Summertime Tan

Remember a few months ago I mentioned wanting to find a way to get a tan, without going to a tanning salon? I had almost given up trying, but I've finally found something that gives me the results I want without having to go to a salon!

It all started with an Instagram post from the fabulous Cameran Eubanks (from Southern Charm). She always looks on point on the show, so I love her tips and tricks she posts. When I saw this one, I was definitely skeptical because of the other tanning products I had tried in the past.

You ask. I deliver. For my fake tan I use the @lorealusa Sublime Bronze towelettes. Best self tanner I've used. They are cheap AF and you buy them from Ulta/Walmart/Target. My sis turned me on to these. They look like a baby wipe. Wipe your pale body down and then 4-6 hours later or overnight you transform into a golden goddess. You're welcome. Not paid. Not an ad. Cam don't play that game. 🙌🏻👉🙌🏽**edit I use these on my face too. Make sure you go into your hairline so you don't look weird.

A post shared by Cameran Eubanks (@camwimberly1) on Jan 3, 2017 at 10:53am PST

I thought, "What the hay?!", and gave it a try. After pricing it out to see where I could get the best deal on it, ya know in case it didn't work, I found that Target had the best deal. There was also a Cartwheel deal on it at the time! In the end, I paid between $7.50-$7.95 for it. I can't remember the exact price but a solid guess would be $7.74. The deal I got on it was exciting enough.

The main purpose behind diving in and trying this stuff was for a wedding I attended this last weekend in Tennessee. I never get enough sun up here because of winter and working all summer. So, when I go back to the South I definitely like to be tan. Plus I was very, very tan practically my whole life from living in Florida. After reading the instructions, I decided I would start using it everyday leading up to the wedding. The pack comes with 6 wipes, so I started on Tuesday and used one daily until Friday. These bad boys are SO easy to use, and for some reason just seem easier than the lotions you can use. The directions are really simple and if you follow them, you'll see a difference. Or at least I did. The best time to use them is after a shower, or at night before bed. They dry fast, so you don't have to worry about getting your bedding orange. Since I had 2 left in the pack, I've been using them 1-2 times a week to maintain the tan.

I LOVE THE RESULTS I HAVE SEEN! I definitely am darker, they don't smell as harsh as a spray tan, and they're fool proof (I mean, I figured them out). Plus, they are cheaper than most of the daily lotions out there. I previously paid around $9 for the Jergens tanning lotion, and felt like I never saw results. Before moving to Colorado, I never had to think about "fake" tans; I just always had a tan. My only two spray tans have been for weddings and were both done during the winter months. While they were okay, I just don't care to do them again. Now that I've found these wipes, I'm hoping I don't have to! Obviously I'd rather be outside getting my tan the natural way, because that means I'd be playing in the sun. However, it's just not as easy here as it was back home.

I honestly never thought I'd be looking for ways to get tan outside of being in the sun, but hey c'est la vie! What are some of your favorite ways to get a tan? Oh, and the lifeguard in me wants to say, "Please always put on some sunscreen!"

Until next time,
K. Shep

Ikea Hack: Bar Cart

This post is 100% inspired by this pin via Pinterest: DIY: Ikea Bar Cart Hack

I pinned this a year or so ago, and have been dying to try it ever since. Bar carts are an obsession of mine. I love the way they can fill a space, and are really popular right now. I've never seen them in stores, and now Target has been carrying them for a few months now. Unfortunately, those bar carts run $130 or more. Ain't nobody got time for that. This is where that pin comes in-buy a utility cart from Ikea, add some spray paint, and you have a bar cart. It's perfect and about $100 cheaper.

Rewind to March of last year, Connor and I are buying stuff for our apartment at Ikea. They have the cart listed in the pin linked above. Ultimately, we don't buy it because our apartment was too small for a bar cart and we had already spent enough money on other things. I figured I could just come back later and get it. Fast forward to living in the new house. We go to Ikea one weekend and I think about buying the Bygel cart to turn into a bar cart. They discontinued it!!! I was pretty salty. Until I was randomly on the Ikea website one day and discovered they had a utility cart similar to the Bygel for $30!!! It's called the Sunnersta, and you can find it here. I finally bought it a month ago, and this past weekend I finished it with some spray paint.

While it's not super fancy, it was fast, cheap, and turned out nice.

Honestly, all I did was spray paint the sides of the cart with some gold(ish) spray paint.
Pro tip: spray paint the sides before you put the whole thing together.

