Peacock Nails

I call these my peacock nails. I used Zoya Aurora, LA Girl 3D Effects: Teal Dimension, Revlon Celestial FX (for the diamonds which I applied with a toothpick), Konad White stamping polish and Winstonia Store plate W108 for the feathers & peacock. I used Seche Vite top coat when I was finished.

(Click on image to make larger)

Sweet Pea: Dec 2011- Jul 2013

Sweet Pea came down with a bad respiratory infection a few day ago... she was on antibiotics but by Saturday was having a hard time breathing. She was making awful wheezing sounds, struggling to breathe. We had her in a towel and I was petting her to comfort her and calm her down. She ended up messing herself really bad in the towel, (side effect of the antibiotics) and I wanted to rinse her off a little to clean her up. She passed away while I was rinsing her off in the sink....

Back in March, Sweet Pea had a really bad inner ear infection. She was left with a permanent left tilt to her head afterwards. But she still had a lot of energy and was still running to hoard food or treats even with her tilt. ♥

My husband picked Buttercup & Sweet Pea out back in December 2011. Sweet Pea was really shy at first and it took her a really long time to finally show her personality. She could be very mischievous sometimes, sneaking up beside one of her sisters and then nipping one of her sisters on the ears or face & running away. ♥

Sweet Pea had really interesting coloring. She was a beige hooded rat, but her beige color was so light it was almost gray, and with the camera flash she would sometimes just look all white. ♥

Sweet Pea yesterday a few hours before she passed away...

Happy 4th of July!!!

Here are my festive 4th of July nails! With Zoya Liberty & Blaze. Konad special stamping polish in white & Winstonia Store stamping plate W107. And Revlon Celestial FX stars!

(You can click to enlarge the photo).

I did a clear coat of Seche Vite over Zoya Liberty so I would have a more even surface for stamping. And I used a toothpick to place the little stars from Revlon Celestial FX once I fished them out of the bottle. Then a few more coats of Seche Vite covered everything. I'm really happy how this turned out, I don't usually do "Nail Art". :-)

 (Left to Right: Independence Hall, Liberty Bell, 1st Congress and the Betsy Ross House, from our 2011 trip)

Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday! My husband & I are just hanging out in the air conditioning (It's in the 90's outside) and I'm making barbecue chicken later on our George Foreman grill, with corn, squash & fried onions. And we have apple pie & fruit salad. :-)

Nail Mail from Florida & The Netherlands!

It's been awhile since my last blog. I've gotten 7 new polishes since then. :-) But... I only actually paid for one!

My long time blogging & twitter friend Lynn sent me a package a few weeks ago. She sent me a DelSol color changing polish! (I also love the mouse card she sent!)

I've never owned a color changing polish. It's so cool! It changes from a super sparkly purple to a deep magenta in the sun. And as soon as you go back in the shade it goes back to purple. The color Lynn sent me is called 'After Party' I only have mobile photos, but the color change is significant! It's a super sparkly polish in person, I love it!

 DelSol After Party in the shade. 

  DelSol After Party in the sun!

Then I got another lovely surprise. My Instagram friend Maaike (Mee-ka) in The Netherlands sent me some more goodies! (This was the 1st package she sent). She felt bad it cost me so much to send her package, and that I included more than I said I would. She is so nice! She sent me so much stuff! I have to send her back something in a few months, because now I feel bad! lol. :-)

She sent me more Essence polish, some nail art polish, facial cleanser, Coconut Lip Balm, which tastes amazing! And Lipton Blueberry Muffin green tea. :-)

Essence 'That's What I Mint' & 'Hello Marshmallow'

This was the manicure I did with the Essence Polish. Pastel & Daisies! I used Winstonia Store plate 110. And Konad Special Polish in White.

I shared my manicure on Winstonia Store's Facebook page and a few days later they shared it with all of their fans! That was so neat! (You may have to click on the photo below to enlarge it),

The only nail polish I've actually purchased myself was Essie DJ Play That Song. I've been wanting it forever. It's a pretty neon purple. Of course being Essie, the formula was thin and watery, so it took 3 coats, and even then I still had some bubbles. But it's a really gorgeous color regardless.

I added stars a few days later with Winstonia Store stamping plate W107 and some Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Silver.

If you haven't already. Check out my Complete Nail Polish Collection!

Zoya Destiny & Konad Animal Print Nails!

These turned out really pretty! I used Zoya Pixie Dust in Destiny, then put a clear coat of Seche Vite over it, (because it's texture polish) and then I stamped the animal print (cheetah?) with my Konad stamper plate M57, (and 1 more coat of Seche Vite). I love the way Destiny sparkles in the sun! I'm getting much more used to stamping now and my shorter stamper I bought from Winstonia Store helps a lot too! :-)

(I do use Amazon Associates, but not because I've made any money- because I haven't! lol! But I like that I can show a picture/link with a product when I'm blogging. Plus I do recommend Amazon.com for their low prices. That or Ebay!)

Dollar Tree Crock Pot Beef Stew

This beef stew was made with Dollar Tree grocery ingredients. (Some Dollar Tree locations now have freezer aisles & canned/dry goods.) My paycheck has been a over $100.00 short lately because of the US Government Sequestration. So, I've had to come up with some cheap but filling dinner ideas.

• Egg Noodles from Dollar Tree 12oz bag. (Only use half the bag & don't add them until the last hour).
• 1 Package of frozen mixed veggies Steam'ables 10oz from Dollar Tree
• 3 packages of frozen Rib Eye steak meat from Dollar Tree 3oz each. Cut into small pieces.
• 1-2 medium sliced, diced or whole onions- your preference (The onions are not from Dollar Tree)

Sauce:

I mix my sauce first and whisk it together in a large bowl, then I pour it over the meat & veggies in the crock pot. Stir everything together.

• 2 cups of Water 
• 1 cup of Ketchup
• 1/2 cup Soy Sauce 
• 3 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 teaspoons of salt 
• 1/4 teaspoon of pepper 
• 2 tablespoons of brown sugar 
• 1 teaspoon Goya Adobe all purpose seasoning. (Red lid)
• 3 tablespoons of Flour (Whisk into sauce).

Directions: Cook for 7 hours on low in the crock pot. During the last hour of cooking- add the egg noodles and stir well. (This makes around 5 servings.)

You can add whatever veggies you have laying around, I had half a bag of baby carrots left over, so I put those into the stew as well.

 If you're looking for a regular Crock Pot Beef Stew recipe click here.

Other Dollar Tree related blogs: 

My Dollar Tree is Freaking Amazing!

* Everything was purchased by myself, I am not affiliated with Dollar Tree.

Sindie Pop Lacquer: Golden Raspberries

I've wanted this color awhile! Sindie Pop Lacquer recently had a restock and Golden Raspberries was available! She also sent me a free gift of Nightshifter, which is a silvery mauve color with aqua shimmer in it. I still have to try it out. This was my first order from Sindie Pop. She packaged everything so nicely too!

Sindie Pop Golden Raspberries is a gorgeous raspberry purple color with lot's of golden shimmer and sparkles. It removed pretty easy with polish remover. This was 2 coats with 1 coat of Seche Vite topcoat.

*Golden Raspberries was purchased by myself. Nightshifter was included with my order as a free gift.

Rat Kids!

Here's a few recent photos of some of my pets rats!

 Templeton!

 Teddy & Templeton stayed like this on my bed, after I pet them.

 Emile using Remy as a pillow!

 Emile and Teddy and um... rat balls... lol.

 Buttercup!

 Pumpkin!