A WEEK OF FRIENDSHIP | BEAUTY GIFT GUIDE FOR YOUR BESTIE

7.21.2016


ere are some beauty must haves that are essential for every girls collection! Part of this week of friendship is to include a gift guide for your girlfriends. Gift giving is a favorite of mine, because it's a very personal and thoughtful act. I know that with my girlfriends we have been best friends for over ten years, and once their birthday rolls around, the ideas of the perfect guide have already been taken, from down the road. However, beauty products never go out of style. So, I have categorized some beauty products that fit perfectly under the special occasions of gift giving for your bestie. Any beauty products you enjoy gift giving?


BIRTHDAY GIRL...
This occasion calls for something a little fancy, and something very personalized. A great beauty product to purchase is an elegant bottle of perfume or body spray. Whether it's from Anthropologie or Bath & Body Works, this gift shows that you took time to think about that person and who they are. What scent represents them, and their favorite flavors.

VALENTINES DAY...
I know what your thinking, and no valentines day isn't always for lovers. It's one day out of the year that presents love towards someone who means a lot in our lives. For us single gals, our nights aren't spent over a candle light dinner, or romantic picnic. Instead it's all about the pizza, chocolate and chick flicks with our besties. Well, at least for me! So I love to present my family and girlfriends a small gift attached with a pun tag. Such as a bottle of nail polish that say's "Thanks for being a toe-tally awesome best friend." How cute is that! Amirite?

CHRISTMAS EVE...
Every year my girlfriends and I always gift exchange for the Christmas season. A wonderful beauty product to give is some makeup brushes. Gold brushes are just to die for! Not everyone spends their own money on beautiful sets of brushes, so the odd of them owning this is slim!

A WEEK OF FRIENDSHIP | HOW TO HELP A DOWN & OUT FRIEND

7.15.2016


'm so excited to announce a fun little series on the blog for this week and it's all about friendship. Here and there my hope is to chose an interesting topic to discuss for one week to dive deeper into understanding and learn more about a particular something. Nothing in this world is better than best friends, and since mine are home from college it's made me miss them more than I realized. So what's better than diving into friendship this week? Today, I'm sharing some great ways to help a down and out friend who is in need of her girls by her side to cheer her up! Have any writing prompts you'd like to see me talk about here on the blog this week? Grab a cup of coffee, text your friend you love her, and enjoy three friendship posts coming your way!


If your friend is going through a breakup...
Breakups aren't easy, and they take time to get over and fully heal. During this time, don't tell your friend that she messed up, or that there's many fish in the sea. Instead, show up with ice cream, and a classic chick flick that can lighten the mood, make her forget about her problems, and spend the night laughing. Boost her confidence with ensuring her strong character, beautiful appearance, and wonderful personality that anyone would die to have in a relationship!

If your friend loses a loved one...
This is the hardest thing any person could go through in life, and as a friend how do you even be there for your friend? What kind of friend do you become? The conversations, mood, and events all change. My advice during this time wouldn't be to constantly say "I'm sorry. I know it must be so hard. I cannot even imagine." Instead, know that in certain moments words aren't even needed, yet the company can be enough. In this time, comfort, support, and love are the most important aspects to offer to your friend. Don't be afraid to open up and share wonderful memories, and stories about the person your mourning over. Nothing is more needed than to cherish over past events with that loved one.

If your friend is ill...
Either critically ill, or just dealing with a cold send them an uplifting card encouraging them to feel better. Share some comforting scripture with them, letting them know that God is in control. A few years ago I had emergency surgery for my mouth, and the greatest gift I received from my friends was a phone call wanting to pray for me. Knowing that they were concerned for my health brought much joy!

If your friend was laid off...
This subject is a bit touchy, because your friend may be very vulnerable, upset, and low self esteem. Instead of trying to shop, or go to a fancy dinner to take things off their mind, try a baking session, or coffee outing as money may be difficult unlike before. During this time, my advice would be just to listen, and be positive for your friend. Don't go crazy with the benefits of leaving a certain company, or come with a list of businesses hiring, yet just remind your friend that perhaps when a door closes, another one opens.

