HOW word of mouth really works

um. i'd like to say i feel like a sucker right now, but...

i don't.

but all you marketing people, you should pay attention. because THIS is truly how word of mouth works.

here we have DRINK NEURO.

now, i have seen them in the grocery stores a lot lately. i paid them attention to them at first because i liked their bright, fun colors. and i liked the shape of the bottle. it was different. SEE- PACKAGING TOTALLY WORKS. but we know this already, because i posted years ago about buying herbal essence because their new bottles were pretty! remember that?! yeah. packaing.sucker.

so... carry on to me forgetting about the drinks. or not wanting to try them because they were pricey. even though i would LOOK at them everytime i passed them in the store, i was never really pulled to BUY any of them.

cut to twitter. and my buddy Matt posting about this stupid drink on it.


so then i was like, "hmmmm, what is this drink all about? maybe i'll REALLY check it out the next time i go to the store."

but then i let that thought go and sort of forgot about it.

cut (again, yes. we're doing a lot of cutting. it's fun for me.) to an impromptu get together a few days later at a friends house. and her teenage daughter (who i LOVE, WORSHIP and ADORE!) starts talking about the dang neuro drinks! she says how they are her most favorite drinks ever, she drinks them all the time, she LOVES them, they are so good, etc.

and that my folks, was all it took.

2 people who i know talking about the same brand of drink within about a 3 day time period.

so what happened next?

if you guessed that i went to the store and bought one of each drinks that they were carrying...

well...

YOU'D BE RIGHT!



so far i've tried 3 of them (sleep, sonic and sun). and up to now, THIS one is my most fave.


(yeah. that's me. sitting IN the sun, drinking SUN for the full affect. brilliant i tell you. how someone hasn't hired me is beyond all reason.)

it's freaking delicious!!! and i half wonder if i love it the most because it was the first one i tried? i dunno, all i do know is that it's really yummy.

and i didn't even want to buy it to be honest. i thought it sounded stupid. but the boy wanted it. he said i HAD to get it. so of course i love the one the most that was the least appealing to me. HA!

go figure that one out geniuses. :)

was there a lesson to be learned here? probably for marketers everywhere. and matt, i hope you get buttloads of cases of neuro sleep (and send the NEURO SUN's to meeeee) for free!

and um, if you're in the market for a new drink... you should try them out. and i should mention that i did drink a sleep before bed (i thought the taste was EH. i mean, not awful by any means, just not super yummy like SUN) and i feel like i slept more soundly than i have in weeks. but that could be the exhaustion setting in? or maybe the drink really does work?

if you try them, let me know! if you already love em, tell me which one's your most favorite! and you think i'm a total sucker, you can tell me that in the comments section right before i tell you to go blow yourself. ha

trying to lose weight by summer?

cause really, isn't that a huge topic of conversation on a daily basis between women (and yeah, some of you guys too)? i feel like i'm constantly battling these "last 10 pounds"... and with summer coming up- and the fact that i like to get tan and wear shorts... well..

yeah.

so my girlfriend from high school, kim... she's been trying to get me to try this weight loss stuff she's been doing. and let me tell you, she's crazy skinny lately. she blames her new diet plan. i blame crack. :)

she insists that it's fabulous and even though i honestly only feel like i have 6 pounds that i want to lose, i still want it gone! (because i'm 6 pounds heavier than i was last summer.. and let me tell you that those 6 pounds have all camped out in my ass and upper thighs) i know 6 pounds isn't much.. but it is a lot when it all resides within one area of my body. 6 pounds BE GONE!

so she offered to send me 3 days worth of product for me to try out! and well, i'm not one to turn down shit that could help me look even hotter than i already do, so i said YES! then she almost made my cry when she ran down the laundry list of items she'd be sending me. (i mean, i was super overwhelmed in the same way i got overwhelmed the first time i started using a 3 step face wash system for my face at night... I HAVE TO USE THREE STEPS?! IN ORDER?! OH MY GAWD, I'LL NEVER GET IT RIGHT!!!) but then when i got everything in the mail, it all made way more sense. :) and even though she sent me a little bit of everything, i only used what i would use if i had bought it myself. basically, the main componant is the shakes that you drink for either 2 meals a day, or 1. i was totally on board. i mean, that's soooo slim fast-ish to me, and i loved slim fast, so i'm down with shakes for meals. ha

anyway, this stuff is called body with vi.. maybe you've heard of it? seems pretty popular lately.. i did a twitter search and it's all over that thing! so, i did 2 shakes a day, for 3 days. one for breakfast and one for lunch. the shakes come in a pouch that is one flavor (sweet cream) and it smells like vanilla frosting when you open it. *swoon* i put the first one in orange juice for breakfast and it was surprisingly good (i was honestly scared with my first sip)! i really, really liked it. but since i couldn't get past the whole vanilla frosting smell (and i feel like frosting belongs in milk & not juice) i bought some non-fat milk and used that for my lunch shake. EVEN better!!! it really was super yummy. reminds me a lot of vanilla slim fast shakes, which i LOVE! but with this stuff, you can put it in pretty much anything. soy products, yogurt, fruit and ice and then blend it.... i stuck with the milk for the 3 days. cause it was so dang good.

she also sent me these energy flavor packet things you can put in your water. i fell in love with that stuff. they were so good and i loved how i felt after. i totally noticed a difference. plus, it's fun to feel like you're drinking something OTHER than water for once. i'm such a freaking water whore, but it does get boring.

did i lose any weight in 3 days, you're probably wondering? i didn't. but in all honesty, my body takes longer than a mere 3 days to lose anything. i plan on ordering a set of the shakes because in the summer- i lose my appetite and i struggle with what to eat for lunch almost everyday. i'm not always very hungry, but i know i need to eat and nothing ever sounds good. the shakes will be easy, quick, yummy and filling. i think they'll be perfect. and then if they help me lose weight, EVEN BETTER!!!

