Alba

So, due to our lovely weather this winter my skin absolutely hates me!  Typically I have very very oily skin and I have to use toners to strip the oil off my face.  I only use a very light moisturizer, typically.  However, this winter my neck started getting super dried out, then it started getting chapped and peeling, gross right.  Well then it started on my face!  First it was just around my nose and ears, no biggy.  I bought a heavier moisturizer and cortisone cream cuz it itched like a MoFo.  Chapping spread to basically all over my face to the point that I could not even wash my face!  So I decided that it was time to change face washes and moisturizers.  The heavy moisturizer just sat on my face, it didn't soak in at all, it was like sunscreen.  So I went online to one of my favorite beauty sites, Ulta.  I've been trying to stick with a lil bit more natural products for my face so I found these  
 and of course while I was shopping I also found these on sale   Maybelline's new Tattoo 24 hr eye shadow.  I love makeup so I knew I would have to get a couple to try them out. I received all my new products last night, yay!  I used the coconut wash and pineapple scrub last night and they made my face feel so soft and hydrated!  Then I put on the moisturizer and holy cow, it just soaks right into your skin and you only have to use a little bit!  This morning I woke up and no peeling or chapped skin on my face!  And my neck is starting to feel better.  I used one of the eyeshadows this morning too so we shall see if it really holds up the full 24 hours, I'm super excited to find out.  I absolutely love face products and makeup and I'm constantly trying out new things.  So, if you're looking for a new face care line, check out Alba, they're pretty reasonably priced and so far so good. And I love Maybelline eye products and the colors are so vibrant so I'm hoping I do not have a reaction to them as my eyes have a tendency to freak out and swell shut with some eye products so we shall see haha

Oh Dreary Day

It is raining, again.  Sunshine please come back, I was enjoying you the last few days...  Why is it raining in January anyways?  Why is it 47 today and going to be 25 Saturday? Don't you know Mother Nature that I hate the cold and rain?  Mother Nature's Response would probably be, well then go move to the damn desert haha  It's been busy at work the past couple of days and then today I have a few moments to actually think before it's back to scanning documents.  All I really want to do though is go home and curl up in bed with my hubs and puppies, ahhh that seems so nice right now....


Speaking of puppies, I attempted to talk my hubs into getting a 4th puppy earlier this week.  I know, sounds crazy, but it'd be another small doggy, specifically an Italian Greyhound.  I have a special place in my heart for lil Italian Greyhounds.  My first puppy that was all my own was one and she was with me when I went through some harder times and when my hubs was off training and what not for the Marines.  A few months before he deployed though she was outside with my hubs and the neighbor dog came running over and she ran off after him and was hit by a car and killed.  I was completely devastated, definitely one of the hardest things I've ever gone through and it still upsets me to think about it.  She was like my baby.  She had issues though, separation anxiety issues and she had them pretty bad after I moved down to Jville with her.  I always felt so guilty because I felt that she was unhappy and that's why her behavior was getting worse (it really was just her and that's how she always was, she did not like sharing me with anyone).  So of course when she died I felt even more guilty and I still feel that guilt to this day so when I see a lil Iggy that someone is trying to find a home for on Craigslist I feel an intense need to adopt them.  That's how we ended up with this lil princess

I mean really, how could you not want to take her home, she's so cute!  Anyways, I found such an Iggy on Craigslist this week and attempted to convince hubs that we needed another one, he did not go for it though.  Probably a good thing considering how much that cute lil girl has already cost us in vet bills since we got her. But I cannot help it!  I think when we move out to where we have land, I will prolly adopt lots of doggies.  I'm pretty sure my husband knows this already and is trying to delay the inevitable as long as possible haha

Dr. 90210

I watch Netflix a lot, especially since the weather has been crappy, and my newest show, Dr. 90210.  It's kind of fun to see all these people getting plastic surgery.  Some of them you're like oh yea you definitely needed it and then others it was like really.  I mean 17 year olds getting boobs.  But anyways, there was one episode that really stood out to me, a 24-year-old Marine wife, mother of 3, getting a breast augmentation and lipo and a tummy tuck, I believe, before her hubs came home from Iraq (these are older episodes).  It was just a really sweet episode.  The doctor that was doing the surgery was a woman and she said that she could not even imagine being 24, having 3 children at home, and her husband deployed and getting such a major surgery done, how strong she was and how she would not be able to go through that if it was her.  The doctor's statement was just very humbling to me because here you have a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon who is calling this woman, a Marine Wife and Mother, strong.  This was somebody who slices people open on a daily basis, it was funny hearing it come from her and very humbling.  I think a lot of people forget how hard it is on the families of our service members.  It's just not the service member that goes through a deployment, it's the whole family.  It was just a really sweet episode to watch and they showed how much more confidence she had afterwards and they showed his homecoming and it was just really sweet to watch.  He of course seemed to really enjoy her new look.

That episode really surprised me because some of these girls are strippers or are in the "Adult" Industry and then you see someone who is so strong and deserving and it was just really nice to see.  After watching this show I can see why women become strippers, they make a shit ton of money, one of them had 3 houses and was only 23!  That's insane!  Anyways, after watching the show, it has scarred me for life from wanting to have kids haha  They can do some scary things to your body.  And after watching it there are a lot of different ways to have a boob job, I myself would not particularly mind it but I think they did say they had to be replaced like every 10 years.  Who has the money for that?  Can't we just get blow up ones where you hook up a tire pump every few years and re-inflate them?  I mean then you have your own flotation device if you fall overboard, just sayin'.

FAM Update

So an update on the Fertility Awareness Method charting that I started doing.  Please refer to this post, Vajayjay, if you are not sure what the heck I'm talking about.  So, I just finished up my first cycle of charting and figured I'd update you on to how well it went.  Let me start off by saying you definitely learn a lot about your body doing it! Getting used to remembering to temp the second you wake up is probably the hardest for me.  I'm so used to either getting up immediately to go to the bathroom or just laying there thinking for forever.  I really like that you can use the website of the book I mentioned to chart on and it's so helpful and makes things so much easier!  Predicting when I was going to ovulate was actually kind of fun, I had a good idea about 2 days ahead of time and when I realized via temping and whatnot that I had, it was like score one for me!  Ok, maybe I'm easily amused but whatevs.  So far my cycle is still too unpredictable and weird from going off the pill to actually use it solely for birth control but once it regulates out and I get the hang of it I think I will feel completely comfortable using it as birth control after I ovulate.  The jury is still out about using it before ovulation, will have to see how well my cycle regulates in a few months.  It's really nice too to be able to pretty well see when you are going to start your lovely period.  The only thing I miss about the pill, you can't manipulate your temping or cycle to have your period when it's more convenient.  I mean really, who wants to start on the weekend, not me.  


Overall though my body feels better being off the pill.  I've gone off a lot of my IBS medications, after I went off the pill they started making me sick which I thought was really strange.  But hey, less medicines, less money in copays, less things I'm putting into my body, better for me.  I really would recommend the book to every woman, even if you have no plans of using it for contraception or getting pregnant, it really does teach you a lot about your body and the more aware of your body you are, the more in-tune you become with your body and the better off you are.  So if anybody has read this book or has been trying the FAM, let me know what you think about it.  It's only been 1 month so I definitely have a lot more to learn and get used to, but so far so good.

Hello 2012

Wow, I cannot believe it's 2012 already!  2011 was a very busy year for us with buying the house and condo and redoing some of the house and the hubs starting school.  I'm hoping that during 2012 we can relax some and enjoy our house and hopefully finish up decorating it.  There's still plenty that needs done this winter to it.  Keeping up a house is almost a full time job haha  Anyways, how was everyone's holidays?  So sad that they are over now and it's back to work and school.  No more time off for awhile, even more sad.  Can you tell I enjoy my vacation time haha  The weather here has definitely turned to winter and it is beyond freezing out!  I will finally get to wear the carhartt overalls my hubs got me before Christmas when I go out to the barn after work.  As excited as I am to finally try them out, I'm not excited that it's 20 degrees outside today and I have to wear them to avoid freezing my tush off!  We even had our first bit of snow yesterday, prolly close to half an inch, but it was nice to watch it coming down.

This weekend I will be taking down all the Christmas decorations.  I'm very sad about this because I love watching the lights on the Christmas tree and it was our very first Christmas tree.  My mom used to always take down our tree on New Year's day, to me that is just too early and even more depressing.  If I could, I would probably leave mine up til February, but I need the space for my new sewing table.  When does everyone else start taking down their decorations?  Do you do it in phases or just all at once?  I'm going to shoot for getting them all down at once.  The SIL is coming over Friday night for a girls night so I figure that will be a good time since we had so much fun putting them all up together while working on our box of wine.  Guess I better get back to work, lots to catch up on...

PS What are your New Year's resolutions?  Mine, to get in touch with old friends that I have lost touch with due to being busy and transitioning from the military life back to civilian life and I guess from being lazy, I miss them!  I've already been in contact with one, my old riding buddy, and got to catch up with her yesterday, so nice!  Also to try new things, like sewing a quilt all by myself (my MIL and SIL helped with the last one) and doing new and fun things with my hubs!  We have plans to hopefully do some more camping this year.

Back to the Grind

Well I'm back to work today, so sad.  I love having time off from work to spend at home with my hubs and puppies!  It's so nice and relaxing, usually haha.  Thankfully I only work today and tomorrow and then I have another 4 day weekend for New Year's.  Yay!  Next week will be brutal with having to work 4 days, I know I'm such a big baby.  Oh how much I wish we lived out in the middle of nowhere where me and the SIL could start our own horse boarding stable.  We could totally kick ass at it!  So how was everyone's Christmas?  Mine was very nice.  We spent most of the holiday with the in-laws and my hubs side of the family.  It was our first Christmas in our new house and our first Christmas together as a married couple where we did not have to drive all the way from Jville to see the family.  My in-laws got me a sewing table for my new sewing machine.  I'm so excited because sitting it on the coffee table and sitting on the floor while using it is a bit difficult.  I'm hoping that I'll be able to start gathering up material soon to make a new quilt for our bed.

Before Christmas I sent an email to an old friend that I lost touch with when I moved down to Jville that I used to ride with and this morning I had a response from her.  I was super excited because I was not even sure that she still used that email.  I used to lease her horse and even named my horse after her horse because they are cousins.  Most of my horse friends from back in the day are no longer into horses due to college and life in general so it will be super nice to get back in touch with an old riding buddy.  It's nice to get in touch with old friends and learn what's been going on in their lives and the lives of people that you know (what, good ole fashioned gossip is fun haha).  The hubs is going hunting yet again soon, so hopefully I'll be able to meet up with her then since I'm sure I'll have extra time to do absolutely nothing.  What did I do when the hubs was deployed for 7 months???  I'm bored when he's only gone 2 days now!  It's too cold to spend hours at the barn, so that leaves me watching Netflix, a lot.  Oh what would I do without Netflix???  Guess I better get back to working since I'm only here a couple days this week, yay!

Merry Christmas!

Ok so I know it's a few days early but still, I'm excited!  I love Christmas!  Today is our Holiday Potluck at work and so I got to start my baking last night.  I made fudge!  Yummy, my favorite holiday treat!  Thankfully my wonderful hubs went out at the beginning of the week and got all the ingredients for everything I plan on making.  Last night I just did the fudge for today and made a venison brown sugar meatloaf.  It was so yummy!  I've never tried the brown sugar recipe but it was so yummy!  I'll definitely be making it again.  Tomorrow I get to make more fudge, a pumpkin roll and a cookie pie (regular cookie dough placed into a deep dish pizza pan).  I love baking!  


Last night the hubs took me on a drive to see some of the local Christmas lights.  People really do some amazing things with them.  There was one, quite large, house that had tons of lights that were flashing and blinking and the neighbor next door put up a lighted sign that said "Ditto" with an arrow pointing next door to the flashing light house, so hilarious.  That was my favorite haha  I love looking at the Christmas lights.  Would have been a bit better if there was some snow on the ground instead of puddles of water from the excessive rain we've been getting but oh well.  It was still super nice to spend time with the hubs and see all the lights.


Christmas Eve the in-laws have a party with all the extended family.  Lots of food and drinks and fun times.  I think afterwards we might bring the cousins back to our house for a "younger generation" party.  I don't think the older ones would like it very much if we cranked up the music and started dancing around the house.  We are making red and green (cherry and lime) jello shots with rum!  They were a big hit last year.  I'm really looking forward to having our first Christmas in our new house!  We've always traveled back home for Christmas since the hubs was in the Marines and we were stationed down in Jville, NC.  No traveling this time, except to drive to the in-laws, 10 min away, for Christmas dinner.  I'm really looking forward to it!


So, what do you guys do to prepare for the Holidays and what are you favorite parts?