Just For Fun

You might be wondering, “So what in tarnation is this Monday Poll thing anyway!?”

Well, it isn’t exactly a poll. It’s more of a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past eight (!) years. (It’s like a kickstart for your brain.) I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.

1. Do you have any birthmarks?
   I have two. One is located on the back of my left thigh; it’s kind of small-ish. Last time I checked, it was shaped like the State of Florida.

   And I used to have — and I say “used to have” because I just checked, and I can’t seem to find it — I used to have a mole on the bottom of my right heel, but it’s gone!

   I don’t know. Is that even physically possible? Maybe I need to wash my feet…

2. Are your toes currently painted? If so, what are they wearing?
   YAAAAASSS! Of course they’re painted, because when they’re not painted, they look like monkey paws.

   I’m wearing two coats of Essie Gel Polish in Beauty VIP, a creamy jade green.

3. What’s your signature dance move?
   The Snake, girlfriend! You can’t out-Snake me.
4. When was the last time you gave someone flowers?
   The last time I gave someone flowers was Mother’s Day. I got my mom a potted orchid, and she got me the same thing, so we each gave each other potted orchids.
5. On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being pro-caliber, how do you rate your winged liner skills?
   I’d give myself a solid 7. I think I’m pretty good at it. I do have my days when I can do, like, with a liquid pen liner, one fell swoop from inner to outer corner, but those days are few and far between… I can do it though.

   Yeah, a solid 7.

Your turn. 🙂 Just copy and paste the following questions into a comment with your answers. I look forward to reading ’em!

1. Do you have any birthmarks?
2. Are your toes currently painted? If so, what are they wearing?
3. What’s your signature dance move?
4. When was the last time you gave someone flowers?
5. On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being pro-caliber, how do you rate your winged liner skills?

Hi, sweet pea. 🙂 Happy Monday to ya. I hope you’re feeling fab this morning and that your day got off to a good start.

I’m in a good mood because Connor woke up in a good mood. When I reached down to pick her up from her crib, the first thing she did was smile, and it was one of those “smile with your eyes” kind of smiles.

If you need it, here’s a big virtual hug [*HUG!*]. Have a nice rest of your day, and I’ll talk to you soon.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

You guys. So, it occurred to me the other day when I did the same look for the umpteen millionth time with lashes, liner and a nude lip that I might be in a makeup rut.

Like a serious makeup rut!

And I think I need help.

So, where do you go when you need help? You ask your girlfriends, of course.

Here’s the deal. I just… Right before I had the baby, I was sooo tired all the time. I wasn’t wearing a lot of makeup at all. Then, after I had the baby, it got even worse, because then I didn’t have any energy or time to put on makeup.

But Connor is four months old now, and I’m ready to get back into my groove and my regular life again, but I’ve gotten used to only putting in the tiniest amount of effort, and things like doing a full-on smokey eye are very daunting.

I haven’t worn a lot of makeup in five or six months, which is a long time for me. I just really haven’t been taking care of myself in that way for a while.

I’m guessing that this is something a lot of women go through? I don’t know… I’ve talked to friends about it, about getting into certain habits with your look of like, I dunno, wearing your hair or doing your makeup the same way for weeks or months, and I’m definitely in that monkey house.

I’m trying though. The other day I laid out a whole bunch of eye products and took pictures of them, because not only am I kind of out of practice when it comes to putting on my makeup (I think I’ve lost a little bit of the muscle memory?), I also haven’t spent a lot of time in front of my camera.

So I was looking at all of these beautiful colors and finishes and the different formulas — the creams, powders and whatnot — on the table in front of me and started thinking, “What if I layer this shade with that one?” and “What if I blend these two things together?”

I thought it was a eureka moment!

I felt like I finally figured something out, but the next day when I sat down to do my makeup, I went right back to — you guessed it! — lashes, liner and a nude lip.

The thing is, I really do miss doing more with my makeup. I want to. I’m just stuck or something.

And maybe this is also a metaphor for my life in some ways. Not to sound too corny, but there are things I want to do and so many paths I want to explore, but at this point in my life, I’ve gotten accustomed to the patterns of my day and living those same patterns day in, day out. It’s gotten harder and harder to push myself in new directions.

I mean, yeah, things have definitely changed a lot since the baby came along, but still, it’s different from when I was in my teens, twenties and early thirties, when, seriously, it felt like something was always happening to get me out of my comfort zone. Now it’s been so long since I’ve pushed myself that way that I don’t know how it feels anymore.

Anywho…thank you for listening to this long, rambling, whining thing, friend. If you have any advice about makeup, life or whatever, I’d love to hear from you.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

You might be wondering, “So what in tarnation is this Monday Poll thing anyway!?”

Well, it isn’t exactly a poll. It’s more of a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past eight (!) years. (It’s like a kickstart for your brain.) I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.

1. Have you ever worn “Instagram makeup”?
   Yeeeeeah, totes! I went through a phase a while back when I was all about the super sharp brow tail, the bronzer you could see from across the Pacific Ocean, haha! room, the lashes and the overdrawn lip — the whole Instagram makeup kit and caboodle.

   It was fun, and I’ll still go that far on occasion.

2. How did you style your hair today?
   So, lately I’ve had ZERO imagination when it comes to my hair. Absolutely zilch. Nada. None. Like, all of the energy I used to use to keep my hair looking somewhat decent has been diverted toward other pursuits, like changing Connor’s onesie every five minutes. (How does a baby get so dirty? I honestly don’t know.)

   So today my hair is up in a high pony, which will probably morph into a messy bun over the course of the next five minutes.

3. What makes you feel hopeful?
   Reading my horoscope (can I get an amen from all my Gemini girls?), seeing people help one another, random acts of kindness and watching the sun rise above the oak trees outside my window. 🙂
4. Five words that describe your home?
   Messy but full of love.
5. East Coast or West Coast?
   West Coast, baby! I grew up here and totally identify with that Cali life.
6. Something you need to get rid of but can’t?
   Ohmygawd, the 10 million bottles of nearly finished body lotion in my bathroom.

   I don’t know why I do this, but I feel like I have to use every single, solitary last drop — even the tiny droplets that cling to the insides of the tube or bottle — before I can throw one out.

   So I’ll leave them upside down all over the counters just to be able to use those last few precious drops, but the thing is…this leads to me having multiple bottles of basically empty lotion all over the place.

   It drives me (and El Hub, truth be told) absolutely nuts.

   But I can’t stop!

Your turn. 🙂 Just copy and paste the following questions into a comment with your answers. I look forward to reading ’em!

1. Have you ever worn “Instagram makeup”?
2. How did you style your hair today?
3. What makes you feel hopeful?
4. Five words that describe your home?
5. East Coast or West Coast?
6. Something you need to get rid of but can’t?

Hey, babe! Happy Fourth of July! I hope your day is filled with fun, fireworks and delicious barbecue. If you don’t mind, please save me the sides, will ya? I’m all about that potato salad and corn on the cob.

A little later this morning, we’ll probably go to Petaluma for lunch, just to get out of the house. We like to time it just right around Connor Claire’s meals, so we’ll get everything ready — her baby bag with the wipes and diapers and stuff, her stroller and Sophie the Giraffe — then we’ll change her, feed her and GO, GO, GO! And try to make it back home before the next feeding time, haha!

It’s a process.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen