Lancome Gift With Purchase @ Macy's - DO IT!!

Well, here's a deal that was too good to pass up!

Macy's currently has a Lancome gift with $35 purchase that is incredible. I love Lancome skincare so I went to the Lancome counter in the mall and, um, it was cray cray. There were seriously 12-15 women waiting for a turn. Um, nope. I went home and bought online. Shipping is free if you spend $50 and if you go through eBates (completely free service, gives you cash back for shopping online), you get 6% back!  

The item I purchased is the Progres Eye Cream, $59. Like so many Lancome products, it gets rave reviews! I'm always looking for the perfect eye cream so I can't wait to try it! 

When you qualify for a free gift, you get to make lots of selections to personalize your freebies to your preferences! Loves it! Here are the things I chose:

* Choose a Moisturizer: Renergie Lift Multi-Action SPF 15, $22
* Choose a Serum: Renergie Lift Multi-Action Reviva-Concentrate, $24

* Choose a Perfumed Body Lotion: La Vie est Belle Nourishing Fragrance Body Lotion, $13
* Choose a Makeup Look: All Done Up Lipstick, $22 

* Choose a Makeup Bag: Pink Floral, $10. Such a great, bigger size and awesome quality!
* Definicils Mascara: Cute little size, $5
* Choose a Makeup Look: Shimmer Pink Pool Blush, $25 (no brush, lots more pink and pretty than it looks in the flash!)

I came up with a total of $121 of free stuff! OMG! And most of the sample sizes are really generous enough to get a real feel for the products! With eBates 6% back I only paid $55.46 for $180 worth of top quality products! Nice!! 

I seriously can't say enough good things about eBates. I've been a member since 2002 (!) and they have sent me a cash back check basically every three months since then. My current total cash back paid? $3,601.59 (!?!). For real! Kinda crazy, yeah?? Please use my referral link and sign up now! You might as well keep some of the money you're going to spend anyway!! :D

Friday iPhone Photo Dump!

Time to linkup again with Jennifer over at Ramblings of a Suburban Mom for the weekly photo dump! It's Friday already??? OMG... time is flying out of control! 

The most exciting news of the week - Hubs and I got invited to do something pretty awesome!! We will be traveling next May to do hands on work in South African schools, helping them install water systems from inspiring Louisville charity WaterStep! Omg! Soooo excited to go back to Africa and SO thankful to give back while we're there! Going to be AMAZING!! 

The week started with a fun meal out at Louisville's August Moon Chinese Bistro followed by a weekend of pool parties, including one I co-hosted for my little one's cheer team! Super fun!! 

Wish I had some spring rolls right now!! 

Hitting up Dollar Tree for pool party supplies! LOL!

Every party needs balloons!! :D

Cheerleaders + pool always = stunts! 

We are deep in the planning phase of our annual charity event to benefit The Smile Train... shew. It's a lot of work but always SO much fun and so worth it!! The silent auction items are starting to pile up as are the party favors!

This weekend marks the start of college football and I can't wait!! Us folks in Louisville love our quarterback Teddy Bridgewater and are hoping he gets a fair chance at Heisman! 

I've got my jerseys out and ready!! 

So that's about it from here! Busy, busy, busy! Looking forward to cutting loose this weekend! Happy long Labor Day weekend everyone!! :D

Julep Maven September Bombshell Box Review

I took a little break from Julep and - OMG!! - what a difference a little time made! I was blown away by this box and couldn't WAIT to share it with you!! 

Julep Maven is a monthly subscription service that sends nail polishes and other beauty products based on your profile each month for a monthly charge of $24.99. If you would like to try your first month free (just pay the $3.99 shipping fee) use code FREEBOX or FREEMAVEN. And thank you in advance if you use one of my referral links! :D

Here's first looks:

And the breakdown:

Look at this fancy packaging! 

