Busy Busy Busy

Hi everyone! So we are in the middle of the biggest move ever. Well, that might be a little dramatic. Technically we are only moving 10 minutes away from our old house. This is, however, the first time we are moving with a baby. Holy crap this kid has a lot of stuff!

Laundry is so backed up with the move. Unfortunately I haven't been able to cloth diaper for the last 2 weeks. We have been using The Honest Company diapers. I will say the designs are super cute, but I can't freaking wait to get back to Cloth. Hopefully we will be back in them by the end of this week.

BAM! KAPOW! ZAP! POW!

When we bought the house we noticed there was a small tree. I wasn't sure what it was and gardening isn't my thing. I noticed a week ago that it was starting to sprout small fruit. Well!! I have a pomegranate tree! Look at how cute these are.

I have no idea how to keep them alive and healthy but I promised myself I would research it this week. Every once in a while I wander to the back yard with a glass of water and I toss it into the roots. Pretty sure a certain best friend will be rolling her eyes and laughing at this! It also rained a couple days ago and it was beautiful.

She kept staring at the window and at some point tried to walk through the glass sliding door.

I still think she has the most beautiful, soulful eyes I have ever seen.

Still no consistent walking. She will take steps occasionally but it's not something she's really interested in. She pulls herself up to standing but doesn't tend to take a step.

My heart melts every time I see Anthony and Madeline. She has such a wonderful bond with her daddy. Probably because he is the fun one.

I'm so ready to get unpacked and start playing with Makeup again.

One Year Later: Tips for Handling Post Partum Depression and Baby Blues

I have been a mother for a year. A full year of my life has been dedicated to one small, rambunctious beautiful little thing. I love my daughter. She is the light of my life. This year has been a huge transformation for my family and especially for me.

I've been putting off writing this post for a year now. For the first month after Madeline was born I really struggled. I don't really know why I wanted to share other than to let other moms know that whatever your post labor experience was, you are brave. 

My pregnancy was pretty rough. I was sick pretty much from conception. I spent the entire first trimester afraid I wouldn't meet my daughter because of one irresponsible doctor. Once I got into the second trimester I spent my time imagining matching outfits and homemade meals. I was totally ready for mid morning snuggles and late night feedings. When Madeline was born the entire world stopped. I was completely elated. The moment your child is born is like nothing else. The world manages to shrink into a small squeaky bundle while simultaneously turning into a huge, undiscovered adventure.

A few days after that I noticed I was feeling anxious over the smallest things. I was recovering from an emergency c-section and I assumed my body was just at it's limit. Unfortunately this was not the case. Motherhood is one of the loneliest experiences I have ever had. For a week after I had her everyone around me was thrilled. I was expected to be this glowing new mom, filled with joy and expectations for the future. Post Partum Depression is real. It's also really painful. You feel completely isolated and scared because you aren't feeling the same way that other mommies are feeling. Some women have a harder time than others after having a baby.  For me it hit 3 days after I gave birth, for some women it starts after you stop breast feeding or even a year later. Every woman is different. A year later I can look back and offer these words of advice.

1. Talk to someone. I was so desperate and so lonely that I actually reached out to a friend who I hadn't talked to in years. She had a baby about a year before me and I wanted to know if she struggled with her experience. I was so scared and so nervous. How do you ask someone if it's normal to cry when people ask you if you are ok? To stay up all night and make sure your baby is still breathing?

Here is how I started the conversation:

                "Did you have a total melt down when you got home from the hospital? I totally lost it yesterday. I kept thinking that without the nurses to help me I wouldn't be able to do it. It passed after a couple hours... But holy cow. I was a mess."

                 "It was so scary. I felt like I had made a terrible mistake. After months of being excited about her, I felt totally unsure. I just kept saying I wanted to go back to the hospital. I was so scared. It's not as easy as I thought it would be to transition."

