14: Showtime & Expectations

Posted on February 10, 2014 by BeautyFrosting

With everything that happened in the last week, it felt like it was more like a month! Wednesday was one of the most challenging days I’ve ever had because literally everything that could go wrong went wrong. I had two band members who had to take their loved ones to the hospital unexpectedly for dire emergencies and there was a world of changes going on that I just was not prepared for.

But then there was so much sweetness that I thought my heart would burst. Ah, life, how you love to throw the curveballs and the cupcakes at us all at the same time. Without further ado, my weekly High-Low.

HIGH: Showtime

Beau’s Debut! Well, now that People Magazine announced it last week, I can announce that my heart just got a little bit fuller – and pinker – thanks to the birth of Beau Katherine Brower!!

HIGH: Beau's Debut!! I got to visit her on her first day at the hospital and I fell instantly in love. Swoon.

Beau was born to some of my best friends, Ned and Sarah Brower (also known as actress Sarah Jane Morris) on Saturday, March 1st and she is just gorgeous and perfect! And since they waited to find out the sex, it was the sweetest of surprises that she was a girl!!! I went to meet Miss Beau and, of course, couldn’t show up to the hospital empty-handed! So I swung by my fave baby store, Bel Bambini on Robertson and picked up some pink to properly celebrate Beau’s debut! I’m utterly smitten and am determined to spoil her rotten. As you can see, it’s already started.

Pink presents for Beau from Bel Bambini - I couldn't help myself! Girls are so fun!!

Hotel Cafe As many of you may know – and many may not – I am a singer/songwriter. I’m not full-time anymore at all but I still write and love to play my favorite venue here in LA (and my home away from home), The Hotel Cafe.

High: Hotel Cafe Show 2/8/14 - For The Lovers, Love-Hopeful, Heartbreakers & Heartbroken

I had the pleasure of playing this past Saturday and it was just the most fun! I got to play with some of my all-time favorite musicians and friends including Ben Peeler, Garrett Hanson, Joel Martin, Jon Button and Malcolm Cross. I realized it had been 10 months since I’d played there and that is 10 months too long. I love to title my shows so this Valentine’s one was called “For The Lovers, Love-Hopeful, Heartbreakers and Heartbroken.” One could argue that I was workin’ through some pretty powerful emotions up on that stage but I worked it out through singing my heart out, dancing and seeing 100 of my friends’ faces smiling at me from the audience. It was just perfect. And it’s gotta happen more often. It does my soul so much good.

This photo perfectly captures my joy of the evening. Just bliss. (*Dress is Plenty by Tracy Reese for Anthropologie and sideways cross necklace is by Flea Market Girl)

LOW: Expectations

Low: Expectations

Let me start by saying that I am so grateful for the week I’ve had and the amazing people that I have in my life. Whenever I express the lows, it’s not to complain but rather to really experience these lows so that I might see the highs more clearly and appreciate them more richly. This week I let myself be let down by a few people. What do I mean by that? I mean that I had some expectations of people and well, they fell short. Not the people but my expectations. I was expressing my annoyance and hurt with my dear friend (and talk show host/therapist) Matt Marr and he blew my mind once again with his insight and wisdom. He said to me, “Expectations are future resentments.” Word. They sure are.

And with me, this goes tenfold. I don’t have many pet peeves but one of them is when someone makes a plan with me and cancels or doesn’t follow through. It gets under my skin like nothin’ else. Those closest to me know this and try to operate accordingly. But what I’m realizing is that I need to lower my expectations a bit. People are human. Things come up. People make mistakes. I’m not saying it’s going to happen today but an ongoing goal of mine is to become a little less rigid and a little more forgiving in terms of people who don’t meet my expectations as I think they should. Thank you for these thought-provoking words, Matty.

xoxo,
BF

BF Asks: What was your High-Low this week?

*So what exactly is a High-Low, you ask? High-Low is the BEST & WORST part of your day, week, month, etc. I started this tradition with friends & family after I discovered it through a movie decades ago. Not only is it useful for reflection sake but it is also an excellent way to communicate with your spouse, kids or friends over the dinner table. By introducing this tradition to folks, parents have told me that their kids have opened up more and friends have told me that their spouses have become more communicative. Try it for yourself and let me know what your experience is!

High-Low 1/27/14: Sweeter Than A Cupcake & Sitting With Sadness (thanks, Louis C.K.!)

Posted on January 27, 2014 by BeautyFrosting

Here’s my High-Low this week. It was a week filled with sweetness, gratitude, love and light and a little bit of sadness. I just consider myself lucky that I get to feel the entire range of emotions. I’m realizing that there are many people who either physically can’t feel these emotions or have blocked themselves to where they’re devoid of feeling emotions on such a scale. So while that means that I’ll have my share of ups and downs over the years, it also means that I’ll be able to continue to share my High-Lows with you all. Lucky ducks…

HIGH: SWEETER THAN A CUPCAKE

HIGH: SWEETER THAN A CUPCAKE - "I Dream To…" Mentor Day with Step Up Women's Network at the Dermalogica headquarters

This past Saturday morning, I showed up at the Dermalogica headquarters in Carson, California to participate in Step Up Women’s Network “I Dream To…” Mentor Day. I am a visionary member of Step Up Women’s Network and am a big fan because their sole mission is to help inspire girls from under-resourced communities to live up to their full potential. They have done this so effectively that 100% of Step Up graduates over the past 4 years have been accepted to and currently attend college.

