Life Style Archives - Page 2 of 10 -

May 21, 2021May 20, 2021

2021 Home Edit Day Designer Planner- Setting goals, weekly agenda, and monthly inspiration!

2021 Home Edit Day Designer Planner Review- Setting goals, weekly planned, and monthly inspiration!

I am super excited to start using this Home Edit Day Designer Planner. I have been using the Day Designer brand since I have been married for the past 6 years. The Home Edit Day Designer Planner has pages in the front to help you set goals, a simple weekly agenda to align your days with, AND monthly inspirations in the back for EACH month!

I hope you find this review helpful. I found this Home Edit Day Designer planner at my local Target for $15!

Click here if you would like to watch my video review! Much more detail!

Fun things about this planner:

-color coordination for each month – If you have watched Home Edit on Netflix you know that is something they love!

-2 small pages of stickers – I feel like they are cuter than my last planner.

-2 small folder pockets in the front! – So perfect for things you don’t need to forget.

-Each month starts with a cute quote introduction page.

The Planner layout

In the front – you have some normal planner pages. You have a monthly calendar for the midyear 2021-2022, meet Home Edit girls page, pages to write goals and routines, and important dates page.

In the middle– You have a 2 page spread for each month and a 2 page spread for each week.

Each month has a 2 page spread. One thing new I love, at the end of each month, there is a page split into 4 columns- Things I did, Things I did but didn’t have to, Things I didn’t do, Things I absolutely had to do – so need to do next month. I love this feature for reviewing at the end of the month.

Each day of the week has its own column except Saturday and Sunday, which is splitting a column in half.

Each day includes a section for top 3 things to get done, agenda, and everything else.

I recommend the app “Fly Lady”. This is a great app that allows you to set up daily routine for morning, afternoon, and evening. This is where you can list your daily chores so you don’t have to write them in your planner. You can also have the app send you notifications. I hope to use this app more.

End of Month review

-In the back – WHICH IS MY FAVORITE!

I absolutely love that they added this feature this year! I have owned 6 Day Designers and I have never seen this.

For each month has a page that focuses on different things to work on that month. Click my video above to see the pages in more detail!

-July -Stay Getaway Ready – checklist for packing

-August – Fall into your Routine

-September – Operation Get Cozy – movies to see, shows to watch, books to read, podcast to listen to checklist.

-October – Refresh your Fall Wardrobe checklist

-November- Holiday Season Begins – Checklist for people’s gifts.

-December – All is Merry & Bright – Holiday Decor checklist

-January – New Year’s Intentions (Not Resolutions) Ideas

-February -Focus on Finances

-March – Spring Forward – Ideas to get done

-April- Spruce up for Spring – Items to purge

-May -Make time for Self-Care – self-care ideas

-June- Surviving in the Great Outdoors – Outdoors checklist

I am so excited to uses these ideas each month. There are tips at the bottom of each page for the different activities suggested for the month.

There is also a couple blank note pages in the back. I used these pages for things like my Christmas list.

I am so excited to use this planner! I have not been this excited over the previous Day Designers.

I hope you found this review helpful! Highly recommend this planner! You can check out my Youtube Channel or here on the blog for more Day Designer Reviews!

~Gracefully Fashionable Britt

April 23, 2021April 22, 2021

3 Thoughts One Year After Invisalign Treatment – Retainers & Schedules

3 Things I Wished I knew After Invisalign

Happy Friyay! I believe it’s actually been a little over a year from my last Invisalign post. There I discussed Three Things I wished I knew BEFORE Invisalign. Click here if you would like to check it out!

Now, I am one year after my treatment. I am still very pleased with Invisalign and would recommend it based off how easy it is and less painful then the old style braces.

Here is what I have learned AFTER my treatment:

Clean your retainer!

Retainers get pretty gross. I normally rinse mine out after each night of wear, but super gross – they kind of get a smell. I even sometimes would rinse them in Listerine, which I believe you are technically not suppose to do. But I did it just for a few seconds.

Finally, I found some cleaning pods you put in a warm cup of water and let your retainers soak for 15 minutes. It is similar to denture cleaner. I will link them here on Amazon. They work well and I try to do that at least every 3-5 days.

