Just a Thought: Show some LOVE to YOU

Sometimes as an adult we can get so caught up in the everyday routine of things that we don't stop to smell the roses and enjoy what it is we work so hard for. Me personally I am a hardworking mother and wife. I have a full time job and when I clock out at work my duties do not end there. I still need to clean house, cook dinner and play with my son before even thinking about relaxing. At 9 O'clock at night I finally get to kick my heels up and get some much needed relaxation. I think it is so important to have some time to yourself and to do something that YOU want to do. Don't get me wrong I enjoy every moment with my little muffin but if I didn't get some time to myself every once in awhile I'd probably explode! Anyone who has kids and a job needs to step away from it all time to time and just focus on them. Life can be so stressful but learning to manage that stress will help you stay healthy and sane. So take a moment whether it's today or tomorrow and do something for YOU! Have a glass of wine, watch a new movie, do some retail therapy, read a book or magazine, eat out somewhere you never have, pamper yourself with a manicure or pedicure, hang out with friends you normally don't see or go somewhere you have never been!!! There are so many things you can do with your ME time so have fun with it....you know you deserve it :)

Deal (or should I say steal) of the Week - Dermablend Setting Powder!

Here's the link to this week's deal - Dermablend Setting Powder! This setting powder will change you life and because it is a matte powder makeup stays on longer, no shine and it keeps your makeup looking flawless all day. I baught this about 2 weeks ago and I'm in LOVE!! Best setting powed I've ever purchased. I will be doing a review on it soon :) Til them you can try this amazing setting powder out for yourself and at a fraction of the price you will find it for in stores. Only $14.99 plus free shipping!!! Also this Ebay company is legit and I have baught many product from then before with no issues plus they ship the item as soon as you pay! In stores like Ulta and Sephora you will not find this setting powder for less than $22 plus tax. Can you believe it? So go ahead....spoil yourself :)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dermablend-Setting-Facial-Powder-Original-/120770761697?pt=US_Makeup_Face&hash=item1c1e7f93e1.

Pick of the Month: Shampoo's and Conditioner's with Keratin

Beginning this month I have purchased three different shampoos and conditioners with Keratin in them. As you may or may not know lately I am completely in love with products that contain keratin in them. I believe that they will give my hair strength sense I color my hair often. I would say that keratin is for pretty much all hair types! It is really great for damaged, brittle and color treated hair but it can do miracles for almost any type of hair. I have thick hair but my hair can get frizzy from time to time and as I said I color my hair alot and I use heat tools on my hair about every other day so in my opinion my hair NEEDS a product that has keratin to give back the natural oils my hair has lost. I have not yet tried any of these products but I will begin to try them tonight and use each of them for one week. At the end of this month I will present you with this month's pick of the month and give you my reviews on each of the products I tried. If you have tried any of these products before feel free to leave your own feedback as well. Below is a list of the products I will be trying out for the month of October:

• Kera Pro- Reconstructive Shampoo and Conditioner $11.99 each (Bogo this week at Sally's)
• Ion's Keratin Smoothing- Shampoo and Conditioner $6.49 each
• Keratin Brazilian Tech- Shampoo and Conditioner $8.29 each

Look out for the "Pick of the Month" at the end of the month! Thanks a bunch :)

SITE UPDATE: Reviews, Pick of the month, Just a thought and much more...

Hey everyone! It's been a while sense I've done a blog because I'm busy trying out new products to do reviews on. Not to worry tho I will be doing many product reviews and inspirational blogs for the month of October. I am also EXTREMELY excited to introduce new blogs I will be doing such as:

• The first new blog will be the, "Pick of the month" where I will pick a few beauty product each month to try and the one I like most will be the pick of the month. I will let you guys know in the beginning of the month what products I am trying and by the end of each month I will post the pick of the month.
• Also I will be doing a blog post called "Just a thought" aiming towards everyday problems, solutions and inspiration. :)
• Another new feature on my site will be the Deal of the week! In which I let you guys in on some of the excellent beauty deals there are on the Internet and in the store. For me getting deals on beauty products I love and not spending a fortune to look good is very important. After all makeup does not make you beautiful it just accentuates the beauty you already have!