These look PERFECT for gifting! Love the little individual boxes!
* Daria, $14 - Dark slate grey creme. Gorgeous.
* Karmen, $14 - Golden crimson microglitter. So shimmery and fun! This is the color that made me select this box this month! 

* Bare Face Cleansing Oil, $28 - I have so many friends who swear by oils for cleansers but I've never tried it! Excited to give it a go!
* There was also a sample of a polish remover pad, $1

I came up with a value of $57 for this box. It really felt like opening a gift this month! I am in love with the fancy new packaging and I am so so happy with the September Bombshell selections!! Can't wait to try all my new goodies!!! Thank you, Julep!! 

Nails of the Week! Football time!!

Footballlllll!!! Seriously. It's one of the things that makes the end of summer bearable!! SOoo excited for the first University of Louisville game this weekend! Nails of the week are ready to party, too, in black with cardinal red accent!! 

* China Glaze Strong Adhesion Base Coat
* Chanel Nail Color in Black Satin
* Klean Color Nail Lacquer in Red Heart

Do you love football, too?? What's your favorite team?? 

Restaurant Review: August Moon

Hubs and I headed out for dinner a few nights ago and, after debating lots of new places, we wound up at one of our longtime favorites, Louisville staple August Moon Chinese Bistro! 

What to wear?? It was SO mild all summer and, now that it's the end of August, it's been SCORCHING hot! So I took the chance to get in another cute summer ensemble! 

* See by Chloe seersucker apron dress
* Bauble Bar chunky crystal necklace from August Mystery Makeover box 
* Juicy Couture suede wedges

There are so many great things to eat here, but it happened to be happy hour so we sat at the bar to take advantage of drink specials and the small plate menu! They have lots of things to try and I think small plates are $5 each? It's a fun way to have dinner out, ordering 3 or 4 things to share (even though that's not what we did this time... LOL!). 

Finlandia Vodka Fusion Blood Orange Martini, $5 on Happy Hour (normally $6.50) - Made with fresh blood orange puree, super tart and SO good! 

Veggie Spring Rolls, $2.50 per roll - Nobody likes super spicy more than I do but WHOO, their house made mustard is HOT! 

Sichuan Style Hot and Sour Soup, $3.50 - One of hubby's faves!


And for entrees!
 

Thai Curry Vegetable Bowl with  Warm Naan, $5 - Okay, this right here. This is why we went. It's one of my hands down favorite dishes ANYWHERE. It's only available at the bar during happy hour (4-7 I think?) but, OMG, it's my vegetarian dreams come true!! 

Hot and Spicy Beef and Vegetables, $14 - Definitely not the hubby's favorite thing he's had here. He didn't even take the leftovers home! 

Seriously, I will go back over and over for the Thai Curry dish! LOL! You can view the entire August Moon menu here. 

Bauble Bar August Mystery Makeover Box Review

I've gotten a few things from Bauble Bar that I have really, really enjoyed. I have loved all of my little slide stackable bracelets* and even bought a bunch for Christmas gifts this year! I have also really, REALLY gotten into the crazy rose gold pimp chain** from the July PopSugar box! LOL!

Each month Bauble Bar offers a Mystery Makeover box. You get a choice of color on one item and then a box is put together for you with two additional pieces of jewelry and a surprise item. The August box cost $44 and the choice item was the Bijou Gem Strand. This thing is chunky and sparkly and I liked it enough to try out the box! 

Here's first looks:

And the breakdown:

Bijou Gem Strand, $38

Buckle Bangle, $28

Can't find these online, guessing $26

Branded notebook, makeover exclusive, guessing $5

I've already rocked the necklace on a recent night out! 

Sorry for wrinkled mess, this was the END of the night out! LOL! 

I came up with a total value of $97 for my box. I love, love, love the necklace. I'm not crazy about the bracelet and the earrings aren't something I would normally have picked out, but I'm going to give them a shot! I was kind of disappointed in the messed up printing on the notebook but I was happy to have it. I'm in the middle of crazy party planning for our October charity event and this is now my official planning notebook! 

