1 & 2 Jillian Nickell // 3 & 4 The Knotty Owl // 5&6 Betsy Olmsted
On Mother's Day, Will and I went with my mom to Penn's Landing in Philly to the Art Star Craft Bazaar. It was such a beautiful day to walk around along the river checking out all the goods. I love these craft fairs because they always get me so inspired and I find a lot of beautiful new creations from talented artists. These are just a few of my favorites.
Hi baby.
This letter is for me and for you. For me to remember what kind of mother I wanted to be before I actually had kids so I can read this one night in the future and roll my eyes over how delusional I was. And for you. To know how much I love you already and for proof that you can later show me that I said you could color your hair and get tattoos. Right now, you are growing in my belly but soon you will be here in this amazing world that I can't wait to teach you about.
If you end up a pessimist, I hope you still have days where you see the world is beautiful and people aren't always that bad. If you are an optimist, I hope you still have your feet on the ground and know somethings won't always go as planned but that's life and it's okay.
I will teach you to be nice, but also teach you to not to be "the nice girl". To think of others but always think of yourself first.
You know you will always be beautiful to me but I want you to also know you don't have to look like the girls on magazine covers to be beautiful to other people. That is only one kind of beauty and it's the least interesting.
I hope the friends you make really care about you and you let them know you care about them. Sometimes friendships fade and it's okay. People change and you can always make new ones.
I'll ask that you wait until you're 20 to get a tattoo (if you want one) but I know you will do what you want anyways. Just, think about it for a while before you get it because it's your body (that I made) but whatever...
I want you to know you can laugh at anything and everything and those people that ask why you laugh so much just won't get it so don't worry about them.
I will probably like your hair a certain way but I won't be devastated if you cut it all off or color it a million different times. In fact, I will probably be a little envious but it will drive your daddy crazy.
I want to teach you how amazing it is to be a woman and teach you about all the strong women who came before you and me and helped turn this world into a world that is starting to accept and appreciate strong women.
When you turn into a teenager and most likely start to hate me, I'll try not to take it personally. I'll know you hate everyone and everything right now. You can still watch a movie with me or just hang out and I promise I won't tell anyone or bring it up ever again.
I hope you learn to appreciate just how beautiful and amazing this world is and try to remember that when your heart gets broken and everything seems gray.
When I say "Remember when..." I will try to bring up mostly fond memories of us both and not embarrassing facts that you will never live down.
I will try accept whoever you choose to love the best I can. I can't promise anything because I will always want the best for you, but I will try really really hard.
I hope you see how hard your Daddy works and that he does it for the both of us because we are his favorite girls in the world. And when the boys start coming around, I will try to keep him from loosing his cool but just know it will be very difficult for him to see his little girl growing up.
Also, try not to groan too much at Daddy's corny jokes when you get older. I know you will love them when you are little and when you are older and you meet your friends dads, you will see that the best dads are usually the cheesiest.
I hope you find your niche in life sooner and not later. But if it is later it's okay because "not all who wander are lost."
I'd like to teach you to be grateful and thankful for everything and everyone in your life. To be fair, and honest. To work hard and play hard. To be healthy and to be happy. And to not roll your eyes at me when I can see you because it will drive me crazy to know you are turning out like me.
I wish for you the world and I can't wait to meet you.
-Mommy
The Office has been more than just a TV show for me. I know the characters so well they are like a second family. With the final episode coming this Thursday, this goodbye is bittersweet. While I agree the show has run it's course, it's still hard to imagine that there will be no more Dwight, no more Jim and Pam, and of course no more Michael Scott.
I remember watching the first season with all the awkwardness and offbeat humor, the show quickly became a favorite. I remember showing the show to my boyfriend, who later became my husband. I remember bringing the DVDs to watch while waiting in the hospital for the birth of my nephew. I remember watching The Office reruns constantly on Netflix with my best friend. I remember visiting my friend in Scranton and eating at Coopers, excited because the show mentions it constantly. (If you didn't make it to the wrap party you can check out Kate's blog post about it and live vicariously through her like I did.)
I'm sure it's corny, but there are just certain things in life we have these intense connections with and this show is one of mine. I agree with Rainn Wilson when he said The Office turned American comedy one degree into the right direction. We have a lot of great shows on now because The Office made a path for awkward, realistic humor over cheesy one liners.
Even if I weren't pregnant right now, I'm sure I would have cried through this video of the actors saying farewell to the show.
Goodbye The Office. This is going to be hard.
All images via Google images.
I always like learning what people use for their everyday looks and I'm definitely a product junkie. I posted a make up tutorial a long time ago with some cell phone pictures. It was pretty awful. So I'm giving it another try. It may become a regular thing as I try to step out of my comfort zone and try new looks. We'll see.
My before picture... how brave of me. My face is super blotchy because of my morning sickness. Apparently I throw up so hard that I end up breaking capillaries just under my skin. This is 2 days after a really bad episode, it was worse before, believe you me. Also, please forgive my gross hair in these pictures. If I really cared, I would have washed my hair before doing this. Obviously, I only care enough to give you a warning which you really don't care about. I digress...
1. True Match Foundation (I'm actually between n2 and n3 so I just mix the two) 2. True Match Powder (I've found this kind of "sets" my foundation. Maybe, I dunno) 3. Eucerin Q10 (I use this as my wrinkle preventer and sunscreen) 4. Kabuki brush (I really like these. I have a couple for my foundation and blush/contouring stuff) 5. Sonia Kashuk Concealer Palette (I use this for the dark circles under my eyes and other discoloration)
This is what I use for my everyday base.
This is with my "face base" applied. It just evens my skin tone and gives me SPF protection. Because my pictures are taken in front of the window it shows all the slight discoloration, in other light it's not so noticeable.
1. Sonia Kashuk Eye Shadow Palette (I have 3 different SK palettes, I think you get a lot for you money with them. This specific one has really nice glitter shadows.) 2. Eyebrow brush 3. Slanted brush ( I use this for filling my eyebrows and lining my eye with a shadow. It's great.) 4. Eye shadow crease brush 5. Eye shadow brush 6. Covergirl LashPerfection Mascara (I really like the brush this comes with. No clumps!) 7. Sonia Kashuk Matte Lip Crayon in Pink Nude 8. Eyelash curler (I have serious issues with my lashes. I think I need to try a heated curler but I'm kind of scared of putting hot things on my eyes, you know?) 9. Another kabuki brush (See I told you.) 10. The Body Shop Shimmer Waves (I've literally had this for more than 10 years. Eww, don't tell anyone) 11. NOT SHOWN- Stila Liquid Eyeliner (It's like a marker tip, very easy to use. I usually soften the line by putting black shadow over it with the angled brush.)
I used to hate shimmery make up but it's growing on me. These shadows have a really pretty shimmer to them and it's not too much. Probably because the glitter is very fine instead of chunky? I don't know.
The specific shadows I used from the palette were the gold (top middle) for all over cover. Then the pearl (top left) in the inner corners of the lids. I used the black (bottom right) and silver (bottom middle) on the creases and towards the outer corners. They are pretty subtle and blend together nicely.
Being pregnant has made me lazy.
Okay, okay...
Being pregnant has made me even more lazy than I was originally When I stopped by Target and saw these slip on shoes on sale I kind of wanted them. I was feeling the slip on shoes but I wasn't feeling the color. Why not give the shoe a makeover? I didn't want to do a literal galaxy paint job on them but thought some new colors and shine inspired by space would look good and would be a bit more "me."
I originally bleached the shoes a bit to tone down the pink. (They were pretty neon, the picture doesn't do the obnoxious color justice.) The shoes in these pictures are wet after rinsing the bleach out. Even if you don't bleach, I recommend wetting the shoes, it's just easier to pull down the dye with the brush when the fabric is wet. I used a cheap paint brush to apply the navy Rit dye, starting at the back seam and pulling it towards the front. This gives you a slight ombre effect.
After rinsing the dye out, I threw the shoes in the dryer, which may not have been the best idea since the fabric shrunk a bit, though I am sure it will stretch out with a few wears. I wanted to add some shine to the shoes without going overboard to I thought studding the tongue would be cute, without being too in-your-face. You can now see how light the shoes are without being wet.
I used the same studs I used for my DIY cellphone case, just in a silver finish. I stuck the studs on with a bit of super glue and then pressed the iron against them to get the glue inside the stud to adhere to the fabric. They are stuck on there pretty well so I know they won't come off too easy when pulling and tugging my shoes on.
