Out of Work, Out of Sight, Out of Mind...

I know I know...where have I been? Well I was let go from my temporary job in May and now I've been home enjoying time with my kids...Yay!!

You're probably thinking what does that have to do with anything? Well I was in a temp office job that was pretty slow so to fill up my time I started blogging. I began to like it and not only did it give me something to do while at my desk for eight hours I began to be therapeutic.

Just a little background about myself that I don't think I mentioned before. My original background is in marketing and I was with a large corporation for 10 years. While on maternity leave with my daughter I decided I wanted a more flexible work/life balance so I quit my job and decided to consult. That quickly was short lived because the economy got so bad there was no work to be had and no one could fork out extra money to pay for an outside consultant, so to my sadness I had to look for full time work. I took a position as an administrative assistant and even though I was grateful for the work and the extra income I really yearned to be back in a fast paced, crazy, creative environment. Thus my extensive job search began which was basically applying online sending out my resume into the black hole of online company websites. In my heart I was torn because if I was going to work full time I wanted to be where I belonged but I quit my good job to be with my kids...and really that's where I wanted to be. After being in my temp job for a year and a half it finally opened up as a permanent position and of course I submitted my resume, because I felt it was the right thing to do. The company ended up choosing a former employee to fill the position, so I was without a job again. I believe all things happen for a reason and God has a plan for all of us. I wasn't sad or scared and the woman that took my job ended up to be very nice and we became friends.  Because I was technically laid off I could now apply for unemployment benefits and at least have some money while looking for work. But let me tell you! I've been much more busier while being off of work then when I was working! I've been enjoying the summer with my kids, but also I've been learning some very good valuable information about myself and really be proud of my past accomplishments. I've joined a professional networking group and have been attending wonderful workshops and honing in on my interviewing skills, I've had my resume re-vamped and have met some wonderful people through networking. I've also been doing some volunteer work and now looking at possibly going back to school. It's been busy but in a positive way....I'm really enjoying myself!

Now that I've come back to my neglected blog I thought I'd share some job searching skills I've been learning about. Even if you aren't looking for full time work I want to pay it forward to possibly help someone else out there!

Good night everyone!

Being Inspired...

A lovely woman who works in my office came by my desk and complimented me on my necklace. She then asked me if I liked her necklace of various wood beading. She then proceeded to tell me the necklace was originally an ugly necklace she purchased at the thrift store then took it to a bead store and walked around the store being inspired by the different types of beads and metals and then went home took the thrift store necklace apart and recreated her necklace restructuring it with the original wood beads and the beads she purchased at the bead shop. After her story I was amazed for one at how pretty her necklace was but how she took something that wasn't so pretty and allowed herself to be inspired to re-create it to something so beautiful. I was inspired just with that story alone!! I thought that was so amazing.

What inspires you? Who inspires you?

Weekend Fun...

This weekend the weather was rainy and cold. My son's t-ball game was cancelled on Saturday due to the heavy rains. I talked my husband into organizing the garage. I was happy to get rid of alot of stuff I was holding onto and donated it to the Goodwill. Now my garage has alot more space and I feel alot more better.

On Sunday the rains had subsided but it was still very cold outside, but the kids were in desperate need of getting out. We decided to take a walk to the neighborhood park. So we bundled up our two little kiddos and put Sofia on her tricycle and Cristian decided to practice his skateboard skills.

Headed out for our walk!

Its The Little Things....

This morning started out kind of rough but as the day goes by and a pleasant conversation with a friend I'm starting to feel better. As I'm sitting at my desk feeling the sting in my eyes from staring at the computer I happen to glance up and noticed the plant that has been sitting in front of my desk is growing so big and gorgeous! I sat here just looking at this plant for 5 min admiring how beautiful it is....and how a plant like this would look great in my house! Haha!! Don't know why they stuck a pencil in it....never noticed that before...but then again didn't notice the plant either! Sometimes it's the little things that help brighten your day.

Birthday Time with Retro Barbie...

