Merry Christmas!!

Merry merry Christmas to you all!  I hope that you and yours had a spectacular holiday!  Matt and I had a wonderful day, beginning with present opening with my parents, sister, brother-in-law and niece (a tradition)!!  After breakfast, we drove the two and a half hours to Matts moms house to spend time with his siblings and niece and nephews.  It was a great day!  Now we are home eating Thai takeout and watching a Guardians of the Galaxy.  

I have been atrocious at keeping up with the last few weeks of my Tarte series and absolutely plan to finish it up.  I wanted to update you all on a few things from the advent calendar that I have really been enjoying and have actually maintained them in my daily routine.

The Maracuja Oil is AMAZING.  It is a wonderfully lightweight but effective oil for moisturizing the skin.  The directions say to use it at night, but I have actually been using it both day and night and have been loving it!  With the holidays, I've been traveling more than often and instead of lugging around my giant jar of coconut oil (my go-to moisturizer), I've been packing this little vial of oil.  Perfection.

The Maracuja Oil Eye Treatment with Vitamin C has also been a go-to item.  This has been my daytime eye treatment since it is lightweight and has a little cooling effect.  It wakes me up and I feel like it. Has definitely brightened my under eye area. 

One of the things I love so much about Tarte is their packaging.  It's just spectacular.

In the near future, look for full reviews of all of the products I got from my advent calendar and much much more!

Thanks for reading, as always!  And Merry Christmas!  Happy Holidays!

12 Days of Tarte - Door 4 - Smooth Operator Finishing Powder

Smooth Operator Amazonian Clay Finishing Powder

Door number 4 of my advent calendar revealed a small container of Tarte's Smooth Operator Amazonian Clay Finishing Powder.  To be honest, I haven't heard a lot about this powder.  I feel like I've seen it mentioned a few times, but I've never seen it as a "holy grail" item or something that is mentioned repeatedly by anyone.  I'm not sure why this is.  My feeling is that it is good powder, but for the price it may not be a great powder.  This is my thought at least.

From the first use, an issue I found that has nothing to do with the actual product, particularly if I had a full size, is that it is hard to get my brush in this tiny container to apply it.  I use the Real Techniques Powder Brush, which is a rather fluffy, large brush (perfect for applying powder).  However, I have a terrible time trying to get it into this container without spilling the product.  As I said, this isn't an issue I would deal with if I had the full size of this product.

It doesn't take much of this stuff to get a good finish on the skin.  It is mattifying without making the skin look cakey, and is super light weight and very finely milled.  It seemed to have kept my skin matte for most of the day.  I didn't have a chance to touch it up much (mainly because I left it at home and went out for the day...whoops!), but by the end of the day the only areas that needed touching up were in my t-zone.  This is pretty standard for me.

All in all, I wouldn't say that I'm underwhelmed by this product, but it didn't "wow" me enough to feel like the price point is worth what I got out of it.  To be honest, my tried and true finishing powder is a drugstore powder; Rimmel's Stay Matte powder.  It is at a great price point ($4.99 as opposed to $32.00 for Tarte) and gives me the same finish and staying power as the Tarte powder.  I do have to say though, after some thought, that I think I will try using this powder to set my under-eye concealer.  It is a perfect size to get my little brush I use for setting that part of my face in and will last me until the product inevitably expires.

Thanks for reading!

Have you used this product?  What do you think of it?  Do you have an absolute favorite setting powder?

12 Days of Tarte - Door 3 - Clean Slate Poreless Primer

Clean Sate Poreless 12-hr Perfecting Primer

This week, the two doors I opened gave me a chance to try out some face products by Tarte.  Inside of door number three I found a deluxe sample of Tarte's face primer, Clean Slate Poreless 12-hr Perfecting Primer.

I was excited to get this product because I was just thinking about grabbing a new primer, since my Pixi Flawless and Poreless Primer is just about out.  I really like the Pixi primer because it is fairly lightweight and has a little bit of pigment in it.  I feel like after I spread it on my face, it evens out my skin tone a little before I even apply foundation.  This was one of the major differences I found with Tarte's primer.  This primer is a clear, almost gel-like textured product.  Once applied though, and spread out over the face, it changes to an almost powdery (very finely milled powder, mind you) finish.

