More Good Hair Days! - My New Favorite Hair Care Line

About a year ago I read a blog post over at Because of Jackie. I was intrigued by her love of this magical shampoo & so of course I entered the giveaway. I mean, who doesn't want free magical shampoo am I right? 

Spoiler alert. I didn't win. In fact, the whole thing kinda fell by the wayside. 

I recently came across this hair care company again and started becoming obsessed. So when I saw that Meaghan was offering free samples I commented that I wanted to try! She mailed me out some samples to try, but before they even got to my house I was so excited about the results people were getting that I signed up as a VIP so I could get 15% off the products. 

After trying the products I knew I had never used anything this good. And as a hairstylist, that is saying a lot! I have brands I love, but none have done to my hair what Monat has done in such a small amount of time. That's my new favorite hair care line... Monat!

Monat stands for Modern Nature. The products are naturally-based, vegan and cruelty free and made here in the good old U.S.A.! The products were clinically tested and showed amazing results. 

After trying out the products and getting the following result...

I could not wait to sign up as a Market Partner! I am so ecstatic about these products!!! This company is amazing you guys. Can you feel my enthusiasm?! I went from someone who despised (that really might not be too strong of a word to use here) MLMs to someone who was joining and jumping in with both feet. Because the products work! They transformed my hair and I can't even imagine what my hair will be like after a few months of using the products!

Having good or bad hair can make or break my self esteem! Call me vain but that's the truth. The fact that Monat is giving me SUCH good hair days (like every day!) and that I'm on day 3 hair and it's still not greasy and gross is a miracle!! 

These products will strip away the product build up on your hair so your hair can feel soft. It will feel like buttah! They are SO concentrated that you barely need any product, a little truly goes a long way.  So if you are sick of your hair... let's chat!

 In fact... I'm giving away <THREE> sets of samples to people who comment on this post with their email address and their biggest hair concern. Let's start a conversation about your hair. (Winners must have valid US mailing address)

You don't need to waste your money on hair product that doesn't work!! There is a no-risk 30 day money back guarantee through Monat (but I guarantee you won't need it!) There are 3 ways to try Monat...

1 // Buy retail

If I have something in stock I can mail it to you directly or you can go to http://brooklyndoeshair.mymonat.com/ and purchase. 

2 // Sign up as a VIP 

Sign up for $19.99 and get 15% off of products forever + free shipping! Then just recieve two more shipments over the next 4 months (30-60 days apart) and then the perks are yours forever! Plus, each VIP shipment comes with a special #JustForYou gift! This months was a makeup bag, and a couple of samples! 

3 // Join Me!

I know you may have a bad taste in your mouth about Network Marketing, so did I. But I promise this can be fun and non-pressure. You don't have to be a salesperson, just a person willing to work and share a product that changes lives. If you think you're interested in this, please shoot me an email titled MONAT OPPORTUNITY and I'll respond asap so we can chat about that option as well. You'll get an additional deeper discount, free shipping and many more perks! I want this to be fun, but I need fun girlfriends to join me for this to be fun! 

And if you join my team in November/December I have some amazing gifts to welcome you to my team! So send me an email at brooklynjolley@hotmail.com and let's talk hair. (and my first Market Partner to join has a very special box waiting for them that I plan to send!!!!)

I wouldn't be selling this product if I didn't truly believe in it. If I hadn't seen my before & after I wouldn't have believed in myself. Let's chat about your hair. As a hairstylist I 100% stand behind these products and am so excited to see the way they change our hair! 

Fall Capsule Wardrobe

I've been on and off capsule wardrobing for awhile now. I really do love when I do it, and then I get distracted by a shiny boutique and the cute clothes and fall off the wagon. Then my closet gets super full, I become overwhelmed and I got on a crazy cleaning rampage. Today I did that. 

I pared my closet down to 33 clothing items (tops, bottoms, skirts, dresses) and 6 pairs of shoes. Which is still a TON. And especially in the fall here in Utah that gives me SO MANY COMBINATIONS. I also pretty much wear the exact same stuff everyday anyway, so the idea was to get the stuff I didn't wear out of my closet so I could focus on the pieces I love. 

Here's what the count came to....

