Help Wanted :)

As you might know, I've been an independent Scentsy consultant since April, and I absolutely love my newfound business. I've been working hard at earning the incentive trip to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic this upcoming June. I have until January 31 to earn it...eeek! So, if you have ever thought about joining your own business and making your own hours, this is the BEST company to work with! Also, if you would like to host a Scentsy online party, I would love to help! Just email me at: hbyrne09 {at} yahoo {dot} com, and I can provide all the details. Thank you! :)

We're going on a hump...

I've had five years to reflect my short tenure in the Marine Corps, and I miss it terribly. A lot of the girls that I went to Parris Island are still in, and some have been out for a little bit. I always felt my time in the Corps was sort of robbed from me. I never really wanted out the way I did. Sometimes, I reflect my decisions that were made, and sometimes I wish that things might have been different. But, either way, I can't change the past. I am who I am today, because of yesterday. So, I am jumping a bit in time to my experiences from the final phase of bootcamp.

I graduated from bootcamp in October 2004, and I didn't come out of Parris Island unscathed. I had an injury from the Crucible that should've kept me on the island to recooperate. However, I had enough of the island, and I was desperate to graduate and get off. I had injured my foot during a long six mile hike carrying an Alice pack full of filled ammo cans. I sucked it up with my back wrenching in pain, and kept going. The following day, I noticed that my foot was making a clicking sound, and I just kept marching on. During the final hump, I limped. I was just so excited to be finished. I remember hiking by 4th Bn, and sighing a sound of relief, just to be forced to keep marching on. I knew that the other recruits had the feeling of disappointment, because we weren't finished. It wasn't too long that we looped back, and the Warrior breakfast that awaited us, was wonderful. I remember the other recruits scarfing their faces with the cake that was provided, and ultimately got sick. I could barely eat, and I was just plain exhausted. I was in a daze, and I couldn't believe that I really hiked over 50 miles in just a couple of days. Defeat was not an option, not when I was exhausted, hungry, or injured-- I could taste graduation in the air, and my ticket off the island.

"Mama, Mama can't you see? What the Marine Corps' done to me?
 I used to drive a Cadillac, now I am humping with a pack..
Mama, Mama can't you see? What the Marine Corps' done to me?
I used to wear Maybelline, now I am wearing cammie green..
Mama, Mama Cant you see?
What the Marine Corps’ done to me...
I'm walkin tall and feeling good,
I'm doing things I never thought I could."

(There are so many variations to this marching cadence..)

Oh Pumpkin!

I find the need to laugh, and I've seen some funny/cool carved pumpkin images lately. I thought I'd share!

Strangest dreams this past week..

What I shouldn't be dreaming about...

1. Getting stomach cancer. Dreaming that my stomach is trying to turn into mush and vomiting... yucky.
2. Dead tapeworms around the steak I am about to eat.
3. Having a dream about a friend announcing that her husband is not coming home from a deployment. That dream was completely random and sad, and I am pretty sure I cried in my sleep.

Hmm... I keep dreaming about dead things. It is probably the month I am in.. yep, that must be it. :/

Thai Pumpkin Soup

For some crazy reason, I completely indulge in the fall foods. I tend to gain that unwanted 10 pounds. {ahem, like I did last fall..} So, I am on a Weight Watcher recipe quest to keep my cravings in check. I know I am allotted 29 plus points, so this should be easy. I also decided to devote 2 weeks straight to providing healthy cooked meals for my family. That means no eating out, Starbucks, nada. Trust me, a part of me wants to go to the Mc Donalds right up the road and play the Monopoly game.. so tempting. I should go walk around the block a few times just to rid myself of the thoughts of a 10 piece chicken nugget, large french fry, and a medium Power Aide. {Really Mc Donald's? I love how you pick and choose what game pieces come on what products, ha! You think you had us fooled..}

Okay, so now that I already made my soup today, I will delightfully share the recipe. 3/4 of a cup gives you 2 points, btw.

{Weight Watcher's Thai Pumpkin Soup}

Image from food.com

2 tablespoons red curry paste

1 (13.5-ounce) can light coconut milk

1 cup water

1 (15-ounce) can unsweetened pumpkin

2 tablespoons fish sauce

1/4 cup chopped cilantro (optional and highly recommended by me)

Lime wedges (optional and highly recommended)

1. Place curry paste in a medium saucepan. Add coconut milk, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Stir in 1 cup water and pumpkin; cook over medium heat 8 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Remove from heat; stir in fish sauce.

