Beautifully Poor

Let's Ring in 2015 with a BANG! As I look back on this year, I can see so many changes in my life, FOR THE BETTER! We moved to Minnesota from Michigan for starters. I went from working two part-time jobs to being a stay at home mom, which I absolutely love and consider myself very blessed for this opportunity. My little boy has started talking up a storm (FINALLY). In fact this morning I ate a piece of toast he didn't want and he got sad at me, no idea why. When he left the room, he looked back and told me, "Don't touch my juice box!" LOL like I would! But too funny anyways.  The bond between daddy and son has grown immensely strong. Don't worry, he doesn't have a real razor in the picture haha! I've made some amazing friends and my new life here in Maplewood has been extremely blessed. I thank God every day for what I have and can only imagine the plans he has in store for our family in 2015.  So as we count down the hours, minutes and seconds to 2...

Finding the Beauty in my Child There he is. As beautiful as a kid can get. Handsome, tall, with good looks. Yet there is something beneath that exterior that many don't know. A little person bursting with self worth, entitlement and someone who knows what he wants. My little super hero as I call him. I cannot imagine my life without this little person I call Benjamin. Yet until recently, I felt like the biggest failure as a mother to him. Captain America/Ninja Turtle You see, Benjamin didn't talk for the longest time. When he was about 2 years old I called Early On back in Michigan where we came from. I stated my concern that he didn't really talk as well as the kids his age, and he had major outbursts of anger, like I am talking out of control, breaking stuff anger. I didn't know how to control my child or how to parent him and I was scared something was wrong. They hooked us up with speech therapy and sessions with teachers to work with him on behavior. Hah...

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year! And it most certainly is! Christmas is one of my favorite times and now that my son is 4, it is even more exciting! He has been talking about it since July! Christmas morning is going to be so fun watching him open his gifts and just to spend time with my family.  We don't go to crazy though when it comes to Christmas. My son gets maybe 5 presents under the tree from mom and dad, and only one of them is bigger. This year we got him the Bat Bot from Imaginext because he has been wanting it forever! The rest are smaller gifts like a book and a board game. Christmas can be expensive so I was lucky enough to buy all of my husband's gifts and all but the Bat Bot and a smaller gift for my son with gift cards I had won from Twitter parties. I was very blessed this season to be able to do that! Otherwise our Christmas would be a lot smaller than it is.  Christmas isn't about presents anyways though, so in that factor, I ...

Forgiveness As this Holiday season is coming to its peak, we tend to forget what Christmas is really about. It's not about getting presents or shopping for the greatest deal or winning that prize we keep entering for! Family is the most important thing this season, and I will say that is my opinion. Yes we remember the birth of our Savior, if in fact you believe in God. If not it isn't about that either. So many times we forget about those people that should mean most to us. Showing kindness to strangers can be so easy, because they don't really know who we are and will think we are just the nicest person ever because they were hungry on the street and we fed them a meal or put a toy in the toy box at Walmart for Toys for Tots. What about the people in our homes and our immediate families? The parent not spoken to for years because of a fight, some sort of resentment, or even because they were abusive in some way. That sibling that has done so many horrible thing...

#MODAVOXBOX Being a part of Influenster has got to be one of the best things EVER! Look at those items I got FREE for testing purposes! Heck yes! So here goes! This is what I thought about the #ModaVoxBox. My 3 favorite items in the box were the Rimmel London products! Scandaleyes Rockin' Curves Mascara allows you to always look like you're #RockinIt! I can see my lashes in this picture! So awesome! The second was the Moisture Renew Lip Liner. It is clear so you can use it with ANY lipstick color. How handy is that!? I also got the Moisture Renew Lipstick in Red Alert. I love reds! I don't rock them often because I have such a fair complexion, but once in awhile I do and I LOVE this color! The next item was the Puffs SoftPack. Now I love Puffs. My favorite brand of tissue because it is so soft and durable. Now they have a SoftPack that is perfect especially for the car in my opinion. If the container gets a little wet or moisture hits it, it ...

  The Newest ChapStick on the Market! Don't mind the picture (LOL) but that is the ChapStick in question! I absolutely love this stuff. The Day end has an SPF 12 in it and long-lasting moisture! I apply a few times per day, as it is the dry season with fall here and winter quickly approaching. The Night end has Tamanu Oil, natural butters and antioxidants in it. I love putting on the night side right before bed to ensure that I don't wake up with really chapped lips! And when I finally do get a crazy cold this winter, I won't have to worry about the cracking lips that come with that! It is also great for putting on before a pretty lip gloss or as a primer for a lipstick. Either way, if your lips are supple and smooth, like this ChapStick provides, you will always look fabulous is your soft lips! ***I received this product free from Smiley360 for testing and review purposes. All opinions are 100% my own.

When Exercising Becomes Fun! Ahhhh! The comfort! The style! The support! A lot of people I know who I work out with don't think of Victoria's Secret when it comes to sportswear. There are so many other companies that sponsor the Olympics, other sporting events and are seen on the 5K race course that are anything but Victoria's Secret.  When we think of Victoria's Secret we think of lingerie; naturally so. They have the most fabulous undergarments and lingerie around and are my go-to for that sort of thing. Not to mention the wonderful selection of lotions, sprays and body washes! I just picked up a perfume for myself recently and their PJ's! Oh to die for!  Anyways, this post isn't about what we all already know about VS. What about their fantabulous sports line! Have you ever checked it out!!?? If not, I dare you to do it!  Think of this. Why couldn't the company that makes the most comfortable and reliable bra in the universe also make the most com...

How Are You Known? One of the biggest sellers to kids and adults these days is to be famous. For everyone to know who we are and what are name is. To somehow put an impact on the world whether it be from inventing something awesome or being an actor(actress), rockstar, or singing. We all have some sort of talent, though not all of us can play an instrument better than most or sing like an angel, making this dream far fetched for most of us. In fact, I would imagine a lot of us feel like the turtle in the above picture. He isn't real easy to pick out of the bog. Between the stick and lillypads he kind of just blends in. I took this picture while on a walk through our local nature center and we spotted a few turtles, but we had to look pretty hard to notice them. If we would've just booked it through the trail without paying close attention we would have missed them altogether.  So how do we get noticed? How do our names fit into this world so people know who we are?...

Family and Adventure I had such a blast this past week and am so exhausted from all our adventures! My parents and nephew drove up from Michigan on Friday of last week and my brother and sister-in-law flew in from Arizona on Saturday afternoon. It was a tiring week but so worth it. I love my family.  First order of business! Letting the two cousins have some pool fun!!! They had such a blast in the pool!  Absolutely love this picture Second order! Choo Choo Bob's in St Paul! One of our favorite stores in the city for kids! Train sets everyone can play with as well as story times and you can even have your child's birthday party there! Then it was picnic time on Colby Lake! Frisbee and food! Playtime and sunshine. So wonderful to have family with us! Cousins Relaxing after a long day Then I was lucky enough to have my family watch my brother and Lawrence and I run the 4 Miles for Hunger in Burnsville. It was so great...