Tag: bp

21 things I’ve learned in 21 years

Published on by Alicia1 Comment

Happy Summer everyone! I’m back from Florida (posts on that to come) and am SO ready to get back into a routine! I didn’t even bring my laptop to Florida and it was so refreshing + relaxing (although I’m grateful my dad brought his because I had to register for 3 classes while we were down there) and I had a great 10 days just relaxing. However, like I said I’m glad to be back with my bed, my dog, and my own routine.

As some of you (or none) know, while I was in Florida, I turned 21!!! Woot drinking, gambling, blah blah. Something I LOVE reading are those “___ things I learned in ___ years” posts so I wanted to do my own! So, here are 21 things I’ve learned before turning 21.

  1. It is 100% okay to not be friends with people based on their political views – A lot of the times (especially recently) it has more to do with the other person’s morality than their choice of Democrat or Republican.
  2. Cutting negative people out of your life is so hard but so rewarding – I’ve cut out a few negative people from my life and yes, it’s shitty at first, especially if you were ‘friends,’ but week, months, and years later when you don’t have that negativity on your shoulder, your life will be so much better
  3. Always trust your gut – Something I’ve realized is that I’m very decisive. However, I always second guess myself and literally ruin my life choosing between 2 choices. One example of this was with transferring. Once I visited OU, I was certain that it was the school for me and once it had like 100x the pros than DePaul I knew I LOVED OU but what if I didn’t like it later, what if I didn’t make friends, etc. I had to visit OU again and it took 3 months for me to make a choice… UGH JUST TRUST YOUR GUT
  4. Life is too short to not have the nails, coffee, and underwear you really want – These are things I enjoy and I want to enjoy them without having to be stingy. I’ll buy cheaper food and clothes as long as these 3 things I get to enjoy.
  5. But in all real life really isn’t that short – Totally an unpopular opinion but life is literally the longest thing we ever do… so it’s not that short.
  6. Question everything – I’m one of those people whose worldview is based on the last documentary I watched. But, I’ve been learning to question things. I don’t believe something just because a person in power or the internet says something is true.
  7. Snuggling an animal can make any bad day at least somewhat enjoyable
  8. Don’t regret anything- I’ve always been that person who says “what if?” What if I’d stayed in San Diego/never even pick it? What if I never played badminton freshman year and started playing water polo instead? As I ask myself these questions wondering how my life would have been different, I also remind myself that if I never transferred, if I never chose San Diego, if I chose a different sport freshman year, etc. that I would never have met some of my best friends, never would have had so many incredible experiences and my life would be so much different. Would I probably like my life just as much as I do now? Yeah, but I love where I’m at now and the choices I’ve made.
  9. Never apologize for being yourself – people will tell you that you’re too much of this and not enough of that. But you’re you and really, that’s all that matters.
  10. Stand up for what you believe in… even if you’re standing alone – I’ve found that following the crowd is a lot less fun when you’re following for something you don’t believe in. It’s hard to stand up for yourself and what you believe in, especially if no one else is standing with you, however, in the end, it’s going to be so much more rewarding.
  11. Make time for what you love – I can’t stress this one enough. In the midst of school and work, taking time to read, write, or go to the gym is so important and can refuel myself to get everything I have to do done.
  12. Be punctual – I can only think of a few things worse [in my opinion] than being late and committing a murder is one of them. I am always early. Sometimes 5 minutes early and sometimes 30. Whether I head to the bathroom to make sure I still look presentable or I sit and tap away on my phone, I would much rather be early than show up right on time… or even worse… late.
  13. Try new things – Try a new workout, learn a language, try eating vegan for a week [yes a shameless go vegan promo] just anything to switch up your routine and remember – variety is the spice of life.
  14. Not everyone is going to like you – This one took me a LONG TIME to learn. I’m such a people pleaser and want everyone to like me and when someone doesn’t I used to try so hard to get them to. Now, I get it. I don’t like everyone and I know everyone isn’t going to like me, and you know what? I’m okay with that.
  15. Loving yourself is extremely hard but even more rewarding – Self-love is one of those things that seem rather ‘new.’ People everywhere are seeing that businesses all over are making billions of dollars on people hating themselves and we’re sick of it. Loving yourself can be one of the hardest things you do in your life, especially when you aren’t that seemingly ‘perfect’ person as shown in magazines ( even though the people in magazines aren’t as perfect as they are shown ).
  16. Getting enough sleep is VERY IMPORTANT – I know that when I get less than 7-8 hours of sleep I don’t feel as refreshed, healthy, and alert as when I get 8 or more.
  17. Travel – I learned far more about life from being in Peru than I ever have in a classroom. I can’t wait to keep traveling and learn even more.
  18. Staying in on a weekend can be just as (or more) fun as going out – I’m the definition of a homebody. I like to be my own company in my own bed. I’m usually down for a night out but cozy pajamas, a movie, and some snacks can definitely be better.
  19. Failure and rejection are a part of life – This took me until this past school to realize. Coming from a high school where I got everything I applied for, to a place with 30,000 other students and a lot more competition. Now, I have to work my butt off to get things I want and it’s taught me so much.
  20. Taking risks, while scary, can be so rewarding – Going against the norm, being different, and trying something so far out of your comfort zone can be frightening, but can be one of the best decisions you’ve ever made (at least all the risks I’ve taken have been)
  21. I have so much to learn – I’ve learned a lot in my first 21 years but I still have so much to learn. I learn something new every day and can’t wait to keep learning