Tarte claims that this product has a mattifying quality to it and will instantly fill in fine lines and pores to create a flawless finish to foundation.  Once applied, I found that I could apply foundation immediately and it went on much smoother than without primer.  It seems as if it also kept the dry patches around any spots I have on my face so that my concealer doesn't cling to them as much.  I have very prominent pores, so they are hard to completely conceal with a primer, but this primer did help to keep my skin smooth for the application of my foundation.

As for staying power, I am quite impressed.  Yesterday I wore my makeup for a good twelve hours and when I went to wash my face late last night, everything was still in place and the only shiny spots were my in t-zone.  Of course, the setting powder I used (next post) may have had something to do with it, but everything had stayed in place very well!

I am very impressed with this product.  It is nice and lightweight (more so than the Pixi primer), keeps my face matte throughout the day, and keep trouble areas on my face easier to conceal.  I would certainly consider purchasing a full-size bottle of this.  Unless I find a drugstore primer similar to this for a much better price, this will be my next primer purchase.

Have you used this product?  Do you happen to have any drugstore suggestions for a primer like this?

As always, thanks for reading!  Be sure to check out my post for the 4th door in the Petite Treats Collection!  If you missed the first two doors, check those posts out in my archive!

12 Days of Tarte - Door 2 - Maracuja Self Tanning Face Towelette

Maracuja Self Tanning Face Towelette

Behind door 2 of the 12 days of Petite Treats 12 Days of Tarte Deluxe Collection, was the Brazilliance Skin Rejuvenating Maracuja Self Tanning Face Towelette.  Let me preface this review with a little background on my self-tanning experience...I don't really have much.  I use Jergens Natural Glow foam and really enjoy it.  What I like most about it is that it is a gradual tanning experience.  Any tanning that shows up dark within a few hours is not something I am experienced with.

With that in mind, I actually quite liked using this Maracuja Self Tanning Face Towelette.  The packaging is convenient and the application was super quick!  You can purchase a box of 10 of these single-use little packets from Tarte and use them when you need a little color on your face.  I'm sure these would be especially helpful to someone who tans regularly and is nervous about putting what they use on their body on their face.

After exfoliating my face in the shower, instead of putting on my moisturizer, I swiped the towelette across my face and down my neck according to the instructions.  I let it sink into my skin and went about my day.  I didn't apply any makeup or moisturizer; I just let it sit on my skin and develop throughout the day.

Just before application 10 AM

Evening of day of application 10 PM

Thankfully, I wasn't overwhelmed by the amount of color the towelette gave me.  Perhaps for some, that's not a good thing but I feel like it gave me a nice flush without looking too orange.  The second picture was under artificial, warm toned lighting (sorry), which makes me look more orange than I actually was.  I have to say that I am impressed with this product.  If I used self-tanner more often, I would probably want to invest in these. 

I like that I felt good about the ingredients I was putting on my face.  It didn't break me out or leave me feeling dry, since I didn't put on moisturizer after application.  I applied this product two days ago and am still seeing the effects of the self-tanner.  

I have to say that I would recommend this product, particularly if you self-tan and are not sure about tanning your face!

Have you tried these towelettes or anything similar?  Let me know in the comments below!

As always, thanks for reading!

12 Days of Tarte - Door 1 - LipSurgence Lip Tint in Wishful

LipSurgence Lip Tint in Wishful

Day 1 of the 12 days of Petite Treats 12 Days of Tarte Deluxe Collection is a mini LipSurgence lip tint in Wishful.  Admittedly, I don't have anything from this line and I've heard great things about it so I was super excited to try it out!  I have to say, I really love this!  

First of all, I love the format of this product.  It is a lip crayon, which I have quite a few of.  It is easy to apply and fun to just throw in your purse.  The LipSurgence line claims that it is a 3-in-1 product that gives you "all the benefits of a lipstick, lip gloss and a creamy balm".  I found the claim to be right on target.  This product has nice pigmentation for a lip crayon, gives a nice sheen on the lips, and feels balmy and moisturizing.  I love all of these things in a lip product, so I was very impressed!

Staying time was what I expected from this type of product.  It hung around on my lips for a good two hours or so, but did need to be reapplied.  Generally these lip crayon formats don't last hours upon hours for me, so I was happy with it.