so yeah. if you've tried body with vi, i'd love to hear about how it was for you. and if you haven't, but you're intrigued.. check out my girlfriends website here. you can email her and ask her any questions. she's super knowledgeable and helpful. and if you order, i hope you'll help her out and order from her. you can ask me anything too. but you already know that. :)

want free mcdonald's angus snack wraps?

i know i just talked about my awesome fitness in the post below... but why not follow up working out, with working out your mouth?

i have some mcdonald's new angus snack wraps to give away. well i don't have them just sitting at my house or anything.. but i have COUPONS for you to go get some!

this is exciting right? of course it is!!!!

just enter to win in the comments section and i'll draw at random on monday, august 31st. tell your friends. tell your mom.

i know how much we like to talk about mascara!

so i have to tell you about my NEW! MASCARA!! that i'm using!!!! i know, i know.. i just got y'all to buy the other awesome mascara i was wearing. don't worry, collosal volume masacara is still amazing....


but this one is better!!!! it's still by maybelline, so we're still in the same brand family!! it's their new one, called FALSIES


i actually love this mascara MORE than the colossal volume one and here's why.
falsies is softer. i mean, i thought colossol was soft-but this mascara (i always wear waterproof so having non crunchy lashes is normally a difficult request) is WAY softer. this does result in me having to put on at least two (and i seriously mean at least) coats AND i have to curl my eyelashes more than one time, which is weird, but i'm used to it now.

the falsies mascara has a totally different wand than the collosal mascara. see?


and the falsies really does seperate ALL of my lashes. it makes my lashes just as long and tall as the other one does, BUT it shows WAY MORE of my lashes. all of them come out to play when i wear the falsies mascara!

i know how much y'all love seeing pictures of my eyelashes so here you go. this was taken the very first time i wore the falsies mascara.


so in all the recent pics from new york and becky & cat's visit i've been wearing the falsies. ah shit, you probably can't even see my eyes cause i'm wearing sunglasses in almost every picture. even indoors! whatever.

so at one point i tried to go back to the collosal so i could do a real comparison, but i kind of hated it. the falsies has won me over- for the length and the seperation. so go try it! tell me if you like it... and remember that it is SUPER soft, so think lots of coats!!!

i love our mascara discussions. lol

dead skin- on your face. and probably on yours too!

i don't get facials and things like that because the two times i think i have done it, my face has completely freaked out on me and looked beyond wretched for days after. so i don't like them and i tend to steer clear of them.

i have never tried micro-dermabrasian before, so when i was contacted to try this new at home personal microdermabrasian kit.. i said yes immediately. and then i got a little scared. or more than a little scared. because it's MY FACE!!! MY ONE AND ONLY FACE!!! and what if i end up ripping all the skin off of it or something?! or what if it was too tough or hard on my face and i ended up with red blotches and stuff all over? what if my face would never be the same again?!??!!? i mean there is only so much makeup can do!!!!!!!

then i calmed down.

it came in the mail and i thought the packaging was weird. i mean, i liked it, except the part where the plug outlet thing goes into. it had a hole in the bottom so it couldn't stay put with the rest of the product and well.. what the heck man? that was the only part that didn't really make any sense to me. because in theory, i'd like to keep the whole thing together and the plug is a main component (the thing won't work without being plugged in) but i didn't want to HAVE to keep the box. you know? this foam stuff was pretty solid and durable and if i could keep it in that without the box, that would be my preference.

the kit came with a dvd to watch and i must tell you that before you try this machine.. you NEED/HAVE to watch the dvd (it's also online). it's super helpful and made me a lot less scared about putting what seems essentially like sandpaper all over my face. you can also use this on your hands, chest, elbows, and neck.

i washed and dried my face so there was no makeup or lotion or anything on it. and um.. here was my face pre first microderm. yes, that is me with absolutely nothing on my face. no makeup of any kind. no lotion. no moisturizing creams. nothing. yay.

the tool was super easy to use!! at first it's a little shocking because it sucks at your face and skin like a little vaccuum and i will admit that it does burn a little while it's doing whatever it is that it's doing to your skin. but that could also be because i wasn't moving quick enough and stayed in one area for too long. anyway, as i moved the vaccuum along my face, it made white lines and put lots of white skin (which i am assuming are the dead skin cells) in pretty much a pile at the end of my face. i tried to take a picture of the pile of dead skin on my face, but it wouldn't show the way i wanted it too.

there are 3 different types of discs to choose from to use on your face. i was sent the blue type (sensitive skin and recommended for first time users) and then green (medium coarseness). there is also red for a more coarse use. i used the blue all 3 times i used the machine. but the next time, i'm going to try the green because i think my face can take it.

after i was done, the machine looked like this. .

all the white dust looking stuff is actually dead skin cells FROM MY FACE. sweet.

so here is my face after the first use. this is still my face with absolutely no makeup, but i did put on lotion. do you see a difference? me either.

the whole point though is that with all these dead skin cells on our face that won't get off- our face won't properly absorb any lotions or creams because the dead cells block it from happening. so since this will take the dead skin cells off of your face, your face can absorb moisture the way it should..


it's now been 3 weeks and i've used the product 3 times. i honestly can't say if it's done anything to my face that is extremely noticeable. i don't feel like my wrinkles are lessened or that my face looks better or smoother. BUT i will say this- everytime after using the tool, my skin looks and feels better than it ever has. the lotion goes on in a more moisturizing way. and my makeup looks flawless and super pretty. my skin looks smooth and amazing. i LOVE the way my face looks after using this tool. but that is literally just the day i've used it. i don't feel like that look and feel lasts as each day passes. i do think that my skin tone is evening out and i am looking forward to that happening more with my continued use.

