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My Favorite Healthy Cookie

by Olivia

I have been working really hard physically to get myself where I want to be. I have completely limited my snacking and have been making strides to a more healthy lifestyle. Of course, every now and then I allow myself to splurge (to a certain degree) but day to day when I’m craving something savory these almond butter cookies are my go to. Almond butter is a healthy fat, made for you to stay fuller longer. That’s the main ingredient out of this four ingredient recipe. Yes, only four ingredients!! The other ingredients are rolled oats which are packed with a ton of fiber, honey which is good for your immune system and promotes weight loss and then an egg which is a good source of antioxidants.

Combined these ingredients create a savory, soft and chewy cookie, not to mention it’s super high in protein. You can always add things to you your cookies too! I typically will add a little cinnamon and chia seeds for extra health benefits. The one downside to these cookies is that they’re so addicting. I baked around 12 the other night and within two days…gone. Hope you all try them out, you won’t regret it. Click here for recipe!

Travel Diary: Naples, Florida

by Olivia

Being a senior in high school, if an opportunity to travel with your friends comes along, you take it. I’m so happy we all got the chance to detox from school, life and just take a few days to breathe and live worry free. I think it’s safe to say we all want to go back to Naples.

The trip began in Atlantic City, New Jersey where we took off for Fort Myers, Florida. Our flight was delayed but we didn’t land too much later than expected. The minute we exited the airport and felt that warm winter air, we all were incredibly content and thankful to being missing the snow storm at home (or so we thought). We stayed at my friend Amanda’s grandparents home, there we were greeted with a ton of delicious baked goods, sandwiches and more. The next morning we went to a beach called Clams Pass and that’s when sunburn invaded most of my friends’ bodies. That night aloe was essential in order to calm and soothe our irritated, lobster-like skin. We headed to the beach again for the sunset which was beautiful and displayed a number of orange tones.

Next day, we woke up bright and early for a boat day in Bonita Springs. This had to be my favorite day of the trip. Spending all day sunbathing on a boat and docking up to an island is my image of a perfect day, and it was just that! After the relaxing boat day, at night we headed to downtown Naples which was the cutest place ever! It was a large, popular downtown area surrounded by shops and palm trees. It had nearly anything from ice cream shops to beach stores.

Our last day, we went to Vanderbilt beach which was yet another calm and serene day! Early morning we paddle boarded which was a ton of fun until I ended up in the ocean and I was unable to touch the sandy floor below me.  Lost my sunglasses, they’re probably floating around somewhere in the Atlantic as I type this. When we got back to Amanda’s grandparents home we packed, soaked in the hot tub and went for dinner at the Clubhouse in their development. Before we knew it, we were on our flight back home to New Jersey and just a day later the snow fell…

Thank you to the cutest grandparents for keeping seven crazy people with them, xoxo.

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Take A Trip With Me: Southport/Oak Island NC

by Olivia

It’s been awhile since I’ve been back to North Carolina to visit my family. This past trip has been the best, most memorable trip to North Carolina so far. Celebrating birthdays are always special but celebrating a 90th birthday is one of the most important, special birthdays there is. This past week was my grandmother’s 90th and she is still so sweet, quick-witted and loving. I am so fortunate to have a person like her apart of my life even being miles and miles away.

Our trip started a little bumpy to say the least… I almost missed my flight and let me explain just how this happened. My family and I got off to a late start waking up at 4 am for a 7:15 am flight. We accidentally mistook the directions to Atlantic City airport and took the turnpike instead of the parkway pushing us back 45 minutes behind schedule. Once we re-routed and got onto the parkway we noticed that the GPS said our arrival time was 6:50 am, meanwhile our boarding time was 6:30. Panic quickly emerged and we felt SCREWED. Once we finally arrived, my mom said, “I’m dropping you and your brother off, do whatever you can to get onto that flight.” We got there at 6:42 and sprinted to security (we had printed our boarding passes the night before). At security, the man noticed my printed ticket was missing a bar code. Every curse word known to man was running through my head, what now?! Luckily my brother had one so he continued through security and went to our gate just in time to meet up with some of our family. The security man told me to head to the kiosk to print a boarding pass with a bar code, I quickly went over to print it. A caution mark popped up saying “sorry it’s t0o late to check in, please go to the Spirit desk.” Thankfully there was no line so I went up to the desk and begged the women to help me. “I’m sorry you’re too late and you need to reschedule your flight.” At this time my Mom must have missed me and ran herself through security. As I’m waiting to reschedule (no flights until the next day) I get a phone call. “Liv where are you,” my brother sounded surprisingly calm. He continued and said to me, “Mom’s here.” My heart sank, what was I suppose to do? I ran back over to the women shaking and she quickly printed me a new boarding pass after I explained my situation. I then ran like never before through security and the airport finally getting to gate 8. It was like a movie scene. I finally got to my Mom and boarded the plane. Each passenger I passed looked at me funny and muttered under their breath, “there she is.” I have never been so nervous and scared but I will always remember that extremely eventful morning.

