Good morning!
I almost made the title “this will be my last recap blog,” but I decided not to go that route again. But seriously, this is my last recap blog…in my twenties! The next time I recap my week, I’ll be 30! Can you all believe it? Some of you were reading my blog when I was 19! We just spent ten years together (virtually!) It’s amazing how fast time goes and scary. I am going to do a blog next week about things I learned in my 20’s! I’m so ready for this next chapter in my life. And if you’ve been reading since the beginning, thank you! 
I finished up filming what I eat in a day low carb, but you all pretty much see everything in these recap posts!
My breakfasts each morning has consisted of these low carb pancakes. I usually add blueberries to them, but I can’t get enough! I’m officially two months in on reducing my coffee down to one cup a day, and wow, has my sleep pattern changed. My random insomnia is pretty much nonexistent, and my elevated afternoon anxiety has been reduced as well.
I spent most of Monday on the computer working. I did happen to get my walk-in (the only one I did this week!) My goal for February, March, and April is to walk one hour a day! Let me know if you want me to create a group if it’s something you’d be interested in doing with me.
After working, Kyle and I picked up chicken caesar salads and buffalo wings to have while watching the Bachelor! He hates the show, but it’s cute that he watches it for me. His commentary is my favorite part. So far, I’m still loving Matt. My favorites are Bri and Michelle. I have a feeling one of them will be the next Bachelorette. 
I spent Wednesday afternoon working on the garden beds. I cut back the hydrangeas, my peonies and ripped out all the weeds that made their way into the mulch in the Fall. I also added a new layer of mulch. I’ll prune the roses in late February and plant some more bulbs! I’m SO ready for spring to get here. I miss being outside or walking the nursery so much! I’ve been documenting everything I’ve been doing outside from now until spring so I can share a gardening post! 
Here’s what my peonies looked like last spring! I’m excited to see them come back up. There’s a chance I may have to move them since the house next door was finally built. I’m not sure if they’ll get enough sun. We’ll see! I have also been working on building a raised vegetable bed for the back of my yard this year, and I’m excited to see how it turns out! The back of our hard has a huge downhill dropoff that I want to utilize, and the vegetable garden is a great way to do it. 
I spent a lot of my week working on recipes (I have so many coming your way!), so I didn’t get to document too much. If you follow me on Instagram, then you know I’m always making something!
For dinner, we had jalapeno queso turkey burgers with brussels sprouts! 😋 
On Friday, I was up bright and early because we had someone coming out to remove our roller shades. We had white roller shades installed, but for the price, we did not love them. They were fraying, they didn’t fit even though they were custom, and they added no design value to the house. Kyle finally agreed with me that drapes would look so much better! I can’t wait to show you our living room/dining room with our new drapes! We have kitchen chairs coming, a new coffee table and end tables, lamps, and we’ve been working on an industrial mirror. I will hopefully do a post next week, but stay tuned on my Instagram! I always share little sneak peeks.
Anyway, I opened up a birthday gift from Kyle’s mom, and it was the best! She got me a pizzelle maker and gave me the recipe that she’s been making for years! They are so good, and I can’t wait to keep the tradition going! It’s always nice when you can do something that brings back good memories for your significant other! 
I’m sure you’re super surprised, but a big stack of low carb pancakes for me on Friday! 
On Friday evening, I started playing around with YouTube makeup tutorials for bridal looks.
Before I do makeup, I use the Vanity Planet Aira facial steamer. I add rose and eucalyptus to the sponge! I usually do this a few times a week before bed as well. After my face dries, I prepare it for makeup! The last makeup video I used was Brianna Fox’s! I’m in love with her makeup videos (coming from someone who isn’t that into makeup)
I am going to do my own hair and makeup for my wedding. I know some of you said it was the best decision to do it yourself, and some of you said you had someone make you look like a completely different person and hated it. But also, there were comments on my latest IG saying to hire someone to do it definitely. The feelings are mixed on this. I’ve had a few bad experiences with getting my hair/makeup done. I sometimes feel a little Halloween-ish. I witnessed someone get their hair and makeup done before a wedding, and they were completely in panic mode. They had bright blue eyeshadow, circle pink blush, sparkle lipstick, and their hair was crispy ringlets. They had to hurry and wash their face, do their makeup, and brush out their hair, 30-minutes before the wedding. I don’t wait to put that on anyone. I’m going to keep doing tutorials, purchase new products, and get everything down before my big day! Plus, I don’t want to time everything around a team of hair/makeup people. I want my day to be laid back and casual. 
