Friday List of Randomness

.1. 

My dreams of being pinned on Pinterest have come true! A few weeks ago I discovered that the buffalo chicken dip that I learned about from my aunt Christmas Eve 2010 and subsequently all my friends make it for all of our gatherings has been pinned!

.2.

Also, in looking at my stats, I discovered a recipe I made for Whip It Up (remember those days??) was posted to the Pillsbury site. Though, it made me laugh that my friend and I didn’t end up actually using Pillsbury products for the recipe.

.3.

Let’s move on from food talk. The first weekend in January, I got a very bad cold and thus was on the couch the whole weekend. Our cable provider was offering a free preview of Showtime and had some of their shows on demand so I started to watch Shameless. Oh man, was I hooked! I burned through all of the episodes they had on there. Apparently it’s based on a BBC series which so happens to be on Netflix streaming.

Speaking of Netflix streaming, this weekend during our little snowstorm, I discovered United States of Tara. I have about 5 episodes of that show to watch now because I devoured it!

.4.

My skin took a turn for the worse after I had my daughter 9 months (!!) ago. My hormones caused my skin to break out worse than when I was a teenager! I finally, finally got it all under control. Around the holidays I picked up Philosophy’s Completely Clear Skin System in the hopes that it would be the answer to my skin issues. And guess what? It worked! My skin cleared up during the 2 weeks that I used that system (I used the foaming wash only at night since I know my skin gets irritated easily and the other tubes and potions AM and PM). It was probably a combination of getting into the habit of washing my face at night and using the system.

After finding out that I love Philosphy’s cleansers, I picked up a small $10 bottle of their Purity wash to try out. I’ve been using that for about 3 weeks now and I really like it. It doesn’t dry out my skin and make it feel tight but it really does take off all the makeup and stuff from the day.  I swear I’m not paid by Philosophy – I just really love their cleansers!

.5.

In the winter time, my skin gets very very pale. I’d say I’m at least two shades lighter than I am in the summer so I have to change up my foundations. Finding a foundation that doesn’t look too dark or too orange for my skin tone is really difficult. Trust me, I’ve tried them all! I recently learned about BB creams and, now that my skin is cleared up, I thought that might be the perfect thing for me in the winter and hopefully in the summer months as well.

I picked up the new Garnier Fructise BB cream and while it felt really light and wonderful on my skin, the light/medium shade was still too dark for me. I’m debating on returning it or saving it for the summer because I’m sure it will match my skin tone then. I also tried the Boscia BB cream and luckily I had a sample size from my Seophora order but that is also too dark. I have one more to try (SKIN79) at the recommendation of a youtube guru and it’s on Amazon and is a decent price so we’ll see.

.6.

Who am I kidding? I will likely keep the Garnier BB cream because I’ve never returned a beauty product that I’ve tried and didn’t like…

Instagram 366: Week 3

016: Went to a taping of Better Connecticut with my mom

017: I adore this outfit! There’s a cute yellow cardigan to go over it as well.

018: Emily’s favorite bathtime duckie. This always ends up taken with her when the bath is done.

019: My BFF gifted me this kangaroo bead for my Pandora bracelet. It’s so perfect because I’m a huge supporter of babywearing.

020: Snow in CT

021: My snowbaby

022: Bridal show with my future SiL

 

Check out previous weeks here.

Instagram 366: Week 2

Woops, didn’t get this up on Monday. We’ve had a really busy weekend, including yesterday which my mom & I had off and did something really fun which I’ll post about this week.

009: finally well enough to leave the house! Off to work

010: Pretty sky

011: yellow tank, gray cardigan, owl necklace

012: Tinkerbell watch I bought during my first trip to WDW

013: Looking very Friday the 13th

014: Successful shopping trip with my mom & my daughter

015: We went to see Disney on Ice

Instagram 366* – Week 1

I meant to get this post up sooner, but I’ve spent the last 4 days sick sick sick so I wasn’t able to get the draft started. Had to wait until my lunch break at work today!

One of my goals this year is to focus on my photography more. I don’t consider myself a professional by any means, but I do love to be behind the camera, snapping away and I also love to learn new tricks and techniques (and I’d like to think I have an eye for it!). In previous years, I’ve attempted to complete those photo a day challenges (completed once!), but this year, I’ve decided to do an Instagram photo a day challenge. I always have my iPhone on me so I figured it would be a great way for me to take a picture a day.

