Monday: 4 Things You Should Never Say to Your Child

If you are like most moms, then you really want to be, well, a good mom! You probably think about it all the time, worry, wonder what your kids will be like when they grow up.... On your road of trying to be the best mom, here are a few things that you should never say to your children.

 1. Stupid, dumb, slow-witted, retarded, etc. Any word that denotes a low intelligence should not be used, especially when joking. Some parents think that it is ok to say words like these teasingly, but in reality, children don't get a good grasp on how jokes work until they are nearly adults. You may feel like it is funny, and they may even laugh, but the truth is that it can leave a  wound deep in them.

2. Fat, chubby, overweight, even 'not that skinny' are all terms to be avoided. Your children, especially your girls, are growing up in a world obsessed with image. They will be pummeled with digs about their looks. The absolute last place that a child needs to hear an insult about their weight is from their mother.

3. "We don't______with ______ kind of people". Children learn their attitudes about the world at home. Even if you find yourself struggling to see people equitably, DON'T pass that on to your children. Love them enough to want them to have a fresh, unadulterated view of the world. Love them enough to not raise them with racism or biases.

4. "Your father is such as _______". Almost more important than the way you treat your children is the way that you treat their father. Even if you are separated from your spouse for one reason or another, that person is still the father of your child and will have exposure to your child. Don't ever try to pit your child against the other parent- it is an awful position to be in. You want the best for your child, right? Your child will most likely end up with someone like their parents. If you build a poor image about your spouse to your child, then they are more likely to end up with exactly the kind of person you describe. The way that you speak about your spouse will change your child's view of them (for good or for bad) and they will subconsciously learn that whatever kind of a person you describe is an ok person to be married to.Whatever your spouse might be, if you insult them to your children (stupid, lazy, jerk, etc.), then you are increasing the chance that your child will marry a stupid, lazy jerk. And I think it's safe to say that is not what you want for your child.

Keep plugging on and plugging on- keep on trying to do your best for your child. As long as you are constantly striving to be your best, you can feel safe that You. Are. A. Good. Mom.

Friday: DIY Up-cycled Cereal Box --> Darling Daily Planner

I have needed a new daily planner for some time, but was a bit too, well, cheap to buy the kind I liked- so I decided to use an empty cereal box to make my own! Here's how to do your own, step by step.

Step 1

MATERIALS NEEDED
*Empty cereal box
*Printed planner pages (50-100)
*1 striped sheet and 1 polka dot sheet of paper
*Clear masking tape
*Letter stickers
*Needle and thread
*Scissors

Step 2

Step 1
Choose the size of your planner-to-be by printing off the inside pages- include whatever information you think is pertinent (date, times, goals, etc.) I chose to keep my simple, with just a few goals, then a general blank space to put whatever I needed for the day. Once you have them printed off (or, hand-write them if you prefer), cut them all to the same size of sheet

Step 2

Step 3A

Using your needle and thread, sew together 10 pages together at a time (I did 5 packs of 10 each)

Step 3B

Step 3

Carefully take your cereal box apart and then, using the section that has just a small lip of cardboard bent up, trace around one of your bundles of paper. Make this outline 1/2 inch or so larger than your sewed bundle of papers. Repeat this step so that you have two identical sized pieces of cardboard.

Step 4B

Step 4

Step 4A

Slide these two pieces of cardboard together to form the cover of your planner. Place a piece of clear masking tape on the top and bottom of the center piece, just enough to make it hold it together.

Step 5

Step 5A

Step 5B

Once the cover has been secured, secure the paper that you chose for the inside of your book (I chose this turquoise polka-dot) with a few small pieces of tape. Once it is secured, use the masking tape in strips to completely cover the paper
Step 6
Next, in the same way that you covered the inside of the cover with paper, cover the outside of the cover. Overlap slightly on the inside of the cover to make it look almost like a dust jacket.

Step 7 (almost done!)

