((little fat notebook))

Yogi Surprise April 2016 review

laelene Post in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: bath salts, boxes, coupons, food, health bars, juices, pictures, products, reviews, snacks, subscriptions, supplements, teas, towelettes, vegan, yoga, yogi surprise

10 April 2016

Here comes a spring box of goodies! Quite a few snacks and supplements this time around. When I go off to school, I’ll probably cancel this subscription, so I’ve only got a few more coming my way.

Yogi Surprise is just under $36 per box (with code for 20% off your subscription – use my referral links from this post) and comes with yoga gear, skincare, food, and other lifestyle products. Boxes are sent monthly with no option to skip. They offer a referral program that earns you free boxes.

Herban Essentials orange essential oil towelettes – A long time ago, I did a trade where I received some of these in orange and lemon. These are perfect to keep around for a quick wipe, whether of my hands or even my yoga mat. I had no idea they went beyond cleaning off grime and smelling nice, but are actually antibacterial and antiseptic! Apparently these are good for improving mood, focus, and relaxation. Wow, impressive.

The Seaweed Bath Co seaweed powder bath in Eucalyptus & Peppermint – I can’t remember how I first heard of this brand, but it’s been on my list and I got a chance to get some, also part of a trade a long time ago. The flakes darkened my bath and made it a little more effort to clean after draining the bath, so we’ll see how this one goes. I like the idea of using seaweed for skincare – just sounds cool, and it’s supposed to be good for sensitive skin, so I’m sure it’ll be great for me.

rishi hibiscus berry herbal tea – Ah, this will be perfect to take with me to school! I can scoop myself some nice tea to sip while working on projects. I got some rishi green tea from Whole Foods before, which I quite enjoyed, so I know this will be a very good quality.

Bambooee reusable bamboo towel – I first heard of these when I got one in my Conscious box three years ago! It’s so useful in so many different ways. I think it’s a fantastic product to have around and I’ll be using this one a lot in the kitchen, I’m sure. I love things made from bamboo. 🙂

Go Raw choco crunch sprouted cookies – Hmm, these “cookies” are basically bite-sized health bars. I’m not super into raw stuff or seeds/nuts, so I found the taste of this to be unusual. I didn’t get much of the chocolate flavor and instead had a lot more coconut and some unidentifiable taste. If you’re into healthy vegan stuff, you might like this though!

Stoneridge Orchards Montmorency Cherries – Alas, I also don’t like cherries that aren’t fresh ones. I’ll be giving these to someone else to eat, though as a dried fruit, this is something I’d consider trying.

Herbal Zap! Digestive Cool & Calm and Digestive & Immune Support supplements – These sort of remind me of the Pranayums I got in the last box. They make use of herbs to help bring health benefits. In this case, these are for digestion and boosting immunity. They come in these little sugar granules that dissolve in water. I’ll be taking these to work to use during the day! I could always use a little help with my digestive and immune systems.

Rescue Plus Stress Complex lozenge in Orange & Elderflower – Well, I had not known the term “lozenge” before, but I guess they’re basically cough drops. These are amazingly sweet for something that has no sugar! The elderflower adds a unique fragrance that is quite nice. They didn’t exactly provide information on how/when I should use these – when I feel unwell? As a daily boost? I’m not sure, but I think I’ll have one periodically.

Dosha Bar in blueberry balance pitta – Another bar that I will try, but am unsure of. I’ve just never really enjoyed bars, whether granola or quinoa or trail mix. But hey, it’s worth trying and using as a snack when I need that extra bit. Lately I’ve been feeling a plummet in my blood sugar on my drive home, so I think this will be great to munch on during the commute.

Yogi Surprise Connecting with Nature yoga sequence series card – This time around it’s time to get grounded and connect with nature. This series has some very easy and very challenging poses. Check out the instruction page to download this sequence.

Four Sigmatic Reishi & Chaga Mushroom Elixirs – Well, these are a new approach to drinks. Can’t say I’ve put mushrooms in my water before, though I certainly enjoy dishes cooked with them. They talk about how great mushrooms are, but don’t offer anything about what benefits I’m supposed to get exactly. And I thought the different flavors had different benefits, but it seems they are named after the mushroom they are made from. In general, it seems mushrooms are good for your immune system, blood pressure, and offer antioxidants.

suja organic cold-pressured juice coupon – (Not pictured.) Underneath everything was this little surprise, which offers a free bottle of juice! I’ve been curious about cold-pressed juices and was actually going to go get some at Whole Foods since I heard on the radio that they are offering 10% off this week. I look forward to trying these!