This past Saturday my very good friend's daughter turned 6 years old. My friend is a super career woman and a busy mom and she needed a little help putting together her daughter's sixth birthday. I suggested doing a Retro Barbie theme. My friend loved it and ran with the idea. I helped put together a birthday banner similar to what I did for my daughter's birthday. The birthday was a smashing hit and Miss Bianca had a fabulous time!

Happy Birthday Bianca! Isn't her cake fantastic!!

Yipee!!

The birthday banner I created for Miss Bianca's birthday party

Sprinting Forward...

The time change is really kicking my butt this morning! I feel I need about 10 Starbucks Ventis to get me going.

Spring Scarves...

Lately Southern Cali weather has been somewhat unpredictable. One day it's cold, next it's rainy, then cold then 80 degrees! Lately "layering" has been my friend, but my constant wardrobe BFF lately has been scarves. They keep me warm in the morning and I can take them off if I get to warm in the afternoon, but I normally keep mine on because they look great with my outfits. With spring around the corner I really love scarves in soft cottan, especially colorful scarves paired with a white t-shirt. My favorite are the long scarves. Right now the trend is a pop of neon color and I've been eyeing lots of cool yellow  and green pieces.

Below are some that caught my eye. Which ones do you like? Do you have a favorite color or style?

1.Target Xhilaration® Pink Bold Geo Color Block Scarf  2. H&M Blue Patterned Scarf $17.99

3. Forever 21 Dreamy Butterfly Scarf $8.80 4. Target Mossimo Supply Co. Woven Stripe Scarf Green  $14.99

Here is me with my new spring scarf! I bought this cute gem for $9.99 at a local little five and dime. I liked the colors and I can wear it with everything. Plus it's long and real soft. I may wear this with all my outfits!

As you can see I'm in the office. So for anybody reading this blog from my office...yes I'm caught red handed taking pics of myself at my desk! Haha!

Weekend Fun...

On Friday night my husband and I tried out a new local restaurant. Ok let me lay this out, we live in South Orange County in California. It's a great place to raise a family with good schools and relatively safe neighborhoods, but everything is in strip malls and not many hip places to venture out to. Then again we're parents of two little kids so we don't go out much anyways.

So on Friday night we headed out to try Bru Grill and Market. We were excited to try it because we've been hearing some good things about this place. It recently opened it's doors at the end of 2011 and it looked pretty interesting from the outside. The executive chef was the former executive chef at The Pelican Grill located in the exclusive Pelican Hill Resort in Newport Coast. I was fortunate enough to eat at The Pelican Grill several times for work lunches and the truffle mac and cheese is to die for! So I was super eager to try Bru.

With the name Bru of course we knew it served craft beers. I'm not much of a beer drinker, but my husband and I did a beer tasting for $10. We got to choose six different types of beers and they came in these little beer shot glasses. I don't remember all of them but I did like the Hefeweizen the best. With our beer tasting we ordered two appitizers. We tried the garlic fries and the twice baked potato fondue. OMG it was delicious!! It's a baked potato slightly hollowed out then filled with cheese fondue then toped with grilled melted cheese and bacon bits....heaven!


Twice Baked Fondue at Bru Grill and Market

 After we devoured this little puppy and finished our beer tasting, my husband ordered a large Hefeweizen and I ordered a Lambic peach beer. I asked the waitress if they had any desserts and she said "Yes"! with a big smile and I told her to bring me out whatever she recommends. All of a sudden out came these heavenly donut holes with three different dipping sauces - chocolate, creme anglase and grape jelly. The ladies sitting near us watched the waiter bring our desssert with their mouths opened hitting the bar table. They were so intrigued that they asked if they could take a picture. I said "Go for it! But don't ask for a bite'! I was playing of course but yet totally serious.  



Powder, Cinnamon and Chocolate donut holes with chocolate, creme anglase and grape jelly dipping sauces

Then on Saturday morning my son had his first t-ball game. I'm not sure who was more excited me or him! It was so cute seeing all the boys dressed in their baseball gear. They looked adorable! Not to mention we had alot of laughs watching them run to the wrong bases and falling over each other trying to catch the ball. It was a fun day!





Way to go team Angels!!

I love my little guy!



