Mandii's Muse

I love seeing what everyone received for Christmas. I received some really cool products, so I want to share those with you! I will break these into categories, to make it easy to read. Here's what I got! Entertainment: Dinner for Schmucks DVD : I can't tell you how much I love this movie. My dad and I laugh so hard until tears come down our faces. Date Night DVD : Again, this movie is hilarious! It never gets old, and you find new things to laugh at every time I watch it! The Christmas Card DVD : This is probably my all time favorite Hallmark Channel Christmas movie. I watch it every single time it is on TV and I know I will probably wear the DVD out. The Chew What's for Dinner cookbook : I watch the Chew everyday that I am home, and love most of the recipes that they make. Plus, the banter between Clinton, Carla, Daphne, Mario and Michael is hilarious! Carla Hall Cooking with Love cookbook : This has those Southern down home recipes that are just delicious co...

Wow, I have been a terrible blogger this past week haven`t I ? Sorry about that. Blame it on the Christmas busyness. I have some fun Christmas posts coming up so be on the lookout for that. I am a traditional person. Christmas is no exception. My family always teases me that we are going to change things up, and I always shoot them down. These traditions have been going on since I was a little girl, so why change them? On Christmas Eve, we always have some type of cheese filled pasta. This ranges from stuffed shells, to manicotti, to lasagna. Always homemade of course! My grandma always gives me a Nutcracker on this day as well. (I collect them!) Christmas Day, we always have hard boiled eggs, home fries, and ham for breakfast. Recently, I started making my breakfast quiche and that has added to the tradition.  When I was a little girl Santa would always put an orange in my stocking, even now there is always an orange in my stocking. There is always an angel on the t...

Image found here Also, the amount of money I DON'T have!  Haha! Christmas season can be rough on your wallet. Between buying gifts for your kids, parents, co-workers it can really make it run dry. I pretty much hate spending money, so this is always a tough time of year for me. This year, I did things a little different. I set a budget. I took about $160 dollars to buy presents for my family. I have stayed within that budget, but I still need to buy for my parents. Which, I will have to add just a little bit of money to what I have left over. So all together, I have bought presents for my aunt and uncle, 2 sets of grandparents, and my great grandpa. All that is left, is my parents. (Why are they so hard to buy for?) I bought some presents online, and I set aside $40 (the total of the bill) to be used when the credit card bill comes in. That way, I won't go over budget and spend that $40 and be scraping around for money when the bill comes in. This system has really ...

Another month, another Birchbox! Who doesn't love receiving mail in today's technological age? Her is what I received in my box! Camille Beckman | Body Butter- As soon as I opened this, my mom claimed it. She loves a rich body butter, and the scent is slightly musky. Mally | Lip Magnifier- I am SO excited to try this! I've wanted to try Mally Beauty for a long time. This lip crayon is in the color Soft Nude, and applies very glossy. *After trying this on, it is too light for me, however I will be using this to tone down some brighter lipsticks, or underneath a lip liner!* Nelson j Beverley Hills | Argan Oil 7 moisture Healing Mask- This mask is said to nourish dry color treated, damaged hair. I love hair masks, and I am excited to see how my hair feels after using this! Skin & Co Roma | Truffle Therapy Anti Aging Serum- This was another sample my mom claimed! She is always looking for a new anti wrinkle cream. The Lifestyle Extra this month is a candle fro...

Friday rolls around, and it is getting closer and closer to Christmas! I'm linking up with Lauren today, as usual! *Sorry for the lack of pictures this week guys!* 1. I had a birthday on Wednesday! Unfortunately, that day was kind of crappy, so I am instituting a birthday redo today! 2. I pulled out my favorite ear warmer and wore it already! It has been bitter cold here! 3. I am doing pretty good with Christmas shopping this year. Now, if only the stuff I ordered online will get here soon! 4. Season 3 of Farm Kings premiers 1 week from yesterday! I'm SO excited! 5. Mom and I are baking Christmas cookies today! What did you love this week? Leave me a comment and let me know!

If you missed part 1 of my favorite CD's for Christmas you can find it here ! Here are five more that I enjoy listening to during the holiday's. I absolutely LOVE Michael Buble's CD entitled Christmas . He does duets with The Puppini Sisters, Shania Twain, and Naturally 7. My favorite song on this album is Cold December Night.  David Archuleta's Christmas from the Heart has a nice blend of upbeat songs, and slow songs. He also does an incredible job on Ave Maria. Amy Grant's Home for Christmas is one that I almost always listen to first when I pull my CD's out. I was first attracted to this CD because it has Grown Up Christmas List on it which is one of my favorite songs. I also love Breath of Heaven.  Let the Yuletide Ring has the entire Nutcracker Suite on it. As a Nutcracker collector, I had to get the entire suite on CD.  The Martin's Light of the World is by far my favorite Christian Christmas CD. They do Christmas like only t...

In my opinion, there is nothing better than Christmas music. I have found myself listening to the same CD's year after year. I wanted to share my favorites with you! I have a lot so I am splitting this into 2 parts! You can never go wrong with Christmas music. I have a wide range of favorites, and I'm sure one of these will suit your Christmas mood! *NSYNC's Home for Christmas is a great upbeat Christmas CD. My favorite song is the ever popular Merry Christmas, Happy Holiday's. They also do a great job on O Holy Night, which is acappella. 98* This Christmas is also one of my absolute favorites! If you are proposing to your girfriend on Christmas, you will want to play This Gift. It is an absolutely beautiful song perfect for the occasion! Jingle Bells is all instrumental. I love putting this on for Christmas Eve and listening to it as we eat diner. Disney's Christmas Collection are Christmas songs like only Disney can do it! I'm 26 and I still lo...

I absolutely love my Better Homes and Gardens wax warmer. It melts the wax cubes beautifully,  and perfumes the entire area with a delicious scent. I found the warmer at Wal-Mart for $15 and the wax melts for $2 for 6 cubes. I think the Winter scents are my favorite, and in my area, I could burn them until at least March! Frosty Peppermint Snow: I ABSOLUTELY cannot be without this scent. It is an icy peppermint that is very subtle, and not overpowering at all. The only problem that I find is that this scent does not last long. I can't get enough of it! Chocolate Peppermint Truffle: If you love Andes Candies, you will love this scent. It is an exact match to the candy. It is the perfect blend of chocolate and mint, and it is not too strong. Caution: this might make you want to snack on Andes Candies!! Cinnamon and Spice: This scent is very homey. It isn't a strong scent, but it doesn't fade in the background either. This scent lasts forever, and even when the warmer...

These nail polishes are a good mix of many different colors. My mood depends on if I want to wear a darker color or a lighter color for my nails. Here are my favorites for Winter! L-R Giovanna, Ruby Slippers, Kendal, Shay, Kelly, Champagne Zoya Shay: This is in every single one of my favorites, because it is a great neutral. It is the perfect mannequin hands shade for me. It is a beautiful pinky/peach with a hint of metallic. I love it! Femme Couture Ruby Slippers: This is my go to Christmas Eve and Day nail polish. It is a deep red with lighter red glitter. It is absolutely gorgeous, and perfect for Christmas! Zoya Kendal: This is a wonderful Winter neutral. It is full coverage in 2 coats. This is probably the lightest purple, which makes it a great neutral. It goes with anything, and you can't tell that it is purple. Zoya Kelly: This is a wonderful purple/blue/gray neutral color. It is dark and sultry, and I love this with Essie Set in Stones as an accent nail. ...

Friday, you are here again! It is lovely to see you! I am linking up with Lauren , as usual! Here is what I loved this week! 1. I worked 4 days this week subbing, and I had to leave at 2 for a doctors appointment today. The plus: I get to eat Olive Garden for dinner! Image found here 2. I just learned that I am going to go see Donny and Marie in concert the day after my birthday! I'm SO excited!! 3. Have you started your Christmas list? I definitely need to! Tell me that I'm not the only one who makes Christmas lists to use as "hints" for my family. Image found here 4. I found this cool way to address my Christmas cards! I'm doing it this year! 5. This week, I am glad it is Friday! How has your week been? Let me know, I'd love to hear from you! Comment away!

Image found here For some reason lately, my soup of choice has been tortilla soup. I've had it at a couple restaurants, and both have been different. One style has been broth based, and another tomato based. Both were very good, but I preferred the broth based soup. I should also mention that I LOVE Mexican food. I make a mean enchilada bake, which I usually make for Cinco de Mayo. Mom and I love to can our own pico de gallo (which would be awesome on top of tortilla soup!) So basically this post is going to be a pre-post to an upcoming post. I found the Pioneer Woman 's recipe of Tortilla Soup, and I decided that I absolutely have to make it. It looks delicious! I will make sure to fill you in on how it goes! Do you have a favorite tortilla soup recipe? I'd love to hear from you! Leave me a comment with your favorite recipe!

I entitled this post Christmas gifts for "The Others" because you know you always have those people that you don't know what to buy for them. People like hairdressers, co-workers, and maybe your child's teacher. I pulled these ideas from my Pinterest page. These gifts are small, and relatively inexpensive, so if you need to make multiples of this, it will not break the bank.  How adorable is this? This is just a cute way to decorate your gum.  Who doesn't love a peppermint sugar scrub? This can be made in bulk and be gifted to many different people. Plus, it could be done in a few hours on a Saturday.  I thought this gift would be adorable for a child's class. Who wouldn't love to munch on "Reindeer Noses", and Rudolph's nose?  What woman doesn't love getting nail polish and matching socks? I know I would! This would be great for your hairdresser or child's teacher! Can you see yourself giving some of these gifts? If you...

I have been trying this new conditioner out and I have been loving it. I received this in an Ipsy bag, and was pleasantly surprised. This conditioner has macadamia oil, and argan oil. It is paraben free. This conditioner is thinner, but don't let that fool you. It is incredibly moisturizing. I put this on and leave it on for 2-3 minutes and when I comb my hair out, it is so soft and manageable. I also find that I don't have a problem with styling afterwards. Another aspect that I love about this conditioner is that is smells incredible! It is so fresh and sweet smelling.  You can buy this at Ulta or locally! Have you ever tried this conditioner? I'd love to hear from you! Leave me a comment and let me know! P.S. Sorry for the blurry photo.    :(