Wow, this time around there were a bunch of smaller items to try, which I rather liked. I feel like I’ve got a ton of health boosts now. What do you think about the products in this box?

[This post contains affiliate links. Signing up through them helps support my subscription and I’d be ever so grateful. 🙂 All opinions are my own and I received no compensation for this review. I just purchased this box and wanted to share what I got!]

Research your dreams

laelene Post in mba，Tags: business school, career, future, mba, opinions, work

07 April 2016

Do you have a BHAG for your life? Do you know what it will take to get there?

When I was in middle school, around 8th grade, I developed my own BHAG. I can’t remember how it came about, but somehow I recall playing full-contact basketball during lunch break, thinking about my future. I don’t know why I make the association thinking back, but that gym is the first place I can remember deciding that I wanted to get an MBA. I guess it was because I felt that I had three good options for a career: doctor, engineer, or businesswoman. I may have imagined it, but I’m pretty sure my dad told me that at some point.

Whatever the case, I became convinced that business was the way for me. And that led me to this idea of an MBA. As a 13-year-old, that does seem like a BHAG. Ultimately, it has taken me 17 years to realize that dream (and it’ll be 19 before the diploma is in hand). I’ve wanted an MBA for more than half my life now and that goal has sort of defined how I thought of myself. Back then, I hadn’t yet considered what I needed to do to reach my goal.

I started with first things first – in high school, I began to consider what majors I might be interested in. When I was accepted to UCLA, I learned that they had no business undergraduate major, so I had to get creative. I ended up choosing Psych & Econ to get two very different sides to what would be useful business skills. While I am proud of the double major I earned, I wish I had started to understand what it takes to get into b-school at that point. Had I known about the intense competition, I probably would have chosen majors I was most interested in – Gender Studies or Environmental Science, perhaps. Granted, the Environmental Science major was introduced too far into my college career to make a pivot without derailing my graduation timing completely.

What I wish I knew was that getting at least a 3.5 GPA would be extremely helpful towards my b-school applications down the line. Instead, I continued down the path I’d chosen from the get-go and my grades slipped as the work got more challenging, yet often was not as interesting to me. While I am interested in these topics, I do not have a great passion for them the way I do others. Had I researched what top MBA programs are looking for, I would have known to focus more on a major that I could get a high GPA in, one that I had a deep drive to learn and excel in. It’s not that I didn’t know grades would be important, but I figured a 3.0+ would suffice.

I consider my next misstep the choice to work for small companies. While I have enjoyed the experiences, I didn’t feel well-positioned as an applicant because the work I did was on a smaller scale. It’s hard to be responsible for impactful programs if the company is too small to have many of those opportunities. While I certainly took on quite a bit of work and led projects wherever I could, they didn’t sound nearly as impressive. With what I know now, I would have gone for larger organizations with bigger challenges.

But then again, maybe I’m just making excuses for why I didn’t make it into Stanford. Perhaps a higher GPA and different work experience wouldn’t have helped. I do feel proud of what I’ve done and the essays I wrote to convey that, but for all I know, those were not as strong as I feel they were. Ultimately, I would have done things a bit differently if I had looked into the details of what goes into applying for and getting into a program like Stanford GSB’s.

So if you have a BHAG, I encourage you to heavily research it. Learn from others and it will help you better position yourself for achieving that dream. I was fortunate that I was able to realize my dream and I’m thrilled to be attending USC Marshall in the fall. It was difficult though, because I had weaknesses in my application I needed to try to compensate for. I couldn’t go in the past to change what had happened, so I had to find ways to strengthen my application in other areas. I very well might not have been accepted at all. And this is a lesson I’m learning – that a dream worth pursuing is worth the time and effort to prepare for. As soon as you have that goal in mind, start learning everything you can to help you get there!

My next goal is to lead an organization’s Empowerment team (which is an amalgamation of People Operations, Culture, and Internal Operations). HR is a concept that has evolved to take on a negative meaning that people don’t really connect with, so I consider what I do to be the latest evolution of that functional role. I can’t wait to learn from others doing this work and take some classes on these ideas. I’ve been preparing for this for a long time. 🙂

Julep April 2016 Collection review

laelene Post in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: airheads, beauty, boxes, candy, face cleansers, julep, konjac sponges, nail polishes, pictures, reviews, skincare, snacks, subscriptions

04 April 2016

So I think they stopped naming their collections as of February, since they aren’t clearly labeling them anymore. This month’s was filled with fun, bright colors in a jelly-like finish. They included a white polish to pair with the colors to use underneath and lighten the color. They look great and I’m tempted to collect the whole set.

