Winter Cara Box

Once again, I participated in the Cara Box exchange, hosted by Kaitlyn of Wifessionals. Things changed again for this exchange, as it is now hosted primarily through Instagram. Some people love the changes, and some don't. I have to admit that I was more on the 'not so much loving this IG Cara Box exchange thing', but I saw it through for this time around. 

My partners were Nicole and Kaysey, two of the most loving women I've met thus far! 
I sent a box to Nicole, whom sadly does not have a blog yet. Key word: yet! ;) I have high hopes that one day she will begin that journey, but until then, take it from me - she's the greatest! She and her husband have a heart for the Lord and a passion for serving others. I'm telling you, this woman is involved in so much! And it all involves her 'giving'. She's truly inspirational, and I've really loved getting to know her! Thank you, Nicole, for being a great Cara Box partner! 
I received a box from Kaysey from Thinking Out Cloud. This momma has a lot goin' on! She has two precious boys and captures her love for them on her blog - so fun. Take a few minutes and go check her out! I've absolutely loved getting to know her over the past few months, and as hectic as the holidays were, she still took the time to respond to my emails and check out my blog! She was so supportive with some personal things I had going on, and I'm truly thankful for her! 
I think I can also say that my love of all things pink definitely came through while we were getting to know each other... 

LOVE that tissue paper! She definitely spoiled me and went above and beyond! Every single thing I unwrapped just had me so thankful. She captured me to a T, and I know she put in a lot of effort to find things I would truly enjoy! 

That lotion smells amazing! Kaysey said it was her favorite, and it was pink and reminded her of me, so she added it. I love it! I literally put it on as soon as I unwrapped it. My mother in law also mentioned how good it smelled and wanted to know what it was called. This stuff seriously smells amazing. The candle also smells divine! Vanilla snowflake?! Yes, please! Especially down in South Texas, where the weather does {on occasion} get cold but no snow. Ever. I'm definitely all over that candle and love it like a fat kid loves cake! :) 
The notepad is great! I'm a list maker, so I'm always excited to have more notepads to fill with my infamous lists. My husband might not have shared my excitement, but oh well :). It's also magnetic, so on the fridge it goes! And that cross?! Let me just tell you about that cross. Uh-Maz-Ing! She mentioned in her note that she knows it's not pink, but this cross is one of her favorites and added it to the mix. Little does she know {she might...I forget what all I tell people about myself} that I have not one, but two cross walls in our apartment, and our decor is 'country', meaning mostly neutrals and browns with a TURQUOISE accent color! This baby matches perfectly! It may or may not already be hanging up ;). 
That scarf is to die for. I recently have had an obsession with all things scarves and she played right into that! It's unbelievably soft and is shades of pink to yellow ... gorg! It's also pretty lightweight, which is great because I just can't do big, bulky, wooly scarves - this is TEXAS! 
And, the best for last - that luggage tag. Want a closer look? Why, I'd love to oblige. It's worth it! 

First of all, it's pink. Winner, winner, chicken dinner! It also has Scripture on it... 
"With God all things are possible." - Matthew 19:26 

We have a trip coming up, which Kaysey knew, and she knew I'd get a lot of use out of this! I seriously love it so much! We're not big travelers, mostly because we can't afford to be right now, but I now have my first ever luggage tag, and it holds a lot of special meaning to me! 
Basically, Kaysey rocked my world with every single thing she added to my box. She really captured ME, which I guess isn't too difficult - if it's pink and it smells good, you're safe :). But she went above and beyond with things that she knew held significance to me and that I would actually get use out of.  Thank you, Kaysey! Best.CaraBox.Partner.Ever. :) 

It's Fall Y'all! {Cara Box Reveal}

It's that time again! But this time, things are different! That's right, I'm talking about the Cara Box Exchange hosted by Kaitlyn over at Wifessionals! It's a swap between bloggers and non-bloggers alike, and a way to get to know some amazing people! For more information, head over here.

 

I've participated several times before, and I just keep coming back for more! And now, there's a new schedule; instead of a monthly swap {let's face it, that's just not enough time to really get to know someone, shop for them, and mail a box!}, it's hosted four times a year, every three months. This current theme {September - November} was all things fall.

I was paired up with Brenda from Totally Brenda and sent her a box. She lives in the Dallas area, so it was nice to get to know someone sort of close by! She has a heart for children and helping in any way she can! She definitely made me want to do more! To "meet" her and see what she got, go check her out!

I received a box from Caitlin over at My Life As a Long. She is married to her best friend and that girl is always, always, always on the go! I just can't keep up... But the box she sent me was simply amazing, and she definitely outdid herself! Seriously!

She started it off with a $15 Starbucks gift card to my email account. Umm, yes please! This allowed me to get my first red cup of the season! :) Thanks Caitlin.

I immediately fell in love with everything in this box! She sent a great assortment of fall scents - my favorite! I took the room spray to my office and it's just glorious! It's Scentsy's scent of the month - cedar mill. Definitely a perfect fall scent.

The Essie nail polish is a perfect fall/winter color! I'm loving the dark colors lately, too, so it was perfect! I also adored the fuzzy socks. Who doesn't like a good pair of warm, fuzzy socks?!

She also hit the nail on the head with the EOS lip balm she sent! I've recently fell in love with their mint balm and Chapstick has become a thing of the past. So, to now own EOS in a pomegranate raspberry...just perfect! I haven't tried it out yet {I'm almost out of my current mint, so I'm waiting to jump into the new flavor}, but I'm pretty excited! Colten just looked at me like I was crazy when I saw this in the box. Haha! The only kinds I ever see are the mint and strawberry. I'm afraid I'll fall in love with the pomegranate raspberry and won't be able to find it anyway. So, *hint hint* Caitlin, I may be asking for a regular shipment! ;)

And the absolute best part of the box was my amazing, monogrammed scarf! I've recently began an obsession with all things scarves {I even bought a scarf hanger/organizer a few weekends ago}, and this fit right in! First of all, it's pink! Second, it's the softest scarf ever! Seriously. And lastly, {but not least} she monogrammed it with my initials. So sweet and personal! I'm in love, y'all! I wore this thing the very next morning. That's how much I loved it! And I got sooooo many compliments on it, too!

