What's Up Wednesday :: November 2018

It's the last Wednesday of the month, that means it's time for our What's Up Wednesday Link Up!

Link up with  me, Sheaffer & Shay the LAST Wednesday of each month so we can read about What's Up with YOU!

Here we go!

What We’re Eating this week..... 
Monday: Spaghetti & Garlic Bread

Tuesday:  Chicken Taco Soup 
Wednesday:  Leftovers

Thursday: Instant Pot Butter Chicken

Friday: Friday Night Pizza Night


Other things I am making this week:
It's rainy all week, so I made a batch of Split Pea Soup to have for lunch.

We have our cul-de-sac Christmas Party this weekend and I am in charge of desserts.
I am going to make Peppermint Ice Cream Cake 

 I am also making a batch of my Salted Caramel Brownies:

What I'm Reminiscing about.....
Because it was Thanksgiving last week I have been reminiscing about last Thanksgiving when we went to NYC see the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade!

It was a Bucket List trip and one I will remember forever! I blogged about each day we were there.
You can read about our trip:
Day 1 HERE 
Day 2 HERE
Day 3 HERE {Thanksgiving Parade Day}

Day 4 HERE

What I'm loving.....
So, I did a thing this year...I got a 2nd tree so that we could have one in our family room/kitchen area. This is where we spend most of our time and I wanted to be able to see our tree while we have dinner & watch Christmas movies.

 Kate and I decided to make this tree a “pretty adult tree” and it only has silver & gold ornaments on it. I love it. The kids decorated our other tree in the living room by the fireplace and it has all our other ornaments with memories & color. The kids did a great job on it, I let them have full control over it and they did the whole thing. I love that tree also & I really love that wherever you are in our downstairs, you can see a Christmas tree.

We got the house is 100% decorated this past weekend...stay tuned for more photos!

What We've been up to.....
 November was a very strange month.
The Northern California Paradise fire that started on November 8th caused terrible air quality here in the Bay Area until Thanksgiving Day. For 2 weeks, we stayed inside. Students couldn't go outside at school, PE and sports practices were cancelled and they even cancelled a day of school because the air quality was so bad.
We watched a lot of movies, played board games & read books.
The air cleared up on Thanksgiving and we headed to the horse races at Golden Gate Fields with Kevin's family. They have been going on Thanksgiving Day for over 50 years.

Then we went to my parents for Thanksgiving Dinner....my favorite meal of the year.
 
Cousins!

On Friday night I went to the Fleetwood Mac concert with my Dad and some of my aunts, uncles and cousins.

 So many childhood memories listening to them on family roadtrips!

We had a blast!

They've still got it!

Saturday we went to the Colorado vs. Cal football game.

If you would have told me 5 weeks ago (when Colorado was undefeated at 5-0) that we would lose the next 7 games, Coach Mac would be fired & we wouldn’t be going to a bowl game...I wouldn’t have believed you.


The Buffs keep breaking my heart, but we will keep cheering them on and staying hopeful for next season.

What I'm Dreading.....
Nothing right time, I just love this time of year!

What I'm Working On.....
Addressing envelopes to mail out our Christmas cards.
I LOVE Christmas cards, but I don't love the prep work of them. LOL!
I still hand address them, I've been meaning to make a spreadsheet/labels on our computer for years now, but just haven't done that yet...maybe I will do that this weekend!
My goal is to get them mailed out by early next week.

What I'm Excited About.....
CYBER WEEK Rodan + Fields Deals!
These are good for anyone! If you are a customer or not!

  FREE eye cream when you buy a regimen!
That is a $60 value for FREE!
Our eye cream is one of our most popular products, helps with crows feet & puffiness.

 This brave consultant only used the eye cream on one eye for 3 weeks.

It's less puffy & she doesn't have bags under that eye! 

  We have regimens for all skin types.
 What is your biggest skin concern? I'm here to help!
Take THIS quick 5 question survey to find out what is best for your skin! 

R+F results are incredible. Unblemish is one of my top sellers!

  My personal favorite is Reverse...it got rid of my pregnancy melasma & sun damage brown spots.

The other Cyber Week deal is Lash Boost for $30 off retail pricing!
$120 & free shipping!
Lash boost is amazing...the results speak for themselves.

One tube will last 4-5 months.


