Category / holidays

by Lexine

Christmas Gifts To Myself

As much as I adore friends and family gifting me during this time, even during the holidays, you just gotta spoil yourself. Judging by all the stuff I bought the past month, I can safely say I spoiled myself way too much this Christmas. In my defense, it’s hard to turn down a good sale, and almost all the things you see in that left pic were bought for its original retail price. The luxe makeup and Diptyque set included. Those Adrienne Vittadini heels, which originally go for $100, were bought for $7 at Macy’s Backstage. Not even Goodwill would sell those heels for that cheap. And since shopping–which includes lots of walking, some driving, and occasional stressing–burns calories, I made myself a low-carb pecan pie to refuel! (I’m also aware of this pie and the chocolate advent calendar I bought, which conflicts with my low-carb ways. Don’t worry–it’s only 5 grams of carbs per chocolate bitty, and I’m only having one piece a day.) The recipe for the pie and crust can be found here.

Hope you all are having a joyous Christmas/holidays/Sunday/Monday!

ETA: if you’re wondering what I gifted myself…(clockwise from top left) Tom Ford Lip Discovery Set (bought during Bloomingdale’s sale two weeks ago), Diptyque L’Art Du Parfum set (bought new & sealed at a bargain on eBay and it is legit), Aqua holographic puffer (also bought during Bloomie’s sale, and a true holographic jacket has long been a coveted item of mine), Charter Club CZ ring (bought during Macy’s Black Friday sale), cheap but sweet holiday bracelets I got from Savers, Compartes Chocolate Advent Calendar (originally retails for $110+ but got it for $32 (!!) at Nordstrom a week ago), the Adrienne Vittadini heels, Welcome To Dunder Mifflin book (bought during Target’s Buy 2 Get 1 Free books/DVDs/CDs sale), and *takes a breath* Pat McGrath’s Moonlit Seduction palette (bought during her Black Friday sale).

by Lexine

Giving Thanks

To my true friends and family

For having this day off from work

To my day job that, despite it being a physical job, pays me well and my co-workers & management are all supportive

To all who voted for democracy during this year’s Midterm elections

To all who continue to fight for abortion/LGBTQ+/voting rights, gender equality, and abuse victims

To the scientists and medical professionals who helped create the Covid vaccines and boosters (happy to be 4X full of 5G microchipped goodness!)

To all the face masks I’ve worn that spared me from getting Covid (I still wear them in indoor public spaces and in large outdoor crowds and I’m not ashamed to do so…but I await the day when Covid becomes an endemic)

To anyone who asks me for an ID as I get another day older (I used to find it so odd when I was in my 20s, but as I near my 40s, I find it flattering)

For being a teen in the late 90s/early 2000s (my Xennial ass is showing here, but what a time to be young)

To all the low-carb websites for giving me all the recipes and carb substitutes when I went low-carb almost a year ago

To Yogi Tea (their teas are 🔥)

To Jackie Collins, Maya Angelou, Dorothy Parker, Sue Grafton, and Sharon Olds, for creating many of my all-time literary faves. My idols, all of them!

To The Simpsons (Seasons 1-10, to be exact), for all the LOLs

To jazz music and its artists, past to present

To thrift stores, where over half of my wardrobe and bedding came from

To the sport of hockey

To Lelo (I’m single; do I have to explain why?)

To Target for selling Lelo products 😀

To the fact that I live in a safe (and affordable) space, all to myself

For living in California

In knowing I had some things to be thankful for in this mixed bag of a year.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

by Lexine

Pumpkin Cravings

Who isn’t craving pumpkin this time of year? It may sound easy to fulfill my pumpkin cravings by snatching up one of those large pumpkin pies Costco sells, devour them, and call it a day. But as a low-carb eater (have been for a while), I got a few extra hurdles to jump over. And I’m aware that pumpkin isn’t low-carb, but some of it for a day (OK, probably this whole holiday weekend) won’t totally wreck me. Plus, it’s the holidays and there’s nothing wrong with a little indulgence!

You can thank Bath & Body Works’ Pumpkin Pecan Waffles body spray (which is what I’m currently wearing, don’t judge) for influencing my breakfast: Pumpkin Pecan Chaffles. (For extra oomph, invest in some pumpkin spice extract and add a teaspoon of it to the recipe.) I also wanted to get a head start on my Thanksgiving cooking, so I whipped up some pumpkin pie sans sugar and excess carbs. The crust is also low-carb, and shoutout to Wholesome Yum for being a gold mine for my low-carb needs. I’m holding out till Thanksgiving morning to have some pie (I’m not making any promises, though, and I still got dinner to eat), but the chaffles–paired with some sugar-free maple syrup and whipped cream–were *chef’s kiss* delectable.