Author: Jessica Hicks

If you’re anything like me, I change up my skincare routine seasonally depending on how my skin is feeling and what it needs most. In the winter, you can probably guess…I need a little more moisture. I tend to do more masks, and intensive treatments in order to really restore and replenish my skin. All in all, I find that it just needs a little extra TLC.

The skincare brand that I use and absolutely love is called Artistry. Artistry was founded by an entrepreneurial couple in the 1950’s who worked hard to combine natural botanicals and cutting edge science and technology. Most of their products are infused with whole, clean ingredients and the company holds many patents for its innovation. Not only that, but it’s effective! It’s truly the best brand I’ve tried… and I’ve tried a lot. I noticed a BIG difference when I made the decision to use ONLY Artistry skincare and cosmetics. If you’d like to do more research of your own, visit our site here: Learn more about Artistry

The first step in my regimen is Cleansing.

I use the Artistry Skin Nutrition Renewing Foaming Cleanser – it’s a mouthful, but it’s packed with SO many amazing ingredients such as Aloe Vera, White Chia Seed, Shiso Perilla, Glycerin and Amino Acids. “Designed to be microbiome-friendly, this cleanser effectively removes impurities while calming your skin’s defense barrier. This gentle formula leaves your skin feeling soft and supple instead of dry and taut.” I love this cleanser because I feel that it doesn’t strip my skin and it leaves it feeling smooth and soft rather than dried out.

The next step in my personal routine is Toning!

I didn’t always realize the importance of this step…but it really does make a huge difference. Not only does it get all of the excess makeup, dirt and oil off of the skin but it restores skin PH levels to ensure that the rest of your skincare products will be well received & most effective.

For my toner, I use the Artistry Skin Nutrition Hydrating Smoothing Toner – I love this one because (again) it doesn’t leave my skin feeling dry. It has a milky consistency that feels so nice and rich and really lays a foundation for the rest of my skincare. There are also some really good stats with this product such as:

• 98% agree it leaves skin feeling velvety smooth.
• 94% say it immediately hydrates skin.
• 94% agree it helps make skin look vibrant.
• 93% say it provides a healthy-looking glow.

Those are percentages that I can get down with – can’t you?!

The next step is…Treatment.

Treatment products are typically the most power packed and provide the most advanced technology and highest concentration of your skincare products. My absolute favorite product in my routine is the Artistry Intensive Skincare Advanced Vitamin C+HA Treatment – this product has drastically reduced the size of my pores, helped even out my skin tone, and given me a boost in hydration that goes well beyond a typical moisturizer would. It’s also what we like to call our “Wrinkle Eraser” treatment product, so I like to think that it’s helping me to stay looking like my youngest, most radiant self.

Here’s the product claim – “CLINICALLY PROVEN POWERFUL PLUMPER – Step up your daily skincare regimen with wrinkle-targeting technology, antioxidant protection and elasticity renewal. Made with the highest concentration of Vitamin C and Hyaluronic Acid in an Artistry™ product ever, it dramatically smooths, reduces and repairs the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles within 4 weeks.”

Next would be our Moisturizer!

I have been loving the NEW Artistry Skin Nutrition Hydrating Gel Cream – you can probably guess why! It’s a cool, gel-like formula that is so refreshing and adds the perfect amount of hydration for the skin. My skin feels so smooth and subtle after using it.

It also comes with some awesome stats:

• 96% say it leaves skin looking radiant and luminous.
• 95% say it helps improve the clarity of skin.
• 94% agree immediately after application, it leaves skin looking plumped with moisture.
• 93% say it helps skin feel more elastic.
• 90% believe it helps minimize the appearance of fine lines.

Lastly, in my regular routine, I apply an Eye Cream!

I used to think that Eye Creams were just for woman who were past a certain age and looking to “undo” damage from over the years. Boy was I wrong! I learned that the skin around your eyes is up to 10x thinner than the rest of your face, and it actually shows signs of aging the fastest. Meaning, if you want to look as radiant and youthful as you can, for as long as you can, you need an eye cream!

I’ve been using the Artistry Skin Nutrition Renewing Reactivating Eye Cream – it helps me look and feel my best by providing extra hydration to that area of skin, and also helping reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, puffiness, and dark circles. MUCH APPRECIATED!

The other category that I wanted to mention would be what I would call “Specialty Products” – these are skincare products that I don’t use daily or on a super regular basis…but they do come in handy when I need them.

