Ready to flush this bathroom project right down the toilet

Oh, people. Why do some home projects have to be so mother-effing hard? This bathroom business has just been a long, drawn out mess.

Today was the day - floor was finished yesterday, allowing us to clean up grout residue, install toilet and vanity, tack on some trim, and do anything and everything else possible.

Husband left to get some ... something or other. I stayed home to clean up the grout leftovers and get our tile squeaky, shiny clean. WRONG. Instead, I freaked out because the solution smeared a bit of grout around on the tile, then called husband freaking out, only to get scolded for leaving the cleaner on the new tile.

Things settled down and we decided to install the vanity. But there were no instructions. And the granite counter needed to be treated. Run to Lowe's. Google instructions. Fine, fine, fine. But when we (by we I mean my husband) started to put the faucet together in the vanity top, we (this time I mean we) realized the plastic piece that fits under the faucet was the wrong piece. Thanks, Moen Quality Assurance Team.

With some elbow grease and crude box cutter skills, we made a flap so the drain pull could move smoothly. Yay, okay things are on track! WRONG. Drain pipe, which was standard size, isn't long enough. Husband goes to Home Depot to get the right size. I go to the gym so I don't murder him or anyone else nearby. Come home to find out some screw up repeatedly backed into his car as he was waiting to get out of the parking lot.

Hi, a-hole, lay off the meth. When someone is A) behind you; B) honking at you and motioning; C) can't back up because there are people/cars/whatever behind him that means something. Even more adorable is that when husband parked his car to pound on man's window to get him to stop HE HAD NO IDEA WHAT WAS GOING ON.

A series of apparently uncouth, ambiguous exchanges followed, and MY F*CKING HUSBAND DIDN'T GET ANY OF THE MAN'S INFORMATION because there was no damage to either car.

Whatever. Hi, you're dumb, as many men often are, but let's move on. So we did (after I spazzed a few more times).

Then the blade needed to cut the pipe/trim/something/whatever broke in husband's hand. He had to go out. Again. I reminded him to drive safe.

This leaves us with a working toilet (Yay!), semi-installed vanity (Blah!), mirror still in the box (No!), fixtures/accessories still in the bags (Guh.), and painted-but-not-nailed trim approximately (Eff it.) 12 hours before I need to take him to the airport to leave for three weeks again. But it does look pretty already, doesn't it?

And we'd been having so much fun together this weekend, up until this day ...

(You gotta be kidding me. At "press time" I was notified that the back splash would not fit behind the faucet, and the vanity counter top could not be pulled forward enough to make room behind it. Anyone want a slab of beige granite?)

It's bathroom weekend at the 28 house!

Well, not yet. But the husband comes home tonight for the weekend and will be put to work tomorrow a.m. starting with taking off the bathroom cabinet doors and repainting them, as well as mudding the floors. Saturday is grouting floor, and I guess that leaves Sunday (or maybe it happens Saturday, too) to install the toilet and vanity.

THEN. THEN I WILL HAVE A FULL BATHROOM AGAIN.

Exhale ..............

My face's favorites

A few week's back I was reading this post on Lover's Knot about Gwen Stefani's tried and true beauty products. Her list was suprisingly down to earth, and it got me thinking about my very own set of holy grail products for eyes, lips and face.

Here they are ... but I want you to share yours, too!

1. Biolements' Kerafole. People, it's sad but true: I am THE poster child of premature aging due to sun damage. My summers in San Diego visiting auntie - with no sunscreen or shades - have snatched any twenty-something tautness from my cheeks and even given me some under eye wrinkles. Not. Cool. And all. My. Own. Fault. However, Kerafole by Biolements is a miraculous, tingly, earthy mask that makes my skin smoother and pores smaller. I discovered it during an express facial appointment a year or so ago and realized the jar of product, which you can stretch out over about a year even though it looks tiny, cost the same as the service itself. I got one to take home and we've been great pals ever since (and I'm almost due for a refill!)

2. Mary Kay Tinted Lip Balm. I never thought I'd order a Mary Kay product. My mom has always maligned the stuff, and I dislike both Cadillacs and the color powder pink. However, I got a $25 credit for MK through a company we used to do furnace maintenance, so I was determined to use it. (Plus, I was flying high on a few other freebie-type situations, which I detailed here.) After about a month of hem-hawwing I finally ordered a few products, including this lip balm in Blush. I LOVE. It's got all the great lip softening qualities of your best friend {insert your lip crack-cocaine of choice here; mine's Burt's Bees} but great pigment and staying power. Plus it has sunscreen in it, so my lips won't turn out like the rest of my face. Pout, pout.

3. Maybelline Instant Age Rewind The Eraser Treatment Makeup. Jesus, what a mouthful. But it's also a faceful ... of smooth, glowing skin. Yep, going back to my crappy skin again - I am clearly insecure about my skin's texture. I use a variety of pricier (and cheaper) primers and foundations, but have still only been kinda-whelmed. After seeing this product on commercials all winter I finally spotted it at Target 2 weeks ago and had to buy it. It so works. My dry skin looks much smoother and actually has a dewy finish after application - something very hard for me to achieve and keep throughout the day.

4. smashbox Cream Eye Liner. I never anticipated using this product, as I am the mistress of poorly applied eye make-up, especially liner. If I wing one eye just right, the other is sure to be doomed by my unsteady hand and leaving me looking like a Muppet with Bells palsy. I was actually introduced to this product by MY MOM who bought it from FRICKING QVC and gave me one of the colors from the combo set she got. With the angled brush (I actually bought my own Sephora brand brush, which has stayed together much better than momma's sb version) and creamy concoction  I am now somehow able to swoop skillfully on both lids, and the product stays put all day long. This stuff is proof that drama can indeed be good.

Okay, those are my favorites. Now it's your turn.