Wednesday 30 April 2014

Thoughts of the month

1. The Bonne Maman Caramel Spread is life changing. And very dangerous. Also, extremely difficult to find. That is all.

2. I've been watching Real Housewives of Melbourne. OMG. Is it for real? Surely it can't be? It must be scripted?

3. The last few days have been cold and wet, it's wonderful.

4. The cold, wet days have really made me realise how much I miss the convenience of living in the city. There really isn't a lot to do around here, especially when it's raining. 

5. The Bonne Maman Chestnut Spread is pretty disappointing.

6. I'm starting to wonder if they'll ever find the Malaysian Airlines plane. For the sake of the families I hope they do.

7. I love this song, although it strikes me as being really sad.  




Tuesday 29 April 2014

Mothers Day goodies

There are some beautiful packs being released for Mothers Day and I want all of them! For those of you wondering what to buy Mum, I've listed a few of my favourite packs.

Subtle Energies have just released a Wild Kashmir Hand Lotion that sounds divine. At $44 for a 90g tube it's not cheap, but I bet it'd be amazing. 
Image credit

NAT. Skincare's Aroma Mother's Day pack is totally lust worthy. For $40 you get a rose essential oil and a 50ml body oil.
 
Image credit

As usual, Jurlique's Mother's Day packs do not disappoint. My pick is the Indulgent Rose Deluxe Collection which is a steal at $99. It includes a rosewater balancing mist, rose hand cream and rose shower gel. 
Image credit

Sodashi is one of those brands that I've always wanted to try but I'll probably never buy for myself unless I suddenly acquire a very large bank account. Their Quintessential Mother's Day Pack costs $265 and contains Plant Essence Replenish Mask, Vanilla Body Butter, Hand Cream and Foot Cream. 
They also have two other packs that are at a cheaper price point. 

Audra James has some beautiful Mother's Day packs this year. The two that really stand out for me are the Triple Rose Facial Oil for $64 and the Vitality Balm + Sleep Balm Pack for $44. 

Monday 28 April 2014

April Empties

Soap and Glory The Scrub of Your Life - Soap and Glory products never disappoint.

Clinique Youth Surge Night - Tiger used this however for some reason he left it with a little bit in the bottom and hasn't used it for at least six months. I got sick of seeing it sitting there so decided to use it up. I got about two weeks out of it. It's a very rich, hydrating moisturiser that I quite liked.

Audra James Skin Cleansing Balm - Love, love, love!

Avene Gentle Milk Cleanser - It's a cleanser and it works. Nothing else to say.

Nivea Stress Protect Deodorant - I don't like aerosol deodorants so I wouldn't repurchase this and also, I didn't find it to be very effective.

Natio Spa Heavenly Hand Cream - I used this in the car because it's very light. It'd be good for summer, but doesn't cut it for my super dry hands at the moment.
Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair -This is the old version, not the new, better one. I was expecting amazing things from this because so many people rave about it, but I got nothing. It didn't do anything for my skin at all. Maybe the new version would give results, who knows.

Klorane Gentle Shampoo - Meh, it was okay.

Kora Vitamin Enhanced Lip Balm - This is finally empty! It felt like this balm lasted forever, I'm sure the make-up fairies replenished it every night. I used this as my night time balm and it did a good job, however I won't be repurchasing it as I don't think it's worth the price. Read my full review here.

1Skin Solution Vanilla Lip Balm - Can you believe I finished two lip balms this month! I'm very sad to see the end of my 1Skin Solution balm, it's one of my favourites. Luckily I have the mojito one to console me.

Saturday 26 April 2014

FFS Friday - There's a mouse in the house

Happy Friday everyone! I hope you have all had a wonderful, short week! Yes, I know it's Saturday, but writing FFS Friday on ANZAC day just didn't seem right.

I don't know how I forgot to mention this last week, but we had another maggot incident. FFS.

Actually I do know how I forgot to mention it, I was too tired to think rational thoughts. FFS.

This maggot incident wasn't as bad as the last one. There weren't as many maggots and they were outside and not in the garage. Also, Tiger had to deal with them. Not FFS.

We've now stopped putting food scraps in the organics bin. FFS.

