Clean Cleaning Products

Happy Monday! I love the weekends with my little family - but they go by way too fast. I spent the weekend cleaning and spending time with my husband. Jay and I decided to celebrate Valentine’s Day early and went to THE best restaurant on Saturday night. I ate too much food and indulged in a dessert but it was worth it. Our sweet pup is having surgery on Valentine’s Day so we will be giving her all of our love that day.

While I was cleaning I decided it might be fun to share how I’ve switched most of our cleaning supplies over to more natural and safe products. I have been using and loving the brand Mrs. Meyers. If you haven’t heard of it I am sure you’ve at least seen it; if you are a frequent Target shopper like me! At first I was hesitant to try these products because I was using a bleach based cleaner for the bathroom and a disinfectant cleaner for the kitchen. I was skeptical about the power of a plant based cleaner but I gave it a whirl and haven’t looked back.

First let’s talk about the Lemon Verbena Baking Soda Cleaner. This stuff is magical! If you have an electric stove you know about the burnt on food and water marks that get left behind after a night of cooking. I could not for the life of me get rid of these marks with my kitchen cleaner and I was about to take a razor blade to it - anyone else’s grandmother do this? Well I decided to try the baking soda cleaner because it had some grit to it and boy did it do the trick! I lathered it all over the stove top and then used a scrub daddy (if you don’t have one you are seriously missing out) and all of the burnt junk came right off! I also use the baking soda cleaner on my tub, kitchen sink and bathroom toilets and it works like a charm!

The second product I am obsessed with is the Peony Multi-Surface Everyday Cleaner. It smells just like a peony, which is why I love it so much. I use this cleaner on my countertops, dining room table, and sinks. I always hated using the disinfectant cleaner because I felt like I was left smelling that harsh chemical smell in my nostrils for hours. I always associated the bleach smell with 100% clean but plants and essential oils have a lot of the same disinfectant power. My bathroom has never been so clean and smelled less like bleach!

The last product is my newest edition but I’ve already repurchased it - the Basil Hand Soap. This basil scent smells so fresh and sweet, it’s hard to not tell you that I am also obsessed with it because I totally am! I ordered a three pack on Amazon last month and stuck one in every bathroom. It gives your hands a good clean without drying them out.

The next products I am looking forward to purchasing are the dish soap and the glass cleaner. I think the scents honeysuckle and lilac will be my next fragrance choices. Have you tried any other clean cleaning products? I’d love to know which ones you like and would recommend! Stay healthy! Xo!

Quick and Easy Eye Makeup Tutorial

Happy Saturday!! I love the weekends, especially now that we have a dog! Jay and I love to take her outside and play, she is so much fun :) Today I wanted to share a quick and easy eye makeup look for even the busiest woman to create. This look takes me just a few minutes to do and this is what I’ve been gravitating towards almost daily. I do have to say that I can’t wait for spring to incorporate more pinks and purples into my look! Enjoy the video! I will list all the products in the post below.

Classic Eyeshadow Palette: I love this palette. I feel there’s a color for every girl in here. The colors are so rich and buttery!

Iconic Eyeshadow Palette: This palette will not be here forever, so if you like it, snagit!

Shimmer Sticks: SOLD OUT :( Here’s a great pencil: Color Outline Eye Pencil

Illuminating Cream Highlighter in Pearl Glow: If you know me, you know I love a good glow. I really like using this in the summer because I don’t wear as much makeup on my face. You can easily apply it with the stick and gently blend it with your fingers. It’s also great on your eyes, as I showed here!

Crease Eye Brush: Similar: I have the older version on the brush linked but this one is just as good, if not better. It’s important to use a small fluffy brush when you’re doing the outer crease because it will really blend the color in. You don’t want patchy eye makeup!

Stay beautiful! XO Kaytlyn

Don't Talk About It, Be About It

Don’t talk about it, be about it. My friend shared this quote with me a few weeks ago and it really stuck with me. It can be so easy to talk about the things you want to do or want to accomplish, but it’s another thing to go ahead and do it.

When thinking about my goals this year I really wanted to be intentional with what I picked and decide how I am going to accomplish these things. For example, every year I say I want to be healthier; eating, exercising, mentally, etc. I am so much more motivated when I am doing something with other people, or have a similar minded people surrounding me. This month I am doing a winter warrior challenge of walking one mile everyday in January with a friend. Each day we cheer each other on and hold each other accountable. Next month I am joining a few ladies to do a 10 week fitness challenge at our gym. Finally, I signed up for a quarter marathon in April with a friend and we are training together. I want to be about my goals this year and fitness is one of my top priorities! The rest of my goals I have written down and shared with supportive friends and family.

Who says we have to create these lofty goals and then do them alone? Women empowering other women is so uplifting, inspiring and motivating. This year I challenge you to create goals and actually complete them. Find a friend to hold you accountable and push each other to be the best version of you. Stay healthy! XO Kaytlyn

Happy Holidays

Happy holidays 🎄🥂🎉 I wanted to showcase alllll of Beautycounter's Holiday collection in one place!! Check out my latest video to see all of the goodies! My favorites are the mini lip gloss vault and the highlighter palette!! 💕 Who wants some under their Christmas tree?! 🎄

Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is Breast Cancer Prevention and Awareness month. To all the women who are fighting breast cancer this month and to all the survivors, especially to my Auntie Sue, know that we support you with this cause. Your courage and bravery to fight this is beyond compare. Cancer survivors and fighters are some of the strongest women I know!