Step 7A

Once your cover is finished, use a needle and thread to sew the pages into your book. Tie a knot at the end of the thread and thread it through the top of the cover, right in the middle. Next, thread the needle through each booklet of papers, one at a time, then back through the top of the cover. Repeat this by going around it twice to hold your book together strongly. Next, repeat this step for the bottom of the cover so that your book is secured strongly. (You may want to add an extra piece of masking tape to cover the exposed piece of thread on the outside). Lastly, use your stickers to name your planner. Mine was simply 'Emily's'.

Step 7B

YAY! You did it! And what's extra nice is that once you have used up all the papers on the inside, you simply need to cut the thread that holds the pages in and re-thread in some new ones. Way to up-cycle! I hope the extra-illustrated instructions helped!

Step 7C

Thursday: Easy 3 Ingredient Home Made Butterfingers

Talk about delicious, easy, and hubby-friendly! (aka, my husband's favorite candy is Butterfingers) What do you need?

*Creamy peanut butter, 16 oz
*Candy corn, 16 oz
*Chocolate, 3 cups

Melt the candy corn in a glass dish in the microwave, stopping every 30 seconds to stir it. One the candy corn has been fully melted, mix in the creamy peanut butter until smooth. Pour into a wax-lined cookie sheet that has sides and cool in the freezer/fridge until solid.

Once the candy is cool, cut into the size of bars that you want to eat and dip in melted chocolate. (you can melt the chocolate the same way that you melted the candy corn) After dipping the candy into the melted chocolate, allow to cool on a wax sheet.


Enjoy!! (did I mention simple?)

Extras: Special Turtle Pic for Sammy

Sometimes, turtles just gotta fly

Extras: Found this outside of the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas

I don't know if Utah has a song, but if it does.... I'll bet no-one knows it. Those crazy Texans, lol.

Extras: Ha ha, baby!

Nooooo! We're out of formula!

Wednesday: 9 Healthy AND Filling DELICIOUS Snacks for 150 Calories or Less- and ALL Under 10 Minutes for Prep

Today's Wellness Wednesdays article is, well, a mouthful. Let's just say it is everything women want from their food. All of the following foods are:
-Under 150 calories
-Take 10 minutes or less to prep
-Healthful (nutrient rich)
-Delicious
-ACTUALLY FILLING!

This is really how to get those 150 calories to stretch to something that will actually carry you. ( a lot more than a stupid '100 calories cookie pack' or half a candy bar.....)Hope you enjoy these and that they help you when the snackies hit.


Guac Tac Roll
Using about a third of an avocado, make up a guacamole mix (you can use this easy recipe http://myamericanconfessions.blogspot.com/2012/04/thursday-freakin-awesome-and-easy.html). Spread it in the middle of a whole-wheat tortilla.
Calorie Count: 150

Egg and Toast
Fry a single medium egg and toast a piece of Sarah Lee Delite Wheat bread (45 calories a slice!). Enough weight to fill you up between meals.
Calorie Count: 120

Scrambled Eggs
Crack a single whole egg and add up to 4 egg whites with a splash of milk. It makes a crazy amount of scrambled eggs to fill you up, but the calorie count?
Calorie Count: 150

Lettuce Scoops
Take three romaine heart leaves and pile on
-a sprinkle of diced tomato
-1/4 of an avocado, diced
-spoonful of seasoned black beans (add a sprinkle of garlic salt, pepper, chili powder, onion powder, and cumin to canned black beans)
Eat these and feel like you've had a full, filling meal.
Calorie Count: 110
(with an extra sprinkle of cheese): 150

Strawberries
You can eat up to half  a 1 pound package of strawberries- basically, you can almost eat them until you can't eat strawberries anymore!  (8 oz by weight) for only
Calorie Count: 140

Plain, Salted Popcorn
We know it's a given- but how do 3 cups of salted popcorn for under 100 calories sound?
Calorie Count: 90

