My Top 10: Movies To Keep You Company This Valentine's

Ohhhhhh yeah, my top 10 series has come back out to play and in today's episode, we're going to be talking about movies! Now unless you want to prove me otherwise, we can all agree that Valentine's day is an overrated and a highly commercialized 'holiday', if you will. However, I am a sucker for grand gestures of love. So in the spirit of this season, I have compiled my favorite rom-coms that you can choose to watch this weekend. Or any weekend, really. Don't let a holiday rule you!

1) The Notebook

"In 1940s South Carolina, mill worker Noah Calhoun (Ryan Gosling) and rich girl Allie (Rachel McAdams) are desperately in love. But her parents don't approve. When Noah goes off to serve in World War II, it seems to mark the end of their love affair. In the interim, Allie becomes involved with another man (James Marsden). But when Noah returns to their small town years later, on the cusp of Allie's marriage, it soon becomes clear that their romance is anything but over."

2) A Walk to Remember

"Set in North Carolina, "A Walk To Remember" follows the rite of passage of a jaded, aimless high school senior (Shane West) who falls in love with a guileless young woman (Mandy Moore) he and his friends once scorned. The two develop a powerful and inspirational relationship in which they discover truths that take most people a lifetime to learn."

3) The Holiday

"Two women, one (Cameron Diaz) from America and one (Kate Winslet) from Britain, swap homes at Christmastime after bad breakups with their boyfriends. Each woman finds romance with a local man (Jude Law, Jack Black) but realizes that the imminent return home may end the relationship."

4) The Best of Me

"Amanda (Michelle Monaghan) and Dawson (James Marsden) were once high-school sweethearts. They have a bittersweet reunion when they return to their hometown for the funeral of a mutual, beloved friend. Seeing each other again after 20 years apart reignites the love they've never forgotten, but Amanda and Dawson soon discover that the forces that drove them apart when they were younger pose even more threats today."

5) Serendipity

"On a magical night when they are in in their 20s, Jonathan (John Cusack) meets Sara (Kate Beckinsale). He finds it love at first sight, but Sara believes in destiny. After 10 years the two -- with 3,000 miles between them -- must decide if fate wants them to be together again. When love feels like magic, it is called destiny; when destiny has a sense of humor, it is serendipity."

6) Just Go With It

"His heart recently broken, plastic surgeon Danny Maccabee (Adam Sandler) pretends to be married so he can enjoy future dates with no strings attached. His web of lies works, but when he meets Palmer (Brooklyn Decker) -- the gal of his dreams -- she resists involvement. Instead of coming clean, Danny enlists Katherine (Jennifer Aniston), his assistant, to pose as his soon-to-be-ex-wife. Instead of solving Danny's problems, the lies create more trouble."

7) Beastly

"A modern-day take on the "Beauty and the Beast" tale where a New York teen is transformed into a hideous monster in order to find true love."

8) What Happens in Vegas

"During a wild vacation in Las Vegas, career woman Joy McNally (Cameron Diaz) and playboy Jack Fuller (Ashton Kutcher) come to the sober realization that they have married each other after a night of drunken abandon. Besides that, there is a huge jackpot at stake. An implacable judge freezes the prize money and refuses to grant an annulment, so Joy and Jack must try to make their impromptu marriage work."

9) You've Got Mail

"Struggling boutique bookseller Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) hates Joe Fox (Tom Hanks), the owner of a corporate Foxbooks chain store that just moved in across the street. When they meet online, however, they begin an intense and anonymous Internet romance, oblivious of each other's true identity. Eventually Joe learns that the enchanting woman he's involved with is actually his business rival. He must now struggle to reconcile his real-life dislike for her with the cyber love he's come to feel."

10) The Fault in Our Stars

"Hazel Grace Lancaster (Shailene Woodley), a 16-year-old cancer patient, meets and falls in love with Gus Waters (Ansel Elgort), a similarly afflicted teen from her cancer support group. Hazel feels that Gus really understands her. They both share the same acerbic wit and a love of books, especially Grace's touchstone, "An Imperial Affliction" by Peter Van Houten. When Gus scores an invitation to meet the reclusive author, he and Hazel embark on the adventure of their brief lives."

*

Anyone else still not over TFIOS?! To be honest, I still cannot sit through it without tears. I'm a giant cheese ball that loves a great love story! Trust me, most days I hate myself for it, too. But for now, let's just pretend it's okay, okay? ;)

I hope you have a fab Valentine's day, no matter how you choose to spend it! ♡

All the love, hugs and kisses,

S

What I Loved in January

It's been quite a while since I put up one of these posts so I thought I'd bring them back! January has and will always be one of my favorite months because a) It's my birth month and b) It's my birth month! :P Fine, yes, I may be a little biased but come on, everyone I know hates this month because it means Christmas is over and the holidays are done so let's cut January some slack, okay? It's a pretty good month. Now, let's talk about all the things I enjoyed during this time.

Smoothies

Man, have I been obsessed with making smoothies lately! I have a few different recipes that I alternate between every morning and they're just the perfect start to my day. I want to say that I hope to have a recipe up on my blog soon but I'm afraid it's gonna be a promise I never end up keeping! So let's just see how that works out! ;)

TEA!

