A Guide to Yelp

We are Yelp obsessed. SO OBSESSED. Maybe a little too obsessed. I'm sure that's not that surprising with what foodies we are, which we do post about frequently, but Yelp really is the most wonderful foodie tool around. It's easily one of the top 5 apps I use on my phone. 

Upon moving to VA is when we really started using the app and I quickly became rather compulsive about reviewing every single place we went to. After about a year of hardcore Yelping I got an email letting me know that I was nominated as an Elite Yelper! Not honestly sure how it happened, but I was (and still am) pretty excited about it. 

                                                                                                                                You basically become  Elite if you have an active profile with quality content. And (not always, but usually) your reviews are highly recommended to other Yelpers upon viewing a business's page. I pride myself on overly detailed reviews and quality photos of nearly every place we visit. But you certainly don't have to be Elite to thoroughly enjoy and benefit from Yelp. 

Pretty much all of our favorite restaurants have been found through Yelp. So I decided to compile some tips on how to get the most out of Yelp. 

Download the app
     The app is a must. You can certainly get a lot of Yelp just from their desktop site, and I often use it to make updates to my profile, as well as plotting out a wish list of restaurants leading up to a trip (more on that later). But so often Bear and I will be out and about, and decide we want to look for something to eat. 

How to Search

 To start, I hit Nearby, and Restaurants. 
Then I hit "Filter" on the upper left hand corner, select my price range I want to stay in, 
slide over the "Open Now" option (for obvious reasons) and scroll down to "Sort By" and select "Rating". 
I feel like this is the best way to narrow down my results quickly. I then scan through to see what looks good, and do a quick scan of the photos and reviews. 















Planning Ahead
     If we have plans to go somewhere new, or are planning a trip out of town, I will open up the app or go online and input the specific location we will be in. You can put the general city, or the specific address and view restaurants near that. Again, always searching by highest rated. I will then bookmark the ones that look appealing, and then discuss them with Bear when it comes time to decide where to go. 

Check-In (get coupons!)
     This is something I will often forget to do, but some restaurants will offer check-in discounts through Yelp. Sometimes you have to use them within a certain amount of time, sometimes you can save them for later. But it's good to check upon arriving to the restaurant. I can't tell you how many times I have checked into a place upon leaving only to discover I missed out on a coupon! 

 Reviews
     I spent a while using Yelp but without posting reviews. But being that I already often take pictures of what I eat I figured I might give back to the community that had helped me find so many yummy restaurants. For my review I try to give pros and cons covering; the cleanliness of the place, the quality of the service, what I ordered and my thoughts on the food, if I felt the prices were fair in comparison to the portion sizes, and if I would be willing to return or not. Additionally, if their seating and ordering is not clear (not sure if you seat yourself, if they bring the check to you or not) I will make note of that as well so people know what to expect if something is out of the ordinary. Photos are not vital but rather important to the review. If reasonably possible, I like to request to sit near windows to ensure I have nice natural lighting in my pictures. 

 (A series of photos for a recent review)

Unless there was something really atrocious about my visit, I like to give any place at least two chances before I say whether or not I would return. I'm not too hard to please, and being that I usually only visit highly reviewed places, I don't often have many bad experiences. 

 Hopefully that helps! Feel free to follow Bear and myself! 

Happy Yelping! 

The Beginners Guide to Gel Nails

After getting my first gel manicure done for my my best girls wedding back in November I fell in love and became obsessed! So shiny, so pretty and so long lasting. But I did not fall in love with the price tag! About $45 every two weeks? 

No thank you. 

So for Christmas my family got me everything I needed to do gel nails myself. Yay! It is a bit time consuming and there is a learning curve, so I figured I would share what I have learned over the past couple months and help ease you into doing gel nails at home. 

Granted I am not a professional, this is just what I have found that works for me. If you have any tips you wish to share, please do!

I did lots and lots and lots and lots of reading up on gel nail kits and tips before deciding what to get. You can get kits including everything you need from Walmart, Amazon, even Sephora has their own brand, all ranging from $50 to $150. I ended getting some SentatioNail , some Sally Hansen and some Gelish products. My plans are to buy a little from each brand so I can do a post on what I like the best, so keep an eye out for that post in the future! From the ones I have used so far I really don't feel like there is that much of a difference from each one. 

There were tons of different blog posts that I read on what tips to follow - this blog post from Lulu & Sweet Pea and this blog post from Beautezine were the most helpful to me. Feel free to jump over there and read what those girls had to share as well!

So let's get started. This will be a bit of a lengthy post, so get settled in! 

Here is everything you need;

UV or LED light - Click here for the one I got from Amazon 

Lotion with SPF - Sorry, forgot to include that in the pictures! Needed only if you are using a UV lamp.

Cuticle cream/oil

Nail clippers

Nail buff and file

Cuticle pusher  - You can get bulk orange wood sticks from Amazon for cheap!

