About Me Monday // AMM

Errrr... Tuesday apparently? Blogger app decided not to upload last night!

One of my favorite blogs, Fun Cheap or Free, does an "About Me Monday" every week and I decided to do the same! I think it's important for my readers to a) know more about me and b) know how crazy I am! So let's start with some fun faves!

First of all, I love this dog!

Other things I absolutely love:

1) TV. Whoever said tv is a waste of life was so wrong. I love tv with a fiery passion and nothing gets between me and my rotation. I watch everything from ABC Family sitcoms to ABC Dramas to too muh Real Housewives and hilarious shows like New Girl. in fact I watch so much that I never narrow it down to less than five. So we'll do it by genre:
Favorite drama: Scandal and Revenge
Favorite girly indulgence: Pretty Little Liars
Favorite stupid ass show I can't believe I watch: Broad City, Kardashians
Favorite Reality Show(s): Real Housewives of Orange County, Vanderpump Rules and Dance Moms
Shows I have the most respect for: Girls and Shameless
Most realistic scripted tv show: Parenthood

2) Raspberry iced tea. I'm drinking it as we speak and I may need an intervention.

3) Beauty products. I'm a junkie. I will try anything and everything and no one can stop me. Current favorite is the GlamGlow mudmask.

4) Balyage hair. I just got it, very subtle but it's there and I love it. My hair girl kicks ass. 

5) Bastille. We're seeing them in Vegas in April and I may die of excitement. Their cd is amazing. But my favorite cd is...

6) Demi by Demi Lovato. Best CD I have ever purchased. It contains my favorite songs to sing incredibly loudly in the card. Like hella loud.

7) Workout clothes. It doesn't mean I'm gonna work out, I just said I loved them.

8) Lunch dates with girlfriends. I try to have at least one-two hang outs each week with a different girlfriend, and they keep me very happy and sane. I have one gf who can talk reality tv for hours, one with a baby boy I can play with, one who just found out she's pregnant, another who's a newlywed, and my two besties down in LA... Well we never have ENOUGH time to discuss all of lives many tales. Girls girl all the way. 

9) Icees. I am obsessed with slurpees and Icees and have been since I was little. I crave them FIERCELY and often. Though I did learn that Icees have like 1/3 the cals of a slurpee sooooo hello Icee machine!

10) My store. It's my favorite hobby. I spend upwards of six hours a day working on my business and sell everything from baby clothes and accessories to women's jewelry to home decor! Check out enjoyessential.com :)



Bye Bye Blackheads // GLAM GLOW Mud Mask Review!


I love cosmetics. I think I've made this clear many times throughout the blog so far. I feel like I've tried just about everything! But one thing I hadn't tried yet was the GLAMGLOW Mud Mask- challenge accepted!
Sephora sells this little container of the mask for $69- yikes! But I had seen so many celebs swearing by it that I had to try. And I am SO GLAD I DID.

I don't normally have to worry about my skin, but lately I've been pretty congested on my nose. See below. Gross.

I slathered on the mudmask in my problem areas- it went on dark blue and turned minty colored as it started to dry. Everywhere where I had oil turned a dark color so I could literally see the impurities!
Each of those little blue dots is a pore!

So of course I had to try it on my husband. For years I have tried steaming and extracting his blackheads with NO LUCK. So I forced him to try the mask. He complained it tingled a LOT but that meant it was working!

Holy crap, it totally worked!!! As soon as he washed the mask off, I could see all of the pores were purging. I barely had to squeeze and every single blackhead came running out! It was amazing. I highly recommend this stuff, especially for your boyfriends and husbands! It is pricey but here's a tip: Sephora gives out free samples if you just ask!! :)


Style Details // My Go-To Outfit

Sometimes you just have to have a go-to outfit. This one is my favorite because it's stretchy, loose and super comfy. Plus, I take any chance I can get to wear red lipstick and a statement necklace!

Lipstick is Russian Red by MAC.

I highly suggest the blouses by H&M. They're loose fitting but flattering and they are long enough in the back to cover your butt and wear with leggings- and I am ALWAYS going to wear leggings as pants, sorry bout it.

Statement necklace is Forever 21.

GIVEAWAY // Chili Body Pad!

Umm... Can I win this?! It looks a-m-a-z-i-n-g. Check out the link below to win big and sleep in perfect comfort!

A Lucky Ladybug
Prize:
4 Winners
Chili Technology Body Pad (A.L.L. Review)
ARV $200
Hosted by:

No Phone Zone.

