scared straight {instyler}

Have you tried the instyler products? I have to admit I am pretty skeptical about hair products and tools, but I have to admit after trying the Max 2-Way Rotating Iron I am hooked! (And that is coming from someone who is too lazy to even blow dry on most days!)

I love how easy the Instyler Max 2-Way Rotating Iron is to use! I don't feel like it is as harsh on my hair as a flat iron and man does my hair have a glossy SHINE when I am done!

See exhibit A:

I had to cut, cut, cut several people out of the pic, but you get the idea. P.S. i was able to have about a hot 5 minutes to use the Max 2-Way Rotating Iron before i was off chasing this little one around the house!

Thank you to Vocalpoint for sponsoring this post by providing me with free products in exchange for an honest review.

cyber Monday {aka the only Monday to look forward to}

DEALS, DEALS, DEALS:

1. Anthropologie: 20% off sale and FREE SHIPPING ( no minimum purchase!)

2. JCREW: 30% off regular prices, 40% off sale! and FREE SHIPPING! 

3. Target: buy one get one 60% off on clothing, shoes, and accessories and FREE SHIPPING!

4. asos 30% off everything!

5. GAP 40% off your purchase and FREE SHIPPING with a $50 purchase!

6. Piperlime 30% off regular priced items and 40% off sale and FREE SHIPPING!

7. Gymboree 50% off and FREE SHIPPING!

8. Hanna Andersson 15% off and FREE SHIPPING!

9. Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids FREE SHIPPING! with the close FREESHIP

10. Zara up to 50% off and FREE SHIPPING on orders over $50.

Happy Cyber Monday!

birthday party for under (ish) 100 dollars

Z turned 1. It was hard on this momma. I truly cannot believe how fast this year went. 

We decided that we didn't want to go overboard for her birthday. We invited Z's grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins to celebrate. Q's sister's family and q's brother's family both live on the west coast and were not in attendance, but everyone else made it. My brothers both travel for work but made it a point to be here for her party which is so great of them. el for work but made it a point to be here for her party which is so great of them. 

When we talked about Z's birthday Q and I wanted to do something a little smaller and more reminiscent of our birthday parties as kids. And I did it for under(ish) 100 dollars. I say under(ish) because it's not quite, if you throw in Uncle Sam's cut :). 

Here's the breakdown:

cakes: 42.00

food: 30.00 (this is a little off because we had some of the ingredients at home and my mom provided the salads)

plates, etc: 2.27 (we used left over disposable cutlery from another party and only purchased enough paper plates for the kids)

decorations: 20.18

TOTAL: $94.45 !!!!

Here are my tips and tricks for throwing a birthday party (or really any party) on a budget.

I started a board specifically for Z's first birthday. Over a few months I pinned, pinned, pinned and pinned some more! About a month before her birthday I spent some time narrowing my ideas and deleting pins to narrow my scope. Let me say that this process helped a lot!

When we talked about Z's birthday Q and I wanted to do something a little smaller and more reminiscent of our birthday parties as kids. And I did it for under(ish) 100 dollars. I say under(ish) because it's not quite, if you throw in Uncle Sam's cut :). 

Here's the breakdown:

cakes: 42.00

food: 30.00 (this is a little off because we had some of the ingredients at home and my mom provided the salads)

plates, etc: 2.27 (we used left over disposable cutlery from another party and only purchased enough paper plates for the kids)

decorations: 20.18

TOTAL: $94.45 !!!!

These took a little time but the price was extremely low! I spent about $5.10 including a few other dot garlands that were hanging about the house. There are several tutorials on Pinterest including this one here. These were pretty easy to make, just time consuming. 

Z's high chair. Again the idea came from Pinterest. I used a piece of burlap meant for scrapbooking and leftover felt from her party hat to add the 1 on the front. Most of the ribbon is leftovers from other projects but again this cost about $3.00.

I made this part hat for about $2.50! I purchased fleece sheets from Hobby Lobby, 1 sheet of firm felt and elastic for the strap under her chin. I was a fleece/felt novice, but it turned out to be one of the easiest projects. 

BALLOONS!!! I get most of my balloons at the Dollar Tree. Balloons are just $1 as opposed to $5 at the local grocery store.

This was where I splurged. Z's "Betty" cake (all kitty cats are Betty right now). And it was 100% worth it. We purchased our cakes from The Cake Lady and she never disappoints. 

Z's smash cake, because we couldn't leave out her dog Annie.

I forgot about the present table and so that morning I quickly whipped up a skirt for the table with some streamers.

When you are looking for party decorations don't forget to shop the "dollar" stores. There are so many very inexpensive options for very little money at these stores. 

