Hair Powder Will Change Your Life

For some reason, I just recently discovered this said, hair powder. I have a serious problem where I strive on collecting make-up and hair products. I generally have no real reason why I have a million eye shadows, 5 tubes of mascara, and 6 cans of hairspray, but everyone has a collection of some sort, right? If some oddballs can collect toenail clippings, or drink their own pee, I can collect all the cosmetics I want.

Anyway, my sister had posted about this volumizing hair powder on the ol' Facebook, and I was intrigued. I pictured myself dumping baby powder in my hair and walking around looking...ashy. How did this work? So we were getting ready for my parents Halloween party and I got to use some of hers. Basically, you tap a few sprinkles underneath sections of your hair, and tease. Tease that weave, girlfriends, and tease it good because this stuff will change your life.

 

Disregarding the fact that I look like an 80's vampire, I was supposed to be just a vampire, but either way, this was the final result of the wonder powder:

 

 

 

Now, mind you, I did use finishing spray once I was done, but the powder did the essential "poofing".  Now, the product that was used in the picture was Ulta brand powder, which costs about $9.00. I LOVE Ulta, and can spend hours and hours picking the shelves apart to find the best products and deals, but I will honestly say that their products, for the most part, are not very good, and are way too overpriced. From experience, their shampoos leave your hair greasy feeling, and their mascara makes my eyes itch (see my previous post on this one). On the other hand, you can get their nail polish and body sprays for an affordable price, and that's about all I would recommend.

 

To better understand what my hair looks like normally:

 



 

It's flat, and lifeless. I can tease and tease and that is usually the result. My skin is not Simpsons yellow either, not sure what's going on with the contrast in this picture. 

 

The very next day, I took a trip to the nearest Ulta and purchased the less expensive, Got2b brand powder. I live by Got2b products. It's about $6.00 and works, in my opinion, better than the Ulta brand. I used it before work the following Monday and BAM, my hair was practically kicking you in the face. It wasn't as huge as my Halloween hair though, obviously. I might've gotten some weird looks with that one.

 

A quick little warning however, do NOT use a lot. It's not meant to use on your entire head, because it will make your hair very unmanageable and you will most likely have to wash it out and start over.

 

The way I use it, is lift sections of my hair, starting at the top, and sprinkle the powder just above my roots. Tease the section to your liking and then shape with your fingers and brush over to smooth. Use a finishing spray to hold the style. Once the powder is worked in, do not use hot tools on it, or try to brush through it, it will break and damage the hair. It's easy to get the hang of, and hopefully you will not be disappointed.

 

Have fun:)

 

As usual, any comments, hate or love, post below.

 

Disclaimer: I purchase all of these products on my own, and am not paid for my opinions on these products. With the exception of the pictures I personally take, the pictures are simply used for enjoyment and I do not take any rights or own any of the stock photos used.

My Most 5 Hated and 5 Loved Products

Hi there.

Today isn't a particularly busy (or quick day) at work, so I thought I would enlighten the world on the products I have at home, or have purchased in the past that I would either recommend or tell you to run far away from.

We'll start with the products I hate, and end on the positive. Nobody wants to walk away feeling negative, so I'll start you out sad and perk you up. Sound good? Ok.

1. SO brand clothing, generally featured at Kohls.

Always adorable in the store and tempting for the price. I can't even tell you how many SO v-neck tees I have stuffed away in a drawer at home (not even neatly folded, but rather shoved out of anger).  The problem I have with these is that you wear them once, wash them according to label, pull it out, and the shirt is a completely different shirt then what went in the washer.

 I tried various types of washing and drying with these things, and I get the same outcome every time. A shrunken, stretched out, tube-topped piece of t-shirt. The V-necks I buy are simple tees, or a 'boyfriend' type style, from what I've heard. Is your boyfriend supposed to wear this shirt too? I don't know. Either way, once washed, the shirt is immediately considered a hand-me-down for a toddler.  I have a pair of SO jeans on the other hand, and I love them. They never fade or stretch and I'm convinced the jeans are not correlated with the tops whatsoever. What's going on there SO?

