Devotion Today

Hurt, Heal, Help!

This weekend, I spoke to one of my dearest friends.  Her and I only talk once every 2-3 months (it's her fault, lol) but when we speak, it's like we pick up where we left off and never miss a beat.  I love her like a sister, she is family.  This past weekend when we spoke, she told me she had been hurt by a trusted friend, a friend whom she views with the same honesty, love and respect that I view her.  Hearing the hurt in her voice really bothered me....it infuriated me.  Immediately my mind was racing and a little piece of me that liked and had nothing against this person that hurt my friend suddenly resented her.  I quickly snapped back, I told myself "we are not little school girls anymore and you can't dislike someone just because they have an issue with your friend".  (Yawl know that's how it worked in school) 

With that being said, the Devotional Plan I am currently reading is from Joyce Meyer called "Ending Your Day Right".  Last night I read Devotions for 2 days because I let myself get behind.  One of the lessons was about people hurting you.  I took this as a reminder from God that he is all you need and always on time.  I didn't need to be mad at this person who had hurt my friend, God would send a healing for her through me...through Devotion.  The following Devotion I share with my friend and anyone who has ever been hurt by another human being.

Hurt, Heal, Help!

Sometimes people say or do things that hurt you, but you have the God-given ability to love these people.  One good way is to start by following the well-known golden rule.  It isn't easy.  In fact, it requires discipline.  But God will help you if you really want to do it. 

Discipline is your friend, it is the ability God gives you to walk in His ways.  Although it is difficult, discipline is temporary discomfort that can lead to permanent or long-term enjoyment. 

If you've been hurt and learned to overcome it, you have a valuable tool...use it to help others.  God comforts us so we can comfort others.  Here's the progression:  We hurt, we allow God to heal us, and we are ready to help others.  Hurt, heal, help!  It's a process that can literally change your life, and the lives of many others around you.

The scripture reading for this Devotion

Romans 5:5

And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

Skin Care Series: Regimen

Let's Talk Skincare:

Basic Skincare Regimen 

 Below is an example of a basic skincare regimen

This skincare regimen is just for use as a guideline, feel free to customize as you see fit for your particular skin type 

Your Guide:

q Step 1- Cleanse: The skin needs to be cleansed at least once a day.  Use a cleanser that doesn’t strip the skin of natural oils. I prefer using a soap or foaming cleanser.  Do not use a soap that is formulated for the body or a bath soap; these choices will strip the skin and leave you feeling tight and dry. (Dry Skin: Use a rich (cream) cleanser; Oily Skin: Cleanse the face at least twice a day to prevent dirt and oil build up)   
   

q C. Janae’s Picks: Biore 4 in 1 Detoxifying foam cleanser $6-$7

Ambi Complexion Cleansing Bar $1.99

q Step 2- Exfoliate: Use an exfoliating cleanser twice a week in place of your daily cleanser (Step 1).  Exfoliation encourages cell turnover and dead skin removal.  Can be used on all skin types.

qStep 3- Mask: All skin types can benefit from using treatment masks.  Masks may be used weekly, bi-weekly or on a monthly basis depending on the needs of your particular skin type.  Choosing a mask that contains cucumber, aloe or chamomile will prove to be beneficial and soothing to your skin. 

q Step 4- Toner: Toners are completely optional, but I highly recommend them. They can assist in removing oil and dirt left behind by your cleanser or they can be used prior to cleansing as a pre-cleanser.   Toners are most beneficial for oily skin and persons that wear a lot of makeup.  During the summer, you will notice your skin is more oily and a toner may prove to be essential during this time.    
  

qC. Janae’s Picks: Clean and Clear Deep Cleansing Astringent (formula’s based on skin types) $3.99

Witch Hazel $3-$7

q Step 5- Moisturizer: Hydration…the most important step in skincare!  Moisturizers serve as a protective barrier between your delicate facial skin and harsh environmental surroundings.  The right moisturizer will extenuate the look, health and feel of your skin.   

