Saturday, December 29, 2012

Georgia Holidays

I've been in Atlanta since the 26th.  I came off of a wonderfully turbulent trip on a teeny tiny plane.  Images of Flight danced in my head as I watched the rain streak across the window. 

GAHHHH

By the grace of God, we landed safely at Hartsfield.  Unfortunately, there was literally no space on this ridiculous excuse for an airplane so we all had to pseudo-check our bags in. However, we had the "convenience" of picking up our bags on the jetway right outside the plane exit (I had to look up the word jetway, which I found from an article entitled "How to Board a Plane").  So I got to spend 20 minutes waiting for my bag while attendants yelled out VERY general descriptions of our luggage ("Black suitcaaaaase? Anyone have a black bag?")

image via newbid.net
That's a jetway, y'all!  I also learned the word "tarmac". Tarrrrmaaaac.  Short for tarmacadam.  If you knew that, I would be impressed. But there's no way you knew that.

Monday, December 17, 2012

Sandy Hook Shooting

It's been heartbreaking to see the names of the children and adults whose lives were taken so quickly in Newtown, Connecticut.

My young nieces and nephew live one town over, and I was with their mom when she found out about the shooting. At the time, I just felt numb.

Now, as more details and more opinions come out regarding the incident, the numbness has been replaced with sadness, outrage, and fear.

An article came out on Gawker about a woman who has a son with violent tendencies and possible disorders.  I was shocked at how judgmental and ignorant the commenters could be.  Yet, among the comments that make you feel utterly disappointed in humans, there are personal stories that give you chills and stir up compassion for people who are dealing with mental illnesses. For the parents of sick children who feel helpless and overwhelmed by the lack of support in the mental health system. For the siblings AND parents who live in constant fear of their family member...not knowing when they will be chased with knives, who lock their bedroom doors at night, and hide any potential weapons around the house.  I urge you to read these stories that readers share in the comments.

Although it is not a thought that frequently plagues me, I believe I worry more than the average person about the gamble of what my future children will turn out to be. I flipped out when I watched "We Need to Talk About Kevin." I know that it can be a hard life when one is a parent to a child with special needs. And to think of the extreme cases, such as the ones that involve violent acts committed by my own child, scares me silly.  I calmed myself down a bit before going to sleep last night. And I prayed for all of the families who are in need of support and love.  I reminded myself that I don't allow fear to stop me from doing what I want.  I do believe that eventually I will have children.  So whatever happens, I will embrace the situation and hope that we can share the joys of life together.

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Estee Lauder vs. Target Brand Eye Makeup Remover







I had been using Target's Up & Up Eye Makeup Remover and was very happy with it. But I got the Estee Lauder Makeup Remover as part of a gift set so I decided to test it out. The Target brand says on the bottle that it is comparable to the Neutrogena Eye Makeup Remover.

Both the Target Brand and Estee Lauder Eye Makeup Removers claim to be oil-free, but the Target brand one does seem to be a bit oily. The bottle even says to SHAKE WELL in capital letters in the directions. The oily feeling isn't so overwhelming that it bothers me. If there was an issue with feeling oily, I feel like all you have to do is take off your eye makeup first with the Target brand (which works really well!) and THEN wash your face. I really feel that you only have to swipe twice with a cotton pad using the Target brand makeup remover. I was a little too thorough on the video swiping with the Target brand. I wish I had shown you how much makeup came off with each swipe, but alas...I wanted to finish this video so I didn't redo it. Sorry! Anyway, when I use the Estee Lauder one, I have to swipe multiple times, and lots of times, it just feels like I'm moving the eye makeup around. It smears all over the place! But oddly enough, the Estee Lauder one behaved pretty well on the video.

Estee Lauder is 3.4 oz and $18! The Target brand is 5.5 oz and $4.54. What a deal! So yeah...I didn't care for the Estee Lauder one. I would definitely be purchasing the Target one again.

Monday, December 3, 2012

Read All the Magazines You Love for Free for a Month!


image via nextissue.com

There's a new app called Next Issue where you get unlimited access to all the popular magazines starting at $9.99 a month. And right now, the company is running a promotion where you can try it for FREE for a month. And no hassle with calling a rep to cancel. You just hit the cancel button through your online account before the 30-day trial is up!

I just got it for my iPad today and am super excited!!