Wordless Wednesday: Natural Beauty

Crazy People at 3am

My sister-in-law came over last night to hang out.  It's been awhile since she's been off of work and actually had time to, because whenever she's over she usually spends the night.  We had fun looking at things for her wedding, and going through my AVON brochures, which we could both do for hours.  I was telling her about the amazing uses of coconut oil and about my giveaway (isn't it a shame, no one in my family reads my blog.  It's just all you people!).  TJ and Lexi came over and we played a game of Quelf, which, if you haven't played, you should!  Especially if you've had a drink or two.  It's a completely random board game, and sometimes it pushes you out of your comfort zone, so a drink is recommended, but good friends are a must!

We ended up playing until about 1am until TJ and Lexi left.  Then we stayed up a bit more because I had to to tweak my first Avon order and s?"my very first one!  I wanted to make sure it was done correctly).  Finally we all went to bed around 2am.  Now, you should know by now that we only have a small apartment, so when Nicole stays over, she sleeps on the couch.  A little after 3am she comes in our room and wakes us up because someone was knocking on our door!  We never would've heard it, they were knocking so softly, but Nicole sure did.  I got up and peeked out of the peephole and saw that it was a chick, much shorter than I am, so I didn't feel the need to drag Eric out of bed (would definitely have made him put some clothes on if it turned out to be a guy).  I opened the door a crack and there's this lady with an armful of shoes, like... seriously a TON of shoes.  I don't even know how she knocked because she was carrying so many shoes.

"Is this Daisy's house?"

"NO this isn't DAISY'S house!!!"

(LOL as I'm typing this up, Daisy herself is walking by the window.  I may need to have a chat with her about her middle of the night crazy ass guests.)

The lady apologized, and really seemed to mean it.  As I closed the door I heard her drop a bunch of the shoes.  I went back to bed, mumbling about crazy bitches and shoes.

In the morning, Nicole told me that she knocked a second time later in the night (later in the morning?)!  She just yelled "It's the wrong door!" and the lady apologized again.

So.. the thing is, Daisy moved.  She used to live in the corner of our building in the basement.  In the *corner*.  We live in the basement also, but in the exact middle door.  Now that she's moved, she's still in the corner, but of a completely different building.  WHY, if you're having guests over in the MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, wouldn't you make absolutely certain they knew where you lived?!

And, hate to admit it, but since we're on the basement level we keep a bunch of outside toys under the stairs by our door.  I mean, bikes, wagons, a couple of sand toys.  Most people don't have nearly as much junk outside their door, so the second time around, don't you think she would have realized it?  UGH!  Crazy bitch.

So, yeah, that was my night.

Right now though, I am super excited to be getting my first Avon order.  From what I understand it will ship tomorrow and get here before the weekend.  Hurrah!  I had less orders than I wanted, but at the same time, a LOT more than I realistically expected.

The Tooth Fairy Will be Coming Soon!

On Friday Luke and Matt were eating apples.  Matt said "Ow, my teeth hurt!"

Uh-oh, I thought, he's finally going to lose a tooth!  As it turns out, BOTH bottom front teeth are loose and as I looked into his mouth I saw *gasp* that his big teeth are already growing in behind them!  I did, in fact, gasp out loud, and I scared him a little bit.  Must keep reactions to yourself, Nicole!  I calmed him down, but I was still worried.  Two phone calls later, one to my mom, and one to my mother-in-law, I was reassured that it was nothing to be too worried about, and I didn't need to rush him to the dentist right that minute.

You know, I didn't cry at his kindergarten graduation, I was way too excited.  After I wiggled those teeth though, I felt like crying immediately!  It was like a train just hit me.  Where did my baby Matt go?  I can't believe how quickly he's grown up, and since Luke was born, how much of it I was too distracted to truly appreciate.  I love this kid to death, and it's quite a blow to realize that he doesn't need me as much as he used to.  This is how baby fever starts!  LOL but, no, I really just want to be able to sit back and watch him become a big kid.  

So anyway, it looks like the tooth fairy will be coming to town very soon!  I would love if you'd share your tooth fairy adventures with me!  I'm thinking since this is the first time, and there's probably going to be two teeth involved $5 will be what she leaves.  What do you guys think?

And, because we were being super silly with my mother-in-law's new webcam, I'm posting some pictures...

AND, don't forget to enter for your chance to win that Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil!

Favorite!

Tropical Traditions Virgin Coconut Oil Giveaway

Here it is! You've read about my experience with Tropical Traditions' Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil (or, if you didn't, you can by clicking the link above).... now you have a chance to win one for yourself!

