-
Human trafficking: Keep your kids safe from abduction
As I type this post, I am shook to my core. I mean, I am in no way an expert on human trafficking. But having just spent a good few minutes online, reading stories of child abduction, my world has suddenly become a lot more shakier. Human trafficking is on the rise in South Africa, yo, and woman and children are being targeted. Have you begun to educate your little one on what they should do if someone grabs them? Do you have a plan in place, to keep your kids safe from abduction? Are you also freaking out a little bit, on the inside? Allow me to reiterate: aaaack!
Okay, now that we’ve sufficiently settled down, friends, I need to tell you that we have to make sure that our small children know about the bad people who are trying to steal kids. Draw pictures, watch Youtube clips, act out scenarios, if you must! But this epidemic is something that is rife and we can’t ignore it any longer. I’ve read horror stories of attempted kidnappings in popular shopping malls – the children were literally right next to their parents, when it happened. I’ve watched video clips of a mom crying her heart out, as she talks about her little boy who is now missing for a whole month. I even did myself the disservice of watching clips, taken in rural parts of Asia, where a car simply stops in the middle of the street and someone jumps out, grabs a kid, and hops back into the car, never to be seen again. Yes, it has sufficiently freaked me out for the rest of my life.
We need to put a plan in place, that will help us to safe guard our children. This is what I found online:
A few safety tips for children:
1. When out in public, you guys, you HAVE to keep an eye on your children at all times. And not “across the road” kind of keeping an eye. Stay close to your little ones. Inspect your surroundings. Is anyone acting suspicious? Guys, we need to put our phones down (me, I’m looking at me, yes with my own eyes) and keep our attention on our little ones.
2. Teach your kids that its okay to be rude to an adult when they don’t feel safe. This includes shouting “NO!” and “STOP!” when they are feeling compromised. Heck, my child will punch you in the face if need be!
3. If your kid is a social butterfly, who may be comfortable talking to strangers, teach them that it is NOT OKAY to go anywhere with a stranger, without mommy or daddy’s direct permission. Children are generally very trusting and yes, they need to be taught this, you guys!
4. Have your child practice their scream, should they be in trouble. Have them take a deep breath and let out their loudest, deepest, most annoying “yelp”. Practice it at home.
5. Should your little one dissapear in a mall or public setting, begin shouting out their name and what they are wearing. Ask passersby to do the same and pass it on. At this point, everyone in the vicinity will know that the child is missing and what the child is wearing, thus drawing attention to the child and hopefully swaying the perpetrator.I am looking into purchasing a GPS tracker for my little ones. I’ve even considered getting one of those kiddies leashes. Have you guys thought about ways to keep your children safe from abduction and human trafficking? Please share your thoughts, tips and ideas with me in the comments section below.
Resources:
Protecting your child from human trafficking
Protecting your child from sex trafficking
Protecting your kids from abduction -
My top 6 marriage posts will probably make you cringe
Look, I’m just going to be honest about this: marriage is no nap on a hammock, if you know what I mean. There’s no down time… no vacation… you don’t get to take a break from each other. It’s a little bit annoying, very much comforting, and a lot of trying to remind yourself that you actually are a whole other person, all by yourself, when your husband is not around.
Well, I’ve shared ALOT about my marriage on this blog. And if you had to go by my blog post titles you’d think that my Hubstopher and I really hate each other. This could not be further from the truth. I mean… sure, there have been challenges. But we’ve also experience a lot of wins. And I guess that’s what makes it worth it… because we go through the challenges together and we experience the wins together.
Anyways, in light of oversharing, I thought to list the top 6 marriage posts that I’ve shared on this blog. I mean, I talk alot. We all know that. But Google Analytics says that these are some of the marriage-related things that you guys enjoyed hearing me talk about.
Who really wins when you give him the silent treatmentYou guys seemed to really relate with this post… I mean, come on, we’re all experts at giving our hubbies the cold shoulder. How else will the man learn?! But, as I’ve discovered (and I’ll quote from the post): “Silent treatment is pretty much a bundle of poop in the bath water of your marriage.”
