Budget Friendly

This might be kind of boring for some but I feel like it's really important to know. I'm the type of person that loves to make lists, I could make a list about anything! When I know I'm going to go clothes shopping I'll make a list in my phone of all the things I want to get (weather I stick to the list or not), going camping I'll make a list of food and what to pack, going on a trip I'll make a list of every piece of clothing I want to take, planning a party I have tons of lists. My 'notes' in my phone is full of lists :) I also really like to budget, like budget my finances, it's an easy way to keep track of how much money is coming in and whats going out and when. That way I never find myself in a jam or strapped for cash. Well of course even if you have a budget it doesn't always mean you stick to it so there are times when money is tighter from not sticking to the budget, however I always know when that is going to happen so I can be mentally prepared.

What I like to do is keep a running spreadsheet of each paycheque, so I will have my budget planned out for a few months in advance. I do all of my banking on my phone so come pay day I take out my budget (which I keep as a paper copy in my purse) see what payments I need to manually do and I do those immediately through my online banking. That way those payments are done with and I don't accidentally spend the money that was allocated for that bill. Then I cross off those items from my budget plan so I can visually see what is left to pay. I take a look at what scheduled payments are supposed to come out of the account so I know what to expect for the next 2 weeks.

This is what my budgets look like with both mine and Mark's income and expenses combined:
*numbers do not reflect actual income and expenses, I used dummy numbers for visual.

                                 June 13/14

Cheque Total: $2000

Expenses                               Other

100 Fuel                                100 Mastercard
200 Groceries                        100 Credit Line
100   Smokes
160 Spending
100 Insurance (car)
100 Phones
100   Hydro
$860 Total
+$200 Other
1060 Total Expenses
-2000 Income
$940 Extra Money

 
                                June 27/14
Cheque Total: $2000

Expenses                             Other

100 Fuel                              100 Visa
200 Groceries                      100 Credit Line
100   Smokes
160 Spending
100   Insurance (escape)
600 Rent
$1260 Total
+$200 Other
1460 Total Expenses
-2000 Income
$540 Extra Money




This is exactly how my budgets are set up. All of my normal expenses are on the left hand side, and yes I budget for smokes. Mark is a smoker and that wont change so I know that money will always get taken out of the account so I may as well budget for it. The 'spending money' is more of a guideline. I'd like to stay within the dollar amount I allocate for it but if we go over that gets taken out of 'extra money'. The 'other' expenses I keep for credit cards and credit line as well as any other things I know I will need to pay for (such as gifts, clothes shopping, new tires, ect.). I keep these in the 'other' column because I  know they wont be permanent bi-weekly expenses. The 'extra money' that is left over is supposed to be for saving, or for putting onto credit cards if we need to make more then a $100 payment. One good idea is to put that money into a savings account right away so you can't even touch it, that way your $160 spending money is all you've got and it may keep you from going over that. But if you aren't good at that then you might end up going into the minus in your account and that will affect your next weeks budget.

Right now we are renting but if we owned a house I would also have sections for fire insurance, property tax and that sort of thing to go into a separate account monthly so that at the end of the year we aren't scrambling for money.

I hope this helped anyone thinking about doing a budget or realizing they need a budget more then they thought they did. Just because I have a budget doesn't mean I always stick to it though (something I need to work on). It does help you to see just exactly how much money you could be putting away though and that might help guilt you into not spending so much ;)

Fast & Easy Curls

Wow, I need to get on top of this already. I've had internet at home for over a month and my blog and YouTube are not getting any better. So much for my resolutions :s BUT that can all change, I just need to be dedicated. As for my YouTube I posted a video yesterday and I have 3 more videos recorded I just need to edit them and upload so there's that to look forward to! As for my blog... I thought I would have more to blog about on a daily basis but I seem to be at a loss most days. I do think about my blog often, I just don't know what to write about most of the time. Maybe if I just get into the groove of things then things will come more naturally. Here's to hoping! Anyway, THIS post is about the video I posted on  My YouTube Channel yesterday.