2. TRESseme 24 Hour Body Creme

On the back of the bottle--tube, whatever, it says, "only use a dime size amount". The stuff feels like a lotion, as it should, because it does say 'creme' on the front, which is just a fancy french word for cream, obviously. Anyway, you rub the fancy french cream throughout damp hair, and blow dry. The first time I used it, I thought I hadn't washed the shampoo out of my hair completely. But being lazy, I didn't care and carried on with my day with the misconception that I just take terrible showers. This could also explain why I always forget to shave one of my legs. It doesn't matter. I tried the crap again the next day and came to the relieving conclusion that I take showers just fine, the product just isn't good. My hair is always left feeling greasy and heavy, and when your hair feel greasy, you feel ugly, and that's just the way girls minds work.

3. Herbal Essences Body Envy Volumizing Hairspray - 4

Most girls don't like their hair flat to their heads. We need a little oomph. Hence why "Bump-Its" were invented. I don't care about the cheap, flaky, commercials, I want some Bump-Its. Anyway, I have had various volumizing products go through my bathroom cabinet, and this hairspray is one that ends up pushed to the back, collecting dust, sad and lonely next to the drip pan. I don't have a drip pan in my bathroom cabinet, but if I did, that's what it would be next too. I spray it in my hair, give it a tease, and 2 minutes later, it's flat against my head again, but with hairspray in it. I've used the hairspray with clean hair (shampoo, conditioner), because I know some of you are thinking that it probably weighs my hair down because I have build up. Well excuse you, I don't. The hairspray is just a 6 on my imaginary scale, 2 of those points being for the amazing fragrance that eludes from the can. I've always been convinced that Herbal Essences focuses more on the fragrance, versus the actual job of the product at hand. My suggestion, spritz a little on after a style for the aroma only.

4. Any sunglasses EXCEPT for gas station glasses

I just have to say that I do NOT buy designer sunglasses. In all seriousness, I strictly buy gas station sunglasses because my experiences with them have always been successful. I bought a pair of $6 dollar sunglasses at a little gas station across from Six Flags in Gurnee, IL about 5 years ago. Those baby's lasted me about 2 years until one of the arms fell off. Thereafter, I got another pair of gas station glasses. They were black and lame and fit my head perfectly. I adored them. Ben and I took a trip to California (drove to California from Chicago in 2.5 days - we're dumb) I picked up a pair at some creepy truck stop in New Mexico. They were purple and pretty, but they were so tight on my temples that I got a headache. Those broke 2 days after I bought them. Those stupid things were $20 bucks. $20 bucks I might as well have lit on fire and sprinkled into the Southern California air. We went to Disney World two years later (April 2011), and I got a pair at the Magic Kingdom. They were black and rad and had a teeny Micky in the upper corner of the right lens. I was stylin'. They broke 2 weeks later. Those were $16. Now mind you, all the while, I still had my black and lame glasses, but I would occasionally try out some new pairs, but nothing compared. Nothing. In July of 2012, Ben and I were at Wal-fart, purchasing a bike for my dad for fathers day. I took my beloved sunglasses off and left them on a nearby Barbie box so I could fix my hair. We wheeled the bike out to the car and I went to put my glasses on, but they weren't there. I made a mad dash back to the Barbies, and they were gone. In the 6 minutes it took us to wheel the bike out, buy it, and walk out the front door, some thief had swiped my glasses. Are you kidding me? I had a record going. So, I had those sunglasses for 3 years, and they were $5 dollar sunglasses that I got at some random gas station. 3 YEARS...do you understand how long that is for someone like me? I seriously wanted to cry. Why would you even want them? Anyway, getting back to my subject. I bought a pair of Mudd brand sunglasses that were on sale at Kohls. I honestly couldn't tell you what they looked like because they were broken in seriously a day. $15 dollars flushed down the toilet. Stupidly, I went back and got a pair of pink Mudd aviators, as shown because they were still on sale. These seemed sturdy, and more promising. Nope, broken a week later. They fit my head like I was Sloth from the Goonies and would fall off if I even bent over slightly. As you can see from the pic, I tried to tape the arms so that they would have some tension and not fall of my face, but this just left me wearing a crooked pair of sunglasses with tape on them.

