Mermaids, smoothies & a bag of beauty

In my last post, I mentioned our beach vacation, as well as my little lady's 3rd birthday. We actually had a party for her while we were there. She wanted a pirate and mermaid theme.

Hayden received this adorable Little Mermaid dress-up outfit for her birthday, which she happily pranced around in before we went to see the "real" mermaids at the aquarium. She couldn't wait to get her first glimpse of them, begging me to lift her up so she could see better.

However, when one of the mermaids finally made her way to where she was standing for a face-to-face meet-and-greet, Hayden quickly ducked down beneath the rocky ledge. It was like seeing Santa Claus all over again.

To my surprise, though, she talked about the mermaids like she really liked them after the fact. She even wanted to get done up like a mermaid in the Mermaid Boutique, but since we already took her to Sparkles, we thought we could make due with what we had for dress up back at the beach house. Instead, we let her pick out this cute little stuffed mermaid you can see posing in the pics with my Vega Energizing Smoothie.

If you recall Charissa's July Smoothie Challenge I posted about all throughout last month, I'm excited to update you with the fact that I won. That means I'll be receiving all five flavors of Vega's Energizing Smoothie mix (thank you Charissa, and thanks to all my readers for sticking with me while I kept posting and tweeting so many smoothies).

I also won one bag of Vega Energizing Smoothie in my choice of flavor from One Green Planet (thank you) for leaving a comment on and tweeting about one of their posts. I selected Vanilla Almondilla, which is my favorite.

I must confess that I've been a fan of Vega products for quite a while now, so it is no surprise that I entered both of these contests. I've posted an interview with Brendan Brazier about him and the products in the past, and even reviewed the Energizer Smoothie's predecessor.

Vega Energizer Smoothie is actually the revamped version of Vega Shake & Go Smoothie. I found that the new version isn't quite as green in color and flavor as the original and is smoother. It mixes very well and tastes amazing. I'm very impressed with the changes made to the product (although I loved the first version, too). I'm anxious to try all the rest of the revised flavors when they arrive.

Another item I received in the mail recently is this fun, natural LovingEco Beauty Bag (the price currently says $45, but I got mine for $15.95, as part of a limited time deal; JP Selects always offers weekly specials that are worth signing up for). Now that LovingEco is part of JP Selects, The LovingEco Beauty Bag I've raved about is back. I hope it reappears on the site monthly.

First of all, it came in a cute red Baggu (I'm still a fan of the white and teal striped one from my last Beauty Bag). It was filled with the following items:

• EmerginC Scientific Organics Kombucha Cleanser: This was a standard small sample, but I made it last for about 7 uses (day and night for 3 and a half days). You only need a little bit. It easily cleansed away my make up, and left my skin feeling fresh, clean and moisturized, perfect for my parched beach skin. The site says the products are organic, never tested on animals and do not contain animal products.
• MyChelle Dermaceuticals 3 Deluxe Product Sampler (Fruit Enzyme Mist, Ultra Hyaluronic Hydrating Serum and Unscented Supreme Polypeptide Cream): I followed up the cleanser with the MyChelle products which claim to be vegan or vegetarian friendly, depending on the product. Again, my skin loved the hydrating properties of these products after all that time in the sun. The mist is so refreshing and helped keep my skin clear. I also think the tiny spray bottle is really cute; I plan on keeping it for refilling.
• Dr. Hauschka Lavender Bath Deluxe Sample: This is nice and relaxing. It pairs nicely with the lavender spray I received in last month's Eco Emi box.
• L'uvalla Age-Defying Day/Night Cream Sample Packet: I haven't had a chance to try this yet, but it says it is vegan and not tested on animals. It contains argan oil which works well on my skin (and hair and nails ...). Oh and BTW, I saw they have free samples on their website.
• Full Size Sprout Vegan Lip Balm: OMG, I've been dying to try one of these, and now I really know why. It goes on so smoothly, like my Hurraw lip balm, and the cocoa butter in it is quite yummy, too. I got cinnamon, which tastes and smells like a bake good. Mmmm! Reminds me of this cinnamon lip balm Hayden and I made a while back.
• Reviogen Larger Travel Size Samples of Shampoo and Conditioner: I'm not familiar with these products, but they are supposed to be good for thinning hair. I always worry that once you start using something like this, you can never stop, which makes me concerned about trying them. I'll let you know if a family member of mine tests them out for me.

 

Lastly, I got a special code to enter for a free gift, since I've been a LovingEco and JP Selects loyal customer. My gift was this Priti Polish in Chocolate Cosmos. As you know, Priti Polish is one of my favorite nail polish brands, so I was excited about this. The color is more of a deep red, rather than a chocolate. I prefer to refer to it as Red Velvet Cupcake :-)

Anyway, my little cupcake (Hayden, of course) is calling for me. TTFN!