Let's talk about Homemakers vs. Housewives..

Wondering what to eat everyday is one of my major life struggles..

 

If you happened to stop by Tuesdays post you would've read about my food issues,

no bread,

no eggs,

no this,

no that..

NO fun!

Booooo.

 

That's where my bloggin' BFF Fran steps in.

She blogs over at The Hungry Homemaker Blog and last week she posted about stir frys.

 

Light bulb - STIR FRYS!

Yes!

No bread, no eggs, no problem!

 

Growing up we were a strictly meat and potatoes kind of family.

Let me tell you that gets old real fast..

I in turn gave up potatoes for a large portion of my life..

To this day I still can't look at a roast beef.. (puke)

The only noodles we had on the regular were coated in yellow powder and tend to go by the nickname KD..

 

So when I saw Frans post I thought, challenge accepted Homemaker ;)

 

Now I'm just going to list a bunch of thoughts that followed..

There will be a lot of """""""" these, anything within those quotations imagine the voices in my head speaking them..

 

-----------------------------------------

 

"lets start with the basic sauce"..

The sauce has basic in the name, how hard can it be!

Naïve Holly.. Naïve.

 

Go to the grocery store..

Can't find any rice wine vinegar..

Ok move on to another ingredient, ginger..

"Dang it Foodland, no ginger to be found"

 Ok moving on, whole new sauce choice...

 

"I really want Shrimp, I don't think orange sauce is the best choice for shrimp I would rather orange with chicken"

 

"Sweet and sour... but again, I can't find any rice white vinegar!"

 

Ok we were down to the final call..

Lemon.

I walk up to the produce..

NOT A FREAKING LEMON IN THE ENTIRE STORE.

 

Turns out I forgot I lived in small town Newfoundland where trucks don't always arrive on time and fresh food supply tends to run low, often.

 

 

 

 

 SUPER, slightly agitated..

I drive to the smaller, only other grocery store in town.

PRAISE!

They have lemons!

I buy 2.. better safe than sorry.

and man would I have been sorry..

See bottom photo for what happened when I cut into that first lemon.

My head nearly exploded but all was well, my back up lemon saved the day!

 

Enough rambles, here is a pic of the goods...

 

 

That's right, I'm a stirfryer!

Shrimp in lemon sauce, whoot whoot!

 

Now I want you to go to Frans stirfry sauce blog - here

Look at her photo then come back and tell me if mine compares!

I'm so excited, I really think this could be a regular menu item.

Its so versatile! I added mushrooms because we love mushrooms.

Next time I think I will sub chicken for the shrimp.

 

Now if only I could find rice wine vinegar!!

Dang you vinegar!!!

Come to my town!!!

 ^ Happy Canada Day!

 

Other than that, FYI our house is still for sale.

I feel like we are at a stand still, come'on buyers move to the rock!

                                          ^This chick

 

Is this - close to walking without holding onto anything.

He also loves mixing pattens.

#fashionista

Yeah that's a cat tail.

Yup my house is a mess.

 

 

 

 

And now...

 

How about them lemons????!!
is it rotten???
is it infected??
why is life so cruel????

Alls well that ends well, I'm going to binge on my leftover shrimp ;)


Do you like stirfry?
Do you have a lazy lady recipe for me to try?
Dish it!!

Let's talk about my 14 day Teatox..

 

How do you take your tea??

 

Normally mine would be with a bit of milk and sugar..

but when Ben from Purgo Tea contacted me to see if I would be interested in trying his 14 day Teatox program I left the Orange Pekoe behind and haven't looked back!

 

 

Before I commit to blog test anything (especially something of the food variety!)

I always try to google the tea leaves out of it. Ha.

 

If you know me personally you know the food struggle...

Food has been a 10+ year struggle for me.

Doctors, tests, blood work... results not so much.

Do I have Celiac Disease ??

Do I have Crohn's Disease ??

Allergies ??

Just some really annoying food sensitivities ???

 

Whatever it is, it's a very fine balance of mental, emotional, physical health; so I do not take food or drink choices lightly.

 

The more I learned about Ben and Purgo the more I realized we had A LOT in common!

This is where I am going to insert a portion of Ben's story because it is so eerily familiar to me. 