5. ULTA Brand Mascara - Orange tube

I don't know the exact name of this mascara, and I can't seem to find a picture of it online. I have a tube of it at home that I've used once before retiring it into a messy drawer of other misfit make-up. In this drawer, you will also find a Mary Kay pressed powder that is apparently for a person with albinism, some hideous NYC brand bronzer that bronzes my sink more than my face, and some other crap. All I know, is that this mascara looks like the one in the picture, but it's orange. Pretty sure that's a black and white picture, so it could have very well been orange, but either way. It should have been a clue when I purchased it on a whim off of the clearance rack. My lashes are quite long, and I like them to look full and bold. It took at least 17 coats of this mascara to get the effect I was going for, and shortly after, my eyes started to itch. I've been wearing make-up since I was about 15, probably too much at that time, and probably sporting the awkward bright blue eyeshadow look, with the slicked back ponytail and two pencil thin bang strands, but I've never had the 'itch eye'. I was perplexed. It was too late to wash my face (because we all know that if you try only get the mascara off - it's just not going to work, you're whole face art is coming off, girlfriend). So I put up with it for that night, but the orange tube of itch was retired into the misfit drawer.

Ok, now that list could go on forever, but I'd like to avoid carpal tunnel, and now that I've got you depressed, let me tell you about the products I love! 

1. Maybelline Intense XXL

Although the name of this awesome mascara sounds dirty, it works brilliantly. After purchasing, I could not figure out the idea of the primer on your lashes. In case you didn't know, you put the white side on, and you lay it on thick, and then paint over with the black. It took minimal effort to get your lashes pumped and chunky just like I like 'em. Don't get too cray cray, you don't want your lashes to look like tarantula legs, but you get the idea.

2.  Blowfish Brand flats

These shoes are the best kinds of flats there are. I am one of those people that look awkward in Toms, and Puma's look like bananas on my feetsies. My feet are too wide I think too, so I have to get sizes that are bigger, so the skinnier the shoe the longer it is on my foot. This ultimately makes me look like a clown. My brother Brandon was deathly afraid of clown shoes as a kid, so I guess the only enjoyment coming out of having shoes that are too big is to shuffle around the house and chase my brother with them. He's not afraid of them anymore, but it will still be funny. I posted a new shoe to the right because they look prettier, but I posted my actual pair of Blowfish's because they are quite simply put, the most awesome pair of shoes ever.

Yes, they are dirty, and beat up, but that makes them better. To clear up any confusion, I wear the tiny ballerina socks designed to wear with flats, I do not have one black bottomed foot. I think I'm just wearing that one backwards.

 3. Scentsy Wickless Candles



Yes, I am a Scentsy Consultant and I am proud of that. Seriously though, Scentsy would have made my list whether I was a consultant or not. I became a consultant because of how much I love the stuff. It's a wickless alternative to candles. As a consultant, it's my job to push this on people, but what I'm really trying to do is make you understand how awesome the stuff really is. You buy the warmers, throw in a cube of wax from the wax bars, and let the scents fill up your house. There's no chance of burning your house down because it's warmed with a tiny light bulb. In the picture of my beautiful and growing kit, you will see my buddy Mollie, who has her arm draped on one of my warmers. I have another one in my bathroom, and a wall plug-in in my front room. Once you get one bar and a warmer, I swear you will be hooked. My mother-in-law got me a warmer and a bar for Christmas last year, and collection has grown quite a bit and now I try to get other people to love it as much as I do. Give it a shot ladies and men, the products will suck you in, I promise. My husband even admitted he loves it. Of course, I have to advertise:

https://brittneylove.scentsy.us/Scentsy/Home

4. Hoover Wind tunnel Pet Hair Vacuum

This vacuum is amazing. I have two long hair mancats who love to get fur on everything. They particularly love to play on my stairs, so I frequently am stepping through tufts of fur and watching tumble furs blow across my kitchen floor. You get the idea. The first time I used the vacuum, the canister, obviously empty, was completely filled to the brim with cat hair. Mind you, I am a very cleanly person and I vacuum 3 days a week, and I do not have a big house. The amount of hair that this vacuum picked up from the staircase alone was astonishing. The attachments work like you wouldn't believe on upholstery and curtains and makes carpets look like new. The ONLY thing that bothers me about this vacuum is the bare floor setting. I have it set correctly, but it doesn't pick things up the best unless the rollers are turned on, but then you could have the kickback effect. I vacuum up a lot of cat litter that is constantly showered around the house from the cats running away from their own poop and showering gravel about the house. If you turn the rollers on while vacuuming it, it will kick it back at you, turning your vacuum into a weapon. I think it's mainly for carpets and fabric, but nonetheless, this vacuum is my best friend.  The bare floor issue doesn't even bother me because it's nothing a broom can't handle for those tricky corners and yes, cat sand.

5. Got2be Collagen Mousse

I love Got2b products. The collagen mousse (which I just recently ran out of unfortunately), is relatively affordable and works like a champ. My hair was so pumped and fluffed, I was ecstatic. My hair is generally more on the limp side, but this stuff defies gravity. I haven't used the pink bottled products yet, but the yellow ones are great. 

Like I said, my lists could go on and on, but I have things to do...like leave work.

Feel free to share your thoughts, share your products, or send me hate mail or if you want. Whatever floats your boat.

Have a good weekend =]

Disclaimer: I purchase all of these products on my own, and am not paid for my opinions on these products. With the exception of the pictures I personally take, the pictures are simply used for enjoyment and I do not take any rights or own any of the stock photos used.

Weight Loss Update

Normally I'd never let this picture surface. Actually, I think it's on my Facebook, but nonetheless...

January 2010

One of our wedding pics - July 2012

August 2012 - My cousin Ryan and I...

Needless to say, I'm down 47 pounds. I believe I talked about this in a previous post, but I didn't feel like reading through them to check. I just wanted to post some before and after pictures. I was embarrassed to post the "before" pictures for awhile, but then I decided I should. I want to be an inspiration to others and let them know that they can do it too. People sometimes ask me what I did to lose the weight...well for any of you who read my posts from when I started this blog, it wasn't easy. It took me close to a year before I started to see any type of results. Of course, this varies from person to person, but I think that my metabolism was so out of whack that I was keeping the weight on. I am going to try to post all of my tips, and hopefully I won't be rambling too much. Hopefully someone reads and can use my tips to their advantage too.

Before I started on my path of weight loss, I was drinking up to 4 cans of diet coke a day. I was skipping breakfast, and mindlessly snacking because I was bored at work. Ben and I had moved into an apartment together and were eating nothing but food slathered in butter and cheese. Hot wings were a big hit in our apartment. Grease and overwhelming amounts of calories, perfect combo for disaster.

It was that picture and the others like it from that particular event from January 2010 that finally pushed me over the edge. I was so unhappy and uncomfortable in my own skin. It wasn't even the emotional symptoms that were bothering me, but I also had heart burn, and worst of all, non-stop acid indigestion. I'm not sure if you've ever experienced acid indigestion, but it basically feels like you are starving to death, ALL the time. I remember every morning when Ben would leave at 5am, I would be tossing and turning for an hour, popping Tums or Rolaids, trying to get rid of the burning. It was becoming horrendous. Waking me up out of sleep sometimes, only to take Tums for a midnight snack. Or eating a piece of bread at 2 in the morning to satisfy a false hunger. Due to the constant "hunger pangs", I was eating more than usual to try and subside the burning. Tums and Rolaids seem innocent enough, but despite the fact that they are chalky, tasteless candies - they are not good for you to take repeatedly, just like any other medication. 