Each Monday, I’m planning to post the photos from the previous week and I’ll also be posting them real-time to Instagram (username: tangiblehope) or my Flickr. So here goes! If you’re doing a photo challenge also, link yours in the comments. I love checking out other’s photography!

Oh, and since we are talking about iPhone photography, I recently won runner up in a phone photography contest at Cabin Fever in Vermont! This was so special to me because the photo is one of my favorites of my little family. Also, Jen, who runs the contests, lives near the lake in Vermont that my family and I go to every year.

001: early birthday cake baked by mom

002: out for my birthday lunch with my favorite girl (who has crazy hair)

003: Vacation to-do list. Mostly done

004: Listening to a podcast on my way home from work

005: E loves Signing Time

006: Festive donuts

007: Beautiful day outside, I was stuck inside very sick

008: Feeling better. New manicure with Essie Mint Candy Apple and Sephora by OPI Only Gold for Me topcoat

*It’s a leap year, baby. 366 days this year.

Pinterest Projects

It’s a little difficult to get back into the swing of things after some time away and all of the hubbub over the holidays, isn’t it? I thought I’d ease back into things by telling you about some projects I’ve completed over the holiday break.

These projects were inspired by Pinterest. You can read all about other Pinterest projects I’ve completed and my Pinterest inspriation by clicking here.

Picture Source: Pinterest

DIY laundry detergent really intrigued me. Could you possibly make your own laundry detergent for cheap and would it really work?? I was able to pick up all of the ingredients from Wal-Mart, except instead of Castile soap, I picked up 3 bars of Ivory soap. If you substitute Ivory, make sure to get the kind without the moisturizers.

Here’s a breakdown of what everything costs (though, I used a gift card so it cost me $0):

Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda: $3.24
Borax: $3.38
Ivory Soap: $1.98
Total: $8.60 for about a 6-9 month [edit: I did the math and this yeilds about 144 tablespoons of laundry detergent. You are supposed to use one tablespoon per load so that's 144 loads. On average, I do about 7 loads a week so this would yield me 20 weeks of laundry detergent or 5 months] supply of laundry detergent

A friend of mine came over Friday evening and we made a batch of the detergent in a 3 cup ratio (3 cups washing soda, 3 cups borax, 3 bars of soap). She grated the soap and I mixed everything up. I sent her home with a little baggie of it to try out. Her washing machine does not have a warm water setting so during her first load, the soap flakes did not melt enough so she ran it through again. She tried it again later and put the detergent in water and let it soak through a bit before adding her laundry.

I have an HE machine, and this recipe is perfect for it as it creates little to no suds. So far, I used this detergent for one load of fleecy blankets and I put my machine on warm which I don’t typically do. My blankets were clean and soft and there wasn’t any leftover residue. I think that the next time I make another batch, I’ll make the liquid version.

I have more than enough leftover washing soda and borax to make another batch, the only thing I will have to pick up is the soap so it will cost me $1.98 for 5 months (that is if I don’t get the soap on sale!). Also, my friend noted that Lowe’s and Home Depot sell Borax and the Washing Soda in much larger quantities than at Wal-Mart so that would be another cost savings.

I envision making large batches of the detergent and putting them in large Mason jars with pretty fabric on top and tying a coffee scoop to it and giving them as gifts for this Christmas or housewarmings!

Picture source: Pinterest

DIY Bumble & Bumble Surf Spray was another pin that I had sitting on my board and I finally got around to trying. Unfortunately I don’t have the cost breakdown, but if you’ve ever seen the price of Bumble & Bumble hair care products, this definitely is a small percentage of the cost.

I picked up a spray bottle and the Epson salt at Target. In my cabinet I already had a trial size bottle of water-based hair gel (I used Herbal Essence Totally Twisted gel). When I made this recipe, I tripled it and then gave a bottle to a friend and saved a bottle for myself.

I’ve never tried the original Bumble & Bumble spray, but I tried the DIY version and I have to say, I really like it! My hair is naturally wavy so I let it air dry a bit and then sprayed some on my hair and scrunched it up. It felt very natural and I loved the waves that it created. And when I make future batches, I will maybe only need to repurchase a small travel sized gel.

