My Top Three: Every day Obsessions

#NoFilter (i.e. morning light and no soft-focus- yikes!)

I dig reading about people's indispensables. You know, the things they'd take to a desert island, or the things they cannot leave the house without. If I'm in line at the grocery store, I'll flip to that "What's in my bag" section in Us Weekly (or whatever rag it is). It's so cool to get a glimpse into people's heads like that (it's the Psych 101 student in me I guess).

Anyway, I thought it would be fun to do a Top Three series here. Once a week, just a random Top Three Whatever list. I'd love to hear your Top Threes too!

For the first ever Top Three, just to get our feet wet, I'll tell you my three biggest Everyday Obsessions.

The sad (but truthful) thing is, I didn't prep for this post. I really did just have these three laying around the house. Geesh. 

#1. Twinings Irish Breakfast Tea. I know, it isn't as rock and roll as you may have hoped. I actually used to be an obsessive coffee drinker (like twenty cups a day obsessive). But after a fluke fever had me laid up for over a week two years ago, I came out completely disgusted by coffee (and Chinese food from my formerly favorite place). After that I didn't consume caffeine at all (it kinda cleansed me of all bad habits to be honest), but now I have at least two cups of it a day (waaaaaay more if I'm at work- yawn!). I buy the biggest boxes I can get my hands on (fifty count usually) and I have to drink it piping hot or I don't like the taste (weird). I'm drinking my second brew as I type this. Thank goodness I accidentally bought decaf last week, otherwise my heart could feasibly pop out of my chest from the caffeine overdose.

#2. Tie between Cadbury Fruit & Nut Bar and Whole Foods chocolate covered dried cherries (seen in the above picture). I can't help myself. My mom put the Cadbury's in my stocking the past few Christmases which started the obsession that then slowly grew and now I get one at least once a week. The Whole Foods issue arose when my local grocery store sold out of the Cadbury's and I had to feed the craving. It has since become my beauty pageant runner up if I can't get a hold of my Cadbury Crack. I get one or the other and slowly eat them throughout the week. They're my happy pills. I don't typically order desserts or really like sweets for that matter (minus an INSANE craving for cherries this Summer), but for at least the past year or so these are my "don't want to go without" fave treat. If I could give them up, I'd probably be a size smaller, but life is meant to be LIVED, people!

#3. Rose Petal Witch Hazel by Thayer's. I've been using witch hazel as the foundational product in my skincare "regime" (I use that term loosely) for over 15 years and if nothing else, will still use it by itself if I'm feeling too lazy to go through the rigor marole of a regime. I don't know what it is that has me completely addicted, other than perhaps it makes my skin feel lovely and never stings.  Plus the Rose Petal version smells absolutely wonderful. I cannot be persuaded to use anything else and I've tried. I'm a "try anything once" kinda gal, and I still go back to my witch hazel over and over and over again. It's my skincare soul mate.


Those are my three super duper tried and true, don't-want-to-go-a-day-without Obsessions. What are yours? I'd love to know!

Next week's Top Three? My Top Three Guilty Pleasures. Start brainstorming yours!

I hope you have a truly wonderful day!

And now for something completely different!

A few months ago (probably around the beginning of Autumn), I kept noticing a product pop up on my Pinterest. It was a face mask that the "pinners" claimed did all kinds of wonderful for the skin. After seeing it week after week, I started getting curious. I have an odd focus like that. It takes a while to get my attention but when it does, I'm a terrier about finding out about it. And so I did!

The product is called GlamGlow and it's a face mask. All the pictures made the users of it look like their faces were robin's eggs. Pale blue and freckled. I was intrigued. I have done enough damage to my skin in my 20's, I kept thinking now would be the best time to try it out and see if it could aid some of the issues I was aggravated by (enlarged pores).

