Happy New Year! I know things have been a little quiet on the blog front but life has been unexpectedly challenging these past few weeks; if you don’t know what I am referring to head on over to Naturally Family for all the details. I thought I’d kick off this new year with the top posts of 2015 along with all the Portland because this year just been the year of exploring PDX.
This post is sponsored by Blue Diamond Almonds Blue Diamond Sriracha Almonds. When I was pregnant with Edith I must have gone through about five bottles (maybe more) or sriracha. I was obsessed with having it on everything and just couldn’t get enough. While it’s almost three years (yes my baby is turning three in three weeks) since I was pregnant with Edith my love for sriracha shines on. To say I was eager to try the new Blue Diamond Sriracha Almonds was an understatement and let me tell you they do not disappoint.
These almonds have a nice spice to them without being too over the top and they are bold, savory and have just a bit of a nice vinegar tang. We brought these hiking with us last weekend and between the three of us (Edith included) we finished off 3/4 of the tin. We would have finished off the entire tin but we had to practice a little restraint since we had brunch plans but oh it was hard.
These are a great hiking snack, moving snack – ooo these would be so good tossed into some popcorn with a little vegan butter and nutritional yeast – and these would be great for a cocktail party. Basically these are just good. I know I’m rambling but they are. Tidbit Food Farm & Gardens.I am embarrassed to say how often we head to this food cart pod (and how many more trips we already have planned) but after the first visit we were hooked. The first time we visited we had vegan waffles, ramen and salad – all were so delicious. On our last trip we got an amazing vegan burger from Earth Burger and oh the fries and the smoothie – they were so good. We also went back for another salad from Garden Monster; a bit on the pricey side but so good (try the vegan ranch). I love the layout of this food pod, all the vegan food options and the location. Tip: If you can’t find a seat grab your food to go and head one block down to the park.
Tidbit Food Farm – Earth Burger
Tidbit Food Farm – Salad Monster
Nature’s Bakery. I figured I should end my food favorites with the snack that we don’t leave home without these days. We have been devouring Nature’s Bakery fig bars for the past few months. We received a stock for our snack dates over on Naturally Family and we have been eating them ever since. I have to say I was a fan of these bars before we received samples but we got to sample the soon to be released gluten free bars and OMG they are simply amazing.
The regular whole grain bars are delicious but the gluten free bars are soft and moist and oh so good. I’m thinking I need to go get one to snack on right now just writing about them. They are a fan among everyone in our family and our snack date groups. Just so good.
Instead of sharing my monthly favorites I am doing a roundup this week of my Spring favorites since I missed posting April and May monthly favorites (oops). Today it’s all about the makeup, coming up we’ll have skincare, food and fitness and other random favorites. Enjoy!
For years and years I only wore a tinted moisturizer and I don’t think I even owned a foundation until two or so years ago. Honestly foundation is something that I’m still trying to figure out. I personally don’t need a ton of coverage and I hate the feeling of too much makeup on my face so finding a light weight light to medium coverage foundation that is also on the more natural side has proven to be a challenge – until now.
Gressa kindly sent me their Minimalist Corrective Serum Foundation* and I have been loving it. I have to say I was pretty intimidated by it being a serum foundation but after some playing around I have finally figured it out. First off the vial looks super tiny but with this type of foundation you really only need 2-4 single drops to get good coverage. I have tried applying it with my hands, a beauty blender, a flat foundation brush and a buffing brush and I have to say I think a buffing brush gives the best finish and a beauty blender comes in second. Overall I am loving this product so far and would definitely recommend it. Side note for those fellow Portlanders Gressa is local and you can find Gressa Skincare (not the makeup) at Whole Foods.
Along with my foundation I have been wearing this Lily Lolo pressed blush* in Just Peachy. I tend to go for more of a pink cheek but after giving this matte peach a try it has become my go to blush. It gives my cheeks just a bit of color without over doing it and it goes really well with the tan I am starting to get (don’t worry I am wearing sunscreen!) I will say with this color of blush that it is a very subtle and natural look which I like but if you are going for a bolder look you may want to try a different color.
Also from Lily Lolo is my go to lip product the Lip Gloss in High Flyer*, it is a burnt orange color but don’t worry it’s pretty neutral. It is basically one of those colors that just enhances your natural lip color and because it is a gloss it gives it nice sheen to the lips without being sticky. The best part? This lip gloss smells (and tastes) like chocolate.
Lastly, I finally found a natural and organic creme concealer that actually works. I have been using this creme concealer from Au Naturale* to cover my dark circles for over a month now and I really like it. If you follow my beauty IG: runwithbeauty you know that I have been on the search for a concealer and I thrilled to have one that works now. This also works great as and eyeshadow base. I will say this however I find that it can crease a bit so I set it with a translucent powder to help lengthen the wear time. Also if you are looking for a highlighting/illuminating concealer this isn’t the one but if you need one to cover dark circles or spots than this is your concealer.
