WEEKEND RECAP {10.26.2015}

We are officially at the end of October! How absolutely crazy, this year is flying by. While we eagerly wait for 2016 to arrive, let me take a moment to write my weekend recap. Well Friday, I left work early to celebrate E's birthday. He wanted to go to Lupe Tortilla so that's where we went. During lunch, I surprised him with his last and final gift, an Xbox One. He was so excited and had no idea. Saturday, he had to go to school to make up for the days missed while we were on the cruise. Once he got home, we enjoyed a day together. Originally, we were going to go to a family reunion, but the weather in Texas has been nothing but downfall and we decided, mutually, that it would be best if we just stayed home. Sunday, we slept in. We missed church because the drive to the church is down back roads and we figured they would be flooded. I got up and made homemade pancakes with sausage and a banana. E loved it! We ate breakfast in bed and watched the pre-game show on ESPN. Around 12pm, we decided to sit and watch the Texans game, bad idea! They were doing absolutely horrible. Our best friend's little girl's birthday party was on Sunday. It was a "Oh Twodles" Minnie Mouse 2nd Birthday. It was so cute!!! Her mama decorated with pink and black and had a cute cake made. Alli looked adorable in a black and white chevron dress with a pumpkin on it. We got her this darling shirt from Etsy. It was a white long sleeve shirt with a number two patch on the stomach with her name in a Disney-style font. They will be going to Disney World in December and since Florida gets pretty chilly around that time, I opted for a long sleeve. I cannot wait to see pictures of her in it. Sunday night, we finished laundry, ate some yummy dinner and sat down to watch our typical Sunday night shows. The Walking Dead took us both by surprise, but I won't spoil it just in case you have it recorded. Anyways, here is my iPhone photo dump.

 

iPhone Photo Dump | Weekend Edition

Saturday, I played around with my Younique makeup

Sunday morning breakfast in bed. Homemade pancakes with sausage and a banana 

Alli's "Oh Twodles" Minnie Mouse 2nd Birthday Party 

Sweet Alli - Happy 2nd Birthday baby girl

 

Sunday meal prep was a success 

Over the weekend, I was promoted to "White Status" with Younique

 

Be sure to check below to find out how to win a FREE 3D Fiber Lash Mascara from me!

 

 

***Interested in becoming a Younique Presenter?

Visit www.YouniqueProducts.com/MeganRRichards, click "join", and become apart of an amazing company with amazing products.***

Instagram: MeganRRichards

YouTube: MeganErikRichards

Facebook: Megan R Richards Younique Presenter

 

 FREE 3D FIBER LASH MASCARA GIVEAWAY VIDEO!



FALL GIVEAWAY {10.23.2015}

 

 Ladies, are you ready for a GIVEAWAY?!

 

"It's time for you to {FALL} in love with Younique"

Well, first, you need to download the Periscope app. Then, find my account "megrrichards" and follow me so you can get the notification for the announcement and how to enter my Younique makeup GIVEAWAY! Get all the details and find out what's included.

Hurry, go now so you won't miss my Periscope announcement broadcast.

 

www.YouniqueProducts.com/MeganRRichards

 

YOUNIQUE | LINK UP {10.23.2015}

Well happy Friday everyone! Hard to believe we have one week of October and then on to November we go. This morning, before heading to work, I filmed a fun little "Morning Makeup Routine" video for you. I thought it would be fun to show you just how amazing the Younique Products are. Don't forget, you can order your own at www.YouniqueProducts.com/MeganRRichards. Below you can find the links to each product.

 

What I'm wearing | Younique
Sunset Bronzer $32
Scandalous Blush $29
3D Fiber Lashes $29
Upscale Moodstruck Opulence LipStick $19
Lovesick Lucrative Lipgloss $15

 

In other news, this weekend is going to be crazy! Tonight, I have to run to the grocery store and pick up things to make a sidedish for our family reunion on Saturday. Sunday, we will be celebrating Baby Alli's second birthday!!! I cannot even believe that she is almost two! Her actual birthday is on October 30, but mom is celebrating early since Halloween is next Saturday. I look forward to posting pictures from this weekend. It's going to be great!

 

Thank you for reading and have a wonderful weekend!

If you aren't already, download the Periscope app on your phones, find my name "megrrichards" and follow me because I will be posting more videos and will have a fun giveaway soon which will be announced on Periscope. You can also follow me on Instagram here! Don't forget to "like" and "subscribe" to my YouTube channel because I will be posting videos there as well!
Have any questions about the Younique products? Email me at meganrrichards@yahoo.com.

