It's harder than though tot to do a give away

I've finished up the stuff I have lined up for a give away. Easy.
I've started a Facebook page for Melanie's Closet. Not quite as easy, but I didn't explode.
Pictures... Well, a bit harder still since my children absconded with my USB cord. Again.
But the hardest part is the freaking RULES. I make stuff in crochet. I want to bring attention to my little endeavour by giving away a couple free samples of what I make. Sounds simple right? But if I'm broke and can't afford to restart a store on Etsy or Hyena Cart then it's not as simple. I've read the rules to giveaways on Facebook and it boils don't to one idea: DON'T.
I'm told by a WAHM friend that I can officially do the giveaway on my blog then *talk* about it on Facebook to garner interest. I'm a little less confident now. I really don't want to get in trouble or bite off more than I can figuratively chew. Why is it so hard to give away cute creations? Shouldn't that be the easy part?
Tomorrow I'm making myself get it done. If I fail, I fail, but I need to try. It's always too easy to give up or make excuses to walk away before I give it a real shot.
Truth is, I'm good at crochet and I love it. That should be enough motivation, right?

I want this t-shirt, I really do.

http://www.allfreecrochet.com/sweeps/Happy-Hook-ers-T-Shirt-Giveaway

I started a Facebook page for Melanie's Closet and I'm attempting my first give-away in hopes it will get me more exposure and in turn more business. Being that I haven't given anything away before - unless you believe my husband, in which case I give away everything I make -I figured it couldn't hurt to check out other giveaways. I Googled 'crochet give away' and this great t-shirt came up. I love tossing into conversation that I hook for spare cash, especially fun I tell people I learned it from my mom and grandmother. This shirt would be just the best thing ever! I want to win it so bad I'm actually doing all of the extra entry rigamarole, I HATE doing that.
In case you're reading this and you're genuinely interested in buying hand crocheted goodies, here is my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Melanies-Closet/166971443375348

Oh the weather!

We don't get warm weather til the end of what's commonly referred to as spring.... Spring here being less snowfall and the occasional melt-and-refreeze. This is fine by me, I love love love the snow and see it as an even trade off for a normal growing season. Especially since it give me a constant supply of goodies to make. Hehe.
I feel like I always say how busy I am and how sorry I am to neglect my poor blog, but I think all of you know this by now and repeating it is simply becoming an irritation, both to any readers I have and to myself. This time I'm not going to say it.... Other than the part where I already said it. That doesn't count.
I'm a mom. A full time, stay at home, homeschooling mom to three boys under the age of 9. I think that alone gives me reason to not keep up daily with my little blog, but then being so into my hobbies takes up the rest of my time. Can you tell I'm working on taking time for myself without making excuses?
On to more crochet! Right now I'm crocheting a skirt but as it gets longer I'm less and less happy with the way it hangs and e size of the spaces in the work. I fear it's doomed to be frogged, poor thing. I'll make up for it by finding an even better pattern for it ;)
Next, I'm finishing up a jacket pattern I found on JoAnns.com, vintage inspired swing style. I am reclaiming a white acrylic sweater just for this project. 6 ply worsted with a K hook. The pattern called for Vannas Cotton Ease and an I hook, but I needed it to be a bigger size. I've made the back and 3/4 of the front and so far it's looking good. Cross your fingers that I got the measurements right because this would be waaaaay too much work to have to redo the whole shebang. I keep forgetting I'm a different size and shape.

Tv dinner diet=successful

Mike needed a little support while trying a new way to lose the weight he had been putting on and after two months we have a consensus- it works. For him. He's lost about a pound a week so far and he's happy, I'm happy for him, but it wasn't so great for me. Too much sodium and my stomach doesn't like so much prepackaged food. I didn't gain, but I also didn't lose and I had water retention.
I think 2 months is supportive enough, so I'm back to eating my way and I feel so much better. I got a new exercise ball and resistance band since my kids respectively popped and lost the old ones and I've been doing pilates every other day and yoga in between. Nothing too hard, but it feels so good to be doing it again.

At Home Pampering

I have always used sunscreen, taken care of my skin, and stayed out of the sun but it was because I'm so very pale, not out of any desire to keep young and healthy looking. In fact, I was never much of a girly girl. In my somewhat recent turn toward the feminine, I've taken an interest in my poor skin. I found a product I love, Skin Genesis from L'Oreal but it's not the cheapest way to care for my skin nor the most natural. Which, if you know me, you know is fairly hi on my list of pluses.
I used to have gorgeous skin, never had blemishes and at a glance I didn't even have pores, lol. Once I stopped working out every day, I started getting spots at certain times of the month, then I gained weight and my skin got oily and my pores enlarged. The next hit was pregnancies, 3 of them. I had bald patches, serious skin issues, and dark brown spots.
This was the time I used a sample of Skin Genesis and fell in love, but it didn't solve everything. I'm 30 and starting to notice dark circles and AGE SPOTS. SERIOUSLY? Age spots?
In my ongoing quest for something to make me look less like my mother (no offense mom, you're lovely) I got interested in a chemical peel. I'm still interested in getting it professionally done but the cost and time involved will make it a special occasion to save for so in the meantime I have been trying out recipes for at-home care. I LOVE this very simple peel recipe

1 Tbsp honey
1 500mg vitamin C, pulverized

Mix together and slather your face. Leave on for no more than 10 minutes, rinse with warm water and apply moisturiser.

Here's a helpful hint from me to you.... Don't use too much near your eyes. Why? Honey melts when warm and vitamin C and honey in your eye burns like the dickens.

It made my skin tone look more even and reduced the color of the dark spots and dark circles under my eyes after one application.
Tonight I made a gentle exfoliating face scrub recipe that I'll have a couple of uses from.

1 tbsp ground oatmeal (just put it in a blender or food processor)
1 tbsp honey
2 tbsp plain yogurt

Mix the ingredients and apply to your face, scrubbing in small circles. Leave it on for a couple of minutes and then rinse off. just store the leftover in the fridge for next time you wash your face