Beauty Joy Unboxing & Review!

I recently received a recommendation from a fellow subscription box addict on Facebook to try out Beauty Joy.  Well, I couldn't resist after all the wonderful things she had to say about her experience with them, so I had to try them for myself and share my verdict with you!

My Unboxing Thoughts:

The Goodies in my Beauty Joy Box:

Amount Paid: $15.00

Value of Box: $62.75

I'm really impressed with the value in this box!  The lip gloss and necklace are quite wonderful.  I'm swimming in cleansers right now; this one smells wonderful, but it'll probably go in my giveaway drawer.  The hand santizer is always nice, but that one left me a bit underwhelmed.  Overall, though, I'm quite pleased with this box!

Verdict: I'm Happy, so Yay!

Happy with Haven Arc's Serum!

I am quite impressed with the benefits of Vitamin C Serums in general, as I've talked about before.

Havens Arc is a small company who offers a natural and organic skin care line to enhance the look and confidence of their customers.  One of their more popular products is their Vitamin C Serum.

Product Description:

- Contains high quality ingredients such as Organic Rosehip Oil, Organic Sea Buckthorn Oil, Green Tea Extract, and Botanical Hyaluronic Acid.

- Contains 20% concentration of Vitamin C

- Ingredients offer excellent anti-aging properties to enhance the health and appearance of skin!

What I Love about Haven Arc's Vitamin C Serum:

- Good quality Vitamin C Serum.  I like that it contains 20% Vitamin C as well as ingredients that are deeply moisturizing

- It does not have an overly strong scent of Vitamin C (no fermented oranges smell, here!)

 - It performs well.  My skin tone appeared healthier and more even after one week of twice daily use

- Dark Colored Bottle with Dropper prolongs product's shelf life, and make dispensing easy

You can find Haven Arc's Vitamin C Serum on Amazon for $17.99 for 1 fl oz, which is an average price for similar products.

Verdict: Meh, but Happy!

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Tomoson.com and made possible by Haven's Arc.  Products were provided in exchange for my time in assessing their quality and writing an honest review about them. All product information is gleaned from the manufacturer's product description.  All opinions are my own based on my experiences with the product.  All photos are my own. 

Laughing Scholar's Jammin' Jamberry ONLINE Party!

I'm really, really, really excited friends!  You know that I love my Jamberry Nail Wraps!  Well, I am co-hosting my first Jamberry Party with Fantastic Friend & Rockin' Jamberry Consultant, Frances!

We'll be running games so that you can earn points for all sorts of fun nail designs throughout the next week!  

Stop by and request to join

Suzanne's Jammin' Jamberry Nail ONLINE Party!

to get in on all of the fun, games, & goodies!

Jamberry is killin' it representing Pantone's Color of the Year: Marsala!
Look at these totally cute designs!

Who's ready for spring already?  Still fighting snow & cold?  At least you can remember the signs of spring on your fingertips!!

What are you waiting for?  Come join the party!

Wanting to buy some wraps, but not feeling up for a party?

You can buy Nail Wraps Here!

#TodaysReasonToSmile ~ My Sweet Puppy Dog!

So, I've had a pretty crappy day today.  I woke up fine, and then when I stood up from working on my computer to get ready to walk the dog, it hit me like a ton of bricks.

Nothing felt right.

The world seemed like it had shifted a bit to the left.

And my head didn't feel totally connected to the rest of me.

All day today I've had to wait out the vertigo and dizziness.

Finally admitting defeat, I sent out email apologies for my absences at meetings today, piled up some pillows, crawled into bed, and rested propped up against the mountain of squishiness.   And you know who snuggled with me for the next four hours while I slept it off?  My sweet Barley-Dog.

So, today's reason to smile is dedicated to a pup who definitely ought to rank in the top 100 of the sweetest dogs in the world.

Enjoy the precious pictures!

 Barley keeping me company while I write my comps.

 Barley cuddling with his favorite person - the hubby.

 Barley expresses how much he missed his favorite person one afternoon by crawling into his lap and promptly melting.

 Barley waits patiently for morning walk time.

Barley very sweetly asks to for morning walks when I oversleep one morning.

Today's Reason to Smile: Barley-Dog!

also known as Nurse Dog, BatDog, Cuddle-Buddy, Bathroom Mat Crumpler, and Enemy of the Skateboard

Bulu Box Unboxing & Review!

I managed to score a $10/3 month subscription for Bulu Box back in January.  You know how much I love trying out these subscription boxes on a good deal and sharing my thoughts with you!  So, here we go!

