It’s The Little Things: Sephora’s VIB 20% Off Event

I am just a tad bit more excited today than usual. It is finally here! Sephora’s yearly sale for their VIB members. Really quick, VIB stands for “Very Important Beauty Insider.” You have to spend $350 a year at Sephora to qualify (welcome to the world of having a teenage daughter). Right now, they are giving VIB’s 20% off everything from November 7-11th with a special offer code. Hooray! I waited all year to stock up on my make up and all of my daughter’s necessities.

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Of course, my cart held a Chubby Stick…or two. I am also going to try the Chubby Stick Eyeshadows.

It is also such a great time for gift buying as well. I know I purchased some great gifts for family members today. ; )

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I also stocked up on my nightly facial wipes that I use from Ole Henriksen.

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I have been experimenting with fake eyelashes, so I bought some more.

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And I picked up some tubes of Benefit’s They’re Real Mascara. This may seem hypocritical after my other purchase above, but a girl’s gotta have options. And fun. Lots of fun!

If you are not a VIB, there is still a chance you can save 20%. The invitation says the VIB can bring a friend with them to the store. So, if you have a friend who is a VIB, maybe you could ask to go shopping with them.

Also, going through ebates online will save an additional 4% back after discounts are applied.

If you are not a VIB with Sephora or maybe now is just not the time to buy make up, my giveaway this month is for something fun from Sephora. I do not know when I will receive it in the mail, but stay tuned for more information on November 10th!

It’s The Little Things: A company appreciating their clientelle! Thank you Sephora!

Are you participating in this event? What is at the top of your wishlist? Please share!

Our New Bookcases and Library Ladder

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Do you know who the sexiest movie hero is?

That’s right. THE BEAST.

Swoon.

Belle was one lucky lady. Well, until he turned into that prince…

But before that, she received the best gift in the world. That library. I covet it.

I decided I must have a piece of her dream, even if it is on an itty bitty scale.

My husband and I collect books. Lots and lots of books. We will come home with bags full of beautiful paper time machines giddy with excitement.

My husband also collects comic books.

We ran out of storage long ago.

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Our house is 1830 square feet (that 30 is important! ; ) ). Half of our formal living room is lined with books. Eventually we are going to have to build them all the way up the walls.

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Our house is small, but it came with high ceilings and weird little square niches everywhere.

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Welcome to the early nineties!

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We hired our carpenter to build us bookcases in two of our niches. This should solve our problem this year. Maybe next year we will tackle the job of the formal living room…

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We also splurged on a library ladder. Because… Do I really need a reason? I mean, just look at it. LOVE. Best purchase ever.

I have been stalking craigslist and eBay for the last four years looking for a reasonably priced library ladder. I am still kicking myself for not snagging one during the Borders Bookstore liquidation sale.

But I never found one. I finally just gave in and purchased a library ladder kit. I am really happy with it. We upgraded to oil rubbed bronze hardware and maple wood. It was fun to be able to customize our options. This was much cheaper than a fully completed library ladder. But it was still a huge splurge. We stained and installed this ourselves.

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Paul and his brother Chris, from Vrieling Woodworks (they also did our baseboards) built and installed the bookcases.

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We are so pleased with the final result. I keep pinching myself, because it truly is a dream come true.

Do you like to read? Are you a hoarder of books?

I shared this on Savvy Southern Style

And My Romantic Home

“Free Your Mind”: My Weight Loss Journey

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Weight Loss

I have received a couple of emails asking me about my weight loss. I struggled with doing a post about it, because I really do think that every woman is beautiful. I do not want someone heavier or skinnier than I am thinking I am trying to tell them how to look. That is not the way I view the world.

I recognize that sounds completely ridiculous coming from a girl with her giant head splashed across the page. I know, I know… I had not allowed myself to be photographed for five years. I was miserable. That photo is a personal dare to myself. It represents what I have overcome and accomplished. I went on a journey. The picture is my souvenir.

With that said, if you are trying to lose weight for yourself, I will share my story:

I lost 76 pounds in a little less than a year. I started off weighing 207 pounds. I now weigh 130.8. It was not easy. I took it one day at a time. I have been collecting clothes to fit into for the last five years. Food is something I struggle with. It is a daily battle. I am a food addict. I will have to take it one day at a time for the rest of my life.

I was getting frequent urinary tract infections. They told me I could have diabetes. It was a huge eye opener for me. That day I began my weight loss journey…

I started Weight Watchers Online. The meetings do not work for me. I am not a crowd person. I hate someone else weighing me and then having to sit with a group. Half of the group’s energy is excitement from the good news they heard at the scales. The other half’s energy feels nervous, sad, self loathing as they realized they had failed that week. The mixture of the energies was too much for me. I found it very draining. I would dread going to the meetings. I would fail. At home, I can deal with just myself. I weigh myself once a week. I log my weight into my tablet and move on. If you need the support of a group, then I do recommend the meetings.

