Tuesday, July 29, 2014
Fall Dreaming ♥
The weather here has been quite cooler lately and as a result, I've been dreeeeaaaming about fall! As you know, fall is seriously my favorite time of the year. In fact, I'm even looking forward to the end of my research month (aka beginning of my crazy back-to-back core clerkships) because that means FALL WILL BE HEREEE. Ahh, just one more month I cannot wait. My friend and I are making a fall bucket list this weekend and I'm so incredibly excited.
I spent the last two days mega cleaning my apartment (blog post will be up soon once I take out all the trash, organize some more stuff, do laundry, etc) and it's actually been quite refreshing. Our kitchen was so incredibly dirty since it hadn't gotten a good clean in over 2 years :x oopsies. But it's sparkling now and I'm really hoping to take the first day of the month to maintenance-clean the apartment. I also finally cleaned out all the trash in my closet and threw away a lot of stuff I'd be hanging on to that I never used. Needless to say, I'm loving my new, cleaner, more-organized room.
In the fall spirit, I created a new YouTube fall playlist! SO excited, much more than I was for my spring playlist. Here's to the beginning of a wonderful, new, cozy season :) ....well just a month in advance :X
Monday, July 28, 2014
August Recipes
New recipes to try this month!
Leggo :)
Leggo :)
BREAKFAST
Bob's Red Mill 7-Grain Pancakes
Breakfast casserole -- chicken sausage, potatoes, onions, peppers, and cheese
Strawberry cream cheese waffle sandwiches
LUNCH
Ham & cheese with mayonnaise on a wheat baguette
Tomato & mozzerella sandwiches
DINNER
Chicken broccoli pesto pasta
Creamy vodka pasta with meatballs
Chicken fried rice
Tofu with Saffron Road lemongrass & basil simmer sauce
SINFUL EATING
Hash brown casserole
Banana nut muffins
Trader Joe's pumpkin bread mix
Saturday, July 26, 2014
My 2-Minute Makeup Look
Good news: I'm done with Ob/Gyn!!!! Thank God! It was a very rough month. I had to fake interest like crazy and it was incredibly hard dealing with bitchy residents and getting on their good side. Didn't even get to deliver a baby or the placenta. Got to do some cool stuff with C-sections and watch babies come out though. But still, I feel like it was really hard to be proactive, like they're always wanting us to do. Ugh whatever though, it's over. I'm kind of scared about my evaluations, but hopefully I can still maybe muster a High Pass? *Fingers crossed*. Should have my expectations as low as possible though, just in case my evals and grades were lower than I had thought. Argh, I hate the guessing game of clerkship grades. The good thing is that no matter how bummed I am about my Ob/Gyn performance, it won't matter too much because I'm not planning on going into the field and now I have a better idea on how to boost my performance in clerkships. It's a little easier to be proactive in medicine rather than surgery, so looking forward to beasting my medicine-based rotations. In fact, I'm planning on studying medicine during my research month in August so I can be prepared to wow them with my clinical knowledge :)
But anyway. Just as I had expected, I barely have had any time this past month to get ready in the morning. Usually, it's a successful morning if I remember to pack a sandwich for lunch. However, since I had been on outpatient medicine last week, I figured it would be unprofessional if I went in looking like I just woke up. For the surgical part of Ob/Gyn, I was able to throw on a eyeshadow on most days and sometimes even do a full-face makeup. But for some reason during my last week in outpatient medicine, I slept right up until 30-45 minutes before I had to leave, so it was a challenge to put on makeup with only a few minutes.
So instead of attempting to do a full-face makeup everyday, I chose to focus only on the parts that take twenty seconds to put on, but make a big impact. For me that means mascara and a blush. As much as I love eyeshadows, I knew I wouldn't have time to put any on since that requires longer (gotta put under eye concealer, primer, eyeshadow, blend, blah blah...TIME CONSUMING!). I know I look a lot more zombie-ish without concealer under my eyes, but it takes me quite a while to put it on properly...much more time than I have in the morning. So, I think it's better to have dark circles under my eyes rather than have patchy concealer put on or put too much concealer on and look like a cakey mess. To each their own though.
