Tag Archives: friends

smoooove

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So, I’ve been on an eternal quest for a healthier lifestyle…for oh, let’s say, eternity.

In March, I added a new skin care regime, because as I lose weight, it is highly possibly that I’ll get wrinkles. And as a woman of 44 years, who still gets carded on a regular basis, the last thing I need or want is to get wrinkles. At least, not yet.

I’ve been using Meaningful Beauty for 3 full months now, and this is me today, without any makeup on and no filters.

Today: No makeup. Fewer laugh lines and crows feet

Today: No makeup. Fewer laugh lines and crows feet

Not too bad for a 44 year old broad, huh? I was trying to find a good comparison picture. I found 1 that would work, but I have full makeup and glasses on so it was difficult to see the difference around the eyes. However the difference around the mouth is pretty significant.

Now, I purchased this product, so MB isn’t paying me anything to review it. Here’s what I have to say.

Yes, my skin looks fantastic and feels SMOOOOOOVE like a baby’s bottom. I’ve noticed a definite fading of crow’s feet and my laugh lines (which I actually love) are noticeably less prominent. I have no issues going without makeup (even though I need new lashes ASAP. Has anyone seen my eyes? Yeah, me either.)

I’m not a huge fan of the cleansing lotion. It doesn’t foam or bubble up, and I feel like I’m having to use more of it than I should. The kit doesn’t come with a night cream, so I use the day cream at night. That’s a huge disappointment. You have the option to ‘customize’ your kit and can add the night cream that way.

I also do not like the “club” set up, however, I have my automatic delivery for 20 weeks, which I can change at any time if I run low. That’s a nice option. Most “clubs” force your into a 90 Day /12 week automatic delivery.

The price point isn’t bad, especially if you set up your delivery for 4 months or more. I don’t need to use a lot of product, one little dab will do ya… or at least it does me. I’ve decided to keep using the product for at least one more round.

In Eating Cleaner news:

I fired up the grill and loaded it with some awesome locally grown veggies this weekend. Sweet potatoes, asparagus, okra, squash, green beans, tomatoes. I also grilled some pineapple, which was oh so yummy. We ate very well this weekend, let me tell ya.

I walked every day for an hour. Monday was hard because Sunday I had some girlfriends over and we enjoyed muy wine. I’ll have you know, I still did not go over my calories for the day, thankyouverymuch.

In OMG how awesome news, I met Ian’s friend-girl this week. (OMG, she’s adorbs). I’m not sure if they’re going to officially ‘date’ or not, it’s really not my business yet (it won’t be until it’s her birthday or Christmas, and then I’ll need to know if I need to buy her a present or not. Haha) But anyway, we were all hanging out on Wednesday and we were talking about parents and parenting styles etc., and I made a comment that sometimes parents have really high expectations of their kids and no matter what they accomplish, it won’t be enough because they expect more. (this is a concept I don’t understand as a parent, but I understand as a kid of those parents.) I said, “for example, I’ve published two young adult novels with a very prestigious publisher, and sometimes I think my mom still thinks I could do better.” She stopped and looked at me and said, “Wait. You’re Melissa Francis? As in BITE ME AND LOVE SUCKS Melissa Francis?”

Me: Yep.

Friend-Girl: OMG I LOVE YOUR BOOKS!! I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU’RE THAT MELISSA FRANCIS.

Me: Happy happy joy joy can’t stop smiling.

And in other O517I1Qi7nnL._SY300_MG Awesome News…I got to see my Stacey Jay this weekend! Have you pre-ordered her latest book yet? WHY NOT?

OF BEAST AND BEAUTY

order it. devour it. review it. and email Stacey and tell her she is made of awesome. (because she totes is).

Find Stacey on Facebook

Stacey on the web

Stacey on Twitter: @stacey_jay

Okay, there’s my weekend recap. It was a great weekend. The boys enjoyed Riverfest. Jefe and I enjoyed each other and the beautiful weather, and I also enjoyed my girl time with some of my besties. Life doesn’t suck.

Hey USA! Happy Holiday Weekend!

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Memorial-Day

Don’t forget to thank a veteran for the freedoms he or she fought for us to have.

 

 

 

 

Also. Happy Freaking Friday! Yay for the three-day weekend!

Last night at the Compound, we fired up Big Bertha for the first time since fall. Not because we don’t  grill year ’round usually, but because we had to use our porch as a storage shed, and poor Big Bertha was inaccessible until we finally got the boxes moved to the actual storage unit. Which we did a few weeks ago, and now, not only can we enjoy our Screened-in-Porch again, but we can enjoy grilled meat again as well.

Mmmmm. Meat.

Mmmmm. Meat.

I melted some butter and added an equal amount of balsamic vinegar and some garlic and I put the chicken and the marinade into a ziploc. I refrigerated the chicken for about 40 minutes. Then I basted the chicken in the leftover marinade while grilling.

OMG. It was seriously so juicy and tender!  I also grilled some green beans and black-eyed peas in foil with a smidge of bacon fat.  We ate well last night.

