Sprucin It Saturdays

It's nice that we are "officially" moved out of the old condo. Even though I really, really hated that place most days, a big part of me will miss things about it. Ok, nothing about the place, just the memories that were made there. Oh nostalgia, you dirty dog, you. Anyway, having nothing to take care of over there and only having to worry about the new place is SOOO nice. Today some of the things on the list were to change some lights out, install the dryer and clean a little. Lucky for me The Hus is super duper handy and we're on the same page as far priorities go with getting things done in the new place. Here are some before and and afters of the lights we put up, and the dimmer he installed. He accidentally got the oversized light plates, and I LOVE it. Is it normal to be so in love with a light switch plate? It totally is.

 

 

Happy Saturday!

xoxo, Janean

Eclosbeauty Package Winner

Happy Friday Everyone!

Im so excited to announce that SABigler is our winner! SABigler, please send me your mailing address so I can send you your beauty package! Yay for winners, and free stuff! Im just going to go out on a limb here and say that I think we found our new hot topic items. Beauty stuff. I shoulda guessed you would all love that stuff. I promise from now on there will be more beauty stuff given away in the future.

In other news, I am going to be putting this, lovely shower curtain in the guest bath. It makes my heart happy. For a while I was thinking I wanted to decorate the new pad in a cape cod traditional style. But it just didn't feel right and I could never really get my mind wrapped around the idea. Then I decided I would decorate in a Restoration Hardware meets Anthropologie way. More life and color. As soon as I decided this, I have been so happy ever since. The ideas just flow and it feels SOOO right. Gettin Hus on board might be a little tricky but I excel at tricky.

It's super perfect. Who doesn't like life and color? I think the trick to good decorating is to make the permanent things in the space, neutrals and decorate with color and whimsy. I have all these great ideas, I can't wait to get started on and blog about, but all theses boxes keep clouding my vision. Ugh. Priorities...

With that being said, we will be making our way to the San Diego County Fair tonight. I don't know what it is about the overly priced deep fried oreos, rickety rides, scantily clad middle schoolers with their massive amounts of inappropriate PDA, mixed with the fear of possibly getting my purse stolen and the huge ordeal parking and riding is, that calls me back every year. But it's in my blood. I have been going practically my whole life. Even when we moved away, we would make sure to go visit CA during the time of the Fair. It feels wrong to not go. And I love it.

Also, ps. I totally just scored a practically brand new dryer from Craigslist. Its being sold for $100 for a fundraiser. Um steal...

Happy Friday is right!

Xoxo, Janean

 

It's Been A While aka Don't Ever Move Unless You HAVE To

Dear Friends,

I apologize for the MIAness lately. Since moving I have been without Internet for the past five days. The upside, I have been quite productive during the day. The downside, I have had to be productive during the day. .. Jk, Jk. But at nights I have been able to unwind to our lovely and extensive movie collection of about 30 movies. Well, I got through the chick flicks that never get old pretty quick. Sound of Music, Devil Wears Prada and The Holiday were all viewed in 2 days. One night I let The Hus choose and no surprise, he chose to start the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Extended version.... Let me just say 2 things, A) those movies aren't bad. Two thirds of the way through, six hours later and subtitles on. And B) I'm not sure if I am creeped out yet or thoroughly impressed by the fact that there are gobs of people out there who learn to speak Elvish (sorry fans if that's the wrong name for Elf-talk.) I must admit I am borderline becoming a LOTR fans. ( that's right, I totes just acronymned that crap.) But not so much that I'm going to inscribe something Elvish on my Tiffany Co. necklace. Not yet anyway. But who knows the trilogy's not over yet... I've got one more movie and probably 4 more hours to devote to that.

Anyway, here is what my life looks like right about now. Welcome, to the study. That's right, boxes, surfboards, toys, oh and uh, don't forget the potty training potty. Yikes. I hope you all feel my pain and forgive my mini hiatus.

Lovely piles of clean clothes on the stairwell, that look like garbage bags.... My life is literally a mess right now. I don't think I've eaten so many donuts and cookies ever in my life. We all cope different ways, right? Totally normal. Right?

But really, the views not half bad. Honestly, I'm thrilled. I wake up every morning happy, that we own this place and I am NOT a morning person.

