$0.54

It turned out to be one of those "nap for HOURS after church" kind of days, so I missed my 12am deadline to post here, but I'm finally awake now to do a tiny bit of light writing. I didn't get as much sleep last night as I normally do, and the acetaminophen made me extra sleepy too. Even though it's not really the kind of thing that makes people drowsy, it knocks me out especially when I take the full dosage.

With that being said, it's definitely not a "bare my soul" kind of post. I think I should do those more often because writing in a public forum or even in a private journal is very therapeutic for me. When it's published online, it also forces me to edit and think through what I want to say so that it's coherent instead of babbling (though sometimes babbling can be very relaxing too!). But when it's late at night, it's more likely that I'll post these types of updates!

Recently I signed up for the "First Look" program at Bath & Body Works via an email they sent me. Last week, I got an email with the title "The freebie you've been waiting for!" and saw this when I opened it:

Who doesn't love freebies? I used to love them just because it was something free, of course, but now I do really appreciate them for their intended purpose of being able to try out the product. When it comes to personal care products, it's a great opportunity to test out whether the formula or scent works for me. I was eager to try one of the new Artisan fragrances. 

My purchase was a pink Pocketbac holder, which was only $0.54 including the tax. I love these things (and it's the cheapest thing to buy in the store)! Though I use Purell for my hands before eating when I don't have access to a sink, I like the BBW Pocketbacs for the times when I don't mind a scent in hand sanitizer. I constantly switch bags depending on the weather or my mood, but I don't always switch the Pocketbac holder. This way I'll have another one to add. They really do come in handy for me though! This past week I got blood on my hands when I was picking up packages of ground beef in the supermarket! I didn't have easy access to hand sanitizer, so I actually had to wait until I got to the car and asked my mom for Purell since I didn't want to dig around in my bag and get it all gross. Then when we went to another supermarket, there was brown gunk at the top of one of the corn cobs I was shucking, and that got all over my hands and under my nails too! Yuck.

Anyway, I did try the Peach & Honey Almond lotion at the store, but the scent was too overpowering for me. That lasted for hours, and it was too sweet for me. Instead, I picked the Lemon Pomegranate Cream scent in a shower gel because I don't need lotion. I haven't tried it out yet, but I do like the lemon scent I get from the bottle. I just love how citrus is so bright and wakes me up!

As for the candle, I thought I would like the Blackberry Bramble Tea scent since I love their London Calling (Tea & Lemon) and Nectarine Green Tea. The blackberry one wasn't pleasing to me though and neither were any of the other options. I guess I'm not too big a fan of fall scents! The one I didn't mind much was actually the Wasabi Apple, which is the oddest thing because that was the one I thought would be gross based on the name. I guess it wouldn't make sense if it really did have a STRONG wasabi smell as if you were getting a plate of sushi! When I showed Howard when he got home from work, I described it as a fall apple candle since it had deeper, muskier notes as opposed to the light fruity apple scents that their spring candles would have. It'll be interesting to see what it smells like when being burned.

In Love

I'll have to write a longer post some other day since I'm trying to finish up a bunch of card orders for tomorrow, but I met my nephew today. Let's just say I'm in love with this lil' fella!

Howard took that picture of Toby pondering life's intricacies while I was holding him. Such a cutie!

Not a YouTube Girl

I admit that I watch YouTube videos that are clearly not intended for my age group. Being 29 (wow, I'll be 30 in just a little over a month!) doesn't stop me from watching videos made by girls who are in the late high school and early college age group. So many are posting back-to-school hauls and tips, and I'm such a sucker for back to school supplies. It's as if a whole new world of possibilities is in my grasp when I have the news pens I like or the binder in the prettiest print imaginable. That's really why I spent so many years as a teacher; I get to have an excuse to buy school supplies. Haha, I'm kidding. It's for the kids. Well, 80% kids, 10% school supplies, 10% summer vacation. That's a fair distribution, wouldn't you say?

Once I finish watching a back to school video, I tend to click to see if there's anything else interesting to watch. At times they're the best videos to have on while crafting because it's something new without actually requiring my full attention. It's either that or Top Chef. Again. I've played all 11 seasons many times through that sometimes I feel as if I need to apologize to Howard because he'll come home and hear Padma's voice before he even hears mine. I'm sure that he appreciates that I watch all the girly videos when I'm by myself though!

Apparently filming one's daily routine or how to get ready in the morning is a major thing and a rite of passage on the road to becoming a YouTube celebrity. I sometimes wonder if I would feel pressured thinking I had to be such a complicated girl if I were a teenager in this generation. Having recently read through some of my journal entries from high school, I feel as if I would be even more of an outcast had I been a 14-year old in 2014. Today in particular, I was baffled to see that one girl's "lazy day morning routine" was more complex than my regular morning routine when I'm going to work or church! I mean, in all honesty, there were more steps in her list of things to do for her face than I do when I'm attending a wedding! Even for my cousin's wedding! Or my brother's wedding! My own wedding is a whole different story for another day, haha.

Despite the simplicity of my face (haha, or head) routine for the days I actually leave the apartment, I still wake up really early to get ready. Putting in contacts, brushing my teeth, washing my face, applying lotion, putting on eyeliner, and brushing on some translucent powder to avoid my face turning into an oil slick really don't take that much time. But I need to be awake to give myself plenty of time in the unfortunate instance of having stomach issues. It doesn't seem as if many of those girls have issues like that based on what I can see.

