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E.L.F flash sale!
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Today only! You can get the Natural Radiance Collection for only $25, that's a 50% discount! Click link below the picture to take you right to it!
Makeup in a Minute: Get our Natural Radiance Collection, usually $50, for just $25 at EyesLipsFace.com. That's 50% Off! This offer is valid today, 6/19 only. No coupon code needed. Shop Now!
Makeup in a Minute: Get our Natural Radiance Collection, usually $50, for just $25 at EyesLipsFace.com. That's 50% Off! This offer is valid today, 6/19 only. No coupon code needed. Shop Now!
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
I've blogged about this meal before, but we had it last night for dinner so I decided to take pictures and make a full post about it. Warning: This is NOT a healthy meal at all ahah! I do what I can to make it a little bit healthier by using turkey hot dogs and I usually use homemade clean turkey chili I have on hand in the freezer if I have it [I did not last night]. This is my family's favorite meal. We probably have it a little too often... but I like to keep them happy =]
Chili Dog Casserole Ingredients
- Turkey Hot Dogs [we use the fit & active brand from Aldi]
- 2 cans of chili, or your own homemade chili if you have some on hand
- Fajita size flour tortilla shells
- 8oz shredded cheese, we like sharp cheddar on it
- Aluminum foil, to cover
Preheat oven to 425 degrees
1) Spread 1 can of chili on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Last night I used a smaller one because I already have stuff in my 9x13s [I'll show you that soon aha]. I definitely recommend using the 9x13. The 7x11 I used last night was too small. I had to reeeeally squish them in tight.
2) Okay, after you spread the chili, you'll roll up a hot dog in a flour tortilla. Place that on top of the chili, seam side down. Continue until all the hot dogs are rolled up.
3) Now, you'll spread the second can of chili on top of the rolled up hot dogs, and add the cheese on top of that!
4) The next step is very important. You need to cover the dish with foil. You want to make sure you get it covered well, but try to pull the foil up in the center over the cheese. You don't want all the cheese stuck to the foil when you take it out of the oven!
5) Bake covered, in 425 degree oven for about 30mins.
Since mine were all squished in a smaller pan last night, I think I could have left it in the oven a little longer. You can see the spots where the cheese wasn't fully melted. It was still amazing as always though!
Here it is plated up. I always serve corn with it. Corn seems to be the perfect companion to this casserole. Jess and I will typically have a side salad as well, this is my son's plate though and he hates salad.
Well there ya have it! My family's favorite meal. NOT in the least bit healthy, but it's a good comfort food dish. It's a very quick meal to throw together, so it's great on busy nights. Very affordable too. I purchase all the ingredients at Aldi and it costs $6.00 to make the casserole. Not too shabby! ;) Now, most people will have leftovers of this casserole. 10 hot dogs with tortilla shells && chili is a lot of food! However, I have a 16yo boy in the home.... That kid is as skinny as can be, but can eat like a horse! This is why I like to find budget friendly meal options that make A LOT of food!
Let me know if you try it! Have you made something similar? Did you tweak the recipe? Leave a comment below!
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
May flew by and we're already in the second week of June! Whew! Talk about being behind on a favorites post, woops! aha! May was a crazy month for me... lots of exciting things happened [hence the lack of posts in May, sorry 'bout that]. I'm sure I'll go into further detail later on about what May meant to me, but right now I'll just briefly fill you in. I was adopted when I was 3 days old, and I recently found && met my biological sister, along with several other members of my biological family. It was amazing and meant the world to me. May was an emotional whirlwind!
Okay lets get down to business with my favorites. The above picture features my favorite beauty products of May 2014. Here are the details:
I recently got my hair cut to a very layered shorter style. I've been using this Spray to achieve the texture && messy look that my style requires. I'm quite fond of this product. It's been around for awhile, but I'm just now getting my hands on it. It smell ah-mazing! You should definitely try it out!
My favorite fragrance in the WORLD is Falling in Love by Philosophy. This body spray is a cheap alternative to it. Great dupe! I love layering it with my actual Falling in Love fragrance, so that I'm using less of the Philosophy and making it last longer.
