Stay Strong

Via & Via

Just as the going gets tough, the tough gets going!

My mom has always always always said this to me!

It's the truth, God doesn't give you anything you can't handle.

We will all be stronger and more powerful in the end!

So keep your head up and smile!

DIY Lotion

On my Friday off, my great friend and I pampered ourselves!

A new nail spa opened up near my house, so we tested it out and got pedicures!

(First time for her! I have converted her)

Then we walked over to Trader Joe's and got some snacks and Coconut Oil for our DIY Lotion Making!

This is super easy!!

(inspiration)

I have never used Coconut Oil before.

First - it comes in a jar...what?

Second - when I opened the jar it was a solid...

Yes, the oil was solid...ha!

I guess I was a coconut oil virgin ;-)

I scooped out about 1/2 of the jar into my handy-dandy red kitchen aid and then put the splash guard attachment on and whipped it on high until it was fluffy.

While it was whipping, we added a couple of drops of lavender essential oil and after about 5 -6  minutes we tested it out.

The heat from our hands when we got some on our fingers turned the "lotion" very oily and it still smelled very much like coconut.

We ended up adding more coconut oil and a lot more lavender. 

Then we scooped it out of the mixer and put it in saved jars.

This is very oily. 

The scent is very soothing, it still has a powerful coconut fragrance to it and a hint of lavender.

Rich says I smell like a tropical princess! 

ha!

(brownie points for him!)

I think that I will mainly use this right before I got to sleep on my hands and feet.

This was super easy and it is definitely nice to know exactly what is going in to the product that I put on my skin!

DIY Projects

Hey All! Don't forget about the Scentsy Party I am hosting! 

We have extended the end date to 9/2/12!

I found this DIY project on Pinterest! 

Thank you! It was so fun and very easy! 

A bit messy!

I went to Home Depot and bought a strip of wood that was 12", well it ended up that they aren't actually 12"x12" so that was kind of annoying because the pictures were 12"x12" so I was going to have to cut them.

Then I painted the sides and a little bit of the front with some grey paint I bought at Home Depot.

I cut the pictures to fit the wood pieces. Some of them were a little off, fortunately it wasn't too bad and you can hardly tell now!

I bought Modge Podge at Michael's (Home Depot doesn't have any?! What!?)

And put the modge podge on the wood piece and on the back of the pictures.

Then I arranged the picture on the wood to make it fit the best.

After I put the picture on the wood, I put the modge podge on top of the picture. Making sure to go 1 way, so all horizontal.

I let the modge podge dry (it drys clear!) and then I put another layer of modge podge going the other direction, so all vertical.

I let the glue dry. Doing the modge podge in both directions really gave the pictures a lot of texture!

My only complaint is that I bought a crappy paint brush so some of the bristles got caught in the modge podge and dried, so I can't get them out. And since it is glue, it picked up all kinds of dust and crap, so if you really look at the pictures up close you can see dust particles and crap in them...which is a little frustrating..I am not sure how to avoid that - so just be mindful and pay attention when you do this! :-)

Also, when you are painting and modge podge-ing, make sure to pick up the pictures every once in a while because as these dry they will stick to the newspaper or whatever you put down under them. So then you need to rip it off once its dried.

After the modge podge dried, Rich screwed two holes into the back of each picture and then tied wire around them so we could hang the pictures.

Then Rich hung the pictures for me!

I am soo pleased with the outcome!

(Yes, I did have 6 pictures. The 6th pictures is not a landscape, so we decided it stuck out like a sore thumb, so we found another place in the house to put it!)

These turned out really well and I am so happy that this wall isn't just white any more! It definitely makes the apartment feel much more homey!

How Pinteresting

I hate to admit...

I have a pinterest and I do not get it! 

I understand how to do it and all of that..

What I don't get...

What is the point of it?!

Maybe I just am not using it the way I should..

..Any advice?

image

I pretty much live this every day!

I am super positive and friendly and social with everyone I encounter

That doesn't mean that I don't talk to my fair share of silly people :-)
And that I don't want to scream at some of them...
ha!

I hope you all are enjoy your Wednesday and don't live this quote too much!