Why I didn't want to spend too much on a cute hat. It was on her head a hot 2 seconds!

Here are a couple of links to felt tutorials that will help you to whip up a hat in no time for very little money. here (a template to print for roses), here (flowers and a tutorial how to make a flower headband) 

Here is the link to my Pinterest page and the board that I pinned to is "Say it's your first birthday"

thanks

lady walker

We have a walker at our house! I didn't expect my little Z to walk so soon (10 months!) but she's up and moving! Another bonus to having a little walker is all the cute dresses and skirts that have been on hiatus because of crawling can come back into rotation! And I think this one fits that bill! It's from gap.com and oh so shimmery and cute! 

{image via gap}

{image via gap}

{image via gap}

weekend warrior {just kidding, i spray painted some chairs}

Q and I tackled the garage the other day. When we moved into our current home I was 7 months pregnant. So with a moving company and lots of help, we put the house together. But the garage didn't see much love.

With the garage looking so good, I couldn't avoid these rusty folding chairs any longer. 

We have had these folding chairs that we bought on an auction  for years. But they were looking pretty tough so I picked up a can of spray paint and gave the chairs a quick spray. 

the BEFORE picture

I used a steel brush to smooth out the rusty areas.

mid process

final product! I used the seat again because the seats were in very good shape and I hate to create unnecessary waste. :)  

There are tons of cute redo ideas for folding chairs on Pinterest. We mainly use these chairs in the garage. Specifically Q uses them for his {insert robot/computer voice} fantasy football league draft. So I love theses next two ideas but, I don't think that Q and his buddies would be that impressed! A couple of cute examples: here  & here.

What is your latest DIY?

happy halloween!

The day after! Z is still recovering! {must be nice to be a baby with her own king sized bed :0)}

Z had a great 1st Halloween! She was a monkey! {see exhibit A}

Can you guess my costume? 

Earlier in the week we carved pumpkins. 

And on Halloween we took Z trick or treating with friends, aka around the block. Z loved it!

I just loved her costume. It's from Chasing Fireflies available here.

zip it

so happy

check it out

Anthropologie is having a sale! {enough said} 25% off sale with the code EXTRAEXTRA! Sadly, I wasn't able to combine it with my birthday coupon, but I did pick up a few things including this top I have been coveting since I saw it in July! 

{image via anthropologie}

wisdom for wednesday

monday monday | let's online shop

Good morning Monday! I will be searching for toothpicks to help keep my eyes open today {teething baby}. Hopefully your Monday is less sleepy feeling. Check out these online deals for mom and babe.


for mom, momma, mum, mutter:

1. JCREW 40% off final sale with the code: SOSWEET
2. GAP $45 off $100!!! with the code: MONDAY
3. MADEWELL free shipping on all orders and free monogramming on leather


for bebe:

1. Naartjie is closing! :( big discounts at stores and online and free shipping when you spend $100
2. The Children's Place free shipping plus 20% off everything

happy fall y'all | pumpkin patch

It's October! Our warm summer days are getting shorter and shorter, reminding us that winter is right around the corner. Q and I decided to take advantage of one of the last warm days by taking Z to the pumpkin patch. She thought it was amazing! Just look at that little face!

word

just keep climbing

hApPy

closet clean out | what should i be wearing?

After working for twelve years in the same profession, I was more than happy to start cleaning out my closet. But now what? I have no idea how to dress myself! I lived in my jcrew khaki shorts and a tee shirt all summer, but with cold weather coming what's a girl (ok a thirty something) to do? 

I remembered reading some posts gp (gwyneth paltrow) did a few years ago on her blog, Goop. gp titled the posts my uniform, spring, and spring fashion (there are more fashion posts, but the posts get progressively more fancy pants as the years go on). I could maybe afford one leg of the leggings and the rest of the wardrobe was out of the question.  BUT the outfit ideas were great and I still think the outfits are great! (maybe I am really out of touch, just like gp when she said working mothers had it easier than her, but I regress).

I need some of the same sort of clothing in my life but... ON a MAJOR budget! 

Outfit #1

{image is from Goop}

Outfit #2

{image is from Goop}

Outfit #3 and #4

{image is from Goop}

Outfit #5

{image is from Goop}

Now to find these on a budget more realistic for me. Stay tuned! 

magazine round up

a few of my favorite magazines:

O (the oprah magazine) | always full of great information 

Midwest Living | because when in Rome

Eating Well | delicious recipes to help inspire cleaner, healthier eating (because I always need that!)

