5 on friday

<ONE>
Winter is finally here in North Carolina. Here's my view as I drink my coffee this morning:

I'm not a huge fan of snow. It's pretty the first time it sticks, but after that I'm done. So I'm enjoying the beauty of it today, and enjoying a day at home with my sweet boys. They both slept until 6:30 so that was a nice treat! Finn has been asking since the second he woke up when he can go outside to build a snowman. This is why I dislike snow. I'd rather enjoy it from the inside. We bought him snow boots for Christmas, so I really have no excuse. I told him we had to wait until Kellan's morning nap. I have about 2 more hours before I have to endure the cold with him! I'm hoping this snow day allows me some time to cuddle with the boys, catch up on blogging, finish editing last weekend's photo sessions, and maybe even watch a movie.

<TWO>

On Wednesday 2 weeks ago, we did our 2nd annual "Stuck for a Buck" fundraiser at school. The idea is you pay $1 for 1 foot of duct tape to tape a staff member to the wall. Three teachers and both administrators participated and we raised $1,174! Last year we made around $1,015. Our goal was just to beat last year's amount and we obviously did with flying colors. We also changed the way we did things this year. Last year we were taped up for 3 hours during the lunch periods. This year we broke it down by hallway for 30-45 minutes at a time. Much less physically painful. Here is a photo from the event:

<THREE>

On Sunday, I am lucky enough to be able to go to the Panthers vs. Cardinals game. Going to the game before the Super Bowl is kind of a once in a lifetime, especially when you're expecting your home team to be in the BIG GAME. It'll probably be frigid and wet, but I'm going to be tough ;) It has been such an exciting season, so I'm anticipating seeing our cats eat those birds! If you see me Monday morning and I'm barely able to keep my eyes open, this is why.

<FOUR>
On Wednesday this past week, our school and another neighboring school were lucky enough to see The Trauma Fighter speak. It was one of those things that lands at the perfect time in your life, when you need to be reminded of the fact that everyone is battling something in their life you know nothing about. This guy is a local kid who grew up in poverty and abuse, experiencing death and disability. He talk about his experiences in school and what his teachers and fellow students did to help and hurt him along the way. It was a good reminder that the "tough" kid in your class most likely is battling a trauma in one form or another. Be sensitive to it. Try to listen, to understand. This guy was my Keith from my first year of teaching. He challenged me in every way possible. Keith made me want to quit my job some days. I knew what he was going through at home so I tried to love him through his tantrums, his cussing fits, his middle fingers, his running away, his blatant disregard for authority, his lying. But at the end of the year, Keith was the student I had the hardest time saying goodbye to. And I wonder every day if he is ok, if he made it in life. It is this type of student that I remember most from year to year. I hope that I made a difference in his life.

<FIVE>
I'm signed up for the Nashville Half at the end of April, and training for it will begin in a few weeks. I'm already ahead because I've been doing 6 mile runs pretty much every weekend to maintain some distance. I've also decided to sign up for the Detroit Half in October and will be doing the International Half - which runs through the US and Canada. My BFF from high school, Jackie, and I will run it together. Finn is going to fly home with me for the extended weekend. He and I are both SO excited!!!

birchbox

Christmases are more about the kids nowadays that getting gifts myself. Pat and I stuff stockings for each other, but give nothing under the tree other than to the kids. Of course, you read earlier that I gifted myself a Stitch Fix box - but that's beside the point. One unexpected gift this Christmas was a year-long Birchbox subscription! It's very similar in concept to Stitch Fix, yet very different.

I'll let you read about the experience and figure the rest out for yourself ;)

My first box came and fit snugly in our mailbox:

I knew ahead of time from filling out the survey about myself that the box if filled with samples - so I'm not sure why I was surprised at the small size of the box.

Once opened, inside is another box. And I think I fell in love just with the actual box itself:

Inside was a book of stickers you could choose from the fill in the blank. The word I cam up with on my own was "energy", but then I put ALL the stickers all over the box because the words they came up with were equally as important.

