Date Night @ Pier 500

Yesterday was Schae's last day of work at Pier 500, a restaurant in Hudson, for the summer. To celebrate, he planned to take me out to brunch. However, the idiot kid who was supposed to take his shift never showed up, so brunch became dinner.

The food was delicious, but all Schae could think about was the chocolate cake. He kept talking about how big it was, and I didn't really listen until it arrived. This was the world's biggest slice of chocolate cake. Like I think I've baked whole cakes smaller than this slice.

It may be bigger than his head. 

YUMMMMMMMM

After attempting to eat the whole thing and not even coming close, Schae gave some to his brother who also works there and got the rest boxed up to bring home. The whole time while eating it I kept thinking of that kid in Matilda who had to eat that massive chocolate cake in front of the whole school. Great movie. 

Stuffed to the brim, we put the leftovers in Schae's car and went for a walk along the pier in Hudson. The Sun was just beginning to set, and the harbor was filled with sailboats coming in for the night. 

Good thing Schae is the world's best photographer. Otherwise these sassy photos of me wouldn't exist. 

Yep, this is a winner.

Ducks!

Unfortunately, the lady we asked to take a picture of us wasn't exactly a photographic genius. And Schae can't keep his eyes open when looking into the sun. Thanks Schae. So this was the best we could get. 

Though it's great that Schae's done with work for the summer. It only means one thing. That summer is almost over. I still have another whole month before I leave for school, but Schae leaves in two weeks. I can't wait to go back to Scotland, but I'm definitely not looking forward to doing the whole long distance thing again. :(  

But all we can do now is enjoy these beautiful summer nights, because they won't last forever. 

Oreo Balls

This is my no-fail recipe when I want to bring a dessert somewhere. I have never met anyone who has tried these and not liked them. Oreos mixed with cream cheese covered in chocolate. If that doesn't sound divine to you, we aren't friends anymore.

You only need 3 ingredients to whip up these balls of Oreo deliciousness:

1 (16 ounce) package of Oreos
1 (8 ounce) package of cream cheese, softened if you have time
1 (24 ounce) package of chocolate bark
Optional: 1 (24 ounce) package of white chocolate bark

The first step is the most fun. Dump all of the Oreos into a gallon size Ziploc bag and seal the bag. Then put that bag inside another Ziploc bag, because the bags tend to rip and spill Oreo crumbs everywhere when you are crushing them.

Find some sort of large spoon or heavy-duty kitchen utensil (preferably one of those hammer things you use to thin out meat) and start whacking away. This actually gets pretty tiring, so just use all of your bottled-up anger and take it out on those Oreos!!

When you no longer have feeling in your arm, they are probably crushed enough. Dump the Oreo crumbs into a large stirring bowl and add the cream cheese. 

Plug in your mixer and start mixing the Oreos and cream cheese together. Warning: the Oreos will fly everywhere but that's just part of the fun. If you don't have a mixer, you can stir them together by hand though it is very very very strenuous. I had to do this when I made them at college. 

When they look like brown, goopy goodness, you know it's time to be done mixing.

Dig into the bowl and get your hands dirty. Roll the mixture into whatever size balls you think people can physically fit into their mouths. This is no time to hold back. VERY IMPORTANT: Don't forget to lick your fingers once you are done. 

Stick the tray of Oreo balls in the fridge for an hour to cool. Here are some suggestions for activities to do while you wait:

1. Walk the dog. You know it's been feeling neglected lately. 

2. Read that book you've been meaning to finish. 

3. Eat. Nothing like gobbling down some food as an appetizer for what's to come!

4. Take a nap. You know you need it. 

5. Do all of the above. The hour will just fly by. 

Ok, once the hour is up, grab your package of chocolate bark. You won't need all of it, so just fill a cereal bowl with a decent amount and microwave it for about a minute, stirring once or twice so it doesn't burn. Take it out of the microwave, stir out the lumps, and take your Oreo balls out of the fridge. 

Grab a toothpick and stick it into one of the balls. Cover it in chocolate and twirl it around above the bowl to get the extra chocolate off. Then place it on a sheet of wax or parchment paper. (I honestly don't know the difference between the two, so pick whichever one sounds better to you.)

Cover the rest of the balls with chocolate and let them cool. The chocolate coating should be hard in about 10 minutes. 

If you are in a rush, you can be done after this step. Enjoy!!! 

However, I prefer to make them look a little prettier. Even Oreo balls need a little makeover every once in awhile. 

Take a little bit of your white chocolate bark and microwave it. Spoon it into a small ziploc bag and cut a teeny tiny corner off of the bag. Drizzle the white chocolate over the Oreo balls to your hearts desire. Feel free to make some creative designs if you are up to it. 