Mozzarella Sticks
This takes closer to ten minutes, but talk about delicious! Cut a string cheese into three pieces. Roll each piece in plain flour, then egg, then Italian seasoned bread crumbs. Throw them in the oven on a greased pan to broil for 4-5 minutes or until the cheese starts to ooze. Totally worth it. Just dip it in some spaghetti sauce. You can eat 5 of these awesome mozzarella stick bites for?
Calorie Count: 150

Microwave Baked Potato
Thoroughly clean a small potato, poke with a fork, and microwave for 4-7 minutes (depending on your microwave). When soft, pull out, cut open, and sprinkle on salt, pepper, and 1/2 tb of butter. Sound delicish? Nutrish? Simplish?
Calorie Count: 150

Crispy Potato Chips
Slice a medium potato extra thin. Throw them onto a lightly greased bake sheet in the oven on broil for 3-5 minutes or until crispy. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then enjoy! Filling? Check. Yum? Check. Low calorie?
Calorie Count: 150

Extras: Har har

Planking: You're doing it right

Tuesday: How to Cut Melons, Apples, and Pineapples to Get the Most Fruit

I got some tips from a produce specialist on how to cut fruit correctly. Since part of their job is cutting pounds and pounds of fruit, I thought I'd share their professional tips. This is how to cut fruit correctly to get the most usable fruit. I thought it would be just in time for summer fruit season!


MELONS
1- Cut off the top and the bottom of the melon
2- Insert your knife into the inside of the melon use it to cut off the skin by following the blade as closely as possible to the skin. Once you have cut a full 360 degrees, take your knife out. All of the skin of the melon should be removed with this cut.
3- Cut the melon in half (if cutting a honey-dew or cantaloupe, remove the seeds now)
4- All done! Just cut the remainder into bite-size chunks

APPLES
1- Cut the apple lengthwise, following the steps in the diagram. This will leave the core intact and you won't need to make any awkward curved cuts to remove it from your apple pieces. Simply slice the remaining apple pieces into a desired size

PINEAPPLES
1- Cut off the top and bottom of the pineapple
2- Hold the pineapple upright and use long, downward cuts to remove the skin. 8 cuts lengthwise will allow you to remove the pineapple skin and keep as much fruit as possible
3- Next, cut the core the same way that you cut the core out of the apple (see diagram)
4- All done! Just cut the remainder into bite-size chunks

STRAWBERRIES
1- Easy as can be- use a clean straw to poke out the center core of the strawberry, then cut to desired size and enjoy!

Mondays: First-Time Breastfeeding Tips for New Moms

This week, for Mommy Mondays, I want to discuss some tips for learning the tricky up-hill slope that is breastfeeding. No man understands all the feelings attached to this word. Before you have your first baby, you can almost write a book about the horror stories you have heard about breastfeeding- crazy things, like bleeding nipples, pink or green breast milk, babies that lose weight from not getting enough, moms that say it is the hardest thing they have ever done in their life.... There really is a lot of hype about breastfeeding. Not to mention all the breastfeeding guilt-trippers. "You know, if you aren't successful at breastfeeding, your child will get sick about 15 extra times each year. Do you REALLY want to be responsible for that?" or "If you don't breastfeed your child, then their IQ will be 10 points lower- how'd you like THAT for you kid?"

Honestly. It's just like that.

So, here is a less-complicated viewpoint. Breastfeeding is great for you and your baby if it is done right. Some women can't or won't breastfeed, but that doesn't make them bad moms. If you want to be a successful breast feeder, it can be tough or confusing. If you really want to breastfeed that little darling of yours, you will need some help. Here are some tips to help you make that happen.

Read up on successful stories. You will hear some CRAZY things if you talk to other women about breastfeeding. Crazy. So, make sure you know the facts and that you hear some success stories.

Arm yourself with a buddy. Find a woman (mom, grandma, bff, aunt, cousin, whoever) that you are comfortable talking openly with and that has breastfed successfully. Let them know that you will be coming to them with questions- they can be a great resource. It can really be one to the best things that you can do to help you succeed. Don't know anyone you feel comfortable with? Join a mommy website and post in their forums.