I did notice that there still seemed to be grime in my retainer, no matter how much I rinsed them. I thought I was going to have to go ahead and order a new retainer. I couldn’t stand seeing how gross it looked and putting it into my mouth every night.

I called my orthodontist and explained the situation. They suggested I come in and have them clean it before I consider ordering another pair.

Due to such a quick appointment, I took my toddler with me. Thankfully, he was pretty good.

They took my retainer and cleaned it while the orthodontist checked my teeth.

When they gave me my retainers back the retainers looked MUCH better, NOT brand new, but better than I could clean them on my own.

2. Ordering a new Retainer

I remember when I first got my retainer, they offered a plan that I could get I believe two other retainers for around 500 dollars. These could be my back -up retainers.

I was only ever given one retainer the first time I got braces, so I turned down their offer.

When my retainers got so gross, I kind of wished I had accepted their offer.

However, my orthodontist explained she rarely suggests ordering a new retainer unless you are getting holes in your current retainers. She explained just to bring the retainer to them to clean or my dentist.

I did not have holes in my retainer, so I just needed a good clean and not a new set.

3. My Retainer Schedule

I pretty religiously have worn my retainers every night up to a year after I was first given them.

Then, due to the grossness, I decided to do every other night. I believe I had read somewhere that wearing them every other night was okay once you had finished your years worth of every night wear.

It actually works well for my teeth. When I alternate nights, my retainer still slides in great and my teeth do not feel pressure from the night I missed.

Now, I continue this habit in hopes it will add length to how long this retainer will last.

If you want to read more about my Invisalign journey – Click here – Invisalign – Braces for the Second Time.

I hope my one year after thoughts can be helpful if you are on an Invisalign journey. It is a very slow progressing journey but I am very happy with my own results. If you have any questions, please leave them below.

Happy Friyay!

~Gracefully Fashionable Britt

January 29, 2021January 28, 2021

My Postpartum Curly Girl Experience & Why I quit CGM

I have always had some sort of texture to my hair. I would describe my hair as a mixture of curls, waves, and frizz.

Like most early 2000’s teens, the straightener was my best friend. I straightened my hair for YEARS. I would scrunch my hair some and try to embrace my curls every now and then. But my loyalty was to my straightener.

After I had my son in June 2019, I ended up having postpartum hair loss. At its worse, I was losing chunks of hair at a time. I would spend an extra ten minutes in the shower trying to get all the hair off of me.

Losing all that hair was a tough experience. I dreaded showering, my hair felt thin, and I felt unmotivated to try anything with my hair. I remember my hair stylist told me that she wished doctors told women more about postpartum hair loss.

While losing that hair was hard, it does usually grow back. Slowly… but it does.

Around the one year postpartum mark, my hair started growing back. Growing back WITH curls. I had little small curls sticking up all over my head.

I decided to embrace the curls and try the curly girl hair method. I began at the end of June 2020.

CLICK HERE to watch my video review!

At first, I did not follow all the rules. I used some Tresemme shampoo and conditioner. The only real rule I followed was no heat.

My first few weeks I had some actual very good curly days. I was visiting my parents some in Tennessee during the summer. They have city water. At my home, I have well water. I do believe my hair did somewhat better with the city water. I am not a scientist, so I can not explain the difference very well, but I did want to note that I noticed a difference.

I believe I have 2b-3a hair if you look at the curly wavy pattern charts.

I would like to share with you:

Products I tried
Facebook groups I found helpful
Reasons I don’t like curly girl method
Why I straighten my hair after 6 months
My curly cut
My current routine
Amazon Recommendations
My curly wavy plans

Products I tried:

-Herbal Essence Totally Twisted Curly Mouse – it was okay, nothing magical.

-Curls Blue Berry Bliss leave-in conditioner – at first it was okay, then it made my hair not feel so good. I do not think my types of waves and curls like leave-in.

-Curls Blueberry Bliss reparative mask- it was good, I would not go out of my way to buy it again.

-Cantu Curl Activator Cream – I was told by the curly girl stylist that this was too heavy for my hair.

-Moptop Gentle Shampoo – one of the best no sulfate/ paraben shampoos I’ve tried

-Moptop Daily Conditioner – nice, left my hair soft.

-Moptop curly hair custard – it has a nice smell, and seems to do fine with my hair. Nothing magical.

