My Week in Pictures!

This past week has been quite insane but in the best way! I flew out to my home away from home, Philippines, and it feels amazing to be back here. The food is incredible (as it has always been) and the weather has been surprisingly forgiving. I've been meeting up with some of my college friends and a few of my relatives as well and that has been nice. Also! This past week, I challenged myself to try out a few new things! I thought I'd summarize my trip so far in this little photo dump. ^_^

This was my favorite part of the flight! When they dimmed the lights, there were stars that lit up the ceiling. It was so beautiful, this picture doesn't do it justice!

I guess you could say I'm an Oreo cheesecake enthusiast! I've tried a LOT of them, but I always go back to this particular one from my favorite cafe in Bacolod, Calea. I legitimately teared up when this got to my table!

My sister and I had really bad jet lag the first night so we just ended up taking a ton of pictures heh heh ;)

I was so happy I got a chance to visit my 'Silay Sundays' house and church family! They're some of the sweetest people I know and they've helped me through so much! :)

I've noticed a lot of Milk Tea places opening up around town and I've been to this one last year and it was so good, I had to come back! Plus points to the people who work here because they're one of the few that can get the actual spelling of my name right without me telling them! :)

I got together with a few of my friends from college and we all planned a trip to a mountain resort that opened up recently! It was filled with a bunch of random things, hence Mr. King Kong in the background!

That's me pathetically trying to pretend I'm caught in Spiderman's web.

They also had a rope course that you can go on! I tried it out with one of my friends but wow, it definitely looked way easier than it actually was! It took us about 2 hours to finish the entire thing and although I was so close to giving up multiple times, I'm really happy I pushed myself all the way to the end. We also tried the zipline! It was my first time and I literally wanted to pee my pants but it was so fun! 

My absolute favorite meal on this trip so far was served in this floating restaurant!

Shoe twinning with my sister! ;)

Two of our best friends graduated this past week and I'm so happy we made it out to watch them!

Who says chocolate shakes are just for kids, yeah? While everyone celebrated growing up, I gave a little tribute to the chocoholic 6 year old within me, celebrating staying young.

Kisses,

S

What I Loved in February!

Hey everyone! I know I’ve gone on a little hiatus these past few weeks and this post is way overdue but I thought I’d still put it up anyway. I’m currently on holiday and I’ve really been enjoying being lazy (obviously) that I couldn’t even bring my fingers to type up a post. However, here I am now so let’s talk about all the great things that I found myself loving last month!

Baking

Wow, did I do a lot of baking in February! I tried my hand at baking my first red velvet dessert (you can see the outcome HERE)! Baking is one of the few activities that I can work on for hours and it still manages to relax me.

The Spectacular Now (Movie & Book)

I first heard Megan Parken talk about The Spectacular Now in THIS video and I was immediately sold when she mentioned it being similar to the likes of A Walk to Remember, which is one of my all-time favorite movies. Of course, I checked it out for myself and I completely fell in love with the story. I read the book first and then saw the movie. I personally like doing it this way but I guess you could see the movie first if you wanted to because the stories are slightly different, but equally great. I’m the worst at summarizing stories without giving the entire plot away so that's all I'm going to say about it!

Apps

OKAY so I finally climbed on the band wagon in February and downloaded Flappy Bird. Easily, I got sucked into it. My high score is currently 27! (Yesss, I am actually very proud! ^_^) Since Flappy Bird was removed from the iTunes store, a ton of similar apps came out but my favorite ‘spin off’ app would have to be Fall Out Bird! It’s even better because Fall Out Boy songs play in the background of the game! Personally, the little Pete floating head gives me the most luck! ;)

When I updated to iOS7, one of my favorite things included with the update was the weather app! Like come on, how cool are the graphics whenever there’s a thunderstorm or snow or even a starlit sky?! Anyway, since then, I’ve found another weather app I’ve come to love and it’s the Yahoo! Weather app. It’s more precise than the one Apple offers and although I don’t get the satisfaction of seeing animation across my screen, it’s still pretty decent.

Okay the last app I want to talk about today is the Akinator! I was introduced to this by my sister and honestly, I was a little freaked out by it at first! I couldn't understand how an app could literally know who I was thinking about but now I love it! It's a paid app but it's so fun, it's worth every cent!

Dry Brushing

The idea of dry brushing may come off as weird at first but it's actually flowing with benefits! I only recently started dry brushing and I'm loving the results so far. I'm actually thinking of making a whole blog post about this!

YouTube

Generally, I watch a lot of YouTube videos but I've enjoyed watching two people in particular this past month - Meghan from meghanrosette & Arden from ardenrose186. They're both really sweet girls with unique personalities and their videos are super entertaining to watch.

Music

Finally, for music, I've gone back to an old favorite band - Fall Out Boy! They dropped an album, Save Rock and Roll, a while back but I only got the chance to listen to it recently. My favorite songs off of this album are 'Young Volcanoes', 'Alone Together', 'Miss Missing You' and 'Save Rock and Roll'.

I hope you all are enjoying this month so far! It's been amazing to have time off work. I will be back next month with more posts, hopefully! Love you all. ♡

Kisses,

S

My Top 10: Favorite Feelings

Yikes, I guess we're talking about feelings today, everyone's favorite (please sense my sarcasm, or lack thereof? :P) Anyway, I'm excited about today's post because I'm announcing a new series I'm starting on my blog! It's going to be called "My Top 10"! I'm going to be talking about a wide array of things so hopefully, I stick to it! I've been playing around with this idea in my head for a while now and I've decided to just give it a go and see how it works out.

So, for my first top 10 of things I want to talk about, I decided to share some of my all time favorite feelings. 

1) Getting in bed after a long day, and waking up and seeing that I still have a few more hours to sleep.

2) When my hard work is appreciated.

3) Eating (naturally...).

4) Catching a really good internet connection (even better if it's free!).

5) Being surrounded by love.

6) Laughing until my stomach feels funny.

7) Post-poop feelings.

8) Water going down my throat when I'm really thirsty.

9) Traveling, discovering new places and meeting new people.

10) Listening to my favorite songs (and screaming out the lyrics).

Of course, there's still a lot more than I mentioned above but I want to know, what's YOUR favorite feeling? Let me know in the comments below! 

Kisses,

S

Monday Motivation: March #1

One of my favorite things is finding inspiration in everyday things; things I otherwise overlook. Another one of my favorite things is rediscovering things I previously loved. 

Earlier this week, I pulled out an old favorite book from my shelf and decided to re-read it. As I flicked through the pages, I was immediately pulled into the story, drowning (in the best way) in the words all over again and I remembered just why I loved it so much in the first place. Isn't that a great feeling? Remembering the reasons why you loved something/someone?

Here's my challenge for you today. Go dig up something you once used to love: an old book, a song, movie, a clothing item, anything really and take a step back and think about all the reasons that got you to fall in love with it. 

Kisses,

S

Monday Motivation: February #4

Okay how is it that February is already coming to an end? I did not even feel last week go by at all! Hey, I'm not complaining though because you know what? March is coming up and I FINALLY get to go on holiday!!!! (I could keep going on with the exclamations I promise you.) So as much as I hate to see this month end, I cannot wait until next month! 

Anyway, enough about me! All day yesterday, I was thinking of what I wanted to share in today's post and you know how some days you have a thousand thoughts/second and some days it's just blank? Yeah well I currently have a thousand things I want to talk to you guys about and although normally that's a great thing, I'm scared that if I attempt to put it to words, it'll all end up as a ramble, kind of like what's happening right now! Today, I really wanted to talk about something that's been on my mind for a while and it's all about fitting in. So let's just jump into it okay? :)

In a world where everyone is trying to fit in, the best thing you can do is to just be yourself to stand out. You know, whenever I meet new people, the thing that helps me remember them right after is when they have a unique personality. No two people were created alike, and that's the thing that fascinates me. I always look for that something in someone that makes them stand out and sometimes I even point it out to them to let them know how unique they are! So if there's something quirky about you, embrace it instead of trying to hide it! It's what makes you different. Don't waste your time and energy trying to be like everyone else because in all honestly, there's just one of you and that's what makes life interesting and exciting. Just be yourself, "embrace the weird" because let's be real, 'normal' is so boring.

I've also decided to share a few quotes on this topic!

"There are people who are generic. They make generic responses and they expect generic answers. They live inside a box and they think people who don't fit into their box are weird. But I'll tell you what, generic people are the weird people. They are like genetically-manipulated plants growing inside a laboratory, like indistinguishable faces, like droids. Like ignorance."

- C. JoyBell C. -

"I think fitting in is highly overrated. I’d rather just fit out... Fitting out means being who you are, even when people insist that you have to change. Fitting out means taking up space, not apologizing for yourself, and not agreeing with those who seek to label you with stereotypes."

- Golda Poretsky -

"If you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be."

- Maya Angelou -

I hope you all have a fantastic rest of the month!

