Friday, November 4, 2016

"Nice man bun, faggot."




"Nice man bun, faggot."

To the guy in bar that randomly walked up to my brother and said, "Nice man bun, faggot":

"Did you punch him in his face?" My contractor-husband immediately asked. 

"No. I just laughed," my brother replied.

"Wait, what?" I asked. "Why did he say that to you? Were you obnoxiously singing or something?" I naively responded, referring to one of Matt's normal escapades that wouldn't have surprised me. As if an act like this, or anything for that matter, could possibly warrant a comment like this. 

"Nope. I was just out to eat for a friend's going away party, and he walked up to me, said it, and walked away." 

I was shocked, furious, and frustrated. I'm a teacher. Not only am I uncomfortable even typing a derogatory term like "faggot" but when I hear immature teenagers use comments like this, I often respond with, "Really? No one even says that anymore, let's not." Apparently, I'm wrong. 

I want to explain something to you, oh ignorant, impulsive, poor decision-making, random guy:


This is Matt Horbaly. 





Yes, he has long hair, which is often in a "man bun." And, despite it taking some getting used to, let me explain to you why he has this, and what he did today. 


This is Jenny. 



To us, she was Grandma Horbaly. Jenny was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 1999, and unfortunately, lost her hair as a result. Despite not being a "kid," after my aunt helped "Wigs for Kids" with some website design, they helped Jenny obtain a wig. Grandma Horbaly beamed with her new blonde locks. We loved her post-chemotherapy bandana, but she constantly wore the wig, saying she felt "more like herself," and her confidence while it was on, spoke for itself. 

"Why are you growing out your hair?" My dad asked my brother 8 months into the process. "You're a professional, is your work okay with this?" It took some getting used to. My dad is from a generation where long hair was often synonymous with rebelling or laziness. 

"I'm gonna donate it, Dad, and yes, it's fine." And that, was that. 



Skip ahead 3 years, and here we are. Today, Matt donated 14 inches of beautiful, natural blonde hair to Wigs for Kids. In case you don't know what happens with hair when it's donated, watch this video, and grab your tissues.



As if this doesn't speak volumes enough for his character, let me explain a little further about Matt. Matt is awesome. He is the guy at the restaurant that learns the waitress' name, calls her by it, and asks how her day is, before she gets the chance to ask him, simply because he truly cares about people--all of them. He's a guy that takes personal days from work, to help his church pass out food at an outdoor produce market. He's a guy, who shamelessly endured questioning, criticism, and crude comments, to help a kid with cancer shine with the confidence his Grandmother did years ago--and did it with grace. 

So, to the random guy in the bar, who may or may not ever read this: This "faggot" is the quintessential definition of a Godly man and a reminder to us all of the what this life is truly about; so take note. 



On a side note. This is also his beautiful girlfriend, Katie. Another perk of the man bun 😉





Tuesday, October 25, 2016



http://www.staygoldshell.com/p/lipsense.html


I scoured Pinterest, Instagram & Google for ideas for a "lipstick bag". Since I'm new to LipSense and just bought a ton of new product, I needed something cheap and functional for my new stock. I purchased a small, simple make-up bag from Wal-Mart because although I'm not ready for a trade show, I needed a "go-to" bag to take to work, parties, and to show my friends the goods.

I needed to keep my supplies and the tubes organized, and when I opened my dresser drawer--it hit me! IKEA has the BEST drawer dividers. You can adjust them to ANY size, and they're only $3!

 
 



You can literally measure, twist, snap and click them together! They are PERFECT for ANY size bag. I'm sure someone else already thought of this hack, but just in case you didn't-- here it is!


http://www.staygoldshell.com/p/lipsense.html 



I left some sections bigger for other supplies like applicators, cotton rounds,  baggies, etc. 

 
http://www.staygoldshell.com/p/lipsense.html


Here's the finished product! For less than $20-- I couldn't be happier!



http://www.staygoldshell.com/p/lipsense.html
 

 I'm sure as my stock and customer base grows I'll need to get a bigger bag, but for now this is perfect! 

staygoldshell@gmail.com


Thursday, October 20, 2016

Fall Family Photography




These are family pictures from a fall mini-session by Kelley Deal Photography. I can't saw enough amazing things about Kelley. Believe it or not, all of these were captured within a 20-30 minute period-- and with 6 people including a baby and a toddler--the photography speaks for itself!

                                                                                                                

                                                                                                                




















Hilarious Halloween Creations

Long ago I decided funny costumes trump sexy costumes ALL. day. long. Here is the evolution of that from me & my fraaaands, passed on to my kids:


 Dumb & Dumber Best Friends Costumes




Couples Costumes-- Trainer & Shamu


Batman & Robin Best Friends Costumes


Squints & Wendy Couple Costumes



Ace Ventura Toddler Costume


Mommy & Me Costume-- Ace & Snowflake



Toddler Rambo Costume



...clearly he finally wanted to pick his own costume, so we decided to be a dragon (insert eyeroll)


Cabbage Patch Baby Costume



Update 2016: Brother/Sister Halloween Costume--Excellent.



My Classroom

Designing a high school classroom is a lot of work, but the ample amount of research showing the benefits of creating a welcoming environment for "your kids" makes it worth it. The added challenge for high school teachers is that anything pre-made is juvenile, so here's my attempt to keep it secondary: