I'm Janine, wife to Donny and mama to Sebastian (age 18 months). We live (with our annoying dog) in a simple, cozy apartment in Portland, Oregon, where we are working on building our home and our lives with style. I believe in buying secondhand, in basic and natural products, and in living fabulously on any budget. More about us.
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♥ Upcoming makeover. It’s that time of year! I’ve been consulting with my best friend/hair stylist to come up with my perfect look for spring. I’ve always loved shaking up my style every few months, and it’s even more exciting since having my son and inevitably losing a lot of ‘me’ time. I am thinking of doing a long, clean bob with heavy bangs. I am also working out a way to add a burst of color to my hair, possibly a purple like this for my tips.
I was really excited to finally have my hair long, and I LOVE a good top knot, but I just don’t think it’s the most flattering on me. When will I learn to just stick to my signature look?
♥ Fabulous sunnies. Sunglasses are always on my love list. These Joe Fresh Retro-Inspired Sunglasses (top right) are at the top of my wish list right now, as well as these cat-eye and wayfarer style sunnies by Rebecca Minkoff. I typically wear contacts all spring/summer, but I’m considering a pair of prescription sunnies from Glasses USA – Right now you can get a complete pair starting at just $67!
♥ Baby playdates. *meltdowns not shown* A friend met us at the park last weekend so that our toddlers could play together for the first time. Hopefully we’ll be seeing a lot more of them – Our kids are just three months apart and his mom and I share a fair amount of hobbies and values. That’s a rarity (unfortunately), especially among other young moms I’ve met.
♥ Toddler walks. Sebastian has been rejecting his stroller lately, demanding to walk on his own. It’s less convenient than pushing him but I love that he’d prefer to be active! Thankfully, he’s great about staying right with us and is easily re-directed if necessary. Yesterday evening he was tired enough to sit in the stroller, and he and I took a quick walk to a nearby park. On the way we picked up some nature items to feel and inspect, including a dandelion and a pine cone. The park we visited is used mainly for live music and other events, no playground equipment, so we ran around looking at structures, picking up rocks, etc.
Inspecting a dandelion and a pinecone on our walk – This is the face he makes when you tell him to “Say cheese!”
Disapproving of the No Skateboarding sign
♥ Having baby soap and alphabet books in my bathroom. More and more, the addition of Sebastian’s stuff to our home makes me happy and fulfilled, and just makes our apartment feel cozier and more full of life.
♥ Rearranging our living room this week has made the space MUCH more conducive to playing and hanging out as a family. There has been lots of couch-jumping and father-son guitar playing lately.
♥ Makeup tutorials. This list of 10 Best YouTube Makeup Tutorials covers all of the basics – the perfect red lip, winged eyeliner, and face contouring. Sebastian likes to watch me put on my makeup, so I can get away with spending a reasonable amount of time on it. (Seb frequently asks for the Pretty Powerful palette
♥ Good toddler sleep. Not perfect, but good enough that I’m not worried about night-weaning anymore – His sleep is naturally improving. Best of all, once he’s stopped actively nursing and is mostly-asleep, I’m able to say, “Time to be all done and go night-night,” and most of the time he’ll unlatch and roll over with no fuss. I can even give him a quick kiss, say goodnight and just walk out of the room. That’s a huge step forward from having to sneak my nipple out of his mouth and covertly tiptoe away!
♥ This week Donny is loving Sebastian’s increased balance and interest in skateboarding. He pulls his dad’s skateboard out of the hall closet often and on carpet he can stand on the board unassisted. He can maintain his own balance as Daddy helps him skate around the apartment and is learning to shift his weight when one end is popped up. Seb also puts on his helmet and sits on his tricycle (which is currently parked in the kitchen) a few times per day, although he hasn’t quite mastered the concept of pedaling yet.
A close friend and I have been talking about going to see a psychic for awhile now. The only deterrent thus far has been pricing. There is a local medium we wanted to see but her rates are much higher than I’m comfortable with, especially as an admitted nonbeliever. I have another friend who is very into astrology, tarot cards and palm reading. She definitely impresses a lot of people! Although some of her ‘insights’ surprise me, I’m far from genuinely convinced. I would be interested in seeing how professional psychics vary in their process, knowing almost nothing about me to begin with. If nothing else, psychics are experts in reading people. I’d be nervous but mostly excited to have an expert try to read me!
I am partially afraid that a psychic would tell me things I don’t want to hear, but I would love to receive personalized advice regarding my future. Sometimes a great horoscope or fortune cookie is enough to change your day and give you the insight you’re looking for – I imagine a psychic would provide a similarly uplifting experience. I’d like to see what a psychic has to say based strictly on their first impression of me – What sort of vibes am I putting out there?
Spirit Now advertises free psychic chat for the first five minutes. You have to create a profile, but it doesn’t appear that you have to enter a credit card to enjoy your five minute trial. Five minutes isn’t very long, but it must be pretty good if they’re banking on that short time span to get you hooked! I love that they have an online chat option along with a traditional psychic phone service – Great for if you’re slightly embarrassed about the whole thing or just a little shy.
Have you ever been to a psychic? If so, was it worth the money?
I won a canister of CLEAN+GREEN Furniture Refresher through a giveaway several months ago. I am in no way contracted to write this review – It’s just a great product!
CLEAN+GREEN Furniture Refresher is hands-down the best solution I have found for pet and other odors in carpets and furniture. Years ago (before I knew better), I used Resolve and other highly chemical (toxic as hell) cleaners to remove stains and nasty smells around my home. When we started making better choices, I switched to vinegar, along with sprinkling the area with baking soda and vacuuming up later. This method was pretty effective but didn’t always completely remove odors. And it was a pain in the ass. Now with a toddler running around, I would have a hard time letting baking soda sit on any area without it being stepped in and tracked all over.
Luckily, I came across CLEAN+GREEN Furniture Refresher Odor Eliminator & Cleaner, which has been a lifesaver. Dog messes gross me out like none other and this Refresher has really curbed my anxiety around cleaning up the (fortunately very rare) dog accident. Less rare are baby messes. Our apartment is almost entirely carpeted and we are working on potty training, which means a lot of diaper-free time, which means a lot of pee on the carpet! Today we had a diaper leak on the couch, which prompted this post. I simply dabbed the area with a damp rag, then sprayed with the can of CLEAN+GREEN. A couple hours later and I can literally stick my nose in the spot without smelling a trace of pee. It’s fabulous!
If you have kids or pets, I highly recommend keeping one or more products by CLEAN+GREEN on hand. The Furniture Refresher sells for $10 and they have free shipping going on right now. Along with the Furniture Refresher, they have products for hard wood, cars, and even a de-skunk dog wash. Products are designed to be safe around kids and pets, so it’s no big deal when Sebastian carries the can around “spraying” the room. It’s also no biggie when Sebastian and/or Rufio inevitably plop themselves down in the exact spot I just finished deodorizing.
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