Spring is in the Air: Spring Cleaning

Winter has finally passed and Spring is coming to life all around us! The sun is warm, the birds are chirping, and school is out (well...at least for the college kids)! Spring is a wonderful season of color and flowers and.......SPRING CLEANING! 

Oh yes, The dreaded - How on earth did I end up with so much stuff? I mean its only been a year since I cleaned our everything! - feeling that we all experience. 

I thought it would be fun to share some of my spring cleaning tips with you - since I just finished cleaning out my bedroom and bathroom this week - that I feel make all the difference. 

1. If you haven't pulled it out in the past 6 months...TOSS IT OUT!

I find this to be one of the most difficult things for me. I am definitely the type of person that is always holding onto things. When I was cleaning out my "junk drawer" I still had ribbons from elementary school... Elementary School!! I decided it was time to get rid of it. I threw out more than half of the stuff that I wanted to "save for memories". But lets be honest...the last time you looked at it was last year when you were spring cleaning. It doesn't mean that you can't keep a few things. There are items that hold precious memories. But take a second and REALLY think about it before y you decide to keep it.

2. Make the plastic bins fit...PERFECTLY

Putting plastic bins in your drawers, cupboards, or on your shelves is a really great way to keep things organized and clean. But have you ever noticed that tiny crack in between the wall and the bin that is perfect for that tiny little paper or that random little trinket? I thought so.... So how do you fix this? Measure the space that you want your bins in and then go buy bins that will fit perfectly to your measurements. That tiny little space will disappear and make it that much easier to stay clean and clutter free all year round!

3. When did I wear this last?

My closet is always my favorite thing to clean out each season. It helps me to really know what I do and don't have and what things I forgot that I owned. But it can also be a challenge to decide what to keep and what to toss out. When I'm going through my closet I will always find things that I have kept for way to long. Some of them are still in really good condition and then I realize that I haven't worn it for a very long time. That to me is an indicator that I need to get rid of it. If it is seasonal...that is one thing. But if I simply just haven't worn it I know that it is time for it to leave my closet.

4. One man's junk is another man's treasure

Once  you've decided what to keep and what to get rid of...why not make a little extra money? After cleaning out all of your stuff it is always a great idea to have a yard sale! But if you are like me...you don't have time to sit out on your lawn for an entire morning/afternoon and watch people slowly come and go as they yard sale hop. I have recently discovered that on Facebook there are many "online yard sales" for the areas that I live in. I have no doubt that if you search your city or county that you'll probably find something. All you have to do is post a picture of your stuff and set a price. Before you know it...you'll get rid of all your stuff! 

5. The Memory Saver 

A big part of spring cleaning for me is cleaning out the junk I've accumulated onto my computer over the year. This is a great chance to clear up some memory space on my laptop for the new things that I will take up that space in the future. I like to start with my music and get rid of all the songs that I don't really listen to anymore or I never even knew I owned. I then get rid of all my documents that are no longer needed - you know..that paper on the revolution that you wrote 2 years ago - and I will never look at again. It's also always a good idea to go through your downloads folder and just delete it all...you won't loose the things that you installed but it will clear that space up for the other millions of downloads you are bound to make in the next year.

6. For the people who, like me, are really OCD

I don't know why but one of my biggest pet peeves is looking back at my social media pages and thinking "why the heck did I post that"? From Facebook to Instagram to Pinterest...we all post things that we - not necessarily regret but - don't particularly like anymore. If you share this fine quality with me then this tip is for you (and if you haven't disliked anything you've posted before...you deserve a award)! I have found that this tip can take the longest. Go through and delete all the things that you don't like anymore and replace it with new ones! On Pinterest you can even make new boards and reorganize the things that you have posted. I did this....it took FOREVER! But I love my pinterest even more than I ever have now!

I hope that these few tips help you out! My last advice to you...Do it now so that you can go enjoy the sun and the beautiful flowers that are blooming all around! Happy Spring everybody!

The Escape House

This weekend was full of excitement and mystery. I got my Sherlock skills in gear and escaped a tiny office by finding clues and putting the puzzle together. With only an hour to escape we made it out with 3 minutes and 46 seconds to spare!

What is the Escape House? Imagine being locked in an unfamiliar room with a few friends with no way out. The only way to escape is to gather all of the clues and punch in the pass code before time runs out. It is a thrilling and blood pumping game that makes you think and react as fast as you possibly can.

Where is the Escape House? It is located at 1320 North State Street Orem, Utah.

I would definitely recommend this to anyone and everyone. It is a fun for a date night or even just to go out with your friends. You can even make it a competition of which group can get out the fastest. We had a blast taring the room apart to find all of the clues and figuring out how to escape.

Hope you are all having a fabulous Monday!

For more information you can visit http://www.theescapehouse.com/

If you don't live in Utah don't worry! I found other "Escape" places for you to check out:

Salt Lake City, Utah - http://mystery-escape-room.myshopify.com/
Atlanta, Georgia - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Boston, Massachusetts -  http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Chicago, Illinois - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Cincinnati, Ohio - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Dallas, Texas - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Denver, Colorado - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Detroit, Michigan - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Heraklion, Greece - http://escapehouse.gr/
Houston, Texas - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Las Vegas, Nevada - https://www.liveroomescape.com/
London, England - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Los Angeles , California - http://escaperoomla.com/ , http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Madrid, Spain - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Miami, Florida - http://thegreatescaperoom.com/
Minneapolis, Minnesota -  http://roomescapeadventures.com/
New York, New York - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Orlando, Florida - http://thegreatescaperoom.com/
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania -  http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Phoenix, Arizona - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Royal Oak, Michigan - http://thegreatescaperoom.com/
San Francisco, California - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Seattle, Washington - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Tampa, Florida - http://thegreatescaperoom.com/
Toronto, Ontario - http://roomescapeadventures.com/
Washington D.C. - http://roomescapeadventures.com/ , http://thegreatescaperoom.com/

Taiwan Taichung Mission

A long time has come and gone since I last posted on my blog. If you read my previous post you will know that I left for 18 months to serve a mission for the LDS church. I was called to serve in the Taiwan, Taichung mission. For 18 months I did nothing but center my life around Christ and sharing the message of love and forgiveness that He gives to us. 

For those of you who don't know missionaries are not supposed to do anything that will take their focus away from their great work. For example they do not listen to mainstream music (only LDS music and other uplifting songs are allowed), watch TV, use the computer (except when emailing family once a week or sharing church websites with people), call family and friends (family Skype is okay on Christmas and Mothers Day), and go shopping unless it is their preparation day.

Some of you might be thinking that those are ridiculous things to expect for 18-23 year olds. But the truth is while we are serving our Savior and bringing others unto Him we really don't have time for those other things. We learn that we don't really need to constantly be plugged in to have fun and be happy. True happiness comes from serving others and doing what you know is right. 

In this high-speed world it can be really easy to forget the things that are truly the most important. We can also miss the precious moments that are happening right before us. We miss out on making smile memories with those we love and sharing the things that we love with others around us.

I am so grateful for the opportunity that I had to serve a mission. It truly has changed me from the inside out. I have gained more self confidence and a better perspective on what is truly important in life. I got to learn how to speak a beautiful language (Mandarin Chinese), explore a beautiful country, and meet people that have forever influenced me. 

I often wish that I was still out there preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. But I don't have to have a name tag in order to do so. None of us do. All we need is a desire to share and open our mouths.

Here are some pictures of my great adventures in taiwan! I hope you all enjoy! If any of you have questions about the LDS church you can visit www.lds.org or www.mormon.org 

This is a place called Sun Moon Lake.

On a boat headed to a small Island for some P-day (preparation day) fun!

A small temple hidden in the mountains of Nantou.

Candy in the morning markets of Yuanlin.

The lantern festival in full swing in Gaoxiong!

