Cold Weather Favorites

The cold weather has hit us in Florida and there's some major essentials I've had to add back to my wardrobe and routine to keep warm and comfortable in this weather.

Faux Sherpa Vest  * UGG Slippers

Infinity Scarf  * Vaseline Lip Therapy

Military Wool Peacoat * Knee High Slippers

eos Body Lotion * Mossimo Shearling Style Boots

My lips and skin especially become dried out with the cold weather so I have to walk around lip balm and hand moisturizer in my purse to apply every few hours. The Vaseline Rosy Lips sent to me from Influenster has quickly become my favorite because it works wonders to heal my dried lips and smells good too.

Purse Essentials:
Sunglasses * Perfume Rollerball * Hand Sanitizer * Lip Balm * Hand Lotion * Lip Gloss

I received the Vaseline Lip Therapy from Influenster for testing purposes. My review above is my true and honest opinion.

Weekend Happenings

Another low-key weekend around here. On Friday K and I had dinner at Pom Pom's Teahouse which has amazing soups, sandwiches, and of course teas. I had the Cherry Bomb iced tea which was so good!

We rented Ted 2 from Redbox and had a relaxing night at home with lots of laughs.

On Saturday I finished organizing and decorating our home office and did a few errands around town. Later in the evening we went out to meet up with some friends for drinks at Firebird's and then dinner at Santiago's Bodega which has amazing tapas. We shared a variety of different tapas but the flaming cheese (saganaki) was a hit!








On Sunday, I went through my closet and purged 3 bags of clothes, shoes, and bags to donate to Goodwill. I then did some damage at Target shopping for warm clothes since it finally feels like "winter" here. Two of my favorite buys are this Mossimo Faux Sherpa Cardigan and the Kalliope Shearling Style Boots both under $35.

After said damage, I went to get an hour long facial at Massage Envy to use the gift package K gave me for Christmas. The rest of the evening was spent relaxing at home, food prepping, and getting organized for the work week. I made this Chicken Tikka Masala recipe in the crockpot with lots of leftovers for this week.

Happy Monday...Let's do this!

Friday Faves

This was the first cold weekend in Florida and it was nice to bring out the boots and scarves however I don't have many warm pants other than jeans. Recommendations? I'm looking forward to another fairly quiet weekend with lots of R&R which sounds like perfection. I'm finally back on track with the work/blogging/personal life balance after the crazy holidays which is definitely good for the soul. So how about some faves for this week...

Favorite Article:
Ashley from The Grits Blog talks about her Blogging Pet Peeves and I couldn't agree with her more, especially #1.

Favorite Purchase:
This dainty silver leaf bangle bracelet from Express goes so well with my watch and has gotten lots of compliments.

Favorite Recipe:

This Healthy Kung Pao Chicken with brown rice recipe looks so good. I'm a big fan of stir-fry recipes and love trying different combinations of meat and veggies.

Favorite Holiday Gifts:

I didn't post much around the Christmas long weekend but two of my favorite gifts were both from K and I'm in love!

#1: Marc Jacobs 'Decadence' Perfume
Smells amazing! Definitely my favorite new perfume on the shelves.

#2: Revlon One Step Hair Dryer and Styler 
This is seriously a life-changer for me. My hair is very thick so it takes a long time to wash and dry which has always been a dreaded "chore" of mine. This brush/hair dryer combo has cut that time down significantly and I absolutely love hoow it styles my hair. I give it a 9 out of 10 because it could have more heat settings but otherwise it works wonders.

Favorite Funny:

Me everyday.

Have a great weekend lovelies!

Joining Amanda for Friday Faves.

Birthday & Holiday Gifts for Her

Tonight is the start of a long weekend for me with my work holiday party this evening and the day off tomorrow. It also happens to be my birthday on Sunday so there will be lots of celebrating going on which means I'll be MIA until next week.

I put together this wishlist/gift guide a few weeks ago but didn't get around to posting it. This year I want to keep it simple and wish for a spa day for Christmas, specifically a facial and massage. It's been a hectic year and I feel some pampering is in order to refresh for 2016 but I do have my eye on this Marc Jacobs Decadence perfume and this Kate Spade Champagne at Midnight watch for my birthday. Everything on the list I think would be perfect gifts for the ladies in your life whether it may be your sister, girl friend or mom. Ulta and Sephora have some amazing gift sets this year so I'm planning to purchase a few different ones for Christmas gifts.

1 / 2 / 3 /  4 /  5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12

What's on your holiday wish or gift list? 

Let The Holidays Begin

Another warm and sunny weekend in Florida. We thought a cold front would be coming through but no such luck. The weekend was pretty relaxing and I only ventured out on Saturday to Kate's annual holiday party which was a blast. She really did it up with great food and drinks plus a photo booth and white elephant gift exchange which is always entertaining. So here's Saturday in photos...

The host and hostess.

I scored a pack of Cards Against Humanity from the white elephant gift exchange.

Festive Roxy

Lots of fun was had and I'm ready to take on more holiday parties ahead.

How was your weekend?

Joining the lovely Biana for her Weekending linkup.

Finally Friday

The broken record in me is here to say how happy I am we've finally made it to Friday and the weekend, of course. I finished up most of my gift shopping on Cyber Monday earlier this week so I'm so happy to check that off the list!

Then it was on to decorating the house with outside lights, stockings, random decorations, and of course the Christmas tree being the biggest time-consumer. All was completed this week and luckily my tree is fake and pre-lit so that makes the process a bit easier.