She was very up front with me about her experiences after labor. She told me it was ok that I was seeking help and that there was nothing to be ashamed of. . Looking back a year later I know that she saved my life. To this day I am forever thankful that she was so willing to help me. If you are ever scared, anxious and feeling alone, talk to someone. Anyone. If you are drowning, find someone who can throw you a rope. 

2. Accept your fears instead of fighting them. This piece of advice came from my best friend. For a long time I was scared to go out with Madeline. I wasn't used to shopping with a baby, what if I turned my back and she got kidnapped? What if I walked away without her? WHAT IF BEARS ATTACKED IN BROAD DAYLIGHT. What if. I was constantly trying to fight these fears. Once I started to listen to her I realized that when I accepted my fears I could look at them more objectively. Yes. Bears are terrifying. Yes, you  never know when one might attack. No. It probably won't happen while you are shopping at Target. 

3. Don't be ashamed to get treatment. If you are in real trouble don't be afraid to get help from a doctor. There is nothing to be ashamed of. You cannot take care of anyone if you don't take care of yourself first. It's kind of like when the flight attendants tell you to secure your oxygen mask first.

4. Earmuffs. People are jerks. Everyone is going to question the way that you choose to raise your baby. Whether you breast feed or bottle feed, use disposable or cloth diapers, eat organic or Cheetos.. everyone will judge. Your only job in this scenario is to avoid giving them the platform to voice their opinions. If you can't avoid it, use earmuffs. Pardon my language, but people can be dicks. Sometimes you come across people who think they have/can/will do better. The truth is that only you know what is best for your child. 

5. Be careful of who you surround yourself with. If you are struggling with acclimating to your new life as a mom.. do yourself a favor. Take a step back from any moms who are quick to question the challenges of motherhood. I'm not saying that you should stop being friends with moms who aren't struggling. I'm saying that if it's beginning to make you doubt yourself, take a step back. I promise you, eventually all of the pieces fall into place and you will be that mom who takes it all in stride. Confide in your friends, if they can't relate or aren't making an effort, take a step back. I remember how hard it was for me to be around new moms who had no idea how hard it was to deal with PPD. 

6. Accept yourself. This one should be pretty easy because you, my friend, are a f****ing badass. You made a human. YOU housed another person inside of your body for 9 months. Go eat some ice cream, or turn up some tunes and do something that makes you feel good. Take a moment to be selfish. Enjoy being you. 

Today I am back to my wonderful, nature fearing self. I might, however, be a more tired version of my former self. Thanks to the help of my friends, loving husband and wonderfully supportive family. Family is everything.

DIY: CAKE SMASH!!!!!

Oh my gosh. This was by far one of my favorite moments with my family. I have a huge passion for photography and my inspiration is my daughter. When I was planning her party I of course went on pinterest to get ideas. While I was there I saw all of these aaaaaaamazing cake smash photos. I decided to post a short tutorial on how I did, the things I wish I did differently and tricks to make it way less messy. The whole thing was really inexpensive. We bought a cake, balloons, a little hat and a banner.

1. The setup! I knew that I wanted to do pink and white balloons with a simple banner. I wanted the focus to be on my daughter and not on the surroundings. Here was the basic setup that we started with. Some people use a cake stand and it looks so much better, but Madeline is going through a flipping and throwing phase. If you can stop your baby from flipping the cake stand and breaking it, it's worth it.

We made some changes after we did the first few photos. Put the balloons closer together. We took a bunch of shots that were pretty close up and the balloons were too far apart. Also, lower the banners! When you take the pictures you will be on her level so you want the banner to be right on her level. I realized this about half way through.

** Note*** Turn on the heat. If you have them in just a diaper or a tutu they might get cold.

2. Timing. My recommendation on this one is to take the pictures after your babies first nap. Mads was waking up around 10, so we setup the cake smash while she napped. When she woke up she was happy and hungry which was the perfect combination. It worked out wonderfully because that time of day has the best lighting and I didn't have to mess with my camera as much.

