Birthday Ulta Haul

So I mentioned in a previous post that I spoiled myself at Ulta for my birthday and I have been meaning to write about and review the goods I got.  My parents and Daniel's parents had given me a little cash for my birthday and I had been wanting to try some new skincare and make-up products and was looking forward to splurging.  The downside is that after I made the purchases, a bit of Mommy guilt started to settle in.... Just thinking about what I could've bought for the boys or for the house with that money.  Daniel continued to insist that I keep what I purchased and that it was important for me as a Mom to feel good about myself and to get something for myself sometimes.  Why does it have to be so hard? 

Anyways, without further ado, the 1st thing that I got was a Philosophy Skin Care Trial kit.  It came with face wash, a retinol night cream, and a moisturizer.  I have pretty much always struggled with break outs since I was about 12 years old, so I was looking for something to help out with that.  Not to mention, pregnancy makes me break out like a mad woman-- far worse than the puberty break outs.  I was really excited to try this product because it had RAVE reviews online and I have heard many friends talk about how awesome Philosophy is.  I couldn't try the night cream because I am pregnant, but I began using the face wash and moisturizer immediately twice a day.  The 1st week went great-- I noticed my skin clearing up, and it felt so soft.  The 2nd week, things went down hill.  My face started itching like CRAZY all day long.  At first I thought that maybe the facial cleanser was drying my skin out and maybe I wasn't moisturizing enough-- the kit was pretty pricey so I was being very frugal with product trying to make it last.  So I started doubling the amount of moisturizer I was using.  The itching didn't stop.  I couldn't take it.  I had to return the product. When you spend that kind of money on something, it really needs to make you happy and I just wasn't.  Maybe my skin is overly sensitive?

 I took the product back and got a face wash and moisturizer that was WAY cheaper and felt a lot better about it.  It's from "Formula 10.0.6".  I had never heard of the brand but Ulta was doing a buy 1 get 1 free sale on it.  I got the "Best Face Forward" face wash and "Seriously Shine Free" moisturizer.  They are AWESOME!  And they were not even 1/4 of the cost of the Philosophy stuff. 

The other purchase I made originally was for some more make-up.  I wrote a post a LONG time ago about my love of bare minerals and I still really like bare minerals but I was just in need of a change.  I have been swirling, tapping and buffing for a long time and I'm just one of those girls that tends to get a little bored with things after a while.  So after reading reviews and watching You Tube videos of people putting on make-up (because I'm nerdy like that and because I don't spend that kind of money without doing a little research first) I decided to go with make-up by Smashbox.  They have a trial kit called the complexion perfection kit that comes with a primer, foundation, concealer and powder.  It sounded like a great place to start and I really and truly could not be more pleased with it.  It has REALLY awesome coverage, and I feel like it makes my skin look pretty close to flawless when it is definitely FAR from it. 

All in all, I am extremely pleased with my birthday gifts that I picked out, and definitely feel like my new skincare regimen gives me a little more confidence and a little more pep in my step and there is nothing wrong with that.  It's easy to lose yourself when you become a Mom, so it feels really good to take care of myself, and splurge a little on me once in a while... even if that means forcing myself.... and even if that means I have to get over a little guilt in the end.

Goat Lady Dairy

 You should know in advance that this post is picture heavy.... But it is SO worth it!

Last night was DATE NIGHT!  They are very few and far between here at the Kroh house since we have Mr. Leeland on our hands. He went to his Nana and Papa's last night while we were out and he even spent the night with them-- his VERY FIRST overnight away from Mommy. My baby is growing up! We picked him up this morning and enjoyed breakfast with my parents at a little hole in the wall restaurant called "Frank and Larry's." Delicious food, and good country folk can be found there, it was perfect!

