Real life.

I got hit by an unwelcome truth bomb this morning: if you were to look at my half of of the bathroom countertop, you might think I'm 476 years old and also very smelly. Here's why:

Legitimately that hot mess contains no less than 11 different age-defying moisturizers and serums (none of which are actually doing anything about my early onset oldness), 4 brands of deodorant (necessary?), 5+ hair products worthy of Rapunzel's locks and enough Birchbox samples to get me through the next Polar Vortex.

I know. I have a problem.

But you see, this problem is SO SATISFYING...and I know that most of you probably share the same problem, amirite? As for me, I'm a product whore and am TOTALLY ok with it. So, I thought that today I would share my top 3 body, skin and hair products. Try to find them a-la-Where's Waldo in the above photo.

1. Aquaphor. I know what you're thinking, and no, it's not just for the childrens anymore. I use it for all the things. Under and around my eyes before bed, as a cuticle moisturizer, on my feet (with socks!) as an overnight softener...and pretty much anything else. It's the bomb dot com of moisturizers in my world.
2. Marcelle BB Creme Golden Glow. The underexaggeration of the century would be that this stuff has changed my life. For real. I got it as a sample in my Birchbox last year and it's one of maybe 3 things that I've actually purchased in real size. It's a BB creme + bronzer but not in an "OMG I look like a Kardashian that got stuck in a tanning booth then went to a rave and got blasted with unicorn dust" kind of way. It's a universal shade, so it works for all skin types, which is necessary for me, as when I have to pick the shade myself I either end up looking like Casper the Ghost or Kevin Hart. In summary, it's the perfect mix of all things--moisturizes and gives that little extra glow to perk up my tired face.
3. And for the hair, Chi Silk Infusion. On any given day, my hair can be my bff or my worst nightmare. More often than not, it's a hot mess and I wave the white flag and just rock a ponytail like it's my job. However, when I actually put 2.5 seconds into a real blowdry and style, this stuff rocks my socks. It's lightweight and smells absolutely devine. 

And for my next trick, I will attempt to organize my bathroom. But we all know that's not happening...

On being 30, but more specifically why my skin can suck it.

If you recall, I had no fears about turning 30. There was no drama, no "woe is me," and in fact, I rather embraced it. I believe my mantra was, "30, I'm gonna rock the shit outta you."

And so I have. Thus far, 30 has been quite a ride and honestly no different from my 20s, save for oh, you know, having a toddler, a mortgage and being asleep in my very own bed at midnight. It's glorious, really.

The part that's not so glorious? My skin is having a mental breakdown. I know what you're thinking, and it has nothing to do with being pregnant, I promise.

Anyway, this 30 year old version of my largest organ (did you know that?) is very uncool. It's like my pores went though the opposite of the Honey I Shrunk The Kids machine and took over my T-Zone like ants on a Dum Dum sucker. Probably the gross ??Mystery?? flavor kind, too, just to make the analogy worse.

Anyway, everyone and their pet monkeys have been raving about those $90 million dollar facial dermabrasion scrubber treatment machines, so off I went to the world's greatest store, Target, to discover my solution.

Legit most of them are like $50+, and I'm not down with that. So when I saw the Neutrogena Wave for a mere $15 I was sold. Refill scrubber pads are about $6 a month if you use it once a day. My kinda price.

image target.com

I've been using le Wave religiously for 2 weeks now. If I'm super honest with you it's been sitting in my cabinet for about 5 months because I'm the perfect combination of lazy and unwilling to admit I have a problem. But nevertheless, I honestly can tell a difference in both the texture of my skin and the size of my pores after consistent use. So far, so good.

Neither Neutrogena or Target know I actually exist (except maybe my photo is up somewhere at Target HQ for being the world's greatest RedCard user?), so this is honest-to-Pete my own review. Sealed with a Kristi!

Tragedy of the toiletry kind.

Bath & Body Works makes a product called 'Miraculos Monoi' that is far and away my all-time fave moisturizer. It's a lightweight oil with a non-offensive scent that you can use on your hair, skin or even in the bath.

So imagine my surprise when I waltzed into BBW on my lunch hour to purchase a replacement to my ever-dwindling stash and the 17-year-old gum popping sales associate tells me that they, "Like, haven't made that product in, like, years."

For the record, she was annoying. "We discontinued the shimmer version, like, 2 years ago. I've never heard of it without the shimmer and I've worked here, like, four and a half years." Gum pop.