Urban Decay De-Slick
I'm a grease machine. I will be the first to admit it. GREASE MACHINE! Urban Decay De-Slick is a MUST in my summer time arsenal. Kansas has humid as hell heat in the summer, and it takes an act of God to keep my makeup from melting off. This product does a FANTASTIC job. I can't live without it.
I received this product in my Sample Society box last month or the month before. I really like the formula. It's kind of "gel" based, which is great for me during the summer time. Even though it's only for my eye area, the more I can do to prevent the grease machine, the better.
This is an eyeshadow trio I received in a Sample Society box several several months ago. I finally dug it out and decided to play with it. I know the colors may seem a little "warm" for summer, but it works. You can use any colors any time of year, it just depends on how you apply it. Blending is key! These shades are very pigmented and very soft. I'm quite impressed with the quality of the shadow.
This has become one of my favorite all over the lid base shadow. It's such a beautiful neutral color, and when you layer anything over it, that shade will POP! Such an affordable product, you have to give it a whirl. Some people have had experience with creasing with these. I have not, and [once again] my skin is a grease machine. I love the color tattoo line by Maybelline!
Let me start by saying that Butter London is my all time favorite Nail Polish brand. I adore the formula && the shades. Well I received this pencil in a Sample Society box, and it's beautiful! I only use it on my bottom lash line with a bronzed or neutral smokey eye. It adds a nice pop of fun color. The pencil is long lasting, and glides on smooth as butter, ahah! Very impressed!
I've been struggling with my brows for awhile. I'll save you the ridic details, but basically I found I was shaping them too low. I was taking too much off the top, which was taking away my natural arch. So I've been letting them grow back in, and it's been a roller coaster. This product has done wonders for helping me fill in the bald areas [side 1], and the gel works well to keep the unruly hairs in line [side 2]. I'm proud to say that we're getting there! Before too long, my eyebrows will be amazing! [Okay maybe not amazing, who actually LOVES their eyebrows?]
My miscellaneous favorites:
I blew through season 1 & 2 in May on Netflix. This is such an addictive show! Very intense from the start. I love it! Huck is my favorite character, I just adore him. You have to check out this show!
I'm really digging this album. Iggy is pretty impressive. There's some catchy tunes ["Fancy" anyone?] and some more real intense stuff. It's definitely an explicit album, but that stuff doesn't bother me ;-)
What were your May favorites? Do you love/hate anything in my list? Let me know in the comments below! I love talking to you guys!
Thursday, June 5, 2014
Three years ago we loaded up and headed to our local Humane Society to look into adopting a shelter cat. We roamed around and played with the cats for several hours. Then we came across a kennel that had kittens in it. I fell in LOVE with one of them, and my family fell in LOVE with another. We held them and snuggled and loved on them for quite some time. Trying to decide which one to bring home. I wasn't budging on my choice, and my family wasn't budging on their choice. It was then that a shelter worker came over to us and explained to us that since it was National Adopt a Shelter Cat month, that we could adopt 2 cats for the fee of 1 adoption.
We hadn't really set out to adopt 2 cats, but the two kitties were shelter mates and got along beautifully. Decision made.
Quorra is named after Olivia Wilde's character from Tron [yes we're a little nerdyyy around here]. Quorra was a little weakling when we brought her home, so I wanted her to have a strong badass name. As a kitten Quorra was very shy, quiet, && timid. This went along with her not feeling well and having health problems. She was my babyyy [still is].
She quickly got healthy and turned into miss alpha. She's loud and bossy! She will literally argue with you. If she's doing something she's not supposed to, and I tell her "no" she mouths off back. Every. Single. Time.
Quorra is obsessed with fleece. I made a fleece tie blanket this past winter and if it's out and on me, so is she. Quorra and I enjoy daily naps when we can fit them in. We curl up on the couch together and snuggle in the afternoon when it's just us home. It's "our" time.
Little Miss Igloo here is the one my son && girlfriend loved. She was a rowdy beast as a kitten! Igloo was the craziest most energetic kitten I've ever seen. She's mostly white so they decided to name her Igloo. Igloo, bless her heart, isn't the brightest crayon in the box... She may not be smart but she's very lovable and has a big personality. As she's gotten older, she's mellowed out a lot. Quorra takes care of Igloo now. She'll groom Igloo, play with her, snuggle with her on cold nights, && looks after her. Together they are the sweetest sisters one could ever hope for.
