April curlBOX & Product Review

Pantene Defining Curls Styling Custard

April's curlBOX came while I'm at an impasse with my hair. I started going to the salon and found out that the stylist I chose works more comfortably with straight hair, so now I'm not as encouraged to go. My two weeks would have been Easter weekend but now I'm starting to feel like every two weeks might be too frequent.

That's definitely a conversation for another time, so let's get to this curlBOX. The items included in this month's curlBOX were full size Pantene Pro-V products. They include:
~ Curly Hair Series Moisturizer + Styler, No Crunch Curls Whip
~ Defining Curls Styling Custard
~ 2 Minute Moisture Hair Masque Deep Conditioner
~ Stylers Heat Protection Spray
~ Truly Natural Hair Shine Serum
~ Expert Collection Keragloss Oil Mist

Coming into this experiment, I was worried about using Pantene products. I've heard a lot of naturals talk about how Pantene's natural hair products weren't for them BUT everyone's hair is different, so I wasn't going to let what I heard form my opinions. I needed to try them out myself!! Out of the items listed, I decided to try out the Pantene Pro-V Truly Natural Hair Defining Curls Styling Custard first...to hold me over until my next hair wash. I got flexi rods the last time I went to the salon, so I decided to use my revamp method to preserve the look. I followed a very similar method this time around.

I didn't want to invest too much time into revamping the hairstyle because I knew it would only be temporary. I separated my hair into medium sized sections; used a water bottle to dampen each section, applied the custard, then twisted each section.

I loved the results. If I had to compare these results to anything I've used before I would say it reminds me the most of Design Essentials Natural Defining Creme Gel. The custard was light weight, it smelled nice, and there were no flakes after a few days! I will definitely use this product in the future!

The results!

Don't mind my mean mug! It was the best picture of my hair!!

Have a great day y'all!!

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Sunday Social

Pet Peeves & Fear

It's Sunday and I decided to participate in Sunday Social! First though! Make sure you guys are following my on Google+ so you can get all my posts sent directly to you!! Click below and add me!

+Mionna Henderson

Let's get into it....

1. What is your biggest driving pet peeve?

I have several driving pet peeves.

A) Drivers who speed up to get in front of me then slow down

B) Drivers who constantly brake for no reason at all

C) Traffic, especially grid lock traffic (I feel like traffic should constantly flow.
If everyone would drive, there shouldn't be any problems)
D) Unnecessary speeding. There are three stop lights/signs between here
and the end of the street. Why are you going 60 mph between each stop?

2. What is your biggest blogging pet peeve?

My biggest blogging pet peeves are...

A) Going to blogs that have too much content on them, especially when I'm at work.
It slows the computer down even more than normal!

B) Bloggers who don't respond to comments or comments awaiting moderation.
I like to connect with bloggers and I feel like those things put a barrier between doing that.

C) Bloggers who don't give credit. It's okay if you want to showcase or share...
but please give credit where credit is due

3. What is your biggest shopping pet peeve?

I used to work in retail in college (at Old Navy) so I know what to expect
when I walk into a store. My shopping pet peeves are...
A) When salespeople don't greet you upon entering a store.

B) When salespeople pester you about needing help or about current sales.

C) When I NEED help and can't find a salesperson in sight!

D) When a store is either unorganized or super large. It's even worse when the store is super large AND unorganized!!

and E) When there's a very long line for the fitting room

4. What is your biggest general pet peeve?

LIARS and DISRESPECT!! Don't do it. You will get cut off real quick! No second thoughts.

5. What is your most irrational fear?

Dying before I'm able to start a family. To be honest, I don't really feel that's all that irrational, it could happen. However, it is a fear...God willing, this won't happen!! :-)

So, can you feel me on some of my pet peeves and fear?? Or is it just me?! LOL

Happy Sunday :-)

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She Reads Truth

When I moved away from Greenville, I moved away from my church home too. I had a very, Very, VERY good church home that I miss on a daily basis. (If you're ever in the Greenville, NC area you should check it out: Koinonia Christian Center Church!! If you're not, they stream live every Wednesday and Sunday. You'll love it!) I was fed awesome Word, I was active in the projection ministry (which was in charge of things like putting the bible verses and words to songs on the screen, operating the video input switch, etc.), I was active in the publication ministry (which took notes of the sermons, published the church newsletter, wrote church devotionals, etc.), and I had good relationships with the members. I can definitely say that the bar has been set extremely high for the churches around here and I have yet to have any luck!

