Lives can be forever changed in a matter of seconds...cherish every minute with your loved ones, never leave the house angry, and be thankful everyday for what you have.
The holidays remind me of the emptiness left behind by my loved ones that have already gone up to heaven. I wish I wasn't baking my grandmother's cookies, but that she was. I wish I wasn't hosting Christmas, but my aunt and uncle were.
Just a small reminder today to cherish every moment you have with the people you love, for you never know what tomorrow may bring. It saddens me that some of my closest family will never know my husband, or hold my future children in their arms. Life can take some very unexpected turns, and you will never be prepared for it, but you can hold tight the moments you have today.
Happy Holidays everyone!
xoxo
~Ali
with my Godmother at my 25th birthday bash
My Aunt Sandy came to see my off to my first high school dance that I had a date too! FZS Homecoming 1998
I posted a couple of months ago that it was my puppy's first birthday on 10.10.2011. My wonderfully talented photographer husband took some photos from the puppy party that night, and I finally begged him to edit one for me. So here is one photo from the birthday girl with her birthday cake...enjoy (I know she did!).
My first doggie turns 6 years old today, and it also happens to be our 6 month wedding anniversary!
Happy Birthday Rusty! I still remember the day I picked him up from the breeder...he was so frightened! The breeder lived in a very small town on the Missouri-Arkansas border, and I made the 4 hour drive down there for my little puppy. On the drive home, the lil guy hid underneath my passenger car seat the whole way back to St. Louis. Here's a pic of the day I met my little Rus:
I don't think I gave him a haircutt until after his first birthday...can you tell from these pics from his very first birthday?
We spent the evening tonight at my mom's house, who also has 2 dogs, along with my sister who has a dog as well. We had a little puppy birthday party, and us people enjoyed a family dinner together. Enjoy some pics of my little Rusty throughout the years!
Some of you might remember my beautiful bride, Maggie Crane, that I had the pleasure of working with on 9-10-11. Maggie is a news reporter for one of our local television stations here in St. Louis. One day during the first week of November, I received a phone call from the producer of a TV show called "Great Day St. Louis" that is aired on that same station. The producer saw Maggie's wedding pics, and asked who had done her makeup. I can't thank Maggie enough for allowing me to be such a special part of her big day....I had no idea the opportunities it would lead to!
BIG thanks to Jeremy at Your Story Studios for sharing his images with me!
photo by www.ysstudios.com
So on the morning of November 10th, I made my way downtown St. Louis to the KMOV station for the live taping of the show. Yes, I said live taping. My topic was to be "how to look great in the morning". I was SO nervous, you have no idea!!! I'm so glad Keith came with me to snap some behind the scenes shots, he really helped to calm my nerves, even if he couldn't stay until my actual time slot. I kept trying to memorize what I wanted to say about each tip that I was going to give, which was making me more nervous, as I was afraid I would slip up and say something silly. I tend to get major mental freezes when I'm put on the spot or nervous. Keith gave me the best advice when he told me that I know exactly what I'm talking about, and to just go out there and be myself. So, this is what happened:
Ok, so you want to know more about what I said, so here's the breakdown:
1. Drink plenty of water! Yesterday alone, I drank over 2 liters of water! Not to brag, but I often get compliments on my skin...and I really think a lot of that has to do with the amount of water I consume. Water can help to flush the toxins out of your cells and out of our body. So drink up! My choice of drink happens to be Smart Water, which is enhanced with electrolytes as well (which help your cells function properly, and prevent water loss!).
2. Mystic Tan in a bottle: I have gotten numerous inquiries on this product!!! I am very bad to my skin, in that I do frequent tanning beds (who doesn't feel better with a little color?!). But, I NEVER tan my face....ever. So, in order to balance out the difference between my face and the rest of my body, I often spray tan at home. These days, I can use my airbrush machine for that, but prior to having my makeup business, I used the Mystic Tan brand aerosol spray tan. It is awesome! The spray goes on evenly, and there is not one hint of Snookie-like results at all. I usually just type it into my Google search bar, and shop for online merchants with the best pricing. My local tanning salon currently sells the product as well. It works best when combined with a three step process; an accelerator base lotion, the spray tan itself, and then a tinted moisturizer to prolong your tan. All can be found online, and all are part of the Mystic Tan brand. I usually let it dry about ten minutes if I will be applying makeup over it, but I found that the best results usually come when applying it at night right before bed. In the morning, just splash your face with water to remove the excess color, and you will be left with a beautiful, glowing tan!