2. We put her down and let her adjust. I waited about 5 minutes before putting the cake in front of her. She smacked around the balloons for a couple minutes and tried to take down the banner, but after that she was fine.

3. The Cake!!!! So if your child hasn't had experience with cake before, they probably won't know what to do with it. We had given Mads some cake at her party, but she was still a little timid with it. So. Like any good parent I smeared some icing on her face and put a ton of cake in my hand and let her play with it. I recommend messing with the cake side that is facing your child, then you don't have it looking as messed up in the pictures. She loved it!!!! Me and my husband took turns taking pictures and playing with her. It was so much fun for both of us.

4. The cleanup. is. the. worst. I am very, very clumsy and the icing had some sort of oil in it and it was a bitch to clean up. I was slipping and sliding everywhere. So. make sure you have cleaner on hand. Other things to keep on hand, paper towels, cloth or disposable wipes and a towel. The cleanup process was made so much easier thanks to Anthony. We used as many baby wipes as we could to get the chunks of cake off of the baby. While he was wiping her down I went upstairs and started the bath. Having the bath ready is key! It makes it much easier. Anthony took care of Mads while I started to cleanup the downstairs.

5. The outcome. I love the pictures. It was so easy and they came out beautiful. I love when we can do fun projects together as a family and this was by far the best.

Mommy Disclaimer: I see a lot of crap out there about making homemade decorations, homemade cakes and homemade crafts. Let's be real, if you have a child you probably don't have time to do everything yourself. We bought the cake and most of the decorations. I took my top 2 favorite things on pinterest (the cake smash being one of them) and I made them my own. I think there is too much pressure out there to do as much as you can from scratch. Don't fall for it. It isn't just about your child turning one, it's also about you surviving your first year of parenthood. It's hard, stressful and incredibly fulfilling. When your baby turns one you will feel all of the feelings. Take the time to celebrate your awesomeness and cut yourself some slack. You're a badass.

Hello Again

Oh my gosh. It's been forever! I feel like I haven't sat down and written a blog post in forever. Things have been hectic. Wonderfully hectic.

Madeline has turned one.

My little baby girl is swiftly headed into her toddler years and every day  she becomes less of a baby and more of a little person. Her personality is really shining through and it's amazing to see the changes. I thought that the transition into toddlerdom would be a gradual "when did this happen" type of thing. Nope. Nope. Nope. Within 3 weeks she has started hating bathes, trying to charm her way out of nap time and throwing temper tantrums for no reason. It's ok though. I know there is a light at the end of the tunnel. That tunnel just happens to be about 18 years long...... Buckle up. 

Here are some pictures from her birthday party and a couple from her cake smash. I'm thinking of doing a "How To" guide for her smash cake pictures. They turned out amazing and I learned a lot from doing them. 

I want to start blogging more consistently but anyone with a baby understands that after the baby goes to bed, mommy goes to bed! She is super fun, but also quite a handful. I have some posts that I'm interested in writing a few different posts, I just need to find the time to sit down and write them. I hope all of you have a great weekend!

***** Also, a huge thank  you to my loyal readers. I have had a surprising amount of traffic on my blog even while I've taken a break to move/handle teething/ throw tea parties. Thank you everyone!!! 

Review: Milani Power Lip

I am such a sucker for the lip gloss/lip stain type product. When I saw these in CVS, I had to buy them. I purchased two colors, Red Control and Cabaret Blend. Red Control is a genuine red. The Cabaret Blend is a wine color. On the package it looks more purple, however on application it is closer to a burgundy red.

The packaging is a twist top. You twist it to get the product out and then apply it directly onto your lips. The packaging stinks. You twist it and you either get no product or way too much. There is no way to control the amount you get.

This is the Cabaret Blend. Honestly, it didn't apply the way I thought it would. When applied to the lips it comes out too red. I wanted a deep, rich purple toned color. Please excuse my tired eyes in this picture, someone has teeth coming in. It's been a long week!

