Glam Bag

So I've always been intrigued by the monthly subscription packages. I finally bit the bullet and signed up for Glam Bag by Ipsy. I was really excited to get my first package. Ipsy has you take a survey to see what kind of beauty products you prefer and questions you on your hair, eye and skin color to make sure the products are the correct shades. I just got my "Beach Beauty" bag and look at all the great stuff that came.

I'll be completing a review as soon as I get a chance to use all the products. It's only $10 per month. If anyone is thinking about joining use my referral link: 

Mkdubs Ipsy Referral

Summer Reading

I looooove to read!  However, like most teachers the only real time I have for pleasure reading is during the summer. There are so many books that I see or hear off and I instantly want to search for them on Amazon.  I keep a list going in the notes section of my iPhone. Having finished my masters last December, I have a bit more time to read but the time that I usually get to catch up with a good book is during the summer.
Given that I am a science teacher I have a few science focused books that I'm super excited to read. Here's the three that I have committed to getting read before the end of August.

1.) The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

Being a biology teacher I've heard the term HeLa cells before, but it wasn't until I watched a documentary in graduate school that I really was intrigued by this women's story. Ms. Lacks was a poor Southern farmer suffering from cancer and during her visits to to the colored ward of John Hopkins Hospital her cells were taken for cultures and later used for research. Still growing in labs today, her cells have been used to help find the polio vaccines, research with cancer and viruses. 

2.) Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson

This book was given to me through a workshop that was associated with Yale University and teaching students in grades 7-12 about vector borne illnesses. It's a quick read (I'm almost done!) and would be a great interdisciplinary book for middle schoolers. Written by the award-winning author, Laurie Halse Anderson, the book is centered around one family's struggle with the Yellow Fever outbreak in Philadelphia in 1793. I know that seventh graders would definitely enjoy this one. 

3.) Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver

I loved The Bean Trees in high school this book was recommended to me recently. It apparently focuses on the Monarch butterfly and global warming, don't know much beyond that but I'm intrigued.