So, because of the lack I feel, I've been looking for some supplemental items to add to my life that can help me have a better understanding and relationship with God in this time of transition. I've recently started this daily devotional tailored for women...that's kind of a big deal in the blog world called #SheReadsTruth.

via

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The newest plan #TheRisenChrist started Wednesday. If you'd like to join, join!! So far, so good. Spending any time with The Word is good for your soul, but having some guided devotional is always helpful. Delving deeper than just reading the devotional but thinking about what it means to you and for you life, meditating on The Word, and putting this stuff to good use is a part of the formula for success!!

What devotionals do you enjoy reading??

P.S. - Don't forget Janee's Birthday Giveaway for your chance to win a $600 Visa gift card! Today is the last day to enter and you do not want to miss out on your chance to have a winning weekend!!! Have a great one!!

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Less Words Wednesday: Semi OOTD

Title: Animal Print & Color

Shades: Franscesca's

Lips: wet n wild (Color - Ferguson Crest Cabernet)

Earrings: Beauty World

Sweatshirt: Forever 21

I was cute this day, with minimal effort!

You should have peeped the whole outfit! ;-) 

P.S. - Don't forget to check out Janee's Birthday Giveaway for your chance to win a $600 Visa gift card! There's only a few days left!!!

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National Cherry Blossom Festival

The week before last was the National Cherry Blossom Festival! I'm not going to say that I'd never heard of it before, but it wasn't particularly on my radar way down in North Carolina!

I didn't think I would be able to make it out this year because I had so much going on with work, softball practices, taking care of business, etc...but I did! Most of my coworkers mentioned that most DC natives don't engage in the tourist-y things like the Cherry Blossom Festival...but I refused to be grouped in that category! I come from a small city where there's rarely anything going on, so to be able to go to a national event in my own city means something to me!

There was an actual festival that happened on the 12th that my boyfriend and I were unable to attend. However, we wanted to get out and see the cherry blossoms before they all fell off. Here are some of the pictures I took (he took that picture above):

Aren't these pictures beautiful?! I can tell you that the scenery was more beautiful in person!

This is an event I'd recommend people attend. There were different activities and events throughout the week. I love the beauty of nature so just being able to enjoy the Japanese Cherry Blossom trees on such a beautiful and warm day was reward enough for me.

Be aware!! There were hundreds of thousands of people out...and I'm not exaggerating when I say that!! We DID NOT drive and I wouldn't recommend it. There was gridlock traffic in that area and parking was ridiculous. We took the Metro which took a load off  because we didn't have to worry about driving or parking. Walking was a bit hectic but we weren't in a rush so we took our time.

Next time I hope to be able to attend some of the events and activities. I could have done so this year, if I wouldn't have waited so late to do my taxes!! (For some reason I always wait until the last minute to get those things done. I'm not pressed for the money, so I look at it as a good thing, BUT I promise to do better next year! LOL) Looking back at Japanese Cherry Blossom Week 2014, I can say it was a success! This whole weekend was a great weekend!

Now only if that weather would come back to stay!! :-)
Have a great day y'all! I know I will!

P.S. - Don't forget to check out Janee's Birthday Giveaway for your chance to win a $600 Visa gift card!

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Easter Sunday

Thank the Lord for saving my life!

via

I certainly believe and praise His name for the glorious things He's done for me!! I'm thankful for the many blessings...and I look to Him for what I need!

"Praise the Lord, Hallelujah, I'm free!!"

Have a great Easter Sunday y'all!!

P.S. - Don't forget to check out Janee's Birthday Giveaway for your chance to win a $600 Visa gift card!

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Truckeroo Visit

This past Friday, I did something new!

My boyfriend and I visited the local Truckeroo at the DC Fairgrounds!! This was my first time and I wanted to share it with you. I feel like sharing this experience won't give you the full picture because there were a lot of circumstances that prevented this event from being greater than it was. This was the first Truckeroo of the year and there was a possibility of rain. There was a cover band there and the atmosphere was very jovial but there weren't too many trucks out. It was a good opportunity, however, to see what this thing was all about without being overcrowded.

I also didn't get the chance to try any of the food (which was a bummer because I keep hearing about how good some of these food trucks are) because we had dinner plans that I certainly didn't want to ruin! Some of the food trucks I would have tried were BurGorilla (gourmet burgers from basic to bananas); Cup Mac DC (gourmet pasta); D Claw (crab cakes and lobster rolls); etc.! They've been doing a lot of construction around my job where the food trucks usually park, so I'm just so curious to find out what I've been missing.

The next Truckeroo is May 9th and the one after that is June 13th. I will be going to one of those and I will be eating some "street meat" and other goodies! If you'd like to join, these would be perfect opportunities!

What food trucks have you found to have good food?

P.S. - Don't forget to check out Janee's Birthday Giveaway for your chance to win a $600 Visa gift card!

