Sparkle and Fizz

Congratulations!!  We've made it to the very end of the #BeTheSparkleWaterChallenge!  How did you do?  I'll be honest; I didn't hit my goal every single day.  BUT, I have definitely formed a habit of incorporating more water into my day.  And I generally have no problem with drinking three of my large 30 oz. tumblers of water every day!  That's a HUGE win for me! If you drank more water, what did you notice from the increase of water consumption?  I noticed a lot!  I really did eat less, I was less fatigued, I felt much more focused and was able to help stay on track and on target of most of my tasks.  I am sure that I had above-average results as I literally drank next to NO water before I started this water challenge, so I was dehydrated three weeks ago!  I want to know what changes you noticed!  Comment below or shoot me a message. Now, for those of you who participated in my Water Challenge---first of all, THANK YOU!  J...

Today is Thursday and I've been feeling a little melancholy lately.  It's time for me to amp up my attitude and remind myself the multitude of blessings that I have been given and share some things that make my heart happy.  Sometimes in the hustle and bustle of life, we have a tendency to forget what truly makes us happy.  Here's what's on my list---do you have some similar items on yours? 1.  My Faith This Bible has been well marked and well used over the years---it was a gift from my church when I was a kid for my Confirmation.  When life seems to be the bleakest, I turn to some of the best advice I can---my Bible.  Sometimes I flip to my marked pages and read my highlighted verses for comfort or strength, but sometimes I feel God speaking to my heart and I'll randomly flip to a page and read a new story or a new section and have new answers provided to me through His Grace.  My husband and I recently found this beautiful antique desk at an E...

For me, fall is seriously all about Pumpkin Spice!  BUT...I may have just found a new obsession that rivals my Pumpkin Spice.  These delicious  Apple Pie Cookies are to die for.  My hubby, who isn't even a fan of fruit anything, likes these cookies!  The best part is using apples you've gone to an orchard and picked yourself!  There's something so satisfying about using fresh produce that you've acquired on your own---it makes me feel even more bad-A about myself when I do that!  Haha! Take a look at these beauties: I honestly have no idea what kind of apples I used.  One of my best friends' parents have a couple apple trees on their farm and I took some apples home when we went to visit.  These apples were perfect  to use, though, and I felt like a version of the Pioneer Woman when I was making these cookies!  I even made enough filling to freeze some for later---I can use that filling for more cookies or maybe I'll make a r...

We're into our final week for the #BeTheSparkleWaterChallenge---how have you been doing?  I'll admit, this has been one of the most difficult challenges I've set out for myself!  There have definitely been some stumbles and there have been days where I haven't hit my goal.  But, I have stuck with it and while I haven't been 100% successful, I just keep going.  I hope that you are, too! Now that we're into our final week, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on how very grateful I am that I have clean drinking water to do our water challenge.  I would really be grateful and appreciate you taking some time to not just read this post, but share it to spread a bit of awareness for the others in our world who aren't as fortunate as we are and have their own water challenges---the challenge to have clean, safe, drinking water on a day-to-day basis. I've compiled a very short list of charities and organizations who are committed to bringing safe drinking wa...

Hi Friends!!  Today I want to share with you a really quick and easy way to do some "watercoloring" --- without the frustrations that go along with it!  It's called Block Watercoloring and it's named that because you do all of your watercoloring with a clear block! You just need a few supplies to get you started: Watercolor Paper #122959 Stampin' Write Markers  (whatever colors you'd like; I used Pumpkin Pie, Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry, Fresh Fig, and Night of Navy --- this created a "sunrise" look) Clear Block  (any size; I used Clear Block D ) Stampin' Spritzer #126185 Once you've gathered your minimal supplies, it's time to get started! The easiest way to do this technique is to color directly onto your Clear Block with your Stampin' Write Markers .  You can, of course, stamp onto a block, too, if you'd prefer, or even lightly press your block into an Ink Pad (but this can get a bit messy...) The nex...

Today's post is, perhaps, going to be a little deep.  But, I promise you, I have a point to it. To start; I was adopted by my wonderful parents.  I've shared that before, but for those who haven't seen that post about me, I am sharing again.  As an immigrant from South Korea, I always had a lot of insecurities about the way I looked.  I didn't have blonde hair, my eyes were "funny" shaped, I was darker-complected, and on and on.  I struggled with self-esteem and "fitting-in" with my peers from a very early age.  I had classmates pull on their eyes to mimic the shape of my own, I've had adults ask me where I'm from (as if it matters). Senior Promo in High School---this was maybe the most I'd smile; I didn't want to squint too much. I once had a boyfriend, in high school, who asked me if, after we were married, would I wear makeup to bed so I would wake up pretty.  That was the final straw to cementing my fears that I wasn't ...