The part of the look that makes the biggest difference is the blush. I bought this one back in March and have been in love since. I love it's packaging (obviously), but I've been especially loving it recently since it's such a multi-tasking product. It's a blush, but because it's so shimmery it doubles as a highlighter. It is quite shimmery, but not so shimmery that you're going to look like a disco ball and can't wear it to work. Plus, it's not super opaque, so if you put on a little bit extra, it's not going to be a mess and can easily be blended out to be as sheer as you want. Shimmery blushes are the best for when you're in a rush or can't pack too many face products because they have this multi-task perfectly as a blush + highlighter and make you look incredibly awake and fresh faced.
Second, I put on a few coats of mascara, which perks up my eyes. I'm absolutely in LOVE with the new Maybelline Pumped Up Colossal mascara, and have been using it like crazy. Again, the packaging is adorbs but I love the fact that it doesn't clump at all, even when I rack on three or four coats. That's the biggest complaint I have from most mascaras I've used, but this one hasn't clumped on me even once yet (knock on wood!). Maybe because it's waterproof? Plus, it makes my lashes look so much fuller without over-lengthening them. No flaking either! Since it's so low maintenance but has amazing results, it's been my go-to mascara this month and I cannot leave the house without putting on a coat of it.
So that's it, that's my 2-minute makeup look! It's basically just my usual foundation routine + blush + mascara. Choosing the correct blush and mascara is important because you want a multi-tasking, shimmery blush paired with a fuss-free mascara so you can dab them on and head out the door in a jiffy. Of course, it's not as glamorous as a full face makeup look would be (especially with the uncovered dark circles), but when you're pressed for time and can only put on a few products, I think these few will make you look much more awake, refreshed, confident, and ready for a full day of work while taking only a few minutes.
Products
St. Ives Even & Bright Pink Lemon and Mandarin Orange Scrub
Aveeno Smart Essentials Daily Moisturizer SPF 30
Organix Coconut Milk Anti-Breakage Serum (best used on damp hair; really makes my dry hair alive, smooth, and frizz-free. went for a week without using this product and my hair was a giant mess.)
bareMinerals Matte Foundation in Golden Tan
Milani Secret Cover Concealer Stick in Medium
bareMinerals Mineral Veil
CoverGirl Volum' Express Pumped Up Colossal Mascara
Physician's Formula Happy Booster Blush in Natural
Sunday, July 20, 2014
New Milani Goodies! ♥
Milani Secret Cover Concealer in Medium
Photo credit = www.storenvy.com
Milani Baked Blush in Rose D'Oro
Photo credit = www.sarahassansblog.com
Milani Baked Blush in Red Vino
Photo credit = www.musingsofamuse.com
Milani Baked Eyeshadow in The Intermix
Photo credit = www.vsmakeupsecrets.blogspot.com
Saturday, July 12, 2014
NOTW: Watermelon Pink Glitter
Sally Hansen Insta-Dri Nailpolish in Speedy Sunburst
Maybelline Color Show Nail Lacquer in Punk Rock Pink
Ain't nothin' like rediscovering old nail polish faves! I recently re-organized my nail polish box and was sooo happy to dig out this really pretty hot pink watermelon shade, which is literally screeeeammms summer. I remember it being one of my absolute favorite summer polishes a few years ago. So very glad I found it again!
I decided to pair it this week with a shimmery gold topcoat and I love love love the texture and sparkle it adds. It makes the polish pop so much more and jazzes it up so it's not just another boring, flat pink nail polish. Just makes it much more summery, girly, bright, sparkly, and fun! It actually reminds me of the Revlon Colorburst Lipgloss in Strawberry, since the color and sparkle is so similar. Hot pink/neon pink shades look amazing on tanned summer skin and are perfect for this time of the year! Also would look amazing on the toes (new nail polish idea?!?!).
Overall loving this combo and will probably be wearing this quite a lot until the end of the summer! Yay for neons!!
Sunday, July 6, 2014
De-bloating After The Holiday Weekend
BLOAT. I effing hate hate hate that word. I absolutely HATE being bloated and for some reason, my body is super prone to becoming bloated even after one salty meal. This past week, I've unfortunately been cheating a lot on my diet and as a result, have become bloated like a pregnant lady. But no fears, I refuse to look back and instead choose to be optimistic and focus on the future.