The one thing I’m trying to get used to is adding more makeup. I don’t know if anyone can relate, but I have this weird anxiety that comes with wearing too much makeup. As soon as I take photos of things or get back home from events, the first thing I do is wash my face. I can’t even sit on the couch for more than ten minutes if I know there’s makeup on my face. I fear that my face is going to get broken out or wrinkly. It’s just weird! So the thing I’ve been working on is trying to do more makeup because I know in photos that the less you wear, the less your features show up. So each time I do a new tutorial, I add more! This was just the first round, but I’ll maybe record it for a video next time I try! 
On Friday night, I got ready for an Anders Ruff class with the ladies on my street.
The funny thing about this sweater is that I bought it in an extra small, thinking it just ran a little larger, but it’s actually maternity. You’d never know the difference! I’ve done this several times at H&M. It’s usually when someone puts a sweater in the wrong spot!
These boots are from Old Navy & soooo comfortable! 
For my Anders Ruff Project, I built a sign for our guest room with the wifi password on it! I think it turned out pretty cute 😊 
On Saturday, Kyle and I headed to my tattoo consultation, and then we made a trip to Whole Foods to pick up dinner ingredients. We were in the mood for steak Caesar salads. 
If you have whole food near you and love kale salads, this 356 Chopped Kale is the best! I had to pick MAYBE five stems out of the bag. The kale didn’t have a billion of those chunky stems you get in most salad bags. I’m in love with this stuff! I think that’s the hardest part about eating kale salads is the bitter stems! 
We dressed the kale in Whole Foods caesar dressing, red onion, parmesan crisps, steak, and avocado. I cooked baby potatoes for Kyle on the side. 
For lunch the next day, I had a kale caesar salad with Sonoma chicken salad on top. That is my favorite salad from Whole Foods! I do need to make my own soon! But that probably won’t happen since I just ordered 2.5 lbs of it for porch delivery today. I can’t get enough of it when it’s with this kale! 
I made peppers, snap peas, onions, jalapeno chicken sausage, and added mozzarella! It was soooooo gooood. 
I made lemon poppy muffins on Monday because I had a weird craving for a lemon donut. This was the best I could come up with, and they were so good! I made them again yesterday so that I can post that recipe for you all Friday! 😋
I’m sure you can guess what was for lunch! 
On Monday night, I headed in for my first tattoo removal appointment! I explained why I wanted to do it and how the first treatment went. I am going to write up a blog for the next three treatments. I’ll share the cost, expectations, the pain, and everything that went into it! I didn’t realize so many of you would be interested in this process, but the DMs were blowing up! 
Monday night dinner while watching the Bachelor! 
On Monday morning, I headed to Hobby Lobby to pick up candles for my wedding dinner table. I’ve been trying to do something every day since it’s in four months! I can’t believe it’s almost here. I have some finishing touches on the table, and then everything is pretty much set to go! 😊
I also stopped to get a mani/Pedi since my nails were looking rough! I went with a cute pink/glittery pink to kick off the birthday weekend! 
Last night for dinner, I made the yummiest low carb chicken parm! I breaded chicken breast with almond flour, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, salt, and Italian seasoning, baked at 350 for fifteen minutes, flipped them and cooked for another six minutes, and then topped them with marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, turned up the temperature to 400 and cooked for about six minutes! I will make this recipe again to post in a recipe format, but WOW was it good. I can’t wait to have it for lunch later. 😊
Our curtains came yesterday! I’ll share everything about the dining room in the blog post next week, but I’m so excited. As I was finishing up this blog post, I got the notification that our dining chairs came! I’ll post them on Instagram today, But if you’re wondering, here are the chairs we purchased, and here’s the rug we have from boutique rugs in our dining room!
Questions for you!
- Have you ever gotten a tattoo?
