5 Things I Love

1. Commander in Chic: The last couple times I've been to Target this nail polish has caught my eye. The last time I went I finally got it. It's my new fav. Depending on what I'm wearing it looks grey, taupe or purplish. It's the perfect fall color.

2. Grey Gardens: PLEASE tell me you've seen this movie! It's definitely on my top 10 movie list (or would be if I actually had one, haha). The original documentary was made by Albert and David Maysles in 1975 (a must-see too!). Edith "Big Edie" Ewing Bouvier Beale and her daughter Edith "Little Edie" Bouvier Beale were the aunt and first cousin of Jackie Onassis. They lived together at Grey Gardens for decades, in squalor and isolation. The HBO film, stars Jessica Lange and Drew Barrymore. It flashes back and forth between Little Edie's life as a young woman and the actual filming of the 1975 documentary. I was beyond excited that it won two Golden Globes and six Emmys.

3. Pssssst Dry Shampoo: I heard about this amazing stuff from Promise last fall. It's a life saver! I shower every night after work and use a little of this in the morning to freshen my hair. I don't know of a ton of places that carry it. I usually pick mine up at Walgreens.

4. Simple Joys: This company was started by my mom's cousin. She recently got a bunch of stuff from them and I've fallen in love with it. They use pure, natural ingredients without artificial color, fragrance or preservatives. Their website says, "We are passionate about offering a superior quality soap that is safe, healthy, natural, environmentally friendly yet effective and enjoyable." Their soaps are made with goat's milk, which has health benefits. It is rich in proteins, vitamins and minerals. They also create their soaps with aromatherapy qualities. Each bar is $4 and there are over 40 kinds to choose from.

5. MiiR: This company was started by a fellow SPU alum and they are doing great things! "At MiiR, we believe in changing the status quo. We believe in thinking differently about what we create and who it may impact. We do this by making our products highly functional, well designed while giving back to those in need. We decided to start by making great bottles with significant purpose behind them."

One dollar of each MiiR bottle provides one person with clean water for one year. Their one4one initiative goes straight to charity: water is a non-profit organization bringing clean and safe water to people in developing nations.

During the month of September (yes I know it's the last day of the month), for every new fan on Facebook they are donating $1 to charity: water. Also, they were also giving away two bottles a day during September if you signed up for their newsletter on their website. I got an email on September 20th saying that I won one! I was pleasantly surprised when my pretty new water bottle showed up just 4 days later! I uploaded one of my pictures for a customized skin. I can't wait to get it!

Check out MiiR on Facebook and Twitter.

MiiR Digital Short // 001 from MiiR on Vimeo.

5 Things I Love: Workouts

I am not a gym girl. I've been to the gym like one time in my life. I don't know what to do there. Besides the fact I don't have money for a membership, I find it pretty intimidating. In my journey to be healthier and more toned, I've come across these gym-alternatives. These are my absolute favorites and they don't take much time. I come home from my 10 hours at work and try and do one of these things. If I can do it then so can you! NO EXCUSES (gotta love Jillian Michaels). :) I've seen results (aka more definition) in less than two weeks.

1. The Biggest Loser: Cardio Max (approx. 30 min): INTENSE! This dvd is crazy and amazing. It has so many options for workouts. You can choose warm-up, cool-down and 3 levels of workouts or there are 3 separate workouts for the 6 week maximum results program. I like that this pushes me beyond what I think I'm capable of. Plus, nobody's as motivating as Bob and Jillian.

2. The Girls Next Door Workout (approx. 15 min): Laugh all you want, but it works. Senior year of college I became a GND fan. I was extremely excited and curious as to what the workout dvd would be like. Each of the girls have their own 15 minute workouts. This is my go-to workout. I start with Bridget's warm-up and leg routines and end with Holly's arms, abs and cool-down routines. It still ends up being around 15 minutes. I've only attempted Kendra's twice. It's not as easy to follow, but I'm sure if I did it more frequently I'd be able to catch on.

3. Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred (approx. 20 min): Unfortunately I don't have my own copy of this, but my local library does. I love her 3-2-1 interval system. This workout is simple and very effective. My goal is to get my own copy and consistently do it for 30 days for maximum results.

4. From Couch to 5k (approx. 12-30 min): Anyone love a free workout? I know I've mentioned this before. Heather and I got through week two and then life (and bad weather) happened. We're planning to get back into it next week.

5. Winsor Pilates (approx. 20 min): This workout is not strenuous, in fact I find it very relaxing. I usually just do the 20 minute workout and haven't ventured much into the accelerated. This is a good option to do in between the more intense cardio workouts.

If you cannot afford to purchase any or all of these, check your local library. Check outs for dvds are between one and two weeks long (at least at mine they are). If the library doesn't have it, you can always check youtube for snippets of the different workouts. I got my copy of BL Cardio from the used section of Hastings. I'm pretty sure I'll go there to get Jillian's too. The one thing I love about Hastings is that they guarantee their used dvds, so if it doesn't work you can always exchange it for one that does. I think the most important thing is to stay active, whether it's working out or even just going on a walk. Like Bob says on BL Cardio, "Just keep moving." Also, when looking for a workout (or a way to stay active) find something that you enjoy doing. Working out is much more bearable when you're having fun. I'd love to hear your favorite workouts or workout motivations.