That was it. It was when I started this blog that my struggle began. Of course, gaining the weight is easy - we all know this, but getting it off seems like an endless dark tunnel. 

I joined the gym down the street from my work and started running. I tried to get in the gym at least 3 days a week and do a half a mile. It was a start. Especially for a smoker. Granite, I was only smoking a pack a week, but that still put me in the category as a smoker. I smoked for the first few months when I first started working out before Ben and I made the conscious decision to quit together. We haven't smoked since October of 2010.

My next feat was to kick pop (or soda as some of you say). I had never believed the myth about diet pop keeping you bloated and keeping the pounds on until I quit drinking it. Ok--I still drank it, but I seriously limited the amount. Instead of keeping a 12 pack in the house I quit buying it altogether. My pop consumption came periodically when I was in the car, which was replacing the cigarette I wasn't smoking. I dropped 10 pounds in only a few short months. I also started taking 5000mg of Biotin vitamins everyday and 500mg of B-12. My hair started to grow out like crazy and my skin looked better and brighter.

Beer was another problem. I simply like beer, there's no way of dancing around it. So instead of drinking Busch Light at a social gathering, I switched to Select 55. Being the lightest calorie on the market, I couldn't pass it up. The way I looked at it is if I drink a 6 pack of Busch Light, that's almost 600 calories or more, whereas Select 55, is 330. 

I started drinking a lot of water. I stress, A LOT. I remembered saying so many times, "I hate water - I'd rather drink pop or milk". It's because I wasn't craving water. I was depriving myself and only drinking pop and sugary juices. Now, I try to drink at least 3 liters throughout the day. In fact, I can't go without it now. Speaking of which, every morning, I squeeze a half of a lemon into a warm glass of water and chug it. Sounds super gross, and it is. I gag it down every morning, and have almost puked a few times, but I feel great afterwards. I wanted to share this link from my good friend Danielle, who is currently in the process of becoming a health and nutrition coach.

http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-4769/Why-You-Should-Drink-Warm-Water-Lemon.html

I started controlling my portions. My BIGGEST point that I want to stress, is don't stop eating what you love to eat. If you want that big, juicy cheeseburger, then eat it, but learn to portion control. Do you really need the entire burger? Unless you haven't eaten in 3 days, no, of course not. So what I do, is order that burger, but I cut it in half. Instead of getting the fries, get a healthy side and then pick a few fries of someone else's plate. I'm using a cheeseburger as an example because I happen to love them. It's my biggest downfall, but I refuse to give them up. So I started to cut them in half and pretend I don't even have the other half. I box it up and take it home for the next day. Give a try, I bet you anything that once you eat that half, you'll be full, you won't even want the other half. Happens to me every time.  If you get a salad, DON'T dump the dressing on the salad. All the fat comes from the dressing. Didn't you ever wonder why when you are reading the nutritional facts about salads at restaurants, it's 40g of fat for a plate of lettuce and vegetables? It's because of the dressing. Ask for your dressing on the side and dip your fork in it before spearing the lettuce. You get the same amount of flavor, and your salad isn't swimming in a pool of runny ranch afterwards. Same goes for pancakes. I LOVE pancakes, but skip the butter next time. Use your favorite syrup (I happen to love Boysenberry, which is close to impossible to come by), and use enough to let it soak into the pancakes before eating. Honestly, I've never understood the concept of 'drowning' your food. The whole point of a pancake is to love the flavor of the pancake itself, not forkfuls of buttery syrup. I will admit, it does taste good, but I do NOT feel good about it afterwards. Mayonnaise at restaurants is a joke too. It's a splatter of creamy, buttery, lard that they squirt onto a sandwich for an extra kick of flavor but is completely unnecessary. Order the sandwich you want, but don't feel silly to do modifications. You won't miss the mayo. 

Ditch the yolks for breakfast and eat the whites. Egg whites always sound so unappetizing to people, but I've found them to pretty much taste the same. I like to scramble them up with skim milk and use various popcorn seasonings for flavor. Kernel Season's is a good one. The white cheddar is my favorite. Sprinkle that on with some pepper and you're good to go. Or, boil eggs the night before and keep them on reserve in your fridge. Crack one open for a snack, or eat one whenever. Try to limit the yolks though. I know the yolks are the best part, but try to limit them. You can eat up to 12 egg whites a day for the protein benefit, and minuscule calorie count, but the yolks need to be eaten in moderation. If you have a hard time eating the hard-boiled white of the egg, use a bit of salt, or even mustard. (Recommended by my husband - I thought it would be gross - now I prefer it, give it a try!)

It's just little things that I started to become aware of and change. I haven't stopped eating what I like (except for chicken wings, those haunt me now), but I've become aware of what I'm eating. I am an annoying label reader now. One of my favorite things to eat is Boca or Morning Star vegan burgers. Dress them up a bit with a dab of BBQ sauce and a bit of cheese and enjoy. Don't be afraid of cheese. I know all the new fad diets out there strictly ex-nay cheese, but I disagree. Of course, I'm not an expert, and I'm not telling you to sit and eat an entire block in one sitting, but a small slice or two is not going to completely sabotage you. 

So overall, I really have no set diet. I have no persistent work out plan. I work out when I feel like it (I try to get in there 2-3 days a week for about 45 minutes, doing at least a half hour of cardio, and switching to weight training for 15-20 minutes, and visa versa). Keep your work outs a surprise. Your body will adapt to the same routine every day and will become resistant so switching up your routine will keep your muscles guessing and force them to adapt and change, and change is good. Eat what you want, in portions and try to eat every 4 hours, and for shit's sake, DON'T SKIP BREAKFAST. There is no excuse why you should. I get everyone is different and everyone has different routines in the morning, but if you don't have time to sit down and eat a quick bowl of cereal; grab a granola bar, or some fruit. Boil eggs the night before and bring them with you (I love doing this). I have also heard the excuse 'breakfast makes me sick in the morning'. Well, ask yourself, what are you eating when you did try to eat breakfast? Captain Crunch? Pancakes drown in syrup? Something undoubtedly loaded with sugar? I know that when I eat something loaded with sugar first thing in the morning, I get the most incredible stomachache. I get stomachaches all the time because I'm just naturally the most nervous person in the world, but now I get one if I don't eat. I feel miserable if I don't put something into my stomach before 10am. Don't use a busy lifestyle as an excuse to put off your goals.

Hopefully my tips helped a bit. Use your own judgement based on what you like and what fits your lifestyle. Don't let ANYONE tell you that you can't do it. Don't pay attention to the people who are going to 'talk'. If there's one thing I've learned over the past few years, it's that people who talk about you are not your real friends, and my advice to myself was, "What are these people ever going to matter in my future? These people are nothing to me". Rise above. Make them feel stupid by not caring and doing what is best for you, and your health. 

In case you were wondering, the heartburn is gone, and the acid indigestion is gone. Tums and Rolaids are a distant memory. 

PS: If anyone out there read my first blog post - I just wanted to let you know, that my state ID is telling the truth now. 

I've reached my goal.

RIP Davy Jones

December 30, 1945 - February 29, 2012

I am saddened to hear the news of Davy Jones.  I have been an avid Monkees fan since I was a kid and have carried it on with me into my adulthood.  They were a big part of my life and still are.  My mom always told me I was born in the wrong era.