 

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HUBBY {10.22.2015}

Today is my wonderful husband's twenty-fourth birthday. Geez! I know we aren't that old, but having known each other for fourteen years, I feel like we are. Last night, I surprised E by taking him to the mall and letting him pick out a few things. He loves hats, so we went over to Lids and he picked out a really nice all black Houston Texans baseball cap. Afterwards, we walked to Vitamin Shoppe and we stocked up on some supplements in preparation for Crossfit on Monday. In addition to the purchased gifts, I usually try to give him something homemade that's special and meaningful. After our mall adventure, we stopped by Chick-Fil-A, per his request, and then headed home where I gave him my homemade gift. I wrote him a long, sentimental note and gave him a custom made coupon book. Last time I gave him a coupon book was Easter 2011. He loved the idea then and was thrilled when he saw the coupon book this year. I'm going to keep this short and sweet and just leave some photos right here for you and do a Wednesday Photo Dump! Enjoy!

 

Photo Dump | E's 24 Birthday Edition

One day, my son will look like this.

 

I mean really, how adorable right?

 

I just had to post because he was is so cute!

 

On the way to his 23 birthday. I had family surprise him at the Houston Texans Grille.

 

 

#21Birthday

#22Birthday

 

FALL FUN {10.19.2015}

This weekend was amazing! For the first time, it actually felt like Fall. Texas hardly ever pays attention to the seasons and just goes with the flow, which is usually hot. But, we were so surprised when we stepped out on Saturday morning to find that it felt great. We woke up around 5:30am, got dressed, and headed out the door for Texas Renaissance Festival. It was a fun-filled day. We got to the Kingdom around 8am and waited for the gates to open at 9am. I tried to Periscope majority of the day, but I also wanted to just enjoy the day. As soon as the gates opened, E and I burst in and headed straight to the introduction site. Right when you walk in, there's a little gazebo where the King will introduce all of the cast members. Then, they do a fun dance, and this year, E and I were both apart of the dance. It was great! We usual run around and try to go to as many shows as possible but this year, we took it easy and just did what we wanted. We walked through different stores, I drank fresh coconut water, E drank beer, we ate the turkey legs and beef jerky, E drank beer, we bought a lotion candle (more on that later), E drank beer, we took pictures with some of the cast that were new this year, E drank beer, and we had to see our favorite show of all time - The Sturdy Beggars. Oh, and I did see Captain Jack but I was not able to get a picture with him this year. I usually always try to get at least one picture with him, but it didn't work out this weekend. E had about six beers and by 1pm was feeling it. Before long, we were both getting tired and figured it was time to go. We managed to get home around 3pm and both passed out. It was so nice getting to sleep. Sunday, we enjoyed church service on the TV, spent most of the day cleaning, went grocery shopping, finished the laundry, and watched our two favorite Sunday night shows - Brooklyn Nine-Nine and The Walking Dead. Over all, it was a really amazing weekend.

 

This upcoming weekend, October 24, we will be heading out to a family reunion. I'm really excited to get to see everyone. Last reunion we were able to go to was in 2012, every year since something has managed to get in the way and hinder us from going. Another thing I'm looking forward to this week is Crossfit! We finally signed up for a class. After our cruise, we kind of lost track and with our busy weekends, it's been hard to get into a groove. Not to mention, E goes to school two nights a week and that makes planning gym days even more difficult. That's why I'm ready for Crossfit. A structured class will really make a difference for us. I can't wait to write about that experience. First Crossfit class is this Wednesday, October 21, the day before E's 24th birthday!!!

 

iPhone Photo Dump • Weekend Addition

The Kingdom Entrance - Texas Renaissance Festival

Early morning at the Kingdom

My favorite time of year!

First year with the Sanderson sisters, they were great!

  Nerd girl=totally crushing over this man! #DrWho (new cast member)

Oh Robin Hood (he and Peter Pan were new cast members this year)

I was channeling my inner Priate

 The Sturdy Beggars (see my YouTube video from the show below)

 Butternut Beer and Fresh Coconut Water

I love him!

 My Favorite "hide-out" is with the Pirates

 While at H-E-B I spotted this balloon and had to stop for a selfie - Jack Skellington! Check out how tired I look. It was a long day!

My favorite way to spend Sunday, with our bubbies beside me with I do laundry and watch TV

 

The Sturdy Beggars Show!