Had to include a pic of  Miss Thing applying her lip gloss representing her brothers team!

Viola Davis...

Now I have not read the book The Help but I've seen the movie twice and I L-O-V-E-D it!! Now I really need to read the book. I'm kind of weird...I always watch the movie first then read the books...I know I'm one of those weird ones.

I am now totally intrigued with Viola Davis. I love being inspired by individuals who have struggled and worked so hard getting to where they are now in life. I saw an interview that Viola Davis had with Oprah Winfrey last week in Oprah's Oscar Special. Everything Viola said in that interview spoke to me. In one point in her interview she talked about how she suffered from low self esteem for years and how anybody can just come in and say something to her and knock her off whatever little pedestal she was on. I think we've all suffered from some sort of low self esteem and/or insecurities and I feel that I have suffered from this for years. One of the things she says in that interview is, "We are on this earth for a dash of time and I don't have time staying up at night worrying about someone who doens't love me says about me". I know your thinking Duh Eileen! And of course I've been taught this by my mother growing up and have heard it many years from my husband, but it was the way she said it, so simple and yet so totally true. As I'm approaching 40 years old I've been doing alot of reflection and learning so much about myself, but that will have to be another blog...this is about Viola Davis! I'm rooting for her to win the Best Actress Award at the Oscars on Sunday February 26!! She was awesome! Below is a video of Viola talking about her low self esteem and what she went through to overcome it - Love it!!

(Video courtesy of Oprah.com)

Target Cosmetics...

First of all I think I'm Targets #1 customer. My husband gets so frustrated with me when I say I'm heading to Target real quick....yeah right! I come home 2 hours later. Today during lunch I had to run over to Target to pick up a few things. I only made it to the cosmetic area and after what only seemed a few minutes a whole hour went by and I had to head back to the office...bummer! But I was happy that I was able to leave with a few little goodies!

1. Loreal Visible Lift - I love this cause it has a built in foundation brush and has an SPF 17. Let's face it I'm getting older so anything with a good SPF is #1 in my books.

2. Elf Blush, Elf Concealer and Elf Foundation Brush - Anything that cost $1-$3 is going on the #1 list. The Elf Blush was $3. I've used several of the Elf blushes before and they've been good so far. Granted it's not MAC but for $3 I'll take it! The concealer was $1! Hello! I've never used their concealers before but heck for $1....you get the idea. The same with the foundation brush which was only $3. Now I know I just got the Loreal foundation with the built in brush but it's always good to have another one handy.

3. NYC Cheek Glow in Riverside Rose - Now I bought this for no specific reason other then it was on clearance for $1.37. I tried it on my hand when I got back into the office and it's not very vibrant. But who knows it may work out for me when I may need it.

What's your favorite drug store or Target cosmetic?

Happy Valentines Day...

Hope everyone has a wonderful Valentine's Day today! My husband and I normally celebrate on a different day to avoid the crowds but tonight we'll have a fun time celebrating with our kids.

I remember when I was single me and my girlfriends made an effort to celebrate amongst ourselves by going out to eat and I think I ordered myself a dozen roses and had them shipped to my office. I told my co-workers they were from a secret admirer! LOL!

What is everyone doing tonight? Hope everyone has a fabulous day either way!

Button Earrings...

A very sweet woman in my office gave me a pair of button earrings she purchased from a thrift store. First of all I love any kind of jewelry and I thought it was so very sweet and kind of her to just give me these earrings. The earrings look antique with a purple stone with a silver filigree surrounding the stone...very pretty!

I've had the earrings for quite awhile now and this morning as I was getting dressed I noticed they matched my purple blouse perfectly. I was excited to put them on! Look how cute!

Of course today I noticed so many images of women wearing button earrings! Now I admit I haven't worn button earrings for quite awhile now, but I think they are making a stylish comeback. Check it out...

House of Harlow 1960 Sunburst Button Earrings, Nordstron $30

ABS by Allen Schwartz Jewelry Shell-Shaped Button Earrings, Saks Fifth Avenue $25

Fierce!

Adele...

