Silent Sunday......

....not today.

Since I've been silent for two days, I thought I post today. I can do that right? It's my blog. Wink, wink. However, because I am suppose to be silent, I will be brief.

Most of us understand that using sun block is important and we try our best to avoid letting ourselves and or children get sunburned. Unfortunately, no matter how careful we are there are times we are left with a really bad sunburn or a sunbured child and understanding all of those SPFs can be difficult.

Which is better for your skin type, 70, 80, 100? Does higher mean better? While all of these SPF lotions provide you with some sun screen, a high SPF may also give a false sense of security. Bottom line is if you aren't getting any SPF 80 protection if you arent' using the correct amount of sunscreen. So, before you head out to the great outdoors, be sure you are using at least 1 ounce of sunscreen on your entire body and be sure to reapply that every two hours.

Be sun safe my friends!

Bad Hair Days

Sure, there are worse things in life, but let's face it, having a bad hair day can make you downright cranky.

Whether you've got the frizzies, fine hair, dry hair, or just haven't had a chance to wash it, when your lovely locks is misbehavin' it can ruin even the best day.

But before you reach for that baseball cap to cover up or the nearest pair of sissors -- there's something you should know.

You can turn bad hair days into stylishly acceptable days, with far less effort than you think.

Looking for extra shine in your hair? After washing and conditioning your hair, rinse with cold water.

Don't want to tear your hair? If your hair is wet, always brush it with a wide-toothed comb. If you use a brush on your wet hair, you can tear it.

How do you protect your hair from the sun? One of the best ways to protect your hair from the sun as well as high winds, big chills and pollution is to wear a hat. Start the trend in your neighborhood.

How do you keep your hair strong and shiny? What you eat is very important to the look of your hair. Protein, such as lean meats, poultry, fish and legumes, will help keep your hair looking its best.

Want your hair to smell extra special? Spray your hairbrush with your perfume and then comb through.

Are you using your hair dryer too much? Blowdrying dries out your hair. When you get the chance, let your hair dry naturally. If you do use a blowdryer, put the setting on medium to cool.
Shopping for a good brush? Choose a natural bristled brush instead of nylon bristles. Nylon bristle brushes can break hair.

Is your hair dry and damaged? Wash it with a shampoo-and-conditioner-in-one and then follow with a regular conditioner.

Stop by the Gift Closet

Be sure to check out my Brownbagem' bag feature on Win it Wednesday over at the Gift Closet and enter to win!. When finished, don't forget to poke around Heather's really great blog to see what other great items you can win.

If you're interested in purchasing a set of bags, you can also just email me. Remember, they make great goodie bags for those summer birthday parties.

I'm back!

We had a wonderful time. The weather and wedding were beautiful! The wedding was in a tent on a pier in Newport, RI. The pier overlooks the harbor where the boat come in. It is such a romantic place to have a wedding. As promised, here are a few pics of my weekend. Some are dark, sorry the wedding went into the night and I don't know how to change my camera settings.

The bride and groom's first dance

The cake - Isn't the cake great looking?!

My mother and niece.

My kids

My yacht.

Just joking. This is the yacht of some very rich people that danced to our music on their yacht and then invited us on. It's hard to tell from the pic just how huge this thing was, but OMG! This large group only took up a tiny piece of the bow. I think it was bigger than my house. I know it cost more than my house!

The Next Day

My family

Part of us anyway...walking on the Cliff Walk in Newport, RI.

We went down there! It was scary.

Forty step.

No, really that is what this is call. There are forty "normal" step down before you have to climb down the rocks of death (as I lovingly refer to it as) to the water.

What a view!

The girls just before we left the walk (oh, and Casey ~how did he get in there)?

Check out my feature on http://www.thegiftcloset.blogspot.com/. If you're an early bird and it's not posted yet, be sure to stop back when it is and commnet on Heather's blog!

Congrats to David and Sarah

TGIF! I am off to my brother's wedding. I have been asked to read at the wedding. How exciting! I love public speaking, but I am sure they don't want me going into my toastmaster mode, so I'll try to keep it subtle. I don't want to steal the spotlight from the beautiful bride and her funny looking groom. Only kidding. I love my big brother, not to mention we all look alike! Here's the happy couple. Aren't they cute.

Be back at ya in a few days!

Be sure to stop back next week for more fun posts and giveaways!

Wake up your face

Congratulations to Pat the lucky winner of the Grill Charms giveaway. Thanks for your post Pat and thank you for following Spoutin' Out!

Dark circles, puffy eyes and a face full of creases. You know, it usually means one thing, you didn't get enough sleep. But why make your face carry the burden the next day?

Wake up your face! No, not with a double Espresso at Starbucks. Try twenty minutes of exercise in the morning. This will increase blood flow to your face reducing lines and creases. Then apply a thick moisturizer and get in the shower. Heat from the shower will also help plump up fine lines and creases.

If lack of sleep and overwork have left their mark on your eyes, run to the crisper, grab a few slices of cucumber and place them on your eyes. It really does work. No cucumbers in sight? Place a cold, damp, clean washcloth over both eyes and lay back and relax for a few minutes.

Makeup artists will tell you the key to opening up tired eyes is curl those lashes. Even when you don't have the time or energy to put on full makeup, taking a minute or two to curl your lashes and apply mascara will provide an instant eyelift. Curling lashes up and away from the eye allows for more light and enhances eye color naturally. I love my eye lash curler !

This is mine. Check it out!

Gwenn's eyelash curler ~ $1.00

These are theirs ~

Blinc Heated Lash Curler ~ $24.00

TalikaHeated Eyelash Curler ~ $37.00

Spot Lash CurlerFor touchups or extra curl - $700

The Tarte - $15.00

Hey, who knew!?

Enter to win 30 days of beauty!

What a week so far! We are winding down from the prom this past weekend while winding up for the wedding this coming weekend and with everything else going on, that is no easy feat. The arrival of all these wonderful occasions also brings the need to want to look your best and looking your best is also, no easy feat. With all the beauty and fashion rules out there, who can keep up? It can be so overwhelming at times, but Teen Vouge would like to help.

Teen Vouge is offering one month of expect tips and tricks to perfect your look! Yeah! They will help you with everything from eyeliner tricks and perfect blowout techniques to the best ways to avoid acne and all you have to do is log in and sign up. Just by doing that, you’ll be automatically entered to win your total makeover in New York City, courtesy of Maybelline New York! Plus, you could also win prizes every day you log on from Prescriptives.

Sign up or log in at Teen Vouge with your style guides username and password now for your ultimate beauty crash course! If you’ve already signed up for our previous style guide, you can enter 30 Days of Beauty with your same login info and you must have a unique style guides username in order to enter 30 Days of Beauty.

It's worth a shot.

A safe night to remember

As students look back on their prom pictures years from now, tucked neatly away in their scrapbooks, school officials and parents want them to recall nothing but fond memories and my daughter will be one of those kids.

In addition to thanking God for bringing them home safely, I am also proud of them for taking responsiblity for their own safety. They rented a limo to take them from picture spot to picture spot, then to the prom (1/2 hour away), then back to the school's awesome 50's themed breakfast and then home again. And, I never needed that wine!

What a wonderful 1st prom experience she had and as promised, here are some pics to prove it! Isn't she beautiful?! And, what a perfect date her boyfriend was. He gets a star from me!

Pics at the house. First stop.

Say cheese! Why cheese anyway?

This is their cool look. I don't think she's doing very well.

Pics at the "Fountain." A traditional photo spot on prom night.

Me, Mike and the Princess.

Putting on the corsage. Dad had to help with this one.

Dad helping.

Special K ~ Day 5

Day 5 ~ My Special K diet is going pretty well. Unlike the first two days, I wasn't very hungry on either Saturday or Sunday. I was however, really busy helping my daughter get ready for prom, so maybe I just didn't have time to think about it. With the craziness of the weekend, having a bowl of Special K for breakfast and lunch was surprisingly satisfying.

Saturday night we did go to our very best friends house for dinner and I did have a "beverage"...... or two. I'm sure that is not on the diet plan and that Theo would not approve, but I was good the rest of the night. I did not snack at all before dinner and only had one small brownie after dinner. Really, it was very small! I told myself that it was okay since I had not had my allowed two snacks for two days. I'll let you know tomorrow if it was okay, since I am going to get on the scale for the first time! I had better have lost something! Special K says up to 6 lbs in two weeks. Obviously results differ, but mine better not, I've given up a lot of great looking food!

Right now the Special K site is offering $1 off of protein shakes, but other than that I can't find any coupons and at approx $4 a box, I would think they'd offer their customers something. I will keep looking however.

PS. My daughter looked beautiful! I will post some pics after she downloads them tomorrow.

