The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar

Earlier this week my fellow NCSocial friends and I were welcomed to The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar in North Hills (Raleigh, NC) for a multi-course meal of deliciousness. This post is a thank you for the glorious meal that they treated our group to. I was not compensated for this post. 

I believe in the past I've introduced you to the NCSocial Facebook group my friend Kate of Life of a Ginger and I run for North Carolina influencers. We welcome bloggers, social media influencers and entrepreneurs. Consider popping in and joining us if you fall in this category. We are currently open to anyone located in NC, but our events have mostly been coordinated in the Triangle area.

Anyway - back to the reason for this post! Kate coordinated with the team behind The Cowfish Sushi Burger Bar in Raleigh and we had the most incredible evening out. A party of 15, we enjoyed all that The Cowfish had to offer. From appetizers to alcohol (we covered that part!) to dessert. No question, the food is incredible.

Would it be wrong for me to start with dessert? I mean, working backwards won't make you any less interested in the food there - I can promise you that. And if you check out my title pic you'll see I've already introduced you to my modified beverage of choice. I had a Snake in the Grass. The modification is that I had them omit the jalapeño part. I am a non-spicy girl and cannot handle that pepper business. It was so so good. I recommend it - with or without the jalapeños - depending on your preference.

Dessert may have been my favorite part of the meal. Because. Well. Look at this.

This is the fresh berry tall cake at Cowfish. And it's so good. There were other more chocolate-y options, but the fresh fruit, ice cream and whipped cream? Let's just say several of us at the table were spooning it up and enjoying it without stopping. It was THAT good.

We also tried their amazing flourless chocolate torte and some delicious chocolate whipped cream cake that was joy on a plate. I couldn't eat all of them, I was so full. I mean, I TRIED them all. I just had to pick one to truly enjoy. And you probably know which one that was.

Above all, the appetizers were a huge hit with our group. My personal favorite was the Crab Rangoon Dip. It's like a deconstructed crab rangoon. But several of them. It's so so good. That's the first picture you see below. The incredible manager and amazing staff also treated us to their famous All-American Bacon Double Cheeseburgooshi, and the Spicy Togarashi Shrimp. From what I heard around the table - that shrimp was extremely spicy - and amazing (remember, spice wimp here)!

Below you'll see some more of the desserts, my super southern turkey burger that I created by taking an item off of the menu and eliminating some of the extras I don't enjoy and popping in a substitution. The Cowfish has a list of substitutions that will make the pickiest eater cry with joy.

And if you look in that upper righthand corner? That turkey burger? Topped with pimiento cheese that's made in-house. The manager Hoff let me know that piece of info and then laughed when I asked if I could have a tub of it to bring home. Dude. I was so not kidding.

In case you can't tell by this point in my post - everyone had a wonderful time and the food was absolutely incredible. I've always heard that local friends love it there, and now I know why. A quick peek at some happy faces after the amazing meal.

The Cowfish has locations open in Raleigh, Charlotte, Birmingham, Orlando and Atlanta. So next time you're in any one of these areas? Stop in. Have the best meal of your travels. Or your week. Or whatever. Just go. Enjoy. You'll thank me for the recommendation - I am sure of it.

* Reminder: This dinner was hosted by the incredible team of The Cowfish Raleigh. We had an amazing experience, excellent food and drink and are so thankful for this opportunity. I was not further compensated for this post or any social media shares I have done/will do to promote it. 

Let's Talk LipSense

A few weeks ago I received a package in the mail and may have been a little bit too excited.

See, I've heard about LipSense, but I didn't have it in my budget to give it a try. So, when I received some information on Red Gate Beauty offering up some samples to bloggers interested in trying and reviewing the products? I signed up.

I figured there was no way I would be considered.

BUT!

I was. Am. Here I am.

So, my first attempt at using LipSense was broadcast out on my Instagram stories. Now, unfortunately those don't stay around, so I had to save my videos and try to pull them together. Hang tight for that one - I'll share it once I'm totally done working on it.

Here's my first go with LipSense.

I decided to opt for the color named Bella.

My sweet dog's name is Bella, and I figured it must have been a sign or something.

There are so many gorgeous LipSense colors, Red Gate Beauty updates their site regularly to ensure you see whatever they carry. I've been eyeing Apple Cider, Persimmon, and Mulled Wine. Caramel Latte is really pretty, too.

Here are a few times I've worn Bella out and about - with no bleeding, streaking or peeling. And even one time where I put it on kind of late in the day, and so it was still fairly striking at bedtime. This would have been when their Ooops! Remover would have been beneficial.

So - in case you can't tell? I'm a fan.

LipSense is the kind of product you can put on fairly early in your day and not worry about it bleeding all over your coffee cup. It won't surface on your water glass or the bread of your sandwich, and it won't start flaking all over you later in the day.

It really works.

I will include a few things that I was concerned with.

If your lips are dry or chapped? It's gonna sting the first time you put it on. And maybe the second or third. And if you take a break from it and start using it again? It'll sting some.

But it's not as bad as you think. I promise. (Video coming soon!)

And if you do have those chappy lips, you may find that it looks a little odd to you at first. Look at my travel with LipSense picture. You can see the lines of my lips. That's the case with most lip color, though - at least it has been in my experience. And after a while that wasn't the case. Look at my conference pic, a day or so later. You can see how smooth my lips look and how consistent the color is across them.

It's also a little bit sticky. Most glosses are - but the good part about this product is that the stickiness goes away once the color and gloss settle on your lips. No flyaway hair getting stuck to your mouth while you're walking and talking outside? Yes, please, thank you.

Want to learn more about LipSense? Head on over to Red Gate Beauty. 

AND - say thank you - because they've given me a 15% discount that we can use to save some money on our purchase.

Just use the code: bloggymoms15

And thanks for checking out my latest addiction! Hope you let me know if you try it. 

* This product was provided to me by Red Gate Beauty. I was not compensated for this post and was only given the product to try and blog about. If you are interested in sending me product for review - please contact me at ace1028@gmail.com. Thank you. *

Mental Health Matters

IMPORTANT REMINDER:

If you are in a place where you feel unsafe or if you believe that you are a threat to yourself because of your illness. PLEASE. Please call 9-1-1 immediately.  

Today is World Mental Health Day.

Today. Tuesday. October 10, 2017.

It's a day where my FB feed was flooded with proclamations.

A day where friends reminded one another of their own experiences with mental illness.

A day where the world stood together for a few brief moments to remind one another that we're not alone. Where so many of us across social media and beyond took the time to say:

Me, too!

You Can't Reach If You Don't Stretch

So.

I almost wrote this in a message to someone today, but then decided, no - this is too good.

It's blog post good.

And so, here I am.

Reminding you.

And myself.

You can't reach if you don't stretch.

To All The Single Moms

Confession time: I've been holding this post in my drafts for a bit. I've been looking for other places to submit it to. I've been thinking, well, is it going to start something w. people when I just want to WRITE and don't want to start anything? And so, I let it simmer. And tonight? While trying to figure out what's for dinner? I've decided to hit publish. Because this is my reality right now - and in sharing it it might help someone else - same as the words of others have helped me. 

I've often been the kind of person who mentioned solo-momming it when my spouse was away for work.

That's not even remotely close to being a single mom.

I'm pretty sure I never indicated that it was, but whether I did or didn't, I'd like to clarify, it's not.

Not at all.

I've seen the mommy wars, watched them unfold online. I've experienced firsthand what it's like to be stuck in a word battle with women you don't even know.

They suck. I'm not here to encourage them. I'm not here to enforce any "laws".

I'm here to speak. To write. To share.

To use my space in ways that I need to.

When you're in a partnership and your partner is traveling for work and you're the only one dealing with all the things?

You're not a single mom.