FitFabFun Fall Box Review

So, this is something I've decided to do quarterly here on my blog.  I subscribe to an AWESOME website called, of course, FITFABFUN.  I pay a yearly subscription, and 4 times a year (every season), I get an awesome box full of goodies.  So, I've decided for any of you who are interested, that I would post what fun little treats I get each quarter, and maybe inspire some of you to treat yourselves.

So, upon getting my box for this season, I was thrilled to see that this one was a bit interactive.  I love coloring (yes, I'm a grown up), and so this was a fun little treat.  The exterior and interior of the box was full of fun little pictures that you could color.

The box comes with an awesome Exclusive Offers card.  It's a awesome way to save on future purchases of the fun things you find in the box.  There is also a mini magazine that comes with each box, highlighting the items you receive each season.

So, here are the awesome items that I received this season:

1.  ModCloth Loch and Key Blanket Scarf – Value $34.99

This gigantic (55x55'') scarf is perfect for fall.  You can wear it multiple ways, and it will definitely keep you stylish and warm on those chilly days.  The fabric is awesome (acrylic, so not itchy), and calling it a "blanket" scarf it fitting.  It's massive, but lightweight, so it's not too bulky or heavy.

2.  FabFitFun Colouring Book & Coloured Pencils - Value $14

Coloring books for adults have really taken off.  Research has shown that coloring reduces stress and anxiety, and a great break from endless hours in front of the computer screen.  This fun little book comes with a set of colored pencils.

3.  Fun To-Go Coffee (Tea) Mug -- Value $19

This adorable mug holds 16 ounces of your favorite warm beverage, and is a cute and classy touch to any morning pick-me-up.  I love the gloss black, and gold detail.  (Hand wash only)

4.  Mullein & Sparrow Mini French Lavender Body Oil -- Value $18

This body oil is formulated with the healing and meditative scents of lavender.  You can use it as a daily moisturizer, or put a few drops in your evening bath.  It's really light, and smells wonderful.

5.  The BrowGal Clear Resistant Eyebrow Gel -- Value $20

This gel works with powders and pencils to seal and protect your eyebrows with great staying power. It comes in a clear gel, so it should work with any brow color.

6.  Pure Cosmetics Nude Collection Eye Shadow Pallet -- Value $50

This great pallet features 12 different shades of eye shadow that compliments the ever popular nude makeup trend.  It includes a great selection of both glitter and matte colors.

7.  Spongelle Bulgarian Body Wash Infused Buffer -- Value $16

This sponge is awesome.  It's infused with body wash, and the sponge is a bit more durable than your typical pouf, so cleans and exfoliates in one.  It should last up to 14 washes, but once the wash is gone, you can just add your own body wash and continue to use it.  A great deal.

8.  Toesox Toeless Fitness Socks -- Value $17

These socks are great for any shoeless fitness activity: yoga, pilates, dance.  I wasn't sure how it would feel having space for each individual toe, but they are actually really comfy.  They are fantastic and have non-slippy, grippy dots to keep you from sliding all over the floor.

9.  Skin Laundry Restoring Night Serum -- Value $50

This serum is designed to "help improve the overall appearance of skin brightness, smoothness, tone, texture, and elasticity".  It is really lightweight, goes on smooth, and has no lasting scent to it, which is really nice.  

10.  Sponsored Products -- Secret Clear Gel and Cottonelle Flushable Wipes.

So there you have it.  All these great products have a value of about $240 and I got them all for $49.95.  Signing up for their yearly subscription is a great idea, and every box I get seems better than the last.  I don't know how they do it.......but I'm so glad that they do.  I can't wait to see what they come up with for the winter box.

*NOTE: This review is my own personal opinion.  I do not speak for FitFabFun, nor am I in any way compensated by the company for this review.

On turning 40

Yesterday I turned 40, and to be honest it doesn't seem real at all.  Forty has always seemed so far away, so grown up......so old!  Yet here I am saying goodbye to my thirties, and while it feels big, I have decided to embrace it and welcome my midlife with open arms.

The big difference between 30 and 40 is the feeling of contentment and being settled.  I'm no longer planning when or if we should have another baby.  I'm no longer stressing over whether I should check out a new career path.  I am settled into my life, my marriage, parenting....and it feels good. it's not that I don't still have dreams about the future; I guess it's just that the urgency is different now.  I feel more comfortable in my own skin now than when I was 30.  Never mind the few grey hairs, or the smile lines that are forming around my eyes.  I know myself better, and I am more aware of and more able to focus on the things that are important to me.  I feel that so much of my 30s were the "planning" years, the adjusting to being a parent years, the becoming a better and more productive wife years -- the figuring out my identity years.