I think I listened to Adele's 21 CD about a million times. It was the #1 CD in my CD player in my car! I think I know all songs by heart! HAHA!! I wasn't surprised that she won six Grammy's this past Sunday. Her voice is amazing!! I love you Adele!!

As she was singing last night I thought she had the best countouring makeup! She looked and sang beautifully!

(Photo courtesy of thehollywoodgossip.com)

Whitney...

Of course the big news this weekend was the passing of the incomparable Whitney Houston. We all read tabloid headlines and saw on TV that she had struggled with some demons, but there will never be another voice nor talent such as hers.
I remember belting out her songs in the car when they would come on the radio. I watched her videos and sang in the mirror with my hair brush. She is a part of my upbringing and her music will live in my heart forever.

(Photo courtesy of weheartit.com)

RIP Ms. Whitney Houston! You will be missed!

Mucho Mustachio...

I came across this cool app for my iPhone - Stachmatic. It's a fun app where you can put mustaches on faces in your pictures you take with your phone. Look how cute my son and daughter look! Haha!

Marilyn...

Has anybody seen Smash? I totally loved it! If your a fan of musicals you will love it. Plus my city at heart is New York so this show is right up my alley!

I came across this beautiful picture of Marilyn Monroe, and after watching Smash I'm enamored of her legacy. Doesn't she look effortlessly beautiful. She's not all made up, just enjoying her drink on what looks like a beautiful afternoon in the Hollywood Hills. And I might add her orange blouse with the orange lipstick...stunning!

Happy Birthday Sofia...

My daughter turned 2 yrs old last Saturday and we threw her a fabulous Olivia the Pig birthday party. Now I tend to go over board when throwing parties for my kids but I can't help it. Kids birthday parties are my version of Super Bowl parties! I love being crafty and creative and everything I put together is on a budget....let's just say I scour the dollar stores!

Even though the party was fun and everyone had a good time, I can't believe my baby turned 2!! makes me a little sad that my kids are getting older....because this means I'm getting older! Haha! Below are some pics of the party....

Blasted Cold....

I came home early from the office cause this cold is kicking my butt! So I'm laying in bed with my trusty laptop, my iPhone next too me, watching The Nate Berkus show with my cinnamon tea that includes a special ingredient. That special ingredient would be shot of tequila...it's the Latin hot toddy! Hahaha!

If anybody has any good remedies to help a nasty cold PLEASE let me know! Having a cold with a very rambunctious little girl is no bueno!

Winged Out Eyeliner...

Eyeliner has been a staple in my personal makeup kit. My favorite style is the winged out eyeliner look. My eyes have a more round shape and the winged out look gives me more of a cat eye shape that I love! Of course no one wears the winged out look more better then Angelina Jolie. She's infamous for that winged out eyeliner that shapes her round eyes.

My ultimare favorite is the Maybelline Eye Studio Gel Liner. For drug store brand this is a mega winner in my books! It comes in a little pot and includes an eyeliner brush. A little can go a long way and it never smurdges and lasts all day! Love Love Love!!

I found this neat tip from MAC Cosmetic artist Fatima T on how to apply your eyeliner for that winged out look. Fatima suggests start with your wing first then start your line in your eyelid and connect the lines. And too make sure to keep your eye open when trying to create this style or else your wing can end up somewhere else if you have your eyes closed. GENIUS! I totally did this and Viola! It worked! Below is Fatima T's tutorial courtesy of YouTube...

I tried the this tip from Fatima and it sure did work...of course it did!! Thanks Fatima! Below is a glorious picture of my eye...

The Black Keys

Thanks to my husband my new found band is The Black Keys! I know they've been around for awhile, but I've never really listened to their music. I love the bluesy vibe they got going on. Their new song Lonely Boy makes me want to dance in my seat. This is the video that my husband sent me...isn't this guy cute!

New Year New Post..

2012 is starting off a little shaky but I have positive thoughts that it's gonna be a great year! Hopefully blogging will make things more interesting!

OK,,,it's after 9:00pm which now a days is way past my bed time. Gotta get the little rascals to bed then off to my comfy pillow top mattress and into dream land! Good night everyone and lets post something tomorrow...hopefully!