Life and all Her Pleasures

What a girl wants...

My first Estée Lauder frag for my first birthday as a MRS!  Yes, this is all I wanted.  Estee has always had such strong fragrances and very floral that I never appreciated.  Well, until now!  I really enjoy this classic floral and it will always remind me of my husband who gifted this to me.  It's the first fragrance he has ever given to me now that I think of it.  He asked if I wanted jewelry... but I just wanted a bottle of parfum. This is actually a lighter version of the original.  I'm still getting use to a true floral.  The Eau Fraiche is actually more like an EDT.  Much lighter but maintains all the same notes as the original.  The original parfum is a bit heavy for me so this is a great introduction.

Something about this fragrance makes me feel mature but not old... just put together even if I'm just wearing sneakers and a tee.  I can't believe there are sooooo many flankers either.  Guess it's super popular like Tresor (and all her flankers).  I just recently started to notice EL products.  They sure are quality products and so elegantly packaged.  I didn't know she created Clinique as well.  I just am so enamoured by her rise to the top.  She didn't grow up rich but was self made.  Who doesn't love a story like that?  Oh how I admire her even though she is long gone.

Although I love this fragrance, I can't wait to add the Pleasures Flower parfum to my vanity.  That has a more fruity fragrance to it.  I'm sure I'll spritz my way through this large bottle fairly quickly this summer... It's so pretty!

Xoxo

Ben and Jerry...

Tastes creamy and just like ice cream!  I love this flavor!!!!

Ahhhhhhh we all have our moments when we call on our boyfriends B and J.  Oh but that association always makes me look like I gave up on life.  5 extra pounds on my 5 foot 1 inch frame looks more like 10:(.  And the mental anguish with each bite.  Guilt.  I wish I could say I could stop at one serving of ice cream...but half a cup is never satisfying. And at about 18 grams of fat per serving, the thigh seams on my jeans look like they are about to come apart.  

Enter Edy's.  I was standing in the ice cream aisle ready to break down and buy a pint of B&J.  But I started looking at other options.  I saw this and was intrigued.   I looked at the nutritional content and with merely 3.5 grams of fat, I had to give it a try.  Truth be told, I didn't have high expectations.  And frozen yogurt at that.  And store bought.  But I knew it would curb my late night sweet tooth.  Why not?

Took it home (bought this after my gym workout... Ohhhhhh my irony) and before I ate dinner, I sampled a spoonful.  Mmmmmmmm... Creamy!  Tastes like the real deal!  Much to my delight and surprise!  My husband passed by me and he tried a little.  He liked it.  He hates anything low fat, diet, etc.  However, this he said he wanted more:)

It passed the husband test.  I'm still not sure if they are lying... why does it taste so good?!  How is it only 3.5 grams of fat per serving?  How is this yogurt again?  So if I eat more than suggested I won't feel momentarily suicidal.  

It's nice that there are other options available.  And as we get older it really is so much harder to stay in shape.  This is one small step in the right direction.  And it's the truth: diet accounts for over 60 percent of weight loss.  At least for women.  I can kill my ass at the gym but if I don't watch what I eat... I undo all the hard work I put in.  Definitely gotta do both.  Yes, I'll be a life member of Weight Watchers as well. I just really need to stick with it and be consistent.  I think consistency is key... and I seem to have forgotten lately.  Just keep pushing and I think women can be hot into their sixties!

Xoxo

Veggie Dog Virgin? Not I!

Petty tasty!

This happened today.  Not bad!  Only 1 points plus on the WW system.  After last weeks indulgences, I was feeling pretty guilty.  I also over did it with the Korean BBQ spare ribs.  I love cooking and that  was my experiment last week.  

To make up for it, I went out and bought a ton of vegetarian friendly foods.  I do enjoy meatless cuisine on occasion:). The options are decent for our local supermarket.  B and Potato are pretty anti anything vegetarian - so that leaves everything for me!  It's nice to know something I plan on making for dinner will be in tact  (versus the Chinese sausages I planned to make for the fried rice... all but half a link was consumed!)

