Christmas and New Year's Review

I had an amazing Christmas and a very relaxing New Year's Eve and Day. Here's a sort of summary:

• went to Greenville on Christmas Eve - did some last minute shopping, went to church, ate shrimp and grits (so good) and then opened presents
• got everything I wanted and more - a new cell phone, a North Face jacket, a book, a movie, the cutest Vera Bradley apron and lots of other goodies
• ate breakfast at my mom's boyfriend's daughter's house (haha what a mouthful) which was gorgeous, went to visit with Katherine and then my Aunt Ann, took Kaitlin to see Marley and Me which was adorable (all my crying embarrassed her though)
• came back to Columbia the day after Christmas and spent the day with Daddy and resting
• discovered that my library in Cayce has Roseanne and am now obsessed with watching episode after episode after episode
• hit up lots of sales at the mall - especially Bath and Body Works and Yankee Candle - I am now stocked for 2009.
• Kaitlin came to see me Sunday night and stayed until Wednesday - it was great getting to spend some one on one time with her
• worked until 7:30 on New's Year Eve, then went to bed early

And now, I'm just trying to get mentally prepared for starting school again. It is crazy to think that I have been going to school nonstop since I was 3. I'm worn out!! This has been my first break since last Christmas. I took a full load during the Spring, took three classes this past summer, and then went all fall. Part of me is looking forward to classes, but I know I need to take all the time off I can and not rush anything. Hopefully I won't get burnt out as quickly as I did last semester. I'm hoping 2009 will be a great year and I'm excited to see what God has in store for me. :)

Oh goodness...

Things have been so crazy lately, but I am definitely looking forward to a much-needed break from school and trying to get things in order. Here's some things that have been happening in no particular order:

• I took my last exam last Friday. I didn't do as well as I wanted to, but I still did okay. More than anything, I am just glad school is over.
• I am still working with Andrew, a 4-year old with Autism. I absolutely love every minute I spend with him. He is the cutest little boy and I learn as much from him as he does from me. I was also so blessed to have his family invite me for Thanksgiving and had a great meal with them.

• When I was in high school, I babysat for a family with three girls. I got very close to them and always try to stop and visit them and everytime I'm home. I stopped by on Monday, and Cyndi, the girls' mom, wrapped all my Christmas presents for me. I am so thankful. One day I will learn how...
• I basically picked all of my Christmas presents this year and made everyone tell me what they want. I figure if we're both spending the money, we might as well get what we want, right?
• Part of my gift from Mama is a new cell phone which I ordered last night and will get to pick up next time I'm in Greenville... Christmas Eve.
• At church a few weeks back, I was challenged to take off my shoes and give them to someone who needed them more. I donated my shoes, along with 750 other people, and helped someone in my city be a little more comfortable and warmer this winter. I also bought a pair of Toms. I had never heard of these before, but it turns out they give a pair of shoes to a child who needs one for everyone you buy. So my friend Lauren and I got some awesome red ones:

• Lena, the sweet lady who does my nails, gave me a free pedicure for Christmas. If you live in Columbia, you should definitely go see her at Capital Nails and Spa .
• I almost finished with my Christmas shopping... still have to get Mama some laundry detergent (what she wanted), pay for Daddy's gift that I ordered today, and get my Grandma a giftcard to Bojangles since she eats there almost every morning. She's too cute.
• As much as I love Christmas and am looking forward to this break from school, I am so ready for the Holidays to be over at Old Navy. We open everyday at 8 and don't close until 11. What a joke. Which means I either have to get there at 7ish or stay until midnight and neither of those fit into my sleeping schedule too well.
• I am so thankful that God has taken care of me in these stressful times and really answered so many of my prayers. He will never stop amazing me.

That's about it for now... just hoping to accomplish my list for tomorrow:

- meet with my advisor about taking a self-paced class to go ahead and knock out another class i need before i graduate

- going to work with andrew for a little while

- have to hit up walmart for some christmas cards, ham, and diet coke

- have to send off my time card for work

- maybe going to mac to look at the chill collection

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Random Stuff

10 Years Ago:
1. I was in 5th grade.
2. I was 10 years old.
3. I went to Washington D.C.
4. While I was there, my little sister was born.
5. My world revolved around AIM and *NSYNC

5 Things on Today's To-Do List (since the day is already over, I'll put my list for tomorrow):
1. Wash some clothes.
2. Do therapy with Andrew.
3. Read some in my book for African American Lit.
4. Study some Geography.
5. Maybe go see a movie with a friend.

5 Things I Would do If I Was a Millionare:
1. Pay off the debt of my close family and friends.
2. Buy a house and a car.
3. Put money aside for Kaitlin's college.
4. Go on a shopping spree.
5. Give the rest to my church.

5 Places I Have Lived:
1. Florence, SC
2. Charleston, SC
3. Greenville, SC
4. Columbia, SC
.... that's it.

5 Jobs I Have Had:
1. Babysitter
2. Cashier
3. Secretary
4. Waitress
5. Telemarketer

Emanuel Ungaro Inspired Look

Right before I was about to start my makeup today, my package came from MAC!

I didn't get any of the eyeshadows, but I did buy the 2 lipsticks, the lipglass, and the beauty powder.

