Amazon Purchases I Definitely Don't Regret

There's a funny thing that has happened as a result of having a steady income and very little bills. I suddenly find myself the proud, albeit slightly embarrassed owner of some kind of odd purchases. I accidentally discovered the joy of online shopping and since then have obviously taken advantage of it.

Here's a few of my new purchases:

Cat Sweater

I know what you're thinking. I can practically see the looks of "Oh my gosh did she actually spend money on that????" Yes. Yes I did. My justification at the time was, "Everyone needs an Ugly Sweater! What if there's a sudden ugly sweater competition and I am woefully unprepared??" I am happy to inform you that not only am I now prepared for any last minute life-or-death ugly sweater competitions in the western Washington region, but I feel confident I have a good chance of winning.

Star Trek Uniform (Costume)

This one is actually justifiable as it is almost Halloween and I do not have any costumes. As a huge nerd in a family of nerds, I felt it best to pay tribute to my original favorite nerd fandom. The only thing I would complain about is the fit. There is way too much fabric in the armpits, making them almost wing-like. Also; the skirt part is not sown together. For some reason they left the overlapping parts unconnected so there's a weird hole if you lift the front flap. It's not too noticeable, but I probably will get someone to fix these oddities for me.

Cat Tower

I have cats. They really needed their own place to chill that wasn't my bookshelf. They also desperately needed scratching posts that weren't my furniture. At first, my kitten was scared of it and wouldn't go near it. This was extremely annoying as I spent a good bit of money on it and time putting it together. The directions were almost nonexistent and I pretty much had to figure it out on my own. However, all that being said, I'm pretty happy with it now. The kitten has gotten used to it and uses it frequently, and it doesn't look horrible or take up too much space in my small house.

Early Bird Shifts and Piña Colada Dessert Bars

Right now I am currently trying to get as much done as I possibly can while I still have energy and motivation. As you either know or are about to be told, I am a night owl.

The only problem with this is that I generally work from 4am-12pm so I have to wake up at 2 AM which is when I would normally be going to bed. I've been having a little trouble getting to bed early enough so by the time I get home I am absolutely exhausted and fall asleep wherever I land. Which means again that I don't get to sleep during the night and start the whole horrible cycle over again.

I'm determined to get on track so tonight I'm not going to eat, drink, or go on electronics after 8:30 pm. It's gonna suck, but I need to survive these early morning shifts.

Some good news though is that I have finally found an awesome dessert recipe that isn't cookies or bread!! I wanted to make a tropical dessert for my Grandmother as a thank you gift because she gave me a gift card to WinCo for $25. So with that money I made these great Piña Colada Dessert Bars.

You can find the original recipe here.

Some changes I made:

1. I only used half of the amount of rum it called for. I found this was plenty.
2. I think next time I'm going to double the crust amount. It felt a little too thin to me, especially since some of it is used to sprinkle on top.
3. I hate sliced almonds, they're creepy feeling. So I chopped them up instead.
4. If you don't want to use alcohol, you could just use rum extract or skip it all together I suppose.

They were a hit! I would definitely recommend trying them out.

At Night

This blog has basically gone completely off the rails. I don't post every Wednesday (no good excuse for this to be honest), and I hardly review anything (I'm too poor to try out new stuff at the moment).

Whatever! Guess I'll just wing it and hope for the best.

As I write this it is a little past 1:30 AM and I'm waiting for my second batch of peanut butter cookies to come out of the oven. Yep, my sleep schedule is as messed up as my ability to blog. You're shocked, I know. Being an "adult" is pretty great though. I used to lay in bed awake and wish that I could get out of bed and bake whenever and NOW I CAN!! There's just something really cool about baking

Also, this is only the second time I've used my new Ice Blue KitchenAid!! Shoutout to my mother for this graduation gift, you're the best EVER. So I guess I actually will be reviewing something!!

Ok. Bad news first. The bowl is kinda small (I should've anticipated this and gotten a bigger one so it's my fault), the attachments are kinda cheaply made in my opinion and I don't foresee them lasting long term very well, and even with just peanut butter cookie dough it seemed very hard on the machine. This is just a personal preference, but I wish the bowl itself had a handle, but to be honest it looks better without one.

