amarisafloria

As I mentioned in my Unplug and Read update, I thought it'd be more beneficial to compile my monthly reading and thoughts in one post instead of separating them into different reviews. So here's my first 2014 wrap up! I'm very excited that I'm on track with reading 50 books this year since I completed four books this month.

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me by Mindy Kaling
I have been wanting to read this book for a good three months now — and I am glad to say it didn't disappoint! It was pure awesomeness and had me laughing out loud (feel free to picture me on the living room couch with my mom throwing confused looks at me.) If you have no idea who Mindy Kaling is, you should still consider reading this book. She is a hilarious human being who I wish was my real life best friend.

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher
When I first started this book, I didn't enjoy it very much. It felt very much like a "this happened, and then this happened" kind of story and I wasn't interested. Surprisingly, as you may have guessed by my rating, I ended up liking the book and its message. I respect Asher for writing about a serious subject in a way where it causes you to think about your actions and what you do that may harm other people. Although it didn't have an exciting plot line and lacked depth, the lesson this story brings is one that everyone should read about.

Looking for Alaska by John Green
As this was a book that has gotten a lot of love, I was excited to finally dive into it. Sadly, I did not like it as much as I thought I would because of the high expectations I had after reading The Fault in Our Stars. I didn't like the majority of the characters and because of that, didn't really care what happened to them. I know that makes me sound heartless, but I just really wasn't into them and their antics. It reminded me of The Perks of Being A Wallflower so if you enjoyed that book, you'll probably enjoy Looking for Alaska.

Tuesdays With Morrie by Mitch Albom
I was given this book as a Christmas gift from my roommate, who stated that this was her favorite book. I was a little hesitant to read it in fear that I would not love it as much as she does, but (knowing her personality) I can see why she really liked it. I was really surprised when I found out that it is a true story — it's incredibly rare to find someone who still appreciates the beauty of life whilst (yes, I really used the word "whilst") dying. It really made me think about who I am as a person and what I want to achieve while I'm still living on Earth. Although I may not agree with everything mentioned in this book, I did like it.

After looking over the publishing dates, I realize that I've been reading books that are out-of-date. I didn't mean for that to happen, but I guess that's how it is if you've been out of the reading loop! I promise that I'll be reading more current books in February, so look forward to that!

While being on a nice little vacation with my boyfriend and two of our other friends, my skin became incredibly dry. I assume it was due to the slight change in the weather and water, but it made me feel as if I had never touched lotion in my life. Thankfully, I packed a couple of items that saved the day and kept me sane.


HANDS + FEET • L'Occitane Shea Butter Dry Hand Cream ($28)
I have tried the Soap & Glory Hand Food Hand Cream, but L'Occitane's works ten times better. It moisturizes so nicely without being greasy and doesn't have an overbearing scent. This stuff comes at a hefty price, but it works wonders and will last for quite some time (it's 5.2 oz!). If you sit in front of your heater all winter long, you're going to want the foot cream in your stash immediately! If you're not willing to spend that much before trying it, Sephora has a smaller version of the hand cream for $12.

CUTICLES • Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream ($6)
As I mentioned in my "Habits I Need To Break", my cuticles are disastrous. Thankfully, this cuticle cream is a life saver and is AWESOME at keeping my cuticles moisturized. When my cuticles are moisturized, I don't peel. This cuticle cream + my fingers = happy Amaris.

LIPS • Blistex Lip Medex ($1)
If I was going to be trapped on an island and only allowed one thing to bring, it would be Blistex. I cannot express my love for Blistex enough (and I guarantee you I'll be doing it tons more in the future!)

BODY • Bath and Body Works Body Lotion in Secret Wonderland ($11)
I love slathering this scent all over my legs after a nice shower or in the morning before I head out. These are surprisingly very moisturizing, but can be scent-heavy. I also like Bali Mango and Wild Berry Tulips :)

FACE • Olay Complete All Day Moisturizer with SPF 15 ($9)
Although the SPF gets me a little oily, it's nothing a little powder can't fix. I have been using this lotion for over seven years now and my skin rarely breaks out or sprouts a pimple.

HAIR • It's a 10 Miracle Hair Mask ($19)
Although I stated that this was nothing special to me in this post three weeks ago, I have changed my mind. My hair has felt significantly more dry after returning to my Dove conditioner and I find myself wanting to use this hair mask because of the moisture it provides. The ends of my hair are holding up pretty nicely, which makes it a lot easier for me to grow it out!