2. Ladle soup into bowls. Top with chopped cilantro, and serve with lime wedges, if desired. Yield: 6 servings.

Fat: 3.4 grams Cal: 74

Enjoy! Be sure to check out my recipes every day for the next two weeks! :)



Run For Your Lives--a commercial shoot experience

Run For Your Lives

A month ago, I had a friend tell me about this new obstacle race series that is debuting in Maryland in October, and of course with my love for the zombie genre, I was all for it! Wait.. you saw that I put zombie in that sentence... This race isn't the typical mud run, it is a 5k obstacle course designed to outwit {outrun} a hoard of zombies. A survival race at its best; while trying not to get your "red tags" taken off your waist.

Yes, zombies will be chasing you for this adrenaline pumping race, and I have a feeling that my instincts will go into overdrive-- and I hope it is a flight to the finish line rather than a fist in the face of the undead. Don't feel motivated to run? Um.. I have a feeling this will! Upon finishing, you will be either labeled as the undead, or as a survivor. Followed by an Apocalyptic party full of booze and good comaderie, because I am sure after that near death experience with other ghoul wanna-be's, you'll have quite a story to tell. Don't forget to upload all of those pics on Facebook, either! Just a few more days to enter in this awesome race on October 22; please visit www.runforyourlives.com for more information.

Holly the Zombie


So, as I am getting pumped to register for this awesome survival race, I "like" their Facebook page, and one day, I logged in to find out that they were in need of zombie extras for a commerical that will be aired during the season premiere of AMC's "The Walking Dead". Umm, hello?! 30 million viewers... Do I need to say more? I hurried up and emailed them for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I got an email back, yay! Did I mention that I always wanted to be a zombie extra? Check marked off on the bucket list!

Sunday--Bloody--Sunday


Okay, I am not a morning person, at all. I don't care how sleep deprived I was during the Marine Corps, or during those early mornings with my two newborns, when I can sleep, I will. In fact, I usually choose sleep over anything, and I am pretty selfish about it. My poor husband always got the good kick in the leg to go put the paci back in our daughter's mouth at 3am.

So, when I woke up at 4 am on a freaking Sunday, I was obviously super stoked about this commericial shoot. For starters, I've never been an extra before, and I couldn't wait to become zombified. Thankfully, my friend Allie from My Marine and Me let me sleep on her couch the night before so I could try to get a couple more zzz's. {Thank you, oh thank you for coming out with me, btw!} So, we headed out at 6:30 am, and made it to the location at 8 am. We immediately got ready with make-up and wardrobe. Which took several hours.. a good tip for the extra newbie-- bring a game, a puzzle, or something to occupy yourself and others with, because there is a lot of sitting and waiting.

Wardrobe Malfunction Take One!

I swear I can't be anywhere without people getting to know me personal. I decided to have one of my dresses slashed, bloodied, and muddy for the shoot, and that was an apparent mistake, or maybe I should've worn some small shorts underneath. We were a hoard of zombies running down this steep hill, and my poor feet couldn't stop, and I completely ate it! I think I fell backwards down the hill, and my whole dress came flying up as I flashed the other zombies and crew. Oops! I am laughing and rolling, and realized that a boob came flying out to say hello as well. I was mortified, but I couldn't help but to stay in good spirits. I just hope they didn't catch any of that action on film.. ahem.

Oh, yes, there will be blood..

That was only the beginning of it! The final shoot while chasing after our survivor, "Cut!" I literally cut my self on twisted metal that was flushed to the grass. Ouchie! No worries, I have medical-- and several hours later, I had my tetanus shot too!

Can't make it to Maryland for the October 22 race? No worries, the "outbreak" spreads across country next year. Check out the "Run For Your Lives" commerical that will be aired on October 16 on AMC's "The Walking Dead". Don't like horror shows? I will be posting the commericial on my blog when it releases.

Don't forget to check them out on Facebook! :)

I love the holidays!

One thing that excites me about the fall and winter, is being able to decorate your home in really pretty things that make it more inviting. Plus, all the smells of baked yummy goodies, and the cinnamon aroma, really make it feel like home. So, I am super excited to announce that Scentsy has finally released their holiday collection! I am planning on doing a giveaway soon! Also, check out my personal website if you are interested in snagging one of these holiday items! HERE!!

Getting "Down and Dirty"

I have to admit that Scentsy is fueling my racing habit with supplementing the registration fees. The races I do can be quite expensive; however, I love them! I wanted to blog about my mud run on Tuesday, except Mr. Earthquake got all the lime light. So, now that I am in-between crazy aftershocks, and a impending category 3 hurricane, I can talk about the race.

