Category: Personal / Information / Etc.

A Day in the Life (10/5)

Posted October 8, 2018 / Currently, Lifestyle, Personal / Information / Etc. / 1 Comment

I’m taking a cue from lifestyle bloggers and vloggers who share daily vlogs about their lives for this feature! I’m not sure if it will be a regular things around here or not, but I always am fascinated by people’s daily lives and routines. I’ll be sharing various pictures and descriptions of a day in my life – what I wore, what I ate, where I went, what I did, and more. Let me know what you think in the comments! 6:30 AM – 9:00 AM I used to love getting up super early and having time to myself before work. That changed when we moved to Maine for a while because our schedules were really weird with Chris working nights and me working from home. I had to get back into the swing of having a commute and giving myself “me time” in the morning again. I have to get up at 7:30 to shower, get ready, and drive to work for 9 AM, so I like to get up anywhere during the “6:00 hour” to have as much time as possible to enjoy my morning. I went to bed somewhat early last night because I was uninterested in the TNF game, so I woke up at 6:30. I scrolled through my phone a bit and got out of bed at 6:45 to make coffee and cereal. Tis the season for Pumpkin O’s from Trader Joe’s! I ate my food in the kitchen while listening to the newest episode […]

Media Recommendations: If You Liked This, Try That

Posted October 5, 2018 / Media, Personal / Information / Etc. / 4 Comments

I love matching books and movies up with each other, providing recommendations based on other books you liked (if you liked this, try that!), and a bunch of recommendations from just one book. I was thinking about some of my other favorite forms of media and how I might be able to make recommendations based off those. Some of these involve podcasts that are popular with lesser known shows, or vice versa, so you’ll see how they can be mixed and matched. I also have a couple that couple podcasts with books, instead of just shows or movies. A Very Fatal Murder + American Vandal As a true crime podcast aficionado, I’ve come to realize that A LOT of them follow the same formula: incompetent law enforcement, botched investigations, suspects who aren’t taken as seriously as they should be (or vice versa), and the commentary on ~small towns~ / “it could happen anywhere.” I absolutely LOVED The Onion’s true crime parody podcast (complete with fake ads from products that will definitely remind you of stereotypical podcast sponsors). The show reminded me of every true crime podcast mashed into one, with the added element of parody and comedy. This is EXACTLY like Netflix’s AMERICAN VANDAL, where high school students investigate the very serious crime of penis graffiti on teacher’s cars (and the second season about the Turd Burglar). It’s another crime procedural parody and I loved every second of its insane humor. Clue + Deadly Manners I only saw the famous […]

Birthday Trip to Charlotte

Posted September 13, 2018 / Lifestyle, Personal / Information / Etc. / 6 Comments

As you may know from a couple of other posts, the fates were on my side when the football schedule was determined back in April. I knew my team (obviously the Panthers – if you don’t know that by now, what have you been doing on this blog for the past 4 years?!) would be playing my mom’s team (Cowboys) at some point this season. When the schedule was released, we learned our teams would be playing each other in the SEASON OPENER, ON MY BIRTHDAY, IN THE PANTHERS HOME STADIUM. Talk about the best effing birthday I could imagine. We immediately hopped on getting tickets (me, my mom, my stepdad, and Chris), and the rest is history. We headed there on Saturday the 8th and returned home Monday the 10th for a quick weekend trip to one of my favorite places, to do one of my favorite things, with some of my favorite people, on the best day of the year. Saturday September 8th We technically started our trip on Friday night, when we stayed overnight in Rhode Island to fly out of TF Green in the morning… very early morning. We headed to the airport, got some Dunkin, and boarded our 6:15 AM flight. We were nervous we’d be hanging around the city for hours without a hotel room but we got lucky – they had one available for us to check into at 9 AM! We freshened up and set out to explore a bit. We went […]

Finally Mastering My Oily Skin: Current Skincare/Makeup Routine

Posted September 10, 2018 / Health & Beauty, Personal / Information / Etc. / 7 Comments

