Unashamed Tour 2013 - Dallas

This weekend definitely makes it to the top of one of the best weekends of 2013. Nayomi, Chuy, Brian & I drove up to Arlington to attend the Unashamed Tour 2013 featuring Lecrae, Tedashii, Andy Mineo, Derek Minor & KB. Nayomi accompanied me in my car as we drove to Arlington jamming out to 80's & other "genres," LOL. We checked into the hotel, which was sweet "suite!" Then took off for a late lunch to Plucker's Wing Bar to have great sweet tea & wings! Afterwards we went back to the hotel & closed my eyes for 10 minutes & got ready to head out for the concert. We waited outside of College Park Center (UTA) in the cold for 2 hours! It was quite entertaining...but luckily we got there early enough to be close to the glass doors. As we entered, Nayomi & I literally ran down the stairs to get good floor spots, totally left Brian & Chuy behind (sorry but not sorry guys, lol.) We were about 3 rows behind the front stage & were uncomfortably close to people. Funniest thing I heard a girl say before the concert: "Someone is going to contract something for being so close to each other!" No kidding. As the concert began, they all came out first and shot a live video for the tour song "Now they know." There was lots of jumping & dancing - I don't remember EVER sweating that much in my life.

The most memorable part:
As Andy Mineo performed "Uno Uno Seis" I was totally regretting not bringing my Puerto Rican flag  since I saw a few people who did. Towards the end of the song Andy decided to do a dive jump in the crowd. Well, he dove into the crowd, and while carrying him over I then found myself on the floor with 15 + on top of me. I got elbowed in the head and couldn't hear for a few seconds - so scary! Luckily as everyone got off me a few guys helped me up & I lost Nayomi after that but found her at the end. Would I do this again? YES!


Despite getting elbowed in the eye & head, trampled under Andy Mineo's dive jump/mosh pit, and lost a favorite earring...Unashamed Tour was beyond awesome & unforgettable!!!

    Left to Right: KB, Andy Mineo, Derek Minor, Lecrae & Tedashii

This guy had no idea - Grateful Apparel.

Brian, Chuy, Nayomi & I standing outside waiting to get in.


Video Footage from my iPhone

"Ayo" - Andy Mineo

You Are Good Enough

Strongly dislike to see people think they are not good enough. You are. You are good enough because He made you. Don't measure how beautiful/handsome you are to Instagram/Facebook likes or daily compliments. You are God's creation and He wondrously made you. 

I struggled with this for years. I would cry myself to sleep in middle school because people would tell me flat out - you're ugly! I would then realize since I was so unhappy with my outside appearance I was ugly on the inside - I became bitter and angry towards people with their attitudes and comments, especially with all the moving. I would fight verbally & argue continuously. I felt like people put standards on me not even GOD would ever put on me. I got to the point and remember praying to God if I can't be pretty physically then change me inwardly to be like You so I can be some kind of beautiful. This was obviously not an overnight process - it took time. 

But one must remember, a beautiful outside can't conceal a broken, ugly, inside. Make up and masks are temporary. They eventually come off. Some of the prettiest women/handsomest men get no attention. And I think God likes it that way. His best is sometimes hidden. 

#keepthatincheck #youaregoodenough #choosejoy

10 Beauty Habits You Should Be Doing Every Night

I came across this article & found it quite useful & actually put some things to practice last night. It turns out your body can do serious work for you while you sleep-you just have to give it a little help along the way.

1. Remove your makeup — all of it. For real.
The most important thing to do to wake up looking fresh is to remove all of your makeup before bedtime. That means leftover mascara, lip color — EVERYTHING! This ensures that your pores will be clean and your eyes free of leftover gunk. I definitely do this every night, if not I just feel oily & dirty!

2. Use two pillows
.
Prop your head up on an extra pillow to prevent puffiness. You can also prop up the head of your bed on 2- to 4-inch pieces of wood. “This is a time when gravity helps you with lymph and blood flow so fluids won’t accumulate under your eyes and in your face.” How interesting! I have 2 pillows but recently started using 1 because my neck hurt from having it so high. Guess it may be time to go back to 2 pillows to reduce puffiness!

3. Do a spot treatment…with a purifying mask.

You can use it to target acne and rosacea pimples, and leave it on overnight.

4. Turn on a humidifier.


A barrier repair moisturizer (containing ingredients such as ceramides and cholesterol) combined with an air humidifier in your bedroom produces durably hydrated, plump skin which is more resistant to irritants and allergens but also to appearing dry and fine-lined. By working on your skin’s hydration overnight, you can skip daytime moisturizer altogether or choose one that’s lighter since heavier moisturizers don’t tend to wear as well under sunscreen or makeup.

5. Go to town with hand cream.

Moisturizing your hands with a thick, plain, somewhat greasy hand cream will keep your hands and fingernails looking their best first thing in the morning. Hands get dried out throughout the day with exposure to dry air and excessive washing, and few of us apply hand cream with every water exposure as we should. Night is a chance to try to undo some of the damage, which will also keep cuticles and fingernails moisturized so they will grow longer and stronger and break and peel less.