Cuticle clipper
Nail cleanser - or just 99% isopropyl alcohol which you can get for super cheap at any drugstore
Lint Free nail wipes - pictured below which I bought for cheap at Sally Beauty Supply, MUST BE LINT FREE
Dual Tipped applicators - (optional) I'll show below what I use these for

Gel base and top coat
Gel nail polish (duh!)
(and for down the road) Gel remover - again you can buy in bulk for cheap from any drugstore 

And from trying out all the techniques I learned, this is what has been working for me;

1. Starting with clean nails - clip nails and cuticles - It's important to make sure your cuticles are pushed down and clipped out of the way to ensure you don't get the gel on your skin. If I skip this and just tell myself, "Oh I can be careful and avoid getting it on the cuticles." I end up with the gel peeling up from my cuticles within a few days. Boo!

2. Buff nails - To help make sure your gel adheres nicely to your nails, it helps to have smooth nails. No need to spend forever doing this, just enough to smooth out any lines or bumps. Plus, this helps buff off any possible remaining nail polish from your last manicure to ensure you are working with a clean surface.

3. Cleanse nail - I bought some Sally Hansen nail cleansing wipes, but went through them pretty fast. So I bought 99% isopropyl alcohol and lint free wipes which work perfectly and end up being cheaper then buying cleansing wipes. This will get rid of the dust from buffing your nails, as well as make sure you have no oils or anything else that would prevent the gel from adhering properly.

- At this point, some people use a nail primer. I have a nail primer from SentatioNail, but I don't feel like it makes any difference if I use it or not, so that's up to you! -

4. Apply a thin layer of gel base coat - Be careful to not do too much as it can pool at the edges of your nail and not cure nicely. Also, be sure to thoroughly coat the tip of the nail, "sealing" it as they say, to ensure it does not peel up from the tip. I also use an orange stick around the edge of the nail to wipe away any gel I may have gotten on the skin. 

5. Cure nail(s) under lamp - I only need to do it 45 seconds, but the time needed will depend on your lamp.

- I start with both thumbs, and then do the remaining nails, one hand at a time. -

6. Apply gel nail polish and cure nail, again for another 45 seconds, depending on your lamp. I then repeat this, doing a second layer, third, and sometimes a forth layer, curing after each layer. Some people do a clear layer between each color polish layer but I haven't found that this makes my manicure last any longer.

-Before curing the color polish I will take a remover soaked dual tipped applicator to remove the polish that I got on the skin-

7. Add gel top coat, again, being careful to not do it too thick to avoid pooling, and thoroughly coating the tip of the nail to "seal" it. And cure for one final time.

8. Remove tacky layer - And finally, you are almost done, but you will find your nails to be a bit sticky, or "tacky". To remove this stickiness, clean nail with alcohol soaked lint free wipe. The wipes must be lint free for this step to avoid leaving lint behind. After this you should have smooth, shiny, lovely nails!

At this point I rub on a little cuticle oil and that's it! You are done! Congrats! If done right gel nails should last up to two weeks. 

And make sure to soak off that polish! Don't peel it off ladies! I am telling you from personal experience, this will seriously damage your nails. It's called soak off for a reason. All you need to do is take a cotton ball soaked in gel remover, place that on your nail, and wrap your finger in tin foil, soaking for 15-20 minutes. 

Clearly this is a bit of a time consuming process, but don't let that scare you off! Once you get the hang of it it will become a pretty easy process. 

And don't throw out all your old nail polishes just yet! Next up I will be sharing how to use your standard nail polishes for gel nails!

Good luck and enjoy! 

Some Movies

It's been a good while since I reviewed any movies on here, so why not!


Captain America

Dave and I saw this one a few weeks ago and it was actually a lot better then I expected it to be. It reveals some things that will prove to be really interesting in coming Marvel movies. Plus it's fun to live near DC know and be more familiar with the city. Minus that huge Shield building, not sure where that one is. (haha) Don't forget to stay for BOTH after credit scenes! 

#poorBucky 

Philomena

I rented this movie just wanting something to watch one night while Dave worked late. I didn't expect much, but wow, such a powerful, amazing movie, and from what I understand, it kept quite close to the true story. I cried my eyes out. It's a little slow, but so sweet and touching. I can not imagine being in her shoes. Such heartbreak! And it made me really so grateful for this church I have been raised in. I won't spoil the story, but this is seriously a must watch, a must own. 

Saving best for last...


About Time

Again, another movie I rented one night when Dave worked late, some chick flick that I didn't expect much of. But oh my goodness. Amazing. One of the sweetest movies I think I have ever watched. The message is just amazing. A simple but beautiful love story all about making the most of life, of each day. Plus, Bill Nighy is my favorite. Again, I won't spoil the story, but it really is a must watch, a must own. I even got Dave to watch it and he even loved it. We talked about it for like an hour afterwards. And yes, it is rated R, but honestly it is the most tame R movie you will ever see, I promise! 

I also may have watched the Wolf of Wall Street. And kinda loved it.