Fact: whenever I'm not drinking my smoothies, I'm drinking tea. I've been on such a tea kick lately that I've gathered up quite a collection. My favorite though has been the Chai Tea from Tim Hortons. I bought this a few months back but it's only when the weather started cooling down, I began to appreciate it.

Cozy jackets

Since we're already talking about cold weather, I've really been loving this jacket I got from Topshop recently. I wore it almost every single day this past month and it never failed at keeping me warm.

Mini "hottie" hot water bag

I bought this on a whim from a store called New Look and it's become my new favorite thing. I'm still not 100% sure how it works or what's the science behind it, but it's essentially a tiny bag filled with some sort of gel-like substance and there's a metal disc inside that when you bend, sends a signal to the gel and it starts heating up. It stays hot until the gel starts to harden (about 20 mins). To re-use, you just have to place it in a pan with hot water and let it boil for about 10 mins. Okay - HOW COOL?! That alone sold me. Aside from being scientifically bad-ass, it actually works. It stays hot for about 15-20 mins, which isn't that long, but it's enough to keep my hands warm in the mornings on my way to work.

'If I Stay' movie & book

I saw this movie over the winter break and I was obsessed with the story! If I know a movie is based off a book, I usually like to read the book first. I made an exception with this one and went right ahead and watched it, and since I fell in love with the story, I was so excited to read the book! The only disadvantage was that the characters and places already came with images so there was not much room left for imagination, however, these details didn't matter as much as the story they held. I particularly enjoyed this story because it reminded me a lot of one of my favorite novels, The Five People You Meet in Heaven, in a sense where it talks about the in-betweens of life and death. One of my favorite bloggers, The Girl in the Moonlight, recently published a book review of 'If I Stay' and she talks about the story better than I ever will! Check out her post HERE.

The Best of Me

Another movie I enjoyed this month was The Best of Me! Let me tell you though, this movie is a roller coaster of emotions. The story revolves around two people who were once high-school sweethearts but because of circumstances, were forced apart. However, their paths join again during a funeral of a common friend, and as with all Nicholas Sparks' books, beautiful drama follows. I won't give more away but I would say that this movie was definitely worth crying over! :)

BBW's Merry Marshmallow Kiss

Yes, I'm still using holiday scented things shamelessly! This scent from Bath and Body Works is the perfect mix of sweet and fruity. Contrary to it's name, you can't smell the marshmallow in this, which I'm a-okay with.

TimeHop

There's nothing I cherish more than memories! This app is the perfect companion for someone who loves to reminisce. It's an app that's basically a time machine. You just link your social media accounts on the app, and let it take care of the rest. Every day, you get little "throw back" pictures/posts that you put up on that day in the past. It's a great concept and I'm glad someone thought to create this. Did I mention it's free, too? A+! ;)

Music

So, Meghan Trainor's new album 'Title' was released this month and I've been playing it on repeat since then! Every song on the album is catchy and super sassy and I applaud Meghan for making an incredible record! My sister, friends and I all joke around that we each have a song that was specifically written for us. My personal favorites include '3 am', 'My Selfish Heart', 'Credit', and 'Walkashame'.

YouTube - Thatcher Joe

I'm always on YouTube and lately my favorite to watch has been Thatcher Joe AKA Joseph Sugg. He makes really funny and creative videos that are always super entertaining to watch! My all time favorite one he's done has got to to be the YouTuber whispers video! You can check out his channel HERE.

Passing my licensure exam!

Honestly speaking, once you get into the Nursing field, the exams never really stop, even if you're already out of school. It's a job that can somehow be both a blessing and a curse! This past month, I was told that I would be taking the Kuwait nursing licensure examination and I was about ready to pee my pants!!! It's been something I was wanting to do for quite sometime now so I was kind of excited about it but along with that, I was also SUPER nervous and anxious. Thankfully, I made it though - YAAAYYY! :O

Sorry, I literally still cannot grasp the reality of it.

*

How was YOUR January? I'm always interested to know, so please, feel free to use the comment box below! Tell me what you loved or hated or what are you excited about for next month? So many new posts are coming your way so watch out!


Kisses,

S

Two Years

Well well well, will you look at this little slacker who finally decided to revisit her blog?! Heh heh heh! ^.^ I think we've all finally established that I'm not really one to stick to any plans I make, yeah? With that said, I wanted to give you all a warm welcome with my first post for 2015! I realized today that it's been exactly two years since I put up my first post on this blog!! Can you believe it - TWO years! That's actually really crazy for me. Although I've been a little absent over the past few months, this little blog has been my happy place. Even when I'm not posting, I'm always looking back on old posts and this may sound a little silly, but they make me smile.

I find it so bizarre how much difference a year can make, let alone two. Two years ago, I never would've imagined I would be where I am right now. Since then, I've welcomed so many new things and people into my life, and also learned to let go of the ones that weren't good for me. A lot has happened over the past two years but I'm happy that this little space I've created on the Internet has somehow remained constant. Initially, I had no direction where I wanted to take this blog (honestly speaking though, I still don't!) but I knew that I just wanted to have a space where I can share my thoughts, ideas and stories. So, I'd like to thank The Wonder Canyon for being just that for me, and also thank YOU for being a part of this! Whether you've been here from the start or just happened to stumble upon this blog, I want to say thank you! I have a lot of ideas for future posts and I'm looking forward to watch them hopefully come to life soon!

Here's to another two years!

Kisses, 

S