Current Night Routine

Yeah buddy..two for two!  Since I started slipping on doing blogposts I decided to have dedicated posts that I'll do at least weekly so that way I can stay consistent with all of this.  I"ll still post my random posts sporadically but I feel like doing a weekly thing will help keep my random posts more frequent.  So on Tuesdays expect something beauty related to check out.  I even have a calendar planned out all the way until February..so this is gonna happen.  Every other week will be some sort of makeup application post.  I guess technically it's a tutorial but remember, I'm just an enthusiast.  I do have an extended blogpost set for Thursday for more background on that and where I'm heading with it.  And then every other week it will be makeup related but more broad and you'll see what I mean as time goes on.

So anyways today I'm talking about my night routine.  This has changed over the years as I try different products and it may change as time goes on.  I've been using a new skin care system lately and so far so good with it but I also want to try out a few other products from this company as well.  But for now I'll share what I'm doing currently and I'll share what I would like to try.

On work nights the first thing I do to get ready for bed is take a shower.  I'll shower in the mornings sporadically for work but I just really love going to bed all clean - it feels really refreshing.  But for the weekends when I don't have to be up super early I prefer to start my day off with a shower.

After my shower I typically have raccoon eyes that are just gross so I take my Mary Kay Oil Free Eye Makeup Remover to remove any makeup I have left on.  I love this makeup remover because it works super well and it doesn't irritate my eyes at all.  If this is a night that I don't take a shower I prefer to use a makeup wipe (wipes are probably the best thing ever created). Out of the three different wipes I've tried so far I like Maybelline Clean Express Deep Cleansing Towelettes the most.  These are large and WET.  I couldn't stand how dry the Mac and Neutrogena wipes got.  I would even store them upside down and that would help but the last few were like..not that wet.  If a wipe feels dry I feel like it's not doing its job fully.  Especially since I now know how amazing the Maybelline wipes are.  Plus if you get home late and don't have enough energy to do your full night routine all you need to do is go brush your teeth and grab a wipe and as you walk to your bed and lay down clean away.  Yes, I have done this before.

In the past for my cleanser I have used Proactiv which I liked and it did what I wanted to do but honestly it's a bit harsh on the skin.  The beads in the cleanser made sense but were rough and after washing my face I felt dried out and a little raw.  So now I'm using the TimeWise 3-In-1 Cleanser (normal/dry skin).  I've tried this product out about four times in the past three years and have liked it each time - this also has the beads in it but it's so much more creamy.  I've been using it consistently for a few weeks now and I do like how it keeps my skin feeling clean and I can tell the difference in using this product.  One night I did use the TimeWise 3-In-1 Cleanser for oily/combination skin just for kicks - I can't give a full review on this since I don't have oily skin and I only used it once.

Following the cleanser I use my Night Solution and you can't forget to moisturize and for that I use the TimeWise Age-Fighting Moisturizer (dry/normal).  I always thought it was weird in the past when I was using "age-fighting" products.  Dude..I'm young!  But why wait for a problem to exist and then correct it?

While I wait for my skin to dry from washing and as I let the Night Solution set I do a few things in between.  The first thing I do after washing my face is apply my Artistry Essentials Replenishing Eye Creme.  I got this eye creme a few months ago and I haven't used it consistently enough to know if it works or not.  My bad.  I have been better about including it into my routine and this is important to me because I have dark circles that I would prefer to not have to spend so much time covering up when I do my makeup.  Once I get through this product I'll give a full review at that point.

After applying my Night Solution I go back to my eyes and apply my Lash & Brow Building Serum.  I've had this product for a long time now but again, I haven't used it consistently enough to know if it works or not.  When I was in high school I used RevitaLash which I loooooooved and I know it works based off my experience but it's pretty expensive.  I have small, sparse and thin lashes, I know how to coat on the mascara but it's nice to have a good base to start with.  So we'll see how this new one turns out and I'm hoping for the best since it's a much better price.

