No.

That's all Mark Salling tweeted, and that's all I could think when I found out about the sudden passing of Cory Monteith.  

What I'm thinking now is that maybe watching the West Side Story episode of Glee isn't the best idea.  

Every scene is making me cry, even scenes without Finn and Rachel.  

Glee is just such a great show.  

It's my family's absolute favorite and one of the reasons my son is exposed to a variety of music genres as well as an introduction to acceptance.  He knows about bullying and that it's wrong.  

If Ryan and I are fighting, we don't mind going to bed without talking, but we'd still watch Glee together.

I can't imagine it without Finn.   

This isn't much of a tribute, but from the bottom of my heart rest in peace, Cory Monteith.  Thank you for the happiness you brought into our lives.

Taking care of yourself for a change

If there is one thing that being deployed is teaching me it's that I need to take better care of myself physically, mentally, and spiritually.  I'm not saying I'm run down and haggard, but let's just say I'm maybe a little rough around the edges, and by edges I mean mah FEETS, haha!  A recent trip to a Luxumbourg taught me that, honey, it's ok to polish yourself up.  A classy city with beautiful people, high end shopping, live music, delicious food, and fish pedicures made this trip one of my favorites so far.

 I always thought I had descent feet... cute even, but I honestly cannot remember when my last professional pedi was!  Oh my goodness, never again will I underestimate the power of taking a time out from life's daily demands and pampering myself.  Once I dunked my paws in the water the fish went to town, while my friend's feet were almost bare of fish!!!!  I told her maybe the fish weren't craving chocolate, but maybe adobo and lumpia instead hahahaha!!!!  

Showing off our tiny Coke cans our manicurist gave us lol!

A fellow airman and blog buddy of mine (check her out at Latin Grooves and Funky Soul Food ), she is the perfect example of one that understands the value of, well, valuing yourself.  Through her blogs she expresses her love for Christ and zest for life through her daily adventures, and this girl doesn't mess around when it comes to her feet lol!  She, as well as the starving fish, inspired me to get my foot pampering game together!  

But enough about feet lol.  Check out our beautiful Luxembourg adventure.  You won't believe it, but the delicious food we were eating was from Pizza Hut!

I wish I could've recorded it, but there was a live band that played this song while we dined.

  Take care!

Why I love snail mail

I'm truly thankful for the luxury of being able to chat with my family online while serving overseas, but there's something special about old school snail mail.

Fun and educational way to keep in touch with your little ones.  My five year old, Kahlil, has pretty much known how to use electronics since before he could walk, but he absolutely loves checking the mail box and finding an envelope or postcard addressed especially for him.   He asked for his own postcards to send me and his cousins, so I ordered some he can color along with Angry Bird crayons and multicolored pens.

 

You get to use pretty postcards & stationary.  For every place I go I make sure to grab a handful of postcards and always send one to Kahlil, my Grandma Hermie (who has been all around the world herself) and other loved ones.  Sometimes stores give out postcards as advertisements, which is awesome because they're free.99 and always look cool.  I'm looking forward to also purchasing pretty stamps and maybe collecting them.

You get to practice your handwriting.  I usually write in all caps, but since I started sending Kahlil letters I've been writing the elementary school way.  I take my time to make it look neat and simple enough for him to read easily, and I gotta say they are moments that I am enjoying more and more.  I imagine him reading my words out loud, and it makes me smile. I think I'll practice my cursive more when I write my sweet heart, Ryan.  More romantic? LOL.  (Image courtesy of fanpop).

You get things in your mail box other than bills & advertisements.  There's nothing like receiving snail mail and recognizing your loved ones handwriting right away.  Emails are great, but there's something genuine and so thoughtful about someone writing to you.  You're also more likely to keep snail mail than an email, at least that's the case for me.  I still have birthday cards from my dad from when I was little, special heart to heart letters from my mom,  neatly folded notes from friends in high school, well wishes during boot camp, and of course every single Valentine's Day, anniversary, Christmas, and random love notes from Ryan.  I miss him so much!!  Gonna send him and Kahlil a postcard right now :)

And finally, snail mail can make someone you love smile.  Enough said.   

Great skin is your best accessory, and smelling good is a close second

I can't sleep, so why not one more June Favorite entree on the last day of the month?  Well, actually it's the 1st already in Germany, but work with me here. 

