Journaling Book of Mormon

Here's a link to the website i used to buy my Journaling Book of Mormon. a guy named "ben crowder" compiled it using the pdf that the church released. there aren't any changes to the text besides the footnotes and chapter summaries have been removed. it's an 8 1/2 x 11 inch book. you can even download the pdf version to look at exactly how the book will look on his site. (or you can use the pdf to have it printed yourself. but... i looked into that idea, and i couldn't find anywhere that could print it for cheaper than the lulu version i linked.)

there's also a Pearl of Great Price, and a Doctrine & Covenants version. although the lds church/ben crowder hasn't released a bible edition, here's an affordable king james version you could use.

now for the fun part: journaling supplies!

my favorite supplies to use include: stamps, washi tape, watercolor paint (using very little water since the paper is not super thick and can buckle), sharpie pens, stickers, and highlighters or crayons used as highlighters.

there are many methods of journaling, like writing down a favorite verse from that page of scripture, writing down quotes from hymns, or general conference that relate to that set of scripture verses, drawing images/using stickers that help you remember visual parables. you could tape a page of velum paper to the inside margin and use that entire sheet of paper to draw, or write down a long thought. and obviously, you could just use the wider margins to write down thoughts with a pen or pencil like you would a normal journal.

my end goal for this set of scriptures is for my children to be able to look through this book when i am older, or dead, and see not only my spiritual thoughts, but also see my creativity, and how my art improved over the years, i hope they look through it and read it as you would a normal journal. i put a date stamp on the bottom of each page that i doodle on so that they will know how old i was and when those scriptures stood out to me.

studying my scriptures like this has made me truly "ponder" the scriptures. i like to start my scripture study when Bayli has gone down for her nap, i start by praying, and asking either a question, or to be shown a set of scriptures in a new light. then i start reading. once i find a scripture, or have a thought that feels worthy of "journaling" i spend some time doodling and creating. this time that i spend drawing helps me think even deeper on the scriptures. finding more questions, thinking about comparisons to other verses, and truly pondering what the lord wants me to learn from those scriptures. the quiet time i have after praying and reading is truly priceless, and i've never experienced scripture study like it before. it's literally been life changing.

finally, another important part of this unique way of daily scripture study is that it provides an opportunity for me to spread the gospel and share my testimony through social media. taking pictures like the ones above, and posting them to my social media with an explanation of why those scriptures are important to me helps me encourage scripture study in others, and share my beliefs, opening the door for missionary opportunities, and encouraging others to participate in their own scripture study.

I encourage you to find your own version of scripture study that allows you to do more than just read. to truly ponder. maybe that is this journaling book of mormon, or maybe it's something else, but whatever it is, i hope this post has helped you see how scripture study can be fun and can be something that you look forward to doing on a daily basis. not only to read the word of the lord and his prophets, but also because of the personal growth it brings to your spirituality and in my case... creativity.

Favorite Find Friday: LiLash Giveaway

LiLash is a eyelash growing serum that you apply like a clear liquid eyeliner daily. if you haven't heard about it, then your really missing out. i started using it about a year ago, and it has been the single biggest improvement to my self confidence in years! sadly, i heard the company has been sued by Latisse and so they cannot sell to the usa anymore, but, i am giving away a 3 month supply (techincally, but it lasted me 6 months) to one of my followers (an 80.00 value!) the only reason they cannot sell in the usa is not because their product is bad, but only because the formula is too close to latisse and so there are patent issues. (but it seems like their website still works so, i don't know. maybe they won the settlement.)

Application Process

here's my story about this product:

i was a new mom, and i was obsessed with how long my baby daughters eyelashes were. they were the kind of lashes that every single person said "oh my, look how cute she is! and those lashes! who did she get those from?" cause really. if you looked at mine, then you knew that they couldn't possibly have come from my genes. before i continue, you have to know that i have never been a big believer in products. i had tried the hair growth shampoos and never saw results, heck, i had even just tried the simple volumizing shampoos and never saw results, i have been a hairdresser for 6 years and 90% of the time, my clients didn't see any real dramatic results either, with acne creams, face serums, body lotions, potions, etc so, for the most part i just gave up on thinking that anything like that would really work. well, i would soon be proven wrong because we had this receptionist at my salon that had the longest lashes i have ever seen, and because of my line of work, even the best application of fake lashes, or eyelash extensions, i can still tell if they are real or not. so... i knew hers were real and complimented them basically every time i saw her. one day i asked about what mascara she wore, and that's when she told me that it wasn't just because of her mascara, that it was all due to this product. "LiLash". so, i promptly went home and researched it, and read reviews, and figured, what the heck, she had great results, and swears by this product, so i will give it a try. well, the store that i went to didn't carry lilash, but they had another product, "Lash Genesis" that was 5.00 cheaper, and the cashier said it worked exactly the same, so... i bought it. bad idea. i used it for a few months, no results, and it irritated my eyelids.
thinking that i had been proven right, that no growing product would ever work on me, i gave up on the idea. well, as a few months went by, a few other stylists at the salon also started using lilash and we even started selling it to our clients at the salon. i instantly saw results in my co-workers, and their clients. so, i decided to buy the actual right product this time, and give it a shot. well, it took me a few weeks longer that the average girl at my salon to see results, it took me 6 weeks instead of 4. but, at 6 weeks it was like a switch went off, genuinely waking up one morning and noticing a dramatic difference, probably 2 cm of growth overnight. no joke. well, that continued to happen, and people started noticing my eyelashes growing saying "have your eyelashes gotten longer?", and then as they kept growing people would compliment them, a first for me to hear someone else wishing their lashes were as long as mine, and then as they kept growing more and more, i had random strangers at the mall asking who did my eyelash extensions. and i had the pleasure of correcting them and telling them about this product that was not anything close to eyelash extensions. still to this day i get people that assume i have eyelash extensions... it happened yesterday. and they are always so amazed when i tell them that they are all real, and all mine!

 so... that's my story, as soon as i heard about the issue they were having with latisse, i went and stocked up on this product because i am sooo scared to try something else, i have had periods of time when i forget to use it, or get lazy and i have seen them get shorter during those periods of time, and it usually takes about 1.5 weeks of using it again to get them back to my normal extra long length. using the application like it says to on the bottle, i noticed an obvious difference with both thickness and length (my lashes easily doubled, actually, probably tripled in length) on both upper and lower lashes.
to me, it is 100%, no doubt, worth the money. also, as a way for me to justify the cost, i now use the cheapest mascara. my 3 favorites are e.l.f. ($3) wet-n-wild ($2.50) and jordana ($3) instead of the pricey mascaras i was using back in the day with my stubby stubs. because, my lashes have more than enough volume and length, that using a perfectly formulated expensive mascara is no longer a necessity for pretty lashes.
i now looove doing my makeup, mostly because i love to put on mascara, it brought fun into my daily makeup routine, and made me WANT to get ready. which proves how awesome this product is, because being a mother of a one year old at the time, i did not want to do anything besides all my mom duties. on more than one occasion, i have done my makeup and still walked around in a robe all day. but, like i said in the very beginning of this post, having long eyelashes has been the single biggest improvement to my self esteem because instead of looking in the mirror and seeing my flaws everyday, i look in the mirror and am still so amazed everyday that those are MY eyelashes, and instead of leaving the mirror frowning with a splotchy red face from picking at my imperfections, i now leave with a smile. i tell myself, "who could be looking at my zits, or freckles, or wrinkles, etc when they have these big fat long lashes to look at instead." :)

^^sorry about the crappy quality picture as my "before" i promise i tried to find a good one, but back in the day, i wasn't proud of my lashes so i didn't take any pictures up close of my eyes. also...today is not my best mascara day, so sorry about the weird clumps. i thought about taking my makeup off and doing it again for this post, but that's not real. and i want you guys to see what they look like without any editing, either on photoshop, or physical editing before the picture was taken by making sure every hair was perfect.

also, as a tidbit of information, besides tons of clients at our salon, and other hairdressers that i personally know, my mother, and mother in law are also using it regularly and saw the exact same results as me. so... if your still skeptical, all you have to do is look up the hashtag #lilash on instagram and you can see tons of people all races, genders, and ages, who have seen results.

This is probably my biggest "favorite find friday" and as you know, i buy all of these products to giveaway with my own money at full cost, and give them away not because i'm sponsored, but only because i genuinely believe that these products are wonderful and its worth sharing the good info. because this giveaway cost me so much money, i am going to ask more of you in order to win it. i would love to give this product to someone who helps me share my blog with more people.

to enter: first you have to be a follower of this blog, either on google, or on bloglovin.
next share any image from this post on either your facebook by copy and pasting the link onto your wall. or on twitter/instagram by either screenshotting my instagram picture, or any of these pictures on the blog about this giveaway and posting it on your account with a comment about the giveaway i am holding. (if you do not have any facebook, instagram, or twitter, then you can still enter by commenting below, telling me about how you plan on sharing this giveaway with your friends.) and finally, come back here and comment below with your email, and how you entered. for example: "keepupwithusjones@gmail.com and i entered on instagram" i am going to let this giveaway go on for 2 weeks and will be announcing the winner on my next "favorite find friday."

if you have any questions or comments about the product, then feel free also: there are lots of other products similar to lilash, including: latisse (you need a prescription) neulash, rapidlash, revitalash, flash, and more, but i like LiLash the best because of it's fairly reasonable price compared to some others, little to no side effects, (i have heard of some people using lilash and getting darker eyelids in the area where the serum is applied -a redish tint- but thats it!) and consistent results. but, if you do not win the giveaway, and would not like to purchase this brand, i would recommend trying Neulash as the most similar product, and you can get it at Nordstrom.

picture from howdoesshe.com

here are a few other reviews i've found about lilash:
1/2/3/4

Makeup Tips

today's makeup was done using the exact same products as in this post, with one exception. i used nyx's butter gloss in the shade "devil's food cake" instead of the moxie on my lips. also, i did less coats on the mascara, and eyebrows because i prefer to do a softer eye when using a bold lip color.

Makeup Tips:

when asked about extremely trendy things that might not stay in style for long, such as coral/orange lips, deep eggplant vampy lips (like my pictures above), super dark thick eyebrows, extreme highlighting and contouring, etc. i would suggest that you try out those colors/products in a cheaper line first until you find that you either one: LOOOVEEE it for more than just one day, or two: it stays in style long enough to have used the product up. this way you are not investing (yes, i said investing, because i believe skin care and make up are truly an investment) in trendy things that you will only find in the bottom of your bag a few years down the road and be sad about the 30+ dollars you spent on something you didn't end up using.

makeup with freckles/age spots: this is one of my most common questions by my clients. i think they feel comfortable asking me because i am covered from head to toe with freckles. (thanks mom.) i always suggest to pick a foundation that matches the lighter color of the freckles, or, the color of their neck if they only have freckles across their cheeks. i also suggest to use a medium coverage foundation that contains spf. i find that when trying sooo hard to make your freckles go away while using a full coverage foundation, you just cause other problems like your face looking cakey or your pores appearing huge. yet, with a light coverage your freckles peek through just enough to make your skin look uneven. i like medium coverage with my freckles because if you look close enough you can still see my skin and freckles underneath, yet that's only when looking very close, so, the average person doesn't know i have freckles and my skin looks smooth and has an even tone. also, highlighting and contouring adds some dimension and a variation of color to your cheeks, so that also helps because where people would usually notice freckles before if you only had foundation on, after contouring there is something more to look at and trick the eye when looking at your cheeks that a small freckle/dark spot usually takes a back seat to what a person sees. lastly: apply foundation with a brush, if you use your fingers you will be able to see streaks on top of your darkest and largest freckles/dark spots. using a brush will help eliminate this. i prefer using powdered foundation for this very reason, it is the only product that has left me 100% without streaks.

finally, do your makeup in great lighting. i put all my makeup in this ikea cart so that i can move it from window to window while i do my makeup. if i do my makeup in the morning, i know which window to do it by, if i am doing it in the evening, then i'm in a different place. makeup bags work well for this also, but, i have quite a few products that wouldn't all fit inside one bag. also, once your makeup is done, check it out in different lighting situations. for example my bathroom is very poorly lit and so i will check it in there, make sure i don't look terrible, also in the car, where you are encircled by natural light, checking your makeup in these different lighting situations will help you feel more confident about your makeup wherever you go through out the day.

My Daily Make-up Routine

first i start with a clean face. i like to use aveeno's clear complexion cream cleanser as my face wash that i use whenever i shower, and daily i use neutrogena's makeup remover cleansing towelettes for my eye makeup, and neutrogena's alcohol-free toner on a cotton pad for my face makeup. being a mom, i don't have  the time to do a huge beauty removal routine in order to get in bed, i just want to crash, so these are super quick and easy for me.
to moisturize i use one pump of aveeno's clear complexion daily moisturizer, mixed with one pump of bare minerals prime time neutralizing primer. i use this lotion because it came with  my face cleanser and I've seen good results and enjoyed both, and i use this primer because it is tinted yellow so it helps with my uneven red splotchy-ness.
i forgot to mention that daily i apply a coat of LiLash eyelash serum when my face is clean to make my eyelashes grow. it works amazing, and i will be doing an entire post on that product soon.

Before

before my moisturizer has dried completely i apply my foundation. i use bare minerals pressed powder in fairly light. i have been using bare minerals for about 5 years now and love it. just recently i was introduced to their pressed powders and i'm never going back. i like that they appear a bit lighter than the loose powder because i'm one extremely white girl. and i always felt like the same shade in the loose powder was just a bit too dark, but now i love it. for my acne spots, and under my eyes i just apply more layers of the foundation. but, if i really feel the need to cover them up seamlessly, then i use nyx's concealer in 01 porcelain. although i have heard amazing things about the bare minerals concealer and will probably be switching to that once my nyx runs out.
next i apply my bronzer for some contouring. i like to use the victoria's secret bronzer in gold crush. i feel like it is more brown than orange and so it gives a more natural look with my skin tone. i love that it is highly pigmented so i don't have to layer on the bronzer, this only works well if you have a great brush to apply it with though, so if you find that it doesn't blend well, or appears streaky, then invest in a good bronzing brush.
the blush i used today is a coral colored one by mac, technically called style (frost) but, on the days when i am rushing out the door i use a bare minerals blush called the confession to do both my bronzing and blush, it is a brownish-rose color and so i find that it will do both jobs well in a hurry.

During

finally i pencil in my brows with the e.l.f brow kit and an angled brush, then apply my eye shadow which changes daily but today i chose to use my mac woodwinked for all over the lid, and mac mulch for the crease. i always do some sort of highlighting below my eyebrows on my brow bone, and in the inner corners of my eye with a white/pink shimmer loose powder from the company "pur element" but it is extremely hard to find, and difficult to apply, and i am looking for a new one. i'd love your suggestions!
next is mascara on both upper and lower lashes. i use they're real by benefit. it's a new product to me and i have been using it because of so many people's suggestion and good reviews, but, i'm not 100% sold on that either. i think i might try lash domination by bare minerals next.
then lastly, i apply my lipstick or lip gloss. today i used bare minerals marvelous moxie lip gloss in maverick. i will be doing a more in depth post all about lips soon.

After

i try to stick within one company: if you didn't notice, i basically use bare minerals exclusively with only a few products of aveeno, mac, and neutrogena. i love that when you stick within one company, your skin rarely flares up and generally feels healthier. i know that during the company meetings they are trying to make sure that all the vitamins and minerals your skin needs are found within that one company. it's not like they say, "oh well, hopefully the customers are using that other company's product to get that vitamin" that's just stupid. so, unless i find something terrible about one specific product, (like the fact that i HATE loose powders for eyeshadow, so, i don't use bare minerals for that) then my first stop for something new is a counter/aisle i have shopped from before. i find that if your skin like's one product, they will probably like the rest. and same goes for the reverse: if you find that your skin doesn't react well to a product, then honestly, i would stay away from their entire line, and try something else.

*these photo's have not been edited, and the last two pictures were taken after a few hours of makeup wear. this is not a sponsored post, all opinions are my own.

for the fisherman out there...

the Provo river is hopping with fish right now. if your looking for something fun to do with the family or just something to do in your free time, go ahead and meet up with my husband just off the provo river trail down by the lake in the mornings/early afternoons. 

the fishin's prime. prime i tell you

using the inside of your pocket as a patch

when i get in my refashioning mood, i hate it when i have to go to the store for something like matching thread or more elastic, etc. so... when i told myself i would be able to work on my fun sewing projects once my not so fun projects were done, going to the store to get patches that matched my old jeans was the last thing i wanted to do. i found a different solution.

using the inside of your pockets as a patch!

i don't use my back pockets much, so, i cut the material out and sewed it as a patch, you could also use iron on tape or fabric glue if you didn't want to sew.

i recommend using this with button up pockets because then you can either always keep your pockets buttoned up or even better, sew them closed by sewing along the edge of the flap. that way you never have a little underwear peak show when you bend over. but, it worked for me and going to the store turned into one less thing i had to do that day.