Silent Sunday

Think it's about time to get a new grill?

Don't forget to enter to win your set of Grill Charms!
Only 4 days left!

My little secret

I've had a personal goal to lose weight since January and here it is May and I am not one pound lighter. So, the other day I decided to try the Special K diet that I am always reading so much about. As I promised you, I researched some more on the MUFA diet I posted back in April, but that would not work for me, because I hate the MUFAs. Anyway, I love cereal, so thought I'd give his one a try.

Today is my Day 3. I signed up online and even have a personal trainer, named Theo. They had two other trainers to pick from, but one was too mellow and the other was too happy. Everyday, Theo sends me an email to help me stay on track. It's pretty cool actually. Below is a copy of the email I received the first day.

Hi Gwenn,

It's Day 1 of your Special K Challenge™. Let's hit the ground running with these few tips to get you started:

Start slowly. If you push yourself too hard at first, you may be forced to abandon your exercise goals because of pain or injury. It's better to start slowly and progress gradually.

Behave at the grocery store. The rule is very simple: If you shouldn't eat it, don't buy it!

Two-minute jumpstart. When you start your day with a little exercise, your metabolism will get the message to start working too. Do two minutes of jumping jacks before you go to work.

Our mission is clear and your target is two weeks away.

Let's roll.

-Theo

Here is some information on the diet:

The Diet ~ You start your day with Special K cereal or one Kellogg's Eggo Special K Waffle with 1oz. light syrup. Whatever option you choose make sure you have two -thirds cup of skim milk and eat some fruit.

Meal 2~ For your second meal, have a Special K Protein Meal Bar or Special K cereal with two-thirds cup of skim milk and fruit.

Meal 3 ~Eat as you normally would.

You can enjoy two snacks throughout the day. Choose from cereal bars, snack bites, protein snack bars, and protein waters all from Special K.

Of course as with any "real" diet you have to partake in regular exercise and if all he ever wants me to do two minutes of jumping jacks before I go to work, this is going to be cake!

The studies show that if you stick to the plan for two week, you can lose weight. The weight loss may vary as it is stated on the box, but the average waist circumference reduction was 1.3 inches. As long as that doesn't come off my chest, I will be psyched!

The Study ~ A study was done through a university and consisted of four groups with diet records and measured body composition. The results to this study prove that you can lose weight by replacing two meals. The average weight loss was 4.4lbs in the two week period. It also recommends that you eat fruits and vegetables and drink your beverages as you normally would.

The Products ~ The Special K website gives you all of the products that they feature. You may design your own personal challenge by answering a questionnaire. After that you may browse through the many different products they have and look at the nutrition labels and ingredients.

If you have been thinking about trying this diet, but haven't started your challenge yet, just take it. If you want to wait and see how my diet goes, that works too. I will tell you that right now, Day 3, I am hungry. I always seem to be hungry on this diet and at 200 calories a meal, I think I know why.

We'll see what Day 4 brings...if I make it that far.

Birthday Shout Out to my Baby Boy!

Today is my son Casey's 14th birthday! I thought I'd share some, "Then and Now" pictures with you. Sadly, I don't have any pics of when he was a real little guy on my computer. I guess his "little" days were when film was still being developed.

My Boy

When I learned that you were coming I was sure that you would be, the most wonderful and precious child that I would ever see. I was fearful, but excited, I was anxious, but prepared, to hold you in my arms and show you just how much I cared. And when the day finally came, my heart was filled with joy, to see that you were made for me, my perfect little boy. Now as the years are passing, you surprise me everyday, by showing me that I can love you in so many different ways. ~ Amanda Rodriguez

Happy 14th Birthday Casey!

He'll kill me when he sees this one with the silly hair.

That was then....this is now....

I know you all have felt this way

Have you ever had so much to get ready for, that you've forgotten what it is you're even getting ready for?

I've been really scrambling to achieve some sort of balance this week shuffling task A to one side while task B gets done, then task C is there waiting in the wings and breathing down on me like some fire-nosed dragon. And project D? I really, want to tackle it but I've pushed it aside for now.

For a working mom like me, managing work and home is always a challenge. The great thing about work-related tasks is that they're just that, work-related tasks. No one's feelings get hurt if you slam the laptop shut, or accidentally-on-purpose leave your papers at work instead of bringing them home.