In honor of everyone who has been affected by cancer - either ourselves or our family members and dear friends - I am partnering with our Beautycounter team to work together in gifting #1000PouchesWithPurpose to breast cancer patients going through chemotherapy and radiation throughout the US and Canada.

You can sign up to sponsor a pouch that will contain safe, gentle products (free of hormone-disrupting chemicals and carcinogens) to make cancer patients just a bit more comfortable and brighten their day. Several of the pouch products we have selected are particularly effective at soothing dry, irritated, inflamed skin from radiation treatments. I'll be personally donating the pouch and I'm asking for sponsors to help with the products.

In addition, I will donate my entire sales commission from each pouch, in your name, to: Breast Cancer Prevention Partners and Keep A Breast Foundation, two incredible non-profit organizations focused on prevention, early detection and educating young women about breast cancer. Your donation will therefore help to fund research for prevention, as well as gift a current patient with a pouch!!

You can sponsor any pouch shown here, sponsor specific products you'd like to add to a pouch (i.e. body lotion, shampoo/conditioner, baby balm, baby oil, lip conditioner, lip gloss, etc.) or simply make a donation in any amount (I will combine all donations to create as many pouches as possible) by commenting below or sending me a private message, text or email. Here in Northern CT, our pouches will be going to patients undergoing treatment at the Helen and Harry Gray Cancer Center (Hartford Healthcare) in Avon, CT.

Our team goal across the US and Canada is #1000PouchesWithPurpose.

Thank you for supporting such a wonderful cause that is near to my heart! Xoxo

Fall Decor

Hey hey happy day! Today I wanted to keep it short and sweet and share some pictures of my fall home decor. I’m just missing a good table centerpiece. I’m looking for a cornucopia but I can’t seem to find one that I love. Any suggestions are appreciated!. I don’t go too crazy with decorations because Christmas is my time to shine! The day after Thanksgiving all of the fall decorations come down and my house turns into a Christmas explosion. It is full out nutcrackers, Mr. and Mrs. Claus, reindeer, snowmen, and basically any other symbol of Christmas you can think of. Clearly I am already excited for that.

I love how the front came out but these steps are our next renovation. They are completely crumbling! I am so excited about what my husband has in mind to redo them!

This is my favorite part of our mudroom. Jay takes all the credit for this renovation because it was his dream since we got the house. I adore the way it came out, and I adore even more decorating it for the holidays!

The corners of our kitchen look like the epitome of fall. I got these jars from Hobby Lobby last year and I love how they are so versatile. I have them in the kitchen and in the bathroom! Our one salute to Halloween doesn’t even have a picture in it - we’re not in love with that holiday so we may need to put a stock picture in there LOL!

Most of our fall decor is from Michaels or Marshalls. I love mixing the white pumpkins with orange accents because it provides a nice pop color. Did you catch the little gnome? We have plenty more of them for winter, they are Jay's favorite so we had to get one for fall. Last year we did all white and blue but I was feeling more warm tones this year and I am loving it! How do you decorate for fall? Xoxo

Patience

If it feels like I have been a bit MIA it’s because I have been. Work has been taking a lot out of me so when I get home I just don’t have the right energy to write. Today I was able to let go of negative energy and sit down with a clear mind. I want to share about patience and why it can be difficult but why it is so important to have in day to day activities.

Patience is defined as the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset. Sounds easy enough, right? One of my new year's resolutions was to be more patient with Jay, but I’m thinking I need to broaden this resolution to being more patient with adults. I realize that I lose my patience much more quickly with adults than I do with children. At work I have the patience of a saint. Young children need to experience things on their own to be able to learn. This got me thinking, why don’t I apply this philosophy when working with adults?

I’ll give you a perfect example, even thinking about what I am going to type already has me starting to lose my cool. Every week I go to the grocery store and bring my own reusable bags, one of which is just for cold things. You know the bag with the insulated lining? Most times when I check out the bagger knows to put all the cold things in that special bag, but not every time. This past weekend I went to the store and to my dismay not a single cold thing got put in that bag. Needless to say I was fuming when I walked out of the grocery store. I called my husband, I ranted about how they never bag my things right, and I angrily threw my groceries in my trunk and drove away. To some this may sound silly, to others you’re agreeing with my rage, and the select few are thinking about the poor bagger I am bashing.

What did that little incident teach me? It taught me that adults, like children, need to be taught and learn new things. My grocery store comparison can be translated into so many other interactions that happen in a day. Think about who it is that you lose your patience with and what they are exactly doing. I can tell you that 95% of the time when I lose my patience with Jay it’s because he’s doing something one way when I know there is a better or easier way to do it; of course he will disagree with me but ladies we know who’s right.

Adults, like children, need the opportunity to try things on their own and explore their own ideas. When you’re in a situation and you feel yourself starting to boil, think what if this were {insert someone you can be patient with}. Have empathy with that person and know that they aren’t trying to annoy you but they may process a situation different than you. No two minds are alike but that is how we learn things! Sometimes I lose my patience with Jay and then realize that he was in fact right or had a better way to solve something (babe, don’t get used to me saying that!). I always tell my students that if everyone were alike in our classroom it would be pretty boring, so apply this concept to the world. To grow as a person you have to be open to others and their ideas, so start today with more patience in mind.

Do you have any tips or tricks to being patient? Yoga breaths also come in handy!! Stay healthy! Xoxo