August 2013 – From My Corner of the Universe

The Final Good-bye Is The Hardest

August 25, 2013

Yawg, kuv yuav nco koj

(Grandpa, I will miss you)

My New Silhouette Portrait

August 22, 2013

Earlier this year I was looking at the Silhouette Cameo and Portrait to supplement my crafting hobby, especially the Portrait. The Portrait costs $180, which was something I didn’t have. I soon started to see giveaways for the Portrait on my Facebook feed and crafting blogs I follow so I would enter in these giveaways. I never won so I pretty much gave up for awhile. Never winning in these giveaways got depressing and I still wanted the Portrait fairly badly so I made the decision that I’d save up for it and get one on my own.

Then one morning as I was looking through my e-mails, I came across another giveaway for the Portrait. It was through crafter/graphic designer, Lori Whitlock, whom I’ve subscribed to for some time now, and in which I’ve participated in her giveaways before but didn’t win. I told myself that if I didn’t win this time that I’d stop doing them and just save hard. Well, to my surprise, I won the giveaway. A few weeks later, the Portrait arrived at my doorstep.

I am still shocked that I won this. I’ve seriously been wanting this so badly and just knew some day I’d get one. I just didn’t know when. I’m a believer that if you ask the universe for something you truly want, you shall receive. You might have to wait awhile for it but it will come. For me, the Portrait just came sooner than I had expected and I am over the moon about it! I’m very thankful for Lori for having these giveaways (she has them quite often) and for Silhouette for their generosity.

I can’t wait to start playing with this, and when I do, I’ll be sure to share my experience here!

Hourglass Gloss

August 17, 2013

I went and got myself a new lip gloss. I wasn’t in need of one but I haven’t worn any in ages. I was never a big fan of glosses. They’re usually sticky, overly scented, overly flavored, and never last longer than a few minutes. I believe the last time I wore a good gloss was in the early 2000’s when I was hooked on a specific Shiseido gloss for its non-sticky, unscented, and gorgeous color. Years later I tried to find the same one I wore but they’ve been discontinued and nothing else ever lived up to it.

Then I came upon Hourglass, a pretty new makeup line. I sampled their Extreme Sheen glosses at Sephora and was hesitant at first but then bought one, a neutral color called, Truth. On me it’s pretty much invisible. It’s the exact color as my lips so all you see is the shine. What’s the point of a gloss that matches my lip color you ask? I ask myself that question too and I don’t have a really good answer except that it keeps my lips moist all day and I can see a subtle rose pink on my lips. I don’t have to reapply every other hour like I do with Chap Stick or lipstick. It stays on until I wipe it off and it’s non-sticky/gooey. It also reminds me of the Shiseido lip gloss I once loved. Um…I guess I do have some pretty good reasons for buying it but nothing in the area of need. It’s pricey at $28.00 a tube so I’ll be using this sparingly.

Lastly, a fun grungy retro just because…and yes, I am wearing Hourglass Extreme Sheen in Truth.

Chicken Laab With Home Grown Mint

August 15, 2013

In late spring I bought a baby mint plant with plans to plant it somewhere in the backyard. I never got to it but continued to water it in hopes that I would do it over the summer. Still never got to it. It grew kind of wildly and I wanted to trim it but I didn’t want to waste any of it’s fragrant leaves. Chicken laab came to mind a couple of times but then things got in the way. I finally got to the point where I was craving chicken laab and had to make it. I’m so glad I did. It was delicious and I feel happy not wasting the mint.

I’ve also been craving hot green tea with a sprinkle of mint leaves. Maybe I’ll have that this evening.

Where Did Summer Go?

August 12, 2013

My 6-year-old started first grade. It’s been hard for me to grasp this. It feels like she was just born yesterday. My 11-year-old will be starting middle school soon. This will be her first year in middle school. I don’t want to even think about it yet.

I tried to hold tight onto summer. In the last few days before my 6-year-old started school I found ways to go to an amusement park and have a picnic up in the mountains. It was fun and kept me from thinking too much about all the changes.