Saving a few dollars just makes cents.

Here we are, smack dab in the middle of summer vacation and I'm not outside enjoying the air and sun and pollen. I'm at my computer. Why? Well, honestly I've had a little too much "outdoor time" lately if that's even possible. We went camping and then on a  two day zoo trip with my favorite family in the world.

We soaked up some vitamin E and man, it really wore me out. So now I'm here, trying to clip coupons, load my Target Cartwheel and Mperks up and prepare for the week when hubby goes back to work on Monday.

Looking back on the week, I am overwhelmed with the joy of knowing how my creative ways of saving money allowed us to take this vacation and not use any of our "house" money or credit cards. Not only have I been tucking away money from my Origami Owl and Thirty One parties to pay for this and my upcoming Thirty One conference in Columbus, but I've been pinching pennies here and there for the last year to ensure we can live comfortable on a single income.

Creative ways. That means more than clipping coupons. I started to do secret shops, most recently for my Credit Union that I use anyway. They pay $15 each shop that I complete. All I have to do is bank like normal, and fill out a survey about my trip. Easy. I just paid for Penny's zoo hat and the admission to the Sting Ray Bay.

Today I made the realization that razor blades and insanely overpriced. With both Nick and I using them (about 2-3 new blades a month) at a cost of $20-$25 a month, we spend over $300 shaving our unwanted body hair each year. Now, I could have just made the decision to never shave my legs or arm pits again, and really save some money, but I instead opted for this: The Dollar Shave Club. For $9 a month (shipping an tax included) I get 4 cartridges each with 6 blades. That's serious shaving right there. Nick and I can share them and each use 2 a month. That's only $108 a month. That means I've saved another $192 for the year. Boom. Hotel paid for!

It's easy to find ways to save money when you know where to look. These are just two things I did today. But honestly if you invest the time, you will be amazed to see how much money you can save. :)

I have to admit, I'm one of the world's worst parents when it comes to remembering to pack sunscreen for my kiddo. It probably goes hand in hand with growing up my entire life never needing/wanting it myself. Lucky for me (and her), Penny got mommy's amazing olive skin genes and tans like the perfect fire roasted marshmallow. :)

I want to try to be better though. You know, so my kid doesn't get skin cancer (on top of all the other cancers she will get from everything else that she consumes, touches breathes in and even looks at). I was happy when I got selected to try this new Coppertone Clearly Sheer Sunscreen for FREE from Bzzagent. I'm usually a buy the $15 all natural, no chemicals sunscreen for my kiddo, but hey, I'll try anything once. :)

My Bzzkit came with quite a huge pile of types and sizes to try out. One for Sunny Days you can wear on your face under your makeup, one is a spray can that goes on super fast and easy (which is stellar when trying to apply to a wiggly two year old) and one giant bottle that will last me a year. Not to mention a bunch of coupons to pass out.  So far, so good. No sun burn, no reaction and no mess. Hopefully I'm extending her life a few years, or at least her sun spots, too.  What kind of sunscreen do you use?



On a completely unrelated note, I'm so excited for this summer. Both my Origami Owl and Thirty One ventures are going to kick ass, I might actually be able to enjoy myself this summer, make some money, hang out with awesome ladies and feed my addiction to these two things without breaking the bank. I'm pretty good at being a stay at home mom. Now that I've figured out a few things, Like how to avoid a meltdown in Meijer when Sandy, the Penny Horse is Out of Order.

Well just get me a pink Cadillac!

It's funny really funny that my first @influenstervox was the #mkglam  voxbox. Anyone that knows me, knows I don't hardly wear makeup. I hate the way it feels like I'm carrying around 5#s of mud on my face, so I usually stick with some light blemish coverup, a little lip glass and some eyeliner to hide my bald eye lids. That's only on the days when I might come in contact with another human over the age of 5, which is rare since I'm a stay at home mom of a toddler. So, when I got the email telling me I'd been selected to try it out, I was a little hesitant but I figured what the heck. I could give an accurate review of at least how the product felt on my skin (even if I do apply makeup like an 8 year old.) So here it is, the box of goodies they send me to try out. Contents include: Mary Kay® Bronzing Powder
Mary Kay® Translucent Loose Powder
Mary Kay® Mineral Cheek Color
Mary Kay® Cream Eye Color in Apricot Twist
Mary Kay® Cream Eye Color/Concealer Brush
Mary Kay® Lash Love® Mascara
Mary Kay® Gel Eyeliner with Expandable Brush Applicator in Jet Black
Mary Kay® NouriShine Plus® Lip Gloss in Mango Tango 

