{clockwise: 1. Smashbox Photo Finish Light 2. Sephora Smoothing Primer 3. Philosophy The Present}

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you will know that I have been on the hunt for a makeup primer. This new obsession happened when I stopped by the Philosophy counter one day. I had never tried any of their products, but the girl at the counter had the most amazing skin I had ever seen! She introduced me to The Present, which is clear makeup (or a primer). I am quite shocked that I didn’t buy it that day, especially after I tried it on the back of my hand and loved how smooth and matte it looked. When I got home I read all the reviews on Sephora.com and decided I HAD to have it. I also bought a small trial size of the Smashbox Photo Finish Light and added the free sample of the Sephora Smoothing Primer. Here are the results:

1. Smashbox Photo Finish Light-This ended up being my favorite of the three. It is SO much lighter than Philosophy….I guess because it is made of 60% water. My makeup goes on smooth and I am pretty happy with the results.

2. Sephora Smoothing Primer-I actually ended up really liking this one, especially when I looked at the price difference between it and the Smashbox primer. It was very light too, which I liked.

3. Philosophy’s The Present-Surprisingly, this ended up being my least fave (of course the one that started it all and the one I bought the full size of)! It is SUPER thick and even when I let it dry completely, my makeup just did not go on smoothly and made me end up feeling oily with splotchy makeup. Very disappointing. I guess I will keep using this on my hands only!

In conclusion, that girl at the makeup counter was probably half my age and was born with gorgeous skin…lol.

EDIT: I found this beautiful drawing of this girl on polyvore and have been searching and searching the internet for who drew it because I just love it so. I found out it is an artist named Danny Roberts who is in CA!!! His art is UNBELIEVABLE! Please stop by his blog. I am DYING to be included in his blogger portraits.

I seriously cannot believe how fast this year flew by!!! Here are some highlights. I have a feeling that 2010 is going to be the best year yet. Wishing you a VERY happy and safe New Year.

My brilliant idea to cut bangs. Fun for about a week.

Started my new hobby… photography.

One of our many trips to Palm Springs.

My old stopping grounds….Brentwood, CA…day trip to Santa Monica.

Accomplice Hollywood.

Thanksgiving in Redding, CA.

Diamond Head Hike on Oahu.

Sunset on Oahu.

See you in 2010! xoxo

{me. photo taken by my husband. redding, ca}

I just have to say…there is nothing better than:

Family; They love you no matter what.

Friends; They don’t have to love you, but stick around because they do.

My Bed; Nothing is better than coming home to your own bed.

Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

My cousin Denice, rockin her couture toilet paper wedding dress!

Everything turned out wonderful! I was a little worried about crowds and parking, but the groom (my real cousin =) was a doll and staked out the awesome canopy location and the parking was a breeze! Final Verdict: Mission Bay=great park bridal shower location! Can’t wait for the wedding!

My cousin’s (well technically she is my cousin’s fiance, but I have been calling her my cousin for YEARS) bridal shower is coming up next weekend so I just ordered this dress for me to wear! I sure hope it fits!

EDIT: unfortunately this dress looked nothing like the picture in person ;( very disappointing…returned it!

In other words…this is one reason for my lack of posts. Please excuse my blinding white legs! =)

We’re baaaaack!

We took off a few days from work and made the holiday weekend a mini getaway in Palm Springs! Our new tradition is to try a new hotel each time we go and this time it was the Movie Colony Hotel. It was exactly what we were looking for…rest and relaxation. This is a very small boutique hotel that only has 16 rooms and although the place could use a small face-lift, we had a great time. We had a terrace room overlooking the pool but we requested the room farthest from the street since we read that there was street noise on one side of the hotel (p.s. the street noise was not bad from any location as far as we could tell). The hotel has a complimentary continental breakfast spread that is included with your stay every morning from 9am to 11am as well as a wine happy hour each evening at 5pm. They also have beach cruisers that you can rent for free each day…we had a BLAST on the bikes. The Movie Colony Hotel is a really mellow low key, yet relaxing stay. It would definitely not work for a wedding location, but could be a relaxing honeymoon.

The GOOD: location, price, quaint 

The BAD: needs a little fixing up…tvs are old old old (maybe they are going for the fifties look…not flat screen), decor is a little ragged, towels/robes are so scratchy they feel like they were dried outdoors.

P.S. This hotel does not have any restaurants/bars on site and is not the place to go if you are looking for a party scene…BUT it is close to the downtown strip. 

This is what happens when you get a new camera and your husband holds up his hand to cover his face every time you bust it out! My poor cat Stitchy is half blind I am sure! I finally traded in the ol’ fisher price camera I have been lugging around (not really, but almost as bad), and got myself a Nikon D40. This is a fantastic camera for your first DSLR. I am having a blast just using the auto settings, but can’t wait to take the classes to figure out how to really use it! Now if only I could figure out how to get the dang polarized filter off the lens…seriously…

We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another. Then we are frustrated that the kids aren’t old enough and we’ll be more content when they are. After that we’re frustrated that we have teenagers to deal with, we will certainly be happy when they are out of that stage.

We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, are able to go on a nice vacation, when we retire. The truth is there’s no better time to be happy than right now. If not now, when?

Your life will always be filled with challenges. It’s best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway. One of my favorite quotes comes from Alfred D Souza.

He said, “For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin – real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life.“

This perspective has helped me to see that there is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way, so, treasure every moment that you have. And treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time…and remember that time waits for no one.

So stop waiting until you finish school, until you go back to school, until you lose ten pounds, until you gain ten pounds, until you have kids, until your kids leave the house, until you start work, until you retire, until you get married, until you get divorced, until Friday night, until Sunday morning, until you get a new car or home, until your car or home is paid off, until spring, until summer, until fall, until winter, until you are off welfare, until the first or fifteenth, until your song comes on, until you’ve had a drink, until you’ve sobered up, until you die, until you are born again to decide that there is no better time than right now to be happy…Happiness is a journey, not a destination.

So…Work like you don’t need money. Love like you’ve never been hurt and Dance like no one’s watching.  

I was completely inspired when I read Susan Yee’s 26 things before I turn 27 list! So here it is…my list of things I HOPE to do before Christmas. I will update you as I cross things off the list. Wish me luck!

1. finish reading one of the three books i have started: audition, four hour work week, or marley & me
2. go through box of shoes sitting in the garage from my move (in jan!); outta site outta mind
3. organize closet
4. finish wedding scrapbook
5. take my kitty for his annual vet visit
6. join webpr
7. clean off nightstand and pile of notes/papers/mags
8. get back into gym routine
9. girls night out
10. choose who i want to make our wedding xmas postcards with and fast
11. add all of the blogs that inspire me to my blogroll
12. do some sort of portrait session with a professional photog
13. go on another hike w/ hubby
14. actually wear this necklace i bought at the encinitas bazaar (i always buy and never wear costume jewelry)
15. make a meal in the crockpot we got as a wedding gift
16. use the panini press we got as a wedding gift
17. go to a ballet performance…maybe the nutcracker for the holiday season
18. go to a concert
19. get my husband to ski with me (he does not like cold, snow or skiing) lol, he prefers the lodge
20. play bingo at that little place in encinitas
21. download a cd for our roadtrip to redding for thanksgiving
22. adopt a meerkat, since i couldnt even watch the special on meerkat manor without balling hysterically
23. try the phill & mel veggie roll at masuo’s in solana beach
24. do some sort of charitable work for animals, aids or cancer