What's In There Wednesday - Makeup Bag

My friend over at Tales of a Short Southern Mama has started a theme post for Wednesdays! It is going to be called What's In There Wednesday and for the first week she posted her makeup bag! If you don't follow her already, you really should! She is a great blog friend to have!

So let's get to it! I don't really have a make up bag, instead I have an entire drawer at my sink. I am the Queen Bee of hoarding beauty products! If you don't believe, go read this post! Yeah, I don't like to throw stuff out. I like having options of what to put on my face everyday, so I have tons of colors of eyeshadow, blush, liners (lip and eye), lipstick, and lipgloss. I can't exactly show you everything I have because we would be here all day. I did take this snapshot of my drawer all opened up to show you just how much I have!Yeah, it's a lot! At least it is organized! So as for what I use daily, I pretty much stick with the same things and just change out my eyeshadow and lips.

I will tell you about each thing clockwise starting with the black tube of mascara ending with the open pink and brown eyeshadow.

• Mary Kay Ultimate Mascara in Black - I love this stuff! It is great and inexpensive! It definitely makes my lashes va-va-voom!
• Loreal brown eyeliner - this is just your basic brown eyeliner from the Wal-mart. I used to use Clinique and I still have a few different colors in those, but I bought this one on a whim at Wal-mart and I really like it. My only thing about eyeliner and lip liners is that is must be a roll-up type, not a pencil I have to sharpen...I really hate those! I wear this only on my top lashline. I really only line the bottom when I am going somewhere special at night. I just feel like it looks to harsh on my fair skin and blonde hair to wear it on the bottom in the day.
• Neutrogena Healthy Skin foundation - This stuff is okay, but I won't be buying any more. It is almost gone, so when it is out I am going to call my Mary Kay consultant and get some from her. I just got fed up with my foundation from Clinique and went to Wal-mart and got this. Now that I am using Mary Kay skin care products, I eventually want all my make up to be Mary Kay as well. I am just replacing everything I have with MK as it runs out.
• Neutrogena concealer - this is okay as well. I use it on my under eye area because without it I naturally have a lot of shadow under my eyes. It just brightens the area up. I also use it if I ever get a blemish and need to cover it. This is almost gone too and is going to be replaced soon with MK.
• Clinique loose powder - Okay, so I am going to tell you a secret. Y'all are going to think I am ghetto! I bought this powder like a year and a half ago, and when it ran out, Ashton had some MK loose powder she didn't like (but I loved) but it was in weird tubes that you were supposed to put in a container. So I just poured it in here with the remnants of the Clinique powder. I still have some MK tubes to replenish when this is gone! haha! I probably won't have to buy powder for another year or so.
• Estee Lauder blush trio - I got a huge make up giftset last Christmas from Thomas' grandparents. It had makeup bags, brushes, and tons of makeup. I loved it! Estee Lauder is some good stuff! I really like this blush (and all their products!) I use the middle one during the fall and winter, the far right pinker one in spring and summer, and the bronzer in summer.
• Make up Brushes - collected from a variety of places. I have MK brushes, but my blush one broke. Now I use the Estee Lauder blush with my other MK brushes. These are my everyday ones, but I really have 2 complete sets of brushes. Oh, and that is my gross foundation sponge. I need to throw it out, but I hate using a new sponge because it soaks up all the foundation and I don't feel like much actually goes on my face. I like them when they get old and grungy like this because my foundation goes on better.
• Luxiva lipgloss - I got this from Meryl Norman in my town. I used to always go there to get my makeup down for prom and sometimes for pageants. They did my makeup for free and my mom would always buy the lips for me to reapply all day. I have a ton of these little tubes that I have had for years! This is just the one I used today, but I literally switch between lipsticks/glosses everyday with my mood and outfit. Sometimes I use liner, but not today.
• Clinique Sugar Sugar eyeshadow - this is a sample I have had for a little while (do you see a theme with my makeup), I use this right under my brow and it makes my eyes POP!
• Clinique Strawberry Fudge Eyeshadow Duo - This is my favorite eyeshadow ever! I love Clinique's shadows because they last all day long! I wore a pink shirt today, so this was my shadow to match. I wear the pink shade all over the lid and the brown shade in the crease. I do a lot of eyeshadow daily, much more than most women. I like my shadow to go from lid to brow (but I promise I don't look like that god awful woman on the Drew Carey show). Maybe it is just living in the south, but I love to wear a full face everyday!

close up of Strawberry Fudge, isn't it pretty! It is shimmery too!