I've been styling my hair this way for about a week now and I'm in loooooove with it! It's super easy and quite fast when you get the hang out it. It takes me about 20 mins start to finish but if you are working with already dried hair it would go faster. I styled my hair this way today too but of course my bangs didn't want to cooperate so I'm not really feelin it :( You know how you can go all day at work and absolutely hate your hair and then you go home and look in the mirror and you're like "hey, this actually looks pretty good" and then you get all your confidence back again. But you didn't even change anything, so you went all day feeling like you look like crap but in the evening you feel like your hair is as bomb as Iggy Azalea ?!? I'll probably feel like that today.

Products used to achieve awesomeness:

Osis Blow and Go Thick heat protectant
Healthy Sexy Hair Soy Touchable hairspray
Arbonne texturizing mousse

If you live in the Winkler area a good tip for you is to go to Masters of Design in the Southland mall and get your hair products from there, they are usually always on sale!

(sorry for the quality of this pic)

Tools Used:

1" curling wand

Blow dryer with diffuser.

(pretty self explanatory, didn't think you'd need photos of these)

Site Seeing (pun lol)

I'm always on the lookout for a cool new website so I thought I'd share what sites I've been visiting lately and maybe you will find something new that you can fall in love with. Maybe love is a strong word... maybe you can find some sites that you strongly like ;)

First off is Etsy. Now obviously this is a huge forum for independent "shop owners" to post their stuff. So you essentially have a million tiny sites within one huge site. One persons shop in particular I've been eyeing down is Jadorelexiecouture ( click  here for her site). She has all kinds of things in her shop but specifically I've been dying over her flower bun wraps *heart eyes*.

Other random things from random Etsy shops:

Yellow and grey pillow found here

Grey pillow found here 

I don't even like skulls but this just looks so cool

Found here

IPhone cases found here

Cross necklace found here

I could go on forever with Etsy stuff but we will leave it at that for now. Another site I often frequent is Hautelook.com , it's a site that has discounted products from a wide span of companies. Each sale lasts a week I believe (I could be wrong), with new sales starting every day. I personally like to check the site for makeup deals. They often have brands such as NYX and The Balm. They also have home decore stuff, clothing, shoes, accessories. It's an awesome site the only thing that sucks is their shipping takes forever... like a month I think. But if you are getting it on sale its worth it right?! (don't forget to pay attention to shipping costs though, make sure you are still getting a deal! 

Speaking of The Balm, I also like to go to nailpolishcanada.com it says free shipping for a limited time but I've seen that there for about a year now. I like to the The Balm products from there. They have some makeup and skincare, hair care and also top brand name nail polish (obvi) for decent prices. And if you can skip shipping costs it's sooooo worth it! They also sell Sigma brushes and I am dying to get my hands on all of them... well maybe all of them is a bit excessive but I like a lot of them lol. They also have Lime Crime lipsticks and let me tell you- these lipsticks are to die for! So creamy and smell so good!

$25.99 plus free shipping (this brush is at the top of my 'want' list) However this brush is 

$21 on the sigma site but you do pay shipping so weigh your options. 

I'll be attending my sister-in-law's wedding this summer and I'm actually in it too so I've been on the hunt for a nice black dress. I haven't had much luck while browsing through stores so I've been keeping my eye on some online sites too. One site in particular is Modcloth. Some of the dresses are a bit more pricey but since this is a wedding I'm willing to dish out a few more bucks then I usually would. 

I really like this one (and its only $65!) but I'm not sure if its

 too "daring" for this type of wedding

This one is $100 but it might be a bit too...over done 

already? Been there, seen that kind of deal. 

That's just a few sites I've been frequently visiting. I hope everyone is having an awesome day! I'm super tired so I'm trying to stay caffeinated, so far so good! 

My Happenings

So, it's been a while... oops! Even though I have internet at home I don't feel like I have a lot of time to blog or to do YouTube videos. Actually it's probably more so that I don't have ambition for it because if you want to do something you'll make time. My apologies. But I don't run on a schedule here, maybe if I had a bigger following I would be more regular but for now random posts will just have to do! I want to get back into doing regular YouTube videos again but I've just been feeling kind of down about it. Like I'm no where near as good as a lot of other beauty guru's out there. But then I need to remind myself that I started it so that I could GET better and push myself to go outside the box with my makeup style/techniques. So I wont quit making videos there just might be some time in between postings like this blog too. I just need to figure out my time/schedule and see what works best for me.