6. Sleep on a luxe pillowcase
.
Wash your hair with a silicone-free shampoo and use a silk pillowcase—sleeping on a silk or satin pillowcase also helps your hair’s overall health. Fibers on most cotton pillows are rough against the hair cuticles. Don’t want to splurge on silk? Changing a cotton or linen pillowcase every one to two days can also bring an improvement.

7. Pin your hair back
.
Your hair contains oils and dirt that can get on your face and pillowcase and cause breakouts. Braid your hair or pin it up into a bun to keep it off your face as you sleep.

8. Get 6-8 hours of sleep.

Catching a good night’s sleep can really effect the way you look. Sleep can reduce dark circles because a lack of sleep compromises your body’s circulatory system and you get stagnant blood in the vessels under the eyes because it hasn’t properly drained.

9. Try a leave-on exfoliator
.
While you sleep, the skin is working its hardest to repair itself says Teresa Stenzel. It’s the best time to apply leave-on exfoliators, to give the ingredients time to absorb and correct daily damage to the skin caused by UV exposure and environmental aggressors.

10. Use eye cream
.
No doubt you’ve heard it a million times, but eye cream is important. Start using great moisturizers and eye cream at night (even if you’re in your 20s). When the morning rolls around, your skin will be plump and hydrated.

Reference: StyleList - http://www.stylelist.com/view/10-beauty-habits-you-should-be-doing-every-night/?icid=maing-grid7|main5|dl15|sec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D407445#!slide=1293272&a_dgi=aolshare_twitter

Make everywhere a beautiful place...

Whether you've traveled the world, or stayed in the same place all your life, it-is-beautiful. Or at least we should say that to ourselves. In the moment you may be tired of the place God has placed you due to boredom, tired of the people around you, unhappiness, etc., but we are where we are to prepare us for the next place we are to go. We should make every place beautiful because when we look back on that time and season 25 + years from now we will miss it and wish we could go back. I find myself missing all the places I've lived (Visalia, Lawrenceville, Mesquite). Those moments of unhappiness when living in those places are there and remembered but cannot replace the cherished memories that were made there & the people I came across. In each of those cities, schools, congregations I learned lessons that have impacted me to face what I face today in San Antonio. Instead of seeking for a beautiful place, make your present place beautiful and memorable.

ISTJ - Introverted, Sensing, Thinker, Judger - that's me!

Over the past few years as an undergrad they ask us to take the famous Myers-Briggs Personality Test. Once again, now in graduate school, they ask me to take it again & I get the same personality profile. Once seeing below you'll understand why I am the way I am, haha! Let me reiterate this is NOT a horoscope. Eso no es de Dios!

 

The ISTJ personality type is the second most popular one (11.6% of the U.S. population). “Only the facts, please” is their motto – ISTJ personalities respect facts greatly and tend to accumulate a lot of information in their own memory.

ISTJ strengths

• Jacks of all trades. ISTJ personalities tend to be very observant and good with facts. They often know something about everything and that internal encyclopedia often proves to be very useful in challenging situations.
• Strong-willed and dutiful. ISTJs are willing to work very hard to make sure that they fulfill all their obligations. People with this personality type are patient and determined individuals who always keep the end goal in sight.
• Very responsible. A promise means everything to an ISTJ. They would rather work overtime and lose sleep than fail to deliver the result that someone else is expecting. ISTJ personalities also tend to be extremely loyal, putting their duties above everything else.
• Good at creating and enforcing order. ISTJs loathe chaos and always seek to come up with some kind of structure or a set or rules, regardless of what they do. They also do not shy away from enforcing the existing regulations and have zero tolerance for rule breakers.
• Calm and practical. ISTJ personalities very rarely lose their temper, always approaching things from a calm and rational perspective. They believe that emotions should not be part of the decision-making process and always have their feet firmly on the ground. Not surprisingly, this also makes ISTJs quite resistant to criticism (in most situations).
• Honest and direct. ISTJs strongly dislike mind games, reading between the lines and emotional manipulation. They do not mince their words and prefer an inconvenient truth over a reassuring lie.

ISTJ weaknesses

• Stubborn. ISTJs often find it difficult to accept a different opinion, especially if it is not based on easily verifiable facts. They also tend to be reluctant to accept changes or acknowledge that they were wrong, especially if that affects their lifestyle or habits.
• Insensitive. ISTJ personalities prefer logic over emotions and often see the latter as irrational and distracting. Consequently, they may unknowingly hurt people who are more sensitive (e.g. Feeling (F) types).
• Judgmental. From the ISTJ’s perspective, facts are all that matters. If someone is unwilling to accept those facts or simply does not know them, the ISTJ may find it difficult to respect that individual, especially if they refuse to acknowledge that their opinion is wrong.
• Always by the book. People with the ISTJ personality type like having a clear set of rules and guidelines – however, this often results in them being reluctant to bend those rules or try something new. As already mentioned above, ISTJs cannot stand chaos and may feel lost and vulnerable in an unfamiliar, unstructured environment.
• May often unreasonably blame themselves. Their strong sense of duty often makes it difficult for ISTJs to relax and stop overloading themselves with work. Sooner or later, the workload becomes unbearable and then the ISTJ may feel terrible for failing to fulfill what they see as their duty.