If you are in a hurry and don't have time for the spray tan, a bronzer can also do wonders (but will melt off in our heat and humidity in the summer, which is why I much prefer the more semi-permanent spray tan). I put a powder bronzer on over my foundation, and my product of choice is the CARGO blu_ray High Definition bronzer. You can find it online at Sephora.com, or again, just try a Google search!
3. SPF Moisturizer: Another must in your beauty regime! Again, I thank my nice complexion to keeping the rays off my face. Bonus if you get one with either titanium dioxide or zinc oxide, as those lotions are the only ones that truley keep the rays off your skin (I have to use those special lotions during my laser hair removal treatments, as they only recommend products with those ingredients as well!). And just keeping your skin moisturized will give it that healthy glow that we all seek.
4. Bright lipsticks: Ahhhh, now on to makeup! I am a huge fan of the hot pink and bright red lipsticks that are trending right now. NARS makes a wonderful product, that has awesome staying capabilities when paired with Makeup Forever's lip liner. Here some color combo's that I'm rocking this season:
(hot pink): Make Up For Ever Aqua Lip liner in 16C, paired with NARS Pure Matte Lipstick in Carthage (my lip color combo for my wedding date!)
(hot pink): Same liner, paired with MAC Pro Longwear Lipcreme in Love Forever! Both this and the previous color combo can be paired with Neutrogena's MoistureShine gloss in Nutri Berry (but you lose some of that staying power when a gloss is applied).
(red): Make Up For Ever Aqua Lip liner in 8C, paired with NARS Pure Matte Lipstick in Vesuvio.
(lighter pink, not so vibrant): MAC Cremestick Liner in Pink Treat, paired with MAC Viva Glam Gaga 1, and then Neutrogena MoistureShine gloss in Nutri Berry on top. Can do the NARS lip gloss (instead of the Neutrogena) in Super Orgasm if you want to keep it a more pale pink color.
(red): Revlon ColorStay lip liner in Red, paired with Clinique's Different Lipstick in Rose Taffy.
Whenever applying a lip liner, it helps to prolong the color if you also fill your lips in with the liner prior to applying the lipstick. I typically purchase the NARS and Make Up For Ever products from Sephora, MAC from my rock star friends who work at Macy's in Chesterfield Mall, Clinique from a department store or Sephora, and the Neutrogena and Revlon from CVS.
5. Chalk (for hair): My super power for teased hair! I love this product for making that voluminous, big hair that I adore so much. It can also be used as a dry shampoo, but only use it one day! This product will last for multiple days, I kid you not! If you were to try to apply it a subsequent day, you won't like the outcome (I promise). You may have heard me say that I only wash my hair every 4 days, and that's no joke....today I've actually pushed it to day 5, as I was tired this morning and wanted to sleep in a little bit more, lol! :P The actual product is called Lakme K.Style Chalk Hottest Matt powder, and can be purchased on Amazon.com, or again by using your Google friend.
6. Hair Accessories: Ok, so on days like today where I've gone 5 days without washing my hair, I might need to start getting creative. Yes, my bangs may be pulled back, and yes, my hair is up in a messy bun....BUT, I will dress up my dirty hair with either a cute headband (perhaps with a bow on it, or some flower or other garnishment) or decorated bobby pins to accessorize the messy bun. Or if I opt for a side braid, I can also incorporate either a headband or an accessorized ponytail holder. You get the point...hair that's thrown up and out of the way to disguise itself can be dressed up to look cute! Forever 21 is a great place to shop for cheap hair accessories!
I hope that covered everything! Please let me know if I left anything out!
