Actions Speak Louder than Words

A lot was said, but never with words.

Outside of us there are things I wish I could take back.

The feel of your lips, the touch of your skin.

Running my fingertips across your arms and cheeks.

Just one look into your eyes.

Feeling your heartbeat with my hands.

Reality intertwining with fantasy.

A conversation without words.

A conversation within the heart.




A heart crushed by reality. . .

Music to Capture the Seasonal Feeling: Winter Session

Hey everyone! So in my last "Music to Capture the Seasonal Feeling" post I focused on music that would capture the Autumn feel. Well, now it's time to create our own Winter Wonderland. When I think of Winter I think of cuddling up in a warm blank or with a significant other. Winter is definitely a season for love. And Christmas and the giving spirit of course. Here are some of the songs that I've been listening to and enjoying during this bundle up season. For me, these songs aren't too energetic and not too slow to where they bore me, They're perfect. :) Enjoy!

Yours Truly,
Carla Renee
xoxo

"Blue Electric Roses"- Travis Garland
I recently came across Travis Garland on YouTube and apparently he's been an active artist for awhile. This song is amazing! I've had this song on constant rotation on my iPod for awhile. He's a really good artist and this song is perfect for that cool winter feel.











"Wrap Me Up"- Jhene Aiko
I decided to explore Jhene Aiko's music after noticing her appearances on Drake's most recent album 'Nothing Was the Same'. This song has been out for a few years I think, but I have a feeling that when it was first released it was released around Christmas time. Since a line in her songs says, "Every December you'd make sure you're here...". It's a great song to cuddle to, haha.












"Christmas Eve"- Justin Bieber
This song is like a year or two old, but I still listen to it. It's so cute! I love this song a lot. I'm not going to lie, I listen to this song year around. It's a great song for any couple, young or old. It's just a cute song, I love it, it's perfect for the holiday season.

"Kiss Me"- Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran is an amazing artist. I think I've said that before in my last music post. This song is one of my all time favorites by him. The lyrics make me think of staying inside the house by the fire with a significant other while it's raining or snowing outside. I listen to this song all the time.

"Furthest Thing/ Hold On We're Going Home"- Ginette Claudette
Ginette Claudette is an up and coming artist that I came across on YouTube. She has an album already out called "Everything's Coming Up Roses". It's a really nice album. Ginette recently did her own rendition of two of Drake's songs "Furthest Thing" and "Hold On We're Going Home". It's one of my covers. It has a really nice r&b feel that I love oh so much.

"Woman's Worth"- Maxwell
This song is pretty old, but it's still so beautiful. This guy's voice is amazing and he still has his phenomenal voice today. "Woman's Worth" is one of many songs of his Now album, which in my opinion is one of his best albums ever. To be honest I don't have a clear understanding of what the song is about. I think I know, but regardless, if someone dedicated this song to me I would be flattered.

"Latch" (Acoustic Version)- Sam Smith
I think this song has been out for awhile, but I never knew what it was called. I found this song from watching a choreography done by Julie Zhan on YouTube. Her choreo to this song is one of my favorite choreo videos ever. I highly recommend you to go and check it! Click on the link, It's so romantic. The feels are definitely real from watching this. This song alone is super romantic. Can this be my wedding song when I get married? Lol, just kidding, it's too soon for me to be thinking out that kind of stuff. :)
















What songs do you all love listening to during the Winter season?

More Than Just Water

I don't know about all of you, but I've always heard that it's important to drink at least 8 glasses of water a day. I've gone online to find out how much water we really need to drink a day. From all of my findings it is safe to say that we should all drink at least 8 glasses a day, or a little over a liter of water throughout the day to stay properly hydrated. I don't mind water too much, but after awhile the plainness of water gets tiring and I give in to juice and soda. I've found some ways to make water more enjoyable and naturally tasteful. It's easy to make and you can make an abundant amount of it so that you can take it in a travel cup and store the rest in your refrigerator for later. It's a great way of staying healthy and enjoying great flavors. All of these recipes are natural. The only ingredients you need are water and the fruits and vegetables of your choice. Don't be afraid to experiment and add your own little spins to these recipes. Think of them as a foundation to something healthy and delicious that you can make on your own. Enjoy. :)

Yours Truly,
Carla Renee
xoxo

With making fruit/vegetable water there are only 3 easy steps:

1) Cut up the fruit/vegetable of your choice and place it in a pitcher

2) Fill the pitcher with water. (ice is optional)
   *I like using ice in my individual servings, I feel like the chill of the ice enhances the flavors*

3) Let it chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours to let the flavors infuse
 

Here are some fruit/vegetable water ideas and the benefits of drinking them:

Lemon Water: Lemon water is probably the most common known infusion of fruit and water. In restaurants the waiter/waitress usually asks if you want lemon with your water. Well, there are health benefits to this simple and common known combination. Lemon water helps stimulate and regulate the digestive track. It also helps fight infections and promotes the immune system due to it's Vitamin C content.

Cucumber Water: Cucumber water is rich with vitamins and calcium. Cucumbers are 95% water so you're adding more water to your water, if that makes sense, lol. Cucumbers are great for hydrating your skin and helps filter the liver and kidneys. To add even more flavor to your cucumber water, mint is a good complementary flavor. Mint can help with a more effective digestion and help relax cramped up stomach muscles.

Sweet-Tart: Stir 2 cups pineapple chunks, 1 cup pitted and halved fresh cherries, and 3 cored and thinly sliced granny smith apples.

(This recipe makes 2 quarts. Top ingredients with 6 cups ice, fill jar or pitcher with water, stir, and cover. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to let the flavors infuse)










Strawberry Basil Blast: Scrunch 8 fresh mint leaves to release their flavors. Combine 3 cups of halved strawberries and gently muddle with a wooden spoon or spatula.

(This recipe makes 2 quarts. Top ingredients with 6 cups ice, fill jar or pitcher with water, stir, and cover. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to let the flavors infuse)

Orangeberry: Gently muddle 5 thinly sliced oranges and 2 cups raspberries.

(This recipe makes 2 quarts. Top ingredients with 6 cups ice, fill jar or pitcher with water, stir, and cover. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to let the flavors infuse)











The last 3 recipes I got from Prevention.com. Click on the link and it will take you to the page with these recipes along with 23 other delicious fruit water ideas and recipes. Hopefully these recipes help and hopefully these will help us drink more water and enjoy the natural taste of fruit and water.

Fort Funston, San Francisco, California

Recently I had an outing to a beautiful view spot in San Francisco with a good friend of mine. It's right on the water and it's a great place to watch the sunset. I suggest bringing a cardigan or a light jacket and boots. It will get cold. And a heads up, people like to take their dogs there and let them off their leashes. From my experience there, most of the dogs were small or medium sized dogs. A few big dogs, but they were all well trained. They weren't running around, just seemed to be relaxing. This was my first time at Fort Funston and I've fallen in love with it. I definitely plan on being a regular at this view spot throughout my years in San Francisco. Here are some pictures I took while I was there. I hope you enjoy them and maybe even plan a trip to Fort Funston to enjoy the view for yourself. :)

Yours Truly,
Carla Renee
xoxo

 The drink came from a boba shop not too far from Fort Funston, it's called TeaWay Express. I got the taro milk tea boba. It's one of my favorite flavors.

Here is a picture of a teddy bear that a guy set up for his girlfriend. He purposed to her here and my friend and I were lucky enough to witness it. It was such a beautiful moment. Congrats to the newly engaged couple. <3 

 My adventurous friend who brought me here. He knew about this place for years and I'm so glad he invited me here.

Music to Capture the Seasonal Feeling

So, I don't know about you guys but Autumn has definitely set in out here in San Francisco. It's gotten cold and people are in coats and boots and wrapped up in scarves. What I like to do, specially in cold weather, is have music matching the cold weather. I feel like I'm having one of those cliche movie moments when I'm walking alone bundled up in warm clothes with my hands in my coat pockets and I have relaxing music in my headphones. Maybe that's just the hopeless romantic in me, lol. But, anyways, here are the artists and songs that I recommend for those cold Autumn days. :)

Tori Kelly's "Foreword" EP

Tori Kelly released "Foreword" on October 22, 2013. Her voice is amazing and she's an amazing live performer. I love every song on this EP. My personal favorites that are constantly on repeat are "Dear No One" and "Paper Hearts". Besides her newly released EP she has many videos on her YouTube channel of her doing covers of songs with other talented artists. I suggest you guys check her out. She's amazing and her music is just right for those cold days out or even for those days when you're inside staying out of the cold.











Jesse Barrera "From the Ground Up"

This album was released earlier this year, in March to be exact. I just recently bought this album on iTunes and I'm kind of sad I didn't buy it sooner. This album is so unique and the lyrics are so relatable. I've been a fan of Jesse Barrera for years now. He also has another album that he released a few years ago called "Love in Technicolor" which I will mention right after this album. A couple of songs great for the weather off of this album would definitely be "Promises" featuring AJ Rafael who is also an amazing artist, "Stars", "Wasted", and "Saved" featuring Melissa Polinar, who is another amazing artist. Definitely an album worth looking in to.









Jesse Barrera "Love in Technicolor"

This album was released in 2010 and I still have it on regular rotation on my iPod. I would tell you guys which songs are great for this weather, but I would just be listing off the whole album. Every single song on this album is amazing. Jesse Barrera's sound is definitely one of a kind. If you want to capture the mood of a cold Autumn day/afternoon, just play this album. I love it.














Ed Sheeran "+" (Deluxe Edition)

Ed Sheeran is an artist I came across about a year or two ago. I love him. For those of you that are familiar with him and his music you know exactly why it would be absurd of me to not mention him as one of the artists to listen to to capture the essence of Autumn. He's so talented and it's incredible how a majority of his songs can hit home, for me anyways. If you have not heard of Ed Sheeran I really hope you look into his music. Ed Sheeran's music is one of those things that everyone should have the chance to experience.










These are the artists that I have chosen for the season. There are so many artists and songs that I listen to. It was really hard picking artists, but these are the ones that I have been listening to the most lately. I might do another music post as a continuation. Or, actually, I might continue to do weekly or biweekly music posts. So look out for that. Also, if you have any artist or song suggestions for me, write them in the comments and I will gladly look them up and maybe even put them in my future music posts. I hope you guys enjoy these artists as much as I do. :)



yours truly,

-Carla Renee 
xoxo