Tag Archives: blah

Face Mask Festivities: Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque Edition

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Face Mask Festivities: Queen Helene Mint Julep Masque Edition

Howdy and welcome to a new edition of Face Mask Festivities! Today, we are going to talk about a lesser liked mask of yours truly – Queen Helene’s Mint Julep Masque. From the very first squeeze out of the tube, I could tell that this wasn’t a mask for me. So, take a look at some pics and let’s discuss:

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My first impression of this mask was how thick the texture was. So much so that squeezing it out of its tube and onto my hand required some serious elbow grease. The mask did smell nice and minty, however, and it applied fairly easily. Unfortunately, that’s really all this Queen Helene product had going for it.

Despite a wash off time of five to ten minutes as listed on the directions, this mask began to dry and tighten on my face literally as soon as it hit my skin. By the time I got to the point in my shower routine to wash it off, it was probably on for seven minutes or so and my skin was left feeling dry as a bone. I was so eager to get my eye cream, serum, and moisturizer on post wash off and my skin still felt parched after hydrating it. Whomp whomp.

I love the idea of an invigorating and minty mask more than the next guy, but all of that doesn’t mean much when it feels like the product vacuum sealed your face. I wouldn’t recommend this mask to my worst enemy (Over dramatic, I know.), and definitely won’t be using it again in the future despite it being in my skin care arsenal.

Have any beauty products disappointed you lately? What has been one of your least favorite face masks? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Bath Bomb Blitz: Lush’s Twilight Edition

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Bath Bomb Blitz: Lush’s Twilight Edition

Hi everyone and happy Monday! This will be the last issue of Bath Bomb Blitz for a while until I can restock my supplies from Lush. I told myself that I would try to space out my birthday bath bombs, but we all see how well that worked out, because I used up four in less than a month! The bath bomb from Lush that we’re going to discuss today is called Twilight and it was AIGHT. Take a look:

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(I like to call the second pic “Journey To The Center Of The Bath Bomb” haha)

Although I definitely liked Twilight better than the Sakura bomb, it was still a bit of a disappointment. I was looking forward to using it, because I thought that the water was going to turn fully pink. But, because the center of the bath bomb was baby blue, the water turned dish water grey, instead. Not a good look.

Twilight also fizzed out rather quickly, which didn’t help the water color situation, either. The bath bomb had completely disappeared within two minutes, so there wasn’t much of a display aspect to using Twilight – and that’s no fun! The final nail in the coffin, is that I didn’t feel moisturized at all from this product, which sucks, because I’m so used to Lush bath bombs making me feel like I just took a soak in body butter. So, even though Twilight was a step up from the Sakura bomb, I definitely wouldn’t bother with this one again.

Which body care products do you like to use during bath time? What would your perfect bath bomb be like? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Bath Bomb Blitz: Lush’s Sakura Edition

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Bath Bomb Blitz: Lush’s Sakura Edition

WARNING:

This post features pictures of my dirty ass bath tub. I apologize in advance. – The Management

Okay! Now that that’s out of the way… Hi everyone! Today, we are going to discuss the first product that I have not been happy with from Lush. Their Sakura bath bomb. In the words of all of my dad joke telling friends, it truly was a “dud”. *Massive eye roll* Take a look and see for yourselves:

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Like everyone else on the planet, when I use a bath bomb, I’m expecting to see some action. Fireworks, explosions, at the very least the bath water changing colors! But, unfortunately, none of the above happened with the Sakura bomb. Hell, it didn’t even smell good.

Upon first inspection of the bath bomb, you’ll notice the pale blue and pink incorporated into the color palette. So, I assumed that the water would reflect that with the soft pink and blue and a creamy white for good measure. But, to assume makes an ass of U and me, as the old saying goes! After dropping the bomb in the water, it fizzed out in less than a minute, and left the water a murky, foamy white. And, even that disappeared after being in the tub for about thirty seconds.

One of my favorite things about bath bombs from Lush is how moisturized they leave your skin feeling after using them. And, this bath bomb didn’t have that going for it, either. My skin felt dry and tight after I got out of the tub and I had to use a healthy amount of body butter afterwards to shake away that feeling. Whomp whomp.

If you’re looking for a bath bomb that does literally nothing, then the Sakura bomb is the one for you. But, if you’re looking for a bath bomb that does something, then the Sakura bomb is definitely not the one for you! 😉

Have any products disappointed you lately? What is your least favorite bath bomb that you have used? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Pacer Progress (Or Lack Thereof)

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Pacer Progress (Or Lack Thereof)

Hello everyone and happy Thursday! This past month has been a total and complete shit show and, needless to say, my activity level has been pretty low. All of my motivation to make big gains on my pedometer app has essentially flown out the window, and I’ve been having a hard time peeling my depressed self off of the couch. So, my stats for the month are definitely not the best. 😦

  • Total Steps: 959,262
  • Calories Burned: 23,591
  • Hours Walked: 148
  • Miles Walked: 315

And, to make matters worse, my activity level dropped from being ninety percent more active than the people using Pacer to a whopping forty-three percent. Whomp freaking whomp.

