Mommy Minute: Kason's 8 Month Update

Kason is 8 MONTHS OLD today!! I can't believe how big he's getting and how much he has changed in these 8 short months. Pretty soon I'm going to be planning his first birthday party, it makes me a little sad just thinking about it because time is flying by. I'm going to update ya'll on what he's been loving this month, changes and milestones, and giving an update on the issues we were having earlier this month regarding bottle feeding.

Kason has been playing a lot more this past month. Instead of spending a lot of time in his bouncer, he's really enjoyed sitting on the floor surrounded by toys. He can sit there for long periods of time, go from toy to toy, and be perfectly content. His favorite toys this month have been a set of Infantino Stackable Rings, the Go GaGa Squeeze & Teethe Elephant from Target, and the Fisher-Price Laugh and Learn Love to Play Puppy. I will set him in the floor and he will rotate each toy, play with them, lick them, and throw them. Throwing things has been really fun for him lately, especially with the rings. The rings are the first thing he goes for. He grabs the base of the stacker and dumps it upside down so that all the rings fall off. He then proceeds to play with just the stacker by turning it over and beating it like a drum. As for the rings themselves, he likes to pick them up and wave them around before he launches them all over the place. The teething elephant has been so wonderful for him. It doesn't have a good squeaker like Sophie the Giraffe, but it's so much better for teething and chewing. The ears of the elephant are what he likes to chew on. He likes to bite down on the ears and tugs on them to rub him gums. It's also super lightweight so it's easy for him to hold. I got him the Laugh and Play puppy at the beginning of the month because I noticed he was starting to play a lot more. He loves it! There's a ton of different buttons and places to press to make the puppy sing, talk, and light up. The buttons are extremely sensitive, so all he has to do is touch it and it starts making noise.

I got Kason a new carseat this month because he had outgrown his carrier. I went with the Graco MyRide 65 Convertible Carseat, purchased from Target. It's rear facing and forward facing, with a minimum weight of 5 lbs and a max of 65. That's one of my favorite things about this seat, you can use it from the time your baby is born all the way through their toddler years. It's also all in one piece, so when it's time to turn it forward all I have to do is unbuckle it and turn it around.  The first time I put Kason in it, he got so excited. I would look in my rear view mirror into his mirror, and he was waving his arms around, kicking, and smiling the entire car ride. It was like he was saying "Oh my gosh! Look at all this room I have now! This is so awesome!". It was so cute and made me really happy to see him so happy. It was kind of bittersweet for me when I was picking his carseat out. It's been so fun lately now that he's getting a little older and is able to do more and play more, but at the same time I'm sad that he's no longer a little tiny baby.

Kason finally got his first tooth!! And it's the cutest little tooth I have ever seen. It came in really fast too. I saw that his gums had a tiny little slit in them, and the next day there was the tiniest little white tooth poking through. As soon as the tooth broke the skin, it's been sprouting more and more every day. It's really visible now, and can be seen when he smiles or laughs. Tooth number two is coming in as we speak. I figured since he hadn't cut them yet that they most likely would come back to back. I saw the white cap right under the skin last Sunday, and his gums now have the little slit in them so that tooth is going to pop up in the next few days I'm sure. He's been handling it really well. He's had his fussy moments and his tantrums, but they are sporadic and don't happen all the time. What I've noticed is that he was mostly irritable for about two weeks before that tooth came in. We went to dinner for my sister's birthday, and normally Kason handles being in restaurants really well. However, this time was an exception. He had a complete and total mental breakdown as soon as we got there, and it was off and on during the whole dinner. I was so embarrassed and irritated, especially when he completely changed his tune as soon as we got back in the car to leave.

After that meltdown, I started having problems with him drinking his bottles. I wrote an entire post about it, if you haven't checked it out you can click here to read about it. Well, I finally figured out why he was doing that. It was because of his tooth! Every baby handles teething differently, and apparently when mine is about to cut a tooth, his bottles go out the window. The day his tooth cut he started taking his bottles again no problem. We went about two weeks with him not taking his bottle, and about two weeks of him taking them before he started refusing them again. When this started back up, I looked in his mouth and noticed the second tooth coming in. The only thing I can figure about why he does this, is that his bottom jaw must be really sore from the new teeth that it makes it really uncomfortable for him to suck. I'm already on the highest level nipple, and if I cut the holes to make them bigger the milk will just pour out, so I can't do that. The only thing I can do is give him smaller, more frequent bottles when he's cutting his teeth, and keep the Orajel and Infant Tylenol on hand. I've found that the smaller bottles work really well when he's sore, because he gets enough to satisfy him for a couple hours, plus he's not sucking for as long of a time which makes him less sore. The Orajel offers him instant relief, and I give him the Tylenol when all else fails. After the Tylenol, he's much more comfortable within 20 minutes. Another thing that's been helping him through the teething process has been more naps. He's been taking a lot more lately, and has been falling asleep within a couple minutes of laying down. Still not a whole lot of luck in the sippy cup department. I bought a couple different types of cups and he's still kind of confused. Surprisingly he's done the best with the Nuby cup. After his tooth cut he figured out how to get the liquid out of the mouthpiece. I've been putting a little bit of apple juice mixed with equal parts water and letting him practice with that.

