March 2017 Favorites

 My first favorite of the month has to be my Makeup Geek eye shadows. I mentioned this in my Best Of 2015 blog post. My color selection has changed slightly  but these are still my must have eye shadows. No matter if I'm getting dressed up to go out or reaching for something everyday, I'm constantly reaching for this pallet.

I've discovered a new dry shampoo this month, it's the Ouai Dry Shampoo Foam. This product was really interesting to me as I have never tried a dry shampoo that has been in foam form before. When  you first apply this product your hair feels very wet and looks greasy but as you work it in it refreshes your hair like nothing I've ever tried before. This doesn't leave any sort of white cast or crunch to your hair. It is honestly left felling cleaned and refreshed and ready to style.

I picked up a new heat protector, this is the Silk Elements MegaSilk Olive Heat Protection Spray with silk. This was another interesting product that I just had to try. I use olive oil in my hair as a hair mask and my hair loves it. When you first spray this on my hair feels very greasy but after you use your heat tool (I use it with a blow dryer, flat iron and curling wand) your hair is left feeling silky smooth. I wouldn't recommend putting it near your roots as it will weight your hair down.

I've changed up my brows this month and I've been loving them. Even on my no makeup days I still will put on my brows and some face powder. Instead of using my faithful Anastasia Brow Wiz I've gone back to using my Anastasia Brow Powder. I feel this gives you a much more natural brow which I've been loving. To set my brow in place I've been using the L'Oreal Brow Stylist Plumper Brow Gel Mascara. This is very similar to the Benefit Gimme Brow but a lot more affordable. I found I was going through my Gimme Brow way to fast and it was getting expensive to repurchase it so often.

Finally my lip combo for this month has been Mac Lip Liner in Oak and Nars Lipgloss in Chelsea Girls.

Let me know in the comments below what your favorites were this month.

Updated Skin Care Routine

My last skincare routine post was EXTREMELY popular on my blog but that post is from way back in December 2015. I decided to post an update as some of my products have changed.

For reference I have extremely dry skin all year round.

First thing in the morning I wash my face. I use the Kate Somerville ExfoliKate Cleanser with my Clarisonic Plus. I love using my Clarisonic with any cleaner as I feel it does a better job than just using my hands.

This isn't my favorite cleaner and I am on the hunt for something I like better - but in the mean time I'm just trying to use up this product.

Then I follow up right away with my moisturizers. First I start with my eye cream which is the Shiseido WrinkleResist 24 Eye Cream, this is still an amazing eye cream. It is very thick and creamy, it tends to smooth out my under eye area and hydrate it very well. Next step is new - I've been using the Sephora CC Eye Cream + Concealer. This has a slight tint to it and will cover up any under eye bags I have going on. I find that using these two products together means I have to use less makeup as there is less to cover up.

Finally I use the Clinique Moisture Surge Intense Skin Fortifying Hydrator. If you have extremely dry skin you need this in your life. This is an instant drink of water for my face and it leaves my skin feeling velvety smooth and soft. I find that since using this product I use less primer and less foundation because everything just smoothly glides over my face.

I start by using my same cleaner with my Clarisonic Plus.

At night I am still using the Sunday Riley Luna Sleeping Night Oil and I follow that up with the Josie Maran 100% Pure Argan Oil. My skin loves oils at the end of the day and when I wake up in the morning my face feels amazing.

I use the same Shiseido eye cream and I use a lash enhancer serum by NeoStrada. This is a product I use off and on again but it really does improve the strength of my lashes.

Finally some bonus products - typically I use these 2-3 times a week. Eye masks have become a huge part of my life. As I'm beginning to age I'm finding my eye area isn't the same. I've been loving the Sephora brand eye masks and specifically the Rose, Pearl and Orchid are my favorite.

For the actual mask I've been using the Sephora Mud Mask Purifying & Mattifying, this is great if I have any texture or blemishes on my face. It gets rid of them instantly but does dry out my skin so I do have to moisturize immediately afterwards.

For a moisture mask I've been loving the Joise Maran Whipped Mud Mask. This is infused with Argan oil and feels amazing on my dry skin. Highly recommend if you face needs and extra hydrating boost.

Let me know if you use any of these products in the comment below. If you think there are any other skincare products I need to try out for my dry skin leave you recommendation in the comments below.

February 2017 Favorites

Jergens Moisturizer For Wet Skin - I tend to skip moisturizing after my showers because I hate that sticky feeling when you get dressed afterwards. This is a quick way to moisturize while still in the shower and my skin feels silky smooth by the time I towel off. 

Garnier Fructis Damage Eraser - This mask has come up in my March 2015 Empties, May 2015 Empties and June 2016 Empties  blog post. If you can't tell this is one of my most favorite hair masks! I did stop repurchasing it for a while as I was testing out some new ones but nothing compares to this. My hair always feel silky smooth after using it. This is getting more difficult to find so I bought a pack of 6 off of Amazon recently - so I'm good for a little while. 

Guerlain L'or Pure Radiance Face Primer - This primer was also in my November 2016 Favorites and yes this is still the same bottle. I still stand by this primer, it makes my skin look amazing and foundation just effortlessly glides over it. You only need a very small amount - as you can tell I haven't used a whole lot since November so even though it is expensive it will last you a while.  

Becca Aqua Luminous Perfecting Foundation - This has been my go to foundation recently. I'm not a fan of the packaging as it is a dropper application but the actual foundation in the bottle is amazing. It is a sheer foundation that looks very natural and dewy. I find the color doesn't match me exactly so I mix in some Cover FX drops with it and the result is amazing. I always use this foundation when I know I'm going to be taking pictures as my skin looks airbrushed. 

Drybar Triple Sec 3-in-1 - I've tried a lot of texture sprays and this one so far is my stand out product. It has just enough texture without leaving my hair feeling dirty and gritty. It does come out white but it doesn't leave a white cast in my darker roots. Plus it smells amazing!

Bear's 8 Month Update | Ms Pam Blam Life Update

Hard to believe but Bear will be 8 months in just 4 short days! I last posted Bear's update at 5 months and a lot has happen since then.

Bear now weights 62lbs and is still growing! Our vet did say to expect his final weight to be around 90lbs so he still has a lot of growing to do.

Bear is definitely a power chewer - we really have to be careful when Bear is out of his crate and roaming around. Bear does get the run of the house now as he is doing very well with our cat Max. But this little guy can get into so much trouble. He loves to chew so we make sure our house is stocked with lots of different bones and chew toys to keep his mouth occupied.

Bear is doing very well with his training. We are constantly taking him to different pet stores to practice walking on a loose leash, listening to us around distractions, sitting, staying, passing other people and dogs, recall, ect. For the most part Bear does really well and we are always complimented by lots of employees on how well behaved Bear is while in the store.

Bear's favorite place still has to be the off leash - he gets a long with every single dog he's met and plays so well with others. I also have to give Bear credit for how smart he is too - we have been at the dog park when dog fights have broken out and Bear is smart enough to avoid conflict and come to my side when this happens. I have to applaud him for that as I do see so many other dogs jumping in and adding to the dog fight and watching all the owners struggle to separate the dogs. I've been asked a lot how I trained him to do that and honestly I didn't...he just seems to know to stay out of it.

Bear has been bullied and picked on by a few dogs at the dog park. It really annoys me when other owners don't correct their dog when this happens so Bear and I either walk away and find another friend for him to play with or if I'm fearful of his safety (depends on how aggressive the dog is) we will go wait in the car until the dog leaves and then we return to the park.

I haven't ever packed up and left the dog park as I don't want Bear to think he's being punished for something - because so far he's never started a fight or conflict with another dog. Whenever we go to the dog park I always allow for a lot of time so if we do have to wait for an aggressive dog to clear out I have the time to do so.

With that being said we only make it out to the dog park once or twice a week - which I think is a lot for a pup that is still growing. My husband and I sometimes forget how little Bear still is and there are some weeks where I think we over exercise him and I know that's not good for his developing growth plates.

If you checked out any of my Friday Fitness Updates you would have seen that I have began to include Bear in some of my training runs. Technically our vet doesn't want Bear to start running with me until he's 10 months old but to be honest we don't go very far or very fast when he's with me. 

I've only been taking Bear out once a week - sometimes I skip a week if he's had a lot of visits to the dog park that week - and Bear only comes with me for either my warm up or cool down. I don't run very fast when I'm warming up or cooling down so Bear basically does a fast walk beside me while I jog. 

Mainly I've started including him in my training runs this early is because I want to get him trained on my hands free leash I bought. 

I have done so much research and testing of which belt, leash, harness combo works the best for our training runs and I have found the perfect combination!

The belt I finally settled on is the Squishy Face Studio Leash Belt. I bought the small/medium in Ocean Blue. The belt is 2" wide so it's very comfortable even if Bear pulls. This buckle is very heavy duty and I'm not worried about Bear pulling hard enough to break it.

I also think it's a huge plus that the leash attaches with a buckle closure, meaning you can use ANY leash you want with this belt...including a retractable leash (which I don't use as I want Bear close by me while running).

The leash I use is nothing special, it is also from Spuishy Face Studio. I decided to buy the belt/leash bundle off their website as it was only $6 more....so I thought why not! I can always use another leash around the house. When I first got it I thought it would be too short, it's 4' nylon leash,  but to be honest it's great for running.

The 4' means Bear has to learn to stay right by my side and watch for my cues. We do a combination of walking and running when he's with me so he's learning cues such as "running/lets go" and "walking/slow down."

Finally is Bear's harness. I only use this harness for running, I use a different harness for walking as he does still pull now and then. I find this back clip harness works the best for running because it keeps the leash from getting tangled under Bear's feet.

I tried to use his no pull front clip harness and it was a disaster! After every five steps I was having to untangle the leash and we didn't make it very far before I gave up and went home.

The back clip harness we use goes over his head and he steps his left paw through a hole and it closes with one buckle. I know there are different harness varies so pick which one seems to fit your dog best - I know there are some step in harness but they seems a little bulky to me and seems like it would be unconformable running. It didn't take Bear long to get used to his harness going over his head...just use some treats and make it a positive experience.

Other than that I just bought a few belt accessories that make our training trips out more enjoyable. First off is the Amphiod Endurance Plus Pouch. I had a hard time finding a pouch that would fit onto the 2" wide belt and hold my iPhone. This pouch is supposed to fit a iPhone plus - I don't have a plus iPhone but it does fit my iPhone 6 with the case and there is room to spare. You can also attach 4 gels to the outer slots. I also like to carry poop bags and a house key, everything fits with room to spare!

I also bought the Amphiod RunLite Xtech 10.5ox Modules 2 pack...careful when you buy these as there are two different lid options. I choose the normal one as I can pour water in my hand for Bear to drink out of...the other one is the Jett-Squeeze lid which would make it harder to give Bear water during our runs. 

We haven't actually used the water bottles yet but I thought this would be good for hot summer runs - and I only wanted to pay for shipping once so I bought the pouch and water bottles at the same time. 

This was my first time purchasing anything for Amphiod but they have some great belt accessories so I would highly recommended checking them out. Look under the section Customize-Your-Run to find exactly what you are interested in. 

Bear is always excited when I pull out my running shoes and his belt - he LOVES running and is going to be a great running companion down the road. I can't wait until he's 10 moths and I can start bring him on some of my training runs. 

On the days that I don't bring Bear for a run I come home to a very pissed off dog - but unfortunately he has to learn that he can't always come with me. 

Thanks for stopping by to check out Bear's 8 month update, make sure you are subscribed to get notifications on Bear's next update and more adorable puppy pictures.

Fitness Update | Coming Back From Being A Victim of Crime

 It's fitness update time!!! It has been a hot minuet since my last fitness update, if you want to check out my last post Fitness Update | Finished 21 Day Fix EXTREME | National Sprint Duathlon Women 25-29 Champion! If you did happen to read it you would know that I qualified to race in Duathlon Worlds this year in August.

I did take a few days off after the qualifying race in September to recover but now I'm back at it. I sat down and made a training plan that lasted to the end of December....which unfortunately I didn't finish and it's a long story...

 ....without going into too much detail as I'm still not sure how much of my experience I want to share I was the victim of crime in December. It was an absolutely gut wrenching experience that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. I honestly lived most of December fearful to leave my house, sleep, anything! I basically sat locked up in my house armed and waiting for our attacker to come back....which he did several times.

It's hard to even put into words what happen, how I feel about the whole situation because I feel like I'm still processing what the hell happen!

My husband and I were so fortunate to have some many amazing family member's and friends that stepped in to help us. We were brought food every single day, people were coming over to my house to walk my dog - no I wasn't even leaving the house to walk my own dog! For me that's a big deal since our little pup usually goes for three walks a day....minimum. I even had people just come over and clean or sit with me to watch some TV to help get my mind off of what was happening.

So basically - as I'm sure you can imagine - my training came to a screeching halt.

Time seemed to just disappear...it honestly took me till about the beginning of February for me to get back to my normal routine - and even then it was hard to even think about how to get back to what was "normal".

If you've even been the victim of crime, you know it's hard to get back to your life. I was told by so many people that it's ok to be all over the place and that it was going to be a struggle trying to return to a "normal" life.

I do want to share a piece of my experience on my blog - my hope is it could possibly help someone who as been affected by a victim of crime...or just provide some support to know you are not alone. I found there wasn't a lot of public support for myself and my husband. Give me about another week or two...I'm going to have to sit down and put what happen into words which I already know is going to be difficult.

 To be honest my training really just started again this February - and yes my body could absolutely tell that I had taken a big chunk of time off. Since the plan that I made ended at the end of December I decided to make a new one instead of trying to finish off my old training plan.....sort of like a fresh start.

Currently I have a new training plan I'm following that includes three times a week of doing at home Beachbody workouts (Piyo, 21 Day Fix Extreme and T25), one interval running day, one tempo running day, one longer running day and spinning at home on my trainer.

It's a busy schedule but I've been loving the variety.

My favorite part of my whole training plan has to be including our puppy, Bear, in one of my training runs per week. If you haven't read about Bear you can read his last 5 month update post. Bear is now almost 8 months and technically he's not supposed to be running with me for another 2 months but he doesn't do my whole workout and I go so slow when he's with me all he does is quick walk beside me while I jog.

I'm planning on doing another update on how Bear is doing on Wednesday so make sure you are subscribe to my blog for notifications. I'll include what sort of training he does with me, how long he runs for and what equipment I use - this is so important! I've tested out so many different running belts, leashes and harness to get the perfect combination. It's not enjoyable if you have to keep stopping your run to untangle the dogs leash or if they are dragging you because they aren't trained properly to walk hands free.

I am so excited to share with you all Bear's update on Wednesday and make sure you are subscribe for to my blog to get notified on my next fitness update!