Congratulations to the Boy Scouts for kinda sorta not being homophobic. *rolling eyes* So what’s going to happen when your gay boy scout members grow up and want to be boy scout leaders? It’s okay to be a gay member (heheh she said gay member) but not a leader who is gay? Really? So isn’t that kinda like Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell? (which really didn’t work out very well, yanno). Or is it the modern version of Separate but Equal? No. It’s not that either. I guess I’m proud you tried to take a step forward. It’s more like a half-a-step and you twisted your ankle, but it is slight progress.

Today is a wonderful day. It started out swell, I’m full of sparkle and awesome, I’m having Sushi with my bestie from high school for lunch, and tonight, there will be wine. Tomorrow we may go canoeing. I’m pretty sure I’ll be shaking my bootay at some point this weekend. (When you have a bootay like mine, you need to shake it well, and often.) And I’m thinking there will be a trip to the farmer’s market in our future as well.

YAY SUMMER!

Hey it’s Monday! Please pass the Advil

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Or something stronger if you’ve got it.

I woke with a migraine this morning. Haven’t had one in a while. I think the bleach I used yesterday afternoon must have triggered it. Either way, I don’t look so swell, and the light is bothering me so I keep squinting, which makes my head hurt more.

The good news is, I’ll get over it.

This weekend was a good one! Friday night was spent glued to the tv telling man-in-the-boat jokes while they arrested the asshole. I also spent quite a bit of time hammering state Rep Nate Bell (@NateBell4AR) for his moronic and insensitive tweet about Boston liberals and then his even more insulting “apology”. I mean, seriously? Between Jason Rapert, Nate Bell and now Mark Pryor…Arkansas looks like a bunch of backward idiots. It’s infuriating to those of us who love our state and want people to treat us with respect. Our State Representatives are not representing us well at all.

 
Seriously? He apologized for the TIMING? What a moron.
Saturday I played queen of the John Deere, then met some friends at US Pizza for a little nosh and beverage. Then we had an impromptu firepit night…and really had a great time. I miss living in town sometimes, but I love nights like Saturday, where we light up the fire and hang out til all hours and enjoy the hell out of a great evening.

 Hope you guys had a lovely weekend and that if you’re experiencing a migraine today, like I am, that you’re able to suck it up and sparkle on. It ain’t easy, but I’m trying!

get ’em, blue!

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I hope everyone in Boston and surrounding areas remain safe and secure while the city is on lockdown. I hope they catch all assholes involved. I’m so proud they found them so quickly. Stay safe, and Kick Ass boys (and girls) in blue!

In fun news, OMG did I laugh my ass off last night. Well, not literally. Sadly. Because I am still carrying my hump, my hump, my lovely lady lumps around with me today. Every inch. Because TTB was running late and she left me alone with the cheese dip UNSUPERVISED. Thank goodness ALL-CAPS KRISTAL showed up on time for once!

I haven’t laughed that hard in forever. I actually feel like I had an ab work out. Laughter, it’s what’s for dinner. (well, that and Cheese Dip.)

In Alien News, Susie is shrinking. I no longer look like I was dating Chris Brown. Jefe is no longer under suspicion for elbowing me in my sleep. It seems the antibiotic is doing its job…so yippee!  (Sorry Susie, we hardly knew ya)

To honor the officers putting their life on the line for America today, I’m wearing my booTAY pants, a cleavage shirt, some sparkly shoes and my inner sparkle is turned up to 11 today.

Also, Happy Birthday to Dobby! I’ll see you tonight!

let me catch you up on very important things

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1.  I haven’t felt well off and on for a month of so. Tired. Neck pain. Headaches. I blamed the pollen and I just picked myself up by the bootstraps and marched on.

Until this week when I was taken down by dizziness and stiff neck and headaches…powerful, yucky, no fun, headaches. And there was a knot on my face by my ear. And the right side of my face was swollen.

Guess who has an ear infection? This girl.

And it looks like it’s been going on a while. So I’m on loads of antibiotics for 10 days. Yippee.

 2.  Speaking of antibiotics…Walgreens is this [] close to losing my business. I waited in line for 25 minutes just to drop off the prescription… and only 1 person moved in the line. So I came back an hour later. The drive through was stacked 3 cars deep on each side. I went in…and waited 10 minutes just to drop it off…they said they would text me…it should be 20 minutes. An hour and a half later, at 8:59 pm, I got the text that my prescription was ready. The pharmacy closes at 9:00…so who didn’t get to start her medicine this morning? This girl.

Not cool, Walgreens. And this is not the first time this has happened. Jefe waited for an hour for his prescription that was only going to take a ‘few minutes.’ (hint: 60 minutes is way more than a few minutes.)

3.  In the world of AWESOME news…BITE ME! and LOVE SUCKS! will be featured in the Scholastic e-book club starting in August! Yay! This is huge news and could be a big boost for the books. So gang, tell your friends to buy my books when they get their book club order forms!

