June flew by! I know every month I say that life is going by so quickly and what a great month it was, but I really mean it, yet again. It was a productive month for me....lots of soul searching, forming new friendships, and trying to figure out where life is taking me. I can safely say that in this moment I am the happiest and healthiest I can ever remember being.

Another month come and gone means another month of favorites. Here's what I was loving on in June:

The shock of the month is that I didn't have a favorite beauty product! I stuck to my usual routine this month and nothing really stood out. I've been trying to simplify my look and use less product since it's summer and I don't like showing up to work with half my face melted off. I haven't bought any new products or sample anything special.

My favorite TV show this month is Big Brother! I live for this show every summer. I applied to get on this season, but unfortunately some instances didn't lead me to get on the show. I will reapply next summer and hope I can win half a million dollar. I've been watching ever since I was 8 years old and already have my strategy formed to have the other house guests eating out of the palm of my hand.

My favorite book this month is "Practical Paleo: A Custom Approach to Health and a Whole Foods Lifestyle" by Diane Sanfilippo. It explains the power of a paleo diet, including recipes, meal plans, and suggestions on which paleo plan is best for you. I've been doing my best to implement the paleo lifestyle into my health plan.

My favorite song this month is Forever Love by Danna Richards featuring Avia Butler. I'm a huge Shaytards fan and have had the honor to spend time with this family. Avia is a special little girl with big dreams and a huge heart for the Lord. Her first single reached the top 40 on iTunes in it's first 24 hours. The music video features her parents, two of my role models, and brought tears to my eyes and chills down my spine.


My favorite movie this month is About Last Night. It's a hilarious, but realistic, journey of two different couples, and the progression of their relationships. It stars Kevin Hart, Michael Ealy, Joy Bryant, and Regina Hall. I had been interested in seeing it in theaters, but never did, so I rented it when my work got it on DVD. I was cracking up the whole two hours, and saw a lot of my own relationships through the eyes of these two couples.



My favorite time this month has been all the family time! From the baseball games, bingo with grandma, spending time with my cousins I hadn't seen in 11 years, and barbecues at my brothers house, the times have been amazing. Family is my everything. They're the only people who are 100% there for me in my life (besides my Savior Jesus Christ) and I'd give anything for them.

My favorite current event in June has been the World Cup. I'm not a soccer fan, but I'm rooting for Team USA. I'm surprised in how far they've come and have the faith that they can make this their Cup.

Reese Witherspoon is my all-time favorite actress. I've loved her since I was a little girl, and the older I get, the more often I here that I remind people of her. We have similar facial features, at times we have similar haircuts, and we both have the same quirkiness. She's been working on a new film and I can't wait for the five other films she has pending in the coming year.

Here are my 5 favorite Reese Witherspoon films.

5.) Cruel Intentions

4.) Walk the Line

3.) Man in the Moon

2.) Sweet Home Alabama

I joined a Diet Bet recently in which I have 4 weeks to lose 4% of my body weight. I paid $20 to play and will spent the $8,000+ pot with all competitors who achieve this goal. I decided in this 4 weeks I would go 100% Paleo. (I cheated on day one and had a s'more....but it was only ONE I promise!) My family has been very supportive of this and has even joined in on some of my Paleo meals. My first Paleo dish I made from my new book "Practical Paleo" was a HUGE success.

Here's my outfit from yesterday that I was OBSESSED with. It was versatile-- I wore it to an interview at a high school, work at the library, and then dinner and drinks with co-workers. It was comfortable, in season, and best of all CHEAP.




Shoes: Forever 21, $8.50
Skirt: Blush Boutique, $30.70
Top: Papaya. $3.99
Sweater: Forever 21, $21.80
Earrings & Bracelets: gifts from my precious late grandmother, FREE (for me)

Sometimes I get lost in everyone else's lives. I see where others my age (and older) are in their lives via Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, and I feel like my life falls short. I feel inadequate compared to the expectations of the world for someone my age. Then I realize, these aren't the world's expectations of me, these are my false expectations based on the media. I've been reading a lot of thought provoking articles lately written for girls in their twenties....for girls who are only 21 but think they have to have life figured out; girls who think that just because some girls they graduated high school with are having kids, they have to hurry up and have one too.

Here are some of the articles I've been reading lately. I hope they change your perspective as much as they've changed mine.

1. Granny Smith Apples-- Amazing. Amazing. Amazing. Amazing. I never want to eat anything in life ever again. End of story.
2. Roasted Kettle Kernels-- I expected a taste similar to Corn Nuts, but these were different. A good blend of salty and sweet, with a kick of honey to them. 
3. Southern BBQ Sunflower Kernels-- Great as a snack, but I prefer them on top of a salad. I'm a big fan of sunflower seeds and will definitely order this in future boxes. 
4. Salted Caramel Pretzel Pops-- My favorite! I'm not a caramel fan and I still fell in love. I loved their size. I could grab a handful and pop them in my mouth while on the go. This is another item I will be sure to order again.
5. Sourdough Cheddar Pretzels-- I anticipated these would be my favorite in the box, but they fell short. Only 9 pretzels is a serving size, and I need more than that to be satisfied. The cheddar was too powerful, even for a cheese head like myself. 
6. South Pacific Plantains (Bonus Snack)-- These were a great snack. I'm a big fan of plantain chips and these were no different. I liked them a lot, especially that the serving size was 25 chips. However, it was hard to count out 25 chips because they were broken up.

So far I'm 0/2 in free gifts from Sephora that I've reviewed. Granted I really like the mascara that came in my V.I.B. 500 point gift set, I have yet to review it. This product had me fooled. It took all my eye makeup off immediately....so it looked. After using the product I took a shower and washed my face and looked like a raccoon. Clearly there was a lot of eye makeup residue left over. When I woke up the following morning, my eyes were burning and swollen shut.