Sunday morning, I wake up uber early.. like 4 am early, and my stomach does not like waking up that early-- and nausea sets in. Lovely, right? It goes away when I eat a banana, but I could tell my nerves were in overdrive. It is a little bit of " I am I going to fall out and pass completely out.." "Did I hydrate enough?" "Does these spandex make my toosh look too big?" "Am I going to bust my toosh on an obstacle?" Yes, I seriously have these provoking thoughts, while my stomach wants to do a number. Great imagery, right? I mean, c'mon! It is only a 5k.. no sweat, right? Well, if you remember me running the Spartan race in June, it was mostly obstacles, and some running.

So, I start off with the bang, wearing my lovely Vibram Five Finger shoes (I was entered in the barefoot division-- since the race was sponsored by Merrell shoes.)

Where was I? Ah! I take off pretty fast, and I am like, "where is everyone?" *giggle* For the first half mile, I probably run a 7 minute mile pace-- and then, lose it all. It just goes down to a nine minute mile-- and depending on terrain-- goes to a ten. So, these males catch up, and some girls in tutu's. I am like, "I don't care.. I am going to keep a nice steady pace." Then, I keep running, and running... oh shoot! They didn't say we were running hills!! I get a little winded by the hills, and just keep going. I am cursing under my breath. Then, I am anticipating some obstacles, and to no avail. What the hell?

Finally, I come to an obstacle-- a kiddie tunnel. Like, seriously? Then, more running. I think there was about an obstacle every mile or so. It was pretty sad until the end. I finally got to go into a water pit, climbed over a wall, cargo net, the slippery mountain, and the mud pit to finish off the race. I had a great time, but mentally, I was prepared for the obstacles. My luck, we literally ran the 5k in a hilly forest terrain. No sweat! I placed 3rd in my barefoot division at 37 minutes. I am still contemplating about the run time, but I can always do better. Mind you, I don't train for these races, at all. I just feel great when I complete them, and go home knowing I did my workout for the day. :)

Whoa... Earthquake!!

Yesterday, I woke up to a beautiful morning with cool air and blue skies. I got my first text of the day from my husband recognizing our anniversary of 6 years since we started dating. I jumped on the computer, and noticed on the Yahoo news that a 5.3 earthquake had struck southeast Colorado, and I called my momma to see if she was okay. She felt nothing, and slept through it. I had a Scentsy vendor-blendor that evening, and I wanted to bring a prospective recruit to the event. On the way to the out of my neighborhood, I noticed that it was looking a bit more like fall outside, and I had a bottom of the pit feeling, that something wasn't quite right that day. I went to my friend's apartment to allow our girls to play, and luckily I managed to grab lunch prior to arriving at her complex.

We were in the yellow outer portion

My friends apartment complex is a small building, two stories high. There were four of us, and five little girls playing in a room at the end of the hallway, when it felt/heard like a stampede. We looked at each other confused, and initially I thought the girls were stomping around all at once. But, then the walls started to shake, and I looked outside and the ground was rolling. I felt like we were on a rollercoaster ride, and our ride was about to bottom out from underneath us.

My husband and I was stationed in Twentynine Palms, CA prior to this duty station, and the Marines came from all over to train, and I was used to the mortar rounds rattling my windows, or the small tremors we got. So, within an instant, I thought we were under mortar fire. (It was really loud in the building.) The shaking wasn't always continuous, it started out slow, and got more intense, less intense, and then more intense. The pictures on the walls were swaying-- and then, I yelled, "get in the doorway!" My brain finally registered, that it was indeed an earthquake. My friend just wanted to high-tail it out of the complex, in case it collapsed. We knew the building was NOT equipped for an earthquake.

I yelled frantically to grab my baby (my two year old), since she was still in the other room where she was previously playing. We all grabbed the kids, and rushed out the door down the steps. (By this time, the quake stopped.) I was shaking for a good minute, scanning the kids to see if they were okay, and we placed blankets on the parking lot, just in cased the aftershocks happened. I instantly called my husband, but the calls weren't going through. I tried calling my momma, and no luck. Amazingly, Facebook on my cell phone did, and I was able to alert my friends what was going on, and that I was okay.

I was just so thankful that I wasn't at my house when it happened, and I was among some good friends. Luckily, the neighbor from down below had the news on, and we were able to go and see the earthquake coverage. We were literally within the 30 mile radius of the epicenter of the quake. I was like, "Omg!! It is right next to us!" We just experienced a 5.9 earthquake. I don't care if you experience quakes or small tremors in California, but if you're not prepared for this (especially the buildings) it feels more like an attack occured than a quake. All I knew was I was not ready to be back in a building for a while, lol.