I've had some of the best 3 years of my life with these girls. I'm home alone a lot! They keep me company when my family is off with their busy schedules. I don't regret adopting 2 instead of 1 at all. In fact, I can't imagine either one of them without the other. They're my companions && they're each other's companions as well.
Please look into adopting a shelter cat. There are so many around the world needing homes. Visit this LINK to view cats needing homes in your local area! Cats can be such a blessing. They're also great for apartment life. The nearest grass to us is several blocks away, so having a dog isn't conducive. I also enjoy the independence of cats. We can leave town for the day and not have to make arrangements like we would have to with a dog. I'm not knocking dogs, I LOOOOVE dogs. I've had both dogs && cats all myyy life! It's just that the cat life suits us best right now.
My girls are my kids. I love them && they make me so happy. Go get yourself some love && happiness! <3 ADOPT!
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
The Julep Maven June 2014 box came in the mail today. This is my second round of boxes and I'm going to do an honest review for you here...
The packaging is fun && they even included some pixy stix this month. The polish colors are pretty as well. I received 2 boxes: one included 3 polishes, and one had 2 polishes with a base coat. I haven't tested the base coat yet... The last box I received a few weeks ago had a beautiful mint color that I wore for about a week. Here's where I'm going to be honest. I wasn't crazy about the formula going on. It was a little goopy and took several coats. The lasting power wasn't terrible, but wasn't exceptional either. I will say that the swatches I did of this months bottles went on a lot smoother, much less goopy. Maybe my mint color was bad? I don't know ladies, I'm just not sold yet... I don't feel they last any longer than a cheap bottle of China Glaze, and they for sure don't apply better. For the price point, I think I might stick with my Butter London. Julep is advertised on nearly every website, every youtuber reviews it, most nail blogs talk about it... I'm just here to give my true honest opinion. I'm not impressed.
Quorra had a fun time getting into the box when I walked away! I had to stop and take pictures real quick before she actually got the pixy stix open <33
Do you subscribe to Maven? Good experience? Bad? Let me know in the comments below.
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
This book review is on one of the best books I've read in a long time. This book touched me so deeply. I read it on my kindle then had to go out and purchase the physical copy to keep by my bed. The Fault In Our Stars [tfios] proves that the Young Adult genre isn't just for teenagers. I urge you to read this book if you haven't already. I fell in love with this book, and then it broke my heart into pieces. When I read the last page and closed the book, I sobbed. Not cried. Sobbed. I rarely say that I book "changes my life", but this one indeed changed my life. It's incredibly profound, and is a wonderful story.
The Fault In Our Stars
Author: John Green
"Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named Augustus Waters suddenly appeared at Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten" -amazon
I'd call myself a bookworm, a booknerdigan, a lover of all books. Lately, I've been really enjoying Young Adult books. This one surprised me and I had to read everything by John Green that I could get my hands on. He's such a great author. While we're on that subject, after you read TFIOS, you must read Looking for Alaska. Phenom.
TFIOS has created a much deserved fandom base. Just input "TFIOS" into pinterest, twitter, instagram, tumblr, etc. You'll find a huge community of "nerdfighters". While the following is largely young adult, obviously it's not only for teenagers... I'm 31 and I'm head over hills for this story.
Funny story: My best friend is a nurse is going to school to be a practitioner. She has a break in between semesters and texted me asking if I've read any good books lately. I of course recommended TFIOS. The next day I received a text that said, "Why the F**K did you have me read this book!?" AHah! Her boyfriend came home that night and thought he was in trouble because she was sobbing.
Honestly though... please don't wait for the movie. You MUST read the book first. You need to experience the story intimately first. Just you and the characters. Then you can see the movie =]
Here's some of my favorite images I found on tumblr about the book:
Okay now run to your local book store, or grab your kindle && read this book! The movie comes out Friday!
Have you read TFIOS? Did you like it? Let me know below! <333