Even if you're not traveling, these are still great for chilly and dry days. What products are you using to stay moisturized this winter?

P.S. I added my Goodreads account in my bottom links! Add me as a friend to see what I am reading (or don't add me and just stalk it every so often!)

Guys, I am a full-fledged snacker. Whenever I'm hungry, I tend to head toward snacks instead of grabbing a bigger meal. In hopes that you are somewhat like me and do this too, I decided to share my top five favorites (in no particular order!)


1. YOGURT + GRANOLA
My entire college life pretty much revolves around this combination because it literally takes one minute to make. Buy a supersized tub of vanilla yogurt and a pack of Nature Valley Oats & Honey granola and I'm set for a good week. Throw in some fruit and I got myself a little mini-meal! I mostly choose strawberries and bananas, but I think I'm going to try peaches and raspberries in the near future.

2. APPLES + PEANUT BUTTER
A recent discovery has got me eating this non-stop. My boyfriend was moving out of his apartment and asked me to keep his peanut butter in my fridge. When he moved into his new place, he never took his peanut butter back. At the time, I was indifferent to peanut butter but I didn't want to throw it away so I decided to eat it with an apple. My life was changed so I think you need to try it too.

3. GUACAMOLE + PRETZELS
I bought guacamole from Trader Joe's solely for its name (I even took a picture of it) and had no chips, so pretzels it was.

4. POPCORN
Whenever I go to the movie theater, I always get popcorn. (Insert sound clip of people munchin' on popcorn in the silence between trailers at the movies.) The only exception is if I ate a meal before and have no room to eat anything. It usually ends up gone by the first ten minutes of a movie, haha. Eating popcorn is quite addicting and I think know I could win a popcorn-eating contest. I also eat microwave popcorn in my spare time so ... where do I sign up?

5. SMOOTHIES
To be honest, I'm one of those people who just throw in whatever fruits I have/seem good together. It always ends up a surprise to me, but how bad can a smoothie really be if you add ice cream?

Bringing you a two-in-one, what what?

Sephora sent me a nice little $15 coupon back in December and I had to use it. This also happened around the time they were giving out a Cyber Monday Mystery Sample Bag, so of course I added that to my cart immediately.

Two of the sample items I was most excited for were the Lancôme Définicils High Definition Mascara and Clinique Almost Lipstick in Black Honey.


You really don't know a good mascara 'til it comes along. This is by FAR the best mascara I have ever used. I don't know how much the sample differs from the regular size, but I love the shape of the brush and the consistency of the mascara. Because it is a dry formula, it is very light on the lashes and dries quickly. I don't think I will ever be a fan of wet mascaras — I like it to dry fast so I can re-curl my lashes after application. I will definitely be purchasing this after it runs out.

Sadly, the Clinique Almost lipstick was very disappointing. After seeing how dark it was in the tube, I was excited to have something similar to the Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Black Cherry.


As you can see from the swatches above, they are two entirely different colors. I guess I should've taken the "Almost" part of the name into consideration. It has a plastic smell (which I dislike) and is buildable, but you'll just end up looking like a little girl playing with her mom's lipstick collection.

It didn't work for me, but that's the beauty of samples — you try it and avoid buying it if you don't like it!


Other items that came with the bag include samples of Shiseido's Bio-Performance Advanced Super Revitalizing Cream, Lancôme's Teint Idole Ultra 24H Foundation in 310 Bisque, and philosophy's time in a bottle.

1. Read 50 books.
I have never kept track of how many books I can read in a year and 50 sounded like a solid number, so I'm doing it.

2. Go back and read at least one book from high school.
I never properly finished or was given the opportunity to read a lot of the books I was supposed to read in high school, so I'm hoping to tackle The Catcher in the Rye, 1984, and Of Mice and Men.

3. Read one classic.
I am all for chick-lit and easy reads, but I would like to challenge myself this year. (Let me know which one is your favorite!)