I'm interested in trying out the Botanical Effects Cleanser because I have a sample of the Botanical Effects Mask and was very happy with the result after once use.  My skin isn't too bad when it comes to acne but I do have some problem areas. My cheeks get blemishes and I have blackheads on my chin under my lip.  My chin isn't that noticeable but it's still gross and I was happy with how the mask cleared this up.  It reminded me of the Proactiv I used to use but again not so harsh.  I only use a face mask 1-2 times a week, not every night.

Now that my face is all clean and set my teeth need some attention.  Flossing and brushing is a definite must.  I have a DiamondClean sonic toothbrush.  There is such a major difference between an electric toothbrush and a manual.  You really don't know what clean is until you use an electric toothbrush.  And to keep my teeth straight I have that good ole retainer.  I had Invisalign for about five months last year and that helped me stick with my retainer this time around (yeah..I had braces before and didn't wear my retainer) because I was already used to wearing a retainer almost 24/7.

And then I get all snuggly in my bed and go to sleep.  Good night.

Ransom Smokey Eye

Before I get into this blogpost I just need to say I am a makeup enthusiast .. All my makeup knowledge is from watching YouTube videos for the past 3+ years and I've grown a good collection of makeup for the average girl.  It's nothing too crazy, really but once you get to the point of having a few different foundations you wear depending on the look you want .. it's a collection.  I have a few Mac foundations and a few MaryKay and I like each of them but again, I wear each one depending on how I'm doing the rest of my makeup.

Also .. these photos were taken with my phone so they're not as great as if I were to have a professional camera and although when I look at the photos today I'm pleased but I remember being disappointed when I initially took the photos - the makeup looked better in person.  I do have another camera I could potentially try out next time.  Plus I wish I went outside instead of just being next to a window.  It would've been the perfect day/time to take photos outside.

 

Anyways here is a before and after of the makeup I did last weekend.  I didn't have anywhere to go, in fact I was home all weekend with a sick baby but when she was taking a bath I thought it would be fun to experiment with  my makeup - if it turned out totally awful at least I didn't have to redo my makeup before leaving the house.  I was quite pleased with how it turned out, however I already know how to make it better for next time.

I really can't say I can think of a photo of myself posted anywhere without any makeup at all.  So that's what I look like in case you were wondering. Ha.  On a day to day basis I try to do my makeup not so cray cray and more with browns and tans for my eyeshadow.  And even though my foundation might vary the bronzer/blush typically stays the same.  I have a few different highlighters and concealers but mostly stick with what I'll share in this post.

 

I knew that I wanted to a smokey eye and this is a very similar look I did for Courtney's bachelorette party (I posted it on my Instagram back in September & that look was brighter on the inner corners and I used a teal blue as the transition).  Below I'm going to list the products I used and how I created this look and at the end of the post will be close ups of my eyeballs.

 

I first filled in my eyebrows with my Anastasia Beverly Hills Go Brow Kit (in medium brown).  I like this kit because it's simple and I really just started filling in my eyebrows this past year.  Plus it's small and I wanted to try it out before committing to buying things for my eyebrows.  I was never really a fan before of filling them in but if you're going to go all out on your makeup for a look like this, your eyebrows need to be done.  Especially since mine are already so light. (With that said, the photos make it appear like I didn't touch them .. for photos I should fill them in darker to have a better balance but when I did it .. didn't look so great.  Good thing I took enough photos before messing them up!)

 

I then primed my eyes with Urban Decay's Primer Potion sometimes I use my concealer for this step and it's *mostly* random what product I use for that.  I did use my Mac Prolong Wear Concealer to carve out the bottom portion of my brow.  I knew I wanted to put a very light color for my highlight so that's why I wanted to use my concealer, I feel like it shows lighter colors better.

 

My eyeshadows for this look came from Urban Decay's Deluxe Shadow Box (I see this at Nordstrom Rack all the time and it's a great price!!) and the first Naked Palette.  Refer back to these photos to see the shadows I used.

