Monster Sillybets on BB

A while back I raved about some building blocks on sale over at Brickyard Buffalo and I am super excited to announce that Monster Sillybets will be featured with a mega-sale on their shop from August 1-4th!

In the mean time, stay up to date on all the sales and fun with Monster Sillybets by liking us on facebook (facebook.com/MonsterSillybet) and Instagram (@MonsterSillybets)

And in case we are not friends on facebook (yet) this is the theme for the August SillyKids Box to be released August 1st on the blog!

Do me a favor, spread the word friends!

xoxo
PlusPeace

6 Mom Must-Have Beauty Items

I didn't wear any makeup other than mascara until after my son was born and even then it was minimal.  After being introduced to some very amazing products through Birchbox - my routine has completely changed!  My reason for not wearing make-up in my pre-kid years was because I really didn't care to take the time to try it out.  Makeup was some scary superficial monster that didn't appeal to me.  Now at only age 22, I am seeing my physical self age and mature.  I knew I wanted to start playing around with some products but didn't want to spend the money on "good" products - turns out there IS a difference between $2 lipstick and $12 lipstick - who would have thought?

So I have put together a list of my 6 most favorite items so far - the list could be longer but to be honest I'm short on time.  These are some of the items in my five minute morning routine with some honorable mentions at the bottom.

1) Juice Beauty Stem Cellular Repair CC Cream ($39) I was introduced to this in April and have just now run out of the two small samples I received.  A little goes a long way and it got rid of several blemished (I picked my pimples alot as a teenager) and had made breakouts few and far between.  This is first in my morning routine.

2) L'Oreal True Match Powder ($10) This was one of the first powders I ever bought and I love it!  I use Almay foundation with this powder on top and it leaves off shine most of the day and gives a nice even, soft skin tone.

3) theBalm InStain Long Wearing Powder Stain Blush ($22) I have only been using this for 3 days and I am in love!  It lasts all day since it's a stain and I just use it in place of the other blush I have been using.  A little goes a long way so it is totally worth the price.

4) Birchbox Bobby Pins ($5) These are not only cute but they are over-sized boby pins that keep my massive amounts of hair out of my face.  I went swimming with one in my hair yesterday and only had to adjust it once when I got out.  Adds a bit of flirty color and goes with anything.

5) BADgal Lash Mascara ($19)  I haven't bought the full size because the trial size has been lasting a long time.  I got this free with one of my orders and it's fantastic for keeping in the purse.  Lasts long and adds nice volume.

6) essie Nail Polish ($6.99 each)  essie stays on long, doesn't chip easily and only requires one-two coats to look like the bottle color.  These are pricey so I also use SallyHansen Hard As Nails ($2-4) as well.  I've found that dong my nails makes me feel a little more pampered - even if I'm rocking mom jeans and a dirty tee.

I have a few honorable mentions that I used daily:

Beauty Protector Protect & Detangle ($21.50) I use this every day after my shower.  Adds shine, keeps my hair soft and makes it easy to brush.

COOLA Classic SPF 30 Moisturizer ($32)  I don't think I'd buy the full size because it's so much money but I've used this 3 times when I've spent the day at the pool/lake and no sun burnt cheeks.  It's also not greasy.

St Ives Apricot Face Scrub ($3.99) LOVE this - I use it in the shower every morning.  Gets off all the gunk and leaves your face super soft.

Sally Hansen Miracle Cure ($8.99) I use this as my undercoat.  I naturally have really nice nails with nice white tips for during the dry seasons they will occasionally peel.  This stuff saves them for sure!

To me, it's important to FEEL a little done up every morning, helps me get into the groove of my day.  In addition to all this wonderfullness, make sure you drink lots and lots of water.  It's fantastic for your skin :)

What are your must have items?

Love,

PlusPeace

Home Made Ice Cream (No Ice Cream Maker)

I have been looking around at different recipes and methods for making ice cream and I also have general knowledge about how ice cream is made anyway and I am an expert on how it should taste - yummy!

So I am not sure I'd really call this ice cream, it's definitely it's own but it is icy and it is made from cream, just no slow churning required and it's kid-friendly!

You can use a bag full of ice, you can use an auto ice cream maker, you can do the ever so taunting process of removing the mix from the freezer, mixing it then returning it every two hours or you can be lazy - like me...

Easiest Ice Cream Ever! (6 8oz Servings)

You will need:
One Pint Whipping Cream
8oz Can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
Vanilla Extract

The above ingredients are your base ingredients.  You can really put whatever you want in there, fresh fruit, coco powder, shaved chocolate, vanilla beans, sprinkles, etc.  Also remember that you can substitute the vanilla for other flavors like coffee, mint, almond, etc.  I used vanilla because I wanted this to only be a $3 project and that's what I had on-hand.

Tools:
Hand Mixer, Stand Mixer, Stick Blender, Blender or just a whisk (if you're ambitious)
6 8oz Freezer Containers - you can also use a big piece of Tupperware to make one flavor or small Tupperware.  I used the Ball Freezer Jars (in the canning aisle) because they are one serving, plastic, leak proof and we decided to make a bunch of different flavors.  They also stack nicely :)
Spoon/Spatula
Large Bowl (unless using a blender)

How to:
In your large bowl, whip the cream until you have soft peeks (about 3-4 minutes on medium).  Careful, whipping too long will make butter...gross.  Once you have soft peeks, add in 8oz Condensed Milk and 2 tsp Vanilla Extract (or other flavor).  Whip again until all mixed in and soft peeks return (about 30 seconds-1 minute).

If you are making one flavor, add in whatever flavoring you'd like now.  For the smaller batches, I used a 1 cup measuring cup to scoop out approximately what would fit in each jar and mixed each in a separate bowl with a spoon.

Scoop the mixture into your containers and put them in the freezer for 2-4 hours for the small and 4-6 for the larger batches.

Enjoy!
PlusPeace

SILLYKIDS Box - Pics!

So we've only done one of the activities but I figured I would post them as we do them!  We started with the Recipe for S'Mores since Bear was playing in his tent and it seemed fit.

Here is the great box opening...

The first look at the box.

"Woah! Cooooool!"

Roasting his first marshmallow

The "fire pit" in action

Nomnomnom...

All toasty!

Now time to tie it all together into S'Mores-liciousness!

Don't forget to hashtag your pictures #SillyKidsBox

Love,

PlusPeace