Saturday morning, after a feast of a breakfast made by my lovely mother-in-law, we all hopped into my in-laws' SUV and made the drive out to the Luray Caverns.
Yes, that was breakfast.
It was a lot of walking but well worth it. Magnificent, awe-inspiring nature.
Fried eggs, anyone?
It's a peculiar thing that when you get married, your family grows. I had a hard time conceptualizing it when I was engaged about to be married and even had a hard time understanding it fully even after I got married.
Three years in, I'm still learning but it's a pretty cool thing - more people to love and to be loved by.
This past weekend, my parents, my brother, the husband and I packed our Honda Accord and headed down to Northern Virginia for the weekend to get together with my in-laws.
The car ride down was full of traffic but nothing some Backstreet Boys Millenium couldn't cure.
On the way down, we stopped by Maryland for some crabs.
Preparing for warfare
Oysters on a halfshell.
My three favorite guys
Boys will be boys - what they do while waiting for crabs
Mamabear and I
Red looks good on you.
It's on!
Onion rings at sunset
This past week was filled with precious time with precious people: brunch with one of my FG girls, weekend with best girlfriend from college, reunited with my parents. I couldn't have thought up a better way to spend my first week off from work.
The other day, I even got to meet up with my best friend from middle school and we met up in our hometown. I hadn't been back in years and as I made the all-too-familiar drive approaching my hometown, I was unexpectedly flooded with memories. Some precious, some difficult. That's the funny thing about memories. They hit you at the most unexpected times.
Mean girls. Broken hearts. Immigrant life. Reunions and goodbyes. Regrets.
As a counselor, I have learned all too well the need to "seek healing". I often work to help others seek and find healing but little did I know it would hit me so suddenly that I myself need it as well. But there's beauty in the broken. And time, reflection, family, friends will do my soul good.
I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
The picture does not do justice but this crispy, wonderful goodness is a chicken quesadilla from one of our favorite spots in Boston: Anna's Taqueria.
Was introduced to herbal jelly milk tea last weekend in Boston
Delicious almond french toast at Patisserie Florentine, my new favorite brunch place
The world's cutest little madeleine served with my coffee also at Patisserie Florentine
Berries galore at local farmers market
I was asked to write a post with some of my favorite videos so here it is!
I have had the melody of Iggy Azalea's "Fancy" stuck in my head nonstop thanks to these two videos.
A hilarious parody about pregnancy. And no, I'm not pregnant but I did send this to a few of my pregnant friends!
I love impersonations. This duo's improvised impersonation challenge had me on the floor laughing.
Though we only have one cat, I imagine she thinks some of these very things and she may tell our dog some of them, in secret of course (because she's too cool to hang with the canine).
A Beyonce medley and choreography? Um, yes please. Yes, they are just THAT in sync and yes, they're in heels.
And I will leave you with what I would define as a feel-good video.
Sisters Lennon and Maisy Stella cover a song they love, "That's What's Up". I love the lyrics, the harmony, their chemistry. Enjoy!
As much as I have confessed my love for makeup, I also love the feeling of taking off my makeup after a long day. And I love that feeling all the more when I use a really good makeup removing cleanser.
Initially, the idea of washing my face with oil felt quite contradictory and odd, especially considering my combination/oily skin. But as they say, iron sharpens iron and I guess oil dissolves oil!
I was first introduced to the Shu Uemura oil cleansers by my friend. (Shu Uemura has one for every skin type). But within the last year or so, I've switched over to DHC (mainly because it's easier to find).
The DHC Cleansing Oil is quite brilliant. It takes off all my face makeup (foundation, powder, bronzer, blush) but it also takes off waterproof mascara!
I take one pump of the DHC Deep Cleansing Oil (I sometimes mix in castor oil - purchased from Whole Foods - recommended by CloudyApples) into my dry hands and massage it into my dry face. Then I take some water and continue massaging my face. Then (my favorite part) I take a washcloth and run it under hot water, wring it out and then lay it on my face to let the steam work its magic!
Sometimes, I follow up with a second cleanse with a gentle cleanser but lately I have just been using the oil cleansers.
After I finish this bottle, I may go the all-natural route and just use organic pure olive oil. (Or coconut oil!)
Let me know if you try this out!
