It's time for some blogging goals!

Now, I've already made my New Years Resolutions, but these are something a bit different. In terms of blogging, I need to step it up just a little bit. And this is just going to be a reminder for me to keep on it.

1| Timing I really need to work on timing my posts. Scheduling them and writing them ahead of time so I always have something to post for the week. I love how relaxed I can be with my blog and still manage to get my posts out on time, but I want to give myself even more of a break. I'm going to start writing my posts in bulk and scheduling them to post once, maybe even twice a week, depending on what kind of material I have and how much of it I have. I think this will really help.

2| Photography I'm actually really happy with the photography I have. I use my iPhone, which has been working out well enough for me. I also sometimes use free stock photos from Unsplash and that has helped me when I didn't have time to take certain images. However, I do want to work on my flat lays and getting them to look better.

3| Variety I feel like I already have a good amount of variety in my posts, but I want to get some more lifestyle posts in. I don't typically post about my personal life or what I'm doing so I might do more of that. Though I love my beauty and book posts, so maybe this won't change at all. Who knows!

2017 has been an okay kind of year, so here's to hoping 2018 is even better!

Happy New Year!
♥

Hello Lovelies!

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a wonderful holiday! As you can guess from my lack of posting, Blogmas didn't pan out so well for me. The month was a bit busier than usual and I wasn't able to keep on track. The first five days went strong though, so that's something! Here's a quick weekly update/summary before the New Year. :)


❄Christmas was technically postponed for us until this coming Saturday! The weather was too harsh to travel, so we spent the day at home all cozied up watching Christmas films.
❄I've met my reading goal for the year, but am struggling to get a little past the mark. the current book I'm reading isn't quite holding my attention.
❄I finally got past episode one of Stranger Things, season one! They killed off the first character I decided to like in the first episode, so I've been putting it off.
❄I've made my New Years Resolutions already, but I'm still trying to decide if I should add anymore?
❄I was only able to watch ONE Vlogmas this month! Zoella is always good for Christmas, but this means I'll be able to have Christmas cheer well into January. So who's the real winner here?

♥

I'm jumping the gun this year and getting ahead with my New Years Resolutions. (Should that be capped? Does it matter?)

Ah well, my goals for last year were the following:

2017 Resolutions
♥whoops, get that car fixed! body work, new rear windshield wiper, rear brakes. yikes.
♥get healthier! work out and meal plans.
♥save more money for an amazing vacation!
♥worry less, plan more.
♥develop and stick to a routine.

Did I stick to all of those?

...nope.

Alas, they were written with good intentions, but the year escaped me, as it does. My car still needs body work, though I am proud to say that it has new brakes and windshield wipers, front and back. I saved up some money. Not enough for a great vacation, but enough that if something happened, I have a good emergency fund to fall back on. And that's it. Ugh.

So with more good intentions, here are my 2018 goals!

2018 Resolutions; a task list for the year.
♥GET THAT BODY WORK DONE!
♥save even MORE money.
♥read even MORE books.
♥let's try getting healthy again, shall we?
♥focus more on myself

Let's do this.
♥

When it comes to reading, I don't think there is anything better then having something tangible in your hands.

Over the years, books have become digitized and made 'more convenient' to the constant traveler. While it's nice to have a book ready to go on your phone, (or Nook/Kindle, whichever you prefer), I find that having the real thing is just so much better. I'm always getting books from the library when I can't find something I want or if I'm not sure I'll like it enough to warrant a purchase.

As of right now, I'm four books away from completing my goal of fifty books read for the year! I'm so excited to be hitting it, but I also want to exceed it. For that to happen, I'm going to have to be reading constantly for the next few days and always have my next book waiting for me. Thankfully, Goodreads makes this fairly easy.

1. The Pleasure Palace - almost done!
2. Between Two Queens
3. How To Be a Woman
4. Wars of the Roses - Stormbird (Goal reached!)
5. Starfish

I think I'm going to keep updating this list as the month goes on and I complete each one. I don't want to add too many, or I'll stress myself out. I like reaching my goals!

What books are you planning on reading for the rest of the year?
♥




*Photo credit to Anthony Tran*
*All links in this post are affiliate links - which means I receive a percentage of the revenue made from purchasing products through this link*

When contacts become too much hassle, I turn to my glasses.

My trusty frames have never let me down. And while I have ordered newer ones in the past, I always come back to these babies. There is only one problem; while my frames don't change, my prescription does.

It may not seem like such a big deal. I can just go out and get the lenses changed out, right? Oh yeah, sure. But let's consider the fact that my insurance definitely doesn't cover it and just getting a quote for the service at LensCrafters was over $300! Yikes!

