Lifestyle
Long Distance Relationships (Won't) Kill You
July 27, 2017
Let's be real, summer is the hardest season for friendship.
It takes so much work to maintain a long-distance friendship during the hectic summer months. Sarah and I have been finding it difficult to keep up with each other while I'm on a four month contract in New Jersey and she is traveling/working at her cool adulting job. Just in case you and your best are struggling like us, I've made a list of things to do that will guarantee you are up to date on all that best friend info.
Stream of Consciousness Texts
Sarah and I keep our texts going as much as we can. Even if it's just an Emma Roberts meme or a "everyone here is stupid, why are you not here?!?!?" text, we make sure to keep each other in the loop constantly.
Facetime Dates
Texting is great, but we all know that the real catch-up happens virtual face to virtual face. Try to have some best friend time at least once a week (this is not always possible, believe me). Make an effort. Set a time. Make some tea (or if you're me, pour some wine) and chat.
Book Club
I bought Sarah and I the same book for her birthday so that we would have something special to bond over. I completely recommend this fun way to stay connected, and not just because it's a major Cher and Tai moment (Authors note: neither of us will own up to being a Tai, so we are both Cher.).
Plan a Besties Trip
Getting through a rough patch of long hours and hard work can be so much easier if you have something to look forward to. Right now, Sarah and I are planning a day to meet up at the Food and Wine Festival this Fall in Disney, and knowing that I have that trip to look forward to makes my days without seeing my best somewhat bearable.
So whether you're separated by a few states or an entire ocean, hopefully some of these ideas will help to cure some of that separation anxiety you experience when everyone is being stupid and you just want your best friend (which is always).
Plan a Besties Trip
Getting through a rough patch of long hours and hard work can be so much easier if you have something to look forward to. Right now, Sarah and I are planning a day to meet up at the Food and Wine Festival this Fall in Disney, and knowing that I have that trip to look forward to makes my days without seeing my best somewhat bearable.
So whether you're separated by a few states or an entire ocean, hopefully some of these ideas will help to cure some of that separation anxiety you experience when everyone is being stupid and you just want your best friend (which is always).
Single Girl's Guide to Galentine's Day
February 12, 2017
Another year, another Valentines Day.
BAM, just like that, it's February. It's February, and you are single during the "most romantic month of the year" (honestly, that's debatable because Christmas is actually the cutest). We here at Sincerely Unfabulous completely understand what you're going through. Do not fret; open Spotify, start playing "Single Ladies" and "I Love Myself", and we will help you get through this otherwise normal Tuesday. Here are some ways to show yourself that you don't need a significant other to eat lots of chocolate and spread the love.
1. Watch your favorite funny movie
Try making the movie theme a little more girl power and a little less chick flick. Instead of stressing about how Jack and Rose could have TOTALLY shared that floating door, celebrate how three amazing women clapped back at their ex husbands and won (First Wives Club).2. Throw a girl's only soiree
Pour some rose' and let the gossip begin! If you want to keep the convos clean of relationship talk, pick up a set of Mindy Kaling conversation cards and get to know your girls a little better!
3. Bake some yummy treats
Three words: Red. Wine. Gummies. Absolutely surround yourself with chocolate. I also love to make cupcakes, and this year I'll be baking strawberry frosted heart tarts to take to my Valentines party. Anything pink and sprinkle covered will do!4. Treat Yourself
This could be with chocolate...or with those amazing velvet rose colored booties from Anthro that you've had your eye on. Bottom line just take some time for you!5. Make it about you and your gal pals
I'm a firm believer that guys will come and go, but your girls are there forever, so let's celebrate that! Valentines Day is all about love, but it does't have to be romantic! Show those around you how much you appreciate them.Don't worry, we will be running around muttering "ugh, couples" every second of the day, but we will also pass out mass amounts of chocolate and send well wishes to the people we love (and ok, yeah, maybe we will also have a bottle of wine and feel no shame).
Another Year of Realizing Stuff
January 15, 2017
As we all know, 2016 seems to have left most of the population with a sour taste in their mouth. Everyone is so pumped to start a new year and forget about all of last year's low notes, but let's not forget that there were a few high notes as well. Do you know what I'm getting at? I think Kylie does.
Ah yes, 2016: The Year of Realizing Stuff. If nothing else, let us remember that gem came out of the wreckage that was 2016. But guess what, 2016 cannot exclusively be the year of realizing stuff, my friends. Every year needs to be the year of realizing stuff. So in the spirit of new beginnings, here's a few things I have personally decided to put on my realizing radar for 2017.
Upgrade: Now that I'm officially settled into my apartment (four months after arrival), I'm beginning to realize little things that could make my home a bit homier. The first step in my plan is curating a new gallery wall for the living room (thank the internet gawds for blessing us with etsy).
Motivate: In all the hustle of adjusting to a new city, I kind of forgot to hustle my butt to the gym. It's so much easier to keep chasing your goals when you are healthy and full of energy. I started by reaching out to my circle of friends. Luckily for me, one of my bests is a Pilates instructor, so now I'm planking for my life every week! My friends and I have also started reading "Eat Pretty, Live Well", a journal that will help to keep us accountable and motivated!
Organize: My apartment, my closet, my planner, my life. Just all of it. I love organization, so this isn't even a chore, there's just so much of it! I'm already busy breaking in my new planner for 2017, and I'm ashamed of how much joy it brings me.
Tune In: Over the past few months, I have not been nice to myself. I've been eating poorly, working twenty hour days, and wearing myself way too thin. Instead of feeling accomplished and happy, the constant work and pressure just made me feel tired, used up, and bloated from stress (I know, it was so gross). The most important lesson I need to learn this year is how to be a human (and not a sad robot). I need to listen to my body and stop the constant stress and pressure. Starting your day with quiet time and meditation is a great way to begin to connect with yourself (but let's be real, so is getting enough sleep and eating properly).
