Ice Angel Nails

I let my 13 year old daughter design my nails this time.

Okay, actually I just told her she could pick out my polish. She took that and ran with it.

I did just what she wanted me to. Using my sticker guides I painted the tips with Sinful Colors 1106 Cinderella. It's a sheer blue (with just a bit of pretty pink sparkle) so I had to really glop it on. I had to go back over it in a couple of places. Luckily I knew it was going under other layers, so it didn't have to look pretty on its own.

The next layer was Hard Candy 804 Ice Pop. I daubed it on pretty thick. For the record, I bought this polish for Betty. It's fun looking, but not normally my style. At least it's blue.

For the final step in this design, I did the top half of my nail in A'dor Beauty Supplies Tears of an Angel. I did a lot of daubing with this one too. Still totally in love with this polish, but I think it's a little much with all the rest...

To finish the look I added my usual OPI Top Coat. I asked Betty if she wanted me to do the matte top coat, but she insisted on the gloss.

She also gave this look its name. Ice Pop + Tears of an Angel = Ice Angel. Pretty clever, don't you think?

Weekend Fun

So much went on this weekend! I hit the first Ogden Farmers Market of the season. I got there half an hour after it all started and the produce was already selling out! I managed to snag some tomatoes, but I was really there for the kettle corn.

It's also a tradition for me to stop in and see my friend Candice and get some amazing henna done!

There is so much to love about the Farmers Market. Aside from all the stalls, I always run into friends, and I always get to meet new doggies.

That's Boss. He's a baby English Bulldog!! I just had to snorgle him! His owner was very patient with me. The good news is that he belongs to somebody running a stall, so I'll get to see him next week too!!



If you've read the last few posts you'll remember that we let my oldest boy get a guinea pig. That has been a saga of its own.

What we thought was simple hiccups turned out to be a respiratory infection. We woke up Saturday morning to a dead baby pig. It was very, very upsetting. Joshua took it like a trooper though. Of course he cried a little, but he didn't act out or anything. I'm really proud of him.

He decided that it was a sign that we shouldn't ever get an animal from a pet store, adoption is the only way to go. Since we'd only picked up the guinea pig on Tuesday, there was a warranty. Josh took the money and adopted another female pig. This time a full grown, mellow adult.

Her name is Lily, and she's a complete sweetheart. Even my husband has fallen in love. That's him cuddling her in the picture.

She's still a little skittish, but she's eating and drinking well. She even took a strawberry I gave her! For the love of Pete, please let this one live!



This weekend I also had the chance to spend some time with my good friend Jen. She lives in Wisconsin now, but she came back into town to get some work done on her house so she can put it on the market.

It was great to see her again, she is as beautiful as ever, and it was so nice catching up. I'm bummed that she's going to sell her house though, as long as she had that I felt like she had ties to this town. Now the only excuse to visit is Tona Sushi and of course all the people here who love her!

Green Nails with Black and White Glitter

My daughter is really into black and white right now. It's her favorite "color". She loves it so much that when I saw Hard Candy's Black Tie Optional, I just knew I had to get it!!

I knew it would have the biggest impact over a bright color. Of course she wanted black or white, but I was able to convince her to go with a fun color.

She chose neon green!

I did two coats of the green, L.A. Colors Color Craze Mint and one coat of the Black Tie Optional. I think it turned out really cool!

Polish Removal and a Shopping Spree

After my nail disaster I painted my nails with another $1 WalMart polish L.A. Colors Color Craze NP541 Candy Sprinkles. I thought it was fun and since it was a dollar I just had to get it.

I knew I'd be redoing things pretty quickly so I didn't bother with a top coat, just one coat of my normal base and two coats of the polish. It's a jelly or gelish, whatever they call it. A semi-sheer color with glitter in it. I didn't do the normal daubing technique like I usually would with a glitter, I just brushed this one on like a normal polish. It worked fine that way, and I am pleased with the polish. It didn't last very long before chipping, but without a top coat I don't know if it's the polish that's the problem or just lack of top coats. 

Speaking of glitter polishes, they are a giant pain in the butt to remove. The polish remover can't penetrate the polish under the metal flakes, so it just doesn't come off as easily. Pinterest (the place I love) is full of pictures of people wrapping their hands in aluminum foil to remove gel and glitter polishes. I thought I might as well give it a try!