Now for the good news: I love the color, it's cute. Not a useful or practical attribute, I know. But what can I say, I'm easy to please and gosh dang it does look cute on my counter. And as much as I complain, it gets the job done.

I don't even really like peanut butter cookies, but I didn't have any chocolate so this was the only option on short notice. My brain has been a little fried lately with stress, I've been reading A LOT of great stuff (it is definitely a brain workout), and it's finally cooling off outside enough to turn an oven on. Since baking is usually my favorite way of de-stressing, I couldn't resist. I get to make a mess, I make delicious (most of the time anyways) treats, and I get to be in control. It helps.

That's all for tonight!

Fun Ways to Be Passive-Aggresive

Keep in mind that this really only works if the person you are being passive-aggressive to actually cares, and so results may vary. It may be petty, it may be immature, but to be completely honest it's a much better way to deal with anger than just losing it and tackling the person who's annoying you and punching them in the face. Here are a few of my personal favorites.

1. Change Their Radio Presets
     This one's nice because then they have to go back through all their stations and set them back again. It's annoying but not harmful. Probably just as annoying as whatever they did (or didn't do) to you to begin this war.

2. Finish Off Food and Leave the Container There
     Is there anything worse than pouring out your cereal and realizing you're out of milk? I think not. But think of the satisfaction of knowing it was your evil plan all along! Mwahahaha

3. Rearrange the Letters on Their Keyboard
    If you're not sure how, I'm sure you can google it. Maybe not on their work computer, but maybe yes....

4. Come Into Their Room and Leave the Door Open (Or Turn Light Off)
     This only works if their door was closed in the first place, so keep an eye out for an opportunity. If that isn't an option, you can always turn the light off and leave (added bonus if they keep yelling for several minutes for you to turn it off and you don't).

5. Ask For Advice and Then Don't Do It
     A classic, honestly. Start with simple things like, "Should I wear the red shoes or the black ones?" and if they say wear the black ones then you go right ahead and wear the red ones.


That's all for now! Good luck, and may the people you annoy not go too crazy...

Blessed Extrovert with Depression

Depression is a funny thing. It affects rich people, poor people, extroverts, and introverts. Whether its a chemical thing, or sparked by traumatic events, it can (sometimes literally) take the life out of you. I'm pretty open about my own struggle with depression because I think it's important to the healing process. I know that I've been extremely lucky because I have people in my life that love in my struggle, and I know for many people who struggle with this have to deal with it alone and silently. My love and prayers go out to you.

I think that I first started struggling with depression about 3 or 4 years ago, and while I have gotten significantly better, there are still days when I struggle with it. Normally I am an extremely outgoing, happy person, but when I was in the worst of it I basically shut down. I wasn't getting help, and I didn't think I would or even could get better.

While some would say that my depression was justified (some major family crises happened), the truth is that I've been pretty blessed. To be honest this sometimes made it worse. I felt guilty about every moment I was sad because I felt I didn't deserve to be. I was only listening to sad music, reading depressing things, and focusing on the darkness instead to trying to let the light in.

Then one day I had a personal crises. I won't go into detail on here, but I will say that it scared me into realizing I needed help. This was a huge turning point for me because up until then I didn't even really want help. I am so lucky that I have the mom that I have, because as soon as I shared with her that I needed help she was in go mode. I started going to therapy, I saw a doctor, and was diagnosed with PTSD and depression. Shortly after that I was put on medication to help balance out my emotions, and it really did help (though not at first, and I was both reluctant and doubtful about it).

While this didn't "cure" me, it did set me down the path of recovery. I've realized some things along the way as well. I realized it's okay to take time to be sad and heal, and that I didn't need to feel guilty or ashamed. Everyone has problems and heartbreak. Some people do have it worse than me, and some have it better, but that doesn't invalidate my own pain. I also realized the importance of what you put into your mind and heart. I used to think I could listen to, watch, and read whatever I wanted and I could be objective and not let it affect me. This just isn't true, and once I realized that I had to stop listening to depressing music, watching depressing shows, reading harmful things, and hanging out with people who encouraged these things. It was extremely difficult to give up these things, but once I did I felt an immediate improvement.

