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Have any of y'all ever gone to paint pottery? I love it so :) It's fun as a date or even as a girls night out. I've gone three different times. Last month I went twice and here are the finished products:

I made this set of coasters celebrating our family. If you couldn't figure it out, we have the same initials which really makes monograms extra cool. When we get some fancier things, I plan to have monograms everywhere. Does that make me lame? Probably.

This is probably my favorite thing I've ever made because it looks cook and I'm not artistic at all. It's a spoon holder for the stove. This is something I used every day (well every day that I cook). Do y'all have one of these on your stove? We always had one growing up so I wanted one for our house. I even remember what the old ones looked like. We had a brown one from Jamaica and then my aunt painted one for my ma when she was in stroke rehabilitation (my aunt, not my ma). I don't know why of all the things to remember fondly, I choose a spoon holder.

Let's get spicy!

The pictures uploaded upside down and I'm not going to take the time to fix them so here are some after and before pictures. I've been looking for a way to arrange my lovely spice collection without spending a bunch of money. For less than $25, this is what I came up with:

TheCount and I were at Tuesday Morning and I saw these bead holders for .74 for each stack of four. I figured it would be worth a try to see if my seasonings would fit. It allowed me to condense my spices a lot and through away half of my spice bottles and the rest I put in 2 freezer bags and put them away.

The stand came from the Home Goods clearance aisle. $10! It had enough space to also store my random sugars (nutmeg sugar, vanilla sugar, chocolate sugar, and cinnamon sugar) and my big flour and sugar containers. I love this set up so much more than the dumb setup I had previously.

This is the dumb set up I had before. My spices were stored in this cabinet above the stove. Do you want to know how many times per week the spices fell out of this dang cabinet into what I was cooking? Well I'll tell you, twice. I also had to take everything out in order to find what I was looking for. My new set up is so much better. This picture would also be so much better at the top of the post.

Oyin Handmade Review

This is day 7 hair. I used shampooed with Organix Tea Tree Shampoo and deep conditioned with Honey Hemp Conditioner. I used a little Cantu leave in and rubbed Whipped pudding all through my hair. As I did each twist, I added Burnt Sugar Pomade. At the end I sprayed with Juices and Berries and put my bonnet on.

For my maintenance every night I put a little Whipped Pudding on my twists and put a bonnet on. In the morning, before I shower, I spray some Juices and Berries on my hair then hop in the shower and let the steam help my hair plump back up.

(clearly I didn't think it was important enough to clean off the table. There's a book, The Green Beauty Guide, my lovely new obsession- a label maker, my coasters, TheCount's keys, and nail polish, lol)

I love Oyin products. I also had Shine and Define, which my momma took from me, because her hair liked it a lot more than mine did. The Shine and Define is thin, like it could come in a squeeze bottle. I didn't feel like I needed it because the other products gave my hair what she needed. The Whipped Pudding ($18 biggest size) is thick and soft and I use it every single day. I even used this while I was transitioning. It is excellent at keeping my hair moisturized. It is my favorite hair product and it gets dangerous around here if I run out. It can also be used on your skin. It has a ton of good stuff in it like shea butter, aloe vera gel, cocoa butter, castor oil, and go to the website if you want to read some more because they aren't paying me for this!

The Burnt Sugar pomade ($10) smells really good and it's also really popular with guys. MrC uses it every morning (replacing his 6 year love affair with Blue Magic) and I took one of his friends to get some too and he loves it as well. I prefer to use the pomade on my wet hair and only on my edges throughout the week because it is waxy.

I broke the top on my Juices and Berries bottle ($11) so that's why this bottle looks so bootleg. Y'all this stuff smells sooooooo good. I remember all of the products I used to use on my hair smelled so bad, but I would say "if it stinks, that means it's working." Whatever! All of these products work, and they smell divine. I also add a little of this to my hair water spray bottle.

I haven't had the Honey Hemp Conditioner ($11) for too long so I can't give too much information about that one. I deep conditioned with it after clarifying and my hair felt moisturized, so I give it a thumbs up so far!

On my body I use After Bath ($10). Every day when I get out of the shower I pat dry and rub the After Bath on while my skin is still damp. I have the coco mango scent. I've had the bottle for about 6 weeks and I have 25% left and that's with daily use. I use a natural body butter after the oil, so it isn't my only moisturizer. I have extremely dry skin and I used to have to lotion up 3-4 times a day. This paired with my body butter has allowed me to lotion up once a day :)

I also have Funk Butter ($5), which is used in place of deodorant. I tried it out, but it irritates my underarms after a few days, so I stopped using it. I'm going to experiment (on TheCount's body) to find other uses for it.

I also had the whipped shea butter. It's whipped shea butter. Yep. I don't have much use for just whipped shea butter.

The prices listed are for the sizes I have. I think they're reasonably priced for a company that uses all natural ingredients and makes their products by hand. I like to support good people with good products. It's black owned and local (for me, not y'all) and the owners are really nice. Oyin products are sold online and at their boutique in Baltimore, exittheapple. Seriously, if you live in the area, it's worth going into the store because the people are so dang nice. I have never had a bad experience there. They are only open on Saturdays from 12-7 though. Anyway, long post over- go buy some Oyin (so I can stop buying everything).

