¡Ombligo!

Picture taken from Luckyscent.com

Ho hum, I was wanting to test something new when lo and behold opportunity arouse to buy a decant of Vettiveru from Comme des Garcons Series 4: Cologne.
Vettiveru is described on Luckyscent as:
Masterfully blended, Vettiveru is perfectly balanced and surprisingly deep for a cologne, and an absolute must for all lovers of vetiver. It opens with a citrusy bergamot and the soft green of vetiver. Once it settles, it drifts in and out of being a light, dry woody scent (white cedar) and a wonderfully verdant and clean vetiver. We love the way it meanders between feeling ‘dry brown’ and ‘clean green, ’ and we can practically guarantee that Vettiveru will be fragrance you reach for when YOU want to wear the scent, not the other way around. Subtle yet please-rub-on-my-sheets/furniture/pillows-so-I-can-smell-it-when-you’re-gone memorable.

The notes in Vettiveru are: Vetiver, bergamot, neroli & white cedar

Out of the three from this series, Vettiveru was the one that appealed to me the least as I'm rather iffy when it comes to vetiver and neroli tends to give me a headache but I figured it was worth a shot.

Vettiveru starts out very fresh on me, a rather soft vetiver but at the same time still bold enough to make a statement. I first tested this on a really hot afternoon and it bugged me but today it was cooler and it seemed like the perfect choice. To me it seems more citrusy today than it did withimmensemense heat.

So, the neroli...that's what bugged me when I first tested it. I don't know but the neroli seemed stronger when I wore this in warmer whether. Not that the neroli is strong in this fragrance, it's not but it's one note I really could do without in any fragrance. The cedar is very, very faint - part of me wishes it were stronger as I love cedar.

I was expecting rather poor staying power but this lasts on me for several hours before feeling the need to spray again. While I like it, I'm not sure I LOVE it so the decant was a good decision but I probably won't replace it once this one's empty.

Vettiveru retails for $80/17 oz. at Luckyscent - that's right baby - seventeen ounces! Man, every fragrance should come in 17 oz. bottles!

Gold Swallow Necklace $28

I'm usually not a trendy girl when it comes to jewelry, I basically wear what I like. I also try to stay away from gold toned items they seems to wash me out a bit but I do like it on occasion.

While shopping last month, I really liked the style of the Gold Swallow Necklace and as I was about to order it, I noticed that for a few dollars more I could instead order the Three Month Necklace Subscription as it was the necklace chosen for the month of March.


Silver Swallow Necklace $24

Other perks given to subscribers are discounts and the ability to vote on which necklace is selected for the following month. The necklace chosen for the month of April was the Silver Swallow Necklace. If you look at the picture on the website, the chain is attatched to the tail of the sparrow. Well, I'm somewhat picky and asked Misa if she by any chance attach the chain to the wings instead of the tail on mine.

I didn't threaten violence or anything, I just asked politely and she said yes!

My necklace is special and I love it! I am so glad I asked because in all honesty, the silver swallow necklace didn't originally appeal to me when I fell for the gold swallow necklace. Now I love it even more than the gold swallow necklace!

First Kiss Pin $12.50

Back in February I believe, Miss Misa contributed some First Kiss Pins to
The Sampler but I didn't get one in my subscription - I try not to set my heart on any one item because odds are it won't be in my Sampler - for that month so I asked Misa to please add them to the site - I'm sounding awfully bossy - and she did! Yay!

Shame I totally suck at picture taking because everything is so much cuter in person! I also have to mention that Misa is an absolute sweetheart!

It's not the camera, it's the girl behind the camera that sucks!

When the going gets tough, the tough goes shopping!

So, there's been this huge birthday celebration going on at Amy Peters' Studio and I was smitten with the little flower pendant which isn't up for sale on the site but was given away for free with any order on April 9th so being a ring fiend, I naturally ordered a ring!

I ordered the flower ring so it could be matchy matchy with the necklace.

Stacking Flower Ring $20

Sometimes matchy matchy people piss me off but I'm not one of those "In your face, check me out - I'm all matchy matchy!"