Maybe you or someone you know is battling with depression, and you don't know how to help or get help for yourself. My advice to you is the same whether you're dealing with yourself or someone you care about. Be patient and kind, encourage being surrounded by positive things rather than negative things, and find someone safe and trustworthy to talk to. I also definitely encourage going to a doctor because how frustrating would it be if you just had a chemical imbalance and this whole time you've been suffering could have been avoided with one small pill??

Wherever you are in life, I wish you all the luck in the world and hope this post helps in some small way.

Catching Up

Today I'm not going to be reviewing anything, but instead I'll be sharing what's been going on in my life recently. There's been a lot of exciting changes, so I thought I'd fill you in.

Firstly, my best friend moved in with me!!! We still have a lot of unpacking and reorganizing to do, but honestly that's half the fun! It's only for a short time since she's moving to Idaho in a few months, but I know we will make a lot of memories and have fun in the meantime. 

Next, I recently started getting into apologetics (defending the Christian faith with logic and reasoning). While my faith over the years has been somewhat intermittent, this has been a huge step for me. It's not always easy (in fact sometimes my brain hurts and I want to throw my book at a wall), but I really enjoy being able to live out my faith this way. I meet with a group of people every other Wednesday to discuss things. Not only do I like what we talk about, but I like who I am talking about with! It's a win/win.

Also, I finally got a job at Beecher's Handmade Cheese! So far, I love it and I feel very lucky to have gotten it. I would say come visit me anytime, but it's in the airport so unless you're flying somewhere you won't be able to :/

Last, in less than a month I will finally have graduated High school!!! FREEDOM!!!!

Even though I am just getting over a pretty severe chest cold, I feel very happy and blessed :)

Moisturizer & Facial Cleansing Towelettes

I am a huge fan of Burt's Bees, and I'm always excited to try out their products. Especially as someone with sensitive skin, it's very important to me to be able to find a reliable product that I know won't irritate my skin. I've also been looking for a good moisturizer, so I'll be talking about that too.

The first thing I'll review today is the Facial Cleansing Towelettes by Burt's Bees. Until now I haven't been able to find a good makeup remover solution. Everything was either too oily, irritated my eyes or face, or just plain didn't work. But I really love these wipes! They don't irritate my skin or eyes, they don't make my face break out, and they even smell pretty dang great. I bought the Pink Grapefruit option, but if you are sensitive to strong perfumes or smells I would suggest getting another fragrance as it is quite strong. You can find them at Target, which is where I bought mine, or here on their website.

Unfortunately, I have to give a bad review to this next product. I will admit that it works fairly good, but only if you keep it VERY far away from your eyes. It's called up & up™ Sensitive Skin Facial Moisturizer. I also bought this at Target, and I was really hoping I'd finally found a good lotion for my face, but alas I'll have to keep searching. It makes my face more oily, it sits on my skin instead of being absorbed well, and if you get it anywhere near your eyes it burns like crazy. Maybe I should just stick with Burt's Bees from now on.

Since summer is coming up, I'll most likely be looking for good sunscreen options. I've had very bad luck with sunblock, but I'll give it another try.

Island Squeeze E-Hookah-Pen "Zero Nicotine"

Hello! It feels like a lifetime ago that I wrote my last blog post. So much has happened, and I almost forgot about this blog! I'm back though, so don't worry.

My first post after my random absence will be on a Island Squeeze E-Hookah-Pen (found here). I haven't done a product review in a long time, but this was too fun to pass up.

It has zero nicotine, and zero clean up. It was about $10, which is pretty pricey for something that's just disposable but it was worth it. Also, you do have to be 18+ to purchase it.

Here's what I don't like: finding information on this product is nearly impossible. How long does it last, what's it made out of, etc. For someone who is new to smoking this is really annoying.

The product itself though is very nice and I would definitely recommend it.

Peanut Butter Cookies

Finally! A recipe that's not paleo! It's a very basic one too, and yummy. I hadn't made peanut butter cookies in a VERY long time, because who wants peanut butter cookies when you can have chocolate? But I thought it might be a nice change from the normal chocolate chip so I looked up the first recipe I found on Pinterest and voila! Here is the recipe I used.

I loved this recipe! Simple, basic, and they turned out perfect. Although I do have a confession to make. I had run out of vanilla extract so I had to use almond extract and it was a little strange. Even with that slight change, they were gone in less than 2 days! I will definitely be making these again (without the almond extract haha).

I tried baking one batch for 10 min., and one for 8 min., and I recommend only 8 minutes. Funny how 1 or 2 minutes can make or break a recipe!

Peaky Blinders

This is a show on Netflix that I am currently in love with. It's rough and a bit violent but it's real. Here's the summary directly from Netflix:

"A notorious gang in 1919 Birmingham, England, is led by the fierce Tommy Shelby, a crime boss set on moving up in the world no matter the cost."

Like I said, it is quite rough and also there are quite a few sex scenes so if you were thinking this might be a fun "family movie night" choice think again. For those of you who have seen Gangs of New York I've been told they are quite similar.

Something that really drew me in right away was the music. It may be set 100 years ago, but the music is modern. I actually recognized a few of the artists, like the Arctic Monkeys and The White Stripes, and it just made it that much more easy to get sucked in.

So if you're looking for something intense and exciting, this show is definitely worth a look!

A Few of My Favorite Things

Who doesn't love The Sound of Music?? Julie Andrews is amazing, and the whole move is just so.....I don't know.....wholesome? Happy? Whatever it is exactly, I love it. My favorite song from the movie is My Favorite Things and I've had it stuck in my head for about a week now. Suddenly it struck me that this would be a great thing to write about! Everyone has good days and bad days, and on the bad days it is so important to remember the things in our life that make us happy. It gives us hope for the future and helps us to remember that life isn't all bad. Here are a few of my favorite things,

Raspberries

I honestly don't know what it is about Raspberries, but I love them so much! I would chose them over chocolate, brownies, cookies, you name it. Not only are they delicious, but they are guilt free! The only downside is that they are a little pricey, so these are a special treat for me.

Camping

With all the busyness of life, it's easy to forget to take time just to be. No music, no talking....just wonderful silence. In that silence you learn things about yourself and about the world around you that you might never have noticed before. Like the fact that it's not even as quiet as you thought it was. There are birds singing in the trees, squirrels fighting over territory, or maybe water flowing somewhere nearby. Maybe you can hear yourself breathing in an out and realize you have never really noticed your own existence before. I live for those moments, and they are some of the most inspiring and renewing memories that I have.

Tulips & Sunflowers

I know they don't really go together that well, but these two flowers are my favorite! I love sunflowers for the same reasons that everyone does. They make me think of sunshine optimism, and especially since sunset is my favorite time of day they just make me feel happy. Tulips on the other hand make me think of love. Someday I hope to have a garden full of both.

Burt's Bees Pomegranate Chapstick

I'm not really sure when this addiction started, but I have no intention of ending it. I never go anywhere without it! There are probably thousands of different lip glosses, lip sticks, and chap sticks that might be considered better but I just love this one. It isn't waxy or sticky, it doesn't taste weird, and it even gives my lips a nice little red tint without getting all over my teeth. As someone who gets chapped lips A LOT, this has been a lip saver.

These are just a few of my favorite things! There are so many more things, but these are just a few that came to mind. I suppose writing is another one of my favorite things, so this whole blog is one more.

Paleo Diet, Copycats, and Banana Pancakes

In three days, I will have officially completed a whole month of eating paleo! It was really hard, but I'm glad I did it. I feel so much better, and there's nothing better than a sense of accomplishment. I've decided to keep eating paleo, but on the first of every month I get one cheat meal. I won't be posting just about paleo anymore, but when I find good recipes I will definitely share them with you.