If you want to learn more you can always check out Purgo's FAQ page or contact them directly, here.

 

 

 

Ben's Story

 

 



The Idea

Purgo Tea evolved from my own personal health struggle. A few years

ago I was living the life of a young twenty-something male

— eating,

partying and burning the candle at both ends. All was well until 2014. Years of nutritional neglect put me in a position where I had to make serious lifestyle changes, or never be myself again.

I had developed a digestive issue called "leaky gut". Basically, my intestinal tract had become so unbalanced and enflamed that it started to allow undigested food into my bloodstream.

This is bad.

 

The real problem however, is that many foods resemble our body tissue on a molecular level. So, not only did my immune system react to food, it also began attacking my own body.

It's very difficult to describe how this made me feel. The symptoms changed daily. Every day was a struggle. Sometimes I would feel physical pain, other times I would have no energy, and perhaps the scariest, were days when I could not think or remember basic

things. The only thing that remained consistent was fatigue and a loss of my zest for life.

Visits to five different doctors left me with no answers. I was getting desperate. Perhaps the hardest part was the feeling of isolation. I could no longer socialise, play sports, or hold in-depth conversations. It's a lonely place; especially when those closest to you don't

understand how you feel. I was a prisoner in my own body.

 

 

Although dampened, my flame was not out. I really believed that there was a fix. I spent every spare moment researching nutrition and its effect on the human body. Over the course of 8 months, I experimented with the foods I ate and listened to my body. I consulted with a naturopath for guidance. Together, we designed a protocol based on clean

foods and Chinese herbal medicine. We began rebuilding my body from the bottom up.

After 12 dark months, I started my healing protocol and saw progression with each passing week. Symptoms dropped off one by one and I slowly became "me", again. As I sit here writing this, I am 8 months in and have not felt better.

 

If there's one thing I learned, it was the importance of nutrition and lifestyle for health and wellbeing. While my case may be an extreme example, I want to serve as the "canary in the coalmine" for others. Health is a fine line that can easily be crossed.

That's why I founded Purgo Tea. To provide a way for people to safely reset their body. And, to remind people that the greatest gains come from prioritizing their health. I know that Purgo Tea works because the program is based on the healing protocol that helped me.



 

----------------------------------

 

 

I find his story so interesting, I must've read it 4 or 5 times in a row.

Partially because I was so interested and partially because not being able to absorb things is a symptom I have as well.

 

Ex: Legitimately this is a sentence I said to my husband tonight,

"the houses of the house."

He kept annoyingly asking me to repeat the sentence..

Until my brain finally functioned and I realized I had been meaning to say

"the photos of the house" 

 

It sounds funny and I laugh a whole lot at myself but it can also be very scary. 

So to make this long story short I can  100% relate to Ben, I am so happy theres people out there looking for answers, finding solutions and I was more than happy to test out Purgo Teas :)



 

 

Onto the Tea!

When you wake, start your day with the Morning Detox I have tried many times to start my mornings with a warm cup of lemon water but always begin to fail around 4 days in, its just too boring for me I like a little more flavour to my drink.

 

Solution! I found myself looking forward to the detox tea every morning!

I thought I would be reaching for the honey I always feel like tea needs something added to it but this tea doesn't! The sweet mild flavour and light pinkish colour is perfect all on its own.

 

Depending on how much time I had that day I would sometimes re-steep the same tea for a cup after lunch as well.

 

 

Then every second evening you make your Evening Cleanse cup.

I was nervous of this tea, I didn't want any Beyoncé style crazy strict cleansing going on..

but I can happily say it was wonderful!

Light and fresh, both teas were easy to drink and beyond that very enjoyable.

 

 

I completed my 14 days and actually went to Ben wanting more!

 

I felt light, bloating was down, energy was up - I can't say I paid any attention to the bathroom scale, it was all about gaining mental/physical balance for me and that's exactly what it accomplished.

 

I sent Ben an email asking if they had any plans on introducing a morning tea that was sold on its own, because I would love to start my day off with that blend regularly! He said I was not the first to ask and they're looking into adding in some solo sold teas.

 

 

I could keep up the Tea Talk forever but before I go I wanted to say Purgo is offering

 

 

5% off your purchase with code

 

"hollyteatox"

 

 

So if you've been on the fence I highly recommend you try the Purgo Teatox program, its so gentle and soothing I don't think you could say a bad word about it.

 

Let me know if you go for it &

Have you tried any fancy detox/teatox programs?

Do you start your day with a mug of tea or are you a go- to-the Joe type of morning person??

 

...HA I myself am a anti morning person but the tea helps, a bit ;)

Comment below... 

 

 

 

Let's talk a little lip and a whole lotta ice..

Hi guys!!

 

Sooo its Friday! Yayyyy!

You may say to yourself  "hey! its Friday, you told us posts were on Tuesday's and Thursdays"

Well I lied!

 

I had to sneak these photos in this week because I love them and knew I would forget to post them otherwise.. very similar to the missing "how my Dominican vacay went" and the follow up to "my sick dog" post.....

Those will arrive at some point hehe

 

For now I give you a photo explosion of my husband, babe, et moi in front of a very, very massive iceberg near our home.

 

Everyone in and around town was taking advantage of the photo opportunity when this puppy rolled into the harbour. Its not unusual for icebergs to be in the area but this one was a biggie!

It was pretty amazing to see in person, the photos don't do it justice.

If you're ever inquiring about iceberg siting vacation spots, Newfoundland should be a top stop on your tour!

 

See below for proof and stay tuned until the end if you want to know what's on my lips!

#Hollyhousewifewears

*Yeah I make my own hashtags, cool like that ;)

 

Lell was preoccupied with my jewelry the majority of the time...

meh he will still have the photos!

Got cha!

Another mesmerized baby shot

And another..

 

It was pretty spectacular, if we get another nice day we might try to head down again and snap it from a different angle. Although we better move fast because its getting smaller and smaller, by the time we return we might be looking at an ice cube. Bahahha

 

So onto the goodies!

Nothing has changed..

Our family still LOVES selfies (no shortage in this house for sure, sorry not sorry)

And I still LOVE the Maybelline Mattes!

 

I decided to wear my matte Craving Coral 685 the other day, and man OH man.

I could wear that lippie every day for eternity.

 

The formula, amazing!

So long lasting, non drying, non flaking, its just a fabulous lipstick.

I'm going to quit chatting about it and let the photos speak for themselves..

 

Canada Day! Yayy! Craving coral ^

 

I applied this lipstick at 10:30am, left to do face painting for the towns Canada Day celebration..

It was a MAD HOUSE, a sea of kids constantly.. my body is still aching.

3+ hours later my arms wanted to fall off, my legs are burning from what feels like 100,000 squats...

Shockingly my lipstick is still on! And on point!

Then lets talk about the airport lipstick...

 

This is what hours, HOURS in an airport with a toddler and dry air looks like..

 

But this is what lipstick looks like at 11pm after a full travel day and no touch ups/barely a look in the mirror .. still rocking! No flaking! No old lady lip lines! Whooo hoooo

And this is what a cute little boy's 2nd plane ride looks like, with Daddy and Sophie assisting :)

PS: We lost Sophie in the airport.. Yikes we are bad parents!
We dropped her on our rush to board and luckily a sweet little girl found her and thought to ask if she belonged to us!

All's well that ends well :)

 

I already had a little video of my Maybelline Mattes Love,

check it out below!

 



Let's blush.. I mean talk about Nars..

If we are talking about Nars I know certain blush *cough* this Nars Blush seems to get a lot of attention, but personally I never really jumped on the Nars blush bandwagon.

 

I did do my research and ended up purchasing this one because it seemed to be more highly recommended for the fairest of skin humans aka my ghostly self.

I like it but I don't LOVE it, honestly it doesn't get used very often.

 

If I was recommending a blush brand that I love and could hit pan on I would probably go for the Tarte Amazonian Clay, man that blush is good! 

Its soft, creamy, pigmented.... and its also neither here nor there because this post is all about Nars!

 

Long story short my friend Sara of Girl Met Blush got me hooked on the Nars train with this favorites video.

 

I saw that Christopher Kane for Nars hot pink pop and I had to have it!

