Fajita Night

After a long day of morning softball practice, nap, and then run with Emmy, Nick and I whipped up some fajitas.  Well, Nick whipped up fajitas.  I was too tired to do much.  Our softball practices go on for hours.  I'm talking, three to four hours of running around in the sun...and we're still not very good.  Anyway, I did the vegetable chopping, but that was about it.  It's a good thing I can depend on him to do most of the work and not need a lot of directions when it comes to cooking.

It seems like we make fajitas a lot.  Maybe because it's so much cheaper to make them yourself than go out to a restaurant to have them.  They sure were yummy!

We had all this great, fresh food, but since Christopher had just gotten back from a weekend backpacking trip he requested that we have refried beans with our dinner.  They look so gross compared to everything else we made.

There he is enjoying his beans.

Sloshball and Softball practice

You may be wondering, what the heck is sloshball?  Well I was wondering the same thing before I played it.  I will never play it again.

To lighten up softball practice one of the girls suggested that we play some sloshball.  The gist of the game is to always be drinking a beer.  When you're in the outfield you have to hold a beer in your hand until you finish it.  So you basically drink your beer as fast as you can so you can put down the can otherwise you have a mitted hand and a hand holding a beer.  This makes throwing very difficult.  I can't throw as it is.  Then when it is your turn to hit, you always have to stop at second base to chug half a beer before you can round to third and home.  It is a delightful game of drunken debotury that I won't be partaking in the future.   It was a lot of fun though.  I've just learned my lesson.

As for real practice, we've been doing a lot of it.  I'm getting better at hitting the ball with semi-okay form and I actually caught two fly balls.  I was so happy that I did a little dance.  We'll see what happens at the game tonight.  I'm hoping that all the hard work will pay off.  Our team is at the bottom of the league right now and I have a feeling that we will be staying there.  It seems like our team is improving from all the practice, but not improving enough.  At least it's good exercise and camaraderie!

Emmy Pictures

I've been catching Emmy in some funny/cute poses and sometimes manage to get my phone out before she moves.  I find that the camera has a hard time focusing because of her fur so most of these are blurry.  But still cute!

She wanted to make sure I wasn't leaving so her head was up, but her eyes
were closing.  I was hoping that her head would plop down from sleepiness
but she just laid it down. 

Good grief she looks fat.

And this is probably why she looks so round!  We've been leaving her home
by herself much more frequently with a stuffed Kong.  She was working out
what was left in there. 

Happy from playing frisbee with Nick

I think I've posted these pics before, but I think they're so cute.  She was
trying to wake me up on a Saturday morning.

Del Sol: Flirt

While my mom was in Panama she stopped at this shop called Del Sol.  I think they have these at a lot of touristy locations because I remember going to one of these stores in San Diego once.  Basically, the company trademark is color changing merchandise.  The color of the object changes when it is in sunlight. I believe it has something to do with the UV rays.  Anyway, so my mom picked up a couple bottles of nail polish while she was there.  I've tried this stuff before, but found that it was streaky in the sunlight.  I think my problem was that I wasn't putting enough on (I usually only use two coats).  Today I applied three coats and it turned out well.

I really like the color of this polish indoors and out, but my one complaint is that it is really difficult to get off the skin when you're indoors.  Since I apply my nail polish while on the phone at work, it made it very difficult to see.  I took off the light color from my skin as best I could, but then when I went outside to see what it looked like there was a complete mess on my toes.  It looked like I painted my nails with my eyes closed.  In the pictures below you'll see that I still have some polish on my skin.  What I ended up doing was taking the nail polish remover and Q-Tips outside with me to do my touchups.  Next time I will sit outside to apply.

