TopBox November 2012 Unboxing

So, apparently I've gone insane and have decided to expose myself to the craziness that is YouTube. That's right, I've uploaded my very first video - an unboxing video for TopBox to be exact. Enjoy and please let me know if you have any feedback.

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Ok, I'm going to get all mushy for a bit and gush about my husband. I'm also going to admit that I'm a giant jerk and I'm proclaiming it to the world (or the three people who read this blog). And here's why...

August 30th was our fourth anniversary. We generally don't go crazy with anniversary gifts and if you asked me what the traditional presents are for 4 years, I'd have no idea. This year I got A. the 2nd season of Walking Dead on Blu-Ray because it was something he'd specifically mentioned wanting. He seemed happy with it and we went on our merry way. He did say that I'd have to wait until September 8th to receive my gift because it was "on its way." No problem.

September 6th rolls around and he says he needs to take M. to the mall to "pick something up." When they get home, M. presents me with a box and says, "we got you a necklace!!" (Girl can't keep a secret.) And this is when it all went to pot.

I opened the box and see what looks like a black dog-tag on a simple chain. Fairly unremarkable but I could see there were some small characters engraved on the face. A. explained their meaning and I proclaimed it "nice." Ouch, right?

Want to know what the engraving is? Those two lines are the longitude and latitude of the place, the EXACT spot, where we met 7 years ago - Camp Julien in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Since that night, I have worn this every single day and every day I think about how I should have been more grateful and excited. So, here's me, hanging my head in shame and shouting my thanks to the world. I love you A!!

August GlossyBox and Fall Luxe Box

Today was a good mail day. I have been obsessively tracking both my GlossyBox and Luxe Box and, as fate would have it, they both arrived in my mail box today! I thought since I was able to open them both at once, I would post the comparison here. Keep in mind that they are different price points so, naturally, the products will be of differing quality.

Let's start with GlossyBox. I have been received this box for about 4 months now and have generally been pleased with the samples I receive. GlossyBox does tend to be more drug store brands, which some people don't like, but I don't mind it because I'm more likely to buy a Biore facial wash than a $100 cleanser. Call me cheap. I love the high end samples simply for the chance to try them but, for me, GlossyBox is a more practical option.

 This month's samples arrived in the standard GlossyBox packaging - a good quality light pink box with black tissue paper and a pink ribbon. I've been saving these boxes for use come Christmas.

 Befine Fine Food Skin Care - 5 single size samples that will invigorate, protect and detoxify your skin. I especially love clay masks so I'm looking forward to trying that.
UPDATE: I've been using the cleanser and the night cream for the past couple of days and LOVE the night cream. It's a nice texture, not too heavy, doesn't leave my skin oily, and smells amazing!

 Biore Make-Up Removing Towelettes - 10 pack. I liked the cleanser I received last month and I like towelettes for their convenience factor so I will definitely be using these.

 Sebastian Potion 9 Lite. A good addition to the shampoo I received in a past box.
UPDATE: Like all other Sebastian products I've tried this one has a nice scent and really does seem to leave my hair feeling softer.

 Layla Smalto "Bijou" nail polish. I've never heard of this brand before and I LOVE the purple colour. Can't wait to try it on my toes.

 Elastoplast SOS Blister. Can never have too many band-aids. The card says this is a full size travel pack but it would have been nice to receive more than one.

 Trend Trunk Mystery gift card. This card could be worth anywhere from $5 - $250 at Trend Trunk which is described as being a "social marketplace which allows you to buy, sell and donate your amazing new and pre-loved fashion!" Interesting concept but not sure if I will use it. Adds no value to the box in my opinion.

 Kryolan for GlossyBox lipstick in Glossy Pink. My one gripe with the boxes I've been receiving is too much lipstick! I generally don't wear it and would much prefer a lip gloss or balm. Most of the tubes I've received have been pink (as is this one) and 50% have been frosty which looks TERRIBLE on me. If I have to receive a lipstick I'd rather get something like a universally flattering red. Lipstick colours are so subjective to the wearer. That said, this is actually a decent colour (seems most people got this same one - not sure if there were alternate colours) so I might wear it.
UPDATE: I've been wearing this every day and am quite impressed with it's staying power. Even after eating and drinking, my lips have a nice colour to them.

All in all, I continue to be satisfied that I'm getting my money's worth from GlossyBox.

Next up is Luxe Box. In the spring, Loose Button decided to change the format of their beauty box from a monthly offering to a seasonal box. The price increased to $26/quarter and was to include 7-8 high end samples. There was a lot of negative reaction to this change but I was looking forward to something a little different from the rest of the boxes. After months of waiting, my first seasonal box finally arrived.

 First, the packaging. What an improvement over the old, flimsy black boxes. This box is a lovely cream colour with the Loose Button logo embossed in gold. Feels luxe!

 Inside the products are wrapped in a silky piece of fabric and Luxe Box is embossed in gold on the inside of the lid.

 The product card envelope is sealed with a monogrammed sticker and I must say, I loved this personalized touch. The simple addition of a sticker made it seem like this box was packed specially for me.

 Moroccanoil Luminous Hairspray. I really like Moroccanoil products but tend not to purchase them for myself so I'm excited about this sample. Especially since I just ran out of hairspray.

 Eyeko Skinny Liquid Eyeliner. I have never used liquid eyeliner in my life and I'm sure it will take some practice. Reviews have said this eyeliner is great for staying put so I look forward to trying it.

