Author: Lila

Categories
Health & Beauty

Aromatherapy

Not everyone has a tub or time for a rejuvenating soak; which is what makes shower bombs or shower steamers or shower melts super appealing. They are perfect for a pick-me-up in the morning before work or a long relaxing shower after a stressful and weary week. The essential oils released transform your mood! They are part of my morning and evening routines!

shower steam heart
Photo by Lee Lee on Pexels.com

By far the best ones are…

  1. Munday-Friday Shower Melts
    These come in a pack of five blends…
    a) Be Calm (lavender, citrus and floral ylang-ylang)
    b) Get Grounded (sandalwood and patchouli)
    c) Energize (peppermint, lemongrass, blood orange)
    d) Deep Breath (eucalyptus, peppermint, tea tree, lavender)
    e) Wake Up (coffee and sandalwood)
  2. Musee Shower Steamers
    Available in: Eucalyptus & Mint or Champagne & Rose or Lavender & Lime or Sea Salt & Grapefruit
  3. Inbria Shower Bombs
    This variety pack features single scents rather than blends; including: Sweet Orange, Bergamot, Lavender, Green Apple, Cool Mint, Vanilla, Grapefruit, Rose, Tea Tree Oil, Lemon and Chamomile.
  4. Lush doesn’t have the variety of shower bond scents, however, their “fluffy lavender lathers,” “lemon alarm clock,” and “a berry good time” are great products.
Categories
Health & Beauty

Enzyme Scrubs –What’s the Hype?

I remember the first time that I had a facial and consultation with a “beauty expert” when I was a teenager. My use of quotes is merely because that was the title used by the spa; it is not meant to be patronizing. Anyways, he wrote up a “beauty regimen” for me and one of the “musts” or steps in the beauty regimen included the use of an exfoliator –I kid you not it was like using liquidifed sandpaper. For years I used it. But now of course we are being told to STOP! Because there is a new product on the scene: the ENZYME SCRUB. These are much gentler on the skin. These scrubs, made predominantly from plant or fruit enzymes, which then “unglue” rather than “scrape” the dead skin. Since March I have been testing out a few.

Here’s some of my favourites…

  1. Dr. Barbara Sturm Enzyme Cleanser


2. Wishful Yo Glo AHA & BHA Facial Enzyme Scrub 

3. Dr. Jart+ Cicapair™ Tiger Grass Enzyme Foam Cleanser

4. Josie Maran Pineapple Enzyme Pore Clearing Cleanser

5. Tatcha The Rice Polish Foaming Enzyme Powder

Categories
Reflections & Lifestyle

Being Intentional –WTF?

There has been a lot of talk this year about “being intentional,” so far in all the professional development sessions I have attended. It comes up in sessions about teaching practice, mental health, self care and achieving goals. It’s such a lofty topic. The most common definition is that “when you are intentional, you choose to make decisions and take action on what’s important to you. Being intentional means getting clear upfront about what you want to achieve. You intentionally set an intention to achieve a specific outcome or result in the future that is important to you.” That’s great but how do you accomplish that? It’s so difficult to put into practice; however, I have been introduced to some really great resources. So, for those of you who are wanting to be more intentional in your daily life, you may be interested in some of these too!

  1. THE ULTIMATE INTENTIONAL PLANNER: 2022 EDITION
  2. Gretchen Rubin’s podcast: Happier
  3. Rachel Kable’s podcast: The Mindful Kind
  4. Before You Know It by John Bargh, PhD
  5. Rest, Refocus, Recharge: A Guide for Optimizing Your Life by Greg Wells, PhD
  6. Mantras
  7. Strides app
  8. Science of Well-Being offered through Coursera

Summer is coming and I am really trying to be “intentional.” I am trying to be productive and have fun. Sometimes, I get into a bit of a funk when the school year ends. I “take a break” but then it becomes a slump and I end up spending way more time on the couch “vegging out” than actually having fun and doing something with my time. This has really become an issue the last couple of years; maybe it’s my age or just the circumstances going on in my personal and professional life.

So much of my time is highly “routinized” externally to me; so maybe I just struggle being in charge of my own routine.
Or perhaps, it is because I am so emotionally and physically burnt out that I “simply can’t” whenever I do have free time.
Or maybe it’s because I just don’t know where to start because I am not used to having much down time for 10 months out of the year.

Whatever the case may be, I sat down and made a list of all the things that I want to do this summer (in addition to camping/fishing with my husband of course) and I brainstormed what that could look like. From this I’ll make a weekly schedule for myself.

Things I Wanna DoWhat Could This Look Like?Commitment
Start my day off outsideCoffee on the deckEveryday; except on rainy days
Stay on top of the gardening/ weedingOne row/planter per day
Upgrading the rototiller to make it easier to do so it’s not overwhelming		Everyday; 30 minutes during the coolest part of the day
Deep clean & decluttering the houseOne large closet or 4 cupboards at a time
Take discarded stuff to the dump or thrift store at the end of each week so it doesn’t pile up and sit		Everyday; 30 minutes during the hottest part of the day
Spend more time with friendsMeet for coffee
Some activities could include: Shopping, invite them to pick veggies/fruit, High Tea, museums, crafting, swimming, see a movie, try a new restaurant, farmer’s market		Once a week
ReadCombined with coffee or
before bed		Every other day; 100 pages of a book
JournallingCombined with coffee
Before bed		Every other day; One prompt 
ExerciseUse NTC app, find workouts that don’t require a lot of equipment15-20 minute workout
Start 3 times a week, then increase to every other day.
Be ArtisticMake a list of projects & source materials
Can be done independently or host a “crafting party” with friends		Once a week

Sample Weekly Plan (July 3-9)…

SUNMONTUESWEDTHURSFRISAT
7am
Coffee on the deck
Read		7am
Coffee on the deck
Journal		7am
Coffee on the deck
Read		7am
Coffee on the deck
Journal		7am
Coffee on the deck
Read		7am
Coffee on the deck
Journal		7am
Coffee on the deck
Read
8am
Weeding		8am
Exercise		8am
Weeding		8am
Exercise		8am
Weeding		8am
Exercise		8am
Weeding
Noon
Crafting		Noon
De-clutter		Noon
De-clutter		Noon
De-clutter		Noon
De-clutter		Noon
De-clutter		Noon
Go to Sweet Capone’s for Cannoli
Evening
De-clutter		Evening
Weeding		Evening
Meal planning		Evening
Weeding
Podcasts		Evening
Meal planning		Evening
Weeding		Evening
De-clutter

If you have any great resources, feel free to share! Comment below.

Categories
Gifts

Mother’s Day Gift Guide

Mother’s Day is a celebration honoring the mother, motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society; and this year here in Canada it is celebrated on Sunday May 8th. Every year I struggle to find something for my mom; my usual go-to is to send her an Edible Arrangement. I wanted to do something different this year and I started planning sooner!

  1. Fancy Chocolates from Thomas Haas
    *The 2-Tier Gift Box contains 32 handmade chocolates!

2. Wi-Fi Digital Frame from Aeezo

3. Birthstone Necklace from Etsy
*Diamond, Emerald & Peridot


3. Azalea Bonsai

4. Quality Sheets from Silk & Snow

Categories
Writing Prompt Wednesdays

Writing Prompt Wednesday

I was gifted an awesome journal for Christmas last year; Picadilly’s 200 Writing Prompts. I am still working my way through it! I wanted to share my most recent entry with you…


What about you?

Categories
Design & Decor

Design Challenge: Downstairs Living Room

And the renovations continue in our home… this time it’s the living room downstairs. We downsized the space quite a bit to make room for a fourth bedroom; so we had to make some design changes.

Paint: Wish (Benjamin Moore)
TV Stand: Hemnes Tv Bench, white stain/light brown (Ikea)
Coffee Table: Hemnes Coffee Table, white stain/light brown (Ikea)
Bookcases: Hemnes Bookcase, white stain (Ikea)
Couch: Uppland Sofa, hallarp gray (Ikea)
Chair: Uppland Armchair, hallarp gray (Ikea)
Lighting: DEJSA Ceiling lamp with 3 lights, chrome plated/opal white glass
Curtains: SKOGSKLÖVER Roller Blind, white (Ikea)
Art: BJÖRKSTA Picture and frame, pink petals/black (Ikea)Plant: FEJKA Artificial potted plant, indoor/outdoor Magnolia (Ikea)

Categories
Current Addictions

Current Addictions

Ad·dic·tion
/əˈdikSH(ə)n/
noun

  1. the fact or condition of being dependent or “hooked” to a particular substance, thing, or activity

Book: From Blood & Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout
App: Whisk
Activity: Wreath Making
Song: About Damn Time by Lizzo
Food: Cauliflower, Paneer & Pea Curry courtesy of Emily Kydd


Drink: Fancy iced teas like Watermelon & Rosewater
Movie/Show: Space Force
Cosmetic: Dr.Sturm Enzyme Scrub
Clothing: Gingham Ruffle Trim Flounce Sleeve Blouse from Shein (multiple colours!)
Jewellery: Butterfly Ring 14K Yellow Gold from Awe Inspired
Product: Starlink

Categories
Writing Prompt Wednesdays

Writing Prompt Wednesday

I was gifted an awesome journal for Christmas last year; Picadilly’s 200 Writing Prompts. I am still working my way through it! I wanted to share my most recent entry with you…


What about you?

Categories
Entertainment

What Did I Read This Month?

Agatha Christie: The Killings at Kingfisher Hill by Sophie Hannah

“Hercule Poirot is travelling by luxury passenger coach from London to the exclusive Kingfisher Hill estate. Richard Devonport has summoned him to prove that his fiancée, Helen, is innocent of the murder of his brother, Frank. There is one strange condition attached to this request: Poirot must conceal his true reason for being there from the rest of the Devonport family.

On the coach, a distressed woman leaps up, demanding to disembark. She insists that if she stays in her seat, she will be murdered. A seat-swap is arranged, and the rest of the journey passes without incident. But Poirot has a bad feeling about it, and his fears are later confirmed when a body is discovered in the Devonports’ home with a note that refers to ‘the seat that you shouldn’t have sat in’.

Could this new murder and the peculiar incident on the coach be clues to solving mystery of who killed Frank Devonport? And can Poirot find the real murderer in time to save an innocent woman from the gallows?” 
–Agatha Christie Wiki

Rating: 5/5

Categories
Fashion

OOTD: Bridgerton Inspired-Wedding Reception Ensemble

Last weekend was my best friend’s wedding reception; I was fresh off a Bridgerton binge session and in need of a pretty spring dress.

Dress: Floral Mesh Belted Surplice Front Dress (multicolour) from Shein
Clutch: Velvet Box Clutch Bag (black) from Shein
Shoes: Kedeaviel heeled sandal (black) from Aldo
Earrings: Rosalind Drops from Olive + Piper