{DIY} french manicure

back in high school i used to love to get my nails done at the salon. i wasn't much into fake nails because i would always bite them and they would pop off long before they should have which was totally not worth the money. but getting french tips painted on was only $10 and that was worth it to me. 

after several times getting my nails done i realized what they were doing wasn't really rocket science and i could totally do it at home. {which comes in handy on our student budget these days}

well it's been about 6-7 years and i think it's about time i share this money saving technique! 

{btw} i have learned that doing my fingers takes a bit more time and patience since i'm not the most coordinated with my left hand. usually i don't do my finger nails that often because they only last about a week {sometimes longer with touch-ups} but it only takes about 30 min. for my toes and they pretty much always last for a month. 

so here's the stuff i use. 

q-tips, nail polish remover, white nail polish with a regular brush, clear nail polish. 

i have tried different kinds of nail polish and "sinful colors" white is my favorite because it isn't too thick and it is easy to take off with the q-tips. "sally hansen"{diamond strength} clear nail polish drys pretty quickly and i really think it is the reason the polish stays on so well. 

 step 1: {after you have clipped/filed}paint the tips of your nails with white nail polish. 

on my toes i go side to side.  on my fingers i start a little lower than the middle and pull towards the end of the nail. do two thin coats. 

 step 2:  pour some nail polish remover into the cap and dip the q-tip in. then immediately begin rubbing back and forth on the nail to make a straight line. {also remove any nail polish from the skin}
*at the salon they use a small makeup/paint brush thing and dip it into polish remover i just found out from a friend that you can buy one at Sally's*

 step 3: finish with two coats of clear nail polish....and some lotion because the nail polish remover makes your skin dry out: )

bonus tip: apply another clear coat after about 2 weeks to make them last!

{old instgram pic after doing my finger nails}

a sneaky date night

so on monday night trevor and i had a conversation that went like this...

T: hey do you want to get a babysitter tomorrow night and go out?

N: ya that would be fun. 

T: okay, well jeff {his golfing buddy} offered to watch the kids anytime. 

N: oh really? well that's perfect. we could go see a movie or something.

T: okay. what ever movie you would like.....

about 2 minutes later....

T: sooooo..... would you care if i go golfing tomorrow at noon with the guys? 

and at that moment i realized he knew EXACTLY what he was doing. he just got me all excited for a REAL date night {which hasn't happened in a while} and then casually dropped the bomb. because he had just been golfing the ENTIRE day with the guys and he knew there was no way i would consent to a noon tee time on tuesday. 

but i happily agreed. 

because hey, i was getting a tuesday night away from the kids to go on a real date! 

he is so good at getting what he wants. 

we had dinner, saw Man of Steel, and ended with ice cream. 

although i didn't love the movie, which is a bummer because i was SO excited to finally see it, we had a great night!

and now i am thinking maybe i need to put a little more crack down on the golfing so i can get a few more date nights out of it ; )

and a HUGE thanks to the Gardner's for watching our kids!

{after} grocery shopping tips

monday's are my grocery shopping days. for us it works better than the traditional saturday because a.) grocery stores are pretty empty monday mornings and b.) we would eat all the snacks/food on the weekends and have nothing left for the week. 

now, i'm not the best advice giver on the actual grocery shopping trip because i am THE worst at actually sticking to my list but i have a few tricks that have made life easier as far as actually eating the food i buy. 

Tip #1

 remove old left overs and expired food from fridge and wipe out. 

a clean fridge helps things feel fresh and actually helps me eat better. if my fridge is looking dirty then  nothing inside looks appealing to eat. it is a must once a week in our house. 

Tip #2 

make healthy snacks accessible and ready to eat.

if your grapes aren't washed and in an open container chances are half of them will go old before they get eaten. same goes for washing other fruits and veggies. no child {or husband} wants to put in the effort when looking for a quick snack. 