As a family rule, we decided that every time we are out in public at a restaurant, it is a no-phone zone. We go out to eat a lot (too much!) and I started noticing how easy it was for us to pick up our phones and text (me) and play games (him), so we enacted the policy of no phones. It is awesome. We have always been best friends and confidants, but it adds new level of friendship and conversations when your phone isn't sitting next to you at the table. Even if the phone is on the table next to you, it's distracting! The only time we use our phones when we are out now is to google the answer to a question, and we will both agree on doing so.

This rule has carried over to the dinner table too, and to car rides together. I first noticed it when we were driving down to Disneyland- I am the driver in the relationship (I love to drive and I also sometimes get carsick if someone else drives). I drove all the way to LA and Matt never picked up his phone once. It was amazing. Unless it was to change the music, he didn't even look at his phone. I didn't think much of it until he drove for a few hours and I had such a hard time not checking Instagram or surfing the web. It really made me realize what a great idea it is to take the phone option off the table (literally and figuratively).

I challenge you and your other half to try it. Go one week without using your phone/tablet when you're together and I promise, it will bring you closer than ever!

Tomales Bay Oyster Farm

One of the best things about living in California is being SO CLOSE to just about every walk of life. This weekend, we wanted the ocean. And oysters. Mostly oysters.
We hit the road to Tomales Bay. First we stopped at the gas station and saw this gem of a circus performer (or something!), and I had to share. Hilarity ensued.
Enter: Tomales Bay Oyster Farm.
We love this place. LOVE. We've been several times, and what's so great about it is the atmosphere. It's on an inlet in the Tomales Bay/Bodega Bay area of the Pacific in Northern California, and though it's usually cool there, the sun hits right on the picnic area. It's extremely casual, and they only take reservations for large groups. This time it was just four of us, so we left around 9am and got there around 10:30. We brought a shucker, hot sauce, butter, garlic and some fun appetizers. Then we went to buy our oysters... ooh the options!
We usually get small oysters but they were all out, so we went with medium and DAMN there was a difference. My personal preference is not to eat something slimy that large, but we can't always get what we want, right?
So large it was, and we brought them back to the boys, who had the BBQ going. Don't forget to bring charcoal! They don't supply anything there, which is the beauty of it. What a cool company- their only overhead is getting the oysters and clams and a few people to sell them!
If you are ever visiting Northern California, I totally recommend this place. It's so fun! So many people visiting from San Francisco, and you can bring anything you want (except meat). We paid $60 for a bag of 50, but they were so large both couples brought home 10 for our parents, which scored us some major points :)



A Day in Napa.

Happy Valentine's Day from our little family! (Puppies not pictured!)
We decided to go out to Napa this past Saturday, which isn't far from our home. I used to live in the Napa Valley a few years back, and whenever I go back it just feels right. The atmosphere in Napa is so different than that of my hometown. Sometimes, you just have to get away, even if it's only 20 minutes down the road.
We visited the Oxbow Public Market, which is a high-end collective of shops and restaurant storefronts at the end of Napa. They have everything from a juice bar to a seafood and meat butcher to Three Twins Organic Ice Cream, which is my favorite! This gorgeous mocha was made at Ritual Coffee, and I barely snapped this photo before my husband chugged it down!
Whole Spice is a little shop in the Oxbow that sells every spice, flavored salt and rub you can think of! I can never leave without buying something. This time it was their Steakhouse rub, a mild yellow curry to add to cauliflower and rice and some ground chipotle to marinade steak with.
How can you pick just one?! So many amazing options!
If you haven't had Gott's Roadside, you haven't been to Napa. My favorite is the St. Helena location up valley, which is outdoors, but this one is just as good, just harder to find a seat. I usually get the same thing: a burger without a bun and sweet potato fries. This time, I got a cobb salad (with dressing on the side) and it was fantastic! You really can't go wrong at Gott's.

We ended the night with a game of "Ticket to Ride" with some good friends. It's a great strategic board game, and if you like "Settlers of Catan," this is a great game for you. It's less confusing but just as fun. So much fun, in fact, that we bought the European version the next day!


A Rant to People Who Buy on Etsy.


I deserve to rant every now and then right? Well I have to say, I totally want to bitch right now. I have had a few customers lately who are just so obnoxious. Seriously! Let me first of all say that I work full time in sales and marketing, which also means I am getting calls at weird hours and sometimes I just have to run off at the drop of a hat. We also are amidst painting our kitchen cabinets, which is a task in itself. AND I had the blackout last weekend which means no power, which means no getting any orders done for that whole weekend. I try, every chance I get, to get out every order I can. I assure you that I am not simply spending upwards of 6 hours a day in my home office on Etsy for nothing.