The 3rd Cyber Week Deal is when you buy our newest product Radiant Defense Perfecting Liquid.

 
When you order this, you get a brush for free! $35 value!

It goes on so easily & it so lightweight. I never wear foundation, but I am loving the Radiant Defense. You would use this in place of foundation. I am seriously obsessed...it covers up the scar on my nose from my skin cancer surgery. I don't even need to wear concealer on my scar anymore.
  This is me with Radiant Defense on in shade 3 (Sand):

 One bottle of Radiant Defense will last 5-6 months.
Comes with a 60 day empty bottle 100% money back guarantee.
Radiant Defense is good for all skin types, has SPF 30 and won't clog pores...it's good for your skin!

 If you are interested in Radiant Defense, you can find your shade on my color matcher HERE.

 
Message me to place an order. These deals end on Friday November 30th
melissa_larson17@yahoo.com

What I'm Watching........

Hallmark Christmas movies! 
Did you know they have an app?

 You can track what you have watched and it tells you all the new movies for the season and what times they will be on TV.

I have Hallmark Channel & Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Channel, so that is 37 new Hallmark Christmas movies I need to watch by Christmas :)

 I can check them all off on my app & it tells me when the next showing is.
What a time to be alive! LOL!
 
Download it!!!!!

What I'm Reading.....
I only read 2 books in November. 

 China Rich Girlfriend

This is the 2nd in the Crazy Rich Asians trilogy & I liked it also!
4 out of 5 stars.

The Perfect Mother

This was just okay...I wanted to like it more.
3.5 out of 5 stars

What I'm Listening to.....
Christmas music playing in our house 24-7
These are my top 3 favorite Christmas albums:

Jessica Simpson (HERE)

Mariah Carey (HERE)

Michael Buble (HERE)

 What I'm Wearing.....

We have had really mild weather this month. It's been in the 60s here in Northern California.
It's chilly in the morning, then it warms up and is really nice.
THESE are the booties I have been wearing....

They come in 4 colors and they are SO comfy!

I am leaning towards getting this color as well.

My favorite is THIS denim jacket. I wear it at least once a week.


It comes in 3 shades of denim, I have the one above and the one below on the right.

Save

It doesn't get too cold here in California, so these jackets are perfect for us here in all seasons.

What I’m doing this weekend.....

 Gingerbread Making Party
Neighborhood Christmas Party


What I'm Looking Forward to next month.....

Justin Timberlake concert!!!!
 Christmas!!!!!!
2 weeks off of school & going skiing in Tahoe

What else is new.....

Claire got her ears pierced!
Our family “rule” is you have to wait until you are 10 to get your ears pierced. Claire’s 10th birthday was 2 months ago, but it was right in middle of soccer season which meant she had to wait until soccer was over to get her ears pierced.
 It finally happened earlier this month and she couldn’t be more excited!
 
If you need a place to get piercings, I recommend going to a tattoo/piercing shop. They did Kate’s 2 years ago & now Claire’s.

Question of the month is:
What are your Elf on the Shelf ideas?
We don't do that many "creative" Elf on the Shelf poses, we mostly just move the Elf to different spots around our house.
This is your friendly reminder & PSA that you can delay having your Elf appear for a week or so because they are in the N.E.T.P (New Elf Training Program) and they are off training other Elves.
I posted about this last year, so wanted to remind you about it because one less week of the Elf is the best! Kevin and I started delaying the Elf by writing these letters a few years ago. Last year, I wrote this letter at the end of November and our Elf didn’t appear until December 6th or 7th...it was the BEST. Working on this years letter now, so wanted to remind all of you about this. Even if you’ve already gotten your Elf out this year, just leave a letter one morning letting your kids know your Elf will be gone for 4-5 days (or a week!!!) training another Elf. It will give you a nice little break. Thanksgiving was so early this year. Don’t want to deal with moving the Elf everyday for a month.

Here is the original letter I wrote 3 years ago:

Feel free to copy! 
 If actually need a creative idea for the Elf, I do have a fun one called  "Magic Elf Seeds"

If you need a good laugh, read my Cautionary Tale HERE  about planing Magic Elf Seeds and you can also get the free printable for Magic Elf Seeds!
I did this 2 years ago & think I will attempt it again this year.

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Can't wait to read about What's up with all of YOU!