C. Janae’s Picks: Cetaphil Daily Facial Moisturizer $11.99

Disclaimer

I am an Esthetician; licensed skincare specialist. I am not a dermatologist.  The information contained in the Skin Care Series sections of this blog are personal tips and information I obtained through school and through experience working with persons of different skin types.  These guides and tips are intended for use as a basic skincare guide only.  

Caring for your skin should be just as important as caring for your heart, lungs and other vital organs.  If you are experiencing a serious skin disorder or abnormalities of the skin, you should seek the aid and treatment of a licensed dermatologist immediately. 

Skin Care Series: Skin Types and Care

Let's Talk Skincare:

Skin Types and Care

What is the T-Zone area? 

T-zone area (forehead, nose and chin)

Disclaimer:

I am an Esthetician; licensed skincare specialist. I am not a dermatologist.  The information contained in the Skin Care Series sections of this blog are personal tips and information I obtained through school and through experience working with persons of different skin types.  These guides and tips are intended for use as a basic skincare guide only. 

Caring for your skin should be just as important as caring for your heart, lungs and other vital organs.  If you are experiencing a serious skin disorder or abnormalities of the skin, you should seek the aid and treatment of a licensed dermatologist immediately. 

Ok.....On to Skin Types and Care....

Normal Skin

Analysis
   

q        *  Smooth, even skin texture

q      * Comfortable feeling

q        * Cheeks may be dry, but nothing excessive

q        * May experience some shine and larger pores on T-zone area

q        * Water and oil content are in balance

Caring for Normal Skin

Cleanse the skin at least once a day with a cleanser formulated for the face, exfoliate 1-2 times per week in place of your daily cleanser, moisturize the skin using a lightweight lotion and use sunscreen to keep the skin healthy and prevent damage. Maintain a healthy lifestyle by exercising, eating healthy and drinking at least 8-10 glasses of water per day.

Dry Skin

Analysis

q       * Skin is tight after washing

q       * Skin looks dry or flaky

q       * Feels rough and uneven to the touch

q       * Skin appears dehydrated

q       * May be sensitive

q       * Small pores

q       * Shows fine lines faster than other skin types

Caring for Dry Skin

Cleanse the skin at least once a day with a rich cleanser formulated for dry skin.  Moisture and hydration are essential needs of persons with dry skin.  A light-weight face oil is a good start, if that is not enough, try layering a rich cream moisturizer over the oil.  Layering different textures can do wonders for dry skin. Apply night cream before going to bed. Maintain a healthy lifestyle by exercising, eating a healthy diet loaded with foods high in water content (fruits, veggies) and drinking at least 8-10 glasses of water per day.  Dry Skin tips: Avoid prolonged sun exposure, caffeine and alcohol as much as possible.

Oily Skin

Analysis

       * Skin is shiny, especially at the T-zone area

q        * Pores may be large and visible

q        * Frequent Breakouts

q        * Few to no signs of aging or fine lines

 

Caring for Oily Skin

Cleanse the skin at least twice a day to avoid dirt accumulation and to keep pores open.  After you’ve cleansed the face, use an alcohol-free toner or astringent to help further remove excess oil.  Use an oil-free moisturizer to keep the skin from over-drying. Oily skin management requires a healthy diet, exercise, proper hydration and maintaining a regular skincare routine to aid in the prevention of breakouts.

Combination Skin

 Analysis

q        * Larger pores on your forehead, nose and chin

q        * Oily T-Zone area

q        * Dry Cheeks

q        * Spot Dehydration

Caring for Combination Skin

Cleanse the skin at least once a day with a mild cleanser formulated for the face; you may follow the skincare “caring” tips for a person with normal skin.  Your regular routine should focus on cleansing, toning and moisturizing the oily areas while applying a dense moisturizer to the dry areas.  Persons with combination skin will benefit mostly by using moisturizing products containing AHA.  Maintain a healthy lifestyle by exercising, eating healthy and drinking at least 8-10 glasses of water per day.

