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2018 New Year Fresh Start & 3 New Year Tips! January Thoughts

Welcome 2018!

Twenty seventeen could not have ended soon enough! For the most part, it is been one crazy, crappy, crummy year for the nation with many feeling the angst. If 2017 were a person, this would be a good representation of it:

It never seizes to amaze me of how fast this year went by. Granted, major changes began at the start of 2017 that brought about new challenges that I never would have foreseen experiencing in my early 20’s. This blog post isn’t to rant about my challenges but rather give it credit for being the most important pivotal point in my personal history, motherhood. Now that the new year is right around the corner, 2018, I’m more than excited to see what kind of opportunities come up or where I can possibly create opportunities. I am hungry to find ways to create passive income because I want to be a able to take care of my daughter and future children while being able to provide more for myself. Luckily, I have a small team (aka our small immediate family) that I trust immensely that do help us. Personally, I am incredibly grateful that this year I got time to pull back from work and school and reflect a lot! I’ve taken this time to explore different interests and really question what I’m passionate about. If someone were to ask me what changed the most about me throughout 2017, I’d gladly respond by saying that I got to learn about myself a lot more.

1. Explore your interest to discover your passions

But a key aspect of self discovery is being patient. Being patient to complete every task or mundane activity to help get that much closer to fulfillment. One major observation I’ve personally made was that I tend to not finish what I’ve started or fully complete it to the best of my abilities. I can come up with a million and one ideas and in my mind work out all the details of what I’ll need to do to finish it but in the end I often don’t see it through to the finish line. Sucks to admit that I’m going into the new year with 2016 baggage, so much for a true fresh start! (Perhaps in my next blog post, I’ll get into more detail about my side projects, let me know in the comments below) So my long term goal throughout the year is to completely finish whatever new projects I begin and to complete it with the best of my abilities, not just half-assly, know what i mean? lol

2. Finish what you started and give a fuck if its the best that you can possibly do!

Throughout the year, I become better at being accountable (maybe not accountable enough to post more often but that’s going to change) and staying focused on the task, meaning if it needed to be done, it gets done even if I don’t get any sleep. Its hard to stay personally motivated to do the mundane tasks but its even harder to motivate someone else who doesn’t care enough to get inspired to take action. As a new mom, willpower became my backbone because there have been so many instances where I’ve had so much resistance about changing a diaper or to go to sleep or even to stay in one room, the list can go on and on and the crazy part is that its only the beginning. My fiance was an only child growing up and has never been around babies so being an attentive dad is something his learning on the job. So going into 2018, don’t just take care of your appearances or money but take care of yourself by being conscious about your choices and time because there is always an opportunity cost to the actions we take up.

3. Become more accountable with your time, not just money.

Handle your next moves purposefully cause its hard to stay focused now in days where there is so much distraction seemingly everywhere. I’m not just referring to dating, partying or playing a game. The media is vying for your attention, advertisements are placed everywhere, then a job requires one to focus on their tasks for 8 hours. The things that matter the most to you are only given a limited amount of time and then the day comes to a close with another 8 hours of your last 24 hours sleeping. This is why I believe if one can stick and master a short list of actions, then who’s stopping you from conquering more? If you can master a short list of skills or habits then more power to you! Focus on three main goals, make it a personal mantra and keep them short so you can maximize whatever you’re already working on. Good luck & Happy New Year 2018!

Classic White Linen Button Down x #ootd

I like linen, especially during the summer but not all linen looks cute and its hard to find classic versatile stable pieces. I got super lucky in one of my thrift store adventure hunts by finding this amazingly over sized linen button down blouse. I’ve never been one to wear many things over sized but being that I’ve been struggling to lose the extra pregnancy weight, over sized tops really help me feel confident yet comfortable. It gets me sad, but I know I’m making strides and taking action on a daily bases to lose the weight that I have! I know that by this time next year, I won’t be in the same place in my weight lose journey and that gets me excited to stay motivated!

Here’s a very casual outfit of the day featuring my recent thrift store treasure.

Details about the outfit below.

linen shirt; henna G, leggings; zara, sneakers; forever 21, sunglasses; ray ban

Wet N Wild PhotoFocus x First Impressions Review

Here was the agenda for the day…

Go to Manhattan to get drug tested for a new job
Go Northwest of Midtown for the DMV office
Go Southwest to visit campus to complete registration for this Fall
&& then to go back into Brooklyn to my parents house, to pick up my youngest autistic brother from the school bus…

ooh, my day wasn’t over just yet cause I needed to, then, go across town. To get back to my apartment and finally EAT!