i am going to keep using it, because i'm not sure that 3 uses is enough to make a difference. i might need 6 uses.. or more than that? so i'm just going to keep using it once a week and see what happens!!! which means i'll be buying more replacement discs (only 15 bucks) pretty soon!!! using this tool is fun and i wish i could use it more than once a week.

i want to crush my phone like the pos it is

remember when i had my verizon fiasco? you know, the one where i cried in their store? the one where THEY broke MY perfectly working phone and wouldn't give me a replacement one without a charge of at least $80 dollars out of my own pocket? i'm sure you're as scarred as i am over that one.

i ended up having to call customer service to see what could be done. i was without a phone for 4 days. oooh, how did i live? customer service told me that they could send me a refurbished phone, but it could only have a certain dollar value. the lady on the line sent me the "best" one of her choices.

i can't even begin to describe to you how much i fucking LOATHE.THIS.PHONE. first of all, it is in no way comparable to the phone i had before. the phone verizon broke. it doesn't have the same features. it is a pain in the ass to use. the screen is probably a third of the size, the phone is half the size and it's slower than that commercial where the swim race guys jump into a pool of caramel. i pretty much cannot stand everything about this stupid phone that i swear was made for children and not grown ups.

you have to understand that i am an electronics snob. i LOVE my cell phones. i LOVE my tv's. i love my stereo equipment. i research the hell out of things that i want to buy and once i've decided what will be perfect for me, i want it and nothing else. and i can't be talked out of it. my cell phone is a reflection of me and my taste, style, and preferences. i don't give a shit if you think my cell phone is stupid or there's a better one on the market- the phone i bought is the phone i wanted.. after testing, researching, comparing, reading reviews, blogs, forums, etc.

so the fact that i have to walk around with this phone on me, is not only embarassing, it's infuriating. everytime it rings or beeps for a new text message i want to throw it at the wall. and in all honesty, i have NEVER in my life left a phone, forgotten a phone, don't know where my phone is, more times than i have since this phone has come into my life. case in point, this weekend my sister, mom and girlfriend were all going to meet us at blake's baseball tournament. I LEFT MY PHONE IN OUR HOTEL ROOM SO I COULDN'T GET AHOLD OF ANYONE!!!! i would never normally do something like that. it is because i can't stand this phone so much subconsciously that i am always ditching it.

so while i want to thank verizon for doing what they should of done in the first place, which was issuing me a new phone.. i also want to say thanks a lot... for giving me a phone that is clearly less superior than my previous phone.. that takes me about 10 hours to send a text message because i cannot deal with the keypad thing.. that doesn't have the capability to video things.. and that was literally, made for children with tiny fingers and hands. i mean, why else would the background be a kids bedroom with a lava lamp??? cause the thing was MADE FOR KIDS.

and i also want to thank verizon for having complete and total unhelpful assholes working in their actual stores. thanks for NEVER having your new phones in stock. for telling me that the htc incredible STILL has a 1 month's wait. i don't know how i will go to new york with this stupid phone i currently have. i need my incredible to travel with. i feel like i can't function with this phone i have now. UGH!!!

verizon.. i have never been more mad at you before. i think i feel even more wronged because i have been such a loyal customer for so long. i don't understand why companies don't care about people anymore. they don't care about their employees.. their customers.. as long as they are making money. i feel like i should have been taken care of better. your store should have fixed what THEY broke. they shouldn't have blamed me for what happened- and sided with their employee when he clearly did not divulge certain information. your manager should learn how to manage and take some customer service classes. i feel completely uncared about. i have RARELY complained to you (unless my phone snapped in half or whatnot) in the past.. i have been a customer since you bought my old cell phone company probably like 11 or so years ago. i want to feel like i matter. i want to be treated like you CARE that this happened to my phone. i don't want to be told to pay money. or it's time for me to upgrade, so i should just do that instead. but we don't have the phone you want anyway, so go fuck yourself. i realize i'm just one person in your grand world of many cell phone users and customers. but the thing is- that should matter to you.

and it doesn't.

i'm sick of it.

this world needs to change.

i cried in a verizon wireless store today

normally i freaking sing verizon's praises. i have been a verizon customer since they came into existance and started taking over other cell phone companies. i swear it's been over 10 years. i've made numerous people switch carriers and get verizon so we could have cell to cell chats. i have loved verizon, even when verizon hasn't loved me back.

but now? today? right this instant? i'm beyond pissed off.

all three of our cell phones have sucked ass lately. in all honesty, boyfriend and my lg voyager has always been sub par. everytime we try to connect to the internet, it shuts itself off. it is always screwing up something. but we've sucked it up for TWO years with a shitty phone just waiting until we can upgrade.

i went into a verizon store to ask about the phones... why don't we get service in our home anymore? why does it shut on and off all the time? the guy told me there was a software update available for our phone that would fix the bugs and issues.

so today, we brought all 3 phones in for updates. the guy working asked me if i had the data backup assistant.. i told him that my phone did, but the other 2 didn't. he said that there was a possibility that we could lose "data" during the update. we said okay and then were told to come back about an hour and a half later to pick up the phones.

when we came back into the store, we were told that 2 of the phones took the upgrade, but one of them didn't. of course, it was MY freaking phone. i was totally irritated and annoyed, but said "whatever".. grabbed my phone and headed out the door.

it wasn't until we were driving away that i realized my phone wouldn't turn on anymore. it didn't just NOT take the update... it was broken. so i turned around, went back into the store, and asked what the fuck happened?? and then i was told that the update fried my phone and that I WAS TOLD THAT COULD HAPPEN.

i'm sorry.

what the fuck did you just say to me????