So that is what is in my make up bag, err drawer. On another note, you can spare me the comments that I need to throw out old makeup and my sponge. I know it is a breeding ground for bacteria. I don't care! I get a new mascara every 3-4 months and I use a clean brush every day for my eyeshadow (I wash it all the time because I change colors so much). As for my lipsticks/glosses, MOST of them have never been used and are perfectly clean. I know my sponge is grungy, but I like it! Haha! So what's in your makeup bag? Join the fun and play along!

It is becoming a problem...

Yes, my obsession with Land's End is becoming a serious problem! It started with a simple purchase last spring for a pair of water shoes for my upcoming trip to the Bahamas. When I got them, I was surprised by the quality considering they were just water shoes. I got a call a few days later from them to ask me about how I liked my first order. I thought, "WOW! They have great customer service!" Then I decided that I would get a bathing suit for my swimming class this fall, and the quality of that was great too. I had been really liking the clothes, but refrained from purchasing any all summer. Then their fall catalog came out and oh my, the clothes are me to a T! The colors, the styles, the suede moccasins, the gorgeous cardigans! Oh my my my! I. MUST. OWN. IT ALL!!!!! So I ordered some basics that in all honesty, I really did need. I got turtlenecks, cardigans, a pullover sweater, and some jeans. They were beautiful and the fabrics were so nice! Not at all what I usually could buy for this price point. I was impressed! I wanted more immediately, but refrained. Then they sent me a lovely email alerting me to a sale plus free shipping. I caved! I bought 2 pairs of the suede mocs I had been coveting and a gorgeous iris ruffle shirt. I loved it all when it arrived, but the suede mocs were a little big. I called their customer service and they were oh so helpful. They actually ordered me some new ones for a cheaper price! All I had to do was return the others to my local Sears. So I go there to return, they tell me I have to go to the Land's End section of the store.....um, we have a real store here in town?!? I walk over and EVERYTHING I have been wanting but not quite sure if I would like in person was there! They took my shoes and gave me coupons! YES! So I peruse and find a lovely cardigan for $14 and then the sales lady walks over and tells me in secret that the shoes are actually ringing up on sale and I can use my $10 off coupon on them. I grab a pair of mustard yellow (excuse me, Aztec gold is their name for it) suede Loafers and check out with my two items. Now, I have a problem. I seriously want all the clothes they have! I want every color of every item they have! I have their catalogs sitting around my room taunting me to buy from them! Oh girls, it is becoming a problem! So mom, since I know you are reading, please remember this post when it comes time to buy your only daughter some Christmas presents!
Oh, and my fav cardigans (first picture) are on sale for $26 and I have been needing a brown cardigan! And I must need own that blue sweater with the Fleur De Lis on it! I need some strength! Oooh, I just had a thought! Thomas and I have an anniversary next month! Maybe I will ask for clothes!

Quick Monday Post

I have to make today a quick post because I am swamped at work! This weekend went by in the blink of an eye, but doesn't it always? I mostly relaxed, cleaned, cooked, and read. My kind of weekend! I am now on the 7th Harry Potter book and I cannot put it down. It is so intense right from the beginning! I stayed up until 12:30 last night reading it.

Today, I got back one of my tests from last week and I got a 96! I think it might have been the highest in the class because everyone else around me had in the 60s. I was excited I did so well and I hope I did as well on the others. I also took a test this morning in another class and I really should have studied more, but I think I did fine. I'll keep ya posted!

By the way, did any of y'all watch Desperate Housewives last night? Ooooh, it was good. It seems like it is going to be dramatic right from the beginning! I am a religious watcher of this show and I have never missed an episode and own most of the seasons on DVD. It is probably my favorite! I just love it, even when the critics are against it. I think my favorite housewife is either Bree or Gabby. Who is yours? Are you going to watch this season? What is your favorite fall show?