 

 



STEP ONE | CHECK {10.14.2015}

Well, after my long and ridiculous rant yesterday, I picked myself up and I'm ready to move forward with this process. First step, schedule doctors appointment, is complete! My first, really second, fertility specialist appointment is scheduled for Friday, October 30. I'm thrilled! Although we still do not have plans on starting treatment until at least January, I will at least get updated information and will feel prepared and ready to go. I'm looking forward to meeting with my doctor again and talking with him about the past year. Although I have a plan in my mind, I want to talk with him about what he suggests for us to do. I will update after my appointment, of course. I also sent in my request page for my doctor's office records. I really wanted to bring all the records with me to the appointment so I'm hoping that I will have all of that in hand when I arrive for my appointment. I would like to be able to bring the ultrasound records, the blood draw records, and any notes my OB made. I think it will help the fertility specialist to see what's been going on for the past year.

 

In other news, I joined the Younique team today! I am so excited to be apart of this amazing company. I am obsessed with their makeup and look forward to making fun videos for you. If you are interested in getting this amazing makeup, visit www.youniqueproducts.com/MeganRRichards. Check out my post here, I briefly talk about the makeup and I show a before and after photo.

 

God Bless

 

FUTURE OF TTC {10.13.2015}

It irks me to write this, but I needed to update on my current TTC situation. Well, round 4, the "final round", as we are so lovingly referring to it, was a total bust! Disappointed. Frustrated. Hurt. Puzzled. Confused. Nervous. I could list about fifteen more words to describe how we feel, but I think you get the point. I hate being negative, no, I loathe it! Negativity is such a waste of time and emotion, but sometimes, in life, you just have to face the facts and realize that not every day is going to be happy and wonderful. Sometimes bad news will happen. Your bad news may not be the same as my bad news and I'm sure some will probably say that my bad news, isn't that bad. I guess in the big scheme of things, it's really not. I have a wonderful husband. I have two beautiful and totally amazing fur-babies. I have a nice car. I have a wonderful apartment. Life is good. Infertility, on the other hand, sucks! If I've said it once, I've said it a million times...it sucks!!!

 

 The fact of the matter is, this is the second full year of Clomid and my doctor basically told me "enough is enough!" My options are limited. Clomid, unassisted, aka with my OBGYN, is not an option anymore. He is now referring me out to a fertility specialist. Oh boy! What joy! More money down the drain for something that has a fifty percent chance of working. Though, I'm not sure where this journey will take us, I never ever expected us to have to go to a fertility specialist. I could have sworn we would have gotten pregnant with a healthy baby no problem on Clomid. I will admit, though it really does sound like I'm being a Debbie-downer, and I guess in some ways, I am, but I really am happy, or at least a small percentage of me is happy, that I will finally have a fertility specialist who will monitor everything! I guess, my only complaint, is the cost factor. I mean...can we just take a second to recognize that fertility treatment is not affordable at all. There's the constant doctors visits, the ultrasounds, blood draws, medications, the procedure it's self. It's all expensive and we have to pay out of pocket for fertility expenses.

 

Alright, now that my rant is over, I can tell you what our plans are. Currently, we are trying to get an appointment with a fertility clinic. They are so impossible to reach with Texas being so big, the Drs. are always swamped. Luckily, the clinic of my choosing, is literally a block away from my house. Convenient! So, as for now, I will visit with my fertility specialist in November. Treatment will likely start after the holidays because, let's face it, no one wants to deal with fertility treatment during the happy holiday season. And, with the gifts we will be buying for family members, we will need the extra time to gather up all the money.  

 

This post is much longer than I expected it to be, and I am realizing that majority of it is going to sound like I am just miserable, but truth is, I'm really not. I'm blessed. Sure, this is a struggle. Every TTC sister knows that infertility is nothing but hills and valleys and sometimes you'll have your high moments, but there will also be lots of lows moments too. At the end of the day, I am reminded that I am blessed. I am reminded that God has made a promise and I know that He is a gracious and caring God who will answer our prayers. I'm looking forward to moving to a whole new doctor. I'm looking forward to being monitored, maybe we will finally get some answers, but even if we don't at least we will have someone who will guide us each step and reassure us. So, here's to another round, another day. In the words of Michael Buble (who wasn't the original singer but his is my favorite version), "it's a new dawn, it's a new day, it's a new life, for me, and I'm feeling good!"

 

 

 

 

WEEKEND RECAP {10.12.2015}

Over the weekend we were busy but it was amazing! I always enjoy busy weekends, more opportunities to have a good time with my husband, and who doesn't want that? Friday night, was like any other Friday night, we just stayed home and relaxed after a long work week. I think we both fell asleep on the sofa around 8:45pm. It was amazing though I felt bad because the next morning, I awoke to a text message from the night before from our good friends inviting us out for a double date. We felt so bad for not receiving their text message until Saturday, but I'll admit that it was pretty awesome getting to bed early.

