Weekend Randoms

I really hate weekend recaps, but it's just what bloggers do on Mondays, right? Not to mention it's easy. Well, I decided my life is way too boring for that, so this week I made you a numbered list of random thoughts I had this weekend. And I think it was even easier :)

1) A shower before bed and then crawling into fresh, clean sheets is the best feeling ever.

2) The only thing I miss about college is Einstein Brothers Bagels

3) I finished the book A Million Little Pieces; if you are interested in drug addiction or autobiographies then read it! It's one of the best books I've ever read.

4) If you see American Mary on Netflix, skip it. Weirdest movie ever.

5) I ran into my aunt and great aunt in the Detroit airport; they were on their way back from Japan and we were on the same flight into Erie! It was a really neat and unexpected surprise

6) I can handle screaming babies on an airplane, but constant shushing is likely to push me over the edge. It won't make your baby be quiet, either.

7) I am loving this fall weather in Pennsylvania. I hope fall gets to Charlotte ASAP!

8) If you ever get a chance to go to Nom Nom Burger, do it! It's this weird asian/hamburger fusion restaurant- think a casual version of CowFish- and it was delish! I got the terriyaki chicken sandwich, and they put it on a bun made of rice. I officially want to eat only rice buns! The only problem is you can't really pick it up...

9) Sometimes you'll find the best treasures at sketchy second hand stores, just bring a friend so you don't get murdered. (side note- I can't wait to pick up my new dresser!)

10) My favorite thing about fall is pumpkin flavored EVERYTHING! I know, sooo trendy, but I've always felt that way. I liked pumpkin before it was cool. #hipster

So, how was your weekend?

Power Outage!

I woke up this morning to NO POWER! Talk about a let down. So, now I am WAY behind on my to-do list, including getting a blog post up. And since I have a whole to-do list to complete before 5 o' clock I'm gonna keep this short and sweet.

I do need your advice, though. You may have already seen my dilemma on the tweet machine, but if not then here ya have it. I have an outdoor wedding to go to next weekend- two actually- and I have no freaking clue what to wear. What does one wear to an outdoor fall wedding? The second of the two I'm not that worried about because it's in North Carolina where it's not that cold, and the reception is (I think) indoors. But the other one is in Pennsylvania and it's an outdoor reception. I'm going to freeze.

I have this sweater dress, but I don't know if it's formal enough?

And what do I pair it with? Should I wear a necklace (it doesn't actually go off the shoulder. I don't know how they made it do that)? Chunky bracelets? Should I wear boots or flats or heels? Black tights or nude?

Or I could wear a strapless dress with a cardigan maybe? Or I have about a million and one pencil skirts, is that too business casual? HELP!

If I wasn't completely broke I'd just buy a new dress, like this one:

Via

Help me, I'm poor.

Ohhhhkay I'm done whining, so let's #backthatazzup with Whitney :)

I've Got Sunshine On a Cloudy Day

One of my very favorite bloggers, Whitney, who you probably read about here, nominated me for a sunshine award!

What's that, you ask? Well, it's a lot like the Liebster. Basically someone nominates you, you answer a whole bunch of questions they wrote, and then you nominate some more people who bring sunshine to you day! If you want to get more technical, here are the actual rules:

1. Link back to my Sunshine Award Blog
2. Include the Sunshine Award logo in your blog
3. Answer the ten questions below
4. Nominate blogs that add a touch of sunshine to your day!

Pretty easy, right?

1. If you could pick a color to describe your personality, what would it be and why?
      Well, my favorite color is orange but I don't think that fits, honestly. Probably purple. It's just a touch girly, fun but not too bright, and I've also heard it's the color of royalty ;)

2. If you had to pick one clothing designer or store to shop in for the rest of your life what would you choose?
       Express. I like their clothes because they're professional, which is what my wardrobe mainly consists of, but they also have things that would be acceptable to wear out on a Friday night. I have a lot of clothes from The Limited, but they're not really appropriate anywhere but the office.