Red Control was a true red. I really liked the color and it was nice and bright. The pigmentation is gorgeous and it doesn't shift like a lot of red colors do.

When applied to the lips it is very hydrating. I actually really like the feeling of it. It's moisturizing without being sticky. The color is fairly long lasting and as I said, I love the stain that's left behind. I might throw a balm over it just to re-hydrate the lips and help even the color a bit.

My overall opinion of the product is pretty good. I wish there were more shades, and I certainly wish the shades on the box were consistent. I would also prefer it with a doe foot applicator versus the twist top. I don't know that I would repurchase this product. I like the way it feels on the lips but the application is annoying. Milani is one of my favorite drugstore brands. I love their gel powder eye shadows and they have really great brow products.

Here is the link to find the Power Lip here
If you are looking into purchasing some Milani stuffs, please please please check out the Bella Eyes Gel Powder Eye Shadows.

Here is the review:  http://putthelipglossdown.blogspot.com/2014/07/review-milani-bella-eyes.html
You can purchase them at CVS or here

My next review will be on the Clinique Black Honey Wardrobe. Here is a sneak peak!!

Thanksgiving / Black Friday!!

Thanksgiving was a couple weeks ago! It was awesome. I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Those of you who aren't in the states (you know who you are), I hope you had a wonderful day anyways.

I had a great Thanksgiving. Typically we eat out at a restaurant so that way we don't have to argue over who does the dishes. It's tradition for us to have an earlier meal so that way we can go see a movie and then I go wait in line at the stores. Wellllllll. This year I have a baby. Last year we went to this lovely restaurant with delicious food, none of which I could eat. Pregnancy. Bleh. I didn't really want to bring my baby to a restaurant where she would cry, fling food and laugh uproariously at my hilarious jokes (faces).  Somehow this turned into me hosting Thanksgiving at my house.

Mmmmmmm Pie. I would like to mention that I technically hosted Thanksgiving, and while I contributed to several dishes (I chop a mean pecan) I didn't technically cook any of the dishes. Nonetheless, it was very stressful. I don't know that I will do it again. I was originally joking, but next year we are doing Boston Market. Especially since my dishwasher BROKE the day after Thanksgiving. We had to hand wash everything. It was a total pain.

Family time is wonderful. My baby sister was in town and she gave Madeline an early Chanukah gift. You can tell she loved it!

It was so nice to spend her first Thanksgiving at home. She got her first taste of cranberries. She's not really a fan, but that's ok. Next year she can try some turkey!

One of my favorite things about this holiday season is Black Friday. I made out like a bandit this year. One thing I do have to say.. I think this will be the last time I wait in line. A lot of stores had the same deals online. I found that I was texting my family the whole time, wondering what they were doing. Anyways... let's move on to my haul!!!

So The Body Shop is one of my favorite stores. I feel like the products are a higher quality than Bath and Body Works and the scents aren't as.... I guess cheap? Don't get me wrong, I have my fair share of Bath and Body Works lotions and I enjoy them for what they are.

This was one of the best deals I've seen for The Body Shop. They were selling all of their body butters for $11. I bought three of my favorite scents. I bought Grapefruit, Mango and Shea Nut.

They also had a deal where if you spent $30 you could buy a canvas tote filled with full size products for $30. Here's what it came with.

- A super soft loufa
- Satsuma Body Sorbet
- Honeymania Bubble Bath Melt
- Shea Shower Cream
- Coconut Body Butter
- Honeymania Soap
- Vitamin E Moisture Cream
- Hemp Hand Protector
- Satsuma Body Polish

The thing that I appreciated about this deal was that all of the products in the tote were full size. The tote itself is a super high quality tote with a really cute design. It says "You're a lash battling, blush blending, colour popping, , eye defining, utterly unique beauty." Damn straight.


So I obviously had to pick some stuff up from Sephora. There were a couple of things that I needed to stock up on. My beauty blender was trashed. I needed a new one. If you don't have a Beauty Blender, you need one. It's worth every penny.