Sensitive Skin

Analysis

q        * Skin may range from dry to oily

q        * Itchy or Blotchy

q        * Skin is easily irritated by cosmetics, moisturizers and cleansers

q        * Sensitivity and prone to redness

Caring for Sensitive Skin

Use cleansers and moisturizers specifically formulated for sensitive skin.  (mild, non-perfumed products) An alcohol free toner formulated for sensitive skin should be used as a pre-cleaner or after you’ve cleansed your face. 

Cleanse the skin at least once a day with a cleanser formulated for the face, exfoliate 1-2 times per week in place of your daily cleanser, moisturize the skin using a lightweight lotion and use sunscreen to keep the skin healthy and prevent damage. Maintain a healthy lifestyle by exercising, eating healthy and drinking at least 8-10 glasses of water per day.

Life Happens

Don’t be fooled by misleading skin conditions.  Keep in mind that certain lifestyle factors (hormonal changes, stress) can alter the appearance of the skin and cause a false analysis.  In addition to these lifestyle factors, many other things can cause a misleading skin analysis like changes in the environment, your health, diet and certain products or makeup you’re currently using.

Certain medical conditions and medications can cause the skin to become red, dry or flaky.  Overusing any skincare product can cause the skin to become oily, dry or flaky, for example, if a person with dry skin overuses their moisturizer, their skin can appear greasy.  A person with sensitive skin can further irritate their skin and cause redness by using skincare products that are too strong or cheap. 

 Keep these factors in mind when analyzing and choosing products for your skin. 

 

Skin Care Series: Self Analysis

Let's Talk Skincare:

What's Your Skin type?

Self Analysis

Using your current cleansing regimen, cleanse your face.  After you’ve cleansed, what is the overall texture of your (un-moisturized) skin? Flaky or tightness through the forehead (dry), shiny (oily), smooth (normal)

How does your skin look and feel around lunch hour? Do you notice oily breakthroughs?  Do you experience dryness even though you’ve applied moisturizer?

Don’t be fooled! Consider the following when conducting a self-analysis:

What lifestyle factors are currently affecting you?

o   An unreleased amount of stress

o   Hormonal changes

o   Diet

o   Sun Exposure 

(These factors can lead to a false analysis)

FOTN: Smokey Eye

Naked Grey's

Products Used:

Primer/base

    * Groundwork paintpot

    * NYX Jumbo Pencil (Black Bean)

Face

    * RCMA cream foundation (Shinto-VIII)

    * MAC select cover-up concealer (NC50)

    * MAC MSF (Dark Deep)

    * Bobbi Brown Bronzer (Deep) cheeks

    * Coastal Scents Blush Palette (Hot Pink) cheeks

Eyes

Urban Decay's Naked Palette (original)

    * Creep (outer V)

    * Gunmetal (lid, crease)

    * Sidecar (tear duct)

MAC

    * Ricepaper (brow bone highlight)

    * Texture (Transition)

    * Wedge (blending color)

Lips

    * wet n wild lipstick 907C (Mauve Outta Here)

    * NYX lip gloss (Real Nude)

More looks to come, stay tuned...

Skin Care Series: Introduction

Let's Talk Skincare:

 Introduction

Before you apply, or allow someone else to apply makeup to your face, you must be sure you are properly caring for your delicate skin.  Applying makeup to skin that has not been properly cared for has the potential to make a minor-bad situation worse; after all, makeup should be used to perfect your skin tone, not change it.  If you were born with naturally perfect skin, feel free to skip this post along with the next 3 or 4 post after. For those of us who weren’t as fortunate, please continue to read.

I have met 2 people in my lifetime that I would say had near perfect skin.  Simple day to day factors and life changes can contribute to changes in your skin: stress, hormones, the season and even medication.  To avoid drastic changes in the skin and to help flush out unwanted toxins, it’s a good idea to maintain a healthy diet, exercise and drink at least 8-10 glasses of water per day. 