My kids on the other hand are a different story. Hannah needs her 'mommy time" and if she doesn't get it, we all suffer. She's been feeling a bit neglected these days and although, I am not sure why, I blame our family schedule. It is nuts. I am sure you all can empathize with that!

Over the next several days, we have lacrosse games, baseball games, soccer games, a cookout, a prom, a wedding and my baby's birthday! He'll be 14! Oh, and did I mention, housework, grocery shopping, wash, weeding, planting, mulching and the pool to be opened?

My oldest daughter still needs to get shoes, makeup, hair thingies, a corsage for her date and oh yeah, a bathing suit for the beach the next day. Do they still really do that?

Then of course the day of the prom (this Saturday), there are rides to be given, limos to meet, photos to be taken, hair to be primped, prayers to be said and a glass of wine to be gulped. That last one is for me of course!

How we mother's do all of this is a mystery to me. One way to get it all done is to be organized and one way to do that is by getting a planner. I found these cute little organizers/planners on Etsy.com by Express Yourself Creations.

This print below is my fave if you should feel like buying me one. Just kidding!

Who doesn't want great looking eyes!?

A few housekeeping items:

First, Congratulations to Amanda for winning the Cover Girl Lash Blast! Thanks Amanda for your post and remember to keep following Spoutin' Out!

Second, don't forget to enter to win your set of Grill Charms. A great idea for Father's day and a fantastic way to grill this summer!

While we are on the subject of eyes, I thought I would share with you what I've learned about applying eyeshadow to eyes. I have read about "rounded" and "winged". Who knew?

First, you need to determine what is the best shading shape for your eyes. You can try applying one shading shape (rounded) to one eye and the other shading shape (winged) to the other eye then look in the mirror and see which one looks best on you.

Experiment and try all the different shading. Although the rounded technique seems to look good on most women, you may find that several of them look great on you. If you don't have much room between the eyelid crease of your eye and your eyebrow then apply eye shadow using the winged shape (unless there is some sagging).

Winged Shading

Looks best where the skin towards the corner of the eye is not sagging such as on younger women because their skin is still firm.

Round Shading

Use when your brow bone markedly curves around the eye and don't use the winged style because it will make any sag more obvious.

Rounded Eye Shadow Application

1. Highlighter (light in color) eye shadow across the eyelid, from the lash line to slightly beyond the crease, and all the way to the eyebrow.

2. Medium shade eye shadow to the eyelid and smudge under the bottom eyelashes.

3. Accent eye shadow in the wedge at the outer corner of the eye and blend well.

4. Line upper and lower lashes with eyeliner pencil.

Advanced Rounded Eye Shadow Application

1. Highlighter eye shadow across the eyelid, from the lash line to slightly beyond the crease, and all the way to the eyebrow.

2. Mid tone eye shadow on inner corner of lid.

3. Accent eye shadow on crease and in wedge; blend all well.

4. Line upper and lower lashes with with eyeliner pencil.

Winged Eye Shadow Application

1. Highlighter eye shadow from lash line to brow.

2. Medium shade eye shadow color on lid.

3. Accent eye shadow in wedge at outer corner; blend well.

4. Line upper and lower lashes with eyeliner pencil.

How to Apply Eye Shadow to Create Shape...

Now that you know the shape of the skin surrounding your eye you are ready to try to apply eye shadow in several highlight and shadow combinations to help you find the one that complements you the best. Remember that the crease of the eye is always shaded. Here are some of the choices for shading and highlighting that you can try:

Apply eye shadow to highlight the eyelid, round the shading: Best suited for hooded eyes and older deep set eyes.

Highlight the eyelid, wing the shading: Best suited for younger deep set eyes.

Apply eye shadow to shade the eyelid and round the shading: Best suited for prominent lids and younger deep set eyes.

Shade the eyelid and wing the shading: Best suited for younger deep set eyes.

Eye Shadow Tricks. If your eyes are…Then try…

Too close together

A light color on the inside corner of your eye lid and a medium to dark color from the center to the outer part of your eye

Too far apart

A medium shade on the inner half of the lid blending it out toward a lighter color; then line your eyes with the medium color following Step 5 above

Small

Lighter shades since darker shades minimize your eyes

Droopy

Applying shadow to the outer corner of your eye, then extend the shadow up and out (think Cleopatra) for an uplifted look

Too deep

Sweeping a light to medium color on your lid and a slightly darker color slightly above the crease of your eye, highlight your brow with a light color