I also wanted to get more light pink bobby pins. I also got the L'Occitane Amande Supple skin oil and shower oil. I picked up the Sephora Favorites Super Stars. This came with a bunch of full size products and a few trial size products. I will probably do a review on this later.

I also got the Smashbox Santigolden Age eye shadow collage.  This is totally taking me out of my comfort zone. The colors are super pigmented. I'm sure I will do more of a review when I have time to play with it more.

I received the Clinique Black Honey Wardrobe as an early Hanukkah gift from my Dad. I am totally obsessed. I will definitely be doing swatches on this bad boy. UGH. SO PIGMENTED.

Most of my other purchases were clothes. Next week I will have a blog on plus size fashion, I'll post my goodies there. I went to Old Navy for clothes for myself and my family. I must say, the baby clothes are so adorable. I also picked up some clothes from Modcloth and the Children's Place.

UPDATE:

I just got a fun little package!!!!!! I love receiving packages, especially when I forgot I even ordered them.

 I bought this Too Faced Natural at Night palette. With it came three deluxe samples including the Primed and Poreless powder, Perfect Eyes waterproof eyeliner and the Glow To Go bronzer and brush.

I'm Back!!

Hello Everyone,

So. I'm sure that you have noticed that I have taken a break from writing in my blog. I honestly needed to take the time to reevaluate my priorities and really think about how much of myself I wanted to put out there. This blog is about my life. My love for makeup and beauty products really is a small, small fraction of that. I love my family, my friends and my life. I don't want to limit this blog to just beauty, fashion and makeup. I will continue to post about my family, including my husband and daughter.  I will never, ever post anything inappropriate of or about them. There will be no bath pictures or pictures of her undressed. I will never share private and personal stories of her or anyone else. I love my daughter. I love my husband. I will always do my best to do right by them. Anyways.. let's move on to a fun little update!!

So my little yumyum is a crawler! That's right folks. My fun and precocious baby is showing signs of heading into her toddler stage. She started to crawl a couple of months ago and it took me completely by surprise. What's worse than that.. She's now pulling herself up on things and taking a couple of cautious steps whilst holding on for dear life. This folks, is the beginning of the end. I would officially like to say farewell to my sanity. Our time together was brief, but I shall remember you always.

Another super fun (semi sarcasm) development are her sharp little chompers. Little mama now has two razor sharp teeth. Nursing has taken a dangerous and painful new twist. God forbid something distracts her while she is eating. OUCH. I consider it a small, fleeting blessing that they are both on the bottom. She has two coming in on the top, but hopefully they won't arrive for a week or so.

We have been making more of an effort to go out and do fun things with the baby. A few months ago I was so overwhelmed that I would avoid taking her places so we didn't have to deal with crying and fussing outside the comfort of our own home. She has grown so much and she now interacts with people and things around her. I find that I can take her places with me and I actually really enjoy it. It's all about timing people! Our favorite spot so far has been the aquarium. First of all, I am totally biased. I remember going to the Seattle aquarium and thinking it was the coolest thing ever. This one was a lot smaller, but it was just as fun!

I loved being able to see the fish swim around me. It was this big room with a huge school of fish swimming in a circle. It was really amazing. Anthony decided to stick his head in with Madeline. I think she was more baffled than anything.

 I felt like such a jackass after taking this picture. Right next to the octopus is a "No Flash Photography" sign that I hadn't seen. Whoops. Sorry Mr. Octopus, next time I won't be obnoxiously taking pictures with the flash. My bad.

This room was pretty cool. Notice how I am not in the picture? Well. The floor is see through. I had the hardest time walking across it. I am totally uncomfortable walking across clear surfaces. My neuroses  have no limits...

It feels so good to be doing this again. I would also like to reintroduce myself. My name is Stephanie. Some friends call me Stevie. Some call me Steph. I am a mother, wife and overall BADASS. I love makeup, trashy tv and a good hockey brawl. Until next time.