Herbal Essences Naked Volume

***This is a sponsored post with Herbal Essences but all opinions are my own. The Walmart gift card and information have been provided by Herbal Essences.***

The Naked Collection Volume Kit includes Naked Volume Shampoo, Conditioner, Volumizing Soufflé Styler, and Dry Shampoo.

Naked Collection Volume Kit

- Kit includes Naked Volume Shampoo, Conditioner, Volumizing Soufflé, Flexible Hold Spritzer and Dry Shampoo.

- Everything you need for irresistible volume!

- Online-only offer.

- Limited-edition kit, available while supplies last.

- Get it first at http://www.walmart.com/ip/33006917 .

- Your chance to be the first to try Herbal Essences Naked!

Naked Volume Shampoo & Conditioner

- Restores hair’s natural body.

- Made with zero heavy residues, dyes, and parabens.

- Light weight shampoo provides a clean luscious bounce.

- Conditioner keeps hair detangled, nourished, and maintains full volume.

Naked Volume Dry Shampoo

- Great for days when you don’t have time to wash your hair.

- Refreshes your look for lightweight, clean hair — even on days when you don’t wash.

- The natural tapioca formula absorbs excess oil and transforms lifeless, oily hair into fresh hair.

- Delights senses with the crisp essence of citrus and mint.

- How to use: Gently spray on and work into roots, brush out as desired.

Naked Volumizing Souffle

- Weightless, volumizing styler gives you a lift for fullness that lasts.

- Delights the senses with a boost of grapefruit and mint.

- How to use: Gently work mousse through wet hair for volume.

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Three Cheese Seafood Lasagna

“This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group™ and Barilla, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #JoytotheTable  http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO.”

Growing up most of us have our own set of holiday traditions. Some people travel and have huge family celebrations. Others stay home with just their immediate families. Whatever they are, we know we can expect them every year. We know the joy the season and tradition will bring.

I don't know about all of you but getting married makes this a challenge. Not a bad challenge, just a challenge. We have to find a way to balance. To make sure to honor each others traditions.

Then come kids. They are the game changers, am I right? For our family, having our own kids meant that it was time to stop hopping from home to home on Christmas morning. It was just too much work and everyone ends up cranky.

Last year, after about 4 years of Christmas' we found a schedule that worked. Earlier in the week with my in-laws, Christmas Eve with my side of the family and we get Christmas. Now that we have a schedule it is time to start our own traditions. We've done birthday parties for Jesus every morning and that of course will remain. Dinner however, is all new.

How many of you get tired of the traditional holiday meals? Don't get me wrong, I love hams and prime ribs as much as the next person but after having it at numerous parties, I'm ready for something simple. Like pasta!

So starting this year, pasta it is. Pasta dressed up for Christmas though. This year, I'm serving up a Seafood lasagna as our main course.Since hubby isn't always a seafood fan and I was stuck on serving this, I knew a trial run was in order.

So I ran to my local Vons where I knew I could find everything I needed in one go...I have four kids, no store hopping for me. And they currently have a promotion of $1 off the purchase of one box of Barilla® Lasagne and one Barilla® Sauce. If you don't have a Vons near you, the promotion is available at all Safeway stores.

Monday night, I crossed my fingers and cooked it for hubby. Of course he was sold, like I knew he would be.

Here is the recipe to our Christmas meal. A Three Cheese Seafood Lasagna for you to enjoy.

Ingredients:

Barilla Lasagne Noodles - Prepared with instructions on the box
8 oz Ricotta Cheese
Bag of Mozzarella Cheese
Bag of grated Parmesan Cheese
1 egg
2 jars Barilla Roasted Garlic All Natural Pasta Sauce
8 oz Lump Crab Meat
1 lb Raw Jumbo Shrimp - Peeled and De-veined  
1 Small Onion - diced
3-4 handfuls of Spinach
3 tablespoons Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Italian Seasonings
1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Basil
1/2 tsp Oregano
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl combine your ricotta, egg and half of your seasonings (1/4 tsp of each).

Heat 1.5 Tbsp of oil over Med/High heat. Add your shrimp, season lightly with salt and pepper and cook until pink, about 2 minutes on each side. Remove from heat and set aside.

Add the remaining oil to pan and begin sauteing your diced onions. When they begin to soften, add in your spinach.

Meanwhile, coarsely chop your shrimp and mix it into the lump crab meat. Add the remaining seasoning and 3/4 jar of your Barilla Roasted Garlic All Natural Sauce.

Once your spinach is fully wilted, add to the ricotta.

Grab a casserole dish. Spray the bottom with cooking spray and then pour about 1/2 jar of Barilla sauce. Make sure to distribute it evenly.

Place a layer of your prepared Lasagne Noodles to dish. Then a layer of the ricotta and a layer of your seafood mixture. Top with a handful of mozzarella and a handful of Parmesan. Repeat until the ricotta and seafood is gone.

Top with one more layer of  Lasagne Noddles and pour about 1/3 of a jar of sauce over the top. Top that layer with another handful of both cheeses.

Bake for 30 minutes in your preheated oven.

Let sit for 5 minutes and then serve and enjoy.

 I often save time on my own pasta dishes by skipping homemade sauces and using Barilla. Barilla's Facebook page is also loaded full of some great recipes. Go follow along so you don't miss out on any of the yumminess.

||Barilla Facebook||

Pixie and Pirate Party

Once again, I am super delayed in posting a birthday party. I don't know how that always happens.

I am really excited to share this party with you. It's possibly my favorite to date.

Rhiannon wanted a Tinkerbell party. I tried to convince her that we should throw in something more boyish since she has lots of friends who are boys. She didn't budge. Until I started the invites. At that point it became a Pixie and Pirate party. So. Much. Fun.

For Pixie centerpieces, we went woodsy. Pretty flowers in mason jars are always a win. Luckily her party was right after a big wind that knocked over a tree in our back yard. Ya, you read that right, a tree fell. But hey, check out those cute wood blocks!

The pirate center pieces were not so much my jam. But we had fun creating with "pirate" items. I came so close to using Rum bottles but decided it would be innappropriate haha.

Food was a simple Pasta Bar. That was a hit. Cheap, easy and tasty.

The dessert table. Fab. I impressed myself. Really I just got lucky and I was able to pull off what was in my head but it turned out so well. I don't think I will ever pay someone to do dessert again. Until maybe the next party when I'm scared ill fail at replicating what I did here.

The party was simple and fun. 

Oh and it wouldn't be one of our parties without a photo booth, so of course we had to do that. :)

Kid Friendly Smoothie

The past few months we have added Green Smoothies into our diets. Most mornings our breakfast is served in a cup. Honestly, I feel so much more energized on the days that I am drinking them. And a nice little perk, the kids are getting more veggies than ever.

Today I thought I would share the kids favorite smoothies with you all.

 Ingredients:
1.5 cup spinach
1/2 carrot
1/2 banana
1/2 cup frozen berries
1/4 cup frozen peaches, mango or pineapple
1/4 cup old fashioned cracked oats
100% Fruit Orange Juice

Chop Carrots. You don't need to do them to small. Just enough to fit in the blender. I do mine smaller so that it blends more quickly.

Add all of the fruits and veggies into the NutriBullet or Blender and top with oats. The reason we are adding oats is to make the smoothie a little more filling. I notice when drinking them for breakfast I was getting hungry pretty early. This helped. When drinking in the afternoon, I usually substitute the oats with almonds to add protein.

Pour your juice to the max fill line or if using a blender, just enough to get the veggies really mixing. For an even healthier version, try coconut water. The kids prefer juice. I figure as long as their is no sugar added and it is 100% juice, it is worth it to get them to love the smoothie.

Pour and enjoy!

Stitch Fix- Round Two

Alright everyone, it is Round Two of Stitch Fix here at Vessel, this time I need your help. Thanks to some referral credits, I am able to purchase 2 items. What, you want me to be able to purchase more next time? Sure, I'll take your the referral credit for ya, just schedule your first fix using this code HERE.

Man, that was shameless. Mama needs clothes though, yo! Anyhow, this time I can purchase two items. There are 3 items I love and two that are meh. I won't tell you which because I want honest votes...I may hint though.

I have to mail back the ones I don't want by tomorrow (Oct. 25th) at 5pm. So there's not much time. Comment here and vote on what I should keep.

One:
Lace Print Top
Initially thought it looked to old for me. On, didn't hate it. Dressed up a little I liked it a lot more.

Two:

Peplum Top

This was my first time ever trying on a Peplum top. I have big hips and was really afraid it would emphasize that. Not too bad. Don't hate the Peplum. (Ignore my overly slanted head, we were taking pictures at bed time and I was getting frustrated at how things were going haha)

Three:

Navy Striped Top

Every day wear and pops of color for date night or girls night or something. Love the versatility.

