FYI-

I now use wordpress to blog about my life and marriage. I don't use this site anymore. If you want to know the new blog site just ask and maybe I'll tell. You won't find it by searching info about me. Peace.

6 Years and beyond of Bliss

Our 6th wedding anniversary and my birthday were once again a deep blessing with my husband! 2016 has been a great year for us so far, I am so thankful! We're definitely looking forward to many many more years together! My husband is my rock! Happy anniversary love! I could go on forever about us and our lives but I am simply too busy so I'll keep this nice and short. :)

Thankful For 5 Years and Beyond...

This year I want to write just how thankful I am for my husband and how happy I am that we are on the same page about God, marriage, family, etc.. Speaking of family, I am truly thankful for his parents and his two sisters, they are all blessings and I am so happy where God has put us in each others lives. Hubby tells me he's just as thankful for my family!

I believe God has a way of working things out for the best (sometimes we don't see it that way) and I am also thankful for the people out there who are constantly thinking about me, Thank you!

This year as always, I've had a wonderful anniversary and birthday celebration since they're only two days apart. My husband loves me and cares for me deeply as I do for him, and I am forever thankful! Here's to a wonderful 5 years and more! Love you always, sweet sweet man! Amen! Thank & Praise God!  Hallelujah!

Parked at a scenic view:

Interests

I know I said I'd be done blogging, but the truth is I am very passionate about helping people lose weight and keeping those pounds off for good. This year I've lost a lot of weight, I am at my thinnest I've ever been and am very happy about it! I updated a new picture of myself on www.aboutvallz.blogspot.com. So I am here to announce that I will be having a new blog in the future. It will be started sometime in January, 2015. I already have a lot of people who said they're interested in following me. I'll post about the meals I eat, and the latest news about what foods are good or bad for you. If you want to be updated on the new blog link I make, let me know!

:)

From THICK to Thin

I have thick hair and it wasn't until in my teens that I discovered hair salons had thinning shears to thin out hair. Thinning out my hair helped relieve what felt like a huge weight off my head from the "so much hair" I have. As a child, I was always told, "You have so much hair," and I still do. But I get it thinned out every couple of months and I love it. Thinning out my hair saves time with drying and styling.

Several years ago I met a hairstylist who I continue to see, she knows exactly how I like my hair cut and styled.  She calls thinning out "texture" or "texturing" and doesn't like to "texture" too much because it can damage hair.

Regardless, she always give me a "texture" when I need one. I've done this for over 15 years and no damage ever, lucky me! If you have thick hair and are tired of it, try getting it thinned out and see if you like the results. If not, the thickness will come back in a month or two.

----4th Anniversary is a Blessing!----

It's been 4 years as of July 10th since Sam and I have been married, and 5 years and 9 months since we've been an official couple! Life with my husband has been a blessing, a very true blessing, and I couldn't of asked for a better marriage. It really does keep getting better and better, just when you think it's at its best! We are so thankful to God for creating our paths to each other!

To celebrate this year we decided to stay home and cook our anniversary meal. This was a team effort, and we always have fun cooking together. I was in charge of warming up the the garlic bread, baking the king crab legs, and boiling the fancy pasta for the fettuccine Alfredo sauce.

After the crab legs were cut down the middle, 

I brushed warmed coconut oil on them and baked them for 10 minutes.

Sam was busy preparing a homemade garlic sauce to fry the baby shrimp in. He was also in charge of warming up the Alfredo sauce. Sam's garlic sauce was so good that we even used what was remaining as a dipping sauce for the bread and crab. 

The preparation and cook time was under half an hour. 

Everything came out fabulous and we filled up pretty fast. I am glad we had leftovers. I wish I had taken a picture of our plates before we ate, but it slipped my mind. I love making meals with my husband, this was a a pleasant evening, and I look forward to a lot more! 

Happy

 4th 

Anniversary 

To
 Us!!!! 