 Tip #3

cut off the tops of the snack boxes. 

this makes one less step for you when you need to grab a few quick snacks to throw in the diaper bag and who actually likes closing the tabs on the tops of theses boxes anyways?

Tip #4

open the bags in snack boxes. 

for things like vanilla wafers, cheez-its, and gold fish i open the boxes and then cut the bags open before i put them in the cupboard. one less step later, easy access, and the bag gets opened correctly instead of ripped down the side. 

this goes for cereal bags too!

Tip #5

make a food list to put on the fridge.

i usually just have a lit of the meals i have planned for the week {in no particular order} but some weeks when i am feeling extra ambitious i make a snack list too. for husbands older kids it is especially helpful so your not hearing the phrase "there's nothing to eat in here!"

and the winner is...

The winner of the birthday giveaway is... 

BROOKLYN COOK!

a HUGE thanks to Brittany at Leopard and Plaid and to everyone who entered! 

{results generated by random.org by rafflecopter}

4th of July {2013}

HAPPY 4th of JULY!!!

i am so thankful for all those who serve our country and protect the freedoms we enjoy everyday. 

the 4th of july is up there on my list of favorite holidays. it packs everything summer, family, food,and patriotic into one day. now that's what i'm talkin' about! 

so let's discuss some traditions/plans we've got goin' on over here : )

yesterday i took my kiddos annual 4th of july pictures. check out last years pictures here!

 

i made emma's shirt last year and all it took was ribbon, rick rack, hot glue, and a lighter to burn the edges!

super easy!

more pictures below...

emma and i also decided to paint our nails for "firework day"!

and here's a little glimpse of my plans for the day!

thanks to pinterest for the ideas... isn't it just the best?

4th of july pinterest board

  and don't forget my birthday giveaway going on until friday at midnight!

Birthday Giveaway!

so last week my sister texted me, "one week until your favorite "national holiday"!" because everyone in my family knows i take birthdays VERY seriously, especially mine.

i mean come on, it's my one special day of the year and i am dang well going to milk it for all it's worth. 

i may or may not use the phrase "but it's my birthday" for anything and everything on july 2nd

my husband thinks i'm ridiculous but it's not like i wouldn't let him do the same on his birthday. 

it's pretty much a right to be pampered and lazy and selfish one day a year. right? 

so in celebration of my birthday i am holding my first giveaway! 

One lucky person will win a necklace from Brittany at Leopard and Plaid!

Brittany and I met 4 years ago when our husbands worked together in Orlando, FL. She has THE cutest blog that is all about fashion, beauty, and decor. Her style is so awesome and let me tell you this gal is the best thrifter I have seen out there. Brittany's Etsy shop has the most beautiful necklaces that she hand-makes and this is the one that is up for grabs!

The giveaway ends Friday at midnight and the winner will be announced here on Saturday!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

ta-ta google reader

starting monday google reader will be gone, kaput, sayonara.

for those of you who don't quite know what that means...basically all the blogs that you follow and show up when you sign into blogger won't be there to read anymore!

so how will we keep up with all of our favorite blogs? 

BLOGLOVIN'! 

i have been using it for a couple months now and have loved it. really the only down fall i see is the fact that i have to go to a whole different website to read the blogs i follow, instead of just signing into blogger. 

the best part is that you can easily import all of your google reader blogs on to bloglovin' SO easily when you sign up. and as a bonus is that there is an app for it!

i've noticed {along with other bloggers} that i have quite a few more google reader followers than loglovin' followers and that may be a problem come monday.

SO...

to follow my blog just sign up then click here. then all you have to do is click the blue "follow" button!

Or you can click the button on my left sidebar that says "follow with bloglovin" 

like i said, once you are signed up it is super simple to  import your google reader blogs.

first you click the little arrow on the top bar next to you profile picture. a drop box will appear and then just scroll down and click import from google reader. 

easy peasy. 

so go sign up for bloglovin' before you lose contact with all your favorite blogs!

p.s. you don't have to have a blog to sign up and read other people's blogs : )