Speaking of food, this morning I just tried a new banana pancake recipe. I even fed it to my non-paleo friend and they were a hit! I added them with a side of bacon though, so maybe that was the real winner, haha. Anyways, here is the recipe I used. I would also recommend listening to Jack Johnson's Banana Pancakes song while you make them.

The original recipe (found here) for this "Primal Fudge" didn't call for a filling of peanut butter or anything and this was a little boring to me. I've changed it a little bit to make it more like a candy rather than just a fudge. I added some almond butter in some of the centers and a mint filling in others. They are VERY rich, very chocolatey, and extremely delicious. It makes for a very good after dinner dessert or something sweet to go with coffee. These are great because you feel like you're really pigging out on dessert but really they're actually healthy.

Paleo Blueberry Muffins

I'm into my second week doing paleo, and honestly it feels like it's been an eternity. It is getting easier as I find recipes to replace the foods I loved, but all the same it's hard. Like when my parents went through Taco Time and there was nothing there I could eat AND I was trapped in a car with the smell of mexi-fries and burritos. I just have to keep reminding myself that it'll be worth it! I do feel a lot healthier. There have been weird things I noticed too. For example I am almost never sleepy through out the day (even when I first wake up), my skin has cleared up completely, and I've lost 10 pounds! I think I might even keep eating primarily paleo even after this month is done. I'll probably  add in some things like oatmeal and peanut butter (I miss them just too much), but I'm really happy with the results.

One problem I've faced with this diet is breakfast. I can't just pop a bagel in the toaster and run out the door when I'm in a rush. I usually have eggs and bacon, but that was getting a little boring. So I found a paleo approved muffin recipe! The link is here, but I made a few changes when I made it.

I didn't have any blueberries, so I had to use black berries which was actually very good so I suppose you could use any kind of berry/small fruity thing. I've made them twice now, and to be honest I preferred not using bluberries. I'll probably just change this to a raspberry or blackberry muffin recipe instead. I also only cooked it for 22 minutes, and I actually prefer muffins a little drier, and if you do too I would suggest letting them cook a little longer. Last but not least, I like to reheat them when I eat one and then drizzle a little honey on it. It's delicious!! It's been a great substitute for bagels or toast.

Paleo Brownies

It's been a little over a week now and I'm still staying strong! I'm not saying it hasn't been hard, because it has been really, really hard. There have been many times when I wanted to just throw in the towel and make myself a cheesy quesadilla but somehow I've managed not to.

That being said, I was pretty sick this last week with some weird head cold or something. About half way through the week I finally caved and had some cough drops. They were almost 100% Paleo, except for the fact that they contained soy. Weird right?

Anyway, I realized that I really need to find a good dessert recipe for when the cravings hit. So I googled Paleo brownies and I found the best recipe! The original recipe is here, and I definitely recommend checking out this guys website. I was not expecting this to turn out that great, because when it comes to desserts the more unhealthy the better (in my opinion). That being said, it turned out amazing!! I actually really liked it!

I will say that next time I make it I'm going to add some stevia, and I'm going to try and find some sort of paleo chocolate syrup to drizzle on the top. I'm also going to look for some kind of Paleo ice cream recipe because that would be awesome!

Zucchini Noodle Dinner

I have to give credit where credit is due, and this recipe is thanks to my mother! Actually, the first couple times she made it I did NOT want to eat it. Noodles made out of zucchini?! I don't think so! However, now that I am on Paleo it has forced me to be more open to different foods that I normally would avoid like the plague. Once I actually tried it it was actually really good! She didn't use an exact recipe so I'll try to write it down as best I can.

First, you'll want to brown some sausage or hamburger (or I suppose tofu if you want vegan).
Then saute some onions and mushrooms if you want (I personally don't care for mushrooms).
I also like to add some bacon because duh, bacon!(unless you want it vegan, in which case I'm so sorry for your loss)
This next part might be a little more difficult. My mom has a special shredder that she uses to shred the zucchini into a perfect noodle shape but if you don't have one of these I suppose you could try a cheese grater?
I like to add a can of diced tomatoes because I like a big meal and want to add as much as possible, but my mom generally likes to use only fresh products so she usually leaves these out.
Last but not least, a little garlic for even more flavor!
And there you have it! A Paleo version of Spaghetti!