Now, coming from a mama who has literally had to scoop pieces of poop out of Jonah’s bath water the other day, let me tell you, poop in bath water is not your friend! It’s messy. It floats everywhere. It gets stuck in between toes. Remember that, the next time you give him the silent-violent treatment. Read more…
“Being married sucks!” I told him
We’ve all been there, we’ve all had moments of intense frustration, within our marriage. You know what I’m talking about Barb… those intensely frustrating moments where you just don’t want to see each other’s faces because you’re that intensely frustrated.
I mean, that’s why this post was so popular. The truth is this: marriage does not suck. But as people, we have the capacity to, uhh, suck, when we aren’t considerate and aware of how we’re making each other feel. And when you’re not putting your spouse first, chances are they’ll think that YOU suck. We all want to feel loved and special and chosen and important. I try to remember that through the arguments and especially when I have my moments of “being married sucks!” Read more…
What do you do when husband says no to the dressOoh girl! The drama! When I wrote this post, a while ago, some women were not impressed that I allow my husband to tell me what I can and can’t wear. They totally misunderstood my intention behind the post.
I mean, I wasn’t saying that the guy beats me into submission and that I don’t wear certain things because I fear him. No ways. I honor him. I want to please him. And I want him to want to please me too. And so, if he feels that the dress is too short, then I won’t wear it. And that’s that. You can read more about my decision and make up your own mind about yours. Read more…
Hubstopher’s near death experienceYou guys know that I thrive in silly moments. My life is a sitcom, ya’ll. So I just HAD to share my husbands “near death experience” with you. It involved a dimly lit restaurant, freshly manicured nails and a very confused boyfriend who was as oblivious as only a man can be.
Needless to say, he is still very much alive, and we’ve moved on from this moment. But it has now become our party trick, when people share silly stories at braais. Read more…
Dear husband, you’re not doing a good jobThis post really hit home with a lot of you, because we all have psycho tendencies.
Whatever, Patricia, you can look at me like that. You know you’ve had these moments too.
We honestly expect our intelligent husbands to JUST KNOW how we feel. Right? They must figure things out. I mean, duh, the information is right there infront of them anyways! But ladies, let me tell you something, they STILL need us to spell it out for them. Well that’s what I learnt. Read more…
He must be cheating on meThis one got so much attention, I had people calling me up to ask me who my husband is cheating on me with. Firstly, do you guys not actually click on the link to read the WHOLE post?
Secondly, I often write something that is not necessarily related to me, but it is applicable to someone I know who is going through something. OR I’ve been there and my heart is heavy enough with the burden, that I want to share.
Lastly, it’s a flippen good topic and I’m glad so many of you contacted me via inbox and comments. We sometimes get shy and timid about our fierceness because we are told that we need to look a certain way and do certain things in order to be perceived as beautiful or accomplished. What rubbish! This post dispels all of that and writing it has definitely brought me some form of release. Read more…
So there you have it… some of my top marriage related posts. I love sharing my heart with you guys. It brings me freedom to get to work through my own short falls, by putting it out there on the blog. I mean, this is a great way to be held accountable, yo! So I hope that this has blessed you as much as it has me!
Which of these posts are your favorite?
-
Ear piercing for kids: doing it right
So the great “when to pierce your kids ears” debate had me trolling the interwebs for hours. I mean, how else was I suppose to know whether my child is old enough to get her ears pierced?! Ear piercing for kids suddenly became a tad more complicated than I had initially thought it was. We sure do have A LOT of opinion about EVERYTHING. People seem to care a bit too much about how other people are raising their own children. And hey, I get it, who am I to speak? I have a blog and I tell you guys how I do things, right? Fair enough. But I’m not out here giving you the stink eye for not doing it the exact same way that I do. Who has time for that anyways? (Don’t look at me, I can’t even remember if I brushed my teeth this morning.)