You can see how well it took the polish off my thumb and forefinger, pretty much one swipe and it was gone. 

It works great!

It feels a little weird to have alien-robot hands, and I only do one hand at a time so I can still do things. It also gets weirdly warm. I'm not sure if it's the chemicals in the polish remover or just the cotton and foil insulating things. It doesn't hurt, it's just weird. 

First, I tear five strips of aluminum foil and get five cotton balls. I apply polish remover to a cotton ball, put the remover side to my nail, then wrap the foil around it all. I've started with my thumb and I've started with my pinkie, there really doesn't seem to be a difference. I just have to keep it on long enough. I keep forgetting to time how long I leave it on, but I'd say it's between 5 and 10 minutes. 

Now, the reason I didn't post all this earlier is because Tuesday was a bit of a crazy day. 

First, I met up with my friend Tiia Lin at Ulta. Where my weakness is nail polish, Tiia's is makeup. Unlike me, however, she has actual training. I highly recommend you check out her Facebook, her blog and her videos. 

Tiia helped me pick out colors, let me hold her adorable baby, and as we were checking out she said she had a present for me! When we went out to her car she handed me a bag full of nail polish!! I love this woman!! 

L to R: Sally Hansen Insta-Dry Whirlwind White, Color Club Dark'n Stormy, Color Club Mod In Manhattan, and Nail Rock Nail Velvet Navy

In addition to those polishes Tiia gave me, I bought a bunch of my own. With the sale going on and the coupon I got 5 polishes for under $9!! It was great!! 

L to R: Essence Colour & Go 147 Miss Universe, Ulta Salon Formula Diva, Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Xtreme Wear 481 Breezy Blue, Ulta Salon Formula Indigo-Go Girl, Pixel 233 Oh Golly Gee!!

I'm already working on a new look with my new polishes, I'll post more soon!

The other thing that kept me busy is that we welcomed a new addition to our family. 

She's still scared and spends most of her time hiding. We've seen her out to eat and drink though, so that's good. 

This little lady is named Summer, and she belongs to my middle kid Joshua. He's been working his butt off this summer, helping his dad with side work and helping me here at the house. We ask a lot of him, and he rises to the challenge. 

My husband and I decided that he's shown enough responsibility to be in charge of another life, so we agreed he could get a guinea pig. I had guinea piggies growing up, so I know what kind of challenges he's likely to face. He did a lot of research and decided that he wanted a female and a baby. He thought about adopting, but he really wants to train it and the sites he visited told him that starting with a baby is easier. 

He's doing really well so far, and going very slowly with her. He had me scoop her out of the carrying box and into her cage so that she won't associate him with anything negative. He left her completely alone for 24 hours and even then all he did was lay his hand in her cage with a treat for a few minutes. For an 11 year old kid with ADHD, this shows a remarkable amount of restraint! I am completely proud of him! 

Nail Stripes

I tried out my new nail striping tape today.

Boy, is this stuff fun!!

For some reason I have really shaky hands, so painting straight lines is hard for me. The tape takes all the trouble away. I can paint wobbly stripes out of polish and then put the tape across the edges and hide all the mistakes. Or I can add perfectly straight racing stripes with no painting at all!!

I did Betty's nails tonight and decided that each nail should be different. Betty's kind of a rocker girl so I went with black, white, and silver. I actually drew out the design before I started painting, that way I knew what I was doing and could paint each layer at a time.

I did one coat of OPI Natural Nail Strengthener as a base coat on all her nails.

On her pinkies I did two coats of Sinful Colors Secret Admirer and a single vertical stripe of silver striping tape. 

Her ring fingers got two coats of Sinful Colors Secret Admirer, then I used one of my tiny paint brushes and painted a diagonal stripe of Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Pumping Iron. I did white striping tape on either side of the silver polish. 

Her middle finger is two coats of Ador Beauty Supply Weeping Angel.

On her middle finger I did two coats of Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Pumping Iron, then I used the same little brush to paint a diagonal line of Sinful Colors Tokyo Pearl. I used black striping tape to outline the white polish. 