Until they design a biodegradable bag that is strong enough to not break open and let maggots get everywhere, our food scraps will be going into the normal green bin. FFS.

Now for yesterday. It was a doozy. FFS.

I woke up at 3.30am with a huge headache and couldn't get back to sleep. FFS.

I needed to take some painkillers but couldn't because I had both boys sleeping on me and every time I moved they woke up. FFS.

So I lay there trapped under two sleeping children, with a pounding headache, until 5am. FFS.

Every morning when I'm having my shower Eljay pounds at the door wanting to get in, so I decided to let him in. As soon as the water hit him he started screaming. FFS.

I had only just got into the shower so was barely wet, with a screaming baby. FFS.

I put him on the floor of the shower and luckily he was happy enough for me to quickly wash my bits and get us both out. FFS.

I put a towel around us both and was in the nursery getting Eljay dressed when I heard some rustling noises. I was wondering what it was when I saw a mouse run across the room! FFS!

I'm fine with spiders, cockroaches etc but I cannot stand mice! FFS.

I quickly got Eljay up, grabbed some clothes and nappies and evacuated the room! FFS.

So there we were, both wet and naked and I had no idea what to do. FFS.

I called Dad, he didn't answer. FFS.

I called my brother who thought it was hilarious. FFS.

He told me that there would be more than one mouse, that they can climb up walls and under doors and that I needed to get some mouse traps. FFS.

Sofa king helpful. Not!! FFS.

Dad called back and he also thought it was hilarious. Thanks Dad. FFS.

My brother had told me that the mouse would be long gone, so I went back into the bedroom to grab some more clothes for Eljay and I saw it again! FFS.

I hightailed it out of the room and jammed some towels under the door hoping that would stop the mouse from leaving the room. FFS.

I loaded both the boys into the car and headed to Bunnings. Eljay sang me the song of his people the whole way there. Chai yelled in harmony. It was fun. FFS.

When we got to Bunnings it was closed. FFS. 

For another two hours. FFS.

I took them to the park where Chai will usually play happily for hours. He'd had enough after fifteen minutes. FFS.

We went back to wait for Bunnings to open and both boys cried hysterically the whole trip there. FFS.

When we arrived I got Eljay out to feed him and Chai was really upset because he'd taken his seatbelt off. FFS.

I told him he didn't need it on because we weren't going anywhere but he wouldn't stop crying till his seat belt was on. I've taught him well. Not FFS.

We did what we needed to do and then headed home. Due to the lack of sleep, by the time we got home I'd convinced myself that there was a mouse plague at my house and that I'd open the door to see mice dropping from the roof and running all over the house. FFS.

I opened the door and everything was normal. No mouse in sight. Not FFS.

I bolted into the nursery, set up the mouse traps and bolted out again. I don't like killing things but Bunnings were out of the humane mouse traps. FFS.

Within half an hour I heard the trap go off. FFS.

I still haven't gone in there to get rid of the mouse. FFS.

I'm going to get Dad to come over and do it for me. FFS.

And yes, I am a grown woman. 

That evening I was telling Tiger the story of my day and he thought it was so funny that he had tears running down his face. FFS.

Bloody unsupportive husband. FFS.

That concludes my whinges for the week. If you've had any FFS worthy moments, please tell me all about them so that I can pretend I'm Tiger and laugh at you. 
If you'd like to read more whinges, head over to Sarah and Brads blog.



Dear Baby G

Monday 21 April 2014

Sisley Phyto Lip Twist

It's well known that I'm a chubby lipstick addict. I am on a mission to collect one of every chubby lipstick pencil ever made. So far, I'm doing pretty well with this mission, but since more brands are releasing chubby lip products I may well fall behind soon. 
Sisley's Phyto Lip Twist is the latest chubby stick to join my collection and it's a great addition. This is quite a weighty, twist up stick, it feels substantial and not at all flimsy, which is exactly what I'd expect from a premium brand. The body and lid are both made of metal, which explains the weighty feel. And how gorgeous is the zebra print packaging!
I have this in shade 2, Baby, which Sisley describes as a tender pink.
One layer provides a sheer wash of glossy colour and two layers provides an opaque, long lasting coverage. Those of you who don't like fragrance will be happy to know these are fragrance free.