Let it dry for 24 hours, or at least overnight, and then put it all together. You've got yourself a bar cart! Let me know if you try it or if you have other awesome Ikea hacks!

Until next time,
K. Shep

Lessons in Life: One Year of Being an Army Wife

Even though we got married in February, March was really when we started "Army life" at Fort Carson. March was when I really became an Army wife and had to start to figure all of that out. Let me tell you, there was (and still is) a lot to learn. Here are some highlights of the things I've learned in our first year at Fort Carson:

• I still don't really understand what to do when retreat happens and I'm driving at 5 pm; like what if I'm at a red light and it turns green? what if I can 't pull over to the side of the road???
• I definitely don't understand why people don't stop for the flag at 5 pm
• Military/24 hour time still confuses the heck out of me; all I can tell is 1300 is 1 pm and 1700 is 5 pm- everything else I'm having to do the math on
• Being an Officer's wife has a ton of stereotypes surrounding it and I can guarantee you like 90% of them are not true...and they're really not true when your husband is a Lieutenant 
• Your military ID is the most valuable thing you own because you're honestly not even a person without it
• ACS is a beautiful program, especially here at Carson
• If you're completely new to being a full time Army wife, you should absolutely take AFTB classes
• I honestly thought I knew a lot from Connor being in ROTC, but there's SO much to learn
• Getting through the gate by myself used to make me nervous all the time (I honestly don't know why) but now it's just a part of everyday life
• Honestly just driving around post used to freak me out because I was sure I'd end up in a restricted area and get in trouble (lol ridiculous, I know)
• If you're a military family and not taking advantage of ITR (or ITT for the Air Force) you're crazy; you can get tickets and vacations at a serious discount
• Sometimes I forget other people (aka normal people) don't understand military abbreviations and I forget to explain what I'm talking about
• It really just depends on your family and where you're stationed, but I love living on post. We lived off post when we first moved here and while our apartment wasn't awful, we were broke trying to pay for it and hated our complex. Plus I feel so much safer being inside the gates.
• The Army 100% runs our lives, but it keeps us on our toes and I'm fine with it
• Learning the lingo really helps
• Knowing all the different ranks isn't vital, but honestly doesn't hurt to learn...I'm still learning like of half the ranks
• Going to the doctor when you're on Tricare is easily a month long process
• You can be super involved or totally hands off  Army life as you want; join the FRG or Spouses Club...or don't 
• I definitely recommend finding something to plug into; a lot of people don't understand this crazy life unless they're living or have lived it

Here are some things specific to Fort Carson:

• There are so many events and resources here, its incredible! While majority of them are for families with children, there's still stuff for couples without kids. 
• I kind of already mentioned this, but ACS here is awesome! There are a ton of classes and resources offered that are completely free. This is where you would take AFTB classes
• If you PCS here, do the Newcomer's Orientation. You get a tour of post AND Colorado Springs, which is extremely helpful
• MWR is also 10/10 here-there are a ton of gyms (aka personal fitness centers), pools, and programs here to keep you moving and exploring
• the 'get on the bus' trips are perfect during ski/snowboarding season, definitely something we have to do before we leave here
• Our PX is pretty nice, better than Peterson AFB (which is nearby)
• I honestly don't mind shopping at the commissary, it saves us so much money; if the Carson commissary is out of something (which happens often around paydays), we'll go to the Peterson one because it's pretty nice too
• sometimes we'll go elsewhere for select stuff, but that's more like if we want a brand of something the commissary doesn't carry
• A lot of people complain about Balfour Beatty aka on post housing. We haven't really had any problems with them, but I've learned all of this depends on the village you live in. So do some research on your village before you count them out.
• If you want to live off post, its pretty much buy your own house or live in an apartment
• Mountain Post Spouses Club is the spouses club here and it's definitely worth joining 
• Fort Carson is big! I still get lost once and awhile

I could honestly add on something to this post daily. I am always learning and discovering new things. This time last year, I was in such a different place. I'm thankful for this past year though, because I have learned and grown so much. It's not easy being a newlywed AND trying to figure out the Army, but what is life without challenges? Any Army wives read this blog? Give me your advice and share your stories with me!

Until next time,

K. Shep

TV Trash

My guilty pleasure is definitely what Connor and I like to call trash TV. You know, shows that you can just binge watch for hours. Shows you can just completely space out on and forget about life for a minute. Those shows. They're typically reality TV shows. I love them. Here are my top trash TV shows.