+ 2 pairs of black leggings 

+ 1 casual chambray skirt

+ 1 pair black work pants

+ 1 black pencil skirt

+ 2 plaid shirts (one blue & white, one black & red)

+ 1 pink casual dress

+ 1 burnt orange fancy dress

+ 4 cardigans (1 b&w striped, 1 navy & cream striped, 1 plain burnt orange, 1 plain mustard yellow)

+ 4 striped tees (1 mauve with simple black stripes, 1 mostly white with black stripes, 1 b&w even skinny stripes, 1 mostly red w/ black stripes)

+ 3 plain white tees (1 v neck, 1 crew neck w/ pocket, 1 basic layering top) 

+ 1 casual star wars hoodie

+ 1 white and floral tunic

+ 1 casual tee from the Elementary School I work for

+ 1 casual "Fur Mom" tee

+ 1 chambray dress

+ 4 peplum tops (1 greyish blue, 1 oatmeal, 1 black & grey stripe, 1 gray with floral peplum)

+ 4 various chambray tops (1 blue & teal striped, 1 plain dark wash chambray, 1 plain white wash chambray, 1 polka dot blue chambray)

+ 1 pair knee high brown boots

+ 3 pairs of flats (black ballet flats, b&w striped flats, leopard print flats)

+ 1 pair of Nike tennis shoes

+ 1 pair brown ankle boots

So that's my capsule! I'll do some instagram updates at @brooklynjolley using hashtag #brooklyncapsules 

I love using a capsule wardrobe and it really helps me have a lesser desire to spend money. I love my capsule because it helps me wear what I love and not feel guilty about it. 

Also one time I read that men wear basically the same thing to work over and over. Black pants, white button down top, and a tie. Why can't women adopt that pattern and just wear a uniform? What if we did?? I do believe that fashion should be fun and can be really exciting and a great way to express yourself! However, I do think the idea of a "uniform" could be fun and liberating. Any thoughts? 

13 by 2017 - an end of the year goal

I'm a big believer in goal-setting. I've been slacking lately, life just got crazy and I felt like I was just barely getting by. Surviving, not really thriving, do you know how that feels? Anyway, I decided to set a fun goal to reach by 2017. One thing I've really missed has been reading! I've missed my long strolls through the library, anticipating my recent Amazon book coming to my door, and having so much to think and talk about because of what I'm reading. 

So I set a goal to read 13 books by 2017! I set this goal a few weeks ago when there were still 13 weeks left in the year! Now there's only 10 which is crazzzzy. 

This Fall weather has been perfect for cuddling up with a book and relaxing in the evening. Although it can be hard to pull my eyes away from Vampire Diaries long enough to read ;) 

You can see what books I read in September by going HERE. I'll do another update for October books read soon! Happy Fall guys! 

How I Survived My First Week Eating Vegetarian (10 Tips!)

I recently wrote about why I'm trying to eat vegetarian. I'm officially on my 12th day of eating this way and so happy and motivated to continue! I was so grateful that there were so many guides online on how to transition into vegetarianism so I thought maybe writing an update of how I survived my first week.

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1. SHOP! 

Go shopping for some food you love and know you will eat. The first day I decided to eat vegetarian was a Sunday (we choose to not shop on Sundays) so it was a little harder to eat this day. We have a lot of meat sitting in the freezer and I was stumped about what to eat that didn't include meat. (Spoiler alert: You can eat SO MUCH!) Once we went shopping I had fresh fruit, snacks, potatoes, cereal, green smoothies, spaghetti, almond milk, frozen veggies, etc. I love having a full pantry and fridge so eating vegetarian got really exciting once I had the food I wanted. 

2. Try a Meat Substitute. 

I was pretty wary of meat substitutes. How does it look like meat, and taste like meat, if it's NOT meat... kinda freaky. I made my Mandarin Orange Cristy Chickn from Gardein and it was so good! My husband asked to try it and it tasted so good! We bought it again and made it with rice the second time and it was still so good. We've now bought Gardein beef crumbles, Boca Chickn patty sandwiches, and Quinoa Morning Star burgers. They are all super good! My husband is not doing the vegetarian thing with me, but he's eating these meals with me.  Cruelty free for the win!

3. Have a Few Go-To Meals

It can be really stressful when you wake up in the morning and have to hurry and think of something to eat and pack for lunch that doesn't contain meat. I didn't consider myself a huge meat eater but I did not realize how much meat I ate until I quit eating it. Turkey sandwiches, chicken nuggets, salad with grilled chicken... it was all out of the question. It was stressful! I made sure to have a few cereals I love on hand, and Van's Vegan waffles for breakfast. That way I had some quick delicious breakfasts. I did the same for lunches, except I knew I could eat peanut butter & jelly sandwiches and baked potatoes. Yum! 

4. Educate Yourself

Watch a few documentaries, get a few books from the library, and google and read tons of online information about going vegetarian and vegan. Feeling knowledgable will empower you. Whenever I get tempted by meat (RIP Chickfila) I think about the documentary Vegucated and the poor chickens. I can not UNSEE those images. I remember the health benefits that have been proven by eating less or no meat and I get excited for those to be MY health benefits. 