I had no idea what to expect and to be honest, I was a little nervous. But after meeting my mentee, “S.”, all of my nervousness went away. We were very different and yet we had qualities at our cores in common which bonded us.

My goal going into the day was to encourage, inspire and motivate her. So imagine my surprise, after spending the day together when I was the one tearing up as I read her letter of gratitude to me and realizing how much she had taught me.

I learned more from this 15-year-old in one day than I have learned from most people in the past month. And by sharing with her some of my successes, struggles and strategies, I actually learned lessons that I didn’t even know I needed to learn.

I am so thankful to have met S. and to have been able to share this day together. My hope is that she took as much away from the day with me as I took from my time spent with her.

LOW: SITTING WITH SADNESS

LOW: SITTING WITH SADNESS (Thanks, Louis C.K.!!)

This past week – like so many other weeks we have in life – I had a bump in the road. I felt sad, disappointed, confused and totally out of my comfort zone. As the extrovert that I am, my initial instinct was to pick up the phone and call a close friend. Usually, that’s what I do. I call my Mom or call or hang out with one of my best friends and share my woes with anyone that I trust. I tell them what’s going on so they can help me work through it and by the end of the call or visit, I get over it and feel better…somewhat.

But this time was different. As I was picking up the phone, I remembered that chat that Louis C.K. had on Conan about cell phones, sadness and basically how it all ties back into our fear of sadness and our fear of being alone. He told a story about getting really sad in his car while listening to Bruce Springsteen’s “Jungleland” (best song ever!!) and how his first instinct was to text like 50 people. But instead of doing that, he took contrary action and just let the sadness hit him like a truck and pulled over and bawled his eyes out. He said that afterwards, he actually felt better because it was like there were antibodies of happiness that came along to counter the extreme sadness.

So, I tried it. I sat in the sadness and let it take me over. I cried like a baby on my bed. I let myself feel out of control. And, well, it worked. I’m not saying that it made me feel all better but it certainly helped me get a little bit more comfortable in my own skin that day. And I truly feel blessed that I get to have those sad moments because they make the happy ones that much sweeter.

xoxo,

BF Asks: What was your High-Low this week?

Lessons Learned: Beauty In A Blackout

Posted on April 9, 2013 by BeautyFrosting

Yesterday in Los Angeles started out as normal as usual. I was working on my interview with Beth Stern for FabFitFun when – all of a sudden – catastrophe struck!

Scary!!!

Okay,I may be being the teensiest bit dramatic. Our power went out. For 8 hours.

Even the most precious Miss Ellie looks spooky in the dark!

Strong winds caused power outage in my happy neighborhood of Wilshire Vista. So what’s a computer-and power-dependent girl to do? Well, at first I panicked a bit. I have deadlines! How will I get my work done? How will I take my nightly bath? And then reality set in. Reality and impromptu blackout parties. Who knew a blackout could inspire so many social invites?

I usually eat clean during the week but with this “emergency”, my friends declared dinner and wine a must.

Then I glanced in the very dark mirror. Uh-oh. I was not prepared to be seen in public. My hair was unwashed, I was in wind shorts still from my workout and had not a speck of makeup on.

In dark times, you find out which beauty products really do bring the light and brighten you up. In this case, I was saved by Aloxxi Dry Shampoo, Bobbi Brown SPF 25 EXTRA Tinted Balm in Light to Medium, Trish McEvoy High Volume Mascara, Aerin Multi Color for Lips and Cheeks in 01 Natural and Tarte LipSurgence in Enchanted.

Power-outage-pretty? No problem!

These sweet superheroes allowed me to polish up enough in the dark to ready myself for dinner – and wine, of course - with friends. These products were easy to apply even in the dark and made me presentable enough for an impromptu evening out.

Applying Tarte LipSurgence in Enchanted in a dark bathroom

Tarte LipSurgence is a no-brainer because you don’t need a lip liner and you don’t even need a mirror, thanks to its creamy and precise tip. And since it washes off with water, Trish McEvoy High Volume Mascara was perfect when I had to take a bath and wash my face in the dark at midnight.

The Bobbi Brown tinted balm doesn’t need too much blending or precision and the same goes for the Aerin Multi Color which gives me a healthy tint without risk of applying too much color. And as for the Aloxxi dry shampoo? Well, it REALLY saved the day when it came to my 3-day-old hair.

So, I tip my hat to these Power outage pretty-uppers that prepared me for an impromptu party with friends out on the town last night!

xoxo,
BF

BF Asks: What beauty products could you apply in the dark?