Yeah, sweetie. That's just what I want. To walk around glowing like the sun in all my teenybopper glory. Not.

Fast forward through me rolling my eyes at her, walking out the door and landing at my desk. I thought for sure a little ebay/amazon/Googling would do the trick, but I'm coming up empty handed.

This is a sad day, indeed. Almost as sad as the day McDonald's takes the Shammy Shake off the menu.

Le sigh. My skin will never be the same.

Overdue, But With Good Intentions.

Remember waaaaaaay back when I did that teaser post about a product review for the fine, fine peeps over at CSN stores? Welp, I'm here to make good on it!

Per uge, I have a swell excuse reason for why I'm just getting to this now...the product I received and reviewed was a Christmas present for Alex! And so, while it came in the mail very quickly after I ordered it, it sat under the tree wrapped in all its glory until Mister Alex tore it open on Christmas morning.

Behold, the KidKraft 2-in-1 Lego and Train Activity Table from CSNstores.com.

It was an all-around hit at the VeeDub house. It was a breeze to put together (score) and it's big enough to be useful for playspace and storage (double score) but small enough that it doesn't take up 4,789,357 square feet of my basement (hyperbole, but triple score).

The quality of the table itself is tip-top. The lid that transitions from a Lego table to a train track (train, track and Legos included!) is just brills. I do, however, wish that the magnets on the train were a little stronger. Alex gets frustrated when he's wheeling it along the tracks (with cute "tchoo tchoo" sound effects) and it doesn't all stay together.

We have yet to actually use the Lego side, mostly because Alex's current obsession with trains doesn't allow for us to play with or watch anything non-rail related.

In summary, I'm once again a super satisfied customer of CSNstores.com. In this particular transaction, we got a quality product at a great value--with free shipping to boot!

Sometimes, Shopping Is Just A Click Away.

In a 'Merry Halloween' to myself, I'll be reviewing an item from one of CSN's 200+ online stores in the coming weeks. Who says blogging doesn't have its perks?

What will it be? An ottoman coffee table (hello, Paula Deen...I ah-DORE you)? Something fabulous for my niephew? New bedding that I've been wanting for months? I JUST DON'T KNOW!

One thing's for sure...whatever I want, I'll be sure to find it at CSN for a super duper price.

Toofers.

As expected, the other bottom/middlish tooth has sprouted. It's probably only a matter of time before he's begging to go to 2-for-1 wing night @ Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner. Le sigh.

Amidst all the crazy things/gimmicks that we've purchased for teething (rings, toys, baby tooth brushes, textured binkies, etc.) I think I've found the golden goose: Baby Orajel® Teething Swabs.

A coworker actually tipped me off about these things. They look alarmingly similar to a Q-Tip, but you snap the top off and the medicine oozes into the other tip and then you swab it in baby's mouth. I tried it on my hand...it really works...and quite instantly! (The girl that told me about it says she uses them when she plucks her eyebrows...ha!)

Much like the pre-soaped washcloths that I prefer to use at bath time, these are rather gimmicky. I could probably buy the tube of Orajel and apply it myself to save some money, but there are some things in life that are worth paying for: plumbers, painters and Orajel. :) Plus, I love that I can throw them in the diaper bag and use them whenever and wherever he might get fussy because of teething-related pain.

Well, I'd love to stay and chat, but I'm off to pick up the future Mr. & Mrs. David Turner from the airport...it's WEDDING WEEKEND! :)

CSN Baby Division = Thumbs Up.

In the event that any of my kickass readers were sitting on pins and needles waiting for the product and store review from CSN Baby, your day has arrived!

My apologies to Ashley and the fine people at CSN for the delay in posting, but I wanted to give this review the time and research that it deserved.

So here we go...

The product I received in the mail was the Skip*Hop Mod Dot Nursery Lamp.




Once you finish squealing with delight at how adorable it is, I will give you the low down.

*pause for squeals*

First, a review on the product itself:

Price: The list price of this lamp is $40. CSN has it 33% off at an absolute STEAL for $27. To be honest, I lovelovelove the Skip*Hop brand (you remember our bottle drying rack?) but hate that it's often so expensive. Worth it, but still. I usually can snag items for a deal at Marshalls or T.J. Maxx, but CSN's price beats them ALL. To drive the point home, this exact same lamp is listed for $49.99 at Buy, Buy Baby and is listed for $50 at many other online retailers' sites.

