Bentonite Clay Facial Mask

Okay, so you all know that I'm all for crunchy, non toxic skin care. Over the past few years, I've read here and there about Bentonite Clay, and eventually, I ordered a jar so I could try out a skin care mask and learn about it's other benefits. 

Here are some benefits of Bentonite Clay:

~ Unclogs the pores and shrinks them.

~ Helps to control the overproduction of sebum

~ Draws out toxins from the skin.

~ Makes skin softer.

~ Gives a glow to your face.

~ Exfoliates your skin.

~ Regenerates skin tissue.

~ Evens your skin tone.

So basically, it's a wonderful product to use! 

Alright, here's how I made my mask.

I started with Apple Cider Vinegar, Bentonite Clay, Frankincense, Copaiba, and Bergamot essential oils. All of these have great benefits for our skin! I typically apply each one after I wash and use a toner on my face. 

Mix equal parts of clay and apple cider vinegar. You can also use water).

Mix with a wooden spoon. 

You do not want to use a metal spoon, as the clay will absorb the metals, and mess with the ions in the clay.

I added one drop of each oil to the clay.

And then stirred it all together really well.

On a clean face, I applied the mask mixture all over, being careful to avoid my eyes. 

Leave the mask on for 20 minutes and remove with a warm wash cloth. 

My face was red after removing the mask, but it was fine by the next day. 

I'll definitely be adding this to my routine and using the bentonite clay mask a few times a month! 

Valentine's Day

We celebrated Valentine's day with lots and lots of class parties last week, and pizza. There's always pizza on Valentine's day at our house. 

DJ went to the gym to workout, and Gretchen has been waking up at 6 am.... so, by the time we were all awake, DJ let us know that he had cards for each of us. 

The girls were so excited, and my heart melted that DJ thought to get the girls a card. 

After cards and breakfast, we headed out the door for school.

But only after, we took a few sister photos. 

I dropped all of the girls off, and went to a meeting downtown. When I made it back to my office, I saw a note from Gretchen and Megan. 

It was just the sweetest. 

And, I knew our valentine's day would be cray, and I wanted to be comfortable. A graphic tee, leggings, boots, and a sweater for the win. 

Adalyn had her party at noon. The kiddos got to decorate a cookie. 

And eat lots of snacks. 

They even had pink ice cream floats. 

 

I loved spending time with this girl at her party. 

 The big girls didn't have their parties until a little later in the afternoon. I saw some speech kids, and then went to Gretchen's classroom to vote on their Valentine boxes. 

Of course, I voted for Gretchen's! 

And then I went down to Megan's party. They played a game where they had to suck M&M's up with a straw and put them in another cup. They had a minute to move all of their candy. 

Poor Meggie had trouble, so she totally cheated. 

And then they played a "broken heart" game with clothespins and a tissue paper heart. 

Their snack was a perfect little snack mix, and they had ice cream floats too. 

I loved spending time with her. 

She made a little card at the craft table during her party. 

At the very end of the day, Gretchen had her party. 

Her class had ice cream sundaes, so we took some selfies while we waited for her turn. 

This girl knows how to make a sundae!

And then we took some photos in their little photo booth. 

Her party wrapped up with a Valentine Bingo game! 

After school, we headed downtown to meet DJ for pizza. These girls were a mess after partying the whole day! Addy's leggings even ripped! Apparently, they party hard. 

We took a photo in front of our favorite wall.

The girls love Andolini's because they get to play with pizza dough while we wait on our food. 

Pizza dough beards for the win!

After pizza we walked over to our favorite chocolate shop, and each of the girls picked out a piece.

And daddy had to sneak in to get a picture with his Valentine's. 

We loved being able to celebrate each other and our family! 

Life Lately

We're out of school today for President's day, and I'm catching up on #allthethings. Including this blog post :) I meant to blog this last Friday, but DJ and I were out late at the Blake Shelton concert, which was amazing.

We had a much needed night out, and enjoyed seeing Carly Pearce, Brett Eldridge, and Blake Shelton in concert. We made it home and in the bed after midnight, so I was dragging on Friday. 

Anyway, on to some life lately....

The girls have been busy with basketball practice. I haven't made it to one of Gretchen's practices this season because hers run later, and we want to make sure the other two kiddos are in bed on time, but, I went to yoga class one night and DJ took all of the girls, and I met them to pick them up before bedtime.... and, I got to see Gretchen practice and make some baskets! 

And, then our sweet friends took her out to dinner to celebrate her birthday. Gretchen and Connor have been BFF's since kindergarten, and say they're going to get married some day. They had a family dinner date at Osaka and had the best time. 

That same night, the weather was gorgeous, so we sat outside way too late and had popsicles in the driveway. 

And then it was too cold to take our John Wesley picture at church, so the girls asked for a photo on their favorite bench. 

And don't you just love a dress with just enough twirl factor. 

I grabbed this one from Gap Outlet when we were in Branson over Christmas, and Adalyn has been begging us to let her wear it, but we've either been sick or it's been too cold. We finally let her wear it last Sunday and she was so excited! She said she felt just like a princess. 

 

We've been reading lots of books at bedtime. 

And heading to gymnastic practices too. Addy's come such a long way this year, and occasionally, she'll have a really good cartwheel!

I was cooking dinner, when she said "Oh no mom, someone colored on me!" "It's a tattoo!" Um, yeah right kiddo. You did that one to yourself. Thankfully, it came off with a little soap and water in the tub.

We celebrated Valentine's day last week, and I'll be sharing more on that later this week :) 

And, we learned that Fun Dip can turn our mouth super fun colors. (gross)

So, that's a little bit of life lately and what we've been up to! 

Have a fantastic Monday my friends.