Something new that I've started doing with him this month is reading to him. I love to read myself, and it's something that I want to raise him to do as well. He has been enjoying our reading time and so have I. We sit on the floor of his bedroom and I sit him in my lap so that he can see the pages as I'm reading. He tries to hold the books, and likes to touch the pages. He will scratch on the pages to hear the sound it makes, and to see what the texture is. He really enjoys all the bright colors and pictures in the books, and likes to reach out and bang his hands on them. Reading is a big part of me, and is one of my favorite things to do. I remember learning to read at a young age, and how much I loved it and still do. I wanted to start something that he and I could enjoy doing together, and to give him a memory that he will always remember.

That's all for this months update! Let me know in the comments below what toys your baby loves, and what activities you like to do together.


xoxo,
Casey

Beauty And The Books: Born At Midnight by C.C. Hunter

I just finished Born At Midnight by C.C. Hunter and I loved it! It's the first book in the Shadow Falls series. I don't know what it is about series' that I love so much, but I just can't get enough. I'm notorious for reading multiple series' at a time too. I always have this big TBR list so there's always other books I'm excited to read, which distracts me from finishing one series at a time. I will read one book in a series, and even if I loved it I usually will go to a different series before picking up the next book in the series that I just finished reading. In my eyes it's like watching TV. You don't want to sit there and watch the same show, episode after episode, over and over again because you'd get bored. That's how I am with books. I don't want to ruin a good thing so I like to "change the channel" after each "episode". Catch my drift? :)

In Born At Midnight, the main character Kylie is having a tough time. Her parents are going through a divorce, her Nana just passed away, her boyfriend broke up with her, and for some reason this guy dressed as a soldier is following her around. Anyone would be weirded out to have some random guy following them around, and popping up at random times and places. What makes this situation even creepier is that only Kylie can see him. Her parents naturally are worried about her, so they have her visit with a psychiatrist to try and figure out what's really going on. Kylie is a good kid, but with everything going on at home she decides to go to a party with a friend of hers to try and unwind. While at the party, the cops show up and take everyone to the police station because of underage drinking, and for drugs that were found at the party. Kylie was not drinking or doing any drugs, but because she lied to her mom about the party she gets in a heck of a lot of trouble.

Naturally her mother is worried about her, but Kylie's mom is not the motherly type. She's cold natured, and doesn't show a lot of affection. When her mom picks her up from the police station, she tells Kylie that her psychiatrist had recommended she attend a summer camp, and after the party fiasco, her mom decides that summer camp is the best way to get to the bottom of Kylie's issues. The camp her psychiatrist recommends is called Shadow Falls. Kylie does not want to go to camp, and she wishes her mom wouldn't make her go. When they arrive to the bus station, Kylie starts to take in the other kids that are also attending Shadow Falls. They all appear to be gothic, and look like the kind of kids that are up to no good. She begs her mom one more time to please let her stay home, but her mom doesn't budge, and sends her off to camp.

Shadow Falls is not a camp for troubled youth like she had thought. When she arrives and the camp leaders are giving their introductions, everyone won't stop staring at Kylie. She's really confused and doesn't understand what's going on. Things get even more uncomfortable when a fellow camper raises her hand, and asks in front of the entire camp "What's she doing here?", pointing right at Kylie. Soon after that, Kylie finds out what kind of camp Shadow Falls really is, and needless to say she's pretty freaked out. Shadow Falls is a camp for supernaturals. Everyone attending the camp is either a vampire, a werewolf, a shape shifter, a witch, or a fairy. Kylie is totally creeped out and doesn't understand why in the world she's. All she knows is that she's just a regular teenage girl. She wonders why her psychiatrist would recommend this camp for her in the first place, and she can't wrap her head around the fact that supernaturals even exist.

After everyone arrives at camp and the initial introductions have been made, Kylie goes in for a meeting with Holiday, one of the camp directors. Holiday explains to Kylie that her psychiatrist recommended Shadow Falls because she believes that Kylie is a supernatural, or at least half of one. What led her to believe this is Kylie's brain pattern, and her ability to see ghosts. Every supernatural has a different brain pattern than regular humans, and they all have the ability to read said patterns. Kylie is beyond confused, she's scared, and she really wishes that this wasn't happening to her. She's not even the slightest bit convinced that she's a supernatural. She is looking for every excuse in the book, and every possible explanation, for why her brain pattern is different and why she could be seeing this ghost.

Throughout the rest of the book, we follow Kylie through her first few weeks at camp as she tries to discover who she is, what she is, and how she came to be that way. We get to watch her come into her own, form new friendship's, and witness a love triangle that is starting to unfold. I really recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Supernatural YA Fiction. There are five books in this series, along with a few side stories. Born At Midnight received 4.15 stars out of a possible five on GoodReads, and the rest of the books in the series also have above a four star rating. 

I hope ya'll enjoyed today's Beauty And The Books post! Let me know in the comments below if you've read this series and what your thoughts and opinions are on it.

xoxo,

Casey

September No Buy: Products I Want To Use Up

Fall is right around the corner and I am so excited! The cold weather months are my favorite for beauty and fashion. In preparation for the new season, I am doing a Beauty Ban for the entire month of September. I'm not going to be purchasing anything new in hopes of using up, or at least putting a dent, in some of the products I already have in my collection to make room for some new Fall beauty products.

I've been going through my makeup collection and setting aside products that I'd like to focus on this next month. These items are products that I have either had in my collection for a long time, have already hit pan on, or things that I haven't used in a while. Some of these products I'm not in love with. If I'm still not enjoying them after this next month, I will most likely be tossing them or giving them to someone who will love them more than me.

First up is my Naked Palette. I know I won't be finishing this completely and I may not even hit pan on a lot of these colors. I am including this because it was the first palette I ever purchased and I have had it for forever. I would really like to try and use this up a little more over this next month.

Next up are a few mascaras and pencil liners, along with my Anastasia Brow Gel. These mascaras are about halfway done and starting to dry out, so I know I will be finishing them soon. I'm not really into pencil liners anymore, but I don't want them to go to waste so I'm going to stop using my gel liner and finish these. The Make Up For Ever Aqua Eyes is already almost gone. It's only going to last a few more applications before it's too small to hold and apply. I included the brow gel because it's also about halfway gone. Once it's finished up I really want to try the Benefit Gimme Brow gel.

These Benefit blushes have been in my collection for a long time. Coralista is almost gone, and I recently hit pan on Belle Bamba. I included these because they are bright, summery colors and won't be getting much use once Fall and Winter roll around.

I am always using different lip products, which is probably why I hardly ever finish any. I'm going to try and finish up the two Buxom glosses for sure. The other's I hardly ever show any love, so this is kind of going to be "Make It or Break It" time for them.

Along with my Naked Palette, I am going to make an effort to use my single eyeshadows. I never use these, which is why I pulled them out. After swatching them, I realized that there are some really pretty colors in this bunch. I really want to get a larger Z-Palette and depot these. I've realized over the years that if my shadows aren't in a palette, they probably won't get used. (1. Stila Kitten, 2. Urban Decay Twice Baked, 3. Urban Decay Vapor, 4. Urban Decay Roach, 5. MAC Sable, 6. MAC Expensive Pink, 7. Urban Decay Pistol, 8. Urban Decay Suspect)

Out of all my bronzers, these are the only ones I've hit pan on. I love Benefit's Hoola, but not so much this Smashbox bronzer in Suntan Matte. I've had it for forever and know that there are other bronzers I love so much more. I did love it at one point, so maybe using it again this month I will learn to appreciate it again.

I am going to keep all these products separate from my regular makeup collection to be sure and use them. I will update you on my progress in the beginning of October and let you know if I was able to finish any of these products, and if I finished anything else in my collection. It's going to be really difficult not to pick up any new products over this next month, but I'm going to try really hard! I'm also going to start a list of new products that I want to pick up for the new season. If you're interested in joining me in my "September No Buy", be sure to Tweet me or Instagram me with a picture of things you'd like to use up using the hashtag #SeptemberNoBuy!


xoxo,
Casey

Skin Care Routine: A.M. & P.M.

Over the past year I have been really into skin care. I've been trying a bunch of different products and trying to figure out what works for me. I've found some really great products, and feel comfortable with a routine that works for me. I'm going to go through my morning routine, along with my night time routine, and discuss all the different products I use.

I don't like to use a ton of products in the morning. I like my skin to feel clean, fresh, and awake without feeling heavy with product. I start by washing my face with the Murad Refreshing Cleanser. It smells really great and has a soft creamy consistency. Depending on how my skin is acting, and looking, I sometimes use my Clarasonic Mia with the Luxe brush head. This brush head is really soft and gentle, making it perfect for morning use. After I've cleansed my face, I moisturize. I absolutely love the Maracuja line from Tarte. I've been using it since I was pregnant with Kason. I start with the Maracuja C-Brighter Eye Treatment. It's a thick eye cream, but it's not heavy. I have really dry under eyes, and this eye cream really hydrates and plumps my under eye area. It really helps moisturize and prep my under eyes for concealer. The Olay Complete moisturizer is my favorite and I've been using it for years. It's light weight and does a great job at keeping my skin moisturized. The Maracuja Oil is like hydration in a bottle. Some people cringe at the thought of putting oil on their face. This oil sinks into my skin without leaving a greasy residue, and leaves my skin glowing and plump. I mix in two drops of the Pure Maracuja Oil with a dime sized amount of Olay. The two work really great together and my skin loves it. Together they keep my skin moisturized without leaving me greasy. It leaves my skin with a nice glow, and makes my makeup go on so much smoother.

To remove my makeup at night I've really been liking the Garnier Cleansing Oil. It removes all my makeup and leaves my skin really soft and smooth. It's really great for dry skin. The only thing I don't like about it is the packaging. The pump leaks and creates an oily mess over the whole bottle. After I've removed my makeup I use the Philosophy Purity Cleanser with my Clarasonic Mia and Deep Pore brush head. This brush head does a great job of exfoliating my face without over stripping it. I've purchased the Purity cleanser multiple times. I started using it during my pregnancy, it was the only cleanser that didn't irritate my face. After cleansing, I take one of the Philosophy Miracle Worker Retinoid Pad's and apply it all over my face, avoiding the eyes, and down my neck and on my chest. You can also use it on the backs of your hands, since the hands are also one of the first things on the body to show signs of aging. I let that sink in for about a minute before I apply my moisturizers. I've been using the Clinique Repairwear Laser Focus eye cream for a while and am almost out, I will be repurchasing it again. I honestly haven't seen a huge difference in my smile lines, but I don't think anything will really repair those completely. One I am always smiling, and two I think it's just part of who I am and is more prominent because of my high cheek bones. It has repaired the tiny fine lines I was starting to get around and under my eyes though. For my night time moisturizer I am obsessed with the Origins Starting Over moisturizer. It's really thick and moisturizing, and smells divine. I tried something different after purchasing this the first time, only to realize how much I loved and missed it. I'm so happy to have it back because my skin adores it.

As you can see, I use quite a bit of anti-aging products. Sometimes when I purchase them, the people behind the counter question me on why I'm buying them. I started using anti-aging products right before I got pregnant, so I was 24. When I got pregnant, I had to stop using some of them because they were unsafe. After my pregnancy and once I was done breastfeeding, I started using them again. I am all about prevention and starting an anti-aging routine at a young age. I'm hoping that by starting early, I won't have as much work to do as I get older.

I hope you enjoyed getting a look into my skin care routine! I do use masks occasionally as well, but I rotate a few different ones depending on what my skin needs, so I will probably save that for another post. Let me know in the comments below what your favorite skin care products are. I love discovering and trying new products so I'd love to know what you guys are currently using.


xoxo,
Casey

Product Empties

Yay for my first Empties post! I've been collecting my empties for a few months now and figured it was a good time to show you what I've used up and if I would repurchase any of them. I also wanted to get this up because I will be doing a Product No Buy during the whole month of September. With Fall right around the corner, I wanna try and use up some of my Summer beauty products so I can get a few new things for the new season. At the end of September I will follow up and let you know if I was able to finish up any products in my collection. If any of you would like to join me in the No Buy, Tweet me or Instagram me with the hashtag #SeptemberNoBuy. I love seeing what products others are using up and what they think about them. Ok, let's get started with the Empties.

Body Care Empties
1. Olay Age Defense Body Wash: This is my go-to body wash. It's super moisturizing, has a nice clean scent, and leaves my skin feeling hydrated and soft. I've already repurchased it and found an even bigger size with a pump. So awesome. 2. Village Naturals Moisturizing Milk Bath & Body Wash: I used this for bubble baths and it was pretty nice. I don't really have any complaints about it, but it wasn't anything special. I wouldn't mind repurchasing it, but I would like to try something new first. 3. Olay 2in1 Body Wash: I purchased these two body washes because they were on sale for buy one get one free. I did like these and they smelled so good. I use my body wash to shave, and this body wash is a little too thick for that, so I personally wouldn't use this regularly. 4. Secret Deodorant in Paris: I flip-flop deodorants all the time. This one smelled really nice and I probably will repurchase it, but not in the near future. 5. Victoria's Secret Body Butter in Pure Seduction: I love this scent! I have the body lotion and the body spray. I have a few more body butters I need to get through before I can repurchase this one.

Candle Empties
I love Bath & Body Works Candles! Both of these scents were perfect for summer. I also used up one in Mahogany Teakwood but I accidentally threw it away with the regular trash instead of in my empties bag, oops! I will definitely be repurchasing Mahogany Teakwood because it's part of their permanent collection. Once they bring out all their fall scents I will be stocking up on those. Bath & Body Works has sales pretty regularly. I always wait to buy candles and stock up when they have their 2 for $22 sale.