 

Urban Decay Deluxe Shadow Box

Urban Decay Naked Palette

Eye Makeup Steps:

1. Applied "Virgin" (Far left shadow from the Naked Palette) to my brow bone for my highlight.
2. Applied "Naked" (Third from left from the Naked Palette) with a big fluffy brush above my crease and slightly blended into my brow bone.
3. Applied "Ransom" (Top right corner of the Deluxe Shadow Box) with a fluffy brush into my crease.
4. Applied "Zero" (Center of Deluxe Shadow Box) with a flat shadow brush and packed that on all over my lid NOT going into my crease.  Because of my eye shape, next time I would stop Zero sooner because when I blended it out into Ransom it was darker than I had intended.
5. Using a blending brush I blended Zero into Ransom and in my opinion, blending is the most important thing when doing any eye look. 
6. I lined my waterline and tight line with Urban Decay's 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in "Zero".
7. I put Ransom on a small brush and blended that on my bottom lash line and then I put my Zero eyeshadow closer to my lash line and blended that all out.
8. I used my E.L.F. black liquid liner to line my top eyelid but I did not wing it out.  I love the way that it looks winged out but..I feel like there are some YouTubers that I watch that do it every single time and .. no.  Let's mix it up. 
9. I applied a coat of mascara to my lashes and place my Ardell "Wispies" on top.  I seriously love these lashes.  
10. The last thing I did was add more Virgin to the inner corners of my eyes to help brighten them up.

This photo is with my eyes *mostly* completed (no false lashes yet).  I also have my foundation on but nothing else.  In my first step below I describe cleaning up the edges of my eyeshadow so take a look at my bottom eyeshadow and see how as it goes up and meets my eyeshadow on top, well, it's straight instead of "blown out".  Hopefully this photo helps with my description below.

 

Face Makeup Steps:

1. I first used some makeup remover on a Q-Tip to remove any fall out from my eyeshadow and to create a solid line on the outer edges of my eyeshadow.  Cora (from YouTube) gave a great tip in a video recently and that was to start the Q-Tip at the top and bring it down.  It really makes a difference compared to going in the upward motion.  I don't always make the edges of my eye shadow straight like this.  Most of the time I leave it "blown out" depending on the look I'm going for.  
2. Since I have such a dramatic, night eye look going on I typically prefer a matte foundation - I save the dewey look for my lighter eye looks or for during the day - I used my MaryKay TimeWise Matte-Wear Liquid Foundation. I blended that all over my face with a stippling brush.
3. I used my Mac Prolong Wear Concealer again for underneath my eyes and here's a tip that Christian (from the Bridgeport Mac store) told me about concealing my dark circles: only add concealer on the dark parts of what you're concealing, blend it and build as needed.  I have a few dark lines that almost frame my bags so I spend some time on that when I really want to hide them.
4. I set my under eye make up with my Bare Minerals Veil.  I mostly use this since I don't have anything else, it is shimmery but since most of my eyeshadows I own are I feel like it's okay .. haha. Jacklyn Hill (from YouTube) used Mac Pro's "Emphasize" and I really like that and would love to get myself one but with it being fall and winter now I would want something not to white.  I do want to get something else to use for when I want a really matte look and not so glittery.  I did initially buy this for a highlighter but I ended up using it this way.  I also placed a little bit of this powder on my cupid's bow .. another tip I learned from Jacklyn.
5. I bronze up my face by adding Mac's Bronzing Powder to the hallow of my cheeks and around my hairline.  I don't really "contour" my face but I do give it more dimension by adding the bronzer.
6. When it comes to blushes I normally use one blush for a few months and then switch it up.  I bought Mac's "Blush All Day" back in September and I totally love it.  I told Christian exactly what I was looking for in a new blush and he handed me this one and I seriously love it so much.  All summer I've been using a bright pink so it's a nice change to still have pink cheeks but something better for fall. (In the past I've also used "Dame" and "Springsheen" from Mac as well.)
7. I then powder the rest of my face with the Mac Mineralize Foundation/Loose.

After adding some bronzer and blush.

For my lips I used the Kardashian Nude Lip S"et "Au Naturel.  And that is it.  My look for staying at home all night long haha.  Next time I do a look like this I want to use "Fishnet" (Top left corner from the Urban Decay Deluxe) and take it more easy on the Zero.  