Picture Source: Me

One day, I searched for paper bunting tutorials and came across this one on Pinterest. It was simple and I had all the supplies on hand. I used a pack of Christmas paper and chose ones that weren’t too Christmas-y and that would transition easily to a “winter” theme because, let’s be honest. I’m totally leaving it up all winter!

Picture Source: Pinterest

After making oatmeal cookies for the holidays, I had an empty large canister that previously held oatmeal. So, I slapped some wrapping paper on it and now it’s a fancy toilet paper holder!

Those are some of the projects I’ve completed in the past week. Have you done any? Link me those projects, I’d love to see them!

2011: Year in Review

{Source}

I’ve been MIA because I’ve been enjoying a week+ off of work and spending lots of time playing, snuggling, singing, etc with my little girl!

1. What did you do in 2011 that you’d never done before?

Survived all of the snow we had this winter (I seriously don’t remember anything like this!), attended childbirth class, made icecream (this one’s with liquor!), had a baby shower thrown for me,  had a maternity photo session, gave birth and never regretted not knowing if we were having a girl or boy until she was born, fell in love with my husband in a different way, enjoyed every moment of my husband’s 3 week paternity leave and was so scared to be alone with the baby (but did well!), took monthly pictures of my daughter and posted updates, went back to work after a much too short maternity leave, took maternity photos for someone else, felt an earthquake, spent nearly a full week without power due to a tropical storm, went apple picking, and experienced the loss of a pet.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?

Last year I said I wanted to read more and live more simpler. Well, I can’t say that I read more – it’s hard to find time to do that! I’d say I moderately succeeded on living simpler. We did scale back our cable to the most basic and I’ve been trying to get rid of things we just don’t need.

For the next year, I would like to focus more on photography: practicing, learning, and creating photo cards. I’d also like to stick to a budget more and save more, especially for Emily’s college fund.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

I did! And my friend did about 2 months after me and a coworker did this year as well.

4. Did anyone close to you die?

Scott’s uncle passed away in November and we had the loss of our kitty.

5. What countries did you visit?

Just the USA. One day I’ll have an awesome answer for this!

6. What would you like to have in 2012 that you didn’t have in 2011?

Time!

7. What dates from 2011 will be etched upon your memory, and why?

April 21st which was the birth of our daughter. My whole world changed for the better.

8. What was your biggest achievement of this year?

Having my daughter. It’s so much better than I ever dreamed it would be. 

9. What was your biggest failure?

Holding on to grudges for far to long, but it seems that’s in my nature!

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

Oh yes! There was the worst 17 hours of my life, and then there was the baby scare which happened again in labor and is pretty much the reason I had a c-section.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

Probably the little santa outfit for E because it allowed for some super adorable photos that make me smile!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

Oh my gosh, my husband was absolutely amazing during labor and recovery and he is such an awesome father. With my c-section, I was not very mobile and he was able to take over and really pitch in. To see him with E, to this day, makes me love him even more than I ever did before. My mom has been a constant support and always willing to help out in any way and I really don’t think I would have gotten this far into motherhood without her guidance. Scott’s parents watch E every day that I work and we love that she gets to spend 4 days a week with them and is being raised by family (and it’s helpful that they came to my rescue when I locked myself out of my house a couple of times!). My close girlfriends who I can truly confide in are those that I hold dear to my heart as well and that has become more important over the past year.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

GOP, those idiotic Penn State students, the jury in the Casey Anthony case, could go on…

14. Where did most your money go?

The house and cute clothes and items for E

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Meeting our little Baby Boo and the Dave & Tim show.

16. What song will always remind you of 2011?

The theme song to Elmo’s world. It’s one of the few shows that we let Emily watch and she loves that song so much! Also, “Someone Like You” by Adele.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? b) thinner or fatter? c) richer or poorer?

Happier: yes
Thinner: yes, but only because I’m not pregnant!
Richer: yes – in ways that have nothing to do with money

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?

Read more, took more chances, ate better<— same as last year

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?