Her thumbs were kind of hard. I painted the bottom half with Sally Hansen Hard As Nails Pumping Iron and then the tips with Sinful Colors Secret Admirer. I think it would have been easier if I painted the whole nail with the white and then added the black to the tips. Of course, this occurred to me after I'd already put the polish on the hard way! Thankfully the striping tape hides a lot of flaws!! I put a silver stripe between the black and white polishes. 

The pictures show one coat of OPI  Top Coat, but tomorrow morning I'll add another coat before Betty goes to school. 

Overall I think the experiment was a success and Betty is super happy with how it turned out. Her thumbs are my favorite, I think I'm going to have to do that look for my nails soon! I think it would have looked better if I did the black nails on either side of the silver, but Betty is pleased and that's what's important. Now I know for next time! 

Of course since I was painting Betty's nails, Joey had to get in on the action. His is just one coat of Sinful Colors Secret Admirer, in case you were wondering... 

Back To School

I have been super busy getting all three kids ready for school. My youngest has started Afternoon Kindergarten this year. Since my kids go to a charter school 20 minutes away, I spend two hours a day just driving.

Joey eats lunch at home still, but this year Betty and Joshua are eating lunches brought from home. Last year the school lunches just weren't big enough for them. For Betty it was because the gluten free offerings were just kind of pathetic, and for Josh it was because he heats like a grown man. So I've been stressing over what to pack them for lunch. So far they've loved everything I've sent, so I think I'm doing okay.

I've been running around like crazy for the last two weeks, and it's definitely catching up with me. Yesterday I was running a fever, and I'm not feeling too much better today. I went to bed early last night, and the fever is gone now. Hopefully I was just a little worn out and not actually coming down with something. I'll try to rest up this weekend and see if I can't feel better to tackle the second week of school starting on Monday.

Silver Firs Farm

We all know that the stuff you put on your skin should be just as good for you as the stuff you put in your body. Chemicals and junk shouldn't be in your foods, and they shouldn't be on your skin either. Natural is the way to go.

One of the things that I struggle with is finding beauty products that are affordable and good for me. Oh, I can find "natural" and "organic" stuff... I just can't afford to pay the prices. Even if I can find something, how do I know I can trust it? How do I know that it really will be good for me?

I buy from Silver Firs Farm, that's how!

This is another one of those times where I'm going to brag about my amazing friends, but I kind of wish I didn't know her in real life. If I didn't know her then readers wouldn't think this is biased at all! In reality though, I am so blessed to have friends like this. So what if you think I'm biased!

My dear friend Kristin is more than the fixer-upper of vintage trailers, she has a real passion for beauty. She's going to school to be a Master Esthetician, a fancy word for somebody who helps people be fabulous. She's also one of those amazing people who can't help but make things better just by being around them. Everything she touches comes out beautiful, the parties she throws are glorious, and she even has adorable kids.

She also has a passion for the products she sells in her Etsy shop. Silver Firs Farm sells top quality soap and lip balms. She's also got a few adorable necklaces (Eric, this is the one I want you to buy me!) All of the products are as eco-friendly and sustainable as possible.

Have I mentioned the quality? The quality! Every batch is scrutinized thoroughly and only the best stuff gets sold. One batch of Castille soap came out looking bad and now Kristin won't sell it! If it has to look perfect, you know it has to act perfect too.

I'm going to take a minute to talk about the lip balms. First, I need to give y'all some background.

I've written about how I get dehydrated easily, one of the side effects of that is that my lips dry out often. A lot. It's one of the first signs that I need water. Spending my teen years in Mesa, Valley of the Sun, "It's a dry heat", Arizona... I tried every single kind of lip balm on the market. Utah is desert too, so my adult life had been a continual quest to find the perfect balm.

The quest is over! Let's just say that if Kristin ever stops making lip balm I will be in trouble. I am a lifelong customer now.

Not only are the ingredients high quality, Kristin takes it further. She doesn't add any artificial scents. Everything has to be natural. She also won't add flavoring. Flavoring only makes you want to lick your lips and that dries them out more. Rather than try to get people addicted to the flavor (like so many other makers) Kristin actually wants what's best for her customers! How rare is that!?!

The feeling of the balm on my lips is heavenly too. "Lush" is the only word that comes close enough to describing the feeling. I don't have to apply it very often because it works so well, but when I do I feel pampered. I have used incredibly expensive lip balms that haven't come close to feeling this luxurious.