3. Why did you start blogging? (I love this question and the unique answers!)
      I used to only look for craft blogs and recipe blogs, but obviously this meant that I came across other blogs on occasion. I got sucked into reading a couple lifestyle blogs, and read them every day. Then I started doing Cara Box, and reading the reveals every month, and I decided I wanted to do it, too! So I started a blog :)
4. What is your favorite movie or book?
      That's a hard question! How about I just tell you my currently reading and watching, and we call it good? I'm currently reading A Million Little Pieces and it's really good! I had to get used to the style of writing, but I am enjoying to content. It's an autobiography of a man who was addicted to drugs and alcohol, and it's a really interesting perspective on addiction and treatment, plus there are the stories of a lot of addicts, and it's just really interesting.
      I'm currently watching United States of Tara on Netflix and it's really good as well. I just finished the first season and can't wait to start the next. It's the perfect mix of funny and serious.

(note to self: don't look up gifs if you don't want spoilers)

5. The best day you have had to date, describe!
    I've had a lot of good days, but the first one that comes to mind (though it might not be the best) is the day I got to NC to visit Sam in July! I mean, I slept through a lot of it and Sam went to work for 10 hours- haha- but it was so wonderful to see him for the first times in six months, and I felt so happy and so in love. It was really wonderful.

6. Your LEAST favorite word? (I hate certain words and I am always curious if others share my aversions!)
     I do have words I just don't like, but I can't think of any of the top of my head. I don't like  lot of "southern" words though, like buggy. It's called a shopping cart.

7. What is one thing you have always wanted to do but have yet to accomplish?
      Get my doctorate. But first I need my master's, which I don't have the motivation or money for right now.

8. What is your biggest fear? (irrational or rational)
      I am afraid of fire. I don't light matches or lighters, I don't burn candles. I just really don't like fire. That's why I LOVE Scentsy.

9. Who is your best friend and why? (No need to name the person if you don't want to. Description is fine!)
      I don't know if I really have one, to be honest. For a long time it was my friend Mulysa, but over the last year-ish I've felt like we've grown apart. She's still important to me, but I don't know if she's really my best friend at this point. My roommate, Scott, is definitely one of my best friends, but is he the best? And then there's Sam. He's like my best friend, except he's my boyfriend so it doesn't really count. This is actually something that's been bothering me over the last couple months. I don't think I have a best friend.

10. What makes you "walk" on sunshine?!
      McDonald's Smoothies, anything glittery, simple crafts, cuddling a kitty, and new clothes :)

I pick Pleas(e) and Carrots, She Crab Soup, Endlessly Beloved, Monster Misa, and It's Kayla Layla. I feel like I should pick more but that's all I got right now. Happy Thursday :)

An Aca-Awkward Weekend

Oh hey! It's me again, here to tell you about my weekend. We'll start with Friday.

First, I had an interview for a part-time retail job. So I get there all ready to blow them away with my awesomeness, and she's like "We just have to wait for everyone else. You know it's a group interview, right?" Um, no. No I didn't. And then, the interview starts and she's like "You guys know this is a holiday position, right?" We all exchanged awkward looks because, um, no again. And then, last but not least, she says "You're guaranteed at least 3 hours a week." Say what? So, that went well. I did get a follow up interview, which occurred by phone this morning, but honestly it doesn't sound like anything I'm too interested in.

On Saturday, I had dinner with my favorites: Sam and his our BFF, Alex. We went to Taste of India in the University area. I love Indian food, and this place was pretty good! It was less expensive than Saffron, where we normally go, and I would definitely go again. Except that the university area is like an hour away. Whatevs.

Oh, and let me tell you about Alex's girlfriend, since we're talking about things that are aca-awkward. She did not go. In fact, she never does anything with us. I have yet to meet her. Although, that might not be 100% her fault- Alex says he only likes her if he doesn't spend very much time with her, so they only see each other once a week. Sounds like a totally healthy relationship, right?

Sunday morning started with Sam bringing me pumpkin cheesecake in bed, so it was destined to be a great day. After cheesecake and getting my candy crush fix, Sam and I headed to one of his buddy's houses to watch the panthers game. And lemme tell ya, that game was just depressing to watch. I don't care either way about the Panthers or the Giants, but that game was sad. But, aside from the Giants colossal (and aca-awkward) loss, it was a pretty fun time. Sam's friend had a giant projector, so we pretty much watched the game life-size (okay, not quite) and I got to meet Sam's work friends who I hadn't met before. Sitting in a room full of cops saying things like 10-18 and calling each other by their last names was, well, interesting. 

After that game, we met some other friends at the bar for some more football. It was fun until the Steelers let me down. Come on boys, what are you doing?! Sam consoled me with a banana fudge milkshake, though, so I survived :)

I don't normally like cookout, but they knew what they were doing with that milkshake.

