Everyone Needs A Lazy Day

I write about this all of the time, but self care is crucial. However, as I mention so many times before, it’s often one of the things that always goes towards the bottom of the list. Sometimes, it’s because we just forget. Other times, it’s because we are trying to do everything — from work to school to making sure that you get enough sleep every night to having a social life.

After all, we’re only human.

A long time ago, someone told me to make time for one day a week to just be lazy. At the time, I thought that it was a good idea. Over time though, I began to avoid that like the plaque. Instead, I would run myself into the ground with social, work and family commitments. I didn’t want to do any of them, because I just wanted to stay in bed. But, I kept on going constantly. I didn’t listen to myself.

Last week, I began to feel run down and tired everyday. I was constantly complaining to anyone that listened that I just needed a personal day. I was having trouble concentrating, and felt exhausted at the beginning of the day.

On Sunday, I decided to do so. I sat on the recliner and knitted all day while watching the Marvelous Mrs. Maizel. And, it was glorious. By the end of the day, I was well rested and ready to take on the week.

So, the bottom line: we all need a lazy day to binge watch our TV shows and charge our batteries. We need days to just sit and recharge.

After this realization, I am now making a new goal for myself: to carve out some time every week for me to have that time to binge watch a TV show, whatever that may be. As I realized, without that time we become run down and can’t perform at full task. And, as I was told many times before, if we don’t take care of ourselves, how can we best take care of others? How can we do our best at everything that we do?

Chances are, we can’t.

So, bottom line — everyone deserves a lazy day.

November Goals

I can’t believe that it’s already November. It seems like the year has flown by, and before we know it, we will be in 2020.

Crazy, right?

This November, I decided to create some goals for myself to not only get stuff done, but to have a healthy month. And, without further a due, here are my goals for this month:

  • Spend less, save more: This month, I opened a separate savings account that is separate from the one that I already had. My goal is to put a little aside in each paycheck to grow a larger savings. Furthermore, I also want to spend less. I have hit up so many sales for yarn, books and clothes that I have more than I know what to do with. Therefore, I want to actually save some money. However, on Black Friday, I’ll be hitting up all of the sales.
  • Make taking care of myself a priority. Lately, I haven’t been taking care of myself. This month, I want to make self care more of a priority. Whether it’s carving out some time each day to do something that relaxes me, or just slowing down and having one lazy day a week, I want to make sure I give myself time to just be. One of the benefits of doing so? I get to approach each task with more vibrance and clarity than I would if I didn’t.
  • Read more books: Lately, I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump. I just finished From Twinkle, With Love, and I am about to start Colleen Hoover’s Verity. I’m hoping this month I’ll be finishing many of the books on my to-read shelf, including: Where The Crawdads Sing, What If It’s Us, and Twice in a Blue Moon.

What are your November goals?

Fashion Friday: Woodbury Common Outlet Haul & Is It Worth the Trip For A Connecticut Resident?

In Connecticut, we have three different outlet malls in our state, and they are pretty decent in terms of finding great deals. However, the one thing that they don’t have is the Longchamp outlets, which are purses that I really love.

However, the ones in Woodbury do have it. Which lead me to getting on the road early one Saturday morning to venture out to the Woodbury Common Outlets. Due to some traffic, it took me about two hours to get there.

Now, the Woodbury Commons Outlets has a mixture of both designer and regular outlets. It has everything from Gucci to Burberry, to more affordable brands such as Old Navy, Coach, Banana Republic, and Dooney and Bourke. There is a ton of stores, so it is easy to spend a day there.

I spent about six hours there, and I was able to find a lot of outstanding deals, as well as getting several gifts for Christmas out of the way.

So, to answer the question in the title, yes it is worth it. Many of the deals that I scored were ten times better, especially in terms of Kate Spade and Michael Kors. What is also nice is that they have a Disney outlet, which in the clearance section, you can find some great deals. They also have a North Face outlet, which had some great deals for the Denali that you would not see here as well.

Now, let’s get to the damage that I’ve done. I can’t reveal all that I bought, because they were a lot of Christmas gifts. Thanks to this trip, I am almost done with my Christmas shopping. Which is an amazing feeling if you ask me. Here’s what I bought for myself:

The first thing that I purchased was Longchamp Le Pliage totes. I loved that they had all different colors. I am a huge fan of the nylon purses, because they are lightweight and they fit everything but the kitchen sink. I got four different purses, because these purses were extremely hard to find, so I picked up four for that purpose. Needless to say, I have enough to last me a lifetime.

Next, I headed over the Kate Spade outlet where I picked up a gift, which I will not share. For myself, I purchased a quilted leather bag, marked at $349 for $94. I also picked up a phone case because I love Kate Spade phone cases because they are pretty, but they last. Well, unless you drop your phone on the pavement, but that’s a story for another time.

I also got my first pair of jeggings from Banana Republic, two sweaters, and a comfy shirt that I can use both for work and weekends. Their deals were amazing. First, the sweaters were buy one get one free. The second was if you spent a certain amount, you got 15 percent off. So, I think that was a good deal right there, because Banana Republic can be extremely expensive.

The best deal of the day in my opinion was Pandora. They had a deal were if you bought two items, you got 25 percent off. So, after learning that some of their charms were about $10 a piece, I bought two charms and a ring.

Next, I headed to Micheal Kors to take a look at their selection of purses. They had a 70 percent off sale, with an extra 20 percent off. I walked away with an additional card holder, as well as a crossbody that I’ve been wanting to buy for a while. The bag was a lot cheaper than I ever could have gotten from Connecticut, so that was a good deal.

Finally, I went to the Ugg outlet to buy a pair of slippers. I personally like them because they are so warm and cozy, and they are comfortable. Win win for a shoe if you ask me. They were 40 percent off.

Overall, it was a good shopping. I’m super happy because I’m set for a long time.

If you’re thinking about going to the outlets to do some shopping, here’s what you need to know:

  • Come early. Around two, places started to get really crowded, so it’s best to arrive as soon as they open.
  • Have a game plan. There are over 200 outlet stores in the mall. It’s best to come up with a list of what you want to do and get, so you get what you want.
  • Bring water. If you’re walking around a lot, it can be easy to get dehydrated, which can lead to terrible choices in terms of spending. Therefore, if you bring a bottle or two of water, it’s worth it.
  • Bring cash. Cash is the best way to pay. I bought some cash, and actually came home with money. It helps you set a limit and makes sure that you’re only buying the items that you are falling in love with.

What I Love Wednesday: October 30th

Happy Hump Day everyone! This week has been a bit of a struggle, so I am so happy that we are at last venturing towards the weekend. Here’s what I have been loving this week:

  • Bath and Body Works Aroma Therapy:

I recently started using some bath gel that I picked up during the summer during the Bath and Body Works semi-annual sale. One of the items that I picked up was the essential oil body wash in lavender. I just started to use it, and it already has been something that I have loved and it’s definitely very calming.

The bad news? Sadly, it’s discontinued. Why does Bath and Body Works always do this to us, especially when we have a scent that we know and love?? Anyways, I did ask the sales assistant when I was there, and they said to try the Stress Relief one. So, we’ll see.

  • Sabotage by JoJo

I have been a huge JoJo fan since I was 10 years old. Therefore, I am always so excited when she releases new music. This has been my jam lately, so if you haven’t heard it yet, be sure to give it a listen.

  • Lose You To Love Me by Selena Gomez

I am not as big of a Selena Gomez fan, because many of her songs are overplayed. However, I am obsessed with her new song, Lose You To Love Me. It’s all about self-acceptance and learning to love yourself. Definitely a positive message.

  • Pumpkin Cupcake Hand Sanitizer:

Lately, I’ve been using a lot of hand sanitizer. Partially, it’s because it’s cold and flu season, the other is because I am obsessed with this scent.

  • Mantrabands:

I’ve been going back and forth with wearing these bracelets regularly, but I have been wearing these a lot lately. What I like about these is that they have so many positive sayings and encouraging sayings to get me through the day. Furthermore, I also have a lot that have a special meaning to me. Some of my favorites include: Self Care Is Not Selfish, Smile, Breathe,and Go Slowly, I Love You More, and Always in My Heart. What is cool is that they come in many different colors as well such as rose and yellow gold.

When wearing my Mantras, I try to wear ones that I will need to hear that day. For instance, if I need to feel like my mom is near me, I wear Always In My Heart. Or, if I want to remind myself it’s important to take care of myself, I wear Self Care Is Not Selfish. I love these bracelets because of their message, and they make great gifts to those who are going through something.

What I Love Wednesday: Halloween Edition

Happy early Halloween! In the spirit of all Hallow’s Eve, I am going to share with you some things that I love about the holiday.

    It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown!

It’s my favorite Halloween movie of all time. I am a huge Snoopy fan, so it is always awesome to see this movie.

    Candy Corn

Candy corn is the official candy of Halloween in my opinion. It is also one of my favorite types of candy. Therefore, it’s one thing that I really love about the holiday.

    Starbucks Halloween Frappuccino’s.

Every year, Starbucks comes out with a super awesome limited edition drink. For the past few years, it’s been the Frappula. And, I really like them, even though they are loaded with sugar. They get me in the Halloween spirit, and since they only really come out once a year, why not?

    An excuse to eat candy all day.

Other than Valentine’s Day, Halloween is pretty much the only day that you can eat candy pretty much all day, and it will be socially acceptable. Kit Kat with breakfast? Sure. Reese’s for dinner? YOLO. Any excuse to eat chocolate is good enough for me.

