solo

we were lucky enough to find the beach to ourselves this morning.

happy fourth of july to us. and to you, too.

sweet home

i'm having one of those nights, you know?

when you've moved and you're in this new place, but you're not actually even in your own new place yet (you're at your in-laws). but you're incredibly thankful and humbled by all of the kindness being bestowed upon you, which only makes it worse, that you are suddenly sad and terribly homesick.

well. at least we've been here a while and this is the very first night i've actually felt this way. so.

to distract myself from actually thinking about my feelings (ba dum ching! ha. (note to readers who are not personal friends, i am famous for previously said activity)) here are some photos of the most wonderful day, with the most wonderful boys.

strawberry picking 6.24.12

dad

mom

strawberry juice

p.s. while reading this post, i actually had to fight tears. oh, easily accessible, healthy, delicious, wonderful ethnic food. how i miss you.

oh, two thousand four

last week i finally had time to flip through some magazines (this is the part where the crowd cheers for sleep training). i stumbled upon an ad for some new covergirl lipsticks. the shades looked uber pigmented, nars style. i didn't buy into it right away because usually drugstore lipsticks all have that frosty look, you know what i mean, but i did make it a point to track these suckers down and question them in person.

and so.... can i tell you about my new favorite, absolutely amazing lipsticks?!?! i mean, shut the front door, you guys. eight bucks!

not all of the colors are great- there are certainly some frosties in there, but with a good eye, any lipstick junkie could pick out one or two aces. i mean these babies hold up to- and beyond- nars, which is really saying something, because i don't let nobody talk s$%# about my nars.

here are my top picks:

spellbound                                         flame

fairytale                                                 delish

i've collected two so far, spellbound and delish. 

spellbound is not that purple in real life. it's bright and berryish with a purple zing. i love it.

delish was not what i had hoped (i'll spend my entire life looking for a lipstick to match up to this shade), but i still like it. i have super pigmented lips naturally, so it just punches 'em up a bit. they look like i just really kissed someone. like high school 'i hope no one notices, that makeout session was way too steamy for broad daylight' lips. right? was that just me? well, shoot. 

p. s. even through a meal and a lot of water intake, this lipstick did not budge! it wasn't even on my glass. it did however make it all over graham's cheeks. 2 for 3 isn't bad!

just awkward

i love oggling photos of the bloggers i follow and their babies. i love the outfits and the tiny glimpse i get into their lives. so why are there so few photos on this blog, you ask? well, let me tell you.

this is the back of my head and a naked baby

also, it's the best we can do. seriously.

i hate taking self portraits and by hate i mean i am absolutely, without a doubt terrible with my camera lens aimed in the mirror. there have to be some tricks and tips i have yet to discover. a more flattering light, a better angle. someone else actually talking them? 

i mean, come on. the pictures graham and i take always get trashed before they're viewed by anybody else. and not because graham ever looks... er... there's not really a polite word that fits here for a baby... it's because i somehow always looks pasty and dwarfed. that said, i am pale and short, but pasty and dwarfed?! 

what are you secrets people? spill.

elusive

the last time i was in new york, i popped in the nars shop. you know, for this and that and a few other things.

i was attempting to squeeze in one last lipstick try-on, while carrying on a conversation and wrangling a baby, when i noticed one of the nars makeup artists dabbing something shimmery on joanna's cheekbones. in the midst of all the chaos, i finished up my purchase as joanna and i headed to the park for our scheduled playdate with the wee ones.

we were sitting on the benches swapping stories about our motherhood experiences, when i couldn't help but become mesmerized by this fantastic highlight stretching from her temple to just above the apple of her cheek. it's just my luck that i got distracted by a protest or a spill from graham before i remembered to ask what that magic highlighter was.

so distracted in fact, it took me approximately one and one half months to remember that i had to have whatever that magic highlighting stick was. so i went on a journey to department stores near and far. and here's what i've come up with.

nars, the multiple in maldives.

there are two other options i haven't seen in person to test out (luxor and copacabana), so i could be wrong about the shade. but my guess is, as long as you stick to one of these three, those brilliant cheekbones i was swooning over will be yours (barring certain genetic components, you know).

p.s. the other thing i have to pick up on my next trip!

image via polyvore