So naturally, I took on the task of locating a website that would do this service for me, at a much more reasonable price. I asked the company that I bought my frames from, but sadly, that's not something they offer. My next step was the golden mark. Thankfully, I didn't have to look too long!

Lensabl offered everything that I was looking for. You select the type of prescription you have, what lenses you'd like, (I got the blue light lenses to ease my eye strain), and then you plug in your prescription. You can upload a picture of it, or send it right to them. And that's it! You pay and they'll send out a prepaid box to your house, where you lovingly place your precious frames and send it back out. And then it's just a waiting game.

All together, I think it took two weeks total for me to get the box, ship my glasses out, and then get them in the lab and reshipped to me. Inside, my glasses were packaged up in a beautiful glass case with some handy eye glass cleaner and cloth. Everything you could want from a service and more!

I've been wearing and testing the glasses for two weeks now, and I have zero complaints. My old outdated, scratched up lenses were a thing of the past! I can now see more clearly and my eye strain has lessened practically overnight. The exact thing I had wanted was exactly what I got! If you're looking to keep your frames but get new lenses, Lensabl is the way to go!

Try them out at their wesbite, here, where you can watch videos and get your questions answered!

♥



*This post is not sponsored! All opinions are my own, as always.*

"But the really scary thing is not turning and turning in the widening gyre; it's turning and turning in the tightening gyre."

Hello, my dear, dear friends. It's been such a long time since I've been able to sit down and write out a book post. To be honest, I've been in kind of a book funk the last month and a half. It's super awful, but it happens. I can't say that this book swooped in and rescued me, but John Green did give me some kind of life back with his newest release.

I was immediately intrigued with the plot of this book. Any book that delves into mental illness/anxiety is something that I want to read. And all the better if it's directed at teens. However, I found that I got lost within the side plot, wondering why it was even there.

Green does a wonderful job with the anxiety side of things. How he describes Aza's spiraling thoughts, her habits, her constant worries was something akin to perfection. Throughout the book I found myself relating in some parts and also finding it hard to swallow that there are people out there that feel the way Aza does. And there is nothing you can really do, aside from being there for them when they need you.

"You seem locked inside your mind, and I can't know what's going on in there, and it scares me."
"I'm fine. Really."
"But you're not."
"Mom, tell me what to say. Seriously. Just... tell me what words to say to make you calm down about it."
"I don't want to calm down. I want you to stop being in pain."
"Well, that's not how it works, okay?"

The subplot of the missing billionaire seems to only serve one purpose; and that is to bring Aza to Davis, her old childhood friend. When they reunite, there is really nothing that says they had ever stopped talking. They seem to pick up quite easily, actually. And this is kind of where I found myself huffing and puffing. If you've read John Green before, then you know that when he puts two teens together, they suddenly start speaking in philosophical quotes and falling in love under the stars while searching for meteors and the meaning of life.

And that's not to say that teens don't speak like that sometimes and are less intelligent. There are teens out there that are incredibly smart, but these two talk like no one I've ever heard before. They did have some discussions with certain lines that really stuck with me. When talking about adults and how they believe so strongly in one thing, example God, that it's the right thing. The correct thing. And the response was "The parasite believes itself to be the host." In context, it's a very strong line.



If you went into this thinking that turtles were going to be a main symbol/part of the book, you were wrong. I was wrong. And I'm pretty disappointed with it. There is a small mention of one turtle in the beginning and then they aren't mentioned again until practically the end of the book. In a discussion about a woman who is 'challenging' her professor claiming that the earth is a flat plane resting on the back of a giant turtle.

"Well, but if that's so, what is the giant turtle standing upon?"
"It is standing upon the shell of another giant turtle."
"Well, then what is that turtle standing upon?"
"Sir, you don't understand. It's turtles all the way down."

In the end, I found this to be a book with a good eye opening example of anxiety and how one person deals with it. Everything else is just turtles.

♥

Hello Lovelies!

I got this post idea from A Life of Charlotte! I love seeing what other people are watching and always looking for some new suggestions, so I thought I'd throw in some of my own favorite shows.

Call The Midwife | I watch a lot of British YouTube. Not on purpose, I just like a lot of them. So naturally, I've heard this show mentioned a couple of times. So when it came to US Netflix, I gave the first episode a try. And now I'm hooked. This is based on the memoirs of Jennifer Worth, who was a midwife in London in the 50s.