I used to save whatever birthday or allowance money I earned just to run to Suncoast and purchase episodes of their series on VHS. I remember, the VHS's costs me $14.95 every time.  Only two episodes at a time. Eventually Suncoast (like most of the other stores in the mall) closed down and I couldn't find them in any other stores. I probably gave Suncoast most of their business. I was short all but two of their albums (cds), I had the box set, the movies, shirts -- I acquired quite the collection, even down to the green wool hat that Mike wore.

The Monkees were my first concert when I was only 12. My dad drove my sister and I to the Star Plaza Theater in Merrillville, IN one sunny Friday afternoon in 1998, and I was blown away.  The venue was small. They let people go up to the stage, to possibly get a handshake during a song, or perhaps a rose from the bunch that Davy was holding. I remember being so close that I could see up Peter's nose as he beat a song out on the keyboard. I couldn't have been happier -- I could see up Peter's nose...What a delight. I was staring at his gray/blond hair bouncing in the light as he played. I was starstruck. Peter, Micky and Davy were simply 3 feet away...almost at an arms length.  Davy was dancing about, Mick Jagger style, tossing roses here and there, and much to my disbelief, one flew at me in slow motion. I went back to my seat in a daze. Mike didn't show at this concert, which was disappointing for me.  I kept hoping throughout the night that he would come walking out on stage, waving to all of our grinning faces staring back at him, but he did not.

In fact, before the concert started, I was actually imagining the boys from 1966 running out in their red polyester shirts with 8 gold buttons and gray bell bottoms. I knew they were much older, but my imagination got the best of me. Gosh, I loved them - and I still do.

I still have that rose. It's potpourri now, but I have it.

My heart broke today when I learned of this news.  All of his fans have heavy hearts to see him go.  As Mike Nesmith put it today, "I wish him safe travels".

Good-bye Davy, Rest in Peace, my friend.

Love, Peace and Hugs always.

The Melting Pot

I'd heard a lot of mixed reviews about this restaurant.  I've heard it's not that good, I've heard it's amazing, blabbity blah blah.

 We went on a double date here with our good friends for the first time and we are fans. We made reservations for 8:30, but got there around 8:00 and were sat right away. We started with the featured Sam Adams Boston Lager fondue. You are given small cups of a variety of bread cubes, cauliflour, broccoli and apples for dipping. Our friends got the swiss fondue. The waiter actually prepares the cheese at your table (make sure you take note of this).  Our cheese was made with a half cup of Boston Lager, a few dashes of tabasco, bacon, and scallions. It was amazing. Simple to make, but sometimes it's the simple ingredients that make the best tasting dips. I mean, it's a bowl of cheese, how do you screw that up?  I guess you can though because our waiter accidently put a bit to much nutmeg in the Swiss fondue they ordered, but it was still good. I'm not a big fan of swiss as it is, so I stuck mainly to our pot of deliciousness.

After the fondue, you get a salad. I got a wedge salad, which delighted me. I love the crunchy part of the lettuce that you can eat like an apple, but that's beside the point. Wasn't the best salad I'd ever had, but obviously this is a fondue featured restaurant, not a salad bar. I also didn't realize that goronzola was a moldy green cheese that tastes like farts and smells like feet. If you are not a fan of farts and feet, stick with the cheddar.  Lucky for me, I have a fiance who enjoys the sour yet bold flavors of this abomination of cheese. It dissapeared off of my plate and into Ben's stomach before I could say 'hey, get your face off my plate'. Either way, you are kind of dumb if you go there just to get a salad. Seriously.

For the entree we got was called the Fondue Fusion which was strips of steasoned steak, bbq pork, shrimp, buffalo chicken, lobster tail and mushroom stuffed pasta (I don't like cooked mushrooms normally, but these were good). You also get new cups of vegetables with your meal.