What did you do this weekend?

This or That?

I was about halfway though a post for today, but then I stumbled upon this link-up with I Wore Yoga Pants and Two Thirds Hazel, and it seemed a heck of a lot easier. So I guess you'll have to read about my thoughts on long distance relationships later!

Vacationing in Florida or vacationing in NYC: NYC! As much as I love palm trees and public drunkenness, I'm in love with New York City. Best vacation of my life, hands down. (and it just so happens that last year's FL vacation was the worst of my life, but I don't blame Florida for that)

iPhone or Droid: iPhone. You probably already know that I don't have a smart phone, but if I do ever jump aboard that train it's gonna be iPhone or nothin'.

NSYNC or Backstreet Boys: BSB always. It's not even a question for me. N'Sync had a few good jams, but the Backstreet Boys have my heart.

Being forced to delete Facebook or being forced to delete Twitter: Yikes, I don't know! Probably Twitter, because I use it strictly for blog purposes and don't actually know any of my twitter friends IRL. But I would surely be sad to see it go!

Fireball or Miller Lite: Firball! If this would have said Budlight instead of Miller it would have been a much harder question.

Full House or Family Matters: Full House without a doubt! I can't get enough of that show.

Dumbledore or Gandalf: If you had asked me this a year ago I would have said neither, but then Alex forced me to finally read the Harry Potter books and I became obsessed. LOTR, though? Hate it. And those I actually have read/watched.

Dying Easter eggs or Carving pumpkins: Pumpkins! Pumpkin season is my favorite in the world, and I've already been researching Pumpkin Patches for this year's Pumpkin Picking adventure.

Halloween 2011 :)

NFL or NCAAF: NFL! I am not into college ball at all. I just don't get the appeal, unless it's my Alma Mater and I have some a lot of purple beer. 

A hangover forever or sobriety forever: Sobriety. I would never want a hangover. I've only had a few in my lifetime, but I was one miserable bee-otch. 

January or July: July! Gimme some of that sweet summertime! In fact, if January just stopped being a month all together I would not mind one bit. I loath winter.

Hannah Montana or Miley Cyrus: Hannah! I've actually been re-watching that show on Netflix for the last week. I probably should not be admitting that on the internet.

Shark Week or Fashion Week: I honestly don't care about either. Not even a little.

Fresh Prince of Bel-Air or Saved by the Bell: Fresh Prince. I never even watched Saved by the Bell until like two years ago.

Britney or Christina: Brit Brit for sure. I like Christina just fine, but nobody beats B. Spears.

Burrito or Burrito Bowl: Burritoooooo! Anddd now I want some Guacamole Ranch. Thanks.

Reading blogs on your phone or reading blogs on your computer: My computer fo' sho. After college my computer kind of just sat in the corner and collected dust, and then I started blogging. That shiz is annoying with a capital A on my phone.

Angelina or Jennifer: "Jennifer, Jennifer, allllllll of the Jennifer. The woman is perfect. That is all." I'm just gonna go ahead and leave Whit's answer there because it is 100% correct.

Doug Funny or The Rugrats: Well, I'm leaning toward Doug because I recently watched Rugrats and my brain melted, but I was all about it when I was little so I might feel the same way if I watched Doug now. Can I just pick Pepper Ann?

An open mouth chewer or a heavy breather: Oh my gosh, just give me a cow chewing gum right now, because if you sit down next to me and start breathing like Darth Vader there's a really good chance I'm going to Ostrich-Punch you in the larynx. I can't even handle that.

Head over to the link-up and do your own This or That! Can't wait to see what you'd pick :)

Life Lately

Oh hi, remember me? I know, I have been MIA lately. Ever since I moved I just haven't been able to sit down and write, even though I wanted to. I love this little blog and I love my readers, but I guess I just had bigger things going on in my life. But I think it's time to get back to writing, don't you?

-30 minutes later-

Okayyy, so I still suck at this. Meep. I never really talked a whole lot about my move, did I? Well, I decided to do this crazy thing and quit my job and move 800 miles away to a house I'd never seen in person so I could live with my friends. I figured no kids, no career, no ring, so this is the best time in my life for adventures, right? 

And, I've actually been quite happy with my decision. Except that I still don't have a job. I kind of thought it'd be a little easier to get one of those. SIGH. But, it's not like I left anything good behind, so I won't be complaining until I need to pay next months rent. Plus, I just get to live with my two best friends and it's like a party every day.

