in my travel tote..

22 January 2016

the fitbit charge hr: my motivator

if you keep up with my posts, you'd know that this past december i was in albuquerque for a week to visit family and friends. while i was there, my sister and two best friends surprised me with the fitbit charge hr. :))

getting healthy has been a goal of mine for a long, long time. i don't want to just diet and exercise for a month to get my results then go back to my old ways of not staying active or eating clean. i want this to be a lifestyle change.

i had been looking into fitness trackers for a few months now, and after my research i found that the fitbit charge hr was the best in the market. now that i have it. and have used it for over a month now, i wanted to talk a little bit about the pros and cons.

what i love:

the fitbit has an adjustable strap so it can fit any sized wrist. it comes in a small or large size. i personally have the smaller size and like that i'm able to wear it just above my wrist or even higher up on my forearm (it's recommended to wear 3-4 inches above wrist bone).

the display on the fitbit was the deciding factor for me when i was torn between a couple of different trackers. you are able to monitor your heart rate with the click of a button during an intense workout instead of having to look it up on your iPhone like other fitness trackers. not only is this convenient and helps you burn the maximum calories, it helps you stay safe and monitor your heart rate.

the fitbit is accurate. especially when monitoring your sleep cycle. it can tell me exactly when i fell asleep and what time i woke up. also catches the times when i wake up during the night for water or to use the restroom.

the app linked to the fitbit is great. it's easy to use, it can be linked to many other fitness apps that you may use. it links to myfitnesspal app which is what i use to log my food intake which worked out perfect for me. there are also challenges you can partake in with your friends with a fitbit or just by yourself.

the silent alarms are amazing. the fitbit vibrates on your wrist instead of you having to hear the loud beeping that may startle you when you're in a deep sleep.

the caller id function is also great. i have a habit of leaving my phone here and there (and it's always on silent) while i'm at home but now i never miss a call because i get the notification on my fitbit.

what i don't love:

my only complaint with the fitbit is that it isn't as thin as i would like it to be. it feels a bit bulky because it must be worn a bit higher on my wrist instead of right where i'd wear a watch to be most accurate. it's great during a workout but because i wear mine all day, and wear mostly long sleeves, it gets uncomfortable.

i can honestly say that i love my fitbit and it's really motivating. i love how much more conscious i am now of how active i'm being or how much better i can do. it keeps me focused on my goal of taking better care of myself in 2016. :)

getting it in the black was perfect. it goes with all of my outfits

effortless. looks great paired with other jewelry.

(the 'sskhan' bracelet was made with my niece and her bracelet making kit lol)

18 January 2016

ahoy, it's a boy!

my eldest brother and his wife are expecting their first baby. and it's a boy! i'm already an aunt to my favorite five year old niece, layana. but now i can't wait to spoil their little baby boy. he'll be born sometime in february, iA, and we're already so excited to meet him.

this weekend (on saturday) was my sister in law's baby shower. my sister, saad, and i flew into town so we wouldn't miss out on the fun. we got to dallas on friday night, and we plan to head back home tomorrow morning. it was a short trip but so worth it. i loved spending some time with my brother and his wife after almost six months of not seeing them.

my sister in law's friends and her sister put together her nautical themed baby shower.

they planned some amazing decor, really tasty food (and a dessert table!), plus some cute games.

yesterday, we went to noodle wave for lunch, and then to hang out with my cousins that live in town. i haven't been able to spend time with those kids in a long time so i was glad i got to see them. we had a pizza party and played mafia. :)

mandatory selfie

tacos

the dessert table

games

very blue punch

momma-to-be!

some amazing thai food

the kiddos

pizza party

in-n-out is a must any time it's nearby. get a chocolate and vanilla mix milkshake the next time you go. it's amazing :)

13 January 2016

hollywood again, and a little touchdown in vegas

saad had to go back to los angeles for work again this past weekend so this time my sister and two best friends decided to meet us there from albuquerque. since saad and i had already seen what we wanted to in la on our last trip, we took the backseat when it came to planning on where to go and what to do. i let my sisters do the planning and i'm so glad we did that. we were able to see la in such a different way. we went to the last bookstore and ate in downtown at this open market type place with a lot of different restaurants and bakeries. we walked the beach and hung out at the boardwalk. i've never gotten to travel with my sister and two closest friends this way before so i was so excited. it was even better that saad was with us. getting to hang out with all of my best friends made for the perfect weekend :)

my girls

santa monica pier :)

churro buddies! hers got stolen by a seagull haha. but we got her another one since birds are assholes, apparently.

as if this wasn't a corny thing to do..

i went ahead and made it even more corny by adding the holding hands lol

venice beach boardwalk

is this sunset for real?

favorite sunnies (kate spade) and lipstick! (mehr by mac)

because pizza is LIFE. best i've had in a while

'the last bookstore'

walking downtown

he gets overly excited about selfie sticks lol

he got a new jacket. italia all the wayy

spotted downtown. photo cred goes to my sister. she's an amazing photographer!

we love you la :)

after three days in la, saad and i said our goodbyes to the city of angels, and to the girls. we drove to vegas to spend the next two days there. we stayed at the luxor hotel, which is where we stayed the last time we were there for new years in 2014. it's our favorite place to stay in vegas. we didn't do much at all, just hung out at the hotel and went to the outlets near the strip. it was a relaxing two days before we headed back home.

12 January 2016

a week in albuquerque..with snow :)

i spent the last week of december in albuquerque. the highlights? my niece. gift exchanges. a snow storm. and star wars.
i was lucky enough to spend the entire week with my niece who was in town visiting. we built legos together, did a whole lot of coloring, played xbox, and went bowling.
we also went to a wedding reception and i spent some time with my girls in old town where we got to see the luminaries and have some hot chocolate. :)
on my last night in town, we all went to see the newest start wars, which was beyond amazing.