 

 

Ok and last but not least, I am going to announce the giveaway tomorrow! I'm excited for the winner.... Who ever you are!

xoxo, Janean

Flashback Friday

5 years ago The Hus and I "officially" started dating. That was a fun summer full of late nights, frequent dinner dates, weekly beach trips and lots of kissing. (gross I know)

xoxo, Janean

Eclos Skin Care Review & Giveaway #EclosBeauty

This post brought to you by éclos Skin Care. All opinions are 100% mine.

Hooray! I love free products and a giveaway. As some of you may or may not know, I recently turned 28. Ugh, late twenties. So disappointing. I am getting to the stage in my life where I am starting to think about stuff like "eye cream", and "fine lines." Seriously how did I get here? Lucky for me, right around my birthday the lovely people at éclos Skin Care, sent me some of their new products to try. Heres what they sent me.

 

Here's a little bit about Eclos.

"éclos features Apple Stem Cells extracted from a rare Swiss apple which have shown tremendous ability to stimulate skin stem cells, encouraging aging skin to behave like younger skin. Plant extracts, vitamins and anti-oxidants combine with the Apple Stem Cell technology to help minimize the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and tired skin."

I really like the Instant Radiance Facial Scrub for its grittiness, the Restorative Eye Cream because really, anything helps and I loved the silkiness of the Skin Renewal Clay Mask. All of the products smelled like ginger snaps, and reminded me of Christmas, which isnt a bad thing. Ever. And the texture of that mask was amazing and felt great on my skin. If you dont know what a clay masks purpose is, its to draw off the oil from your skin and tighten your pores. Yes, please.

Oh, and they added a headband for washing the face. Which I actually thought was super thoughtful. I love little surprises like that. Pictured, is a little product rundown.

 

I think its refreshing to use a product without parabens, sulfates, synthetic fragrances, synthetic dyes, and petro-chemicals. Here is an embarrassing before picture, for your viewing pleasure.

And here is an after, I totally cheated and wore makeup in the "after."

 

Do I think that I noticed a huge difference after using it? Not necessarily, but I liked the product and would definitely consider buying some in the future. The Skin Renewal Mask for sure, especially since the package also comes with a $3 OFF coupon to use towards any regualr sized item. You can buy the mask at Ulta.com for $13, before the coupon. Not bad.

And before you get jealous that I got to try these items and you didnt.. I am giving away a trial package identical to my own. Thats right, headband included, to one lucky reader. All you have to do is follow my blog, and leave a comment stating which item you are most excited to try. Dont know how? Just ask.

For more entries you can:

Follow how i keep sane on facebook

Share this giveaway on facebook

Tweet about this giveaway

Blog about this giveaway

Please leave a separate comment per entry. Contest will run for one week! Good luck to you all!

xoxo, Janean

 

 

Anthro Sale Alert: Tees Under Twenty. Dollars That Is.

I LOVE when I get emails like this from Anthro. I immediately start to salivate and think my life is so ridiculous that I have to wait ALL day for The Hus to get home, so I can go put out the fire that the $50 my mom just gave me for my birthday, is burning in my pocket. *Like he has something super important to do, like care and provide for our family or something. Hello! I have things to buy babe! (please read with a thick sarcastic tone for full effect.)

Heres whats making me drool, right now. Somebody get me a Xanax, pronto.
Click the images to shop the sale! Happy Hunting!

Staccato Garnish Racerback

 $19.95

 click images to shop sale

Squared Shoulder Top

$19.95

Lace Topped Tee

$19.95

Dual Patterned Dolman

$19.95 

click images to shop sale

Manifold Top

$19.95

Dicot Macrame Tank

$19.95

Tousled Pintuck Tank

$19.95

Twist & Flounce Tank

$19.95

Lace Petals Tee

$19.95

Ruffled Ribbed Tee

$19.95

 click images to shop sale

Ruched Stripes Tank

$19.95

Scalloped Strings Tank

$19.95

Prancing Rounds Hoodie

$19.95

Windsor Stone Necklace

$19.95

click images to shop sale

Cabarita Duvet Cover

King Size $109.95 (Ugh, LOVE this!)

