Why hello there! *waves* Yes it's been quite a while since I was active on my blog. In short, life got in the way and in a big way...

The short version: my mother was sick was cancer. In fact, she was sick when I started doing videos and this blog. I couldn't deal with her being sick and this was my way of forgetting for a little while that she wasn't. That everything was fine. That life was normal. I got to a point where I just couldn't deal with anything. I stopped videos, blogging, pictures, keeks etc. I kinda wanted to disappear for awhile. It felt good. I didn't regret any of it, in fact I found it relieving! Needless to say my mother is on the right path to getting fully  healed again. She has one last hurdle to overcome and fingers crossed, it'll be her last. So until then I'm just holding on and riding the wave, wherever it takes me.

In the meantime, not much has changed. I'm still subbed to Topbox, have bought maybe a few other dolls. Haven't bought a ton of makeup seeing as I really don't need anymore! Even nail polish has kind of stopped. Okay, well...I'm in the midst of building up my gel polish collection! It has done a world of good for my nails, honestly! Maybe one day I'll explain further.

I have been on a planner kick though. I have set up myself with a Martha Stewart planner to just get organized already. I don't know why, in high school I LOVED and ABUSED my agenda. Swore by it, decorated it. I just loved it! I bet it's long gone with a ton of my other high school papers that my parents threw out. Too bad...:( Anyways, I'm trying to reorganize my life and the planner has helped immensely! 

As for videos and keeks, I gave all that up. I just didn't feel comfortable putting myself out there with MY FACE especially LOL! I'm such a private person, it just didn't feel right and if it doesn't feel right, I just stop. So, this is all you'll get of me...lousy blog posts and pics of stuff I've bought lol..Honestly, this is a blog for me, if people read it, all the better :) So I said goodbye to my YouTube vids and my Keek vids. Life is better for me this way I think...The internet can be cruel at times and I'm not interested in challenging it!

And that's my life in a nutshell...kids are good, family is good, I'm good...That's all that matters really :)

Until my next post,

A.

I am having mega FIRST WORLD PROBLEMS not having my Photoshop working! Long story short, I haven't been able to open it and it's all my hubby's fault! I've hassled him to get it fixed but it's his busiest work schedule right now ugh...A huge reason why I haven't been able to post pics up of my last 2 Topboxes and write my blog posts on them sigh..Not to mention, I need to have pics done for my other projects going on! So now all I can do is WAIT..All I ever do is WAIT ugh...

On a great note though, I managed to film a video today, edit it and upload it onto my YouTube channel! I haven't filmed a video really in about 2 months and I do miss it! I'm just waiting (AGAIN) for when all my kids are gone back to school because trust me, you CANNOT hear a word I'm saying with 3 kids screaming in the background...It's my brush cleaning video and you can find it on my YouTube page here on my blog :D

Another update on my garden...It was confirmed a groundhog was chomping away at my garden goods as I had suspected! I finally had the last straw when he dug his little hungry teeth into my tomatoes! I got fed up, told my hubs that I was going to somehow build a fence before I kill the damn thing! There's nothing worse than seeing your vegetable garden thriving and then demolished by a hungry woodland creature despite my best efforts to scare it away ugh...Naturally my hubs' solution was to get a gun and kill it but where we live, that's ILLEGAL so the next best thing according to our exterminator friend was to set up a cage and relocate it in the woods. 

