Blogmas, Day One: November Favorites

On the first day of Blogmas...just kidding! For those of you who don't watch YouTube, Vlogmas is something that YouTube gurus started a few years back, vlogging every day from December 1st through the 25th. It is most definitely one of my favorite parts of the holiday season because you get to see how everyone prepares to celebrate Christmas and generally gets me pretty pumped for the season as a whole.

Today, for my very first post of the month and of Blogmas, we're talking November Favorites. If I'm honest with you...and I always am, I really didn't discover a whole lot of new things this month. November was kind of just a flyover month for me this year. I barely wore makeup, stuck to my winter standby clothing choices and generally kind of mucked through the month at work. But for the very few things that did become favorites this month, I thought that I would put together a little blog post and share them with you. This is going to be super quick, I promise.

Makeup

Sigma Beauty Finishing Touch Eyeliner. I saw this on one of MakeupbyTiffanyD's favorites videos early in the fall and was instantly intrigued by the slightly pink tight line pencil so, naturally, I HAD to order it. 

I'm sure for most makeup mavens (and by that I mean any woman in the world who spends more than 5 minutes of slap-dash on her face), this is a last step in a full on smoky eye look to brighten up the lower lash line and balance out the darkness of the upper eyelids. I, on the other hand, laziest of makeup wearers prefers to use this as a tool to make me look more awake all the time. 

It's pretty rare that I wear makeup to shipment shifts at work because, really, who needs a full face on at 7 am when I won't be seeing customers, but when I do, this is a must-have to make me look like I'm actually alert. You just pop a little bit on your waterline and bam! Instant eye brightening and fake awakeness. 

Sigma F35 Contour Brush. Another YouTube discovery, MeghanRosette talked about this in her November favorites...last year. Initially I thought, contour schmontour. However, in my lazy ass makeup routine, taking the time to contour my cheeks a littl but does actually make a huge difference in my face. I'm still looking for my ace contour product, but thus far, this little brush couldn't make the whole thing more easy if it tried. 

Food

Just as a heads up, all of my food favorites were discovered at the very end of November and they come from Trader Joe's because Trader Joe's, and not Whole Foods, is the mothership.

Trader Joe's Candy Cane Green Tea. This is seriously the best tea ever. First of all, it has a narwhal on the packaging ("Bye Buddy, hope you find your daaaad.") and a really cute little Santa polar bear which is undeniably cute. But most importantly, it is SOOOOOOOOO good! It's minty without being too minty because it's balanced out with vanilla and some other delicious holiday flavors (at least according to the packaging. I really just taste the peppermint and vanilla). I will literally drink at least 3 cups of this each day and have since I got it.

 

Trader Joe's Dark Chocolate Covered Minty Mallows. This was a horrible mistake. Horrible, horrible, horrible. My mom and I picked these up for snacks on our Thanksgiving trip out to the North Coast and I am obsessed with them. I love dark chocolate as a rule and for whatever reason lately, I've been really liking marshmallows even though I never have previously. So when I saw the box sitting on the shelf, I ran for it and threw it in the cart. Now I'm thinking I'm going to have to be making a trip to Trader Joe's just to stock up on these. 

Random Favorites

Starbucks Travel Mug. This is part of the Starbucks Holiday collection and when I saw it on the website, I had to have it. I love the metallic flecks all over. They kind of remind me of mermaid scales. I mean, it's a travel mug. There's not much to say. It keeps my drink warm and holds my Trader Joe's tea when I have my second cup of the day. 

The Cousins O'Dwyer Series. When I was graduating from high school in 2009, Lifetime did a set of movies based on Nora Roberts books and I loved them. A few months ago I got a hankering to watch one of them and, after needed to download the second and third books as well, which I did, in the parking lot of the Fort Bragg Starbucks yesterday morning. According to my Kindle Fire, I have 50 minutes left in the second book and will be starting the third one this evening. 

Other than making me feel like its about time I got into a relationship, the book series has been such a great escape and a really good read. I honestly wish there were more books. But for right now, I think I'll content myself by discovering what happens at the end of the second book and start the third. 

doing so decided to look her up on Amazon where I found a series about Irish cousins with a bit of magick going on. Needless to say, as an Irish girl and a big fan of all things magical, I bought it. Aaaaaaaand then forgot all about it until I charged up my Kindle to take with me to Thanksgiving and saw it in my carousel. Soooo I started the first one...and devoured it. Which meant that I

Anyway, guys, that's Blogmas, Day One done. Told you I had very few favorites for last month and I wasn't lying. 