Thank you Caitlin! You outdid yourself, but {obviously} I love absolutely everything! :)

 

August Cara Box {Reveal}

cara (car-rah) noun : beloved friend    

Kaitlyn over at Wifessionals hosts the Cara Box Exchange every month. Well, she used to. The rules are changing a bit, so go check it out! Basically, you get paired with two women to get to know for the month. You send a box to one of them, and the other one sends a box to you! I've met some amazing women through this exchange, and I look forward to continuing my participation in this amazing exchange! This is only my second time to participate, and it was awesome, just as before! Go here to see my June Cara Box experience.

I was paired with Raewyn over at Warrior Queen and Jessica at A Different Kind of Plan. This month, Kaitlyn did a phenomenal job and paired everyone with someone in their age range and marital/child status. Both of these girls have amazing men by their side, just like I do! Head over to Raewyn's blog to meet this amazing girl and check out what I sent her. She's currently in wedding planning mode and is getting married on April 19th of next year! Girl, that's just 8 short months away! Good luck! :) But this girl seriously got me through some rough times this month. I look forward to keeping in touch with her!

I received a box from Jessica, and boy did she go all out! Seriously, she really outdid herself! She sent numerous items for a romantic spa date night in: sleep mask, bath soap, face masks, loufa, candles... wow! I can't wait to use this stuff! Maybe this weekend...we shall see!

She also wrote the sweetest note - sorry the picture is a little blurry - that really melted my heart. Thanks so much, Jessica! This girl really picked up on the big, true things in my life. Although, I've also been told I'm pretty transparent...oops! Oh well - that's what a blog is all about, right?! :)  

This girl also sent me some amazing lists and post-its! As an avid list-maker - I'm in love! These will most definitely come in handy, and I've really been needing some new ones, so it's perfect!

She also included these Chihuahua tissues - because this month has been terrible to me, and, as she put it, it's okay to cry. Well, why not cry into these amazing tissues?! So super sweet and absolutely precious! And I had a good laugh - thanks Jessica! Perfect timing.

I also received two big bars of chocolate that may or may not have been devoured immediately. A girl after my own heart, I must say! They were delicous ;).  Also included was some under eye cream - I'm super busy in my life and there are many, many nights where I don't get enough sleep which equals tired eyes and dark circles. If I fall in love with it, it better not be too expensive, or my husband may not allow it, and we can't let that happen! Fingers crossed :). 

I had a great experience this time around and I just love meeting new people! But, I must admit, I'm very excited that Kaitlyn has decided to change up the way she runs this exchange. Instead of it occurring monthly, it will be a span of three months. Let's face it, two weeks to get to know someone and then send a box of goodies to them is just not enough time! Especially when life happens. I admit I had to send my box to Raewyn a few days late due to my dental emergency, but thankfully she still received it in time! I look forward to coninuing with this wonderful exchange. I'm so blessed to know two more amazing women around the U.S. and to have found Kaitlyn's blog that allows me to meet amazing women! If you haven't participated yet, I strongly urge you to! September's pairings will be based on location, so I'm excited to maybe get to know some Texas women! And, if you're not a blogger, you can still participate! That's right - she will pair you with another non-blogger and y'all can still have the same experience. Seriously, what are you waiting for?! :)

Carnival Craze

I participated in my first ever Cara Box exchange this month, sponsored by Kaitlyn at Wifessionals!     cara (car-rah) noun : beloved friend   The Cara Box Exchange is a monthly box swap with other women.  You can be a blogger or not, but you sign up over on Kaitlyn's blog - I highly recommend it!  You are then paired with two women, one that sends a box of goodies to you and one that you send a box of goodies to.  Over the course of the month, you pretty much stalk these two women in an attempt to really get to know them.  Well, you email them, too, of course ;).  This month, I was paired with two very amazing women: Brittany at Everyday Thoughts and Joanna at River City Essentials.   I sent a box to Brittany, which you can check out here, and Joanna sent a box to me!      Each month has a theme, and June's was 'Take Me to the Fair!' She went with a carnival theme after learning that I'm a sucker for date nights with my hubby!    

  She learned fairly quickly that I love pink!  I hope it wasn't 'too' obvious! :)  Another part of the Cara Box is that you include an encouraging letter to the woman you're sending too - who doesn't love getting a box of goodies in the mail AND some encouragement from fellow women/bloggers?!  No brainer there!    Joanna included so many goodies!  She even thought of Ace, our sweet puppy! 

Included were: //Crystal Light lemonade //super cute pink & white polka dot napkins //ping pong balls and cups for a balltoss  //glitter pink nail polish & lipstick from pure romance //animal crackers //caramel corn popped chips //elephant dog toy for Ace  //supplies for a kissing booth   I loved all of it! Thanks, Joanna!  Ace seriously is obsessed with his elephant - it's become his favorite toy and he drags it around everywhere he goes!  (if you follow me on Instagram {@brileigh12}, you've already seen a pretty funny video of him and his new friend) My husband also thanks you for the animal crackers - if only you could've seen his face, haha!  It was priceless!  We also plan to have some fun with the kissing booth soon, so stay tuned for that date night!     I've loved being a part of the Cara Box exchange and I will definitely participate again in the future!  I've met two great ladies and I look forward to following their journey and continue learning more about them. :)