The Crown | Another England based show. I'm also obsessed with British royalty, as you probably might know by now. I've never been that into the current Queen and her particular line, but the first season of this show was amazing and I don't think I've ever looked back. Season 2 drops December 8!

Parks and Recreation | I mean, how can I not add this show to the list? This is one of the best shows ever created. It's such a good thing to put on when you need a laugh or when you need some background noise. And there will be a character you can relate to, trust me. Treat yo'self!

1922 | I'm not really into scary/horror shows or films, but this has a really good plot line and I couldn't help but to get sucked into it. This is based on Stephen King's novel of the same name, so if you like his work and need a new thriller to get into, this is the one for you!

Thirteen Reasons Why | I've written a post on this show before, comparing it to the book, and I'm sure you've seen/read/heard a lot of good and bad things about it. This show had me down in the dumps for days. It's really heavy subject matter, obviously, so if you're underage, definitely ask your parents before you watch this. I think this has a important message though, so I highly suggest it!

♥

Welcome to Blogmas day one! I'm excited to do this again, since I skipped last year. Get ready for holiday flood posting!

Is there an album that just brings back all the memories?

I was recently going through all of my CD's in storage, trying to make some room, and we all know I ended up just going through everything because of nostalgia. Music is the best form of media to remember old times. Songs can just stick with you. So here are my top ten!

1 | A Day To Remember; What Separates Me From You - This is my college days anthem. I fell completely in love with this album and continue to listen to it on repeat to this day. There is just something so rejuvenating about being able to scream about something but then finish it off with some singing. You know, the normal kind. Favorite Song; All I Want.

2 | Britney Spears; Britney - The Queen of Pop broke out of her conservative, innocent shell with this self-titled album and so did I. At the ripe old age of eleven I was so ready to grow up and do whatever the hell I wanted. In moderation, of course. Favorite Song; Anticipating.

3 | N'Sync; No Strings Attached - Who didn't love the good old puppets of the 2000's? To be honest, this was the album where I discovered N'Sync and I still don't know, or own, any album before this one. I'm a believer in not needing to know every artist's song that they've ever made to be a fan. Favorite Song; It's Gonna Be Me

4 | Matt Nathanson; Some Mad Hope - I think like most Matt Nathanson fans, I discovered him with his song Come On Get Higher, from this album. But I instantly fell in love with Matt and his songs. He's become a big part of my life, with this album being my favorite. I listen to this and his new releases all the time. I have my 'Matt Nathanson Moments', my mother and I have a special connection with him as an artist, and I even got my husband to love him as well. Favorite Song; Sooner Surrender.

5 | Christina Aguilera; Christina Aguilera - Self titles albums look so weird here. 1998/1999 was the time of pop queens and kings, and I was a fan of both the top queens of the day. While I haven't followed Christina around like I have with Britney, her first album will always have a special place in my heart. It helped that she did Reflection for Mulan, because that was another connection. Her voice is like no other and this is an album where you could bounce around the room without abandon. Favorite Song; I Turn To You.

6 | JoJo; JoJo - JoJo was the biggest thing in 2004 with her debut album. She was all my friends and I talked about, listened to, danced too. She was IT. Every song on this album brings back so many memories of putting on pretend concerts, dancing in the back of my step-father's truck bed, using it as a stage and singing to other love lorn girls who were still figuring out who they were. This was the anthem. Favorite Song; Fairy Tales.

7 | Boys Like Girls; Boys Like Girls - Have you noticed a lot of these are the artist's debuts? When it comes to debuts, you can't really beat BLG. This was kind of a new thing for me when this came out, a new style, and I really fell for them hard. I recently took my best friend to see their 10th Anniversary show, where they celebrated this album. And it was still as good. Favorite Song; Five Minutes To Midnight.

8 | Avril Lavigne; Let Go - Avril was everything when this came out. Complicated was everyone's favorite song and they would sing Sk8er Boi on the bus in the mornings. I can't really remember when this album fell out of popularity, because I still hear it all the time. Favorite Song; Anything But Ordinary.

9 | Paramore; Riot! - This. Is. Everything. I can't even begin to tell you all the 'concerts' I put on in my room, pretending to be the fire haired singer, bouncing on stage with incredible energy. The lyrics were something I could relate to at the time and if anyone says that they didn't own this, listened to it, liked it, they are LYING. Favorite Song; Crushcrushcrush.

10 | Maroon 5; Songs About Jane - The album that put them on the map. The album that, I believe, is so under rated, is so overlooked when compared to their newest songs. Their debut has some BEAUTIFUL songs. The instrumentals are gorgeous and relaxing, and if you have the 10th Anniversary Edition, you can listen to the demos. And those are just as perfect. Favorite Song; Sunday Morning.