- What is one product you’ve loved lately from the grocery store?
- What did you have for dinner last night?
1- Never had a tattoo
2- Can I say wine? Cause the wine is the only thing that helped lift me out of a pretty rough week last week, on multiple days. I’m taking the weekend OFF drinking starting Friday but the red red wine, a Beringer Cab Sav, was my favorite grocery find the past week.
3- Last night we had shrimp dumplings with bok choy and jasmine rice. Absolutely delicious- all from our local Asian mart! With red wine, did I mention the red wine was so helpful?!
Also, quick thanks for mentioning the fresh cravings dairy free cashew queso– I just purchased it last night when I spotted it at my target and had it with a little beef and some chips beside my lunch salad today. It’s quite tasty.
I am definitely interested in a daily 1 hour walk the next 3 months and hope you will instagram or blog about your walks, how you change them up, how you keep them interesting, how you power through them even on days you don’t feel like walking.
Jenny
Happy almost birthday!!! I have been following your blog since the Undressed Skeleton days and you are just such a positive influence in my life. I am so excited to read where your 30’s take you 🙂
I also really like Bri and Michelle! I think they share a strong connection with Matt. I really like that Rachael girl too! I don’t really see the connection with Matt but I just think she is so cute!
I love all the recipes you have been posting lately and your house is SO PRETTY!
Hope you are enjoying your day!!
xx
Love everything about this recap!
– I laughed out loud to your pitzel maker. My Italian grandmother has made those every year for all occasions. They’re so good!
– YES. To anxiety adding more makeup than normal. I often feel I look like a clown. You’re good at makeup though. So no worries for the big day. You’re going to be GORGEOUS.
– not going to say dinner last night. But dinner tonight is my chili recipe with your new low carb garlic bread rolls! Can’t wait! 🤩
Hahaha I got the torch now! lol I hope I can make them good!
😭 you’re so sweet girl but I’m happy you get what i’m saying about too much makeup!!
YOUR DINNER LOOKED SO GOOD!
Hi there! Have you started eating dairy again? I know you had stopped a while back but seems like you have recently re-incorporated into your diet!
Yes! I started slowly incorporating it back into my diet late November!
If you find a really good makeup and/hair person, it can alleviate a lot of stress day of! You have a few trials before hand, where you see how it’s going to look, take pictures, and make any necessary tweaks – so there is no surprises. If it’s in your budget, highly recommend.
Good to know 😊
I did my own makeup for my wedding, and a friend did my hair (we went to my hair dresser together and worked out some ideas/methods).
After I did my makeup my friend looked at me and said, “go put more makeup on.” After I reapplied my sister saw me and told me to “go put more makeup on.” So… I put the same makeup on 3 times to finally have everyone think I had enough and it did look good in pictures and in real life. I didn’t want a fancy, not-me-look. I had hair and makeup done for a friends wedding and did not like it at all, so I knew I wouldn’t do that for my wedding. I was very happy with my choice.
ps- IMO it matters most that you are not stressed on your wedding. We rarely look at our wedding pictures, but I do remember how I couldn’t stop smiling at my wedding.
I love that! ♥️
Hi! Is the hardware on your cabinets black or brushed bronze? Love it!
Hi, 😊 it’s matte black!
Have you ever considered doing a garden journal? Not online or anything.. but just something for yourself where you do sketches of things that pop up in the garden, notes of plantings, some quick watercolors? It’s a fun thing to do if you’re a hobby gardener who spends a lot of time outside and you like to paint
I’ve seen people do that! Something to definitely look into!
I have four tattoos and absolutely zero regrets! Each one was prayed through and has a specific meaning that is so special to me. They’re not all perfect, but I do love them.
BUT I think it’s awesome that we have options if we change our minds! I’m glad you chose to take whatever next age you wanted. Thank you sharing your process, even though you don’t owe anyone an explanation!
♥️ appreciate that!!
I bet your tattoos look great and it’s even better that they bring you joy! I didn’t get to think mine through enough 😉
1. I’ve never gotten a tattoo but I have thought about it! I knew back then that I changed my mind on things so easily though so never went through with it, and now I’m glad I didn’t.. not really feeling them for me personally now. But man some people can rock them! I’m definitely not against them!
