Friday, May 18, 2012

Friday's Letters

Dear Blog, sorry I've abandoned you lately. We barely get internet service at our house and I'm too tired after work to hang around camp. I'm working on it, promise. Dear Seattle friends, I miss you desperately. The weather may be beautiful in Southern California, but wow did we have an amazing community up there! Dear Split Ends, don't get to thinkin' you'll be hanging around much longer. You only have 7 more days til you'll be swept up with the dust. Eck. Dear Zach, thanks for choosing me. You amaze me each and every day with your patience and hard work. I love you. Dear Kitties, thanks for cuddling with me at night.. sorry if I smother you with kisses during the day. Dear borrowed Canon Rebel, you spoiled me on our road trip last weekend. Can't wait until I have one of my very own - I had way too much fun! Dear Lauren, come to California soon? :)



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Thursday, May 10, 2012

Ride For Mom

Shmello!  I'm super excited about our upcoming weekend, not only because I get to spend it with my most of my Dad's side of the fam, and quite of few of my aunties that I so adore, but also because we get to support my Uncle Bob in a huge bicycle ride he has been planning for years.



My Uncle has planned a ride that has over 250 350 riders signed up! There will also be healthy lifestyle fair going on, to raise awareness about making healthy choices when you are young.

" I started riding my bike six years ago when my mother, “Jinx”, battled cancer, a second time. This time she lost that battle. Mom did not take the best care of herself physically. Cancer and diabetes both run deep in my family.

Cancer, diabetes and heart disease are scourges of our generation. It is estimated that as a result of these three diseases alone, $800 billion to a trillion dollars are lost annually in medical costs and lost employee time. That does not include the profound emotional and social costs to families and friends. Several major cancers, diabetes and heart disease are preventable through exercise and good eating habits, choices that all of us can make right now. Imagine the savings that would be realized if we as a society made better lifestyle choices.

I wonder if Mom would still be here if she had made different lifestyle choices."
Bob Fores, Founder

I am beyond proud of my uncle for planning this and making such a huge impact on the area where he lives. It is my (and his) hope to impact lives for the better so that our grandmas and grandpas and moms and dads can be around longer!

Friday, May 4, 2012

Friday's Letters

Dear Zach, Thanks for being so patient with me and loving me well. I'm forever grateful for you. Dear Mom & Dad, I'm glad you're getting to experience this once in a lifetime trip to Italy. You deserve it!! Dear SoCal, This cloudiness can vanish at any time now. What happened to that 80 degree weather we were blessed with a few days ago? Dear Uncle Bob, I am so proud of you and all the work you're doing for Ride For Mom. Can't wait to support you next weekend, and see how many people are touched by this ride. Dear Next Weekend, can you please come faster? I am getting antsy to see my family and then take a  roadtrip with my hubby down the California coast. Hurryyyyyyy... Dear Blog Friends, as always, thanks for being eternally supportive. Y'all make my day, like all the time. Dear Meg, thanks for being so awesome. Loved getting to hangout with you and Sean this week. I love how you two love eachother :)


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Thursday, May 3, 2012

How I Have Perfected my at Home Manicure

So I basically have a slight addiction to nailpolishes. My friend and I actually used to quiz eachother on the names of the colors, haha.

I personally think I have perfected the at-home manicure and have decided to share my tricks.

I have really weak nails that peel & also nail polish ALWAYS chips within 1-2 days.. partially because of peeling but also just because my nails suck. I keep them short so that they look decent. 

1. Shape/File
First of all, after I trim my nails I use a crystal file. It is so much gentler on my nails and really helps with preventing - or atleast not causing- the peeling. It really makes a difference :)
After you're done filing, wash your hands atleast with water to remove residue and to have a clean base for your polish.


2. Base Coat
I used the same base coat for a few years until one time the store was out and I was devastated (rough life, I know) and the sales girl talked me into buying a different one. I don't know how she did it, but she convinced me to buy CND Stickey & promised it would make my polish last longer.

OH EM GEE it's a gift from above, I promise! I never thought my nail polish would last longer than a day without chipping, I had just accepted that as part of my life - and for a girl who loves nail polish it was really sad!


Seriously, get it. It will change your lifeeee.

3. Polish
OK, once that has set for a few minutes, it's time to paint ("polish" as we had to call it in beauty school =]) It really doesn't matter what brand you use, although I prefer OPI because of the width of the brush.

When painting, start with the brush 1/4 of the way up from your cuticle, then gently push down until you reach the cuticle. From there you want to repeat 3 times, once in the middle, and once to each side, leaving 1 mm between the edges of your nail and the brush - that's how you avoid getting paint all over the edges of your  nails!

Always do two coats. The first one doesn't need to dry completely before adding the second coat, but let it set for a few minutes then add the second coat using the same technique (start a 1/4 of the way down, push to the cuticle, then three strokes of polish).

4. Top Coat
Top coat is probably the most important step of making your manicure look "polished" (pun intended). It finishes off your look, making the color you chose look shiny and solid.

My favorite is Seche Vite dry fast top coat. This stuff is by far the BEST. It makes your nails completely dry in about two minutes, no joke. I am so impatient and until I found this, my nails were always smudged and I just stopped caring because I can't sit still long enough for them to dry. This literally dries them completely in a few minutes! Worth it's weight in gold, I promise.



And you're done! See how easy that was?  A professional looking manicure from the comfort of your own couch. =) Let me know how it works for you, or if you have any tricks I need to know!!

Oh, also. For those pesky hangnails and split cuticles that are so popular in these dry months: rub some aquaphor (my secret beauty tool for EVERYTHING) on the affected area, wrap in a bandaid and sleep with that overnight. In the morning, it'll practically be gone. It's magic, I swear.