Educating yourself on how to care for your particular skin type and how to treat and recognize problem areas before they get out of control will help you further maintain your healthy skin and assist you in choosing the correct skincare products.  Over the next few days, all new post will be dedicated to achieving and maintaining healthy skin.



Conclusion/Weigh In: 3 Day Fruit and Veggie Cleanse

Overall, I am happy with the results of the fruit and veggie cleanse.  I will incorporate this cleanse into my diet at least once a month.  My only problem occurred on day 3 when I got a headache.  On all three days, I ate every 2 to 3 hours and drank water after each serving and all throughout the day.  I consumed about 70-80 ounces of water throughout each day.  I drank plane water (sometimes I added a few drops of lemon juice), sparkling water and zero calorie Sobe water.  Ok...enough cake, let's get to the frosting:

July 13, 2012 8:04am Starting Weight: 135.6

July 16, 2012 7:44am Ending Weight: 131.5

Total loss: 4.1 pounds

Water weight? It is possible, but I hope not, during the course of the three days, I drank more water than I normally drank and I got anywhere from 900-1000 calories from fruits, veggies and lean protein.  This week, I started a 30 day low intensity workout program.  I planned to start Insanity, but my current work schedule just doesn't allow for much time (recovery time after the workout); however, I will be starting Insanity after Labor Day.  I will begin posting weekly updates pertaining to the 30 day workout program to include weight changes and meal plans.  I only weighed myself during the 3 day cleanse, but for this 30 day program, I will take measurements as well.  Stay tuned...

Too funny...love this photo, before the haircut

Day 2 & 3: 3 Day Fruit & Veggie Cleanse



Day 2 and 3 were slightly different from day one, however, throughout the course of both days, I still did not feel hungry. One day two when my stomach began to growl around 11pm (should have been sleep anyway), I ate a hand full of grapes and drank a glass of water.  On day 3 for a late night snack, I had 4 small strawberries, a glass of water and called it a night.  I realized that day one was pretty much vegetable-less so on days 2 and 3, I added in a few greens.  My eating plan for day 2 was as follows:

Breakfast: banana, grapes, glass of water

snack: watermelon!!

lunch: 2 cups mixed salad greens, 3 cherry tomatoes, vinaigrette dressing, water

snack: pineapple, honeydew, grapes, water

dinner: salmon, asparagus, 3 strawberries, water

late night: grapes, water

I'd say day 2 deserves a round of applause!! Day 3 eating plan is as follows:

Breakfast: banana, strawberries, water

Snacks throughout the day: grapes, honeydew, blueberries

Dinner: Chicken breast, roasted potatoes :(  small salad

late night: strawberries, water

Day 3 was not as smooth as days one and two.  Breakfast was fine, I ate a serving of fruit every 2-3 hours as usual with water.  My husband ordered pizza for lunch and the smell was soooooo tempting.  I love pizza!  I held it down though...  For lunch a had a large fruit salad mixture.  Right after lunch I began to get a headache... this headache would not go away.  I figured the lack of protein and carbs were finally catching up with me so for dinner, I added some carbs....problem solved.  After that, it was smooth sailing...at least until my late night hunger would call.

Found these shoes at TJ Maxx...they were different so I decided to buy them, look for an OOTD soon!

Tonight's dinner, Salmon, Asparagus and strawberries



Day 1: 3 Day Fruit & Veggie Cleanse

Yesterday was day one of the 3 day fruit and veggie cleanse and to kick things off, I ended Thursday night by taking two Dulcolax.  Big mistake!  Luckily, by the time I went to work Friday morning, things were back to normal.  Day one was more fruit than veggies, but my eating went as follows:

For breakfast, I had a protein shake, a banana and two glasses of water.  After that, I ate 1-2 servings of fruit every 2-3 hours followed by a glass of water after each serving.  For lunch, I had a nice sized bowl of fresh strawberries and blueberries.  After lunch I drank a 20 oz bottle of sparkling water and did not have any more fruit until I got off at 4.  Once home, I had a small fruit salad (mango, pineapple and a few grapes).  For the next two and a half hours I did not have any fruit or water because I was doing volunteer work at the mission.  Once I got home, I ate an orange and had salmon and a serving of roasted red peppers for dinner.  I know, I know, I should have had a salad or broccoli...anything but those starchy potatoes, but they were soooo good!  Oh well, the past is the past, can't change it now.

I can honestly say that I only got hungry once during the first day and that was late at night when I should have been sleep anyway.  To satisfy my hunger, I ate a few grapes and a glass of water.  The supplements I took were a multivitamin and a fish oil tablet.

Day 1 down...

Why Complicate things?

3 Day Fruit & Veggie Cleanse

The last 3 weeks have been a disaster in terms of my diet and exercise routine.  Prior to my current state of binge eating and sedentary activity level, I was progressing quite well at a new round of P90X.  I was well into week 3 with 5 pounds down and 2 inches off my waist.  Fast forward to 3 weeks ago...I started a new job and my daily routine got out of whack (terribly).  I've resorted to quick family dinners (hamburger helper, fried chicken, french fries, etc.), haven't gotten much sleep and don't wake up early enough to workout and still get to work on time.....lets not forget to mention the endless snacking.  Am I the only one that mistakes boredom for hunger?  Suspect #1: Hershey bar with almonds (I once ate 3 in one day).  Suspect #2: Sour cream and onion chips.....the dots say enough!!

I've made the decision to get back on track with my workouts and overall health, but first, I have to get rid of the junk (in my body).  I've decided to try a 3 day fruit and veggie cleanse...sort of.  I've done Beachbody's Shakeology cleanse in the past and will incorporate that into the next three days, but I will not be following that cleanse this time.  One day of shakes is all I can handle.  I went online and researched a variety of fruit and vegetable cleanse programs and created my own program based on the information I gathered during my research.  My first step was heading to WalMart to buy groceries.....yes, WalMart, it is the cheapest place to get groceries here besides the Commissary and it's too far away for a random fruit trip.  I can't believe there is no Kroger's here....I love Kroger's.  So $100 later, this is some of what I got:

 

Stay tuned for day 1 update.

Daily Devotion

As I continue to grow in this world and better grasp this thing called life, I find myself wanting to be closer to God.  I have always wanted to read and understand the bible but had never made reading the Bible a priority on my "to do" list.  Now, as, I settle into my 30's, I realize that in order for me to succeed at anything, God MUST be the center of my life and I must get to know him.  Then, as it would happen, certain events happened in my life and I found myself on my knees repenting, begging for forgiveness and pouring out my soul to the Lord.  Psalms 51 became my best friend. 

After God saw me through events that would take my life in a different direction forever, I finally picked up my Bible... Where do I begin...the beginning, the end, the middle, the New Testament, Old Testament, what if I don't understand?  These questions were mere excuses for me to once again place my desire to read the Bible on hold, but after what He brought me through, I knew I could not.  And I did not.  Immediately I picked up my iPad and downloaded the Bible (I like reading books on my iPad).  Just then, another app caught my eye, it was titled "Bible" by You Version sponsored by Lifechurch.tv.  In addition to giving you the Bible in over 200 different versions, this application provided plans that would help you read the Bible and explain the passages you read.  This by far has been the greatest app I've purchased.  I don't miss reading the Bible daily, several times a day.

Of course you could just pick up the Bible and begin reading without an application, but this app really helped me understand the written Word.  If you don't have an ipod or ipad, you can sign up at http://www.youversion.com/, it's the same thing.

This is an example of how the app looks.  I've completed 4 plans already and I'm presently working on two plans.  The voice control at the bottom allows the passages to be read to you, sometimes I enjoy sitting back listening to the Good Word.