Win 1 quart of Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil!

Tropical Traditions is America’s source for coconut oil. Their Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil is hand crafted in small batches by family producers, and it is the highest quality coconut oil they offer. You can read more about how virgin coconut oil is different from other coconut oils on their website: What is Virgin Coconut Oil?

You can also watch the video they produced about Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil:

Tropical Traditions also carries other varieties of affordable high quality coconut oil. Visit their website to check on current sales, to learn about the many uses of coconut oil, and to read about all the advantages of buying coconut oil online. Since the FDA does not want us to discuss the health benefits of coconut oil on a page where it is being sold or given away, here is the best website to read about the health benefits of coconut oil.

Enter below!  Remember: you can tweet about this giveaway once every day for an extra entry!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tropical Traditions Virgin Coconut Oil

About a month ago I signed up to receive a jar of Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil.  The very generous folks over there kindly sent one to me!  Since then I've been using it in a number of ways and I have to say, I love it!

Ways I've used coconut oil:

• facial moisturizer- I've been applying it to my face right out of the shower, concentrating especially on the area under and around my eyes.  I've noticed a more youthful appearance around them.
• lip balm- It made my lips soft and smooth.
• every where else moisturizer- Again, right out of the shower I use it to moisturize my entire body.  It works just as well as any other lotion I've ever used.
• make-up remover- I use waterproof eyeliner and coconut oil had no trouble softening it up and making it easy to remove.  
• deodorant- Yes, I even tried it as a deodorant, and tested it out by taking a walk downtown on a pretty warm day and even wearing it to work.  I know what I smell like when I sweat.  Using coconut oil as a deodorant definitely worked!  Even after hours walking in the sun and a full work shift, I had no B.O.!  I still sweated, because of course it's not an antiperspirant, but as far as keeping my pits from stinking, I give it an A+
• butt stuff- I used it for Lucas' diaper rash.  He's always hated it when I applied diaper rash cream, and to be honest, I hate it too.  It's so thick and it sticks to my fingers.  I put some coconut oil in a baby food jar and stuck it in the basket with his diapers and wipes and started using it regularly.  His rash cleared up after a few days, but even while he still had it, it didn't seem to bother him as much.  He actually grabbed the jar every time I changed him and asked me to give him his "butt stuff!"
• skin condition- I had a weird itchy, rough, and scaly patch on my elbow for weeks before I got the coconut oil.  I started rubbing it on my elbow daily and it was gone within a week.
• bug bites- I put it on Matt's bug bites when they were itchy.  It seemed to work for him, but it's hard to tell for sure.
• coffee- I stirred a spoonful into my coffee one morning.  I really couldn't taste the difference, but the oil spots floating in my coffee kind of turned me off to it.  It's something that I could probably get used to, if I did it more often.
• brownies- I used coconut oil to grease the pan, and then I used it in place of the vegetable oil that the box called for.  Since it was still solid, the batter was a little thicker and more difficult to mix and spread in the pan than it would've been with vegetable oil, but other than that, they turned out great!  They had a very slight coconut flavor to them, which I totally see as a bonus!
• margaritas- my friend and I were trying to rim our mango margaritas with sugar, but we didn't have any lemons or limes... so we used coconut oil to make the sugar stick to the glasses.  SO GOOD!  The flavor worked especially well with the mango.

 Things to keep in mind

• When you get your coconut oil, it will be solid, but it will liquify at 76 degrees Fahrenheit.  Mine completely liquified and I put it in the fridge, because I like the texture that it is at room temperature, but not so much when it's liquid.  When I took it out of the fridge it was really REALLY solid.  It was actually too solid to scoop any out with just my fingers.  I would recommend keeping it out of the fridge.  
• If you choose to cook with it, keep in mind that the virgin coconut oil WILL have that coconut scent and flavor.  Tropical Traditions green label coconut oil would be a great substitute for every day cooking.
• It's *oil*.  When you use it for your skin or hair, you really don't need a lot.  I like to put a lot on my legs, because it makes them look kind of shiny, but I put a much smaller amount on my face.
• If you're going to be using it for something kind of gross, like baby butts or athlete's foot, put a small amount in a baby food jar just for that reason.  You don't want to be dipping your fingers in it while doing those things, and then later putting it on your face or in your food.  Just saying!

For more ways to use coconut oil and lots of recipes, visit Tropical Traditions website!

**Disclaimer: Tropical Traditions provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose.  Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review or sponsor a product giveaway in return for the free product.