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Length Check Shirt

Natural Hair Arts & Crafts

I'm doing a trial run of something but I don't want to reveal what it is just yet. However, I will say that it involves my hair! If you're a naturalista, I'm sure you've seen length check shirts used to measure the length of natural hair (if not, see here). Back in the day I researched these shirts but they were pretty costly, so I immediately dismissed the idea of having one. I think now, since people are making their own, you can find them at more reasonable prices than you could back then. I decided to join the make-my-own-shirt team!


The items needed were simple enough. I decided to use an old screen tee that I hardly wear anymore. This way I wouldn't be "ruining" a good shirt!

Next I researched the best way to make the shirt. I'd seen many length check shirts and each shirt had the 1 inch line starting at different places on the back of the shirt. I decided to start measuring from the collar of shirt. You guys know I'm shooting for length retention so the higher up I start, the better I'm sure I'll feel once my hair starts making it's way down my back. It's not like I'm using the shirt for scientific research!! It's just to have a point of reference when measuring my hair. So, if you're going to make you're own shirt and you'd like to start somewhere other than the collar, go right ahead!!

I ironed the wrinkles out of the shirt with my hand and placed the ruler in the middle of the shirt, lining it up against the collar. Next, I marked a dash at each inch.

I put the ruler up against each dash mark and made dashes going across the shirt horizontally. I wanted the ends of each line to line up, so my dashed lines are about the length of the ruler.

And voila! That's it!

April is my length check month so you'll get a chance to see me put this shirt to work at the end of the month. I know I won't be happy with my length this month because of my trim...but hopefully this trial run experiement will have positive results!

Stay tuned!

Also, while you're here :-), help us celebrate Janee's birthday by entering the Birthday Giveaway for your chance to win a $600 Visa gift card!! The summer is near...there'll be cookouts, summer vacations, wardrobe changes, etc!! I know $600 would certainly be a nice chunk of money to throw at anything you're trying to do this summer, so ENTER!!

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Flexi Rods...AGAIN!

Salon Flexi-Rod Set

I know, I know. I've been doing flexi rods since January y'all, but listen...

I was hesitant about going back to the salon after two weeks, because I knew I could pull off wearing my hair straight for another week. I ended up making myself go because I knew with softball practice every week my hair wasn't going to go another week! I also wanted to get this salon visit out of the way and get myself used to going to the salon every 2 weeks again.

I texted my cosmetologist and told her I had no idea what I wanted done to my head, which is most often the case. Somehow during the conversation, it's revealed that to me (from my understanding) that she only works with straight natural hair. Duhn, duhn, DUHN!!!! Oh No (I'm thinking to myself)!!! I went through all the work of finding somewhere to get my hair done and now this! I'd already made my appointment for Saturday, so I told her I would keep it, but I also told her we would have to discuss a different kind of schedule than every two weeks because I usually don't straighten my hair more than about once every 3 months.

Saturday gets here and I'm like Tammy, NO!! We talked a bit and she told me that she was trying to say she prefers to work with more tame hair when she's curling it...not that she only works with straight hair. She also said that my hair was too soft for some of the other styles and if she gave me a style she wanted it to last. I definitely get that, because I'm paying my hard earned money...I want it to last too! But that's just the nature of my hair. I've had  flat twist styles, and updos, and whatever else. The longest my hair is lasting is a good week. My hair is very soft and it is naturally frizzy. Period. So she ended up suggesting I try another girl in the shop who does more of the natural hairstyles I was looking for. I'm thinking about going to her the next go round...so, I may find myself giving her a try sooner rather than later.

These are the results. As you can see from the pic above, the curls are definitely popping!! If I sit under the dryer, my hair will hold on to a curl for dear life!! But, if you guys know me, you know I like length, so I'm only tolerable of this style.

I know what you're thinking. Why would I get this style if I like length? Well, as I mentioned, I didn't know what kind of style I wanted. I'm very particular about hairstyles, so I'm not one to say to a cosmetologist "do whatever you want!". That's taking it a bit far. So I stick with what I know. This style is kind of like a protective style because I don't have to comb my hair, I can oil my scalp, and I don't have to prep it at night.

In the pic to the left, I have a headband on. My hope is that the headband will stretch the curls without damaging them. My hair gets super frizzy...extremely quickly. If I wanted to, I think it could pull this look off for two weeks. I've been coming up with plans for how I can hold the curls but stretch them at the same time. I'm going to try and be creative with styles first, so we'll see how that goes.

So, what are you guys thinking? Flexi rods...or no?!

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AND don't forget the Spring Break Cash Giveaway. This is the last post I'll be doing before the drawing. You can't win if you're not in the game!

My First Feature

Guess what everyone!!