Saturday Blog

I usually never blog on Saturdays since it is the weekend and I have errands to run, sleep to catch up on, and big plans. But not this weekend, nope, no plans at all! I slept until 11 this morning, which was glorious since I haven't slept much in the past week. My mom's chihuahua, Chico, and my furbaby, Lucky, both got in bed with me last night and snuggled all night. They are so sweet. I watched a little t.v. and cleaned the kitchen and started dinner. I am cooking my favorite mushroom chicken that cooks in the slow cooker for Thomas and me tonight. If you are a new reader, you can look in my archives for the recipe. I started it a little late, so I hope that it will cook right. Other than that, I haven't been doing too much! I am working on plans for Lucky's 3rd Birthday/1 year of being at his forever home Party. It is going to be next weekend at the park. Thomas told me I was very silly for having a birthday party for a dog, and maybe I am...but he is seriously my baby! I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Views of Savannah

Today is such a pretty day in the Coastal Empire (that's what they call Savannah). The sun is shining and the sky is a bright blue. I never get tired of living in this beautiful city! Here are some pictures I snapped on my blackberry while I was being a very irresponsible driver!I love this beautiful building on Forsyth!If you look really close in the middle, you can see the fountain in Forsyth Park! We are going to take some of our wedding pictures there and maybe the engagement ones as well.I love the hanging moss in the trees! The park I walk through everyday I go to work. I love this fountain!

My Week

copyright http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2280/2332906457_3729e05bb5_o.png

I studied this graph for no less than 1 hour and it wasn't even on the test, urrrrgh!

This is basically what my week has consisted of. GRAPHS, GRAPHS, and more GRAPHS. Throw in some crazy equations that have partial derivatives on top of each other and set equal to price ratios and there you have every waking hour of my week. One more test to go this week and one got pushed to Monday (Sociology, which has NO graphs or equations YAY!). Oh, I am exhausted! I studied until 8:30 Monday, 10 on Tuesday, took on work Wednesday and studied all day, and probably until 10 tonight. Wish me luck!

What I'm Wearing

I have 4 tests this week! I am just warning y'all that I probably won't blog everyday this week. I am going to be studying in the library every night this week! Wish me luck!

So let's talk about my outfit today. I am seriously in love with what I am wearing today! It is super comfortable and very casual chicI got this cardigan from Land's End this past weekend (they just opened a store within our Sears!!!) It is navy and ivory stripes with ivory enamel buttons with gold detailing. I couldn't find a picture of it on the Internet in that color. It is so comfy and preppy!I paired it with a pair of dark wash skinny jeans from Gap that I cuffed at the bottom.I also got these loafers this weekend from Land's End!

and I am carrying a Nine West leather bag similar to this one (only cuter). This is the closest picture I could find of it (from ebay no less!)

I finished with my silver Seiko watch, pandora bracelet, engagement ring, pearl earrings, and a silver pearl pendant necklace. I am ready to take on the day in this cute outfit!

Weekend Wrapup

This weekend was a lot of fun! Friday night, Ashton and I went out to eat at the Olive Garden. I got some wine, cheese ravioli, salad, bread sticks...I am ready to go back. I really love the Olive Garden. My friend Amy was supposed to go also, but she couldn't make it. I know you read Amy, so know that you were missed! Ashton and I went to the mall afterwards and I found this really cute dress at New York and Co. I ended up wearing it to the bridal show with some bronze flats and chunky jewelry...sorry I didn't get a picture because they didn't allow cameras at the show. I looked in every store at the mall for brown patent or leather flats that were a little dressy. I planned to wear them with any of the dresses I posted about last week. Wouldn't ya know that there were none! Suede...yes, but leather...no! I did find one pair I loved but they were just a lot more than I was planning on spending. That's why I ended up with a new dress for the occasion!

Saturday, I just cleaned the house, read Harry Potter (almost done with book 6!), and watched The Office season 5 with Thomas. Have I ever told y'all how much I LOVE The Office? It very accurately describes the office environment (minus the crazy boss...I don't really have one of those).