Visit a lactation consultant. Will you have a chance to meet with someone in the hospital? Probably. Are there so many things going on in the hospital (oh, I don't know, trying to recover mentally and physically from making a baby?) that are going to make it hard to really pay attention and do well? I'll say yes. So, go ahead and spend a week or two on your own, trying to figure things out, then visit a lactation consultant. They will be able to tell you if your breastfeeding methods are working or not. Even if you feel like you are doing well, the effects of poor latching, etc., are often not manifest until several weeks after delivery, because if it can be difficult to distinguish sore nipples from breastfeeding and the sore nipples from poor latch when you haven't had previous experience. The worst thing that can happen is that they tell you that you are doing a fantastic job and don't need to do a thing. The visit is totally worthwhile.

Find something extra. Some may say to not watch tv or read or sew or do ANYTHING while breastfeeding so that you can bond with your child. There is some truth to that- there will definitely be times when doing something else will make you miss out on some bonding- but honestly, you will have plenty of times and ways to bond with your child all throughout their life. If you do pick something you enjoy that you can do sometimes during breastfeeding (hand-held Yahtzee, Oprah on TiVo, your favorite book, some fruit snacks... whatever) it can help. In the first few weeks of breastfeeding, it will sometimes feel like you only get a long enough break from breastfeeding to run to the bathroom and back. That can be frustrating. If you can have some other distraction that you look forward to, it will help you to not associate breastfeeding with negativity. If every time you think about breastfeeding you feel frustrated, your experience with breastfeeding will probably be a short one. So, find something extra that will make breastfeeding more of a pleasure.

Don't pump for the first month. Your body still doesn't know what kind of eater your baby is going to be. Will they need 3 ounces every two hours? Will your baby want 4 ounces every 3 hours? You, your baby, and your body are trying to figure that out. So, in that first month, give your body a chance to figure out how much milk it really needs to make for your baby and when. Once your body is accustomed to how much it needs to make, you can up the supply a bit by pumping. If you start pumping before then, there is a good chance that your body will get a little messed up on timing and you may end up with less milk than your baby needs when they need it, giving you a sad, cranky baby.

Hard-core pumping planned? Get a good pump. There is a whole market of pumps out there, from inexpensive hand pumps to pro-pumps that cost hundreds of dollars. If you intend to pump just here and there, every once in a while, a cheap pump will get you through just fine. If you intend to pump daily, you need to spring for an expensive one. Why? If your nipples are hurting, your breastfeeding days are probably numbered. Cheaper pumps pull unnecessarily on your nipples and cause minor irritation, sometimes directly after use and sometimes weeks after use. If you only intend to use your pump here and there, that's not a problem. If, however, you know you will be using your pump day-in-day-out, that added soreness and discomfort from a bad pump are going to do you no good. So, if you intend to pump often, pay the big bucks and get a Medela or similar breast pump.

Buy nipple cream ahead of time. Some people (very few!) just breeze into breastfeeding easily. For the rest of us, it is only a matter of time before you will need nipple cream to help soothe your nipples. Buy it and have it on hand so that you can use it right when you need it, instead of sending your hubby to the store at 3 am.

It's like learning a language. Let's say you want to learn French. It takes practice, learning, practice, practice, oh, and I think you need to practice. Breastfeeding is its own little language between you and baby. At birth, neither of you speak this language, so you need to learn it together. Both you and your baby will figure out the nuances of this language a bit at a time, so be patient with yourself and with your little one as you figure things out. It won't happen overnight.

Support. Tell your hubby (or boyfriend or partner) that you want to breastfeed and that you don't know how you are going to do. Tell them that it might be easy or tough, but that no matter what they do, they need to have your back. If you can tell them that clearly before you actually start breastfeeding, then they will be less likely to say, "Hey, it looks weird when you try that" right at the moment that you are crazy hormonal and feel like you are going to break down and cry. Think of it as preventative maintenance, like changing the oil in your car so it doesn't break down later.