I WAS NOT TOLD THAT THAT COULD HAPPEN! i was told i could lose DATA, not my entire phone.

and you know what they said and did?

the manager took the salespersons side. he said that the salesperson said i could lose data or my phone. i told him (with the salesperson standing there) that he did not say that. and if he DID intend to say something like that, maybe he should word it more clearly. like, THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT THE UPDATE COULD FRY YOUR ENTIRE PHONE AND IT WILL NO LONGER WORK.

i realize that's hard to say.

cause who wants to be held responsible for shit like that?

so they told me that they couldn't do anything for me. i was almost eligible for an upgrade, so did i want to do that right now? i told them i wasn't ready to do that yet. plus, the phone i want isn't available and has like a month wait. so wtf?!? then he went into the back and came out with a used phone and told me he could sell it to me for $80.

this is when i lost it.

i said.. "i came into the store with a phone that worked... and i came back to a phone that won't turn on. I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING. YOU BROKE MY PHONE and now you want me to PAY MONEY to get a new one?!?!! i didn't do anything to my phone. i didn't break it."

and i started crying. because clearly, i hold it together well.

i was just so upset that they were not trying to help me. they were making this my fault.. my responsibility and that they were telling me that i had to pay for a new phone.

i seriously expect to be treated better.

i am a fucking awesome verizon customer. i really am. and in return, i expect to be treated like an awesome verizon customer.

especially when something like that happens. i'm sorry verizon, but when YOUR SOFTWARE UPDATE results in the loss of an entire phone- why is this MY problem?!?!?!?

i don't know, but apparently it is. and for that, i hope they go fuck themselves.

ps- what does that mean for all of you who text and call me?!??! well you can't. cause i have no phone. and clearly, that is MY fault.

skin care

i've asked you guys more than once before just what the heck you wash your face with. i've been on a search for quite some time now to find products that simply... work for me. i used proactive for years and not because i ever had super bad skin or anything, but because i liked having "amazing" skin. but i started getting scared and wondering things like, how harsh is proactive on my FACE??? i still don't know the answer, but a product like that can't be gentle, right? and this is my face people. it's the only one i've got and i can't cover it with clothes and stuff when it starts to look bad.

so i've been wanting to find a replacement... something obviously not as harsh, but works just as well. the last thing i want is to turn into some zit freak, when i never was one before. at the persistence of a friend who started to sell arbonne, i tried multiple products of theirs. i didn't like any of them. the RE9 line way too moisturizing and heavy of a product for my combination skin. and the FC5 products just did not agree with me.

so it was back to the drawing board... and back to proactive... (can we pause really quickly and talk about the fact that proactive bleaches the hell out of everything? towels. washcloths. pillow cases. why doesn't anyone ever talk about that?!?!?!) so i've been using bleach face about twice a week, and this other over the counter face wash the other days. i feel like i have to substitute the proactive, otherwise i will suddenly sprout zits. and i can't have that. i refuse to have that.

this post is getting long.

someone offered to send me these products (the M2 sensitive skin collection bundle). yes, for free. and since i've been in such a skin care dilemma, i accepted. when they arrived, i noticed that they were designed really cute and differently than other products (the refinish twists up and down and the moisture lotion has a lid thing you press down on and the yellow goop comes up out of the middle of it). yes i notice everything. also, i like to read the stuff that is printed on the things i'm using. you know.. like the directions and the ingredients. but the writing on all of these bottles is way too light and blends in with the color of the product, making it extremely hard to read... especially in light (because the light ends up reflecting off the bottle itself). that was annoying, because i was already freaking exhausted after trying to read the damn bottles.

anyway... the products were different. the exfoliating cleanser didn't feel like it was cleaning my face intensely. but i think i'm also used to my face feeling like i'm scrubbing it off everynight, so i'm not sure i'm such a good judge on how a product is truly cleaning your face or not. time will tell. the skin refinish is supposed to get rid of all my fine lines (yay!!!) and even out skin tone, which should be fun since i'm freckly and stuff. it's kind of sticky. not in a super glue way, just in a ... tacky kind of way. my skin had a sticky feel to it after it had dried. i thought that was weird. the skin recovery moisturizer had that funky top that i talked about earlier and i was seriously confused on how to get it to work. i mean, i kept pressing it up and down.. up and down.. up and down.. until FINALLY, scary yellow looking goop came out. the color is weird. and it doesn't feel super moisturizing. although i'm starting to wonder if all the other lotions i've used feel moisurizing because they have sunscreen in them? this product doesn't. but it's weird to think that something could possibly be moisturizing your face when it doesn't FEEL moisturizing. i even had boyfriend feel my face before bed because it didn't feel soft (i like soft)... and he said it felt like leather. haha

but when i woke up the next morning, my face definitely looked different. i'm not sure WHAT exactly it is..... but it looks better. it looks softer. it looks prettier. and this was just day 1.

day 3.. this stuff is making my face very dry (either the stuff is leaving a super thin layer of crap that flakes off my face when i rub it, or it's my actual skin flaking off). i understand why because all 3 products have those acid's in them.. and nothing FEELS moisturizing. i think i'm going to have to modify things. i might stop using the 3rd step altogether and use my regular moisturizer. hopefully that will help. (update- it is step 2 that dries the hell out of your skin)

day 6.. i use the face wash everynight. i use the skin refinish stuff once every 3 days. .and i've stopped using the moisturizer completely. not sure if it's changing the way my skin looks or not. i haven't broken out at all which is awesome. maybe i'll use the moisturizer stuff like once a week or something?

day 30-something or other.. i have been using the face wash everynight. and i use the other 2 products like once a week i think. not sure the wrinkles are lightening at all. they are still there and still noticeable and i don't think they're fading. (maybe i should stop smiling) but my skin is pretty awesome. i break out slightly right before i start my p, which is to be expected. and then the rest of the month i'm pretty much clear skinned, with some exceptions that i haven't quite figured out yet. i think it might be because i started forgetting to use the other 2 products. once i start using them, my skin repairs itself and sends those zits packin! i haven't touched my pro-active since i started using these products. they are still sticky. they are still weird. but they work and i like feeling like i'm not putting something on my face that bleaches my freaking towels.