I hate exercising. I should do it more… I won’t. I also am not the healthiest person. If I want dessert, I will eat it for lunch. Not with, but for. I am not saying do what I do/did. I just want to share what worked for me:

1.) Track it. Track whatever you are putting in your mouth. Whether it is calories, carbs, fat or points. One of my downfalls used to be thinking I had failed for the day. I would then go and eat even more, because I thought I had all ready ruined my diet. By tracking, it has made me more self aware. You will probably find that you did not blow your diet as badly as you thought you did. If you did blow it: do better the rest of the day. Do not tell yourself you will start over tomorrow. Start that very second.

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2.) I do not eat dessert at night. This was a hard one for me. But if I am hungry at night, I drink a glass of ice water. And, yes, I usually am hungry when I go to bed. If I cannot stop thinking about what I am craving… I set it aside and work that craving into the next day’s points. I found this interesting article about calories burned while drinking ice water. Every little bit helps! I usually drink three glasses of ice water at night. My skin looks better for it.

3.) With that said: Do not starve! I use all of my points. I use all of my flex points. The system works. You just have to trust it.

4.) Set little goals. I did not set out to lose 76 pounds. I just wanted to lose 30. When I saw I could accomplish that, I continued with the weight loss.

5.) Plan ahead. I usually plan my meals the day before. If I am going to a restaurant, I research their menu ahead of time to find what works best with my plan.

6.) Reward yourself. But not with food. I bought a lot of clothes. A lot…Seeing these clothes in my closet motivates me to stay on track. Being able to shop in the stores I love is a huge motivator. I love dressing for the day now. We all have to find what we will splurge on.

7.) Do not give up. There were weeks I would gain a pound and feel the self doubt begin to spiral downward. I made myself shake off those feelings and keep on trying. Eventually, it worked.

8.) People are going to hurt your feelings. It will happen. Most won’t mean to. It hurts when someone says, “You look great! I haven’t seen you in awhile.” You immediately jump to thoughts of not looking great before. It is meant as encouragement. Take it as that.

My “favorite” line was to my husband (in front of me) from another man, “Well, I guess you’re going to keep her now.” It was very hurtful to both my husband and myself. Just move on. People’s perception of beauty in this country is of smaller people. It is a reality. Let it be their foundation and not yours.

Now I sometimes hear, “You’re too skinny.” I just smile. I remember the oreos I had for lunch and I grin. My goal is to stay between 127 and 133. This is where I am comfortable. This is my peace. This is my life. Find your comfort zone and smile, because…

Some people are just not going to be happy for you. That just boils down to their own distraught soul. Send kind thoughts through the air and into their being, and hope one day they will find their own contentment. And then you move your own happy self along. That is an order.

9.) Love yourself. It does not matter if you are heavier or thinner. Life is short. Life is a gift that we will never fully open. Be happy. Be healthy. Be content with who you are.

10.) This is a big one for me: I eat what my family eats, but in moderation. I love food. I will not live a happy life eating just salads. I must have butter. I must have chocolate.

I love to cook. I am not going to make a beautiful meal and not eat it. You will see me post a very fattening recipe. And you may think to yourself, “really, this girl lost 76 pounds?” The pictures I take of the meals are my husband’s serving. Not mine. My serving is usually much smaller, which does not make for great pictures. If the meal is high in calories: I am either using my flex points for the extravagant splurge or I probably had a very light lunch.

And yes, this means at three o’clock in the afternoon, I may be cranky…

Dessert posts are the same way. I probably had a salad for dinner or I will eat the dessert the next day for lunch. I told you… I might not be the healthiest, but I am happy.

I hardly ever eat breakfast. I just drink coffee. I do not like breakfast. This allows me to have more calories for the rest of the day.

11.) Weight Watchers allows you to eat as many fruits and vegetables as you desire. I do not desire, but this helps a lot of my friends.

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12.) Find low calorie treats that will satisfy you. For me these are:

1 Quaker chewy chocolate chip granola bar
20 White Cheddar baked Puffs (I like Gaytan’s) for 2 points
1 Refrigerated snack size Snickers bar
Pretzels
Wine: okay, not so low calorie. It is 4 points for a glass, but this snack makes me the happiest : )
Salsa with 11 chips
Prepackaged refrigerated pudding cup

The above is what I have experienced and have gone through. I am not perfect. There are so many areas on my body that I struggle with loving. I jiggle. I roll. But I am content. I have a husband who thinks like I do: all shapes and sizes are beautiful. He agrees with me that Ina Garten and Adele are some of the prettiest ladies out there. It really helps me knowing I have someone supporting and loving me regardless of my weight. We all have struggles. We all have imperfections. We all are human.

I am going to leave you with the wisdom of En Vogue :

“Why oh why must it be this way?
Before you can read me you gotta
learn how to see me, I said
Free your mind and the rest will follow
Be color blind don’t be so shallow.”

What does that have to do with weight loss? Well, in my head I hear,

“Be yourself and the rest will follow.”

And it will…