Once the inner box was opened, you see this gloriousness:

...and a card looking like this...

...which would equate to Stitch Fix's style card. Kind of.

Unlike Stitch Fix, I don't go sample every product immediately. For example, one of the products is to be used on wet hair, so I waited until the next morning. Another is a sunscreen...which I probably won't try until Spring Break or even this summer. The eyeshadow stick I didn't try until I had an outfit that would match it.

Here are my thoughts:

amika - bombshell blowout spray - full size $24

This is the one you put on wet hair, starting at the roots and then spraying to the ends. Blow out your hair and POOF, it instantly volumizes and smoothes...well, not really. I could tell there was a slight amount of added volume. I am using it every day just to use it, and don't necessarily deem it $24 worthy. But it smells good!

Cargo - Swimmables Shadow Stick - Sunkissed - Full Size Trio $22

Waterproof and smudge proof eyeshadow/liner...I was a tad confused. It's huge, like the tip of the pencil is too wide to really be a liner in my opinion. Nor would I line my eyes in bronze. But to use it as an eyeshadow made me look a little crazy. It's more of a color you'd wear to bronze your face I think. Perhaps if it were in a typical eye shadow color I use I might like it? I don't know. I used it once and probably won't again.

Supergoop - Daily Correct SPF 40 CC Cream Fair/Light - Full Size $32

I know it says "daily" but my facial regimen already has SPF in it. So I'm thinking I probably won't try this until I'm at the beach this summer. I don't want to waste it during the winter, especially when I am indoors most of the day. But I'm not sold on spending $32 on sunscreen for my face either.

Vasanti - BrightenUp! Enzymatic Face Rejuvenator - Full Size $34

So this is kind of like a Microderm product I think. A mask/scrub type thing. I already use something similar, and I like what I use. But I tried it and it smells nice and seems to "work" - I think I'd prefer it to be slightly thicker. Probably won't buy full size, but will definitely use the sample until it's gone.

Lastly,

Whish - Three Whishes Body Butter - Almond - Full Size $24

I LOVE THIS! It smells amazing, is the perfect thickness, and truly leaves my skin feeling buttery. I've been using Arbonne's hand cream for several years, and pay a good amount for it. I can't stand to have dry hands, and have always had a hard time keeping them from cracking in the winter. This body butter is a must-buy and will be replacing Arbonne's hand cream ONLY because of the smell - and maybe it's a few dollars cheaper :)

So after this super exciting box #1 experience, the very next day, box #2 arrives - I think they had a mix-up and were supposed to send one in December and another in January. They just happened to come on back to back days.

Next box:

I'm in love with their boxes! I'm going to keep them and use them to wrap presents.

Actually I think this box was supposed to be my December box because it showed that I'd been gifted the subscription and gave me a $10 gift certificate to use in their store.

Exciting :)

This box was slightly more successful for me.

Dr. Lipp - Miracle Balm - Full Size $17

Everyone in my family is dealing with chapped lips right now. Cold. Wind. Winter. I used this for the first time today - and it stayed on really well for a long time. Most of the time lip balms seem to "disappear" from my lips quickly. I felt like I didn't need to reapply this more than 3 times in one day. I'll want to completely use the tube before I decide to spend $17 on a full size balm. Which I can't imagine would be much bigger than this? It's good stuff though.

Eyeko - Fat Liquid Eyeliner - Full Size $16

If you know me, you know I'm a big fan of mascara. I've always used eyeliner pencils. Never tried liquid liner because I don't have the steadiest of hands and thought it would be a disaster. I tried this for the first time this morning getting ready for church. It was AH-MAY-ZING! Easy to apply, instant perfection. I'm buying it immediately.

Juliette Has a Gun - Not a Perfume - Full Size $90-$120

I'm sorry. Are you kidding me? $90-$120 for this? The smell was horrible.

