5 Ways to Get Your Face Ready For Holiday Photos

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #HolidayGlow #CollectiveBias

You guys - it’s here. The Holiday season is upon us which means parties, dinners, events, and outings are surrounding us - as well as many opportunities to be featured in everyone’s photos.

It’s hard not to be self-conscious or shy of photos this year - after all, we are all eating a little more and probably partaking a little more than usual. But that doesn’t mean that next time your co-worker grabs your hand and drags you into the photo booth at the company’s holiday party that you should duck and run for cover.

In fact, I think you should do quite the opposite. This year, throw all of your insecurities aside and say ‘cheese’. Have fun, celebrate, and make memories.

Living Locally: Zoolights at The Oregon Zoo

I hope everyone had an amazing Thanksgiving this last week and had the opportunity to feast with friends, family and make memories. I had a whirlwind of a long weekend which included dinner at my house, a friendsgiving at my friend's home, black Friday shopping, an overnight solo trip to southern Oregon to visit my Mom, and lastly, our annual visit to the Oregon Zoo's Zoolights. 

Why You Shouldn’t Make Everything From Scratch This Thanksgiving

We hosted our Thanksgiving early this year. It wasn’t big, wasn’t elaborate, but it was memorable.

In years’ past I always got caught up with the hustle and bustle, trying to be Miss perfect and create everything myself - and all from scratch. Sure the food tasted good (most of it anyways!) but I was left tired, worn out, and stressed out.

I wasn’t sure if it was worth it.

Mandarin Orange Cranberry Chutney

I grew up on canned cranberry jelly.

You know, the kind that looks like the shape of the can when you pour it out? Many people love canned cranberries and they’re really not that bad, however, once I made homemade cranberry chutney for the first time I fell in love.

A few years ago I was scrolling through a magazine that I had received in the mail and it had a recipe for homemade cranberry chutney. I was in charge of creating Thanksgiving dinner for our families and I wanted everything to be homemade, so I decided to use the recipe from the magazine. The chutney was a hit and I haven't used canned cranberries since.

New Mom Advice

I received product and compensation from Mead Johnson Nutrition to create this post written by me. All experiences and opinions expressed in this post are my own and not those of Mead Johnson Nutrition. Consult your pediatrician before making changes to your baby's diet or if you have concerns related to your baby's digestive health. Please see the product label/website for acceptable use and benefits. You can contact Mead Johnson Nutrition with product related questions or comments toll free at 1-800-BABY 123 or through the Contact Us link on Enfamil A.R. or Enfamil.com

I think something is in the air around here - I know so many pregnant women right now! It brings back lots of memories, some good, some that I definitely don't miss, but it certainly makes me miss tiny little toes and baby snuggles. Gosh they grow up so fast.

It really makes me think about these past twelve years that I've been a mom.

Sometimes I get so busy living life that I don't take time to reflect. With Anika in the 7th grade, it seems like forever ago when I would stay up countless nights with her, rocking her, burping her, and feeding her. She was definitely my most time consuming baby and actually had frequent spit up issues, which was not only messy, but frustrating for my naive 18 year old self. There was many sleepless nights together just the two of us, and we both did a whole lot of learning.