Again, here is the final look and then some close ups of the eyes.  I was experimenting taking photos and yeah .. not super happy about how they turned out but..whatever.  

 

Courtney's Makeup Trial #1

One of my oldest and closest friends is getting married next month!  Courtney and I have been friends since we were 13 and along with Kristi and Lindsay she's one of my oldest friends and I have so many great memories with her and I'm thrilled she asked me to be in her wedding party and plan her bachelorette party.  She also asked if I would do her makeup for her bridal shower, bachelorette party and for the day of the wedding.  She said she noticed I have been getting into makeup and I'm excited she's letting me practice my skills on her.  She'll be the second person I've applied makeup to and oh crap, it's tough.  Haha.  I've done my sister Brooke's makeup a few times and then more recently for her prom which I was very pleased with how it turned out.  I'm getting used to doing makeup on someone else but it will definitely take more practice.  At this point the only issue I'm having is liquid liner and mascara.

Tonight I went over to Courtney's to do the first makeup trial.  The first look that came to mind for the wedding was a very flawless look with a light eyeshadow with a semi dark crease with no harsh lines.  I figured if anything this would also be a great bridal shower look.  I figured we would give this a shot and I'll do the look without her knowing anything I was doing and let her see everything when I was done.  Then next time I'll have her choose colors and give me some direction of what she envisioned and then the following time after that we would try something dramatic and fun (which would likely be for the bachelorette party).  And also for each time we would keep the foundation routine pretty much the same but fine tune it each time.

The foundation routine today was first a liquid foundation (I can't remember what it is at the moment, it's something she had in her makeup bag) which was a good one but I'm thinking I would want to try a bit more coverage foundation for next time.  Underneath the eyes I first put my new Maybelline Instant Age Rewind Eraser Dark Circle Treatment Concealer (in "light").  I got this the other day at Target (I think Gregory Gorgeous was the YouTuber that mentioned that he liked it but I honestly can't remember who it was for sure).  This was only my second time using it (once for myself and once for her) and I like it so far!

I also applied my Mac Prep and Prime (in "bright forecast").  And like always I LOVE THAT CRAP.  Seriously if anyone wants to gift me the two other shades I might love you forever...just saying!  Especially since the other two shades are lighter and one is a pink tone.  To set all of that I applied BareMinerals Mineral Veil.  It's a shimmery powder and while Courtney likes it shimmery I want to try a matte powder at one point to see how we like it.  I set her t-zone with a Mac face powder and then I slightly bronzed up her face with my Mac Bronzing Powder and used a bright pink blush from on one my IPSY bags for her cheeks.  Stephen and I agree that next time a bit more bronzer would be a good idea, I just didn't want to go all crazy this time around.  I also think it would be fun to try contouring a bit just to see how we like it.  But again, I don't want to go super cray with that but I still want her face to have dimension since so many photos will be taken that day.

Now for the eyes!!  And for those I have some close up photos of.  They were taken with my iPhone which actually photographed pretty well.  I've tried taking photos in the past of makeup and it's difficult to do!  I always wondered what cameras that girls on Instagram use but at that point..that's a lot of work.  But it's their careers so I guess it makes sense to have super amazing quality.  So I will say that in person it looks more pigmented and pretty much amazing. And I'll say again..this is like still all new to me, the whole putting makeup on someone else thing.  It's hard to know how to place your hands since you're used to putting it on one way and now it's all backwards.  I wasn't worried about the eyeshadow part, just the liquid liner and mascara.  And since Court is a pro at winged liner so she'll do that for this as well as the mascara.  I did it today to test my skills and so I can do the whole look without her seeing it until the end.  So please excuse the liner and the placement of the false lashes.  That was also a first for me, putting those one someone else.  But I'm pleased with what I was able to do.  Just takes practice.  I also shaped her eyebrows tonight as well.  She asked me if I could and I told her I would try (I JUST figured out how to do this on myself these past 6 months).  I thought I would at least remove the stray hairs and if I wasn't comfortable shaping them then I would stop and tell her to go get it done.  And holy efffff.  I did good.  Hahaha.  I was very surprised that I was able to give her a nice shape and to clean it up a bit.  I would still probably suggest her getting them done by a pro a week before the wedding so that way they're perf but again..these turned out pretty good.  Haha.