Getting through to my husband was difficult. After an hour, I was able to get a hold of him from my friend's phone, and I was so relieved he was okay. I finally calmed down for the better part of the day, and I felt a small aftershock when I was settling down to get some sleep for the night.

So, there you have it, my quake story.

Back from the Stampede!!

What a week!! Monday, my daughter, Miss K turned 4 years old!! I can't believe it, she keeps getting smarter and bigger each a day.

Flying into my homestate of Texas!

Tuesday, I flew in Dallas/Fortworth, Tx to go to my very first Scentsy convention. I was so excited that I would be able to finally meet the girls on my team, and to see 10,000 other consultants that shared the same Scentsy Spirit with me-- it was truly a Stampede of women and men. I finally got to see my friend that is also on my team whom I had seen in seven years!! {We went through boot camp together, and we stayed in touch over the years, and when I began my Scentsy adventure, she decided to hop on board as well.} Then, my friend/sponsor went to Hobby Lobby and bought some flip flop and purple bling to show our Scentsy pride for the next day.

I finally had Whataburger, and I hadn't had that in a very l-o-n-g time. I love their hamburgers, so you should've seen me freak out when I saw one, and told my friend, Rachell to pull into the drive-through. Nom! Nom!!

Excitement sets in

That evening, the rest of our team showed up, and after all the giggles, we managed to fall asleep.



Wednesday.. Of course I am not exactly a morning person, but I woke up at 6:30 a.m. too excited about all the events for the day. I wanted to run around the room, and do a little dance. I felt like it was Christmas all over again. We had a kick-off group meeting with our Super Star Director, and that was amazing. We donated pj's to a battered women shelter for the little ones, donated money to the food bank, and donated school supplies to the local area. Scentsy believes in giving more than you receive.. With each donation, you received a ticket for a raffle. During the first game, I managed to win a $25 gift card, and I won a raffle and received a $100 American Express gift card... I was on high heaven!

The rest of the morning, we were checking in with registration, pinching ourselves that we actually made it to convention-- something that we talked about on our Facebook group's months...and it was finally here!

The Night at the Stockyards

In Fort Worth, they have the Stockyards-- the epitome of old western Texas cowboy. I loved it! Of course, I am a bit biased. ;) Scentsy had a special concert featuring Gloriana and Clint Black. It was a bit hot out, and we managed to find ourselves in a cool bar with a glass of beer. Prior to that, we got to sit on our very first live longhorn--which was pretty cool!

The evening was pretty great, couple bars with the girls--and a drive-thru to the local Jack in the Box. Why can't they have that in Virginia?

Day One of Sessions

Thursday..Seeing 10,000 consultants that share the same goal, is pretty amazing. Coming from all over the world, to meet in one single place-- and share the Scentsy spirit. We had inspirational guest speaker, Connie Podesta!! Hilarious woman-- teaches us what personality we are by the shape we had chosen. I believe I am squiggle; however, my director thinks I am a square, lol.

Followed by Connie, was Orville and Heidi-- the President and CEO of Scentsy. They are the most down to earth people, I've ever met. They truly want to make a difference in the world, with the power of one individual can impact many. The introduced the new fall/winter product line, which I am very excited to show everyone soon!

We broke for chow a couple of hours of later, and that was when I realized that "stampede" was another metaphor to what we were-- a herd of people trying to exit for lunch, lol.

More product reveals and exciting information soon followed, and two boxes full of amazing freebies from the new fall/winter season.

Day Two of Sessions

Friday, was a bittersweet day. It was our last day of convention, and I am sure my days were blending in by now. We had two more inspirational guest speakers, John C. Maxwell, on how to be a effective leader, and Shawn Achor on the happiness advantage. Learning to be happy will make you more successful and impact those around you.

Goodness, I could go on and on about how convention changed my whole outlook on life, and seriously it did. I realized that it is more than just a product, and something much bigger-- Simplicity~Authenticity~Generosity

We found out at convention, that we have the opportunity to earn a trip to the Dominican Republic for next summer, and next year's convention will be held in Las Vegas!! Now, who wants to join my team, and come with me to these great places, and meet the most amazing people that share the same dreams you have? Check out my personal Scentsy website at: https://hollybyrne.scentsy.us for more information about this wonderful opportunity. :)

Here are some moments from convention:

If I Ever Go To War

{A poem that I found on one of my friends FB page, and although I am out now, this reminds me of a time in 2004, where if I was to deploy was undetermined.)


If I ever go to war Mom,
Please don’t be afraid,
There are some things I must do,
To keep the promise I made.
I’m sure there will be some heartache,
And I know that you’ll cry tears,
But your daughter is a Marine now; Mom,
There is nothing you should fear.