Here's what I used for the look:

Ardell Brow Definer Powder in Taupe

Bare Study paint pot

NYX Tropical - lid

Satellite Dreams - crease and above crease

Clue - outer crease

Phloof! - brow bone

Graphblack Technakohl - waterline

Satellite Dreams - lower lash line

Maybelline Colossal Volum' Express mascara

Blooming blush

Flower Mist Dew beauty powder

Pure Rose lipstick

Pastel Emotion lipglass

Yellow FOTD with Purple Liner

After not wearing makeup to work and class yesterday, I felt like I needed to step it up a little bit. I think yellows are a great way to not do a neutral but still keep it simple.

Here's what I used:

Gold Dusk Pigment - lid and crease
Rose Blanc - inner lid
Creme Royale - middle lid
Ricepaper - outer lid
Going Bananas - outer crease
Rose Blanc - above crease
Nylon - brow bone
Ardell Brow Definer Powder in Taupe
Iris Eyes fluidline - upper lash line
Graphblack Technakohl - waterline
Rose Blanc - lower lash line
Maybelline Colossal Volum' Express Mascara

Pink Swoon blush

Pervette lipstick
Cultured lipglass







Be sure to let me know what you think in the comments!

Cutest Thing Ever

Bogey in his new Halloween costume:

New MAC Collections

My life has been so crazy lately, but one thing that has been my go-to when it comes to relaxing is getting ready for all these MAC collections!

Both the Cremesheen and Suite Array collections came out last Thursday at my store. I went in between classes to check them out.

I loved the Cremesheens, but some of the colors were a lot darker than I had seen in pictures. The texture was really nice though. When I swatched them, they went on very smooth and bright.

I narrowed down my choices to: Fanfare, Hot Gossip, Modesty, Ravishing, Speed Dial, and Creme D'Nude.

And ended up with three...

Creme D'Nude, Speed Dial, and Hot Gossip



I really love all these colors, but after trying it on, I realized Hot Gossip (top) is really similar to Sweetie (bottom).



While at MAC, I also picked up two lipglasses to go with my two pink lipsticks: Cultured and Culture Clash. Culture Clash is from the Electroflash collection.



I also checked out the Suite Array collection, but nothing really stood out to me. The eyeshadow suites were all colors I have, and I hated the texture of them. They were very chalky, and although they are buildable, it was just too much glitter for me.

I did, however, get Fly-by-Blu powerpoint eye pencil. I don't really need any more liners, but this one was super pretty.

I also got Warming Trend eyeshadow from the Cool Heat collection when I realized my counter still had it.



The Emanuel Ungaro collection also came out online today. With the exception of Phloof!, none of the eyeshadows really stood out to me, and I already had it. I did, however, order the two lipsticks: Pure Rose and Freckletone. They are both lustres with I love.

I also bought Pastel Emotion lipglass to wear on top of Pure Rose. Since I had never tried a beauty powder before (only beauty powder blushes), I bought Flower Mist Dew beauty powder.

MAC is having free shipping on all US orders over 60 dollars, so check it out!

Old Navy's Best Friend Weekend

Nationwide in stores in U.S. & Canada, Friday through Sunday!

Bring in a Friend, say the password ‘BFF‘ and you’ll both save 20%!

To redeem in store, you and your friend need only say the password ‘BFF’ at time of purchase. No coupon necessary.

To redeem online, enter this promo code at checkout: BFF
Online code limited to one time U.S. purchase only.

To learn more please visit: : http://next.oldnavypromotions.com/?v=bff&tid=ONFB1

Offer valid on Old Navy merchandise only from September 19, 2008 to September 21, 2008 in the US (including Puerto Rico) at gap.com, bananarepublic.com, oldnavy.com, piperlime.com, and Old Navy stores in U.S. & Canada.

My Newest Obsession

I went home this past weekend to celebrate my birthday and was lucky enough to get to bring my sweet puppy with me. On Sunday, I brought him back to my boyfriend's house and accidentally forgot my camera there, so no more looks until he can get it sent back to me.

Anyway, I thought I would share my favorite thing of the moment: Starbucks' Pumpkin Spice Lattes.



As much as I hate the end of summer and the beginning of cold weather, the one thing that gets me excited for Fall is the return of all things pumpkin. I love pumpkin flavored stuff so, so much! So far I've had a pumpkin bagel with pumpkin cream cheese, pumpkin spice Hershey kisses, a pumpkin spice frap from Starbucks, and my favorite: the pumpkin spice latte. I will now make it a point to get one of these everytime I'm near a Starbucks from now until the time they are gone.

If you haven't tried one yet, get on it!

Oh, Mondays....

Mood - Overwhelmed

Foundation and Powder - Today I wore Avon's Mark C-Thru-U Tinted Moisturizer with MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural

Outfit - Very simple today... black shirt, denim skirt, black flip flops

Eyeliner - MAC's Graphblack Technakohl

Fragrance - Victoria's Secret Love Spell bodyspray

Next Thing On My To-Do List: Do an online quiz for one of my classes.

I'm Thinking About - Everything I have to do tomorrow.

Goals for the Week - Stay on top of all my work for school, not miss anymore classes (I accidentaly slept through one today), do a great job at work, and stay positive.