First I used Courtney's MaryKay eyeshadow primer.  I started with my Urban Decay Naked Palette and I had "sin" on the inner 2/3 of her eye but then thought it was too sheer and put "skimp" from my Urban Decay Mariposa Palette on and it was closer to what I had envisioned since it's more cream and matte.  Also from my Naked Palette I used "naked" for the transitional color for her crease, "hustle" for the outer corner of her eyelid and then "virgin" for her highlight and inner corner.  

The liquid liner is NYX and although you can't see it I put a black pencil liner on her bottom lashes and then slightly smudged with "hustle" with a small brush.  It looked pretty.  Promise!  Having it slightly smudged made it softer and not so harsh.  I really don't even liked describing it as "smudged" since I didn't lay it on thick.  I believe that's all I did today...I didn't fill in her eyebrows since they're already full and but I would go in and add a little bit of something next time.  I will for sure for sure for sure for sure use a setting spray for each of the events.  I currently have Urban Decay's All Nighter Spray which I'm close to running out of since it's a travel size and I use it like no other.  It's amazing how spraying your face with something like this once you're done with your makeup can really help it stay looking great.  I really want to try their Chill Makeup Setting Spray since I've heard great things about that one as well.

And I just remembered, the lashes!  Courtney got these at the Dollar Store!  Whuuuuuuuuuut.  They're the ones that crisscross and I prefer those the most out of all the styles and to apply these I didn't use any lash glue.  I just kept the sticky stuff on them and placed them on since we just wanted to see how it would look and didn't want to just waste them.  We'll use them on Friday when I go back over there to do her makeup for Stephen's birthday.  We'll also trim them at that point.

And then for the lips we decided a pinky/nude color would be best.  I only had bright pink, hot pink, coral and plum in my bag so I'll go pick something up.  I had the perfect lipstick/lipgloss combo that I got from Mac but I lost it!  The last time I saw them was on Easter and I have no clue where they are.  So sad.  And the worst thing is that I don't even have a clue what their names were.

So yeah that's it for this look today!  I'll be back there Friday and we'll put together more of a night look since they're going out that night so it's suitable for that and also to play around with things again.  So I may share that one as well!  I didn't have any plans to put together this post today but as I was writing the caption for these photos for Facebook I realized I should just write a post for it so I can put all the details and whatever.  I wanted to do this for Brooke's prom makeup but never got around to it but really, it was pretty similar to this but she has fair skin and no false lashes.

Peytyn's Birth Story

So today is Peytyn's fourth birthday!  It's amazing how fast time goes by.  I thought I would put together a blogpost about being pregnant with Pey and her birth story.  Enjoy!

Overall the pregnancy was great.  I never had any morning sickness, I was just extra tired and would take naps in between my classes.  My last term of school for the 08-09 school year I only had classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays and they were general classes and not too demanding which was great!  I do remember two days that I felt a little nauseous but, whatever, I'll take it.  Haha.

I also did not gain much weight.  Which was fine up until the last few weeks of my pregnancy.  I carried small and didn't really start showing until I was like 28 weeks pregnant.  Obviously there was a bump there sooner but nothing too noticeable.

One thing that was troublesome was that when I was 32 weeks I was only measuring 28 weeks.  So my doctor scheduled an ultrasound to check her weight and she turned out to be "small-ish" but it wasn't anything to worry about.  Then a few weeks later (when I was seeing my doctor once a week) I had lost two pounds .. again that was concerning.  Normally at this point you're supposed to gain a pound a week.  I remember crying in my doctor's office and I could tell where on my body I lost the weight, my jeans were fitting looser but I also felt like I was eating normal.  It was all confusing but the ultrasound helped me feel better about her growth separate from what was going on with my body.

