what I'm lovin in march

So I have seen this done on a few different Vlogs {video-blogs} that I follow so I thought I would start this project on my blog. Each month the Vlogers that I follow video tape themselves with all their favorite products/songs/foods/books of the month. Since I don't really video too much, I will pick out a few favorites from the month and show you. I'm really excited for this new little project and can't wait to see where it takes me!! If you want to join in just link my to your post and make sure you let me know, because I would love to see other people try out this little project with me!

Since this was a month of crazy vacationing, spring coming, and many new experiences, there are so many to choose from. I think I will stick to 9 different things per month because that seems like a doable number, and I'll start in the upper right corner, working my way across and down.

Lypsyl Lip Moisturizer in HoneyBerry
My Grandma game me this product on our trip to Mexico, so I'm not sure where she got it, but it is amazing! It has a SPF of 15 in it and it's made with pure Swedish beeswax.

EOS Lip Balm in Summer Fruit
I love the packaging on this lip balm. It's so cute and it's so different from any other lip balm that I've ever used! Plus it not only makes you lips really soft, but it really does smell like refreshing summer fruit!

Sally Hansen Insta-Dri nail color in Grape Going
The moment I saw this color I knew I had to have it. It is an amazing purple color with blue shimmer in it. Depending on if you wear blue or purple I feel like it will sort of change color and I love that versatility. Another thing I love about this line is the tapered brush that is flat on one side and narrow on the other. Love those types of brushes!

Maybelline Dream Mousse Blush in Peach Satin
I found out about this product through a Vlog that I follow. It's my first stab at cream blushes and I am loving it. It's the perfect shade for my skin and great for the upcoming summer months!

Life As We Know It
I first saw the preview for this movie last year and I couldn't wait to see it. My sister and I watched it during the week before our vacation and I totally fell in love with it. It was only a 1 day rental, but I still managed to watch it 2 times. I love both the main actors in it: Katherine Heigl and Josh Duhamel and in my opinion it was very well done! Pretty clean for the most part and how could you resist that little baby girl, what a cutie!

Beach Boys Music
Ever since I started getting ready for my trip to the beach I have been listening to the Beach Boys. They are a band that I listened to religiously as a kid and love their up tempo summery music! I never get sick of them and they are a big part of my new summer playlist on my iPod.

Persuasion
Whether it's the movie {the 2007 version with the oh-so-yummy Rupert Penry-Jones} or the book I love everything about Persuasion. I am one of those girls who loves old romantic novels and I took this with my on my vacation last week. I finished it in Mexico and started a new one, so that might be in my next What I'm Lovin for April, we'll have to see.

Avocados
I have become sort of obsessed with Avocados lately. In Mexico they seemed to be in in every dish and I am planning on making an Avocado hair mask tomorrow because my hair is in need of a little TLC after being in the sun for so long. It also seems like any product that I seem to run across that has avocados in it, I can't resist at least giving it a closer look if not snatching it up! I can't wait for summer when these are more in season and much more accessible.

Honey Bunches of Oats with Almonds
I seem to go through phases with cereal, and this month it was this one. I have always been a fan of this as a kid, but hadn't had it in quite a while. It's go go to cereal in the morning with ice cold 1% milk splashed over it. It's the perfect start to my day!

