Fancy But Frugal

~ Aloha ~ Most of you know already that Jon and I go on an "annual honeymoon". It’s usual somewhere warm and romantic, and it’s more of a splurge than our normal trips. This year was a tough choice between Portugal and Hawaii, but on a whim, we decided to go to Hawaii – and boy, was it awesome! We’d both been to Hawaii before (him to Oahu and me to Maui), so we picked Maui based on flight prices. We booked the resort through Amex (we have a Platinum card and it has the best benefits – seriously check it out here !) and got a great deal on the Waldorf Astoria Grand Wailea resort ( P.S. it's a Hilton partner, so you get all the Hilton Honors perks - aka free upgrade, free breakfast, resort credit, etc. ). I heard that this resort was “ Disney World for Adults ”, and I’d agree. This was the best resort I’ve ever stayed it – and that says a lot!! I could easily go on and on about this vacation, but I’ll spare you and give you the cliff notes version. I’ve put ...

Hola amigos! Here is a quick recap of my #monthlydoseof challenges for   July and   August!   ___________________________________________________ July was a very “adult” challenge month. I’m still trying to pretend like my body is in my 20s... eating and drinking whatever I want, not worrying about wrinkles, and only exercising when I feel like it and not because I need to. Sadly, I'm not in my twenties anymore 😭 and this new decade has hit me like a ton of bricks. In trying to be a real adult, I started thinking about my skin care routine... which is all but non-existent. I wash my face in the shower sometimes, and I rarely take off my makeup before going to bed. (Gross, I know.) I recently saw a friend's face looking bright and fresh and told my husband (who is in the beauty industry): “I want skin like that... I want it to look wet all the time”. My hubs promptly stated that it’s called “dewy”, not wet. 🤣 Well, whatever it’s called, that’s what I wan...

Hi guys! 👋 Long time no talk. I've been off of social media (we'll get to that later), so I wanted to catch you up on what I've been up to the past 2 months for my #monthlydoseof challenges! I'll keep it short and sweet, promise!  MAY My challenge for the month of May was to get a #monthlydoseof meditation . Speaking of meditation, does this conversation sound familiar  to you: Them: "Hey, do you meditate?" You: "Ugh, I've tried, but I'm SOOOO bad at it"  This used to be me to a T. I love the idea of meditating, but I always end up daydreaming, praying, or falling asleep. I knew I wanted to give it a sincere shot this month, so I enlisted a little help with the Oak App (link here ). It has sessions for meditation, breathing, and sleeping, and yo u can personalize the session by choosing which voice is used, the type of background noise and the length of the session.  The app looks like this:  During May, I did 5-minut...

Ciao, bella! Just a quick blog to summarize a cheap, easy, and fun trip Italy! There are a few things you need to get started: quick fingers, $400, and a spontaneous spirit! ✈💼 Where did we go? We visited Milan and Lake Como, Italy over 4 days. How did we get there? Call it luck, website error, or whatever you want. While searching for a Memorial Day trip on a third-party website (initially looking at the Caribbean or Puerto Rico), I stumbled upon a $400 direct, round-trip flight to Milan, Italy with perfect flight times. Pretty sure that it was a mistake, I yell across the room to Jon “I don’t know if this is legit, but let’s try it!”.  Boom . Booked. Fast forward to a couple hours later the airline when the airline tries to cancel our ticket, because it was indeed a mistake. In comes my husband’s charm. “But sir, we received a confirmation and have already booked accommodation, tours, everything. I assume you will be refunding us the full cost of this trip?”...

This month’s challenge was slightly different than the others. Drum roll please…. I had a #monthlydose of No Coffee! I didn't do “no caffeine” - because I'm not a complete psycho. I wanted to specifically cut down on coffee because I feel like it's a mental addiction ( maybe physical too?? ).  Also, since joining the work force, I’ve needed my morning coffee to lure me out of bed. No coffee, no wakey . And there have been times where I've had a 2-3 cups a day to get through busy days. It’s been a crutch I lean on for quick energy, but I know that there are other, healthier ways to get that fix. (Let me know all of your ideas - I’ve heard lemon water!?). 🍋  I also was looking back at college pictures (I didn't drink coffee until after I graduated college), and my teeth were so white . Don't get me wrong, I still brush my teeth the normal amount that you’re supposed to, but it has stained them and messed with my pH level (per my dentist). Further, most...

24.  That’s the number of people who messaged me to tell me their own story after news broke of our miscarriage.  24.  An astonishingly high number of people in my own circle who quietly had a miscarriage; some who had  never told anyone  because of guilt, shame, and fear of what others would think.  24.  Why is this such a taboo topic? How can society give women the courage and strength to share their story? How can you be a safe person for your friend who just had a miscarriage? It’s hard; I get it. I never knew what to say (or not say) when my friends had a miscarriage. Here are some tips from my experience of how to comfort someone during this time: • Don’t ask why . Please educate yourself. A quick Google search will tell you that most of the time, miscarriages happen due to chromosomal issues. Something just didn’t match up right. Even knowing this, I can assure you that the mom is replaying every move she made and every food she ate, w...

During March, I got my  #monthlydose  of   Yoga! Traditionally, I'm a fair-weather yoga fan. I go through phases of practicing and then I won't do it for another year. I enjoy it but don't prioritize it for financial, time, or whatever reasons, but I know the benefits of it are real. This year, two different doctors have recommended that I start practicing yoga for stress relief and and to help with tension in my head and neck, so this month's challenge was   literally   what the doctor ordered .  So what did I do? I was budget friendly of course ( #fancybutfrugal ) and did an at-home yoga program through Beach Body on Demand (it's like Netflix for workouts and so affordable! Check it out here:  https://www.beachbodyondemand.com/ ). I did the 3-Week Yoga Retreat over 4 weeks so that I would have a few rest days each week. It's a beginner/introductory yoga program, and each session is only ~30 minutes. Very doable for almost anyone, and I highly ...