The Hump Day Blog Hop!

Happy Hump Day everyone! We are halfway through the week and the hump day camel is too freaking cool, so lets have some fun and a blog hop to celebrate.

This is a little different than a link up. To participate, simply add your blog link. There is no required entry or anything like that. This is about networking, making new friends, and finding new blogs.

All I ask:

1) "The Hump Day" blog hop button button be displayed anywhere on your blog page or a specific entry with a link back to me or the weekly co-host. (Please do this. These blog hops take a lot of work and preparation.)

2) You don't have to follow me, but in the words of Blake Shelton: it'd sure be cool if ya did.

3) Please follow the co-host. I love helping and promoting these amazing women in the blog world! I do this to not only meet new people, but help my friends make new friends and readers.

4) Mingle with your fellow Bloggers.

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<a href="http://www.fitnessblondie.blogspot.com" title="The Hump Day Blog Hop"><img src="http://i1285.photobucket.com/albums/a593/fitnessblondiel/humpday_zps418f63f6.jpg" alt="The Hump Day Blog Hop" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Please join me in welcoming this weeks co-host; Tricia from "Tricia's (Mostly) Healthy Lifestyle!"

My Skin Care and Makeup Regimen

Throughout my time blogging, people have asked me what I do and use for my skin and makeup, so I thought now would be the perfect time to share. I know I write a lot about how much I love makeup, and I truly do, but I don't get crazy with it. When I was doing makeup for a living, I loved creating new and fun looks, but now I just don't have the time, ha. My two favorite brands for skin care are Clinique and Olay and for makeup: Urban Decay and Smashbox. 

Healthy skin is the most important of anything cosmetic related.

Contrary to popular belief, I actually do not always wear makeup. I wear it for work everyday and when I go out at night with my friends for a night out, but I never ever sleep in it and I think I look fine without it. Above all of the makeup in the world, healthy skin is my priority! 

This was Sunday evening before bed, I used my brand new face wash I bought over the weekend and I am in love. I have used it 4 nights and I am already seeing a difference at the evenness of my skin tone. Plus it helps fight aging; that is always a bonus. It is "Elemis Tri-Enzyme Resurfacing Facial Wash". Buy it here. It is hands down worth every penny. I made this post before I bought this product so it is not included on my initial picture. And my cat likes to sleep on my head every night, it is in fact really weird. 

• I wish my face every evening and in the morning. 3-4 times a week I use the Target brand facial scrub for blackheads, and all of the other times I use Clinique for oily skin. I also exfoliate once a week and I use Clinique for that as well. I have very oily skin and since I wear makeup almost everyday, it is important to exfoliate. 
• I always use toner. You would be surprised at how much dirt will still be on your face after washing it. I use Neutrogena's toner after washing. I use the acne one since I still have acne and break out issues sometimes. I have been using this since I was a teenager; it's great!
• Moisturizing ones skin is so, so important. A few times a week I use Olay's Pro-X anti aging cream and the other times I use a gel from Garnier Fructis. Like I said, I have oily skin and using a gel as a moisturizer is better for me sometimes. I use Olay's Pro-X eye cream every morning and evening as well.

• I am a former tan-a-holic. I never tan anymore and skincare is my top priority. However, I love keeping a sexy, tan glow. Famous Dave's is the only brand I will use. I am constantly asked about my skin color and what I do to keep it bronzed all year long. Famous Dave's is completely it. It is natural looking and amazing quality. 

• I use Smashbox's foundation primer every morning. This stuff is amazing and I swear by it! It keeps my foundation looking fresh and beautiful all day long. This is one of my most favorite products.
• I love liquid foundation and Smashbox is fabulous for it. 
• I use Mary Kay's translucent powder over my foundation. It keeps my skin from showing oil and getting shiny.
• I use Lorac's "TANtalizer" for my bronzer. I only apply it on my cheekbones. I absolutely love it. I recently starting using this product and I am hooked. It has a "highlighter" with it as well (it is a duo compact) but I rarely ever use it.
• Urban Decay's makeup "stay spray" is perfect for when you're doing an all-day event or going out for a night out on the town. It's a good quality product. I usually only wear it when I am going out.

• I have been using L'Oreal's eyeliner forever. I love it and will always use it. It's only about $9 and last forever. I hate pencil's so I like how this is retractable. 
• I also like Urban Decay's glide on eyeliner as well. 
• I am pretty basic with my eyeliner. I usually only wear black and do not do crazy things with it.