4.  My father-in-law, Poppy, is back in the hospital due to complications from his recent gall-bladder surgery. Any love, prayers or healing thoughts you can send his way will be much appreciated.

I’m meeting some friends from high school tonight. Even though I have an alien baby growing inside my face, I’m gonna tough it out for a margarita. I’m hoping the antibiotic will kick in and immediately start shrinking Susie (the knot, er, I mean, the alien baby). Also, I think the margarita will help me feel less dizzy.

That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!

blog post #2: For Lynne

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In my previous post today, I neglected to mention the most wonderful and generous and lovely gift I received this weekend.

My dollar store beer koozie.

Thank you, Lynne. Please forgive my oversight. I think it is so special, it deserves its own post anyway.

A weekend of sunshine and awesome.

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I posted my Week 1 of 12 update at FCR this morning. Also there’s a fantastic baked or grilled salmon recipe included. Go forth and enjoy.

What a lovely weekend. I managed to mow for a couple of hours on Saturday, after walking 4 miles with Robyn. I also drove topless all weekend long.

The TreeFrog and his friend came over to do some yard work and enjoy foods that only his momma can fix.

That night, I baked some asparagus stuffed chicken breasts and made rice pilaf…mmmmm. And let met tell ya something, I threw some of the leftovers into a tortilla and added a little sour cream and avocado yesterday and it was one of the yummiest wraps I’ve ever tasted.

I don’t know if you’ve figured it out or not, but I’m kind of a big deal in the kitchen. (true story)

Jefe and I took the girls for their first swim of the season this weekend. Well, Trinity swam, Ruby waded and played but didn’t venture out very far. She sinks without her life jacket anyway, so probably it was for the best.

This was a lovely weekend. First one in a while that was sunshiny and warm. I even have a little color on my face and arms now! YAY! I hope y’all enjoyed the hell out of your weekend, and that you’re sparkling extra brightly today…even though it’s a Monday!

Oh, and BTW, my Father-in-Law’s surgery was successful and he’s home safe and sound. Thanks for the love and healing thoughts!

bippity boppity boo

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I have no idea why I chose this title, but there you go. So, here you go:

Robyn and I enjoyed the sunshine yesterday and walked nearly 3 miles. My body protested, of course. But this morning, I woke up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed (note to self: shave tail) this morning.

12 weeks. We are committing to 12 weeks of eating healthier, and exercising daily. Like I said at FCR yesterday, I’ve done a great job keeping up my positive attitude and working on my sense of self. Now I just have to stop fueling my body with crap and start filling my well with exercise. After we complete the first 12, we’ll do it again until this is habit.

So, bippity boppity boo! It’s like magic. Only it takes dedication. I would very much like for my fairy godmother to help me out, though.

2013: Month of Mel Days 16-25

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I took a blogging break for my birthday month. Sometimes a girl just needs a little downtime. So…let me catch you up.

My TreeFrog turned 19 on the 16th. We had Japanese food and pedicures to celebrate.

Rader went for Catholic High colors. Ian chose to be Emo Nemo with black toes and I really wanted a touch of spring, so I chose the lovely blue.

Last week, my friend Lynne did my lashes for me. And now my eyes POP.

It’s amazing how different having long lashes can make your eyes look. My natural lashes are thin, straight, short and blond. (sounds like my first boyfriend!) Curling and mascara don’t really help much.

I’m totes digging the lashes. I’m bangin’ hot now. (not that I wasn’t before. but whatever.)

It seems that Mother Nature decided that since I bought a convertible AND got my toes did, that she needed to punish me for wishful thinking. Spring has not sprung. I need some warm weather, stat. I need some sun on my skin, wind in my hair, and quality time on a boat. Sooner rather than later.

Hope you guys had a good week and weren’t too bored without me. I know, I miss y’all, too.

2013: The Month of Mel days 9-11

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This weekend in SPARKLE:

Saturday, I had a very special playdate with my Best (male) Friend from High School. He moved back to Arkansas before the holidays, and we’ve had dinner a couple of times, but we haven’t been able to have good, quality time yet.

We went to Dizzy’s for lunch and had some fantastically large portions of food. We drove with the top down and took Sally Sparkle to Wye Mountain where I posed for my Easter Card. (Just kidding. I posed, but I don’t send out Easter cards. I’m not your grandmother.) The sky was beautiful, the temp was warm…and we cruised like it was our job!

We had so much fun, that we weren’t ready for it to end…So we called ALL-CAPS Kristal and she joined us on the porch at SO for a couple of beverages. Then we continued the day well into the night, by hanging out at Dale and Terry’s Bachelor pad. El Jefe joined us and I cooked a magnificent pasta and we just chatted and laughed until it was time to go home.

Sunday, I napped. That’s how you beat Daylight Savings Time, you see…You nap.

We have officially entered the WEEK OF MEL (subcategory to the MONTH OF MEL) We have initiated mandatory sparkle. If you have a bad week…you have nobody to blame, but yourself. 😉

Sparkle on, my minions!!