    Pillsbury Pumpkin Sugar Cookies.

It is really a holiday unless you have these cookies? I think not.

    The day after sales.

Half price bags of Reese’s? I’m there. After all, I love getting a good deal. And, who can pass up half price chocolate? Not me. I also am looking forward to heading to Petco to get Lucy some half price Halloween toys.

    Dressing Your Pet Up

My favorite part of Halloween is seeing all of the cute pet costumes. On my dog Maggie’s last Halloween, she proudly paraded around as a queen. This year, I actually went out and bought my new puppy Lucy a costume and I am so excited to show you all.

What do you love about Halloween?

Four Things I Try To Never Buy Online

Online shopping is so convenient and easier ever before. For me, this is even easier since getting an Amazon Prime Membership. However, there are some things in my opinion that you should still try to buy in store, at least at first.

Before I begin, let me say this: if you’ve bought something that’s on this list already and you want to buy a different color or something, than I always turn to the websites because I already know what I am getting.

So, here are some things that you should probably avoid adding to your cart:

Purses:

Now, I love shopping for purses as much as the next person. However, for me, buying purses is something that you need to see in person before you buy. Otherwise, there’s really no other way to gage the size of the purse that you are buying, or what it actually looks like.

What I’ve also noticed is that purses are the cheapest at the outlets — whether you’re into Coach, Dooney and Bourke, Kate Spade, and so on. Therefore, sometimes the prices online tend to be a little more.

Yarn:

For me, yarn is something that you always have to buy in the store. I’ve had so many instances when I was looking for something online, found something that I thought would match the criteria of what I wanted. So, I bought it. When I got it home, it was so much different than what I was actually looking for. However, when I go to the store, I was able to get exactly what I needed.

Jeans:

Jeans are the weirdest things for me to buy. Sometimes, I need to go a size up. Other times, I need to go a size down. However, I will say this: the size that I always order is never the size that I actually end up needing. Therefore, I have to exchange it for a different size. This all could be avoided if I had went to the store to get them in the first place.

Bath Products:

This is one that always gets me. How do you know what it smells like through your phone or the computer? Exactly.

What I Love Wednesday: Purses and Cupcakes

Happy Hump Day everyone! Today’s post is being written from my couch, as I am on bed rest until tomorrow due to a sprained knee. I am currently catching up on a lot of TV, and wanted to catch you all up on what I am loving this week.

  • Longchamp Le Pliage bags

These are hands down my favorite purses. I love nylon purses, because they are light and durable. I especially love these, because these purses can fold. These purses are awesome because they fit everything but the kitchen sink. I have both the medium and the large, and they fit so much. I like the large a bit better, because I can fit my laptop or iPad in addition to my regular items.
Many people don’t like these bags due to the lack of compartments and pockets, but I’ve found that to not be an issue. Most of my stuff remains organized, and I can easily find it. And, these are really durable and easy to manage. If you get dirt on it, a little water will get it clean. And, it last forever. Therefore, you get a lot of bang for your buck, which is awesome.

  • Ugg slippers

As I mentioned earlier, I sprained my knee last week. It all started due to a sprained ankle. As a result, my foot was so swollen that I could not wear any other shoe. These were so comfortable, and fit my swollen foot, which was great. I know that I wouldn’t always be able to wear these, but they are so comfortable.

  • It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown!

Hands down a Halloween classic. I was able to watch it yesterday while my beagle named Lucy, and I was so happy I was able to catch it.

  • To Drink Coffee With A Ghost by Amanda Lovelace

I finished this book yesterday, and was in tears. Amanda Lovelace is one of my favorite poets. I read every book from her Women Are Some kind of Magic series, and loved it. I was so happy to hear that she wrote another series called Things That Haunt. I read the first one, To Make Monsters Out of Girls a little while ago, and loved it. So, if you like poetry, these books are worth checking out.

  • Pumpkin cupcakes

I tried two different kinds of pumpkin cupcakes last weekend from Sugar Bakery, and loved it. The first was Pumpkin S’mores, and the second was Pumpkin Salted Caramel. I thought they were very well done. I liked the caramel one a little bit better because it just tasted like fall. So. Good.

Fashion Friday: Outlets 101

Like a lot of people, I like name brands. The main reason is because I love the quality of the items, and how they can last for several years to come. One thing that I don’t love about designer brands? The price tag.

Enter in my love for the outlets. I am fortunate enough to live near not one but three outlet malls. Well, they are about a 30 minute drive away from me, but it’s worth the extra trip.

Many people often diss the outlets, because they have last season’s style or maybe be not what the original stores have. I think that may have been true in the past, but nowadays, I think they have evolved to being just as comparable as the same items as you see in Macy’s. The only difference is that they are cheaper. At least, that’s the only difference that I could find.

And, the savings is substantial. I often find Micheal Kors purses, normally prices at $398 for as little as $80. Furthermore, I also have found Coach Wallets, normally priced at $275, for $60. The same with clothes. I go to the Banana Republic outlet, and often walk out with shirts that are about ten dollars.

Now, with that being said, it can be easy to go crazy with your wallet with all of these good deals. Therefore, here are some of my secrets on ensuring that you get the best deals.

  1. Check out the clearance bins: One of the best things about the outlets? The clearance rack. Many of the ones that I go to often have save an extra 50 percent off in addition to the already reduced price. For example, last weekend I went to the Banana Republic outlet. I found a sweater that was marked to $50, something that I need because I lost a few pounds since my mom died, and none of my clothes are fitting properly. Clearance that day was marked to an additional 50 percent off. So, I paid $24 for a heavy sweater that actually fit.
  2. Log into your phone: One of the cool things about the outlet malls is that many of them are online now. And, if you create an account — which is free, you can access many of them have save an extra ten percent if you spend this. So, if you’re already buying that amount anyways, why not pile a few of the extra savings?
  3. Bring cash: This is what I do to stick to my budget. I get cash, and leave my debit cad at home. Once I’m out of cash, I’m done for the day. This way, I can make sure that I am staying within my means without going overboard.
  4. Do your research: I try to go once every few months, but I try to have a game plan of places that I want to go. If I know I want jeans, I go to the Gap outlet, since they have them for twenty dollars. If I know I want sweaters or dresses, I go to Banana Republic, because the clearance rack is the best place to score them. If I want a new crossbody, I go to Micheal Kors, since I love theirs. I also try to look up those items online so that way I know if I am getting a good deal or not.
  5. Shop around before buying: I often make a few rounds around before actually purchasing something. That way, I know what I want after I see everything and can make purchases I truly love. Last year, I went to the outlets the day after my birthday, and I wanted to treat myself to a purse. I found I liked, left and walked around for a bit. Once I realized that was the one I wanted, I went back and got it. I often find that if you need to think about it, you probably don’t want it. But, if you fall in love with it the second that you lay eyes on, it probably is something you’d be disappointed if you walked away from.
  6. Only shop outlets: Almost all of the items I purchase are from the outlet because I like to save. Therefore, I only shop there. This is already a great way to save, because chances are, you’re not paying regular price for any of it? See, already smart shopping.

Hopefully these tips can help you score some major deals the next time you head to the outlets!

What I’m Loving Wednesday: October 16, 2019

Hey there readers! I wanted to create a fun new feature called What I Love Wednesday, where I feature five things that I am loving right now. I got this idea from an old blogger friend, and I thought that it might be a good idea to do on here. So, here goes nothing:

1. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel:

I’m only about halfway through season one, but I am loving this show. I love how Midge is constantly overcoming boundaries and is a strong female character. I love how Amy Sherman-Palladino wrote the show. You know, the one that wrote Gilmore Girls. Maybe that’s why I love that? Anyways, my goal for myself is to finish the series before season three comes out later this year.

2. Pumpkin Spice Lattes:

Call me basic. But, I love fall partially because I love the taste of pumpkin — especially pumpkin spice lattes. So, when fall rolls around, I go all out. I can’t resist. With that being said, you’ll catch me at Starbucks almost daily getting my soy pumpkin spice latte.

3. Audiobooks:

I will admit that my stepmother got me into these. I like them for two reasons. The first is because I like to listen to them while I am doing tasks as background noise. Secondly, I love the fact that I can read books even in the smallest of moments. It helps me burn through my to-read pile so much quicker!

4. Sweaters

Now that fall is officially here, I’ve been indulging myself with all of the cozy sweaters. My favorite is an oversized sweater with leggings. Fall is definitely the coziest time of year.

5. Crocheting

I learned how to crochet in March, but recently, I’ve been carving out so much time to crochet at night. Partially because my project that I am working on is for a baby that was born for a few weeks ago, and partially because I have so many projects that I want to make.

So, those are five things that I am loving this week. What are you loving today?

13 Thrillers Worth Reading Those Spooky Season

Spooky season is in full swing, so you know what that means: an appetite for thriller movies. For me, this means spending the month reading thriller novels. So, if you’re like me, here are some of my favorites:

  1. The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine
  2. Ghosted by Rosie Walsh
  3. The Last Time I Saw You by Liv Constantine
  4. The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks
  5. The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
  6. Dark Places by Gillian Flynn
  7. Into the Water by Paula Hawkins
  8. A Simple Favor by Darcey Bell
  9. Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough
  10. All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda
  11. Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
  12. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
  13. The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

What are some of your favorite thrillers?