Toothpaste Empties
My husband and I really like the Crest 3D White toothpaste. They have a couple different flavors and I'm not picky on which one we get. As long as my toothpaste has a minty flavor I'm good.

Hair Care Empties
1. Pantene Pro-V Nature Fusion Shampoo: I've used Pantene for years. I don't care if people say it's the worst shampoo for your hair because my hair loves it. I always rotate different shampoos. This one was ok, it's not my favorite from the line. Pantene discontinued their first set of Nature Fusion products and I was so sad because they were my favorite! I really wish they would give this new set the ax and bring back the original formula. 2. Aussie 3 Minute Miracle Deep Conditioner: I've talked about this before in my June Favorites. I use in almost every time I wash my hair. It's my favorite drug store deep conditioner. I have already repurchased it and even have an extra for when the new one runs out.  3. Batiste Dry Shampoo: I've also raved about this product before in a previous post. It's the best dry shampoo I have found for my hair and it's super affordable. I get mine from Ulta. 4. Macadamia Deep Repair Masque: This mask gets tons of love in the beauty community. It's a really nice deep conditioner, but it's also pretty pricey. I did like it a lot, my only complaint is the price. I really don't think it's worth the hefty price tag.

Makeup Empties
1. Make Up For Ever HD Foundation: This is one of my absolute favorite foundations and I always have one in my collection. I recently hauled my new bottle of this and use it regularly. Right now it's the darkest foundation I have, so I can only use it when I have a fresh spray tan. I plan on getting another shade for when I'm at my lightest, that way I can mix the two shades to match me all the time. 2. Laura Mercier Radiance Primer: I love Laura Mercier primer's. This is my second bottle of primer from the line. I would repurchase her regular oil free primer before repurchasing this one again. 2. Dior Addict Lip Glow: I recently did a post comparing this to the Tarte LipSurgence in Energy. This is one of my holy grail lip products and I will definitely be repurchasing it.

Nail Care Empties
1. Studio Beauty Strengthening Nail Polish Remover: I know this isn't super exciting, but I finished a nail polish remover. I'm not a big stickler on nail polish removers. My only must is that it has to have acetone in it. Honestly, I don't have a go-to remover. I can grab one from any store or brand and be happy with it. 2. Essie Polish in Fiji: This is my favorite nail polish color! I've already purchased a new bottle. It's the perfect milky pink color and looks great with anything. I'm one of those people that likes their nails to match what their wearing, and this is the safest polish because it's so classic. I hardly every have bright colored nails. I tend to stick with neutrals and then dark colors in the fall and winter. 3. Sephora Formula X Top Coat: I love this top coat and will be repurchasing it. It dries so fast and makes my polish last twice as long as any other top coat I've tried. I have a few other Formula X products, and I highly recommend the whole line.

Skin Care Empties
1. Philosophy's Purity Facial Cleanser: I use this face wash every single day and have repurchased it many times. It's gentle, has never broken me out, has a spa-like scent, and works great with my Clarasonic. 2: Loreal Youth Code Texture Perfector: I talked about this product in my July Favorites and I really like it. It feels nice on the skin and smells fresh. I'm on the fence if I would repurchase it though. For a drugstore item, this serum is pretty pricy, coming in at $20.00. It also really didn't last long and I wasn't able to get the last little bit out. I think the packaging needs some tweaking. I don't think the pump extends all the way to the bottom of the bottle. You can clearly see there's product still in there, but the pump won't pull anything and I can't get the top off to dump it out. 3. Olay Beauty Fluid Lotion: I love the Olay moisturizers and have been using them since I was in high school. I go back and forth between this one and the Daily Moisturizer with SPF, which is what I currently have. 4. Origins Night-A-Mins: I really like Origins as a brand. I think they have some really fine products in their line. I did like this moisturizer, but I won't be repurchasing it only because it's a gel formula. I'm not a fan of gel moisturizers, I prefer creams and lotions. If your skin works better with gels, I definitely would recommend this one. 5. Origins A Perfect World Facial Cleanser: I received this deluxe sample free with purchase and it was a really nice cleanser. When I first used it, I hated the smell, it's very different and I couldn't put my finger on it. This little guy lasted me a lot longer than I thought it would. It's really thick and lathers really well, so a little goes a long way. I used it in the mornings, and I even used it with my Clarasonic a few times in the evenings and it worked great at both times of the day. I definitely would repurchase this in the future.