• I am pretty basic with my eye shadow as well. I love a sexy brown smokey eye and deep purple. 
• I buy an Urban Decay pallet once a year and use it for the majority of my looks.
• I love Ulta's single eye shadow colors as well as Smashbox's "nude colors".
• I recently received an awesome eye shadow compact in my Ipsy bag (the one on the far left) I am surprised at how much I like it!

• I take lashes very seriously! I have never worn fake lashes, nor would I ever. I just don't think it's worth it. 
• I swear by Lancome's "Cils Booster". If this product was ever discontinued, I would literally cry. This is the primer for my lashes and my conditioner. It also assists in making your lashes look darker. This product is top notch quality.
• I never buy full size mascara products. I purchase and obtain "trial" sizes whenever I can. Since the brushes are shorter, I am able to pull on my lashes harder; therefore it significantly lengths and thickens them.
• Lancome and Smashbox's "Full Exposure" are my top 2 favorites, but I also like Clinique's main brand.

• Nyx is my favorite brand for lipstick. The colors are so fun! It lasts and it does not make my lips feel "caked up". Nyx is cheap and usually buy 2 get 1 free at Ulta.
• "Slivery Moon" by Clinique is a standard of mine.
• I get pretty random with my lip colors and brands. 

Now that I have listed my regimen and favorite products, what are some of yours?

A Lovely Easter Weekend Recap

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Easter weekend, or what is left of it. I know I did! Unfortunately I did not have Friday off like most of my friends did, but I did get to leave work early! I went to my doctor to get my B12 injection and my weight loss this week was 2 pounds. I am thankful for that! Last week my fat mass was down 3 pounds but the scale was up half a pound. I know that is good, but it still irritates me. 

After my doctor's appointment I went to the gym. Holy crap it was one of the best workouts I have had in a long time. I always schedule my leg workouts the day before my rest day. Legs are my favorite to work and I made sure I pushed to the limits. I am still very sore today from it. 

Once I finished I at the gym, I came home to get ready. I went to dinner with one of good friends, Crystal. Since I had a cheat meal earlier this week, I had my last week meal for the week with her. Go big or go home, ha! We went to one of my favorite restaurants, "City Tavern". I had my favorite dinner, their prime rib wheat wrap and we also had dessert, "Banana Foster". We were miserable after eating, ha! After dinner we we went to the movies. We saw the movie "Oculus". I am a horror junkie plus this movie got really good reviews. However I was not a fan. I hated the ending and the story line was hard to follow.

Saturday morning I woke up at 11 AM. I normally never sleep that late but that is what happens when I have those brutal leg workouts. As expected, I couldn't walk, ha. I got ready then took off to Greensboro to spend the night with my mom and grandma. When I got there we went to a wine store to a wine tasting then did some shopping. I found the cutest bag at Target, I love my new purse!

Once we got home, we went outside to enjoy my grandmothers new outdoor room. It is absolutely beautiful and it was the perfect night for it, too. The weather had been awful - very rainy and cold.

My two rocks in this world; my amazing mama and my amazing grandmother.

Also when we got home from shopping, my grandmother showed me her new purse. Can someone please help me figure out who this bag is by so I can purchase one? The bag does not have a label on it so I don't know if anyone will recognize the symbol. I begged my grandmother until I was blue in the face for this bag and she will not let me have it, ha. It matches with her Easter outfit too well. She bought it at a boutique at the beach and has no idea who the bag is by. All I know is, I died when I saw this purse. I want it!

I had a lot of fun, we had a girls night with lots of talking, laughs, and spending time together. Those are my favorite kind of nights - I am so close to my mom and grandmother. Perhaps too close. This morning my grandmother looked absolutely stunning in her new outfit for her Sunday best. Seriously, how gorgeous is she?

She was also excited because her dress makes her have a little booty. She wanted me to take a picture of it, too. She is SO taking after her granddaughter (hehe) and I absolutely love it. If you guys think I am crazy, you should meet the two generations of women above me! They are where I get it from!

I arrived back to Charlotte around 12:30 from Greensboro. I initially planned on driving from Greensboro straight to the mountains to hike, but I bailed on the idea. I did not sleep well last night, my legs are still really sore from Friday, and I forgot a sports bra. The idea of driving 2 1/2 hours to the mountains and being all stiff and sore when I got there, did not sound too great. Plus it rained all freaking weekend. 