The white chocolate should harden almost immediately. Take a step back and admire your handiwork. Wow. So beautiful.

Ok, enough admiring. Grab one and take a bite of heaven. 

Look at that. Food of the gods. 

Sometimes people comment on how bad these are for you. However, this is a special recipe. Completely low fat. In fact, it might even be negative calories. Yep, definitely is. So go on, grab another one. You know you want to. 

Beauty Haul

Last week in the post-braces depression, I went a little crazy online shopping and bought a ton of makeup. Here's what I got!

First of all, e.l.f., an extremely affordable cosmetics brand sold at Target and online at eyeslipsface.com, had a huge sale where everything on their site was 50% off. I'm a huge sucker for sales and have recently developed a bit of an e.l.f. obsession. Everything is so cheap and most of their products are actually pretty good. I read a lot of reviews online before purchasing, because their products tend to be hit-or-miss. I got all of this for only $16 plus shipping:

I'll start on the bottom left and go clockwise. The prices listed are including the 50% discount.
1. Studio Beauty Book in Bronzed (Close up later in this post) - $2.50
2. Essential Eye Shadow Brushes - $.50 each
- Lots of bloggers love these because they work well for being so cheap.
3. Studio Powder Brush - $1.50
- So soft and just the right size
4. Zit Zapper - $.50
- Seriously, this stuff has a higher concentration of salicylic acid (the main ingredient in acne medications) than my "zit zapper" that I paid over $20 for at the dermatologist. And it's only a dollar full price.
5. Contouring Blush and Bronzer in St. Lucia (Close up later in this post) - $1.50
6. Studio Endless Eyes Pro Mini Eyeshadow Palette in Natural (Close up later in this post) - $3.00
7. Studio Baked Eyeshadow Palette in California (Close up later in this post) - $5.00
8. Essential Eyelid Primer in Sheer - $.50
- I kept reading about how amazing this is on beauty blogs and decided to try it. Whenever I wear eyeshadow, it ends up creasing or disappearing after a few hours. I tried this out yesterday and my eyeshadow literally looked like I had just put it on even after 9 hours of wear. Incredible.
9. Essential Brightening Eye Color in Day 2 Night (Close up later in this post) - $.50

                                   

                    Here is the closeup of the Beauty Book. It comes with three shades to create a day look and three to create a night look. It also includes a mini eyelid primer and eyeliner. I haven't tried this out yet, but the colors look really nice. 

I love this palette. I used it yesterday and today, and with the use of the primer, the shadow lasts all day.  The colors are also very versatile. 

If you google reviews of this product, you will have to buy it. For only $3 full price, and after reading tons of reviews praising this blush and bronzer, it's a must-buy. The colors look great on, and they blend very well. 

I haven't tried this yet, but for $.50 I couldn't pass it up. If I use the primer, the shades should look nice on. 

If there's one thing I hate most about big eyeshadow palettes, it's that they always have gross bright crazy colors that I will never wear. I saw this one with various natural shades for only three dollars and had to give it a try. There are so many different color combinations to try, and the quality is actually pretty good. Definitely glad I bought this. 

I also bought some makeup from my favorite makeup brand, Too Faced, and a new concealer that I kept reading about from Hard Candy. 

Starting from the left and going clockwise again:

1. Hard Candy Glamoflauge Heavy Duty Concealer in Medium: They weren't kidding. This stuff is heavy duty. It can cover any blemish. People even use it to cover their tattoos. It also comes with a mini concealer pencil which is nice. Best part? It's only $6 at Walmart. 

2. Too Faced Lashgasm Mascara: I received this along with the lip gloss as free samples with my Too Faced order. Which is absolutely terrible. Because I love this mascara. I thought I was doing great with my Covergirl mascara until I tried this. And it was amazing. Which means I'm gonna have to find $21 to buy it full-sized. Stress.

3. Too Faced Glamour Gloss in Flirt: I'm not a big lip gloss person, but I'll always accept free samples. This stuff is pretty good, but I'm not gonna spend $19 on the full size.

4. Too Faced Glamour To Go Palette: This is adorable. The whole palette is about the size of my iPhone, so it is perfect for just throwing in your purse. Too Faced eye shadows are my absolute favorite, and this palette doesn't disappoint. The colors work very well together, and there's good combos for both day and night. The bronzer and blush are good for contouring, but I haven't tried the lip gloss in the middle yet. I would definitely recommend this cute little palette because it's only $22 whereas most Too Faced palettes run at about $40 to $50. 

Close up of the inside of the palette. So cute. 

Ok, that's all! Happy Tuesday!