Shadeless Doorknob

$19.95

Brassica Butter Dish

$14.95 (swooning)

Brassica Salt & Pepper

$9.95

Happy Hunting!
Let me know if you got anything good! Id love to post your pics on the next Alert!
Or have you bought an item lately you could review for us? Lets hear it!

xoxo, Janean

Make It Monday: Easy Roasted Vegetable Recipe

To stay on budget, I try to buy as much produce as possible and just things that are a necessity. Like bread, eggs, jam, peanut butter and meat. I don't always buy cheese, because it is so expensive and I only splurge once in a while on donuts or cookies or chips. I rarely buy expensive pre made packaged foods from the frozen section. Easy, yes. Cheap it is not. My local Henry's has double deal Wednesday. On Wednesday all of their items are the sale price of the new week ONTOP of the sale price of the last week. So for example bell peppers are like 4/ $1. It's awesome. I only buy my produce at Henry's on Wednesday. It works out great for us and I can get A LOT of produce for like $40 when prices are that good. My kids eat a lot of fruit and I use the veggies for dinners and snacks for the kids.

I make roasted vegetables quite often to go with our dinner and I have been able to broaden my vegetable horizon. Here is my most recent and probably favorite recipe slash concoction yet.

 

It's super easy too, which is another reason why I love it. This is broccoli, brussel sprouts, bell peppers and onion. I cut up all my veggies, drizzle some extra virgin olive oil over them, a little salt and sprinkle with dried dill weed and basil. Set the oven to 425 for about 30min or until the onion start to carmelize. I stir them around only a few times because I like the broccoli and sprouts to get browned.

This is so delicious and so easy. I could eat it everyday!

Happy Monday!

Xoxo, Janean

 

Sunday Confessions: Jekyll & Hyde

I am like the Jekyll and Hyde of being healthy. One day I am all about juicing and eating vegetables for dinner, and then I have like brownies or something to reward myself. Its ridiculous.  I really love to be healthy and frequently think about exercising, while I sit on my laptop and watch shows, and eat potato chips. Sometimes I even eat the whole bag... thats like 1000 calories guys. No, really, it is. One serving is 150 cal, theres 8 servings in said bag. Um yep, one thousand calories. Thats right, practically a third of a pound. But then I tell myself that the people on all the Food Network shows, like Giada, Mr. Flay, Paula (you catch me) are all really happy people. They love food. I love food. They dont limit themselves to crazy diets, or only vegetables. They use butter in their ingredients for crying out loud. Granted Paula deep fries Mac & Cheese, Im not that crazy.. but I bet its good, and you know what, if Paula Deen offered me some deep fried Mac & Cheese, the Hyde in me would eat some!
Then Jekyll takes over and I feel horrible. I need to be healthy, look better, exercise more, take better care of my body. I have to justify and tell myself that I am not a horrible person for wanting to use butter while I cook. Or if I want to have a steak, or a fish taco at a famous taqueria down here in San Diego, even if it is *gasp* deep fried. Or you know what else? The Hyde in me LOVES ice cream, deep fried ice cream at that. (ok, now I just sound like a slob, I dont eat everything deep fried) Its really hard these to days to not want to eat these glorious things.
Its even harder when your mother is hitting her mid life crisis and going super duper uber healthy on you. Guys, sometimes when my mom calls and asks what Im having for dinner, I dont tell her. I know she will be disappointed in me if I say pizza, or mashed potatoes, or anything cooked (for reals), not organic, not grass fed, not free range. Oh heavens, dont even get me started on how embarrassed I am to tell her I am eating something that came out of a bag or a box. Holy Hannah. I honestly think, she would be more disappointed in reading this post, than if she heard me using the word "crap." Conservative, remember? Im not perfect, especially not in the healthy eating category and you know, what? I probably never will be, actually, I dont want to be. Sorry mom, you and I are just going to have to accept me for who I am. Jekyll, Hyde and Janean.

xoxo, Janean

Foodie Fest Friday

Today, I packed my butt off. I don't mean literally, I wish literally... Anyway. I worked mostly on the kitchen trying to pack things that I have decided we don't need for the next week and a half. I'm pretty proud of myself. It's going slowly, but it's coming. I packed a lot of little things like, extra kids plasticware, and extra bottles, some mugs and then big things too. Like our extra large George Foreman grill that grills 10 patties or something crazy like that. Which we never use, except when I'm pregnant. Ha. I kid, I kid. But really. So with the kitchen a mess I decided that the perfect dinner idea would be, going out. Obviously. I'm pretty sure that eating out while moving, is the only good thing about moving. So, I was super stressed out and only feeling two types of food. Either italian or Mexican. I talked to The Hus and he was on board. Yes! Earlier that day I had talked to one of my friends who is also moving and remodeling. I wanted to stop by and see their progress. Their new place is close to one of our fav Mexican gem, hole in the wall, restaurants. Can 'gem' and 'hole in the wall' be used in the same sentence? Well, I just did, and I meant it. Mexican it was.