What are your Spring makeup favorites? How are you changing things up for Summer?
Disclaimer: This post contains no sponsored content. Occasionally I am sent products for review but they will only be featured if I truly like them and use them regularly. All sample items are marked with (*).
Disclaimer: This post is in no way sponsored. I received NO compensation for this post. I am simply sharing my love for the these products/shops/services. Body Care Product
CARU Skincare Co.You guys seriously this stuff is amazing. I have been using this all month and I just love it. I use the scrub 2-3 times per week to help promote circulation, exfoliate and eliminate dead skin cells. The scrub is so gentle on my skin and it leaves my skin super moist. After getting out of the shower I dry off and immediately apply the body oil which again just so moisturizing and amazing. I am kind of weary about body oils because this mama can’t be bothered to hang out to let oils or lotions dry but luckily this body oil skins into the skins easily by the time I am done combing through my hair and applying my face moisturizer and applying deodorant.
My hubby has taken to using both the scrub and body oil as well and he loves it an the smell which #sadface seemed to be a limited edition but I just checked and right now they have a Cedar + Fir scent and I bet smells amazing. I will also say between the two of us and using this for going on six weeks and have only used about 1/3-1/2 of the both products so a little goes along way and is worth the money. Have you tried any CARU products? I am super curious about their toners and face masks…basically everything that they carry.
Shop
My name is Lindsay and I am addicted to Abe’s Market Try for $2. Basically everyday at 11am EST/8am PST Abe’s Market releases new products that you can try for $2 including shipping (!!) So guess what I am doing most days at 8am? Yeah that’s right checking out what new products made the cut. You can order up to 3 items per day and most days I find myself ordering at least one. The sizes of the Try for $2 are not little samples either they are deluxe sample size or most of the time full size. I am going to tell you right now this is in no way sponsored (although Abe’s if your reading this…) The Try for $2 has been a great opportunity for us to try products we might not have tried if it wasn’t for the deal or buy some of our favorites such as those Beanfield Chips which are basically vegan Doritos. I just put in another order before posting this and I am too excited to see what they post tomorrow #IHaveAProblem.
Workout
I heard about the barre3 online program from Ashley’s blog and decided to give it a try last month and I am continuing to use it this month as well. As you may already know I have been dealing with some issues with pain while running so while I work with my PT to get that all figured out I have been working on strengthening my body and barre3 online has been such a great motivator for me. I can spend anywhere from 10-60 minutes doing one of their online workouts and even just 10 minutes gets me sweaty! I love the flow of the videos and all of the options. I am already feeling so much stronger and know I will continue using this service for a long time. One day I will get brave enough and actually go to a class…someday.
What are your March favorites? What are you just loving?
Body Care Product Who else has been on the search for a really great natural deodorant? I have found you one. No seriously I have. I have tried I want to say 8+ kinds myself and Neil has tried a few himself and some have been okay, some have irritate my pits (no pretty way to say that) and most just don’t really work. While I have pretty much come to terms that natural deodorants won’t last as long as chemically filled ones I still want one that actually works. This is where Caitlin’s Supernatural comes in.
Caitlin’s Supernatural deodorant comes in three scents lavender & currant, bergemamot & cypress and sandalwood & olive leaf. They are all vegan, cruelty free, organic, made from 100% botanical and sustainable ingredients. Also they are for both women and men so feel free to share them with your husband (I do!). I am partial to the lavender scent and Neil is loving the sandalwood but honestly we both use all of them. I also love that they don’t end up smelling a bit funky after awhile once they mix with your body chemistry like other natural spray deodorants I have tired – example the one that made me smell like I had just visited a cafe in Amsterdam.
Neil and I have been wearing these for going on two months now and we both really love them and they actually work. I will spritz it on in the morning and I can chase two kids and go for a run and I am able to manage my stink no problem. I do find by the end of the day I need to reapply a bit but honestly depends on how active I have been that day. Neil who has a tendency to really get stinky (sorry lover) and finds himself turning back to more conventional deodorant at times has really found that this actually works for him. He does find it wears off him a bit quicker than he’d like but it has worked the best of any natural ones he has tried. So overall a winner for both of us. What is your favorite deodorant?
Makeup Product I have been making time to take care of myself more lately and I am working on getting a good skincare routine in order and also taking a little more interest in makeup. I would have to say currently my most used makeup palette is this beautiful one from Gabriel Cosmetics. I use this palette basically every day that I decide to wear makeup.
This palette includes four neutral eyeshadows, a translucent powder and a blush; basically the perfect palette for someone getting into makeup. I use he translucent powder basically everyday to set my makeup and then I will either use all of the eyeshadows, my favorites being the two on the left, or a combination of these shadows with a few others that I have. I generally always use the color bone which is the top left eye shadow as as neutral base on my eyes.