I regretted my decision after being home for about 30 minutes. So I thought I would just go to the gym instead. Wrong! My gym was closed. Then I thought about just taking the day off from working out. That did not last long though - I have goals to attain and I am not going to get there by skipping planned workouts. Thus, I improvised. I did a 30 minute full body plyometric workout in my living room then jogged the greenway behind my apartment for 50 minutes. It was an awesome workout. I am so happy I pushed myself to do it, even when I wasn't really feeling it! 

Another great thing how much stamina I now have with running. I am down nearly 47 pounds since 11/25/13 and it is incredible how different I feel. Distance running previously hurt. I had too much weight, and short/big legs. Now that I have lost so much and built so much muscle, I can just run and run and run and run and not stop. That is truly incredible to me. It has been a long time since I have felt this way.

Now I am off to food prep for the week and clean my apartment! The list never ends!

High 5, it is finally Friday!

I am so happy to see it is finally Friday. I am ready for the weekend and time off of work, ha. I wish I had a long weekend like most of my friends, but I am leaving work an hour early today so I guess that is better than nothing. My weeks have been a bit redundant lately. I'm working a lot and hitting the gym hard after work everyday. Then I come home. That is about the extent of my rock star life right now. Work is crazy - there is so much going on and by the time I leave work, it is all I can do to muster up the strength to train at the gym. I think I am turning into that woman who talks about her job too much, oops! I know it will all pay off so I keep going. I keep going with a smile on my face as well!

The week started off nicely since (1) my Ipsy bag came! What do you guys think so far? I am pleased with it. I am impressed Urban Decay was in there - I have used the eyeliner all week. The eye shadow is cute, too. However, I don't use the microdermabrasion or the eye shadow brush so if anyone wants to trade - let me know. I think some people were getting a light pink lip stick/gloss - I want it!

If you don't know what Ipsy is - it is a monthly makeup bag you receive via mail. It is only $10 a month and with that you get a makeup bag and 3-4 beauty products. You are billed on the first of every month and products arrive between the 10-15th! When you sign up, you get to customize your settings so you get products closely matched to your beauty preferences. If you want to join, please click here and use my link! I will appreciate you!

Wednesday evening, (2) I indulged in the most fantastic cheat meal ever. The gym was hard. I don't know what was wrong with me but I was struggling. I was on the go so much at work, I know I did not eat enough. Then when I finally did get to eat, I don't think my food had enough time to properly digest. Nonetheless, I push hard at the gym and I sweated like never before. 50 minutes of cardio and my core workout; it was brutal. I was starving after. I felt like I could have ate a house. I picked up the most delicious pizza I have had in a long time at a local italian restaurant. It was a personal pizza and only $6! I had spinach, mushroom, and pepperoni. Seriously, how amazing does this look?  

I got my hair done last weekend. I'm back with my platinum roots and lovely red streaks - I could not be happier. I am trying not to wash my hair too much right now so they do not fade as quickly. Thus (3) I have been getting creative with my hair-do's. I have not done a head braid in a while and I did one Thursday and today. It's my favorite look. I feel like a princess or gypsy, ha.

Last night I did my grocery shopping so I would not have to do it this weekend. I still have to get my vegetables but I got the items I get at Harris Teeter and Target out of the way. I get my vegetables at Earthfare or local stands. Anyways, I think I need to stop grocery shopping at Target. I always end up getting clothes or things I don't need. That store is like crack to me. However, their jeans have been impressing me like crazy lately; I have been getting all of my new pairs from them! (4) And last night was no different - I love my new jeans! OK and a new shirt for work. I could not pass up the pretty blue color. Seriously, Target has totally stepped their jean game up. Also you can text a number for $5 off a pair. Go to your local store and you will see a sign for the code.

Lastly, (5) say hello to my Olympia sponsor this month, Maegan. Her blog is "Creating Confidence". To all of my amazing friends and readers, please pop over and say hello to her. She is trying to grow and spread the message of her blog, and I could not more excited to help promote her. You guys know I am all about "girl power" and empowering women -- so is she. I worked with Maegan at LA Fitness and she is a wonderful friend of mine. Another fun fact - she was on America's Got Talent. Y'all know that is my favorite show. She writes about being a teenager and young woman in the American society. She also provides interesting prospective's on how the media and TV affects us from our looks to behaviors. Maegan posts are refreshing and a must have on your blog roll!

 

I hope you guys have the best weekend ever. Don't forget to link up today and share your Friday 5!