The Beauty Barn

I try to stay on top of fashion, skin care and things of that nature. I want to look nice but I don't want to pay a high price. I figure if the word "Barn" is in the title, it must mean good deals are involved.

Here are a few tips to save a few bucks:
*Shop at thrift stores in more affluent areas of town. I have gotten many name-brand barely worn/new clothes at a nearby Goodwill.
*Look for your favorite skin care products online. I just received my Obagi products from Amazon for half the price.
*Instead of spending hundreds of dollars at the dentist, you can get teeth whitening products over the counter or even medical-grade ones on eBay.
*Read the ingredients of your skin care regimen and buy them at a drug store in it's "raw" form (i.e. Witch Hazel, Hydroquinone, etc.) Witch hazel (skin toner) is under $3 and Hydroquinone (freckle/sunspot lightener) is less than $7.
*Microdermabrasion interest you but you can't afford salon prices? Try Avon's ANEW Clincal advanced dermabrasion. Here's a link to my friend's Avon site. I love this stuff and it is under $23 right now!

Do you have any tips for the Beauty Barn? Have you found a great deal on fashion or beauty products?

Maya's Potty Mouth...again

Maya: Mommy, you gotta kill that dadgum fly.
Me: That what?
Maya: Dadgum fly... you know, dadgum flies, dadgum moths, dadgum butterflies...

I think she picks these things up from Jeff's reformed sailor language.

Melody, You Got it Goin' On

When I got married, I was utterly mortified if some guy hit on me. Of course, when I got married I lived on a Navy base and those guys generally didn't seem to care if I was married or not. I remember thinking, "Don't they realize I'm married?!?!" Then as I had been married for a while, I didn't think much about it if a guy hit on me. I guess it thought they were just being friendly or something of that nature.

I recently worked in Kentucky. Here is an exchange between me and an Indian fellow at a gas station.

Dude: "You live here?"
Me: "No, I'm from Ohio...just here for work."
Dude: "You move to Kentucky?"
Not sure if he was asking me a question, of if it was some weird request...
Me: "Uh, no, I don't think so."
Dude: "Why not move to Kentucky?"
Me: "No, I'm going to stay in Ohio for a while. I just moved there."
Dude: "You move to Kentucky? I am here."
I laughed, gathered my snacky snacks and said,
"Maybe next time." Not that that made any sense, but neither did he.

Maya's Wit

My brother and Maya joke quite a bit with each other. Maya is almost 3 1/2 by the way. Here's a taste of the banter:

Maya: You stink, Uncle Shi.
Shi: No, you stink Maya.
Maya: No, you're just smelling yourself.

So, whatcha been doin'?

Dear blog readers (yes, all two of you). I must apologize for my sporadic postings of late. I think my mind went AWOL and I may have found it, but I'm still debating that one.

So, if you wanna know what I/we have been up to, here are a few highlights:

* I recently lectured my neighbors' children on birds, zoonotic diseases and the need to bleach out their swimming pool (long story worth it's own post)
* I worked in Indianapolis and went to the home of the ButterBurger and survived.
* Maya found a piece of metal shaped similarly to a plug and decided to remove the plastic plug cover, insert the metal into the outlet, see sparks and trip a circuit in our home... all without dying.
* Maya has moved from rebellious to just plain sneaky.
* Reili says, "Da-da" each time I try teaching her the word "ma-ma"... I secretly wonder if she is throwing this word in my face
* I have almost accepted that I am no longer a runner and I must move on to yoga or Pilates or something less stressful on my knees. Being over 30 is not for wimps.
* I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.
* Jeff and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary. We ate delicious king crab legs at Jay's Seafood Restaurant in Dayton.
* Our cool friends moved to VA and we are sad that they and their adorable Glitter aren't here in OH anymore.
* Thanks to my marvelous-looking friend, Debbie, I started some Obagi products and I am currently watching my face peel off.
* I am working on being more structured as a mom. So far, I have shortened the bed time routine and made a box for all of Maya's shoes....baby steps.
* We are planning on making a trip to PA for a week this month for a long overdue vacation.

Whew.

Lessons I've Learned...

Well, it has been a crazy few months. I moved up in my job and that reeked havoc on my home, my blog, and pretty much every aspect of my life. I have learned a hard lesson and that is that I should stay home more and focus more on my family.

I initially took a job outside of my home so that I could interact with others a little bit each week. I could have conversations with adults and I could get to know the locals in my new community.

I have learned that going to work so that I may have more sanity kind of backfired. I ended up dealing with others' neuroses and not dealing with my own! Every job I've had seems to have those that like to cause a commotion whether there be one or not. As I've gotten older I realize that I could change jobs, but the same "type" of person will still be there. I try to do my best and there will always be those that will try to bring me down. They aren't happy people on the inside. They relish in others' failures and are jealous of others' success.

I just want to scream out, "Focus on yourself and leave me out of it."

I think I will go back to dealing with my own crazy life and working a bit less.

Tagged by my high school bud, Evonne.

My friend Jane asked if I was okay since I haven't posted in over a month. I am alive and well (at least physically but not so much on the mentally side). So, for an easy post, here is some more stuff about me...just in case you haven't had enough...

Thanks, Evonne for the tag!

Here's what you do:
Link to the person who tagged you,
Post the rules on your blog,
Answer the questions about yourself,
Tag five people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs,
Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment at their blog,
Let your tagger know when your entry is up.

What was I doing 10 years ago?
I was living in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. I was dating a guy named Ken, who was the kinda guy I swore I would never date... and he knew it. I was working in an Emergency Department in Birmingham, Alabama. I was also driving my first car, beloved Levar, a black Acura Integra.

Five snacks I enjoy:
1. Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Almonds
2. Sharon's Coconut Sorbet
3. Rosemary and Olive Oil Triscuts
4. Azuki (Japanese red bean)ice cream
5. Shrimp Flavored Chips


Five things on my to-do list today:
1. Pick up my new loveseat from Big Lots... yes, Big Lots. (I got the floor model for $130 off!)
2. Give the girls a bath.
3. Clean and organize the living room.
4. Catch up on friends' blogs and my blog.
5. Veg.

Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
1. Go to medical school.
2. Build an energy sustainable house in Yellow Springs, OH. (Maybe an entire village of them!)
3. Take my entire family to Japan to visit relatives.
4. Set up my family and good friends for life.
5. Go on a humanitarian mission for my church (with Jeff of course).

Five jobs I've had:
1. Huddle House waitress
2. Bookkeeper/Office Manager for a lumber brokerage firm.
3. Assistant to Dr. Palmer (and ER doc)
4. Cardiovascular Disease research assistant at a university.
5. Lead Consultant for a health and wellness screening company.

Five of my bad habits:
Hmm, can I narrow it down to five??

1. Wasting vast amounts of time on the internet!!
2. Almost always being late.
3. Reading about exercise and not doing it.
4. Ignoring dirty dishes.
5. Trying too hard to fix everyone's problems.

Five places I have lived:
1. Tokyo, Japan
2. Great Falls, Montana
3. Piedmont, Alabama
4. Marlboro, VT
5. Dayton, OH

Five people I want to get to know better (yes, this means you are tagged!)
1. Ilona D.
2. Jennifer K.
3. Jane S.
4. Laura H.K.
5. Fauna S.