Rafflecopter Giveaway!

February 6, 2012 – 5:59 pm

I love a good giveaway, and now the creative minds behind the wonderful widget Rafflecopter is having their own giveaway!

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By Brooke | Posted in Online | Tagged | Comments (0)

Day, n. a period of twenty-four hours, mostly misspent.

January 17, 2012 – 12:00 am

(quote by Ambrose Bierce)

I procrastinate and I waste time. Sometimes I realize it’s happening, and then sometimes I look up and four hours have gone by. I don’t know why I procrastinate with things I actually want to do. I don’t know why I let time be wasted when I have plenty to play with. I used to blame it on life, on being tired, on being too busy. Sometimes that is the case, but most of the time it’s not. I am the worst at managing time. Yet I know how precious it is.

One of the things I admire most is people who can get so much done in what seems like such little time. I wonder how they do it. Does it come naturally for them? Are they blessed with having everything they need at their fingertips? Are they incredibly organized? It is a mystery to me, and the more I try to solve it the more time I feel like I’m wasting.

This year is my big year for making things happen. I am the only thing standing in my way, and while I have accomplished a lot for myself in the past year it is still not quite enough. I feel like I have a list as long as my arm of things I want to do. It feels as though I don’t have enough time to get to them all. I think part of this is to blame for the years that were spent not thinking about myself. The time I spent being there for my family. It’s what I became used to. Now I have more time for myself, and I don’t know what to do with it.

Perhaps I should make a master list, even a visual one, and use that as guide.

By Brooke | Posted in Life | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

Scentsy Giveaway!

September 2, 2011 – 4:59 am

I love entering in giveaways, though I don’t win very many. There’s always that chance of winning though that gets me excited. That, and the idea of getting a new package in the mail.

Laugh, Love, & Lattes is giving a lucky commenter a $50 gift from Scentsy – a company that offers flameless candles through their independent sellers (think Avon, mark, etc.) – “including the Full-size Boleyn Scentsy Warmer, and three fall scented Scentsy bar packs! (Autumn Sunset, Hemingway, and Cinnamon Bear.)”

photo courtesy of LLL.com

I would love these in my house. With fall coming soon, I love filling the house up with scents like apple, pumpkin, spices, vanilla, and cinnamon. It really helps set the mood and feeling of autumn. I hope we have a good fall this year. It’s been so hot these past few months that I’m ready to feel the crispness in the air. I want it so bad! If I don’t get it then it really might be time for a move.

By Brooke | Posted in Online | Tagged | Comments (2)

[book review] Harry Potter and The Sorcerer’s Stone

August 17, 2011 – 8:00 am

I re-read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. I hadn’t read the book since it first came out, which was over 10 years now. Then I got caught up in all the movies. So after watching the last Harry Potter movie I decided to go back and re-read them.

The thing about me is that when I’m excited about a book I tend to skip through a lot of things. I read fast so I miss a lot of important details, and then later on I will forget certain things completely. So reading the book again was almost like reading it for the first time. That in itself is kind of amazing.

What really surprised me was Ron. In the movies they show him as this cowardly sidekick and he really isn’t at all. Even in some of the scenes it’s Ron who’s ready to take on Malfoy, who yells at Hermione to get her act together, who is actually very witty and funny. Hermione is more or less the same for me, and Harry is slightly different. He seems to open his mouth a lot more. I’m excited to read the second book, and watch these character progress again only this time I feel like I’m able to appreciate and understand it more now that I’m older.

By Brooke | Posted in Books | Tagged , | Comments (0)

Natural Beauty

August 14, 2011 – 6:47 am

I’m not a vegan. I’m not even a vegetarian, though I try. I still use paper products and plastic bottles, and I don’t always buy the “right” thing. But when it comes to beauty products I have become a lot more aware than I used to be. When I start investigating makeup product companies about two years ago it changed my entire outlook. I don’t buy from CoverGirl or any other national brand except for Almay and Revlon. My go-to makeup is e.l.f., which is actually pretty great for the price and I feel like with time they’ll just continue to improve.