Well, as things go, I have a tendency to put my needs (or wants in this situation) on hold while I find a million excuses to put whatever it was I was wanting or needing on the back burner. Then a few weeks ago, I'd just had it. I found myself scrolling through before and after pictures of people who used the product and promptly put the clay purifying mask in my online shopping basket...where it stayed for another two weeks before I pulled the trigger.

The package arrived two days later and inside the label, it greeted me with "Hello Sexy" (printed on the inside)...which snarky as I am, I kinda liked. I used it for the first time last Wednesday (and though I probably shouldn't use it more than once a week, I had to use it again when my mom and I did makeshift facials while we were at the beach). And let me tell you what, y'all...my skin looks friggin' awesome.

Ew, right?! But morbidly wonderful...

At first I was scared it was going to burn my skin because it had a lot of different acids in it and my skin is hyper-sensitive, but it didn't. The tingling lasts for a few minutes and then fades away as it dries and sure enough...I looked like a robin's egg. But you know what? My skin has responded to the mask better and better every single time I've used it. Sure a little bump crops up as my pores clean out here and there but unlike how they were before the mask; they depart very quickly and my skin is just...glowy! I super highly recommend it.

Next on the list? Every thing they make! The hydration mask in particular! Ooh lala!

P.S. It's waaaaay cheaper from Amazon, get it here! And this is completely an unsponsored post.

Think you'll try it? I'd love to know! Have a wonderful day, y'all!

Post-birthday care, cleanse and detoxification!

29 Dogs Who Made Huge Mistakes.

Now that the birthday festivities are over, I'm taking my last day off (for a while) to get organized for the week ahead. I was all over the place this weekend, not minding my budget as much as I should and indulging in all kinds of wonderful treats. Nothing too out there, no record-breaking in the booze department, no Nutella-slathered craziness. Just...more indulgence than usual. I don't feel (too) bad about it, I'm just glad I have a day to recover!

In that vein, here are some other "recovery" tips and what-nots to aid in getting one back on their feet after a weekend of debauchery and fun! Just because you fell so far off the wagon you can't see it down the road anymore, doesn't mean you can't dust yourself off and start taking good care of yourself again. Right?! Right!

*Morning Green Smoothie. I make a version of this at least once a day to get my fruits and veggies in one fell swoop. The key is to keep the ratio 2 fruits to 1 veggie so it tastes awesome and not salad-y. I'm about to go downstairs and whip one up for myself! I like it because even if you ate hot wings and pizza for three days (ahem), and you do this one thing- you feel awesome for it and it snowballs into overall better care for oneself.

*Drink too much? I'm adding this one early since Mardi Gras is in a week. Here's a super yummy "mocktail" to cleanse your liver. Take it easy on your livers (and kidneys), guys! Drink more water while you're at it, okay?!

*Ten easy yoga poses that promote detoxing and the cleansing of the body!

*Here's another easy one: Five Daily Detox Routines.

*I've heard several times that dry-brushing does more than make your skin pretty. It's also an important tool in cleansing your lymphatic system as well as your overall circulatory health and your body's ability to remove toxins. It's the cheapest and easiest thing on this list apart from just drinking water! Check out this information on it. I'm convinced and will be giving it a go today!

*Give reflexology a try. I've been interested in it for ages, but have never done it. After looking over these reflexology charts I had to laugh because two of my chronic areas of pain are correlated to places on my feet where I've broken bones that have never healed correctly. Regardless of whether you believe it works or not, give it a try. At least your tired feet will have a little massage by the end of it.

I hope you have a wonderful day!

Love Yo'self!

My super up-close coffee scrub.

It Thursday, y'all! A good day to turn that amazing outward positive focus inward for a minute. You have to refuel your positivity, love and kindness reserves pretty regularly too, you know! Now, usually I post a bunch of fun self-care recipes and goodies here, but this week I'm doing something a teeny bit different. This week I tried one of the many recipes I've hoarded for homemade skin care products. I found this coffee scrub and decided (because I had all the ingredients in my pantry- otherwise I apparently can't be bothered) to try to duplicate it at home.

It just looks like a cup of old coffee grounds, but it's so much more!

It was awesome, if not a little messy. I don't know (or care really) about it's cellulite-banishing claims or whether it really works in that department. However, it does leave your skin feeling incredibly tingly and soft and smelling amazing.

I felt like I was brewing some artisanal hipster coffee brew though. Tub-infused lady coffee. Ew. You could make some money in Japan with that methinks. Ew again. I'll totally make this again though, it made me feel magnificently scrubbed and smooth and moisturized and it is a unisex scent so even the manliest of dudes can try it.

Give it a whirl, y'all! It took five minutes to make and the duration of a quick shower to use (preferred over an actual tubby soak because, ew ew ew!) and bada-bing, bada-boom- you've given yourself a lovely little pick-me-up.

Take the time to care for yourself today. Even if its just ten minutes. Ten minutes can be spared, I promise! It's simply ten less checks of the FaceTube, the Tweeter or whatever else you kids are doing online these days. You deserve the attention and the time, so does your psyche and- in this case, your skin.

I hope you have a truly wonderful day, y'all!

Love Yo'self!

Image courtesy of Wellness 360.

Well, how did you do last week? Did you try any of the DIY care recipes? I'm going to start using the baking soda face polish for sure. Everyone I've talked to about it seems to have tried it and loved it. Thursdays on PP&PS are all about self-care, and without further ado, more ideas on how we can care for our bodies and skin and spirits a little bit better this week. Anything you do that's a surefire self-love fix? I'd love to hear!

*Turmeric milk for colds, flu, & depression. I have to say, I'm intrigued. Especially because I spent the first part of the week in bed with a case of the "trying not to pukes" something that is going around my office. Ew.

*Fight human trafficking in your jammies. I love the Punjammies company. You can get a beautiful pair of pajama pants handmade by women who have been removed from forced prostitution and are taught a trade to make a living wage. Cosy and beautiful gift for you or your friends, and it helps a lot of women and their children. I want the Ratna full-length. Beautiful all the way around!

*I am definitely giving this a try this week. It sounds relaxing.

*Ginger Sugar Scrub for face and body. Oh that sounds so invigorating! Now if it came with a strong-handed massage therapist to apply it it would be even better!

*Because shimmying to sexy music is a great way to care for your body and have fun too!

*Meditation to help with depression. Nice to have in your back pocket for a rough patch.

I truly hope you have a wonderful day!

Love Yo'self

Self-care is something I need to work on. Considering how vain I can be sometimes, I certainly don't care for myself the way I should. Or, at the least, I could be doing better. I've removed the immediate bad guys from my list over the past year: excessive booze, cigarettes, and weirdly my beloved caffeine. But, in the clamor of daily life, I have neglected the things I used to hold dear. Skin care, healthy recipes, meditations, organization and the like.

So on Thursdays, I want to add some fun health and care suggestions, recipes, home remedies etc. to encourage caring for oneself as an act of kindness and generosity. I'm not using the terms associated with glamorous magazines and what-not or anything like that because, Ew. Instead, personal kindness is the name of the game. Our bodies are strong and capable of incredible feats every day. Let's honor them together in fun and creative ways. Here's a few suggestions for your Thursday!

* Five-minute post-work yoga. I do this every day before and after work and I love the quirky and sweet instructor. 

*DIY Greek Yogurt face mask. I can't wait to try this out. I bet it feels like chilly bliss.

*As a kid I always had bug-bite ridden legs in the summertime; this summer has been unintentionally nostalgic. Homemade Calamine Lotion!

*Intrigued, because I do love me some coconut oil. All-Natural Homemade Face Polish.

*A little reflexology for your tired tootsies. I need to massage my sinuses, liver and small intestines. Never thought I'd type that sentence. 

*A breathing exercise to help relieve anxiety. Exhaaaaaaale!

Have a truly wonderful day!