Then once I got home, immediately start breastfeeding my babygirl cause engorgement is a mother f******.

All this had to be done in 80 degree weather, so I decided to wear some lightweight coverage because I wasn’t about to look like I just rolled out of bed…

My day was full of errands and just as I finished up the last touches of my coverage, I ended my routine with the Wet N Wild PhotoFocus Vaporisateur Setting Spray. I didn’t notice much of a scent, which is great because I hate having strong perfumes or smells around me (unless I actually put on perfume). The nozzle is not hard to push down and it doesn’t get stuck on itself as your fingers are pushing it down. From the many makeup Youtube videos I’ve seen, setting spray is key and should be one of the last steps to helping maintain all that effort you put to applying the makeup in the first place. This is a classic drugstore find and for the price point, you’ll likely find me hoarding this cause I’m a huge fan.

Throughout my agenda, I paid special attention to the overall appearance of my face which is more on the oily side and these are the things I noticed on my skin;

-my nose was not so oily even after power walking to catch the train with some of my nose contour still in place! I was really surprised by this little victory because my nose is usually the first thing that gets super oily.

-at noon, the temperature was at its highest and I started to get some sweat beads around my hairline but my eyebrows stayed the same as when I first left my house (hurray!) and

-by the time I got to my parents house, I felt super hot and humid. When I looked in the mirror, I was surprised to see that my skin still looked a bit airbrushed, except for my nose. The bit of oil on my skin looked a bit glowy also (as if I’d applied some highlighter) which was a very nice effect!

For the first time trying it out, I was really impressed by how long my coverage stayed on especially on such a challenging hot New York City day. To back up my experience and see how others felt once they put this to the test, I looked up a few Youtube videos to just see what others had experienced. Nathalie Marie Kay, a beauty Youtuber Creator, did an awesome comprehensive review of multiple drugstore and high end brand setting sprays. She felt that the Wet N Wild PhotoFocus was one of her top three choices (link of the video down below because its awesome) and she even compared it to the Urban Decay All Nighter Makeup Setting Spray.

Her review made me feel even more excited about this purchase because it was money well spend. Nothing gets me more disappointed then when something is overpriced and your not getting the quality that you expect for it. Especially to someone like me, who’s learning the effects of different products on my skin after pregnancy since my hormones have changed the texture of my skin.

Thank you so much for checking out this review, I’ll try to post on a more consistent basis, but I get lazy and, honestly, sometimes uninspired. Thank you again and have a blessed day!

Link of Youtube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJa9uWdMaNI&t=1004s

Off-The-Shoulder Floral Romper x OOTD

This was a super casual floral romper for a casual stroll around the park in this crazy humid New York City heat. The romper has a trendy off-the-shoulder look with super cute floral motifs of red, pink, blue flowers and leaves that almost look drawn on. It was really comfortable and cute. I’ve been feeling a little anxious lately, mostly because I’ve been researching the classes I’ll need to take to go back to school for a bachelors degree. I’m really excited about the major I’m planning to go into but its going to be really tough for me because its mostly in math. I’ve spend so much time researching what would be the best and most flexible degree for me and my little family for a while now. It was really challenging because there were so many questions that I had about demand, pay scale, etc and nothing that could be answered by simply googling it.

Personally, I wish public high schools would incorporate and encourage other topics, something that’s more relevant long term, to build interest within the kids which would grow into a life skill. Instead of spending so much time on memorizing (what feels like now) useless facts or rules. I completely understand that education is important, but understanding whats valuable and what isn’t is just as important. Its just unfortunate that kids don’t get that time to really explore and question the things around them because of all the time spend on schoolwork or craming for tests… Anyways, I’m just ranting on my own personal experiences.

Perhaps you’ve had a different experience or have a different opinion about the education system, if so lets chat in the comments below! Also, what do you think about this outfit?

Thanks for checking out my blog and this post!

sunglasses; Ray Bans | romer; Rainbow | sneakers; Forever 21 | bag; Boohoo | baby; MINE 😅

Wet n Wild Mega Liner Glam Kat Eyes

#MOTD inspiration!