Ben and I got the pot of broth for cooking, and our friends got the oil. I have always had a fear of raw meat, so I was pretty skeptical on the 'cook your own dish' scenerio, but you get the hang of it after a few minutes. In fact, when he set the plate down I had a secret panic attack and kind of felt like running away -- but the food was great. I loved the chicken and shrimp. You also get two different kinds of batter for your meats. It's fun to experiment, and you can't really mess anything up. Everything pretty much goes good with everything. If you're a worrier like me and can't even touch ground beef to make hamburgers in the summer, then just leave the food in longer. Better to be a little overdone then underdone right? Plus my worrying made my friends laugh, so everyone wins right?

They also give you 8 different sauces to work with. I loved the greek goddess sauce. I even ventured into my wild side and spooned a little bit of the bleu cheese sauce onto my steak. The greek goddess is a creamy dillweed/cucumber sauce that you can pretty much slab on anything. Well, I can anyway.

For our chocolate, we got the PB&J. Probably the best thing ever. Strawberries and bananas in a PB&J chocolate? (Homer drool).

Overall, the food was good, our waiter was very nice, and I had a great time. It's a bit pricy, but thankfully, we live too far away to go all the time;-) So basically, if you have no personality, no sense of humor and hate life, I would not suggest going, because it's a great time!  I would also highly advise against it if you are trying to watch your calorie intake because you pretty much take in a days worth in the hour you are sitting there.

So over the summer I ended up quitting the gym completely and took up hula hooping.  I lost 10 pounds in the duration of the time that I was hooping (probably a month and a half), and really loved it.  I got pretty good at it for the most part, but never got my nerve up enough to record myself doing it. I watch these videos on YouTube of these chicks who are amazing, and put me to shame.  Then our laptop broke and I couldn't watch the tutorials anymore to learn more tricks so I didn't spend as much time with it.


I ended up feeling empty after that and rejoined the gym. I figured if I was going to be hooping that I could skip out and try something new for awhile. I also got tired of being stalked by the same guy every morning, and I just got sick of the constant bickering from the same onslaught of people.  The stalker would try to be nonchalant about his stalking, but the attempts were just irritating.  There are timed dials all around the gym that work the ceiling fans above the different work out areas.  Stalker Steve (I have no idea what his real name was) would come over to the cardio equipment where I happened to be biking, and would turn the fans on above me as if they were going to cool him off on the opposite side of the gym where he was doing squat thrusts or whatever. This became a repeated occurrence. Finally one day, he came over and turned the dial on the fans (which were already on) and then made his move. He started talking to me and asking me why I left at 8:45 every morning. I told him I have a job. His response was something that made me think that he thought I was in high school. Even creepier considering Stalker Steve was probably in his 30's. Let's just say I was not overly nice about his annoying and pathetic advancements. This went on for about 3 days.  I was not nice to him. In fact, I will admit I was flat out rude, but come on. Get the hint already. I'm convinced that had he flat out asked me on a date and I told him that I was married, he would have asked me when he could pick me up for our date. It's even more annoying when guys hit on you that you're not interested in, but you're not wearing any make up on top of it, and sporting baggy sweats, a men's t-shirt with pit stains, and wal-mart shoes. Ok, now you KNOW they are just desperate. Gosh.


Maybe I was just being over cynical of them but I needed a break. I didn't want to work out after work because that's when all the high schools over take the place.  Did you ever notice how high school boys act at the gym? A majority of the time, when they aren't tickling each other, they are flexing in front of the mirror and giggling...I witnessed this a majority of the time when I did work out in the afternoon and it bothered me.


So I rejoined after that month and half or so. A lot changed in that time I was gone. Half the morning people quit or transferred gyms, so I didn't have to listen to that anymore, and Stalker Steve seemed to have nabbed himself a girlfriend who shows up in his car now and again and works out there.  He won't even look at me now and I couldn't happier.

Hair update

January 2010                                                                                                January 2012