In case you were wondering, I think I'm going to go this weekend to get some lip balm and honey wash. You weren't wondering that? Oh well.

Week long twists

Tomorrow I'm going to talk about my favorite hair products, but today I sucked up my whining and posted more pictures of my hair. The longest parts of my hair are 3 inches, and the shortest pieces are 2 inches. I guess that's good to know when keeping track of growth, lol. Last week I left my twists in Sunday - Saturday. I wore them out (last picture) yesterday and today. I'll probably pick the twists apart to give myself a fro and wear that for a few days. I rarely can go this long between washes, but my beloved hair products have kept my hair so moisturized.

The first picture is from Monday right before TheCount and I went out to Copeland's, the second picture is Friday when I was sitting in traffic, and the last picture is Saturday right after I took the twists out.

Be Still

I couldn't get my mind right to blog this week.

 

I needed this blog today.

 

I also want to stamp COSIGN on this blog.

 

I had fun doing Serenity23's hair idol links.

 

My aunt called me today saying I had been on her mind and she had been praying for me all week. It touched me so much. I'll be back on Monday full of light and sunshine. God has been so good to us and every day he sends unexpected blessings. I'm grateful.

 

Verses I've been meditating on this week:

  A man's heart plans his way,
      But the LORD directs his steps. Proverbs 16:9

 

  A man's stomach shall be satisfied from the fruit of his mouth;
      From the produce of his lips he shall be filled. 
        Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
      And those who love it will eat its fruit. Proverbs 18: 20-21

 

There are many plans in a man's heart,
      Nevertheless the LORD's counsel—that will stand Proverbs 19:21

And we ate...

Wednesday

Focaccia Bread Pizza

The site is in French so you'll have to use Google Translator. I made the recipe as it was written, but I didn't sprinkle salt on the top before baking. Instead, I sprinkled 1 cup of mozzerella cheese and a handful of shredded parmesan cheese. Probably wouldn't make this again.

Get Yo Man Chicken

I had taken some chicken out, but had no plans for it. When I saw this recipe I decide to just go ahead and make it. I only used 2 chicken breasts because only 2 people live here. It was really good and flavorful, I'd make this again.

Thursday

 

Popcorn and donuts 

I don't even remember Thursday, but MrC insists this is what I ate for dinner.

Friday

Papa John's

Saturday

Jamaican Beef Patties and Mashed Potatoes

I've never had beef patties before so I don't know what they're supposed to taste like. I'm sure they shouldn't look like the foolishness I made. They weren't nasty, but I wouldn't ever make them again.

I'm busting out!

I've been out of the office for a full week :) I came back today to not only find that nobody has called but I also don't even have any emails to handle. How's that to show you how important you are, lol. I did send out a request on 2/4 and neither of the people I sent it to has even bothered to respond at all. Not even a "go away, we don't want to help you" email. Now I have to track them down since I need to order 20,000 copies of 5 documents once they finally get around to updating them.

 

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All of our Valentine's day plans have been canceled. We were supposed to have a marriage getaway with our church this weekend, but they postponed it until the 26th. The purse I ordered myself as a gift from TheCount got cancelled too. There was an inventory error :( I acted a dang fool when I got the email. I was all solemn and dramatic. TheCount came running over because he thought something was wrong. I started rolling across the floor wailing and then he threw an orange at me and told me to shut up. I had so much fun acting out that I wasn't even said about that adorable BCBG purse anymore.

 

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Our new plan of action is to go to Copelands on Monday for lunch. I'm going to surprise him with a really thoughtful gift. I hope it works out, I don't want to blog about it in case he chooses this one day to stop by and read. He hasNO idea I'm even getting him anything.

 

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I am going to hit the mother load of mail this weekend. I haven't gotten any mail in a week including all the stuff I get sent to my parent's house. Apartment mailboxes are small, there is no way this stuff is going to fit. I normally get home right after the mailman has come. Hopefully I'll get there 15 minutes earlier today so I can intercept the mail before he crams it all in there and rips up my stuff.

 

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I had a lot of fun being snowed in with TheCount. The only day I wanted to kill him was on Wednesday, oh and last night when he confessed to losing my bottle of Ranch dressing.  How do you lose dressing?

 

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Three day weekend. This is so awesome, lol.

 

Blizzard Eats

I've been in the house since Friday which means I've had a lot of time to cook and clean and think. I think on Saturday's I'll start posting linking to all the food I've made throughout the week. Even my forgetful self can handle that. Unfortunately, all the days have blended together (but I do know it's not Saturday!) so I can't remember what I made each day during the snow storm. So this is just the blizzard menu.

Friday

Hamburgers with Fresh Buns

Saturday

Ice Cream night

I've been thinking about Coldstone ice cream forever but only because I like to smell the cones. For some reason I decided to make ice cream cones to go with our tasty oreo ice cream. I couldn't get them shaped like real cones, but they were really good. I'm going to make some more today.