Sunday, my mom and I went to the bridal show. My future MIL and SIL didn't end up coming because my future MIL had a bad headache and needed to stay home. They were definitely missed! We had a great time at the show, but some of those booths were like vultures! I had one group of ladies sweep down on me and they were showing me pictures of the weddings they had done (which were all India inspired with an elephant cakes and really gaudy crystals EVERYWHERE) and telling me they already envisioned what I wanted when I said "Peony" and "Pink." They really thought I wanted a sweetheart table with crystal curtains hanging from the ceiling surrounding us, you know like those things hippies used to hang from their doors. Not to mention their business card had a hand on it with henna tattoos all over it! That is not me! A few booths down another group of ladies grabbed me and got all of my info (oh no, I will be getting calls and letters from them trying to sell me this junk!) and guess what they were selling! Just guess! Okay you never will! FAT SUITS! Seriously, they sold these suits that went from your knees all the way up to your top (they came strapless or with straps) and the whole purpose was (1) suck you in like a girdle and (2) make you sweat a lot so that you loose weight. Apparently they make you loose like 5 inches in your waist alone!?! Oh, and you just drink this brown juice stuff when you get hungry that is supposedly a super healthy dietary supplement. Yeah right, sounds like a crash diet to sell to vulnerable brides who are desperate to loose weight to me! She tried to tell me I needed to get all my bridesmaids and myself to order them and wear them so that we will be skinny. My only question about this contraption is, "What happens when I drink a glass of water or their gross juice?" I guess I gain it all back! She even told me to buy my wedding dress a size smaller because with this stuff I won't be my size for long. Um, when did a 8 become huge? It was all I could do to keep myself from laughing when she talked about how it make her girls perkier too! She was telling me to look at how high they were. I think her words were, "They are at my neck!" I guess she thought I was droopy too? So like I said it was fun, but very interesting!

Bridal Show Outfits

Okay, I am probably putting way too much thought into this...but I always do for things like this. What should I wear to the bridal show? Do I go casual and wear jeans, or more dressy with a dress? I am planning to go to church before the bridal show, but I can go home to change if I need to. Here are the outfits I was contemplating (don't mind the hair, this was like 9:45 last night)

Option 1: This is a great lightweight jersey wrap dress that I haven't worn yet. It is very slimming, but I fear it might be too dressy. It hits right at the knee.Option 2: Lilly Pulitzer from last year. I LOVED this dress and had to have it, and I got it over the summer for a steal on ebay. I haven't worn it yet, but I have been dying to! Everytime I open my closet, this dress makes me excited for fall! I am just a little worried that it also might be too dressy. I have some cute plaid fall kitten heel pointy toe shoes to wear with it, but they might start to hurt throughout the day. I am contemplating going to buy a pair of brown flats that can dress up or down to go with either Option 1, 2, or 3 since I usually wear heels or boots and I can't wear either right now.Option 3: Lilly Pulitzer. I love this dress, but I usually wear it when it gets colder with a t-neck underneath and tights and boots. However, I was thinking it might work without the t-neck and maybe a cute pair of brown flats. I don't know if I like it without the t-neck though, because I am super white and have thick arms. Hummm, maybe an ivory long sleeve tee would work and keep me warm enough inside? Thoughts?Option 4: Lilly Pulitzer top with either jeans or black pants and my black patent Coach ballet flats. Love this option and I think it would be the most comfortable, but my heart screams "Wear a dress!"

So what are your thoughts girls? I need major fashion help! On a fashion side note, when is it appropriate to wear a lightweight green chino skirt with embroidered leaves on it? I thought about that for this too, but since it will be the 20th and fall officially starts on the 22nd I wasn't sure if I could do it. Would I look out of season?

Wedding Wednesday

Today I am going to have a Wedding Wednesday. For all of my new readers, I got engaged at the beginning of this summer to my high school sweetheart, Thomas. We have been dating for 6 years! We are planning a summer wedding in 2011, right after my college graduation. From time to time, I do a Wedding Wednesday to fill y'all in on my wedding plans! Okay, now that we are all up to speed...let Wedding Wednesday start!