Other than that, our trip was very tranquil which was obviously very needed after the airport drama. I had the best time with family and enjoyed the peace of a small town in North Carolina. Sometimes all you need is family and serenity. Enjoy my favorite pictures from Southport/Oak Island North Carolina!

FYI: The town I was in was also where the movie “Safe Haven” was filmed. A local restaurant called Loco Jo’s (best food in Southport) has a picture of Josh Duhamel at the bar.

Thank you Spirit Airlines for getting me to NC!

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Zaful & Rosegal Review!

by Olivia

I recently had the opportunity to work with two online stores/boutiques. I have previously worked with Zaful on a post so when they reached out to me again, I figured I’d try some more pieces out. My previous post with Zaful can be found here.

My first Zaful find was a dark, burgundy, velvet bodysuit with a low scoop open back. I loved this item because it was comfy and it could’ve been dressed up or down. In the pictures below I styled it with a denim black skirt with buttons down the middle. My suggestion for the winter is that you wear a cardigan to keep you toasty and bundled up, trust me New Jerseyans the low teens are on their way.  Below you will find that I also paired the black skirt with another more simplistic bodysuit. The black bodysuit looks similar to a camisole but the straps are set farther apart, this adds a more modern, tasteful change to a simple piece. The final piece from Zaful was a thin, white pullover with a little detailing by the side upper chest. I love the white pullover because I can throw it on with jeans, sneakers or slip-ons and still look put together and presentable. I definitely give the website a 8 out of 10, the shipping was way better than previously, everything was true to size and the quality of each piece was pretty good!

From Rosegal I received a black, satin looking top with a criss-cross back and an extremely soft and fluffy hooded cardigan. I am OBSESSED with the gigantic cardigan (out of stock). It totally feels like I’m wrapped in a blanket and it’s so cute and wearable! On the other hand, the black satin top didn’t do it for me. Personally, it was ill fitting across my chest and around my armpit and the odd material kind of stuck to my body oddly. For accessories I received a velvet, lavender choker and lobe cuffed earings. The earrings were a miss but the choker was a hit. All in all, I’d give the online store a 6 out of 10. You really have to hunt for good pieces on their site although, that big cardigan OBSESSED! *click any of the blue words to be re-routed to the item on the featured site.*

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December Favorites!

by Olivia

Happy New Year! Here is a bunch of products and clothing items I’ve been loving in December. It hasn’t been the chilliest of December’s for New Jersey but I am waiting any second now for a blizzard.

Every Christmas my Aunt and Uncle get me perfume and every year they pick out the absolute best scents. I tend to like stronger, harsher scents. I hate floral, girly scents so this one is just perfect! This one by Calvin Klein will definitely be a staple for more dressy occasions.

This by far one of my favorite Christmas gifts. It is the cutest, coziest pullover and I love it. I can’t help but feel like a big teddy bear while wearing it. It’s from Southern Shirt, unfortunately right now it is out of stock.

I was in desperate need of casual shoes I could slip on with just about anything. Fortunately, I found these Steve Madden slip ons in grey!

My favorite lip products this month are the Nivea Recovery chapstick and the Maybelline 015 Born With It lipstick. The Nivea chapstick has been essential during these cold months. So that my lips don’t get chapped overnight, I apply this right before bed. It is the best chapstick I’ve used to date, plus has the benefits of SPF. The Maybelline lipstick I apply before school or before going out. It’s a neutral shade that I usually add gloss over, for a natural pinkish tone.

My final favorite for the month of December is the new Naked Urban Decay Smoky palette. I’ve been loving the shimmery golds but also have been appreciating the warmer, darker tones for the winter time. I recommend having a good primer underneath so the shadows have something to stick to, they’re not creamy. My one negative comment is that there is a lot of drop out that falls under your eyes. When using this product I recommend doing your eyes first so any drop out you can clean with a makeup wipe after.