Today makes my fourth day being 100% on Paleo, and it's actually been pretty easy! Unfortunately I have a pretty bad head cold, but hopefully not overloading my body with sugar and white flour will help me get better faster.

Something I have noticed doing Paleo, (even in the short time I've been on it) is that not only is it easier to wake up in the morning, but I'm less sleepy throughout the day. You never notice how many food commercials there are until you start a diet, and Taco Bell has been tempting me all week! The food cravings are starting to slowly go away, so that helps a lot. I will say I miss peanut butter more than I was expecting to, but I'm going to be getting some Almond butter soon and that will help.

If you're looking for a (relatively) easy diet plan, I definitely recommend Paleo! Good luck!

Raspberry Swirl Sweet Rolls

Since I am going to be doing Paleo this coming month, I had a few recipes I wanted to try out before the deadline came. One of those recipe I tried was from Pinterest (of course!). Look at how delicious this looks!! But, I was actually a little disappointed. I think if I make them again I can probably adjust them to my liking. The picture above is not the ones I made but from the person I got this recipe from.

Surprisingly, they were too sweet for me! So I think next time I make them I'm going to add half the amount of sugar. They were also a little dry, so I'll bake them a little less longer and add less flour. My last complaint is that it needed WAY more fruit! I actually didn't have any raspberries so I used just a bag of mixed berries, which was delicious by the way, but I wanted way more than what the recipe called for.

Ok, so I lied when I said that was my last complaint. I hated the glaze recipe. Absolutely hated it. I'm still searching for a recipe for glaze that I like, but I definitely wont be using that one again. Granted it was just powdered sugar and milk, but there has got to be something better than that. Maybe I will look for a copycat of the Cinnabon glaze....

So that was my weekend! As fun as it was to make it, I probably won't make them again for a good long while.

I rate this recipe: Leave it

Paleo (Part 1)

All my life I have been known for my insatiable sweet tooth, but believe it or not I have actually done a lot of studying on healthy eating. This last month I've been trying to get healthier and just eat better in general. One of the things I've experimented with is called the Paleo Diet. Starting in February I'm going to be on it exclusively. The principle is fairly easy: eat like a cave man would have! Seems simple right? Wrong! Some of the things I'll have to cut out is all dairy (sob), peanuts (yep, that means peanut butter too), and even oatmeal!

Since I'm probably not going to be able to keep track of every single little thing that's Paleo and what's not, I bought an app called Paleo (io) for about  $.99. This will help me make sure that what I'm eating is actually Paleo. I also have an app that I got for free called HealthyOut for when I'm going out to eat with friends. Dieting can be so hard when you eat out often or if you don't want to feel left out. So this app shows me restaurants in the area and I can type in what foods I'm allowed to eat and it will pull up meals available at those places. It even has a Paleo option to make it that much easier!

If you're not really sure what Paleo is, let me break it down into the very basics:

EAT THIS

• Fish & Seafood
• Meats
• Fruits (but in moderation, as sweets are high in sugar)
• Veggies
• Eggs
• Nuts & Seeds
• Healthy Oils (like coconut oil, olive oil, etc)
• Natural Sweeteners (my personal favorite is Stevia)

NOT THIS

• Grains
• Legumes (beans, peanuts, peas, etc)
• Dairy
• Refined Sugar
• Potatoes (I know, it's devastating)
• Processed Foods
• Refined oils (canola, corn, grapeseed, hydrogenated, etc.)
• Soy

This diet is pretty straight forward, with no weird hoops to jump through that a lot of extreme diets have. You could live on this diet, and actually I believe if more people did they would be healthier and happier. But just like with any life changes (especially ones that affect your health), make sure this is right for you and wouldn't have any bad repercussions before you try it.

For me personally, I like this diet because it's fairly easy to remember what's ok to eat and what's not. Not only that but it cuts out all the stuff my body reacts badly to anyways (all the delicious stuff of course,).

Like I mentioned earlier, I'll be starting this diet at the beginning of February. I'll write a post at the end of the month to tell you how it went! Throughout the month I will also be posting Paleo friendly recipes that I find and try out to make sure they taste good enough for you to try (if you're so inclined).

Revenge

First of all, it is really hard to review a TV show without giving away a ton of spoilers. Also, I am learning it is more difficult than I thought it'd be to write one little post once week. My procrastination and laziness knows no end! So full disclosure, I will still be doing one post a week but it may or may not always be on Wednesdays.

So I started watching this show about a week ago and I am on season 2. I don't usually like shows right away but this one caught my attention from the very first episode. For those of you who are familiar with Count of Monte Christo, it is roughly based off of that story.

I have really enjoyed the first two seasons. However, I got impatient and looked up the episode summaries of the most current episodes and I have to say I am a little disappointed with where the story line has gone. What I liked about it at first was that it wasn't too contrived but still had me pleasantly surprised with plot twists. Unfortunately though, as the seasons continue it's clear that they are just going for shock value. It's not as believable any more and on top of that many of the important and loved (more like love to hate) characters are killed off.

All in all, it's a good show to start and maybe have on in the background, but it's not a show I feel any real loyalties or passion about.

Christmas Gifts

Hello everyone!! I know I've been gone for awhile, but this year my family was hosting Christmas and so it's been quite busy. Whatever holiday you celebrate (or even if you don't) I hope you had a good winter and that you had lots of yummy food. I sure did, and now I am still burning off all that holiday food, haha. Some news in my life, today we got a dog (named Ozzy), and it's good news because my mom is always happier when she has a dog. I'm not really a huge dog person, but if it makes someone I love happy, then I'm willing to sacrifice. He is pretty cute and lovable, so I'm sure I'll get attached (even though I don't want to, I don't think I'll be able to help it). Let's get started!

DECOR

I don't usually review things that are so expensive, but I got this for Christmas from my step-dad so I wanted to show it off! First things first, it is VERY complicated to put together. In fact, I wasn't even the one who put mine together. I had to have my cousin Jaden do it (he's just super smart, what a nerd) but now it's up in my room and I love it. It has a lot of color options from Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple, White, and multiple colors in between. You can also choose the brightness of each color as well as choose to have it play every color on a timer kind of thing. The only bad thing is that it is very hard to put together like I mentioned before, and it's quite pricey for just one light. 

The pieces themselves are about $25.00 and come separately in 30 pieces that you have to put together. The color changing light bulb and remote are $20.00 and for some reason is sold separate from the light cord which is $10.00. I'm sure you can find this product somewhere else for much cheaper, but these are the prices I found from the official website.

BOOKS

This is just a simple journal from Fireworks and it was also from my step-dad (shout out to Peter, gift giver winner of the year). There's a quote on the inside by the artist of the cover that says, "The soul would have no rainbow if the eyes had no tears." I love knowing about amazing women in history so it was really cool to learn about Laurel Birch, the artist. The back page of this journal gives a brief biography of her, and it was fun to learn about how she was a self-taught artist as well as "flower child." In the back is also a pocket sort of thing to keep small papers or something which is just super neat and I will probably forget about and never use. I have terrible trouble keeping a journal because I never know what to write and I'm always paranoid someone will find it and read it so I've decided to just record my dreams instead. Eventually, I'll be able to look back at some of them and say, "What the heck, I am nuts. How could I dream that?!" and that'll be fun.

I received more things than these, but these are just two of my favorite things and they are easy to write about so I decided to keep it short. Actually, this last Christmas was probably the best (if not the only good) Christmas I've ever had. Sure, there were people I missed and thought about, but there was no drama or recent heart break and I was surrounded by people I love and that I know love me. 

It's crazy to think that the Christmas before this one I was so down, and felt so hopeless. This year has had it's ups and downs but I'm so glad I survived to see it get better. If this year is your hard year, hang in there! It may not get better right away but you are not alone in your struggle, and just know that there are people who have gone through similar things that you are and have not only survived but got better. Believe it or not, they didn't believe they were strong enough either.

Happy New Year!