Sometimes I feel like the days are just slipping away unnoticed.  I try to grab hold of all those "little moments", but, at times, the chaos of every day life just pulls them away.  Time can be such a funny thing - it lulls you into feeling like it's moving so slowly, that it will always be there.  And then suddenly it's gone.  I have no idea what the future will hold, but the last 30 years have been so full of growth and SO many lessons learned.  I'm not going to let it get me down.  I'm going to use this as a starting point for the rest of my life. Bring on the 40s.

Here's a few things I have learned for sure:

-  Age is just a number...I still feel 25
-  Having growing children will keep you young (tired, but young)
-  Pursuing your passion every day is good for the soul
-  A good nights sleep and lots of water are better for you than botox
-  Life is too short (and to precious) for drama
-  Toxic people have no place in your life
-  Family is everything
-  It is okay to not fit in
-  Confidence comes from being yourself
-  I am WAY stronger than I ever knew
-  There is nothing wrong with boundaries
-  Comparing yourself to others is a waste of time
-  It is okay to ask for things you need
-  My parents were right about almost everything
-  I know what I want and I won't settle for anything less

Thoughts on Max

Do you ever sometimes just look at your kids and wonder where the Hell the time went.  I do this often.  Maybe it's because I'm soon approaching 40.  Maybe it's because in another year, even my youngest son will probably be an inch taller than me.  I'm not sure, but I've already got one child with a foot out of the nest, and I'm realizing that my middle boy is, in all reality, not far behind.

To my Max;

If your life was a road trip, I would find myself wondering why on earth we ever even thought about once going over the speed limit, why we passed other cars in our race to our destination, why we didn't take a few more pit stops along the way.

Some days it's hard to believe that you are 16.  You wear it well.  This is both a compliment, and not. You are moody and emotional, complicated and complex.  You challenge me in ways I never thought possible.  You have opinions and insight about the world, politics, humanity.  There are things in your life that I don't know, which I like to think is a relatively new phenomenon.

You are also witty and sweet, ethereally handsome, and still boyish is all the right ways, even as your shoulders have broadened, and your feet have outpaced mine in size and stride for a couple of years now.

These teenage years are like a highway under construction - the trip takes on a new element of challenge, even from an experienced driver like me, who traveled down a similar freeway with your older brother.  Your highway has been a different road, with detours, and barricades, and near constant confusion.  I am learning to appreciate the traffic and the opportunity it has given me to remember that this journey won't be forever.....and that is both the best and worst thing.

One day we will roll up to our destination in the true meaning of the word awe.  The adult version of your will dwarf the wonder of the Grand Canyon.  You are a gift that I have given the world, and I am so confident in my offering.  I will revel in the success of our arrival, and I will mourn the end of our journey at the same time.  I will lament those cheesy road side pitstops that I chose to skip, and the boring hours will take on a rosy glow that only nostalgia can bring.

I hope I've planned enough and not too much.  I hope I've made the hours pass with ease.  I hope you know that I knew the way, even when it seems like I didn't.  Because you and your brothers -- you are my way.

Thanks for accompanying me so closely on this leg of our trip through life, and for being one of the best guides I could get.

I like you, I love you, I will always protect you, and I will be here for you no matter what.

Love, Mom.

Make Up Tips

Can someone please explain to my why every makeup company in the world is still producing blue eye shadow?  Blue eye shadow has ALWAYS been tacky.  It was never popular.  It was typically only used by prostitutes or Halloween costumes (most of which are prostitute costumes).

I wanted to make a type of flow chart or meme.....but that sounded like a lot of work.  So, instead I decided to go with a simple list of people who can actually pull off this bold look, at any time.

People who can pull off blue eye shadow are as follows:

-Tammy Faye Baker (or really, just anyone named Tammy for that matter)
-Tim Currey in "The Rocky Horror Picture Show"
-Betty Boop
- The clown from Stephen King's "It"
-Everyone's grandmother
-Paula Deen
-Barbie dolls
-Dolly Parton
-Mimi from "The Drew Carey Show"
-People who work at or frequent Shoppers Drug Mart
-The cast of "Steel Magnolias"

If you do not find your name on this very short list, then you should NOT be wearing blue eye shadow.  I hope this has helped.

Parents who Teach Their Children to Steal are Douchebags

Yesterday, I  received an email from a friend, telling me that her 6 year old son's scooter had been stolen while they were at the park.  She was very upset, because the park had been very busy.  She had just taken her eyes off the scooter for a second, and it was gone.