Overall, I have been very happy about our choice for a long engagement. There are times that I get sad about how long I am going to have to wait to be Mrs. Casey and get to get into full planning mode, but really it has been a great choice! I am not stressing about my weight just yet, or flowers, or a certain shade of pink. Instead, I get to be the blushing bride-to-be for 2 years with plenty of time to pick vendors and flowers and dresses and all of that. My plan for this year is to look at as many venues as possible, talk with planners, talk with caterers and florists, etc. so that when next summer comes and we are able to secure the date, we will know exactly who we want right away. That way I can get them before anyone else!!! This weekend that plan is going into effect! My mom, my future mother-in-law, my future sister-in-law, and I are all going to the Georgia Bridal Show! I don't really know much about what happens at a Bridal Show since I haven't been, but I know there will be tons of local vendors to talk to. I am super excited! So, my question for all you married or engaged girls is...what questions do I need to ask these vendors? Have a great Wednesday!

Twitter

I have caved in and joined twitter! Come follow me at SouthernBrideJS!

New Baby

Guess What? My brother and sister-in-law are pregnant! We just found out yesterday and I am obviously thrilled! They already have two sweet daughters, so this is their third. Congrats Jason, Danielle, Olivia, and Autumn!

Rotten Fish?!?

SERIOUSLY! My row of cubicles at work smell like rotten fish. I think I might be sick!

Yesterday, I felt like it was Friday. I kept thinking all day that I would get to sleep in the next day and it was a total buzzkill when I kept reminding myself it was only Thursday. Ha! Don't ya hate when that happens! Well, this morning I knew it was Friday when Thomas called to wake me up on his way home from work. (he works nights) I told him I had to get up in another hour and a half for school and I would talk to him later. I didn't even set an alarm and I completely overslept! I should have rushed around this morning to get ready, but I was so lazy. I have been in a "Saturday mood" all day! I guess my internal clock is all messed up! I can't wait for 4:30 when I can leave work and go to El Potro with Thomas, Ashton, and Trey! Happy Friday!

By the way...I figured out the homework and got the right answers! After some major googling on the Cobb-Douglas Production Function and talking to some other professors in the department, I actually understand it. I formed a little study group for that class and we worked it out. We are going to start studying together about once a week.

Welcome!

I have been meaning to welcome all my new readers for a while now. Everytime I see my counter for followers go up, I get so thrilled! I never would have imagined that so many people would want to read what I have to say! I have really made quite a few great "friends" through the blogging community that I email and chat with on facebook. I say "friend" since we haven't officially meet in person, but perhaps one day we will! Everyone of your emails, comments, and facebook messages make my day. So thanks for reading and welcome to my new readers! I can't wait to get to know all of y'all too!

School Woes

Wednesdays are my bad day for school. I have 2 classes in the morning starting at 10, go to work until 4:30, back to school from 6-9. Usually, I go to Moes with Thomas between work and night class. Today I had to alter my plan because I have to get together with classmates at the library to work on the MOST DIFFICULT homework of my life. not. even. kidding. There are way too many alphas and betas involved and I am seriously confused. I hope the people I am meeting with know it! By the way, the test I thought I aced, I actually did really really bad. Pray I make it through this day!

Labor Day

I hope everyone had a fun and relaxing 3 day weekend. I mostly laid around and watched The Office and read Harry Potter (finished 5, onto 6). Sometimes I love to be lazy! I also took Lucky to the vet to have his nails trimmed, get him weighed, and to buy a flea pill because somehow he has gotten fleas!!!! He stays in the house, so it is really concerning me how he got them! They are gone now, thank goodness! After a trip to the vet, I always take Lucky to Pawpazzari to get a special treat. He got a new shirt for fall and a Peanut Butter and Carob pie treat that he gobbled up! Monday, Thomas and I went out on the boat with his dad to go fishing. The three of us LOVE to fish and always have a great time. We didn't really catch anything big this time, but we did have a good time. Here are some pictures from the weekend!

Lucky relaxing after a bath

View from our "fishing spot"

Thomas caught bigger fish than this, but this is the only one I took a picture of. He told me not to take pictures of the minnows, ha!