I swear, I'm not!

Plus, the ring is a stacking ring and it's rather dainty so it's not like anyone would really notice that I'm matchy matchy.

Anyhow, they're giving away a surprise freebie tomorrow with any purchase.

How many calories does crying burn? A whole heck of a lot!

I went down a total of four pounds this week - exactly four on the dot!

Mind you, this is the week after my flow so it wasn't all diet and exercise. Yeah, water retention played a huge role in this week's weigh in. Plus, my levels are more normal now that I'm on the lower dose of Synthroid - which are pink by the way, my favorite color! Yay!

I was far beyond frustrated and really, really needed to see some change this week. Oh man was I frustrated! I tried, I mean really tried so hard this past week with everything. I worked out even harder than the weeks before because I was needed to see some change. Ugh, for the last couple weeks I've felt so off and had really questioned if it was worth putting forth anymore effort towards this entire lifestyle change.

I've done really good with my eating habits and consumed so many vegetables this week. For the last three weeks I've substituted ground turkey for any recipe that call for ground beef so two weeks ago I made a bunch of turkey chili - with half of meat it called for and instead added a lot of vegetables and double the beans it called for. I also made turkey burgers as I've been craving a hamburger like mad! I made guacamole - again filled with double the veggies - and made myself a guacamole burger on whole wheat bread. It was so incredibly awesome!

I've considered going pollo-vegetarian as I eat primarily chicken and seldom eat other cuts of meat but I have to do a lot more research on how it will affect my body and what will work best for me. I'd love to go vegetarian someday but I think that may be taking on too much at once so for now I'll settle for small changes.

SI: Ah, these past couple weeks have been so tough and this was the one behavior that I was most afraid of reverting to as I've only recently tried to control it. Friday and Saturday were really hard days to get through, for specific reasons I was really sensitive on those days and spent a huge chunk of both days just sobbing.

Crying is still relatively hard for me but once I get started it's like I can't stop. It's quickly progressing to be an automatic phase two when I feel the overwhelming desire to injure myself.

In my head I have a vision of "the best me I can possibly be" and when things get hard I try to envision all the opportunities that life has to offer and how once I get to that point, I'll be in a better position to accept those opportunities.
So, I made it through yet another week without injuring myself! Like so many people remind me, it's all about the small steps in life. Small steps that add up to huge leaps.

I get it, change won't come overnight and sometimes it won't come for several weeks but it does come around....eventually. I have to hold on for those moments, when change does come. Ugh, it's hard but it's totally worth it!

¡Ombligo! On to next week....

I'm feeling rather comfy cozy today and wearing Versace's The Dreamer which is marketed for men but I love it on myself!

According to Osmoz, the notes in The Dreamer are:
Top: Clary sage, Lavender, Mandarin, Mace
Middle: Tobacco, Geranium, Carnation, Rose
Base: Vetiver, Cedar, Tonka, Fir

It starts off with a subtle spice, I love spicy fragrances but am not really fond of the spice found in the top notes. It seems a bit out of place and don't really flow with the rest of the scent. I love the lavender in here, it smells rather cool and refreshing. The heaviest scent on me is the tobacco which is slightly sweet at first and diminishes the longer I wear it. The floral and wood notes are incredibly soft on me, it's the tobacco that really makes this fragrance.

I've been wearing The Dreamer to bed lately as it's a rather comforting fragrance. They staying power is very good on me, I can easily detect it hours after application.

Seems like The Dreamer is easily found at a discount price and can be purchased for under $30 a bottle. Love it!

Ah, the numbers! Oh, the numbers! Why? Why, don't they change?!?!

Okay, okay the number did change.....slightly.

I lost .4 lbs from last week to this one which is practically nothing. I know, I know in the end it all adds up but I'd like it to add up a little bit faster than this!

It was noted this past week that I looked though I've lost a lot of weight - which I have - over a year but haven't - more recently.

Thing is now the weight loss has become more apparent in my face. So yeah I still have a big fat face and a chunk body to follow but you can kinda tell that something is going on.......slowly.

