5 Things you might be doing to age yourself earlier than you want.

Everyone ages, some more gracefully than others. While a few laugh lines show you're living life to the fullest, no one should look older than they need to. Instead of breaking the bank on expensive creams and lotions, try loving the skin you're in by using a few tricks to keep it looking as young as you are inside.

1) Over exfoliating your skin.
Exfoliating your skin can be a good thing to help skin layers turn over faster, which can make you look younger and glowing. To much exfoliation, however, can mess with your skin's natural defenses and cause it to lose moisture and be susceptible to redness and acne. Using a washcloth or or scrub could be the problem. Opt for a once a week gentle chemical exfoliant or peel, which loosens dead skin cells using an acid, such as glycolic, salicylic, or lactic. Always use a moisturizer and use sunscreen  after exfoliating.  Make sure to avoid scrubs made with particles such as seeds or crushed shells; these exfoliants have jagged edges that create microscopic tears in the skin.
2) A little "color" in the summer.
Whether you get a glowing hue or turn lobster red, any sign of color is a sign the skin has been damaged. A summer's worth of color can turn lead to dark spots that won't go away come fall. Opt out of the sun and into a faux tan. Self tanners are so much better than they used to be without the orange hue or yeasty smell. If you splurge on a salon spray, they might even give you some contouring! 
3) Making faces.
Your grandmother was right. Make that face to many times, it will stick. If you are constantly squinting or furrowing your brow, eventually your skin will develop deep set lines in those areas. Wearing sunglasses can help reduce the glare and the crow's feet, and make an effort to relax your facial muscles when you don't have to use them. Meditation can help you focus on those muscles in your face, and de-stress your body so you won't have to furrow. 
4) Sleeping on your side or stomach.
Just like making the same facial expression over and over can lead to lines, squashing your face against a pillow night after night can cause what dermatologists call "sleep wrinkles." If you can't retrain your body, try minimizing the damage with a satin pillowcase or a wrinkle-preventing pillow such as the Juverest, which has a design that reduces the contact your face makes with the pillow.

5) Using the wrong cleanser.
Does your skin have a squeaky-clean feeling after you splash away your face wash? You may be over drying your complexion by stripping away its natural moisture. Only the oiliest skin types should use foaming cleansers or washes with scrubbing beads. If your skin is dry (and most of us get drier as we age), choose a moisturizing cream cleanser. Combination skin can handle a little bit of lather, but opt for a gentle formula that won't irritate dry patches. 

The Perfect Pout

Here are a few quick tips to make sure the color you've chosen looks perfect on your pout. I've picked Please Me from Mac, and all the goodies that go with it. 

 1) prime with lip primer. I used Mac lip primer. 
2) line your lip with a soft neutral color about a shade darker than the lipstick color. I used Mac Pro liner in Etcetera. 
3) fill in using your lip color. I used Mac Please Me. 
4) use a highlighter pencil to line the outside of your lip on the top and corners. Don't do the bottom. It creates a shadow effect and will make your lips look fuller. I used Benefit Watt's Up. 
5) create a soft finished look with gold highlights on your cheeks and eyelids, one coat of mascara on your lashes.

 Oh my god, the time goes by fast. All of a sudden our lives went from one husband and one pregnant wife, to us and this little being. He takes up our everything, in a good way, but it doesn't leave much mental space to think about doing anything else!

It's been 4 1/2 months since Ryden Jeffrey was born. I sort of thought my life would change and go back to normal after having him. Everything is definitely the same, it's just me who's changed. Your priorities shift. Now that he is a few months old though, i'm feeling a little more like i can come back to me a little bit. Baby steps, haha. As we all get into the swing of things i'll be back to posting hair makeup and fashion. Until then, a little picture montage of y new little monster!

 Let me tell, on a purely selfish note, the best thing about not being pregnant is getting to sneak a tequila once and a while! Ah, the little things. Cheers!

10 weeks ago; what a difference! I can't believe i'm 38 weeks already and the little man is almost here! Something tells me he's not quite ready to make his debut yet, and I don't think i'm quite ready for it either. I know once he's here he is everyone else's, including his own. I know he'll still be mine, of course, but in a different way. Right now he is all mine and I would like to keep that feeling for at least another few days... or 2 weeks... or until he gets big enough i can't breath anymore. :) 

 28 weeks

38 weeks

OMG! the time flies! here i am trying to remember this amazing time of life by cataloging my triumphs of getting through this entire pregnancy without buying any maternity clothes... except one pair of jeans (when you can't button you have to at least have ONE pair of acceptable pants). i have worn what i thought were some cute outfits, and i get home and take them off and jump into comfy clothes before i realize i missed my window of picture taking. damn this tired feeling where all you want to do is be comfortable! here are some shots of the last few weeks of expanding belly, and hopefully from here on out i will ACTUALLY take outfit pictures. these weeks coming up are the hardest since i am no longer able to see the bottom half of my body, so i'm going by feel of what actually fits and what looks like beer belly on a bad day. so far no one has stopped me, so i'm either doing great, or people just feel sorry for me. hmm...

30 weeks

32 weeks

34 weeks

36 weeks

my latest action shot, done last week, which would be at 36 weeks, wasn't to bad. it was raining, so the boots don't really count, but i bought this dress back in japan in january. it's not maternity but it still fits now, and i'm hoping it's just as cute after. it will be interesting to see the real length of this dress in a few months. 

20 weeks a few weeks late

I found pictures i had taken from 20 weeks. a little late, but i thought i would pop these in to remember that stage. No kicks, only flutters. A little bump, but nothing anyone could really see other than to think i just really loved beer. :) 

dress: pinky

sweater: missoni for target

leggings: lulu lemon

27 weeks and a new dress

ok, maybe not an entirely new dress, but i haven't worn it in a while and when you fill it with a whole new version of yourself, it feels completely different. To go along with the dress i thought the new bangs and winged eyes made a nice compliment. I'm trying to go my entire pregnancy without buying maternity clothes. So far, 6 1/2 months in i'm still at it. ok, ok, i did buy a couple pair of jeans with the elastic waist. shoot me. ;) 

dress: h&m

sleeves: mercy

shoes: Prada