-Glazed Argan oil Silkener – I have not tried enough. Slightly regret buying.

-Aussie Instant Freeze Gel – works fine with my hair but not by itself.

-Redken Hair Cleansing Cream – I’ve used this for years. Recommend – NOT CGM approved.

-Tresemme Botanique Nourish and Replenish Shampoo – currently using NOT CGM approved.

-Tresemme Botanique Conditioner Nourish & Replenish Coconut & Aloe Vera – currently using and I like it.

-Suave Kid Purely Fun detangler – currently using, NOT CGM approved.

-Aveda Be Curly Curl Enhancer – LOVE! My hair seems to like this. NOT CGM approved.

Facebook groups:

Curly Girl Method – Keeping it Simple & How to make it work

Curly Girl Method Rejects – For those who dare to be curly but not CGM

Reasons I don’t like the Curly Girl Method

Too many rules. I began to feel stressed and not enjoying doing my hair. I was getting tired of trying product after product with no magical success.
Every curly head is different. I watched some of this interview (which I will link here!) with a Trichologist. A Trichologist studies the scalp and hair. She mentions how some silicones are okay! Silicones aren’t the same they were years ago.

Due to a list of rules and a never ending list of product recommendations, I decided I didn’t really like the curly girl method. That is when I found the Facebook group, the curly rejects.

I straightened my hair!?!

After I realized I didn’t really like what the curly girl method was doing to my hair, I decided to straighten it. I went from the end of June 2020 to Thanksgiving 2020 without putting any heat on my hair.

I let my sister straighten my hair. My sister did notice that my hair seemed harder to straighten than before.

I ended up not liking my hair straightened at first. All my layers had grown out and I felt it did not compliment me. So I decided to try a curly cut.

My curl cut experience:

I found a place in Indianapolis that did curly cuts. They taught you how to wash and style curly hair. They also cut your hair dry.

I ended up not liking my experience. I felt they put too much product in my hair. I also did not like the cut. The cut style seemed to just be cutting my ends into one layer.

I decided to go back to where I normally get my haircut and got my haircut again. The hairstylist added layers into my hair and introduced me to the Aveda Be Curly curl enhancer, which I love!

Not long after I got layers put into my hair, I tried to straighten it. I ended up loving it straightened and my husband said it was nice to see something different.

I noticed that by straightening it, my hair did much better blending in my baby hairs with the rest of my hair. I know for some hair that might have an opposite effect of making the baby hairs stand out worse.

My current routine:

Tresemme Botanique Nourish and Replenish Shampoo
Tresemme Botanique Conditioner Nourish & Replenish Coconut & Aloe Vera -Brush the conditioner in
Squish squish while still wet in shower with Aveda Be Curly curl enhancer
Wrap my hair up for 20 minutes using Turbie Twist Hair Towel
Let it air dry – don’t brush!

Amazon Recommendations:

-Diffuser

-Hairstyle bottle spray

-Hair clips

My Curly Wavy Plans:

I have noticed over the past few months my curls are a bit more defined and start higher up on my roots than before. I have also noticed my hair loves less product. I get some of my best curls when I have the least amount of products on my hair. Also, I sadly still have quite a bit of frizz. Due to having frizz and baby hairs regrowing sometimes the diffuser makes my frizz worse, so I embrace air dry.

I plan to embrace my natural God given waves and curls. But I also plan that if I want to straighten my hair, it is okay. I talked to my stylist and my hair is healthy! As long as my hair is healthy, I can try and experiment as much as I want. You don’t have to follow a set of rules. Do what makes you happy and is good for your hair!

January 15, 2021January 14, 2021

Proverbs 31: A Virtuous Woman – A Beautiful Heart.

I can’t believe these are my last two verses of my Proverbs 31 reading journey. I have learned so much from these verses about a virtuous woman. I pray my notes have been as helpful to you in growing your relationship with the Lord, as it has been helpful to me.

I wish I could say I have instantly become a virtuous woman, but it is a journey. Everyday just trying to love Jesus and my family more.

So let’s discuss the last two verses – Is your heart beautiful?

Since having a baby, I know for sure the woman’s body changes. Not in a bad way, but things never completely go back to the pre-baby body. I even started getting my first gray hairs when I was first married around the age of twenty-five. Oh how soon, we as women learn that “beauty” does not last.