There's a first time for everything!! I want you all to head on over to this blog hop to meet some fantastic bloggers! This is one of my favorite blog hops because you get to reach so many bloggers on all that social media sites in one place!! It also allows you to have the same exposure for your blog and social media sites.

I want to thank the ladies for picking me to be featured. It means a lot!!

ALSO while you're here check out the Spring Break Cash Giveaway!! There are 3 days left!
Enter for your chance to win $200. Spring is coming and I'm sure we all could use that $200 to Springify so many things in our lives!

Have a great Monday y'all!

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Sunday Social

I haven't done Sunday Social in a while, so I decided to join in today.

1. When did you join Twitter? Great question. I joined Twitter on January 11, 2014. I wanted to expand my brand more and I had avoided it for a year. I definitely thought it was time.   2. Who is your favorite non-celeb to follow? Good question. I haven't quite found a favorite just yet. I'm still trying to learn my way around!!   3. Who is your favorite celeb to follow? Celebs are funny. Some of them only tweet about upcoming events or albums and that gets annoying. I want to find a celeb that's tweeting regular thoughts and occurrences like I am. I have yet to find a favorite in that category too...lol. I'll definitely take good suggestions though!   4. Have you ever had a celeb respond to your tweet? I follow some radio morning shows and I @ them from time to time to give my input on whatever topics they're discussing in the morning and I've had my tweets read on the radio. But I've never tweeted at a celebrity. Guess I should try!   5. What is your favorite store/brand to follow? @CurlBox. I have a membership with them and they have chats for different hair-related things. I participated in one chat recently and I actually gained a lot from that convo. I'll definitely take suggestions on good stores and brands to follow too.   6. Give us three tweeps we should follow we should follow. Me @justmiblog (of course), Nicole @pharr_away, and Erin @MrsErinAlmond!!   After looking at this Social Sunday, it looks like I definitely need to step my Twitter game up!! Don't worry y'all, it's on my to do list! Since I'm new to twitter, I've been trying to keep up with everyone that I follow. That's hard to do when your list is 400 people long. I don't understand! BUT, I recently got rid of some celebrities and store brands to help me do a little better with following actual people first. So follow me and I'll follow you!! Happy Sunday!

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A Healthy Gravy Recipe!

I posted a post earlier in the week about my amazing French toast. This recipe falls into that same category. It's amazing and it's healthy. I must admit, I haven't been working out lately. I've picked up my old hobby of playing softball and that's replacing my exercise routine. I'll eventually find some type of schedule that'll allow me to get a workout or two in throughout the other days of the week, but supplemental to my physical exercise is the healthier eating which I'm indeed doing better with.

This post talks about one of my favorite things to cook and eat! Since making a choice to eat healthier, I haven't had any meals with that one ingredient in it for a long time!! I did a little researching over the weekend to look for healthy ground beef recipes and just so happened to find this jewel: Meatballs and Peppers (via)!! Your level of excitement for bell peppers will determine the level of turnt-upness you reach when you hear the name of this meal! I love peppers! This meal included two of my favorite things to eat AND was under 300 calories. I got excited so I decided to make this recipe my own!

MiMi's 'Mazing French Toast

Since I've been trying to eat healthier, I've been trying different things in the kitchen. I ran out of french toast sticks one weekend and decided to make my own french toast! The first day I tried it, it was okay...but by the second day, I had it down pact! I think this is a healthy way to start your morning and NO this is not an April Fool's joke!

Ingredients

2 slices of bread

1 egg

milk

cinnamon

butter

Very Easy Steps

1. Get a pan (that will easily fit two slices of bread)

2. Crack the egg into the pan
(To get even healthier about it, you should try using egg whites)

3. Add about a teaspoon of milk (or as much/little as you'd like) into the egg and stir until blend well

4. Add the cinnamon (as much/little as you'd like) and stir until blended well

5. Lay the two slices of bread into the egg mixture and allow the side to soak in the mixture

6. Pick up the bread and allow the egg mixture to recover the spots in the pan where the bread was

7. Place the bread back in the pan on the other side and allow this side of the bread to soak in

8. Put about 1/2 a tbsp of butter (or enough to coat the pan) into a frying pan and allow it to melt

9. Once this is done place the bread into the pan and allow the side to brown

(as light or dark as you want it)

10. Flip and do the same for this side

Total time (prep and cook) = 10 mins

Once you have done these steps your french toast will be complete! As you can see there's a little wiggle room in this recipe for your to make it your own. I'm sure a good number of you know how to make french toast, but if you didn't...did you ever know it could be this easy?!

You should definitely give this recipe a try and let me know what you think about it!!

And, of course, don't forget the Spring Break Cash Giveaway. There's still a chance for you to win this $200!! Click on the link for details and to enter!

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