There's also a "seen it for less?" button near the price on CSN's product pages. All you have to do is click the link and fill out a quick form (where you saw the price, what it was, etc.) and they will send you back an offer. As a girl who loves a deal but sometimes gets exhausted on the hunt, I find this to be an absolutely brilliant concept. Customer retention? Ab-so-friggin-lutely.

Shipping: This item shipped to me for $6.21, which isn't bad considering it's a LAMP for crying out loud. Currently, they're offering free shipping on orders of $75 or more.

Function: Ok, why have I not owned a touch-operated lamp before? BRILLS! A light touch to the base or pole of the lamp will turn it on; it has a 3-way bulb, so the low setting is perfect for a night light in Alex's room and the high setting is great for bedtime stories. Plus, I can easily turn it off if he's sleeping without the annoying *CLICK* of a standard lamp. Nobody likes to wake a baby!

Now, for a general review of CSN:

Product Offering: They have a wide range of products from a great selection of brands. From nursery decor to travel gear, there's pretty much nothing you can't find on their site. Plus, with over 200+ CSN sister sites, you're sure to find whatever it is you're looking for...baby-related or otherwise.

Price: As previously mentioned, their price points are very competitive. Even if you were to use a coupon at a big-name baby retailer like Buy, Buy Baby, you're still getting a better price even factoring in shipping at CSN.

Customer Service: Now, I suspect that I got great customer service because I was doing a product review for them, but to be extra sneaky I anonymously called their customer service line with a few fake questions just to get a taste of the company and its culture. I'm pleased to report they passed with curteous, flying colors.

In Summary: My final grade for CSN is an A+! I would like to thank them for the opportunity to review their company and its products. You can bet I'll be a repeat customer.

And to my friends at Starbucks, MAC, Target, etc. if you are reading this and would like to follow suit, hit me up at kveedub {at} gmail {dot} com.

AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH.

Based solely on my current stress/anxiety levels, you'd think I was the one getting married this weekend. And if I'm feeling this way, I can only imagine how Kelli is doing...

Anyway, the Post®-its are out of control and I'm beginning to fear they are going to take on a lifelike form and revolt in an uprising against me. I've managed to throw away 5 of them this morning - 2 personal and 3 work-related. Only 432,879,721 more to go!

In other news, Starbucks Christmas Blend came out today. Best. Coffee. Ever.

And, for those that give a rats, the E-Boarding pass worked like a charm. I just pulled up the text message from NWA/Delta that had the barcode on it and scanned it under this little machine thingie and breezed on through. VERY cool. I always stumble and stress like a maniac to find which pocket I put the paper pass in, which results in an instant hot flash of fear that I lost it, dropped it, or was mugged. I knew my phone was in my pocket, so no fear, no sweat. Love it!

And it's LONG overdue, but tomorrow you can expect the post on my lovely surprise from the CSN baby division. It's VERY cool!

The Best Is Yet To Come...

Greetings, readers. Happy Saturday morning to you.

The fine people from the CSN group of stores contacted me last week about doing a product review for their baby division, http://www.csnbaby.com/. Apparently they got the memo that ABM3 was the most kickass blog on the block, and they wanted in.

Or, they just knew I was a sucker for free stuff. Either way, I'm not arguing.

I've spent some time researching their product offering (which includes baby furniture, nursery decor and baby gear) to make sure they were worthy of a prestigious ABM3 review. So far, I'm very pleased with their range of products and the prices seem to be competitive.

My mailbox is dancing in anticipation. And like my Momma always told me, "Honesty is the best policy." So, CSN, it better be good!

Eegads!

Confession: I am a TOTAL office supply whore. I heart the back to school season because all of my favorite stores greet me as I enter with lavish displays of pens, notebooks, folders and other paperish items.

Back to School 2009: Enter the Sharpie retractable pen.

I have been searching like a fiend for this hot little item since I first drooled over the swirling coffee cup in the lame introductory commercial campaign. MUST. HAVE. IT. NOW.

Alas, no brick and mortar stores in the Greater Metro Detroit area could keep them in stock long enough for me to get my hands on one. And, quite frankly, I draw the line at $3.99 shipping from Amazon.com.

So imagine my sheer delight when I found them on Sunday at my neighborhood unfriendly Wally World. YIPPIE!

And in case you were wondering, they are awesome.