That being said, I have been getting messages from customers that are lightweight harassing. I love my shop and store and it's my livelihood. Hell, sometimes it's more important than anything else in my life! And yes, it's a LOT to take on so much business without hiring an assistant, but I love money and don't want to pay anyone. 

So when I get a message from a customer that says "Hi, it's been a couple weeks and just wanted to check in and see when I can expect my order?" I'm like "Sure, no problem let me check!" But when I get a "Are you purposely not responding? You are lying about shipping my order! I am filing a formal complaint against you!" my first instinct is to want to punch them in the face. Sorry about it. What ever happened to manners? First of all, I am always upfront with my customers to let them know my turnaround time. Secondly, if I sent you a PayPal invoice, it means you have my email address, so send me a private message instead of harassing me publicly on my Instagram. That's just called being super immature. Sometimes things get lost in the mail! It happens, and I don't charge for replacements because I AM A NICE PERSON. So I let the woman know I would be happy to replace her lost items and she continued with the horrific comments. So instead of refunding her, OF COURSE I sent her a brand new tshirt. I hate being nice sometimes. UGH.

Other times I do things like not charge people for major upgrades or custom designs. So I am giving them my time and energy for free and designing something custom that I can never use again, and when they get it and it's SLIGHTLY different than what they wanted,  they want both items replaced. For free. Immediately. Seriously? The design still looks great, I didn't charge a custom fee, and you're going to end up with 3 onesies for $20. And I have 48 orders waiting for my attention, but I have to jump on yours because I am afraid you'll leave me negative feedback. KILL ME.

Okay, that's all I wanted to share. Please don't think I hate my customers, just realize that when you purchase something from Etsy or something handmade, you are likely purchasing from one woman running a shop out of her spare bedroom, which is covered in scraps and glitter and trash and she is probably not charging you for the amount of time she's spending on your order. So be a nice human and give her the benefit of the doubt before attacking her. Just saying.

Patina Home and Garden

I don't think I've ever walked into a store or home and said "This. Is. Pinterest." until I visited Patina Home and Garden in Fairfield, California. It opened in late 2013 by the Northern California stockest of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, so it's quickly become a mecca for women looking to restore furniture and work on some fun projects!


There are so many fun gifts (for yourself too, no judgments!) and I am always so fascinated by the amount of beautiful things she has in stock. It's like someone took my pinterest board and said "Here ya go Cady!"
If you know me, you know I am HUGE into prints. The more the merrier. This wall has made me so excited I can barely contain myself every time I walk in. And that NEST sign? Don't even GET me started!
And here we have the holy grail- chalk paint! Annie Sloan Chalk Paint is made without all the chemicals you would usually find in paint. It is so incredibly easy to use, and all of the furniture in her store is painted with it- by the shop owner and her daughter! They are such pros! My husband and I went in to buy the supplies for our kitchen cabinet makeover and she walked us through all of our questions and the process. It was incredible, I am so happy with the results (to follow! I can't wait til it's ready to post)!
All of these hand-painted signs are made by my good friend Arianna, who is insanely talented. She's a little OCD, just like me, which makes us destined to be friends. The quality of the wood is fantastic- you can just feel the work she puts into them! You can buy some of them here!

Another great sign by Arianna. I am grateful for art like this.
I have to have these metal signs. Like, HAVE to. At $45, they are not too pricey, considering they're very large!
Love and be loved. 

Check out Patina Home and Garden's online shop for more beautiful items and to purchase any size and color of chalk paint!


Out for Breakfast.

I have never been a breakfast person. I actually spent most of my life despising it. I would ALWAYS rather have a steak than an omelette, and still, to this day, I refuse to eat eggs made by anyone other than myself. But recently, my husband and I started going out for breakfast on Sunday mornings and it's become a little traditional that really makes my weeks. There's something about cozying up in a little family-owned cafe and eating ham and gravy off of mis-matched plates that is so charming to me.
One of the things we've been doing as "newlyweds that don't feel like newlyweds" is start little traditions like this. We spend a lot of time together, but when we make an effort to go have breakfast, phone-free, and chat bout life, it's just such a wonderful thing. We love our time together but it's so easy to be distracted by other things and other people. Recently, we have used these little dates as time to plan our upcoming trips, map out our new finances plan, and just make each other laugh- and we don't use our phones at the table unless we absolutely have to.
Find a place like this near you. They're everywhere, you just have to look closely :)

White Girl Got Posole

This winter I saw a lot of people posting about making posole and it peaked my interest. I love food from other cultures, especially Mexican food, but I often stick with the things I love, like tacos and Indian curry and tikki masala. When it comes to ethnic food, I always tend to make it too "white," so I sought out the help of my girlfriend Ana, who's family knows how to throw an awesome fiesta and make the best Mexican food! Here is Ana's family recipe for posole- get some Don Omar playing on Spotify and get to cooking!