Yesterday, Americans all across the fifty states celebrated our independence day with a lot of bbq and fireworks. Its the unofficial, official start of summer, which is awesome!

But the heat and humidity makes it unbearable to put on a full face without it literally melting off your face. For the rest of the summer, my strategy is to emphasize the eyes while being subtle and light on my skin so it’ll have enough room to breath. One easy way to create glam look is a sexy cat eye. The first step to getting it done perfectly (even if you’ve got to try a few times) is by finding a pointy tip liquid eyeliner. It will revolutionize the way the wings are applied and wear throughout the day. My personal favorite drugstore liquid liner, that is amazing for your budget and overall quality is the Wet n Wild Megaliner. The Megaliner collection has a variety of liner tips and colors to create the looks your heart desires.

The rundown of products I used for my eyes…

Using the same Wet n Wild Megaliner, you can create the inner corner wings which just emphasizes the shape of your eyes beautifully. Then I used the Mega Eyeliner Pencil to trace my water line because the pencil is not as bold and looks more natural. Lastly, I applied some mascara and then curled them with my a curler so my lashes will stay up for longer. The Maybelline The Colossal Volum’Express is nice… but its not always consistent. Sometimes the mascara comes out clumpy and other times its smooth.

These are the products I used for my face. As you can see, I just focused on covering my under circles and set it with the Maybelline FIT Me! Powder so it’ll keep my face matte. By keeping the skin smooth and simple, it’ll make the eyes pop even more.

I found these blending sponges at my local bargain store. I enjoyed how they’re all in different shapes and blend smoothly.

The Neutrogena 3-in-1 Concealer has been my go-to for everything. I found that using a flat shader brush makes the littlest drop of the concealer go a long way, which helps me save on quantity

Thank you so much for checking out my post! I hope this look inspires you to try it out. Whats been your favorite liquid drugstore liner? Let me know in the comments below. Have a blessed day!

#OOTD x Hot Pink Ombre Nike Sneakers

This is a casual Friday street wear workout sporty outfit. The best part about it are my favorite throwback ombre hot pink and purple Nike sneakers because their so eye catching and comfortable. It instantly adds life to any occasion and emotionally, it brightens my mood!

Since my body is still bouncing back from my pregnancy, I’ve been wearing a lot of black on a day to day basis which sucks. Wearing black is very slimming but it makes you feel hotter and with the NYC humidity, your like a walking sauna which is not cool. But I won’t get tired of wearing my Straight Outta Compton t-shirt because its perfectly oversized to wear as a mini dress or tie it in the center to add more shape. I thought it be relevant to wear because of the release of the Tupac movie All Eyez On Me, which I can’t wait to go see this weekend! Even though its kind of a throwback fad to the summer of 2015 when these shirts were everywhere with the release of the movie.

I hope you’ve enjoying this dose of minimal and sporty inspo #ootd. Let me know in the comments below if you like this outfit/or the sneakers. Also, which movies have you seen in theaters lately? Are you excited to see the Tupac movie? Was he your favorite 90’s artist?

Like always, have a blessed day!

outfit: ombre roshe run Nike | t-shirt Unknown | running shorts Champion | choker Customized

Socials: instagram @rozalyndamoxie | snapchat @rozalyndamoxie

Five Month Update x Mommy Thoughts

Now that I’m a mom, I constantly have this internal battle with myself regarding the massive changes with this new lifestyle of motherhood. It sickens me whenever I hear other parents say to those who have no kids that they shouldn’t have any kids period, as if their a curse from God. No bueno! I find myself having to remind my baby’s father about our great gift whenever friends ask us how we’re doing. Like, no, you don’t get to complain unless you were the one bearing the pains of birth!

But I get so confused and upset sometimes because I want to complete my to do list on a daily basis. I’ve got some easy tasks and others that are a pain in the ass, like figuring out how to back up all your electronics (Sheeshh, as tech gets more sophisticated it also seems to be more complicated… or maybe I’m out of touch).

The battle starts with the idea of being constantly present, in the moment with my baby girl. Watching like a hawk for the small details of her development, physical changes and guiding her to understand what’s around her… yet, I have other personal important things to do, goals to accomplish and dreams to fulfill.