What have you guys learned that I haven’t?

❤ Alicia ❤

Blogs I’m loving

Published on by Alicia8 Comments

Happy Friday everyone! I’m currently en route to Florida! I’m visiting Universal in Orlando and Sarasota as well and I’m super duper excited to be there, especially because I’ll be turning 21 while I’m there!

To keep spreading all of this love going during the month of June, I wanted to share some of my favorite blogs to share them with you guys!!! I love reading SO many blogs (so these are just a few of my faves) but I wanted to share some of the blogs I’ve been loving currently!

Jamie

I’ve followed Jamie for a while now (I think she was one of the first people I followed when I started blogging) and I absolutely adore her blog! From her vlogs, her Netflix reviews, and monthly favorite posts she always gives me ideas on what to buy/watch!

 

Emily

Emily (whom I don’t think I’ve ever met) and I came into contact sometime during or before freshman year at SDSU. There was probably a follow train of nervous freshmen and we ended up following each other on Instagram. We are both from the Chicago suburbs and she makes me want to get more into fashion because of all of her ‘how to style’ posts. Maybe one day a post of hers will spark me to make a wardrobe change instead of sporting leggings and t-shirts 24/7

Alys

Although I’m pretty sure Alys has only been blogging for half a year or so I feel as though I’ve followed her for much longer. She posts about mental health, traveling, college, and bullet journaling to name a few. Her bullet journal is SO AMAZING! I have tried to get into bullet journaling for a while and whenever I see one of her posts about it, I always try to restart mine because of how aesthetically pleasing it is.

Rachel

Something I love about Rachel’s blog are all of her traveling tips. As a gal who definitely wants to get some more traveling done sooner rather than later, I love seeing what frequent travelers do that makes traveling a breeze. Not to mention the photos she adds to posts are unbelievable and make me want to visit every nook of this beautiful Earth!

Hope

And last (but certainly not least) is Hope! While she doesn’t post too often, the posts Hope shares are always well thought out and have great photos to boot. I love reading about her life and various DIYs and recipes she shares!!

Make sure you give all of these lovely ladies a follow!!

What are some blogs you’re loving currently?

❤ Alicia ❤

Unpopular opinions

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Happy Wednesday everyone! If any of you are on twitter (I know some of you are because we follow each other), you may have seen the “Unpopular Opinions” trend going around. I have related to SO MANY of them and I wanted to share some of my unpopular opinions with you all!

Circuses are bad

Every year when I was a kid, my friends and family would go see the circus and as I got older I began to see how terrible circuses are. Animal abuse and poorly treated employees make “The Greatest Show on Earth” not that great

Vegans aren’t protein deficient

I mean they can be but so can nonvegans. If you eat a balanced diet of carbs, fats, and proteins there is no reason a vegan should or would be protein deficient

We need to stop idealizing certain body types

I saw a tweet today idealizing the ‘dad bod.’ that’s great and all but in the process totally bashed on guys with abs and nice pecks. We need to love all bodies without simultaneously calling other bodies bad.

I hate the Kardashians

I don’t hate many people but I really can’t stand the Kardashians/Jenners. They advertise appetite suppressant lollipops, skinny teas, waist trainers, and other useless products that literally don’t work. I get that they want to make an extra buck but people are spending money on things that don’t work because their idols do ??????

13 reasons why glorifies suicide and depression and is garbage

I feel like this is becoming more of a popular opinion for anyone with a mental illness but I barely even finished the first season and didn’t start the 2nd season. Suicide and depression (and literally all other mental illnesses) need to not be glorified but shows like 13RW make it seem like that’s an okay thing that society does.

What unpopular opinions do you all have? Do we share any?

❤ Alicia ❤

10 things I love about being ME

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I figured I’d start June off on a positive note with my self love post of the month AKA sharing 10 things I love about being me! I have a feeling this is going to be a tough one for me to muster up 10 things… but here goes nothing!

1. I love that I love learning- I heard a while ago that no one can take away your right to an education and that really stuck with me, After my gap year, coming back to school reignited my passion for learning and I’ve been striving to better myself ever since.

2. I love that I’m curious- Going off of me loving learning, I’m curious about other things nonschool related and if they really spark my interest I’ll delve deeper into that subject. As the old saying goes, ‘curiosity killed the cat but satisfaction brought it back.’

3. I love that I am determined- I can be told no 1000 times (as seen this past school year) but I’m still going to keep trying until I succeed

4. I love that I’m *usually* okay with change- I’m very much behind the saying ‘don’t fix it if it isn’t broken,’ however when something does need changing, I’m quick to adapt and move on.

5. I love that I’m not going to settle for less than I deserve- This one is pretty self-explanatory but when I know I deserve something, I’m not going to settle for anything but what I know I should be getting.

6. I love that I’m confident- Over the past few years, my confidence has been gradually increasing and I love the confidence I currently have and can’t wait to see what the future of my confidence holds.

7. I love that I’m unapologetically myself- I’ve spent years trying to be less of this and more of that and I’m proud to say I no longer care what others think of me or what they want me to change. I am who I am and that’s not going to change.

8. I love that I’m vegan!- Saving animals, saving the environment, and doing something great for my health… why would I not love that?

9. I love that I’m always trying to better myself- I’m constantly working on myself in all aspects of my life and doing whatever I cant be a better person inside and out.

10. I love that I’m caring- Whether it’s for my friends, peers, colleagues, kids I’m working with, etc. I do my best to be the most caring and compassionate I can be.

What do you guys love about yourselves?

❤ Alicia ❤

June goals

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Happy June! In one week from today, I will be on my way to Florida! I’m so excited for June and I hope you all are too : ) I’ve got a lot planned for this month and I can’t wait to get it all done. Here are my goals for June!

  1. Plan for CHAARG- Being the CHAARG Treasurer involves a lot of planning over the summer. I want to set aside a few hours a day [or just one whole day] where I get as much planned for the fall as I can.
  2. Start CHAARG Booty Camp or Insanity // Something I love doing over the summer are workout programs. I have way more time this summer to dedicate to improving myself and I’m going to start one (or both) once I return from Florida!
  3. Eat better // Since being home, I’ve been cooking a lot… but I’ve also been eating a lot. I’m trying to find the right balance for my body and I’m going to give meal planning and prepping a try to see if I can find a good balance for myself.
  4. 1 gallon of water daily // you guys already know.
  5. Figure my whole major thing out // I’ve officially changed my major to International Business [long story] so now I am emailing professors nonstop trying to get into classes as my major isn’t 100% changed yet.
  6. Read // In one my last posts, I shared my summer reading list. In order to get that list finished, I need to start!
  7. Go to bed earlier // This will relate to the next one but whenever I go to bed, I spend at least an hour on my phone and all of a sudden it’s 1 in the morning and my planned 6am wake-up time quickly turns into 10am. I want to shut my phone off by 9pm each night and then read before bed so that I’m ready to sleep and ready for the next day ahead
  8. Less screen time // Since I really don’t have a job this summer, I’ve been spending SO much time watching TV, scrolling through my phone, and being on my computer and I hate it. I want to spend more time outside, with friends, walking my dog, even cleaning my house.