I’m going to list these pretty briefly but just trust me when I say, I love these just as much as the rest of my lineup!

That’s all for my Winter line-up! These are the products that I see the best results from during the cold, harsh Winter months. Come spring, I may still be using several of these products or I may just switch things up depending on my specific needs.

If you’re wondering, “Jess, how do you know what products to use that are right for your skin?”…the answer is I DON’T. Yeah, you read that right. My favorite skincare secret weapon is the Artistry Virtual Beauty App! It’s a FREE app that you can download onto your phone (compatible for both Android and iPhone) and you can literally take a photo of your skin, analyze it on the spot, and then find the perfect skincare products for your skin type, skin age, and skin concerns. IT’S AMAZING! Truly has to go on the list because it’s definitely an underrated (BUT MY ABSOLUTE FAV) skincare resource.

If you download the app, and want to discuss your personalized results, let me know! I’d love to help you find your perfect regimen!

Blessings & Love,

In the last post, I talked about some of the goals that we’re excited to be accomplishing this new year. One of the things we’re focusing on is reading daily from a book about personal growth, success or faith. Over the years this has been a habit that we’ve both developed…but we just haven’t yet been AS consistent as we know we could be. It was sort of that “checkbox” mentality instead of truly reading to grow and change.

So, this year, we’re changing that and being a lot more intentional.

In reflecting and thinking through some of the books that I plan to read in 2022, I noticed that I’m going to be revisiting several of my favorites that I’ve already read. So, I thought I would share some of my favorite books for personal growth as we enter 2022 strong. These are just some of the books that have personally helped me THE MOST on my personal growth journey. I hope they can do the same for you!

(These are in no particular order by the way)

So there’s my list of Top books for Personal Development!

I hope this helps and inspires you to pick up a copy of a few of these gems. They’ve truly helped me and Russell cultivate our people skills and grow as individuals…and we’re still growing and changing everyday.

What are a few of your favorite books? Drop them in the comments below.

Blessings and Love,

Keeping with the theme of New Years Resolutions…I thought I would share what I’ll be committing to this coming year in the hopes that it will inspire someone to set some goals of their own…and (to be honest) as a way to personally document my decisions and hold myself accountable.

I’m generally not too fond of the term “resolutions” just simply because I feel that they sort of come with a negative connotation for most. Most people give up on the goals they set and never see them come to fruition, which leads people to become skeptical that people really achieve what they set out to accomplish.

My hope is that there are still some positive, optimistic people out there who are truly embracing the new year along with us. I know we’ve got plenty that we’re excited about! 2022, bring it on!

Our word for 2022 is DISCIPLINE!

We’ve been guilty of getting a little lazy over the past year and a half with the Pandemic totally turning our world upside-down. Sure, we adjusted and made things work…but much of our life went virtual and while that has been a huge blessing…it doesn’t come without a few repercussions. So many of us have reverted back to our natural comfort zones in several ways…us being no exception.

We’re determined to change that this year.

We’ve decided to really get our routines and habits down this year. We want to be the kind of people who truly “live in a glass house” per say. What you see is what you get. We want to set our routines and daily commitments and actually stick to them and stay consistent. This is something that’s truly been difficult for us in 2021.

We know we are capable of more! We know that we’re not meant to be average. We want a life worth living…a life of significance, and we can’t really achieve that by doing the same old things that haven’t gotten us where we want to be yet.

So… in 2022, we are committing to the following daily habits:

(Some of these are new, some old…but the difference will be CONSISTENCY!)

• Listen to a Podcast about Success Mindset / Personal Growth
• Read from a book on Success Principles / Personal Development / Faith
• Move our body in some way (physical exercise)
• Fueling our mind and body with a healthy diet
• Drink more water
• Daily devotional & time with God / reading the Bible
• Devote energy towards the pursuit of our business goals
• Speak our affirmations & goals

This list may seem like a lot, but trust me, we’ve realized how much time we actually have in a day if we truly choose to use it wisely. We know that we can put forth the effort to commit to these things in order to grow personally, in our marriage, and as leaders…which will all get us closer to our dreams and goals.

We foresee some MAJOR changes coming in 2022 that we are so excited about…and we just want to make sure we’re doing all that we can to ensure the bright future that we have in mind for ourselves.

I’m excited and curious to hear about what commitments YOU are making this year…so please, leave them in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you.

