Shaving: The New At Home Facial

I know, I know, when you hear shaving and facial in the same sentence you probably are picturing something like this:

  Rest assured, that looks nothing like what I am talking about.

  To be honest, I have played around with shaving parts of my face for years.  I have noticed that makeup goes on so much more smooth and looks so nice when you have removed some of the peach fuzz.  And because I have blonde hair on my face, I never really bought into waxing it because it was still unnoticeable when it grew in (because of the blonde color).

  I didn't talk about it much with anyone because I figured estheticians and beauticians would laugh at me and tell me I was doing absolutely the wrong thing.

  Then I heard about this video (I already knew who the girl was) and I watched it:





 I felt so justified after seeing this video that I decided to go for it.  Now, she mentions a lot that people can see your peach fuzz and that's why you should shave.  While that is true, that's not the only reason for shaving your face:

  1. Seriously, if you use makeup on your face you will love how great it goes on when your face is hair free.
  2.  If you blend your makeup into your neck (and you should be doing that if you wear foundation), then it will not only feel the same but it will look different (the peach fuzz on your neck is longer than it is on your face - I can definitely see mine).
  3. Shaving your face is a huge way to exfoliate it really well!  Think about men and how they keep their complexion more smooth and clear (and youthful)  - well, they regularly exfoliate through shaving!  You will help clear up your skin and keep it nice and smooth.  It's a mini facial right at home.
  4. You don't have to do it all the time!  You can do this once or twice a week at most.
  5. No more paying for waxing that upper lip.  I have not waxed (or threaded) my upper lip for years because I know I can shave it quick myself.  Yes, ladies, you have a mustache even if it's blonde.  =)

Okay, have I convinced you to at least try it?  If so, you do NOT use a regular razor - nor shaving cream.  Use an eyebrow razor which is made for dealing with smaller, finer hairs.  Also, the benefit of an eyebrow razor is that they don't cut you (at least not me - it would be hard to cut yourself with one of these).  To try it:

I started with a clean, dry face.  Shave in quick, downward strokes at a 45 degree angle (it doesn't work if you use it straight on).  You will probably have to play around with the angle some - I had to figure it out the first time.  Once done, rinse off with water (or a toner first and then water) and then follow up with a moisturizer.  You will love how your face feels afterwards!

Here are the razor's she mentioned in the video (although I just found some at Target that I have used.)



Try it at least once and give me your feedback!  Love it?  Hate it?  Indifferent?  I wanna hear!

XOXO

Joy

Big Changes Ahead!

We bought our first house!!!  AND, it's in Denver, Colorado!  Let me back up a tad and explain how all this went down....

When I married Peter I relocated to Boise, Idaho for the first 9 months of our marriage.  Then we relocated to Portland, Oregon for his job.  I never envisioned myself living in Oregon (and had never even been to Portland when we moved) but I did know when I married Peter that our life would be an adventure and I welcomed it.

Moving to Portland was a huge blessing and grace from God.  We were in a time in our marriage when we needed a fresh start and godly people to walk alongside us.  Both of those came when we moved here.  I can not say enough how instrumental Mars Hill Church Portland was (and Marc Driscoll) in growing our marriage and helping us through a rocky start.  We would not be where we are today if it hadn't been for both of those influences and we feel an enormous amount of gratitude.

Around the end of February (this year) we decided to start looking to purchase a home since our lease was going to be up soon.  I wanted to try to move before the baby arrived but as we looked we realized that was unrealistic  (since our lease was up in March) and so we decided to keep looking but extend our lease for a couple months.

  Obviously God had other plans for us because also around the same time we got word that there was possibly going to be new work opportunities for Peter in another state.  We were asked if we would be interested in moving to either Denver or Phoenix.  We were open to it and waited to hear.  Just a few days into March we got word that the contract had gone through in Denver and we were moving (as long as we wanted it!).

  This news came only weeks before I am due with #2!  Wow, everything big seems to come in pairs at least.  =)  We are ecstatic to announce that we are moving to Denver around the beginning of May!  This is a very bittersweet move for us.  It's sweet because we have lots of family around Denver and have never lived close to them as a family (plus, Colorado is just amazing).  It's also bitter because Portland has become near and dear to us as the place where we "grew up" as a married couple and started a family.  We have many close friends here who have walked beside us through difficult and wonderful times and it is hard to say goodbye.  It feels like the end of a chapter that has been good to us and I am sad to see it go.  On the other hand, we are excited for our new adventure and seeing what God does with us in Denver.

  I feel so excited that Simon (and baby) will be able to grow up knowing some of their cousins, Aunts/Uncles and Grandparents in a more close proximity.

  So, on top of all of this, we purchased our first home!  I haven't even seen it in person because I have not been able to fly to Denver (being big and preggo).  Peter went out there last week and walked through a bunch of houses.  We made an offer on two and got the one we wanted so we are thrilled to be moving into our own house.

  We can't wait for this new adventure to begin as a family of 4!  =)

JOY

Family Maternity Shoot

 One of my favorite parts of pregnancy is the maternity photos!  I have looked forward to getting these this entire pregnancy.  For me, it signifies a time when you feel most beautiful and womanly.  I try to do them before I hit that point where you just feel huge.  ;)   Just like hearing the heartbeat the first time heralds in the pregnancy, to me, maternity photos signifies the end being in sight and so those are my 2 things I really look forward to.
  I think pictures are so important and special because you will never get this time back again so having good pictures is really priceless.  Because of this, I called up Christa Taylor from Christa Taylor Photography.  She truly is amazing and makes me feel beautiful.  We had used her for our shoot with Simon and those are some of my favorite pictures so I knew we would get really great shots this time.
  She did not disappoint - not in the slightest. =)

I am so glad that we got to capture this special time of welcoming in this new little one.  We all love this baby so much already and are excited to become a family of 4 soon!

XOXO

Joy