What are your goals for June?

❤ Alicia ❤

May wrap-up

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Hi everyone! Can you believe that May is already over? I am so excited for June BECAUSE… It’s Gemini season aka my birthday is in 12 days, I’ll be heading down to Florida in less than 10 days, and summer is officially beginning!! Since I was garbage at posting during the end of April + beginning of May so I’ll be wrapping up my April goals instead, which is fine because most of them I was still working on in May.

  1. 128 oz of water daily- I don’t get it every day but I’m doing really well with this!
  2. Get my body moving every day- Most morning I wake up and walk 3-4 miles and those days (and days I’m not I’m working out) so I’ve been very active this summer
  3. Finish this semester with straight As- 5 solid As and one A-
  4. Figure out my whole switch major/graduate early situation- Still ugh but I’ll update on this later
  5. Go through my laptop files- I did this and soon I’ll be putting all my photos on an external hard drive because I have over 13000 and I need to stop them from slowing down my computer
  6. Finish CHAARG exec transition- I did and I had my first summer team meeting Sunday and I can’t wait for the fall!
  7. Don’t stress about presentations- I didn’t and I got 100% on both!
  8. Figure out my living/working situation for the fall- A few sublease opportunities fell through but I ended up signing a lease by myself so I don’t know my roommates but at least I have somewhere to live!

How did you guys do on your goals for the month?

❤ Alicia ❤

Decluttering my life

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2018 has taught me a lot so far and one of those things is to only keep things (and people) in your life that bring you joy. Since I’ve been home (and even while still at school) I’ve been trying to remove people and items from my life that no longer give me joy. Whether that be by unfollowing people on Instagram, defriending people on Facebook, or throwing a LOT of things away.

I watched Gabbie Hanna’s video about getting her ‘hoarding room’ organized and a lot of things Gabbie and the professional organizer talked about in the video I really related with, which caused me to really evaluate why I keep certain people and objects in my life.

I’m a total hoarder of so many things. From clothes that I wore on special occasions that don’t fit or I don’t like, to empty boxes, and random bags of electronics and keychains.

Over the past week or so (and I’m still not done) I’ve been going through all of my possessions, discarding old items, boxes, and going through clothes to either donate, throw away, or sell.

As I mentioned before, I not only got rid of items that don’t give me joy but people as well. I went through the people I follow on Instagram and realized that I either don’t talk to a lot of people still, have never talked to them, or I only followed them because they followed me first. Recently, I’ve stopped caring about how many followers, likes, and comments my posts so I decided to go through my followers and only keep following people who give me joy. I unfollowed over 400 people on Instagram, 100 or so people on Twitter, and unfriended 50 or so people on Facebook.

It’s so nice having only people I care about on my social media feeds as it A. makes me spend less time on social media (because there are fewer posts to see) and B. I don’t have to see negative people crowding my feed anymore.

I HIGHLY recommend that everyone does a bit of decluttering in their lives (and often) because it has left me feeling refreshed, less stressed, and I’m learning how to let go of people and items.

❤ Alicia ❤

If we were having coffee

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Happy Monday everyone! I haven’t made a nice catch-up post in a while and I figured it was time for one! So, sit back, relax, grab a cup of coffee, tea, or your beverage of choice and let’s chat.

If we were having coffee I would tell you that I’m heading to Florida in about 2 weeks. While there, I’ll be visiting Universal Studios in Orlando and my mom’s friend’s parents’ house. Complicated but I’ve known them since I was born and I have yet to visit their house so that will be nice to see them since I haven’t seen them in around a year.

If we were having coffee I would tell you that I have no job for this summer… which is upsetting because I didn’t have my life together when I should have been applying for internships and the families I babysat for last summer never responded to me so I’m out of luck. I thought about applying to somewhere close to my house but no one wants someone for just the summer so we will see.

If we were having coffee I would tell you that I have been drinking SO MUCH WATER.  This may seem dumb to tell everyone but it’s such a big deal for me. At school (and literally for the rest of my life) I drank either gallons of water a day or none whatsoever. However, since I’ve been home I’ve been drinking tons of water and there hasn’t been a day that I haven’t had at least half f a gallon of water so I’m very proud of myself.

If we were having coffee I would tell you that I’ve been cooking nonstop. Over the weekend I posted about some of my favorite recipes recently. I never cooked before college and I’m learning so much and I feel really independent when I cook which makes me feel like I have my life together to some extent.

If we were having coffee I would tell you about the super cute dress I bought last week. My sister and I went shopping for some clothes for our Florida trip and I saw this dress a while back and HAD to have it. I tried it on and even though I can’t wear a bra with it (big boob probs) it’s the cutest thing EVER and I’ll share a photo of me wearing it in Florida.

And if we were having coffee, I’d ask you about your life lately. Tell me something that’s happened in your life recently!

❤ Alicia ❤

My TBR

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Happy Sunday everyone! I hope everyone is having/had a great weekend and that you’re all ready for Monday!! Something I really want to do this summer is read… A LOT! I have sooo many books that I’ve accumulated and I have yet to read. My goal for this summer is to read 10 of them but there are more than 10 books on my TBR (to be read) list.

Here is my current TBR list and while I would love to read all of them this summer, I’m definitely going to read at least 10.

 

  1. Eat, Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert 
  2. The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin
  3. The Mastery of Love by Don Miguel Ruiz
  4. Walk like a Buddha by Lodro Rinzler
  5. The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie
  6. The Harder They Come by T.C. Boyle
  7. Adultolescence by Gannie Hanna
  8. The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
  9. The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
  10. Needles and Pearls by Gil McNeil
  11. Local Girls by Caroline Zancan
  12. A Long Long Way by Sebastian Barry
  13. Where’d You Go Bernadette by Maria Semple
  14. The Fifth Agreement by Don Miguel Ruiz
  15. The Secret Language of Sisters by Luanne Rice
  16. The Homecoming by Stacie Ramey
  17. Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann
  18. Something Borrowed by Emily Griffin

What books will you all be reading this summer?

❤ Alicia ❤

Anyone can cook

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Hi everyone and Happy Saturday! I hope you all are enjoying the start of your 3-day weekend (if you’re in the States that is). Something I love about being home (and will enjoy this fall in my apartment) is a kitchen! I’ve been cooking so much since I’ve been home and trying SO many new recipes and I wanted to share them, with you guys (especially my vegan followers because I know I love learning about new vegan recipes) since I’ve been loving some of these things so much! Here are a few of my current favorite things to make!

Stuffed Mushrooms

I’ve been really loving mushrooms lately but I wanted to learn to cook them myself. I had stuffed mushrooms once in Peru and they were one of the best things I’d ever eaten so, I took to the minimalist baker’s website to find a simple and quick recipe for them. These were sooo good and my non-vegan family members thought they were great too!

Protein Pancakes

I am a pancake fan like no other and since I’ve been trying to track my macros, I’m trying to eat more protein. These pancakes are SO simple and SO tasty (my sister doesn’t think so) and I could literally eat them for breakfast Every. Single. Day.

Mac & Cheese

If you couldn’t tell by now I LOVE THE MINIMALIST BAKER! She has recipes on the foods I really want to make with ingredients I already have in my house. This vegan mac & cheese recipe has made my life! I haven’t had it in so long and this recipe made my heart (and stomach) so happy.

