I was actually in CR when my April Birchbox arrived and I was super excited for my little pink box to be in in the mail when I returned. That being said, I think my excitement over the "delayed" Birchbox added to my overall disappointment in this months beauty products.
I will admit that currently I am battling my first ever case of acne--yes ladies and gentlemen, at almost 28 I am now having to deal with acne and IT STINKS! **Interject me yelling "where the hell is all of this coming from!!!!" While I used to be devastated when I would get the occasional pimple here and there, I have now come to realize that was nothing compared to the countless imperfections I currently have appearing on my face.
Besides the usual TMI, my point in referencing the above issue is that this months box contained mostly natural skincare products. You would thnk that I should be excited, however, given that most items are in trial size--I am currently in a phase where I need to start a regime and stick with it to see improvements. Thus, I will be holding off on giving any of these products a try until I can gain some form of "normal" back to my face.
There were two products that will be trying out and that is the Amika Obliphica Nourishing Hair Mask
and Zoya "Lotus" nail polish from their 2012 True Spring Collection. I think the nail polish may be a bit over the top for work so I will be trying it out this Friday to have for the weekend! I'll post a picture this weekend.
One last product (not contained in the Birchbox) but that I received this week as part of my acne panic, was the Clarisonic Mia 2. I have actually been wanting a Clarisonic face cleansing system for quite some time and now that I actually need one, I splurged and made the purchase. Today is day 1 so hopefully by this time next week I will have some positive news. Anyone else have any acne clearing products that they would recommend? I am up for suggestions at this point.....
Monday, April 30, 2012
Sunday, April 29, 2012
CR Trip Report!!
Costa Rica was amazing!! I am about 2 weeks behind posting but my goal was to at least complete in April (mission accomplished).
Of course the end of the post will contain a few photos but I will admit it was very hard narrowing down what to post here and on a Facebook album as all together we took over 400 pics. Costa Rica is such a beautiful place and while we were there in the dry season, we heard that the rainy season is an even more beautiful time to visit. There are lots of things that I could write about our trip, but I thought I would use this trip report to give you an idea of what vacationing in Costa Rica (CR) is like as opposed to other beach destinations you could choose from--here goes:
1. CR is the jungle, period. I think I wasn't prepared for the bugs, wild animals, morning AND evening noises. However, after the first few nights the bugs are still bugs, the wild animals are fascinating and you appreciate getting up early before the intense heat so the noise isn't ALL bad.
2. CR is hot and steamy from January to May and I mean STEAMY! There was no point to do your hair, put anything on your face other than some suntan lotion and maybe a touch of bronzer. I didn't even bring a hair dryer and good thing because it was useless. This was a little frustrating as you are in this beautiful place and then you go to take photo's and um..... frizz central! John (and his new tan) of course, looked great--grrr.
3. Mal Pais and Santa Teresa are still very non tourist CR destinations as opposed to other coastal locations in CR. This might be the most important point to this post, if you wanted to go to a resort, have paved roads, lots of US amenities, etc there are coastal places/beaches that offer that in CR. We, however, did not choose to go to those locations. Mal Pais and Santa Teresa are (in my opinion) still an up and coming tourist attraction so its a very relaxed, surf town at its best..
-- roads are terrible, ATV is the best way to get around if a rental car is not in your budget
-- restaurants are amazing but not cheap as they know that they are the only options in those two cities
-- beaches are out of this world and deserted; we were maybe 2 of 10 people we could see for miles in either direction and we were there during Easter (very busy time).
-- when the sun goes down, the whole town stops to grab a beer and head to the beach for a sunset celebration, EVERY NIGHT!
-- after the sun goes down, its the darkest place I have ever been and to look up the sky is so clear and the stars seem thousands of miles closer than I have ever seen in the US.
4. Adventure: CR was probably one of the best vacations we have taken that offered a little adventure everyday and equal relaxation time at the beach or pool. We had something planned every day (zip lining, surfing, ATV off road tours, snorkeling, etc) that we would do either in the morning or afternoon and then had the other part of the day to explore, spend at the beach or relax by the pool with a nice cold beverage. This was my favorite part of this vacation is that there is ALWAYS something to do and for every age and family type.
5. CR is no frills, its easy, the people are friendly and the basics are offered wherever you are: grocery stores, banks, medical attention if needed. Most of my sundresses that I brought I was over dressed compared to the rest of the population. All you really need is plenty of swimsuits, cute cover ups and flip-flop options, literally.
__________________________________________________________________________
All in all we had a fabulous time and if we ever went back it would be when we have elementary age children (we think it would be such an adventure for kids that age) or with a group of friends, and 100% we would stay at Villas Hermosas each and every time we go to CR!!
Here are some photos from our adventures in CR.
Of course the end of the post will contain a few photos but I will admit it was very hard narrowing down what to post here and on a Facebook album as all together we took over 400 pics. Costa Rica is such a beautiful place and while we were there in the dry season, we heard that the rainy season is an even more beautiful time to visit. There are lots of things that I could write about our trip, but I thought I would use this trip report to give you an idea of what vacationing in Costa Rica (CR) is like as opposed to other beach destinations you could choose from--here goes:
1. CR is the jungle, period. I think I wasn't prepared for the bugs, wild animals, morning AND evening noises. However, after the first few nights the bugs are still bugs, the wild animals are fascinating and you appreciate getting up early before the intense heat so the noise isn't ALL bad.
2. CR is hot and steamy from January to May and I mean STEAMY! There was no point to do your hair, put anything on your face other than some suntan lotion and maybe a touch of bronzer. I didn't even bring a hair dryer and good thing because it was useless. This was a little frustrating as you are in this beautiful place and then you go to take photo's and um..... frizz central! John (and his new tan) of course, looked great--grrr.
3. Mal Pais and Santa Teresa are still very non tourist CR destinations as opposed to other coastal locations in CR. This might be the most important point to this post, if you wanted to go to a resort, have paved roads, lots of US amenities, etc there are coastal places/beaches that offer that in CR. We, however, did not choose to go to those locations. Mal Pais and Santa Teresa are (in my opinion) still an up and coming tourist attraction so its a very relaxed, surf town at its best..
-- roads are terrible, ATV is the best way to get around if a rental car is not in your budget
-- restaurants are amazing but not cheap as they know that they are the only options in those two cities
-- beaches are out of this world and deserted; we were maybe 2 of 10 people we could see for miles in either direction and we were there during Easter (very busy time).
-- when the sun goes down, the whole town stops to grab a beer and head to the beach for a sunset celebration, EVERY NIGHT!
-- after the sun goes down, its the darkest place I have ever been and to look up the sky is so clear and the stars seem thousands of miles closer than I have ever seen in the US.
4. Adventure: CR was probably one of the best vacations we have taken that offered a little adventure everyday and equal relaxation time at the beach or pool. We had something planned every day (zip lining, surfing, ATV off road tours, snorkeling, etc) that we would do either in the morning or afternoon and then had the other part of the day to explore, spend at the beach or relax by the pool with a nice cold beverage. This was my favorite part of this vacation is that there is ALWAYS something to do and for every age and family type.
5. CR is no frills, its easy, the people are friendly and the basics are offered wherever you are: grocery stores, banks, medical attention if needed. Most of my sundresses that I brought I was over dressed compared to the rest of the population. All you really need is plenty of swimsuits, cute cover ups and flip-flop options, literally.
__________________________________________________________________________
All in all we had a fabulous time and if we ever went back it would be when we have elementary age children (we think it would be such an adventure for kids that age) or with a group of friends, and 100% we would stay at Villas Hermosas each and every time we go to CR!!
Here are some photos from our adventures in CR.
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