Saturday, October 10, we woke up, enjoyed breakfast, and headed out for Katy Rice Harvest Festival. This is an event that our city hosts every year. The very first time I attended, I was in fourth grade, we had just moved here from Louisiana and my dad entered me in the Katy Rice Harvest Pageant. I don't even think they do the pageants anymore... Since then, I try to make this a yearly activity for us because it's great to support local businesses and DIY home-makers. Most of the items are handmade but occasionally, you will see things like ItWorks, Scentsy, and many others. I ended up purchasing the Younique 3D Fiber Mascara. We walked around for a few hours before heading home to eat and get dressed for Fight Night. I'll admit, I could not wait to get ready and try out my new makeup. Just look at the difference! The left eye is after two coats of the Younique mascara. The right eye is after two coats of the L'Oreal Voluminous mascara.

After admiring my makeup, we left the house and headed for Sugar Land, TX for Fight Night, an absolutely amazing and inspiring event. Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott were terrific and taught us so much. The idea of this event is to teach couples how to fight correctly. How to fight with each other but remember to respect and love each other. We actually won the tickets to this event. I applied online with KSBJ, a local radio station that plays all the greatest Christian hits. I was so surprised that we won and was thrilled to attend. Not that E and I argue that much, but sometimes, just like many other couples, when you fight sometimes you try to dig at the person instead of listening. I was able to open my heart to what Drs. Les and Leslie were saying and I was able to see clearly just how God wants us to "fight/argue/disagree" with our spouse without hurting them or breaking them down. If Drs. Les and Leslie are in your area, I highly suggest you get tickets for this event. It is life changing and eye opening in so many ways. Additionally, we were able to see Josh Wilson perform live! This man is amazing! His lyrics, his voice, his stage presence. You could feel, through his singing, that God was with us. He performed my favorite song, This is Now. I mean he sounds exactly the same live as he does on the radio. It was just a truly wonderful night. Very thankful to KSBJ for allowing us to attend this event for free.

 Sunday was a lazy day for us. Typically we attend church but we decided to consider Fight Night as our church service for the week, not to mention, we didn't get home and in bed until about midnight. We were exhausted! Most of the day was spent just lounging around but we did get a few things done. We managed to go to the grocery store and My Fit Foods. We also finished the laundry and watched two of our favorite shows. Oh, and we even got to read a chapter from Dr. Les' book, Crazy Good Sex.

Well that was our weekend recap. I hope you had a wonderful weekend, I just wish they would slow down, we wait five whole days for it to get here and then once the weekend is here, it flies by! Oh, and *side note* the Astros are doing amazing! Hoping we can pull out another win and maybe even win the whole thing.

 

iPhone Photo Dump • Weekend Addition

 Sugar Land Baptist Church

 E and I at Fight Night

 Josh Wilson performing; check out his drummers drum...it's a suitcase!

 Meeting Josh Wilson



Chief and Brooks being lazy on Sunday

OCTOBER BE GOOD TO ME {10.01.2015}

This month, we are busy! That statement seems so easy and nice. Although I know that we will have fun, we are still swamped with things to do. What a blessing that we get to fill every weekend with something new and exciting.

Here's a look at our calendar:

October 3 - Acupuncture
October 4 - Church and day out with nephews

October 10 - Rice Harvest Festival and Fight Night

October 11 - Texas Ren Fest

October 17 - Friend's Engagement Shower
October 18 - Church and Saint Arnold Brewery

October 22 - E's Twenty-Fourth Birthday

October 24 - Family Reunion

October 25 - Church and Baby Alli's Second Birthday Party

October 31 - Halloween

 

It's funny how it looks so little and so simple, but realistically, it's going to be crazy! Aside from all that, I am loving the weather so far. Texas is not known for Fall weather, really we aren't known for any other weather than hot, but since the start of Fall, I have been pleasantly surprised. There have been a few rainy days but overall, it's been sunny with a breeze. I'm looking forward to the real Fall weather! Being able to wear sweaters, leggings, boots, scarves, I look forward to that, but we probably won't get that sweater-weather until at least mid-November. Good news is, we will be off in Florida for Thanksgiving and last year, we were so surprised at how cold it was.

 

Additionally, I am so ready for Christmas! Everything about Christmas is amazing. The movies, the gift giving, the lights, tons of craft shows like the Nutcracker Market, and spending time with family. I recently found a fun website that literally counts down to Christmas. How fun? Every now and then, I will head to the website just to see how many days we have left. Check out the website here! As of today, we have 84 days! Ahh!! Have you started buying gifts yet? I haven't, but I have started thinking about what I want to get people, does that count?

 

 

*one year ago - 2014*
*two years ago - 2013*