Don't stress it. You aren't a bad mom if everything isn't hunky-dory perfect. You aren't a bad person if it takes a hundred years to get a good latch. If you end up giving your baby formula, don't think you deserve CPS called on you- your kids are going to grow up and eat hot dogs, for goodness sakes. Believe me, formula is not going to be the worst thing that your kids will ingest. Just do all you can and don't worry about the rest. You'll be fine.

Hope these tips help ya' out when you are maneuvering that crazy road of breastfeeding for the very first time. Don't stress, get good support, and love that little baby of yours!

Extras: Just had to steal this one...



Unless you are my husband....

Friday: Kiddo DIY Fun Toy!

Shake and play!

This is a really easy and entertaining toy! Not to mention inexpensive!

Materials
*Empty hand sanitizer bottle (thoroughly cleaned)
*Red food coloring
*Olive oil
*Super glue

Fill half of the bottle with water and add a drop of red food coloring. Next, fill to the top with olive oil to the brim. Lastly, put a generous amount of super glue in the lid and screw on to the bottled. If you have a flip-lid, make sure to put extra super glue where the lid flips to keep it SAFE FROM SPILLS!

Lastly: Let dry- then shake and enjoy! Good anti-stress toy for mom, too!

Friday: It's All About Baby Crafts!

This week's Crafty Friday crafts are barely even qualified to be called crafts, as they are so simple. I'm just gonna throw them out there as a few easy ideas for anyone to use on their kids and babies.

First, Stroller Buddy. Again, so easy it barely deserves to be mentioned, but with this one, just buy a spool of ribbon, cut 3-4 foot pieces, and use them to tie toys to your stroller. That way, when you are out for a brisk walk, your child can have something to play with and you don't have to stop and continually pick up dropped toys. (Note: They ARE long ribbons, so do take care and watch your babies with them.)


Second, Bath Buddy. For this one, just get an empty dish soap bottle. Fill it with warm water and a drop or two of food coloring- better yet, let your little one pick the colors and drop them in themselves. Then throw your kiddos in the tub and use this special, 'magic water' when you need to rinse the shampoo out of their hair. This is perfect for kids who hate getting water in their eyes/on their head, because they think it is so neat to have 'magic water' that is only used for rinsing- it also leaves their bath water just SLIGHTLY colored, which makes it fun for bath time, too!

Like I said, almost brain-dead ideas, but hey! If they help anybody, then awesome!

Extras: My Hunger Games Book Club Party

In the spirit of the Hunger Games, I decided to host a book club. Here's what I did! (I'll add pics of my party later...)

Starting off, everyone who walked in the door had the chance to vote for their favorite- Team Peeta or Team Gale! (Team Peeta one hands down at my book club....)

FOOD

For the food, I set one table, one half with the foods of the 'Capital' and one half with foods from District 12. I really had to do some guessing on the Capital side and really just tried to focus on fancy, over-the-top foods.

Capital Side

Crystal goblets and white china, set on a lace table cloth. And for that actual food?

*Mini cherry cheesecakes

*Bite sized key lime crumbles

*Fancy sliced French bread

*Strawberries and whipped cream

*Red velvet mini cupcakes

*Orange juice (HAVE to have that orange juice... they talk about it so much!)

District 12

Much simpler, set on a rough piece of woven brown cloth, served in stone and wood dishes. The food?

*Sliced Swiss cheese (reminiscent of the goat's cheese from Primm)

*Sliced apples (as mentioned in the book)

*Home-baked bread (Peeta't bakery, perhaps?)

*Pumpkin bread (seemed homey-and simple)

*Milk (served in a stone pitcher)

ACTIVIES

I kept these rather simple and book-based. We started with a quiz of over-the-top questions (I'll post a few- see how you do!)

(1) What Hunger Games did Haymitch win? (_____________th)

50^th

70^th

55^th

(2) What is the baker’s favorite meat?

(3) Who is the only male member of Katniss’ prep team?

(4) What score did Rue receive in training?