Weight

I've lost a lot of weight recently, and I continue to keep losing. I am happy and healthy. I feel great, and that's the beauty of most weight loss success. ! It's a great feeling and I am glad I can celebrate!! :)

`````Nails`````

I get in the mood to paint my finger and toe nails during the Spring. I just love the pastel and dark nail polish colors to mix and match on this time of year.

I follow Lauren Conrad's blog and remembered she posted about what colors combine best:

Picture found: Here

I recently tried the lavender and purple combo, and loved it! I can't wait to try the other colors.

Give this a try for your mani and pedi and see if you like it. If you're looking for something different or new, try an ombre nail design. You can try what I did by clicking: HERE. 

<< Blush It Up >>

If you have trouble finding the right color of blush for your face,  I have a tip for you to try.  It's about picking the same color of blush on your cheeks that match the color of the inside of your lip/cheek. Using that color is a way to naturally highlight your cheekbones and add a perfect glow.  It's also an easy way to find the right colored blush for your face.

The right one for me has always been by CoverGirl in deep plum:

Deep Plum Cheekers by Covergirl

I really love how naturally this color works for me. I am open to other brands so if you know of one, please share! I don't use the attached brush, instead I buy a contoured  blush brush sold separately at stores. The contoured brush that work best are ones that look like this:

Contoured blush brush

Whether you're new to using blush or have been applying it for years, I learned a great way to apply blush right.

1. Using your contoured  brush, make a check mark stroke starting from the top of your cheekbone and stroking back to your hairline. You may fill in the check mark as needed. This is what I've been doing for years, and it works every time.

It should look like this:

A picture of blush applied right.

This will definitely cover the right area to highlight your cheeks.

Try this way of applying brush and see it works well for you.  I hope these tips will help you find the right color of blush for you face and help you find a better way to apply your blush! Till next time, toodles!

Vallz

Color treated products for moisture!

If your hair is feeling dry lately and need a moisture boost, try Redken Color Extend Shampoo and Conditioner . I learned a tip 6 years ago, that this line is not just for color treated hair!

Redken Color Extend

Redken Color Extend can be used for non colored hair and will make your hair very soft. In fact, when I feel that my hair needs a shine and moisture boost during the dry seasons, I find my Redken Color Extend shampoo/conditioner stash and get results immediately after one use.  I bet you don't expect or haven't seen a hair product give you results in the same day, but I do with all Redken products. What I also love about the Color Extend line is that it brings out my natural colored highlights.

The Color Extend line works amazingly for colored treated or uncolored treated hair because it has extra protection ingredients and conditioners in it.  I hope you try this line for a hair improvement and love it as much as I do!

 If you love this color extend line as much as I do, also try All Soft, That is all for  now, keep your hair soft and shiny!

♦ Fall Season = Fall Looks ♦

It is finally starting to cool down around here. And I've seen makeup colors cool down for the Fall season.

I think it's time to start highlighting my little Latina eyes again because this Fall season is a great time to bring out your eyes and lips with purple, black, and brown colored makeup. I love Milani's baked eye shadows, especially in a dark purple. A purple eye liner definitely looks really pretty and stands out this Fall as in this picture below:

Picture found on: Instagram

Now that it's Fall, it's time to put away my bright nail polish colors. I want to try painting my nails with a bronze, gold, dark brown, and even a plum purple. I really want to try these nail polish colors:

Found this pic on: Milani Facebook page.

I guess there's a photo taken of the singer Rihanna out there with blue lips. I think for Fall, it's better to go with more of the purplish or brown color like this picture below:

Milani Lipsticks. Picture found on their Facebook page.

I love the pictures of the Fall makeup Milani has on their Facebook page.
You can find Milani makeup at Fred Meyer, Walmart, even the Dollar Store at times.  I'd recommend using any brand of makeup for your Fall look.

What I am loving about this Fall Season is that you can try colors from dark cherry to dark berries to brown shimmering bronzes.

My beauty tip for Fall is to: Go darker with your makeup and feel prettier!

Until the next beauty tip, Xoxo!

Vallz!

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

`*` 3rd Anniversary Is A Charm! `*`

The only thing that mattered to me on our 3rd year wedding anniversary (July 10th) was to spend the day with my amazing husband. Who by the way, went all out anyway for the occasion!

First of all, my husband is great, and I am not exaggerating.  Not only does he cook for me a lot, he always throws out the garbage, helps me fold the laundry, and he'll empty the dishwasher a few times, etc, etc!!. :) All these little things add up and shows me he cares. I have a real handsome superman in my home!

Going back to cooking, he wanted to make us a delicious anniversary dinner. He went through a cookbook and found a few items, and then took off to the grocery stores to get ingredients.

Portabella Sausage-Stuffed Mushrooms with Asiago Cheese

Our first course consisted of Portabella Sausage-Stuffed Mushroom Appetizers. I was at work when he was preparing and cooking these, so I wasn't able to help out. They were very scrumptious though! We both love mushrooms and this just hit the spot.

As he was making the stuffed mushrooms he was also preparing to make the 2nd course of Chicken Empanadas. He loves his empanadas! I helped him stuff and fold them. I didn't want him to do all the work. They came out so cute and great tasting!

Chicken Empanadas for our 2nd course.

Chili-Rubbed Shrimp served with lemon wedges.

And  for our last course, we had Chili-Rubbed Shrimp. My husband peeled them and veined them, I made the chili powder mix and fried them in it. They were the perfect end to a marvelous evening meal! I am glad I was able to step in and help with the food preparations for course 2 and 3, that's the beauty of our relationship, team work! ;)

Chicken Empanadas and Chili-Rubbed Shrimp

My husband had one more surprise up his sleeve. He bought me really cute jewelry. He found a bracelet that actually fit my thin wrist and he found me cute earrings to go with it. I can't wait to wear them both this weekend!

My husband and I had a charming, elegant, and perfect celebration night. I could not ask for a better husband!

<><> Red HOT <><>

Pic from: Here

I've always wanted to buy and try on a red colored lipstick. And if wasn't for my fashion icon,  Lauren Conrad, for always talking about red lipstick this year and last, I am not so sure I would of even bought one.

I  bought a red lipstick at Walmart a week or two ago.  I was debating on two colors from the brand Wet n Wild, one was a slightly bright red and the other one looked like a ruby red. I decided on the bright red and immediately tried it on once I was home. It turned out to be more of a coral looking red on me, but I actually love it.

I'll probably get the ruby red looking lipstick next time I shop for lipstick, but for now, my one and only red lipstick is here to stay! Lauren Conrad always suggests that red lipstick will not go out of style. Let's hope not!

A lot of celebrities sport a red lipstick, so if you wan't to be bold and get one, try a few different red shades and find one that looks best to you. I am sure you'll find one you love! Red lipstick might not be for everyone, but it sure is fun to dress up with.
I started with putting on my favorite BB Cream on my face, then I used the best foundation I've ever tried from the Hard Candy Brand for my foundation. Next, I highlighted my eyes underneath with an aqua blue to make them *Stand Out*, I also put on some plum colored blush, and finished with white and purple eye shadows.

I also completed my hair look with my amazing diamond shining bright hair gloss spray.

Enjoy ;)

Xoxo,

Vallz!