In my last post I wrote about a feeling of wanderlust and I decided that 2013 would be a year of travel. Thankfully it seems that wish is coming true.

 I've already traveled to one of my favorite places, SEATTLE. I took off on a long road trip along with my awesome cousin Stephanie and one of my favorite adventure buddies, Cassie.

             Cassafrass, Steph and Muah

We travelled to Renton to see my Aunt Mel and Uncle Steve (funniest and sweetest people I know). Love them so much!

Explored the undergrounds of Seattle.

and ferried around the San Juan Islands. (ferried sounds like we frolicked in fields or something... which we did, naturally.)

next on the adventure list: 

Buffalo NY, Palmyra NY, BOSTON and

 the ATLANTIC OCEAN, all of which I have NEVER seen.  

A Year in Review

Fun adventures were had in the year 2012

(State Fair, My first ever trip out to Antelope Island, Experiencing Salt Lake's new City Creek Mall, Family Lagoon day, and a Bees Game)

Began the years adventures with a trip to California to visit Zach and Sarah. Trip also included a rainy day in Disneyland and a day long marathon of The Walking Dead.

Lot's of time spent with my Nieces and Nephews, which I love! A weekend at the Lake is always something I look forward to. 

 Flew into Denver and spent the day with Sarah riding bikes around downtown. Followed by a week long work-getaway in Cheyenne, WY.

I said, "Better late than never" and went for it. BRACES!

Mourned the loss of my car, Lexi. Replaced her with a shiny Scion tc.

Welcomed three new babies into the Averett/Barton Clan.

 Lana in June, Channing in October and Van came in December. 

Here's to many more adventures in 2013! I have a bad case of wanderlust, who knows where it'll take me. 

If I've been a weee-bit absent over here it's because I've been focusing on some goals over at another blog called
Shedding the Rolls. 

as in belly rolls -gross, i know- haha

So if you'd like to follow me, head on over for some inspiration

 or to just.. you know, support me :) 

 I thought I would put some of my day-dreams on paper for everyone to see.

 -am i the only one that day-dreams about clothes?- 

-I don't think so-

- if for some crazy reason you don't you need to start using your imagination-

-because it's fun-

-ok i'm done. feast your eyes upon my dream closet-

 I love this canary colored shirt and those shoes, yes please!

I love these colors together and again THE SHOES!

Probably my favorite of the three. I love dresses. I actually wear skirts and dresses more than pants. Right now most of my pants are too small anyway -but not for long- so it's a good thing I like dresses so much. 

Alrighty there you have it, a few of my day-dream outfits. All were found on either modbcloth.com or shoprushe.com. Two of the most ah-mazing websites for cute clothes... in my opinion. 

 For more day-dreams follow me on Pinterest. 

First Memory

Memories are something I cherish. It is through them that I may visit sunny afternoons while in actuality it’s a cold snowy night in January. It is through them that I may remember happy game nights with my family. Moments where you laughed so hard you were sure abs were forming from the workout you just gave them. People and situations may change but memories don't. It is through them that I see, hear and smell my mom.

When I think back as far as my mind will stretch I have a memory of soft blankets and white wooden bars in front of my eyes. Standing up in my crib I remember seeing my oldest brother Deven walk into the room. I remember him getting me ready for the day. My toddler belly pushed out, he was unable to button my denim shorts. “Suck it in, suck it in” he told me as he patted my stomach. Shirt on, shorts buttoned we walked through the house and out the door to a sunlit summer morning.

A couple of days ago I was looking through my camera when I came upon a picture of my oldest nephew Triston and niece, his baby sister, Brin. Instantly that twenty-one year old memory came flooding into the foremost part of my mind.

A memory of a sweet older brother taking good care of his baby sister. 

If you really knew me

Jumping on the bandwagon. I got the idea from a few of my favorite blogs 

(Em, Raven, Megan, Jenni)

If you really knew me...

...you'd know that I would rather do almost anything besides going bowling. 

...you'd know that I love anything small, fluffy and cuddly. Like Golden Retriever puppies, little duckies and cute kitties. 

... you'd know that I am extremely claustrophobic. I avoid elevators, underground parking garages and Disneyland rides at all cost. It's completely sad and it makes me very frustrated at times. I think the hardest thing is I've never met anyone that shares this fear, who is at the same level as me. 

...you'd know that I hate the sound of dry skin rubbed against fabric. Whenever I hear this sound a spasm runs up my spine causing me to cringe and do a weird seizure like head roll. 

  ...you'd know that I am very emotional. If I'm talking about anything serious, spiritual or family related (especially anything relating to my mom) I get that air restricting lump in the back of my throat. A warning sign letting me know that tears are fast approaching. 

...you'd know that I have the strangest looking feet. I'd say they are turtle cute... so ugly they're somehow cute. 

...you'd know that I love to golf.. but just a few holes. Mostly I like to drive the cart and watch my dad or brothers play.

...you'd know that I love the four seasons. I don't think I'd be happy living anywhere where Summer Fall Winter Spring don't occur.

...you'd know that I am the only girl in my family and that I'm extremely close with my older brothers. I'm the most 'me' when I'm with them, I would tell them anything.


...you'd know that I have a definite personal bubble... I don't like to hug people I don't know very well and if you stand too close to me while talking I'll usually step back, as slyly as possible so as to not hurt your feelings. I'm not heartless.

...you'd know that in the Summer time I absolutely love lying on the grass on a warm night, watching the stars.

...you'd know that if it were socially acceptable I would always be barefoot.

...you'd know that I love my 5 nieces and 5 nephews and I'm always vying for the best aunt ever award.

...you'd know I'm very spontaneous and easy going. I love trips on a whim and a good adventure.

and lastly

... you'd know that I love TV.. I think I get this from my Grandma Averett. When I was little I would visit my Grandma's house and go strait to the satellite TV. There were hundreds of channels. .. it was the coolest! Nickelodeon, Are You Afraid of The Dark, and as many Hey Arnold episodes as my heart desired.

Face It: Part II

What seems like ages ago I posted about my acne troubles. Looking back I still feel very vulnerable.. that photo was atrocious haha. I really want to thank all who contributed advice. It's been 9 months and I'm finally seeing a difference. It was a long process and in the end I kind of made a full circle.

After two months of using an Aveda treatment I decided it was not working for my skin so I switched to a less expensive and more convenient approach. I tried Clean&Clear which you can purchase at any grocery store. I used this product for about 5 months. I saw some but very little improvement. 

 I still wasn't happy and after about 7 months of awful acne I made the decision to go back to Proactive. I saw a definite improvement within the first month but my face was never completely clear. So I decided to change makeups. My best friend Shannon has been using bareMinerals makeup for as long as I can remember and she had only good things to say about the line. I decided to give it a try. A small investment later and I had my starter kit. 

With bareMinerals you have three powders. First being your all over coverage, second your warmth and third is your mineral veil. No liquid pore clogging concealers, just mineral powder. 

I absolutely love this makeup! It's so natural looking  and very light on the skin, yet I still feel like I have all over coverage. It really covers those red splotchy spots on my face and any pimple that I might have. 

I've seen vast improvements to my skin tone and clarity. 

In the end I'm not saving money like if I were to buy Clean&Clear or a drug store type treatment but I guess you get what you pay for. 

For convenience purposes and to save money on both bareMinerals and Proactive I'll be ordering online. Great deals can be found on sights like Amazon and Ebay. 

If there are others out there who are battling with acne I strongly recommend bareMinerals makeup as well as Proactive. 

July 25

 October 24

Both photos are sans makeup. 

Please excuse my bushy eyebrows in the latest one.