Julep ranges from just under $25 to $40 per box based on tier (or as discounted as just under $20 to $35 per box when prepaid three at a time) and comes with combinations of nail polish colors, skincare products, and beauty products (depending on your style profile choice). They offer plenty of upgrade and add-on options too. Boxes are sent monthly unless you choose to skip. You also have the option of gifting your box to a friend. They offer a referral program that earns you $15 store credit per referral.

julep maven april 2016 collection box contents

April 2016’s collection of Brights + Whites box

Green Tea konjac sponge
I don’t know what it is about green tea, but when I see something with it, I gravitate towards it. Between the kaolin clay one that was going to come in my box and the charcoal one I’ve had before, neither could beat out the funky green sponge. I don’t think it makes much of a difference since all those ingredients are great for your skin, but I’m happiest with this one.

Polish colors in Brynn and Brigitte. I waffled between Brynn and Marissa for ages before choosing this more reddish orange hue. Normally I’d go for the purple but this time I wanted something different! I like how Brynn looks both as a gel as well as with the white underneath, which is what I have on now. I got compliments at work today for my bold color that starkly contrasted against the dreary day. (I already have another Brigitte from almost exactly a year ago, but it’s a color that can be used in many ways.)

love your bare face Detoxifying Cleansing Stick
It said to rub this on my hands and then cleanse my face, which was interesting. It was very gentle and smelled nice. I don’t think I put enough on since I didn’t really get a lather. I look forward to combining it with my konjac sponge, which I am waiting to open once I head off to grad school.

julep april 2016 collection card and discount offer card

The April 2016 Collection cards.

julep love your bare face detoxifying cleansing stick and kaolin clay konjac sponge information card

The info card with details on the detoxifying cleansing stick and konjac sponge.

The April 2016 Collection quote card.

Another great box! I’m very pleased with my newfound flexibility to customize boxes. Now I really get to be picky, though it makes for some hard choices!

Join as a Julep Maven to get polishes and/or beauty products sent to you monthly! Use code FREEBOX or FREEMAVEN to get the first box free (you pay shipping).

Prospurly March 2016 review

laelene Post in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: bath bombs, beeswax, body butters, boxes, candles, charcoal, essential oils, face washes, prospurly, reviews, subscriptions, tea, trinkets

02 April 2016

It was a battle getting the key to work on the mailbox compartment for packages at our place. For some reason the postperson always puts my packages in box #2, which takes about 5 minutes to get open each time. I was then very happy to find this box, which had some heft to it.

Prospurly is just under $45 per box (with code for 10% off your subscription – use my referral links from this post) and comes with artisan foods, bath & body items, home products, and other sustainably crafted items. Boxes are sent monthly with no option to skip. They offer a referral program that earns you free boxes.

Tops Malibu Flying Magic Butterfly – How adorable! You wind this up and place it inside a book or card so when someone opens it, a little butterfly shoots out. Make sure you point the butterfly towards the top of the card or book so it doesn’t hit the person. I found it shot out more than flew out, but was really fun to play with.

Essential Living Foods coconut chips – Oh my, what a massive bag of coconut chips! I definitely have to take this to work since I’m still working on the one I got from Yogi Surprise. I can barely remember to eat yogurt for breakfast, much less add these chips to them, so this is going to be slow going. With my colleagues’ help, they can make quick work of these. This was the surprise treat in the box, which seems to be a new thing they’re doing.

Vicara Good Morning essential oil – I’ve never had essential oil with ginger, so this is a unique one for me. It vaguely reminds me of some dishes we cook with ginger, in a good way. It’s not overwhelming as you might think and there’s a warmth to the scent that I wasn’t expecting. I like it!

Menagerie Charcoal face wash – This is fabulous! Tea and charcoal? Just the kind of ingredients I enjoy most. I love how this smells and the very slippery texture it has. It’s fun to use and I definitely need some more charcoal in my life.

Nuun All Day healthy hydration – These are perfect for me to bring to work. Who doesn’t like watching bubbles? Plus I could use a boost in vitamins and hopefully energy too. I haven’t been sleeping well lately so it’s hard to have energy late in the afternoon.

