Dear Influencers: Time To Check Your Privilege

First and foremost let's start with an open mind. I know thinking about privilege and even accepting it is hard. Talking about it is hard. As a person of color I see privilege happen all too often, But this is not about race, because contrary to what some people may believe (and stop saying this is China's fault or that this is a Chinese virus because that is racist) this virus that is changing our society as we know it knows no skin color, no social class, it has no boundaries.

So if you clicked on this thinking this is about you, it probably is. Sorry not sorry.

I am disappointed on the influencer community. This moment in history has shown us so many uncovered areas we didn't even know they lived within us, a moment where we HAVE TO think about an "us" vs and "I" because if we don't the consequences will be catastrophic to say the least. Yet, I am seeing posts on the daily about influencers posting about their fourth designer purchase during quarantine?! I'M SORRY WHAT?! 

Let's back up and take a deep breath... 

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So... We Bought A House!

Photography by: Authentic Grace Photography

It’s been a little less than a month since we closed on our new home and it is still surreal to wake up there. It honestly feels like we are at an Airbnb on “vacations” and we will head back to the apartment soon... haha!

If you are caught off guard about this news, well you are not the only one. I was very caught off guard by all this, it all happened so fast and SO out of the blue! Don’t get me wrong, my husband and I had talked about buying a house and was in our plans at some point…. Like 2-3 years down the road… but I guess the God and the universe had another plan for us!

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A Juicy Lucy Celebration

Photography by: Miles + Smiles Productions

 This post is sponsored by Tillamook. All opinions are my own.

Hubby and I got to enjoy a fun date night with Tillamook yesterday night. With their recent arrival to the Twin Cities, they invited us to enjoy an extremely yummy meal from their Melty Fest tour at Handsome Hog in Saint Paul to celebrate the infamous Juicy Lucy.

If you don't know what a Juicy Lucy is well let me introduce to you one of man's best inventions. It is a burger, but unlike any burger (and i've had a few around the states) this one is patty STUFFED with cheese!! Yup, you read that right!

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Age Is Just A Number

Post sponsored by AARP Cincuentañeros and #WeAllGrow Latina Network. Opinions are 100% my own.

If I had a dollar for every time I'm told "OMG are you seriously 33?!" I would be RICH! and yes, sometimes it can work to my advantage specially now that I am getting older in age... but it has been a big issue when it come to my career.

I had the opportunity to share an amazing dinner with AARP Cincuentañeros back in May while I was down in Long Beach for We All Grow where they made this safe space to talk about age, what it means and how we limit, or rather society limits us just because of our age through their campaign #Cincuentañeros. It's all about celebrating you wherever you are in live without counting the years!

They presented us with this term "ageism" and how much it impacts our day to day lives. This hit very closely to home, because I have battled for a while with how young I look.

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Top 3 Summer Adventures in Minneapolis

Photography by: Miles + Smiles Productions

 This post is sponsored by BabbleBoxx.com on behalf of popchips

One of my favorite things about living in Minneapolis is that the amount of summer activities and places to discover is infinite. You can literally pick up and drive in search of an outdoor adventure and you will find a cute little spot 15 mins out.

Here are 3 summer activities that are a must if you live in the Twin Cities area: 

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The Stories Behind A Smile

Photography by: Miles + Smiles Productions

Post sponsored by ARC Whitening Strips. Opinions are 100% my own.

It is true, I am a happier and better person in the summer. I guess it’s all that vitamin D and the gorgeous Minneapolis summer days that truly fill my heart with joy. There is NOTHING that I love more than a Friday afternoon at a lake or just simply our soaking in the warmth, because well we don’t get many of those days through the year.

I’ve also tried to smile more on my photos, like big huge smiles. I remember a couple of years back when I started the blog someone said that I was too serious on all my photos. And that really stuck with me, and ever since I’ve been working on it. I have noticed though how much confidence a real smile can bring, but well sometimes the different foods and drinks can make our smile a bit duller. 

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Gardening and The City

Photography by: Angel Torres

Post sponsored by Bachman's. Opinions are 100% my own.

Oh summer! You finally decided to make an appearance in Minnesota. Every year, since 2013 I picked up urban gardening as my summer hobby. I didn’t know I was so into it even though I grew up watching my mom create her beautiful garden in Maryland. Who would have thought I would like it this much!

Last year my husband also got into it—like REALLY into it. He even got into making jalapeño aioli, and let me tell you he is a total pro by now. 

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Dear Future Self: You Are Enough

Photography by: Angel Torres

Post sponsored by Olay. Opinions are 100% my own.

I’ve always struggled with Imposter Syndrome and that is not a secret to anyone. I guess we all do, but I have learned that it’s not about the syndrome but rather what you do with those feelings and how you react when they hit you all at once.

To me, the feeling is even stronger when all my life I’ve have been told I am a strong independent woman. I know I am, I have proven to myself that I can face pretty much anything life throws my way but as I get older, the challenges come with more responsibilities and yes, that scares me. At 33 years old I am pretty much running marketing for the multicultural demographic for a Fortune 500 corporation. 

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Mom & Daughter Day with Ponds

Photography by: Angel Torres & Diego Camargo

Post sponsored by Mirum. Opinions are 100% my own.

Some of you may know that sadly my mom and I don’t live on the same state. It's not easy being away from her because we are pretty close and pretty much have the same personality. It been more than 12 years since I left home, and it kills me that my parents are growing old and I don’t get to enjoy more time with them. Also, I have to say I am probably not the best daughter (!!!) Ever since I got married life just got 200% busier and keeping in contact with them is a challenge. That is why whenever I get a chance to talk to them, I try to make the most of it.