As I was getting ready to go out, I realized it had been FAR too many days since putting on any kind of make up. So of course, I took some pictures. Quite the occasion. And plus, we were eating out, at a place with a waiter. Which has also become quite the occasion these days. *sigh* Such is life.

The good thing about California, San Diego even more so, is that the more hole in the wall the restaurant, the better the food. BUT BEWARE, I am referring to Mexican food ONLY. Don't go all Hell's Kitchen on me. Anita's, in Oceanside. I wish i had taken more pics of it... But sorry, the stained glassed behind me in the booth will have to suffice for now. Those flowers and Humingbirds are pretty rad, huh? This place is pretty upscale as far as hole in the walls go, but def not a 5 star. Let me tell ya though. The food does not disappoint. Tonight I had the best thing I have ever had there. Tacos Al Carbon Plate. This was super Delish. The meat was cooked well, had great flavoring and the tomatillo sauce on top was Limey but not spicey. Perfect for this little gringa. The tortillas were made from scratch and amazing. And I love their rice and beans there.

The Hus always gets the same thing. Tochos Quesadilla. Don't be fooled by what you think you know is a quesadilla. Not only cheese, but some delicious chicken as well, avocados and bell peppers. Super good guys.

 

So I totally recommend this place if your looking for good authentic Mexican food here in town. Hopefully there will be more foodie posts in the near future.

Xoxo, Janean

My Memories Digital Scrapbooking Suite Giveaway & Coupon

I havent been much of a scrap booking person. I dont know why, maybe I just never had the right tools. I always thought of it as more of a traditional style as far as aesthetics go. And I like more modern and current stuff. Well, this product sure has changed my mind. The kind people over at My Memories have let me have a spin in their Lamborghini of design programs. The test drive went so well, that I am now a convert to using digi scrap. This program is awesome! And the best part is, they are giving me one to GIVEAWAY as well. You lucky dogs.
There are so many awesome and amazing functions with this digital scrapbook software. My favorite, is the ability to create and design your very own photo book, and have it printed and bound into a real book, all through the program. Super cool. Heres a little peek at what I did and my favorite features.. so far.


This photo is to demonstrate that you can design the look of the spine of your book. Which I thought was actually a pretty rad feature.

Here I am showing the cover that I designed. I made the shapes with the shape editor feature, which I LOOVE.

This feature is so freaking cool. I'll talk more about it in a bit.

This picture is of a picture layout page. I really like that you can easily upload your own personal photos into already pre-designed shapes and sizes. This is a major plus and great for precise design. No guessing on what looks good where or how to space it perfectly. Its already done for you.

Here is another design I made up using the program. I love the look of these square chains. It has a great modern feel. I got the idea from some rugs that I like. The nice thing about designing a page your self is that you dont have to start from scratch every single time. You can just add a "duplicate page" from one of the menus. Super easy.

 I wanted to show what it looks like when you go to order a book. I was surprised at how easy this was, and was curious to find out what the price was. My 12x12 book I made, came up as $22. Not bad.

Lastly, I wanted to show you how the shape editor feature works. I think it is awesome. Below, I started with a ring shape, and then manipulated it, by pulling on the little square nodes or points. This was really fun! Not to mention easy.

This program was a real surprise in its feature and functionality areas. I just loved all the features. It can do so much and I havent even scratched the surface yet. If you are interested in using photoshop or illustrator for your projects, but dont really have the know how, or the $600 for the Adobe suites, then this might just be your next best bet. Its pretty awesome. I cant wait to make things, like cards, invitations, birthday announcements and whatever else my heart desires. I really feel like the only thing holding me back with this program. Is my imagination. For realz.