I thought it might be fun to just write about recent things that have been going on in my life. Nothing too special but I was thinking about how some of my friends and I just can't get together a lot because of conflicting schedules so if they wanted to see what I was up to they could just read my blog lol!

1. Last week I got contacts and its been awesome! When I was at the optometrist the receptionist had to show me how to put them in and out. First my eye doc. had put them in so I had to show her I could take them out. It was taking so long and my makeup was running everywhere that she almost gave up on me and sent me on my way lol. She was just asking me if I lived with my mom (she thought I was still in highschool!) and if she could take them out for me if I needed. Pretty much right after that I got it out. Then I had to put it back in which took literally a second. The next day however when I was on my own it took me 20 mins. to put in ONE contact!!! And then 2 seconds for the other one. I'm a little faster with my right eye now, probably down to about 5 mins. which isn't too bad I don't think ;)
            (oh, putting glasses on over your contacts will make you see better, however it will make you dizzy)

2. Don't flush grapes that are still on the vine down your toilet. And especially don't do this if you don't have a plunger. Maybe if they aren't on the vine it will work but I wouldn't really recommend that either. Your parents will have to bring over their plunger and your niece will tell everyone you have something weird in your toilet.

3.I went to an Arbonne party and discovered they have some great new stuff that I'm dying to try out! I found out they now have hair products and I purchased their mousse so I'm waiting for that to arrive in the mail. They also have shampoo, conditioner, smoothing serum and hairspray. I think they have more but those are the items I'm interested in. Also this melatonin spray that you spray in your mouth before you want to fall asleep. It speeds up the sleeping process and you are supposed to have a very restful sleep too. It's also not addictive which is awesome. They also have some protein shakes (and a shaker mug!!!) that I'd like to try out. Also they have this Gelee stuff that does multiple things but it also works as a wrap- the kind you put on your skin then wrap yourself in saran wrap and keep it on for a while and you lose inches. Kind of like the 'ItWorks' wraps but for a better price. There was lots of awesome stuff but those were my favorites.

4. I started working out again. Well I started 2 weeks ago and went good for a week (even ate good too), then I didn't work out for the next week (I suck I know) but I still went for walks so that's good I guess. Then Sunday went for a run and yesterday I did yoga (and I'm feeling it today!) so I intend to stick with this this time. I do want this to be my lifestyle, not just a weight loss thing (although that is what I'm wanting right now). Next week I think I'm going to start a class at the gym too, it's a mix between turbo jam and kick boxing they said- high calorie burner so I can't wait!

5. A little while ago I had posted something about living out my dream. It's at a bit of a stand still right now and that's because what I had planned to do was sell name brand makeup and clothing at discounted prices. I was under the impression that the product was slightly defective and thats why they couldn't sell it in stores. I ordered a few items to test out for myself to see if it was something I'd want to sell to others and I was slightly disappointed. The makeup packaging is exactly the same as the makeup brand but I don't know for certain if the product itself is legit. I was expected the packaging to be damaged or something but the product itself in tact. I ordered a palette that I already have myself so I could compare and the colours were slightly off. So I'm not totally sure if I want to sell this to other people. I could however buy makeup that doesn't have a brand to it and resell that for a great price but I'm not totally sure. I also bought a pair of Lululemon yoga pants and I received them and they have the logo and they are super comfy and I LOVE them but because of the makeup I'm not sure how authentic the pants are. But then I thought to myself- well I bought a knock off Louis Vitton purse so people might buy knock off clothing and makeup... I don't know. For now I posted a few items on VarageSale (an app) to see how they sell and I have a few more things coming that I will post and see how things go. I just don't want people getting mad at me if they don't like the product. Any input on this topic would be greatly appreciated! Also I plan on selling phone cases and flower crowns/ head jewelry. I think these will go over very well on the VarageSale app just because you can't get stuff like that locally around where I live. OH I also want to get makeup brushes from my supplier and sell those because even if they aren't a top brand but still super good quality I think people will buy them. There is practically NO WHERE to buy makeup brushes where I live and it is beyond annoying!