& feel free to leave comments on what products you have tried and what products have worked best for you!

REVIEW: Olay Daily Facial Express Wet Cleansing Wipes

So about 2 weeks ago I was shopping at Walmart and came across the Olay Daily Facial Express Wet Cleansing Wipes (boy was that a mouth full lol). I liked the packaging and I seriously in need of cleansing wipes so I figured I'd give these babies a try besides they were really cheap (only $6)! I started using them day and night to remove makeup and dirt from my skin before I went to bed and when I woke up each morning. I also exfoliate my skin every other day and use a night cream to add moisture to my skin. So after using these cleansing wipes everyday for about a week almost all my blemishes vanished!!! I have combination skin and the wipes are oil free so I was a little worried it would dry out my skin but it didn't. These wipes left my skin feeling clean, refreshed and rejuvenated. I've tried the Target brand up and up wipes and Walmarts brand equate wipes but found they to have too much alcohol and it dried out my skin causing me to break out. I usually break out around my chin and forhead which I think are the most common places for your skin to break out! On everything good I have seriously not got a new pimple sense I've started this routine. I feel like I've finally found a skin care Regine that actually works for me and my skin. I thought I'd share this with you guys in hopes that you all find that perfect match for your skin that leaves you looking and feeling good without heavy makeup!! :)

Learning to LOVE yourself...Flaws and All!

When I was a teenager I didn't wear any foundation...at all! I barely wore any makeup for that matter and never really cared much about looking good or trying to impress others. I even look back on old photos of myself and think, "Dang I was cute! What happened?" I sometime miss those days. The simpler days when all I had to do was wash my face, brush my teeth, throw on some deodorant and be out the door! Now I am completely obsessed with makeup!! I cannot go out of the house without concealer, foundation, eye liner, mascara and lip gloss. It's as if I need this mask to cover all my flaws before I feel comfortable enough to talk to anyone. Why are we so critical of ourselves and how we look? I think as we get older we start to feel more sensitive to others opinions rather than our own. I mean let's be honest if heels didn't look so good we wouldn't go threw the pain of wearing them. They say beauty is pain right? Wrong!!! Beauty is not pain. Have you ever seen someone that is barely wearing any make up, care free and happy?! I bet you have and I bet you remember them because they are few and far between. You probably were a bit envious of how they did not seem to care what other thought but still seemed happy. Those are people who have come to accept themselves for who there are! They don't care as much as most people about what others think or say. Makeup or no makeup we are all beautiful and stunning in our own way. You don't need to look perfect to feel good about who you are. Some times when you look to done up that can also look like your very self conscious of others and make you seem less appealing and not as attractive. Sometimes all you need is confidence. Your life is what you make it and everyday on this earth is precious so why waste your life worrying about things you can't change or trying to please someone you don't even know?! Your never going to please everyone!! Instead of trying to please others try pleasing yourself and finding what it is that makes you special. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and I must say that in my eye's beauty is reflected from the inside out...not the other way around!

Review: PANTENE (Medium-Thick Hair Solutions) Breakage - Strength

I know most of you have seen the new commercial for this product with Eva Mendez. In the commercial Eva says, she uses heating tools until she see's smoke! I hope that's not true lol. Anyways she claims that this product will have your hair looking silky smooth with no breakage and you don't have to give up the heat! I honestly don't think they could have picked a better spokes model for there product or described there product any better. This conditioner is AMAZING!!! I have only been using it about a week but I can definitely say it has made my hair look and feel 10x more healthier. No lie! I use to use Organix Coconut Milk Conditioner because it is organic and has No Sulfate in it. I think I will continue to use the shampoo for those reasons but I am in love with this conditioner! If you have somewhat thick hair and use a curling iron or a flat iron regularly you need to try this product!!! The Pantene Breakage-Smooth Conditioner has really saved my hair. Now I won't need to cut so much off the ends and I can still use my beloved curling iron and straightener! :)


*Also just to let you guys know I am not in any way affiliated with Pantene or any of the companies I do reviews on there products. The reviews I do are my honest opinion on the product and how it has or has not worked for me.