WAGS (only the original though, not Miami)

The Real Housewives of Orange County, New Jersey, and New York
Don't Be Tardy

Counting On

My Big Fat Fabulous Life

Toddlers and Tiaras 

Dance Moms

Teen Mom: OG
Teen Mom 2

Shows I love to binge watch that I don't consider trash TV:

Flip or Flop

Fixer Upper

Little People, Big World
Bob's Burgers (not trash, more like comedic genius)

Netflix shows I'm into (also not necessarily actual trash):
Master of None
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Chasing Cameron (I am fascinated by this kid creating a full blown career off of being an Instagram model???)
Orange is the New Black

Trash TV, for me, can only really be taken in doses. Honestly, these are probably most of my guilty pleasures. Do you have trash TV that you love? What is it?? Let me know so I can check it out!

Until next time,
K. Shep

March Bucket List

This is going up a whole week later than I wanted, but at least it's still pretty early on in March!

I feel pretty good about the February bucket list. I'd say a solid 6 or 7/10 things got crossed off. The most exciting being that we spent a weekend in Denver for our one year anniversary that included seeing the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Colorado Avalanche in overtime. Some of March's bucket list are boring responsible adult things. The truth is March will be pretty busy for me as next month minor league baseball kicks off. So, I'll try to have some fun but it'll probably be a lot of boring stuff.

Here is my March Bucket List:

We'll see how March goes, I'll try my best to keep the blog afloat!

Until next time,
K. Shep

Weekly Obsession [2/22/17]

This week's obsession: Fujifilm Instax Mini 8. 

I had been eyeing these little guys for awhile, but wasn't sure if I really wanted one. I thought it'd be really fun to have and something a little different. During an event I was working, I saw the host of the party using it to take pictures of guests. Then those guests could take them home and have a memory from the night, or the family could keep them as memories from the party. I thought about all of the awesome things I have coming up in the next year and how fun it would be to collect little memories right as they happened. I think I had finally decided I wanted one. 

Connor bought me one for Valentine's Day, and it's been a fun little gadget to have! I took it to Denver and to the Tampa Bay Lightning game this past weekend to try it out. I have to admit I still haven't 100% gotten the hang of using it yet. Some pictures come out too dark and others too light. I have a few pictures that came out nice though, and I'll show those to you via Instagram. 

I can't wait to take this lil camera all over and have these mini photos to keep with me in my purse or at my desk. Honestly, I constantly have the urge to take it everywhere with me but usually resist. 

If anyone has one of these let me know because I have so many questions! Should I buy a case? How do I get the best picture? What do I do when the picture comes out of the camera to make sure it develops correctly? Any and all advice is welcomed! 

Anyway, these things are fun (I used that word 3 times to describe it). I can't wait to share little (literally) snapshots of my adventures with this thing!

Until next time,

K. Shep 

Weekly Obsession [2/16/17]

This week's obsession: my Fitbit Alta.

Last Christmas, Connor got me a Fitbit Charge. I was so excited because I had really been wanting one. It was awesome; I loved it. Sometime around the following August, the band started to separate from the actual tracker. I was pretty sad. I decided to reach out to Fitbit about it, and the customer service was awesome! It hadn't been a full year so they told me they could replace it. Awesome. Turns out that they had stopped making the original Charge though, because they had just come out with the Charge 2 and a few newer trackers. Bummer. So, they told me they'd like to send me an Alta free of charge-back to awesome!

I told them that was great and I'd love it. I figured the Alta could only be an upgrade because it had text and call notifications and you can change the band on it. A few weeks later it came in the mail and so far I honestly love it! It has quite a few upgrades such as automatically tracking workouts and reminding me to get up and move every hour. I already have a black and a teal colored band and I can't wait to get more (aka the navy blue one). The only downside is that the Alta doesn't track floors, or how many flights of stairs you've climbed. I missed it at first, but honestly I never thought it was very accurate on my Fitbit Charge anyway because some days I'd have an outrageous number of flights of stairs when I knew I hadn't climbed that many.

Overall, I'd give the product a 9/10. I've only had one problem with it so far and it wasn't anything a simple reset couldn't fix. Who out there has a fitness tracker? A Garmin? Apple watch? What do you love about it, and what do you wish yours had? I'm pretty in love with my Fitbit, but I'm always curious about what else is out there. Do you also have a Fitbit? Add me and lets face-off in a step challenge-I love 'em!

Until next time,
K. Shep