         I think that's pretty much it for whats been going on with me lately :) I have another post idea ready so that will be coming either tomorrow or sometime this week! I hope you all are having a fantastic start to your summers and any feedback on all of this would be great!


xoxo

The Internets

Good news people… I’m getting internet installed at my place!! Well we have everything set in place to get it installed so it should be actually installed in the next week or two. I’m SO excited about this. Not only do I get to catch up on all the shows I've missed (heheh), I get to start focusing on making my blog better. That actually means a lot to me, this is a space I created to be able to get my thoughts down and out there that’s different than the conventional “journaling.” I do still journal though, those thoughts are not for the public lol. I also like having this space to share things, things that I like or find, am currently using. It’s also a place for me to vent or to enlighten or just to talk. And I want to make it the best space I can, one that I’m proud of.

For today though this is probably going to a boring picture-less post… well hopefully the content isn't boring lol. I have recently started a new job, I am 3 weeks in at this point and I just wanted to share my experience. Before even applying for this job I was praying that God would lead me to where I was supposed to be. I had complete confidence He would too. I was put in a situation where I would normally worry and stress but instead I was calm and completely at peace. Because I knew.. I knew God was taking better care of me then I could myself. So I did what I could do, such as applying at places and going for interviews. I asked God to make it so I wouldn't get any phone calls after an interview if I wasn't supposed to work there, I promised Him this wouldn't make me feel rejected and that is what I wanted. He complied and so did I. One day I caught myself wondering why no one was calling me and thinking I wasn't good enough but then God reminded me of my promise and I immediately stopped. Boy do I feel better for that too, I can’t tell you how easy it is for me to doubt myself.

Then I had an interview at the place I’m working at now and I wanted this job so bad, it seemed perfect for me. It seems God was thinking the same thing because they called me so I took it. My first 2 days were great and I was learning so much and everything was sticking in this brain of mine pretty good. Then came the third, fourth and fifth days. They were filled with a lot of negativity and it made me start to doubt my choices. Then the second week I opened up to the women training me and we talked about the negativity and we both told each other we were Christians and it sorta made me feel good to know that. I told her how I felt God was telling me to take this job and she told me that God had told her not to take this job but she had taken it anyway. When she told me that it started to make me think this wasn't a good place to be. In the days to come I would learn that God has a plan for all of us (ok, I already knew that part but just keep on reading), and that doesn't mean that his plan for one person is the same for another. This women wasn't supposed to work here, it was obvious in so many ways, and a friend of mine said to me that maybe I was supposed to work here so that she wouldn't have to anymore. I do believe that, but I also believe that I am supposed to be here because this is the right job for me. In that next week and then this week as well I've been getting comfortable in my position here and I really like it. I click really well with my bosses wife (well she’s my boss too I guess and she’s here quite a bit so it’s good we click). I actually see a lot of me in her and it’s pretty cool. She doesn't know that though lol. I actually really like my boss too, I say actually because I was afraid to come to an interview here just because he looks so intimidating. Man I tell ya, looks certainly can be deceiving! My boss is a big man who wears a scowl most of the time, even the way he talks his tone sounds… very forward and to the point. But after you spend even a day around him you notice that he likes to joke around, he likes to just stand by your desk and have a conversation and the thing I like the most about him is that you can openly see how much he loves his wife. The way he talks about her when she isn't here and the way he talks to her when she is here. He cares about her and its so heartwarming to see that in people. It puts my mind at ease to see that’s the way he treats women, I work in a place where it’s all men except for when his wife is here so it’s definitely a big plus when you get treated with respect.

