My 5-Minute Makeup Routine

I've never been one to wear or own a huge amount of makeup. This is because I have no idea what I am doing when it comes to putting it on, so shopping for makeup is completely out of my comfort zone. I also prefer to look like I'm not wearing a lot of makeup as I have this thing where I think everyone is staring at me if I AM wearing makeup. I know, I have issues!

That being said, I do like making my skin look more even toned, and making my eyes pop and not look so tired #momlife. Before I discovered Beautycounter, I hadn't bought new makeup in years. Actually, I can tell you exactly when I bought new make-up - it was a few months after Sully was born and I had a whole bunch of Shoppers Optimum points to redeem. I made my mom go with me, and I had a quick makeover done and then I went home with all new makeup. Some of it I barely used, but a few pieces became part of my daily routine. Anyway, clearly I've been due for new makeup!

As I started to become more and more aware of what I was putting onto my body, I knew I needed to make better choices when it came to my makeup. When you think about which products are sitting on your skin for the most amount of time, makeup is right up there at the top of the list. And unfortunately, most makeup out there isn't tested for heavy metals as it's not required. Enter Beautycounter: when I first ordered makeup from them, I started with the Tint Skin (foundation) and mascara. It wasn't long before I added in blush, bronzer, an eyebrow pencil, and lip gloss. Of course, most days I just wear the tint skin and mascara, and if I'm staying home, just a little bit of mascara. But I love that I know just have a handful of safe, high-performing makeup products for when I do need them.

Yesterday, Beautycounter revealed their 5-Minute Face, which will give you effortless beauty with just 6 products (for a stinkin' deal I must add!). I've never really timed how long it takes me to put my makeup on so yesterday I thought I would and I can say it takes even less, as long as no little humans are interrupting you.

Here's my before and after. I took the photo in the same light and didn't edit it at all. I know the difference isn't that drastic in the photos, I have a lot of freckles in the summer which I don't try to cover up, and to be honest, for a few months now, I have been having the best skin ever (no breakouts, not a lot of red patches, no dryness). But I love how I look just a little more even skin-toned, and how my eyes pop.

Here are the products used to create your 5-Minute Face:

1. Tint Skin Hydrating Foundation (I'm wearing porcelain)
2. Touchup Skin Concealer Pen
3. Eyebrow Pencil (I'm wearing light)
4. Mascara (I'm wearing volumizing)
5. Blush (I'm wearing Bloom/Tulip)
6. Lip Gloss (I'm wearing Bare Shimmer)

It's that easy! I adore Beautycounter's Tint Skin because it's moisturizing and it provides coverage without looking like I slathered foundation all over my face. It blends SO well. You can build additional coverage by layering if needed. The concealer pen is awesome for brightening up the area under your eyes and covering up any blemishes. (I didn't include one in the photos because I don't actually own one yet. Yet!).

Two new mascara's were also revealed yesterday: a reformulated lengthening mascara as well as a volumizing one (it's amazing!). I'm wearing the volumizing one in the after photo. I'm not a huge lip gloss wearer because I'm always kissing boo-boo's around here, but my favourite is Bare Shimmer which provides just a hint of colour and feels so nice when it's on.

And that's it. All you need is five minutes and you will feel refreshed and way more pulled together. It's pretty much impossible that my hair, outfit, and makeup are all done on the same day, and while just-washed hair always makes me feel the most pulled together, a little bit of makeup definitely makes me feel like I have my sh*t together. And 5 minutes to pull it off is so doable! Maybe you like rummaging through a makeup bag or drawer, but I prefer a more streamlined approach. Too many choices gives me anxiety and I then start to doubt my makeup application abilities.

So my friends, I say this with pure love for you and your skin, but there is no better time than now to breakup with your makeup. No one's perfect, but when we know better we do better. Even just making small changes gradually will make a difference! I'd love to chat safer beauty if you have any questions! :)


Tell me: what's your current makeup routine look like?



*affiliate links have not been used, but I am a consultant with Beautycounter, so should you purchase something under my account, I would receive a commission. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Emmeline: 6 Months

Oh Emmy....I should be writing up your 7 month update, but here I am, writing your 6th an entire month late! Just know, I did in fact take the photos on the day you turned 6 months! But finding time to sit down and write has been challenging lately. I just want to spend all my time with you and your brother! :)

So what's new in your sixth month? Well, you're still our little peanut - you had your immunizations on your 6th month birthday and weighed in at 12lbs 3oz. You're trucking along on your own curve and we aren't worried at all about how petite you are. Secretly (or not so secretly), I love that you are tiny as it lets me enjoy the baby phase for that much longer. It also makes it a lot easier to hold you when I'm trying to do things around the house, or wear you in the ring sling when we are shopping. You're still wearing a mix of 0-3 month and 3-6 month clothing, depending on brand and what it is (onesies seem to fit forever in 0-3 month). You're still also wearing size 1 diapers - I tried size 2, but they just seemed way too big, so we will wait on moving up for now.

Not much has changed in the sleep department. You still have a long nap 2-3x per day, depending on how on the go we are that given day. The car usually puts you right out, but you most often wake up as soon as we get to wherever it is we are going. I thought by now I'd be trying you in your crib at night, but I haven't been able to bring myself to do it! You seem so little and I just love having you sleep beside me. Plus, it makes nighttime feeds so easy! You're also our last baby and I know these days of sleeping together are limited, and since you still are content to sleep in your Dockatot at night, I shall let you be.

We will be starting solids with you this month, and up until now, you're still exclusively breastfed. Thankfully, we did finally find a bottle that you love so that's been handy for when I need to be away for more than a few hours.

You've started rolling over all the time, but you get SO mad when you roll onto your tummy. It's kind of funny and sad at the same time. You are able to roll from tummy to back as well, but I think you get too upset to even try and fix the situation you got yourself into in the first place! We're working on sitting up though, which you enjoy since you can see more of what's going on around you. We've started putting you in the jolly jumper as well, but you just kind of hang out in it and haven't caught on to the jumping part of it. Your tolerance for being in it and the jumperoo are limited though!

I find myself thinking back to this time a year ago, when you were growing inside of me and it's hard to believe how fast time goes. I know that's the most cliche saying you will ever hear, but that's because it's the truth. A year ago, I had no idea who was inside of me, what little person would join our family and complete it, and now that you are here, I am thankful every day for you and the joy and love you bring all of us! Just the sight of you lights up my mood, and watching you and your brother interact more and more is the best thing in the world.

Happy Half Birthday, Emmy!

xoxo
Mommy


*affliate links have been used

Camping in the Kootenay Plains

{the view from our campsite}

The other weekend (Father's Day weekend), we ventured out on our first camping trip of the year! We really didn't have any plans to camp in June, but when my best friend Karen invited us to join her family and some others at a group site, we figured why not! Karen and her family camp a lot, but we've never been able to join them before. I knew it would be a blast for Sully to have other kids to play with during the day, and the beauty of camping with your friend who has a trailer is chances are good that if you forget something, they will have it!

We packed up Friday morning and made the 3.5 hour drive north west of us to the Calvacade Group campsite in the Kootenay Plains. For local folks, this is about 65km west of Nordegg. The drive for us was beautiful, as it took as through the mountains up towards and through the Banff and Lake Louise area. I've never camped in a group site before, so I really had no idea what to expect. All I knew was that the sites were unserviced (not an issue for us since we tent it anyway) and no running water, so pit toilets only. I called ahead to make sure that the walk from our site to the closest outhouse wasn't too far and was told that each site had it's own outhouse.

When we arrived, I was taken aback by how beautiful the area was. Nestled in amongst the mountains, you would never expect the area to be a campsite. There were 8 sites and only 3 were booked for the weekend. But each site was so large that even if you had neighbours, you would barely notice. Our site in particular, also had a large outdoor shelter, complete with a wood burning stove and picnic tables in case weather took a turn for the worse. Pretty cool! Firewood was also included in the cost of camping which was great as we didn't have to haul any along with us.

We arrived around 4pm, quickly set up camp and then spent the evening cooking, eating and drinking, while the kids and Karen's dog ran around and played. So much open space for the kids! A couple sets of friends weren't able to make it after all, so it was just us, Karen's family and Karen's husband's Aunt and Uncle. It was great spending the weekend with my best friend and watching our kids play so well together.

As for night time - I'm not going to lie. It was COLD. I wasn't really thinking about how early in the year it was, so I was not prepared to be so cold at night! I definitely regretted taking my leggings out of my duffel bag at the last minute! Emmy was a trooper though and napped and slept great! Karen leant us a travel sized playpen for using in the tent, and I brought along her Dockatot. At whatever time she would wake up to eat in the middle of the night, I would just bring her into bed where I kept her till morning.

I was worried about how Sully would take going to the washroom in a pit toilet, but he thought they were totally funny and awesome! He couldn't get over the fact that he was peeing into a big hole and that there was no handle to flush. Thank goodness he thought it was a novelty to use them! And I have to say, the outhouses at the campground were spotless and maintained daily, which made using them that much easier.

I already feel like the rest of the summer weekends are filling up quick, so I'm so glad we made it out once already to camp. We do plan to keep the rest of our camping trips this summer closer to home, but we definitely plan to return to this place again in the future!

{the coolest 6 year old I know}

Do you like to camp? Where's the best place you've every camped?

Tent or trailer? :)