I believe God made men and women different. There is something special and beautiful about a woman’s body. I read an interesting book that argued how women are the “crown of creation.” Other than the Sabbath rest day, we are the last thing that God created.

That should make us a feel a little special. 😉

As women, I feel we are all beautiful in our own different and unique ways. Some of us have luxurious hair, or gorgeous skin. Some of us have a perfect smile or dreamy eyes.

One thing I notice, as women, we often forget we only look “perfectly beautiful” maybe ten percent of the time.

Most of us especially as mothers, we have pulled back hair, with baby hairs growing back ( postpartum hair loss is no joke), we have no makeup on, we most likely have sweatpants on with a food stains somewhere on us.

While I am blessed to have a husband who would still tell me I look beautiful, I know that is not the word I would choose.

I am reminded of the Bible story when Samuel is going to choose King David to be king of Israel.

Based off appearance, David was not Samuel’s first pick. But God said –

So let me ask – Is your heart beautiful?

Most people are remembered for their beautiful character and heart, instead of just their beautiful face.

True beauty is a pure heart, a clean tongue, serving hands, a kind spirit, and a love for others above yourself.

So as a virtuous woman, on the days you are wearing sweatpants, know that your lasting beauty comes from the Lord. While its okay to dab on some concealer and coat your lashes with mascara – The beauty the Lord provides you with is a beautiful heart.

I also really like the KJV version – “Give her the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.”

It says let her “deeds” publicly praise her, not let her words or other people praise her.

Are we living as virtuous women for verbal praise?

I know sadly, sometimes I do. As a mom, sometimes I selfishly want to hear – “Good job!” “You’re amazing!” “I don’t know how you do it!.”

A virtuous woman instead of waiting for her own praise, should be praising the Lord. We should daily be praising – “I praise you Lord for giving me my children.” “Thank you Lord for my husband’s job. “ “What a blessing this meal is.”

Let my works praise the Lord and not myself.

I hope as a virtuous woman my deeds declare:

She loved her children.

She cherished her marriage.

She served her church.

She was an encouragement to others.

She showed Jesus through her words and her actions.

So remember :

Is your heart beautiful?

December 4, 2020December 3, 2020

Books, Routines, Education Toys, and How I Share Jesus with my Toddler.

My 17 month old and I try to read books daily, follow a routine, and try to learn skills like scribbling almost every day. But most importantly, I try to share Jesus with my toddler through books, music, and loving him as the gift from God he is.

I have a middle school teaching degree, but I don’t think you have to have an educational degree to teach a toddler. It is kind of funny how I get a little excited planning what we will do for the day. It’s almost like lesson planning… but the lesson can easily be destroyed depending on his mood. 😉 Bless toddler teachers. 😉

So today, I wanted to share with you things we do, toys we use, and songs we sing.

Click here to watch video!

In the morning:

TV Time

Normally after breakfast, I will let Milo watch 15-20 minutes of television. I use this time to get a few chores done around the house or any other important thing that needs to get done.

Milo loves the shows Patch’s Number Forest and Cal’s Sound Yard.

I highly recommend these shows. Milo has learned his numbers 1-4 and letters like A, E, C, and H from these shows.

Whenever Milo has been a good boy, feeling sick, or I am having to unload the groceries, I let him watch this Baby Einstein video for fun. He loves this show.

****AFFILIATED LINKS **** -DISCLOSURE- PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THAT SOME OF THE LINKS IN THIS POST ARE AFFILIATED LINKS AND IF YOU GO THROUGH THEM TO MAKE A PURCHASE I WILL EARN A COMMISSION. KEEP IN MIND THAT I LINK THESE COMPANIES AND THEIR PRODUCTS BECAUSE OF THEIR QUALITY AND NOT BECAUSE OF THE COMMISSION I RECEIVE FROM YOUR PURCHASES.

Books

In the morning we read 4-5 books. Here are my recommendations:

Pop-up peekaboo! Farm (This is a great book to incorporate stuffed animals as well as animal noises.

Pop-up peekaboo! Under the Sea

Eric Carle’s A B C ( I sing the ABC song after reading this book.)

If You’re Happy and You Know It – Little Words Matter. (Milo learned how to say “Amen” from this book!)