A lot of mixed emotions come with these subtle changes as I'm still frustrated at how slow everything is progressing. The past couple weeks have been a real challenge as I'm doing my absolute hardest and it's still not enough!

Hills and valleys, I know! It still makes me want to scream!

Sometimes I think I'm making more and more strides when it comes to self control but at the same time I'm not at the place where I've mastered self control. I made a comment last week that I can't have an entire cake in the house. I just can't, I'm weak when it comes to cake and although I know the consequences of eating cake I'd still polish it off. Now I've never polished off an entire cake by myself but have come relatively close to it, in the past.

I strongly believe with this entire process to eat foods that I would normally eat, not to restrict anything from my diet because as soon as I go bad, the pounds will pile back on. So, on occasion I'll allow myself a treat - now these occasions are becoming few and far between in this entire process and I'm slowly breaking my addiction towards bad foods and finding that I don't have as much of a desire to eat them. And really, if you don't purchase them - you can't eat them.

Before, I didn't see it so much as an addiction but it is - at least for me. To explain this better, I've known alcoholics that can't have alcohol in the house - it's too hard to be around it. Yet there are others that can have it in the house but they have enough self control not to serve themselves any of it.

When it comes to bad foods, I'm at the place where I can't have it in the house - I can't! I'm not strong enough to have them around but not eat them and I feel really awful about it!

I don't know.

Sensibly, it seems rather funny to admit an addiction towards cake or other bad foods but at the same time it's made me feel like such an absolute failure. Yet, I'm not trying to be funny in my admittance of my addiction towards cake or other bad foods because in all honesty, I'm an addict.

I was mentioning this to my sister and she brought up that saying "I love you like a fat kid loves cake."

I'm an addict and know it, have always known it but never really acknowledged it because even when I acknowledge it it still looked upon like a joke. When I was little, my parents would buy those Hostess or Little Debbie treats for our lunches - rather, my sister's lunches. Being a fat kid I was always put on a diet of somekind and was told that I couldn't have those treats. I'd still sneak them in as I was a latch key kid and as soon as I came home I'd eat one of those treats and hide the wrapper in a sheet of foil and bury it in the bottom of the trash can. It's behavior I still exhibit to this day and I'm not sure how to break free of it.

At this point all I can do is avoid having these foods in the house because I'm not strong enough. Perhaps I'll never be strong enough?

Anyhow, this past week was a bit rough. There were a lot of tears shed this week. Most had to do with my hormones going crazy on me and some had to do with the reaction people have towards my addiction with food.

And really you'd think I'd be more okay with it by now especially since my addiction with food isn't my only addiction. That's where my self injury issues come up once again. Again a behavior I never really saw as an addiction but it is and it's one that I'm trying desperately to defeat. This week was made easier with my ability to cry to get my emotions out and again I relied heavily on breathe therapy.

The past couple of weeks have been a real test as I've had problems sleeping. I've been a life long insomniac and have the tendency to injure myself more when I'm having problems sleeping. It's frustrating enough being unable to sleep and the more I lay there, the more I start to think about all the negative issues in my life which make me even more frustrated! Before you know it I've reached my boiling point and injure myself.

My sleeping pills haven't been quite so effective these past couple weeks so I've been watching a lot of television until I can fall asleep naturally. At this point I'm trying not to let any negativity build up to a boiling point, to deal with negative emotions as soon as they arise. So far it's working, it's all about the subtle changes this week.

Taken from AngelaTong.com

I have been in love with Angela Tong's Swan Ring for a while now and was so unsure on whether I should purchase it or not as they're only sold in specific sizes. Once again, damn you man hands!

Anyhow, Last December Trunkt (where the ring is also sold) ran a promotion where the entire site was 25% off with a code. I pondered ordering it, but ultimately decided against it and had regretted that decision since.

Opportunity arose again two weeks ago when once again there was a 25% off code at Trunkt through Daily Candy's Deals. If I don't answer the door the first go round, you can bet your ass I'm going to answer it if opportunity knocks once again!