Lately though, I’ve been really focusing on my beauty regime. I have very sensitive skin, thanks to my genes and sunburns from when I was younger. I also don’t exactly take care of myself like I should (but that’s another issue). After some trials and errors, I’ve finally decided that after I use up my store-bought products I’m just going to switch over to natural products. If I can eat it, then it’s safe.

I’ve found some great stuff already and I’m pretty close to figuring out my exact recipe for great skin. Right now I’ve got a great exfoliating scrub, partially thanks to Crystal for her awesome scrub I won from Ashley’s blog. I have a toner recipe from Kristin’s beauty blog (which is really great, btw). I’m going to give it a try when my Clinique one runs out. She also put up a moisturizer that I want to try as well. Below I’ve listed what I’ve discovered so far:

Make-Up Remover: olive oil.
Really, it just works the best. I need to find a better way to remove it though other than a wash cloth. I need something a little softer that is also washable. I’ve tried grapeseed oil but I just don’t think it works as good.

Face Wash: honey, perhaps with cinnamon.
I just read about this the other day. I’ve heard great things about using honey as part of your beauty regime. The only thing is regular honey is not vegan, and raw honey is better. I don’t think my stores sell vegan raw honey so it might be something I need to pick up in the city. I haven’t tried it with cinnamon yet but I will soon.

Toner: apple cider vinegar, green tea, tea tree oil – the recipe can be found here!
This is the one I’ll be trying when my Clinique toner runs out, which will be soon. I might skip the tea tree oil, even though I love it. My skin tends to be more on the dry side so I would like to replace it with something more moisturizing. Maybe rose water? This will be one I’ll play around with to get it right. To continue with being more green I will be reusing my Clinique toner bottle.

Moisturizer:  aloe vera, vitamin e, tea tree oil – the recipe can be found here!
Another recipe of Kristin’s that I’m excited to try! Again, I will play around with it to see what the best results are. I need to find a vegan sunscreen that I can use as well. I was going to buy the aloe vera gel but so far I’ve only been able to find products with chemicals added to them. Even Fruit of the Earth, which is a little disappointing. So I’m going to see about using the actual plant that’s growing in our yard.

Exfoliating Scrub: oatmeal, brown sugar, grapeseed oil, honey
I absolutely love this scrub. I made my first batch the other day, reusing the jar that my giveaway scrub came in. The only difference is that Crystal used olive oil, which may be better. This is the first time I’ve used grapeseed because I’ve read it’s better but we’ll see. So far, other than feeling like it’s a lighter oil, I don’t see a difference from the two.

If you have any tips or tricks to pass my way please do so! I’ll be happy to try almost anything.

By Brooke | Posted in Makeup, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Comments (0)

something needs to change

July 20, 2011 – 1:11 am

I had a good day off yesterday. I woke up, did a few chores, stretched the hours out and did a little bit of everything I wanted to do. Today? I woke up late, and now 8 hours later I feel like crap.

Maybe it’s the fact that I don’t want to go back to work tomorrow. Or that I’ve been sitting in front of the computer for too long, unsure of what to do with myself. I want to write, but my thoughts feel confusing. I want to exercise, but I feel like I’ll just give up. I was having a fine time posting about but now people have annoyed me and I want to withdraw again.

I was talking to my mom earlier about working from home. I just don’t know what to do to get started. I obviously couldn’t quit my job until I found something to replace it, but it is something I really want. Because working from home means setting my own time, and to give me a better chance of doing other things that I want to do without feeling exhausted and worn out.

Perhaps this is just me being in a fussy mood. I’m hoping with the fall season that work will slow down and I might even enjoy it again. Maybe I’ll find something in a different department that I will like better. I just need something to change. I don’t know what yet but I need it to.

By Brooke | Posted in Life | Tagged | Comments (2)

songs I wish they would sing on Glee

July 18, 2011 – 5:21 pm

As a big fan of Glee (most of the time) I have a dream list of songs of who I wish they sing – including who will sing them.