Beautiful buildings at Fo Guang Shan (Buddha Light Mountain).

Monkey Mountain...watch out for their sharp teeth!

Beautiful Qishan!

The best dumplings ever form Bafang!

Yizhong Jie! The best food comes from the street markets!

The Taipei LDS Temple.

More Fo Guang Shan!

A wall of Taiwanese stamps in at the post office in Nantou!

Dumplings and rice... my two favorite things.

I like to ride my bicycle I like to ride it where I like....

The blue truck had the best breakfast ever!

The temple!

 At the Taipei 101.

Small Vacation / I'll be back

I started this blog as a trial run for me to see if I would enjoy blogging about beauty and health and life. And I have fallen in love with it! But sadly, I have to leave the world of blogging for the next 19 months as I go to Taiwan to do service for my church. I will only be allowed to use the internet to communicate with my friends and family and will not be able to continue this blog while I am there. But because I have loved doing this so much, I will definitely be starting this blog back up when I get back. So here are some fun pictures that from my final vacation with my mom before I leave. 

We had such a blast! We went to a place called Zermatt in Heber Utah. Zermatt is decorated in the theme of Europe. They have a french pastry shop, an Irish pub restaurant, and beautiful German decorating. They even have a cool carousel and an amazing spa.

Right across from Zermatt is a beautiful little place called the Homestead. It has always been one of our favorite places to visit! There is horseback riding, swimming in craters, golf, delicious food and so much more. It is such a beautiful place to relax at and step away from the world. 

For more information here are the websites for both places:

http://www.zermattresort.com

http://www.homesteadresort.com

Please stick around, I'll be back on here first thing in 2015! I can't wait to share some of my pictures and adventures from Taiwan with you all when I get back. In the mean time... I'd love to hear of your favorite little places to go to when you need to get away and relax.

32 And Counting

Because I am one who loves both journalism and fashion, it is probably no surprise to hear that I absolutely love reading magazines! But I have a problem with not getting rid of them once I have finished reading them. So I thought it would be really fun to see exactly how many magazines I had. To my surprise, I have 32 magazines sitting by the side of my bed! 

The oldest one I have is from 2011 but it isn't the first magazine that I've ever gotten. When I was younger I used to get those teen celebrity magazines with all the Disney Channel stars. I honestly believe that if I had kept all of those I would have 20 more magazines sitting in my room. But now that I'm older I love all the bigger magazines. My favorites are VOGUE, ELLE and GLAMOUR. But they are not the only ones that I enjoy. I guess the number will continue to go up as I keep on reading and enjoying magazines.

I thought it was super fun going through all of my magazines for this little post. Do you guys have magazines that you have kept? I'd love to hear what your favorite magazines are or if you enjoy collecting them like me!

A Small Summer Jewelry Haul!

A few weeks ago I decided that it was time for me to clean out my jewelry drawer and get rid of the jewelry that I no longer wear or want. I was surprised to see that I still had a lot of jewelry from my elementary and jr. high years. I found things from frayed friendship bracelets to beaded word necklaces and decided that it was time to get rid of it. As someone smart once said "out with the old and in with the new".

After taking a small inventory of the jewelry I decided to keep, I realized that I had a lot of necklaces but only a few rings and bracelets. So I decided that it was time for me to go and get some great summer bling! So I went to my two favorite places to buy jewelry (H&M and Forever 21) and this is what I got.

The first 2 set of bangles that I purchased are from Forever 21. I chose the first set because I loved how simple they were. The plain gold and gray are perfect for just throwing them on and dressing up you look a little bit. They can go with pretty much everything. And they were only $4.80 which was a total plus! The second set I purchased from Forever 21 cost $8.80. I was absolutely love at first sight. I love the white and black and thought they looked a little more chic and will go well with more dressier outfits. I got the last set of bangles for $5.95 at H&M. I really liked this set because they have a different pattern than the normal bangle. I love the arrows and they look fabulous will all sorts of outfits.