Pretty tough, right?

And the PRIZE if you got the most quiz questions right? Over-the-top make-up and nail polish, reminiscent of the Capital.

Then I doled out a simple question sheet to promote discussion of the book, with questions like:

· What was your favorite part?

· If you could change one thing what would it be and why?

· Which character do you think you would be in the Hunger Games?

· What part upset you the most?

· What do you feel was the point the author was trying to get across?

Then, I sent everyone home with little gift bags of some European chocolate.... not that Europe existed in the book, but I am sure there was plenty of delicious chocolate! Feel free to steal some ideas. If you are interested in just having my entire format for YOUR party, reply to this post and I'll e-mail you my whole text document with pictures, quizzes, and decor as an attachment. (It's a .doc file)

Thursday: 3 Ingredient Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies/Muffins

Are you ready for something easy? Delicious? Kid-friendly? Low-fat? Weight Watchers approved? I think I may have the recipe for you! This is a delicious recipe (egg free- so you can eat the dough without worry) that is almost impossible to mess up! What do you need?


Ingredients
*1 box of spice cake mix
*15 oz can (or half a 29 oz can) of pumpkin
*1 bag of chocolate chips

Mmm. All done!

Mmm... Mini Muffins...

 What do you do? Mix these three ingredients. At first, it will seem like it won't combine and that there aren't enough wet ingredients, but keep mixing- it combines fine. Once all together, spoon onto a greased cooking sheet for cookies, or into a muffin tin. Bake at 350 for 8-12 minutes (depending on the size of your cookie.) If you decide to use a muffin tin, know that the dough doesn't rise/expand much, so you can fill the muffin tins to the top without worry. Cookies are done when a toothpick comes out clean (minus melted chocolate, of course). These cookies really are delicious and surprisingly impressive. Enjoy!

Thursday: Vegan Street Tacos!

This lovely recipe is for my sister. Sometimes she says I don't make anything vegan. Well, I do! And not necessarily just because this is vegan.. more because they are DELICIOUS~! (And, easy to make)

Ingredients:
*Fresh guacamole (you can use my easy recipe
http://myamericanconfessions.blogspot.com/2012/04/thursday-freakin-awesome-and-easy.html)
*Diced tomatoes
*Chopped green leaf lettuce
*Chopped red onions
*Yellow corn tortillas
*Salt/pepper

I feel like I don't even need to tell you HOW to make them because they are so easy, but here goes anyhow!

*Fry the tortillas on both sides in a frying pan
*Put a dollop of guacamole on the tortilla
*Sprinkle tomatoes, lettuce, and onions on top
*Add salt and pepper to taste
*Scoop on salsa (if desired)


Serve them flat, like traditional street tacos, then fold one up and eat to your heart's delight! They are healthful, vegan, easy, delicious.... everything you could want from a food! Enjoy!

How to Clean IMPOSSIBLE Toilet Bowls

Dirty toilet bowls. Disgusting, no? But the WORST is a stained toilet bowl that you just can't get clean! This is a brief tutorial on how to get the most impossibly dirty toilet bowls clean again! What do you need? Just run to the dollar store and get:
1- The Works toilet bowl cleaner
2- Ajax cleanser
3- Wire scrubber

Step 1: Flush the toilet once and sprinkle Ajax cleanser generously into the bowl
Step 2: Don some plastic gloves and use the wire scrubber to just scrub the heck out of the stained places. You'll notice that the entire area that you scrub turns blackish-grey from the scrubber: That's ok! Keep scrubbing and scrubbin.
Step 3: Flush the toilet (to remove all remaining Ajax cleanser) and pour the Works toilet bowl cleaner all around the inside of the bowl. Use a normal toilet brush to wash off the blackish-grey left from the wire scrubber.
Step 4: Be surprised that your toilet bowl is now sparkling clean!

I used this to clean a toilet bowl where every other deep cleaning product and lime remover had failed. It worked!