Happy New Year!

Blessings and Love,

Have you ever set a New Year’s Resolution that quickly became nothing more than a nice idea? Yeah, me too. I’ve had a lot of good intentions in the past years, but sometimes my lack of determination to see the resolutions through kept me from achieving the goals that I set to begin with.

This led me to wonder, “What are the most commonly set new year’s resolutions?”, and here’s what I found…

According to GoSkills.com, the top 10 Most Common New Year’s Resolutions are as follows:

• Exercise more
• Lose weight
• Get organized
• Learn a new skill or hobby
• Live life to the fullest
• Save more money / Spend less money
• Quit smoking
• Spend more time with family and friends
• Travel more
• Read more

I found this to be pretty interesting. I, myself, have set several of the resolutions mentioned above…and let’s just say that some were more successful than others.

Another question that I had was “What leads most people to give up on their resolutions rather than seeing them through?”…

According to an article on businessinsider.com, “one of the biggest reasons that people fail to keep their New Years resolutions is because they’re not specific enough”.

In looking at the list above, I realized how true that statement is. And, not to mention, in all the success principles I’ve studied over the years, I’ve NEVER seen the suggestion that setting vague goals leads phenomenal results. So… with that in mind, I think that the more specific we can be about the goals that we’d like to accomplish, the better!

So, I wanted to compile a few helpful tips on how you can get more specific with your goals and actually accomplish the New Year’s Resolutions that you set.

1. Start with the End in mind – One thing I’ve learned to keep in mind is distinguishing between “what I want most” and “what I want right now”. This has been a HUGE mindset shift for me personally, and Russ has to constantly remind me of this principle (bless him). What the core concept really is based on is delayed gratification, but when applied to goal-setting or, in this case, New Year’s Resolutions…it’s one and the same. Ask yourself “What do I want MOST?” and “How is this goal going to help me get there?”.
2. Use metrics – Part of setting an attainable goal is understanding where you’re starting and where you ultimately want to be. What gaps do you need to fill in? Tracking your progression can not only be super motivating, but it allows consistency to compound and gives you something to actually measure. For example, if your desired result is to “get into shape”, what goal are you setting that will help you get closer to that end result? Say it’s doing pushups – how many pushups are you going to do? In what time frame? Then, how are you going to progress from there? Those metrics will help you take baby steps towards what you’re looking to accomplish.
3. Keep a Positive Mental Attitude – In my opinion, this is THE key. If you tackle things from a mindset of being a “good-finder” and seeing what good can come from any given situation, you’re bound to be far more successful than the complainer. Sure, things are hard sometimes. But nothing worth having comes easy…and one sure fire way to make things harder on yourself than they really need to be is to complain, condemn or criticize. Find silver linings! You’ll be shocked at the impact that one simple action can have on your entire outlook and overall how you walk through life.
4. Celebrate “little” victories – Be proud of your personal wins! No matter how big or small, progress is progress. As you’re working towards accomplishing your New Year’s Resolutions, I encourage you to set a few checkpoints along the way. At those checkpoints, if you’ve progressed or hit micro-goals, TREAT YOURSELF! You deserve it. You’d be surprised how much this can positively lift your spirits and motivate you to keep going and get the job done.

These are things that we’ve personally learned to implement over time, and they have helped us SO much along the way. Of course, we all get off course from time to time…so as much as this is helpful to others, it’s a much needed reminder for us as well.

I hope you’ll take some of this to heart and that it will help us all achieve the goals we set for 2022. Let’s make it OUR YEAR!

“I’ll be honest – we weren’t really “looking” for an opportunity when our business stumbled into our life, but it ended up being everything we wanted all in one amazingly cool package.”

I’ll just start by saying that this whole journey started with some incredibly thin threads. Neither of us were searching for anything else to add to our plates when I met our now mentors. Sheri and I met completely organically (literally in the self checkout line at Target), and from the get-go, I just had a feeling that my life would be better with her in it. It’s really hard to explain. I’ve never felt like that before…but I just like to think that it was a God thing and not try too hard to make sense of it.

You have to understand that I come from a background of being pretty introverted. I love people but I’m not necessarily the “bold” type. So me getting involved in a people-based business that involves sales and becoming a leader…yeah, not exactly what I saw myself doing with my life if I’m being honest. BUT, like I said, I just wanted to surround myself with good people. And our mentors are a shining example of that. They had a great marriage, great friendships, a thriving business that they were excited about and they loved the Lord. All things that I admired and aspired to have and/or be one day.