Real Simple | love all of the tips, tricks, and ideas... Always looking to simplify

Mother Earth Living | think Martha Stewart (minus the jail time) meets eco friendly

I read my magazines which are usually hand me downs from my mom. I tear out recipes and ideas occasionally. When I am finished with the magazine and if it doesn't look like teen wolf got a hold of it, I bring it to my neighborhood library for the magazine exchange so someone else can enjoy it and hopefully recycle it or pass it along. 

What are your favorite magazines?

Hello | Goodbye

Creamy Baked Ziti

I like to cook. Before Pinterest (love Pinterest!), I had a composition notebook. I would tear recipes from magazines and tape the tear-outs in the notebook.

I have pinned tons of recipes, some better than others... but this one from mostly homemade mom for Creamy Baked Ziti is pretty darn easy to make and was a real hit with Q.

The original recipe from Mostly Homemade Mom and to the right the changes I made.

Creamy Baked Ziti

1 box ziti pasta     (i used penne pasta, because i had it in the pantry)
2 jars spaghetti sauce     (i used 1, i would definitely use 2 the next time)
1-1 1/2 lbs of ground beef     (you could sub ground turkey or Italian sausage or a 50/50 mix)
1 small onion diced
1 cup sour cream     (i might try cottage cheese or Greek yogurt next time)
1/4 pound sliced provolone cheese     (i used prepackaged shredded cheese)
1/4 pound sliced mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tablespoon of oregano


Cook pasta until al dente. Meanwhile, brown ground beef and diced onion in a large skillet, drain. Add two jars spaghetti sauce, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes. Spray a 9x13 pan with nonstick spray. Spread half of ziti on bottom of dish. Layer with alternating slices of mozzarella and provolone cheese. Ladle half of meat sauce over cheese. Place dollops of the sour cream over the meat sauce (use all of the sour cream, not half as this will be the only layer of sour cream). Repeat layers as listed ending with the meat sauce. Sprinkle top with grated parmesan cheese and oregano. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

I  tweaked the recipe just a bit one way was adding pasta sauce to the bottom of the pan before layering the ingredients.
P.S. This bakeware from Celebrating Home is pretty great.

What is your favorite or best recipe from Pinterest?

HGTV crazy! or just crazy :0)

I have a love for most things HGTV. I am not a do it yourself person, I have no plans on moving, or remodeling, but I will watch HGTV nonstop for hours on end. (probably a lot less now that I am a mom!) When it comes to houses and design I can't get enough!

These are some of my favorite blogs and websites for all things house:

Hooked on Houses |  it incorporates celeb houses, remodel before and afters, and cool houses around the US.

real e stalker  |  celeb owned homes and luxury real estate, lots of homes to drool over... And some added snark

houzz  |  duh, this is a no brainier, best house photos ever!

rate my space  |  on hgtv.com viewers upload pics and other people can comment or ask questions sort of a precursor to houzz.com


What are your favorite websites and blogs for all things design?

blue light special | best deals for August

Z and I are lonely on our morning walks. All the fun and laughter ringing up and down the streets in our neighborhood has come to an end. The kids are all loaded up on the busses and off to school.

I always looked forward to heading back to school. New clothes, fresh school supplies, what more could a girl want?

Although I am not headed back to school, I do still love all the fall fashions. :0)

Here are some of the best sales and deals around the web:

1. GAP 40% off your purchase (thru 8/27) with the code DEAL at checkout.
2. Anthropologie 20% off sale.
3. JCREW 25% off select styles and final sales items.

Happy shopping!

Totally Target | my dollhouse bookcase adventure

Z is growing up so fast! It seems like each day is gone in a blink, and I cannot believe how fast the last 8 months have gone! She is growing and changing each day and it is awesome to watch. She also is collecting more, and more, and more TOYS!!!! I went on a search for some book and toy storage that would work in her room now and later in a toy  room. I love all things girlie for this little one!

I searched for awhile and settled on a dollhouse bookcase. There are so many amazing choices out there from pretty reasonable in price to I hope I will the lottery soon!

1. Pottery Barn (always a perfect pick!) super cute at $499
2. Land of Nod at $299 (plus right now 15% off with the code BUDDY at checkout!)
3. Posh Tots (for the mom with a bigger budget) a very cute option at $899
4. Target (the bookcase in this blog) $99 (including shipping!!!!)

I looked and looked and decided on the dollhouse bookcase from Target, available here.

I am not going to lie, it was a little overwhelming when I opened the box.  

I was excited to see how simple it actually was to put together. I was able to complete the project within about an hour.

with this little bird cheering me on!

(that face!)

almost finished!

with some of Z's books and a couple of her toys


All in all I am pleased with the results. I highly recommend  an electric drill for the backing or going to the hardware store and replacing the tiny screws with little tack nails.