When Racism Rears it's Ugly Head

So, what started out as a wonderful evening for my family at the town of Arlington's First Annual Star Spangled celebration ended with on a low note. Today, my daughter, had the honor of performing the National Anthem before the fireworks display. We arrived at the Arlington Sportsplex around 6:30 with our picnic baskets and had a great time with our family as we awaited Aliyah's big moment. After her performance, we enjoyed the wonderful fireworks display. Once the lights were turned back on, we packed our things and headed to our vehicles (my mom had driven her truck and I had driven mine). Despite heavy traffic flow, I was able to make it home in about ten minutes. Shortly afterwards, Aliyah's friends arrived, who had each driven their own cars. 15 minutes pass by and my mom and Aliyah still have not arrived home. I was a little concerned, but not panicky yet since I knew they were in a different lot and may have had trouble getting out. Thirty minutes after the Star Spangled celebration has ended, my mom and daughter arrive visibly upset. Apparently some irate woman and her husband attempted to block them from leaving the parking lot after accusing my mom of hitting the wife's car. My mom and 16-year old daughter were cursed at and called all kinds of names. My mom immediately called 9-1-1 as this verbal assault continued with the husband standing in front of her truck. Finally the wife blurts out, "the back of your tire hit the front of my truck", to which my mom replies, "then that means you hit me." Aware that my mom was on the phone with the 9-1-1 dispatcher, the husband's attitude immediately changed as he encouraged his wife to get back into her vehicle. No one's vehicle had been hit, the lady was simply upset because she could not get out of the parking lot. The man apologized profusely and they each got into their vehicles and drove off. My mom informed the dispatcher that an officer was no longer needed and she and Aliyah came home safely. Aliyah is quite shaken. After what should have been a great night for her, she had to face the obvious racism and hatred of some ignorant individual. I am not naive. I am not ignorant to the fact that racism still exists. It just hurts me that my mom and my daughter had to experience something that was so unnecessary. The sad part is that the situation may have played out a lot differently if they had not been black. The husband's apology cannot erase from my child's mind what she had to witness tonight. I am proud to live in Arlington, TN. I live here by choice because this is where I want to raise my children, this is where I want them to attend school. My neighborhood is awesome, my neighbors are friendly, and overall in the 6 years that we have lived in Arlington, we really haven't had any issues. My daughter did an awesome job tonight and I am so proud of her. I just wish that she had been able to enjoy her moment without drama. She has learned a valuable lesson tonight; even in 2013, we must still fight to rise above the hatred, racism, and ignorance of others.

Thirty One Gifts

I am so excited about my new business! In addition to my roles as wife, mother, educator, and baker, I am can now add independent consultant for Thirty One Gifts to my resume! This is a perfect time to pay gifts for Easter, Mother's Day, Graduation, and end of year teacher gifts! Check out my website for the latest Thirty One gifts!
www.mythirtyone.com/LaTia/

Happy Shopping!

Neutrogena Makeup

So, I am a bzzagent. Anyone who has come across my blog in the past few months has seen my reviews of various products. Well, today I am reviewing the Neutrogena Healthy Lengths mascara in black, the Crease Proof eyeshadow in constant cooper, and the MoistureSmooth color stick in sweet watermelon. Let me start by saying these are some of the greatest makeup products I have ever used! The mascara made my eyelashes look amazing without making them feel stiff or weird. I suffer from dry eyes, so I rub my eyes...alot. This mascara did not smear at all! The Crease Proof eyeshadow was very easy to apply and it highlighted my eyes well. The MoistureSmooth color stick made my lips feel so soft. The color was neutral, so I was able to wear this alone and still have a natural look. I don't wear makeup often, but the Neutrogena mascara and eyeshadow will definitely become a part of my special occasion makeup routine and the MoistureSmooth color stick will now become a part of my daily beauty routine.