Anyways, Kari is almost four years old and yes, I did not have her ears pierced when she was a baby. I just figured that she would be too little to understand the pain of a freshly pierced ear, or how to care for it. So I chose to wait until she asked for it. And even on the day of the actual ear piercing, I still wasn’t sure if she was ready for it… even though she had asked for “rings on her ears” pretty much every day for two weeks. How was I to know if the kid could handle it? Well, here’s what I did, you guys, and I feel very clever for doing it:
I pinched her ear lobes.
Yep, I know, genius. Somebody should call Carte Blanche immediately.I pinched the girl’s lobes while explaining that having her ears pierced will be a bit eina. She said she is aware of the pain and still wants rings on her ears please. I also explained that in order to get “rings on her ears” the aunty will be making holes in her ear lobes. She was like, bring it on mom! And then I explained that once the rings were in her ears, she would have to look after it. With bling earrings comes great responsibility. She nodded her head in anticipation. Okay, she was ready.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKwQzYZ3KM8&feature=youtu.be
Guys, I can’t say that I’m going to blow your minds with this but after investigating my options I actually preferred taking her to a good ol’ fashioned Sterns for the actual ear piercing. We were very blessed to know most of the staff at the store, so she was already at ease. (The lady in the vid is her aunty) I appreciate that both lobes were pierced at the same time and besides for the 5 seconds of “ouch!”, Kari was good to go!
So what am I trying to say? Is three years old the best age to pierce your kids ears? Should you rather go to a jeweler and not a professional piercer? Am I Super Duper Mommy – the best parent in the whole entire world – and everyone should bow down at my feet and feed me chocolate? Well, I mean, feed me with chocolate all you want. But no, I am not the best or the cleverest or the most knowledgeable.
The truth is: I know my child better than you do. And you know yours better than I ever will! And so, my dear friend, allow me to say this: Take all your mommy wisdom, add some practical knowledge to it and TA DAHH! You too can be a Super Duper Mommy, parenting YOUR kid the way YOU know best! So there you have it. No lecture. No “my way is the best way” monologue. Heck, I don’t even have tips for you this time around.
But hey, if you’ve come here for ear pierce tips, I’ll share some with ya:
1. Since baby’s immune system is still developing, it is suggested that you wait until they are atleast 6 months old before creating an “open wound”.
2. Rubbing ice on the ear lobe for 20 minutes will numb the lobe and reduce the pain.
3. If you want to be extra you could also get a dermatologist or pediatrician to do the piercing.
4. Ask your chemist about a topical medication that can numb the area.
5. It’s preferable to use surgical stainless steel initially since some people are allergic to certain materials (white gold etc).
6. Try to avoid swimming for a while after the piercing. Remember that it’s considered an open wound and can be prone to bacterial infections.
7. Keep the earring in for atleast six weeks after the initial piercing, to give the area enough time to heal.So there you have it. Drop me a comment below if you can think of any other shweeet tips or advice to pass on to other mommy’s who are thinking about getting their kids ears pierced.
-
How to take care of color treated hair
If you’ve been following my hair journey, you’ll know that chopping off my hair was a very big deal to me. But it was something that needed to be done. I mean, what’s the point of long hair if it’s not healthy? Anyways, if you can recall, I’ve been calling Michelle of Stylish Steppers a “hair whisperer” since like, before I was born (so dramatic) so it just made sense that I would ask her to fix my hair problems. Mish not only chopped off all the kaka hair, but she also gave my hair a super dramatic color change. I visited Stylish Steppers again this weekend and she vibed up my color, once again, and gave me a couple of amazing tips on how to take care of color treated hair. Here they are:
(Disclaimer: Please note, all of the selfies in this post was, in fact, taken in my car in some random parking lot while strangers passed by and looked at me as if I am a mad woman. Which I am.)
Cut, cut, cut!
Trim your ends with every second color. Mish always tells me that in order to grow your hair, or keep it healthy, you need to go for regular trims to get rid of those damaged ends. And don’t forget, you have to trim your ends each time you touch up your highlights. Peroxide and ammonia weakens the ends of your hair and can cause split ends. Snip, snip, girl!
Treat that hair!