Kisses,

S

Monday Motivation: February #3

Hey guys! I hope you all had a great Valentine's weekend, no matter how you chose to spend it! My brother's birthday also happens to fall on Valentine's day so we had a nice little family brunch. The only thing I hate about Valentine's day is how love is only glorified during this time when it should really be all the time, yeah? ♡

Anyway! I'm not the best at putting words together but I came across something online that just placed everything I wish I could tell someone (myself included) into words and of course, I wanted to share it with you guys!

• I’ve learned that you cannot make someone love you. All you can do is be someone who can be loved. The rest is up to them;
• I’ve learned that no matter how much I care, some people just don’t care back;
• I’ve learned that it takes years to build up trust, and only seconds to destroy it.
• I’ve learned that you can get by on charm, for about fifteen minutes. After that, you’d better know something;
• I’ve learned that either you control your attitude or it controls you.
• I’ve learned that no matter how hot and steamy a relationship is at first, the passion fades and there had better be something else to take it’s place.
• I’ve learned that sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you’re downhill are the ones to help you get back up.
• I’ve learned that sometimes when I’m angry I have the right to be angry.
• I’ve learned that true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love.
• I’ve learned that just because someone doesn’t love you the way you want them to doesn’t mean that they don’t love you with all they have.
• I’ve learned that maturity had more to do with what types of experiences you’ve had and what you’ve learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you’ve celebrated.
• I’ve learned that your family won’t always be there for you.
• I’ve learned that no matter how good a friend is, they’re going to hurt you every once in a while.
• I’ve learned that it isn’t always enough to be forgiven by others. Sometimes you have to forgive yourself.
• I’ve learned that no matter how bad your heart is broken, the world doesn’t stop for your grief.
• I’ve learned that our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.
• I’ve learned that just because two people argue, it doesn’t mean they don’t love each other. And just because they don’t argue, it doesn’t mean they do.
• I’ve learned that we don’t have to change friends if we understand that friends change.
• I’ve learned that two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different.
• I’ve learned that no matter how you try to protect your children, they will eventually get hurt and you will get hurt in the process.
• I’ve learned that your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don’t even know you.
• I’ve learned that it’s hard to determine where to draw the line between being nice and not hurting people’s feelings and standing up for what you believe.

I wish I could frame this and hang it up somewhere in my room as a constant reminder! They're all excellent points and I hope they spoke to you somehow!

I want to know! What's one thing you learned this past week/month or just something you recently learned that you want to share? Please leave it in the comments below and I'd be more than happy to read it!

Hoping everyone has a great week ahead!

Kisses,

S

V-Day Treats: Surprise Sweetheart Cupcakes

To close off this year's Valentine recipes, I decided to share a recipe that's one of my all time personal favorites! What I love about it most is that the cupcakes look ordinary but once you cut through them, you'll find a little surprise inside! ;)

Ingredients: 

1 (18.25 ounce) package white cake mix
1 1/4 cups water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 egg whites
8 drops red food coloring
2 drops almond extract

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350F (175C) degrees . Line a standard muffin tin with paper cupcake liners.

2) Beat the cake mix, water, vegetable oil, and egg whites together on low speed for 30 seconds, then on medium for 2 minutes, until smooth. Fill cupcake liners 1/3 full with white batter; set aside.

3) Stir 4 drops of red food coloring into the remaining bowl of batter to make the batter pink, stir in almond extract. Pour 1/3 of pink batter into a resealable plastic bag/piping bag and set aside.

4) Mix more food coloring into the remaining bowl of pink batter until it is an orange/red color and pour the batter into a resealable plastic bag/piping bag. Stick the open tip into the center of each cup of white batter and squeeze in about two tablespoons of red batter.

5) Stick the open tip of the pink batter into the center of the red batter and squeeze about 1 tablespoon pink batter into each cup.

6) Bake the layered cupcakes in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.  Makes about 24 regular sized cupcakes.

*Recipe adapted from AllRecipes*

You can choose to frost them or just leave them the way they are! They actually remind me of a Sprinkles cupcake this way.

Fun fact: I took these pictures just a few minutes before I had to head to work so I was pretty much in such a rush and my only regret is that I wish I could've shown you guys how cute the center of the mini cupcakes are!

Nonetheless, I'm quite happy with the way they turned out! I get giddy every time I reach the center and see the pink and red colors! ^_^

If you try this out, please show me how they turn out! Link your pictures to my Twitter or Instagram (@mykiwiseed) or if you decided to make a blog post about it, feel free to leave your links in the comments below! I'll definitely check them out! 

I hope you all have a splendid time this Valentine's Day, no matter who or what you're spending it with! 

I love you all! Good luck.

Kisses,

S