mexico madness: part II

It's the second post day of my Mexico madness adventure and I have so many more pictures to share with you. Our adventures started on the first day where we took a trip to the 'market' as my grandma called it. When she said market, I was think of some sort of really busy outdoor market filled with Mexican food and people running around everywhere. Little did I know that the market was in fact like a large Mexican walmart, but filled with cheaper amazing food.
Now this may seem a little dramatic, but when we finished making the rounds in the fresh fruit section, which was more that I could have hoped we headed over to the bakery section. When I saw what is in the picture below, I freaked out right there in the isle. If you know me at all I'm sure you could have imagined one of my 'freak-outs'.
When I was in grade school and we used to like in California, my mom would take me to the farmers markets. We would pick out the most amazing fruits and my mom would let me and my sister pick out some sort of baked good. About 9/10 times I would pick out one of these rolls with this white sort of powdery frosting on top. Ever since we moved to Wisconsin I have never seen them again, till last week so I had to snap a picture!! Anyway, their bakery was certainly something to marvel at, while their meat department was not so desirable. Open bins of raw meat= not really my fancy! Ew!
That night we went to a Mexican Lua which included an authentic Mexican buffet {with amazing desserts}, dancers, and other forms of entertainment. Just a disclaimer, the lighting was a little bit of a challenge that night which made taking pictures a little challenging.The next day we went on a bus tour around the city of Mazatlan and got to see so many amazing sites. We saw cliff divers, a military truck filled with scary men with guys and a tractor in the same shot, an amazing catholic church with the largest chandelier in Mexico, and an amazing restaurant with fabulous fish tacos and pina coladas! On the second to last night we went to a highly suggested restaurants from one of my friends at school and we were not disappointed! The owner of this resturant is from the midwest and serves the best burgers. I got the guachamole burger and couldn't put it down! It makes my mouth water just thinking about it.
The last few days of our vacation included many hours of relaxing by the pool, taking a dip in the ocean, painting some clay items by the pool, reading under the palm trees, getting a little pinker that we hoped, and seeing one of my best friends during our 6 hour layover in LA!My sister and I had such an amazing week and can't thank our grandparents enough for the fabulous week in the sun!

mexico madness: part I

I'm back!! Yey! My sister and I had such an amazing time in Mexico over the past week, but I really missed you all. I missed seeing what everyone else is up to in the blogging world, and I really missed putting up posts. Sometimes the blogging world can get a little overwhelming with all the different posts that need to be done {like this week for instance} but I really missed the daily updates from all the other blogs that I follow and putting up posts of my own.

There are so many different pictures that I want to share with you, but I have to narrow it down from the 270+ pictures that I took. I will be sharing my pictures in 2 parts. The first one as you can probably see from below will be all about the location where we stayed and the atmosphere that we soaked up over the past week, and part 2 will be about the adventures that we took. Just a warning in advance, these will probably be pretty long posts, but I have had a lot of people wanting to see them so I'll try by best!

Our first 'classy' airplane shots {looking extremely pale} and our first peak at Mexico!These are a few of my favorites of the resort and all it's beauty. You can't really get the full affect from behind the camera, but it comes pretty close.There aren't too many people pictures in this post becuase I am trying to give you a look at the resort, but here is the whole motley crew. There are my grandparents on my dad's side, me in the middle and my sister on the right!This was where we spent many of our hours, reading our books and relaxing in the sun!
The food there was even better than I remembered from being there 7 years ago. We had the best fresh fruits, like mango and cantaloupe, and the best authentic Mexican food like shrimp tacos, enchiladas, and guacamole nachos. I've only been back for a day and I already miss the food. I think I'll have to run down to our local Mexican food store and see that they have!
Tomorrow will be my post bursting with pictures of our adventures in Mazatlan!

1st day of spring

The day has finally come, the first day of spring and I spent my day packing for my trip. Even if I would have had time to spend this day out doors I would have gotten soaked due the the down poor of rain that has left us a ll a little soggy. My departure day is getting closer and closer and I couldn't be more excited. Well, maybe if I didn't have finals still looming over my head, things might be a little more hopeful, but that will be over soon and paradise will be in my grasp.

Above is a picture of one of my infamous lists, if you know me at all you know that I am a planner. I am a list girl who loves to have things organized.