I have been struggling with oily skin forever. I’ve gone through so many products and been educated on so many different things over the years… and I’ve FINALLY found a routine that keeps me minimally oily for the vast majority of my day. I had a routine recently that kept my fairly matte but would get cakey by mid-day because the products never fully settled into my skin. I switched to a new amazing concealer and powder routine that allows me to go from 8 AM until 4-4:30 PM without blotting my face. This is huge for me because usually I start to get oily after just a few hours of having my makeup on. If you’re curious about my journey to get here, here are some makeup and skincare posts and product reviews: old skincare routine and updates, new makeup, and favorite beauty brands. This post does not include other makeup items (like lips, eyes, etc.) — it’s purely focused on the face and how I combat oily skin! Check some of the other posts and my Lauren Lately updates for more. Skincare I have a slightly weird routine for this because I always want to use oil-reducing, mattifying products, but using too many can actually dry out your skin and produce more oil. Because of this, I try to alternate them with more hydrating products and balance things out without giving too much moisture. I have “A” and “B” days to categorize my morning routine and parts of my evening routine, […]

Fall TV Plans and New England Bucket List

Posted September 6, 2018 / Goals & Planning, Lifestyle, Personal / Information / Etc. / 7 Comments

I’ve used this little September graphic for the past few years because I just love it so much. September is my favorite month of the year for so many reasons – my birthday, football season, my anniversary, New England activities and fairs, perfect weather and sweaters, new TV shows, and what feels like a clean slate (even though I’m not going “back to school” anymore). I’m here again with another fall bucket list, including what TV shows I need to finish off, start, binge, and keep up with weekly. Fall/Winter TV – To Be Watched When the weather gets cooler, I’m able to hole up inside and binge shows. I feel like I need to get back into my habit of waking up early and knocking out my hobbies, like reading or watching shows. Chris and I spend so much time together that we struggle to separate and watch our own stuff sometimes. I really need to do a better job of organizing my time now that I’m commuting again. Shows to finish up: Most of the season/show to watch: Younger has been one of my favorites for a while but I tend to go through spurts of binge-watching, then forgetting about it and saving them up, and then binge-watching again. Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce started its final season recently but I’ve honestly been sad it’s ending and don’t want to finish it yet. Sorry not sorry. I started the reboot of Will & Grace and it’s been pretty good. It’s a show I […]

Currently: A-Z Edition

Posted August 6, 2018 / Currently, Personal / Information / Etc. / 1 Comment

A-Z Edition You guys know I love a good Currently post – something that talks about what I’m currently doing or am into at the moment. I’ve done various flavors of this post, from the standard to the iPhone-related, and I found another one. Journey of Doing posted a Currently edition based around the alphabet. Self-explanatory, I’m sure, but it basically means that there are 26 little updated based around each letter of the alphabet. Since I’ve been back in Connecticut living for a full month now, I thought it would be nice to highlight what ya girl is up to these days. [Most of the words associated with each letter are the same as hers, but I made a few changes!] Accomplishing a lot of my goals for this half of the year, plus my local bucket list! Chris and I just started to have time to explore our area and we’ve taken a couple of road trips around CT lately. I’m excited to keep crossing items of my lists. I’ve been paying down some things thanks to more commission, which is excellent. We have all of August and parts of September to check everything out in the nice weather, then foliage in the fall, and skiing/snowboarding starts up again! EEEEK. Buying produce and fun things from the Farmers Market (haul picture below)! We have one of the best Farmers Markets in the state right in the town we live in now. We got some great veggies, kettle corn, and a […]

Beauty Brands I Love

Posted August 3, 2018 / Health & Beauty, Personal / Information / Etc. / 2 Comments

… aka own more than one product from. I saw this post and was inspired to make one of my own. I’ve talked a lot about different skincare, beauty, and makeup preferences/routines in recent months and hope to make it an even more regular thing here. I am constantly watching beauty YouTube and buying/testing new products that are recommended to me. My routines have changed a lot over the past year (multiple times) but I’m finally getting into a groove. I’ll probably post some updated favorites and routines soon! Otherwise, you can check out my posts on my first skincare routine, my favorite “holy grail” products, and two parts on beauty favorites and more. This post is about beauty (makeup and skincare) brands that I love. In my case, that means “brands and companies I own more than one product from.” I tend to try out a LOT of makeup and return things like nobody’s business. I opt for high-end stuff the majority of the time but there are so many wonderful drugstore options to mix in too. In order for me to discuss the brand here, I want to have more than one product from them in my arsenal. For example, Tarte Shape Tape is a wonnnnderful concealer… but I don’t own anything else from Tarte, so you won’t see them here. The Body Shop I have been using this line of products for a while. They’re still very much ingrained in my routine and I think they’re the reason […]