Back to School Goals

I have been really trying hard since the beginning of this semester a couple weeks ago to nail done some goals to work towards this year. I feel more motivated during "Back to School" to make goals than I do at New Year. At New Year, the school year is half way over and it feels like I am making them at a bad time. My goals that I am focusing on this year are...

• Make a budget and stick to the budget - This is a very hard one for me. I have made the budget for this semester, but the sticking to it is hard. My work schedule changes from semester to semester and I work full-time during Christmas and Summer break. That means that my income goes up and down often and it is hard for me to gauge what I can spend at times. Now that I know what the budget is for this semester, I am focusing on sticking to it! This is probably by far the most difficult of my goals.
• Keep up with reading and studying...don't procrastinate! - this is a hard one too, but I will be so much less stressed this way
• Read books that don't have to do with school - I love to read, much more than I like watching t.v., but I neglect reading for pleasure when school gets going. I am trying to at very least read one book every month, but hopefully I will read more. I am also going to get them from the public library instead of buying them. I could spend a small fortune on Amazon buying books that I will only read once. WASTE. OF. MONEY. First I need to get a library card :)
• Be healthy - this goes along with my budget as well. I eat out way too much! I am shaving off money spent by packing lunch. I am also going to try to go on walks with Lucky and Chico whenever possible.

So there are my goals! I know I won't do everything perfectly on my list, but there is a goal! Something to work towards! I think this semester is going to go great! What are your goals?

Fall Shopping

Y'all know how much I love a good sale! Well, Land's End is having a Fall Pre-season sale on all their new items. I wish I would have a waited a couple weeks to get my cardigans because they are on sale now, but oh well! My loss is your gain! They have quite a few items that I have had my eye on in the sale including shoes. Land's End has great high quality clothing and I love everything I have from them. Quality merchandise, reasonable prices, and great customer service! Just an FYI, if you sign up to be on their mailing list they are always sending you emails with free shipping links. That is a great savings in itself. The sale ends September 10th, so now is the time to buy! Happy Shopping!

ETA: Here is the info for FREE shipping! Enter the Promotion Code SEPT1 and the PIN 00001145 in the space provided when you checkout.

Test Anxiety and a Dilemma

This weekend went by so quickly, but I guess a cold and an upcoming test will do that! Thanks for all of your well wishes for my cold to go away. It will feel better and then it feels worse. I hope it will go away quick so that I can enjoy my Labor Day weekend!
Today was my first test of the school year. I studied and felt really good about it...until last night when I could not sleep at all! I have decided I must have test anxiety! I don't know why I should have it because I am a good student that does well on tests. I read the chapters, did the exercises after the chapter, read the summaries, read my notes, and understood it. I still was terrified for this test. I guess it was the unknown of what the test questions were going to be like. I tossed and turned all night long and kept getting up to get a drink of water and then later to go to the bathroom. I am so tired now and miserable! I took the test and wouldn't you know, I knew every answer! I am sure I got an A...hopefully this won't jinx me now! I turned in my test and then I looked around the room and saw so many people cheating! The professor leaves the room when we have a test and goes to his office. He very rarely checks on us, so he really makes it easy to cheat. There were at least 5 people cheating and there are only about 15 in the class. I was irate! I study so hard and when I don't do well, I can only blame it on myself. These people are just riding on others coattails. I kept looking at them and shooting them looks so that they knew I knew. This caused them to get a little flustered, but they did keep on. I am now in a dilemma. I don't want to tell the professor because I don't want all these people to look at me differently. They would know it was me and our department is very small therefore I have at least 3 to 4 of these people in my classes this semester and have had almost everyone in a class before and I am sure I will in the future. Our department has us work on a lot of things in groups like homework assignments and they encourage us to form study groups. If I tattle, it will make the next 2 years a living nightmare. However, I really don't want them looking at my paper when I work so hard. It is also really distracting when I can hear people whispering in groups about how to solve problems and relate that to a graph. It just isn't the type of thing you can suddenly learn in 15 seconds of whispering to your neighbor. They just keep whispering the whole time trying to explain how to do it and what the answers are...by the way, they were wrong. I know some of these people got As in other classes I took with them, and I always wondered how? Now I know. So what should I do? I guess ignoring it is the best choice, but it is very difficult. What would you do?