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Starting the Holidays With the Fam

Photography by: Angel Torres

Look who made it to the blog! Everyone let me introduce to you to my mom and sister! The finally came to visit me during Thanksgiving and I could not have been happier. While I was a little sad that my hubby was traveling, it made me happy to spend some time with my family.

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Cheers and Chill: Moving Into a New Home!

Photography by: Angel Torres

No, I am not a fan of moving, but when you find a good deal you gotta go for it! We literally moved 24 floors down on our same building to a 250 sq ft bigger apartment for a cheaper price! Initially I thought the move was going to be the easiest one to date (because I have moved SO many times in my life!) and I wasn’t wrong but I wasn’t right either.

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Cheers to Fall! A Time To Be Re-born

Photography by: Angel Torres

It's been a while since I write a lifestyle post and just let some thoughts spill out, so here we go!

It is no secret by now that my favorite season is summer. I love everything about it, the food, the smells, the weather, EVERYTHING! This summer specially meant a lot to me; met so many amazing people that I get to call my friends and created really amazing memories.

Coming out of a terrible last year, this Fall feels like some sort of re-birth period of time for me. We are moving to a new apartment in a month, the blog is doing so amazing, my marriage seems to finally be at a good place, my new role at work is complicated but nothing I wasn't anticipated to be, overall everything seems to be falling into place (hope not to jinx it!).

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Uptown Art Fair with Studio Ink

Photography by: Angel Torres

This past weekend I had the opportunity to finally go to the Uptown Art Fair here in Minneapolis. I had heard quite a lot about it last year so I was definitely looking forward to go this year. It truly did not disappoint! From canvases, bird houses and greeting cards we got to see so many cool stuff.

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Being Latina and Living in Minnesota

Photography by: Emily Voss

We should start from the beginning and you are probably asking why in the world do I live in Minnesota? Well, about a year and eight months ago a week before my wedding I flew out here for an interview at my dream job. In comes Target. On my wedding day at exactly 1 am (because I could not sleep) I signed and accepted a letter that I knew it was going to change my life as I knew it. And boy it did!

Not only I was starting life as a married woman but also I was yet again starting from scratch at a new state (yup, this is my second time around). A state completely the oposite to what I had known at that point in my life, and basically I didn't know anything else about it besides IT IS COLD. I was terrorized, but the thought of finally working at my dream job and building my life with my husband at a new place seem pretty exciting at the time.

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The Museum Of Ice Cream Miami: The Power Of Imagination

Photography by: Angel Torres

A little over a month ago while we went back to Miami, my hubby and I had the chance to check out the Museum Of Ice Cream in Miami Beach. Oh what a magical place it was! 😍 It truly was everything I thought it was going to be and then some.

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My Take On Corporate Dressing

Photography by: Emily Voss

You all know that I don't dress up for work. I dress up for event, and those are blogger events which are very different from "regular people" definition of dressing up.

I was invited to attend a Diversity & Inclusion conference in Las Vegas last week. Maybe you were following me along on my Instagram stories, maybe you weren't. To give you a little background; I am a creative person and the thought of dressing up literally makes my skin crawl. Have you been there? when thinking corporate dressing is as boring as a gray or black pantsuit and thats about all you get to wear all week long? Gross!

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My Relationship With Sunscreen

Photography by: Angel Torres

Now that I’m back from Miami with a sun kissed tan, it really made me think about how I treat sun skincare as a whole. Not only because I wanted a tan (after hibernation for 6 months) but also because I became very aware of it a few years back.

I am not going to lie, I’ve been pretty reckless with my skin. I used to be the girl who would go a couple of times a week to the tanning salon to lay on a tanning bed back in high school. I KNOW! IT WAS AWFUL! I did it for a couple of years until I moved, and my tanning salon was not close to me anymore- Thank God! I truly can’t even imagine all the damage I caused to y skin and how many years I added to my appearance just because I wanted to be super tanned.

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Living That Coconut Life

Photography by: Angel Torres

Its been an amazing couple of days in Miami so far. Had some family time, beach time, friends time, food time and of course some pool time too.

Being back in Miami after almost a year and a half, has brought a lot of memories but it has also shown us a different side to it and now we get to actually be tourists! There are so many things that I never enjoyed here in Miami that are well, SO MIAMI! As simple as drinking coconut water straight out of the coconut. Well, now I have and I'm happy I did it. It's going to be a problem because I dont think I can find it in Minneapolis when I go back. Ha!

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Making Your Way Back Into Fitness Less Painful

Photography by: Angel Torres

My fitness journey has been like a roller coaster. I hit an all-time high and then I get sick or I have to travel and that’s the end of that. I think consistency has been an issue for me ever since I can remember, even if I try. But now that I’m about to turn 32 and hopefully start a family soon, I want to break old bad habits and “adult” more.

I don’t work out to lose weight, thankfully I don’t need to. I work out for mental health and as a stress reducer. I took a looooong break from it because I was focusing on some other areas in my life but about 2 weeks ago as I was going to bed I thought to myself “maybe tomorrow I’ll work out” and the thought grew overnight and, in the morning, I was actually pretty excited about it.

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Inspired by "The Women I Work With"

I am lucky to be surrounded by amazing women. BAD ASS WOMEN. Women that have showed me how to be tough but professional, to rock presentations and productions while rocking a baby bump and looking amazing while doing it.

But that has not always been the case. We live in a men's world and we all know that but I am so glad to be part of a generation that said "Enough!" and armed themselves to be the change the world desperately needed. Initially I wanted this blog post to be about the amazing sense of fashion that this girl bosses have but as I was writing it, it felt off. It felt like something more important was missing and I was completely reducing them to their sense of fashion. Which, don't get me wrong I do believe that success and a good sense of fashion and self care go hand in hand but it is not the only thing that matters.

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