Mockingjay Review

So, trying to keep to my goal of reading at least one book a month I finally read the last in the Hunger Games series, Mockingjay. Oh my good heavens, what a waste of my time. I kept reading it, hoping that it would eventually get better, but it never did. I can honestly 100% say that was the all time worst book I have ever read. I am absolutely shocked that they are splitting it into two movies. How in the helk do they plan on doing that? I wanted to give myself some time between reading it and writing a blog post about it, but the fury I felt still lingers! Honestly I haven't really read anything since I finished it because I am scared of being so let down by yet another book! But I have started reading Bossypants by Tina Fey (which has been a little disappointing but I'm still fighting through it...)

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

My first issue with Mockingjay, since it had been awhile since I read the other ones, I had forgotten how gory these are. One of the reasons I hate them. I don't want my children to ever read these books. No one under 16 should read this series but especially this last book. As an aspiring author I think that is what the most difficult for me to stomach. That someone came up with such a gory and twisted story. And it only makes it worse that it's geared to teens who LOVE IT. Yikes.

I've found it hard to find a book with a main character I really love. I can't think of a book I have read since Harry Potter where I don't find the main character dreadfully whiny and annoying. Katniss is no exception and is even worse. In the previous book she was annoying, but at least she was strong willed and at least something somewhat good to look up to as a strong girl. But in this last book she just dissolves into a drug obsessed depressed mess, who has no control of her life, and doesn't seem to even care to have control. She literally gives up. 

The ending wasn't as depressing as people painted it out to be. It has a relatively happy ending - mostly - she ends up with Peeta and lives mostly happily ever after - begrudgingly becoming a mother.

The entire book really drags. I had to force myself to read it not just skip to the end and read the last few chapters, which I wish I would have done. They are really splitting it into two movies? How? Part one will be boring as hell. Don't waste your time reading this book. I really hope they take some serious liberties to make it more hopeful, and paint Katniss as a better example for girls to look up to.

2013 Resolutions - In Review

It's come to be that time of year - reviewing all of my resolutions for this year. Some things I feel like I failed at, but some I am happy did actually work out! This year has not panned out how I thought it would, but it's been fun! Stay tuned for a re-cap post of all the best times from this year! 

2013 Resolutions

"Relax --- I am seriously the biggest stress case known to man. I don't sleep well, I often have head aches and have began to think my frequent being nauseous may be a form of a panic attack."

Yes and no. I think I have honestly let go of a lot of stress I was feeling last year and at the beginning of the year. And I think a huge part of that was quitting my previous job, thank heavens! I feel much happier. 

But there is one thing I need to be better about - procrastinating. I am really bad about dealing with things in a timely manner which causes me lots of anxiety.  Mainly in regards to taking care of normal adult chores - my current hurtle - renewing the registration on my car. It causes me so much anxiety to just think about it that I literally break down. I don't know why, and it drives me nuts. UGH. So here's to being more on top of taking care of my adult duties, like an adult. 

"Reset (everything) --- As I wanted to last year, I don't feel I really accomplished it, I want a lot of change. I think we are getting more of a direction of knowing what to do with ourselves (finally) which helps."

Haha -  We certainly experienced a lot of change! I still feel we are not really sure of our direction - and moving to VA was certainly unexpected. But again, I really think we are getting closer to a new scary/exciting direction.... We'll see what this next year has in store for us! 

"Run (get out) --- This has a few resolutions warped up in one. Run, as in work out. And I want to get out on hikes, go geocaching, all the things I know Dave loves but that we don't really do.

We have been much healthier in how we eat. We eat much cleaner, a lot more veggies and fruit and all that good stuff. I feel like I have learned a lot about what's healthy for me, and I've been better at being less picky! There are still things we both want to work on but I am happy with our changes and growth so far this year. 

"Create --- I want to write more. I would like to have at least one book ready to e-publish by the summer."

Ha, fail! Totally have not done that. I have written SOME, but I have been having a really awful time getting the inspiration flowing. But I have recently come to realize that when I was more creative I was reading much more, usually 3 books at a time! I have not been reading at all, so time to start reading new books and re-reading old favorites to help spark some creativity, hopefully. 

Become a flight attendant. I want an new job, but that would be a sweet one to get.

I became a substitute teacher! For like a brief month before moving to VA. But it was such a treat. I loved every minute of it. Especially the one time a third grader drew an absolutely darling picture of me, and another told me "Everyone says you look like Snow White". Be still my heart! I also started subbing in my own High School for my own old Photography teacher. It. Was. Awesome. I will be going back to do that again! 

Visit a tropical beach.

Kinda

Close enough.

Start making my own clothes.

Nope. Still want to.

Read more (currently reading the Great Gatsby for the first time)

Finished Gatsby, but other then that, nope.


Get to bed earlier
Get up earlier

Bahahaha

Eat more raw (mainly fruit and veggies)

Yes! Yay!

Happy Monday!