Treat: You are amazing. You work so hard. You deserve a cookie...or a face mask...or those shoes. I've been so worried about money and budgeting over the past couple months that I did not treat myself, not once. Y'all that kind of behavior is self-destructive. So now I do little treat yo self every week (love you Aziz). In all the hustle and bustle that is life in your twenties, please do not forget that you are worth that treat yo self.
So by all means, leave the majority of 2016 in 2016, but don't forget that you're still allowed to realize stuff (Or maybe things).
Weekend Update
January 8, 2017
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| Image via OhYeahDisney |
New Beginnings
January 6, 2017
Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a great holiday season, I know I definitely did! Now I'm back on that work grind and I realized that coming up on the 6 month mark at my job... seriously, where has the time gone?
A new year is the perfect time to start a new chapter, and 2016 was definitely a year of change for me. I graduated from college, started my first official job and moved back home. I experienced many (and I mean many) very high highs and very low lows this past year, but looking back on those moments, I've realized that I had to go through all of that to get to where I am right now - and I'm pretty darn happy with the way my life is going.
If 2016 was the year of change, 2017 is going to be the year of happiness. I'm settled into my work situation now, so I want to change focus on figuring out what makes me happy outside of work. I'm creating my own life - my adult life, as some might say - and I'm living each day the way I want to. I don't live by anyone else's schedule but my own now, so I need to figure out what it is I want to do to live life to the absolute fullest. I've grown so much over the last 6 months and I want a life that reflects who I am and who I want to be.
Since now is the time to start making resolutions for the upcoming year, I thought I would share mine with you all. I am so excited to see what this year has in store for me, and I'm hoping by working towards (and hopefully achieving) these goals, I can take my future into my own hands and create a life for myself that I love.
1. Work Out 3 Times A Week
I am the worst at exercising. I don't enjoy it and I would much rather sit and do nothing, but I know that in order to live a healthy life I need to change that. I could say "Sarah, you're going to work out every day", but I know I would never be able to stick to that. So I'm starting at 3 times a week.
2. Drink More Water
I've been pretty good about this, but I've fallen off track since December since I was drinking all that hot chocolate. I'm going to get back on it and have a water bottle at work and at home to help me keep track of how much I'm drinking. I do notice major skin and digestive improvements when I'm drinking a lot of water versus when I'm not.
3. Devote More Time To Creating
This is new for me. I have always been very creative, but I've lacked the confidence in myself to persue anything. I can't really draw or paint or anything like that, but I always have this urge to create something so I'm going to tap into that somehow. I just have to figure out what.
4. Social Media Detox
I've been thinking about this one a lot. Lately, I've realized I spend so much time on social media and it is driving me crazy. There are times where I'm scrolling through my feed and I get angry, frustrated or annoyed by what people are saying (Facebook is the worst offender) and I just need a break from it all, but I don't do anything about it because I don't want to miss what's going on in the world. I think for my own sanity though, I have to just have days where I'm off social media completely.
5. Read More BooksI love reading, but when you're in school you have very little down time to read what you want. I've recently gotten back into the habit of reading regularly. I'm not someone who usually finishes a book within a few days, but I'm hoping that by dedicating more time to reading, I will be.
6. Look On The Bright Side
I want to work on becoming a more positive person. I wouldn't say I'm a pessimist or an optimist, I'm definitely somewhere in the middle, but I can seem very unemotional (think: Kourtney Kardashian) and I want to change that about myself. I want to look more on the bright side and see the good things in life and get excited about everyday things that happen. I think this will generally help me be happy more often and put me in a good mood. It'll be useful when I'm having a bad day and need to be reminded that everything happens for a reason and that getting caught up in the little things is just a waste of time.
7. Dedicate More Time To Friends
If you go back to my post about being an introvert at work, you'll see that I struggle with finding the right balance of time to myself and time with friends. I tend to err on time to myself and I know that I need to start cultivating more meaningful friendships, especially with the friends I've made at work.
8. Change Up My Style
I do this every couple of years, and I think it kind of goes back to my itch to create things. I constantly want to reinvent myself, but in the past I always just jumped into it, I didn't take time to reflect on what I really wanted. This resulted in a lot of money wasted and a lot of bad purchase decisions. I've learned my lesson though, and I'm ready to find a wardrobe that's a bit more young adult chic and less college kid comfortable.
9. Declutter
I have so much stuff in my room that I am constantly overwhelmed by it all. Like, I still have things from when I was in High School, not okay. I need to spend some serious time going through my desk and closet and getting rid of everything that is totally unnecessary or no longer fits my aesthetic. Get rid of the old to make room for the new, right?
10. Travel More
I want adventure in the great wide somewhere, I want it more than I can tell! Ok, sorry for that little Beauty and the Beast reference, but I had to! Anyway, I love to travel and I have always talked about going to new places and seeing the world, and now I've come to the point where I have to ability to actually act on it. Like I said, I'm living on my own schedule now, so if I am able to go somewhere I want to go - I'm going to go! I already have one trip planned for February (to Disney World, of course!), but my cousin and I have been talking about going to Iceland of Greece for the past few weeks, so maybe that will happen in the near future!
I'm embarking on this incredible new adventure that adults apparently call "Real Life". It's so exciting but incredibly daunting at the same time because my life is totally different now than how it has been the last 22 years. Post-grad life is great, but it's no joke, guys. It can get overwhelming and stressful, but that's why having a healthy and happy life is so important to me right now. You need to have something to look forward to and be happy about when you're having those down on your luck days that are just inevitable. I feel like my life is finally beginning and I'm so ready for it.
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