While I was there (Sephora) I got all down and Nars-y with my bad self and here's the outcome - Enjoy ;)

 

Nars Starscape blush - blush  

(This was a limited edition, and I know I'm going to win most hated blogger for this but it seems to have been discontinued already! I went online the day after it arrived to find the link and its not there. Please don't let that discourage! #FINDTHATBLUSH and let me know if you do!)

 

Nars tinted moisturizer - 19.99 Sephora

 

Nars Sharpener - 8.50 Sephora

 

 

No regrets here, I really needed a dual sized sharpener and this hit the mark!

Plus cute lid - check!

 

The tinted moisturizer, hmmm still on the fence (see video for more)

I should've known before I purchased..

Moisturizer, SPF and tint does not make for the most gentle of combos on my sensitive rosacea prone skin.

I was hoping for more of a moisturizer and less of a SPF for this one, the way its worded online I thought that was what I would get but once it arrived I realized its more about the SPF.

I am not returning, but buyer beware sensitive or redness prone cheeks this may not be the best for you.

 

Now the big mama!!

I love this blush and it has made me more opened minded to Nars blushes in general.

Its soft, creamy and buildable; I love that there's no glitter/sparkle totally not necessary.

It's perfection applied to the lower cheek bone and pops with just a swipe of highlight above, I've been obsessively using this highlight.

Yup I jumped on the Becca bandwagon, haters gon' hate.

 

Will be using this blush all summer, maybe I missed the memo that states neon blush is HOT HOT HOT right now but I'm going to go out on a limb and say it's HOT.
I've noticed a lot of my beauty emails have been focusing on neon cheeks!

So check that out and report back please..
is it still available??
is there a dupe I can promote??
do you buy into the Nars blush hype???
tell, tell : )

See my video (work in progress Youtuber) below!
Also a added hair tutorial??! yup.

Let's talk about my favorite sunnies..

 

 

First off, let me say how excited I am to be cost hosting this link up with Jana and Maegen!

How excited am I??

Excited, Whoooooo!

 

I've always felt that sunglasses were that one accessory that never let you down,

you know what I mean?

 

Yes I love scarves and shoes.. but sunglasses are the spanx of the accessory world, am I right??

They cover things up and help out on those "I need a 26th cup of coffee" days.

 

So let me introduce you to my current fav sunnies, mind you one of many.. but I really, really like these ones.

It is my dream to have an amazing sunnies storage system like Essie Buttons, if you don't know what I'm talking about click here to see - fabulous.

 

Without further ado, welcome to my sunnies..

 

I know, so cute!

They're my favorite style of sunnie, LARGE.

They're black/brown tortoise pattern and have little teeny tiny studs along the top rim.

 

 

I picked these up at Joe Fresh and they were a whopping $19.99!

Unfortunately I can't seem to find a sunglasses section online, which is a crying shame because I order from Joe Fresh all the time and I wouldn't mind tossing an extra set of spectacles in my next order. 

 

None the less I will leave you with the website for browsing - Joe Fresh

because my shirt is also Joe - find it here

my pants are my very fav comfy casual Old Navy pant - Old Navy (similar)

And my necklace is - Winners!

 

 

Since we were modelling Elliott wanted to show off his Joe Fresh Sunnies, but it was extremely windy so that plan was a bust.

 

 

"Mom I love this necklace!"

 

So lets keep this sunnies party going and take photos with some other favorites..

Ardene ^

Both sets of white rimmed glasses are from Ardene, I love that store for a quick accessory haul.

I picked up 3 pairs for my wedding and they were an amazing 3/$10!

 

*We didn't even end up using them on the big day because that day was mad hectic, but good to have them on hand ;)

Forever 21 ^

The final two shades are from forever 21, they rival Joe Fresh for my favorite sunnie selection.
The price range is from $7-12 dollars and they're always so stylish and on trend.

I've owned this bottom pair (yellow & red) for 5 years and they're still one of my favorite accessories I have ever owned - $8 well spent!

Do you pay the higher price tag for brand name sunnies?
Do you stick to one set and never lose them?
Or do you hoard cheaper pairs everywhere in your house and car like me?
Then end up sitting on them and misplacing them constantly ;)
Comment below!

And link up with these lovely ladies!!

Mingle the sunnies marathon! xx

 

How cute are Jana and Maegen?!

An InLinkz Link-up

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<a href="http://www.lifecouldbeadreamblog.com/category/fashion/the-creative-closet" title="The Creative Closet"><img src="http://i1173.photobucket.com/albums/r593/janalynne528/creativeclosetbutton_zpsfa38b641.png~original" alt="The Creative Closet" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

Let's talk about changing times..

Hi there.

If you're reading this it means one thing, 

I'm already gone...

 

BACK TO WORK.

I cannot believe that one year could go by so quickly.

 

 

^ Me this time last year at 40 weeks, waiting for Mr. Elliott to arrive.

Spoiler he didn't come for 2 more weeks.

I can't even go there with the whole pregnancy/birth story because its just too much, maybe someday I will dedicate a multiple blog post special but right now nope.

Today is my first day back to work and leaving a babe behind, (I always hated to leave my pets but I knew they could hold down fort for a few hours) this time it is different.

I am not a schedule person I need a big commitment like, working for pay to hold me accountable. A work place that requires me to show up at a particular time so I can't procrastinate; I think it's going to be helpful keeping me on track in all areas of life.

& I've worked at the post office a long time so I'm not scared of the job, I'm actually really excited to go back!
I'm just scared to leave Elliott, what's he going to do without me for 4+ hours a day????

 

Seriously he's a really, really exhausting child..
I'm worried all the babysitters in town are going to go running for the hills after the first day, babysitters must prep themselves for this kind of thing right???

So that's that, I'm back at it.
& what's this going to mean for the blog you ask??

I've been mulling over that one for a long time myself.
I know a blogging schedule is the way to go, but I just admitted to being a terrible scheduler..
However this blog has become way more to me than just a disposable hobby so its on my high priority list to keep going.

At first I thought I could stick to posting Monday, Wednesday, Friday..
I tried to do that the past few weeks and well it was pretty disastrous.
Now I am committing to you Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Hopefully that will allow me to get one post ready on weekends and 1 throughout the weekdays.
(That being said don't hold me to it... looky here this post is posted on a Monday! ;))
(Tomorrow does have a scheduled post though, how organized of me ;))

Trust me I have TONS left to say, I've become majorly blog-vested and I can't wait to see how my posts/life changes in the coming months. Stay Tuned!


*Ooh also- don't think its lost on me how amazing it is to have had the opportunity to stay home with this little ham for an entire year!

It's been the shortest year ever but its also been the longest, was there ever a time Elliott wasn't in our lives????? Oh yeah there was, it was glorious times of freedom.. trips to the grocery store all alone whenever I wanted and sleeping in until noon, I remember ;)

Wish me luck!!

Comment tips and tricks for working/blogging/babying

Help a girl out! :) xx

Let's talk about five by fall..

Sometimes being a member of beauty blogger networks is bad, really bad.

Because they're complete enablers!

You won't hear many..

"No, don't get that stunning highlighter, lipstick combo pack... and definitely don't get that just released, ridiculously expensive, insanely beautiful new foundation"

 

However there are perks and they far outweigh the bad!
Lets be honest the only negative to enabling in this case is the money thing..
and money ain't nothing but a chicken wing.
Moving on.

When Angela from Raincouver Beauty asked if anyone would want to join her use 5 by fall mission I was like "YES"..

I need to use products up, its a crying shame.
So without further ado here is my 5, plus a couple extra just in case ;)

 

 

1. Victoria Secret fragrance - discontinued scent, similar

2. Lush Santa lip scrub - Christmas time release, similar

3. Fresh Rose face mask - Sephora

4. Fresh Sugar lip treatment - Sephora

5. Mac concealer - Mac

 

Luna is very excited for this endeavor ^

As for my extras I'm really going to try and use up these Glam Glow eye masks

And my favorite Maybelline colour whisper in pin up peach.

 

If you want to join in please do and leave your blog in the comments below so I can follow along.

Fall officially starts September 23rd so pick you items now, and use them till you lose em!

 

I also did a quick little video of my items, see below &

Be sure you check out the other ladies participating in the challenge :)

 

 

Alanna from Classy on the run

 

Chelsea from Olive & Ivy 

 

Sandra from Sandies Stash

 

Samantha from beautiful, free & wonderful

 

Maria from Pink Petals