June Favorite #5 (Beauty Products):  

 

Since middle school I've always had trouble with acne.  I remember showing my 7th grade pictures to my dad who pointed out the tiny bumps on my forehead.  Looking back on it now, it wasn't even that bad, but I overreacted and tried EVERY product under the sun (including home made remedies, smh), which only aggravated my skin.  I finally tried Proactive when I was a teen but wasn't consistent with it.  

The break outs finally calmed down in my twenties, but then out of no where they came back when I turned 30!  Grown ass woman and still getting zits?? Ain't nobody got time for that!  So before heading out to Germany I bought a 30 day supply of Proactive.  My skin has never been better.  I still have dark scars and a pimple here and there, but my complexion overall has cleared up.  The parts that were already clear feel so much smoother.  Can't wait until my boyfriend visits me and feels mah FACE!  3 weeks, yay!

My skin got really dry during the first couple weeks of using Proactiv.  St. Ives Apricot Scrub is another thing I've used in the past, but maybe not correctly.  It's not something that you should use daily.  I've been exfoliating about 3 times a week, which helps get rid of dry, flaky skin.  My face feels like a baby's bottom after I use it.

Like most people I have combo skin, which can get dry or oily depending on environmental factors.  Because of the oiliness, I use light matte foundations like Bare Minerals or Studio Fix but still found myself getting shiny, which usually shows in pictures.  So annoying!  I got talked into buying MAC's prep + prime, and after months of never using it I decided to bring it with me to Germany.  I absolutely love it!!  Not only does it have a high level of sun protection, but it seems to minimize the look of pores, foundation stays put, looks fresh all day, and best of all no unwanted shine.

And last but not least, my only beauty product fave this month NOT for your face (unless you want it to be) is Love and Toast's Honey Coconut Perfume.  What caught my eye was the adorable packaging.  It was only $7 for the mini bottle of 0.33 oz of "sweet honey, sugared vanilla, violet and sandalwood", which I thought would just make me smell like a vanilla candle or something, but a few minutes after I put it on I did noticed hints of floral and kind of an earthy scent, which I can only think comes from the sandalwood.  I dunno, but I like it.

Hope you enjoyed my June Favorites.  Have a happy first day of July!  K Bye!

A picture is worth a thousand words

June Favorite #4 (Photograph):  In one month I've taken a bajillion pictures, but this by far is my favorite, taken by our friend, Ruben.  I look at it and can't believe it's real.  It will always be hard to be away from my family, but it's such a blessing to be able to serve with such amazing individuals while experiencing the beauty of other nations together.

Once upon a time I had permanent orders to Europe, but I turned them down to be closer to my family while raising my boy.  I don't regret my decision one bit, and here I am almost six years later.  It's all in God's timing.  Extremely thankful and humbled.

The Louvre - Paris, France

 

Hey Girl! Watcha Doin?

June Favorite #3 (Show):  Who's that girl?  It's Jess!  Ok, why did I wait so long to start watching this??  We always watch Glee as a family, but when New Girl starts I'm usually getting Kahlil ready for bed.  Yea, I could've recorded it, but I've always been bad at following any shows, so I end up doing a marathon on dvd.  Thankful that the Ramstein library has Season 1 and for friends I can watch it  with who randomly repeat funny ass lines, "Caroline!  I still loves you, I do!" and "Heyyyy, sailor!"

 

What's not to love about Zoey Deschanel?  I loved her ever since she played a blond in Elf, but she's definitely skyrocketed on my list of favorite actresses with her bangin' bangs, great style, and musical talent.  The rest of the cast is just as hilarious and loveable.  I feel like we all have a bit of every one of their personalities, which is why it's such an accessible show. 

And how about that dope a#% loft?!?! Be still my heart.........

Finding the Silver Lining in everything: Mental Illness Awareness

June Favorite #2 (Movie):  Most quoted movie by my Germany fam: definitely Pitch Perfect, but my favorite that I thoroughly enjoyed while having a quiet night doing laundry was Silver Linings Playbook.  Being a psych tech, this movie really caught my attention.  The novel written by Matthew Quick is about a teacher named Pat, played by Bradley Cooper, who did time in a mental institution.  The story takes you inside his very distorted but tender mind, troubled with bipolar disorder and depression. 

 

The moral is that life may not always go as planned, but you can always rebuild a positive attitude.  If you're careful to read the signs, you'll find the silver lining in everything.  With an all star cast including Robert Di Nero, Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper, and Chris Tucker this movie had me in tears of joy and pain.  It reaffirmed my belief that people with mental illnesses and disabilities are gifted, although misunderstood and unaccepted by society.  Not your typical romantic comedy, this movie raises awareness on the reality of mental illness, and I just think that is great.