 @MaryKay Let me tell you I love it. I LOVE IT. ALL OF IT. The NouriShine PLus lip gloss in Mango Tango is beautiful. The Cream Eye color is so light I can't even tell I'm wearing it and the Eye liner just glides on so smooth. Since getting this box in the mail, I've taken the time to put on makeup everyday. The bronzing powder and blush add a little color to my otherwise pale winter complexion (and a little goes a long way let me tell you!). I think overall though, My favorite is the loose power. It's perfect to take away that shine I always seem to have across the top of my nose. Even though it has nothing to do with the actual product, the packaging is awesome too, because you can actually twist to top closed so power isn't falling out all over when you drop it on the floor like I inevitable will do at least 3 times a week.
 All in all, I can say that this @influenstervox has turned me into a makeup wearer. I'm sure my husband appreciates the fact that I don't look like a just rolled out of bed at 5pm when he gets home from work anymore. :)

So I like coffee, a whole lot actually.

They say everyone has a vice. Well, mine is undeniably coffee. I drink at least 3 cups every morning and more if I have access to a Tim Horton's or Starbucks in my daily travels. Sometimes I have tell myself, "Michelle, you need some real food today, not just coffee" or "Hey, it's 8:30pm, don't you want to sleep at all tonight". The truth is, it's an addiction, like anything else. There are worse things I could be doing I suppose but something just feels missing in the morning if I don't have a steaming cup of java next to me while I lose my 5 lives in candy Crush Saga.

So, on to the real story. I'm a member of Bzz Agent. If you don't know what that is, I will give you the short version. It's a site that selects people for these campaigns in which they send you a  product, for FREE and then you try it and write a review, talk to your friends and basically spread the "buzz". Now I've gotten some great campaigns in the past, but I have never been more excited then when I got this last one, which was fro Green Mountain Fair Trade Coffee. I drink Green Mountain all the time, but something about them giving me these 6 free K-cup packs sent me over the edge. I guess it would be like a crack addict scoring a few free rocks. I don't know. It was amazing, and somehow tasted better then any of the other coffee I had in the house. Maybe because I learned what "Fair Trade" means, I envisioned my little cup of heaven helping this poverty stricken village attain clean drinking water. My addiction was HELPING someone else. That's good right?

You can learn about feeding your addiction with Fair Trade Certified coffee and then you will be like me.

Now, I have to make another cup. Then I have to go buy more creamer. It's an endless cycle really.
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the A, B, C's and DDD of motherhood.

So, we have all been there. Put on our clothes one day and walk past a window on the outside of a store and then back up because we think someone has played a cruel joke on us. Was that really myself I just caught a quick glimpse of? There is no way I have that much muffin top and such bad posture. Well, get over it. It is you, and your hunchback.

After having my first child, I was a little depressed at how my body didn't snap back to all of it's pre-baby glory like they seem to in any movie you see. I took comfort in the fact that my milky boobs still looked glorious, both in and out of clothes and I rocked that confidence for a solid 10 months postpartum. Then, almost over night, something awful happened...they deflated. Not just a little like, "sorry you don't have porn star boobs anymore", but  a whole lot, like "time to shop for underwires and padding again."

Like it isn't bad enough having to shop for new shorts, and dresses and even shoes (did anyone ever tell you your feet will permanently get bigger?) after having a kid! I totally forgot about Bras. I had been wearing my super sexy (Not!) nursing bras for so long I forgot how uncomfortable (and expensive!) regular bras were.

 I set out to the only place I knew to buy bras and have someone measure me, Victoria's Dirty Little Secret. I wasn't surprised to learn I was a bigger size than before had conceived my little bundle of fat packing joy. I was still hanging on to about 15lbs of of, ahem, baby weight. A 36C didn't seem unreasonable. So hear I am, with 4 new bras and about $200 poorer.