The last month of my pregnancy was tough though.  A month before I had her (about two months before her due date) a good friend of mine passed away.  It was a very tough first week mourning the loss of Corey.  But I was truly amazed with how my body handled it.  I really don't remember much of that week but I remember looking back at the end of it and while my brain was aloof my body was still in check.  It's like my body was doing what my brain was forgetting to do.  I ate and slept pretty normally but it wasn't intentional - if that makes any sense?  Not that I wouldn't have tried to eat and sleep normally but again, my brain and emotions were not in check.

Also during the last month of my pregnancy I had to go to the hospital three times (I think..it might have been four but I really don't remember).  But I remember at the end of one appointment my doctor told me to call if I couldn't keep food or water down.  I thought this was odd since I never had any issues with that but of course I kept it in mind.  Then the next day, I was laying in bed feeling super sick and couldn't keep food or water down.  I called my doctor and went in to see her.  After seeing me she decided to admit me to labor and delivery.  After five hours of fluids and IV I felt a lot better and was sent home.  Then a week went by and it happened again.  This time I think I was in the hospital for more like 10 hours, but I can't really remember.  After this event my doctor prescribed me some anti-nausea medicine to help prevent it.  But if I remember right it made me feel sick and I threw it up.  They tried a few different pills for me to take and there were two or three that just weren't working and a few days later I was back in the hospital.  This time it was for good.


It was a tad annoying though.  One of the times I went in the doctor on call kind of dismissed me and what I was going through.  UM LADY...I wasn't faking!  I'm not some crazy who's trying to get my baby sooner.  Thankfully another doctor came on call and was much nicer to me and thought everything going on with me was very odd.  The last time I called L&D to go in the nurses were trying to keep me at home.  Even after I told them that none of the prescriptions worked and it really was unbearable. I told them I would try to stay at home but I would call when I couldn't handle it anymore.  I think I called back like 15 minutes later.  It was also annoying that when they checked to see if I was dilated this time a nurse said I was like 2cm and said I could be having the baby that night.  Um.  No.  I first spent three days in there and then eventually got induced.


It was a hard three days.  I was at least stable and not feeling super sick but I still couldn't keep food or water down.  Eventually by day three was able to keep some Gatorade down but it was truly exhausting.  I was told that if I got up to 4cm they would induce me but I think I stayed at 2cm those three days.  But finally I was given the option to be induced.  It was a hard choice to make.  I was three weeks early at this point and was explained that her lungs and being able to breast feed were the two concerns of having her that day.  I was given three options, 1. Go home and wait it out. 2. Stay at the hospital and wait it out. 3. Be induced.  I told them I for sure wanted to stay in the hospital because there's no way I would've been comfortable at home without the IV and fluids.  But then like a few minutes later a nurse comes in to discharge me.  Um...no crazy lady, I did not choose that option!  Since we were going to be there who knows how much longer my mom decided to leave me and went home to get a few things.  While she was out I was alone for probably the first time (thanks Mom for being there!!) and I felt the calmness come over and felt that if I had Peytyn that day, she would be fine.  I called my doctor I was ready to be induced.  She came in, broke my water and started the pitocin. I will say my dad wasn't happy about that choice.  He wanted her in there as long as possible but once we found out after she was born she was perfectly fine, it was all good.

Now the contractions.  For the love...those things suck!  I knew I wanted to wait as long as I could before getting the epideral but seriously.  It sucked.  I yelled at my dad at one point to shut up (sorry Dad!!).  But I did make it clear to everyone in the room that no talking was allowed during contractions and there was a machine that beeped whenever I was having one so they knew what was going on.

I was in labor a total of six hours (which was great considering I was on pitocin).  The first three and a half hours were the painful ones.  I finally got my epideral and I was actually afraid to get one because I heard it hurt going in.  But honestly, I did not feel one thing!  I didn't like how it made me feel though.  I hate the numb feeling of my legs.  It made it so hard to push her out.  How the hell do you "push" when you can't feel a thing.  My favorite part of labor was the nap I had after receiving my epideral.  BEST NAP EVER. Seriously, can I have another?