Marikym

Best Semi-DIY Cream

I

Best all-purpose cream?

Putting it all in one tub was the trickiest part.  

Finished product!

Semi DIY is what it's about, no doubt.  Sometimes it's hard to get everything you want out of just a bottle to satisfy dry skin prone to cracking and bleeding.  I was blessed with said condition during the frigid winter months.  So I searched high and low for the best face cream that contained vitamin e.  All the googling got me to this recipe.  Just a simple mix of three ingredients that can be found at pretty much any drugstore or big box.  Baby lotion, Vaseline, and vitamin e cream.  Nothing more.  I know, right?  Could it be too good to be true?

Well it's hard to nail down who created       this concoction.  It's someone's friends doctor or sister who has been using this for years and gave it to them with the ingredients listed on the jar.  Or was it someone's uncle who has a neighbor who was family friends with the doctor and nurse who created this recipe?  But whoever this anonymous person or persons is, muchos gracias.  The original formula called for regular baby lotion in the pink bottle.  Something about the fragrance is a bit too much for me so I opted for a bottle of Cerave baby.   The elegant formula filled with ceramides and niacinamide as well as being fragrance free sounded promising.  Vaseline is cheap and I chose to go the brand name version just because I'm use to always having a jar of it around the house but you could definitely buy generic to save a few shiny coins.  Finally, the vitamin e cream.  Fruit of the Earth was chosen because it contains a good mix of collagen,  elastin, wheat germ oil, vitamin a, aloe vera and vitamin e and is uber cheap at Walmart!  Two jars at four ounces a piece was less than fours dollars.  

I combined equal amounts of the Vaseline and vitamin e cream (about 4 oz each) and the baby lotion was twice that amount (8 oz).  I put it all in a container and then used my hand-held mixer and blended until the consistency was fluffy like frosting. 

You would think that this would be heavy and thick what with the Vaseline and all. But when I dipped my fingers in for the first time it was so light!  There is a fragrance in the vitamin e cream (if used without any additional ingredients) that is stronger than I like, but blended with the in scented baby lotion and Vaseline - the fragrance is barely detectable.  This light texture sinks right into the skin and applies with pretty much no drag.  The gentle ingredients can be used all over.  What an amazing night cream for the face!  There are many variations of this recipe, but this one is the one I came up with because I like unscented or very lightly fragranced since I have very sensitve skin.  

A few months into 2015...

And a couple things kinda happened... 

One of note is that I got married!  It was fun and crazy and everything that was suppose to happen during our wedding kinda got derailed...but in the end it was perfect.  And a kiss captured at sunset... one of my favorite photos😊. We got to take some photos at the beach after the Church ceremony.  Our chapel was in Laguna Beach and it was a beautiful and intimate ceremony at St. Francis by the Sea. We held a larger ceremony and reception the following day.  What a beautiful weekend we had too.  My mom told me the week before it was rainy and the following week it was windy.  Had we waited a week, no one would have been able to attend from the East Coast because it was hit by a blizzard!  Both Saturday and Sunday were simply beautiful. It wasn't too hot or too cold.  We had an outside ceremony following day at the hotel and I was nervous it was going to rain or something.  It was a beautiful day in January!  Here's to January brides! 

Xo

Rice Cakes Hello!

Not bad at all!

Cutting back on potato chips is seriously a hard addiction.   But rice cakes have surprisingly helped kick some of the cravings.  Topped with some avocado and tomato?  Yes, please!  I have tried it with hummus which is super delish as well.  For that pesky sweet tooth  - some Nutella does the trick:).  I purchased both the lightly salted and the popcorn versions.  I really enjoy them.  Give them a try the next time you have the crunchy-munchy-salty-sweet snack attack.  Less guilt for sure!

Xx