My Little Secret

I wanna start by telling you guys that I Rarely pay retail price for cosmetics. How you ask, because I know how to find deals!! So many woman are forced to pay ridiculous retail prices because they don't know how to find deals. I really wanted to write this blog to help people out because were in a recession and paying $20 or more for some lip gloss just ain't right! So I basically have 3 ways to find the same exact items you love at a cheaper price. The first way is to DIY(Do It Yourself). Many of the products you buy at the store like toner, lip balm, mascara, eye makeup remover and much more can be easily made at home for less than half the price! Go onto YouTube, type "DIY beauty products" and try some of them out! Another way to save money on beauty products is to buy directly from the manufacturer. Most of the time they will be a little cheaper or offer free products with it and free shipping! This can save you gas and time so you don't have to shop for the item and end up picking up other items you don't need (Impulse buying). The third and most effective way to buy the products you love for cheap is......(dun dun dun) Ebay!!! You can find thousands of name brand, brand new and never used products on Ebay. For instance I just bid on and won the Nars lip gloss Turkish Delight for only $10.75 + free shipping. That is an amazing deal sense the lip gloss usually cost $24 in the store. The reason you are getting these amazing deals is because most woman don't know about Ebay's deals on beauty products! Also you can find products that are hard to find on Ebay like Jessica Simpson's lip gloss and True Religion jeans. Let's not let the word get out about this or everyone will know about it!! This can be OUR little secret...=)

Baby your a Firework

I want to start by saying that we are all beautiful and makeup just accentuates that beauty! We all have something amazing inside of us that God believed was worthy of life and living. When I was around 6 my parents divorced and my mom turned to drugs and alcohol. I don't think I really noticed how much the divorce had effected her until the day she forgot to pick me up from school! I was in the 1st grade and school got out around 1pm usually I would wait in the front for her to pick me up but this day was different. I waited and wait until the secretary closing the office came up to me and asked me where my parents were. I told her I didn't know so she took me home and called my dad to come pick me up. My dad was so upset that she would do such a thing and risk someone being able to kidnap me. I understand where he was coming from but what he didn't know was that my mom was not stable enough to raise me and my brother. She had become consumed by alcoholism and drug use that we just weren't important to her anymore! It's sad but now that I am older I can see things for what they really were and I've come to realize it weren't my dad's fault, it wasn't the alcohol's fault not even the drugs...it was her fault! For not being strong enough for her kids that needed her. She was so consumed in her own self pity that she didn't even realize that he is only a man! Yes he is my father so I think he is an amazing man but no man, woman or anything for that matter should keep you from taking care of your kids. As I got older I always told myself I would never be as weak as she was and that if a man decided to leave me with or without kids I would pick up the pieces and move on with my life. I thank God for showing me that you have to love yourself before anyone will ever really love you and to look inside yourself for strength because it's there...he put it there! We all have something amazing inside us that will guide us threw any darkness...we just need to believe in ourselves!!! So often we forget about that strength and focus on things that don't really matter like money, cars, cloths etc. when really you have everything you need inside yourself. Beauty will only get you so far because let's all face it were all going to be old one day and there's nothing you or anyone can do about that. What you can do is reach out to those who need you most, be there for the one's you love and always believe in yourself and your own abilities. You are a Firework...you are an amazing person put on this earth for a purpose and while your beauty may go away someday you will always be beautiful inside....and that's what really matter's!