Avon Review.

Remember the Avon giveaway I won? Well, here's a little review of the products I picked. For $30, I got some GREAT stuff!

1. ADVANCE TECHNIQUES Dry Ends Serum - I've been using Redken Smooth Down Heat Glide for what seems like an eternity. And even though I'm a product whore and love to switch things up, I've never strayed from my Heat Glide because I love it so. But, this was an opportunity to try something new for free, so I went for it. I'm not disappointed in the slightest - it makes my hair soft and silky and smells DELICIOUS!

2. NAILWEAR PRO Nail Enamel in Midnight Plum - Kelli has spent the entire summer trying to convince me that dark is the new red when it comes to nail color, so I thought (again) for free I'd give it a whirl. Not only am I crazy obsessed with the color, it's also a pretty good polish. Quick to dry and slow to peel. My kinda girl.

3. mark That's Deep Purifying Gel Cleanser - The ingredients sounded hokey pokey to me, but I currently have no less than 6 facewashs in my shower, so I thought I'd throw another in the mix just for fun. The only thing I wish is that it had a bit more of an exfoliating punch, otherwise I'm a big fan. My face feels nice and fresh...plus the packaging is cute. :)

4. NAIL EXPERTS Liquid Freeze Quick Dry Spray - A day or two before I placed my order from Avon I ran out of a similar product from Creative called Solar Spray. This stuff is mucho cheaper and works just as well! It even has the nice moisturizing after effect that the Creative stuff has. It doesn't smell as yummy, but I can get over that for the $14 in savings.

5. ASTONISHING LENGTHS Mascara in Black - Eh. Not a fan. It just goes to show that I will never quit quitting Maybelline's Volume Express. Once you go 7x you'll never go back.

6. mark Angled Contour Face Brush - I actually needed a new face/blush brush and was just getting up the courage to drop the $50 for the MAC one I wanted like this. MAC brushes are the only currently making an appearance in my repertoire, but this brush from Avon did not disappoint. And you really can't beat the price.

So there you have it! Thanks again to Mrs. Newlywed and Avon Lady from SC for the great stuff!

A'int Nothin' Like The Real Thing, Baby.

We all know that I adore coupons. And store brands. And sales. And basically anything that will save money. However, there are a few things that I absolutely do not compromise on. I know that you probably don't give a rats ass what they are, but I'm going to tell you anyway. And you will probably read them.

1. Jif peanut butter. I don't care what anyone says, no other pb on the planet is as delicious as Jif. I am a choosy Mom and will continue to be for the rest of my life. Let's not kid ourselves here, though, I always buy it with a coupon. It's like freakin' $8 for the big jar!

2. Nabisco reduced fat Wheat Thins. The store brand "wheat crackers" just simply do not cut it. And I would buy the reduced fat even if they were the full fat kind, because I think they taste better than the regular ones. Also, no fancy flavors here. I applaud Nabisco's venture out into the world of flavored crackers, but I'll stick to the good ol' fashioned nutty goodness of the original, thankyouverymuch.

3. Reduced fat Cheez-its. I could literally eat an entire box of these in one sitting. And the same goes here for the reduced fat - I think they actually taste better than the full fat ones. Mmmmm delicious. And while they don't often print coupons for le Cheez-it, I typically will only purchase them on sale. And buy purchase them I mean throw 2 family size boxes in my cart and salivate until I can open them.

4. Diet Pepsi/Coke. The store brands just simply do not cut it. Perhaps I have a very refined palate (Joey stop laughing), but they are NOT the same. And as long as we're talkin' soda pop, there is NOTHING, and I mean NOTHING like McDonald's Coke. It's like heaven through a straw. I don't know why, but no other fountain Coke tastes like Mickey D's...it has more of a cinnamon-y taste that I simply adore. And the $1 any size summer deal? Let's just say they know me by name at the McDonald's down the street.

5. Swiffer dusters. I hateloathehateloatedespise Swiffering more than anything on the planet and would do anything including faking a heart attack to avoid it. Meijer recently came out with a store brand version of the refills, so I bought them and thought, "Hey, to save $3 I'll give it a whirl." They sucked so much I actually threw away the rest of the box. That should tell you something.

Told you you would read them. :)

Now that I have successfully wasted a good 6 minutes of your life (4 if you're a fast reader), I shall go make friends with the treadmill so I can have a successful WIW next week. Ciao!