Now that I realize how low I let my movement get during my depression stupor, I am SO ready to get back on the horse and keep going until I start making good progress again. It’s going to be difficult, because I’ve been feeling so sluggish lately. But, once I get started, it will go back to being easier to get my 10,000 steps in no time. So, here we go!

How do you get yourself back on the horse after a stint with depression? What motivates you? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dunkin’ Donuts Disappointment

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Dunkin’ Donuts Disappointment

Hi! This week, I received my freebie cold brew packets from Dunkin’ Donuts in the mail, and it was nothing short of disappointing. Take a look at some pics, don’t mind the Loony Toons pitcher, and let’s discuss:

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As you can see, the preparation of the cold brew coffee was easy and self explanatory. It wasn’t until I was ready to drink the coffee that everything went up in flames! In the morning, I woke up and was excited to give my cold caffeine drink a try and, unfortunately, I wasn’t able to taste one single drop.

While attempting to get the coffee bags out of the pitcher, they ripped and I had barely even touched them. It turned all of the liquid in the pitcher into a thick, coffee ground contaminated mess. Now, I probably should have just poured the drink into another pitcher so that I could add the extra water and then dispose of the bags, but I was tired and wasn’t thinking and really REALLY just wanted my coffee and ended up having none at all. So, needless to say, this freebie was an absolute and total bust. #disappointed

How do you like to drink your coffee? Who else has had some coffee ground disasters before? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Monday Update: Therapy Edition

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Monday Update: Therapy Edition

Hi everyone and welcome to another week here on lifewithlilred! As many of you have shown an interest in my therapy journey, here is an update. Meh, it’s going so so. I feel like I have hit the metaphorical wall where nothing seems helpful and I’m running out of things to talk about. And, I’m getting frustrated with rehashing the same shit just worded differently all of the time.

I’ve actually been playing around with the idea of not going after the few appointments left that I have scheduled. But, I feel like that’s a bad idea. Maybe once every two weeks would be a bit better. I don’t know, it’s just becoming more of an annoyance than anything, and I feel like I’m getting even more pissed off by my weekly visits.

Obviously, there’s still a bunch of stuff in the ol’ mental health department that I need to work on, but I just feel kind of burnt out. Like I’m so micro-focused on it that it’s making me even more depressed, anxious, and just all around angry. I feel like I need a break. I guess that will just be something to chat about during this week’s session, amIright?!

Who else has felt similarly to the above during their time in therapy? How did you deal with it? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feeling Blahhhhhhhh

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Feeling Blahhhhhhhh

Hiii everyone and happy weekend! Ugh, I don’t know about any of you guys, but I have been feeling so blah lately. I am in the process of getting over a flu/cold thingie that lingered on with me for a week and am now just trying to get myself back up to snuff. I had hot and cold flashes, a sore throat, a cold from hell, body aches, and – to top it off – I was on my period for part of it! Could it get any worse?!

During this agonizing week, I had a really hard time keeping up with my 10,000 steps per day walking regimen because I was so weak. And, now, after a week of feeling sluggish with some movement here and there when I was up to it, I am left feeling so blah about everything. The way my body looks, how I’m still feeling the effects of the sniffles from this blasted cold, and my severe lack of energy. Could it get any worse?!

I know that these feelings will pass, and I have been trying really hard to get myself back on track with my walking. But, I am having a hard time shaking away the post sickness blues, even with the lovely weather that Ohio is finally having. It’s been a lot of going through the motions for the past week, and feeling self conscious the entire time, so I am definitely looking forward to feeling back to normal soon so that I can start enjoying my days again.

Has anyone else been dealing with the blahs lately? How do you combat the post sickness blues? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

What Might Really Be Causing Your Headaches

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What Might Really Be Causing Your Headaches

If you find that you are getting a lot of frequent headaches, you will certainly want to find a way to get to the bottom of it. Having headaches all of the time is not the kind of thing that many people can put up with very well for too long, and it makes sense to want to sort it out as early as you can. As it happens, there can be many reasons that you might develop a headache, and it is often necessary to look into the underlying cause before you can find the best solution for your particular situation. In this article, we are going to look at some of the most common causes of headaches, so that you can be sure what you know is causing yours – and hopefully fix it all the sooner:

Stress:

We all experience a lot of stress in our daily lives, and this can lead to many health problems in time if we allow it to overtake us. This is all too easy to do if you are not careful and allow it to worsen, so it is a good idea to make sure that you deal with it as early as possible. One of the possible results of a lot of stress, is that you might experience headaches throughout the day. You can generally tell if it is a stress headache because there will not appear to be any underlying health problems and it will be linked to stressful or triggering situations. Obviously, the way to get rid of such headaches is to remove the source of stress, or to take up stress-busting activities such as meditation and mindfulness exercises.