Review: Organix Beauty Pure and Simple - 30-Day Smoothing Treatment

If you read my blogs you must know that I am in love with hair care products with keratin in them. I believe that keratin will make my hair stronger and longer! So that is what gave me the idea to try this product and do a review on it. The 30-day smoothing treatment promises to eliminate frizz and cut blow drying time by 75% for up to 30 days. The treatment works by using keratin proteins, coconut milk and avocado oils to smooth cuticles for straighter longer hair. Let me start by describing my hair; my hair is to the middle of my back, it is medium thick, color treated and wavy. Maybe my hair is too thick or wavy or maybe I needed another treatment but this product did NOT leave my hair straight and smooth for 30 days...more like 6 or 7!! After about a week I started to notice my hair was looking really frizzy and it was tough to get a comb threw it. I had to go back to my It's a 10 PLUS keratin and Argan Oil so that my hair would look good without having to style it all the time. I really think this product is for thinner hair because it did not last long even tho I followed the package instructions. I just want to let everyone know that all my reviews are HONEST and REAL to my experience with the product. Just because I did not get the results I wanted does not mean this product won't work for you...everyone is different! A new thing I will be doing in all my reviews is if I didn't like the product I am going to recommend at the end of the blog a product that won't brake the bank but you can still try to see if it works for you or not. So for this product I have listed below what I think may work better for your hair if you have thick damaged hair...

• Moroccan/Argan Oil - When used as a treatment you can heat the oil in a bowl then apply to hair after shampooing. Leave on for 10-15 minutes as a hot oil treatment. Then towel dry your hair and add a quarter size amount to damp hair. Brush through evenly.

The difference between NEED and WANT!

I really wanted to write about this topic because the other day I had a serious convo with my brother about differentiating need from want! A need is a necessity or something you have to have in order to survive. A want is not a necessity and it wont be the end of the world if you don't get it. Most people have a hard time telling what they want from what they need. I can honestly say that I myself have been threw a time where I was so caught up in what I wanted that I didn't take the time to appreciate that I had what I needed. If you have what you need in your life like shelter, food, water, health and love then really you should be thanking god that you have these things because some people are not lucky enough to have what they need! A lot of people get so caught up in what they want like money or to be successful instead of appreciating the blessing god has given them. People who suffer from cancer or other terminal illnesses go threw so much physical pain and emotional pain and having to deal with insurance companies...it must be so hard! If your reading this right now and you do not have a terminal illness I want you to stop what your doing and say a prayer to god. Thank him for giving you what you needed to live life and pray for those who need him most! By realizing that you already have what you need and what you want is not that important it will make you a happier person. I swear it will! I'm not saying to not set goals for yourself. I'm saying to stop stressing about the things you want or things you can't change and start to realize how lucky you are to be alive and well. Think of it like this you've been blessed with a cake now you just want to put frosting on it! Some people are okay with a little frosting and some people like a lot of frosting but you already have the cake and that's what you really needed! I hope after reading this you take a moment to enjoy life and the people you have in it because life changes so fast and how things are today are not how they will be tomorrow. Live, laugh and love those who mean the most to you <3

How To Deal With Haters!

So as you know I typically do reviews on beauty products on my blog but I've decided I will also be writing motivational blogs on here too! For my first motivational blog I wanted to talk about "Haters". Haters are people who don't like you or what your doing not because it's not right but because there either jealous, insecure, regretful or just plain mad! For example you write an amazing paper for your Literature class and you tell a few people in the class how excited you are about the paper and how you hope to get an "A". Some of those people may be genuinely happy for you but chances are at least one will not be so happy for you. It happens because you are reaching new heights and possibly even becoming more successful. With success in work, school, sports or anything you do there is going to be someone who wants what you have. It's just the way it is. The way you deal with these kind of people says a lot about you as a person. In my opinion if someone hates on you, you should not call them a hater or say anything rude back to them! It just fuels the fire. The best thing to do is ask questions that force them to think about why they are not "On your level" or even helping them will show that your generous and kind. For example if your excited about your paper and someone says, "What's new you always write good papers." Your best response is "Well why don't you come over sometime so I can help you?" or "If you feel like your writing isn't as good as you want why don't you ask for help?" These sort of questions take the focus from your success and cause the person to focus on there own issues. Plus it's a lot harder for someone to hate on you when your being nice to them so.....kill them with kindness!! Half the time people make rude comments just to get a reaction out of you anyways so by ignoring them and not letting them effect you your less appealing to hate on! It's just like when someone teases you the more you hate it the more they want to do it!

Review on: Olay Complete -All day UV moisturizer!

So I noticed I have been doing a lot of reviews on products I love but now it's time for a product I will never buy again! Yes it's that serious...I'm just playing guys but seriously I will never buy this product again! So I was at CVS looking for a moisturizer with SPF and came across Olay Complete all day UV moisturizer! Sense I like Olay's night creme I figured I'd give this moisturizer a shot! Keep in mind everyone's skin is different and what may not work for me may work for you this is just my opinion on the product. So I bought it for around $8 or $9 and started using it as a moisturizer under my makeup and boy was that a mistake!! I started breaking out like never before...my chin, forehead and even cheeks broke out! I have been lucky enough that all threw my life I have not had any acne on my cheeks. I kept thinking what am I using that is causing my face to break out like this? The answer was Olay Complete. Olay Complete Moisturizer was super greasy, thick and even burned when I put it on. About 4 days after I stopped using this product my acne vanished! The important thing to remember when buying a moisturizer is looking for that unique match for your skin just like a foundation you have to make sure your moisturizer is not going to clog your pores or cause you to break out! A moisturizer is suppost to add the right amount of moisture to your skin for hydration. I am now using Neutrogena's Healthy Defense with SPF 50!! So far I love this moisturizer and will continue to use it as long as it's good to my skin. :)

Review on: It's a 10 Miracle Leave-in PLUS Keratin

This product is amazing. I was shopping at the mall a few months ago and seen a salon with beauty products in a case and It's a 10 caught my eye. At first I wanted to try the original It's a 10 Miracle Leave-in treatment because I heard it works really good but the salon lady convinced me that It's a 10 PLUS Keratin would be better for my hair. She explained how Keratin is a natural oil found in our hair but is stripped away when we use heating tools such as curling iron and flat irons. I heat style my hair almost everyday so I was looking for a product that would strengthen my hair and also add shine. After she said that I knew I had to try this product. I shampooed and conditioned my hair with Organix Coconut Milk, towel dried my hair and sprayed a few sprays in my hair. I was amazed how easy it was to run a brush through my wet hair(I have very thick long hair) after using this product. Sense then I continue to use this product everytime I wash my hair and I can honestly say my hair is stronger because of it! Another added bonus is that this product is also a heat protector so on days you wash your hair you wont need to use a heat protector before using heating tools. The only bad thing really about this product is that you can only buy it in salon's and it cost about $20 for a 4 oz bottle but believe me it is worth it because that bottle will last you more than 3 months. I also want to add that this product is not intended to make your hair softer by any means it's suppost to make your hair stronger and grow longer and that's exactly what it does!! I absolutely love this product and will continue to use this product til I find something better...if there is anything better! :)

It Does 10 things:

1. Provides keratin for straightening treatments
2. Improves styling & manageability
3. Great for all hair types
4. Replenishes lost protein
5. Protects and replenishes the natural keratin in hair
6. Provides protection against heat
7. Balances hydration in hair
8. Adds shine and helps detangle & defrizz
9. Fortifies hair structure
10. Seals cuticles for extra smooth hair
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    

Review on: Organix Pure and Simple - Coconut Milk!

Let me start by saying I've used a lot of shampoo's and conditioner's over the years. I've tried everything from Herbal Essence to John Freida to Bed Head and all these shampoo's stripped my hair of there natural oils leaving my hair frizzy and super dry! The reason is all these shampoo's had Sulfate in them. Sulfate is a numerous inorganic compounds related to sulfuric acid. In laymen terms it has salt in it that strip natural oils from your hair in order to clean it. Luckily some companies have caught on and have started making shampoo's that are Sulfate Free!! What's really unique about Organix Pure and Simple - Coconut Milk is that all the ingredients are natural and not made of any acid or chemical that can damage your hair. It's paraben free, safe for color treated hair, good for all hair types and they do not test there products on animals! The conditioner has organic coconut milk which helps nourish your hair, egg white's that help to add strength and shine and coconut oils that add hydration and balance to your hair giving your hair a healthy natural glow! From the first time I used this product I was hooked!!! This product left my hair feeling amazingly healthy and my hair color even looked better too! I have now been using the shampoo and condition for over 6 months and I can honestly say I will never go back to those other shampoos or conditioners because I finally found a keeper. :)

How healthy is a sandwich?....Really??

I am yet to me someone who doesn't love them a good sandwich but is the sandwich your eating really healthy for you? Well it depends! On what kind of sandwich your eating but here are some examples of some of the most unhealthy sandwiches out there....I think the list might surprise you!

Unhealthy Sandwiches:

• Arby's Ultimate BLT Market Fresh Sandwich (880 calories)
• Panera Bread's Chipotle Chicken on Artisan French Bread (990 Calories)
• Subway Meatball Marinara Footlong (1,160 calories)
• Blimpie's Special Vegetarian 12" (1,186 calories)
• Quiznos Large Tuna Melt (1,760 calories)
• Applebee's Grilled Cheese BLT (1,310 calories)

Keep in mind an average healthy person's calorie intake should be around 2,500 calories a day! That means almost all these sandwiches are half a days worth of calories so your next two meal that day better be really light and don't even think about having soda or juice!! To me this is insane a sandwich is suppost to be the "healthy choice" and it can be compared to fast food places but it really depends what kind of sandwich your eating. Some sandwiches are packed with so many calories you might as well of eat a burger and fries! Below is a list I came up with of healthy sandwiches I would rather eat then the calorie hogs above. Check it out and give them a try. :)

Healthy Sandwich Choices:

• Subway Roast Beef 6" (310 calories)
• Quizno's Bistro Steak Melt Sammie (390 calories)
• Togo's Turkey and Avacodo on Weat Bread with Light Mayo (530 calories)
• Arby's Super Roast Beef  (430 calories)
• Red Robin's Whiskey River BBQ Chicken Sandwich, without Ranch Dressing (522 calories)
• Panera Breads Chicken Bacon Dijon on French Bread (650 calories)

Review on: Argan Oil

A few weeks back I was watching a YouTube video about haircare because I felt my hair was getting too dry from coloring it and bleaching it every few months. The girl on the YouTube video mentioned that she uses Argan Oil on her hair everyday and that it works great for dry damaged hair. I figured what the hey I'll give it a shot! I went to Sally's and purchased there "One n' Only Argan Oil Treatment" for $10 for a 3.4 oz. I thought it was a little pricey for such a small bottle but in the YouTube video they said you only us a small amount on your hair everyday and the bottle will last more than 4 months. That night I shampooed and conditioned my hair as usual and after spraying my detangler I put a quarter size amount of the oil into my wet hair. I towel dried my hair and went to bed. The next morning I could not believe how soft and shiny my hair was. My hair hasn't felt this great in years!!! I've now been using Argan Oil on my hair for over two weeks and I love how my hair looks and feels! I strongly recommend this product to anyone who wants to repair there dry damaged hair or anyone who simple wants to try a new treatment that will leave your hair soft and silky :)

The Lemon and Water Cleanse!

So yesturday I was talking to my sister-in-law about Herbalife's 21-day cleanse(she is a rep for the company). The cleanse requires that you reduce your calorie intake and take the pills they give you for 21 days. They say you should do there cleanse 2x a year! She really wanted me to try it but why would I take pills and watch what I eat when I can just do the Lemon and Water Cleanse and it will give me the same results? The Lemon and Water Cleanse is not only gentle on your body but the most natural way to detox and flush out your liver. It's really easy to make just add lemon to a cup(8 ounces) of warm water and drink it every morning for about 2 weeks. It will gently eliminate toxins from your liver which is why it is also called the "liver flush" and has been used for many years to naturally cleanse the body. Also when you drink this regularly there are some long term benefits to your liver health and over all health. I hope this has helped you if you are thinking of detoxing or cleansing your body. I recommend that you give the Lemon and Water Cleanse a try before buying any of those pricey cleansing/detox system and get the same results.