Friday Faves + IKEA LATT Hack

Happy Friday, my friends! We did it, we survived another week. We have been getting back on track after the holidays. We miss Matt now that he's back at work & busy busy, but we got a lot done this week!

I managed to deep clean the majority of my house & we are starting to Spring Clean a little early. Do you ever just get so annoyed by all the things you have in your house? Me too. I started a very large "donate" pile & an even bigger "throw away" pile. One of my goals for 2016 is to live a simpler life - guess I'm starting to embrace that! ;)

I wanted to share a few things with you before I sign off for the weekend! This cleaning technique for
vinyl floors has my "stay at home mom" heart singing. We have vinyl floors in our kitchen & they hold on to dirt like there is no tomorrow. No matter how many times I mop, the dirt doesn't seem to come out of the creases. So I decided to give this a try on a few "squares"... worked like a charm.  Planning on "ironing" the rest of my floors this weekend!

I've been loving these crayons for Kess' new coloring table. I know these aren't new or even super cute, but dang it, they are sturdy & I don't have little bits of crayons all over from Kess breaking them. I think they will last us a long time!

Santa left this Essie Gel-Setter top coat in my stocking this year - he knows me so well. I finally got around to trying it & love it. The finish is great & I'm excited to test out the durability over the weekend. I always feel so put together when my nails are painted, so I hate to see them chip. ;( Hopefully this top coat will extend the life of my polish a bit!

And finally - the IKEA LATT hack. I seriously love this little table.  Kess thinks she is pretty cool stuff when she sits at it. She loves to color & put stickers on her paper. She even shares her chairs with her teddy. I knew she would love this (actually, I didn't know, but I loved it so...) I bought this from IKEA when I went down to UT this summer & it's been sitting in my garage ever since. Of course, I waited until the very last minute (we were painting the second coat on Christmas Eve, yaaa...) But I think it turned out so darn cute. There are "IKEA Hacks" all over Pinterest, so I did a quick search & found some ideas. I decided to go with white & gold dipped legs. It will match her room perfectly & I think it will be easy to clean up. We decided to do the top with chalk paint, but it's already flaking off, so I recommend spraying/painting the rougher side (bottom), not the white (smooth) side.

We painted all the pieces before we put it together. Matt taped off the legs & we spray painted them with some gold spray paint. It was super easy to put together. Easiest little furniture makeover, ever! It already has crayon marks, but hey, that's what it's for right?

Happy Friday, everyone! I hope you have a great weekend! XO

Year in Review

How is it 2016? I remember thinking that 2014 was going to be a wild year because we would be having our 1st baby. She turns 2 this summer. 

2015 was a wonderful year for us. Matt blessed Kess. We moved back home to Nampa, from McCall. Matt finished his fellowship & got a great job. We were sealed for time & all eternity. Kess turned one. I went on not only 1, but 2 baby-free girls trips. We went on our 1st official camping trip as a family of 3.  Kess fell in love with playing in the pool. Kess & I survived Daddy being gone on his long hunting trip. We picked our first pumpkin. Kess was the cutest ballerina for Halloween. We chopped down our first Christmas tree as a family of 3. We survived the holidays with a 1 year old! 2015 was beyond good to us. We can't wait for what 2016 is going to bring. 

Matt & I write down our goals every year. Individually & as a couple. Our couples goals always seem to be attainable, but my personal goals tend to be blown out of proportion like... get into an exercise routine & eat healthier ;)

Although, those are on my list this year... I'm going to try to keep 2016 simple.

Fuel my body with good things, but live life - splurge occasionally. Spend less time on my phone, especially around Kess & my family. Keep truckin' through this blogging adventure with all of you - keep trying new things. Cook more; eat out less. Go on more dates with my husband. Give Kess more one on one time. Be more present with Kess. Get down on the floor and play with her. Read more, check social media less. Say my personal prayers more often. Build a closer relationship to my Father in Heaven. Tell my husband I appreciate him more. Declutter & live a simpler life. 

What are some of your goals? I would love to hear them! 

Christmas 2015 #BEcap

I've been the worst blogger ever! The holidays have been so hectic & I've been trying to soak up time off with my little family, but don't worry - I'm back at it! You probably weren't worried, were you? ;)

Christmas was so fun & exhausting this year. I think it was a glimpse of Christmases to come. We stayed up way too late watching Muppet's Christmas Carol, painting Kess' IKEA table (talk about last minute, right?) & then finally assembling the table. I'll be posting an IKEA hack here in the next few days - it was beyond simple :)

Matt woke Kess up around 7:15 and brought her into bed with us. we got a good snuggle session in & then rushed to open presents. Kess didn't quite get what was going on, but the second she saw her little table, she was in love. It made all that dang last minute prep totally worth it! We had to pull her away to open the rest of her presents. We try to keep Kess' presents simple, mostly because she is ever growing, changing & honestly - we don't have the room for tons of toys. So this year we stuck to her little coloring table, some blocks & some princess magnets. She likes to play with the magnets on the fridge while I cook dinner, so I figured we could get some cute ones! She got some stuffed animals from grandparents, which she loved! She's a stuffed animals lover like her momma was!

