OK, it’s Tuesday night. Don’t judge me! Yesterday was one of those why-is-today-so-ridiculously-unproductive days. And today was more of the same.

But last weekend was truly awesome. Last Monday was my birthday weekend. And my friends at Dove Visibly Smooth helped me celebrate! To help promote their amazing hair-growth-reducing deodorant, some of your favorite beauty bloggers have been invited to host Dove Visibly Smooth Girls’ Night Out events — click here to read about The Beauty Bunny, Clumps of Mascara, and This That Beauty’s Girls’ Night Out events in their cities.

I wanted to do something a bit different, since it was my birthday weekend. So instead of doing dinner or a lounge, I decided to invite some of my best blogger friends for a Girls’ Afternoon Out instead – at Allyu Spa, one of my aforementioned favorite spas in Chicago!

And here we are! From left to right:

Nikia of ChiTown Fashionista.
Aramide of The Sassy Peach.
Rae Lewis Thornton of RaeLewisThornton.com, a Diva Living with AIDS.
Brittany of Black is Breezie.
Karyn of The Fab Giver and The Red Pump Project.
Luvvie of Awesomely Luvvie, Luvv Divine, The Red Pump Project and prolly like 6 other random blogs LOL
me!
Jessica of Beauty Woo Me
and Courtney of Coco Cooks.

Allyu Spa arranged a beautiful room for us to hang out in, and we went in groups of three to get our manicures done.

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Bellas, I can’t even really wear heels, but today on Afrobella I’m proud to represent and rock these fly Alexander McQueen red pumps online all day!

Today is National Women & Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. One year ago, Karyn and Luvvie founded The Red Pump Project — an enthusiastic non profit organization which has tirelessly worked to raise awareness both online, and with a series of awesome events around the country. Today marks the celebration of the 500 in 50: Rock the Red Pump campaign — where fellow bloggers are encouraged to be part of the movement and show solidarity by featuring a Red Pump badge on their blog. And to write about what National Women & Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day means to them.

When I look at the statistics of women and girls with HIV/AIDS, it terrifies me. And when I look at the women and girls who seem to live their lives completely ignorant to the ongoing threat of HIV/AIDS, it astounds me.

Every 35 minutes, a woman tests positive for HIV in the United States.

Black women make up 66% of all new diagnoses of HIV in women.

These are statistics that should resonate with anyone who’s reading this. So how can you support the cause, and do your part to raise awareness?

If you’re a blogger, you too can participate in the 500 in 50: Rock the Red Pump campaign – it’s not too late!

You can become a Red Pump Ambassador and help to raise HIV/AIDS awareness in your own community.

You can seek out local HIV/AIDS charities in your neighborhood and offer to volunteer time, money, or supplies.

Or at the very least you can wear your favorite pair of red shoes today, to show your solidarity with the movement.
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Friends in Chicago, the weather may be chilly and the streets may still be slushy — but I hope you’re still going out and about despite it all. Because on February 21, I’d love to meet you at a truly delicious event! My friend Courtney of the awesome food blog CocoCooks is part of a worldwide event called Stir It 28: Food Bloggers Align for Haiti Relief – a blogger based fundraising effort to bring money to Haiti. From February 1st through the 28th, food bloggers are coming together to raise funds for Share Our Strength and Yele. The event is a result of the efforts of Courtney and her fellow food bloggers Bren Herrera, chef and author of Flanboyant Eats, and Chrystal Baker of The Duo Dishes.

Click here for event details.

Food fundraising events will be taking place on Sunday, February 21st in participating cities – that includes Atlanta, Washington DC, Los Angeles, New York City, and sweet home Chicago. Come by on Sunday February 21, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Three Peas Art Lounge. Tickets cost $30 in advance, $35 at the door, and Share Our Strength and Yele. Visit Coco Cooks to buy a ticket to your local event!

I continue to be amazed and impressed by my friend Luvvie. She’s co-founder of The Red Pump Project. She’s holding down one of the funniest corners of the internet at Awesomely Luvvie. She speaks her soul at Luvv Divine. She was just specially invited to be on a humor panel at BlogHer 2010 (OMG, that’s HUGE!) And she JUST started an online book club today called iRead, iLive. Someone tell me how she manages to find the time!

Luvvie is hilarious, but she is also very dedicated to the cause of AIDS awareness. Together with her equally fantawesome cofounder Karyn The Fabulous Giver, they’re trying to take The Red Pump Project to a whole ‘nother level.

And you can help!

500 in 50 is an initiative where bloggers can show recognition for March 10, National Women and Girls HIV Awareness Day.

“Leading up to March 10th, we’re asking bloggers to “Rock the Red Pump” widget on their sidebars to represent the strength and courage of women fighting HIV/AIDS or affected by the disease both directly and indirectly. Then on NWGHAAD, we would like you to embed the Red Pump Widget within a post with a short snippet of its significance, including some statistics about HIV/AIDS and its effect on women and girls.

Also, your blog will be linked on a post that will run on the following pages: The Red Pump homepage, Awesomely Luvvie and The Fabulous Giver on that day.”

So right now I’m telling you all about 500 in 50. This weekend I’m going to post a widget myself and be part of the movement! Want to join us and help to raise awareness? Click here to read more, and then send an email to rocktheredpump@theredpumpproject.com to get a widget of your own!

I can be astoundingly picky when it comes to photographs of myself. I. Love. This. Photo. It was taken by amazing photographer Dan Chen, for an upcoming project that I am SUPER excited about (but can’t share with y’all just yet, but I can’t wait to tell you about!)

BTW, I mentioned this fabulous top when I mentioned my Silhouettes blogger boutique — do you like it? If you do, click here to buy it, and click here to check out my blogger boutique!

Today I am honored and excited to share an interview I did with Renae of In Her Shoes. We touched on everything from the best advice my mother ever gave me, to an average day in my life, to my thoughts on life in Chicago. Click here to read it. And if you’re not savvy to In Her Shoes yet, click here to read this amazing, inspiring blog. And click here to follow Renae on Twitter! She is a GREAT person I am delighted to know.

Thank you SO much for the opportunity, Renae! I hope you like my interview, bellas!

Last September during New York Fashion Week, I had the pleasure of meeting Karen Robinovitz, the dynamo creatrix behind Purple Lab. It was as close to meeting Carrie Bradshaw as I’ll ever get. Karen is a firecracker. She’s sweet, petite, dressed to the nines, and so dedicated to the business of beauty that it’s inspiring to just be in her presence. Love. This. Lady!

So when I learned that Purple Lab is seeking models to show off their awesome new products on HSN, I knew I had to share this news with my bellas! Karen may be teeny tiny but she makes BIG things happen, so this could be an awesome opportunity for one of you!

Click here to learn how YOU can be a Purple Lab star on HSN. If you win, you’ll be on the air modeling their lovely, sheer gloss infused with Hoodia — Huge Lips, Skinny Hips (which you see me wearing here in Lychee Martini), and five new products. I’m most excited about Lashionista Modelista — mascara made with DIAMOND DUST? I NEED that in my LIFE!

Click here to enter! I hope to see one of my bellas on HSN on February 18, 2010! Best of luck!!