The Lavender Spearmint is my current favorite. The mint makes it tingle in a really fun way!

Kristin does have one exception to flavors. Her son was chewing on his lip so much that it was getting horribly chapped. Whenever she'd put balm on it, he'd just suck it all off before it had time to work. She started experimenting and came up with Bitter Stick. It feels just as amazing as her other stuff and it's still natural, flavored with lime essential oil and naturally blended pomegranate flavor oil. It has a flavor, just not a good one. Not terrible, just not good. (I tried it myself.)

I have some for my youngest. He likes to suck on his bottom lip and it gets chapped. Especially in the winter when the air is super dry and cold. I started using the Bitter Stick and it works wonders! It isn't so nasty that he hates using it, just bad enough that he realizes what he's doing and stops. He even asks for it now!

Silver Firs Farm is up and running on Etsy for your shopping pleasure! You can also read all about the fun at the Silver Firs Farm Blog and "like" them on Facebook. I highly recommend her blog. She does all kinds of reviews on beauty products. A good stop if you're in the market for face stuff, and really, what woman isn't?

All the pictures from this post are courtesy Kristin Guthrie Brandt and Silver Firs Farm. Pssh, as if anyone would believe I could take pictures this good!

"Pool Honeys!"

Yesterday we make my nephew's dream come true and took the kids to "The Sandlot Pool".

In reality, we went to Lorin Farr Pool which is right in my neighborhood. It is the pool they used during the filming of the movie, but it's changed a little since then.

There used to be a couple of giant slides called Rampage. You went down them on a raft and they had rollers. It was dangerous. I heard horror stories.

Now they've put in three twisty water slides. Much safer, and lots of fun. The three youngest couldn't go down the slides, but they had a blast anyway.

This was one of those times when I'm glad I don't have more kids. Keeping my eye on all three of my kids was stressful.

I did have lots of fun, I went down the slides and soaked in the water.

My kids and I got burnt. Toasted. I swear I smothered us in sunscreen! We're just soooo freakin' pale!  Well, not any more.... Now we're pink!

We had tons of fun though, so I guess we earned the burn!

Video courtesy 71WinterWolf on YouTube.

Countdown to Summer

Today is the last full day of school for my kids. Friday and Tuesday are half days. The school year was actually supposed to end tomorrow, but we had a Snow Day and needed to add another day to make up for it. One of the cool things about my kids' school is that they sent out a survey asking when we'd prefer to have the extra day added.

Here I am, sitting in the living room trying to motivate my kids to get dressed and ready for school. They're dragging. I keep chanting to myself, "It's almost over, it's almost over..."

I'm looking forward to this Summer Break. I have all sorts of fun stuff planned! My sister is coming into town at the beginning of June, and I'm super excited about that. I've also been compiling a list of things I want to do with the kids. I've been working on it since January. We're going to build a solar oven, and attempt to cook a meal in it. We're going to pitch the tent in the back yard and camp out a lot.  I'm going to teach my kids part of my vast knowledge on how to start and maintain fires. We'll be Letterboxing and using the compasses the kids got for Christmas.

Joey had his Kindergarten evaluation and didn't do very well, so a lot of this break will be dedicated to getting him ready for school. I have an idea in my head to do my own little Summer Camp for the kids and the idea is evolving to include things Joey needs to be familiar with. Maybe a number, letter, and shape of the day? I have to ponder that one some more.

Middle Child

I spent some time this afternoon outside watching my eight year old, Joshua, do tricks on the new scooter he got from Santa. The light was going but I did manage to get a couple of pictures.

Here's a shot of one of his tricks.  He calls it the "I Gotta Go". 

Yup, that's my boy!

Fashion Show

I've got a deluge of pictures of me wearing dresses today.  I feel horrible about all the sick days I've taken from Dressember so I put on three different outfits today and forced my long-suffering oldest son to take a bunch of pictures.

I will admit that I didn't wear the first two dresses longer than it took to take the picture and then change.  I'll explain why after each shot.

This is the first dress I ever sewed start to finish for myself.  It's actually wearable.  Okay, it was actually wearable.  When I tried it on earlier this month and realized that I really need to let it out.  In the bust area.  I never thought I'd actually have to say that.  I'm used to being the Pirate's Ideal.  You know, a sunken chest.  Needing to let out a bust is definitely a first for me!