BONUS! The first CD I ever owned;
Britney Spears; ...baby one more time - Who didn't own this album? Everyone I knew, all my friends, friends parents, even some boys, had this album. It is the definition and the pinnacle of music in the 90's and it's going to outlive us all. Favorite Song; Soda Pop.

The first CD I bought on my own;
Creed; Weathered - I don't know if I should be proud about this or ashamed, but this was the first album I bought all on my own. I haven't listened to it in years, but I also can't bring myself to get rid of it. I still have mixed feelings. Favorite Song; One Last Breath.

What are some of your throwback albums?
♥

If there was ever a face scrub made for autumn, this would be it.

I happened to have this polish land in my lap by chance. I had never heard of this brand before and I didn't think I would ever be using something that smelt just like pumpkin pie on my face. It's a strange world we live in.

So this is basically exactly what it says it is. It's a detoxifying face scrub that smells like pumpkin spice. It has a couple of good selling points! It's paraben and preservative free, they're cruelty free, and it uses the pumpkins natural enzymes along with bamboo and jojoba to keep the face soft and smooth after use.

It has helped the spots on my face to disappear, but there is one thing I don't quite like about this. The micro beads. Not only are they bad for the environment, because they don't dissolve, I've had a personal bad experience with them when one got into my eye and scratched it. There is nothing quite like the pain of eye pain!

Aside from that, this is something I would use again. It's perfect for this time of the year as well, as you can wash your face with pumpkin spice, then go downstairs and eat pumpkin pie! It'll really get you into the mood!


Elizabeth Grady Pumpkin Polish
♥





*This post is not sponsored. All thoughts/opinions are my own, as always*

There is always something exciting about a new Zoella Beauty launch. I feel like these posts are something to be expected from me when she releases a new collection, and sorry not sorry, I love writing and taking pictures for these posts.

The new Christmas scent is not something that you would expect. It's a really fresh and crisp kind of smell. Peony and mint. It doesn't scream Christmas, but the packaging definitely does. I think this might be the best packaging she has done for her collections so far. With the Scandinavian trees, the rose gold, white, grey, pink, and black, there really is nothing wrong with anything in this collection. I prefer the scent of last year's Christmas collection, the lovely Gingerbread and Vanilla of Bake My Day. I think this new scent is one everyone will like.

There are some new items this year! Roller Ball perfumes, which I was particularly excited about, a gorgeous glass bottle of the sparkliest bubble bath you could ever find, a body scrub, a 120mL of the mist, and while I don't have these on hand, tea bags for the bath! The variety is perfect and I have been dying for colder weather so I can put all of this bath stuff to use.

You can find Zoella Beauty in the US online at Feel Unique, Ulta, and Target.
♥





*This post is not sponsored. All opinions are my own, as always*

Hello Lovelies!

So recently, I celebrated my one year wedding anniversary with my husband! We were married on October 21, 2016 so we packed up the bags and took a mini vacation to Vermont. I'm not going to get too sappy here, so don't worry!

Vermont was super beautiful and while we missed the PEAK season for all the leaves changes, they were stunning nonetheless. The hubby had flowers delivered to the room and the hotel we stayed at even bumped up our room to a very nice one with a balcony. I'd go back in a second.

We stayed at the Burke Mountain Hotel and Resort. FUN FACT: The stuffed green thing on the bed is Jeero and he comes with me everywhere.

♥

I think at this point, it's safe to say that we're no stranger to dandruff on this blog.

I talk about it often. And how can I not? Dandruff has made itself a daily presence in my life, much to my chagrin. I've gone through the rounds of trying to get rid of it, lessen it, whatever I can to make it less irritating. That means I've also tried countless products. Some have worked pretty well, others stopped working after a while, so it's been hard to keep to a routine when I'm having to constantly change around my products.

I was given a chance to try this product from Maple Holistics. Tea Tree is known for being great against dandruff. Ninety percent of the products I've tried have had this included in the ingredients. I'm going to admit, I didn't have very high hopes. I gave this baby a longer test run than usual and I can say that it has withstood the test of time. A month and nothing has changed on my scalp. Nothing but the amount of irritation I have on my scalp!

This shampoo has been an amazing, and relieving, part of my hair care routine. It's so easy to just set it and forget, putting it into the same category as all the others at first look, but you should definitely not underestimate this bad boy. All you need to do is leave this on your head for five minutes or so and wash it out. I've been leaving mine in longer, because I'm super desperate, and it's been working marvelous! I still have my days, but this shampoo has allowed me to skip at least three days from hair washing.