I also wanted to touch base on how my emotions have been through all of this. So before I took this job I was working a temp job at a different office. I really liked working there but at the same time it was a challenge. I worked in an open office with about 9 other people. So there were constantly people around and that wasn't something I was used to. It was nice to have a variety of different people to talk to and I really do miss the coffee breaks around the front counter where everyone joked around and had basically the same sense of humor. At the same time having so many people around could sometimes be taxing as well, almost as if I would have so much energy sucked out of me each day just by having to have responses to everyone who talked to me. That might not be why I was so tired but I felt so drained when I went home every single day. I was tired of being tired. Working in the office I do now I’m alone most of the time but my boss is in and out and customers come in all the time so I’m not alone all of the time but I have a lot of my own time to do my work in peace. On my first day I had gone home and I had so much energy I even went out for coffee. On a Monday! I was shocked lol. That right there showed me that this weight had been lifted off my shoulders and I felt like I could breathe again. In the other place I worked I had messed up a few things I had been working on and I think that did a number on my confidence so that was difficult to deal with. Where I am now I know the accounting program a lot better and I’ve actually been able to make a few changes already that make things run a little more efficiently. How’s that for a confidence booster?! So things had a rocky start due to me fighting within myself and with God but things have worked themselves out like they seem to always do. 

I feel like this is the beginning of something really great and I feel good with where I am in life right now. Maybe this year isn't going to be so bad after all ;)

Speaking of, this year has been shaping up to be a pretty good one. It started off with my Dad having surgery on his brain and after that all went well and his first day back at work was yesterday, that has kind of been a huge relief. My job situation has sorted itself out and I feel comfortable and confident which is awesome. After 3 months of working here we want to look into buying a house so that's exciting in itself. One of my friends moved back here from Alberta so that's awesome. Oh ya, I'm going to Backstreet Boys next month! OH YA I'm not sure if I've mentioned this but it is official that I will be going to New York this year... in 4 months to be exact. I am so beyond excited you have no idea. My husband and I are going with another couple. This time we plan to hit the places we didn't get a chance to last time and also to sorta check out New York as a local instead of a tourist. I think it's going to be so much fun. I'll probably have a few posts about it leading up to the date because I just love talking about it!!

Oh look, a picture! 

I think that is all for today, I hope everyone has a really great weekend!

Huge Haul

 

Hello all! Some exciting news for me to share, I got a job! Well I have a job lined up for when I'm done the job I'm currently at. I couldn't be more excited because this means that I get to go shopping and not feel bad about it. Also, it means my New York trip we're planning is a definite yes... now my only obstacle is to tell my new boss that I need some time off in summer lol. Hopefully that goes over well. And it also means that we will be getting internet at home so I can start putting more effort into my blog and YoutTube channel. I'm so excited to start working there I feel like it's exactly where I am supposed to be. I prayed so much about finding a job and I applied at places and had great interviews but I wasn't getting anything. I had asked God not to let anyone call me after an interview if I wasn't supposed to work there and I promised I wouldn't feel bad about it. Like you know, wonder why they didn't want you after an interview that went so well. This company called me after the interview and I didn't even hesitate because I knew. And obviously God knows how indecisive I can be with big decisions so He made this pretty easy for me and I couldn't be more grateful!

 

I received a package yesterday, or rather I received the card telling me I have a package waiting at the post office. When I went to go get it I was 4 mins late and the person refused to give me the package so now I have to wait until I'm done work today to get it and I am ddyyyyiinnnnnggggg to get my hands on it. Isn't that dumb? I know exactly what it is and I know I will have it in my hands in a few hours but it is just killing me inside. I guess my future kind of rides on this package as well but more on that when the time is right ;)

 

 

In the mean time I will post for you a video of stuffs that I got! I'm not bragging in this video I just like to watch these kinds of videos so why not make some like it too right?! And again, in the future there will be a detailed list of all products used/mentioned in posts.