As for the color; I adore it.  It is a perfect "my lips but better" color for me.  Wishful is a nice, peachy nude with a litter sparkle in it.  Just gorgeous.

One last note on the LipSurgence line is the peppermint oil in them.  If you are not a huge fan of peppermint, I would not recommend this product for you.  It has quite a candy cane smell, similar to what you find in Burt's Bees chapstick, so be aware of that.

All in all, I really like this product.  The one thing I do want to make note of is that I have found a few drugstore products very similar to this that perform similarly and have a much lower price point.  LipSurgence lip cremes retail for $24, whereas Revlon Kissable Balm Stains (which perform very similar to these lip cremes) retail for $9.49.  I HIGHLY recommend grabbing these types of products in sample size collections like I did and trying them out before splurging if you are on the fence about them.  These types of collections are also a really fun way to try high-end products without forking out too much without knowing how much you like them.

Keep in mind, if you are interested in Wishful because you like the color, it is available only in this advent calendar or in the Sweet Dreams Holiday Collection, which I cannot find online at the moment.

A New Family Member!

We Got a Kitten!

That's right!  We added to our family yesterday and adopted a second kitty!  We have had our resident cat, Guenhwyvar, for four years now and thought it was about time to get him a playmate.  For about a year, a few years ago, our roommate had a kitten that we raised with Guenhwyvar, but we have parted ways since then so we decided to add onto our furry family!

Meet Gnar!

Gnar is a male kitten, about five months old.  He looks like he's got some Maine Coon in him, so I'm wondering how big he will get.  He does however have short, stubby legs, so we are thinking that he might have some Munchkin Cat in him as well!  He may turn out to be a huge cat with stubby legs...(let's hope).  :D  He is super cuddly and wants to be petted all of the time!  We hope he stays this way :)

He seems to be settling in fairly well.  (While I am typing this, he is at the vet getting fixed though...yikes!).  We are keeping him in a "safe room" to help Guenhwyvar (resident cat) to adjust to the new kitty smell while Gnar gets used to living in a house rather than a cage.

I've also included a photo of Guen...he's not too enthused just yet...

As always, thanks for reading!  Stay tuned for my first post about my first two doors I opened in my Tarte advent calendar!

Tarte Petite Treats 12 Days of Christmas

New Series!  

Hi everyone!  Sorry I've been a little absent as of late.  I've been doing a lot of work on my YouTube channel lately and just haven't had much to talk about here on the blog.  However, that is all about to change!

I have a fun new series I am going to be doing once a week through Christmas!  I got an order recently from Ulta that included Tarte's Petite Treats 12 Days of Tarte Deluxe Collection and I am so excited about it!  Growing up, each Christmas, my grandmother would give me an advent calendar at the beginning of December.  It was one of my favorite traditions and still is today.  I hope to start to make it a tradition with the kids in our family (our four nieces and nephews).  With that in mind, I just HAD to get my hands on this to carry on my own favorite tradition AND to get to try out some products from Tarte!  Admittedly, I don't think I've tried anything from Tarte before but have always heard great things and have been wanting to try them for a very long time!

Of course, I just couldn't wait until the 12 days before Christmas to start opening the calendar, so I decided to make it into a series over the next six weeks leading up til Christmas.  And yes, there are just six weeks until Christmas in case you haven't been keeping count.  YAY! 

Each week, I will open two of the doors in the advent calendar and do a little mini review on the two products I get sometime that week.  I will post at the end of each week (probably Saturday or Sunday) to tell you what I think about what I found inside of the doors!

Door 1 - LipSurgence Lip Tint in Wishful

Door 2 - Maracuja Self Tanning Face Towelette

Door 3 - Clean Slate Poreless Primer

Door 4 - Smooth Operator Finishing Powder

So stay tuned and let the holiday fun begin!

As always, thanks for reading!

Review: LUSH A French Kiss Bubble Bar

My Bath Matched My Hair...

No, but really.  It did.  :)
Today I wanted to review the experience I had with the LUSH A French Kiss Bubble Bar.  I purchased this recently with some seasonal products I featured in my recent LUSH and Bath and Body Works haul on my YouTube channel.  I have always heard great things about this bubble bar, so I added it to my basket last minute to try it out one evening!