That's it for my first Empties! I hope you enjoyed it and maybe found some new products to try. Also, don't forget about the #SeptemeberNoBuy! Be sure to Tweet me or Instagram me to let me know if you're going to be joining me. I'm ready to use up some of my goodies so I can go out and grab some new ones for Fall. Plus, my wallet needs a break from beauty spending..... :)


xoxo,
Casey

Beauty And The Books: The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey

I have been wanting to dive into this book since last year and have finally gotten around to it. The 5th Wave was recommended to me through Barnes and Noble because I liked dystopian adventure type books like Divergent, Hunger Games, and The Maze Runner. I didn't do a lot of research, or read a lot of reviews on this before I read it, and I'm glad I didn't. I like to go into books not knowing a whole lot, I like to be surprised with my reading and I don't want any spoilers, so I'm going to discuss the book without giving everything away so you can enjoy it as much as I did. It was different than I thought it would be, and I think that made me love it even more.

The beginning of the story kind of reminds me of The Walking Dead. The main character Cassie is all alone, living in a tent in the woods of Ohio. She walks during the day searching for food, and hides in her tent at night so "the Others" won't find her. The roads are abandoned, and so are all the stores and shops which have all been looted. She's a lone survivor of The Waves and isn't sure how many other survivors are left, all she knows is she can't trust anyone. The Waves were brought on by aliens. They invaded Earth and have been slowing killing off the human race wave by wave. These aren't the little green martians, or tall skinny aliens with giant eyeballs, they look just like you and me. You can't tell an alien from a regular person, which is why no one can be trusted.

Let's break down the waves. During the 1st Wave, all things electronic stopped working. All cell phones, computers, and electricity stopped at once. Same goes for cars and planes which all just died mid drive and mid flight, causing pile ups and planes crashing down from the sky. During the 2nd Wave, all coastal cities on every continent were wiped out during a giant tsunami. During the 3rd Wave there was a plague that slowly began infecting the human race and killing them off. It didn't effect everyone though, some people didn't get it at all and some people got it and then were able to recover, but only a slight few. The 4th Wave, which the world is currently in, brought along the Silencers. The Silencers are The Others who are out killing off the survivors of the 3rd Wave. They hide on top of buildings, in the woods, and wherever else they can think of and basically are sniping out any wandering survivors.

The 5th Wave was a fun, easy read. It had a lot of different Parts and short chapters which I loved. Another thing I liked about the writing style, was that we got to read from different character's point's of view with each new Part. Sometimes I enjoy reading different point's of view, but depending on how it's written it can be really confusing or it doesn't flow well. Rick Yancey did a fantastic job with each transition. They flowed really well because instead of switching every other chapter, we got whole Parts with multiple chapters for each character and their point of view.  This really hooks the reader in, and makes you understand the waves and the new world much better, but you also get invested with each character. I really enjoyed the characters and their stories and development. Of course there were characters and Parts that I enjoyed more than others, but I loved getting to read through different eyes and experiencing all their different journey's. Yancey literally gave life to each character, and you could tell which character was who just by their attitude and tone with each changing Part.

I highly, highly recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of dystopian, action and adventure, or sci-fi/fantasy books. It's a page turner and flows really well. It didn't go through any ruts where it got slow or boring. The story advanced smoothly, and each part progressed at a perfect pace. The second book in the series is called The Infinite Sea and it comes out on September 16. I cannot wait and definitely will be purchasing it. This series is definitely going to be a competitor with The Hunger Games, Divergent, and The Maze Runner. There's already a movie in the works for The 5th Wave, set  to come out in 2016, starring Chloe Moretz as Cassie.

I hope you enjoyed today's review and are enjoying my Beauty and The Books series. Reading is one of my favorite things to do, and I look forward to bringing you more book related posts. Let me know in the comments below if you've read The 5th Wave and what your thoughts were on it!


xoxo,
Casey

#OOTD & Back To School Shopping

It's that time again! School starts in a week and like usual I put off shopping until the last minute. Lexi is super excited for school this year. She's going into the 6th grade, her first year of Middle School. I can't believe it! Time seriously is flying by. I'm really excited for her. New school, new classes, new friends, new beginnings, and new memories to be made! She's really excited, and I think a little nervous too. We've talked about it for a while now, what it would be like as a Middle Schooler. We registered her, picked up her PE uniform, and her class schedule. I think it really started to sink in when she had that schedule in her hands. She's going to have a busy year, she's in all AP classes! Kevin and I are so proud of her for getting into those classes. She's in choir this year, but she's starting to wish she would have chosen Theater Arts. I told her to stick it out for the first semester, and if she still wants to switch at Christmas then we will talk to her councelor about changing over. She's definitely not excited about PE. She's not a fan of the uniform, or the idea of having to change in front of strangers. I told her not to worry, that PE uniforms are never cute, but that everyone will wear them so all the girls will be in the same boat. One thing she was looking forward to this year was having a locker. We were both so bummed when we found out her school doesn't utilize their lockers. Also, they aren't allowed to carry regular backpacks. Only the string cinch packs are allowed. Thankfully we found a really cute denim one with white polka dots for her to carry.