Four:
Tulle Orange Sweater.
Lightweight for our not so cool Fall Weather. Love the scalloping on this one.

Five:
Little Black Dress
Pulled this out of the box and thought the folks at Stitch Fix went crazy sending me a granny dress. Put it on and it's so not granny.

 So what do you think? What two items should I keep and what three should I send back?

Any guesses on what three I was debating before asking for help?

Oh and don't forget to schedule your own stitch fix. Not just so I get credit but because it's rad.

To see my first fix and read little more about what it is, go HERE.

Let's Talk Little Lady

Today she is five. She won't always be. In the not so distant future she will be all grown up.

In this moment she wants to talk to me about everything. She might not always want to.

Right now her favorite topics are princesses and ponies. They won't always be.

Eventually my little girl will grow up. She will outgrow the things she currently loves.

In the now, she knows she is beautiful. She has no interest in boys. She is too innocent to see the evil and scary things of this world. That won't always be the scenario. (Hopefully she will always know she is beautiful). 

Eventually, as these things change, I want to be the one to lift her up. I want to be the one teaching her. I want to point her toward God and what He says and away from what the world says. If I am not present today, that may not be an option tomorrow.

It is so easy to get caught up in our days. To shush a talkative child. To tell them to wait a minute...and forget to return to the conversation. Sometimes a child's topics seem so trivial to an adult. 

What we do with our children now is shaping and training them for the future. 

When the little things of their day are confirmed to be small by the reactions and tones of our voice, they may not share about tomorrow.

When their biggest secrets are shared because we didn't hold them as sacred, they may not tell us the next one.

The conversations and relationship I am building with my daughter (and my sons for that matter) today are a stepping stone to the relationship we will have for the rest of her life.

If we want our children to be open to communicate with us as they age, we need to start now. When they speak, we need to give our full attention. Turn off the computer and put down the phone.

Snuggle up in their beds and talk about their days, their dreams, their wishes, their secrets. Talk about everything.

Over the years our conversations will drastically change but they will still exist. 

Today she is five but she won't always be.

Five!!

Today my first born turns 5. I thought that I was going to be super emotional and sad. And while I did cry a tiny bit that she is going to college soon, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

Instead, the place that I thought would be filled with sadness is over come with joy and pride. 

My sweet, not so baby any more, is growing up but she has grown into a little girl that any mommy would be proud of. 

This little five year old knows The Lord and shows Him daily with her kindness and loving nature.

I am such a proud mama today. Happy birthday Rhiannon!!!

Weight Loss "Secrets"

Many of you have been asking how I am losing weight. Today I thought I would share exactly what I have done to shed the pounds that I have lost. Really it hasn't been too much and it's completely doable.

First thing I want to point out, I just had a baby. So the massive weight loss is partially an illusion. The big belly that disappears literally over night plays a little bit of a trick on your eyes. The instant 15 lb. weight loss is a little bit of a cheat.

From that point on, I have done the work on my own, no magical instant tummy disappearance.

To begin, we cut back on red meats and added in a lot more salads. Cut back on sodas and juices and replaced that with water. Oh, and as most of you know, I {heart} Starbucks. Like big pink puffy heart LOVE Starbucks. In order to cling on to that relationship, I cut out all the yummy sauces, no more extra caramel or chocolate drizzle. In fact, I nixed the sugar all together. It's all non-fat sugar free goodness now. Simple changes that made a huge difference.

Those alterations got me down to my pre-Corbin weight. Once those pounds were gone, I was a little stuck for a couple weeks.

To lose the pounds that my body was clinging onto, I started the Body.Mind.Spirit Challenge with April over at April Kennedy..My Life + My Style. This is the forth week of the challenge and my body is slowly losing the weight that I wasn't able to.

Since being on the challenge we have been eating healthier options. Basic changes. More veggies, less carbs. MORE water than anything. Just good healthy changes. Plus some exercising.

Work outs for me are simple. I warm up with general yoga poses. Do a small tiny amount of running. And focus on my problem areas with LOTS of crunches and lunges. Nothing major but I am starting to see a difference in inches.

The last thing that I have been doing, our most recent change, is green smoothies. Hubby bought me a NutriBullet and the whole family has replaced breakfast on most days with green smoothies. Making sure to get all the key elements into the smoothies so the kids and nursing baby are getting everything they need.

And okay, if we want to be honest, my green smoothies are purple because they are sooooo loaded with fruits but hey, they are delicious and the kids are getting more greens than they ever would eat on their own.

So that's it. That is how I have lost the weight I gained with Corbin. My next goal is to get back to my pre-any baby weight. My end goal is to be back to almost my wedding weight. I gave myself 5lb leeway because I have delivered three babies, my body has changed...and well I don't wanna be greedy. Haha.

The secret to my weight loss has been basic but if I come across any secrets, I'll share them with you. I will definitely be sharing some recipes soon.

What goals are you working towards?

Date Night Style

It's not often that my husband and I get to have a real date night. We get the occasional quick bite to eat thanks to having my mother in law and mama close by. But a full blown, get dolled up date night is rare.

Recently, we got a chance to have one. It is was so fun to do my hair and make-up and change out of my usual mom wear.

Even more fun is that hubby surprised me with a dress he knew I would love. When the package arrived, I was impressed to say the least. He sure does know me.

Because I didn't want to be to formal, I funk-ied (I make up my own words, don't hate) it up a bit with my jewelry. I absolutely loved the overall look. 

  

Dress- Nordstrom

Necklace- Stylefox

Bracelet- Relics by Tami

Shoes- Anchor Blue

Choc Walk

Last month I told you about sweet Luke. For those of you who weren't reading along, Luke is one of my friend's son. He just turned three and is battling AML Leukemia.

Luke recently finished up his second round of chemo. All though Luke and his family have faced some tough challenges along the way, Luke is still smiling through it. This sweet boy is truly a little hero.

On October 13th, I have the honor of walking for Luke's team in the Choc Walk. To be able to walk along side his family and friends to show our support. To raise money to give back to a hospital that has helped Luke so much. I am really excited to be there.



I would be so grateful if you would consider donating towards my walk. Every dollar helps. You can do so by clicking here.

Thank you so much to all of you who have been following Luke's Journey Through Leukemia on Facebook and praying along side us.

Donate to my walk with the Luke Loves CHOC team

HomeSchool Week: School Photos

Today we are wrapping up HomeSchool Week with our school photos. I have had a lot of fun sharing with you and even more fun with the e-mailed questions and conversations that the posts have inspired.

To look back at what was shared, click these links:

What she is Learning

Our Schedule

A Sneak Peek at our Classroom

Now onto the pictures.

The idea behind her pictures came from her love of reading. I thought it would be fun to have a librarian inspired shoot for her school photos this year. So we headed to our library and did just that. Here are some of our favorites:

I am torn on which one should be used as her official Kindergarten picture. What do you think? Help me chose by commenting your favorite photo.

HomeSchool Week: A Peek in our Classroom

I daydream of a class room with chalkboard walls, a dozen globes and vintage educational posters. Right now, that Is not a part of our reality.

We don't have a room dedicated to school. We don't have spare rooms right now. In a few years we will be in a new home with extra space...if we don't have any surprise adoptions ;)

Right now we are blessed to have a bedroom that is bigger than anyone would ever need. We use half of it as our offices and home school room.

This is Rhiannon's portion of the room. On her desk we have any textbooks or activity books we are currently using, her chalk board and white board and her globe.

In her drawers you can find her paper, crayons, pencils and anything else an average kindergartner would need (except her scissors of course. Those are required to be in a locked cabinet...foster parent problem haha)

Hanging on her wall she has her alphabet pennant banner we made last year and clipboards to show of her good work. Soon enough we will have my chalkboard up, we are just trying to find the right place.



In my section of the room, I have my desk which is loaded with everything from invoices and orders to foster and home school paper work. This is my main hub. I blog here, I manage our home here,I teach from here.

On the desk you will always find my bibles, home school calendar, chrome book, the cute little props and most likely a mess that has exploded out of my creative mind moving to fast for its own good.

Choosing Joy Scripture from Thorns of Grace

In the drawers, lots and lots of paper work and handbooks and records. It's a chaotic mess that only I can navigate.

The white drawers next to me, all of our activity books and craft supplies.  We also have learning games and stuff like that in there. It's my type Z personality trying to be a Type A.

Hanging on the walls: a reminder board, another calendar (because the day planner, phone and google calendar aren't enough) and daily or weekly to do list.


