Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from a Witch, Wonder Women and Batman!

 

Pumpkin Patch 2016

Last weekend, my sister and I continued our annual tradition by taking Cooper and Tiger Lily to our local pumpkin patch to pick out their pumpkins. Cooper wore his Batman Halloween costume and it was so funny to watch his cape blow in the wind as he ran around. Tiger Lily wore her Boo Halloween dress and she looked so adorable. Here are some of the photos from our pumpkin patch outing.

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Quarter Life: 25 Facts About Me

Today I turned 25 years young and in honor of 25 years on this beautiful earth I thought I would share with you all 25 facts about me!

1. Lipstick is my makeup weakness.

2. I've been blonde for over 11 years, and don't ever plan on going back to brunette.

3. I'm obsessed with taking pictures.

4. My dogs are my world.

5. Disneyland will forever be my favorite place. 

6. Survivor is my favorite reality show. I've watched every season. 

7. Remember the Titans is my favorite movie.

8. I have an extreme fear of heights.

9. I believe in ghosts.

10. Country music is the sound of my soul.

11. I love to travel and where I travel to next is always a top priority.

12. The Cincinnati Bengals are my favorite sports team. 

13. As much as I love Football, Golf is my favorite sport.

14. I can't go a day without a Dr. Pepper.

15. I haven't eaten cheese for 17 years.

16. I love to bake and I pretty much bake something for dessert every night.

17. I make the best homemade pizza. 

18. My favorite foods are Mexican food and Sushi. (I'm a true Californian)

19. Halloween is my favorite holiday.

20. I believe in trying everything once.

21. Autumn is my favorite season.

22. I'm a night owl, not an early bird.

23. I will never get tired of staring at sunsets.

24. My happy place is on the beach in the caribbean with no people, no noise, and no worries.

25. The number one thing on my bucket list is to go to the Yi Peng Lantern Festival in Thailand.

Here's to 25!

Kira & Dale's Wedding

This past weekend, in a beautiful ceremony at a fairytale cottage on the central coast of California, I had the pleasure of being a bridesmaid and witnessing two of my favorite people in the world get married. Kira made me cry, Dale made me laugh, and the whole thing was just perfect. I absolutely love weddings and this was my favorite I have ever been to. It's going to be hard to beat this wedding's perfection in the future. 

Congratulations Dale and Kira! Thank you for letting me be apart of your special day!

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From San Diego With Love

San Diego will always hold a special place in my heart. It was my home for 5 years while at college and it is also home to two of my favorite people in this world, my Littles. During college, I was apart of Kappa Delta Sorority where I gained two special children, Sonnen and Brittney. My Littles mean the world to me and I feel blessed everyday to have them in my life!

 
This past week, my oldest Little Sonnen graduated from San Diego State University. I am so proud of everything she has accomplished and I can't wait to see where my future Doctor Little's life takes her. 

I love you Sonnen and Brittney!

My Big Fat Greek Wedding

Being in a sorority is very special. You spend four years of your life around people that become more then just your friends, they become your family. This past weekend, I attended a wedding in San Diego that most of us have been waiting seven years for, between two people that inspire each and everyone one of us what it means to truly be in love.

Congratulations Matt and Kelsey!

AOT

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March Beauty & Lifestyle Favorites

Spring has finally sprung and with that comes March Beauty & Lifestyle Favorites! 

Let's start out with beauty! March was all about transitioning my makeup from the dark and moody winter to being more light and happy for spring. I purchased the Tarte Energy Noir Clay Palette a few months ago after hearing great reviews about it and overall I really like the palette a lot, but this past month I have been mostly loving the blush in the palette called Unearthed. This blush is a matte cool toned dusty pink that is perfect for the transition from winter to spring. It's a great everyday blush color and because it's made with amazonian clay it lasts a long time on the cheeks. Sticking with cheeks, the only highlighter I have been wearing all month is the Becca x Jaclyn Hill Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Champagne Pop. Oh my gosh I do not know how to express how mush I love this highlighter! The color is a soft white gold with a peachy pink undertone. I use it on the tops of cheeks, brow bone, tear ducks, bridge of the nose, cupids bow, a little on the forehead, and tad on the chin. I don't think any highlighter will ever be able to top this one! On my eyes I've been loving the Burberry Eye Colour Wet and Dry Silk Shadow in Rosewood. After purchasing the color Pale Barley and loving it a few months ago, I purchased the color Rosewood. It's a soft rosy taupe with a hint of shimmer. This has been my go to everyday spring eye color. On to the lips there are two colors I have been wearing all month. First, the Too Faced Melted Liquified Long Wear Lipstick in Melted Fig. This is a rosy orchid color that is soft enough to be worn everyday. It goes on the lips like a lip gloss but then dries to a demi-matte finish. My favorite thing about this lip product is that it fades throughout the day so well. I find that I can wear this throughout an entire day work day, drink Starbucks, eat lunch, and not even have to touch up once. I really need to purchase more colors in this line. Next, for more neutral lip days, I have been wearing the Maybelline Color Sensational Creamy Matte in Touch of Spice. This is a soft neutral pink brown color that is a perfect for an everyday nude lip.