Placed my order and two days later it was in was on my pinky finger! I love it, it's gorgeous and fits just perfectly! Trunkt only offers the silver version so that's the one I purchased, naturally.

I've been called lucky by a lot of people which I shrug off for the most part but I can't deny the fact that I was incredibly lucky this time around as when I placed the order, the ring was priced at $66 so with the 25% off code I only paid $49.50! Since then, just a few days after receiving my order - the price shot up to $80.

I know, I know, the price of silver just went up but still what are the odds that I ordered the ring right before the price went up and the code was still in effect - huh?!?!

No seriously, what are the odds?

I wonder if I get two more wishes - world peace? Nah, I'll take Clooney and his villa! Wait does he come with the villa? Then that counts as one! Okay, Clooney and world peace!

Swan ring retails for $80/silver or $298/gold and can be purchased direct through Angela Tong or at Trunkt.

Last week I was really determined to make the scale move, I've just been feeling so out of it and everytime it seems I'm making progress - I end up even farther behind. I was rather frustrated but focused on what I could accomplish and really stuck to eating healthy all week (some days I didn't even use up all my WW points) and put in so much effort with my exercise - much more than usual. In all honesty, it was like my body was possessed by a health freak or something but I really needed to see some results.

Last Friday, I started on the lower level of Synthroid which I kinda knew wouldn't affect my weight any this week but I hoped that all my extra efforts would pay off. When I woke up Monday morning I felt lighter and had it set in my head that I lost a pound. I get on the scale and see that I only lost .2 lbs. Seriously, I thought the scale was broken and kept checking the number but it didn't change only .2 lbs lost this week. I logged in my weight got the typical WW message that I'm losing weight at a healthy rate, blah, blah, blah... and tried to shrug it off as if it didn't bother me.

Now I know so much of my weight loss is determined by my thryroid and when it's in check I lose weight and when it's off I don't. I know this, but still it gets to me because I have so much determination in me - I don't know, it's like I have to prove not only to myself but others that I'm worthy of such a happy life because deep inside of me there is this spirit that is just waiting for the day when it can shine, when I can shine. I try not to get too frustrated when my levels are off because it's beyond my control at that point. I know I have to control what I can and leave everything up in the air I guess but that's not enough for me. It just frustrates me not to have full control.

Later that Monday I got my feelings hurt over the smallest,most insignificant comment that was said to me and really the person who said it wasn't out to hurt me but I just took it as that.

Naturally - for me at least - it was enough of a trigger to want to injure myself.

I start really focus on the real reason why I want to injure myself and everything has to do with my frustration. Frustration about my weight issues, frustration with Graves disease, frustration with being a self injurer. When my levels are off I notice that I'm such a jittery mess, I can't maintain my focus on anything. The smallest tasks just frustrate me, my memory is totally off and once again with the sleeping problems.

I'm just beyond frustrated and start crying and I hate when I cry, I've always seen it as such a sign of weakness for myself. Ugh, as a kid I was teased so much either for being fat or for looking like a freak because of my vitiligo and I was so determined not to let anyone see me cry, not to give them the satisfaction to know that they hurt me so I'd wait until I got home to cry while I'd injure myself.

Anyhow, once I started crying I couldn't stop. For twenty minutes while making this whole wheat, cheeseless, vegetarian pizza I'm just sobbing away trying to let it all out which in all honesty made me cry even harder because here I had only lost .2 lbs in the week and I'm trying once again to eat healthy but deep in the back of my mind I want to pile on loads of cheese and just give up. After all that crying I felt better, much better and the need to injure myself had passed.

I had been thinking last week if it was going to get any easier, thinking about my struggle with self injury and I compared it to my struggle with my weight.

Does it get any easier? In all honesty, it doesn't!

It just becomes more routine, knowing how to make healthier choices for my life. Where the decision to choose the healthier option comes up faster and makes more sense than before.