Yeah, as you can see from the picture this dress needs lots of help.  One of my Christmas presents is a Dressmaker's Dummy, hopefully I can do a lot of these alterations so that my wardrobe doesn't have to be held together by safety pins!

The shoes I've got on in the picture were purchased especially for that dress.  I made Elizabeth a dress in a similar material the same year and those shoes looked just like her dress shoes.  I thought it was cute to be a little match-y.  They are the most uncomfortable shoes I own.  Even more than the ones that left visible bruises.  It's too bad they're so cute.  I can just make it through the three hours of Church before I have to give up and take them off.  I might also take them off any time I'm sitting down at Church.  Let's just say I won't be sitting in front while I'm wearing these babies.  Also so you know, I only wear them in the Summer.  I'm a pretty strict follower of that "No White After Labor Day" rule.  I know it's pretty silly but I just can't shake it.  I also try to match my shoes to my handbag and belt if I'm wearing one.  I swear I was born in the wrong decade.

Here's my red dress, the one I was saving for Christmas.

I think it's time for this one to go in the donate box.  I iron it and it still looks so wrinkled.  I hate ironing and I really hate ironing when it has no effect. I've also mended the hem three times.  It's in need of more mending and I don't think it's worth my time.  It's also too tight across the bust, gaping buttons are not attractive.  Oh yeah, and the buttons end way too high up on my leg.  I have to pin it for about a foot below the last button and that makes the whole drape of the dress wrong.  I'm actually kind of glad I was too sick to go to Church on Sunday.  I would have been really uncomfortable in that dress.

These shoes were also specifically purchased for this dress.  They are the second most uncomfortable shoes I own.  The ones that left the bruises are number three on the list.  These red shoes are also Summer shoes, I don't wear any tights or nylons with them.  I'm also on board with the whole "No Nylons With Open-Toes" rule.  I broke it for the pictures of my favorite shoes a few days ago and I'm still feeling kind of guilty.  Tights are a different story but it has to be special circumstances.  I don't think the picture above is one of those circumstances.  I just don't like how it looks.  Maybe if they were patterned tights or woven or something.

Okay, here's what I'm actually wearing today:

I thought the ballet flats were appropriate since I feel like my ballet instructor from Third Grade, Ms. Greenwald.  The T-shirt is from Target and the rest of the outfit you've already seen.

One last picture before I go.  I found this written on our white board.  I have no idea which of the two kids who can write actually wrote this but it's just too darn cute not to share:

Six Kids

I have six kids in my house right now.  No, I didn't spontaneously give birth to triplets.  I volunteered to have my friend's kids over for a while while she did some Christmas shopping.  I only get the oldest three, she took her baby with her.  Darn it.  I was really hoping for some baby cuddles!

Things are going surprisingly well.  The oldest boy is good friends with my Josh and they are playing together happily.  Bethy and the middle boy are also playing together and so far it's been great.

The youngest is another boy who is just a bit older than Joey and they are like two peas in a pod.  They've been having an absolute blast with each other.  Things got a little quiet so I worried and went looking.  I found them playing with a couple of flashlights in a box that I would have sworn was way too small for two boys.  Somehow they made it work and had quite a time. So far, so good.  Knock on wood!

I made lunch for everybody.  It was so pretty I had to take a picture:

The cut off one on the far left is Bethy's Gluten Free Sandwich.

I feel like Martha Freakin' Stewart.  Six nutritious lunches and I didn't even break a sweat.  I've already cleaned up the mess too.  Gape in awe at my amazing-ness.

Everything went so well I was able to finish my latest project.  It's yet another scarf.  Here's a quick picture to tease you, I'm going to type up the pattern for another post.

I knew I'd have a house full today, so I went for comfort over fashion again in my Dressember outfit:

The skirt I'm wearing today is actually a dress.  It's the same as the blue one I wore on Dressember Eleventh, I bought them both at the same time.  On clearance at Wal-Mart.  For a store I hate I sure have a lot of clothes from there.  The long sleeved T-shirt is from Old Navy.  I can't remember if it was on sale, but I'm pretty sure it was.  The boots you've all seen before, and I'm not wearing any accessories.  Sorry, it's pretty boring today.