Once I woke up from my nap I had dilated to 8cm (an hour before I was at 4cm) and a few of my friends were there and it was awesome to see them.  After not very long at all my nurse came to check in on me and when checking to see how dilated I was she told me to push.  Um..what?  I was alone in the room with this nurse and you want me to push?  Once that contraction was over she called my mom and doctor and 11 minutes later out came the baby!  I do want to add in that Peytyn was "right there" since I first arrived at the hospital.  There was no way for her to be lower without slipping out on her own.

There was a little complication with Peytyn's heart rate dropping every time I had a contraction so that was another reason she came out so quickly..doctor took matters in her own hands to make sure she was okay.

On July 29th, 2009 at 11:41PM my baby Peytyn Cosette was born weighing 6 pounds 2 ounces and was 19 inches long.  For being three weeks early that was a great weight!  Especially since me and all my siblings were all about 6 pounds as well.

She had a head full of hair and out of all the crazies I heard and dumb pregnancy stereotypes the one and only thing that was consistent was that baby hair equals heartburn.  And that was so so so true in our situation.  It's what I felt was causing me to feel so sick at the end. It's funny actually, you could even see Peytyn's hair waving in the fluid during my last ultrasound.

We were able to leave the hospital two days later and she had great lungs and breast fed right away.  So the two possible issues were totally fine.

I'm so happy and thankful that I have my Peytyn.  She has been such an amazing daughter and I love her so much.  It makes me sad thinking that next year at this time I'll be buying her school supplies!!  But it will be so fun taking her to school and seeing her continue to grow.

I love you Peytyn!

A few days before giving birth.

OOTN: Oversized Aritzia Tank with H&M "Leather" Pants & Bellami Hair Extensions

My clip in hair extensions are from Bellami Hair, I have Bellissima 220g 22' in Chestnut Brown.  I went with this color because I currently have an ombre and it matches it perfectly.  It will continue to match as I go lighter - it will turn into a shadow box eventually.  And I have major issues  with the top of my head when it comes to my hair.  It's always so flat and nothing seemed to go right when styling it so I pulled it back with a mini French braid.

My top is from Aritzia. It's the Talula Inglewood Tank and I bought it a little bigger so I can either wear a tank underneath it or one of my Free People lace bandeaus.  This particular time I wore a Splendid tank that I got from Nordstom Rack.

I wanted some leather-looking type of pants and found some at H&M.

My heels are Donald J Pliner that I got for only $10 at Nordstrom Rack - normally $315.  And my accessories are the same as always: mine and Peytyn's Juicy Couture necklaces that have our zodiac signs, my Knoname Flektor in white, Rastaclat bracelet in black and two silver rings.

Princess Photoshoot

A few weeks ago Rick took some DARLING photos of Peytyn for her birthday invitations.  Her first three birthdays were a lot of fun to plan but this one is even more fun since I was able to get her input for the first time.  Her first birthday didn't have much of a theme, just cutesy and girly.  Her second birthday was a "Look Who's Turning Two-Two" party which was a tutu theme (duh) and her third birthday party was a milk and cookies theme.  That last one had sooooo many goodies!

A month ago I asked Peytyn what she wanted to do for her birthday and the words that left her mouth were "pancakes", "pink cake" and "princess". That made it super easy for me!  All things girly and princess!!  I have a lot of ideas and fun details for the party already but I'll share those once it happens and I can share photos of them.  But basically every Disney princess will be represented in some way.  

The camera Rick used was a Canon.  Some of these photos are edited by him, by me and some are unedited completely.  Pey is wearing a dress she picked out at Costco with my mom.  My mom took her out to get groceries but when Peytyn saw the "princess dress" she begged for it.  The tutu she's wearing is actually mine.  When I had photos taken of us before her second birthday we both wore tutus that I made and so I still had that on hand.  I wanted it to be big and fluffy and the one I made for her was a lot smaller than mine and I didn't even bother pulling it out.  Her tiara is also mine that I got from Silverado Portland Jewelry located in Bridgeport Village.


Adding a little glitter and blush to help get her in the mood.

I wasn't sure what to do with her hair since I was putting on a tiara, a simple braid can never go wrong.
 

The first spot we found was a little too bright!

Me: Peytyn, what's on your nose?

Peytyn: A sucker.