Wednesday: Grapefruit Mint and 4 Other Ways to Healthfully Jazz Up Water

For this weeks Wellness-Wednesday, I wanted to give you some ideas on delicious ways to spritz up water. The right (or wrong) beverages can literally make you or break you when it comes to a healthy body weight. As great as a diet soda may be to cut calories, sometimes just a fresh look at water can be great way to quench your thirst naturally. These 'water recipes' are a few different ways to jazz up your water without 'adding to the luxury of your waistline.'

Grapefruit Mint
*1 sliced grapefruit and a 5-6 sprigs of chopped mint per 2 liters of water

Cucumber Lemon
*1 sliced cucumber and 1 sliced lemon per 2 liters of water

Lemon Mint
*1 sliced lemon and 5-6 sprigs of chopped mint per 2 liters of water

Strawberry Basil
*6 sliced strawberries and 3-4 sprigs of chopped basil per 2 liters of water

Citrus
*1/2 sliced grapefruit, 1 sliced lemon, and 1 sliced lime per 2 liters of water

Extras: How to Use Bleach to ACTUALLY WHITEN Your Clothes

I had a robe from Bath and Body Works that had become dingy. I didn't want to buy a new one- I was ready to try anything. So, I decided to go a little bleach-crazy- I had nothing to lose, I was about to throw it out anyhow! And so I learned how to ACTUALLY whiten clothes with bleach!

-Gather all of the clothes you want whitened (make sure they are sturdy and not delicate fabrics and that they don't have any colors at all, threads, etc.)
-Throw them in the washer on HOT and wait until it has been filled with water- then STOP the washer
-Add (believe it or not) 4-5 cups of bleach
-Allow to soak for a few hours
-Add laundry detergent and wash

You'll be shocked that what seemed un-whitenable actually turns pure white!

Sidenote: A few weeks after I wrote this, I started using DIY OxyClean that I just made at home- and while bleach is good to freshen up and whiten clothes, this DIY OxyClean just blows it out of the water in terms of stain remover. DEFINITELY check it out, especially for delicate fabrics.

(As I added to the comments below, please note that this method of using bleach really is only for sturdy white fabrics, not delicate or old fabrics. If you are in doubt, put a small piece of the shirt in the bleach water and let it sit to see how it stands up to it. If you have any qualms about the fabric, boil it instead in the DIY OXYCLEAN from above.)

Tuesday: How to Do Your Makeup in 2 Minutes

The Official Before-After

Sometimes, I feel lazy when it comes to getting ready and it feels like a hassle to do my makeup. So, one morning, when I felt really lazy, I told myself, "Just do your fastest routine. It won't be that bad." and so I timed myself. BOOM! Under two minutes. In the off-chance that this helps someone else out there, this is how I do my make-up in two minutes. (forgive me, I only have my own face to use an example)

My products of choice

1. Products:
-Good foundation (I liked Nu Skin's tinted moisturizer, because it gives a good cover, but feels like moisturizer
-Black eyeliner
-Bronze powder (got mine for .99 at Charlotte Russe)
-Light pink shimmer (from the dollar store, oh yeah!)
-Black mascara

Step 1: Apply foundation (25 seconds)


After step 1

Step 2: Use the bronze powder to dot your cheek bones and then brush over your eye area, avoiding the actual lid (5 seconds)

After step 2, 3, 4, and 5

All done!

Step 3: Using the pink shimmer, dot your cheek bones and then apply directly to your eyelid, underneath your eyebrow arch, and dot sparingly at the corner of both eyes (to brighten them up!) (7 seconds)

Step 4: Using your finger tips, blend the makeup on your cheek bones and on your eye lids so there are no define lines (10 seconds)
Step 5: Use the eye liner on just the outside corner of your eyes, focusing on the eye lids (15 seconds)

Step 6: Apply mascara (a good mascara can take a couple of coats, so use the rest of your time here)
ALL DONE! And you have a nice, beach-y summery look! Win.
















PS! Make sure to check back here every Friday for your (very good!) chance of winning something great!