Sunday

Sausage and Potatoes

When we (by we I mean MrC) finished shoveling on Sunday we needed something quick to eat. I had some leftover cooked sausage and I found this recipe online. It was really fast and good!

Beans

Y'all I made the most banging beans. I don't know why I got lazy and started using canned beans. No more man! I soaked pinto and black beans overnight. The next day I put them in a pot with 2 cloves of garlic and a piece of bacon and simmered for 2 hours. Mannnnn, those beans were so good! I had them on shrimp nachos and bean and cheese burritos.

Monday

Pulled Pork Sandwiches (Pork Rub and Barbecue Sauce)

I bought an 8 pound pork butt last week because it was less than $4. I used Alton Brown's rub and roasted the pork for a little over 7 hours. I pulled the pork apart and it was so tender and juicy. Yesterday TheCount and I had a cook off and we each made our own sauces for pulled pork sandwiches. MrC used a bottled sauce and spiced it up, whereas I made mine from scratch. It was really good, but very sweet.

Give us free!

TheCount and I will both be missing work on Monday. 30 inches of snow is no joke. I was working hard! Can't you tell?

Snoooowwwwwww!

We're supposed to get around 2 feet of snow this weekend! I am so ready :) I've been thinking of the foods I want to make this weekend: chocolate chip pancakes and bacon, donuts, cajun rice, maybe some pretzels, that 8 pound pork butt, ohhhh a chili too. Everybody is whining about the snow. If you don't like being in your own house, you're doing something wrong. My house is clean, stocked, and comfortable and I have great company. Last night at 2 a.m. I went on a cleaning spree. TheCount kept hollering for me to get in the bed, but I just couldn't! When I get home today I'll vacuum, and finish the laundry so I can fully relax this weekend. I have some spots I need to get out of the carpet that have been bugging me. Maybe I'll do a before and after testimonial for Resolve.

 

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We have a lot of expenses coming up (sister's graduation, taxes, and various other unexpected things) but I kept saying I'm not going to worry about it, and I haven't. I won the $200 a couple of weeks ago which has been a huge blessing itself! Yesterday I opened up our electric bill and saw this: Balance due $0.00 and a $53 credit. Say what now?????? Some commission did something to somebody and as a result we had a $100 credit on our electric bill. Praise the Lord! Our bill was $80 last month so this was right on time :) My God always takes care of me. It's kind of exciting when "difficult" times come up, because then unexpected God things happen.

 

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Seven weeks later...still no package.

Share food related things with me!

I have an 8 pound pork butt in my fridge and don't have a clue what to do with it. I'm going to have fun figuring it out! Maybe roast it on day one, have pulled pork on day 2, and then figure out the rest...

 

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We have a Super Bowl Party to attend that's a potluck. We were going to have our own party, but MrC's friend sent out the invite first. I was going to go ahead and have our party too, but I didn't want to be unfair to MrC's friend. If you could choose a party where you have to bring a dish and the host said they were only providing utensils versus a party where you could just bring yourself and you've had the hostess' banging food before, where would you be? Exactly. I think I'm going to take Cajun Rice to the party- as soon as I learn how to make it.

 

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I have some cornish hens marinating at home that I'm going to bake tonight and serve with mashed potatoes and  broccoli...when I get home at 10 pm. The pictures look so good I'll probably cry if mine comes out gross.

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I've been making s'mores for dessert all week. Take out a graham cracker, add a few chocolate chips, a few mini marshmallows and sit it in the oven for a few minutes (but not under the broiler, that didn't work too well) and you have a single serve snack! Oh how I love it. I also have a s'mores maker with the tray and little pot, but that's for travelling s'mores.

 

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Tomorrow I'm going to make Alton Brown's recipe for enchilada lasagna. I'd link to the recipe, but I hate Food Network's website so much and I don't feel like going back to it.

 

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For Valentine's day I'm going to hand out *hopefully* Princess and the Frog cards (backup: any cartoon with a brown face) and cookies at work. I'm going to wrap it up all pretty too. Maybe I'll even be on time for work that day (12th) and have them on their desk's when they get in. Then again, I have been coughing a lot so people may not want to eat my cookies. Nevermind, the other day somebody sat 12 random cupcakes on a table (no tray, no covering, no note saying who put them there, or even a flavor) and these nasty suckers ate them all up. I could probably pull a cookie from my shoe and they'd eat it.

Let's all look at me!

It's hair day! Excuse the greasy face, the photo shoot was at the end of the night.

Here's a non greasy face taken before we left the house to go to the super late Christmas party.

Since I thought my outfit was so cute, I made TheCount take picture after picture of me.

I liked how my hair looks in this picture. I was putting together my new bookcase while TheCount snapped pictures of his handywoman.

This is a picture from the day I did my big chop. I hated it, it looked like a jheri curl and it was so dang sticky. I much prefer my twist outs!

Serenity23- here you go! I'll leave the posting of fabulous hair to you :)