Enchanted Storybook Japanese Cherry Blossom bath bombs – I got a whiff of these as soon as I opened the box for pictures. They have a nice sweetness to them and a gentle fragrance that I enjoy. It’s going to be fun to use these in the bath! They also happen to be my favorite color. 🙂

Enchanted Storybook Japanese Cherry Blossom body butter – I’m not really sure what a body butter vs a lotion should be, but I’m used to body butters being thicker in consistency. Since this is not as thick, I’ll use it more like a lotion. It almost has a perfumey quality to it and I really enjoy smelling my hands after applying it. It absorbs really well and instantly softened my skin.

Crystal’s Candles beeswax votives – You know, I was just reading about how beeswax candles burn clean so this is perfect timing. They’ve got a slow burn and should last awhile. I look forward to using these and I wonder how much of a scent they will give off. We’ll see!

Happy birthday to Prospurly! I wish I’d known about them from the start because I really would have enjoyed it all along. Oh well, I’m happy to have a subscription now! What do you think of this month’s box?

Office move

laelene Post in general blog，Tags: change, moves, moving, offices, work

30 March 2016

It’s been a long time since we’ve had a major change at the office and today’s the day that we kicked it off. At 6 PM, everyone had their stuff packed in boxes and the movers began to roll things over to the newly opened section of the office, which has been under renovation for weeks (nearly 3 months). We have officially taken over the entire floor and get to enjoy the new area. Our current space will be closed off for renovations before the big reveal in May, when the entire office will be at its peak. I’ll get to enjoy that for about a month before I head off for business school!

At the end of the day, we went to the new part to start putting together new furniture, arrange desks, and get everyone’s boxes to their place. We have a ton of new meeting rooms and a nice hardwood area where the cafe and event space/theater are. I’ve found my new favorite room, which is a little one that can fit two people and is tucked up right against the window. It’ll be a cozy place for me to do webinars and get away from the mess of people in the main area.

For the next month, we are all going to be crammed into a space that is about half of what we were in. This means that the sales team is no longer in their own area and quite honestly, all of us are dreading the level of noise that means across the entire open office. I’m pretty sure I will seek reprieve in one of the meeting rooms or other public spaces. Or, perhaps I’ll be able to work outside a bit since our wifi signal can sometimes be picked up downstairs in the courtyard.

Tomorrow’s going to be a strange day as we discover a new pattern. I always enjoy some change, so this should be fun. 🙂

Spring sightings

laelene Post in video blog，Tags: hail, ladybugs, rain, rainbows, spring, videos, weather

28 March 2016

I feel like spring wants to be here, but winter keeps shoving itself back in the picture here and there. Today was craaaazy windy out! I look forward to things getting warm for good before I head off to grad school, though I’ll miss things like these…

spring hail outside office window from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

double rainbow from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

loud rain on car from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

ladybug on 8th floor window from Mary Qin on Vimeo.

Petit Vour March 2016 review

laelene Post in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: beauty, boxes, cleansers, exfoliants, exfoliators, mists, nail polishes, pictures, products, reviews, shampoos, skincare, sprays, subscriptions

26 March 2016

PV time already? Alright! I’m very pleased with the items in this box, which are all fresh and feel like spring.

Petit Vour is $15 per box (or as much as $30 for international subscribers) and comes with vegan beauty, skincare, and other personal care products. Boxes are sent monthly with no option to skip. They offer a referral program that earns you points towards free boxes (email contact@petitvour.com to say I referred you if you sign up!).

Yarok Feed Your Moisture shampoo – I don’t think I’d ever buy shampoo at that price point, but I’m happy to have a sample to use! I can use it in conjunction with other samples from the line that I have yet to try.

Little Barn Apothecary Geranium + White Tea beauty mist – Ooo, a special formula just for PV! I love anything with white tea, so this is awesome. I love facial mists/sprays that I can use after cleansing. They’re so lightweight and fun to use.

suki exfoliate foaming cleanser – This citrus smell reminds me of the derma e microdermabrasion scrub that I love so much. It’s delightful to use and has a bit of foaming action along with exfoliation so you feel extra clean.

lauren b beauty nail polish dual base/top coat – Nice! This will go well with the other bottle we received almost a year ago. I found it to be a bit more runny than my other top coats, but that also seemed to product a very shiny finish that’s quite nice.

I’m a fan of all these products!! These items felt very luxurious to me. 🙂 What do you think of this box?