Now that I’m a mom, its so ironic to me how I’m more sure and confident about my career and life and what type of action to take… how convenient. It doesn’t help either that I have this constant feeling like theirs a shelf life for my plans and that times being wasting by me choosing to pay attention to my daughters daily activities rather then my own. Then again, I argue, who is she if not the value I place on myself… ultimately, it’s a tug between who’s more important: my daughters development or the future me?…

Maybe its because Isabella’s my first baby that I’m feeling this way, but I haven’t heard many moms talking about this feeling or even express it. I’m literally learning as I go and trying to document it so I can share it with others, but if your a mom and have felt this feeling before, let me know in the comments below! How did you adjust? Did you find a helpful hand from family or did you have to buy it?

Thank you so much for checking out my blog, if you want to check out my socials, they’ll be listed below. Have a blessed day!

white fur coat from Macy’s: onesie from First Impressions: pink headband from Babies R Us: doggy shoes from H&M: black jumper from Aerie

Socials: instagram @rozalyndamoxie | snapchat @rozalyndamoxie

Sally Hanson x Romantic Gold Nails

I’m having a very golden moment as the summer in NYC is just getting started, borderline obsessive. The most attractive part is the subdued luxe look and that hint of shine that’ll instantly grab your attention once the light hits it just right. We’re constantly using our hands, they might as well be eye catching. NYC is bound for more sun and heat in the next few months and metallic makes for a beautifully bold hue to embrace the rays we’ve lost all winter long.

I picked up the Sally Hanson Insta-Dri Go For Gold nail polish because I was inspired and it was under $5. Honestly, I had some doubts on the quality because of the price tag. But as I was testing it out, I started to really love the consistency and the color. I created minimal design which really showed me how consistent the formula truly was. I was very excited with the outcome of the design when it was all dry!

I hope that you’ll use the design as a source of inspiration for your own nail design masterpiece. Not everything has to look perfect because beauty comes in so many different ways.

Ps. Since I’m not one to buy a lot of nail polishes, I like to reuse the ones I already have until very last drop! This whole month I’m planning to re-imagine new designs using this gold polish (and others I have in my arsenal) I CANT WAIT TO SHOW YOU!

Thanks for reading along and checking out my blog.

Have a blessed day!

Birth Story Video x Baby Bella

Finally, I’m getting this done!

Someday in the future, my daughter and I will watch this video together (especially during those inevitable rough patches in our relationship). This is the new way of keeping our own histories within the family. Maybe down the line we’ll have something more holographic and 3 dimensional like in star wars. But for now, its best to master the tools available to us at the moment, Lord only knows how complicated these applications already are!

Lastly, thank you for checking out my video! I look forward to your feedback so leave your comments below, much love and have a blessed day 😘

#allblack Boohoo Jumpsuit

Mama’s got her body back, yass! lol

Well.. maybe not for a few more months. I’m two months postpartum and my body has been slowly getting back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I’m really excited about the progress but my real challenge is to flatten out my stomach. I’m currently editing a birth story video to post up on my Youtube channel with all kinds of details about what had happened 😱. I’m excited to share it and I’ll have the link to that video in my next blog post.

Before my pregnancy, that was one area of my body that I really struggled to maintain and to tone. My diet was horrible but since I would spend a significant amount of time in the gym, I was content with just maintaining my weight. A lot of my clothes that I had before, either don’t fit me or I just don’t feel comfortable in anymore because of my c-section pooch. I really wanted to get some inexpensive pieces for my closet that (1) were not going to break the bank (2) I could comfortably lounge in the house in (3) and confidently run errands in. I know, I kick myself in the ass sometimes cause I would talk myself out of buying something because of all my requests.

I decided to spend my time and money on Boohoo.com, I had heard a lot of positive reviews through friends and some Youtubers. I was skeptical at first but then as I skimmed through the website, I had fallen in love with the items and the prices especially! But I was disappointed at the quality when I finally got my shipment. Some of the leggings were XTRMLY thin and see through and others just didn’t flatter my new body. The fabrics for all my items are soft and stretchy and my favorite item is this black jumpsuit. Simple yet versatile and is under the “little black dress” category which means it can be mixed and matched with different accessories depending your mood.

Thank you for reading along and checking out my blog. Let me know in the comments below what you thought about this look and what you think of boohoo. Be in the lookout for my next upcoming post for the link to my Youtube video link. Thanks again and have a blessed day!

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Socials: instagram @rozalyndamoxie | snapchat @rozalyndamoxie

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