Tofu

Tofu is awesome to cook because it is SO versatile! Whatever flavor combinations you are feeling, you can season it with tofu or add tofu your recipe and the tofu will compliment the dish perfectly!

2 types of ways I like to cook tofu is asian style- with sesame and soy sauces with sesame seeds, stir-fryed with broccoli and placed over rice. I also like to eat it (stir fried again) with garlic, salt, pepper, and various veggies. YUM

What recipes do you all like?

❤ Alicia ❤

My favorite places in Athens

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Hi again everyone!! After reminiscing about my first year at OU, I really began to miss some of my favorite places in Athens! Because of this, I wanted to share my favorite places in Athens (in case for some reason any of you end up in Athens, Ohio or I have some fellow bobcat readers). So, here are my top 5 favorite places in Athens. Enjoy!

  1. Donkey Coffee- This super cute, eclectic coffee shop has the best vegan muffins, cookies and more +++ the best red tea (I’d never had it until I went there)! It’s super cute and has a great atmosphere and I absolutely love studying there!
  2. Brenen’s Coffee- The best-iced coffee I’ve ever gotten in my life! It’s my go-to spot for coffee and they even offer a meal plan (might have to get that in the fall).
  3. Bagel Street Deli- My favorite place to eat off campus! Bagel Street Deli is a sandwich shop (on bagels of course) that have breakfast and regular sandwich bagels which has tons of vegan options! It is one of the best places to eat no matter the time of day and I love bringing my family here when they visit!
  4. Union Street Diner- There are 2 diners near campus, and while the other diner has that typical diner look and feel, Union Street’s Diner wins in my opinion because of the variety of options (especially vegan ones). It’s open 24 hours and I love going there with friends for some late night snacks!
  5. The Athena Theatre- I’ve never actually seen a movie in this Theatre, however, the history and architecture of the building are so cool. The theatre also features a lecture hall on the second floor (I attended an extra credit seminar there) which was beautiful all in its own. But, what’s great about this theater is that they have new (and old) movies for very very cheap which is great for all college students on budgets!

There are so many other places that I could talk about, but I think these take the cake as some of my absolute favorites!!!

❤ Alicia ❤

Review: Gearbunch Leggings

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Happy Friday everyone, sorry about my absence. I’ve been busy with midterms and job applications but here I am. It is currently pouring outside and I have a class in 2 hours. So,  I figured I would write a bit to pass the time.

A few weeks back, I was contacted by the company GearBunch, a company that specializes in custom leggings and other various customized apparel. Their prices range for leggings from about $85- $120. Gearbunch was lovely enough to send me a pair of leggings to review! So, that’s just what I’ll be doing today!

I received the Black and White Mandala leggings from Gearbunch (different from the B&W Mandala leggings which is what I thought I asked for haha), which are white with black print (as opposed to the other which is black with white print with a different design).

P.S. I apologize in advance for not using my own photos. My camera is doing this thing where NONE of the pictures are clear (unless they’re super close up) so bear with me.

 

First, let me say that I am normally an all black leggings kinda gal or like a little bit of mesh on the side and call it a day. These leggings are the complete opposite. With intricate designs (mine were probably one of the most simple designs they had) of all shapes and colors their website just makes you want to get creative. I definitely do like the patterns available and might start branching out and trying other patterned leggings in the future!

Anyway, these leggings are so comfy, sort of squat proof (I did 2 squats, one with black underwear and one with like a light purple and the black ones were a bit visible which was expected since they are white pants but the pair with the purple were not but I never wear black underwear with leggings anyway just in case), and super cute!

The only negative thing I have about these is that the inseam on the legs is done really simply. I always appreciate a sturdy inseam on leggings especially when they’re super expensive because on some of my cheaper leggings they tend to rip at the thighs which is so sad ++ I would HATE for that to happen to some more expensive leggings. Obviously, I can’t say that will happen as I have only worn them twice but it does make me a tad nervous that it might happen in the future.