i do however want to try some kinerase moisturizing products- for wrinkles and stuff. but for face wash, i'm totally sticking with these products until they run out.

then you know what?

i'll buy them.

hair & mascara

i have a kind of confession to make when it comes to my hair.




i don't really brush it.

well wait, i mean that's not entirely true. i totally brush my hair. just not often. like, after i shower i'll comb it through and stuff.. cause otherwise you can't get the tangles outta your hair. well after i either blow it dry or let it air dry... i don't brush it. and then i started thinking about how chicks always have freaking brushes in their purses and they whip those things out in restaurant and bar bathrooms and start brushing at their hair to make it all soft and pretty... and me? never. i'm like the girl in the bathroom trying to get her hair messier, not more confined and in place. i'm the chick who on her wedding day said "i don't want my hair in perfect curls, or perfect anything.. i want it messy. i want it out of place, tangled and sexy as hell. you know, like i just got fucked." so yeah, i don't brush my hair that often. this is me RIGHT NOW (although in person, i'm actually in color).. the lighting was terrible so it looked crazy and not to mention this is with my cell phone, so it sucks regardless. but yeah, here is me and my non brushed hair.


am i really the only one who does this?


now.. for the mascara portion of our show. you remember when i told you about my new favorite and amazing mascara (ps, my hair in that picture? totally not brushed) the one that makes my lashes look fake and incredible and i want to suck them off everytime i see them? (omg, not literally. please lashes DO NOT FALL OUT!!!) well millions of you. yes, millions. have emailed, facebooked, twatted at me, talked to me in real life, called me, etc.. about this flipping mascara. i had no idea that my stupid post about maybelline's collossal mascara would inspire so many of you to go buy some! but it did. and your lashes don't look like mine. and you're all pissy and whiney and wondering WHYYYYY are jennster's lashes so amazing while yours are sucking like a whore on sunset?

well all of you ladies had the same answer for me when i asked you 1 simple question:
DO YOU CURL YOUR EYELASHES?

every one of you who didn't like the results you got with that mascara said NO.
no????? NOOOOOO???

ladies- YOU HAVE GOT TO CURL YOUR LASHES! how else do you think they're going to stand out at attention the way mine do? do you think i wake up, put that mascara on and my lashes do that on their own? are you high? if i didn't curl my lashes they would not look at all the way they do. they wouldn't look amazing or long or luscious.

you have to curl.


but you do not have to brush your hair.


class dismissed.

a post all about mascara

i love mascara. i truly do. i love my eyelashes. and i'm a total sucker for good marketing (and a pretty package).

when maybelline came out with their new COLOSSAL mascara, i wanted to try it. baaaaaaaaaad. but they didn't make it in freaking waterproof. so i attempted to forget about it. until i went to target the other day and SAW IT IN WATERPROOF and in a color called GLAM BLACK! how hot is that?! so hot.

i bought it.

i am in love.

holy freaking lashes... i love what it does. i love how it feels. typical waterproof mascara's make my lashes feel brittle and hard. this doesn't. it stays soft. and it's not clumpy.. AT ALL! and just look at how long my lashes are! i feel like they look like they are fake, but they aren't! i love how long they are.. i love the way they look. my lashes are super eye catching now. har har.
pay no attention to the fact that one of my eyes is opened more than the other. oh great, now that's all you see isn't it?!
squirrel!

do the carpets match the drapes?

i bet i know what you think this post is about! ha! well, it's not. what is about is the new wd-40 spot shot carpet cleaner. how come whenever i see wd-40 i think of cars? no really? they are a car product right? aren't they, or am i just more crazy than usual?

regardless, this stuff is the bomb! i wanted to try this product because when we moved into our house, the carpet downstairs was icky. and after we got all of our under the house work done, the workers had trampled all over the icky carpet and made even ickier. there are mud spots and stains all over the place down there. i figured that was where i wanted to try this product the most- cause we all know that it isn't THAT difficult to get out fresh stains, you know? (speaking of fresh stains, blake spilled some dippin dots all over the carpet. they were flourescent blue and pink and i had fucking blue dots all over the place. the wd-40 spot shot took them RIGHT out. it's like they were never there).

so i went to work downstairs- working on stains that i know have at least been on that carpet for 9 months (but most likely more). i sprayed and scrubbed. sprayed and scrubbed. sprayed and scrubbed. the stains almost came all the way out. see my before and after pics below.





if i had one complaint about this product- it would be that it left my carpet cleaner than it was. all the spots of carpet that i cleaned made the non-stained parts brighter, cleaner and now the rest of the carpet looks like crap! HA! that's not a bad complaint if you ask me. :) do you think it would be wrong to pour the entire bottle all over the carpet and attempt to scrub the whole thing?

and yes, this is just one of many ways i spend my sunday. more on that later...

this post brought to you by my awesomely stained carpet, and mom central.

hi, i'm a function drink whore

good lord people... ever since i actually found a place up here where they sell function drinks, i've turned into

A- their biggest unpaid spokesperson and
B- their biggest whore.

oh, you don't know what i'm talking about? you don't know function? well FIND IT! i'm not kidding. these drinks are awesome!! and just because i know the people who made them and just because i'm helping them get richer and richer everyday by opening my big fat mouth about them, doesn't mean that you shouldn't try them! if i didn't believe in the product, or think it was awesome, i wouldn't even waste my time telling you about them. and oh yeah, i don't know about you, but i'm really concerned about how much sugar and carbs are in the things i eat and drink. the drinks are all pretty much 12 grams each. and i figure that's ok.

function is a line of drinks that has good stuff in it. i guess it's like vitamin water, but way better! for example, after i work out (you know, do the p90x stuff that almost kills me), i drink function shock sports. it has stuff in it for muscle recovery and joints so that you won't be as sore as you would normally. all i know is it's good, i'm not super sore, and i love the stuff! after every workout, i drink one of these!

