2016: A Year Of Growth

It's January 20th, and my life is about to get crazy. So much is changing - much that is dragging me outside of my comfort zone. I went out on a limb, I prayed, and I took a plunge. I'm continuing to pray that my jump works out in my favor... right now, I feel a lot of anxiety, excitement, and just a slight twinge of fear. But, that's pretty typical when you change up everything familiar, right?

I've done this is in the past. I've leapt, and it's always worked out in my favor. In fact, so many blessinga have stemmed from my big and scary leaps of faith... so, I'm counting on this to be the case, again. This wasn't a leap I was planning on taking, but God's been good to me. He knows what I need, He knows what I deserve, He knows what I work for every single day.

We're talking on "Onward" in church, and my life right now seriously couldn't be more of a perfect depiction of this message. I'm writing this down to remember. So that, months from now, I can write a follow-up post and reference this mid-January message while reflecting on all of the GOOD THINGS that will come our way in the next few weeks.

Until then... pray with me! For continued favor, ease, peace and FUN.

January: All About Skincare

I have been obsessed with my skincare lately. It started when I got a stye in my eye, which I was overly stressing about (and ironically, stress can be one of the causes, right? COOL) and then I had some sort of weird reaction to... something. I tried a lot of crap to get rid of my stye, and something caused my skin to FREAK OUT. I'm not really sure what. But, my face was red and peeling, my tone was uneven, and I just looked rough.

I decided to really focus on my complexion. I love makeup, but no matter how great the makeup is, it won't look good going on crappy skin. So, I got to reading. I got to testing. I got to getting rid of my dark circles, come hell or high water.

Ooh, water.

Here are some of the things that I KNOW have worked for me so far, and I will keep using to see if I notice long-term impact:

1. Coconut Oil
I love to wash my face with coconut oil. I get it from the grocery store, but I always look for organic, plus important words like raw, and unrefined. Do some research... they aren't all created equal. The one I linked is "so pure you can eat it". How is that a bad deal? If it's truly good for you, you should be able to do whatever you want with it, right? To use it, I scrape a little from the jar, and rub my hands together to warm it up/melt it. Then I massage it into my face softly, and rinse off with a hot washcloth. I don't rub the oil off, either... just press the hot washcloth into your skin and softly remove. Add more hot water, and press into your skin to remove. It takes off the excess, but still leaves a really light film there for added moisture.

2. Toner
I've used two in recent weeks: The L'Oreal Hydrafresh, and this new and much preferred one, here. The second one, by Avalon Organics, is a much better choice - full of vitamin c, aloe, cucumber and papaya... and is free of parabens, sulfates, and synthetic fragrances.

3. Other oils
Right now, I'm using Frankincense oil - just a drop or two into a small amount of coconut oil, and 100% pure argan oil. I got mine at my local grocer. I have only used this a few times, but I love that it absorbs quickly, and doesn't leave me feeling greasy. I have heard AMAZING things about cacay oil, so I'm doing my own research and will probably try this next. If I had an extra $100 laying around right now and I didn't think my husband would serve me with divorce papers, I would splurge on this Bamford Restore Elixir. This elixir has rosehip oil, which I've also used in the past and will probably buy some of that again here soon. Basically, I am in love with oils and elixirs and I want to put it all on my face.

4. Wash your face morning - AND NIGHT
I know, I know. Sometimes it's just not feasible. But I've seen a noticeable change in my skin - without using any of the above products religiously - when I wash morning and night. Think about it. You're laying on a (probably somewhat dirty) pillow all night. Oils, room dust, drool... it can't be good for that complexion, girlfriend.

5. DRINK WATER
I don't even need to provide any supplemental information here. WATER WILL HELP YOUR SKIN IF YOU DRINK ENOUGH OF IT.

I also love the Yes To Cucumers and Yes To Blueberries lines (I use the blueberry moisturizer), but I just found this - and I'm sold. Going to add this to the list and get it in my bathroom immediately.

What are some beauty routines or products you swear by? I'm in the market for a great eye cream, so if you have any suggestions, I'l take 'em!