I then settled on the fact that I can only do so much at this point and try not to let all this frustration get to me fast forward to today where I wasn't feeling good and low and behold I get a sign - my flow. I know, I know T.M.I.

Stupid flow which is usually a bad sign, but not this time because an absence of a flow means something is wrong with my body - typically that my levels are off like last month when I skipped. Anyhow, it's the first sign that my levels are getting more normal so I can expect to feel better sometime soon and hopefully I'll start seeing changes in my weight once again! Until then I just have to really focus on my goals and not let all these frustrations get to me.

Highs and lows, I know this! I just wish there were a lot more highs!

The highs I can take - it's the lows that get to me!

Taken from Buckle.

Let's face it, I'm not a Buckle girl!

Two years ago I won a contest through Buckle and that's where my saga with Buckle began, I received a letter stating that I won a Hoobastank surfboard, and autographed CD and a $50 gift card to Buckle.

The prize was valued at $500 which was *at the time* the biggest prize I had won! I was ultra excited, filled out and sent back all the necessary paperwork to accept my prize. Days go by turning to weeks, turning to months without a prize in sight.

During this time the first contact person said that my original surfboard was damaged enroute and returned to them so they have to create a new surfboard which after being assembled will then be autographed by the band which was then on tour in Europe.

After several of my e-mails and phone calls went unanswered and I had all but given up on this prize.

The surfboard finally arrived about nine months later!

Ah, but the prize stated that I was also to get the autographed CD and a $50 gift certificate. That's when the second contact person came into the picture mentioning that the first contact person was fired and within a week after talking to her the CD and $50 gift card arrived.

Since I'm not a Buckle girl that gift card has been stuck in my wallet - only to see the light when I switch purses or wallets. Anytime I'd go to the mall, I'd walk past Buckle but there was never anything I liked so in time I forgot all about that poor Buckle gift card until the other day when it slipped out while I was reaching for another card.

So, I decide to check out the website. Since I'm between sizes, clothes are out of the question. They do advertise fragrances on their website. I'm guessing fruity florals? Not that there's anything wrong with fruity florals but do I really need another fruity floral fragrance?!?! They've got watches there but I don't wear a watch and I didn't like any of the bags on the site.

So, I'm fiddling around with the site and come across these shoes:


Ok, I have huge mother feet! Seriously, I have like the biggest feet known to man and wear a size 11 and sometimes an 11...and a half! Why I have flippers for feet is beyond me, I'm not even tall! So unfair!

But these shoes are on clearance and are marked down from $75 to $19.99. Where it pays to have huge mondo feet as a woman is when you find shoes made for men with smaller feet on clearance! So yeah, these were size nine men's shoes but for $19.99 I didn't care. I was going to use up my gift certificate anyhow so even if they didn't fit or they were just plain fugly, I wasn't out any money!

Soon after I spotted them I start to have fantasies of skipping in these shoes, dancing in these shoes, shopping at non-Buckle stores in these shoes!

I then search around for things to add to the cart so I can use the entire balance on the card at once. Settle on a bunch of scarves and my total including tax and shipping comes out to $49.40 - Excellent!

Needless to say I was rather happy with what I had chosen, especially the shoes...until I received an e-mail about my order stating that my order had been shipped...............minus the shoes - which were now out of stock!

Bastardassbucklemotherfuckers! The shoes were the main reason why I placed the order! Would it have been that hard to contact me about my order and ask if I wanted to continue with my order?

Now I have $22.27 left on the stupid Buckle gift card and it costs $5 to ship another order so I'll have to either go to the store to use up the rest of the balance or place another order.

I should have gone with the fragrance, always go with the fragrance!

*Update: Buckle contacted me a few days after my I had placed my order that they found the shoes in stock and gave me the option of reinstating the order with free shipping! I told them to go ahead and reinstate my order and they did. The shoes are now in my possession! No way in hell are these shoes worth $79.99 - the sticker price on the shoes! They look like Payless shoes - no offense to Payless but yeah I'm glad I didn't have to pay out of pocket for these babies! Cheers to Buckle for finding the shoes!

Taken from Wikipedia.