Note the thin inseam

All in all, I am a huge fan of these leggings! I was a bit hesitant on the white but they have definitely grown on me! I wore them to yoga last week and a lot of people asked where I got them from. So, Gearbunch, hope I got you some new customers and thank you for the leggings!

I would definitely recommend checking them out sometime!

Check out my 3 favorite pairs (1 2 3)

Are you more of a simple leggings person or are you all for designs??

❤ Alicia ❤

Tarte Cosmetics review

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Howdy everyone, hope everyone is doing well. Over winter break I bought a few Tarte products and thought I would review them. I did another tarte review a while back and a lot of people seemed to enjoy it, so why not make another one.

Tarte always has the best sales (which is when I buy from them usually)  randomly so whenever they do I grab what I can. For this haul, I got the be happy. be bright. be you. set, the 3-in-1 frxxxtion stick exfoliating cleanser, and the no makeup magic beauty essentials.

While this is all I ordered, I also received the Swamp Queen eye and cheek palette by mistake. This actually happened to be the last thing I purchased from tarte as I got it for my sister for Christmas, so now we both have one! Now, onto the review!

be happy. be bright. be you.

Okay, for this one, If I’m being honest the main reason I bought this one was for the bag. It’s super cute and I LOVE the “be happy be bright be you” quote on it. Now, just because I loved the bag, doesn’t mean that I don’t also love the products it came with.

Highlighter duo- I’ve always been a girl that likes to glow. However, I’ve never tried cream or liquid highlighters so both of these sides were a first for me. I was SHOCKED by how pigmented these both were (liquid was more so) and a little went a LONG way. I’ve been wearing the liquid on my cheeks and the cream on my nose and upper lip (it’s easier to keep it in a small area) and I am in love!

 Lippie duo– Everyone knows there’s not been a lipstick I’ll turn down and these are no exceptions. I’m not much of a lipgloss person but I’ve been putting the gloss over the lipstick and it looks super cute (in my opinion haha). They’re both nude colors which I love (especially in Ohio because I can look put together and nice without people being like “why do you have so much makeup on”).

Blush- I’m not really going to review the blush because I’m not a blush person. My cheeks are rosy enough I don’t need them to stick out any more than they already do

Ready. Set. Radiant. Setting Spray- I never realized how important setting spray is until you use it and your makeup still looks good after 10 hours. It smells amazing (kind of like wood and citrus and mint) and keeps you looking good all day.

Sweet Tarte perfume- I’m not usually a gal who likes sweet and girly scents (I’m more of a natural perfume wearer) but this smells so good! I wouldn’t say it smells like sweet tarts the candy but it does smell fruity just good???

3-in-1 frxxxtion stick exfoliating cleanser- I reviewed this one in my last review but it was so good that I got it again! I have very sensitive skin so I don’t exfoliate a lot to keep my skin healthy and not dry but when I do, I use this! It’s sort of on the small side so if you exfoliate a lot I might not get this but if you do it more sparingly like me, this is for you! After I use this, my skin isn’t dry, itchy, or red AND it’s so soft! This is by far my fave skincare product they have 🙂

No makeup magic beauty essentials

This was another set that consisted of the brighter days highlighting moisturizer, and a lip quench. I really wanted to try the moisturizer to see if it would work well with my skin but didn’t want to spend a bunch of money on the full size one in case it irritated my skin or I just hated it.

Brighter days moisturizer– I love this. Once I finish buying books (kill me) I’m going to definitely grab this in the full-size option. It’s got little glitters in it which is what adds the highlighting aspect and it leaves you (me anyway) moisturized WITHOUT BEING SHINY which is so hard for me to find.

Lip Quench- this ended up being very moisturizing I just wish it wasn’t as tinted. The color is nice (sort of an orange-brown) however, I would’ve liked a more muted color or to be able to pick the color that came with the set.

