Now let me just tell you that before I was a mother, I would not have thought shopping with a wee one could be that difficult. I mean, you just strap ’em in the buggy (for you non-Southerners, I’m talking about the ‘shopping cart’) and go. I held onto this belief even after my son was born until one day, I (completely lost all of my sensibilities and) decided to take him to Ulta with me to pick up a few things. Even when shopping, my son is not a particularly belligerent or disobedient child; until he decides he’s hungry, he’s typically attentive and eager to please.

So, at about 11 months old, he and I trek on into the mecca of cosmetic stores. Y’all. I don’t know happened. Actually that’s not true – I do know. I didn’t feel like pulling the big stroller out to navigate the narrow aisles, plus there are no buggies (ie- no imprisonment). And there is a reason. They don’t want your children in there. My theory is that they know that there is this force field of estrogen and eyeshadow and Givenchy perfume one passes through at the entrance that will completely mutate your sweet angel into a rabid, eleven-armed Mowgli manchild incapable of hearing your demands to not eat the ankle-high lipgloss testers… or kick the wire trashcan of used Q-tips across the floor at the lady suffering through an upper lip wax. Just so we’re all on the same page – a karate chop that knocks all of the nail polish bottles onto the tile floor is LOUD.

On that particular day, I thought it was just a fluke; “he’s having a bad day”, “maybe he was too tired”, yadda yadda. So we left, and then tried again a few weeks later. I only needed two things and had a Navy Seal’s master plan of how to get in and out undetected, no buggy needed. HA! I kid you not – we walked three steps through the estrogen force field entrance, and my manchild pooped to his shoulder blades with a substance that smelled powerful enough to cure cancer instantly and may have killed a few small birds. There is not a word to adequately describe the range of emotions that went through my soul at that moment.

I don’t go to Ulta with my kid. There are many places we do go shopping together, but that is not one of them.

So…guess what I do when I don’t have my kid? You got it. I grab my Starbucks, that silver mesh shopping bag, and have a ME-DATE as the angels sing! I went a few days ago, and I thought I’d share with you some of my finds. I often get stuck in a product rut, so I’m always grateful to hear other people’s opinions about what they like! (*I’m not getting paid or anything like that from these recs… just passing along some girly info! And you can find all of these products on the Ulta website linked above.)1. Has anyone ever tried these C. Booth products? I bought my first two – the Milk Bath bodywash and the 4-en-1 Buerre Vanille body lotion. Oh my goodness. I may never buy anything else. The prices are super reasonable, they smell fantastic, and my skin (which is really, really sensitive) feels great! There are lots of fragrance options, body scrubs, butters, and shower products… Most everything is paraben and sulfate free. Definitely give them a try.

2. My friend, Sarah, gave me these facial masks for my birthday and I finally got the time to try one out! I used the aloe moisturizing mask because my face has been feeling a little drier now that I’m outside getting more sun. I loved it! I left it on for about 25 minutes and could definitely tell a difference afterwards. (No sensitivity reaction) I can’t wait to try the others! These run between $4-6/each.

3. I could not survive without dry shampoo. People ask me fairly often “how do you get your hair to do that?” This right here is the kryptonite. I’ve tried the expensive stuff and the cheap stuff – it’s all the same and the Batiste original is one of my favorites.  I wash my hair about twice a week and use this the other days. (Yes, my husband thinks it’s gross and no, I don’t care.)  “Dirty” hair is so much more pliable and fixable and curlable than hair that is washed every day. Yes, it is a pain to train it and you feel like an oil slick for a week or two. After the training period, your scalp naturally stops producing so much oil and your hair will not feel greasy. Trust me. Grab a ball cap or some head scarves, cover that junk up for awhile, and add years to your life not spent holding a hair dryer. It’s worth it.

4. My mom and sis-in-law LOVE the browning lotion on the left. Swear by it. Buy it for each other in bulk. My skin is more fair and if I use this on the beach, I get burnt. So, I was really excited to see this sunless tanner! Cheers to a good “tan” and no melanoma!

5. One other thing that is always on my shopping list is this under eye concealer. The price is great and it allows me to avoid casting call offers for The Walking Dead. Win-win.

Hope y’all are having a great week and get some time soon for a ME-DATE!