OK, So I Fell Off The Face Of The Earth

I've been gone from this blog for a while...

But I can explain!

Here in a nutshell is what I've been up to lately:

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We took a lovely two week tour of 

New England for Spring Break!

Itinerary:

 New York City / Long Island

Upstate New York

Vermont

Boston

Cape Cod / Plimouth Plantation

Rhode Island

Connecticut

We had a fabulous time!

 ~ ~ ~

One of my wildest dreams came true!

I visited Kate Spade!!!!

But didn't end up buying anything.

It was still fun!

~ ~ ~

 I've been on a digital fast of sorts...

I haven't been reading many blogs

{sorry friends!}

and I obviously haven't been writing my own!

~ ~ ~

I've been dreaming and working up some plans 

on a longtime dream of mine!

My mind has been working overtime on it

so I've been working on getting it all down onto paper.

One must go with the flow when inspiration hits!

Especially when people and things keep 

getting placed in your path!

I don't know that anything will come of it yet,

but I'm dreaming!

You can catch a glimpse here:

 ~ ~ ~

And finally...

I've been taken out of commission by

the strangest flu bug...

It has had me down and out for the count for a solid week!

Ugh!

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If anyone is still hanging around...

Let me know what you've been up to!

I hope you are having a glorious spring!

Hug, hug, kiss, kiss!

Mwah!

Just So You Know...

I didn't totally drop off 

the face of the earth!

I've been travelling...

and just so you know...

Yep! Pretty much!

Be back soon...

Non Dairy Coconut Milk Whipped Cream

So a while back I saw the

Non Dairy Coconut Milk Whipped Cream recipe

flash past on Pinterest.

This week I finally got around to trying it:

{click picture to enlarge}

Easy peasy!
And totally yummy!

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What have you tried from Pinterest?

Bye, Bye Birdie

There has been a death in the family

Cause of death:  unknown

Authorities have found certain small children operating a fort building practice without a proper building permit, using illegal and inappropriate building materials.  Current ongoing investigations are occurring.
 

Our birdie was a beautiful addition to our family and frequently graced the piano top vignette.  He will be greatly missed. 

Rest in peace dear sweet birdie!

Chameleon Eyes...Again!

Are you guys getting sick of me going on about my eyes yet?  Well, to me they are pretty important.  If I don't wear eye makeup people always ask if I am sick, sad or feeling ok.  In my younger days I could get away with less eye makeup  but now... I need eye makeup to help me look awake and alive apparently! 

So the other day I happened upon Almay's Intense I-Color which are palettes specifically for different colored eyes.  So I picked up the palette for hazel eyes.

The colors are different shades of grey.  Hmm.  Grey?  I wondered what that would do for my eyes so I thought I would at least try it out for fun and here is the result . . .

{drumroll please!}

The grey shades for hazel eyes make my eyes appear...GREY!    Hmm.  Not what I was hoping for.  It definitely didn't bring out my subtle shades of blues and greens.  Bummer.

Btw, that is an undoctored photo taken in natural daylight with my iPhone just like all my other eye pics have been ~ I still haven't figured out a macro lens to use yet.

So I guess if I want grey looking eyes I will use grey shadows.  The grey palette may work on other people's hazel eyes, but my chameleon~like eyes change to match the grey shadows apparently.  Now I wonder if I use the palettes for blue or green eyes if it will bring those colors out instead.  I think I may have to try that! 

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Have you found any fun new products lately?

Spa Day!

Lately I have been feeling a little sad and down and I realized that the winter blues were really getting to me this year.  I have a tendency to get a little depressed in the winter anyway, but knowing this, I am usually pretty good at heading it off with simple things like keeping my stress levels down, taking my Vitamin D, getting lots of sleep if I need it and being mindful of not taking on too much etc.

So fast forward to last week.  I noticed I was sad just a little too often and kept watching movies that take place at the beach on Netflix.  Yep!  This girl needs some help...STAT before she gets a little too mopey!  My husband said he couldn't afford to fly me out to Hawaii on the spur of the moment and I was really needing some pampering self care since I was daydreaming of running away to a destination spa so I decided to get my girls together for a little fun!  I had a friend who knows oils and massage come over to teach us some massage techniques.

I decorated the house with paper lanterns I had from a Chinese party earlier.  Look at the pretty glow they make!  I decided they would be really pretty to use as Christmas decorations sometime.  I hope I remember that come Christmas time again!

I broke out the wine glasses so my girlfriends could sample some of the Slim & Sassy water that I love so much and had yummy spa-like finger foods out to much on {which I forgot to take a picture of...doh!}. 

Before the party I had to run to the store to buy a few more wine glasses because some of my others had broken over the years.  The cashier asked if I was having a wedding or something.

Um...no.

Then she wondered if I really liked to drink wine or something. 

I was just left to shake my head.   I have never had a drop of wine or alcohol in my life!  But who says you have to use wine glasses for wine anyway???  They are beautiful...fun to hold...and are lovely for water or juice!  I like to use them frequently and even let the kids use them if they want.  They aren't expensive to replace if they get broken plus I think its good to let them get used to using nice things while they are young.

Anyway, I digress!  My husband is excited for me to teach him the new massage tips ~ mostly because that means he will benefit from getting a massage during the process!  Which is fine with me because then I get a nice massage afterwards too!  And this makes for a happier me!  

It's fun to get together with my girlfriends!

I had a good time at our spa day ~ I hope my friends did too. 

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What do you do to combat the winter blues?

Oscar Night Fashions

Oscar night is always fun to watch celebrity fashions.  I always dream up a dress or two of what I would wear on the red carpet.  I love designing evening wear in my head!  This year I wondered if I were a classic movie star, who would I be?

Well, Kay of Movie Star Makeover, has a fun little quiz you can take to see which classic movie stars you are most like.  I turned out to be the Lively Girl Next Door and happily join the ranks of Debbie Reynolds, Jane Powell, Ginger Rogers, Doris Day and Betty Grable.

via Movie Star Makeover

Lively Girl Next Door
Like Debbie Reynolds, you are the Lively Girl-Next-Door. You are warm, friendly, full of joy and a little zany with a vibrant, unsinkable spirit—you’re the sunshine girl! People love to be around you because you have such a positive, upbeat attitude and it seems there’s nothing you can’t handle. You are the go-to girl when there’s a project, because you know how to get it done and still have enjoy yourself in the process. If you have children, they probably have the best parties in the neighborhood, because you have a great time right along with them. You’re strong, sturdy, earthy at times, fast on the draw, and seem inexhaustible. You can be very sentimental and love photos and family heirlooms. You may have a bit of a hot temper, but you usually wind up laughing at yourself in the end. Life’s too much fun to hold a grudge!

So...what would I wear?  Hmm...I don't know yet but I'm feeling like pink this year and I think I would base my wardrobe around this gorgeous replica of Ginger Roger's {she is after all amongst the Lively Girl Next Door club!} from The Hollywood Collection...

via The Hollywood Collection

I think it would be set off with a lovely blue drapey gown such as this with some fun yet exquisite detailing:

Oscar Night by byourself featuring wedding shoes

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What would you wear?