First of all, it is an adorable little shape.  It's the shape of a Hershey's Kiss (adorable) and smells AMAZING!  The description of this bubble bar boasts notes of lavender, rosemary and thyme; all of which I can smell in it.  It is such a relaxing scent!

This color my bath turned when I crumbled it in (which was way late in the bath since I forgot that it is a bubble bar!) was just gorgeous!  I had just gotten my hair colored when I took this bath and it matched my hair pretty perfectly, which was fun!  It gave a nice richness to the bath, which if you've read my other reviews of LUSH bath products, you know I look for that.  My skin felt soft and luxurious and again, the scent was super relaxing and amazing!

A French Kiss will definitely be a repurchase for me.  It is perfect for a nice, cozy winter bath when you just want to chill out and go to sleep.  I definitely recommend this product from LUSH.

Have you tried A French Kiss?  Do you have a go-to bath product when you want to relax before bed?

As always, thank for stopping by!

Foodie Friday: Outer Banks Seafood Festival

Delicious Sea Critters!

First of all, I apologize for missing Foodie Friday last week!  If you read my post on my new hair, then you know that I was out of town to get my hair done and visiting with some friends.  I attempted to write the post while I was there, but they have no internet and my phone signal was dismal at best.

Anyway, a few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of getting to spend a day at the Outer Banks Seafood Festival, enjoying some delicious food and beer!  Food tents for local restaurants were set up across the fair grounds, along with a beer tent, games and arts and crafts.  Upon entering, you could purchase "Sea Bucks", which you would use to purchase your food and beer at the festival and have at the tents!

Oyster and shrimp po'boys from the Jolly Roger!  Perfectly fried!  The rolls they were served in were a little much, so we mostly just ate the critters!  Sooo tasty.

Oysters Rockefeller from Captain Georges.  Very cheesy!  A little dried out, but the oysters were still pretty tasty!

Mahi fish tacos from Captain Georges.  Tasty fish!  Loved the crunchy slaw along with it!  The sauce was a little plain to me, but all in all, I enjoyed it!

This was the first time I had the opportunity to go to the Seafood Festival and it definitely did not disappoint!  We had some other great food while we were there, but unfortunately I got too excited and ate it before I took any pictures!  The beer choices were great as well.  Some local craft brews were featured, as well as some larger distributors if you were looking for a lower price point.

All in all, it was a tasty day!  I give the Outer Banks Seafood Festival a full five bugs.  I thought that the price points were great on the food and the concept was great as well.  You could buy as many or as little as $20 in Sea Bucks and eat until you run out.  Great food, great beer, great prices.  I will definitely want to go again next year!

Lavender Hair

Purple Hair, Don't Care!

That's right!  I colored my hair and turned it lavender!  And I am OBSESSED.

This is something I've been wanting to do for a long time.  With my job though, I can't have "unnatural" hair color.  Fortunately and unfortunately, my job is seasonal, so at the end of this summer I decided that as soon as I was finished working for the season, I would get this done.  I am SO GLAD I did.  I just can't get over how much I love it.

I had it done at a salon that uses Aveda products.  If you know much about Aveda, you know that it is a great line of products that are beneficial to your hair and even the dyes are not nearly as harmful as traditional chemical dye jobs.

To achieve the results I was looking for, my stylist pulled the brassy tones out of my hair to turn it into a bright platinum blonde color.  She then put in the lavender color with a hint of magenta to achieve a multi-dimensional lavender color.

One of the really cool things about the color is that with all of the different shades in it, it sometimes looks pink or sometimes blue, or even has a little silver in it at times.  It is MAGICAL.  I can't wait to see what happens over the next few months as it fades and the color changes.

As always, thanks for stopping in!  I apologize for missing Foodie Friday this past week...I was out of town to get my hair done!  See you soon!

Review: LUSH Northern Lights Bath Bomb

The Night Sky in My Bath?!

Oooh yes, that's right!  I had the night sky in my bath last night!  Well, sort of.

Yesterday Matt and I went to the mall, which is usually quite an adventure since we live over two hours away from any "real mall".  We had decided to go to an art museum, so decided to go to the mall in the same town which got me SUPER excited because it is the only mall in the area that has a LUSH.  *Happy dance*

So, obviously as soon as I got home and filmed my haul of what I bought yesterday at LUSH and Bath & Body Works, I ran a bath and lit a candle!  