Cheers, and see you tomorrow!

Countdown to Blogmas: Christmas Movies All Around!

I'm tryin' something new this year and I'm going to jump on the Blogmas bandwagon and post every day from December 1st through the 25th with a different holiday post. We'll see how it works out, but  I'm definitely in the planning stages right now. It should be pretty cool. 

You know, this year I tried not to be one of those people who immediately skips from Pumpkin Spice to Peppermint, Jack O' Lanterns to Christmas lights, but I just couldn't help it. Halloween ended and the next day I watched Eloise at Christmastime, my favorite holiday movie....or one of them. I thought that if you were also in the Christmas spirit just a touch early this year, I would share my favorite Christmas movies (that I may...or may not have already watched so far this month).

How the Grinch Stole Christmas

While my mother loves the original, I am definitely partial to the Jim Carrey version of things. Loosely based on the original Grinch, this version relies much more on physical comedy and Carey's mastery of one-liners (who-venile delinquents, anyone?). For some reason, the version that I watch about a billion times online each year and the one ABCFamily uses for 25 Days of Christmas are a little different, so I get to enjoy both several times before the holidays are over.

Eloise at Christmastime

Oh, I absolutely love Eloise! This is, by far, one of my favorite movies, Christmas or otherwise, because I love Eloise. She's precocious and adorable and sees life as black and white (and sometimes, pink!): You love each other? Good, I'll make sure you end up together. If you're not as Disney obsessed as my family, you may not know that this premiered as part of the revival of Wonderful World of Disney over 10 years ago. Sophia Vassilieva plays Eloise and Julie Andrews plays her ever-patient Nanny in the duo of films that they produced in the Eloise series. It's such a sweet movie and I love how she plays the famous six year old.

Year Without a Santa Claus

If you don't love a good Rankin-Bass Christmas movie, you don't have a soul. These are what make Christmas in my eyes, and this particular movie is my absolute favorite of them all, probably because of Heatmiser and Snowmiser. The flamboyant duo who control the temperature of the world are what make this movie.

The Family Stone

I saw this in theaters when it came out (I was much too young to understand the movie) and liked it. Now that I watch it as an adult, there is something about this movie and this family that makes you fall in love with them. Despite their dysfunctionality and the craziness that ensues when they get together, at the end of the day, they love each other and everything turns out alright. I love it and will watch it again and again this season.

Arthur Christmas

Oh, the slippers in this movie! Written about Santa's youngest, most...well-meaning son, this movie shows what happens when three generations of Santa live under the same roof and how the meaning of Christmas is so individual. I love the animation and to be totally honest, the movie reminds me a lot of my childhood even though it came out three years ago.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Dear mainstream media and obnoxious parents, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is not promoting bullying. It's promoting acceptance of differences and dancing to the beat of your own drum. I can't believe that's become a topic of conversation. This is one of my Dad's favorites and I can't help but love it, too. After all, Rankin-Bass rules Christmas. Yukon Cornelius makes this movie for me. With his big, red beard and his can-do attitude, he kinda reminds me of Teddy Roosevelt. Between him and The Bumble, this movie really couldn't get any cuter.

It's a Wonderful Life

True Life: I love Jimmy Stewart. After I saw Harvey like 7 years ago, I fell in love and when I watched this movie for the first time as an adult last year, I just fell in love with him all over again. After all, who is more charming than Jimmy Stewart holding a bathrobe out to a naked woman hiding in a bush?

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

Rank-Bass, man. This movie was my absolute favorite as a kid. I loved the Winter Warlock and the Burgermeister Meisterburger. It's just such a silly, feel-good movie and I watch it at least twice every holiday season because I love the music and the story of Santa and the explanation of Mrs. Claus. Plus, Santa's a ginge. Of course I'm gonna love the movie, duh!

Rise of the Guardians

Technically, this movie takes place around Easter, but I mean with the giant, Russian Santa and the elves and yetis running around, there's no way it's an Easter movie. I just love this movie. It's one of the funniest, freshest movies that has come out for Christmas in a while. None of the characters are trite, traditional Christmas characters and the way the movie talks about belief and finding out who you are is a great message for kids and adults alike. 

A Charlie Brown Christmas

I mean, the iconic, sad little tree. As a kid, I really wasn't into the Charlie Brown Holiday Specials, but as I've grown up, I've realized how good they are and how poignant and important the messages that they share with us each year are. Christmas isn't about getting a new PlayStation or finding the perfect present. It's about family and coming together to celebrate the feeling of this time of year.