We are almost done with her school shopping so she's almost ready to go. She found clothes at Abercrombie, Kohl's, Dillards, and Target so far. We also are almost done with her school supplies. The only thing we need to get for that is plain manilla paper, which apparently is a hot commodity because we can't find it anywhere. We are going to go back out tomorrow to get a couple more shirts and she will be good to go. She picked out all her own clothes. When we got home we went through everything and she pretty much picked out all three-quarter length sleeved shirts. But really, that's all that we could mostly find that she actually liked. Tomorrow our mission is to find more short sleeved shirts. She's allowed to wear flip flops this year which she's really happy about, because that's mostly what her shoe collection consists of. She went through a growth spurt this summer and is a size bigger in everything. We went through her closet today and over half of it were clothes and shoes that were too small. Her closet is pretty bare now, so we are going to have to get her more clothes than I anticipated. I don't really mind though, because she only goes on these huge shopping sprees twice a year, once before school and once again in the winter time. I pick her up a shirt or a pair of shoes here and there through out the year, but nothing like what she gets for back to school.

Now onto our outfits of the day. This has been Lexi's signature summer look. Cute tank, cutoff shorts, and a pair of flip flops. She got that mint purse from Forever 21 for Christmas and takes it everywhere we go. She keeps her 3DS and games in it, along with her iPod and allowance money. Her go-to hair style lately has been a bun with a bow. She's starting to try and fix her own hair, and this is what she does to it every day. It's easy, and it keeps her cool with her hair out of her face.

Kason rocked one of his new shirts today from the baby clothing haul I posted a couple weeks ago. This shirt is from Macy's and it's just too cute. His dark gray cargo shorts and from Old Navy. Old Navy is my go to place for his shorts. The baby section there is very small, but the shorts are really affordable and they hold up good in the wash. He rocked his checkered Vans today. This is his second pair, the first pair he's already grown out of. I love these shoes but they are such a pain to put on.

I went with a simple tank from H&M, denim cutoffs from Pretty Little Things, and flip flops from Old Navy. These shorts are so comfortable. They are stretchy and don't ride up. My purse is the Selma Top Zip Satchel from Michael Kors. I got it last year and am still so in love with it. The color is perfect, and I like how sturdy and structured it is. It came with a long strap that clips on so I can carry it on my shoulder or cross body, but I prefer to carry it this way. I normally carry my Rebecca Minkoff MAC when I'm taking Kason out, but since he was in the stroller all day I was able to bring this one and put it in the bottom of the stroller.

I hope you enjoyed today's post. If you have any requests for posts you'd like to see, leave them in the comments below!


xoxo,
Casey

Mommy Minute: Where Did My "Easy Eater" Go?

Hey ya'll!!

Well well well..... Kason sure has been putting me through the ringer these last two weeks. He has been going through some major changes! From his attitude and temperament, to his eating habits, he has been throwing me for a loop and keeping me on my toes. For the most part, these first seven months have been pretty steady, and we've been able to work around changes in feedings and being on a regular daily schedule pretty easily. All that changed about a week and a half-two weeks ago.

Kason has always been a great eater. He's never given me too trouble with feedings and I've always known what he's wanted and how much he's wanted. We've always had a really great, natural feeding schedule going on. I've never forced him to be on any type of schedule, and I've never been strict about sticking to one either. I have always let him lead the way and let me know what he liked and what he didn't like. Once we would get our schedule down, he'd be a creature of habit. If I didn't have his food ready at the same time every day, he had no problems letting me know I was late to the party. He also would eat and drink absolutely everything I'd give him. For some reason, he now has completely flipped the switch and my "Easy Eater" has become extremely difficult and hard to figure out.

He eats his solids no problem at all, but his bottle is a totally different story. He has been fighting his bottles like crazy! The first thing I thought was "Maybe his formula isn't working for him anymore?". When he was diagnosed with Reflux, I switched him to AR and it worked really great. He has been off his Reflux medicine and hasn't had any symptoms in over a month, so I was thinking that maybe the AR was just too heavy for him now. I went ahead and started switching him back to the formula he was previously on. I didn't do an immediate switch and I still haven't. I've been slowly transitioning and he is getting half AR and half Gentlease. When that didn't help, I thought about the bottle nipples. Since the AR is so thick, I had to cut the nipple holes in all my Level 1 and 2 nipples so that the formula would come out, and for months that has worked just fine. I decided to go buy all new Level 3 nipples hoping that was the issue. Nope, still didn't help. Next thing I thought of was "Maybe he's ready for a sippy cup?". I browsed through all the different sippy cups and decided on one by Nuby. It is a no-spill sippy with two handles and a silicone mouth piece. I gave it to him with just a few ounces of water in it, just to see what he would do and if he could get the hang of it. He is more interested in "waving it in the are like he just don't care" and throwing it, than drinking from it. I've been trying to get him to use it for a week now with zero luck. After that I decided I was not going to try and force him to drink a bottle, that I would just try giving it to him and if he refused I would try again in 30 minutes. Literally I have had zero luck with anything I have tried. Sometimes he will take it, sometimes he will drink two ounces and be done with it, and sometimes he will just scream.