they have many other types of drinks- all there to help you. did you read that? the drinks are there to DO STUFF FOR YOU (hey drink, do stuff to this!) the drinks work for you. have a hangover?? then you drink urban detox. it helps rid your lungs and stuff of pollutants in the air- but it also helps your hangover. see? i'm telling you! these drinks kick ass!!!!

what else is there you ask? what other flavors do i like? well right this very instant i'm drinking an alternative energy. it's my first time trying this kind. and well, it's good! it's not like a rockstar type drink where you get this rush of energy right away and then it's gone. it has ingredients in it that give you an energy boost for hours. um.. i also really like brainiac! it's supposed to help your mental clarity and your mood, and basically i just think it tastes good (and the fact that it's good for you is just a bonus). i like to drink one in the morning instead of a suckbucks- way less calories, and probably better for me (not to mention cheaper)!

oooh, the one drink i really want to try, but can't freaking find anywhere is the light weight one. it's supposed to help ignite your metabolism and do good stuff. i want that sucker! but so far, no luck!

i know what you're thinking. they must be paying me to write this, right? they aren't. i just really, really like these drinks. and yes, since they're my friends- i really care about the success of their business. but like i said earlier, the drinks are really good. i really like the product. and since they're somewhat new to the marketplace, i want to help them get the word out! i know how powerful word of mouth is, and how much we listen to eachother in blogland. so i figured if i told you about the drinks, you might try them! and since i included pictures, you now know what to look for (aren't the labels awesome? seriously, i love them)!!!! you might want to know where i found them in my area- whole foods (aka whole paycheck) and target! also, some weird alternative energy store, but whatever. each store carried different flavors that the other stores didn't carry (except no light weight dammit!)... alright i'm shutting up.

couple questions for you (and any questions you have for me about the drinks just ask me in the comments and i'll answer back!)- do you drink drinks like this normally? have you ever seen these drinks, or have you tried them yet? if so, what do you think about them?

yogurt is gud

i love yogurt. my son loves yogurt. my husband however, not so much. so it's a good thing that the yoplait for kids wasn't for him. hmph. this wasn't going to be hard. go to the store. grab some kids yoplait yogurt. head home. force feed it to your kid. ask him annoying questions that make him want to hurt you. blog about it.

but what are you supposed to say when you love the yogurt?!?! what are you supposed to say when you're already a fan of the yogurt? are you just supposed to remind everyone how fun and yummy the yogurt is? okay. hey everyone, yoplait for kids yogurt (trix especially) is super fun and yummy!!!! blake loves it! he eats one every morning for breakfast, and also at night when he wants a snack. i will admit that blake did say that he thinks he might be getting too old for the yogurt. he thinks the trix is a little too sweet. yeah, i know- totally not a normal kid, right? but it's cute that he associates the sweetness with youngness. ha!

bottom line is we're a big fan of yoplait yogurt for kids. blake thinks it's yummy. blake likes to eat it. i like to buy it (especially when it's on sale). and now you can too- click here for a coupon for $1.50 off your next yoplait kids purchase!


this product review was brought to you by the parent bloggers network.

why hanes underwear rocks out with its *blank* out

ha! i can't type the dirty word i want to use here in a product review!!!! it wouldn't be right. right? i mean, even though hanes DOES really market itself towards that word. what? it's totally true and you know it! :)

hanes boxers. hanes briefs. hanes socks. when i first signed up to review hanes, per usual, i was super excited! i mean, we're pretty much a hanes family. well, at least the guys are. they are all about hanes under their shorts and on their feet. what i didn't stop to think about was the fact that i would have to actually grill my 10 year old son with questions about how the product was feeling, moving, holding his junk, etc. this was going to be tough.

me: blake, put on these boxers and model them for me.
blake: what?? what do you mean?
me: dude. just do it. put em on and then walk around and let me see if they bunch out and stuff like other boxers do.
blake: *groans* fine.

blake proceeds to model his cute bubble butt around the room. no bunching at the fly. YAY! i hate when the boxers do that huge gap at the fly. i mean, i always think that one day, his junk is just gonna fall right through that hole! seriously! i cannot be the first person to think that (just probably the first mom to actually write about it when talking about her son). so. awesome. they don't fly. hence the "no gap fly" hanes talks about. sweet!

next up, the briefs. blake is going through a pure hatred stage for briefs. he absolutely refuses to wear them. BUT, when he plays baseball, we make him. he is the catcher, so he has to wear something that will actually hold a cup in place. boxers aren't cutting it (although boxer briefs might work).

me: okay. now you have to put on the briefs.
blake: what?! why? seriously mom.
me: omg, just do it! please! you know i have to write about this on my blog and i want to make sure they're comfortable and don't ride up and stuff.
blake: of course they're not comfortable. i hate these kind.
me: oh.my.gosh. just put them on.
blake: *more groaning and complaining* fine. they're on. can i take them off now?
me: no! pretend you're playing catcher. seriously. dude, get in catching position and tell me if they're comfortable.
blake: they're comfortable.
me: are you lying?
blake: no! they really are comfortable.
me: good!!! now do they ride up?
blake: what the heck does that mean?
me: are they riding up your butt, so you have to pick them out?
blake: mom! no, they aren't!
me: awesome!!!

this really is awesome because we have to get blake to wear briefs for baseball, and up until now it's been a struggle everytime. i don't think it will be a problem from here on out! thanks hanes. seriously. no really. thank you. (his nuts thank you too).

we'll continue to be a hanes family for sure. there wasn't much doubt, but with hanes new comfort fit promise- which means that if they aren't comfortable YOU GET YOUR MONEY BACK, it's even more of a sure thing! (although they totally made that promise because they know you'll think their products are comfortable and you won't want your money back and so well, they still win)

the only problem i had with these products at all, was the fact that boyfriend whined and wanted to know why they only sent ones for blake. where were hanes stuff for him??? at the store silly. go buy some.

this review was brought to you in conjunction with the totally awesome hanes and the super rockstarish parent blogger network.

please post any questions in the comments section and i'll be sure to answer! thanks!

wanna win some fruit roll-ups??

