Happy Wednesday and second day of Blogmas. I am so excited that we are now in the holiday season, because now I can listen to Christmas music and appreciate my Christmas tree. It is also the most challenging time of year for me, since Christmas without my mom isn’t easy. By doing Blogmas, it actually creates a distraction from all of the sadness of dealing with the loss of my mom. 

That said, I wanted to share some of this week’s favorites.

Plastic Hearts by Miley Cyrus: I am such a huge fan of Miley Cyrus since she was Hannah Montana. In fact, I think I still have the Hannah Montana CDs in my house. That said, I really am loving her new album, Plastic Hearts. I am getting the 80s’ rock vibe from it, and I am here for this era of Miley Cyrus. My favorite songs are: Prisoner, WTF Do I Know, and Midnight Sky.

Rachel Hollis’ Didn’t See That Coming: I love Rachel Hollis’ new book. I listened to the audiobook a few weeks ago, even though I have the physical book. I am going to be honest, I loved the audiobook. It was really great to listen to. The book talks a lot about healing, and is something that is a great resource for someone that is grieving or going through something. Since I do have the physical book, I’ve been using that as a way to journal and reflect. I really recommend this book as a way to grow, and am considering getting her other two books — which I loved — on audio to serve as inspiration.

The Sopranos: I am so glad that I finally have the ability to binge my favorite shows now that I can use HBO Maxx on my Firestick (Thank you AT&T for including this in the plan.) I love this especially since I can finally watch the Sopranos in full. I am currently in season one, but I can’t wait to cross another show off of my list.

Madewell Roadtripper Jeans: I am a huge fan of Madewell, as many of you know. Nordstrom was having their Black Friday sales early this year, so I snagged a pair of these jeans. I got them the next day and wore them last Friday. These jeans are really comfortable, and they fit great. I loved them so much, I ended up purchasing a second pair actually. I can see these quickly becoming my new favorite pair of jeans.

New YouTubers: I stumbled across two Youtubers — helloxluxury and Angel Nguyen. They both talk about jewelry and luxury fashion. Even though I am not purchasing a luxury bag or item for a while, I still enjoy watching those type of videos, and they both give honest views on the products that they talk about. Therefore, I really enjoy their videos.

Happy day before Thanksgiving everyone! Thanksgiving is looking a little different this year, but I wanted to take a moment to share some of my favorites from this past week, since next week is going to be Blogmas content. Can you believe that we’re already about to be in December? I can’t.
That said, this post will be the last of the week so I can enjoy a break blogging. So, without further adue, here are this week’s favorites:

Dash and Lily: I heard about this, and watched the first episode, and was instantly hooked. It is a Netflix show that is about a girl named Lily who leaves a red notebook in the Strand looking for love, and a lonely boy named Dash finds it and completes the challenge. The two begin to talk and they really hit it off. At the time of writing this post, I have binged watched six episodes, and am really looking forward to finishing the show. The show is a really quick watch, and I began reading the book as well. It is definitely a cute Christmas show if you’re looking for something to get you in the holiday spirit.

Pandora Beads and Pave Bracelet: I mentioned that I’ve been taking advantage of the Pandora sale and this is one of the things that I’ve purchased. I bought this a few weeks ago, and it came into the mail last week. I have not taken this off since I got it, and I like it that it’s a piece that I can wear with everything. I really love layering this with some other bracelets as well.

Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Bread: My boyfriend got into Trader Joe’s this past week, and I was really excited that he did. One of the things that he purchased was their pumpkin bread, which is really delicious. I have had it with avocado and hummus, and it was delicious.

Trader Joe’s Vegan Mac and Cheese: It has been seven years since I’ve had Macaroni and Cheese. My boyfriend also picked this up, and I really enjoyed it with broccoli. I am the type of person who is skeptical when it comes to vegan items and was pleasantly surprised that this tasted as good as it was. It’s amazing, and I recommend it if you’re dairy-free like I am.

Diamonique Hoop Earring Set: I’ve mentioned my love for Diamonique before, and I got this earrings partially for myself and partially as a gift set that I will spilt to many people. I kept a few pairs to myself, and I really love them. They are lightweight but they still pack a statement. I highly recommend these for gift giving — and for yourself.

There is no science backed behind the fact that no one on this Earth is happy one hundred percent of the time. We all have bad days, we go through hard times, and we have times in our lives when it is simply challenging to survive. 

Yet, we are told to just shake it off, to cheer up or that it will get better. 

There is a name for that. That is toxic positivity. 

The true definition of toxic positivity, according to the Science of People, is feeling of acting happy or cheerful when you’re really not. It can be inflicted on yourself, or it can be the things that people say to you directly. 