Usually I just use Neutrogena makeup remover wipes to take off eye makeup, but decided to try this product since it was given to me free. Needless to say this product is in the trash and I'll be going back to my regular routine tonight.

I'm starting a new segment called #Trending where I take a peak at what is trending on Twitter and talk about it. What's trending now? LIZZIE MCGUIRE. The greatest show of my child hood. My age 8 obsession. When Aaron Carter kissed Lizzie under the mistletoe....DEAD.


Apparently it was trending because Disney Channel decided to air some good old wholesome hearted family fun on Wednesday night....Lizzie McGuire and Even Stevens. If those shows had stayed on the air I would still be watching Disney at 21. The reruns of Lizzie, Miranda, and Gordo got me started thinking back to the best shows of my childhood. In honor of what's #trending and #throwbackthursday here's a run down of my favorite ten as a kid:

10.) Brace Face

9.) Angela Anaconda

8.) Rocket Power

7.) Sabrina the Teenage Witch

6.) Smart Guy

5.) Doug

4.) Boy Meets World

3.) Lizzie McGuire

2.) 7th Heaven

1.) Full House

Hi I'm Cate and I'm addicted to Pinterest.....HI CATE.

Today you'll get a look inside my Pinterest boards & my FAVORITE pin on each board. Go follow me on Pinterest and you'll see where I get all my creative blunder.

Board 1. Dream Wedding.

Makeup is powerful. End of discussion. It can change a person from looking like they just rolled out of bed to looking like they just walked off the runway. Here's my daily makeup routine

• Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion
• Neutrogena Healthy Skin Primer
• Clinique Acne Solutions Liquid Makeup - 03 Fresh Neutral applied with bareMinerals Full Flawless Face brush
• Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer Medium1 Custard applied with e.l.f professional foundation brush
• bareMinerals matte foundation broad spectrum SPF 15 - C20 fairly medium applied with bareMinerals Flawless Face brush
• Maybelline FITme! bronzer
• Clinique soft-pressed powder blusher - 04 pink blush
• Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray 
• Urban Decay Eden Eyeshadow Primer Potion
• Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette: Trick (whole lid), Buzz (outer corner), Dust (below brow bone), Liar (top liner)
• NYC Kohl Brow/Eyeliner Pencil (bottom liner)
• Prestige Lipliner - L91 Cameo
• Mac Cremesheen Lipstick - A83 Creme In Your Coffee
• Maybelline the Mega Plush Volum' Express Mascara
• Sephora Outrageous volume dramatic volume mascara
• Revlon Colorburst lip gloss - 044 Sunbaked

Summer is upon us! It's time to put away the sweaters and leggings and get ready for warmer days. Here are my top 5 favorite fashion trends for summer 2014.

In February 2014, University of Missouri defensive end, Michael Sam, told press that he was gay. When he was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in May's NFL Draft, Sam became the first openly gay player in the National Football League. Some say that Sam is making history, but I say so what?

By giving so much press on the fact that there is a gay athlete, it makes being gay seem further like a taboo. The media focuses so much on people coming out, but if it wasn't such a big deal, maybe more people would do it. The day after Michael Sam came out, the world was still spinning. He woke up the next day and kept living the same way he had been his whole life, just a little more freely. If being gay wasn't such a stigma in today's society, Sam never would have had to make the decision to come out of the closet. It could've been a casual thing known throughout his whole life. I date guys, so does he. WHO THE HELL CARES? We should recognize Sam for all his hard work on and off the field. Few people know him as the 2013 Cotton Bowl MVP, but many know him for being gay. Is that where our focus should be? I'm not known for being straight, so why should we allow his sexual preference to define him?

Don't get me wrong, I think that Sam did a brave thing in today's society, but I wish our society wasn't in a state that it is such a major news breaking event when an athlete comes out. I pray that other athletes, musicians, and public figures follow in Sam's footsteps. Fight the stigma. There is nothing shameful about being gay. And I'm saying that as a straight, Christian, woman. Let's make gay normal. If a guy likes a girl, if a guy likes a guy, if a girl likes a girl, WHO CARES. Is it harming you because Michael Sam is gay? No. So let him and others not have to worry about coming out. Embrace everyone with open arms regardless of who they love.

Another month, come and gone. May was a crazy one that's for sure. I'm glad it's over and I've turned a fresh page in my life. June has a lot of opportunities for me and I vow to take full advantage.

Favorite thing I did: Graduated college!

Favorite beauty product: Naked 3 palette!

Favorite song: Yeah by Joe Nichols


Favorite TV show: True Tori

Favorite purchase: I have to go with the Naked 3 on that one too :)

Favorite snack: Granny Smith Apples from my Nature Box (review is coming in a couple weeks!)

My June wish for you all is to be happy & healthy. Focus on the voice inside your head and even greater, focus on the voice inside your heart. Do what is best for you.

Remember The Happiness Project? I was supposed to spend this month being as happy as possible in my relationship. I had a checklist of things I was supposed to do that would make me an awesome girlfriend and most importantly a happy girlfriend.....

I FAILED.

One of the items on the checklist this month was no dumping. When times got tough, when I wanted to escape, I had promised myself not to run away. I was supposed to step back and take a breath. I failed....and I dumped. I thought that I needed to find my own identity and that would lead me to my ultimate happiness. However, the great things that have happened to me this week are meaningless without sharing them with the one person who matters.

While I spend this month ahead trying to better myself and fix the relationship I damaged, I will also put focus on my family. I'll try to lighten up and acknowledge people's feelings. I'm going to try to talk so people will listen, and listen so people will talk. I'm going to focus on happy memories and identify problems before they become blow outs.

I failed, but I am not a failure. I disappointed, but I am not a disappointment.