Phyto Lip Twist is very comfortable to wear, it's lightly hydrating and once it's on I can't feel it on my lips at all. The wear time is great, if I apply two layers it lasts for at least four hours before the colour starts to fade. 


Both photos were taken in natural light with no flash. The lip swatch is one layer, as you can see, even one layer provides great coverage. 

There are six shades available, Nude (soft beige), Baby (tender pink), Peach (zesty coral), Pinky (luminous fuchsia pink), Berry (succulent plum) and Cherry (intense red).  


Whilst these are on the high end of the price scale, I think they are worth it when you want a splurge. The packaging is beautiful, they wear really well and are weightless once applied. I'm planning on getting Nude next.
Phyto Lip Twist costs $50 and is available at David Jones stores. 

*This product was provided to me for review.

Friday 18 April 2014

FFS Friday - Decorating with coffee

Hello! It's a super long weekend for us all, got to love that. Especially since I have Tiger home so I can actually enjoy the weekend instead of being jealous of all the families together when I'm flying solo.

This morning we had a huge sleep in and didn't wake up until 7.30am. Not FFS.

It's amazing how great I feel when I've had a good sleep. Not FFS.

It's been so long since I had a good night sleep that I'd forgotten what it felt like not to be tired. FFS.

This week has been pretty trying. FFS.

Poor Eljay is teething and he's been so unhappy, the poor little tyke. FFS.

His two bottom teeth came through at the same time, which would explain why he was so miserable. FFS.

I suspect that his top teeth are on the move too, because he still wakes up screaming in pain. FFS.

It's no secret that I love coffee. I like to drink it. Tiger likes to decorate with it. FFS.

Every morning he has a protein shake (don't get me started on them!). FFS.

He puts coffee in it and then microwaves it, in the shaker. With the lid closed. FFS.

You know what that does don't you? FFS.

It pressurises the container. FFS.

And then to make things worse, Tiger takes it out of the microwave and shakes it. FFS.

And then he's surprised when it explodes. FFS.

He's done this so many times and yet he doesn't learn. FFS.

Monday he decorated the kitchen, the roof, the walls, the dining room and the windows. With coffee. FFS.

I came out to help him clean up the mess and ended up doing the majority of the cleaning. FFS.

Next time I'll let him do the whole thing himself. FFS.

I'm still finding spots of coffee all over the house. FFS.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, Tiger is the woman in our relationship. FFS.

Tuesday he decided it was time to rearrange the furniture. FFS.

He does this regularly and it drives me crazy. FFS.

Things are the way they are for a reason and there's no need to change things. He just can't help himself. FFS.

He rearranged the lounge suites in the theatre room and lounge room and is now so pleased with himself. FFS.

Next month he'll probably put them back the way they were before. FFS.

Bloody waste of time. FFS.

We all know that Tigers parents drive me crazy, but I'm so worried about their health. FFS.

We spoke to Tigers dad earlier in the week and he didn't sound well but he insisted that he was okay. Later on we found out that he'd had food poisoning and it had upset his diabetes so he'd ended up in hospital. FFS.

I wish they'd just tell us the truth, we'd worry so much less if they were honest with us. FFS.

That concludes my whinges for this week. I hope you all have a wonderful, safe long weekend.


If you'd like to read more whinges, head over to Sarah and Brad's blog. If you've had any FFS Friday worthy moments, please tell me all about them in the comments so I can have a good laugh.
 
Dear Baby G

Friday 11 April 2014

FFS Friday - Fridge Fiasco

This week must have been fridge week as all my complaints relate to the fridge. FFS.

Food is better than poo complaints. Not FFS.

Saturday we were getting to the pointy end of the swing, where I'm exhausted, everything is too difficult, Chai has had enough so is whinging for all he's worth, the house is a mess because I'm sick of cleaning it only for it to be messed up two minutes later etc. It's fun. FFS.

Chai went to the fridge and helped himself to rice for his afternoon tea. I'd made some lovely sticky rice, so he took it to the table, got a fork, ate a few mouthfuls and then threw the rest all over the table and floor. FFS.

Ever tried to vacuum up sticky rice? Don't. FFS.