Without sun

With Sun

No Sun No Flash

Sun No Flash

No Sun Flash

Sun Flash

Remedied Hair Bands

I love wearing elastic hair bands to keep fly aways and baby hairs out of my face when I work out. I have very fine, slippery hair so most types of hair bands don't stay on my head well.  I had originally gotten a pack of three pastel colors years and years ago to try them out. They worked out pretty well for me.  Then about a year back I figured I'd get more.  I was bummed to find out that they were bigger than the original set that I bought.  The popped right off the back of my head even when just sitting around.  Clearly this wouldn't work if I was running.  I left the hair bands in my drawer because I couldn't bring myself to throw them out. Today I decided that I would try to fix the problem.  One of the new hair bands is the same/similar color to our softball team jersey.  I snipped off the stitched area of the band and sewed it back together.  It worked out perfectly!  Now my hair band fits my head and I didn't waste the $5 I spent on them.  I think I will do this to the rest of the pack too!

Super Nachos

I wanted to post a quick picture of some nachos that I made for Christopher and myself a couple of weeks ago.  They were sooooo good. I based my recipe off of the Turkey Nachos from Allrecipes, but added fresh tomatoes, jalapenos, olives, sour cream, red pepper flakes and shredded mozzarella cheese to it.  I will definitely be making these again because my mom loves nachos.

NYX Jumbo Eye Pencils

I think I'm in love.  I haven't been this stoked about a makeup product since the Naked Palette.  These things are just so easy!  I've heard a lot of great things about NYX cosmetics, but hadn't tried them until recently because I didn't want to pay shipping and Sephora doesn't carry them.  I found a couple of sellers on Amazon that have free shipping so I decided to give them a try. The texture is so creamy and smooth that it glides right on without tugging at the skin.  I use these on my eyelids for full coverage.  All you have to do is color them on like a crayon.  The staying power is phenomenal also.  I don't use a primer when I put this on and it seems to last all day even when I have a run incorporated into my routine.

My favorited Jumbo Eye Pencil is Iced Mocha.  It's a soft brown color that blends well with my Naked Palette or can be work alone.  I use the Cottage Cheese and Strawberry Milkshake colors less frequently, but they really pretty too.  The Cottage Cheese works well as a highlighter.  I find that it is a little to white to wear by itself.  All of these colors blend well with the Naked Palette. Whenever I go out now, I use Iced Mocha as my base or stand alone.  It is very subtle and so quick to apply that I can color it on right before running out the door.  Last night I had to stop myself from buying another five jumbo pencils.  I have a feeling that I will end up ordering them eventually though!

From Top: Strawberry Milk, Iced Mocha, Cottage Cheese

From Top: Strawberry Milk, Iced Mocha, Cottage Cheese

----

I decided to purchase more on Amazon and will post pictures when I get them.  I originally wasn't going to put on makeup today since we have a softball game tonight.  I got bored at work so I did a "look" with the three pencils that I have here.  I used the pink as an all over color, the brown in the outer corners, and the white in the center of the lid.  I also tight lined with Stila's Kajal in Onyx, which did carry over into the shading of the brown.   Hopefully it doesn't rain later at the softball game.  

I don't know how the ladies on Youtube and beauty
blogs take pictures without blinding themselves!
This is without a flash because I was seeing spots from
trying to do it with flash.

No Flash

Softball Practice and Batting Cages

Saturday was an eventful practice.  Well, before practice was eventful.  If I wasn't afraid enough of the softball before, I am now.  Our coach accidentally hit his wife with a ball and split her eyebrow.  She ended up having to get seven stitches and has a black eye.  Apparently she jumped for the ball when she didn't really need to jump and it caught her in the eye and not her mitt.  It's a good thing she was wearing her sunglasses.  They snapped, which probably caused the cut, but I think that if she wasn't wearing them that she would have had a lot more damage to her eye.  She was a trooper and didn't freak out.  I would have been having a heart attack.  Good thing for us one of our friends is an REI guru and is always fully stocked with outdoorsy stuff including a giant first aid kit.  REI Guru slapped a maxi pad onto Coach's Wife's face and Coach drove her to the hospital.  They stitched her up and gave her a CAT scan just to make sure that there wasn't more damage than the gash in her brow.  She was also asked questions about how it happened, was it really an accident, whether she felt safe at home etc.  Coach was sitting right there.  It seems like if they were going to ask her if she felt safe around her hubby that they would do it while he was out of the room.  It probably didn't help that her shins were all bruised up because she is our catcher.  Coach's Wife is fine now, but she has been getting headaches and Coach feels bad.  I'm not sure if it's better that it's his wife or not since he has to go home with her!  If it was another player he would feel bad but not have to hear about it when he gets in bed.  Hehee.

Last night our team went to the batting cages.  I was actually able to hit the ball!  I'm quite excited about softball now.  I want to see if I can actually hit it in a game.  Catching is still an issue, but if I focus I might be able to get my bat on the ball.  It also was a great stress reliever.  Now that Dave is gone work has been stressful.  Mostly I think I get frustrated with Neil because I never know what he's doing or where he is if I need help.  I was literally hitting each ball and thinking NEIL! NEIL! NEIL! It really helped.  I was peppy and feeling good after our session.

Monday Blues

AKA: "The weekend wasn't long enough, I need a vacation, Mondays just suck," Blues.  I had fully intended on have a weekend update blog post, but I'm feeling the Monday afternoon drag, which I've just decided on calling the Monday Blues.  We all get this and if you don't think you do, let me tell you, you do.  It wouldn't be so bad if the Sharks didn't play like crap last night, work wasn't exploding all over the place, and the weather wasn't so crummy looking outside.  At least my parents are back so the house is a-buzz with life.  Until tomorrow, blues will be blues.

Softball

After resisting for a few weeks, I've been coerced into playing on a softball team with our friends.  I have to say, I'm a little bit excited about it.  I originally didn't want to play because I'm TERRIBLE at anything baseball related, but after seeing that the team is full of people at my skill level I decided to join.  I haven't played a competitive sport in a while and the thought of it gets me going.  I just like to win.  We'll see how it goes.  I'm pretty competitive.  Though I don't have have high hopes that the team will win many games, I still want to play at my best.  But considering I can't hit, throw, or catch a ball, I will always being playing at my best as long as there is slight improvement.

Nick and I are starting to do sprints to get into shape.  I am so sore.  Even though Emmy and I jog two and a half miles everyday, we're just jogging.  It's not that taxing.  My lungs are in pretty good shape now, but my muscles aren't used to being pushed to go so fast and hard.  My abs and ribs are really tender.  It hurts just to blow my nose!  Last night I tried to turn over in bed and woke up because of the soreness.  We will be doing the sprints again tonight after I get back from my evening run.  As people say, no pain, no gain.

Check, Please! Bay Area

I've started watching this show on PBS called Check, Please! Bay Area.  It airs on Thursdays at 7:30pm PST, but I've been catching the repeats on Sunday afternoons.  It is a low budget restaurant review show of local places.  I've seen it a few times now and love it.  Basically, the show picks three local diners to review their restaurants.  Each reviewer suggests their favorite restaurant and they each go to eat there.  They don't go together as they don't really know each other before the show.  No cameras follow them in to film their experiences so the restaurants don't know that they're being reviewed.  They all go to three different restaurants to try them out.  When they do the taping, they sit around a table and the host asks them questions about what they thought.  Each person offers their opinion.  Obviously the person who suggested the place is always biased, but the other two reviewers are usually very honest.  If they loved it, they loved it.  But if they didn't, they say so.  The other day I was watching and one gal was pretty dissatisfied with the wait service.  She said that there was only one other couple in the restaurant, but the waitress didn't clear any of their dishes.  Since she had ordered appetizers, an entree, and dessert she was displeased by all the dishes on their small table.  I guess I can understand this.  I get annoyed when there are to many plates around my setting.  At the end of each review the host wraps it up and the reviewers say whether or not they would go back, pros and cons, and average price per diner without drinks.  It's kind of like Yelp on tv.

The reason I'm blogging about the show is because I'm considering submitting an application to be a reviewer.  I was telling Nick and Linda about it today while writing my statement about why I want to be on and would be a good candidate for their show.  Once I finished writing the statement, which took me way longer than I thought it would, I remembered that I get serious stage fright and don't like to be on camera.  I'm talking, shaking so hard while doing presentations that I can't read my notecards stage fright.  I don't know how I would handle being a reviewer on the show.  I was very gung-ho about signing up this morning, but I think my excitement clouded my ability to think clearly.  I was a little bummed at my realization, but I decided that since I had already spent a lot of time writing why I wanted to be on the show that I may as well do the second part of the application and write a review on one of the restaurants that I was suggesting.  I treated it as a writing exercise.  I've been very out of practice lately.  Even though I try to do this blog daily, it is so casual that I've almost forgotten how to formulate a concise thesis.  This blog helps me keep up my writing chops, but I blabber on and on with no real direction...if you haven't noticed.

I think I might sleep on the application.  Everything is done for it and I think I've written a good representation of the restaurant I'm nominating.  I just don't know if I want to be on tv for it.  My original goal was to be able to go and try new restaurants.  Well, I can do that whether or not I'm on the show.  I have no idea how many people actually apply for this show since it is pretty localized and on PBS.  I don't know my chances of being picked either.  Linda told me that I should apply and worry about being nervous if I get picked.  I might take her advice, but will have to think about it a little more.

Emmy Socialization: Step 1-Result

Yesterday, as planned, I took Emmy to the dog park after our run.  I thought she did a pretty good job considering her agressive history.  Once off leash, she ventured out a little bit further than the day before.  There was a big crowd of people and their dogs. I went to stand by them so that she would feel more comfortable about going near the group of dogs.  There was one dog who came up to her, sniffed, and the kissed her all over her face.  And she let him!  No growls or bared teeth at all.  I was so pleased! I think it helped that while the other dog was sniffing her bottom that I kept saying, good girl.  She seemed to relax after the first time I said it and her tail began to wag.  I could actually see her face relax as she sniffed back.  When she was stressed her mouth goes back in a straight line, but as she became more comfortable she started to get that relaxed smile.

I did notice, however, that when the other dogs would bark and growl at each other that she would shy away from them.  Maybe it was her way of staying out of trouble.  I also realized that this is what dogs do.  Their owners would tell them to cut it out, but not actually do anything about it; and this was okay.  Usually I pull Emmy out of the situation as quickly as I can and we go running, literally, for the hills.

From all of the books that I read, she would be classified as a reactive dog.  One who is insecure and doesn't know how to conduct herself around other dogs.  This is no surprise since she was being bounced around to different houses, including mine, before she came to stay with me permanently.  She is like a misbehaved child of a divorced couple.  Edward and I already knew that she had these issues when we adopted her, but I know that I didn't know/realize what her needs entailed at the time.  I think I have a pretty good grasp on it all now though.  The instability of her home life just made her behavior worse, but I fully believe that she can recover.  Now we're trying to work on that reactivity and it seems to be going well.  Because of the daily runs and being left alone for short amounts of time, her behavior has improved immensely.

So, we will continue to take small doses of the dog park until she can become aware that other dogs play fighting is a good thing.  My hopes is that she will become secure enough that she will approach other dogs, rather than them always coming up to her.  I also know that I have a lot of work to do too.  I have to keep telling myself that she is a dog, not a person.  When she barks at other dogs it's okay.  I keep repeating that to myself.  It's okay when she barks, it's okay when she barks.  The vibe I send her when she barks and I become panicked does nothing but show her that she has to be weary of the other dog.  I firmly believe that there is no such thing as a bad dog, but a bad owner.  I will continue to read dog books in hopes that I can set myself straight so that my dog can be normal.  From what I can see, her problems stem from my own insecurity.  My constant fear that her barking might result in a fight or her bared teeth when she meets a dog she doesn't like is holding us both back.  The other dogs get her I-don't-like-you drift so I need to also.  I have to remind myself that it is okay when she sends out a warning.  I just don't like when she does.  But for the record, she seems to greet the humans at the dog park more than the other dogs.  I think I have a dog who thinks she is a person.  I need to relax.  She is just a dog after all.

Jet Lag

This weekend Christopher and I had a couple of family events to go to.  Nick was trying to recover from jet lag so he didn't attend like he normally would have.  On Friday night he came over after work and was super tired.  He usually doesn't stay the night, but he did this time because he didn't think he could drive all the way home.  I had asked him if he would rather sleep on the sofa downstairs or on the floor.  He said that he would decide in a minute.  While I was going through and deleting all of my parents junk mail so that it would be easier for them to check their mail from the cruise ship, I heard snoring.  Before he even decided whether or not he was going to sleep on the couch, which is very comfy, he passed out on my floor.  Emmy decided to keep him company.

Chinese-Style Lettuce Wraps

One of our favorite dishes at Chinese restaurants is the lettuce wrap.  It is just so good.  I tried making it once when I was in college and missing home, but it just wasn't the same because I used ground beef.  Now that I've been cooking more and have a little more knowledge of flavor and ingredients, I thought I'd take another whack at it.  While it wasn't exactly like the restaurants, the wrap was pretty darn tasty and passable.

Lettuce Wraps 

butter lettuce
1lb ground pork
1 8oz can water chestnuts, minced
5 large cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp ginger, minced
1 tbsp italian parsley, minced
1 tbsp red pepper flakes
4 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp dry white wine 

Directions:
Saute water chestnuts, garlic, and ginger for one minute.  Add pork.  Stir in oyster sauce, soy sauce, wine, and parsley.  Stir fry until meat is fully cooked and liquid has reduced.  Serve with butter lettuce.

Since dinners have been pretty light and not full of calories,
we were unsatisfied and each ate a cucumber
while watching Castle.

Emmy Socialization: Step 1

This weekend Christopher, Emmy, and I went to my cousin's first birthday party.  My Auntie Mary brought her dog Sparky, whom Emmy has met before.  They played together so well that I was embolden to take her to the dog park after our run yesterday.  She has been so well behaved on our runs when she meets other dogs on leash as well that I figured that it was worth a shot.  I decided that I would take her for the entire run before looping back around to let her into the dog park.  I wanted to get out some of that energy so that she would be less nippy around the other dogs.  We always pass the enclosed area on our runs.  Because it was Mother's Day, there were only a few dogs in the park.  As soon as we got in and I took off her leash she strode about five feet in front of me and sat down, waiting for her frisbee to magically appear.  I did not bring her frisbee.  She gave me a look as if to say, "Well then why are we in here?"

So then I went and sat on a bench because I wanted her to learn to play with the other dogs.  Thankfully the other dogs were very calm.  Emmy would sit by me on the bench and then go sniff about ten feet off and come back.  The other dogs started to become curious about her and would slowly approach her.  She did beautifully with this method of socializing.  It wasn't until two giant boxers came into the park and started sprinting around.  I have to say, these boxers were huge.  Our neighbors have boxers who would look dwarfed next to these behemoths.  At first, one of the boxers almost ran into her and she snapped at him.  It was time to go.  As I was getting her toward the gate, another one of the boxers was running full speed and almost knocked me over.  My feet pretty much came out from right under me.  My legs flew up and my left hand went to the ground.  Thank goodness for all those years of gymnastics.  If I hadn't jumped to the side he would have taken out my left knee and I would have been down for the count.  Emmy came running back over to me and sat on my foot and looked up at me like, are you okay?!  No wonder she snapped at the dogs.  They were like wrecking balls!

Today I'm going to try the same method.  We will run and then loop back to the dog park.  There are usually a lot more people at the park during the week.  Even if we just stay in the park for two to three minutes, I think that I can slowly build up her anti-social/mean dog habits.  We'll see.  What I have to keep reminding myself is that not all people get along, so why should all dogs?  Emmy clearly did not get along with her cousin Ruby, but she LOVES her cousin Potatoes.  She also gets along with a few other dog friends, all who are boys. What a flirt.  So I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel as far as Emmy-quirks go.  Hopefully she will be able to go to to the dog park and be a well behaved, friendly girl.  Wish me luck!

I own a Louis Vuitton

I know.  I can't believe it either.  The box is sitting dauntingly on the corner of my desk.  I keep giving it sidelong glances to see if it is still there and not just a figment of my imagination.  Nick surprised me and brought it back from Paris even though I explicitly told him to not spend that kind of money on me.  He didn't listen, clearly.  If the clutch, which is still inside the box, had a voice it would be saying, "Where on earth will you go special enough to use me?"  Nick is now obligated to take me out.

When I unwrapped the box from the T-shirt he had folded it in, the only thing I could mutter was, "You didn't, you didn't, I can't believe you, you didn't." He said afterwards that he was surprised that I hadn't whacked him.  I think I was in shock.  I don't even want to know how much he spent.  He had said, "Eh, I have a tax return and my parents went halvies with me."  If I had my wits about me, I would have given him a good, hard whack for that.  I better write his parents one heck of a thank you card.

Even the box feels expensive

It looks like a book!

Inside

Sigma: Make Me Classy brush set

For months I have been dying to get myself the Sigma: Make Me Classy brush set.  I've been pining over them like a child ogling giant tubes of Jelly Beans in a candy store.  Last week after my parents left I finally decided that I was going to fork out the $98.25 for the twelve brushes.  I had heard that these brushes were fantastic from four or five separate makeup gurus so I figured that they had to be great.  Some even said that they were duplicates for the very expensive MAC brushes.  I don't really know what MAC brushes are like so I can't compare them, but I am not disappointed at all.  These brushes are sooooo soft.

Lately my skin has been super sensitive from rubbing my nose and eyes in my sleep.  I will literally wake up looking like I have pink eye because my eyes are so bloodshot.  For those of you know know me, my eyes are always rather pink from my contacts anyway.  This is ten times worse.  I have had pink eyes for the last two weeks.  Just looking at the trees from my bedroom make my eyes itch.  This is partially what spurred my move to buy the Sigma set.  My Sonia Kashuk (SK) brushes, which I thought were soft, were pricking my face whenever I applied blush.  When I used the Sigma blush brush I didn't feel any prickling at all and my blush and bronzer showed up on my face a lot better.  Usually with the SK brushes I have to tap my brush into my blush or bronzer a couple of times in the makeup before applying it to my face.  When I did my usual double tap with the Sigma contouring brush it applied too heavily.  I had no idea that brushes could make the pigmentation apply so differently.  Well, technically not different since the makeup formula didn't change, but I didn't know that the brush quality could really bring out the potential of my drugstore makeup.  I was seriously impressed.  Now I only have to tap my makeup once to get the right amount of color.  It's amazing.

On Sunday before I ran errands with Christopher I thought that I would try out some concealer around my nose to hide the glaring redness.  I've been walking around like a spring-time Rudolph.  I've never had luck with concealer because it cakes up or doesn't blend into my skin, which makes it look like I have a blob of light colored paint on my face.  I tried using the big foundation brush to blend it in because I had seen videos where girls did this.  Oh. My. Gosh.  For the first time in my life I was able to wear concealer like a normal person.  I was stoked.  My nose wasn't red and I didn't looks like a painters daughter.  The best part was that with my raw nose the brush didn't hurt it at all.  I had figured that out of all the brushes in the kit that this was the only one that I wouldn't utilize.  I still don't like the feeling of foundation on my skin so I figured that this would be the one brush that would just sit in the kit looking pretty.  I was astounded to see the fabulous results.  This may be one of the my most used brushes!

All in all, I love love love this set and will be able to put all of the brushes to good use.  I was able to get 10% off from one of the makeup guru's I watch, which covered the shipping.  If you're interested, I can get that coupon code for you.  The set normally runs for $99.00 at sigmabeauty.com.  It also comes in pink, purple, and blue, but I liked the classic black the best.  I also liked that each set had a cute little name.  The one I got is called "Make Me Classy", but the pink is called "Make Me Blush".  I thought it was clever and cute.

Originally I was going to post my own pictures of these brushes, but Sigma Beauty did a much better job of displaying them so I yoinked these photos from their site.

Here is their Sigma product description:

12 professional quality brushes for a complete makeover! Everything you need to apply makeup to eyes and face.
Best deal compared to individual brush purchase! Save $53! 
Brushes in this kit: 
Eyeliner - E05 - An extra-fine tipped synthetic fiber brush that delivers a precise, firm, even stroke to line the eyes.
Pencil - E30 - Precise application of color on the crease, outer corner, and upper and lower lash line. Also ideal to smudge out pencil liner. Natural bristles.
Tapered Blending - E40 - Rounded and tapered top. Specially designed to apply and blend color on the crease. Natural bristles.
Eye Shading - E55 - Soft and dense with a rounded finish. Can be used to apply pressed or loose eye shadows and pigments. Ideal to build intense color on the eyelid. Natural bristles.
Large Shader - E60 - Flat shape is ideal for application of cream formulas and eye shadow primers. It also works great with loose eye shadows or pigments. Can be used to apply color all over the lid or precisely on the lash line. Natural bristles.
Small Angle - E65 - Essential for the application of gel or cream eyeliner on the upper and lower lash line. This brush is also excellent for filling out the eyebrows. Synthetic bristles.
Medium Angled Shading - E70 - Angled, tapered, flat top. Ideal to apply highlight shades underneath the eyebrow and on the inner corners. It can also be used for a precise application of darker shades on the crease area. Natural bristles.
Large Powder - F30 - Very dense with a rounded top. Ideal to apply powder products on face and body. Natural bristles.
Large Angled Contour - F40 - The angled shape makes this brush ideal to apply blush or contour shades. Natural bristles.
Duo Fibre - F50 - Specially designed to generate an ‘airbrushed’ finish when used to apply liquid foundation. It can also be used to apply blush, highlight shades and loose pigments. Blend of synthetic and natural bristles.
Foundation - F60 - Can be used to apply liquid or cream foundation. It is also recommended to apply moisturizers and conceal large areas. Synthetic bristles.
Concealer - F70 - The rounded, tapered, flat shape makes this brush ideal to conceal the under eye area. It is also recommended for a precise application in small areas. Synthetic bristles.

Essie: Mochacino

Yes, that is how Essie spells it.  I absolutely love this color.  I got it a while back during the same shopping trip as Trophy Wife, but totally forgot that I had it.  Lately, I've really been on a pattern kick.  For a while I was just doing single nail designs or even just plain nails, but now I'm back on the patterns.  I've learned that with the black Konad polish you have to wipe it off as soon as you can otherwise it settles into those tiny lines in your fingers and fingerprints.  You also have to wait about 10 minutes before putting on your topcoat otherwise it streaks a little bit, which bothers me.  I love the black though because it is so bold and really makes a statement.  I was really debating this week about whether or not to do a stamp at all.  I really love this color and the patterns tend to take over the color.  Plus, these patterns make me look like I'm a teenager, but I still enjoy them.  I finally decided to try the pattern since I painted my toes in the same color and leave those pattern-free.  I have to tell you all though, if I didn't work from home I would never do my nails.  This is a lot of work.  It's a good thing that I have a lot of rambling customers who sometimes just need someone to listen to.  Nail painting is one of those no-brain tasks that I can do while going "Uh-huh", "Oh yeah?", "Well that was nice of him" etc.

Mochacino Flash

Mochacino No Flash

Flash

No Flash

Emmy's Vet Appointment

On Saturday morning before Linda came over, I took Emmy to the vet for her annual checkup.  We were just in the vet's office a couple of months ago for a heartworm test.  I really wish all of her check up stuff could be at the same time, but all of her vaccines are due in different seasons.  When we went for her heartworm test they told me that she was getting a little chunky.  I could definitely see that for myself.  So I've been on a mission to get her back down to size.  We have been running almost everyday for the last month and a half now that the weather is nicer.  I expected her to have lost weight, but when we went for her physical on Saturday she got on the scale and she gained two pounds!  She even had a furcut since her last weigh in!  The vet said that she feels pretty healthy and he can feel her ribs so she probably only needs to lose those two pounds and she'll be ideal.  I'm guessing it's muscle because her belly is going back to the ideal dog swoop.  (We both tend to gain weight during the rainy season.)

The vet also mentioned that the food we've been giving her is probably very low in fiber and high in calories as most commercial dog food is.  I've always fed her Adult Dog Pedigree and have never had a problem with it.  But it seems that now, even though we've cut out all training treats and extra rice with dinner, she is still not losing enough weight.  Unless a certain Uncle gives her treats while I'm not looking, she hasn't been getting any unless there are new visitors who I want her to feel comfortable around.  This is a pretty rare occasion though.   Let me also put out there that our daily runs are about 2.5 miles long and has quite a few inclines.  When I told the vet, he said that on average humans only burn 125 calories per mile and dogs burn fewer.  That depressed me.  So the vet suggested that I try a high fiber dog food that has fewer calories.  He said that she's not at the point where she needs actual diet food, but since we're giving her the recommended amount of food daily (we use a measuring cup), that switching her food might be helpful.  Christopher and I picked up some "light" Science Diet food for her yesterday to start integrating with her regular stuff.  It says on the package that it is high in fiber and helps hunger throughout the day.  It also boasts that it's the "tastiest formula".  I'm not sure how they figured that one out, though I do imagine little dogs in their labs going, "Mmm this one is the best," while pointing a paw at the bowl.

Aside from her being a little bit over weight, she is healthy.  I have to take her back in for another heartworm checkup because we found a tick on her that I had missed from her squirrel hunting escapade.    Just to be safe, the vet said to wait two more weeks and then bring her back in for the test.  He also gave her a rattle snake vaccine because he said that a lot of times if there are ticks, there are rattle snakes.  We will be going back in a month for the booster.  Lots of vet visits!  We neighbor a city that I know has a lot of woody and grassy areas that has snakes and I wouldn't be to surprised if there are rattle snakes by us too but haven't shown their little rattlers.  I've seen snakes around our area, but they're always the cute little green ones.  The vet said that it is advisable to get the vaccine because it is really difficult and expensive to get a rattle snake antidote where the vaccine is only $30.  Basically, the way the vaccine works, to my understanding anyway, is that if she gets bitten then the flesh around the bite will die, which prevents it from attacking her organs.  For $30, that is fine by me.  We run through a lot of tall grass so it's better to be safe than sorry.  Now I just have to worry about myself!

Since my parents are gone and the house was nice and quiet
this was how Emmy was trying to wake me up around 11am.
Nowadays since my parents are up early on weekends I've been
getting up around 9am, which is sad for me since I like to sleep in.

Weekend of good food and company

I have been excited for this weekend since the work week started.  Knowing that I have fun plans on the weekends gets me through the week.  Linda and I planned to have a shopping day and dinner.  We had been trying to plan a trip to the Tart Outlet for a while, but since she lives about an hour away we just never had the time to go.  We were finally able to go this weekend and were both severely disappointed.  It was a small, slightly dingy outfit that had racks and racks of mismatched clothing.  All the bright colors  looked so sad on the plastic hangers.  Needless to say, we left empty handed.  At least our trip to Target and TJ Maxx was successful.

After a few hours of shopping, we settled back at my place for some beers and chit-chat.  We talk as if we don't chat on AIM all day anyway.  I had planned a big meal that turned out pretty well.  I know I enjoyed it!

I whipped up some whipped cream (T-hee) to put on top, but forgot
to take a picture of it.  It turned out nice and molten-y!

On Sunday Christopher and I ran a bunch of errands and actually left Emmy home for three hours.  She did pretty well except that she had somehow managed to get into Christopher's room even though the door was closed and destroyed a chocolate bunny case that Briana had left on the floor.  Thank goodness she couldn't get into the wrapper.  She tore up the cardboard casing, but didn't have time to get the foil off the bunny, which I'm certain she could have done if she had time.  We had come home just in time because she wasn't at the door to greet me and the giant chocolate bunny was left on the stairs as she ran down when she heard me call her.  Whew!  I would have hated to take her to the vet two days in a row.  We are still boggled as to how she got into Christopher's room in the first place.  We speculate that the door know wasn't fully latched and she was able to push her way in.  Other than that, the house was as clean as we left it. 

In the evening after taking Emmy for a run, I made Shrimp Fettucini Alfredo from scratch.  I wasn't hard at all and was quite tasty.  I think I am more of a red sauce person though.  I just wanted to try it out when Nick and my mom, who are both sensitive to milk, aren't around.  Sorry, no pictures.  I forgot and it really wasn't that exciting to look at.