Back to last night though.... Last night we enjoyed fine dining at Goat Lady Dairy. It's located in the small town of Climax which I grew up in.  The Goat Lady is very well-known around here for the most fabulous goat cheese, and there are many Saturday's that I can be found at the local Farmer's Market seeking specifically Goat Lady Dairy goat cheese. The Dairy hosts dinners on the farm a couple times a month.  You get a thorough tour of the farm which includes seeing and even petting the goats and you are served a 5 course meal of local and farm fresh food.  Much of the food is from the farm and some comes from local sister farms.  Because the food is always fresh and in season, you don't know the menu until a couple days before the dinner. I have to say that I really enjoyed the mysteriousness of it all, and the excitement of opening the email to find the menu.  Here's a little bit of our fun and what we enjoyed:

"Goat beauty is in the eye of the beholder"

 Our evening started with appetizers on the porch, followed by the farm tour.

Appetizers were served on the porch: Cherry tomatoes stuffed with Cilantro Queso Fresco. Delish!!!

We learned about sustainable gardening. (chicken on the loose!)

Saw some really cool bees! They're very important for pollination and garden growth.

This is the barn.

Another shot of the barn-- we dined inside.

LOTS of chickens! They were beautiful!

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And of course the goats!

Each goat had a name tag-- this was Angie

I fell in love with the Nubian Goats-- they have long floppy ears and are adorable!

We got to see 2 baby goats.

And we were surprised to learn that goats have personalities like dogs and really enjoy being pet.

After the farm tour, it was time to head inside for our meal. 

An assortment of Goat Lady Dairy cheeses served with pita chips.

And wine!

Gazpacho con Tropezones

This was a fire roasted corn and cucumber salad with goat cheese and chili plantain chips.

Free range chicken and goat cheese enchiladas with a jalapeno corn muffin

Daniel devoured his enchiladas-- not too big on spicy though, so no jalapeno muffin for him.

Dessert was homemade shortbread with vanilla ice cream (from my favorite, HOMELAND CREAMERY) with a brandy and blackberry sauce. This was all my dreams come true!

Our chef!

And then even after all of that, we got goat cheese chocolate truffles that were wrapped and ready to go. And there was decaf coffee brewed and ready out on the porch if you wanted. Didn't get a picture of my truffle-- just being honest with you guys, I devoured it in the car on the ride home.

The whole experience was fabulous!!!  Daniel and I both thoroughly enjoyed the food. I was nervous going in to this experience with Daniel being such a picky eater, but he really loved it and said that he had a great time! A special thanks to the Goat Lady Dairy for having us and also for running an awesome special this month which made it easier for us to go.  If you're in the area, you should definitely check it out!  If you'd like more information on the dairy, visit their website Goat Lady Dairy

Another baby shower cake and sugar sheets.

This weekend I had another baby shower cake order-- those things really make me realize how many people are pregnant. I know SO many people having babies right now! Are you in the same boat? I have to admit that it makes me a little jealous... just a little. I would LOVE to be pregnant again and make Leeland a big brother. In God's time it will happen-- the patience on my end is the hard part.

So without further ado, here's the cake I made. The couple that it is for don't know if they are having a boy or a girl-- a good old fashioned surprise.  The cake needed to be somewhat jungle themed or monkey, and I thought green and yellow were good "jungly" gender neutral colors.

I used sugar sheets to make the yellow and green polka dots.  Sugar sheets are a new product that Wilton just came out with. And I mean really new-- like this month-- like when I called AC Moore, they wouldn't give me any because they weren't going out till this weekend-- BUT when I called Michael's, a sweet gal there offered to sort through their boxes and find exactly what I needed.  Thanks Michaels's! (For there record, I do in fact love both stores and know that they have their own protocol for new merchandise and love to frequent both.)

They are literally like paper-- 8 1/2" x 11" and are about the same thickness as card stock.  You can use scissors to cut them or Wilton makes a special punch tool where you can punch out various shapes. I tasted some and they just taste sweet and they are a little chewy like fondant. Overall I really enjoyed them! They are much easier to work with than fondant and I like that they are so thin so you don't get the look of a giant circle popping off the cake.  The bag is resealable and the instructions say that if you place what you don't use back in the sealed  bag then you can store them-- I used all of what I bought but I wish I would've kept some scraps to test that theory and make sure it didn't dry out. Thanks Wilton for another fabulous product!