After our little family Christmas we were off to Matt's parent's house! We started some breakfast casseroles before presents, but the little kiddos beat us to the punch, they snuck off & found their presents. It was actually pretty hilarious & they were really excited! Plus, how cute is that little shopping cart from grandma & grandpa?

After breakfast, Kess got a little grumpy. I'm sure the day is overwhelming & exhausting for these little ones, too. We decided to take off a little early & put her down for a nap. The little stinker dozed off in the car, so it took us a while to get her back to sleep, but she finally conked out. We, of course had to wake her up to get to my parent's house on time & she wasn't super pleased about that. She taught us a lesson by being a grump for a while. ;)

Kess got a little slide from my parents, she loves that too! She didn't quite get how to climb the ladder on her own, but we taught her so it makes our life a little easier! ;) We ate ourselves into a food-coma during Christmas dinner, so much food! It was delicious. We decided to head home to get our sassy girl into bed. All in all, it was a successful day full of love! It's super easy for me to get wrapped up in the presents and all the Christmastime activities, but I tried really hard to slow down & think of our Savior & His birth. What a glorious day that must have been! What a painful sacrifice it must have been for our Heavenly Father to send him to us. I hope you all had a beautiful Christmas with your family & friends!

Hunter Boots

Let me guess... you've been dreaming of Hunter Boots, but $150+ is just an 

unrealistic amount of money for rain boots? Ya, me too! I think they're beautiful, 

and super trendy, but that's a lot of dough... dough that could be spend of groceries, or baby clothes! #momlife

A friend of mine told me a secret... Costco.com sells Hunter Boots for $80. $80!

Believe it! I snagged the tall gloss black in a heartbeat! Mine were back ordered, which was a bummer... but they totally shipped earlier than what they said! Bonus! To get this steal of a deal, you must be a member of Costco Wholesale (or know someone who is and borrow their membership number.)

 I was a little nervous about how often I would wear them. Let me tell you, I probably wear them

 too much. They pretty much go with everything! So, if you're hoping there are Hunter Boots waiting for you under the tree on Christmas morning. Head on over to Costco.com & get moving! 

Merry Christmas to you!

Thanksgiving #BEcap

I have really been looking forward to the holidays this year. Last year was really stressful for me - it was our first holiday season with a baby. I had no idea what to expect and I was so nervous about balancing breastfeeding, nap times, eating food for myself and enjoying family, plus we were living out of town and had to drive in crummy weather to get home to see our family. We totally made it home without a glitch, even in the snowy weather, but Kess totally had a bad case of "stranger danger" and hated all the people around her, but she napped great and I just ate while she slept. We survived.

This year was great! Kess is down to 1 nap, in the afternoon. We decided to put her down a little early. She took a shorter nap and we made it to dinner on time. I volunteered to make the stuffing this year. I saw a few recipes on Pinterest and gave this Crock Pot Stuffing recipe a try. It was really yummy, but I didn't love the texture of it. It was more mushy, than fluffy... bummer.

I also found these super cute Thanksgiving Photobooth Props on Pinterest, and just had to print them out. They ended up being a hit and were so fun to play with. Matt was also beyond thrilled about these, obviously. ;)

I hope you all got some steals on Black Friday. I am a "stay in my jammies and shop from home" kinda girl. I stocked Amazon all day. Half of my Christmas shopping is done! Whoop! Any fantastic Cyber Monday deals that you know of? Throw 'em at me!

We chopped down our christmas tree this morning. It was stinkin' cold, but we had a great time! Kess did really well for the temperature being well below freezing. She got to go sledding, play with the dogs and watch Frozen in the truck once it got too chilly for her. She even conked out for a bit in the car. I can't wait to see her little face light up once we get our tree up and decorated. Here's to hoping she keeps her sweet little hands away from the ornaments! #yarightmom

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving! I am so thankful for all of you and for the time you take to read my thoughts. So grateful for this community of mothers, family and friends!

Monday Must-Haves

My Friday got a little crazy, so #fridayfavorites turned into #mondaymusthaves... did I just make that up? I should probably trademark that hashtag! ;) 

I'm sharing some of my favorite facial products today. I am always on the lookout for great moisturizers, exfoliates and cleansers. Always. I'm pretty willing to try any product, but they can't break the bank. Let's get real here... I have better things to buy than a $100 jar of wrinkle cream. So, first and foremost... do little things to take care of your skin. 

Keep heavy sun-exposure to a minimum. I'm not saying never tan or go out in the sun, but take care of your skin, even if you want to get some color on those cheeks of yours,  use a light SPF to keep burning at bay. 

Wash your face at night... no falling asleep with your make-up on. No no!