2. Me and my husband have been obsessed with those pretzel chips lately.. not exactly the healthiest! But hopefully it’ll just be a phase lol
3. For dinner last night I had shredded chicken tacos! I made the chicken in a crockpot and it was delish! I used the leftovers for tostadas today!
I definitely relate to that! ♥️
Hahaha we also went through the pretzel chip phase!!
ohhhh that sounds amazing!! Can’t go wrong with tacos.
Please let us know more about the tattoo removal process! And yes I do have a tattoo – no plans to get it removed currently though haha! ❤️✨
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Will do 😊
I am hooked on Aldi’s roasted red pepper hummus with tortilla chips. Also, their caesar salad kit is the garlickiest!
Also, can’t wait to try your easy chicken parm recipe.
Hope you enjoy!!!
Ohhh, I havn’t been to Aldi’s in so long! I need to!
I have 3 tattoos and like you, I got them all when I was either post breakup or in a tough spot in my life (all with the same guy 🙄) it was my way of proving I could control myself, that I could make my own choices. Maybe a coping mechanism? I regret them sometimes (one in particular) but I’ve never considered removing them. If anything, they remind me of what I’ve overcome and of a place I never want to be in again.
Hi, Kristen!
Funny how we make choices based off our emotions ♥️ I bet your tattoos are amazing and I’m so happy you love them still!
Loving your table and drapes! So pretty!
Glad to hear you are doing your own hair and makeup for your wedding, no matter what you do, it will look beautiful. And loving the salmon burgers from Costco, in the frozen section by all the other seafood.
Awwww thank you, ann!!!
I did my own hair and makeup on my wedding day and found it to be very therapeutic and calming. I’m glad you made that choice!
Love hearing that!
Hi Taralynn! Are you going to post a recipe for the jalepeno queso turkey burgers? They look so delicious!
I am in February 😊
Such a great recap! I also had a tattoo removed.. best decision ever. I have nothing against tattoos either.. but just like you I change my mind way too much! I also got it when I was young and did NOT resonate with it anymore. It’s almost completely gone and the laser treatments I had were great and super quick. I didn’t think it was painful at all luckily. Hang in there 🙂
XO, Katie | http://www.meshkomoments.com
Thank you for sharing that with me!!! I feel the same. I love tattoos but i just change my mind too much!! So happy to hear yours was successful !
Hi Taralynn!
Are you getting the camera tattoo removed? The one on your wrist?
In terms of wedding hair and make up, you can’t go wrong either way! I am not someone who wears a lot of makeup so I was not fully comfortable doing it myself on my wedding day. I never put enough on for pictures and can look washed out. I will say that hair/makeup places DO offer trials. You obviously pay for them but it may be worth getting a recommendation for somewhere in your area. you can bring in a picture of what you want for hair and/or make up. I did that and they fixed anything that I did not like to make it perfect for me. It allowed me to wear the style and makeup around all day after to see how it looked in pictures and they kept a copy of everything that they did on file. It was great to wake up that day and let someone else take care of it all! I already knew exactly what to expect and I got to sit back and drink coffee and relax. I highly recommend doing a trial (or two!) at bridal hair/makeup places IF you decide to get it done professionally!
1. Nope! But my siblings told me how they almost forced me once- we were all going to get a tattoo of our dad’s signature after he passed, but they decided to wear his name on our hearts instead. ❤️
2. Fresh cranberries & plain kefir! They make a great smoothie that’s not sweet at all.
3. Yesterday I made quesadillas after accidentally making a spaghetti squash explode in my microwave the night before. I ended up burning my hand on the griddle. 😂 Maybe it’s not my week. P.S. Put aloe gel on a burn right away and it won’t scar at all!
Have a great birthday weekend, Taralynn!! 🎉
Happy early birthday! I turned 30 last year and so far it hasn’t been so bad. The only downside is that my new bedtime is like 8:30pm these days lol! I absolutely love the white plate with blue watercolored spots on it–where is that from?! And I would love to be a part of a walking group if you get that started 🙂
Thanks, Kelsey!