With high hopes, we went to Canadian Tire and got us a cage big enough for this fatty creature. We set it up as our friend had told us and placed it close to where I suspected it was coming from since I had seen this thing before we started a veggie garden. My hubs set it up in the morning and by noon nothing happened - no groundhog, no gopher, no ferret..hell, not even the neighborhood cat showed up in it! I wasn't entirely discouraged but I was getting anxious. Around 1pm sure enough the little creature came out of the bushes where I thought he would come from and stuck his hungry butt into the cage filled with lettuce and carrots (lettuce was apparently HIS THING)...Next thing I know *BANG!* The cage door shut promptly behind the groundhog's butt and I danced a silly, awkward yet victorious Asian jig! HE WAS FINALLY CAUGHT!!! I have dreamt of this day since May and now finally he was never going to eat my veggies again! HA! TAKE THAT YOU GOPHER GROUNDHOG WHATEVER YOU ARE WOODLAND CREATURE THING! My hubby happened to be taking off soon to go fish so he took the furry thing with him and relocated him near the river. Not IN the river but NEXT TO the river LOL..And so, hopefully this ends the saga of the hungry and mysterious woodland creature chewing up my garden...I just hope he doesn't have an angry groundhoggy spouse or buddy to replace him! :/

And so the life tales continue LOL...Stay tuned for more!

Angie

It's July, the thick of summer vacation for my kids...NOT ME, MY KIDS...ugh...I've spent my days cooking 3x a day, refereeing my kids during some heated arguments, dragging all 3 kids with me to run simple errands only to know that there are my kids causing all kinds of people to stare in amazement with how much noise comes out of them...OH MY GOODNESS I NEED A VACATION FROM THEIR SUMMER VACATION! *pulls hair out of head*

All hair pulling aside, I do enjoy not having to run around so early in the morning. I do enjoy the later start to my days. I do enjoy going to bed at midnight and not having to worry if my son did all his homework, packed his bag properly, washed his gym clothes etc etc etc....However, I need to brace myself for the coming year since this is the first year that all 3 kids will be GONE during the day! That only means one thing really: 3x the running for school supplies, 3x the budget for said supplies, 3x the labelling of all their items...I'm exhausted just thinking about it! 

Speaking of school, I was wondering if I should do a series on how I prepare for back to school! I realized that I have probably some good tips that some mommies of kindergarteners might enjoy! Naturally, to film a video is near impossible without the shouting you'd hear from my kids..I'm not quite sure you would even HEAR ME ugh....I may film in patches as I go. I've already started the school uniform shopping! I made a huge order from Old Navy last week and got so many things for my kids i.e.. backpacks, lunch bags, school tops and pants...I may write up a blog post later on this week seeing that my Photoshop has been exceptionally unforgiving and won't open for me to watermark and edit photos sigh...I did manage to film the unboxing of their school uniform loot which I'll probably add to other videos I film documenting my Back to School tips so keep an eye out for that if you're interested!

In other news, I have started a doll collection and it really wasn't my intention - SERIOUSLY! I am debating whether to start a new channel on it or to just implement it onto my current channel. I know some people don't dig dolls and I can respect that but it's become a huge part of me, I think I'd like to kinda share it...at least in small chunks! I'm still undecided but will let you know when I have made my decision on it...

I have not bought really any makeup since I started my doll collecting. I have always advocated responsible spending and sticking to budgets and that hasn't changed! I still use a portion of my budget for my dolls, use another portion to pay off bills, and usually after that, there's nothing left to spend. Now I'll bet you're wondering what my husband thinks of all this LOL...Actually, he understands why I started doll collecting but I'll briefly explain why here. It fulfills a childhood void and dream I had since I was little. Growing up my parents did their best to give us the best but with 4 little kids and very little help, financially and emotionally, it was very difficult. All our basic needs were met but they were VERY BASIC. I grew up with a few toys and one Skipper Barbie that ended up having her head broken off no thanks to my little sister fighting with me over her sigh...The rule in our home was always "You have to share with your sisters!" Ironically, we did share willingly and always have gotten along for the most part and that's truly miraculous in my opinion LOL! As difficult as it was, I think highly of my parents and think they did a great job raising us 4 kids :)