 

 

 

 



 

 

The Dream

Have you ever had a dream? Something you are striving for? Something you are so passionate about that you are unstoppable and as determined as you have ever been to reach that dream. I’ve never had that. I’ve never had that one dream (or multiple dreams for that matter) that I was striving for. It wasn’t that I didn’t want a dream, in fact I’ve always yearned for it an envied the people who had dreams and were reaching them. Sometimes I’d even go so far as to be mad at those people because I was just jealous (to be clear I mean celebrities reaching fame and that sort of thing, I never had any bad thoughts to anyone in my personal life reaching a dream, I was/am always truly happy for them). I mean I have had goals and reached those goals, for example getting married and having the type of job that I have. But I’m talking more of what drives me, what makes me passionate. I’ve always had ideas of what I’d like to do but I wasn’t crazy about it. It was like I was going to settle for any possible dream just to say I had a dream. That wouldn’t be fair to myself because if I reached that fake dream then I wouldn’t even feel accomplished or get any gratification from it. There has always been this one idea in the back of my mind but I never thought it was possible, I didn’t think it was in the cards for me so I just didn’t count it as an attainable dream, or a dream at all. BUT I am here to say that I have finally found a dream that I feel is worth working toward!!! I am beyond excited about, unfortunately I can’t exactly go into detail about it at this time but in the next few months things should get started and then I will be able to speak more on it. I feel so relieved that I finally have something to work toward, the ultimate goal! I think about it all the time, it’s consuming me and I love it. And because of that I know that if the avenue I’m wanting to take for it doesn’t work out, I’ll just try to find other avenues instead of giving up.

This dream will ultimately be a source of income, if it turns into something that could support me as a full time job then that would be fantastic, if it only ends up being a side source of extra spending money then that’s awesome too! I just want something extra in my life you know? Like a job that is also a hobby and this will provide that for me. This project also involves partnering up with a friend of mine (and also sister in law) so naturally I’m so excited about that. I get to share every aspect of this particular dream with her and she’ll be able to relate and understand and I feel like that is going to be such a great part of it all.

I didn’t want to jump the gun or count my chickens before they hatch (I’ve always hated that expression, I really don’t know why I chose to use it now lol) but I couldn’t help but daydream. This is my first real dream I’ve ever had so I’m bound to get over excited about it ;) I used my mind to peak into my future and of course I know it might not look how I made it look, God is in charge of that, but it brought a big smile to my face none the less and gave me a vision to keep close for when I’m down on my goals ya know?! My vision was on how a day would look living my dream:

A bit of background- in this vision this dream has become a full time job for me and/or this is me being a stay at home mother with this as a side source of income.

The Vision

I wake up and get ready and dressed, my usual. I make my way over to the kitchen and start brewing my first cup of coffee, as that’s brewing I walk into my office to fire up my computer. After my coffee is made and I settle in at my desk (by the way my office looks super cute in this vision) and check my emails. After that I log into all social media outlets and catch up on comments and the sort as well as making a blog post. I then check my orders and see what all needs to be packaged up and sent out (this is what I can’t divulge in so this vague explanation will have to do). I then go to one of my many spreadsheets and fill out the orders and check inventory and that sort of thing. After this I go to the mail and see what kind of packages I’ve received and lug everything back home. At this point Nancy comes over with some takeout for a mini lunch meeting where she starts freaking out inventory levels and cash sales. I calm her down and we make a breakdown of what we need to do and we come to a solution together. As we finish up our lunch we go over the orders together and then start the packaging process as we chat about life and how pretty my hair looks. That takes a few hours and after we are finally done Nancy takes the packages to the post office on her way out. I take this time to catch up on other blogs and social media sites I like to look at and then I go for coffee with Nellie and Tina because I no longer have a 9-5 job. Nellie asks how business is going and I jump into a conversation with them on how great everything is. We talk for about an hour and then browse some stores and so some window shopping. Then I pop in at Superstore to pick up some ingredients for supper and start making that so I have it ready for when Mark comes home (just in case Mark is reading this- on this particular day in this scenario I have supper ready for you, however, this does not mean I make supper alone every day). Then I spend the evening doing normal non-work things and start the day over again the next day. Obviously every day doesn’t look exactly like this, sometimes I go for coffee with my mom instead of Nellie and Tina ;)

So now that I’ve waaaaay jumped the gun I’m going to get back to my normal life how it is now and just hope and pray that this all works out just the way Nancy and I want it to!

Hope you are having a lovely day. Sure is the perfect day to work toward YOUR dreams!