I've always loved pomegranates, my father's parents had a pomegranate tree in their back yard and I remember as a kid being taught to pick the pomegranate and then smashing it on the floor to break it open and eating it.

Two of my favorite pomegranate fragrances are Jo Malone Pomegranate Noir and Santa Maria Novella Melograno so I figured it would be fun to venture out and try other pomegranate fragrances.

Demeter Pomegranate is described as: Our favorite pomegranate story, not surprisingly, is the Greek myth of Persephone. Hades abducts the beautiful daughter of Zeus and Demeter, our namesake, and carries Persephone to the Underworld. Tempted by the luscious Pomegranate, Persephone is made his eternal queen by eating its seeds, only able to return above ground for six months, her return heralding the arrival of Spring.

Given that heritage, Pomegranate by the Demeter Fragrance Library had to be great, and this one is, capturing all the freshness and deep, sweet flavor that tempted Persephone in the first place.

Demeter Pomegranate is incredibly tart and smells more like a bottle of POM Wonderful than an actual pomegranate.

I think this may well me my absolute favorite Demeter ever as the scent of pomegranate juice is very true, and the strength and staying power is absolutely amazing - especially given that it's a Demeter.

One drawback is that it when you first spray it, it doesn't smell as true as it does later in the day. It starts off more as a mixed berry scent and then morphs into a pomegranate juice fragrance. Still, I give it a thumbs up and would easily re-purchase this bottle.

Demeter Pomegranate retails for $19.00/1 oz.

Lily Lambert No. 77 is described as: Fresh and fruity, the main notes are simple and mouthwatering. Her intoxicating base includes pomegranate, and honeydew. A hint of Strawberry opens up into a main body of amber, and baby pink roses.

First off, I like all the notes mentioned in Lily Lambert No 77. I've mentioned many times not being particularly fond of melon in fragrances but I'm usually referring more to cantaloupe over say honeydew.

That being said, I was rather unsure if I'd like the honeydew in this fragrance. I HATE cantaloupe - both as a fragrance note and as a fruit. I refuse to eat it! I won't even eat cantaloupe flavored Jelly Bellys! Honeydew I like, honeydew's my friend.

Lily Lambert No. 77 starts off with subtle pomegranate which is muted even more by the honeydew as it warms to the skin. I was unsure as how those notes would smell together in a fragrance but I was pleasantly surprised! The strawberry and rose are more evident as the fragrance wears on. I'd classify this more as a fruity fragrance over a floral one because it smells like a mixed drink. I was able to detect the rose even more once I went out in the sun.

Lily Lambert No. 77 is more of a summer fragrance to me. I don't know, I'm unsure of what to make of it because I was certain that it would be the mixture of fruits in this fragrance that I wouldn't like, yet I do. It's the rose in here that seems a bit lackluster, perhaps if a different rose was chosen?

You want to know what image I get while testing this fragrance?

*picture it*

Scene: Late 1980's in a seafoam green living room.

I'm sipping a Carpi Sun while wearing neon clothes and listening to NKOTB, in the corner of the room is a vase full of pink roses.

Boring and somewhat dated right?

I mean it's nice, but it's nothing extraordinary.

Maybe my expectations were a bit too high fragrance but the rose kinda kills it for me - and I love rose!

I've been known to change my mind on fragrances when I test them in different weather so for now I'll give it a maybe for summer. The fruity I like, the floral needs to be worked on.

Lily Lambert No. 77 retails for $40/.35 oz.

I went down a whole 0.8 lbs this week! Stupid body, stupid Graves! Graves disease for the most part isn't bad until my levels are off and then it's just a plain ass hassle. This week I start the new dosage of Synthroid so I'm hoping that my body starts feeling better. I'm feeling incredibly off lately - tired, aggravated, my eyes are killing me and I'm having problems sleeping again.

When my levels are normal I can fall asleep naturally, this past week even sleeping pills didn't help me fall asleep! I can't wait for my body to get back to normal, that'll be nice!