On trips like these I always seem to pack too many clothes, but I have planned out all my outfits on paper, so I hope that I have just the fight amount. It always seems to happen that you get there and there is just a few things you wished you would have packed, but I am all about going with the flow when I am on a vacation were I can sit by the beach all day. I will make sure to take tons of pictures to bring back with me, and a little something for the winner of my vacation giveaway. If this is the last post before I leave I hope you all have a wonderful week and enjoy the first week of spring!!

comfort food

Stress. We all have it in our lives, but how we deal with it is all up to us. Some people draw, some take a walk, for me it's cook. Cooking is a way to forget about what's going on around me and create something new and not to mention very yummy. This week has so many different things going on at once, but I took the afternoon to make a little comfort food.Comfort food for me means pasta, cheese, potatoes, chocolate....just about any sort of carb. This afternoon I made a yummy dish filled with some of my favorites. I would share the recipe, but there is none, I made it up! I will give you the low down on what's in this dish though: onions, chicken, cream sauce, garlic, chicken broth, green beans, bow tie pasta, corn, cheese, and a mix of spices. What's your comfort food?

ten on ten {march}

So I can't believe that March 10th has already come and gone! Sorry it's a few days late, it's been topsy-turvey-crazy around here. While it might be a little depressing that spring is just 10 days away and our city is still covered in snow, we can still embrace all of our wonderful blessings, like spending some time with an adorable little girl, who is almost 2! She certainly has grown from the last time I blogged about her.
Fresh strawberries and starbucks for breakfast, does it get any better?For lunch I enjoyed a black bean, turkey, wrap filled with peppers, salsa, and cucumbers. Found the idea in a magazine and added it to my cookbook, which has been steadily growing.I have been busy creating in the kitchen this week, and Thursday was no different, so this ten on ten has a theme of the foods I've been creating. That we had Chicken Marengo in a red white sauce with....
whole wheat bow tie pasta....
and steamed broccoli.

Not the best shot, but this is Jackson's new hobby: watching the toilet swirl around. I think my sister and I wasted a few gallons of water entertaining him last night.

spring break

So I need to let you in on a little secret. Well, by now I'm not sure it is not a secret anymore, but I like to think it still is. In exactly 2 weeks I will be jetting off to a more tropical place than the chilly of the Midwest. This is the first spring break in 4 years that I will not be on Tour Choir, and while that is a very depressing thought, I just have to think about sitting on the beach or swimming in the crystal clear pool and any depressing thoughts slide right out of my head.

I am traveling with my sister and meeting up with our Grandparents for a week of much needed rest in the sun. It won't exactly be like the Gilmore Girls episode "Girls in Bikinis, Boys Doin' the Twist", but believe me I am thankful for that. {I hope somebody know what I am talking about there} I am just excited to relax and soak up as much sun as I possibly can. Anyone guess where we are heading off to?
Yes, that is Mexico. I have already started making packing lists, yes I know, please don't mock. I like to plan early and can't believe that phase has already started. There are just so many things to accomplish in the next 2 weeks:
-do quite a few loads of laundry
-get my hair trimmed
-finish up some crafts for the grandparents
-do a little last minute shopping
-finish my school projects
-study for and take all 5 finals {2 of them I am taking early, so we can leave earlier, yikes!}
-finalize the packing lists
-make our upstairs presentable, because there's nothing worse than coming home to a messy house
-follow my Grandpa's instructions: "Bring 1/2 the clothes and twice the money." Those are words to live by for any vacation, remember that!

I am planning on doing a little give away from Mexico when I get back, so leave me a comment and you will be entered to win a little piece of Mexico. Not entirely sure what that will be, but there are a few ideas in my head and they are pretty fabulous! I wish I could bring you all back something, but I am a college student after all. What are your plans for spring break? Any trips or goals for the week off?

open uncharted waters

Inspiration. It is not only half of my blog title, but it is the drive that get us up in the morning. It's what makes us want to be better people. It's how we live our lives. Where do we get it from? Some get it from books, some family, some work, but tonight I got it from a simple little movie. A Julia Child movie. If you don't know what I am talking about don't worry, you will. I'll cover that a different day.

The past has been a little gray from where I am sitting as of late, but no more. The world is full of color and I intend to see it all. There is so much to do in life, whether it's traveling or cooking, exploring or creating. Life isn't about what the world holds for you. Life is about what you bring to it. It's about how you want to live your life and what you want to be doing.