The only thing I haven’t been in love with is the blush but not because of the quality but just because it’s a little bit darker than I like wearing. I am not as much of a blush person as I am a bronzer and highlighter so I just don’t reach for it as often.
For my gluten free and/or vegan friends this makeup is both and it is a mineral makeup. I have to say I have been experimenting a lot with mineral makeups and find that they usually can be a little more challenging to work with but I don’t find that with this one at all. Have you tried anything from Gabriel Cosmetics or their other brand ZuZu Luxe? I hear that the ZuZu Luxe liquid eyeliner is pretty amazing and it’s on my “to purchase” list right now.
Book For this month’s book club I was to pick a love story and ended up going with Eleanor & Park*. I picked this after a number of other bloggers recommended it and I honestly was as little skeptical. While I have enjoyed my share of young adult books they are usually more dystopian fiction. Anyways I have to say I LOVED this book. I don’t know what it was about the book but I couldn’t put it down and found myself going to bed early just so I could read it and I finished the book in about four days.
The book is set in the 80’s and is about two awkward teens who end up being each other’s first love. Eleanor and Park meet on the bus and after weeks of sitting in silence they start to really take an interest in each other. They basically silently bond over comic books and eventually they actually talk and find themselves bonding over music as well. Time goes on and they begin to connect more and more and eventually they find themselves in this crazy state of first love fog. They encounter a number of challenges from Eleanor’s step-father to Park’s parents who find Eleanor a little odd but ultimately how their love for one another can overcome these obstacles.
I honestly don’t do well at describing books without giving everything away so I know I haven’t done this story justice. Anyways I think I was a bit of an awkward teen and I remember those feelings of your first “love” plus all of the music they were listening to in high school I was too. I also loved the ending of the story because well it wasn’t super predictable. I’ll leave you with that. Who else has read this book? This coming month I need to read a biography or rather this month I need to and I still haven’t picked one- help!!
Food
Manitoba Harvest Hemp Hearts.I don’t know why but until last month it had been forever since I had picked up a bag of hemp hearts. I ended up receiving a trial sized bag via my Sweat Pink Ambassadorship and I also bought a small bag earlier in the month as well. Now we are eating them on everything and I need to buy a big bag when we do our next grocery shop. I sprinkle them over salads, soygurt and oatmeal. I also love them on avocado toast. Edith calls them sprinkles and insists on having “sprinkles” on her toast in the morning.
I also have been playing around with using hemp hearts in recipes including this recipe for Creamy Vegan Pasta Primavera. The “cream sauce” is just 1/4 cup hulled hemp hearts, 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast, 2 tablespoons rolled oats, juice of 1/2 a small lemon and 2-4 tablespoons of water; blended until smooth. I poured the sauce over sautéed leeks, zucchini, green beans, shiitake mushrooms and tomato that was seasoned with herbamere, garlic and black pepper. Lastly, I tossed with about two servings of einkorn pasta.
Pylian Estates Olive OilI received a bottle of Pylian Estates Pristine Extra Virgin Olive Oil as part of a FitFluential campaign back in December but didn’t get around to opening it until closer to January and boy am I regretting it! This is seriously one of the best olive oil I have ever tried. Since opening it I have been using it all the time because it simply tastes amazing. Maybe that’s because it is harvested and pressed within 24 hours of being picked. Or maybe it’s the fact that it comes from one single type of Greek olive, the Koroneiki olives, and is never blended with other oils (which sorry to tell you many of the ones you buy at the supermarket are). Or maybe it’s because it’s processed without heat or chemicals and that it’s unfiltered and comes in a dark glass bottle to help protect it from the sun. Anyway you look it this olive oil taste amazing and really has me re-evaluating future olive oil purchases. I don’t like to cook with it though because the flavor is best in it’s cold state. I drizzle it over pasta dishes, use it in dressing, drizzle over creamy soups and simply just use it to dip crusty bread into. Seriously so good.
Numi Organic Indulgent Tea I shared a sneak peek photo of this on my Instagram the other day and I tell you this tea is so good. I have been indulging in the roobios and earl grey flavors and both are so good. I am a chocolate lover and while I’d love to eat copious amounts of chocolate every day I know that probably isn’t the best idea so I have been enjoying this tea instead. I drink the earl grey when I need a little pick me up and the roobios at night instead of dessert. I tell you this will never replace chocolate but it is good when I am having a mild craving
Kari Gran Skincare I have become so much more focused on my own self care and with that a big part has been skincare. I plan to share a number of my favorites over the coming months but for right now I’ll share just these two from Kari Gran because I am obsessed. First let’s talk about my new Holy Grail lip product – Kari Gran Lip Whip– seriously the best lip product I have ever tried. This has been my go to especially in this cold winter months because it really hydrates the lips and makes them super soft and moisturized. I’ll put just a little on during the day and at night I slather it on to give my lips a nice little lip treatment. I often wear it alone but also like to wear it over a lip stick. I just have the naked one but these also come in tints and I think I might have to buy myself a tinted one as well but now I just have to settle on a color!
The second Kari Gran item that I have been loving lately is the hydrating tonic. I use this a few times per day specifically in the morning and at night plus I’ll spritz my face throughout the day whenever my skin is feeling like it needs a little moisture. It is alcohol free so it is so gentle on my skin and I have the lavender scent and it smells amazing. I also started to really get into mineral makeup and this does a beautiful job at setting it. Such a versatile product – seriously love it!
Uma Pure Calm Wellness OilI tell you being a stay-at-home mom of two sure has it’s moments. It can be exhausting and frustrating some days and sometimes I just need a time out. Lately I have been using this little teeny sample of Uma Pure Calm Wellness Oil to help me when I am feeling a little overwhelmed with the day. It is supposed to “naturally alleviate anxious feelings and stress, while promoting tranquility and balance from within.” I dab a bit behind my ears and on my pressure points and take a few deep breathes. I honestly don’t know if it really works but it smells amazing and I think the ritual alone helps to calm me so I’ll keep doing it because why not?
Giveaway
Want to win this box of goodies? Head on over to my Instagram to learn more! Also stay tuned for more giveaways this week!
December feels so long ago by now but I still wanted to share a few of my December Favorites with you. My favorites range from food to fitness to self care items (beauty and skincare). These items are ones that I found myself going back to over and over again all December and I’m still addicted to them this month.
Tea. I don’t know what it is about December but it seems every year right around the same time I become obsessed with tea and then Spring comes and I move on to iced coffees. In December I found myself having a cup of tea every afternoon. Tea seems to help me relax and unwind for a moment even when life is chaotic. While I have been drinking a variety of teas I have been hooked on this Pukka Elegant English Breakfast*. I have no idea what makes it “elegant” but it tastes amazing. I have the relax and the original chai as well but I have yet to try the relax, although there are days I probably should and the original chai is okay but it’s not as strong as I’d like. Honestly I just have them displayed right now on our coffee/tea station because they look so pretty together.
Nii Bars. Seriously these bars are so good! I have found myself turning to bars in the afternoon when I just need to grab something quick to snack on. I first tried these bars at the Portland Veg Fest and I was super impressed. The bars are filing, taste amazing and have a great texture. I only have a few bars left so I’m going to have to restock soon! P.S. The Cherry Coconut Nii Bar is my favorite flavour.
Julep Plush Pout Lip Crayon. I got this in a Julep Maven box back in the summer (that I have since canceled) so I have had this for awhile but I rekindled my love for it this past month. This lip crayon is super hydrating and easy to put on when you are on the run – no mirror necessary. I just think it’s great in the winter because it doesn’t dry my lips out and it makes them look fantastic. The shade is Almond Nude and it’s just a simple nude but it’s really pretty.
Mama Mio Goodbye Stretch Marks. I would say that this is one of my favorite products not for just December but if I were to make a 2014 favorites list it would be included. Seriously amazing stuff. When I first decided to try it I was skeptical that it would actually work but I can honestly say it has reduced and faded my stretch marks on my stomach. After two babies my belly is basically all stretch marks but I have been using this since mid-September and it has visibly reduced my stretch marks. I have only been using it once per day and I believe it recommends three times per day but I am here to tell you once per day does really help. I am sad because I am at that point where you know any day now I’ll go to pump some out and it is going to be empty. Sad face. I have a few other stretch mark balms/lotions to use up right now so I probably won’t run out and buy another one but if I didn’t have others to use up I would. Basically I heart Mama Mio.
Fitbit Charge. I just love my Fitbit Charge*. It helps to keep me motivated and moving more. There is nothing like a little watch tracking your movements to keep you in check. My only gripe about the Charge, and this goes for most non-GPS trackers is that when I am pushing the stroller or a cart it doesn’t accurately pick up the steps because my arm stays pretty stationary. I guess it’s not a terrible thing because it just tricks me into moving more so I can get in my 10,000 steps.
Who else has been on the search for a really great natural deodorant? I have found you one. No seriously I have. I have tried I want to say 8+ kinds myself and Neil has tried a few himself and some have been okay, some have irritate my pits (no pretty way to say that) and most just don’t really work. While I have pretty much come to terms that natural deodorants won’t last as long as chemically filled ones I still want one that actually works. This is where 
I have been making time to take care of myself more lately and I am working on getting a good skincare routine in order and also taking a little more interest in makeup. I would have to say currently my most used makeup palette is this beautiful one from 
For this 
Fitbit Charge. I just love my 