YES, you do!!!!!

fruit roll-ups has this new thing where you can design your own fruit roll ups!!!! how fun is that?!?! super fun! i designed baseball ones for blake's travel baseball team and he was so excited when he unwrapped them and saw his team name and his number on it. he was like "HOW DID YOU DO THAT MOM??!? THAT'S SOOOOO COOL!!!!" they have tons of designs to choose from. you can personalize them to say whatever you want. the process is very easy, fast, and fun!

so now, fruit roll-ups has made me the coolest mom ever.

and you can be too. head on over to the site and tell me what design you would choose! post it in the comments section and then i'll choose someone at random to get their very own box of fruit roll-ups!

dude, it's exciting. you know it.



this post brought to you by the parent bloggers network.

moving announcements that are SO cute!

well, at least i think so!



when parent bloggers asked if anyone was interested in ordering announcements of some type for their latest review, i jumped all over it! i mean, we had recently just bought a house and moved, and i hadn't formally sent anything out yet. this was the perfect opportunity for me to get some awesome moving announcements!

i didn't know when i signed up that tiny prints was the sister company of wedding paper divas. our wedding invitations were from wedding paper divas. things just got more exciting!

first things first... i went to the website. they don't have a huge selection of moving announcements, but they had enough. they had some cute ones that combined a new baby with a new pad, but that didn't apply to me, so all of those designs were out (almost). they had many different types of designs, as well as ones you could personalize with a picture. i really thought that that was what i would want to do- get an announcement with a picture of us on it. i didn't end up choosing that one, although i can't remember why at this point.

i actually ended up playing with a few different designs before deciding on this one. the process was easy, fun and very detailed. you get to approve what your design will look like before ordering (to ensure your announcement is error free). the shipping was extremely fast. they were boxed and packaged so that your cards do not arrive at your home bent, or messed up. they were perfect!!

if i had one improvement for tiny prints, it would be that the cards themselves would come in a variety of color options. i know that at their sister site, if you click on a card you like, 3 or 4 (or sometimes more) color choices come up. so for example, the card that i chose had a blue border with white dots. while i love the blue, maybe someone else would have liked that card in green, or yellow, or pink. i would think that would be an easy enough option and honestly, i'd apply the change to every moving announcement they offer. it gives the illusion of more choices that you can personalize to suit you that much more. there was one announcement that i really liked, but since it was only offered in the color shown, that turned me off to it. had they offered numerous color choices, i would have probably chosen that one.

other than that, i highly recommend them for all your announcement needs. they're quick, easy and fun to use!!! and the announcements are durable (no crappy thin paper here) and just as cute as they look online! :)

discovery channel toys?

did you know that the discovery channel made educational toys? well now you do. :) can educational toys be exciting, fun and cool? yes. yes, they can.

when i opened up the box containing the discovery tornado lab, blake was crowding over me (per usual) trying to see what it was. once i told him that it was a toy in which we could simulate tornado's and how they react at different levels, he gave me a puzzled look. (think "what you talking about willis?") blake loves science and weather, so things like this are really interesting to him. the lab was really simple to use. it was pretty self explanatory and i think definitely age appropriate.

we filled the plastic container with water and we played with the various force levels of tornado's and we watched the swirling water make a thinner funnel tube, or a fatter, messier one. blake loved this. my only complaint would be that the levels on the knob aren't super clear. they just aren't marked well enough to tell where you have the level at. or maybe i'm just lame. lol

the lab also came with foam squares and round balls that you could put into the tornado to see how different weights/objects will react in a real tornado. will the object be sucked into the vortex of the tornado, or will it remain on the outside of the funnel and be tossed around? well, you'll have to play with it to find out!!

blake thought this product was so cool, he brought it his 4th grade class the very next day. he said that the teacher let him show it, and the kids all got to play with it and do mini experiments with it. he said that all the kids thought it was neat with the foam and the harder pieces you could put into the lab and watch them react. they really liked it.

now while i think the tornado lab is awesome and is truly an educational and interesting toy, i can't imagine a child playing with it over and over again. i think it's something extremely suited for a classroom environment. a perfect science example and a way to help make science fun in the classroom. but as far as being a toy that your child will truly enjoy day in and day out, i just don't see it (unless your kid is a true science nut and loves all things science).

this post was brought to you by the parent bloggers network.

but, i really don't cook

when i heard about the deceptively delicious cookbook that the parent bloggers were reviewing, i got excited! and really, i don't know why i got excited. i mean, i hate to cook. like, i really, really hate to cook. but i think the idea of the cookbook is what made me excited. the whole premise was about getting your family to eat healthy, in ways of trickery. i liked it! it sounded fun!

so when the cookbook arrived, i thought it was super cute. i loved the colors and the design and i think it looked really fun.

when i opened the book however, and learned how we were going to trick our families into eating healthy, i got worried. i hadn't realized that we were going to have to puree (see, i can't even spell it right) a bunch of stuff to put them into recipes. my first reaction was that i didn't have time for this kind of thing. i work all day long, and i get home sometimes around 7pm. i don't have time to freaking puree shit to sneak it into food. hell, i don't have time to follow a recipe for dinner. i know it sounds bad, but it's true. i looked through the cookbook and while the food looked great (but sometimes the recipe sounded somewhat scary)- i truly wasn't motivated enough to try it. i asked boyfriend if he would try a recipe so i could blog about it. he said he would, but when it came down to it- we didn't have time. or maybe it's just that we didn't make the time. or maybe i forgot to remind him after the first time i asked.