This is our space. It's not perfect but we love it.

Where do you spend most of your days?

HomeSchool Week: Our Schedule

One of the biggest perks of homeschooling has got to be the ability to make your own schedule. From the time you wake up and do school to the days you take vacation, it is all up to you.

This year we went with a traditional school year vs. year round scheduling. We added in a few vacation weeks and played around with holiday breaks. Any vacations we decide to take that are not on our calendar, we will simply bring school along with us and make it a little more fun while still educating.

Our school year will look something like this:

First Day of School was September 3rd.

In School: Sept 3rd - October 11th

Mini Vacation: October 14th- Oct 18th (yep, baby girl gets a week off for her birthday. Spoiled)

In School: October 21st-November 22th

Thanksgiving Break: November 25th - November 30th

In School: December 1st - December 15th

Christmas Break: December 16th-January 3rd

In School: January 6th- February 28th

Mini Break: March 1st-March 6th

In School: March 10th-April 20th

Easter Break: April 21st- May 3rd

In School: May 5th-June 10th

Our weekly Schedule changes a little bit from time to time Most weeks we do school at home on Monday Wednesday and Friday with classes at Integrity on Tuesdays and Art Co-Op on Thursday. On occasions where we have field trips or holidays during the week, we will do that days work on Thursdays.

Our at home school days start anywhere from 8:30am - 10:30am depending on wake up time and fussy babies. Curriculum has been broken up based on the number of days in our school year and how units or topics in the books flow together. Most days go something like this:

• Begin with prayer and a devotion.
• 1-2 letters in Handwriting without tears. 
• Start with workbook then play with manipulatives and finish by writing on whiteboard or chalk
• Units are broken up into 5-15 sections. We do anywhere from 2-4 sections a day with the activities that go along with them.
• Start with text book plans and hands on work, finish with activity book
• Play with pattern blocks or base 10s for 10-20 minutes
• 3-5 pages from Explode the Code books
• Read from books we have brought home from the library
• 1 page of geography and any mapping activities that go with it.
• A portion of homework for History and Science

Depending on holidays and fun things happening around us we will also throw in little crafts, cooking or other fun stuff.

It is enough work to keep us busy but not enough that it is not doable in a day. We have fun together and Rhiannon is not only being educated but she is being trained up in the Word and learning to love to learn...tongue twister. 

HomeSchool Week: What She is Learning

Ahhh...curriculum.

Choosing what your child will learn and how they will learn it is such a challenge.

Research. A lot.

Sit down and do practice lessons with your kids. Figure out their learning style. And your teaching style for that matter.

Look at the teachers guides. Not just the books. Do you need them? Are the workbooks self explanatory? Do the teaching guides give you enough guidance? Enough structure? Too much structure? Can you incorporate your own lessons and activities? Do you want to?

It can all be so overwhelming. We have so many resources and options these days. Maybe too much.

Last year, we used SonLight for Preschool. We loved it but Rhiannon is still very easily distracted and had a hard time focusing on ALL the reading. Once she is reading on her own and can sit for longer we will likely go back to SonLight with some added manipulitives, as she is a very hands on learner.

This year, I wasn't sold on any one curriculum. We loved the math is some but the English was lacking. Some had the perfect amounts of reading but we didn't like the choices of books. Then their were perfect curriculums but they were too pricey and we still needed to add in manipulatives.

I was feeling defeated when hubby stepped in and suggested I put together our own curriculum with pieces from different ones. He's a genius I tell you, why isn't he educating our kids? Sheesh.

So here is what we went with:


Bible: 

• Leading Little Ones to God: A Child's Book of Bible Teachings

English:

• Reading/Phonics- 
• Explode the Code 3 book series
• Get Ready for the Code, Get Set for the Code and Go for the Code
• Bi-monthly library trips for reading books
• Spelling and Penmanship-
• Handwriting without Tears 
• Book, Wood letter pieces and molding clay

Math:

• Singapore Math
• Textbooks and Activity books
• Pattern Block Set
• Magnetic Base Ten Set

Social Studies:

• History
• Rhiannon is enrolled in a History class at a Satellite school
• Geography
• Beginning Geography Activity book
• Maps and Globe

Science:

• Rhiannon is enrolled in a Science class at a Satellite School

Physical Education:

• Ballet
• Fun activities at home

Art:  

• We are part of a co-op who will alternate homes and art projects