beauty time tuesday (on wednesday)...laser hair removal

ever since the bachelor started, beauty time tuesday went on hiatus. i didn't really mean for it to. i meant to move it to another day, but that didn't seem to happen. i'm checking in today for one of my fave beauty topics-laser hair removal.

i love laser hair removal! i always joke about being a hairy monkey, but really it's not a joke, it's true. i have a lot of thick dark hair. i really can't figure out why we have body hair. i really hate it! enter laser hair removal. i started with laser on my arm pits at least 10 or more years ago. i felt like it was the best beauty decision i ever made until i decided to do more body parts. laser hair removal has gotten more affordable over the years, and i really think every person should get it. it's worth every single penny and every bit of pain (which really isn't that much).

i have justified the cost of laser hair removal many times. i saw a great groupon around the holidays so i even got it as a birthday gift. that's how much i love it. i recently started receiving laser treatments at simplicity laser. i love it so much i've teamed up with them to do a giveaway over on my instagram. hop on over and enter to win an 18 month brazilian membership.

let's hear it. have you done laser hair removal? why not?

blogging the bach 20.6

i had good intentions to go back and watch the first half that i missed last week, but that never happened. from the posts i read, it seems like i didn't miss too much.

who's watching:celsey, alicia, amanda, and megan

rose ceremony
olivia said all the right words. she did very well at casually putting the girls down (amanda).
who's still here-olivia, lauren h, amanda, caila, lauren b, jojo, becca, leah, emily

date 1: caila let's see if our love is reel

what i saw
ben looks really tired. caila is so awkward.

what i heard 
i just feel like she's blah--alicia
i feel so uncomfortable right now--megan
so why are you here?--cel
i'm feeling second hand embarrassment right now--megan
i feel understood by 65 idiots daily, but that does not mean i'm in love--cel
he's kind of gullible--cel

what i thought
ben gives her another date because he needs to figure out if he really likes her. caila is so confusing, and ben is so dumb. i can't believe he gave her the rose after all of that.

date 2: lauren b, becca, amanda, jojo, lauren h, leah love is unpredictable

what i saw
girls on a boat and then pigs swimming in the water and then ben talking to all the girls individually in front of the other girls.
why has ben still not gotten a wax job?

what i heard 
there's so much screaming--amanda
his tattoo just looked like a math problem--cel
i love how becca never gets caught up in it-cool as a cucumber--megan
she's wearing an off the shoulder top. how weird--cel
i thought she was nice, and now i'm annoyed with her--megan

what i thought
ben can't figure out why this date is so awkward. does he not realize the one on one time with the girls is right in front of the other girls? ben isn't as into amanda as he is some of the other girls. leah is obviously jealous of lauren b.
leah sneaks out of the house to waste all of our time. get out of here girl. she feels foolish because she acted like a fool.

date 3: two women, one rose. one stays. one goes. let's sea what the bahamas have in store for us.

what i saw
i'm pretty sure i have the same necklace as olivia. i should probably throw it out.
why did ben take the rose to say goodbye to olivia?

what i heard
mom jeans--megan
ugh they both look terrible--amanda
that was not a great choice on emily. she looks like a hooker--megan
girls, stop telling him you love him. he's dating so many other girls-megan
she wants to win--alecia about emily
sucks to suck olivia--cel

what i thought
someone give this poor girl a hair tie
i saw on social media that he sent olivia home before we watched. i'm a little surprised he didn't send emily home too.

cocktail party/rose ceremony:

what i saw
ben out on the rocks crying about being unloveable
girls freaking out

what i heard 
she's got to be using some double stick tape--megan about jojo
i honestly think becca is the prettiest. maybe it's because she's not a drama queen--megan-i totally agree
the reason is your odds are really bad--megan

what i thought
we're all mad he wasted roses on caila and emily.

tear tally: 18-mostly by leah

word tally

husband/wife-1

love-20

journey-1

connection-2

amazing-4

who's still here-emily, caila, amanda, becca, jojo, lauren b

the previews show a whole lot of crying from everyone. i kind of can't wait to see what happens.

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provo city center temple open house

besides the first few years of my life when i lived in idaho (and can barely remember), most of my growing up years i lived 5+ hours away from the temple. as a youth group we usually went to the washington, dc temple once every summer. it was a big event. we had to stay over night and often did other things while we were in town (theme park or other tourist things). my parents only went a couple of times a year since it was so far away.

when i moved to utah to go to college, there were several temples close by. living in provo, there is a temple right up the street. i made the decision in college to attend the temple as often as i could. it was a big blessing to me throughout college. it provided me with much needed peace and strength and also helped me solidify my testimony of the temple.

the provo temple was always so busy. on any given day it was hard to find a place to park, and there was a good chance i would have to wait. these are good problems, but it also makes it tricky for tight schedules. when the provo tabernacle burned several years ago, they decided to restore the tabernacle to a temple. 

the provo city center temple is done and having the open house right now. tiffany, sage, and i went last weekend. it is so beautiful on the inside and out. there is so much intricate beautiful woodwork and stained glass. the temple is open to the public for tours through march 5. it is definitely worth making the effort to go. tickets are available here. if you can't get tickets, go anyway. they will let you in.

i'm so blessed to live in a place where there are many temples. it is a place of peace and comfort and somewhere i need to go more often.

foodie friday...protein shakes

this is one of the easiest recipes i've ever posted. I've been trying to get in more protein lately, and protein shakes are a great way. as much as i love green smoothies, it doesn't work for me to use the blender every morning. i need something quicker and less of a mess. 

~1 cup unsweetened coconut milk

1/2 cup plain kefir

1 scoop chocolate protein powder (i use  gnarly brand)

1 tablespoon pb2

1 teaspoon cinnamon 

shake in blender bottle and voila. 

do you drink protein shakes? what's your fave way to make them?

these is my words book club

I've said before that I like to read, but when it comes to book discussions, generally I haven't read the book. The same is even truer for movies. 

I was so excited when Bonnie announced the January book club book because I've actually read the book. 

Bonnie hosts a monthly online book club and added a local in person book club last week. I listened to this book several years ago and really liked it. Unfortunately remembering I liked it was about all I could remember. I went to book club thinking the discussion would help me remember the book. It did but only a little. Even though I couldn't remember much, I very much enjoyed the conversation about the book. Everyone offered a lot of insight, and we discussed everything from pioneer relationships to sex education to the bachelor. 

Even though it has been years since I read the book, I'm really glad I went, and it makes me want to read more. Have you read any good books lately?

blogging the bach 20.5

i saw on twitter this weekend that lace is already confirmed for bachelor in paradise this summer. i think we all knew that was coming.

who's watching: celsey, amanda, alicia, lacey, megan

sometimes life happens, and tonight was one of those nights. i missed the first part of the show so the format for this week's post will be a little different.

date 1:amanda's one on one-i missed the whole thing. my friends said it was pretty good. after the show was over they changed their minds and said it was pretty high pitched and boring. they went in a hot air balloon because apparently all dates this season must include flying in the air.

date 2: group date. i missed the majority of this too. when i walked in everyone said olivia pretty much stole the date and jubilee has been a whiny baby the whole time. i don't like either of those girls so i wasn't exactly sad i missed all of that.i said send her home about 5 times before he did. either she has never seen this show or she's the poutiest broad there is. adios jubilee. we were half and half about olivia getting the rose. i knew he was going to give it to her. i am so done with her, but he clearly is not.

date 3: one on one with lauren h. we're all wondering if she's ever watched top model. she missed the smile with the eyes lesson. it seems like he was thinking of sending her home due to being in the friend zone. she told her sob story about being cheated on so he basically has to keep her.

cocktail party/rose ceremony

what i saw
jojo is in the worst dress
olivia smelling her rose over and over

what i heard 
there's no way she's a news anchor. she's the worst--cel
becca's in another sparkly stunner--cel
how weird, amanda's in a peasant top--cel
she's like an episode of catfish--megan after olivia said amanda reminds her of teen mom
ok ben, she's obviously not going to tell ben she's the house bully--cel

what i thought
there's not a whole lot going on with emily so good for her for taking one for the team
we're all mad about the to be continued

no word tally or tear tally tonight since i missed half the show.

i only saw about 1/2 the show tonight. i really liked last week since my faves got dates. this week feels like all the people i don't like got all the attention.

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one little word: february goal update

i have my one little word of the year (STILL) and yearly goals to go along with it. i also have monthly goals. one of the best ways to accomplish those goals is to have to report back. join us (love ashley, my new lines, and one hoolie mama) today and every first week of the month to check in on our goals and yours.

yearly goals to be still

1. morning and night quiet time-drive to the gym with no music/spend a few minutes each night reflecting on the day and writing 3 good things about the day i've done really well with this. i need to extend my quiet time at night a little

2. attend the temple monthly i went to the provo city center temple open house in january

3. color once a week-i might not keep this up all year, but i got a coloring book a couple of months ago. i haven't used it, and i know i will love it and feel very relaxed-i have done this, but i need to work on it more. i spend about 5 minutes once a week which is better than nothing but not a lot.

4. prayer book-keep list of people i need to remember to pray for-i got out my prayer journal again and put it beside my bed. it's helpful to have that to remember those that need extra prayers.

january goals

1. wake up at 5:00am to go to the gym-i didn't always wake up at 5:00, but i almost always did or at least in the 5:00 hour. my workouts have really improved this month.

2. clean up my diet-check. i am doing so much better with this

3. no treats for 60 days-i have a lot of willpower when i want to. i haven't even been tempted to eat treats. i decided to go with the 30 days of the 30 day challenge i did. for the next 30 days, i can have one treat a week.

i have a lot of goals for my health and fitness this year so i am going to stick with my same january goals for feburary. i am joining another 30 days challenge to help keep me on track and motivated with those goals. i am really focused on taking care of my body and getting it in the best shape i can so for now, that is where i put my efforts.

how are your goals going? grab the button below and link up. 

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book review-the matchup

i like to read. really i do, but i rarely make time for it. as much as i love a good story, i will always choose something social over going to my room to read-100% extrovert. i am always excited for the opportunity to review a book because it means i have to force myself to read-something i actually really enjoy. 

when i heard the storyline of the matchup, i knew i wanted to read it. basically valerie and gage didn't care for each other as teenagers. fast forward to their adult years. they randomly run into each other in the grocery store late one stressful evening. you'll have to read to find out the rest. 

the book is based in the lds/mormon culture. there is quite a bit of religious talk   religion is a huge part of my daily life so that aspect of the book was very natural for me. the great thing about the setting is the book is very clean-no bad language or violence. there is definitely romance, but that is very clean as well. it's very refreshing. there's a definite element of cheesy, but i don't really mind that. 

if you're looking for a quick, clean page turner, the matchup is a good one. purchase from barnes and noble here
***i received a complimentary copy of the matchup from the publisher. 

blogging the bach 20.4

now is the point in the season when i start getting a little more excited about the show. i finally know who almost all the girls are, and i am starting to pick my faves. i read on twitter that jade and tanner got married over the weekend. i'm kind of excited someone from paradise actually worked out.

who's watching: celsey, amanda, and lacey

date 1: jojo you set my heart on fire

what i saw
olivia looks rough
not much of the date-did they just ride in the helicopter and then have dinner?

what i heard
weird, we're on the roof having drinks. what did you think was going to happen?--amanda
he's the worst kisser in america--cel
they've kissed a lot--cel
oh my gosh she's a stage 5--cel about olivia

what i thought
we all really like jojo. ben seems to really like her too.

date 2: amanda, jubilee, caila, amber, haley, emily, lauren b, leah, lauren h, jennifer, rachel, olivia 

what i saw
rachel in the cutest romper.
a few girls being very embarrassing
caila basically attacking ben
olivia's terrible outfit and farrah fawcett hair

what i heard
oh no i'm nervous
oh ya. a bunch of drunk tourists. i can't imagine a tougher audience--cel
ok. she was a cheerleader. this isn't a rally--amanda
if this doesn't say individual, i don't know what does--amanda about the riverdance
is she going to pop out of a cake like a literal hooker at a bachelorette party--amanda
that would be embarrassing. that would make me cry--amanda
um her butt's out so that's great--cel about caila
that's not what you call your future wife. that's what you call your mistress--cel
what i thought
that date was too long. i wanted to see more of the date with jojo

date 3:becca

what i saw
jojo helping becca get ready-i love when the girls are nice to each other
becca is beautiful. i have serious hair envy.

what i heard
why did i chop her so fast? i like her--lacey
i'm so excited for this--cel
guys they're so cute--amanda
i love her. she's just classy--cel
what i thought
i'm impressed ben addressed becca being a virgin, didn't make it weird, and actually respected her for it.
i really loved this date! i love becca.

date #4-twins

what i saw
twins dressing matchy matchy

what i heard
oh my gosh they have 4 weiner dogs crawling around. they legit gross me out--amanda
because you still live there you freak--cel
what kind of grown girl doesn't have a single decorative pillow on her bed?--cel

what i thought
are these girls grown up or still little girls?
i thought he would send them both home. 

cocktail party/rose ceremony

what i saw
rachel is really dressed up
olivia interrupting

what i heard 
her fake signs are the worst--cel about olivia reading into everything
i really do love becca's dress. if only it was 2 feet longer we could wear it--cel

what i thought
i really wish someone would interrupt olivia. ben is definitely annoyed with her.
dealing with the girls and their insecurity would be so annoying

who is still there-jojo, lauren b, becca, amanda, lauren h, jubilee, emily, caila, jennifer, leah, olivia

tear tally:6

word tally (i'm not very confident in my counting this week)

husband/wife-5

love-15

journey-2

connection-7

amazing-7

do you blog about the bach? linkup below. if you don't, tell me what you think so far.

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weekend happs

my weekend started a little early this weekend. i took friday off work-mostly to help a friend for a couple of hours in the morning. i watched my friend's little babe while she presented at a blog conference. i didn't attend the conference, but i did go see a few friends there.

after hanging out with friends for a little bit, i ran a few errands including getting my oil changed in my car. why is that one of the worst tasks? it doesn't even take that long, but i kind of hate doing it.

part of my efforts to be still includes being home a little more. i love to make plans on the weekends, and i love to have fun. after a busy week, i decided to stay home on friday night. i got caught up on some things i needed to do, and i was happy i stayed home.

saturday morning started out with a run. the plan was somewhere between 8 and 12 miles. i haven't gotten in many miles lately so i knew there was pretty much no way i could do 12. my little group planned for 8, and i pushed us a little more. we ended with about 9.5, but since i was so close i made myself get 10. it was hard, and i was tired, but i needed it. i needed to push myself.

sage and i had a fun afternoon/evening. we did a little target shopping, ate dinner at goodwood bbq, and went to an amazing spiritually uplifting night. several lds/mormon bloggers and influencers shared their testimony through word and music. i left very inspired.

i woke up to a winter wonderland on sunday morning. i know the east coast is getting slammed, but nothing shuts down for snow here. we still have to go about our days. i went to church and spent the rest of the day at the hospital waiting for my friend to have a baby. it was one of the most amazing experiences-full post coming.

how was your weekend? any exciting happs?

a piñata gender reveal

i started making gender reveal cakes several years ago. it's a lot of fun especially when i am the only one that knows the gender of the baby. it gets a little tricky because people want the gender reveal to happen pretty quickly after the ultrasound. the turnaround time is pretty quick.

cakes are fun, but it's fun to do something different sometimes. lisa wanted to do a fun gender reveal party with her family, but she wanted to keep it pretty simple. instead of a cake, she decided on a piñata.

i filled the piñata with candy and circles. the kids had fun taking turns trying to break it. 

it's a BOY! big sister ava is excited for a brother.

what would you do...with 1 hour of free time

i'm excited for a new year of the what would you do linkup. kimberly is having a new little babe and decided to take a break for a while. i'm holding out hope she'll be back to blogging,but if not go check out her etsy shop and die at the cuteness. i have some new hosts, and i'm really excited to welcome emilie, sharlee, erin, suzanna, and tayler to the linkup.

this month we want to know WHAT WOULD YOU DO...with 1 hour of free time?

this question is a little tricky for me because technically i have a lot of my own time. besides the hours i am obligated to be at work (and even that is flexible), i am completely in charge of my own schedule. even though most of my time is my own, i rarely feel like i have free time. i keep myself pretty booked, and that's the way i like it.

in theory i would read a book or do a craft or color or sew something or clean up my pinterest, but in reality if i had an hour of free time i would probably spend it catching up with a friend. as much as i love all of those other things, i LOVE talking to people the most.

we want to know WHAT WOULD YOU DO...with 1 hour of free time. we're not big on rules so grab a button, link up your posts, and hop around.

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blogging the bach 20.3

i've been reading all over the internets that people are surprised ben kept lace. i'm not. she's the resident crazy and therefore has to stick around for a few weeks for the drama factor. my guess is we have 2-3 more weeks of her.

we planned to fill out our brackets before the rose ceremony last week, but by the time that came we just wanted to finish watching. so we filled them out tonight during dinner. we've all managed to avoid spoilers so far, and i'm excited to see how everyone does in the end. we ate dinner, chatted for a while, and then attempted the brackets. we can't remember half of who anyone is so this should be pretty entertaining.

who's watching:celsey, lacy, amanda, alicia, megan

date #1-lauren b the sky's the limit

what i saw
the most awkward kiss ever

what i heard
you're kidding-they're going on a helicopter--cel
why is he obsessed with convertibles?--cel
it wasn't because of ben. it's because it wasn't scary--amanda
collective ugh when he went in for the kiss
why do they have to fly over and brag?--amanda
i think they're nose twins--cel
i thought she was going to be a cute crier. she definitely is not--alicia about caila
in the biblical sense--megan when ben says he wants lauren to get to know him

what i thought
ben really likes lauren b
does anyone else think a private concert would be awkward?

date #2-amanda, haley, jennifer, shushana, leah, amber, lauren h, olivia, jami, rachel, lace, emily love is the goal

what i saw
have these girls even seen the game of soccer?

what i heard
he sounds like he's reading a script--cel
what are the other sports that you know so much about?--megan about olivia
i'm not good at soccer and i feel like i could kick all of their ___--amanda
they should have them play like women's rugby or something and hunger games it out for ben--megan
you couldn't come up with some job title-dog lover, general human being, something--megan
you're coming home to cry to all the girls that didn't get a date--alicia

what i thought
i can't believe amber got the rose. i didn't think he would keep her this week.

date #3-jubilee love is in the air

what i saw
ben comes and jubilee is acting so weird.

what i heard
grab his chest hair. it will keep you in the helicopter--cel
she clearly isn't classy enough for caviar--megan
i don't get why they always have to be in a swimsuits.are they doing body checks?--megan

what i thought
he obviously had to give her the rose. she's not my fave, but i think she's sticking around for a while.

cocktail party/rose ceremony
what i saw
girls laying around like lazies and acting like crazies.
what i heard
it's not like she's doing anything bad--megan
they should edit over whatever the girls are saying with the words i'm jealous--megan
i'm going to massage her now. her heart hurts so that's the part i'm going to focus on the most--cel
these are some really classy gals--amanda
can we just wipe the slate and get all new girls because i hate them all--megan
lace looks like she should be the doped up wife of a governor--megan
she would rather quit than get kicked off--lacy about lace
ew really-stepford wife--megan about lauren h
what i thought
i don't know why everyone is so mad at jubilee. i don't love her, but i don't blame her for taking time with him.
olivia is so obsessed. clearly getting the last rose of the night didn't phase her.

tear tally-12

word tally

husband/wife-did i miss this? i didn't hear this once

love-14

journey-none

connection-4

amazing-5

who's left-lauren b, amber, jubilee, lauren h, amanda, becca, haley, emily, rachel, caila, jojo, jennifer, leah, olivia

final four pick-becca, joelle, lauren b, leah
who are your faves?

do you blog about the bach? link up with us below.

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weekend happs...pretending to be a dance mom

this weekend was full of a lot of fun-dance fun. my friend michelle coaches the layton high school drill team. i've been to dance competitions before, but this was the first time i was so dedicated to the team.

i love dance! i grew up dancing my whole life until college. i even took a couple of dance classes in college before giving it up for good. i love watching dance, and it brings me back to my dancing days.

i went up to bountiful on friday night for dinner with laurann and stefanie and to spend the night at laurann's house. michelle and the other coach jessica came over after solos. we talked about the fun sleepover we were going to have, but really we all just wanted to go to bed.

this competition was a little crazy. there were a lot of big school competing, and there really wasn't room for everyone in the gym. the real dance mom got to the school at 2:45am to wait in line to get in the door. they brought tents and heaters and sleeping bags. this is serious business.

i got up at 4:00am to workout, hurry and get ready, and get to the school by 6:00am. luckily the dance moms let us be pretend dance moms and get in line with them. the doors opened, and we got really good seats.

it was a really long, fun day. we watched a lot of dances. i missed their lyrical performance last time. i was so excited to see it and their character. it was a fun filled day supporting michelle and the team. they did really well. we didn't stay for the awards, but they placed in every category. i felt like a proud dance mom.

after the competition, sage, laurann and i grabbed some dinner and headed home. we were all completely exhausted from the day.

how was your weekend? any exciting happs? do you ever feel like you're pretending to be someone?

christmas break in cali

i talked about the christmas day part of my christmas break in california but not the rest of the trip. the whole trip was pretty relaxing-just the way i like it. i spent a lot of time playing with the kids. it was perfect.

we dressed up kenzie in her new clothes and took pics

we tested sugar cookies and various opinions

we made homemade cafe rio salad

karlee made donuts in the microwave

we painted nails

and jumped on the trampoline that got fixed for christmas

and rang in the new year with a fancy dinner

i stayed most of the break this year. it was really fun to be around family and away from the monotony of every day life. i can't wait to go back again soon.