Number 4 - Fluoro5 Elixer Restore & Repair Oil - Full Size $26

I tried this this morning instead of the other spray from the first box. Its purpose is "amazing shine". It definitely gives amazing shine without an oily look. However shine isn't important enough to me to spend $26. I'll probably still use the sample until it's done. If I bought a product like this it'd be the spray from box 1 because I think it made my hair shiny as well as slight volume.

Soap & Paper Factory - Shea Butter Hand Cream - Green Tea - Full Size $18

I'm glad I had another hand lotion to compare to the body butter from box 1. Really the only difference is I like the body butter's smell better (Almond). This one is still thick and leaves your skin  soft. Depends on which smell you prefer. Well, that and the body butter is $6 more. I'm still getting the body butter.

SO........

You can go online and review the products. For every review you get 10 points. For every 50 points, you get $5 credit to spend toward product. Reviewing all 10 products in these boxes gave me $10, then I had $10 from the gift car included in this box. So that's $20 toward the body butter and liquid liner that I can't live without. Pretty good! That means I'll pay a total of $20 for both full size products, which I think is a pretty sweet deal.

There is a way to gain referrals and earn 50 points (I get 50 points and you get 50 points) BUT you can't just click on a referral link like Stitch Fix. I have to send you an email with a referral and you only have 2 days to order a box in order for both of us to get the points. So whenever you're ready to try it, let me know and I'll send you a referral link.

And just so you know, I'm not a huge product junkie. If you are, this would be HUGELY ADDICTING. And for me not being a product junkie, this is just another fun box to look forward to every month...whether I like the product or not!

I'm so new to this I don't even know how much it costs to buy a box. I guess if you want to try it, you'll find out.

stitch fix #8

Eight Stitch Fix's in one year sounds a bit like an addiction. They says step one is to admit you have a problem. I have a problem.

I'm not sure if I've said this before BUT...I love "Sam". She is the bomb stylist. I forgot to take a picture of her note to me but, in summary she apologize for sending me too much navy in my last fix. She didn't include any navy in this fix. I also told her I wanted a pair of pants I can wear to work that are comfy, but that I didn't like the Emers from my last fix. She totally came through. And to top it off, I got an item on my Pinterest board that I've been DYING for. Score!

This fix was scheduled to arrive on Christmas Eve, and like clockwork it arrived a day before expected. I put it under the tree, patiently eyeing it for two days. That was torture. And, I waited until Christmas evening to open it, because it was too chaotic that morning to savor in the glory of the box.

And this time, no dirty bathroom picks. My sister was here so she took pictures of me...in front of the tree. :)

Item 1 - Iglesia Pleated Blouse by Papermoon ($48)

The thumb says it all. I didn't like it from just looking at it. It was a teal green color and the pattern was not me. At all. 

Item 2 - Pinson Drape Cardigan by Brixon Ivy ($54)

This was pinned to my Stitch Fix Pinterest board, and I was so thrilled when I pulled it out of the box. I've been waiting for this piece for months! It's grey and black and so cute and comfy! Obviously looks good with jeans, but can also be dressed up for work. That was kind of the theme of this fix. Can be casual for "play" or dressed up for work. Keeper!

Item 3 - Kathy Striped Fit & Flare Dress by Pixley ($68)

I really struggled with this one. I wanted to love it, because I felt like it was very flattering. And typically I love anything black and white. But this pattern of horizontal stripes that were tiny made me feel dizzy. It was too busy of a pattern for my eyes. Maybe if the stripes had been thicker or if the dress were solid... it was a toss up. I decided not to keep it in the end.

Item 4 - Rizzo Skinny Pant by Liverpool ($98)

These are like yoga pants for work, kid you not. So comfortable! The price kind of made me cringe. But how do you send back flattering work pants that feel like yoga pants? You just don't. And they look good with the cardigan! Keeper #2!

Item 5 - Morgani Lace Detail Button Back Sweater by Brixon Ivy ($78)

I immediately fell in love with the color of this sweater. It's a light purple with buttons on the back and lace underneath. I originally thought the lace was black but it's a very dark blue. The only thing I don't like is that the sweater is so short in the front. I wish it were 2" longer. But I don't have anything this color, and it can be dressed up with a nice necklace. Keeper #3!