About Bulu Box:

Bulu Box is the first health, nutrition and weight loss discovery box designed to help you feel your best. Each month, you’ll get a custom box filled with a new mix of 4 to 5 premium samples from top brands to try. Every sample is sufficient enough to decide if the product is right for you. Of course, shipping is always free and you can cancel anytime. Share your thoughts about each product in our sample surveys and you can earn 50+ Rewards Points (that's $5!) each month! Use your points to purchase your new favorites in full size atBuluBox.com! Here you’ll also get expert tips, tricks and a supportive community of Bulugans just like you! Join the discovery and find a healthier you!

February Bulu Box Unboxing:

Here's the Box:

All the Goodies:

Overall Thoughts:

I think this is a great purchase for $10 for 3 months! I'm really excited about trying out some new products, raking up some points, and buying something before my 3 month subscription is over.  That said, for the $10/ month, I don't think it would really be my thing.  I'm just not that into health food . . . 

Now, $10/month is still a great value for these products. 

I love that we can earn points for every review we write as well as for friend referrals.  The downside is that points expire 90 days after you earn them, so unlike Birchbox, there's no storing them up all up year and then going crazy in the store.  

I was impressed with the four coupon codes plus heart health insert that came in my box this month, though!

Finally, I'm relatively happy with their questionnaire that helps match sample products with your specific box.  I like that I got a nice array of things that might actually interest me.  I didn't get any weight loss magic pills/powder stuff, which I specifically said I did not want.

Verdict: Yay!

Want to try Bulu Box for yourself?  I'd love it if you used my referral link!

#TodaysReasonToSmile

Today's reason to smile comes at the very end of my day.  

Hubby knows my anxiety has been high lately with new job, comps, and other changes.  The past week he's been doing a great job of checking in about my anxiety level, what I can do to help reduce it, and what he can do to make it easier for me to accomplish those things.  

Because my depression usually raises its ugly head as a result of my anxiety spiraling out of control, I really appreciate him helping me to be aware of how high or low it is at the beginning and end of the day.  

Tonight while we were out walking the dog, he checked in with me as usual.  He supported my decision to get ready for sleep when we got upstairs and even offered to make me decaffeinated tea to help me settle down for the night.  

Its really nice feeling sleepy before 2AM! 

So, today's reason to smile is having a supportive partner who will make me tea!

Today is International Women's Day ~ My Thoughts + How to Plug In!

Beauty is more than skin deep, and an issue that impacts us all as human beings.  We long to be seen as the beautiful creations we are.  We ought to be treating one another in ways that celebrate each human being's unique beauty.  This world is filled with beautiful people who treat others and are treated by others in truly ugly ways, which is why we need days like International Women's Day.

My contribution to the conversation is a short piece on feminism, which I hope you will read.  Additionally, I encourage you to take part of International Women's Day today, March 8th via links at the bottom of the post!  

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As a self-proclaimed feminist, I embrace today and the message about the importance of gender equality.  I do not understand feminism to be something that is anti-men/ anti-male.  Rather, for me, feminism is the desire to see the end of oppression within human relationships.

I understand patriarchal ways in which society functions to be equally detrimental for women and men.  As a brief example, demands upon men to be the "bread-winners" holds them to standards that are, by and large, completely unreasonable in today's economy.  The expectation that men always go to work can stifle the desires of those fathers who want to be stay-at-home-dads!  

The fact that women across the board are paid less than their male counterparts is inherently problematic.  Especially in our US society where one of the ways in which a human being's worth is determined is by the size of their paycheck, our economy declares that women are less valuable than men.  This is one of many variables that create situations in which women are marginalized in our capitalist economy.  Pair the reality of women with the reality of persons of color and we end up with a situation in which those who are the most vulnerable in our society are women of color.  Even within women's struggle for equality, our struggle is not equal.  It is imperative that women continue to lift one another up, even across political, socio-economic and racial boundaries.  It is only together that we can continue the dialogue.  Action requires communication.  Both require mutual understanding and a willingness to work together toward a mutual goal.  I hope that today is a day in which the complexities of the struggle for equality are lifted to the surface just as the need for equality itself is highlighted across the world.

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I've included lots of logos and links to various ways to connect with today's celebration!  May today be beautiful for you!

Today we celebrate the role of women in our international communities while reminding ourselves and the rest of the world of the need for equality!

#MakeItHappen

#PaintItPurple

PLUS, Tune in for an Amazing Presentation by Emma Watson as part of Celebrating International Womene's Day for a HeForShe and Gender Equality Conversation Live on Facebook!

I hope that you've found a way to plug in, participate, and be inspired to #MakeItHappen; we all need to work toward a greater awareness of gender equality!