Now, as an adult, it's been my hubby's life's purpose to fulfill me with the things I never had as a kid whether through experiences or through physical items. He's always spoiled me and this doll thing is no different. At first he was unsure, said he was creeped out a little bit but soon realized how happy I was just having my 'girls' around. They calmed me, they relaxed me...They brought out my inner child again! I call this my second childhood LOL and he totally understands. See, he had a much more discerning childhood: family vacations, sports, lots of extracurricular activities, a grandmother who doted on him...I never had any of these things. I lived a very sheltered life because my parents either couldn't afford it or my mother was exceptionally paranoid. It's a struggle I deal with with my own kids. I don't want to hold them back out of my own fears but I want them to live the life I never had as a kid. I want them to really experience what life really holds for them you know? My sons have done so much more than I did at their ages and that's all credited to my husband. He is what truly completes me, makes me a better person..I love him very much so for that <3 How did this become a sappy blog post on my hubby? LOL back to reality! 

One last thing..My veggie garden has been outstanding this Summer! I have had a bajillion cucumbers and zucchinis in it LOL..We have given some away and have eaten them crazily because like, hello...it's organic and nutritious and practically FREE! We also have a ton of tomatoes and herbs and so much more growing. It's been overwhelming with the upkeep at times but hey, I get a tan and I sweat my butt off! What a great way to get into shape LOL! I will post pics up when my Photoshop behaves again ugh...Such a buzzkill *side eyes*

So, I just wanted to update those who actually read my blog (probably only me LOL) and know that I'm still around just not 100% around :D I will update my beauty blog posts though with my Topboxes that I received since my last post. I also got 2 Seasonsboxes to blog about (I'm not sure how that happened but it did). I'm on it now so be on the lookout for that! 

Until then, stay safe and have a very happy Summer!

It appears I update this section of my blog monthly LOL...But I think it's good balance. It allows me to reflect on the past month and see how busy my life really is!

This month was unusually busy between my wedding anniversary and my son's birthday. It's also the month that ends up with my family sick as dogs ugh. My husband is just getting over a flu-like thingy and so far  no one else has gotten it *knocks wood* My oldest son has had a tummy bug of some sort that has HIM out of sorts! Not a big appetite, not as active..yeah, that's a real giveaway that something's up. My youngest has also inherited that stomach bug and is now a complete hot mess...My second son is holding strong along with me - FOR NOW. Ugh..I dread getting sick, especially since I've been sick on and off the past few months which is unusual for me. I'm just hoping I can steer clear of these funky germs my family is dealing with right now...

My wedding anniversary was like any usual day...Oh wait, not true. LOL...We planted a vegetable garden! My hubby has been fabulous about the gardening this year. He and I aren't real fans of gardening but we love the idea of growing and harvesting our own veggies. Last year, I grew cucumbers, green peppers, strawberries, herbs and tomatoes and they were all so very delicious. There's something to be said about growing your own food - it seriously does taste better! I took a before pic but didn't take a pic of the finished product. I will once this awful rain stops and goes away already! 

But with veggie gardens come pests...little woodland creature pests! Something has been chewing on our lettuce and that annoys me like you have NO IDEA! My OCD kicks in and I'm suddenly googling how to stave off these pests. I'd like to eat my own lettuce thank you very much! So now, I'm looking at my options and as gross as it sounds, I'm thinking the urine of my hubby will keep the pest away, at least for a little while LOL..Don't believe me? Look it up yourself! HAHA!!

We really celebrated that night though after a day in the yard with a childless sushi dinner and a movie. It was BLISS! I could enjoy my food and actually talk to my husband! What a novelty...We watched Star Trek Into the Darkness and it was amaze balls! Lots of action and great dialogue! 

Over the same weekend as my wedding anniversary was my son's 2nd birthday. It was a great one as well filled with family and a barbecue we had for him. Let's face it, the kid only cared about the cake but he had fun knowing he had his entire family there to play with him! 

With the upcoming school year ending I'm unsure how many videos I can post up. In fact, I'm kinda at a point where I'm wanting a mini break. I have all my prerecorded videos go live already and I'm not in a rush to record new ones. I had issues with a subscription service which kinda broke my mojo honestly. Now that I have received my box, I'm ready to record it and my monthly haul video and that's it. I'm not inclined to film other stuff....I don't know, I think a break is in order though. I will focus more on my blog then if that's the case. I don't mind..I find it's hard to film, edit, upload and then blog about it all. It's very time consuming which I currently am low on right now since my kids are almost done with school. A break has always done me good and I'm looking forward to just posting when I can.

As for Youtube though, I will admit that a giveaway has been piquing my mind recently. I have 50 subscribers to my channel which is mind boggling to me but I am beyond ecstatic to have! I have been playing with a few things to add to my giveaway and when the time is right, I will make a video on it and provide details. 

On a last note, I have suddenly fallen victim to a new obsession...it's so absurd yet I can totally see myself falling HARD for it. When I receive my new goodies I will post about it and do a video on it as well...You have no idea, I am beyond excited it's stupid! I haven't felt such an excitement over anything in such a long time!

And that is one very long arse post! Are you still reading this? If so, kudos to ya LOL! Until next month...

Angie ❤

On April 28, 2013 we celebrated the upcoming arrival of a new family member by throwing a baby shower for them and my sister Chris! She's been waiting for this for a very long time and my sisters and I did what we could to make it as memorable for her as possible! 

The theme was grey, yellow and a chevron pattern. It was something my sister chose so we took to it right away! Let me say, it isn't as easy as you'd think on a budget! We were all assigned tasks to help keep the costs low. I was assigned the task of baking cupcakes, being the photographer, assembling the crudites platter, which ultimately went to my husband LOL!) and helping with setting up the room. My oldest sister was in charge of making macarons and the cake. My older sister was in charge of games, the invitations and all other paper related tasks since she's more the scrapbooker. My pregnant sister who's a chef took care of some of the food and made all those awesome rosettes and pompoms that ultimately hung from the ceiling and walls. It was a true family affair!

We had about 30 people in my sister's basement, it was soo nuts! My sister had invited her former coworkers and bestest friends as well as many extended family.  Even with so many people crammed into one small space it was still very intimate and personal. Everyone got along and somehow knew of each other through one another if any of that made sense LOL! I had taken about 200 pictures that day but decided to just share a few of the decor and food that we were so very proud of :) I'd share more but it's all about family and friends in most of the pics and I'd like to preserve some privacy. I hope you don't mind! Onto the pics...

For pictures we created a backdrop of rosettes that my pregnant sister made since she had a lot of free time on her hands! Most of the paper used was wrapping paper and was adorned with lace doilies to finish off the edges. It was also complimented with pom poms like I have shown in the picture above. It was needless to say a great hit with the partygoers!

Party favours were created by hand by my older sister who really loves to create paper crafts. She cut and stamped all the papers and assembled them all by hand. It was a really long process but it turned out so great! The only thing she did not create were the bags themselves. They were from the Dollar Store if you could believe it! 

Believe it or not, this was a FRACTION of the gifts my sister got...In some of the gift bags, there were 3-4 gifts in them! She was surrounded by tissue paper and wrapping paper with every gift LOL! My oldest sister had huge garbage bags on hand to keep it all under control and even that was difficult. It was a ton of fun though and I could see my pregnant sister was pretty amazed at all the loot she was getting LOL!

A fraction of the sweets table...Seriously, we had macarons, cupcakes, cake and a candy bar set up and people were amazed at how complete it was! Food served was crudites, empanadas, focaccia bread, egg rolls, and so much more! I made those cupcakes all by myself which was honestly a huge feat for me seeing as I don't bake very often. I never frosted a cupcake with a frosting tip so that was also an experience but honestly, it was very natural to me. I love to craft and be crafty and this was just another facet of art to me. I had loads of fun baking and decorating them. I made lemon vanilla cupcakes and chocolate vanilla cupcakes. People really loved them and honestly, they really kinda tasted pretty darn good LOL! 

I know you'd love to see more, like how happy my sister was that her baby shower was such a success or how big her baby bump was/is but I think it's best to just kinda keep that private. Her having a good time and having a successful shower was of the utmost importance to her and my sisters and I can proudly say we've succeeded in helping her achieve that. It's a bittersweet moment though...We all have children and are pretty much done so this is most likely the very last baby shower we'll ever hold for our family. I'm glad though that we ended it on such a high note with a big bang! Thanks for letting me share a portion of my sister's baby shower with you...Now onto the birth of this new family member! ❤

Angie

I noticed I haven't blogged about what's been going on recently! Whoops! Shows how busy I've been...

Teething hell...YES, that's been my reality recently. If there's anything I do not enjoy about little children under the age of 2 it is the teething! Good gosh, I haven't slept in 3 days...My son had a really high fever and was plain miserable. It was tough to see! He had zero appetite, wouldn't sleep, whined and cried and wanted to be held all day long. Yep, SO MUCH FUN. However, we see the light at the end of the tunnel! The fever finally broke and he's smiling again :) However, I'm still sleep deprived..One WIN at a time I guess huh? :)

Work has been nuts again. Always around Spring and Fall does work get hectic since a lot of it is seasonal. My husband and I were stressed to keep up with the demands but we're hanging in there! In case you're wondering what we do, one of our companies designs and creates custom jerseys and we also help manage and activate unrelated events with the other two companies. It's the season for us and every year we always feel overwhelmed but we get through it eventually. Having kids makes it harder, I work around them to get things done so it does take more time for me to answer emails and catch up on paperwork but it gets done!

My little sister is expecting a lil baby girl this Summer and my entire family cannot be any more excited or happy! A little girl was needed since my other sisters and I have boys LOL! I cannot wait to meet this little girl and to celebrate her impending arrival we are organizing and prepping for a baby shower in her honour this coming weekend! I am even more stressed about it - I'm in charge of photography, cupcakes, the photo booth activity and crudités. All this along with a teething child sheesh! But I will get it done - I'm determined to anyways! I will definitely post pictures up on my blog in the following weeks :)

Okay...I can't be the only one struggling with the time change right?? I am soooo tired these days, it makes no sense! I find myself struggling to get to bed 'on time' before the time change but I'm constantly running behind. It's frustrating...and annoying LOL! I managed to get into bed at 8:45pm the other night (no, seriously!) and I managed to catch up on some really good sleep. I also managed to ward off what could've been a mega nasty migraine headache so win-win! But again, the next night I was in bed at midnight...It's like I just couldn't get into bed earlier than that ugh..I'm feeling the effects again from the lack of sleep sigh...If this post makes absolutely no sense then you'll understand why LOL!

So before the time change messed me up, I was having a really good March! I bought some really good stuff this month, not quite as insane as last month but so far, it's been quality goods! I can't wait to show you in my March Haul video :)

On the home front, my lil guy who turns 2 in May has finally mastered sliding down the 2 steps that put our bedrooms and bathroom on another floor from the main living space of our house. It has made my stress levels fall a bit that's for sure. Now instead of carrying him down or having my older kids bring him down the 2 steps I can kind of breathe again! How time flies though, my baby is almost 2...it's all so quick, I could swear I was just pregnant and on mega bed rest! 

What else is happening? Oh, my hubby's birthday is just around the corner and I am always soo stumped as to what to buy him for a gift. He's impossible to buy for since he's the type to just go out and buy whatever it is he wants or likes in that moment ugh! I thought I'd buy him a Chillow but the idea of a potential leaky pillow on our expensive mattress changed that idea QUICK! I figured the best way around this was to just tell him to find something he really wanted and I'd buy it for him. In this case, he has been eyeing a few comic books that were missing from his collection (he has revived a  childhood hobby which really, I'm okay with! I think it's cute :D) but were a bit on the pricey side. So I told him to choose one or the ones he really wanted and I'd frame it for him :) He was totally up for that LOL! My hubs deserves it, he's amazing and I heart him tons <3

So that's it for now..I figured I'd chat about my family a bit more...I mean, makeup and shopping is fun but it's not what life is all about! At least not for me...I love my family to bits!!