If I ever go to war Dad,
I know that you’ll be strong,
But you won’t have to worry,
Cause you taught me right from wrong.
You kept me firmly on the ground,
Yet still taught me how to fly,
Your daughter is a Marine now Dad,
I love you Semper Fi!

If I ever go to war Bro,
There are some things I want to say,
You’ve always had my back,
And I know it’s my time to repay.
You’ll always be my daybreak,
Through all of life’s dark clouds,
Your sister’s a Marine now, Bro,
I promise I’ll make you proud.

If I ever go to war my Friends,
We’ll never be apart,
Though we may not meet again,
I’ll hold you in my heart.
Remember all the times we had,
Don’t let your memories cease,
Your friend is a Marine now, Dear Friend,
And I’ll die to bring you peace.

And when I go to heaven,
And I see that pearly gate,
I’ll gladly decline entrance,
Then stand my post and wait.
I’m sorry Sir I can’t come in,
I’m sort of in a bind,
You see I’m still a Marine Sir,
So I can’t leave them behind.

Goodnight Moon Link-up~ Rebecca Black - My Moment

I just wanted y'all to have a good laugh this week with this song. ;) Enjoy!!

Heading to the Stampede!

I am pretty excited to say, that I am going to this year's Scentsy convention!! Even bigger bonus, it is in my home state of Texas! And a few days minus the hubby and kiddos. My good friends are driving up from my hometown, and in-between convention activities, I get to see them. I wish you all could see my big smile here. I am pretty stoked that I get to see a whole bunch of people that love doing what I do. Pretty darn amazing business here. I am really looking forward to the Stockyards.. (we get to see Clint Black and Gloriana!!!) and I will be wearing this dress with some cowboy boots!

My friend (who is also my Scentsy sponsor) makes some incredible jewelry, and she is blinging us out Texas style in Scentsy colors. I can not wait until I see the finished product! I will have to upload those when they come in. :)

I am looking forward to seeing all the new fall product, and learning about where we are going on our incentive trip next year. I wasn't a consultant in time to earn the 2011 summer trip-- but, whoever earned it, got to go to DISNEYWORLD!! All expense paid for, and Scentsy surprised their consultants with amazing Disney gifts in their room. Who wouldn't want to earn one of those trips? I want to go! I want to go!

If you ever thought about making your own money from home, and doing something you love, I would love to have you on my team! Heck, maybe next year, we'll be hanging out at convention, and talking about the amazing Scentsy vacation we were just on. ;) Either way, I love this company, and I am darn excited about all the new friends I am about to make from convention.

I can't wait to post about it in a couple of weeks!

Be sure to check out my personal website HERE!!

Reason #657 Why I don't like taking Birth Control..

No, I don't rambunctiously have babies like the Duggars, but my body protests to these artificial hormones. My ovaries have decided to get angry again, and are being stingy with the eggs. They did this when I was on active duty, so it was no surprise when the ultrasound tech showed clusters of cysts on both ovaries.

Dang it!! They came back. It is called polycystic ovarian syndrome, and I have to find out if I actually have the syndrome part, but my body says otherwise. So, the OB managed to talk me into birth control to regulate my stubborn cycles, (not to actually prevent pregnancy, btw.) and it has tricked my body into thinking it's pregnant!! NOOO!! It is soo not cute! Bigger boobs, and a bloaty tummy. Did I mention I get emotional over everything? I tear up as if I had a little human in my stomach tugging at my heart strings. Headaches.. Not cute-- at least not until I really do want to get pregnant. And well, if we were trying, that is definitely a no go.

I am sure this is not the post you were hoping for, but I am assuming my general readers are females, and maybe you can get a good laugh at this. Needless to say, I will be off this mess in a couple of weeks!

*End rant. ;)

I love the way you hold me..

I am in LOVE with this Cupcake!!

Since I started selling Scentsy, {which I absolutely love doing} I got really excited about July's warmer of the month. I have a thing for cupcakes, and I could totally do my whole kitchen in a cupcake theme.

Yum! Yum!

 

The cupcake warmer is the first three layered warmer of its kind, and it is only 10% off this month! The scent of the month is "Happy Birthday" and it smells like sugary vanilla icing.

If you love Scentsy as much as I do, I would love to have you on my fabulous team. Feel free to browse my personal website, HERE.

I will be doing a cupcake warmer giveaway as soon as I get a 100 'likes' on my Scentsy fanpage, HERE.

Bring me Back my Bar!

Did you have a favorite scent bar that went away? In the month of July, 20 bars came out of the vault, and be sure to get it while you can! Because they go back in after July...