5 Things I Love: Summer

1. NOOK: Our parents got Heather and I Nooks for our birthday on Sunday! I absolutely LOVE it! This past weekend we ended up getting covers for them. Mine is a little boring, but I couldn't justify spending $125 ($90 on sale) for the gorgeous Kate Spade cover. One thing that I love about the Nook and Barnes and Noble is that we can download books from different resources, not just B&N. I found this website that has a bunch of free books. PLEASE let me know if you have any other resources (free or otherwise). We ended up buying a couple new books too and I just started reading Sense and Sensibility for my 25 before 26 list. What's a great summer read?

2. Bright nail polish: I love bright, fun nail polish colors for summer! These are a few of my favs. The top three are Sonia Kashuk for Target: Ocean Breeze, Purple Rain and Tutti Frutti. The bottom two are Chinese Glaze, Pink Voltage and Sinful Colors, Innocent.

3. Victoria's Secret PINK pjs: For my birthday last Sunday, Heather and I decided to get ourselves new summer pjs from VS. Since we're an Angels card holders, we get $10 giftcards for our birthdays. But we had also got $10 giftcards in catalogs, so we each had $20 to spend there. I know the shorts I got are a little creepy (my mom hates them), but they were the best choice and I love them a little more every time I wear them. I love how the lacey design on the shorts go with the print on the tank.

4. Platinum Beauty Lounge: I'm kind of picky when it comes to my hair, well picky when it comes to who I have cut it. I think it's because I had the same woman cut my hair from the time I was in elementary school through high school. When I was in California, I found an amazing stylist, Melissa, at Urban Renewal in Claremont. I was extremely sad to say goodbye to her and unsure about finding a new salon and stylist in Idaho. I asked around and heard about Platinum Salon in downtown Boise. The salon opened last fall and has a great feel to it. Karina is my new stylist and I LOVE her! My first time I went I just got a cut, but the last two times I got cuts and color. She's fabulous and fun!

April 2010

July 2010

5. Kind Campaign: A movement and documentary, based upon the powerful belief in KINDness, that brings awareness and healing to the negative and lasting effects of girl-against-girl "crime". "Look, we know it's hard to be a girl sometimes. We aren't asking for everyone to become best friends...that's simply unrealistic. However, we are suggesting something very simple: to STOP the competition, STOP the cattiness, STOP the hate, and to BE KIND."

The documentary will display the often-cruel way in which females treat each other, and shows the detrimental effects those relationships and experiences can have on girl's self-esteem and personal growth.

Kind Campaign is currently entered to win the Pepsi Refresh grant for $250,000. Pepsi Refresh is looking for people, businesses and non-profits with ideas that will have a positive impact. Please go HERE to vote for Kind Campaign. You can also text to vote, text 101818 to Pepsi (73774) (standard text messaging rates apply).

Find Kind Campaign:

Twitter

Facebook

Youtube

My amazing friend Amanda is selling bracelets here to support Kind Campaign. Heather and I ordered some and we LOVE them!

5 Things I Love

1. Gladiator Sandals: I got a pair of gladiators at the beginning of the summer and I wear them ALL the time. I love the look! Forever21 has some great, inexpensive ones. I need them all! haha.

2. The Big Bang Theory: This show is absolutely HILARIOUS! Kaley Cuoco is fabulous and I've fallen in love with Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons.

3. Air1 Radio: I LOVE Air 1!! I've been listening since I've been in high school. Luckily, if there's not a radio station near you, you can listen online. It's "family friendly" and play awesome Christian music.

4. Margaritas: Delicious and refreshing! Perfect summer drink. Best if you drink while sitting by the pool with your girlfriends.

5. Boyfriend Jeans: I love this look, but haven't found a pair that look good on me yet. Anyone have a pair they love? Where'd you find them?

sources

5 Things I Love

1. Bracelets by Amanda Leigh: Amanda makes the cutest bracelets! I have two that she sent me (the last picture). The feather one is a friendship bracelet. She's such a sweetheart. She donates a portion of the sale to American Cancer Society. Go check it out!

2. Nutella: What is there to say about Nutella? It's amazing! I've been putting it on everything! I especially love it on a toasted cinnamon raisin bagel. Sooo good! If you didn't read it before you must go read this song Heather wrote about Nutella. Not only is my sister creative, but she's hilarious!

3. K. Jenny Designs: My BFF Jenny makes gorgeous hair accessories. She has many different designs including zipper flower headbands, button clips and headbands with feathers. They are so fun and go great with anything! Be sure to stop by her store!

4. Formula One Actions: I heard about this from Miss Promise. These Photoshop actions are amazing! As a newbie to PS, I am excited to learn more and get to playing with these awesome actions. Promise has a discount code: PROMISE for $25 off. I wasn't smart when I ordered and didn't use it, but luckily they had a $20 off discount I got instead.

5. Mr. Lovewell: I had been hearing about Mr. Lovewell on MercyMe's twitter, but was totally out of the loop until this past weekend. This is an excerpt about Mr. Lovewell, "And who is Mr. Lovewell? He's an idea. He's a movement. He's the hope that the little things can add up to a big change. He's what the Bible has already called us to do...love one another. Look for the best in people. Give people a chance regradless of status, race or gender. Mr. Lovewell is the understanding that the gospel is for everyone. Some may receive it, some may reject it, but, from where we're standing, all that should matter is that the Gospel applies to us all. Who are we to demand the outcome before we decide to contribute?" You MUST go to the Mr. Lovewell website and read more about it. What an amazing movement!