4. Finish the Delirium trilogy.
I started Delirium back in November for my Unplug and Read dystopian theme and didn't get to continue reading the trilogy due to the order of books I scheduled. Thankfully, I've stopped doing that (which I briefly discuss here) so I WILL be finishing this trilogy! I may also attempt to finish The Maze Runner trilogy as well :)

5. Re-read the entire Harry Potter series.
One of my favorite series, if not favorite, and just a must-do every year.

6. Read five already-bought books.
I always, and I mean always, buy books that I plan to read but end up leaving on my bookshelf to collect dust. I want to be able to say that I've read everything I own before I purchase new books! Some of my neglected books include The Year I Turned Sixteen, The Six Rules of Maybe, Beauty Queens, I'll Be There For You, and Ten Girls to Watch.

As someone who dyes her hair more often than she should, my hair always needs a little extra TLC. I never cared about my hair before — I would wash it and even curl my hair with a flat iron every single day. I've even bleached and dyed my hair three times in a span of two weeks (I know, I'm crazy.) After gaining hay as hair a week after each haircut, I thought it would be a good idea to start taking care of my hair before it all falls out.

After hearing many great things about It's a 10, I decided to try their miracle hair mask.


This miracle hair mask claims to detangle, restore moisture balance, instantly restore elasticity, soften, smooth, impart luminous shine, enhance natural body, nourish, defrizz and improve color vibrancy.

This was the first hair mask I have ever tried and luckily, I didn't pay full price for it (thank you, Target!) $10 is usually my limit on hair products, so this was a nice treat for my dehydrated hair.

Although it does a good job at detangling, I wouldn't go so far as to say that it is nourishing. It does keep my hair moisturized for longer than a conditioner would, but I don't think it's worth paying more than $20. However, the packaging was a nice surprise. I don't have to worry about turning it over to get the last bits or wondering if there's any left — I can see exactly how much I have remaining.



This miracle hair mask is a good product, but there's nothing special that stands out. I would only recommend this for someone who has really dry hair and doesn't wash it often. Other than that, using a Dove conditioner would probably give you the same results.

I have decided to drop the idea of monthly themes because I feel as if I'm forcing myself to read. I initially did it because I thought it would be fun to read books centered around the same genre, but I always ended up wanting to read something else. Although I change my mind way too often, it doesn't mean that I can't finish a book (I actually ZOOM through books if I want to read something new) — it's just that the order of the books I read may change depending on my mood or things I've recently discovered.

But fear not, Unplug and Read will still be happening in 2014! I'll have a large post at the end of each month discussing the books I've read, but I'll always mention the title of the book I'm reading before I start it on my Twitter. It'll be like a little sneak peek so you can read along :)

Thanks for understanding and stay tuned for my 2014 reading goals!

2013 was such a crazy year, but I'm super excited for 2014 and all the events that will accompany it. I already did a little reminiscing back in my 2013 recap post, so feel free to head there to see a picture with Minnie and me (a proud moment, yes.)

I love the idea of making goals, but keeping and completing them may be a different story. My brain thinks that if I share them with the Internet, there may be a better chance that I'll think about them more often. So here are four of my goals :)

1. Be consistent with my Q&A a Day book
I am terrible at being committed to anything, but something as little as answering a question every day may help build toward the bigger things (for example, with finishing big projects and such.) I love this little book and have had it for a year now, but I only answered about half the questions. I hope to fill out more this year so future me can look back and read what I did or what I was thinking on certain days.

2. Maintain my blog and continue posting, but only when I'm happy with it
Although I have been blogging and moving around for well over four years, I created Afloria in 2013 and am so glad that I am sticking with it. I have always been afraid of what other people think of me, but Afloria has been such a great outlet to express what I love and talk to all of you about our similar favorites :) With that, I hope to continue posting the things I enjoy posting. I want to post at least once a week, but I want to be proud of the content I create.

3. Create and stick with an exercise routine
I used to be quite good at finding time to take a run throughout the week, but it stopped due to a busy school/work schedule. Since more of my classes this semester will start later, I want to get up a little earlier and run before I start my day. My main goal for this is to build endurance and keep my heart strong.

4. Drink less soda
I honestly cannot get through a day without drinking at least a cup of soda — I know, it's horrible! I cannot resist the bubbly feeling :( I'm not saying I'll never drink soda, but I want to be aware of how often I drink it and minimize the amount.

So there they are! I know some people are against goal-making, but I think it is necessary for improving and getting yourself to a place you want to be. I hope you guys had a great time ringing in the new year, whether it was out partying with your friends or staying at home with your family.