I also get to see my boyfriend more, and that's pretty darn cool. And also really weird, to be honest, but in a good way.

ALSO, it is so freaking hot here! Like, really? How do you people live this way? I've always said that being hot doesn't bother me, and I like when it's 85 degrees outside, blah blah blah. Yeah, apparently that's not true. I. Am. So. Hot. But I will never tell Sam that because I called him a whiner all summer and complained about PA not being hot enough.

So, while I've been neglecting this blog I've been playing with all my friends and job hunting and cuddling my roomie's kitty, and it's taken up all the space in my brain leaving no room for writing blog posts or reading all of yours. But I promise to try and get that in check :) So, see you tomorrow! (I hope)

How to be Pretty

Every morning you wake up, look inside your own little make up bag, and think "I wonder what's in Amanda's make-up bag," right? Nope, probably not, because chances are you don't know me in real life and I could spend everyday looking like a troll for all you know. But I don't, and I'm going to prove it with a selfie.

Ta da! Not a troll! At least I hope you don't think so. So here's what I use to keep that face lookin' so damn fresh.

Step 1: Make Up Bag

I have this presh Laurel Burch bag, and it is the perfect size. Just big enough to fit all my crap (plus some) and just small enough to throw in any tote.

Step 2: Mally Perfect Prep Poreless Primer

I just started using this, and I love it. I used to use Philosophy: The Present, and I loved it and would totally recommend it, but this Mally shiz is better. The philiosophy stuff made my face look perfect, but it never felt dry. Mally makes it look just as good, and my face doesn't feel like it's melting off. Win-win!

Step 3: Sheer Cover Duo Concealer

I got this bad boy in a VoxBox a bajillion years ago, and it's great. It has wonderful staying power, and I like that the two tones allows me to keep using in the summer when I get tan(ish). I use it just on all my freckles/red marks/imperfections. And if you aren't sure how to use concealer, get the JC Penney lady to help you.

Step 4: Mineral Wear Loose Powder

This is just some cheapy stuff that I buy at walmart, but it gets the job done and lasts all day. I put this on my whole face.

Step 5: Random cheap highlighting powder that I stole from my mom

2 shades lighter than my natural skin

Step 5.5: Mary Kay Facial Highlighting Pen

I use the powder on my T-zone and the pen under my eyes. You can use the pen on your whole face, but it feels like a lot of work to me.

Step 6: Mary Kay Bronzer

I LOVE this! I use Bronze Diva and it's the perfect color. Mary Kay only sells two shades of bronzer, and it can be either sparkly or not. Mine is the darker one with no shimmer. My MK consultant tried to talk me out of it, saying she normally only sells the dark one to black people, but I think it's perfect for my skin tone.

Oh, and here's a little chart about highlighting and contouring. 

I can't find the one that I use anymore, but this is close. Where this highlights the cheeks I use blush, and I also highlight under my eyes, which helps a ton with the sleepy eye-bags look I always have.

VIA

Step 7: Bare Minerals Blush

I use the shade "rose." It's a perfect, subtle pink. And I always use loose powder blushes. I've tried other, but looser is just better, my friends.

Step 8: Define-A-Line eyeliner by Maybelline

I only the the outside of my eyes. I start in the middles, line the top and the bottom, and meet in a subtle point outside my eyes. If you click the picture of me you can see it pretty well.

Now, this is the only makeup I have that I wouldn't recommend. This stuff makes a perfect line and has the blendy tip, so it always looks perfect at first, but as the day goes on it starts to smudge terribly. It ends up all over under my eyes and even on my eyelids. I can't find anything with a semi-thick line that I like, but doesn't smudge. Any suggestions?

Step 9: CoverGirl Lash Blast Mascara

I probably only bought this because of the orange bottle, but I love it. It doesn't clump, it lasts all day, and it makes my lashes luscious! Everything you want in mascara. I also never use waterproof mascara (Unless I know I'm gonna cry, like if I'm going to a wedding) because it is SO bad for your eyelashes, and also because I don't take my makeup off at night (I know, that's bad too), and that junk will last forever if you don't use makeup remover.

Step 10: VS Prime & Set Makeup Spray

This doubles as a primer, and I've done that a few times, but I prefer just to use it to set. This truly does make my makeup last all day, and at $15 (half the price of any others I've seen) it really can't be beat!