Life is like a canvas, and it's up to you to fill it with colors.

Now that my little rant is over, it's time to start looking to the future. The once so distant future is slowly becoming my present and it's time to figure out where life is headed. That used to be such a scary thought to me: 'my life is an open, unfinished book.' But that doesn't have to be scary at all. All that is, is thrilling. There are so many upcoming adventures headed my way and it's daunting to be standing at this cliff. The cliff that will leave me diving into open uncharted waters. Graduation, traveling, possibly moving, new jobs, all that lies ahead and I'm not sure how it's going to turn out.

The one thing I do know is that there is without a doubt a wonderful plan. There is God's plan for me, even with it's twists and turns that will work out for the best. Not just work out for good, but the absolute best. That is all that I can think about some days, when I really just want to pull out my hair. After all, he gives us his promise even when we can't see our own way...."Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

mommy bag

Ever since Bethany's wonderful give away, I have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of the adorable mommy bag. While waiting for this special package I was full heartily planning on gifting this for a stylish mom to be. It arrived earlier this week and now that it is here I just don't know if I can part with it!

I was so impressed with the quality and durability of this mommy bag. It is both baby friendly and stylish. I would highly recommend this bag to any parent out there, and with refreshing colors like these even Dads wouldn't mind sporting this adorable bag. Beverly is the amazing creator of this bag and she makes all of her creations by custom orders. I love the idea of creating a one of a kind items. You can find her at her lovely shop, Remember Me Knots, or on facebook. She it truly an inspiration to us all!

my puppy for the day

Yesterday started off like any other day. I got up, went to work out at the gym, went home and showered, got some homework done, then back to the gym for work. It wasn't until after I finished my shift that my whole day changed. As I swung the garbage bag over my shoulder into the big garbage bin behind the gym, I turned around to see a little yellow lab puppy.

Yes, a little puppy!!

The cutest little puppy shivering, partly from the cold, and partly because his tail was wagging so profusely. In seconds I swept him up, wet + sandy paws and all. He instantly relaxed in my warm arms and I knew my previous plans that seemed so necessary flew out the window. I shut off my car and ran inside to collect myself, trying to think about what I should do. My first instinct was to bring him home and never let him go, but after some painful realization, a vision of little child flashed into my head. A little child who was crying about their lost little friend and I knew what I had to do.

After giving him some water and showing him to my co-workers I go some mixed advice from them. Some told me to call 9-1-1 and give him the police while others told me they waned to take him home. There was no way I was going to just let him go with a police officer or random stranger, so what do I do? What does any adult do when they can't think responsible? Well, maybe not anybody, but this girl called her parents.

They gave me the advise that I already knew was coming. I reluctantly got into the car and drove to the local human society, only a few miles up the road, but not without snapping a few dozen pictures on my phone. Even though the quality of the pictures isn't the best {because they were taken from my phone} you can still see how unbelievably cute he is!

The staff instantly fell in love with him just as I had done and I knew it was over. I signed a few papers and visited with a little girl about 4 years old {very similar the one I saw in the vision of the child crying} who wanted to pick out a kitty. I talked with some of the workers there and they assured me that if no body claimed him within 7 days he would become property of the animal shelter and would be open for adoption.

If that were to happen he would be snatched up quickly by a loving family and added to their lovely home. One of my coworkers named him "Golds", seeing as though I found him at Gold's Gym. I would have given him a better name, but there just wasn't enough time and I didn't want to become even more attached to him than I already was.

I said my last good-byes to my little puppy for the day and sadly walked out to my car. I kept trying to tell myself...
he will find a good home...
you only had him for a few hours...
you can't keep him...
but the tears began to run down my cheeks and I couldn't help it. As the tears hit my lap, I felt an absence where he had been sleeping only a few minutes earlier.

For a few short hours he was all mine, and all I can say is that I can't wait to have my own someday. A puppy that will be all mine and I will never have to let him go!