Poor Eyesight:

If you have eyesight which is gradually worsening, that too can lead to some pretty bad headaches on the whole. You might have a hard time working out whether you are experiencing this kind of headache, but again there will be some telltale signs. Probably the most obvious is that you will have headaches mostly when you are doing a lot of close reading, or possibly while driving and other activities like that. If you are having this a lot, you might want to get an eye exam and see whether your eyesight is getting worse or not. If it is, wearing glasses or contacts might be the answer, and will hopefully reduce headaches, as well.

Dehydration:

We all know the feeling of the hangover headache – all of this is really  dehydration, and if you are frequently dehydrated you will find that you are having a lot of headaches. The best solution here is preventative – in other words, make sure to drink plenty of water at all times. But if you are struggling to do that, you might want to set yourself reminders so that you can be sure of doing it more often and more easily. With any luck, your headaches will disappear, and if they don’t you will at least know that the cause must be something else.

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Hydrate!

Featured Image By: Pexels

Treat Yoself! Burrito Binge Edition

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Treat Yoself! Burrito Binge Edition

Hi! I like to think of myself as a fairly frugal gal. Yes, I like to shop – but I always try to score the best deals and get the most bang for my buck. One way that I try to optimize my savings is by being cautious about getting fast food when I am by myself. I have no problem with going out for drinks or dinner with friends one or two times a month. And I do love to snag a Starbucks drink every now and again. But, I try to keep my “I really could go for Taco Bell after work” trips to a minimum.

But, last month – I was bad! I got Chipotle and Taco Bell at least twice each. I also went to Moe’s, but I got that meal for free thanks to their handy app. Although I freaking LOVE T-Bell, Chipotle, and any food that is burrito related, I do sometimes feel guilty about eating out when there’s plenty of food that I could be eating at home. But, for some reason, I really didn’t seem to care last month.

I’m not going to lie, January was a real shit hole of a month. But, there was just something about answering my cravings and eating a food that I really enjoyed that was soothing. It was like, the world was shitting all over me, but I still took care of myself enough to treat for dinner at Chipotle or grabbing a coffee from Starbucks.

Now, is eating a fast food meal the most healthy way to take good care of yourself? No, of course not. But, damnit, a girl has gotta eat so I figured that I could be a little “bad” in my frugality regime. Treating yourself can be buying a new nail polish color, staying in and reading a good book, or taking a warm bath. In my case, treating myself was eating a massive burrito.

My burrito binge taught me that I can splurge for myself and it’s not going to destroy my bank account. But, it also taught me that, at the end of the day, I am the one in charge of making me feel good, first and foremost. And if making myself feel good means eating a burrito every once in a while, then I guess that that’s just my cross to bare!!

How do you treat yoself? What do you do to self soothe during trying times? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Blah, Meh, Whomp Whomp Whomp

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Blah, Meh, Whomp Whomp Whomp

Heyyy everyone. Is it just me, or is 2018 feeling totally lackluster? Recent single digit temps in good ol’ Akron, Ohio have given me a case of cabin fever to no end and, as the title of this post reads, I am definitely feeling Blah, Meh, Whomp Whomp Whomp. Is it a lack of Vitamin D? Maybe. Is therapy not helpful? No, I wouldn’t say that. Therapy has been going pretty well, actually.

SO WHAT IS IT?!

I don’t know!! The doldrums are so real, though. I just feel so stagnant at the moment, and it’s not a good feeling. Between multiple jobs, one would think that stagnant is the last word to describe my life. Not the case. I feel so bored. So indifferent. I wouldn’t go as far as to say depressed…but it definitely could escalate to that.

I feel stressed about wanting to move out. I feel stressed about feeling stressed. I feel stressed about feeling so below average. And we’re barely even into the new year!! So, what gives? Sometimes, I feel like the new year puts a lot of pressure on people. Pressure to instantly get happy or instantly turn their life around. Obviously, this is never the case. But, it sure does suck on ice when that’s the mindset around the holiday and you feel yourself going backwards instead of forward.

Oyyyy, sorry. I needed to throw myself a little pity party. But, now that the party hat is off, the cake has been binge ate, and I’m still feeling like shit, I guess that it’s time to get back on the horse and try again for a better day tomorrow.

How do you shake away the new year blahs? What do you think 2018 has in store for you? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah