#TwinkleVoxBox

The time has come the walrus said to talk of many things.....

Influenster was kind enough to send me their #TwinkleVoxBox! #contest (Disclaimer: All the products were complimentary, but all of these opinions are my own).. It was the perfect little happy during the holiday season. I was most excited to be able to try new products. One of the items just happened to be the COVERGIRL So Lashy! Mascara. If you know me, then you know how much I LOVE trying a new mascara. I'm sorry to say that I was disappointed. The wand was way too chunky to be precise. Every time that I tried to apply it, it would go alllllll over my lid.

The Aquation Daily Moisturizing Lotion has been absolutely fantastic though. As soon as I get out of the shower, I cover my entire body. It doesn't leave a greasy feel on your skin at all.

Next up is the Axe White Label Night Body Wash. My stepdad prefers Axe over everything else, so I gave this to him. It smells just like you think an Axe product would.

Hill Bros was kind enough to send some k-cups of Hot Chocolate. I was so PUMPED to try their brand, but it didn't meet my expectations. They send a Milk Chocolate and a Dark Chocolate and neither one of them were that great. I did it on the lowest setting, so I could really taste the flavors..... but all I could taste was water. Better luck next time?

Country Crock sent a coupon for a free spread. My family baked so much over the holidays, so this was the most useful. We made strawberry cake with the sticks that we had picked up.

Speaking of delicious desserts.... Guess who got some free Oreo Thins?? You can't go wrong with any Oreo. These were gone in seconds.

Reynolds Slow Cooker Liners came in handy for all the extra cooking that had to be done. They saved so much time and effort!

Last but not least, Not Your Mother's included a travel sized Unscented Dry Shampoo. I buy this dry shampoo all the time. This size was perfect to throw into my purse.

All in all, I loved receiving this VoxBox. It was such a fun experience and I hope to do it again soon!

Body Rant

This has not been my week. A large part of that goes to my lack of self confidence. If that sounds silly to you, click away from this page now. Because here comes a body rant.

Most days I don't worry too much about my appearance. My job requires me to wear scrubs every day, and who can feel good about themselves while wearing them? No one. When I do get to wear normal clothes I feel great until I look into the mirror.

It is too easy to point out all the parts of me that I don't like. My double chin, fat thighs, broad shoulders...the list goes on and on. I promise that I try to feel confident about myself. It just doesn't always work....

Today I saw myself on a big screen. You best believe that I almost cried in front of a lot of people. I just couldn't take it. There were so many gorgeous girls walking around, and I felt TOTALLY out of place. There were other girls my size walking around, but I still felt like poo. It's just so frustrating. I'm sure plenty of you can relate. Why do we always compare ourselves to others? It just causes heartbreak. The standard for beauty is too overwhelming. 

So this year will be dedicated to change. NO, this is not a New Year's resolution. This is just a better me revolution. Better mind set and better body. I have been doing a whole lot better with drinking more water and cutting back on sweets and portion sizes.

ENCOURAGEMENT TIME. 

I know that it is hard to believe people when they tell you that you look beautiful or handsome. If you are going through something similar, I am sorry. Really I am. Reach out to the people who can relate and help encourage you. 

It's okay to not be happy with your body. But there is a fine line between hating yourself and wanting to change. So here's to being happier and healthier.

P.S. If you need tiny booster in your mood, grab a tube of lipstick. Rock the hell out of it.

My Top 6 Milani Lipstick Shades

 If you know me, then you know how much I LOVE lipstick. It hasn't been until recently that I have been wearing it ALL the time. As much as I love Mac Cosmetics and their lipstick, it's just too overpriced for me. I wanted to find an affordable, durable, and lovely lipstick brand. This was a bit of a challenge. 

I've tried the Rimmel London lipsticks. They have lovely colors, and I still wear them often. The only problem is that they seem to fade a bit too quickly. In my local Walmart, Milani cosmetics is right beside RL. Milani has the best drugstore brow kit that I can find. Not to mention their beautiful bronzers and blushes. So of course I wanted to try out their lipstick. It didn't take long for me to fall head over heels. The pigmentation of their lipsticks is fantastic. The price is under $5, and the color lasts for a long while. Not to mention that it glides on so easily. 

This is my top 6 favorite lipstick shades from Milani.

This is the swatch of all the colors on my arm. They are in the same order as above. 

Cherry Crave is my favorite red lipstick. I have MAC's Ruby Woo. It's more of a flat, matte red. It's rather hard to apply and wipes off so easily. Milani's Cherry Crave has a shimmer of gold added. Well worth the paying the $5. 

The Violet Volt is such an electric purple. I was rather spectacle of wearing this in public. It's a hard color to pull off. Definitely worth the risk. 

Uptown Mauve is a pretty magenta. It would look great with any skin tone. 

Sangria was a risk as well. It's rather dark when applied. So far I have had nothing but compliments on it though!

Teddy Bare has been my most recent purchase from them. The color is a bit subtle, but it goes so well with bright apparel. 

Nude Creme is my favorite pale pink. This is the one I normally use every day.

This is in no way sponsored by Milani. I just really love their products! I really do hope you decide to give them a try!

This is Cherry Crave.

Above is Violet Volt.

And this is Teddy Bare. LOVE them all. 

Christmas is finally OVER!

I can't begin to describe about how excited I am that the Holidays are over. It's way too stressful. And as an introvert, it's completely draining emotionally.

If you follow me on Snapchat or Twitter, you have probably noticed that I have been watching way too many movies/tv shows. That's just my way of getting relaxed. Having the flu absolutely drained me the week before Christmas. Between the Tamiflu and the steroid shot, I could barely sleep 30 minutes. Slowly but surely I am catching up on getting some shut eye. So please forgive me for being a bum. 

This is the part where I share my favorite parts of Christmas this year. 

One of the Mom's at the daycare gave me this. She knows me all too well. 

They are just so darn pretty. I had to share with someone. 

My sweet Hugh. I don't know what I would do without her. 

They are all perfect. I'll never have to buy another coffee cup again.

When Cara went on her Study Abroad trip, this is the only thing I wanted. My name is the sand somewhere. This was near Croatia. This was on an island off of Spilt. 

This was a Christmas gift to myself. I blame B&N in Tupelo for tempting me. 

My sweet Milly Billy.

Guess who won a Noonday Collection gift card? This necklace and the bracelets below are what I spent it on. 

Sophie Grace also gave me an Owl Mug. 

Seriously though, please no more coffee cups. I have no where to put them. 

Harley actually enjoyed The Holiday. Who doesn't love Kate Winslet? 

Last, but certainly not least, the perfect cup of Wassail. 

I hope this Christmas didn't make anyone too crazy or stressed out. Relax. Go put on Netflix and grab yourself a cup of Hot Chocolate. The good kind, not Swiss Miss. yuck. 

Go Put Your Records On

 As most of you know, I've started collecting vinyls. Moody and I try to head up to Tupelo every month to attend the Flea Market. I was able to pick up some amazing albums yesterday. There were some amazing finds. And who doesn't want to spend the day with 

friends?

Moody and myself.

This was the first stop of the day. This is where I found my Jerry Lee Lewis album. 

How beautiful is the artwork inside the cover?

He may have an anger issue, but he sure can play the piano. 

No one can beat Elvis when he is singing gospel. When I play this it's like I'm at my Uncle and Aunt's house in Memphis.

This was our next stop. This is one of the sweetest men you will ever meet. Moody & I have decided to adopt him as a Grandfather. He loves to tell you stories about all the albums. 

There are no words to tell you how excited I was to find this. They are all in almost perfect condition. The Beatles never disappoint. 

These are my guilty pleasure finds of the day. Doesn't everyone clean house while playing movie soundtracks??

Last, but definitely not least, Ray Stevens was a big part of my childhood. This man helped me survive the chicken pox. I am forever grateful.

Guess who we found at the mall....
It was a mini D'Belle reunion. Love these girls! 

One of the last stops was to see Guardians of the Galaxy. It did not disappoint. Chris Pratt is beyond adorable. How doesn't love a good Star Lord? I just wish MouseRat would have had a song on the soundtrack. Maybe next time. 

I Miss Him.