the bottom line is, we didn't try a single recipe. i do like the way the book is set up with all the explanations and examples in the beginning. it's really colorful and fun. she has cute quotes throughout the book that are laugh out loud at times. it's lighthearted and i appreciate that. but in all honesty, i'm still unsure of my desire to make anything from it. the pictures look good, but the thought is scary. and i'm wimpy when it comes to food (unless it's dessert) and sometimes lazy. i really want to give this book to someone who would use it, but i'd never get around to mailing it. lol

me & my car- survivors!

first of all, when i read about parent bloggers network teaming up with sequoia survival, i got so excited i almost peed myself!! which would be messy, but still! i live for shit like this! car survival kits... earthquake survival kits (which reminds me, i really need to get one of those together).. anything to HELP in an emergency situation. especially the type of emergency you never hope you'll be in *knock on wood*.

when the car survival kit arrived, i was SO excited! boyfriend thought it was for him, until i beat him with a stick to stay away from it. i kept telling him it was "MINE MINE MINE" but he kept bugging me to open it. he was possibly more excited than i was about it. not to mention the fact that he wanted to steal it! which is so rude... he only wants him and his car to survive and not me! hmph.

the first thing i noticed about the kit was the size. it was definitely not too large, as to take up too much space in my car. the next thing i did was pick the kit up. it was pretty heavy, but the bag it comes in is totally sturdy, so i wasn't worried about it breaking. in all honesty though, i was afraid to start looking at what was in the bag, because it was so neatly packed that i knew i'd never be able to get it all back in there again.

at boyfriends insistence, i finally unzipped the bag and began to see what was inside. waterproof matches, mini water packs, a kick ass flashlight that requires no batteries and doubles as a radio, alarm & cell phone charger (does that mean it quadruples as??), first aid kit, survival blanket, food rations, rain ponchos, light sticks, leather gloves, rope, playing cards, etc. i LOVED this thing! boyfriend was really thrilled about the flashlight and i can't say i blame him. i feel really confident that if something was to go wrong and i got stuck somewhere, this kit would definitely make itself useful. and quite possibly, could help to save my life. the fact that the crank flashlight comes with all sorts of various cell phone plugs is awesome (unless you have no cell reception, then it's pointless). but my fear about not being able to get everything back in there as neatly as it started? it was true. once i took everything out, i had a really hard time getting it all back well enough to zip it up. it would be nice if it wasn't so tightly packed, so that you could just toss everything back in there not perfectly. and so that you could also add things if you needed too (medication, etc). that way, this bag/kit could be the only one you have and/or need in your car.

what else would make the kit better? well boyfriends suggests a magnesium fire starter (it's small, and helps to start fires quickly) as well as a sewing kit.. and a signal mirror. these are things i never would have thought of, but since boyfriend is an avid outdoors person, i completely trust his knowledge and suggestions (and think the sewing kit is a total kick ass idea.. he's so smert.. and totally hot).

personally, i think that there should be more food. it comes with enough food for 2 people for 1 day and i simply don't think it's enough in a real and true emergency. i'm sure you all remember the James Kim family who got stuck in the oregon wilderness for 11 days after their car got stuck in a snowstorm offroad? 11 days? no food? i'm thinking i need more than 1 days worth of food here people.

all in all, this kit kicks ass. is it worth the $99 dollars they charge for it? couldn't you go out and buy all these things seperately and save a ton of money? you could, but i don't think you would save as much as you think you would. things like this add up quick. the kit might be a little more than you're willing to spend, but i do think it's worth it. and boyfriend agrees. they have other products too that are quite a bit larger, and more costly. i think the car kit is the best value for the money and is also the one i would choose to purchase.

listen, if you don't get one of these kits, then do us all a favor, and make your own. get some essentials for your car just in case. you never know what life is going to throw at you, and at least this way you'll be somewhat prepared. do you have an emergency kit in your car? anything survival-wise? also, what would you add?

print a blake!

print a kid (personalized books for children) had a campaign through the parent bloggers network and when i read about it, i loved the idea! you personalize a book for your kid, that includes your childs name, and the names of their friends, family, etc (depending on the book). i figured, what better way to get my kid to read, then to have a book that was supposed to be about him and the people he knows? plus, i got to put myself in a book! HA!

when the book finally arrived (it took me literally WEEKS to get this book because i had gotten a notice that something was sent to me, but i had to physically pick it up at the post office. i had no idea what was waiting for me there and working full time doesn't really help me get to the post office during their business hours. so literally, the book sat there for weeks before i had a chance to pick it up) i was totally excited because i had forgotten all about it!

blake and i ran upstairs to read it and he was cracking up everytime he would read his own name, and then the names of his friends. he thought it was so funny, BUT he wanted to know why he was a kid when his friends were all animals? that made me laugh, but i still think it's a good question. lol he also wanted to know WHO THE BUNNY WAS because there was a picture of a bunny on the cover on the book, but no one in the book was the bunny. this must have bugged him cause he asked at the beginning of the story, during the story and at the end. pretty observant i think. "they never said who the bunny was." was blake's last comment after reading the book.

but he did like it. he thought it was neat and i can't tell you how cute his laughter was when he would read the name of someone he knew in his head, before he would read it out loud to me. it was fun! and funny!

in all honesty, he hasn't even asked to read it again, but when i suggest we read it, he wants too. and then of course he brings up the ever eluding question of I WONDER WHO THE BUNNY IS SUPPOSED TO BE??? i think these books are great, creative and really fun to read. and while the material was definitely age appropriate, there is still something about it that i think would appeal more to a younger audience (they have them for younger children as well). i think by this age (blake is 9), blake is looking for a more intriguing type of story. i do however, think that these would make great gifts for younger kids who are just learning to read, or just like to be read too. i can imagine a story about your child, and the people they know, being a favorite read for them at bedtime. maybe even more than goodnight moon! :)