I really hate cleaning my brushes, (who doesn't right) but this past month I discovered the Beauty Blender Blender Cleanser Solid and it has made cleaning my brushes and beauty blender sponge so quick and easy! I usually use a combination of dish soap and baby shampoo, but it's so messy and time consuming. This is a solid soap that you run under water for a few seconds, wet your brush, swirl your brush in the soap a few times, rinse your brush, and you're done. The only thing negative I would say about this product is the price, other then that I highly recommend it! My March skincare favorite was The Body Shop Vitamin E Hydrating Toner. I have been using this toner for a while and have loved it. Then towards the end of January I ran out and didn't make time to repurchase it. Throughout Februray, I felt like my skin on my face was missing something. I repurchased the Vitamin E Toner and my skin went back to normal. What I love about this toner is that it's very hydrating and doesn't have any alcohol in it so it doesn't dry out or irritate my sensitive skin. I will never forget to repurchase this ever again! My haircare favorite this past month was my Verb Ghost Oil. Verb is a new brand that I haven't heard really much about, but I saw it online on Sephora one day and decided to a give it a try. For one thing, their prices are very reasonable compared to other haircare product prices you see at Sephora and even at the drugstore. I decided to try the Ghose Oil first and I absolutely love this hair oil! It's a moringa oil blend that I put on my ends when they're wet, blow dry my hair, and then put a little bit more on my hair when its dry. It really tames away any frizz and leaves my hair so soft and shiny. If you're in the market for a new hair oil then I recommend this one from Verb. I can't wait to try more products from the Verb haircare line!

To anyone who knows me super well, knows that candy is my weakness, and March is filled with two of my favorite candies! First, Brach's Chicks & Rabbits which is a dense marshmallow like Easter candy. This classic candy has been put in my Easter basket for as long as I can remember and I'm not going to lie, I definitely went through like three bags of these throughout March. Next, every Reese's Peanut Butter Cup lover knows that the best Reese's are the eggs! They're soft chocolaty peanut butter goodness and I just love them!

My Netflix favorite this month was a film titled Man Up. This british comedy stars Lake Bell and Simon Pegg on a blind date that goes so wrong, it's right! I don't want to give too much away, but if you need a good laugh, watch this movie!

I know Easter was a few weeks ago, but I thought I would still share mine, Tiger Lily, and Hannah's Easter photos! Have a happy Spring everyone!

Leap Day

Happy Leap Day Everyone!

Leap Day is such an odd holiday because it's basically an extra day every four years so the calendar year will always sync up with the astronomical year. Now the technical reason for leap day aside, I see leap day much more then just that. I see it more as every four years the universe gives us an extra day to live the life we've always wanted. Everyone I know, including myself, is always asking for more time. More time to work. More time to play. More time to sleep. More time to dream. But mostly more time to just live. Use today as the day to take that leap of faith for the thing you've always wanted to do. Today our prayers have been answered and we have been given the gift of time. Please don't waste it. 

Tiger Lily

One year ago in February 2015, I saw a picture of a tiny puppy on my local SPCA website, and I fell in love. The very next day I met that puppy and the day after that she was mine. I adopted Tiger Lily one year ago and what a year it has been! Tiger Lily has brought so much joy to my life and I have loved watching her grow over the past year into such an amazing dog. When I adopted Tiger Lily she weighed only three pounds and now fully grown she weighs ten! In a year she's pretty much tripled in size, but she's still my little peanut. 

I get a lot of questions from people asking what kind of dog Tiger Lily is and for the longest time I had no idea. The SPCA guessed a terrier mix, but I was unsure if that was true. My mom bought a dog DNA kit through Amazon that had great reviews and came highly recommended. We did the test and found out Tiger Lily is one quarter toy poodle, one quarter shih tzu, and one half pretty much every other dog that exists. Basically, half of her DNA is distinctive and the other half is a mix of about ten other breeds. Even knowing what I know, when people ask me what she is I just say she's adorable!

Tiger Lily's personality is the thing that makes her so adorable. She's still toddles around acting like a puppy most of the time, but then she suddenly becomes tough and spunky like she's one of the "big kids" aka my two older dogs. Tiger Lily is in her mischievous phase and it doesn't help that she's still in her chewing phase as well. During the holidays I got her a red collar with bells on it and we haven't taken it off of her. Not because it's cute, but because we always know where she is within the house when we hear the bells ringing. Tiger Lily's favorite things to do are playing with her best friend Oliver the cat, playing fetch with her ball, laying on a lounger in the sun, and eating a puppuccino aka whipped cream.

I absolutely love to dress up Tiger Lily! I never thought I would be one of those dog parents but I totally am. There's just one problem, Tiger Lily hates wearing clothes. Anytime I put a new dress, shirt, or sweater on her, she looks so sad and acts like she can't move. After a while she gets used to wearing whatever I put on her, but she still gives me that look of why am I making her wear something. The only time Tiger Lily likes to wear clothes is during the winter. She gets cold very easily because she's so tiny and even though in pictures it looks like she has a lot of hair she really doesn't.  