Have you ever just had something hit you out of no where? I miss my Pop Pop tonight. There have been so many times when I wished that he was still here. When I was in the 6th Grade, he passed away. That man was my best friend. I was his "little dude." (Full House reference) 

 My Pop Pop wasn't the greatest man when he was younger. He had a drinking problem at one point and with that, he started having anger issues. But as the years passed that faded away, and he was precious with my Big Mama. He was tough on the edges, but when he loved you, you knew it. He was a wannabe John Wayne.

When I was born, I was a month late. They had to do an emergency C section on my Mother because my heart rate was dropping. This had my Pop Pop all kind of frazzled. He refused to come inside the hospital because he didn't want to get attached and then something happen to me. So like always, he waited outside in his truck. When all was well, my Father went outside to tell him. Pop Pop was livid that my name was Carly. My Mother said he complained that it was too complicated and hard to pronounce. Mom said it didn't take long to have him wrapped around my finger. 

That man would do anything in the world to make sure that I was safe and sound. He was in charge of getting my sister and myself to and from school. I never had to wait in line. He would be outside the school at 2:00 to wait on me. This is the man who had to have an Oxygen tank 24/7. Big Mama was wheelchair bound because she had an amputated leg. So every day after school, my sister and I would have to go into Kroger to pick up odds and ends for them. Pop Pop always made sure that we picked out a special treat for ourselves. He usually even let me keep the change. He waited in that truck on the very edge of the building in the fire lane. No one ever tried stopping him from doing that. They knew it was his spot, and he wouldn't have moved even if they had asked.

There was one day when I was sick, so I just stayed home with him and Big Mama. Pop Pop wasn't always big on showing affection. I remember that I was laying down on the other couch half asleep. He noticed and got up to put a blanket on me. Little things like that showed me how important I was to him. He might have been wrapped my finger, but I was just as much wrapped around his. That man means the world to me. I wish that he was still around so that I could cuddle up with him on the couch. And he would never let a guy treat me the way that I've been treated before. They would have had a come to Jesus meeting with him by now. My Father would have been dealt with too. 

This is the man who always made sure that I had a flashlight during a storm.

His normal state. My spot was right next to him on that red couch. (on left)
These photos were taken years apart, but he still has the same shirt on. 

No one can compare to this man.

My Heart Is Full

There are some weekends that seem to drag on forever, and some that don't seem that important. This past weekend was different.

First of all, Orange is the New Black Season 2 was released on Netflix. I'm already on Episode 11. Oops.


But that isn't as special as my friend's wedding day. Kelsey and Trey are friends from church camp, and I have been able to watch their love for each other blossom. It was a beautiful wedding in a small town church. Here's looking at you Baldwyn. The ceremony was so sweet, and so was the reception. Literally. There was 4 or 5 cake options, two pies choices, and a candy bar. What's sweeter than that? Food aside, it was so great to catch up with all the camp girls.



Moody and I went to Tupelo before the wedding to explore the bookstores again. I'm pretty sure we have a book buying addiction. My bookcase is overflowing with books that I haven't read yet. There isn't enough time in the day to read them all. We had time to kill, so we decided to go see Maleficent. I loathe Angelina Jolie. There's just something there that I don't like, but she blew me away in this movie. It was so visually stunning. There version of Sleeping Beauty was fantastic. SPOILER. I also love the fact that "True Loves Kiss" was between Aurora and Maleficent. She was like a mother looking out for a daughter, and I loved it.



(This is Brooke. We are kindred spirits.)


These are the 5 books that I picked up yesterday. I've been wanting Love Letters to the Dead & Someday, Someday, Maybe since I found out about them. I have weakness for anything that Lauren Graham does. *cough* Parenthood.

If you haven't noticed by my puppy spam on social media....We have a new dog around the house. Her name is Harley, and she is a Cane Corso. She has gotten so big so quickly. :( At this rate, it's very likely that she'll be bigger than Chopper. She's almost 4 months old. I don't know what we have gotten ourselves into.
                           











Last but not least, I found a letter from sweet Hugh in my car. Apparently it got lost after I checked the mail a few days ago. Even when she is across the pond, she knows just what I need to hear. I love that sweet girl. When she gets back, she'll be grounded. That girl has been gone for far too long.


I hope you have enjoyed your weekend as much I have mine. Friends bring love into your life that you didn't know you needed.








P.S. We were able to throw sprinkles at the newly wedded couple. How great is that?