In the After Noon

Education Toys

Milo loves these Magnet letters. He is even learning to match them, like big S to small S.

He also enjoys playing with these magnetic dinosaurs.

I found this toy at Target. I will try to link it here! He enjoys pushing the shapes through the hole and turning it over.

I try to let Milo learn how to scribble with jumbo crayons and a notebook. He still doesn’t seem very interested in learning about scribbling. He does however love to put crayons in a small hole on his shoebox. Click here to watch! I think this is a great hand eye coordination skill he has learned.

As long as I am not busy, I never turn down books when Milo wants to read.

Here are some of his afternoon books:

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do You see?

Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox

Trucks – Priddy Books (These book has flaps he loves to lift!)

Dr. Suess Books – Hand, Hand, Fingers Thumb (I try to also sing the song, “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes” with books about the body.)

Poke-a-dot First Words ( Milo played with this for 10 minutes straight when he first got it!)

Night time

At night we spend family time together. Milo often plays with his toys and daddy. We always read books before bed.

Books for Bedtime

Pajama Time by Sandra Boynton ( Milo’s favorite bedtime book. I can read this book without even looking at the words 😉 )

Snuggle Puppy by Sandra Boynton

Big Trucks Getting the Job Done Together (Milo learned how to say “Beep Beep” from this book!)

Pigs in a Blanket by Hans Wilhelm

How I share Jesus with my toddler

Sharing my faith with my son is one of the most important things I can do as a mother. I try to make time each day to read Christian books with him. I also try to sing with him every day the song, “Jesus loves me.” Each time we sing the song, I do the hand motions that I learned as a child with the song.

I recommend the iTunes album “The Best of Kid’s Bible Songs.” Whenever Milo seems fussy, this album seems to help and also great to play in the car.

Christian Books

God Created Everything illustrated by Pan Georgiou ( I could not find this online.)

Peek a Flap – Noah

Little Bible Heroes Storybook (This also has video links in the book to go with each story. Milo loves this book!)

Baby First Bible Story.

I also pray with Milo before each meal and at bedtime. He will even say “Amen” as soon as I start praying, because he knows food comes right after. 😉

I hope all these books and toy ideas can be helpful, especially with the Christmas holiday coming up.

I pray from all these activities Milo learns to love learning, reading, and Jesus.

~ Gracefully Fashionable Britt

November 27, 2020November 25, 2020

WHICH BURNS!?-Neutrogena Hydro Boost Gel Cream Vs. Meijer Moisturizing Water Gel

Neutrogena Hydro Boost Gel Cream Vs. Meijer Moisturizing Water Gel - WHICH BURNS!?

Happy Friyay guys! I wanted to share this quick review with y’all. I compare the Neutrogena Hydro Boost Gel Cream to the Meijer Moisturizing Water Gel. Click here to watch the 5 minute review!

I have oily/ dry combo skin. I have an oily “T-Zone” and I get dry patches on my cheeks and chin during the winter. During the winter, I usually use the gel cream instead of just the gel.

I was at Meijer a couple months ago and noticed that Meijer had a moisturizer gel cream that claimed to compare to the Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel. Click here to view product.

I have used Neutrogena Boost Water Gel and the gel cream multiple times. I have no bad reviews of either of them.

Since the Meijer brand was so much cheaper (12.99 compared to 17.29), I decided to try it.

Review:

It burns!

I do not think my skin was overly dry when I first used this product. But it caused my face to burn for a couple minutes. I considered not using it again. Each time I continued to use this product, my face would burn, not to the same extent as the first time.

This caused me to go back to the store and repurchase my faithful Neutrogena Hydro Boost Gel cream.

My final thoughts:

I purchased the Meijer gel because if you look at the ingredients, they are very similar to the Neutrogena gel cream.

One main difference I later noticed is the Meijer brand does have a strong floral like scent. The Neutrogena one is fragrance free. I know from watching some dermatologist on YouTube that fragrance in a product is actually not a good thing.

I highly recommend the Neutrogena Hydro Boost gel or gel cream depending on your skin type. I would not repurchase the Meijer brand water gel again.

I hope this review was helpful if you were considering buying either product.

Happy Friyay!

~ Gracefully Fashionable Britt