Would I do the makeover box again? Probably, if I like the spoiler item as much as I did this month! It's always fun to try something new!! :) 


* I received bracelets in my June Ipsy bag and in my May Blush Beauty bag. I've worn them like crazy all summer, including to dinner at Varanese!

** Oh, I've gotten a couple of fun wears out of this already! Dinner at The Chocolate Bar and partying at Bruno Mars!  

~ Post contains referral links, so use them chica! Thank you! :)

Ambition Box August Favorites Special Edition Review

Had such a fun, busy weekend with the fam! We swam three days in a row - more days in a row than we managed all summer!! LOL! Now, it's Monday, and back to work! :)

Ambition Box is a new one for me. I signed up via their Facebook page for this one time Special Edition Favorites box. It looks like their regular website isn't working, so maybe the Facebook page is it for now! 

The cost for this box was $20 for "4 samples and 5 full sized products valued at $120." I had NO idea what to expect from this box and was excited for the surprise! 

Here's first looks:

Doh. I could smell the nail polish leakage before I ever opened it! :(

Exact quantities promised, 4 samples and 5 full size

And the breakdown:

Celazome Lip Treat, $33 - I'm sure this will come in handy during cold winter months!

Celazome Serum Vitae, $56 - Always up for trying a new moisturizer! Wish there were some reviews for it on Amazon!

Nikki's Magic Wand, $8 -  These are made to reach into the bottoms, sides and shoulders of makeup tubes. The side of the box says  something about "Finish your makeup, there are models starving everywhere!" LOL!

Nailtiques Polish, $10 - A pretty color! Wish hadn't leaked!

Salt Air Roll On Perfume Oil, $10 - A nice, simple, fresh scent. I like these little rollerballs for my purse! Scent definitely doesn't  seem to last long, but it's fun to reapply! Haha!

Samples: Olivella Nourishment Cream, Global Goddess Hair Treatment, Waxelene (petroleum jelly alternative), Show Stoppers fabric/skin tape. 

Ugh. What is it with me and the crappy box luck??? It seems like I'm always having some kind of leakage, broken, weird issue... I have emailed Ambition Box about my box. I'll update here when I get a reply! Regardless, it's always fun to try something new! :) 

I came up with a total value of $117 + samples, so pretty much right on the promised value. I'm curious if anyone else got this box and what you got?? There is some kind of bracelet on their Facebook page and I'm wondering if the boxes were all the same or different! 

** UPDATE ** Customer service never responded. Disappointed and won't buy again. Fail.

OMG.... Computer NIGHTMARES!

Please bear with me, everyone! I've been trying to add a drop down menu to organize everything and... um... it involves lots of computer code and let's just say, this is NOT my strongest talent! LOL! 

Hopefully I'll get it all worked out soon and get some new posts up, too! In the meantime, please ignore any weirdness! LOL!

Love With Food August Box Review + Coupon

Lots of love for Love With Food! This is a super fun way to try new foods AND give back. Boxes are $12/month (including shipping) and for each box purchased, LWF donates a meal to a child in need. They have passed the 100,000 mark for number of meals donated! Awesome!

The theme for August's box is Backyard BBQ. Cute theme for the end of summer! Here's first looks:

And a quick breakdown:

Aunt Sally's Original Pralines, $2

Snapea Crisps, $1

BOPS Sea Salt Potato Crisps, $1.50

Sahale Fruit & Almond Crunchers, $1

Project 7 Mints $1.50

Rip Van Wafels Caramel Filled Cookies, $1.50

El Pinto Salsa, $1

Dizzy Pig BBQ Rub, $1

Assorted Coupons

So, this box had a value of about $10, but I'm happy with it and will continue my subscription since the company is doing good deeds!! :)

If you'd like to try Love With Food, please use one of the referral links. Thank you! And if you use my link, you should get $5 off your first box!