It took me half an hour on my hands and knees to clean it all up. FFS.

Days later I was still finding rice all over the place. FFS.

Sunday the fridge fiasco continued. FFS.

Whilst I was feeding and putting Eljay to sleep Chai went to the fridge, got a whole tub of grapes, ate a few and threw the rest all over the theatre room. FFS.

Later that day I found him hiding in the theatre room with a whole block of cheese. FFS.

That afternoon I went to Bunnings and got a lock for the fridge. FFS.

Have a lock on the fridge is sofa king annoying! FFS.

But it's much less annoying than finding food all over the house. FFS.

I keep forgetting the lock is there and wondering why I can't open the fridge. FFS.

That concludes my complaints for this week. I would have more, however I am too exhausted to think of them. Blame Eljay for that. He has barely slept for the last ten days and nights. FFS.

If you would like to read any more whinges, head over to Sarah and Brads blog. If you've had any FFS worth moments, please feel free to tell me all about them in the comments. 

 
Dear Baby G
Have you entered my Phillips VisaPure giveaway yet? Full details here.

Wednesday 9 April 2014

MyNewSkin

It's no secret that I am a great lover of Do Everything balms. I like having a balm on hand that I can use on me, the kids and on hubby whenever the need arises. My latest Do Everything balm is MyNewSkin which is very interesting as it's made out of herbs that have been freshly picked. 

I've been using this on myself and bub with great results. For me I've been using it as a night treatment and for bub as an eczema treatment.

As a night treatment it's great. I only use the smallest amount (less than a pea size) to cover my face, neck and chest. I wake up in the morning with soft, hydrated skin. The area it's been most effective is my chest. From sleeping on my side I have chinkles (chest wrinkles) and these are significantly better since I started using MyNewSkin. 

For bub's eczema, I wanted to use something that is light and chemical free. I've tried various oils that weren't helping and the Dr gave me steroid cream which I really didn't want to use. The ointment the chemist suggested was really thick, sticky and stained his clothes so I was delighted to find that MyNewSkin didn't sting him and cleared his eczema up within a week.
For those of you who like me, are wondering what Sheep Sorrel is, it's a herb with leaves that are very rich in vitamin C.
I love a product that has a 100% refund guarantee, it gives me confidence that I'm buying a great product.
One thing to note is that this smells distinctly herbal. It smells like something out of the garden. The scent is not unpleasant, but it does take some getting used to purely because I am accustomed to using products that are either fragrance free or artificially fragranced.

Another thing worth noting is that I do no recommend this for use on the lips as it's quite greasy and does not taste pleasant. 
There are two variants available, Olive and Lavender or Olive and Lemon Myrtle.
MyNewSkin is Australian owned and made in Australia from fresh, Australian products.


There is a breakdown of all ingredients used on this page. I found it to be very interesting reading. 

*This product was provided to me for review.

Have you entered my Phillips VisaPure giveaway yet? Full details here.

Monday 7 April 2014

March Favourites

Echolife Lavender Calming Facial Mist - This saved my skin after I had an allergic reaction to a face mask. Within a few hours it'd calmed down the redness and my face was nearly back to normal. Magic.

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush in Ethereal Glow - I am absolutely in love with this, I've used it every day since I got it. It's very light so wouldn't work for people who don't have pale skin, but for pale skinned people like me it's perfect. 

Audra James Bespoke Perfume - Every time I wear this it smells better, the scent is amazing. I have half a bottle left so I save it for those days when I need a pick me up or mood booster. When I put it on it instantly lifts my mood and I feel great.

Luminesce - As soon as this has absorbed I can feel my skin tightening, it's quite amazing. I know it sounds strange, but it's not a bad feeling. I've only been using this for a few weeks so I'll be very interested to see what the results are like over a longer period of time.  Despite it only being very early, my skin is already starting to look better, more radiant and I'm sure my fine lines are reducing.

Carmex Moisture Plus lip balm - Oh Carmex, you can do no wrong. I always have Carmex products in my handbag. I've talked about the Moisture Plus lip balms before (read my full review here). At the moment I'm using the clear version in place of lip gloss because it gives a lovely sheen.

