Extended Hiatus

As in my last post, you all know that Nan was suffering from pneumonia. She's no longer suffering as she passed away on Friday night. It is hitting me really hard as I grew really close to her the minute I met her. She gripped my heart instantly and never let go.


- on Nan's 90th birthday in 2008

I loved everything about her. I loved coming over to help her and watch after her. I loved listening to her stories that she would tell even when she had already told me the same story five times before. I loved talking to her about our common interests. I loved our inside jokes. I LOVE HER.


- Nan on her 91st birthday last November! She was so funny especially when she would pose for the camera!

I suppose I can't really say that at 91 years old that she was exactly taken too soon. She lived a long life! Not many people even reach that age. It just feels that way to me, because I only came to know this fantastic woman in 2004 when I moved here to be with my husband. I'm completely selfish in saying that I wish it had been a longer time frame. I enjoyed every single second.

Her visitation is Wednesday and her funeral is Thursday. With that said, I feel that I must take this week off from blogging. I just do not feel in the mood to be posting at this time when my heart, emotions, and thoughts are elsewhere. I will be back next week with my reviews, swatches, etc. etc. Hoping you all understand! I'd also like to thank all of you that offered prayers, wishes, and positive thoughts for Nan (and for me and my family, as well). They do not go unappreciated. It means a great deal! Love to you all.

Smile, Though Your Heart is Breaking

You'll have to forgive me for having no post today. As I've stated in past entries, I've been helping my mother-in-law for the past two weeks while she has been in the hospital. I have been watching over Nan (my husband's grandmother). Last night was a really rough night for her and she was complaining of being cold and not being able to breathe.

She went to the hospital where we found out that she had a fever of 101 and pneumonia. I stayed behind with my MIL, because she just had knee surgery and can't really get around. It was truly a rough night of emotions and sleep was next to none for all of us. Nan's fever is gone now and they are taking care of the chest congestion. At 91 years of age, they are taking this all very seriously and giving her great care.

With all of that said, I can't promise an entry for tomorrow either. I won't deny that I have been an emotional wreck, but that's what I do to myself after something like this happens. So I'd like to take some moments for myself and find my footing again. Thanks for understanding! Prayers, best wishes, and positive thoughts for Nan are always appreciated. Love to you all!

Huge MAC Haul

Currently listening: Glee!
Currently missing: my husband...I'm still at his mom's helping.
Currently feeling: worn out
So I almost called this post "Big MAC Haul", but that just made me think of McDonald's so I chose huge as a descriptive instead. :) I decided to spend my Christmas money on something that would make me happy and something that I would use...so of course, I chose to spend the majority of it on makeup. That's the fun thing about getting money on birthdays and Christmas because it's expected to buy something that you would have asked for in the first place!

I ordered ten things and they are expected to arrive tomorrow! As always, I'll be sure to do swatches later! I never find the swatches on MAC to be anywhere close to true-to-life.


A blush palette. I already own one blush that I plan on depotting. If you plan on owning more than one blush, buying the palettes and refill pans will save you money. And it takes up less room in your makeup storage.

Two blushes. I don't have any blushes that are light in color like these. I thought it would be a nice change and would look really good layered with other blushes and MSFs.

Two Dazzleglasses. Both of these are LE. Euro Beat is from the Euristocrats II Collection and Goldyrocks is from Double Dazzle Dazzleglass Collection.

Plink! lipstick. This gets a lot of raves, so I thought I would try it out. I was thinking of seeing what it would look like with Euro Beat layered over it.

A lipgelee. This is my first lipgelee and it's LE from the MAC in Lillyland Collection that is out now. I thought of getting the pink or purple one, but this one caught my eye the fastest. It looks gorgeous!

Three eyeshadows. I only needed three more eyeshadows to fill up my palette, so I picked up three that I've been wanting for awhile and that have top reviews. I also think that these will be very versatile and will fit nicely in my neutral palette.