KEEP EXPLORING | HUME LAKE

7.12.2016 Sequoia National Forest, CA, USA



ume Lake last week was such a retreat, and great family vacation getaway! One morning I challenged myself to wake up early to watch the sunrise with my dad which ended up being worth the 4:30 a.m. alarm clock, and afterwards explored the creek that flows through the whole lake. These photos honestly don't do it justice!

This has been my seventh trip up to Hume for a vacation with my family, and every year I'm able to explore and re-visit my favorite spots. Hume Lake Christian Camps offers amazing mountain views, lush nature, and no cell phone service. This trip I ditched the pressure of capturing photos, and lived every adventure through my own eyes, and not the camera lens. The photos you see in this post are the only photos captured on my canon, plus a few separate taken from my iPhone for Instagram. Throughout the years I've taken so so many photographs of this place, so perhaps another photo of these pine trees weren't needed! Hence the simplicity, and I truly have loved that.


Hiking isn't something I enjoy, nor will ever desire to conquer in my spare time. Yet, here I am sharing about my little adventure following along this beautiful running creek. The path along the creek truly represented nature at it's finest: birds chirping, rushing waterfalls, wind through the pine trees, and the pure silence of being lost in the forest. Sounds heavenly right? Yes, it was refreshing to step into nature to escape the loud cheers, and screams coming from the high school campers...until the sun's heat beamed down on my back the whole way.

Did I mention that I wore flip flops through all the challenges of nature such as dirt, slippery rocks, moss, bark, and fallen trees? Or that my bare legs and arms were covered with bug bites? How about climbing up dirt trails, rocks, and tree stumps? Feeling my clothes stick to my body because of the heat, and dirt? Oh, well now you understand why I have such a strong dislike for hiking! Drama queen? Girly girl? Fashionista? Yes. And I'm okay with that!

Despite the crazy difficulties that challenged me, the experience and view of the many waterfalls were worth the effort. The one amazing thing I learned while being at Hume was exploring more of who I am, and what my likes and dislikes truly are. My priorities began to line up, and my standards became clear. For that, I couldn't change a thing about this hike, and my rambling complaints because through it I learned more in that hour than I have in a long time about my whole personality and being.


         THE HIGHLIGHTS 

Hume Lake will always hold a special place in my heart, and I'm so grateful for the memories that were made along the week. Despite my ramble about the trail of the hike that lead until the spectacular views, the rest of the week was pure bliss. The lake water was so refreshing, and clean this year. I was able to go kayaking which is my favorite activity in the mountains. I had my three favorite milkshakes at the Snack Shop which included birthday cake, chocolate, and mint n chip. Fourth of July lacked the fireworks, yet was celebrated with a darling patriotic parade, full of flags, confetti, music, and cheering. 

At night in the cabin my family played our famous round of hide in the seek in the dark, which ended up being completely hilarious as we were scaring each other left and right. One night we watched the stars as thousands were visible because of the lack of air solution, and city light, while sitting around a camp fire for warmth, and the perfect classic camping experience we don't have when renting a cabin. My sunrise view from the end of the dock overlooking the lake, was truly unforgettable, and so memorable with my dad by my side. Nature followed us everyday, as we listened to woodpeckers,  watched blue jays fly, and baby ducks swim in the water around us. All of these things, I will treasure, and miss deeply as I enjoy the rest of my summer. Until next time Hume!

FALL FORWARD

7.03.2016


I'm loving the cooler weather and I'm happy to say it's officially fall here in So-Cal! Of course when I did this shoot is was way too warm for this sweater and boots, so by the end I was heating up but I thought it was so worth it! I figured it was about time for a style post, so here it is! With school, lighting difficulties because it's getting darker earlier now, and working on the weekends (finally found a job, woohoo:), fitting in time for a shoot seems impossible. Thankfully my friend offered to take these photos for me, and I'm so thankful she did, because I've been too silent here on the blog. For that, I'm so sorry and I promise you my little break is over and I have some awesome new things to share with you soon!  




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