Pretty Girl Rock by Keri Hilson feat. Kanye West – http://tinysong.com/D8HZ
• Sung by Mercedes and Artie

We R Who We R by Ke$ha – http://tinysong.com/D1Zs
• Sung by New Directions

Fireflies by Owl City – http://tinysong.com/Htde
• Sung by Finn

Love Don’t Cost a Thing by Jennifer Lopez – http://tinysong.com/Hgjx
• Sung by Santana

If You Had My Love by Jennifer Lopez – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhHOJO-gec8
• Sung by Rachel to Puck

Good Girls Go Bad by Cobra Starship feat. Leighton Meester – http://tinysong.com/symB
• Sung by Puck and Rachel

I’m Yours by The Script – http://tinysong.com/w1zY
• Sung by Puck to Rachel

More to follow…

By Brooke | Posted in Glee, Television | Tagged , | Comments (0)

reading machine

July 18, 2011 – 5:00 pm

I have been reading a lot more lately which I’m excited about. In the past couple of weeks I’ve finished 3 books that I really liked, and I’m onto my 4th one. I love that I have this Kindle. I still read an actual book from time to time but there’s something so satisfying about being able to read what I want when I want without having to go searching for it. I love that I can pick up my Kindle any time and take it practically everywhere (I even read it while I’m taking my bath).

Right now I’m just going through what I have not read on my Kindle yet. I want to add more books but I don’t want to overwhelm myself. I need to play around with it some more, figure out if I should keep the books I’ve read or remove them. I also want to add some games onto it for when I’m bored or just need a break from reading.

I’m trying to do this challenge, much like the movie challenge I’m doing this year (which I really need to update). It’s posted here: http://www.goodreads.com/user_challenges/17117 Apparently I’m 8 books behind which I didn’t even think was a big deal until I realized summer is almost over, thankfully. I’m so ready for summer to be over.

I’m wondering if I should start doing book reviews on here more often.

By Brooke | Posted in Books | Comments (0)

Harry Potter

July 18, 2011 – 4:51 pm

I went to the midnight showing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows II. I bought our tickets online, and stood in line for an hour like many other people were doing. I was very excited, and expected to cry a lot during the film. I think I was just overwhelmed that this was the last movie and I only teared up at a couple of things. I felt like the movie went by so fast even though it was a couple of hours, and I don’t remember some of the details because I wasn’t paying attention. So I definitely need to watch it again.

But I’m surprisingly not as sad as I thought I would be. I guess because I don’t feel like it’s truly over because we have the books, the movies, and soon-to-be Pottermore. I was even telling my brother last night that I wanted to re-read the books because it’s been so long and I feel like I can appreciate them more now that I’m older.

This series was such a big part of my childhood, and something I shared with my brother and our family that it feels close to my heart. I even want to get a small HP tattoo with my brother to symbolize more of the connection we shared over it than anything else. I kind of want a small lightning bolt on my inner wrist. Just something not too noticeable except for myself since it’s personal.

By Brooke | Posted in Books, Life, Movies | Tagged , | Comments (0)

being productive

June 16, 2011 – 7:22 pm

I’m having one of those days where I’m actually being productive. Not so much with things that I have to get done but things I’ve been wanting to do. Like, I woke up – after sleeping for 12 hours because I worked 12 hours yesterday, omg – and I watched tv for a little bit. Then I got all my paint and stuff that I’ve been buying recently to do all these things with and still haven’t. I went outside and made myself some paint splatters and played around with different brushes. I’m going to be turning that into Photoshop brushes later.

Then, I didn’t really do anything so much productive after that but now I’m actually curling my hair and my makeup before work tonight, and I just made some brownies. Usually I start getting ready like an hour before I have to leave, sometimes less. So it seems like I never do my makeup or hair but lately I’ve been trying to stop that. I feel better when I make myself a little done up. I still haven’t mastered the skills of making my hair, my skin and my makeup look flawless but I’m working on it.

I really want those brownies now though.

By Brooke | Posted in Life | Comments (2)