Dermalogica Skinperfect primer - I think I've found my holy grail primer. I've been using this for a week so far and it's love. A little bit goes a long way, it's lightly tinted so helps to even out my skintone and it makes my pores look smaller. Perfect. I've worn it both over and under BB cream and it works perfectly. I'm going to be very upset when I finish my sample as I have a whole pile of other primers to get through before I can buy a full size of this. Unless I give all my other primers away, hmmmm.

What have been your favourite products this month?

Have you entered my Phillips VisaPure giveaway yet? Full details here

Friday 4 April 2014

FFS Friday - Last night I had the strangest dream

Last Friday night I was woken in the middle of the night by a kick to the head. FFS.

From Chai. FFS.

He kicked me so hard that it bruised. FFS.

How he managed to get his leg up to my head when he was sleeping right next to me with his head on the pillow, I'll never know. FFS.

It took me ages to get back to sleep because my cheek was throbbing and I had a huge headache. FFS.

I still had the headache when I woke up in the morning. FFS. 

It's parental abuse!

Monday Mum was supposed to come and stay for a few days. She'd told Chai on Thursday that she was coming to visit so he'd been looking forward to it and counting down the days. Sunday she let me know she couldn't come because she had the flu. FFS. 

I'd been saving tasks to do for when she arrived. You know, fun things like wash my hair, vacuum the house, put the washing away, tidy up etc. I had to get it all done with both kids "helping". FFS. 

Tuesday we had a poo incident, the worst poo incident we've had yet. FFS.

I was taking Chai's overnight nappy off when he decided to do a poo mid nappy removal! FFS.

I'd just taken his nappy off when he leaned forward and started doing a poo! FFS.

The nappy was wrapped up and I didn't have time to open it so I tried to use the nappy to catch the poo but it didn't work. FFS.

You know what happened don't you? FFS.

So, so gross. FFS.

Yes, I caught the poo in my hand. FFS.

EWWWWWWW! FFS!

It was either catch it or let it fall on the carpet. FFS.

I should have let it fall on the carpet. FFS.

I have no words to describe how truly disgusting this was. FFS.

FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS FFS!!!!!

I was tempted to call MIL to see if she wanted to come and clean it up for me. Heh.  

I've been trying to keep Chai as busy as possible whilst Tiger is away. Wednesday he whinged from the time he woke up and when he wasn't whinging he was crying. FFS.

I tried to cheer him up every way I could think of but it just didn't work. FFS.

I cuddled him, tickled him, danced with him, chased him around the house, I even asked him if there was anything I could do to cheer him up. Nothing worked. FFS.

We went to the park and when we were leaving Chai wanted his bottle. Instead of waiting for me to get it for him, he got it himself, took the lid off and poured milk all over himself, his car seat and the floor. FFS.

Of course, that set off a new round of tears. FFS.

We were heading to the farmers market after the park, when we got there I got Chai out of the car and went to get Eljay out of the car. He was fast asleep. FFS.

I didn't want to wake him up but when I told Chai we were going home he had a huge tantrum. FFS.

I really needed to get some fruit as we were out and I had a friend coming over the next day. FFS.

Thankfully Eljay stayed asleep when I put him in the carrier and slept the whole time we were at the farmers market. Not FFS. 

Thursday Chai had a friend over for most of the day and it was great, he had a wonderful time. It was lovely for me too as they entertained each other and I managed to get some cleaning done. I live the high life. FFS.

That concludes my whining for this week, so I will leave you with installment number two of things I never thought I'd say as a parent:
Get your bare bottom off my head.
Keep your feet away from your brother. And your bottom too! 

If you'd like to read more whinges, head over to Sarah and Brad's blog. If you have any whinges, feel free to post them below so I can laugh at commiserate with you. 
Dear Baby G
You may be wondering what the title is all about. The answer is                         it's the song that was going through my head when I was trying to think up a title. 

Wednesday 2 April 2014

March Empties

Natio Ageless Gentle Cleansing Milk, David Jones Facial Cleanser, Clarins Multi-Active Day and Guardian Angel Intensive Conditioning Treatment - I have the same thing to say about all of these products. They were nice but nothing amazing. They all did their job nicely and I'd be happy to use them all again, however I won't be rushing out to buy them.
Morgan Annie Latte Lip Scrub - I loved this. It smells and tastes amazing and every time I used it I wanted to eat it.