Regular moisturizing treatments are recommended. Stylish Steppers offers the Mega Sleek Treat… guys, this stuff is amazeballs! It contains shea butter which helps to seal in that moisture and it makes your blowdry last for much longer. Your hair feels sleeker and more nourished and with continuous use, you’ll see a huge difference in the condition of your hair. Mish suggests you treat your hair every 3 weeks.
Protect your color!
Invest in excellent color-protecting products. The right ones will form a protective layer over your hair shaft. Sulfate-free shampoos are always a good choice. Mish says that your hair only absorbs those natural oils (coconut/argan etc) if it is mixed with a treatment base (like your conditioner). If you want to apply natural oils to your hair, donot simply apply it to dry or wet hair! For the best results, mix it with your regular conditioner and use as you normally would.
So what do you think about my new color? Have you ever gone for a big hair change? What would you like to change about your hair right now? For more from Stylish Steppers (They have LEGIT specials, you guys! Like, seriously, sometimes I wonder if her prices are for real or if it’s a typo!) check them out on Facebook.
-
2018 Fifa World Cup beginners guide
It’s soccer world cup season and if you’re anything like me, you’ve jumped onto the bandwagon even though you don’t really watch soccer. Don’t look at me like that Paul, the excitement is kind of infectious! But how does it all work anyways? I mean, yes I know the ball must go into the net and all of that. Got it. But what’s with this points system? And who decides which teams play against which? (I mean, I’m a mother, I need to know that things are fair around here.) And most importantly, how will I know if my team is doing well? Well, I’ve decided to share all my soccer world cup knowledge with you guys. It’s not much, but it’s something atleast, right? Anyways, enough chit chat, here is my 2018 Fifa World Cup beginners guide:
How the teams are split up
So, this is trivial, but in case you wanted to know how the first round of teams are split up: The 32 teams who have qualified are split into four-team groups. The groups are drawn from four pots – so that’s basically one team from each pot. Teams are actually placed in these pots according to their position in the Fifa world rankings for October. (So there’s a piece of information you’d never thought you’d need to know.) Russia (automatically put into pot one) is the only exception, since they are the host country. In case you’re curious, the line up for the pots are:
Pot one: Russia (hosts), Germany, Brazil, Portugal, Argentina, Belgium, Poland, France
Pot two: Spain, Peru, Switzerland, England, Colombia, Uruguay, Mexico, Croatia
Pot three: Denmark, Iceland, Costa Rica, Sweden, Tunisia, Egypt, Senegal, Iran
Pot four: Serbia, Nigeria, Australia, Japan, Morocco, Panama, South Korea, Saudi ArabiaSo from this, the teams were put into these groups: (Image courtesy of Fox Sports)
Group rounds
Spotted your team in one of the groups? Great stuff. Okay, right, what happens next? Well, your team will then play against the other three teams in their group. Points are handed out like this:
WIN – 3 points
DRAW – 1 point
LOSE – 0 points
The two teams with the most points, after these three games, will progress to the next stage of the competition. That’s right, yo. Only TWO teams!But wait, what about a tie?!
Yes, my spreadsheet brain is totally freaking out! I mean, what happens when the group stage is finished and some of the teams have acquired the same amount of points?! AAACK! Okay, settle down Margeret. Fifa and all the other clever people who take this type of thing seriously have figured it out. In an event of a tie, the winner is determined like this:
1. Goal difference – Whoever has the highest goal difference (which is simply: goals scored minus goals allowed).
2. Goal scored – In the event where the goal difference is equal too (these things happen), the winning team will be the one with the most goals scored.
3. Head to Head – If there is STILL a tie (what witchcraft is this?!) then the team who won the head to head match will go through. (eg. If Mexico and Sweden were tied, but Mexico beat Sweden in their head to head match, Mexico would go through).
4. Fair play points – If somehow teams remained tied through all of this, officials will have a look at their disciplinary records in the tournament. So basically, if they received a yellow card its -1 point, two yellows resulting in a red card will be -3 points, straight red card is -4 points, yellow card, then straight red card will be -5 points.