Harboring guilt, watch tv <—same as last year

20. How did you spend Christmas?

Christmas Eve was spent with my family, as it always is. Having Emily there to share the day was just so special. She started to get the hang of opening gifts and that there was something cool underneath the wrapping paper! Christmas Day was the three of us in the morning, in our Christmas jammies having breakfast and opening gifts. We lounged around a bit and enjoyed the time together and spent the rest of the day with my husband’s side of the family. 

21. Did you fall in love with 2011?

Every day just seeing my husband with E makes me fall in love with him in a completely different way. My love for E is just so overwhelming. Experiencing the deep and profound love a mother has for her child is such a blessing.

22. What was your favorite TV program?

Storage Wars, Pan Am (weep), One Born Every Minute, Community, Parks & Rec and Up All Night.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

I don’t hate.

24. What was the best book you read?

Bossypants – Tina Fey

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?

Even though I loved her before, I really enjoyed Adele a lot this year. 

26. What did you want and get?

A beautiful and healthy child.

27. What did you want and not get?

To be able to find a way to stay home with my baby and feel fulfilled.

28. What was your favorite film of 2011?

I’m awful at remembering movies I’ve watched! I loved the last Harry Potter movie and loved the Muppets! These are also movies I’ve seen in the last 6 months and anything before that…I don’t recall!

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I turned 32 and had breakfast with my parents and my hubby at an omelette place that was delish! Very low key this year and it was lovely.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

Being independently wealthy! <–yes!

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept of 2011?

Comfy…and apparently gray.

32. What kept you sane?

My husband, my daughter, my family.

33. What political issue stirred you the most?

OWS.

34. Who did you miss?

Always my grandma. My family when I don’t see them for long stretches.

35. Who was the best new person you met?

My little E.

36. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2011.

We are all trying to do what is best for us and our families and don’t ever feel bad for the choices you make to do right for your family!

37. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

‎”Always remember that there’s nothing worth sharing like the love that let us share our name.”

2010

From Our Family to Yours

Wishing you a very happy holiday season and a healthy New Year! Here’s our holiday card for 2011.

Check out more holiday cards here:

Friday List: Woohoo For the Weekend!

.1.

Again, another jammed packed weekend planned! Today I’m meeting up with a friend who is surprising her 10 year old daughter by taking her out of school early so we can go to lunch and go paint some pottery! A total girls’ day. I’m very excited to go to the pottery place because it’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while – I used to do that a lot growing up with my mom.
This weekend, Scott and I are going to see the latest Muppet movie along with trying to finish up our last minute Christmas shopping. We have to pick up a couple of gift cards which are the easiest thing to get for Christmas, yet somehow, they are always the last things we run around getting.

.2.

I felt like such an idiot. Two weeks in a row I did something really stupid with my keys! Last week, I left my keys in the diaper bag which of course ended up at my in-laws. This wouldn’t be a problem if my spare car key was coded correctly but it never was. So my poor FiL had to drive my keys back over to me.
This week, I grabbed my spare set of keys and the second I closed the door behind me, I realized I just locked myself out of my house with the wrong keys. This time, my MiL had to drive over to get me back in my house.
So, yesterday, I marched over to the car dealership and had them code my key correctly. I hate the dealership I bought my car from – I’ve always seen the service and parts department treat women differently. The man who took care of me in parts was a bit rude and short with me. But it’s coded correctly now and I don’t have to step foot in that place again!

And I should hopefully not have problems with my keys!

.3.

We’ve been watching Baby Signing Time with Emily and my inlaws watch and sign with her also. The other night, Emily blew us away when she started signing “milk” (that dude is a little creepy, no?) after we’d say the word! She’s not yet 8 months old so it took me by surprise. In fact, she woke up this morning and when I grabbed her from her crib, she made the sign again. Smarty pants!

.4.

I finally changed over my winter clothes (I am not blessed with walk in closets so I keep 2 tubs in our closets and just pack away summer clothes during winter and unpack the winter stuff). It’s been so mild weather wise lately that I haven’t needed my super warm sweaters until this week. It’s nice to do that because then I get rid of clothes I haven’t worn in a while. I must have gotten rid of a lot because my closet is starting to look a litlte bare! It’s a great feeling.

.5.

I finally bought the last supplies I need to make this pin and make some homemade makeup brush cleanser. I’m hoping the beachy spray will be really good because I’d love to make it for friends as a little stocking stuffer!

 

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday