scalpel? check!...

if you look in my bathroom cupboards you'll find the regular stuff - cotton balls, q-tips, extra soap, razor refills, and some not normal stuff like... scalpels. have you heard of dermaplaning before? it's a beauty treatment where a trained professional (not me!) scrapes your entire face with a scalpel. it scrapes off the first layer of skin basically (peach fuzz and all) and leaves your skin soooooooo soft! if you've never had it done, you REALLY, REALLY, REALLY should find somewhere near you that does it, and try it out. it doesn't hurt, it's pretty fast and the results are amazing! i'm almost positive it can only be done in cosmetic surgery offices, and some med spas. you can't (SHOULDN'T) get it done at just any spa where you get your regular facials. my sister introduced me to this procedure a few years ago and i couldn't believe how soft my skin felt, and how smoothly my makeup went on. after having it done several times, i thought "i could probably do this myself"... then i realized i sounded crazy, and i should forget that idea. i did forget it... for a couple years, and about 6 months ago, that crazy idea came up again. i watched some dermaplaning videos on youtube, and found out what size scalpel blade they used. i went on amazon and, sure enough, you can buy sterile medical scalpels with any size blade you want! amazon is great :) you can buy heavy duty scalpels with detachable blades... but i also found some disposable guys for pretty cheap. i figured i should try the disposable guys first, before i invest in some serious medical equipment ;) anyway, i got my scalpels in the mail and took the blade to my face. it was scary, i'm not gonna lie. those scalpels are soooooooooo sharp. i got about a quarter of my face done before i 'dextered' myself - all i needed was a glass microscope slide to collect the blood! ;) of course i had to take a pic of my slice with a little blood dripping down. i immediately texted it to my sister (who, by the way, thought this was a bad idea from the beginning). i just recently deleted that pic, otherwise i would've posted it here for you. anyway, i'm not afraid of a little blood, so i kept going. by the time i finished i had a few small cuts, but nothing major. fast forward to today - i just microplaned again (3rd time in about 6 months) and i'm getting really good! no cuts today! no blood! just smooth-as-a-babies-bottom skin. 

*i don't AT ALL recommend you try this at home. but, please go get it done somewhere. you'll LOVE it!*

day 22 of 365...

ok, let's be real. i can't keep up with the 'pic a day' project. this will be my last 'day xx of 365' post. i'll still post pics, but i don't like the pressure of HAVING to post 1 every day.

the past few days i've tried some new recipes i found online. oh my lord, they are both SO good! so, so, so good! too good to not share with you.

recipe 1:

asian slaw with ginger - peanut dressing

since her blog has WAY better pics than i could take, i'll let you get the recipe from her. i stumbled on the recipe a few mornings ago and realized i had all but 2 of the ingredients on hand. WIN! i made the salad for lunch that day (minus the edamame and green cabbage) and it was soooo good. she suggests buying pre-made slaw mix and shredded carrots. i don't agree at all! definitely buy red and green cabbage and shred it yourself. then grate some carrots in a food processor. if you don't have a processor, just use a cheese grater. i find that prepared veggies from the store are always dried out, and flavorless. also, she suggests using 2 green onions, i used 3 and i actually would've preferred more! so add extra, if you are a fan of 'em! anyway, i made the salad 2 days ago, and had some leftovers again today and it's still super good. i can't wait to make this again!!!!

here is my picture of the salad, obviously a lot different looking than her salad... but still delicious :)

recipe 2:

quinoa - stuffed peppers

this is what we had for dinner tonight. yum-o!!! about halfway through the meal, hubs is cramming forkfuls of food into his mouth and he was able to mutter "this is a TEN!". yay!!! even without meat, he loved it! it's such a good recipe. great for vegetarians, vegans (if you leave out the cheese), and gluten-free people. i left the cheese out of mine, but sprinkled a little bit of cheese on the hubs' peppers. the recipe takes a looong time to prepare/cook, but the result is worth it. i was glad i read through a lot of the reviews before hand. somebody suggested giving yourself 2 hours from beginning to end. she was right. some other people said it's a long process but worth it because the peppers freeze/reheat nicely. that's what sold me! the recipe says the filling will fill 4 peppers, the reviewers said it fills WAY more, and again, they were right! (don't you love recipe reviewers? they do all the hard work for you. i always read the reviews before i try something new). i bought 6 good sized peppers, and still had leftover filling. next time i'll use 8 peppers (LOTSA leftovers for when i'm lazy!). i baked mine, let them cool, then individually wrapped them (in plastic wrap and foil) then put them all in a labeled ziplock baggie in the freezer. when i don't feel like cooking dinner next week, i'll defrost 1 in the fridge and bake it in the oven. simple!

this is my pic of the filling as it's cooking.

i added corn. the recipe doesn't call for it, but it was good :)

make 1 of these next week. you won't be sorry!

day 21 of 365...

my family has been bothering me for years to get a smartphone. i'm stubborn and kept saying 'i don't see the point, i can check email on my computer. i don't need to play games. i really only use my cell phone to text. etc, etc'. today i finally caved and got an iphone.

pic by iphone. NOT BAD!

i seriously would've been fine using my crappy old samsung phone forever. that being said, it's kinda fun to get something new :) and i also might be kinda excited to play 'words with friends' ;)

keeping with tradition, i got the white phone. (i've only had white phones for the past 7 or 8 years).

also keeping with tradition, my wallpaper is a pic of jared leto. (did you expect anything different?!)

day 20 of 365...

yeah, i fell behind on the pic a day thing :( i skipped day 17-19. in my defense, it was raining quite a bit, and who wants pics of rain?! anyway, i'm back.

tumbleweed on a walking trail

i love how blue the sky is today, and how fresh and crisp the air is. yum. :)

day 16 of 365...

maya

her family is gonna be so excited *sarcasm* when they come home tomorrow to find that their clean, white puppy is now a beige-y color ;) there's a reason the photo is black and white, hehe. nothin' a bath can't fix! i say the dirt is just proof of how much love and play she's gotten this week :)

crush of the week...

this weeks crush is noah mills! noah has walked the runway for armani, bottega veneta, lacoste, michael kors, dkny, perry ellis, diesel, givenchy, john galliano, and many more, all over the world. he has modeled for dolce & gabbana since 2005! apparently he had a small role in 'sex and the city 2'... but since i have never seen any episodes of SATC or either movie... i had no idea.

day 15 of 365...

see 'em???

here, i'll zoom in...

aren't they beautiful?! i think they're red shouldered hawks. not that i was being creepy and watching, or anything... but a nest nearby will be getting some eggs soon ;) ...or maybe she was just giving him a piggyback ride on the branch. i dunno.

day 14 of 365...

brrrr...

i had to scrape quite a bit of ice off of my windshield this morning!

and i loved it :)

day 13 of 365...

kc

almost every time we babysit this old girl hubs mentions her makeup. "oooh, hi kc! i see you got all dressed up for me and put your eyeliner on! it's beautiful!!!" hehe (yes, we talk to animals like they're people)

day 12 of 365...

crappy cell phone pic

chilly night, perfect for a crackling fire.

day 11 of 365...

static electricity + coton de tulear =

maya

(babysitting this new little girl :) she's like a little stuffed animal!)

day 10 of 365...

i was up bright and early (that's actually not accurate... i was up before the sun, so i suppose i was up 'dark and early') this morning for a dogsitting job. although i HATE mornings, really, i'm not a morning person at all, it was kinda nice to watch the sunrise on my way to fallbrook.

sun rising over temecula

yes, i pulled over on the side of the road to take pics of the sunrise :) if i wasn't wearing my striped pj's, i would've gotten out and taken a lot more pics ;)

day 9 of 365...

drink up, baby!

yep, i'm telling you to drink apple cider vinegar. it supposedly has a ton of health benefits. webmd and a bunch of other sites said so ;) a couple of years ago my moms friend suggested it for weight loss. i thought it sounded crazy, but bought some and tried it. i don't know if it helped me lose weight. anyway, it's supposed to help if you have a sore throat, sinus problems, acne, acid reflux and loads of other ailments. so, are you willing to try it? you can start out with 1-2 teaspoons diluted in a cup of water. i don't like the idea of sipping vinegar water, so i make a more concentrated version, using only about 1/2 cup of water. make sure you don't drink it straight though, cause the acid will mess up your teeth and mouth over time. anywho, if you add honey to your water/vinegar mixture, you won't even notice the vinegar taste. ok, that's a lie, but seriously the taste isn't bad at all (or maybe i've just gotten used to it).

day 8 of 365...

i got a surprise in the mail today!

my great, wonderful, amazing sister surprised me with a SMASH book, SMASH tape & SMASH tabs! 

we saw these a loooong time ago on a cool youtube video (you should watch the video to see how awesome they are!). i could never find them in stores (ok, i didn't look THAT hard, but i never saw them when i was out and about) that's why i was soooo happy & surprised to find 1 in my mailbox today! if you're interested in them, she got this one at paper source in carlsbad.

i'm so excited to start 'smashing'. maybe i'll post some pics after it starts filling up :)

hand-some...

this might be the strangest confession you'll see on my blog. hands down ;)

i like hands. there. the end!

k, fine, i'll explain. wait, i don't think there is much to explain. some people are 'butt people', some 'teeth people', some 'leg people', whatever-whatever, all body parts are nice, but for some reason i'm always drawn to nice hands. i thought i was a little bit weird, but i keep seeing little jokes/comments online, that make me think i'm not alone. don't get me wrong... it's not some sick fetish or anything, i just find myself often thinking "wow, look at his hands!" yesterday i was browsing pinterest (as usual) and was linked to a blog where a girl was making an ottoman. her husband helped her with part of it and she posted some pictures, then said "...and he has the greatest hands! (i'm a hand girl)." WHAAAAT??? somebody get's me?!?! btw, she was right, he has great hands ;) i also noticed the bio area of her blog says "i love jesus, ..." uhhh, my love of hands can't be that weird, if someone else admits to it AND she loves jesus, right?! i think i'm safe. 

anyway, i noticed that when i was at concerts or watching live music videos on youtube, a lot of the time i'm focused on the singer and/or guitar players hands. like mesmerized by them. it just so happens that my 2 fave musicians have GREATTTT hands! how lucky for me! (have you left yet, or are you still here reading???) check 'em out.

brandon boyd

the still pictures are not nearly as impressive as watching him sing/move live. he is so expressive with his hands. here's a video from when incubus played on letterman last year.

i wish i was that microphone

then there's jared leto. not only does he use his hands while singing/playing guitar, he also has the most active hands while telling stories. i love it.

love.

and lastly, my favorite...

hand porn.

k, so whatcha think? am i crazy?! but c'mon, you gotta hand it to me for being honest, right?! can you hand-le the truth?! haha *dork* alright, that's enough hand phrases.

anything you want to confess? :)

day 7 of 365...

woohoo! thanks, fedex man...

so what if it's my 3rd alternative box in 10 days (and 2nd box in the past 2 days)?! mind your own business! 

they tempted me with their 'free shipping' scheme and then a few days later it was their '30% off' scheme that got me. now i have 3 hoodies and a pair of sweats. (about the sweats... i was sooo excited to get them cause they looked so comfy online... i ordered a large, thinking 'i like to have extra room'. to my shock and horror, the larges are uh, ummm, "fitted"! :( they don't look bad, just not as baggy as i was expecting them to be on my svelte *total sarcasm* body. oh well, there is NO WAY IN HELL i'd exchange them for an XL! i'd rather lose the 5 lbs that christmas, so kindly, gifted me!)

day 6 of 365...

the beginning stages of ratatouille...

... mmmm! so colorful & so good! :)

i shared the recipe last year. you can find it here.

(if you're wondering what the yellow stuff is, it's yellow squash... henry's market was out of zucchini.)

can't wait for dinner tonight!!!!!!

day 5 of 365...

ummmm, i didn't add this to our instant queue...

someone has some 'splaining to do.

brace yourself...

thank you, pinterest, for gems like this...

joe manganiello

day 4 of 365...

just a guy lovin' on his cat...

... melts my heart :)

day 3 of 365...

i've been couch-ridden all day with cramps from the devil. hubs is insane brave and decided to go to costco... just to look around. yeah, i'm serious. he went to costco in the middle of the day on a SATURDAY to walk around! now that i think about it, costco was probably less of a hell than sitting in a house with me while i'm pms'ing, HA! 

he came home and said "i thought this might help your cramps":

CHURRO!!!!!!!

he really is the greatest husband in the world :)

more ecards...

more ecards for your entertainment :)

easily followed by...

TOTALLY me!

day 2 of 365...

waiting for these babies to kick in :(

day 1 of 365...

day 1 of what?! is that what you're thinking?

i saw a few people, on facebook and other places online, that are doing something called a '365 project'. there are a few names for the 'project' (365 photo project, photo a day project, etc), but all you do is take a picture a day for an entire year. i'm a little late, and am starting on day 5... but with the new camera, and my love for photography, i couldn't resist! i just decided tonight that i'd start, so i don't have a fancy or cool pic to post tonight. instead, i grabbed my little camera and took this:

catnap

i think it will be fun (for me!) to force myself to get out, play with my camera and share little pieces of my day/life with you. this project is totally more for me than anybody else. i will TRY to post the pics every day, but might not get to it. however, i WILL take a pic every day, and if i have to share 2 or 3 in 1 blog post, that's what i'll do. wanna join me?! start today, or tomorrow, or whenever.