#GotItFree

Garnier Peel- 16 days

Ok, so after 16 days of using the product I still don't see much difference in my skin. I stopped using it for a few days because it seemed to be irritating my skin. Once I started using it again, the irritation returned, so my trial of this product is officially over. I have to conclude that this product is not for me and based on my experiences I cannot recommend this product to anyone else.

Garnier Peel Day 2

Ok, so after my first night if use I don't really notice a difference in my skin. I will give it a few days and provide another update after 5 days. I am still optimistic about the product!

Garnier Skin Renew Dark Spot Peel- Day 1

Ok, so I am a bzz agent. Basically, what this means is that I get to try a lot of really cool products for free and then share my thoughts and opinions about those products with the world. The latest product that I have been given the opportunity to try is the Garnier Skin Renew Dark Spot Peel. This product promises these results:
"Overnight: Skin is brighter, smoother, and more even toned with a healthy glow. In 4 weeks, Dark spots and discoloration are diminished and skin looks more uniform and feels smoother."
Tonight, I am using this product for the first time. The product is clear, so once I put it on I couldn't really tell it was there. I have sensitive skin, so I am usually reluctant to try new facial products, but this product markets itself as being "gentle to skin." Can't wait to share the results of day 1 with you tomorrow!

Comcast Blues...Again

Comcast, why must you torture me this way? Several months ago I posted a blog about my Comcast woes. Well, here we go again. I tried, unsuccessfully, for almost three weeks to port a phone number from a competitor because for some reason the customer service reps at Comcast do not communicate with one another or make notes to the account in the system. I talked to 5 different people in the port department in a two week period. Each time I was promised that my number would be ported in 4 days.  All this after realizing that Comcast had assigned me a new phone number without informing me when the number was initially supposed to be ported. After twenty days, on the last promised date for the porting of the other number, my Comcast phone number was disconnected. Upon calling Comcast, I was told that the Comcast number had to be disconnected in order for the other number to be ported. By 8 pm CST, the other number was still not ported. I again called customer service and was informed by the rep that my initial request for the other number to be ported was never sent to the correct department, even though I had spoken with 5 other people who claimed to be from "that" department. Of course, there were no notes or records of these conversations because this other department apparently doesn't have access to the same account. Finally feed up, I requested that the port be cancelled and opted to keep the Comcast number. However, that number was once again disconnected the next morning and no one could explain why. Service was restored within 30 minutes, but still there was no explanation as to why it was disconnected in the first place. Since then, my usually great Comcast internet service has been lackluster. It has been extremely slow and we now have connection issues. The internet is the only reason why I opted to return to Comcast after trying out a competitor for a few months. I am really disappointed, yet afraid to call customer service for fear that something else will be unnecessarily disconnected or they will offer to send out a technician to look into it and charge me $50. Oh well, I hope this situation gets better soon or I may be forced to return to a competitor for phone and TV services and only keep Comcast internet. Verizon, please provide home service to my area soon! 

Loreal Paris BB Cream Review

About L'Oréal Paris Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream: This product gives the sheer coverage needed to create a natural bare skin finish, while delivering built-in skincare benefits. With four beautifying actions, this all-in-one innovation primes and smoothes, perfects to hide flaws, hydrates all-day, and corrects and evens skin. The product is infused with skincare ingredients like Panthenol, Vitamin E and Glycerin for 24-hour moisturization.

To apply, simply dot on and blend with fingertips. Self-adjusting beads will instantly transform and blend to your skin tone.

L'Oréal Paris Magic BB Cream retails for $10.95 for 1 fl oz. It is available in four shades and is sold at mass food and drug retailers nationwide. Click here to find out more.

I received this product free from She Speaks to try and review. I do not wear makeup often, so I was very excited to try this product. Since I have a darker complexion, I opted for the deep version of this product. Although it did seem to smooth and hide some of my flaws, it also made me paler than usual.The picture below doesn't really show it well, but one of my children called me a vampire, so I probably will not be using this product. Even though I chose the deep version, apparently it wasn't deep enough for my skin tone. I would definitely recommend this product for someone with a lighter complexion.