Step 11: Dollar General Lip Balm in Fruit Punch

Nope, this is not a joke. I love this lip balm. It adds just a hint of pink and moisturizes as well as the Chapstick brand. And for a mere 2/$1, you might as well try it!

And that's how I do my makeup! Do you use any of the same products? What products do you love that I need to try?

Cara Box: August!

Happy Wednesday, friends! I am still adjusting to this new schedule/house/life, so things might be a little inconsistent around the blog for a few days. But I promised to show you my Cara Box today, so that's what I am going to do!

Not familiar with Cara Box? Basically it's a blogger (and non-blogger) exchange that gives you the opportunity to make friends and get presents! This link will explain it a little better.

This month I was paired up with Kara, who I sent a box to, and Jameson, who sent me a (super awesome) box! I loved getting to know both of these ladies. Kara and I had a lot in common, and she was so sweet. I really enjoyed picking out some fun things for her, and I even got my craft on a couple times! Go check out her box here.

Jameson was also wonderful.  She has such a joyful attitude and I loved getting to know her this month. She filled my package with so much fun stuff- definitely one of my favorite Cara Boxes to date!

She sent me:

• A tiny calendar from Italy because I told her I like to travel
• A cute little notebook that it PERFECT for in my car- I'm always needing to make notes and grocery lists!
• Some very fun nail polish
• A cute little tin with bobby pins in it- I LOVE THIS! It is so perfect, my mom even asked if she could have it!
• Wine glasses
• A crystal growing kit that looks so neat! Can't wait to try it out :)
• little things that make your wine bottle tilt up
• Some super cute coasters
• NOT PICTURED- a bath bomb that smells SO good!

She also sent me a birthday car in addition to her letter (too darn sweet), and she packed it all in that super cute box which is perfect to store all my knick knacks in.

And wanna know the most exciting part? She said she forgot to put in something, so I get another surprise :) My first mail at my new house!

Okay, let's back track to those wine glasses.

Jameson made me an adorable set of glitter wine glasses! I was so excited when I opened them up, and I thought it was so cute that she matched the polishes to the glasses. My mom and I had a couple glasses of wine after the move, but the blue and green glasses haven't been used yet! So, who wants to come over for a girl's night? :)

My August Cara Box experience was so fun, and I can't wait for next time!

Now you want a package in the mail, right? Well good news! I want to invite you to join Influenster! Influenster is an interactive service that sends you free items in the mail to test and review! So far I've gotten a few boxes, but some of my favorite items were the Sally Hansen Nail Effects (love them!), a full-sized bottle of bath and body works body spray, delicious snacks, the Olay Fresh Effects system, and sea salt spray for my hair! (That last item I didn't end up enjoying, but at least I found out for free- I'd been wanting some for ages!)

It's fun, and completely free (my favorite), but the only bummer is that it's invite only. However, I have five invites to send out, so the first five people who comment or email me their email address will get an invite from me! :)

Don't you want a box of goodies?

Moving Weekend Shenanigans!

Hey Lovebugs, did you miss me?! If you follow me on Twitter, you know I haven't been around lately because there was a mix-up with Verizon and my internet got shut off early. And if you don't follow me, you should probably go do it right now. Click here.

I pretty much just spent the whole weekend moving and packing, but I'll give you a recap anyways :)

Friday:
I literally spent the entire day packing. The cat helped.

My mom also bought me a Vino2Go! Love her :)

Now, I know that reviews of these things have been all over blog world. And this is a genuine Vino2Go, but I have to be completely honest, I am not crazy about it.  It is cute, but the lid slides shut when I'm drinking. I have to hold it open to drink. Very annoying.

Saturday:

Moving day! This was a long day. First of all, we left at 7 and it's a ten hour drive. We got here at 12:30. You don't have to be good at math to know that the drive took way too long. 17.5 hours to be exact. It involved a huge fight, my window breaking, and staying at a hotel instead of my house. So yeah. Long day.

Sunday:

Moving day part II! On Sunday I actually got all of my things moved in, spent time with my mom, and and had some quality roommate bonding in the evening. Sunday was a wonderful day :)

Monday:

On monday (Labor Day!) my roommate and I went to Ikea, and then I went to spend the night with Sam! Seeing him for the first time in 2 months wasn't as good as seeing him for the first time in 6, but it was still pretty great :)

And that's about it! It wasn't too exciting, but it was pretty great! And tomorrow I'm revealing my Cara Box! You don't want to miss that :)