Exfoliate. Help cell turnover rates by sloughing off dead skin to keep it glowing.

Moisturize. A lot of people panic about moisturizer. I get it, you feel like your face is oily, so why add more moisture. If you think drying out your face is going to help, I'm super sorry to say that it most likely isn't. When you "dry" out your face, your body thinks it's lacking moisture and overcompensates by producing more oil. Finding a good balance is key.

I've been looking for a few great "saving face" products and I think I've found them!

Lush Let the Good Times Roll: Best exfoliant everrr. This is actually a dry product that you add water to. I keep it in my shower and use it as my cleanser/exfoliant everyday (well the days that I have time to shower.) You don't have to use this daily, but I like the way it makes my skin look and feel. It's an all natural product that smells amazing!

Lush Ultrabland: I initially went into Lush to find a good cleanser and was sold on this and "Let the Good Times Roll" instantly. This is an oil-based cleanser, which is what I was really wanting, because I didn't want my face to produce too much oil. I was hoping that with something oil based, so my face would find a good balance! Bingo! Totally did! This stuff is amazing! By far, my most favorite cleanser I have ever used. 

Biore Charcoal Pour Strips: I've noticed a blackhead issue on my nose... blackheads are a total bummer. They are kind of a pain to get rid of too... no amount of scrubbing helps. So I grabbed a packet of these strips at Wal-mart and they worked like a charm! Plus, I totally loved seeing all that gunk come out of my pours - but I'm weird like that ;)

And last, but definitely not least doTERRA HD Clear Facial Lotion. While my Lush cleanser does double as a moisturizer, I love this product for acne help. I've always had a fairly clear complexion, but as I get older and dare I say, a little more hormonal, I've noticed some acne. I think this product helps keep it at bay. Nothing is fool-proof, but the essential oils in this product are super helpful at keeping my skin clear and bright - and it smells good. Win win! 

What are your favorite facial products? I would love to give them a try! Comment on instagram @beautifuleffort or share below! 

Passion Series: Fatherhood

I have been writing this post in my head for months now. As some of you know, I started the "Passion Series" to share some of the things that I've become more passionate about since starting this blog. We've talked about motherhood, but today is my husband's birthday, so I'm going to talk about Fatherhood.
I'll be completely honest, I knew very little about fatherhood, minus the fact that I have a wonderful dad who has helped me grow into the person I am now, but I only knew one side of fatherhood, and that was through the eyes of a child.

As I have watched the person I love turn into a father, I have realized the heavy dedication it takes to be a dad. In full disclosure, I didn't understand why Matt wasn't ready to have kids when I was ready. I was ready to have a baby about 1 year before we started trying for Kess. Matt was mid-MBA, mid-working full time & mid-exhaustion. Now, I'm not entirely selfish, the plan was the wait until Matt graduated, but I like to think about things way in advance and Matt is totally "in the moment"... I knew I had to start buzzing in Matt's ear about a baby well before I knew we would actually start trying, but the more he said that he wasn't quite ready, the more stubborn I became, even though I knew it wasn't time yet.

After Matt graduated with his MBA, we thought we would start trying for a baby. Then Matt asked if we could just wait for summer to be over. We could enjoy our last summer without kids with camping and hiking. While it was a great idea, I was still miffed. I remember selfishly saying, "Why does it even matter to you? I'm the one that will be pregnant. I'm the one who is going to be breastfeeding. I'm the one who is going to be staying home. I'm the one who is going to be getting up in the middle of the night. Having a baby hardly affects you." How arrogant (and rude) was I? That selfish comment has replayed in my mind over and over again as I watch my husband wake up in the middle of the night with our daughter, as he walks me out of her room because I'm exhausted and at the end of my rope, as I watch him hug and kiss Kess the second he walks through the door, or as we climb into bed at night, we check the baby monitor one more time and he says, "I love her more than anything."

I have two very clear images in my mind relating to Matt and Kess. The first is the moment she was born. They sat her on my chest and Matt touched her tiny hand and she wrapped her bitty fingers around Matt's. I will never forget that, ever. And, the very first night we brought Kess home, I was terrified and exhausted. I was so nervous for her to wake up in the middle of the night. I remember that first little cry that woke us up out of our sleep. Matt turned on his lamp, flashed me a huge smile and said, "I'll get her!"

So, I am constantly reminded about my selfish comment by the way he treats Kess and I. On top of that, I can't imagine the stress that comes with earning the primary income for our family.
Matt isn't a flawless dad, just like I'm not a flawless mom, but he works so hard to provide the life that we dreamed of for our family. We often talk about how important the motherhood role is, and I wholeheartedly think that fatherhood is just as important.

Happy Birthday Matthew, I cannot imagine my life without you. How incredibly lucky are we to know that we are each other's forever? You are the husband I dreamed of, the husband I prayed for. And now, you are the best father Kess and our future children could ask for. We can't wait to celebrate with you tonight! We love you more than you could ever comprehend!