5. Lots are drawn – If there is bizarrely STILL a tie names are put into a hat, so to speak, and the first name pulled will go through! Crazy stuff!Knockout stage
The second and final world cup stage is a knock out round! So if your team loses any game in this stage, they are knocked out of the world cup. No second chance. No redo. In the event of a tie, a game will go into extra time, which means two extra halves of 15 minutes each are played. A penalty shoot out will determine the winner if there is still a tie after extra time.Round of 16
In this first round of knockout games, the top 8 is determined. This is the schedule:
Winners Group C vs Runners-up Group D
Winners Group A vs Runners-up Group B
Winners Group B vs Runners-up Group A
Winners Group D vs Runners-up Group C
Winners Group E vs Runners-up Group F
Winners Group G vs Runners-up Group H
Winners Group F vs Runners-up Group E
Winners Group H vs Runners-up Group GOnce the top 8 is determined, we then have the quarter-finals, semi-finals, third place play-off and then the final match! Laduuuuuma!
Right. So are you feeling a little bit more empowered and excited to get into this world cup thing? Good! Who are you rooting for? Drop me a comment below to let me know. -
FIFA World Cup 2018 activities to do with your family
If soccer fever has hit your household, and you’re not keen to hide away in your bedroom for a whole month (oh is it just me then?), why not embrace the ball, yo. The soccer world cup is actually the perfect reason to schedule some fun, quality time with the ones you love. Looking for some cool things to do this soccer season? Well here are five FIFA World Cup 2018 activities to do with your family:
Pick your team
Get some friendly competition going by having a team “lucky draw”. Instead of root for the world cup faves, get them to lucky draw a team from a hat. Put up a wall chart to mark each team’s progress. You could give points for goals scored and even deduct points for fouls. I would probably do a redraw once the top 8 teams are revealed. (Hint: Put together a hamper of treats for the person with the most points at the end)Get kitted out
Get your family to represent their team by wearing country colors on game days. You could even get them to paint their faces and make flags and banners. Give points for best kit, paraphernalia and team spirit. Double points if they can sing their teams national anthem, complete from start to finish!Food always wins
Big game days are a great time to have “foods of the world” on your snack menu. Ask the kids to do some research and you could even get them to help you out in the kitchen as you prepare the dishes. Soccer World Cup party, anyone?Fun facts
Half time is a great time to have some soccer trivia. The internet is your friend, yo. Put together a couple of soccer world cup trivia questions and allocate points for each correct answer. This is a great way to keep the hype going.Visit a fan park
Find out where the world cup fan parks are located in your city and be sure to visit one, on a big game day. Ain’t nothing like the real thing, but the fun vibe at a genuine fan park is close enough! (Hint: day games are better, if you’re going with kids)So that’s on my list of things to do during this world cup season. Do you have anything special planned? Let me know which of these FIFA World Cup 2018 activities you’ll be doing with your family.
Image: Fifa World Cup website
-
My hair is breaking off
My hair is breaking off, you guys! What the heck does this evens mean?! I honestly don’t even notice these things, because my hair goes up in a bun at home, and I pretty much finger brush it en route to work. I’m very low maintenance like that (because of my many, many children). But alarm bells went off when people kept asking me if I had gone for a hair cut (which I didn’t btw). I decided to do my own inspection and noticed that sections of my hair are definitely shorter than the rest. (If you’re following me on Instagram, I’m sure my hair rants in my Instastories must have had you rolling your eyes) Anyways, panic ensued and I almost went to the emergency room. Kidding! But I did I chat to a few experts and did my research on hair breakage. It’s a matter of “process of elimination” for me now. I need to figure out what is causing my mane to become brittle. Here’s what I found:
Lay off the heat
You guys, I’m a brown person. And like most brown people, I grew up heat styling my hair. I think the introduction to my best friend, the flat iron, may have taken my relationship with heat styling to the next level. Heat styling is obviously not natural and it does damage your hair and makes it weaker and more susceptible to breakage. I only flat iron my hair once a week but I don’t use a heat protector before doing so. I know, right? I could totally give myself a stern talking to right about now.Chemicals
Overprocessed hair is not healthy hair. I mean, even your simple boxed hair dyes contain chemicals and solutions that strip your hair of its natural protection. And, for those who don’t know, guys I’m greyer than the most ashiest elbows in the world. I pretty much dye my hair, at home, every six weeks to avoid looking like a Golden Girl. The chemicals in boxed dyes are not brilliant for your hair. Apparently I am meant to apply a salon-grade treatment to my hair every now and then to make it feel loved and special. I obviously don’t do that (many kids, little time, remember?). Could this be my hairs passive aggressive way of telling me that it wants to be loved?