I'm glad I lost some weight this week because I put forth a lot of effort, well minus this weekend - not too much effort there but still.

SI: Thank you all for your constant love and support, it honestly means the world to me! I'm very proud to announce that I made it through an entire month without injuring myself! This is the first time that I'm making a conscious effort to control this issue and I'm rather proud of myself. Not to say that it's been easy, it hasn't - far from it! I was really tested this past week when on Wednesday my computer was subject to a virus.

I've had minor issues with computers before, mostly having to remove programs that were added without my consent and the like but this was the first major issue that I've had to deal with. I was calm when it first hijacked my system and I was able to delete some of the program but everytime I'd restart my computer the program would take control over more of the system. I couldn't localize the hidden folders so it got to the point where the virus was in full control and at that point I'm just sobbing and the desire to injure myself is just escalating by the second.

Everything I'm trying isn't working and I'm beyond breathe therapy because I'm about to pass out, I walked out of the room sobbing because at this point even system restore isn't working. The last thing I can do at this point is get it back to where it's factory restored so I run that program and again walk out of the room.

I was so frustrated and felt such a desire to injure myself just to feel better. I really needed instant relief at that point so rather than injuring myself I decide to hop on the treadmill while the computer is running the restoration program.

I set the treadmill on incline and start it at a rather high speed to get all that negativity. It took a good half hour on the treadmill to get all those emotions out, to get to a place where I no longer felt the need to injure myself.

I was lucky in this situation because I was able to fix my computer and able to let the negativity out without injuring myself but I wonder what happens when I can't easily control the situation and focus that negativity elsewhere. At least here, I still had a lot of control.

What about situations that are far beyond my control, that's what scares me! What do normal people do in situations like this? It's going to take so much effort to get to a place where I can deal with situations that are both within and beyond my control.

I know there will be setbacks in my progress but I'm going to try my best to prevent them from happening. At this point that's all I can do, my best.

I know how blessed I am and that for the most part I have never wanted for anything, for the most part!

That really can't be said about two certain toys that I was denied in my childhood - An Easy Bake Oven* and a Strawberry Shortcake Doll!

Oh sure, I had Strawberry Shortcake ornaments, glasses (remember when they sold glasses at Pizza Hut?), pillows, blankets and a few other things but never the doll!

Wait a second, I did have the miniature dolls which did smell like Strawberry Shortcake but that's not the same!

Denied! Shot down and I'm still quite bitter about it!

Ah sure, they still sell those things but it's just not the same. I mean really, the new Strawberry Shortcake is just plain creepy and she just doesn't smell the same!

Not that the original Strawberry Shortcake smelled of actual strawberries more like strawberry cotton candy but for us little girls of the 80's that still seek that scent but are looking for something that suits our now adult ages *sobs* that's where Lily Lambert No 44 comes in.

Described as: Lush, full bodied, this sexy fragrance has strawberry as its heart note, set like a jewel in a rich tapestry of blackberry, sage, and musk.

Lily Lambert No 44 is more of a naturally sweet strawberry scent. You know when you buy fresh strawberries that have that gorgeous candy red hue where the skin is so shiny you'd swear it was dipped in oil. This smells like the way those strawberries smell, a bright vibrant naturally sweetened scent.

The other notes are bit characters in the entire fragrance. Slightly more sage than the other notes but still rather subtle. At times, the blackberry was more evident but when it comes down to it, the strawberry is the diva in this fragrance!

Love it! Lily Lambert No 44 retails for $40/.35 oz and is available through B-glowing.

By the way, 25% off everything at B-glowing with code: instyle06

*If I wanted to bake a cake I can use a real oven now! Thank you very much! Seriously, were there any kids who had serious burns from baking a cake with a lightbulb?!?!?

Picture taken from Triplelle.etsy.com

These are the newest addition to my ring collection. I had been eyeing them for a while and scored a bargain last month when at the very last second I discovered that they were marked as buy one get one free for one day only!

What colors did I buy?

*rolls eyes*

All of them, of course!

At regular price, they are still quite the bargain!

$7 each at Etsy.