But yes, as a result of eating as much salty fatty yummy foods as I want, I'm feeling incredibly bloated and hate hate hate hate haaaaaaate that feeling. So, for this week, I have some specific fitness/health goals I want to try and adhere to. I will be undergoing a schedule change this week, since (starting Wednesday) I begin night duty in the labor and delivery suite. Not totally excited for the crazy circadian rhythm change, but still excited since I'll get to deliver babies!! But, I'm still going to try and follow these few simple diet rules even through my crazy schedule change in order to reduce bloating and get a fitter, flatter core. I don't bloat as much on my upper/lower body (does anyone?) but when I bloat, my back and my stomach area puff up like crazy. And that's just not very pretty.
1. Water, water, water
By far the best thing to reduce bloat for me is to drink copious amounts of water. I'm hoping to drink 4-5 bottles of my 24oz bottle for the next two days for a total of 96-120 oz of water per day. Crazy! But, this is literally the best thing to fight bloat. After that, I'm probably going to drop back down to drinking 3 bottles per day (72 oz) and try to continue drinking that much each day to prevent bloat in the future.
2. Salt
Next best thing: cut out sodium from my diet. Dropping my sodium intake down to 1500 mg is the best way to lose my bloat. Now, the issue is that eating only 1500 mg of sodium on normal days is kinda impossible. So, after I go back to normal, I'm planning on resuming my 1500-2000 mg sodium regime and this time, strictly adhere to it! No more venturing above the 2000 mg line because that just bloats me right back up.
3. Cardio sweatfest
While drinking water and cutting sodium are the two most crucial things for me to reduce bloat, I will say that exercising also helps. How? Because I sweat like cray cray when I do any form of cardio exercise, which is another great way to drop water weight. Sure crunches help, but a cardio sweatiest is golden. Since I have a lot of abdominal fat, crunches and planks and abdominal exercises won't help as much in visibly reducing bloat for me. But, they do give you a feeling of having a tight core, which also helps.
4. Drop the carbs
I've read in several magazines that eating a lot of carbs causes water weight retention....which leads to bloating. So, I'm also hoping to cut down my carb intake to less than 150g per day. I'm finding that to be easier said than done however, since I'm out of my apartment for most of the day and don't have a fridge to keep food in during my rotations. Most perishable snacks tend to be carbohydrate-rich, which can be a problem. I have found that nuts are great snacks though full of protein and healthy fats and tend to hold me over for a long long time. Plus, the Babybel prepackaged cheeses also hold up well in my lunch sack. I'm hoping to stock up on these healthy, low-carb snacks and munch on those in between my rotations instead of grabbing a granola bar or pretzels.
Friday, July 4, 2014
June Favorites ♥
Lots of beauty products I've been loving this month! I've had a lot of time this month to experiment with new stuff and have hauled up a lotttt of goodies that I've fallen absolutely in love with. Here they all are. It was really hard to narrow them out, but here are the main products I've been loving. I wanted to mention a lot of products I mentioned in my Summer/Spring favorites, but I left them out so I wasn't talking about the same products again and again. But, I still loveee those products and have been using them a lot still, but here are some of the newer products I've loved and discovered this month.
PINK Sweet & Flirty Body Mist
Photo credit = www.iamlinderella.blogspot.com
Smells like summer in a bottle! Super light, breezy, and fruity. I've been wearing this in the morning as a light fragrance and it makes me smell amazing! Doesn't last a long time, but that's just the way I like it for an everyday scent.
BBW Candle in Lilac Blossom
Photo credit = www.todayiadore.com
I usually don't like floral candles, but this one is an exception. Very light floral, lilac smell and the mason jar version is strong enough to fragrance my entire bedroom!
Real Techniques Expert Face Brush
Photo credit = www.makeupyamind.wordpress.com
I normally don't mention makeup tools in a favorites post, but this foundation brush is soooo nice! It's nice and dense and it applies my foundation like a dream in less than 3 minutes without any fallout or streaking.
Urban Decay Eyeshadow in Dust (Naked 3 Palette)
Photo credit = www.beautyjunkiesunite.com
I mentioned the Naked 3 Palette in one of my spring favorites, but I've been using this shade in particular the entire month! It's such a pretty frosted pinky-rose color and I love this shade in particular because it doesn't look too light or too pink on me. It almost looks like a light mauve on me. It's the most natural looking pink in this palette (for my skin color) and I've been loving it on days where I want a non-brown, but still natural eyeshadow. It makes me look refreshed and awake without looking like I applied a ton of pink eyeshadow.