Since it was a chilly night and I was looking to go to bed at a decent time (didn't happen by the way between editing my video and watching D3 The Might Ducks before bed!), I decided to go with the Northern Lights Bath Bomb.

First of all, I have to say that I love that Northern Lights is large enough to use for two separate baths which is always a plus to me since LUSH is prettyyyy pricey.  But worth it.  :)

This bath bomb initially explodes into a beautiful bright magenta color, but as it continues to dissolve, it creates a deep blue hue.  As the colors mix together, the bath turns into a deep indigo color.  It's beautiful!  

As far as the scent goes, it is extremely calming.  The description says that it's got jasmine and ylang ylang; I can certainly pick up on the jasmine, but I honestly don't know what ylang ylang smells like sooooo...that's helpful.  For skin benefits, I found that it made the bath water feel nice, it was smooth on the skin.  I've definitely had silkier feeling baths than this one, but the calming effect was what I was really looking for, which was achieved.  The scent lingered on my skin for the evening, creating a nice scent to experience when drifting off to sleep.

All in all, I like this bath bomb but honestly would reach for a different one next time.  There are some really nice ones like The Comforter Bubble Bar, which I have reviewed in the past if you're interested in checking it out.  In a nutshell, Northern Lights creates a beautiful bath, smells nice and creates a calming environment, which is nice before bed.  However, in my opinion it lacked in the skin benefits that usually go along with a good soak in the tub.  It's a fun bath bomb, but there are some even better ones I have experienced from their permanent line that I would reach for instead.

As always, thanks for reading!  Stay tuned for more reviews of what I picked up yesterday in the coming weeks.

Review: Montagne Jeunesse Manuka Honey Peel-Off Mask

Today was Spa Day!

Today involved having a productive morning of shopping at Walmart (does anyone hate doing this like me??) followed by an afternoon of catching up on my shows on Hulu with a face mask and a Jamberry manicure (future post to come on that).  One of the things I do enjoy about Walmart is their selection of one-time use mask packets.  Everytime I shop there, I have to grab one and today was not any different!  In fact, I bought three!  

Today I wanted to share with you my thoughts on the Montagne Jeunesse Manuka Honey Peel-Off mask.  First of all, being a peel-off mask, it is quite thick and gooey.  It was one of the smoothest peel-offs that I've applied and smells AMAZING.  It has a very strong honey scent, which I love but if you are not a big fan of honey, beware.  I can still smell the honey scent on my skin and I did the mask over two hours ago.

On the face, the mask felt very nice.  It has a cooling effect which I was surprised by, but after some thought and some research, the second ingredient in this mask is alcohol.  I'm not crazy about the idea of that, but there are quite a few other ingredients that are soothing to skin and make me feel a little better about the alcohol.  It took about 10 minutes to dry all of the way so that I could peel it off and was pretty standard as far as the act of peeling it off went.

After peeling it off, my skin felt super smooth and fairly hydrated.  Normally with any mask, I go straight to my moisturizer to rehydrate.  I didn't feel that this was necessary with this mask.  

Overall, I enjoyed the mask but I'm not sure that I'll reach for it again.  I have combination skin that errs on the side of oily and I really benefit from a clarifying or pore cleansing mask.  The honey mask is meant more to cleanse/hydrate the skin and I feel like I got those benefits from this product.  All in all, if you are looking for something to give your skin a little extra care, grab for one of these masks.  If you are looking for something along the lines of what I would use for my combination skin, stay tuned!  I grabbed another two masks (that I use back to back before bed a few times a month) today that I will be posting about within the next week or so!

As always, thanks for reading!  See you next time!

Foodie Friday: Ground Turkey & Spinach Stuffed Enchilada Shells

Mexican Italian Fusion

Hello!  This weeks Foodie Friday comes to you from my kitchen!  And Pinterest.  Let's be real.  I was super busy this week with finishing up my seasonal job for the summer and catching up with some friends I hadn't seen in a while.  I did actually go out a few times (probably more than I should have), but I was so busy catching up and eating the delicious food I had that I didn't think to grab some photos.  I DID however snag a photo of the dinner I made the other night which was quite tasty if I do say so myself.

Since I am not working full-time anymore, I have a lot more time on my hands to find and create meals at home.  Matt's work schedule has also changed a little, giving us more time to eat dinner together (a rarity for us).  The other day I came across this tasty-looking recipe on Pinterest and decided we should give it a try.