Until next time,

Angie

I think that should sum up why I haven't updated my blog! I have been saddled by 3 whining children who complain when bored, then act up when they've been entertaining themselves too well i.e. feathers all over my living room floor from tossing our accent pillows around! Ugh...I'm exhausted from playing referee between my kids, i'm exhausted from making 3 meals a day, baths, trying to keep my kids entertained etc. Spring Break was made to drive parents insane!!

I did manage to upload some videos to YouTube somehow. I was able to get some work done also for my hubs. Can you understand why I'm so exhausted? LOL..While I'm talking about Youtube videos, I may as well say that I put up 2 vlog videos and one haul video! I'm so happy to have gotten those things ticked off my to-do list! Now if only I linked them up on my blog here haha..Guess I'll do that now while my lil guy naps :) 

What else is up with me? Hmmm...Oh right, I am actually in the midst of a ailment which I will not disclose but it has definitely made things difficult for me during the past week. Yes, the SAME WEEK as Spring Break! How convenient! So I'm still healing but slowlyyyyyy....I can't wait to be 100% again, I don't do well when I'm not in tiptop shape!

I apologize if my blog post is a little bit convoluted. I'm just so scatterbrained these days. Too much to take care of, too much on my plate. I'll do my best to link up my new videos on my blog here! 

Until next time!

Angie

Stupid question but uhm, can someone get addicted to talking to a video camera while out and about in public..? Seriously, it's a legitimate question because I am now hauling my video camera everywhere and film whenever I don't feel too weird about it haha! Don't get me wrong, I still feel completely dumb talking to myself in the car but I like to think that should someone in the car next to me wonders if I'm a weirdo that I can say I was talking on the phone right?? Still...it weirds me out LOL....But get this, not awkward enough to STOP doing it though? I just filmed my 3rd vlog and I'm uploading my 2nd vlog right now as we speak! I kinda want to involve my hubby into it, he'd be a complete natural but I dunno...He's gonna get all...all...constructive on me because he's got more experience talking to inanimate objects LOL! No, seriously...lol...Yeah, let me mull this one over for a bit..

I am constantly struggling to find proper lighting for my pics and videos. I want to film in my creative space but the light coming from my window isn't always the best. I have been playing around with lights and proper positioning and hoping it works for my next video. I think my camera isn't that great wither and have already decided to save some moolah for a new camera. I've done comparison shopping everywhere and yet the best deal is found locally surprisingly! So fingers crossed I can improve my videos even more soon!

As for my pics I have found perfect lighting and that's in my kitchen LOL! I finally figured out what I need to properly prop items up and how to effectively showcase them. I don't know if the last post I made about the Archie's Girls lipstick and powder show improvement but I'm pretty pleased with them so I think I'll stick with that location. If only I could film there! 

I'm not sure what my next video will be. I've done my first vlog which honestly wasn't that horrible to do I guess. I feel completely weird talking in public to a camera or my iPhone so I don't know how visually stimulating my vlogs will be LOL! I'll try to do my best as usual though and if something I filmed stinks I won't post it up. In fact, a lot of stuff I've filmed never gets used. I always scrap it and start fresh. Ya, I know, pretty time consuming but I'm so OCD that way. If I'm not 150% happy with anything I produce i.e. illustrations, designs, blog posts, pictures etc. I don't post it up. It's a reflection of who I am so taking the time to fully and properly oversee it's correct is a small investment on my part which I'm fully content with :)