Swamp Queen eye and cheek palette- As I mentioned before, I got this palette for my sister for Christmas. First of all, this smells heavenly. Most eyeshadow palettes smell like eyeshadow. Nothing special This palette smells like birthday cake or frosting and honestly, I’d buy it just for that! As for colors, I really like them all and the contour and highlight colors are good for my skin tone, but not for many others, which stinks for those of you who aren’t super fair skinned.

I’m always wanting to get better at makeup and I can’t wait to get experimenting with this palette!!

All in all, I loved all of these tarte products!

Alicia

Best day of my life

Published on by AliciaLeave a comment

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to the final post in my super late Peru series. This post is dedicated to one of the best days in my entire life: the day I visited Machu Picchu.

There are physically no words to describe my time at Machu Picchu. My entire day was surreal and went by far too quickly; from waking up at 330 to returning home close to 24 hours later. I met so many people from all corners of the globe and while I would love to say something more about my time, no words can amount to the indescribable day I spent there. So, instead, please enjoy some of my favorite photos from one of the best days of my life.

The train station in Aguas Calientes

Rescue horses and rescue inhalers

Published on by Alicia2 Comments

Well with a title like this, what do you expect? Just this. Rainbow mountain was an experience like no other, for many reasons: the magnificent mountain itself, the amazing people I met along the way, and of course the title of this post.

Rainbow Mountain, or montaña vinicunca in Spanish, is a 3-4 hour hike from 4500m to 5200m in height to the top of a beautiful mountain of colors and many more in the distance.

To be on my way to la montaña de los colores, I had to be awake and ready to go by 330 am. At 315 I was ready and walked down to the Plaza de Armas where I waited for over an hour with another man (who waited longer as we weren’t in the same tour group) until a woman in patterned leggings yelled out my name. I shot up to meet up with her and another couple before boarding our bus to take us to Rainbow Mountain.

Catedral en Plaza de Armas at 330 AM

After stopping for breakfast, getting a talk about the history of the mountain, time limit, and random facts about the area, we were off on our hike. I met a few nice people at breakfast and the bus whom I talked and walked with for a bit. 1 was from San Francisco, 1 from London, 2 from Lima, and one from a small town in Chile. We discussed our travels and lives back home, before myself, and the ladies from Lima and Chile started not being able to breath too well. We trudged on (we were far too gone to turn around and get a horse) but all of a sudden none of could breathe at all, so we sat down. I took a few hits of my rescue inhaler as one of the guides ran to get us oxygen. The 2 guys from San Francisco and London had been all through South America and had done hikes like these frequently throughout the past 6 months. Us ladies, however, had not. Along with the oxygen came some rescue horses for our group and another group of people past the halfway mark.

 

We all mounted the horses, oxygen in hand, and continued up the mountain.

 

The horses can’t take you all the way up the mountain, so for final 200m or so we had to walk up to the top (which happens to be the steepest part of the way).

 

My new friends and I finally made it to the top and with the little breath I had left in my lungs, it had been taken away by the unbelievable sight I witnessed. The colors of the mountains were unlike anything I’d never seen. I know it’s just how the minerals formed, but it was absolutely surreal. I never had seen something so enchanting in my entire life.

 

I spent about 20 minutes up there, recovering from the rest of the hike up, taking pictures, taking other people’s photos, and just enjoying the earth’s creations.

 

I finally started my descent from the mountain and made it as far as I could with no horse until, oh yeah, I couldn’t breathe anymore, so I found a horse, and all of my other rescue horse friends, where we descended the rest of the mountain together.

When we made it back to the start of the hike, there were 10 of us in the bus. Our guide came and told us that we would be waiting a minimum of 2 hours for the rest of the people. We all figured that we would just nap until it was time to leave. Luckily, another guide said that he had an empty van ready for us if we wanted to go now. So, the 10 of us (each friend of mine I’d made that day was on the van with me which I thought was pretty ironic) and our guide started back to Cusco, stopping for lunch and then finally back on the road to Cusco, everyone napping on and off until we were each dropped off at our hostels where we had ample water, ample air, and a nice warm bed for the night.

Alicia