At the grocery store, we opted for ground turkey instead of chicken because ground turkey cooks quickly and we've become big fans of it as of late.  To add a little extra "oomph" to the dish, we chose to cook up some yellow rice to add to the mixture inside of the shells.  It most definitely turned out quite tasty.  Matt and I however decided that we are not big fans of enchilada sauce from the store, so we will be looking for different sauces to try out next time.  

Bottom line: I will be making this again.  It was quick and CHEAP and filling!  We made enough for three leftover meals AND another casserole dish full of shells to freeze for later!  Score!

I give this 4 bugs for the simpleness of the dish, price point and taste.  It doesn't get five bugs because we need to try it without enchilada sauce and go from there!

Coconut Oil for Acne Prone Skin

Oh, For the Love of Coconut Oil!

I am a true believer in if you find something that has changed your life, you should share it with people.  This goes for finding the person you want to marry, to foods you may want to marry but can't, a cleaning or organizing tip no one should live without, or in this case a life-changing beauty product.  Shall we consider the oil from a tropical nut a beauty product?  Sure!

I have been a long time sufferer of acne.  I have struggled with acne on my face, chest and back from the time I started middle school.  That's over fifteen years of dealing with breakouts and self-confidence issues.  I have tried this product and that product and oral medication that made me feel sick.  I went so far as to cut chocolate from my diet completely for a few years.  Not fun.  And with no results.

A few short years ago, one of my best friends was telling me that she had started using coconut oil as her moisturizer and it had CHANGED HER LIFE.  Again, sharing something that has changed your life.  Such a good friend.  :)  I was apprehensive so I smiled and nodded and said I might try it, but never made the effort to actually give it a go.  One day last year I was so fed up with my skin annoyances that I decided "What the hell...".  I love coconut ANYTHING, so why wouldn't I love smearing coconut oil all over my face?  

I cannot tell you enough how much I LOVE this stuff now.  It has completely changed my skin.  Before coconut oil, when people would complain about a little breakout on their chin, I would guffaw at them while I sat there trying to find a decent area that didn't have an active breakout.  These days, I am one of those people!  I seek out a breakout!

I honestly can tell you that there is nothing else in my life that I can attribute to this change in my skin other the coconut oil.  The only other thing I have changed is I have started using a gentle cleanser WITHOUT acne treatment medication in it.  Just a quick wash with Purpose Gentle Cleansing Wash and a little Virgin Cold-Pressed Coconut Oil to moisturize, and I'm ready to go!

Bottom line:

If you have oily, acne prone skin like me, try this.  I bet you will not regret it!

Foodie Friday: Bad Bean Baja Grill

Tasty Fries!

Today's delicious restaurant choice was the Bad Bean Baja Grill in Kill Devil Hills, NC.  Bad Bean is a place we have returned to time after time and always have something unmistakably delicious!

One of the really fun things about Bad Bean when it comes to their drinks specials is that they have a variety of margarita or mojito concoctions that change often!  In the past I have tried blackberry and cantaloupe; today I had a honeydew mojito!  Today's was my favorite of all three.   The refreshing mint with the cool honeydew was just perfect together and would go extremely well with a spicy dish.

Bad Bean also has four salsas to choose from for the complimentary chips they bring to the table.  There are three "normal" salsa varieties to choose from: mild, medium or hot (each of which has it's own little twist); along with a verde tomatillo based salsa.  Today we chose the medium variety, which is a roasted tomato salsa with a little kick.  DELICIOUS.  It has a nice acidity that is unexpected from the roasted tomatoe, but it balanced out well with a nice sweetness that also comes from the tomatoes.  The roasted flavor in the background pairs spectacularly with the chips!  Tasty!

For my entree, I went with a choice I discovered the last time we went when I was looking for something light.  Usually, I go with the marinated tofu burrito but rice and beans felt a little heavy for me today, so I ended up choosing the "Callie" Wrap.  This wrap is packed with marinated tofu, lettuce, fresh tomatoes, monterey jack and cheddar cheese, and guacamole.  It is a perfect light wrap packed with healthy veggies and protein from the tofu.  The wrap is cold, but the tofu is hot so the cheese melt well when it's all wrapped together.  It's a super refreshing, feel-good wrap!

