I've Got a Quote for That

I'm a quote fanatic. I think a good quote can change your perspective, inspire, improve your mood, make you feel more connected, etc. Those of you that have been on a Facebook live with me or a Zoom with me may have seen me reference my desktop quote box more than once. I've had a couple questions about it, so I wanted to share:

This is the one that I have, that you've seen me share from time to time. It has a total of 230 quotes and comes with a little window front box to display them in. Every day, I randomly pull one from the box and slide it to the front to display it. Honestly, it's amazing that almost every day, something will be said or something will happen that will make that quote, that I chose at random, become completely relevant to the day.

Today's quote: "Find your passion and pursue ti with whole heart and single mind." - Gail Sheehy

This is available at Target.

Why I'm Pampering Myself Like Crazy This Year

I have a confession...I'm a direct sales shopping junkie. There are just too many companies out there with products I adore. So I buy. A lot. And until recently I was a total hoarder of all things skin/beauty/pampering. Like truly, the amount of scrubs alone I have is ridiculous. And what's even more ridiculous is that I was not using them frequently because I didn't want to run out. Ahhh! Silly girl, I think I'm good, right?

And that is just a few of them...BUT, I have seen the error in my ways! I vow that this year I will (try) to stop hoarding and will actually use and love all these products that I just had to have!

Including more bath bars and body bars than any one person needs in a lifetime.

And okay, those that know me, know that in general I'm crazy organized...and I tried, really I did, with all the cute Zipper Pouches from Thirty-One, but this is officially out of control under my sink. So I vow that not only will I be using up these amazing products from Posh, Jordan Essentials, Acti Labs, Lemongrass Spa, etc. but that I will get a handle on this whole under the sink thing, and get rid of those products that I have failed...you know, the ones that have dried up, expired, etc. That WILL happen, and I'll take pics when it does. Cause no self-respecting Thirty-One chick should have a bathroom cabinet that looks like this.

Hold me accountable blog-land, I'm on it!

Comparison Shopping

I LOVE working as an independent director for Thirty-One. I adore our products, and I love that there is really not much in the way of competition in the field for our products. If anything, we most often get compared to Vera Bradley, as far as the look and feel of our bags. Having never owned a VB bag, I have been meaning to check out their items for awhile now, and in the spirit of procrastinating both grocery shopping and my workout, today I have done just that. I have to say, they do have a couple cute things, but I can’t believe how much more expensive they are than Thirty-One. A couple relatively close comparisons, size and functionality wise:

VB Hipster – $58

VS

Thirty-One Organizing Shoulder Bag – $39

So for a third less in price you can get a cute Thirty-One bag that’s within 1/2 inch size-wise, AND get it embroidered with your name or initials. Let’s look at another one.

VB Baby Bag – $125

VS

Thirty-One Cindy Tote – $68

These ones look almost identical, both in size and fabric, even. But Thirty-One’s version is half the price, and again, you can personalize. Did I mention I love my company!? lol. One more…

VB Messenger Bag – $84

VS

Thirty-One Messenger Bag – $38

Once again, dimensions within a half inch of each other, but price miles away. AND, one of the things that makes the Thirty-One Messenger Bag a particular favorite of mine is that the entire front flap of the bag zips off completely and is reversible, so when you buy it, you automatically have two looks, and can buy additional reversible flaps in other designs for $10 each. Meaning that for the price you’d spend on one VB Messenger Bag, you could have the Thirty-One Messenger Bag with a total of 5 flaps for 10 whole new looks for your bag! Hell, personalize one for every day of the week at that price!

Alright, so now that I’ve done my research, I do totally get how people compare Thirty-One to VB as far as style goes, and I’m thrilled to see what a great value Thirty-One is for the price, esp. in comparison.

I give up

So, with all the drama surrounding my POS dryer this week, I decided to cave and buy a new washer and dryer. Woohoo!

They are ever so cute (despite what my FB friends have told me, that washers and dryers simply are NOT cute)! No delivery available until Wednesday, so I’m pretty much wearing dirty clothes till then, but I can only assume they will be well worth the wait. And I’m convincing myself that the fact that they are energy efficient will mean that my $500+ monthly electric bill will go down. Right?

got bra? yep.

The sets that I ordered from my previous post a couple days ago when Victoria's Secret was having an awesome promotion came in. Woohoo. See, just that easy. I truly do love a deal. Makes me want to surf some of the deal of the day sites to see what other wonders await me. =)

shopaholic

Friday at lunch I went out and bought a new family room set. I told this to my girls at our Live Laugh Love Club meeting this morning and they said that was crazy, to go out at lunch and just on a whim buy a whole new room of furniture. lol. But in my defense, dh and I had been kicking around the idea of getting new stuff, so it wasn't TOTALLY out of the blue. Anyway, I'm super excited! It's a couch, loveseat and two recliners, all dark brown leather. SO cushy and comfortable. Right now we have a big micro-fiber sectional, but a couple of the bolts that hold the sectional together underneath have broken, so we're constantly having to push the pieces back together (like when the kids or one of our giant dogs launch themselves at the couch and send it sliding across the wood floor - lol). So it'll be very cool to have a new one. Tuesday I've got a company coming to haul away the old one for donation, along with a futon up in the loft (and then we'll move our current recliner loveseat up to the loft, cause it's still in good condition) and a giant TV that's been sitting in the garage ever since we replaced it with a flat screen in the family room. Then Wednesday my new stuff comes!! Woohoo! I can't wait. Here's a pic of the sofa from their website:

9 Things You Should Know About Me

• I’m a huge procrastinator. I make list upon list of things that I should do. Most of it doesn’t get done, but to be fair, most of it probably never warranted making the list to begin with.
  
• I love to plan parties. My girlfriend Ravi and I are party planner extraordinaires. Most notably for our annual summer luau and our Christmas parties. All must involve jello shots, color coordinated to our décor, natch.
  
• I’m a huge TV junkie. Biggest faves are LOST, Big Brother, Grey’s Anatomy and Deadliest Catch (I heart Captain John!). But those are really just the tip of the iceburg.
  
• I’m a list person. I have lists of stuff to do, stuff to clean, stuff to buy, stuff to remember, emails to answer…It’s insane. It doesn’t all get done (see point 1), so I stress over it.
  
• I can’t sit still, like EVER. I am incapable of just doing nothing, because I feel like I should be doing something productive. I am a very antsy person like that. DH, not so much. He’s quite content to lay on the couch, until I come bouncing in and entreat him to “entertain me.” He doesn’t often care to do so, btw.
  
• I love to shop. I would probably go so far as to say I’m a shopping addict. It just makes me so happy. Ravi challenged me once not long ago to go a week without shopping. I am pretty sure I caved day one. Though I did pretty well at restraining myself to internet purchases, if that counts at all (she said it didn’t.)
  
• I’m extremely indecisive. In most cases, I would much rather have someone tell me what to do, than to actually make a decision for myself. I think I always worry that I’ll make the wrong choice (think restaurant choices, plans for the evening, etc.)
  
• I’m a huge geek when it comes to numbers. I literally adore running numbers, stats, budgets, future earnings projections, etc. Something about looking at all the what if scenarios really entices me. I’m hooked on YNAB and Dave Ramsey.
  
• I chew pen caps, big time. At work, at home, sometimes even in the car. It’s gross and silly, but I love it. Oral fixation issues I guess.