My 400th Post! - Mini Drug Store Haul

Currently watching: Oprah for Susan Boyle and Adam Lambert!
Currently preparing: to cook dinner for everyone
Currently feeling: busy

I'm still away all this week so I'm trying to come up some posts for what I have around me. I got these things this past weekend, so luckily they are on hand! It's just a small haul, but there were sales going on! 25% off of Revlon products and 15% off of Gosh products. :)

I decided to add to my lipliner collection since I don't own that many. I took advantage of the Gosh sale to purchase Darling, which a lot of beauty bloggers rave about. I particularly got it to see how it compares to Creme D'Nude and to do a comparison blog for you guys later. And with the eyeliner pen, I wanted to see if I like the pen applicator. I have been wanting to try MAC's Penultimate liner, but I don't want to pay C$20 for something that I may not like.
Swatches:

Golden Globes Best & Worst Dressed

Currently listening: Happy by Leona Lewis
Currently playing: FarmVille
Currently feeling: sleepy
I'm not much of an awards show watcher unless one of my favorite performers is set to perform. However, I do love watching the arrivals to see what everyone is wearing. There were definitely some highs and lows at last night's event. This is my personal list of who rocked the carpet and who failed to impress. The lists are in no particular order.


1. Emily Blunt - The color and fit is gorgeous.

2. Amy Poehler - Such a simplistic yet elegant dress.

3. Jane Lynch - I chalk this one under the "unexpected" category! She looks fabulous!

4. Jennifer Aniston - Brad Pitt is an idiot. This dress does nothing but prove that. Jen looks sexy and beautiful!

5. Lea Michele - I love this dress. Love is an understatement, actually. Lea actually wore this dress and did not let it wear her. She completely owned it!


1. Jayma Mays - Walking in a spiderweb!

2. Julianne Moore - To show up with a designer while wearing another designer's dress seems a bit insensitive to me. Not to mention she'd probably have looked better in a Tom Ford design!

3. Tina Fey - The shape is bad...very bad...with that print.

4-5. Patricia Arquette and Thomas Jane - This couple takes the 4th and 5th spot on my list. He's wearing all black until you get to his brown shoes. Not a fan of that! And I don't even know where to start with Patricia's dress. I really wish she'd hire a stylist.

Hope all of my fellow American readers are enjoying their holiday today! And thank you to all of those that provided prayers and positive thoughts for my mother-in-law. She comes home from the hospital tomorrow. :)

New Toys for my Electronics

Currently watching: GaGa on Oprah
Currently thinking: of future blog posts ideas
Currently feeling: stressed
I just ordered a few cases for my Blackberry as well as a stylus for my iPod Touch from Accessory Geeks. I think part of the fun of getting a new phone is getting to buy new items for it. I have a Curve in red, so I tried to get cases that would not look weird with the red background on the keyboard. I'm still on the lookout for a perfect leopard printed case! The ones I've seen so far have just not hit the spot. So if you know of a great place for cute cases (preferably silicone), please share a link! :)

A basic purple one. I wanted a basic one, but I didn't just want a basic color. I'm thinking the purple will look good with the red.

Couldn't find the perfect leopard one, so I settled for zebra. I needed one "in your face" printed one! :)

Had to get this one the minute I saw it. My nickname has always been Wendy the Pooh, so I couldn't say no to this. Not to mention that I'm a Disney freak.

I wanted a stylus for my iPod Touch, because honestly sometimes typing is a pain in the you-know-what on it. I hope this thing works!

I Put a Spell On You and Now You're Mine

Currently listening: Tik Tok by Ke$ha
Currently doing: filling in my new Moleskine
Currently feeling: tired
I got the Put a Spell On You pink lip bag from the MAC Holiday 2009 Collection for Christmas. Here are my swatches and reviews!

You know I love pink lips! This lip kit is fantastic. They all seem so plain when separated, but they look fantastic when layered together. I wish Dream was not LE. And now, I don't know how I ever lived without Baby Sparks Dazzleglass!

Dervish lipliner- A pink nude lipliner. It matches the natural color of my lips when I don't cancel out the pigmentation. With that said, I can use it both ways and get two different looks. Reading other reviews, I noticed many saying that this pencil was hard. The one that came in my bag is rather soft and goes on quite easily. I do recommend using this with pale pink lipsticks, because it does add an extra dimension to the color. This is a part of the permanent collection.

Dream lipstick- It is a glaze finish and is limited edition as part of the holiday collection. It's a pale pink and looks very different when worn on its own as opposed to over a lipliner. Because it is a glaze it has more of a gloss finish so if you want more color, you really should pair it with either a lipliner or a tinted gloss over it. I really like this color. I wish I could buy a single one outside of the lip bag to keep as a back-up.

Baby Sparks Dazzleglass- This is a very popular dazzleglass and probably their most sold. It's a gorgeous pink with purple and blue glitter mixed in. When one layer is applied, it's more of a clear wash of color. When layered, the pink becomes more noticeable. This looks beautiful layered over Dream, and I'm looking forward to seeing what else it looks good over.

Swatches:



And in a non-related matter: I'd love it if you beautiful people would direct prayers or positive thoughts to my mother-in-law to have a speedy recovery. She had knee surgery today and is in the hospital until Tuesday!

Reese's Pieces

Currently listening: Lady GaGa's The Fame Monster
Currently drinking: Coke Zero
Currently feeling: congested...darn sinus infection has lasted more than 2 wks

Reese Witherspoon was seen paying a parking meter yesterday in this adorable ensemble. I love every single piece of her outfit. The ruffled dress, cardigan, and chain purse is absolute perfection. I think she's quickly becoming one of my style icons!

Christmas Gifts!

Currently listening: Fifteen by Taylor Swift
Currently at: my MIL's
Currently feeling: cold
If you don't like hauls/gifts posts, then please scroll past this entry or click the "x" at the top of the page. I do not say that with menace, but just that it is common sense. :) I personally love seeing what people get! So if you made a Christmas list in your blog, link me to it! Or share what your favorite gift is that you received or gave someone this year!


A dog lover's pin from Avon and three bracelets with charms to add to my collection. My husband picked a bunch of charms that made him think of me. They were all very thoughtful. I especially love the one that says "I love my boys." That's what I call my baby cousins and brother. So that charm is extremely close to my heart and my new favorite.

My husband works in advertising so I got little cookies from his clients. I got a new pair of chopsticks, two Old Navy giftcards, and a Walmart card based solely on the fact that it has polar bears on it!

Mario Party 8! I've been wanting this awhile!

I always get magazines in my stocking. My stocking is huge, so these fill it up quickly. Magazines- Everyday with Rachael Ray, In Style, Harper's Bazaar, Glamour, Marie Claire, Flare (Canadian), UK Glamour, Nylon.

There haven't been that many CDs that I've really wanted lately, but all of these were on my list!

Yeah, I'm just a little addicted to DVDs. :) Those two Golden Girls DVDs complete the series in my collection. Golden Girls FTW.

Viva La Juicy giftset. Perfume, purse spray, body lotion. This bottle is one of the prettiest in my collection by far.

Skincare! Polar bear bubble bath from Avon (because I'm obsessed with polar bears), Cetaphil moisturizer, and Clean & Clear Acne Spot Treatment. Reviews to follow on Cetaphil and Clean & Clear.

Makeup items. Three Coastal Scents palettes (shimmer, warm, concealer), MUFE palette (empty for my already owned MUFE shadows), MAC lip kit, Revlon ColorStay foundation, L'Oreal Concealer, Coastal Scents lipgloss, L'Oreal Voluminous mascara, two Rimmel lipsticks, Maybelline Dream Matte powder, Nivea lipbalm, Benetint Pocket Pal, and clear Great Lash mascare. Reviews to follow on many of these.

Perfume sampler. It's much like the one that Sephora has. I got ten perfume samples that I can't remember what they are at the top of my head. And I can try them all and figure out which one I like the most. It comes with a certificate to get a full-sized bottle of the one that you choose. I love it! I'll be sure to do a review on each of the perfumes in the kit. :)

Not pictured:
Starbucks gift card
Maple Leafs tickets
tickets to 2 Toronto Marlies hockey games
movie gift certificate
money
Olive Garden gift card
Applebee's gift card
polar bear painting
polar bear calendar
COOKIES...nom nom nom... :D

I'll post what I got while I was home later! I count that haul among my Christmas gifts. :) It might have to wait until I get home to take pictures. I'm away from home all week, though. I'm pretty excited about some of my finds!