Now, onto you getting this, for FREE... The giveaway. I love giveaways. Who doesnt like free.. right?
One winner will receive, the full My Memories Suite Scrapbook Software.
To enter:
Go to the My Memories website and leave a comment  telling me what your favorite design is, from the "New Kits" section.
For extra entries:

• follow my blog
• like how i keep sane on facebook
• follow My Memories blog
• like My Memories on FB
• follow My Memories on Twitter

Now, that is a whole lotta opportunities to win some really cool stuff. I hope you take full advantage. Please leave a separate comment for each entry.
Contest will run through the week. Ends next Wed June 20th


Didnt win? Do not fret..
The rest of you are still winners in my book, even if you dont win this one contest... With that being said if you buy using this coupon code, STMMMS72711 (copy and paste) you get $10 off the product, making it $30 instead of $40 and $10 credit towards the My Memories Suite Store.
Um, super cool. Thats a $20 value!

Good Luck All!!

Hump Day Inspiration: Braids & Dumpster Diving

The other day while I was getting out of my car, we have underground parking, I noticed a box full of what looked like a tea set by the dumpster. Let's get real, I would lose my street cred as a crafter if I didn't frequently check out what's bein dumped. And I wouldn't gain any said cred if I didn't frequently take things out the dumpster and into my house. Am I right, or am I right? (my life's motto) Anyway this particular dumpster find has been by far my fav, although there was that ginormous mirror we picked up and have major plans for. I mean, what are these people thinking? Is no one creative? Is no one on Pinterest? A whole box full of cool ceramic mugs and a little pitcher. I have been so inspired lately with people different projects using ceramic paint and stencils to create an Anthro knock off, or a ceramic paint pen to do an awesome design on some mugs. I am super excited to fancify these mugs. I know they're dishwasher proof, since I washed em first thing. Now, let's hope they're oven safe..

Onto the other half our inspiration for the day, braids. Are they going anywhere? Not anytime soon. A braid is def one of my go to hair styles when I haven't washed my hair and I'm heading to the beach or pool. Or grocery store, but whatever. I think the braid is the perfect choice for when I brush out my bed head hair and it looks more like I was struck by lightening than just got out of bed. I like the braid cuz it will contain said craziness, in a super cute way. Since I have layers though, my bangs are too short to be added to a side braid. So I usually put them in a braid of their own and pin it back with a bobby. Hipster hair love...

 

Xoxo, Janean

Make It Monday: A Difference aka Be smart: Rent Text Books, Save Lives, Smile

Let me first start off by saying that I will never recommended anything to you guys that I dont believe in. Unless its a great deal, or a fantastic cause, or I really use it, used it and love it. You wont be hearing about it. Period.

With that being said, I was recently in contact with a great company. Campus Book Rentals. Not only do they rent out text books for college. Which is awesome, because text books are another couple hundred dollars on TOP of an already expensive tuition. And in most cases, you dont need these books forever, and you can hope to sell them back to the school, but most times, good luck. They are probably going to be outdated and using the next edition. Honestly I wish I knew about this company when I was in college, coulda saved me some bucks.  You can see the price difference right here, between renting from Campus Book Rentals and buying the book. Buying the book would be like $150 and when I added it to my cart for rental, this is what showed up. $27.70 + FREE shipping both ways. Not bad.

  
Some perks with them are:
-save 40-90% off of bookstore prices
-free shipping both ways
-can highlight in the textbooks
-flexible renting periods
Heres a video on how the website works:


Now, whats so special about a book rental company, (besides saving cash) you ask? Well, the reason I like these guys is because they donate to Operation Smile, with every rental you make. Um, awesome! If you havent heard of Operation Smile, then get with the program!
Operation Smile is a super cool company. All over the world, children are born with a cleft lip. In some cases (most) the families of these children and babies can not afford to fix their lip. Thats where Operation Smile comes in. They give free surgeries to these children and save and change lives. Now, I am all about supporting people who are all about making a difference. Good on you, Campus Book Rentals.
Here is a quote from the Operation Smile website.

"As one of the most prominent charities for children in the world and with a presence in over 60 countries, we are able to heal children’s smiles and bring hope for a better future. If you are looking to make a difference on a child’s life, Operation Smile is one of the best charities to donate to."

I totally agree. 

So, if you are interested in saving money, saving lives and saving a smile, this is the way to go! 

Hope this helps you in your endeavors to become more educated and change the world along the way, because as my readers, I know you all are!

XOXO, Janean