It's now July, hot as hell and about 140% humidity. There is no hiding the armpit/back fat that the bra makes under my tank top. I want to still wear a hoody to hide all the weird fat rolls, but I would die of a heat stroke. So here I am, wondering why I can't wear a bra and a tank top and not feel like I'm constantly trying to adjust my boobs back in.

Today it hit me.

I think I was lied to.

I think that lady at Victoria's Secret Society of Mannequins doesn't know what the F&$@ she's doing! After wasting 17 hours pinning crap I'll never actually do on Pinterest, I found a pin about bra sizing. I clicked on a few different charts and photos and came across this amazing blog about finding your REAL cup size, which for most of us is way bigger than we wear.

 Just because you get fatter, it doesn't mean only your band size goes up. They are relative to each other. Duh! So guess what? A 36C has about the same cup size as a 34D.

Now if you know me, you know I don't have huge boobs. Somewhere in my teen years, I was lead the believe that "D" cup and above meant huge boobs. That's not the case. Look at these two woman:

 Really? Could it be this simple?

Now I haven't actually bought any new bras. But I did measure myself using the "bend over" and the "Swoop and Scoop"methods and I should definitely be in a larger cup than a C cup. Hmmm... maybe then I won't have to constantly tuck back in my nipples when they are billowing out the top of my C cup! Ugh. Seriously VS, you really have let me down.

The Three "E's"...Excited, Exhausted and Empowered

I started something new today. I signed up to become an independent designer with Origami Owl. If you've never heard of Origami Owl, I will tell you what it is. Quite simply, it's customizable lockets.

I know, I know...you want another jewelry party invite like you need another hole in your head, but you what, I'm EXCITED about it!

Let me start a little further back. I've been selling Thirty One for a little over a year now. I signed up as soon as had my darling little Penelope and knew I couldn't be the mom who worked 50+ hours as a retail manager and had my kid at daycare more than she was at her own home. I knew money would be tight but I also knew we would find a way to make it work. I mean come on, look at that face....

So, with $99 and a mission I took on my own home based, direct sales business. It was a slow start, and I was able to contribute here and there to the bills. I amassed quite the collection of function totes...(Most of them embroidered with "Penny" for my little nugget) I mean, seriously, who doesn't need more bags and totes?

But for me, it became so much more than just a paycheck. I realized that day after day of watching Mother Goose Club, and playing with Little People had Exhausted me. Not physically, but emotionally and mentally. I was losing myself. I was becoming ONLY a wife and mother and forgetting how to be "MICHELLE". Having Thirty One parties was rejuvenating to me. I got to meet adults and have adult conversations again. I got to be in charge of something and make it my own. I felt Empowered again. 

I think a lot of times, as wives or mothers we forgot to do that. we forget to take time and having something to truly call our own. I, of course, can't be happy with just ONE direct sales adventure. I have to take on two. That's were Origami Owl comes in. :) After all, we need to constantly challenge ourselves don't we? And you know what? I REALLY want to go back to Hawaii. So I got another job to pay for it.  :)

Welcome to the world of blogging. One nerdy word at a time.

Well, here we are, Blogging. I haven't written my thoughts on the internet since the days of AOL and BedfordGirl Online, but I figured WHY NOT? I have a lot of crazy thoughts, ideas and helpful tips and it's totally worth sharing with the world. I'm a sharer. It's what I do. It will also keep me from spending hours cyberstalking people on Facebook, so it seems like a total win/win situation.

I'm going to have to really think about the direction I want these posts to take, so if you have any suggestions I would be happy to hear them.

For now, I will leave you with this consumer tip of the day. Read packages. Most places are counting on you being a sucker so they can take your money. Example. ZzzQuil. You know, helps you go to sleep. About $6.99 for a box of 12 pills. Well, if you really want to throw your money away, then go ahead and buy it. OR you can turn around  to the Allergy relief section and buy a box of generic Benedryl, which will be about $3.99 for a box of 12. Same ingredient, same strength. Weird huh? I know.