So how are you all doing after week one?  It is a super daunting task to get all that water in!  I'll be honest---I didn't make it 100% every single day this week.  Did you??  I made it 6/7 days.  It. Is. Hard!  BUT!  Gotta keep plugging along.  It takes 21 days to create a habit, after all!  (Note: our challenge is 21 days long....accidental correlation?  I think not!) I did a little more research to see how to help increase that water intake on the reg and I've compiled a summarized short-list of my findings for you here today! Tip #1:  Create a Water Tracker Well, by golly, Miss Molly!  This was one of the most common recommendations for increasing your water consumption!  After all, we're typically visual creatures and it helps to keep us on track, accountable, and helps us create that habit.  If you've been using my Water Tracker Printable, fantastic!  I'm super excited and would love to hear how it's ...

Well, we've made it to Day 1 of my September "Drink More Water" Challenge!  I hope that you snagged your FREE Printable from my last Blog Post; if you didn't, check out Friday's Blog Post and get your Printable from there now.  Today I'm so excited to start my challenge with those of you who have already committed!  If you didn't put in your commitment; that's OK!  You can still Challenge with us---just jump in anytime!  And be sure to join me on Facebook and on Instagram for some additional group motivation.  I figure this first round we'll go three weeks (so the Challenge starts TODAY and will run until SATURDAY, September 29th !) To kick us off, I have some more great additional resources for you.  First, I'm going to share some Tips & Tricks with you on how I use my Water Tracker and give you some extra ideas on how you can make this Tracker work for you. Here's how mine looked last week: As I mentioned, I use st...

Do you drink lots of water?  I don't!  I've found that I am hard-pressed to get even 8 ounces of water in my body during the day and that is no bueno!   I was really beginning to see the signs of dehydration---including a lack of energy and irritability!  (Yes, that's a real thing!  Check out the symptoms of dehydration here ). So, I decided to do something about it.  I decided to start drinking more water.  And I read more about water. It's no secret that water helps with your overall health; like aiding in weight-management , energize muscles , balance the body's natural fluids and improve kidney function .  But, I was shocked at how much water can help with your skin!  And for someone who is kind of fanatic about their own skin (yes, I am!) I wanted to know more! Did you know that your skin is 64% water?  So, it's safe to say that your skin health is directly correlated with your water consumption.  In fact, dermatologists...

Happy September, Friends!!  While it's always a little bittersweet to say "good-bye" to my birthday month, I welcome September with open arms!  This month is almost my favorite month, the change of season just starting and the return of Pumpkin Spice Lattes!  I'm SUCH a lover of #PSL; I think this is how I become a Gold Status Member of Starbucks.  Oops. I decided to take that love and create a super fun card using some returning favorites; Coffee Cups Framelits  and a sentiment from Wood Words Stamp Set  along with the addition of some new Designer Series Paper, Share What You Love Specialty Designer Series Paper . These items combined created such a fun #PSL card! I didn't do any stamping on this card; other than the "Hello Friend" Sentiment; making this one of my faster cards to make. I thought the "fallish" colors from the Share What You Love Specialty DSP was beautiful and paired very nice with Pumpkin Pie.  I also added a t...

It's no big secret that I've been on a bit of a "blogging" hiatus!  Life has gotten busy with two energetic toddlers, energies poured into my secondary side biz, among running a household, maintaining relationships/social life, and holding onto what little sanity I have left!  Ha!  Can anyone else relate?? Well, while I've been doing that, I've also been debating upon whether or not to continue my creative, crafty journey and after much deliberation, prayer, and support from my family and friends, I have decided to not just continue, but merge my two businesses together!  I am super excited to bring you: Sparkle & Fizz Paperie! Why, do you ask, for the name change?  Well---while I have enjoyed nicknaming myself the Papercrafting Passionista, my mission was very similar to my mission with my Sparkle & Fizz Business.  As the Papercrafting Passionista, I was embarking on inspiring and encouraging others to be their best.  With Sparkle ...