Basics
You guys, I am so shocked to learn that sleeping on a cotton pillowcase could be damaging my hair! Say what?! Cotton creates friction between the fabric, and the hair. Satin or silk pillowcases are apparently way more gentle on the hair. Did you know that even towel drying is a bad thing? Tying your hair in a towel can lead to breakage and tangling. I read that you need to swop your towel for an old, soft T-shirt instead, which is more absorbent and less abbrasive. Go figure. And duh, combing versus brushing your wet hair is way more smarter.Thirsty hair
Yes, you read it, my hair is probably just thirsty. Dry hair is more prone to breakage. Make sure you’re using the correct shampoo and conditioner, friends! I mean, I generally grab whatever is on the shelf (and cheaper, let’s be honest Maggie) but in order to ensure that your hair receives ample moisture, you need to make sure the product you use contains ingredients that help to hydrate your locks. Also, did you know that the more you wash your hair, the more you’re stripping it of natural oils?! So yes… that.All in all, my hair is breaking off. Excuse me while I freak out.
I’m considering going for a super dramatic hair chop. I need to get rid of the damaged hair. And getting it all to one length again, would also be a great idea. The lopsided look is not working for me. I must admit, I am freaking out. Oh wait, I told you that already. The thing is, I’ve always had long hair, but I guess with long hair, comes great responsibility (I’m sure I heard that on Spiderman). If you’ve had experience with hair breakage, and have some advice to share, please drop it in the comments section. You guys, I don’t want to chop all my hair off! Help!
-
Easy peasy mommy makeup with Essence {Giveaway!}
Moms, I get it. Putting on a full face of makeup is probably on your list of things to do one day when you’re kids are old enough to move out of the house. Until then, lip gloss and eye pencil should be enough to get rid of the zombie-esque look, right? I mean, who has the time to apply copious amounts of product using 103 makeup brushes that pretty much all look the same?! Mommy makeup should be an uncomplicated thing! Well, what if I told you that it’s not that difficult, yo. And it doesn’t have to take you 20 minutes to look like a superstar. To prove this to you, my friends over at Essence has agreed to help me help you uhh… help yourself. AND they are giving away a fabulous make up hamper to one lucky mama!
How I do my mommy makeup with Essence
When you fall out of bed in the morning, reaching for coffee and a toothbrush at the same time, putting on foundation is probably the last thing on your mind. I love that the Essence All I need concealer palette and Essence Stay All Day foundation is uncomplicated and so easy to use. Seriously though, on most days I even use my fingers to apply! If you’re looking at the concealer palette with a confused heart, please know that yes, the green part really does look green on your skin. But that’s the cleverness of it, yo! The green shade hides redness. Beige covers imperfections, pink hides tired skin and the yellow conceals under eye shadow. So clever. I apply dabs of the concealer to my skin first, before applying the Stay All Day foundation (which lasts for 16 hours, you guys!)
I then get into the seriously pretty Essence All About That Nudes eye shadow palette. This palette has an array of shimmering, long lasting nudes in various tones. I love that Essence gives us super moms (amateur makeup artists) instructions on how to use their product. I apply the lightest shade to my brow and the top of my eyelid. The medium colors go on the upper eyelid, blended in to form a nice gradient. The darker colors would be used on my eyelid crease on the outer eye. Hows that for impressive! And I’m not evens a YouTube beauty blogger!I use the Essence Blush Play sculpting palette in shade 10 Play It Peach, to make my otherwise zombie looking palour a bit more pleasing to the eye. Again, the Essence team has made my life easier by actually engraving instructions on the pressed powders. How cool! The highlight section is used to create a soft glow. The define section is used to accentuate the cheeks and the sculpt section is added to the cheek bones as a hint of color.
My favorite Essence products are the long lasting eye pencil and their range of amazing mascaras. Seriously guys, the Essence mascara is my friend. This time around I gave the Essence Lash Princess false lash effect mascara a go and I am super duper impressed! I also used their Essence Make Me Brow eyebrow gel mascara to make my eyebrows match, somewhat. (They secretly hate each other, I’m convinced).To finish the look I use two Essence lippies. I don’t have to, but I love the look and longevity of these two together. The Essence Ultra Last instant lip color goes on really smoothly and the color is intense. The Essence Matt Matt Matt lip gloss is a long lasting matte effect gloss that comes in the most gorgeous colors! I’m a fan!
And that’s that. What do you moms think? Is this something you could try at home? Well, guess what, Essence would like to help you with that! We are giving away a fabulous Essence makeup hamper to the value of R500, as part of my March birthday giveaway month. That’s right! It’s my birthday and I want you to celebrate with me! Whoop whoop!
To enter, simply check out the corresponding post on either Instagram or Facebook, and tag a friend to let them in on the sweeeeet deal! Once done, complete the entry below so that I can know where to contact you, if you win! Aaaack! Winners of all my March birthday giveaways will be announced on my Facebook page on March 30th.[contact-form to=”luchaeg@gmail.com” subject=”Essence competition”][contact-field label=”Name” type=”name” required=”1″][contact-field label=”Email” type=”email” required=”1″][contact-field label=”Which social media did you respond on? (Facebook, Instagram or both?)” type=”text” required=”1″][contact-field label=”Want to grab a bonus entry? Share the following on Twitter: Aack! I’ve entered the fab @essence_za competition with @luchaewilliams and #myspreadsheetbrain! #giveaway ” type=”checkbox”][/contact-form]
-
How to celebrate a birthday – well, kinda!
Go shorty, it’s my birthday! Well, not officially, but hey who’s counting? *cough* Me. I’m counting. It’s 17 days before my birthday and I’m so excited, I just can’t hide it! I can’t help it, you guys, I love birthdays! Why? Well, because crying about my age is out of the question. I’m still alive! Life is a celebration! Now to find the perfect way to celebrate it. One would think that I’d know how to celebrate a birthday. But this year I’m stumped! I’ve had a couple of ideas but thus far nothing seems to stick. So I did what any rational “mature” lady would do (I am mature, I promise), I Googled to see what OTHER people are doing for their birthdays. Duh! Well, it made sense to me anyways. Here’s what I found:
Themed party
I love a good costume party and I get the thrills at the mere thought of dressing up! With this in mind I was thinking about having a “L” party – you know, where people come dressed as something that starts with the letter “L”. (It’s L for Luchae… you get that, right?) I mean, the possibilities are endless… leopard, little mermaid, leprechaun, lady gaga? Hmm….Leave the country
Okay that sounds a tad bit dramatic. What I meant to say was “leave the city” as in, go on a road trip! To where? Who knows. But the idea is to be as spontaneous and fun as possible. Road trip with no destination in mind! I guess it’s a bit harder to plan, with 4 kids to think about, but it’s a sweeet idea none the less. I’m all for the adventure! (Says the woman who wanted to secretly book an AirBnB in her home town so that she could sleep alone on a bed, in complete silence, for one whole night.)Games night
I love games and trivia – it’s legit my thing! So one idea I had was to host the ultimate trivia night, where I would get my guests to come as teams (they must be dressed alike and everything), for a massive trivia and music trivia showdown! There’ll be prize (dum duuum!) and bonus rounds and gasp, maybe even a trophy at the end! (Dum dum duuuuuuum!!!!!!!!)