5. Have a Quick Response

It's terrifying for me to have to tell people I'm not eating meat. Especially since the decision came on so suddenly and without any preparation. After answering to a few people I told my husband I needed to come up with a scripted response I could use when someone says, "Why would you go vegetarian?" So I did. 

"Well, I knew a few bloggers who have recently gone vegan and have seen amazing health benefits. I started looking more into it and decided it was I wanted to try for myself." I'm also going vegetarian (and hopefully eventually vegan) for the animals and for the environment, but that response is true and also not super offensive to meat eaters and seems to be quick in and out response. It's definitely the easy way out, but for now, it works. 

6. Look at Your Schedule and Have a Plan

If you know you're going to be going out to eat do a quick google search "How to Eat Vegetarian at ________". You could also call ahead. So many people have already done the research. McDonald's is a horrible place to go! Most others places make easy accommodations. Chick-fil-a made my wrap without chicken, Wendy's has baked potatoes and salads, Taco Bell has lots of vegetarian options just order without meat. (Vegan is MUCH trickier because I swear dairy products are in EVERYTHING, which is why I'm making the vegetarian transition first)

If you're going to any family meals, find out what they are making and make sure you can eat something there. If you can't eat much there, be sure to eat before you go! 

7. Let the People Close to You Know What You Are Doing 

I let my husband know when I made the decision because he was most important to me since he would be the one weirded out when I didn't want a Junior Bacon Cheeseburger at Wendy's for date night. I also started tweeting about it which is how my Mom found out. I don't think you have to make a huge Facebook announcement, but let your besties, and significant other know so they can support you.

8. Decide What New Foods You Want to Try 

There are a lot of foods out there that vegetarians can eat that other people don't eat. Try tofu, make homemade sweet potato fries, try different kinds of rice, bake vegan cookies, use almond milk in your cereal, eat a veggie burger, try chia seeds on your salad, eat pecans. Expand your palate! I'm trying really hard to taste new foods because I've always been a mac n cheese and chicken nuggets kinda girl. It's been exciting to try new things and think about all the new things I will get to try. 

9. Create a Pinterest Board and Pin Like Crazy! 

I made a vegan Pinterest board to pin recipes, advice, and inspiring quotes to. You can find it HERE. Pinterest is really great for inspiration when making lifestyle changes! 

10. Supplement During Transition

One thing people will without a doubt say is... "But where do you get your protein?" Most people don't realize that you can get plenty of protein from plants, whole grains, nuts, beans, etc. I bought a soy-based protein powder and soy milk. One scoop of the protein and 8 ounces of soy milk add up to 30 g of protein! We really only need around 55 g a day so that is pretty dang good! I've been trying to drink one a day while I figure out how to get enough protein on a vegetarian diet.

Many also say that you will be deficient on B12. They say that vegans get their vitamins the same place that meat-eaters food get it, from plants! I made sure my daily multivitamin had plenty of B12. Do the research to make sure you're getting what you need! (Many meat-eaters don't get enough vitamins anyway!) 

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I've been really grateful for the support I've had during this transition. Some days are harder than others. When we went to Cafe Rio I was so sad I couldn't eat the sweet pork, then I remembered I COULD eat the sweet pork but I was choosing not to for my own reasons and it was a choice I WANTED to make. 

I know this was a super long post but I hope it will be helpful if you decide to make your own vegetarian transition! I'll continue to do updates on here about my transitions and hope you'll stick around for the ride :) 

The Sacrament Is For Me - Book Review

I've been so blessed to be offered so many amazing book reviews lately. I hope you are loving them, I sure am! The most recent book I've received to review is The Sacrament is For Me by Jessica B. Ellingson. 

It is a really cute rhyming children's book that explains how we should act during the sacrament. It explains why we take it and how to make it a special time. I absolutely love the focus of Jesus Christ in this book, I feel like one issue I find in church is I don't hear enough about Jesus! But maybe that's because you can never hear enough about Jesus ;) Either way, I love the reminder this book is for children and adults on why the sacrament is for each of us. 

Any book that rhymes is automatically a winner to me. I love the way the words flowed in this book. I've wondered how we will be able to teach our future children (and foster children!) the way we feel about sacred ordinances like the sacrament, and books like this are the perfect way. How blessed we are to live in a dispensation with so many resources at our beck and call!

If you'd like to read more reviews and/or purchase the book you can pop right over to Amazon and check it out!

Defenders of the Family - Review

I was given the opportunity to review a new book called "Defenders of the Family" by Benjamin Hyrum White. I've been wanting to build our collection of children's books as we prepare to start our family and this book looked like a perfect one to add to our collections.

It was!

 This book has comic book type illustrations which kids will love! It goes through many of the roles of family, why families are important, and how we can strengthen our families.

I loved the simple descriptions that were used in the book and I wanted you to see what the inside looked like so you can see that below!

The book describes perfectly what Heavenly Father's plan is for families. It would be absolutely perfect to read to children to help them understand.

Like we learned in conference, if we don't teach our children about God and Jesus Christ, the world will.

This book can be purchased HERE from Amazon.

Why I'm Trying to Eat Vegetarian

Over the last few months, I've been trying to change my eating habits. After being diagnosed with a few mental illnesses my doctors recommended a gluten and dairy free diet. I've been focusing on how I feel after I eat. I haven't lost any weight, but when I eat a better diet I FEEL better: both physically and mentally. 

I started doing some more research of what kind of diets are most helpful for anxiety and one that I came across is a vegan/vegetarian diet. I read my blogger friend Annie's article about Why Every One Should Try Going Vegan at Least Once in Their Life and was intrigued. I've been thinking about doing it for awhile and the other night when I was home alone I got on Netflix and watched Vegucated. 

MY. MIND. WAS. BLOWN. 

I have been living in this little "Brooklyn-bubble" completely unaware of where my food comes from. I had "heard" these crazy vegans and vegetarians, but I hadn't listened to what they were saying. 

I decided to educate myself even more. I watched Forks Over Knives and Hungry For Change on Netflix. I started reading WHOLE and ordered The China Study. I don't want to keep living in the dark. I want to feel better. I want to take care of my body, mentally and physically. So what do I have to lose?

There are incredible benefits for eating vegetarian or vegan! There are benefits for our environment, our bodies, animals, and the world! Seriously you guys. Do some research! Here's a list by Annie of 100 Reasons to Go Vegan. 

I'll be honest. I'm nervous. Giving up meat doesn't seem too hard, because I'm not a huge meat eater anyway. But RIP Chickfila, I'll miss you! I plan to eat vegetarian for at least a couple of weeks, but the ultimate goal is to continue eating this way! That's really scary for me to post, because then it holds me accountable... but that's what I need. 

I am excited to give this a try, and I'll be doing updates on my Instagram of how I feel and what I'm eating! Be sure to go follow over at @brooklynjolley

OCTOBER 2016 GOALS

I was reading my blogger friend Ashley's October Goals and it inspired me! I love reading what goals others are working on and how they are achieving them. I've been off/on with blogging for awhile and have been feeling a little more inspired lately so here I am! I decided to share some of my October goals with you to keep you in the loop. 

We are in transition on a lot of things right now: becoming foster parents, becoming biological parents, selling our home, Colten graduating, new jobs, etc. So instead of worry about all the things I can't control, this month I'm really trying to focus on what I CAN control. Which is me! So here's my goals based on Luke 2:52.

WISDOM 

Read 4 books this month. I just finished No Ordinary Women by Elaine Dalton on audiobook and loved it! Now I'm starting a book about yoga and so far so good. I'll try to do an October book update like I did for September. 

STATURE

Practice yoga every day- even if it's only a couple of stretches before bed. 

This is something I'm working on to try and help with my anxiety, and so far I feel like it's been helping a lot! 

FAVOR OF GOD

10-30 minutes of "SIT" time every day. I need to write a full blog post to explain this concept, but basics of SIT time is that I spend time Studying wherever my heart desires as long as it is spiritually uplifting, spend time in Intentional prayer/meditation, and give myself Time to write in a journal.

FAVOR OF MAN

Go on a fall-themed date with Colten! I've been wanting to go pick pumpkins and make caramel apples so we are definitely going to figure out how to make this happen. Fall is my favorite season!

That's all for now. I've been working through my mental illnesses and it has been very life-consuming for awhile. I finally feel like I'm getting a routine down that works! But I am still giving myself grace when I fall and need to pick myself back up. I hope you'll do the same for you this month.

Where to Buy Halloween Leggings

A bunch of my friends who sell Lularoe were able to snag a few pairs of the Halloween leggings capsule! I was so excited for them. I am totally into cheesy holiday outfits, so once they were posting the leggings I popped over to their Facebook pages to see what they had.

EVERY. SINGLE. PAIR. OF. LEGGINGS. WAS. SOLD.

In seconds! You guys! It is insanity. Now I'm seeing them being resold for $50, $60, $70+ dollars! It is insane!!