MMS Purity Perfume - This was a dupe for Child perfume which isn't available in Australia. I wish it was because it's one of my all time favourite scents. If I ever get the chance to buy Child I will.

Grown Alchemist Camellia and Geranium Hydrating Cream - This was nice but not outstanding.

Jurlique Jasmine Hand Cream - One of my all time favourite hand creams, I have repurchased Jurlique hand creams over and over again and will continue to do so.


Yu-Be Moistuizing Skin Cream - This was a pretty useful product. It can be used all over (if you can handle the strong camphour scent). I mainly used it as a foot cream and it did a great job. 
By Terry Cellularose Brightening Serum - Amazingly I got seven days use out of this tiny little package. You wouldn't think so to look at it, but a small amount went a long way. I'd buy this just for the amazing rose scent.

Eve Lom Cleanser - I"ve now used two samples of this and I just don't like it. I know everyone raves about it but I don't know why. It's gritty, it smells awful and if you've used the Audra James cleansing balm there is no comparison.
Lavanila The Healthy Deodorant - I have finally found a natural deodorant that works and doesn't irritate me! Of course it had to be an expensive one but still. Once I've got through my current collection of natural deodorants I'll be repurchasing Lavanilla over and over again. 

Premium Spa Salt Body Scrub - If I hadn't used Soap and Glory scrubs I'd be saying that this is wonderful, however for me, nothing beats the Soap and Glory scent.

Estee Lauder Idealist Even Skintone Illuminator - This is my second bottle and it won't be the last. Whilst it's only cosmetic, I really like using this serum, it makes my skin look great. You can read my full review here.


Lush Fair Trade Honey shampoo -I bought this because my BFF told me it smelled amazing. I don't share her love for the scent. It smells okay and it's an okay shampoo but I won't buy it again.

The Body Shop Chocomania shower gel -Love this and thankfully I have another bottle stashed away because they discontinued it!

A'kin Instant Radiance Facial Masque -  I've used and loved this for years, however I had an allergic reaction to it so am tossing it out. It was so strange, the bottle is nearly empty and it's my second or third bottle. I've never had a reaction before so I don't know what happened.

Mustela Baby Lotion - MIL gave this to me for bub but it's very light and not hydrating enough for him, so I used it. 

Tuesday 1 April 2014

Klara Cosmetics Kiss Proof Lips

When the Klara Cosmetics Kiss Proof Lips arrived in the mail, I ripped it open and put it on straight away. I was expecting to do my usual two or three coats, but this only required one coat for a very bright, vibrant colour. It set very quickly and did not budge for the rest of the day. I ate and drank with only minimal colour fading. To test out how long it would last I wore it to bed and when I woke up in the morning I still had patches of lipstick on. 

The swatches I did on my arm stained and I had a mark on there for two days!

Klara Cosmetics says: No matter how much you play around, this lipstick will never betray you. Consisting of 100% pigmentation, Kiss Proof gives you 24-hour long lasting matte lips, full coverage  and high voltage shades that make lips pop in 60 seconds.


Klara Cosmetics 09 Watermelon Kiss and Lime Crime Pink Velvet

Watermelon Pink is extremely bright, almost neon. When Tiger saw it he did a double take at how bright my lips were. It's the brightest lipstick I've ever worn. 

Initially I thought that Watermelon Kiss was very similar to Pink Velvet, but as you can see in the photos they are totally different. Watermelon Kiss is a warm coral pink and Pink Velvet is a cool bright pink.

Klara Cosmetics on top and Lime Crime below.
This is a very comfortable lipstick to wear. It isn't at all drying and once it's set it feels weightless, I kept on forgetting I had lipstick on and got a shock every time I caught sight of myself in the mirror. It is fragrance and flavour free, which surprised me as most long lasting liquid lipsticks I've used have a chemical type fragrance.

Kiss Proof lipstick costs $29.00 (AUD) and can be purchased from the Klara Cosmetics website. There 11 shades available, from bright to neutral. I've got my eye on Passion Pink which is a gorgeous, natural pink shade.

* This product was provided for review.