If you're having trouble with dandruff and an itchy scalp, I seriously recommend you try this. It's currently on sale for around eight dollars! The company also has a free samples program which I definitely think you should take advantage of in case you're not sure if you want to shell out for a full size.

Tea Tree Oil Shampoo
Free samples program!

♥





*This post is kindly sponsored by Maple Holistics. All opinions are my own, as always*

What is the point of having a face brush?

In my post Write Now, which you can read here, I stated that I'm not really good at expressing myself vocally. I think I used to be pretty good at it, but after high school and college, I've seemed to curl into myself and step away from a lot of social interaction. In fact, you'll find me at home ninety percent of the time if I have the choice. But it's gotten to the point where my anxiety has built up and if I don't get it all out, then I'm really just hurting myself mentally. So enter the journals.

So I decided to start with some simple journals that would have random things inside. Some with my thoughts and writing prompts, others with doodles, another with things I've found online that I can relate too. It's all a mixture but I've found that writing things down and being able to go back to something that inspired me without having to go back online has really helped me take a step back and look at myself for who I am.

These notebooks are just the beginning, but I'm hoping to fill them up and start collecting a whole bunch of them. So I don't have to be afraid of the word 'diary' and I definitely don't have to be afraid of expressing myself and getting my thoughts in order. They are no longer running around in my head at a million miles an hour. And I can't even tell you what a relief that has been.

Thoughts & Prompt Journal
Doodle & Inspiration Journals

What do you like to write about?
♥





*This post is not sponsored. All thoughts/opinions are my own, as always*

I am a lover of tea.

Whenever it's particularly cold out, or I have some kind of illness going on, tea is there to save the day. It is a constant companion and has come along with me on all kinds of adventures; both real and literary.

I've actually discovered this brand of tea before, kind of unexpectedly. This company allows you to make your own blends of teas, and I bought a few made by fans of a game I play. So it was definitely cool to find out that it was the same company!

Following, I have a couple of different blends that I'm pretty excited to share with you. With Autumn on the way, there's a decent handful of these that are going to fall perfectly in line with my routine.

Peppermint Tea | What else can be said about Peppermint tea? I feel like this is the most comforting and readily available tea that you can find. I like adding a bit of lemon to it as I find it makes it a bit sharper in taste, but this is perfectly good on its own and all year round!

Tea-tox Tea | There is nothing like a good ol' detox tea to flush out your system. (Just erase the graphics of that, would you?) This comes in a pretty cool metal tin, easy for re-using as future storage for even more tea, or whatever bits and bobs you want to keep safe. My first impression of this was that it was quite crisp and fresh, without being too overbearing. I've had detox tea before and the particular one I had was like... a heavy duty detox. Very strong in taste and it was like a punch to the face. But this is very mellow and something that you could find yourself drinking more than a couple times throughout the day. I would stick to just one in the morning though, as you don't want to detox too much in a day.


Lavender Earl Grey | When first opening this tea, the first thing that hits you is the smell. It's so beautifully fragrant! I have to admit that Earl Grey has always been a favorite of mine, so I might be a little biased here. The lavender is a wonderful addition though and honestly, I have no idea why I have never had this one before. This is a tea that you can drink all the time, though I think I'm going to stick to those nights where you had a really stressful day and just want to relax. This is the tea that will get it done.


Masala Chai | Oh my God. Is there a tea more spicy than this one? If I could put Autumn in a tea, it would be this one. This actually tastes better with a bit of milk added in. I typically take my tea with sugar only, so this was a different kind of experience altogether. I don't think I would drink this all year round. I like vanilla chai's no matter the weather, but this one is definitely an autumn drink.

Jasmine Phoenix Pearls | Now these were the weirdest things I've ever gotten. When you think of tea, you think of loose leaf or tea bags, but balls? These little things are hand-rolled and are super cool to make. When added to your hot water, they unfurl and pretty much look like a little tiny green dragon that tastes like jasmine. It's a little sugary flavored on it's own and was a completely new experience!

Spiced Apple Chai | This was a tea I was very excited for. Yes, the name says it all, but they also came in large tea bags, so you could steep entire pitchers full of the stuff! You could do hot or cold, it doesn't matter, but the taste is so so good! It's as it says; spiced apple in a chai tea. Perfect for the new fall season!




Do you have a favorite tea?
♥




*This post is sponsored by Adagio Teas! All opinions are my own, as always.*