You'll need:
Crock pot
Blender
1 can of hominy
Rump roast
Dried Chile California
Dried new Mexico Chiles
Salt
Garlic cloves

Boil 6 new Mexico Chiles and 4 California Chiles
(After they've boiled let them cool down a bit). Put the water and Chiles in a blender.  Add salt and a clove of garlic. Blend until it's a liquid. (It will have small pieces of Chile in it. ) 
Cut the excess fat off the roast.  Cut it into quarters and put into your Crock pot. Strain the liquid from the blender over the meat.
Leave on high for 4-5 hours and check to make sure it shreds with 2 forks. Once it's reached that point put one can of hominy into the Crock pot(without the liquid that comes in the can). Let it cook on warm for another 20-30 minutes and it's done!
Cut up some cabbage, limes, and onion to add to your bowls and sprinkle some died oregano on top too!

Long Hair, Don't Care

I love my hair. Like, love it. It's the first time in forever that I have felt I got exactly what I was looking for. It's also the first time in forever that I found a stylist who is incredibly affordable and knows exactly what I mean when I show her every photo I can find on Pinterest and then say "but like... not the exact thing and maybe like darker?"
Finding a good stylist is hard! I feel like as women we gain this sense of loyalty to the person we've been seeing for years, so we don't want to try someone new out of a) fear it won't look good and b) hurting our current stylist's feelings. And maybe that's true, but if you are paying someone $130 to have your hair done dark brown every. single. time., get a box from WalMart. If you are paying someone $175 to do your highlights regularly and your hair is still fried, find someone new!! 

Until this year, I never went to a stylist. I went to Great Clips for trims and put a box of dark dye on my head and it always looked fine. But once I decided I wanted to invest in good color before my wedding, I had no idea how great my hair could look. I wanted something funky and fun, but classic and natural. A pop of color I could hide when I wanted to, or showcase every day. I started seeing Amber, my current stylist, and we started experimenting. I bring in photos from Pinterest every appointment, and she doesn't mind if I tell her something isn't working! I love experimenting, and we finally got it right this last appointment!

I used to think hair was so important. And in many ways, it totally is. But I never wanted to try anything major because of the price and because I was afraid it would be ugly. But the truth is, if its messed up, I'll rock a ballet bun for while and try again next appointment. It's not the end of the world! I would rather try something new than have the same hair for the rest of my life. 

These peekaboo highlights are subtle and easy but made such a difference. I have never gotten so many hair compliments! So thank you, Amber at Salon 13 in Vacaville, California. You are awesome! 

Follow Amber on Instagram for tons of beautiful before and after hairstyles! So fun to see all of the transformations!
@beauty_by_cosmogirl




Where Do You Do Your Best Work?

I love working on my site- it's so calming and makes me happy to see it growing and becoming successful. I am a total computer person, so I can spend five hours on one and have no idea that much time flew by! It's a blessing and a curse. This is how you'll see me constantly, either on my phone, my other phone, my tablet or my big ol' iMac (I have a Macbook too that I don't even use- what is wrong with me?!)
I find coffee shops to be so peaceful for working- but not always Starbucks. First of all, I like to support small businesses, like my own, so I enjoy the family owned shops far more than Starbucks. Not that Starbucks isn't a good place to chill, I just don't really like running into people I know every single time I go there. One of my favorite spots is the Nugget Market, which is similar to a Whole Foods but a small chain of only about 10 stores. It's large, like a grocery, but quality. They also have the best food there. Every day I get myself a raspberry iced tea and a container of hot chicken noodle soup and give myself a "lunch break" to work on my shop and network and catch up on BlogLovin. 

Sigh. I want to go back there right now.
 
These amazing photos are courtesy of Sarah, of her sea of love, which happens to be one of my favorite blogs to follow. Check her out- she's been blogging for YEARS. You may have even seen the most adorable Vine video of her daughter on @lol_vines... a video that was so adorable, in fact, that she has to turn off her Instagram push notifications because she gained like 10k followers!!! Thank you Sarah for being such a wonderful photographer and always "getting" my vision!