Adopting Tiger Lily has truly changed my life over this past year. Last February, I was in a bad mental state. I was dealing with being out of school for almost a year, being unemployed, and having heighten anxiety. Having Tiger Lily in my life gave me a reason to wake up every day. She gave me something to be responsible for other then myself. Most importantly, she gave me the unconditional love and companionship I was needing in my life. People always say that when you adopt a dog you're saving their life, but I believe that Tiger Lily saved my life as well.

I'm so excited to see that the future holds for me and Tiger Lily! We are going to have many more years of fun and adventures that I hope to share with you all! One last thing, if you are looking to add a new pet to your life, whether it be a dog, cat, or any type of animal, please adopt don't shop. Somewhere there is a loving animal waiting for their forever home in your heart.
 

December Beauty & Lifestyle Favorites

I can't believe this is the final favorites post of the year! December has been one of my favorite months of the year and I have rounded up some of favorites that range from makeup, skincare, a television show, and food.

Makeup
December is the month to rock a red lip and these are the three products I use to created my perfect red lip. First I use the MAC Lip Pencil in Cherry to line and fill in my lips. This lipliner goes on creamy and then dries matte to lock in the color and create a kind of wall around your lips to prevent your lipstick from smudging or feathering out. Then I fill in my lips with the Sephora Cream Lip Stain 01 in Always Red. This liquid lipstick goes on like a lipgloss but then dries completely matte and doesn't move all day. Lastly I top off my lips with the NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Cruella to deepen the color and add a creamy velvet texture to the lips. I wore this lip combination to Disneyland and after 12 hours of walking, talking, drinking, eating, and everyday wear on my lips, I didn't have to touch them up once! I know it's hard to believe because I couldn't even believe it myself but it's true! If you're looking for products for the perfect red lip, then look no further then these three products.

My last makeup favorite product of the month is the Burberry Eye Colour Wet & Dry Silk Shadow in Pale Barley. In the pan, this eyeshadow looks like the most boring eyeshadow color ever. It looks like a million colors you've seen before and you're pretty sure you own something just like it. Well, let me tell you this eyeshadow color is anything but ordinary. The color is a dirty bronze taupe with hints of gold shimmer. It is perfect to wear on its own for a more neutral everyday look, or you can dress is up with a bold lip. This eyeshadow is a cult favorite that comes with a heavy price tag, but it's totally worth the hype and every penny.

Skincare
The winter weather has really hit my skin hard this month and my life saver product has been my Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate. This serum adds that punch of moisture my skin needs and also helps repair my skin from the elements it endured throughout the day. If your skin is in desperate need to be saved from the harsh winter season that is upon us, then I recommend trying the Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate.

Winter is the season of the bold lip and wearing a lot of lip products all day in the cold weather then scrubbing them off at the end of the day has really taken a toll on my naturally dry and chapped lips. My lips life saver is my very well loved Bite Beauty Agave Lip Mask. I have been wearing this lip mask every night and I wake up with my lips feeling smooth and moisturized. I'm always trying new lip balms and creams, but I always return to this lip mask because it works so well. If your lips are struggling through winter or bold lip season, then you much try the Bite Beauty Agave Lip Mask.

Fashion
I have been waiting a long time for it to be cold enough for me to wear this scarf and it finally is! This ASOS blanket scarf is the perfect winter accessory. I am so in love with blanket scarves! They can be worn so many different ways and it keeps you so warm that sometimes you don't even need a jacket. If you're looking for your next winter staple accessory, you need a blanket scarf in your life.

Television Shows
The show that has consumed my life this month is Outlander. This show starts out in 1945 where a women named Claire is on her honeymoon with her husband in Scotland and after encountering some mystical stones she falls through time and lands in 1743 Scotland. The show follows her adventure in the past and her efforts to try to get back to her correct time. Outlander has all the elements that make up a good show. It's a period drama filled with action, adventure, love, betrayal, and mystery. If you're looking for your next show you're going to binge watch, then I highly recommend Outlander.

Food
This best thing about the holiday season is the limited edition treats that come out. My favorites are the Reese's Peanut Butter Trees. They are so much better then the regular versions and I'm not going to lie, I'm pretty sure I some everyday this month. I high recommend going out the stores while you still can to stock up on them before they're gone!

Happy Holidays From Disneyland With Love

There's truly nothing like Disneyland during the holiday season. Last week I spent a few days at my favorite place and I thought I would share some of the magical holiday spirit with you all!

Meeting the characters is still one of my favorite things to do!

You can't go to Disneyland this time of year without seeing the Christmas parade! 

The ugly stepsisters from Cinderella are my favorite part of the parade!

You would think that the best holiday themed ride would be either The Haunted Mansion, which gets turned into The Nightmare Before Christmas, or It's a Small World, which gets transformed to celebrate the holidays all across the world. But actually the best holiday ride is The Jingle Cruise! The holidays have literally exploded all throughout the jungle and the animals seem to really be enjoying all of the decorations. Also, the jokes told by the skippers are so much more hilarious this time of year!

I don't think anything beats It's A Small World all lit up at night during the holidays!

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy Holidays!