I watch them on YouTube and examine how they apply foundation and concealer under their eyes to brighten it, and I think, "It's a good day when I don't poke my eye accidentally when applying eyeliner!" Hairstyle tutorials tend to lure me in too when I see titles like, "No Heat Curls" or "Easy School Day Hairstyles." Then I click on them to watch and immediately close them out because there's really nothing easier than my current hairstyle. The night before, I wash my hair and air dry it for a bit before drying most of it with a hairdryer just so it's comfortable enough for sleeping. I do one French braid so that I don't have to spend time blowing it straight and be cautious about how I sleep. The next morning, I take out the braid and then clip the front portion back so that it's out of my face. Done. Same deal every day. I also only use one clip since I accidentally dropped the other one that came in the set on the floor and broke it. Whoops.

This is my mundane life with my mundane look. I feel surrounded by people (even in church) who know the right way to dress, who carry the expensive bags, who know what's going on in pop culture. And the thing is it's not even like it's a financial issue because if I wanted a Marc Jacobs bag or a Michael Kors bag, I could just buy it.

Wait. Hold up. Scratch that. I just did a Google search to see how much those things cost. Haha. Never mind that last statement because in my couponing mind, there's no justification for a bag that expensive. I'm not knocking anyone who has one, but it's just my personal choice! 

Anyway, I admit that I sometimes walk around feeling a tad bit insecure, that I don't quite fit in certain situations. I can't for the life of me accessorize. My accessories consist of my engagement ring, my wedding ring, and the watch I had to buy so that I'd know how long I had left in each period to teach. I choose clothes based on whether or not I might be too warm or too cold later in the day because I've gotten to the stage of life where the AC can make me uncomfortable. When I purchase tops, my criteria is that I want it to give me the freedom not to have suck in my stomach to make it look flat. They're even more stylish in my eyes if they're located on the clearance racks. For the longest time, even my students pointed out, "V-neck!" because that's what I wore all the time. I've never colored my hair, and I don't intend to unless the whites get wildly out of wing. I mean, hand (hehe). There are times that I wonder if Howard wishes I were a girl who did things to make myself "prettier" according to worldly standards.

And then I realize that even my own mind has been warped by the lies of this world. I may not be one of the girls who wants to look a certain way, but I am clearly being influenced because I think that there's something wrong with me for not wanting it. Why is it so important to look the part? Why am I so consumed with the idea that my "Plain Jane" life is subpar? Why does it matter whether other people think I look acceptable when my husband sees me as beautiful? Instead of the thoughts of this world inundating my mind, shouldn't I be trying to be a Proverbs 31 woman? Shouldn't I be thinking about how I am viewed by my Heavenly Father?

I know I will probably be struggling with the idea of fitting in this world for the rest of my life. However, I pray that even if that issue is still prevalent for the rest of my days on earth, I will lean more towards figuring out ways as to how I fit in God's kingdom and what I can do for His glory instead of any potential glory I might get for knowing how to make my face appear flawless. I've already been made clean through Jesus' blood; isn't that the best eternal makeover one could have?

Throwback Thursday: Crumbs Bakery

It's kind of sad to think that cupcakes from Crumbs can now be considered a subject for "Throwback Thursday" since they somewhat recently closed all their shops due to bankruptcy! What?! Why now?! Howard surprised me one day when he brought home two cupcakes in celebration of our 2nd anniversary. I was really in the mood for chocolate, so he was a great best friend in that he went to the bakery after work to deliver it to my tummy! 

This is the Blackout. Well, maybe I should say that this was the Blackout. Surprisingly, the descriptions are still available on the website as is the pop-up to sign up for email updates. This one is described as follows: Chocolate cake filled with fudge mixed with vanilla custard, topped with chocolate cream cheese frosting and chocolate crumbs drizzled with chocolate.

It wasn't my favorite one out of the four we've been able to try. I think the one I liked the most was the Devil's Food because it didn't have a custard filling but still was heavy on the chocolate! We probably also aren't great judges of what makes a good cupcake since we split the second one on another day, so it spent some time in the fridge yet we still enjoyed it. But realistically, we are very easily pleased, and being able to get a fancy cupcake like this was a tiny bit like having a taste of Disney World here at home. We shared a chocolate peanut butter cupcake from Starring Rolls during one of our trips with my parents, so in my mind, I associate big treats like this with the most magical place on earth. It probably also reminds me of WDW because of how much Emma enjoys the cupcakes there too!

Victorious!

I had a battle with my keyboard earlier today. When I was gluing pieces together to assemble Cricut cuts, I accidentally left a lot of residue on the table. I decided to get a Clorox wipe to clean the whole area including under the keyboard. While I did that, I noticed just how disgusting it was underneath the keys themselves! I proceeded to pop out a bunch of keys at a time to clean underneath, but then I ended up having issues trying to put the "Enter" and right "Shift" key back in place because they're part of the few that have the little metal piece on it too. I couldn't figure out how to snap it all back in place. It took me quite a long time, and I was a bit frustrated. It finally made sense to me, and I got them back where they belong! I know it seems like such a silly thing to write about in a blog, but it really consumed my mind for so long. Haha, I don't like when I can't get things right!

Okay, I'll get to posting some cards and the Mickey party decor I did soon. Um, hubs, can I have those pictures when you have the chance? Thanks!