Add It To My List – July 2018

Posted July 27, 2018 / Add It To My List, Personal / Information / Etc. / 5 Comments

This linkup is hosted by Lauren and Bre, where you’re able to share what you’re currently recommending to people in real life. You’ll likely see movies, shows, podcasts, books, household items/purchases, technology – the list goes on! The linkup happens on the last Tuesday of the month, but I’ll be posting sometime in the last week due to TTT. Add to your shopping lists Recent Favorites from Amazon Natural Bamboo Charcoal Oil Absorbing Tissues | I will definitely be doing a new makeup and skincare routine roundup because my life has been CHANGED with some products lately. This is one of my favorites. I bought these oil blotting sheets months ago and didn’t use them until my friend got married in early June. It was a must-use during the super hot day. I LOVED these and so did everyone else! The charcoal part absolutely keeps you more matte for longer after you blot. I use this around 4 PM at work if my makeup has been on for around 8 hours and I don’t really NEED to put powder on top after. Coty Airspun Loose Face Powder | I know I’ve talked about this before too but I wanted to mention it again. The best method for this is as the loose setting powder for your concealer. I do the ~beauty guru~ thing and put concealer to lighten up the center of my face (meaning nose, parts of my cheeks, undereyes, forehead, chin, etc.). I use a damp Beauty Blender to press […]

Grocery Shopping Online vs. In-Store

Posted July 23, 2018 / Food & Drink, Personal / Information / Etc. / 6 Comments

I’ve noticed recently that there’s a big trend toward doing grocery shopping online instead of going to a store. This is typically for non-perishable items like canned food, snacks, sauces, etc. Most people still seem to get veggies, meats, and frozen stuff in-store (with a few exceptions!). I’ve been wanting to do an analysis to see what actually makes the most sense from a financial perspective. Influencers have talked about a few different websites for grocery shopping, so I wanted to compare prices between them and see what makes sense for a few of the items I buy regularly. I’m not going to analyze Amazon Pantry or Fresh because I don’t qualify for most of it in my area. My Shopping Situation I typically do my shopping at Trader Joe’s, Stop & Shop (local to the northeast I believe?), and/or Target. My friend’s father owns a meat and seafood store that I want to be better about visiting because he has some good deals as well. We have a local farmer’s market in our town that sells ALL kinds of things but I usually treat that as a special occasion kind of place. I’d go broke if I bought everything from there! My perfect world, shopping-wise, would be to find the best place to get all of my canned food, snacks, and other non-perishable items from, then using a separate place for grabbing fresh meat and/or veggies/fruits each week. I envision myself getting things from one of the online stores […]

TBB Asks: July Vacation Edition

Posted July 20, 2018 / Lifestyle, Personal / Information / Etc. / 3 Comments

I love when Grace does these posts so I decided to participate! I thought it was appropriate to post today since I am currently in the Hamptons for my friend’s bachelorette party. More on that later, I assume! 1. Will you go on a summer vacation this year? Let’s see, I’m currently in the Hamptons for my friend’s bachelorette weekend, so that counts. Chris and I don’t actually have summer vacation plans as of right now? We may try to sneak in a long weekend somewhere in August. Our next trip is currently planned for my birthday in early September. We’re going to the Panthers’ home opener in Charlotte with my parents, since they’re playing my mom’s team! 2. Do nothing but relax or pack it all in vacation? Chris and I tend to get antsy if we don’t plan a few things, but there’s definitely a balance. We usually travel places to see specific sights or do certain activities. When we went to California, we were busy nonstop, and it would have been nice to have an extra day or free afternoon at some point. I like to relax for part of the day and do something that takes up 50-75% of the rest of the day. 3. What month do you like to vacation? We actually don’t do a lot of summer vacations, honestly. A lot of our trips are long weekends. In the winter, we hit ski mountains. In the fall and spring, we go somewhere a little warmer […]