The Shoes

When dreaming about their wedding, most teen girls will at some point spend hours online browsing through wedding dresses, debating over which is their favorite style, and picturing how perfect they will look in the dress. Though I have done my fair share of this over the years, I have always been a little more fixated on the wedding shoes. Yes, maybe you won't really be able to see them under the dress, but how can you not feel like a princess wearing these.

They are the most beautiful shoes in the whole universe, created by the one and only Christian Louboutin, and I will wear them on my wedding day if I have to wear a paper bag as my dress. (Ok, slight exaggeration but you get the point.)

There's just one problem. They are a little pricey. Ok a lot pricey. Like $3695 pricey. But a girl can dream, right?

Ever since I discovered these shoes in 7th grade, I have longed to own a pair of Louboutin heels. Unfortunately, the cheapest pairs cost over $600. And $600 can buy a lot of pizza at college. A lot. 

But sometimes in life, beautiful things happen. Fate steps in and in the midst of a not-so-great day, you walk into Nordstrom Rack. I was feeling pretty sick while browsing the shoe section when I saw them. A single pair of refurbished Louboutin pointed-toe heels. In my size. 

I gave it about an hour of deep thought, called everyone I knew for advice (even Louboutins found at Nordstrom Rack take up a lottttttt of pizza money), then ran back to the Rack and made those babies mine. Bye bye paycheck. 

Hello beautiful. 

Can't believe these are actually mine. 

For the record, taking pictures of yourself wearing shoes is pretty much the hardest thing ever. 

Sigh. Now please excuse me while I go build a shrine to them in my room. 

Wonderful Weekend

Working 9-5 Monday to Friday is exhausting and sometimes it seems like Friday will never come. I've recently discovered that if you plan like 200 things to do during the weekend, the week seems to fly by because you know the weekend is going to be a blast.

Friday after work I went out to dinner with my dad to Chino Latino which is one of our favorite places to go together. We ordered the sushi sampler which was definitely a good choice. It arrived on a covered metal bowl filled with dry ice, so the vapors from the dry ice seemed to be coming out of the sushi. Gotta give it to Chino, their presentation is stunning.

After dinner, I went over to Colleen's house for a good old Vis reunion. We shared college stories, ate a lot (no surprise there, it's Vis), and caught up on what's going on in each others' lives. If there's one thing in this world that i'll never get sick of, it's hanging out with my Vis girls. 

So much food. So Vis. 

Love you Kelly!

After Colleen's, Erin and I (the new summer dream team) headed over to Nick's house. We had a great time, made some new friends, and made some classic memories. I'm looking at you Erin. 

This could be the cutest picture of all time. 

ND love. 

After a great night, my dad picked me up from Erin's and we went to the mall. My dad had set up three appointments at the Apple store for fixing various devices, so I was free to shop. 

Three and a half hours later, my dad was still not done in the Apple store and I wasn't having great success with shopping. However, my luck changed drastically. If you follow me on Instagram, you know what I'm talking about. I'll post about what I got later (getting heart palpitations just thinking about it...)

We finally left the mall and I was a very happy Alexis. Once we got home, I was in such a good mood that I actually cleaned my room. I mean you can't really tell, but you can see the floor now. In most areas. Natalie and Erin came over around 8 and we had a classic girls' night. I'm just a huge fan of those. Natalie baked some delicious brownie whoopie pies and after eating them, I may hire Natalie as my personal chef/baker. 

After lots of stories and giggles, we all squeezed into my bed and dozed off, tired and happy. 

It was a beautiful weekend packed with fun and friends. Hope you all had wonderful weekends too!

Brace Face

Dear those who prayed for me about my braces,
Thank you. God has answered. I was able to get white ceramic brackets instead of the metal ones, so you can't even see the braces until you get up close. So at least some of my dignity was preserved.

Until now.

Get ready for some good pics. Fortunately for all of you (not for me), my dad came with me to my ortho appointment and acted as photographer. And he captured some gems. I know I'm gonna regret posting these. Too late now.

Thanks Dad. I look awesome. Goodbye dignity.

At least my eyebrows look good. 

After getting them on; you can barely see them! 

The first thing I did after leaving the ortho office was to hit up SA for the $.99 any size icee. As my brother wisely put it, "Why would ANYONE want the small size when they can get the huge one for the same price??" Amen, Andrew, amen. Truer words have never been spoken. These icees are the perfect cure for sore teeth. Well, actually the cure for just about anything. 

Two days later, I'm almost used to the braces. It's still a bit of a shock when I look in the mirror, though. Whatevs, I can totally rock the middle school look. 

Middle school selfie on photo booth: 

Omg braces LOL