My online shopping haul from Express (all items 50% off last week) arrived and everything fits perfectly which is a huge relief since I guessed my sizes. A friend of mine was raving about how comfortable the mid-rise jeans and leggings are and she wasn't kidding. I purchased two pairs (here and here) and won't be going back to regular fit. I also bought a couple of their silky zipfront tops which come in a variety of pretty colors, a portofino blouse for work, and the softest tunic sweater for any occasion. 

Did you happen to catch my guest post over at MakeupHER's blog about some Wedding Day Tips for soon-to-be brides? I also included a picture recap of my wedding to relive my big day and give inspiration for future brides out there.

Ok here I am talking about shopping again but I love that Ulta has OPI nail polishes on sale right now for 3 for $19 (plus you can apply this coupon to get $3.50 off a $10 purchase).

I made my way over to the Ulta store on Wednesday night and they were sold out of a lot of the colors but these are the three that caught my eye: Suzy and the 7 Dusseldorfs, Peace, Love & OPI, and In The Cable Car Pool Lane.

I'll leave you with a weird fact about my Lola. She has a fear of iPhone cameras ever since we got her as a puppy. Well not fear but she shuns them and will look away as soon as you pull out your phone to take a photo. BUT as soon as I bring out my big girl camera, she will sit still and pose as if she's a Victoria's Secret model. She's has some work to do in the fashion model department and maybe some braces to boot (kidding) but I love that she'll let me take photos with one of my cameras!

Linking up with my fellow Floridian blogger, Amanda from Meet At The Barre.

Happy weekend everyone!

Swim Lover's Holiday Gift Guide

Luckily Florida doesn't stay cold for very long so beach/pool weather is usually in our favor. As you can probably tell from the name of my blog, I'm a big fan of swimsuits and beachwear in general. The holidays is the perfect time to stock up on some new suits for the year ahead and I usually pick up a thing or two for the husband and my girl friends as gifts.



SwimOutlet.com contacted me to review their online store and merchandise and of course I agreed. I purchased the Volcom Wild Marks Bikini top and matching Brazilian cut bikini bottom for myself and the Rusty Men's Boardshorts for K with the gift card they provided. I have to say the material of the bikini is so incredibly soft you can tell it's great quality. Actually same goes for the shorts. I also love that they kind of (not on purpose) match each other.



From growing up in the Caribbean I've always been a fan of good quality swimsuits and beach clothing that will withstand the salt and sun. Luckily SwimOutlet.com carries most of my favorite brands including Vix, Betsey Johnson, Volcom, Roxy and Kate Spade just to name a few. I picked some faves for Him and Her that would be perfect for gifts or just to gift yourself.

Gypsy Road Kimono / Wrap Bikini Top , Bikini Bottom / Pineapple Kaftan Cover Up
Free Spirit Dress / Jaime Bikini Top, Bikini Bottom / Pineapple Paradise Tank

Desert Fringe Crochet Shorts

Pineapple Paradise Beach Bag

One / Two / Three / Four / Five / Six

Garmin VIRB X Action Camera

They offer a whole lot more than just fashion swimwear like for competitive swimmers, techies, kids, and water sports such as surfing and water polo. The fashionista in me naturally drifted to the beach clothing and bikini sections of their online shop.

If you're looking for gift ideas, SwimOutlet.com's Holiday Gift Guide is a good place to start as they offer some great ideas for different types of swimwear and equipment. I also like that they offer free shipping on purchases over $49, which always helps to cut the cost of shopping online.

Thanksgiving Long Weekend Fun

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving last week with family/friends or however you spent it. The 4-day weekend was the perfect break for me from work and blogging to relax and recharge before the holidays ensue.

I started off the long weekend with a quick happy hour on Wednesday after work with coworkers before getting into the Thanksgiving festivities. Cask & Larder has excellent happy hour specials on small bites and drinks for anyone in the Central Florida area btw.

On Thursday morning we drove 2 hours with Lola as the backseat passenger to have Thanksgiving dinner with my in-laws and extended family at my SIL's house.

I can't believe I've never tried pecan pie before this Thanksgiving. Probably because I'm too turkey stuffed but I'm definitely choosing it over pumpkin pie in the future.

After dinner we met up with some friends to watch the UCF vs USF game. Of course UCF lost but it was a fun night out with friends nevertheless and we got to see some of K's high school/college friends.

On Friday we had breakfast with the in-laws and made our journey back home to Orlando. We had some amazing lunch and craft beer at Gnarly Barley before hitting some Black Friday sales.



I scored some warm clothes (the booties being my fave. They're sold out now but these are similar and I have them in gray), a 2016 planner, 3-wick candles from Bath & Body Works, and this Rebecca Minkoff ring which is gorgeous.

Friday night was spent relaxing with a glass of wine while watching The Vacation at home which was quite funny. Perfectly relaxing night after our road travels.

Our Disney annual passes expired yesterday so we made plans to go to Magic Kingdom on Saturday for one last hurrah and to check out the Christmas decorations.

We happened to catch a Disney parade on Main Street then went on several rides and finally browsed through some Christmas shops so I could pick out one last decoration for our tree. I think we made great use of our annual passes with Epcot being our favorite.

After Magic Kingdom we had all intentions of heading over to Hollywood Studios to check out the Osborne's Family Lights Show but after taking several wrong shuttles/trams, we decided to call it a night and head to Yard House on I-Drive for some dinner and drinks.

It was a busy and fun-filled long weekend but thankfully I got to catch up on lots of sleep so I'm ready to take on this week and I'm even more excited for some upcoming holiday parties in the next few weeks. This is my favorite time of year afterall.

Joining the lovely Biana for her Weekending linkup.