I've checked his mouth to make sure he didn't have Thrush or any kind of sore that may be getting irritated by the formula. He still doesn't have any teeth, and his gums aren't swollen or anything, so I've kind of ruled out anything that has to do with being sore from teething. It also can't be an issue with his throat because he eats his solids just fine. I finally decided to call his doctor's office to see if they had any tips or tricks for me. The first thing the nurse asked me was "Well why won't he take his bottle?" I briefly paused and the first thing I wanted to say was "I don't know? Do you want to ask him?" Come on girl! What kind of question is that?! Anyways, I told her everything I had tried and asked if she had any suggestions. I'm sure this is just some sort of weird faze, but when he's going from drinking three 8 ounce bottles a day, to only taking 15 ounces or less a day, and screams bloody murder the minute a bottle comes close to his mouth, I start to get a little worried. She asked about his wet diapers, which he has had plenty of, and she asked if he was eating his solids. She said not to worry about "daily requirements" pertaining to formula ounces as long as he's still having plenty of wet diapers throughout the day. She also told me to try to get him to drink out of a sippy cup, and that I may have to try a few different kinds before I find one that works for him. I've tried working with him on drinking from a straw, but all he does is lick it, so we definitely need more practice in that department. My only other options are ones with the plastic mouth piece, and different shapes and sized mouth piece's. I'm going to go a grab a few different types of sippy's, and keeping my fingers crossed that I find one he likes and will actually drink from. I'm also hoping that this is just some weird faze that he will quickly grow out of, and that there's not a serious underlying issue. I will keep update ya'll on this bottle fiasco on his 8 Month Update.

Did any of your babies ever go through any weird "feeding" stages, or refuse their bottles at all? What kinds of methods did you try? Let me know in the comments below! I'm currently stumped and will basically try anything to get his crazy little butt to drink his formula.


xoxo,
Casey

Buxom Lip Products

Hey ya'll!!

Today I'm going to share with you my Buxom Lip Product collection! I have mostly glosses, but there are some lipsticks too. I will have hand swatches and lip swatches for you as well. Buxom is one of my absolute favorite brand of lip glosses. They are super thick and creamy, and have a minty/tingly/plumping feeling to them. There are over 100 different shades on the Sephora website, so there's definitely a color for everyone.

This first set of glosses are my favorite shades of the bunch. From left to right I have Amber, White Russian, and Celeste. Amber is a very pretty peach shade, White Russian is a creamy pinky-nude shade, and Celeste is a shimmery peach shade. All of these are much loved and are perfect for every day. I use these three shades more than any other lip glosses in my collection. I can pick any of these three, throw them in my purse, and my lips are set for any occasion.

This next set I received separately, all gifts with purchase types of things. They are also my least used. From left to right I have Dolly, Sweet Thing, and Nicole. After pulling these out for today's post, I realized that I really need to start using Dolly more because it's really pretty. It's a shimmery purple/mauve shade that I think will be great for Fall. Sweet Thing is a color that I definitely wouldn't have chosen for myself. It's a hot orangey-pink shade and just doesn't look great on me. Nicole is a shimmery berry color, again one that I wouldn't have chosen for myself. I do like it more than I do Sweet Thing though.

The last two are the Full On Lipsticks in the shades Amsterdam (left) and Havana (right). Amsterdam is literally a "my lips but better" shade. It matches my natural lip color almost perfectly. Havana is a gorgeous wine color. Both have the same tingly feeling as the glosses. They are really easy to apply and have lasting power. Amsterdam is super opaque, creamy, and leans toward the matte side. Havana really makes me sad. The color is gorgeous, but it gets a little patchy, and breaks up on my lips sometimes. It's so weird because it doesn't always do that. I think it has to do with how dry and how moisturized my lips are. Most of the time, lip products work best with hydrated, moisturized lips. But for some reason, Havana works better if my lips are completely dry, no lip balm and no moisture. I definitely have to make sure my lips are exfoliated before I wear it, but I definitely can't have any kind of lip balm or moisture on my lips, or it breaks up and looks like a complete mess.

I hope you enjoyed today's post as much as I did! I enjoy doing these types of posts, because I personally love looking at different products and seeing different swatches. Let me know what your favorite brand of lip glosses is, and if you have any Buxom lip products.


xoxo,
Casey