The BEST part about getting an entree at Bad Bean that comes with fries are those damn fries.  They are RIDICULOUS.  They are named "garlic cilantro fries" and they are to die for.  The garlic flavor almost feels infused into the fries themselves and they are always fried up perfectly golden brown.  Now, I am not a cilantro person.  Don't like it at all.  However, they only sprinkle the chopped cilantro on top of the fries after they are plated, so a person like me can just pick it off.  They are perfect for my husband though, because he can just gobble everything right up.

Speaking of the husband, he grabbed a daily special today and went with the beef brisket sandwich.  It was tender, smoked brisket smothered in cheese on a sub roll served up with the amazing fries.  I only had a bite, but it was melt-in-your-mouth delicious!

So, if you're ever in the Kill Devil Hills area of the Outer Banks and are looking for a tasty meal, stop by Bad Bean Baja Grill.  You won't be disappointed, I'm sure!

Five Bugs!

Update: I'm Moving!

Busy Busy Busy

Hi guys, sorry long time no see!  Well, like a week no see...but still.  I'm still here and still planning to continue blogging.  The past two weeks has just been a blur.  We've been in a mad scramble to secure a place to live for the next year!  The place we are living right now is a winter rental, meaning that at the end of March if we want to stay, we have to pay summer-time prices which is WAY out of our price range.  We knew this before moving in, but now the new year pushed us into overdrive to find something we like to move into!  After a grueling two weeks or calling this person and calling that realty company, we made a decision on a place and signed the lease last night!  Yay!  So, we are now in a scramble to get our stuff together so that we can move February 1st!  Again, I apologize for my lack of posts and believe me, I miss the interaction with you all!  Thanks for sticking with me and look forward to a race update and some other fun posts I come up with before we move!  :D

Review: LUSH Big Blue Bath Bomb

Another Day, Another Bath

If you follow me in Instagram, you may know that I have been trying not to get sick this week.  For four straight days, I was waking up with a scratchy throat and feeling just plain icky.  With my 5K coming up next weekend and just the sheer fact that I hate getting sick, I knew I needed to do anything I could to nip this thing in the bud.  I went to the store and grabbed some Airborne, I was extra adamant about taking my probiotics, I grab some OJ from the store, etc.  I tried to get some extra garlic in my system by cooking up some super garlicky mushrooms and kale for dinner and burned away the scratchy throat with a hot toddy with extra cayenne pepper.  Okay okay, maybe I overdid it a little bit, but I have to say that I feel FANTASTIC today.  My symptoms never got worse and now I'm all better!

LUSH Big Blue

You can see the seaweed pieces that will hang out in the bath with you!

One thing I did last night that I think really did the job was got in a sweaty workout down in the garage (I was sick of sitting still) and followed that up with a hot bath with a LUSH Big Blue Bath Bomb.  I knew that of the LUSH products that I had to choose from for my "kick this cold's ass bath", I needed to grab this one.  It's a one of LUSH's "Bath Bombs", which is basically a bath fizzy, made of sea salt and has lavender and lemon oil as well as seaweed.  It makes for a super relaxing and might I add beautifully blue bath.  I made sure it was super hot and grab my giant Tervis tumbler filled with iced water and relaxed for a good half hour.  It was perfect.

Sooo fizzy!

It turns your bath a gorgeous blue!

Iced water...sweet nectar of life...

The sea salt in Big Blue draws out the toxins in the body.  Paired with ice water to rehydrate, it's a great way to draw out all of the "ick" if you feel like you're getting sick.  The lavender oil was super relaxing and helped my chill out, since to be honest I have a hard time sitting still for very long in a bath.  LUSH claims that the seaweed "softens and soothes" the skin which I can't say I could really tell was happening, but that's a hard thing to really measure.  One thing that I can say about the seaweed is that if you feel weird about chunks of stuff in your bath, this bath bomb is not for you.  To me, it's fun and I made it a game to gather up as much as I could in my hands (more of a difficult task than you would think...).  

Anyway, Big Blue was a really fun bath bomb.  It is one that I have now had two times and I will purchase it again.  It was especially helpful yesterday since I was looking for a detoxifying bath.  It delivered.

Have you tried Big Blue?

Do you ever take "detox baths"?