Benefit Roller Lash - My New Mascara Obsession!

Ok readers, I've got a new mascara obsession! It's called Roller Lash and it's awesome. I'm a huge fan of all things Benefit and their newest mascara does not disappoint. The official launch date of this mascara is February 27th, but thanks to Ulta I was lucky enough to get my hands on it early. 

This is by far the best everyday mascara and just what I've been looking for - remember the ones I tried here?! I would definitely turn to another mascara to va va voom it up a little for nights out on the town, but I'm not kidding when I say this is the best for your daily routine. 

When I first opened it, I wasn't super in love with tiny little brush, but did love how it came out without a single glop or clump. Then I started using it and realized that the tiny little brush is the best part! It separated every single lash and added such volume without being over the top or spidery. 

I felt so awake (which is saying a lot considering I had been up since 3am and had the pleasure of dealing with pipes that burst, woof). The brush does a great job curling too, which of course it should per the name. The bristles were fashioned after the old school Velcro rollers and sure do grip, grab and curl your lashes!

So, what do you think? Will you give it a try? What's your favorite Benefit product?

My Very First Baby Shower!

The other weekend I took advantage of the last weekend that I was approved to travel and hopped on a short plane ride down to my hometown of Greenville, SC for my very first baby shower!

My Mom, Nana and two awesome previous neighbors/family friends threw this shower and everything from the decor to food and company was just so much fun. 

After everyone arrived, we all sat down for a nice lunch and cupcakes!

Since I flew, my Mom had most people send gifts straight to our house, but it was fun to open the ones people brought as well. Luckily my Dad and sister were coming up the weekend after the shower, so they brought the in-person gifts up with them.

I had a hard time deciding what to wear and honestly forgot to pick something out until right before I went to pack. This outfit I wore is actually all regular Target and I loved it, although I'm thinking something actual maternity may have photographed better :). 

The trip was way too short, but it was so special to spend this time with everyone and celebrate baby girl! So crazy that the countdown is ON y'all, we're now in our 30s, with only 9 weeks to go, eek!

Rose & Valentine Bachelor Viewing Party

Tis the season of LOVE y'all! And what better way to celebrate this upcoming Valentine's Day than with a good 'ol girls night including roses, sweet (and savory) treats, wine and The Bachelor! 

When looking for roses, there's no better place to turn than ProFlowers who is actually the official floral partner of The Bachelor! To get your own red roses, just like the ones that you see on the show, check out their Bachelor Collection here. Oh and you still have a tiny window of time to get them to your valentine by this Saturday too!

I was so excited to receive two of their Bachelor Bouquets and super yummy organic snacks from Cherry Moon Farms via ProFlowers for our viewing party this week!

All of the girls pitched in and brought snacks for the night too, I was just overwhelmed at the homemade goodness on the table. Not to mention the roses, aren't these just gorgeous!

By the way, do you see how lovely the three photos above are?! My friend Tory is taking a photography class and was gracious enough to share the above with us. What a difference between her super nice photos and ones from my iPhone, ha!

Here are some other fun pics from the night...

Oh and yes, you did see that right, there were heart shaped pizzas above! Oh and did you see the beautiful homemade cupcakes too?!

All in all it was an amazing night filled with laughter and full bellies! 

Check out our other Bachelor viewing parties here and here.

Happy Valentine's Day readers! How are you celebrating this year?

Ombre Real Strawberry & Champagne Cake

It's no secret I love pink, champagne and all things sweet, so I was super excited to make this cake for the "His and Hers" couples shower we threw our friends. You can see all the details from the shower here and as you can guess, this was on the "Hers" side of the dessert table and it was delish.

Did I mention it's also PERFECT for Valentine's Day?!

It's been awhile since I turned on my great-grandmothers Kitchen Aid and it was so nice to get back to baking!

I pulled together this cake from a few different recipes to fit my timeframe and what I had on hand. I found the frosting recipe from Paula Deen, here. The champagne cake was from Beantown Baker and can be found here. Just make sure to dry out your strawberries so they don't leak and make the cake slide. I also put it in the fridge for a couple hours before the party to solidify it since there's cream cheese in the frosting. 

I made a game time decision to do the three layers different colors so it would be ombre. To look as impressive as it does, it really is the easiest thing ever! Just separate out the batter evenly, pick your color, and add different amounts of food coloring in that color to the batter.

Just to make sure we don't leave the guys out, you can find the recipe for the Hard Cider cake and the Fireball Whiskey icing here from If you Give A Blonde A Kitchen. 

Now go try these recipes, they're SOOO delicious!