Of course it made me want some cute Halloween leggings, but not for that price! I decided to do a little internet research and thought it might be helpful to share what I found. So here are some places I found to buy Halloween leggings that aren't Lularoe!

+ Skeleton Leggings from Amazon


+ Spider Web Leggings from Amazon


+ Nightmare Before Christmas Leggings from Kohl's


+ "Creepy" Halloween Leggings from K-Mart 


+ Jack O Lantern Leggings from K-Mart


+ Spider Web Leggings from Tipsy Elves


+ Candy Corn Leggings from Tipsy Elves


I hope this post is helpful! Let me know if you find some cute leggings for yourself, I'd love to see. And be sure to share with your other leggings loving friends so they can get in on the fun!

September Books I Read //

End of August I joined a book club in my ward. Even though we weren't able to meet with them once the book was finished, I really enjoyed getting back into reading. Reading has been one of my hobbies for so long, but as the years have gone by and my anxiety has gotten worse I set it aside. Reading for the book club reminded me of how much I love it!

I committed to reading 10 pages a day. If I wanted to read more I could, but if nothing else I'd read 10 pages of a book for pleasure every day. I finished four books in September! (Needless to say I read more than 10 pages most days!) 

Fishers of Men by Gerald Lund

This is the book I read as a part of the book club. I'll be honest, it took me about 100 pages to actually "get into". I felt really confused. But after those first 100 pages or so I started to get super into it and loved it! It follows some families who were alive at the time that Christ lived on the earth and as he began his ministry. I really enjoyed hearing the stories of Jesus in a new way, through the eyes of fictional characters who were there. There are a few more sequels and I want to read them soon!

Uninvited by Lysa Terkeurst

I had seen a lot of bloggers posting about this book so of course I bought it to read! I hadn't read anything by Lysa Terkeurst yet, and I must say I love her writing style! This book gave me some amazing eternal perspectives on why we feel left out, where our worth comes from, and how to overcome those awful feelings of loneliness and comparison. If you're even a tiny bit interested in this book, give it a read. 

Let God Love You by Wendy Ulrich

I just finished a full review of this book. You can read it HERE.

Anxiety: Panicking about Panic by Joshua Fletcher

I purchased this book back when I was first diagnosed with anxiety and panic disorder back in May. It wasn't enough to know that "something was wrong with me." I wanted to know what and why and how. This book explains what can cause anxiety, and what's going on biologically when you are experiencing anxiety and panic attacks. I have found it super helpful. Knowledge is truly power! I believe one of the best ways to dispel fear is to gain more understanding about what it is that you fear. 

I've already purchased a few books for October and my Amazon list is FULL! What are you currently reading that you love?? I'd love to add some to my list!

Let God Love You - Book Review

Wendy Ulrich is one of my favorite authors. As a psychologist, I just feel like she GETS me. She understands the mental challenges we experience, and she understands that they affect us spiritually. 

I recently was given the opportunity to review her newest book from Deseret Book titled, "Let God Love You- Why We Don't, How We Can." The idea behind the book is coming to understand that our past and current relationships have affected the way we picture God. 

If we've had relationships that were really good, and then that person let us down, or abandoned us, or turned against us, we know the pain and trauma those experiences cause. We may start to put those ideas into Heavenly Father. Well if my husband left me, why wouldn't Heavenly Father? If my best friend gets impatient with my long stories, why would Heavenly Father want to listen? If my parent abused me when I made mistakes, how could God ever love me after this mistake?

See what I'm saying? After reading this book I realized just how many incorrect ideas I have about Heavenly Father that have come from past relationships. This book is amazing at helping you uncover what it is that is keeping you from closeness with God.

There are so many quotes in this book I want to share! But the best thing to do would really be to go buy the book from Deseret Book and read it! Here's one of my favorites I shared on Instagram. 

"Christ's disciples once asked Him to teach them to pray. He can teach us too. Sometimes we need more practice with submissive prayer, or grateful prayer, or penitent prayer. Sometimes we need to try praying longer, out loud, or with a paper and pencil in hand. And sometimes we need to simply invite God to join us at whatever empty chair we can see or can imagine, opening our heart to let Him come close, and sit with us as we wrestle with a problem, or feel sad, or just stare in wonder at the night sky."

This book has changed my perspective on how to get closer to God. I'm so grateful I took the time to read it. I have so many quotes marked in it. Most books I donate or share with a friend after reading, but this one is going to stick around so I can re-read it someday. God is truly waiting for us to let Him close! His love is unchanging, it is simply, always, there.