She started looking for the culprit, but couldn't see anyone she would peg as the "usual suspect" type. There weren't any middle or high school kids who would have taken it to show off to their friends or just to be jerks.  It was all young kids who were being supervised by (seemingly mature and law abiding) adults.  Little did she know there was a thief with her at the park.

What sort of parent/guardian/authority figure steals something with their child as an accomplice?  Who does this?  Does mom just tell little Mikey that she is "borrowing" the scooter? ("I'll call his mom in  few days and she if she wants it back").  Does she tell him she "paid" the other mom for the scooter? ("There was a garage sale at the park today.  Lucky us!  It was only $5).  Or does she tell the truth?  (Dad says we can't afford a scooter right now.  But that boy brought a scooter and a bike.  He doesn't need both.  Let's take the scooter....hop on and ride it like you own it).  WTH?!?

My friends email went on to say that after the terrible experience at the park, she headed to Walmart. When she got out of her car, she stepped on a dirty diaper that someone had just left on the ground.

WTH is wrong with people?

Why stop there?  Forget the diaper; why not just teach your child to poop in the parking lot next time and avoid the hassle and expense of diapers all together, you douchebag?

I think what horrifies me the most, is my belief that both of these acts were likely committed by women.

There apparently weren't any dads at the park, so it was a women who stole the scooter.  And, how many dads do you know that change diapers in the middle of the day at Walmart?  (I know that's stereotypical of me, but I'm going to have to go with the odds on this one).

I expect asinine, gross, rude, lazy, disgusting behavior like this from men....you know, the gender that can fart on demand and scratch themselves in public.  Let's face it, men have always cornered the market on being war-mongers, polluters, rapists, and pillagers of this world, and now these women are muscling in on their territory.  Wonderful.

All I can say is I hope someone breaks their arm on that stolen scooter.  Nothing like hours in an ER and a first day of school pictures in a cast to put the $50 they saved stealing a little boys scooter in perspective.

My Mother-In-Law's Holiday Slush

Growing up in my husband's family, this drink was a staple at Christmas time.  I don't think you need to limit it to just Christmas.....in fact, I think it would make a delicious summer BBQ drink as well.  I don't want to lose the tiny, faded piece of paper that she has written it on, so I'm going to post it here for posterity.

SLUSH

Blend the following together:

- 3/4 cup of sugar
- 12 oz can of frozen orange juice
- 12 oz can of frozen lemonade
- 2 ripe bananas
- 1 carton of frozen strawberries (I don't know what she considers a carton)

Add a 48 ounce can of unsweetened pineapple juice and 4 cups of water (I personally would use 4 cups of Sprite or 7-Up instead).

Now my mother-in-law would also add a bottle of Vodka or Gin Fizz to this slush.....but I'll leave that up to you.

Enjoy!

Celebrity Idiots and the Morons who Love Them

The Kardashians – Years ago, I thought they were mildly entertaining but after seeing young girls aspire to be like the Kartrashian women, that’s some scary stuff. These people have fans?

The Duggars – They spawned Josh Duggar and I'm pretty sure they are in a cult. Need I say more?

Chris Brown – This freaking guy. Holy crap. What an abusive, angry asshole.

The Palin Family – I don’t even know where to start with this mess of a family. And seriously?! Bristol Palin was paid thousand of dollars to speak and promote abstinence and got knocked up by two baby daddy’s. Please don’t misunderstand. Normally, that wouldn’t make me so judgmental but also, men and women that have different moms and dads for their children don’t get paid the big bucks for preaching abstinence.

Kanye West – Oy. He’s a delusional, raging lunatic. Fits right in with the Kartrashian family but damn, I feel bad for his poor kids.

Dani Mathers– I only first knew she existed yesterday and if you’re not familiar with her, she’s a Playboy playmate that took a photo of a naked woman in the shower at the gym. She posted the photo and made some smug ass comment about the woman’s body. This asshole committed an appalling act of an invasion of privacy. I go to the gym, and I can’t even imagine someone doing that to me or thinking it was okay to pull something like that.

Mike Huckabee – Hmmm. Let me count the ways. He’s an asshole, plain and simple. He also supported Josh Duggar. Douche.

Donald Trump – I could go on and on and on and on about this particular moron. It enrages me that he spreads so much hate… and other assholes support his idiocy. He’s a misogynistic, racist, hateful piece of crap and it’s terrifying that so many people are supporting him.

Did I leave anyone out?  Let me know.