Fancy supper
I’m also not totally opposed to the idea of having a little restaurant celebration. I would want my guests to come dressed in their best attire (because let’s face it, for many of us this would also qualify as an unofficial “date night”). I would have a little photo corner, some birthday balloons, some bubbly and a lot of grown up behavior going on. Also, excellent lightening needed because we do it for the ‘gram. (Don’t even front, Margaret, yes you too)Pamper zone
I have considered taking the day to do a full pamper – massages, manis and pedis, facials, the works! As much as a big celebration excites me, the thought of spending a whole day by myself feels like heaven! (Remember the AirBnB idea). I mean, I love my family but I wouldn’t mind 24 hours of alone time.What have I decided to do? Well, nothing yet. Possibly nothing at all. I’m such a thrill. Living life on the edge, as usual. But please friends, lend me your ideas! What are the interesting, cost effective, things you’ve done for your birthday? (Key words: cost effective).
P.S. I will also be sharing a couple of amazing blog giveaways as a build up to my ‘coming of age’! So keep your eyes peeled to this space for more, over the next few days.
-
Purge Party: Upgrade your closet for FREE
I don’t have a thing to wear! I mean, okay, shoes are spilling out of my cupboard and I need more packing space for my extensive scarf collection. But the mantra remains unchanged: I don’t have a thing to wear! Can anyone relate? Well, that’s how Purge Party was born. Purge Party is a nifty concept that will have you swapping out your preloved items for someone else’s. The idea behind the party is to get rid of the clutter to make room for new and hey, in the process, you may pick up a fabulous new look or two!
Hands up if you have a closet full of outfits but nothing fits. Well, that’s my closet. If I’m not saving items for when I’m skinny again, then I’m storing them because they have sentimental value or because I just can’t bare the thought of giving it to a charity shop who may or may not appreciate the value of a boob tube pin stripe dress. (Yes, I really own one. And yep, it’s the size of Ariana Grande’s small toe.)
Oh don’t give me that look Veronica we all have a cupboard full of preloved hand bags and wedding shoes that we’ll probably never use again. Needless to say, I needed new clothes. And I needed to free my closet of the outfits that I just don’t wear anymore. And, most importantly, I needed to not spend any money while doing either of these things.
Purge Party: Free your closet
At the very first Purge Party I hosted 10 friends at my home. The event has grown since then and we found ourselves hosting more than 30 ladies at a bigger venue, for the second Purge Party! I mean, ladies see the value in upcycling their outfits for someone else’s (so to speak).In order to make Purge Party work though we have some very strict instructions, yo. Firstly, you are encouraged to FREE YOUR CLOSET! Be intentional about it! This means removing items that you no longer wear. The items has to be clean, of quality and in great condition!
Hand in your stash, at the “buy” section of the Purge Party, where you will receive tokens for your goodies. Enjoy some coffee and snacks (and lekker conversation time) while the team and I get to do my favorite part: setting up the little preloved pop up shop.
When the pop up shop opens, guests have the opportunity to “shop” till they drop, using the tokens they had collected at the door. You guys, at the last party, I walked away with beautiful shoes, a handbag, and a stunning dress that I would never have bought for myself (because the kids come first… why buy for myself when I can get something for them. I know, it’s a “mom disease”…)
I also get a kick out of seeing Purge Party guests chat with their newly made friends – helping each other choose garments and try on jackets. The snippets of convo make my heart so happy! “Oh wow, this looks so good on you” and “you should definitely try that on” – I love when women empower and encourage each other!At the end of the day, all the clothing not claimed in the “shop” is boxed to hand over to a local charity. All in all a win-win situation in my books! The event was such a huge success that we’ve hosted quite a few Purge Parties last year. And hey, who knows, we could be hosting a Purge Party at a venue near you!
What do you think? Does the idea of a “Purge Party” make you want to burst out in hysterical laughter? Would you rather not wear someone else’s preloved clothing? Or do you think it’s a brilliant idea? Please leave your comments below.