So the entire box was a 3/5 for me, which is pretty average. I tried something new with this fix. The two items I didn't keep (blouse and dress) I put up for sale on a FaceBook group of people who all are Stitch Fix addicts like me - particularly for our size range. I posted them for sale as if I were getting the buy 5 discount of 25% plus shipping. They both sold! So I got all three of my pieces at a 25% discount, which made me less cringe-y at the price of the pants, and the sweater.

One of my principal peers recently signed up for her first Stitch Fix using my referral link so I have $25 credit toward my box that is scheduled to arrive right before Spring Break in March. For that box I asked for a bag, a pair of shoes, and some early spring pieces. Hopefully Sam will come through. I love that I request her and continue to have her style me.

If you want to give Stitch Fix a shot, click HERE or on any of the words "Stitch Fix" in this post to use my referral link. Once your first box ships, I get a $25 credit and you get started with your addiction.

a much needed respite

Many people have such sweet, pleasant Christmas traditions. Ours is that we get sick. Not just runny nose under the weather sick. SICK. It started on Tuesday night before Christmas. Kellan started throwing up. Then around 10 pm, I started throwing up (and other stuff I won't detail). Wednesday morning (yes, Christmas Eve Day) Finn got sick. Somewhere in this mix Pat was sick as well. Thankfully within 24 hours I was starting to resemble normal and was able to pick my sister up from the airport.

Christmas Day was glorious. We were all well, enjoyed opening gifts, sipping coffee, and eating good food.

Then Saturday hits and my sister gets sick. Hers was so bad that after 36 hours of it, she opted for the ER. Two bags of fluid and a nausea shot later, she was on the mend. My mom and Aunt came down on Saturday and managed to avoid getting sick right away.

After all this sickness, Pat and I flew to Jamaica to celebrate our sixth anniversary on the beaches of Sandals Whitehouse.



All I wanted to do was literally sleep. On the beach. But still, sleep. Our flight in was quick and painless, of course after a 90 minute delay due to someone forgetting to sign maintenance paperwork. Going through customs and immigration was pretty easy, no luggage issues, and we got onto our resort bus very quickly.

The drive to the resort was about 2 hours long due to traffic and mountainous terrain. Driving through the Jamaican mountains and seeing how the natives live made me really appreciate how lucky we are to live in such a nice home with well maintained, level roads without goats tied to the trees. About 30 minutes into the trip I just had to shut my eyes. They drive 80 mph around very sharp turns and there are no separating lines in the road. The cars literally drive in the middle of the road straight toward each other until they're 10 yards away from crashing, and then they move over.

Finally, we pull into the resort and are whisked away to the welcome center where they can't find our reservation. I tell them we have confirmation codes in our emails, but they won't let us on their wifi because we're not technically "guests" yet. It was an hour of straight up panic. What it came down to is that for an hour they were looking up "Cummings" and not "Clancy". MINOR heart attack. Once we were checked in and shown to our room we immediately bolted for food.

The best thing about Sandals is that it's all-inclusive. I love not having to carry around a purse or credit card or cash. They don't accept tips, so it's just show up and eat/drink/do activities. All you have to do is give your name and room number. There were 7 restaurants and we ate at all of them at one point or another throughout our stay. My favorite was "Cafe de Paris" which was essentially a desserterie. All sorts of desserts, changed daily. There was a crepe bar and coffee bar, and their frappucinos were literally better than Starbucks. Don't ask how many I had.