I am going to be real – 2019 was the hardest year of my life for many reasons. The biggest though was the fact that my mom died unexpectedly. I cannot even begin to count how many people told me to “just be strong,” “fake a smile,” or just to push my own feelings aside to be happy. I felt this pressure during the holidays, a season that my mother truly loved, to just grin and bear it. It felt almost as if I was a weight around those around me that brought everyone around me down.

The truth is, that is not okay. In fact, it’s dangerous, because I was holding my feelings in. 

And, I am not alone. The article states that more than 75 percent of people said that they sometimes, often, or very often ignore their emotions in the favor of being happy. Furthermore, what is also damaging is that 67.8 percent of people have experienced toxic positivity in the past week alone. 

I am going to be the first to admit that I find the positive in practically everything, because I do have a lot to be grateful for. Sometimes, this is a fault of mine, but that’s another story. However, one thing that I am learning that suppressing my emotions in light to “look at the bright side” may not be the best idea  because it bottles them up. Going back to my example earlier, it is a very natural emotion to experience grief when you lose a parent and to admit it. Or, on lighter examples, that are not losing a parent, you can feel frustrated with something that happened in your day, or even with a situation. It’s okay to feel those emotions. 

One of the things I would like to change with everyone who is reading this blog post is to seriously stop this toxic positivity garbage. Instead, I want everyone to learn to say “I know you’re hurting, but it’s okay,” give the people in their circle a chance to be upset, and stop saying “cheer up.” 

For example, I’ve had a few moments where I was frustrated from it being one of those days. My water bottle spilled all over my car and soaked my rugs. Things weren’t working at work, and everything that happened was the ultimate test of my patience. I began to feel annoyed and frustrated, which is to be expected, only to tell myself to hold everything together. 

Newsflash – we don’t have to, nor do we need to be positive all of the time. Sure, we can’t explode, but we are allowed to feel that way. I am allowed to vent about the fact that I am frustrated, instead of saying “that’s okay.” 

So, the takeaway here is this: you are allowed to feel however which way you want to feel. And, no one should tell you differently. 

It’s safe to say that Christmas season is now here and we are in full swing on the gifting season. Today, I want to touch upon a unique sort of type of gift – a good holiday gift for someone who is moving out on their own for the first time, whether that may be for college or their first apartment. Many of these gifts are things that they may want, but they probably won’t think to ask for something like this for themselves. That said, here are some great ideas for someone who first moved out on their own. 

Air Fryer:

This is hands down one of the best things I could have ever done for my kitchen, because I can do so much with it. I warm up frozen foods, leftovers, I make French fries, and there is so much more you can do with it that the options are endless. If they don’t already have this, I highly recommend that this. 

Coffee Maker:

Coffee makers are expensive, but they are so worth it. If they drink coffee, then this will save them so much money. And, there are so many different price points for coffee makers, as well as different brands. For example, there’s Nespresso, there’s Keurig and so much more. Having a coffee maker is so helpful because you can make a cup of coffee almost anytime that you want. And, the price per cup is significantly lower than Starbucks. 

If you can’t decide between the many different options out there, I highly recommend that you get a Keurig, and the mini one would be perfect for someone who is living alone. My reasoning is because you can do so much with it. You can brew hot water for tea, coffee, and so much more. And, the variety of pods is also amazing as well. 

Amazon Firestick:

This is hands down one of the best things that I have purchased for my house. I recommend this to anyone, because there is so much that you can watch with it. You can stream YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, Apple TV, Prime TV, Disney Plus, and more. This is such a cheaper way to get cable, and what I personally love about it is that you get to watch whatever you want whenever you want to do so. 

Brita Filter:

This is one of those items that you would never purchase for yourself, but once you do, you can’t live without it. I’ve had this for a few years now, and I’ve been loving it. It saves both money and space, since you’re not buying water bottles. This is a cheaper alternative to buying water, because you pay anywhere from $17-$30 for the actual pitcher, and then you pay $17 for four filters. Since you change the filters once every three months, that’s basically $17 a year for water. This is definitely going to be a gift that will be used. 

Blankets/Towels:

These are the go-tos, and for good reason – everyone can always use them. In the case of towels, one of the things that people don’t realize that you need more than one of is dish towels. Furthermore, it’s also good to have an extra throw blanket around as well for décor, for the bed or even to have lying around on the couch when watching TV. 

Phone stands:

This is hands down one of my favorite Amazon purchases. Basically, it’s a stand that keeps your phone, your watch, and your AirPods organized. What I love about this is that it keeps everything in one place, and looks great on your nightstand.