It’s from Home Goods 😃
I totally get what you mean about needing to add more makeup- the first time I was a bridesmaid for someone we did our own and the bride told us to do it very natural and minimal so that was what I did. I remember thinking one of the bridesmaids had a very dramatic look that didn’t seem very natural. Well, when I saw the pictures afterwards I understood why I felt like the other girl looked over done- I looked washed out and like I wasn’t even wearing makeup in the pictures and this other girl looked great! It is crazy how much work can go into a natural look! But I think your strategy is good – just keep practicing and by the time the big day comes, you will have it down pat and will look awesome! 🙂
Thanks so much, Brit!!!
Yes, I’m going to keep practicing and learning what I love and what I don’t! I’m going bolder each time!!
Happy birthday weekend!! hope you have a great day celebrating. Finally getting to catch up on your blogs, this year has started off with a bang, and also where has January gone?.
I have several tattoos, I love them all and each one means something different to me, I have a flower for each of my grandparents. I completely understand you getting yours removed, life changes. our grocery store is not stocking toasted organic coconut flakes they are so good, I am adding them to everything. I made your dairy free chicken fettuccine its the best!! my friends all left with your recipe. have a great weekend
I had my makeup done for my wedding by a professional and I am NOT a makeup person. I knew I didn’t want the stress of messing it up myself, so I did a lot of trials at a few different salons until I found the right person who listened to me. I wanted to look like a “slightly enhanced” version of me, not a different person. It was a great decision.
I also have a ton of tattoos, an entire sleeve plus a few others. I regret a portion of my sleeve and plan to have it removed but it will be tricky, and more expensive. But like you, I got it after a difficult period in my life and it no longer serves the purpose that I wanted it to. I also have another one that isn’t my favorite that I got on my 18th birthday, I consider covering it up, but don’t think I’ll get it removed.
Hi, Kelli!
I’m so happy your makeup turned out beautiful and everything you wanted on your wedding day! 😊
I bet you’re rocking those tattoos so beautifully. The cool thing about technology is that you can change it up anytime you’d like!
I love the trials you’ve done of doing your own makeup! You look beautiful! I’ve had my makeup done several times professionally for my wedding and others I’ve been in. For one of them they used sooo much product and I looked orange and caked on. I will say – if it’s your own wedding you can find someone to do trial(s) of it and can tweak anything they do. You can tell them your concerns and they can even redo any parts you don’t like. If you did go that route I strongly recommend airbrushed instead traditional. I know that sounds like it’s heavy/fake looking but it’s 100% not! I’ve learned that airbrushed makeup looks SO good and dewy and natural and not caked on at all because they can build it. I have freckles and they didn’t cover them up with thick foundation and just airbrushed 1 light layer so it looked super natural, wayyyy better than foundation ever would, and my freckles all still showed. I’ve had traditional makeup done every other time and I don’t like that at all, I feel like it’s just too thick and doesn’t look natural.
If you do your own makeup, I would recommend to take some pictures with a “trial” makeup with your big camera in natural light/outside/basically trial run pictures. Professional makeup artists know how to apply it so it looks good in pictures, but when we do our own makeup it’s harder. Pictures def are not the only thing to worry about, but it is also nice to look back and like the way you look haha.
Ugh I have the biggest tattoo that covers my entire shoulder blade that I got when I was sixteen (I’ll be 31 this year)… For some reason I don’t love flowers and stars together anymore… Who would have thought 🤦🏻♀️. I would totally get it removed in a heart beat. How did you find where you decided to get it removed?
Love your recap, friend! I think your makeup looks have been so pretty! I think you should do whatever makes you feel the most comfortable. The main thing is not to stress yourself out on YOUR beautiful day. 🙂 You do such a wonderful job, so I know you’ll look amazing either way.
Funny story about my wedding day. I had it set up to have my hair and makeup done the morning of my wedding, or so I thought. I went to my hairstylist first and there was a major mix-up for my makeup and the person wasn’t there to do it. I convinced myself not to freak out, but thankfully my hairstylist just jumped right in and grabbed some makeup and did it for me, haha! It was a little wild, but it still turned out perfect.
P.S. Heading over to your lemon poppy muffin recipe right now!
Make Life Marvelous