 Loose Button Exfoliating Pad. That about says it all. Might toss in the shower.

 China Glaze "On Safari" nail lacquer in Adventure Red-y. Another awesome addition to my polish collection. I've actually never tried China Glaze (I'm normally a Revlon girl) but I've heard great things about it.

 Vichy Proeven Daily Dark Spot Corrector. I like Vichy so I'm willing to give this a try. Not sure that I have "dark spots" per se but I'm up for anything that will even out my skin tone.

 Benefit Stay Don't Stray primer. This may be the product I'm most excited about. I've never used primer before but I generally end up with raccoon eyes by the end of the day so I'm hoping this will help.

Madonna Truth or Dare Eau de Parfum. Probably the sample I'm least excited about. I'm pretty picky about perfumes because I'm sensitive to scent so I tend not to wear them a lot. (That, and my work is a scent-free environment.) Also, I HATE the packaging. The box is fine but the sample itself is in a glass tube with a stopper (hard to get out) and a rounded bottom! It doesn't even stand up on its own. Will be going into my give away pile.

So, this being the first seasonal box, I am fairly pleased. There was a good variety of brands and products but I actually thought there would be another full-sized item. I'm looking forward to seeing what Loose Button comes up with for Winter.

Were you pleased with the samples you received this month? Which beauty box is your favourite?

"The Heart and the Bottle" by Oliver Jeffers

M. received a lovely book for her third birthday called “The Heart and the Bottle” by Oliver Jeffers. I was unfamiliar with Jeffers’ work before seeing this book but knew that the gift giver was a big fan of his books. The first time I flipped through the book I thought the illustrations were wonderful and that the story was cute, if a little sad. Obviously, I wasn’t paying attention to the message in the illustrations.

Last night, M crawled into my lap and I convinced her to let me read “The Heart and the Bottle.” Lately, she has been obsessed with Madeline and only wants to read that book over and over again. While I was reading I pointed out things in the illustrations and asked M. questions about what she saw. As we turned the pages I finally got the true meaning of the book and broke down crying.

Essentially, “The Heart and the Bottle” is about a little girl who is endlessly curious about the world around her and experiences these things with (who I take to be) her father. (As an aside, while I was reading reviews most people take the older man to be her grandfather and Jeffers has said he prefers to leave the interpretation up to the reader. So, father fits my personal experience better.) One day the little girl runs to show something to her father and finds his chair empty. At this point she decides to close her heart in a bottle so she can’t be hurt again. She grows and loses the sense of wonder at the world, only feeling the weight of her heart. It is only when she meets a little girl (who probably reminds her of herself) that she tries to free her heart.

M. wasn’t sure why I was crying (I just told her it was a sad story) so I’m not quite sure what she got out of the story aside from enjoying the illustrations. Either way, I think this book is a great addition to any library, young or old, and provides a great message about loss and grief.


{Image sources: LittleElfMan & where is my tomato}

Scenes from my weekend : June 23 & 24

This weekend was supposed to mark our first camping trip of 2012. While, we did get out to Kananaskis Country for one night, the rain and damp ended up being too much for us and our friends so we packed up on Saturday and headed home. I'm sad we didn't get a full weekend out at the beautiful Mount Kidd RV Park but I'm happy I got to sleep in a warm bed and we still had fun exploring the small towns near the city on Sunday.

Stunning drive but the weather definitely had us worried for our camping prospects. This is why most people in Alberta camp in RVs.

 On Sunday we took a drive South of Calgary down the Cowboy Trail. There has been so much rain (and mountain run-off) that the rivers and streams are swelling their banks and flooding roads.

Just a quick pass through Black Diamond.

 

We headed down to Longview to pick up some of their famous beef jerky. The first kind we tried was Sweet with Heat - so good!

It was still a little early for dinner so we popped in to Ian Tyson's Navajo Mug where I had what was possibly the best London Fog of my life.

We debated Mexican or local homecooking for dinner. The Heartland Cafe and their awesome food won out. I had bacon-wrapped, mushroom-stuffed bison meatloaf with house-made tomato-peach chutney. Yum!

We ended the evening with a quick swing at the park. I can't believe she's big enough to sit on the big swing now. *sniff*

How was your weekend? Did you attempt to camp in the rain?

Scenes from my weekend

This past weekend was very kid-centric - Saturday was spent cooking and baking and Sunday we hosted the (early) 3rd birthday party for our Birth & Babies group. All the kiddos were born in July but with birthday parties galore, camping, and other scheduled events, we decided to have a party for them in June. Can you believe that our little group has continued to get together monthly for 3 years?! Love them all!

 M. turns 3 in July and the theme for her party this year is "ice cream social." I worked with my amazing friend Laurel, who is a graphic designer, and she came up with an awesome invitation.

Someone has decided she's a baby again - she rides around in her baby stroller and occasionally sucks a soother (even though she never did as an actual baby!). The thing that makes it funnier (to me anyway) is that she always wants to wear her "woman" shirt. Sorry kid, you can't be both. :)

I made cupcakes for the party - not bad if I do say so myself.

 I also made dried strawberries (which look NOTHING like the picture on Pinterest but were still yummy) and roasted chickpeas. The chickpeas didn't really get crispy though. Tips?

Every year we do a book exchange (which makes M. very happy) so I put out a basket to collect the books. This year we gave "Henri's Walk to Paris" by Saul Bass and received "Leonardo, The Terrible Monster" by Mo Willems.

 

I think the cupcakes were a hit! :)

How was your weekend?