Make Up For Ever Smoky Extravagant Mascara
Photo credit = www.musingsofamuse.com
bareMinerals READY Blush in The Aphrodisiac
Photo credit = www.loveshelbey.com
A beautiful blush I recently rediscovered. I've owned this blush for a few years and I have a love-forget relationship with this. This summer, I've been loving how beautiful and glowy this shimmery apricot blush makes me look while still appearing natural! The best part? No need for a highlighter since the shimmer specks in this blush do all the work and light me up instantly while giving me a healthy, pretty, sun kissed glow.
Clinique Cheek Pop in Berry Pop
Photo credit = www.musingsofamuse.com
Another blush favorite this month. I've always been afraid of bright pink, fuchsia blush colors but I gave it a shot when the new Clinique blushes came out, and I'm soooo happy I did! This color looks gorgeous on tan skin and has been my go to blush on most days since it makes me look extremely well rested, fresh, bright, youthful, and like I just worked out...in a good way! I like to wear this color on days when I want my cheeks to pop a little bit more since this isn't as natural appearing as a peachy-apricot blush. But yet, it doesn't look like you slapped on blush. Just enhances your look in a very pretty, doll-like way! Next to a shimmery peachy blush, this is definitely my new favorite summer blush color -- probably will look great in the colder months too!
CoverGirl Lipslicks Smoochies Sizzle Gloss in Hot Stuff
Photo credit = thebeautybudgetblog.wordpress.com
I was browsing around Ulta a few weeks ago and picked up this gloss because I had heard good things about the Smoochies line. And ohhh my gosh this gloss smells and tastes just like cherries! I really like to wear this on days where I'm wearing minimal makeup, usually on weekends on days off when I can get away with wearing glitzy makeup (this gloss literally has chunks of glitter!). Beautiful sheer peachy, glittery gloss for the summer, especially with the fruity taste and smell! I'm pretty sure I'm halfway done with the tube, thats how much I've been wearing it recently.
Maybelline Baby Lips in Rose Rush
Photo credit = www.musingsofamuse.com
I'm usually not a big fan of the Baby Lips balms because they're quite opaque and I don't wear tinted lip balms as much anymore. However, they recently came out with a Pink collection and this color looked absolutely beautiful in swatches. On me, it translates to a gorgeous mid-opaque hot pinkish color. This shade in particular is gorgeous because it's sheer, but yet opaque enough to enhance my lip color. Plus, it smells like watermelons mmm! I really like Baby Lips because they're so incredibly hydrating and for only $4 a tube, they do well in terms of pigmentation. I'm glad I finally found a wearable color in this line!
Trader Joe's
Photo credit = www.mediabistro.com
Oh my gosh, I recently discovered TJ and I'm in LOVE. Their frozen section is absolutely amazing! They have cheap food, but the best part is that it's so much healthier than the grocery store frozen foods section in terms of sodium, sugar, and ingredients. Their other sections are good as well, but the frozen foods section is a total winner. Things I've been loving are their potato pancakes (with only 5 ingredients!), pad see-ew, and a pesto pasta TV dinner (with only 390 mg sodium and 300 calories!!!). I'll definitely be going here every single time I need to restock my freezer!
Sesame Oil! (hahaha)
Photo credit = www.budgetbytes.com
Totally random favorite, but I've started using sesame oil to cook my Asian dishes and ohmygosh it makes SUCH a big difference in terms of taste! I love love love Asian cuisine and I've been experimenting with cooking my own Asian dishes at home. So far, I've used sesame oil to make chow fun noodles and fried rice, and it definitely gives these dishes more flavor than olive oil. Definitely a must ingredient for any Asian dishes...olive oil definitely won't cut it! I'm so surprised I didn't discover it sooner, but never again will my pantry be without this!!
"Keep Calm And Have A Cupcake" Desk Notes
Photo credit = www.scribewritingessentials.com
Last but certainly not least, my new favorite desk accessory. I found this at the clearance section of my university book store, and it is SO fricken beautiful. Love the light pink casing and the cupcake imprinted notes. I love baking and love love love cupcake-baking and decorating in particular, so this message is me in a phrase. I love everything about this...the box, the notes, how big the notes are, the design, the elegance, the font size, the message. Ahh, love love love. So me in every single way. Plus, it's been keeping me organized and top of things this past month so it's a total win win!
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