[This post mentions a referral program. Signing up and emailing contact@petitvour.com to say I referred you helps support my subscription and I’d be ever so grateful. 🙂 All opinions are my own and I received no compensation for this review. I just purchased this box and wanted to share what I got!]

Treatsie March 2016 review

laelene Post in reviews, subscriptions，Tags: boxes, candies, candy, chocolates, food, pictures, products, reviews, snacks, subscriptions, treats, treatsie

24 March 2016

Alright, another box after quite a gap from receiving the first box of the month. It’s been awhile since they included this many brands in a box.

Treatsie is $15 per box + $4.95 shipping and comes with artisan candy from 3-4 brands. That means about 6 or 7 different flavors of treats. Boxes are sent monthly with no option to skip. They offer a referral link program to earn store credit. Use my referral link and code FRBUCO01 to get double the treats (a purported $40 value) in your first box!

J&M Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies: I looooved their triple chocolate flavor and this one is good too, but can’t beat that. I really enjoy how these are “dry” cookies yet they are not dry in a bad way. They’re still just crumbly enough that it doesn’t feel like you ate a cracker without water.

Quin Candy Dreams Come Chew: These must be similar to Starburst style candies. I found that they had a tendency to stick to the wrapper and melt quite quickly. Very tasty though!

Bees & Beans Honey Bar: Yuuummmm I knew I’d like this as soon as I saw it. Chocolate with caramel and nougat? Oh yes. I wouldn’t mind a little extra crunchiness inside to add to the textures.

B. T. McElrath Chocolatier chocolate bites in Salted Butter Caramel & Dark Chocolate Caramel: Just like before, I loved the firm texture of these. If you like a chocolate with a nice break to it, definitely try these out. I didn’t quite taste the caramel and I generally like the gooeyness of it, but these were tasty nonetheless.

Clairesquares Shortbread & Caramel dark chocolate square: For some reason I thought this was kind of brownie-like, but it’s like a buttery cookie. The shortbread holds together well and gives the bar a rich flavor.

I’m quite pleased with the variety of products and inclusion of a product that’s brand new to me. What do you think of the treats from this box? To get Treatsie, sign up with my link and code FRBUCO01 to get double the treats in your first box!

Pie pops for Pi Day

laelene Post in photo blog，Tags: baking, cooking, experiences, food, friends, holidays, pi day, pictures, pie pops, pies

21 March 2016

Last week I was going through emails and saw these adorable pie pops from Treatsie. My friend “Calavera” and I decided we had to make them, so she came over this weekend to make some belated Pi Day treats.

piece of pie crust stuck in glass cup while cutting out circles in pie crust

We used a small glass to cut out the circles in the pie crust.

circular pie crust pieces with leftover material

Extra pie crust that we rolled out and cut until it was all used.

The other piece of pie crust was cut into long strips and woven.

thin strips of pie crust woven into lattice pattern

Weaving together the pie crust lattice.

Once done, we used the same glass to cut out circles on the lattice.

round pieces of pie crust with little bit left over

After cutting, we had minimal waste of the crust.

putting together pie pops with jam and egg wash

Then we got to work putting together the pops, putting jam inside.

pie pops put together and ready for sugar dusting before baking

Almost ready for baking!

The final touch, adding some sugar on top.

And in they go for baking.

The heart one was pumping and “bleeding” everywhere.

finished pie pops laid out on turtle-shaped cutting board

Ta-da! The finished product. We tried carving our initials and making the sand dollar ones, but the lattice ones came out best.

The Ritz-Carlton treatment

laelene Post in photo blog，Tags: experiences, hotels, panda, pictures, quality, service, travel

19 March 2016

While Panda was away on travel, he got a chance to stay at a Ritz-Carlton property. When he left, he realized that he could not find his power adapter, so he contacted the hotel and they were unable to locate it. Weeks later, he was supposed to return to the property but plans got changed and he had to stay at a different hotel in the area. When the hotel staff found out, they offered to send the replacement adapter they got him and delivered it to his new hotel! Not only that, but he mentioned he wanted to get something from the gift store – a rubber ducky – and they even brought that all wrapped up at no charge. Now this is the type of service I’ve heard of from this establishment and it’s great to see it in action. They made his trip that much better with their extra effort and kindness. 🙂

ritz-carlton gift box with white wrapping paper and red ribbon

The gift box, all nicely wrapped.

Turns out they packed two ducks!

Now we have these keepsakes from their hotel.

universal converter/world adapter gift from ritz-carlton

And this wonderful replacement adapter for future travels. 🙂

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