The ability to have our own business outside of what we do full time in our careers has taught us so much over the years. We’ve literally become new people, in the best possible way. Now – a lot of that is due to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, not simply because of an endeavor…however, we grew closer to God through the relationships that we developed with people on our team. So to us, they sort of go hand in hand.

We’ve learned to develop more people skills, to have more patience and always give others the benefit of the doubt. We’ve learned what a healthy, Godly marriage looks like and how to protect that over anything else. We’ve learned from some of the most humble servants what it looks like to love on people wholeheartedly…even when there’s no immediate “benefit”. We’ve seen people come to know Jesus, overcome challenges, mend broken relationships, and develop new skillsets. All of this while also learning how to develop and grow a business of our own that no one can ever take away from us. We get to call the shots. We don’t have a boss or someone telling us what to do or when to do it. Just the example of those who have gone before us and who model success in its various forms and encourage us to come alongside them. It is truly a process of iron sharpening iron.

The day to day aspects and the “how to” of what we do is so simple…which is why we love it! I mean, let’s be real, if it were that hard we probably wouldn’t be doing it. But in all honesty, because we were so attracted to the intangibles and all the serendipities that came along with the package…we were willing to learn a thing or two at our own pace in order to get to be around the people and the team. THAT is what sold us. Not the way we do business, not the money we can make or the products that we have access to. It was the people before anything else. After all, they say that you’re the sum total of the 5 people you spend the most time with. For us, we wanted to make darn sure that was going to play in our favor. I couldn’t look back on my life and my experiences before we met the team and say that I would have been proud of who I had surrounded myself with.

It’s the coolest thing to know that we’re doing things today that others won’t so that one day we’ll be able to live like others can’t. We’re investing our “less productive” time (nights and weekends) now in creating something GREAT for ourselves, and we know that it’s going to be well worth it. We’d much rather be chasing after our dreams and putting in the work now than look back years from now and have the pain of regret saying “what if we had actually gone for it?”, or “where would our life be today if we would have just been willing to do a little extra work while we were young?”. I don’t know, maybe that’s just us. Maybe we’re too passionate. But a wise man once said…

“There is no passion to be found playing small – in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.”

– Nelson Mandela

Ultimately, we’ve found a second family through this opportunity and it is SO much fun! Entrepreneurs in business FOR themselves, but not doing it BY themselves. The support is amazing. We all love to laugh and have a great time, while still developing ourselves and focusing on the future and making it as bright as possible. It’s honestly hard to imagine where our lives would be and the trajectory it would have followed had we not decided to do life this way. We are forever thankful and truly consider ourselves blessed. Our greatest desire is to share this opportunity with others so that we can play a very small role in them getting the experience all the amazing things we have thus far.

The best part? It’s only the beginning…

This is a recipe that I totally made up one night, and now it’s quickly become one of our favorites. We’ve also made this recipe with Tortellini or Rice instead of Orzo…but the Orzo seems to be our favorite combination.

I’ve said it before, but when I cook I typically don’t measure unless I’m following someone else’s recipe. So, I’m sort of guessing at the amounts…. but I’m pretty sure I’ve gotten pretty close.

So let’s get into it…

Ingredients:

• 2 Packs of Apple Chicken Sausage (we prefer the Nature’s Promise Brand)
• 8 oz of Orzo (we get the Barilla brand 16oz box and use half)
• 3oz Finely Shredded Parmesan Cheese
• 1/3 Cup of Milk
• 2 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 tbsp Italian Seasoning
• 1 tbsp Basil
• 1 tbsp Thyme
• 1 tbsp Garlic Salt
• Pepper to taste

Instructions:

• Cook Orzo according to box instructions & set aside
• Sauté Chicken Apple Sausage over medium heat (I spray cooking spray between each pack)
• Chop sausage into small pieces & set aside
• In a small bowl, make the “sauce” – add parmesan, milk, olive oil, and seasonings and whisk together until well mixed
• Put the orzo and chicken in a large mixing bowl, then fold in the sauce

That’s it! It’s super quick and simple.

This recipe does make enough for PLENTY of leftovers for us (probably about 6 servings easily). That’s the way I like to cook so that we have plenty for a few days.

Several of you wanted this recipe, so I hope it lives up to the hype lol.

Comment below if you try the recipe!