I bought the gold rings in a set from Forever 21. They cost $5.80 and are probably my favorite of all the rings I got. The square-ish one can face any direction on your finger so you have the choice as to what angle you want the ring to show from. The next ring I got was $3.80 and is also from Forever 21. I got it in a smaller size because I thought it looked really cool on my pinky. I love the look of the split down the front. It adds a different aspect to your outfits than simple silver rings normally do. The last ring I got is from H&M and cost $6.95. I really love the the turquoise stone and have nothing else like it and thought that it would make a great addition to my small collection of jewelry.

The last thing I got is this mirror from Forever 21 which cost $2.80. I just thought that it was really cute with the gold triangle pattern and would be a great mirror to throw in my bag when I needed to do some touchups during the day.

The reason I chose to go to these two stores for my jewelry hunt was mainly because of the prices and styles. I have always been a huge fan of the designs of both Forever 21 and H&M and will probably continue to purchase the majority of my accessories there.

April Favorites!

April has come and gone and this year seems to be flying by. As it is the first week of May I thought that I would share my April favorites with you all.

The first product that I have been absolutely loving in April are the Maybelline Color Tattoo cream eyeshadows. I first purchased Bad To The Bronze and absolutely loved it! So I had to go back and I bought Audacious Asphalt and Barely Branded. These colors are really pretty and they look softer on your eyelids then than they do in the bottles. They last all day and don't crease on your eyelids as the day goes on. They look really good not only together but with other natural shaded powder eyeshadows as well.

Lately, I have been loving oranges toned lipsticks. The first one I've been using a lot is the Rimmel Kate Moss Lasting Finnish swatch 109 (left). It has a really matte finish and isn't really bright. I like to put NYC City Proof gloss in the color Gold With Me on top to add a little bit of shine to my lips. The next one is by Revlon and is in the color Siren (middle). It is a cream lipstick and doesn't dry out your lips. The color stays on really good. You may have to touch it up a few time during the day, especially after eating a meal, but it is a really pretty spring/summer color. The last one is a Maybelline Color Sensational in  Coral Crush (right). This one has a little bit more of a pink tone to it and is a great bright color for your lips. It is a cream lipstick and it kept my lips really moisturized throughout the day.

I have had this color on my nails for the entire month of April! This is Essie Bikini So Teeny and I just couldn't bring myself to use a different color. I love pastel colors in the spring and this totally did the trick. The color is in-between blue and lilac and goes well with a lot of colors. It looks best with two or three coats.

The hair products that I have been loving this month are Formula 10's Miracle Leave in Mist and Loreal's new Smooth Intense Frizz Taming Serum. The Leave in mist I use every night before I go to bed and every morning after I shower. It smell delicious and is really good at conditioning the ends of you hair, repairing damaged hair, and helps a lot to detangle you hair. My hair looks so much healthier and feels so much smoother. The Frizz Taming Serum is part of a new line of products that Loreal recently released. It is an oil based serum that is really good at keeping those fly-aways down. It really helps control frizz and works really good in humidity. It also adds a healthy shine to your hair. Just be careful about putting it near your roots, it can make you hair look greasy. It is best to rub the product between your hands and to apply it to the ends of your hair first and then using the extra to help control the craziness on the top of your head.

Bath and Body's new summer scents are amazing this year! My favorite is the Capri Seaside Citrus. I use both the body cream and the body spray. The scent is a very light and yummy. I love the body cream because it keeps your skin moisturized for the entire day and you don't feel sticky after putting it on. I love body sprays especially for the summer. It feels and smells light on your skin and the scent isn't overpowering when you are crammed next to someone. They both last a really long time too. It doesn't take a lot for them to work their magic.

This last one is kind of random but I have been loving this so much. Dole's Orange Peach Mango juice is so good. I drink it almost every morning. I love to drink it just plain or blend into a delicious smoothie. Not only does it taste absolutely amazing, but it is really healthy for you too.

I hope this has helped some of you and that you have enjoyed it. I loved doing this post and will totally do more like this in the future.