We opted out of doing excursions due to the extra cost but mainly because you can't sleep and go on excursions. Like I said, my goal was SLEEP. Each day, however, we tried something in an effort to cool off from sun bathing. First day we did a tube ride behind a boat. It was fun, but my eyes were closed for most of it because of the massive amounts of salt water being sprayed in my eyes (sunglasses would've helped). The second day we tried Paddleboarding. It was both of our very first times trying this. Sandals has photographers all over the place capturing sweet candid and posed moments, trying to lure you in to purchasing memories from your trip at a disgusting price. Well of course the photographers just happen to be snapping away at our Paddleboarding experience. Me? I did ok. Got up, stayed up. Pat? Well. I won't get into too much detail He may have fallen five times or more. The photographers truly enjoyed capturing Pat's experience, laughing at him, and capturing me laughing at him. Finally Pat decided "knee" boarding was more his cup of tea. Needless to say, our experience didn't last more than 30 minutes. Our final full day all we did water activity wise was lay in the water hammock for a little while. Oh, I did get to read a book! That was nice! (See Me by Nicholas Sparks)

Our anniversary is New Years Eve. That was the first full day we spent at the resort. The resort workers spent every waking moment getting things set up for the festivities of ringing in the New Year. Stages, rafters, red carpets, photo sets, bands, dancers, the whole shabang. So, you can imagine everyone was anticipating something beyond their wildest dreams. The theme of the evening was The Great Gatsby. Pretty much every vacationer was dressed to the nines. You walk in on the red carpet, have your picture made, then have these acrobats hanging upside down pour you your first glass of champagne. I was impressed. Then all 7 restaurants have majorly impressive buffets. You grab a plate and fill it up with anything ranging from grilled lobster to lasagna to lo mein. Tables were set up on the outside patio of the pool. I think we both had at least 2 full plates of food. And then there was the dessert buffet. Amazing pudding concoction in a martini glass with all kinds of delicious fruit and chocolate shavings.

An interesting singer/karaoke person started off the evening during dinner. He wasn't very good but it was music. After he finished, toward dessert time, a Sandals band takes the stage. Worse than the karaoke singer. I mean bad. Then the Sandals dancers take the stage and do a tribute to all the major countries and their dances - they were decent. Then the Sandals band takes the stage again, and it appeared they were the headliners until midnight. I kid you not, 80% of the people were sitting in chairs staring at them. The other 20% either were too wasted to notice or had meandered off elsewhere. We TRIED to get in to it, tried to dance to a few songs, to no avail. We ended up leaving the "party" around 11:30 and finished the evening on our balcony. Fireworks went off at midnight, and most people were celebrating from their balconies as well.

On our final evening we went by the photography shop to view all of our photos. I was really hoping for a few good shots, especially one of Pat mid-fall into the ocean from his board. No such luck. We had 2 pictures we liked, but it would cost $16 per picture to burn it to a CD. I think I need to be a Sandals photographer. Needless to say, we did not make the purchase. Therefore, this blog post is photo-free. I didn't bring my camera and my phone was only turned on twice daily to check in with my sister and mom on how the boys were doing.

After our final meal, we enjoyed an evening at the piano bar where several Sandals workers jammed out together and sang. It was amazing. They are such talented people who love to have fun with the vacationers. One of the things I love about Sandals is that their employees seem to genuinely love their job. I mean, they live on the resort so how could you NOT love it? They always seem to be having a good time regardless of their assignment for the day.

Thankfully our trip home was seamless. The drive to the airport was short with no traffic, and the flight home was not delayed. It was so nice to see our boys, they were excited to see us as well. Finn told us repeatedly how much he loved and missed us.

My sister was a great replacement parent while we were away, my mom said she parented just like I would've.

She experienced her challenges, but also appreciated the opportunity to bond with each boy. I'm so lucky that she, my mom and Aunt were all able to be there together. Unfortunately the sickness plagued my mom and Aunt while we were away as well.

Magena flew back to California Tuesday morning, but we got to spend a few hours out on Monday evening just the two of us. This is what we did:



Pat and I decided our next trip will be to Beaches, which is the family resort version of Sandals in Turks & Caicos once the boys are old enough to appreciate it but young enough to still want to vacation with us. That'll give us ample time to start saving!

I'm enjoying a week of January with a slight tan, and fondly remembering my days sleeping on the warm beach! Now, back to it...