Monday, November 26, 2018

Oversized Graphic Sweater from Eva Trends

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post by Eva Trends. As always, all opinions are my own.

A few weeks ago, I was contacted by Eva Trends and asked if I was interested in reviewing several of their items. Looking at the website, I was right away drawn to the unique designs. Many items have graphic patterns. The sweater I'm wearing in today's post caught my attention right away as it reminded me of a sweater I owned in the late 80s that I absolutely loved. It had a girl walking down a street on it - I always presumed it was a street in Paris - and the colors were mainly black, white and a little red. I could have worn that sweater every day, and I have a feeling some weeks I did...



The Eva Trends sweater is oversized and long enough to wear with leggings. In fact, it's perfect with my faux leather leggings that I seem to be wearing all the time lately. 


The sweater is called Girl in the City sweater.

Eva Trends Girl in the City Sweater

The design continues on the back of the sweater, which I love.

Eva Trends Girl in the City Sweater

The sweater is very soft and thin enough to drape well, which is important since it is oversized. I chose to wear it with a black turtleneck underneath for added warmth, and it was very comfortable.

Eva Trends Girl in the City Sweater

One last look at my new Girl in the City sweater. I know I'll wear it a lot! And I'll feel like I'm back in the 80s every time I do. And in this case, that's a good thing! 

Eva Trends Girl in the City Sweater

Eva Trends Coupon Code

If you want to check out Eva Trends, you can save 10% off your entire order by using Code MM10. If you love graphic sweaters, you'll be very happy you did. But there is so much more, from embroidered pants to the most beautiful, unique dresses and cardigans.



Questions: Did you ever own a graphic shirt or sweater? What items from way back when do you still think about today? 

Friday, November 16, 2018

Faux Leather Leggings for Fall/Winter & the Holidays

This post contains affiliate links, and www.andreaswellnessnotes.com will benefit from actions taken on the links. 

Today's post is a collaboration post with four other fabulous bloggers - Suzanne, Robin, Julie and Nina. Make sure to read to the end for lots of style inspiration.

If you have been reading my blog for a while, you'll know that I love faux leather leggings. In fact, I own multiple pairs. The last pair of faux leather leggings I bought is my most affordable one, but I like them a lot.

In fact, I like them as much as my much more expensive pairs. I think they are also a great option for those who may be on the fence about faux leather leggings as they are not a huge investment.


I love faux leather leggings in fall and winter and for the holidays. I bought the Desigual dress in Germany a few years ago and knew it was a bit too short on its own. Since I have a tradition of adding at least one Desigual item to my wardrobe on every trip, and I really liked the dress, I had to find a way to make it work. I think it works well with the leggings. It's one of the holiday outfits I'm going to bring to Germany when I visit my parents in December.


 I like that the leggings have a ponte back, which makes them very comfortable.

Outfit Details: Faux Leather Leggings

And now on to the other fabulous bloggers and how they have styled faux leather leggings. 

Suzanne from Ask Suzanne Bell always styles faux leather leggings so well. In fact, I bought my other favorite pair of faux leather leggings, Lysse, on her recommendation last year, and I am glad I did as they are still like new after countless wears. Here are two examples of how Suzanne styles her Lysse faux leather leggings. If you don't already follow Suzanne, check out her blog for great, relatable style advice, follow her on Instagram, and like her on Facebook. Here is a link to Suzanne's blog post.



Next is Robin LaMonte from Hello I'm 50ish. Her faux leather leggings are from Chico's. Isn't this the perfect holiday outfit? I so want to recreate this outfit! Here is a link to her post. You can follow Robin on Instagram here and like her Facebook page here.


Julie from Fashion Trends and Friends styled a very affordable pair of faux leather leggings from Amazon. Didn't she create a lovely holiday look? Here is a link to her blog post. Follow Fashion Trends and Friends on Instagram here. And like their Facebook page here.


Next is Nina from Sharing a Journey. Here is a link to her blog post. I love the pop of red she added to her outfit! It makes it instantly festive. Follow Nina on Instagram here and her Facebook page here.


Questions: Do you own faux leather leggings? If yes, what is your favorite way to style them for fall/winter? Do you ever wear them for the holidays?



Monday, November 12, 2018

Camo at AT&T Park for the Bacon and Beer Classic

This post contains affiliate links, and www.andreaswellnessnotes.com will benefit from actions taken on the links.

I still haven't gotten tired of my camo jeans, and I wore them again on Saturday when Andy was a judge at the Bacon and Beer Classic at AT&T Park in San Francisco. This time I paired them with an old navy and white sweater and an old moto jacket.




There are a couple cable cars in the park, and I couldn't resist posing on one of them. 

Outfit Details: Camo jeans

After assisting Andy with taking photos, keeping track of his notes and making sure he tasted everything he was supposed to, I very much enjoyed resting a bit in the dugout. 


Of course, I had to get a photo in front of the Bacon & Beer sign.


It was cool to view the empty stadium. 



One last photo on our way back to the car. 


Questions: Do you own any camo clothing items? The jeans are my first, but I want to get more. I sort of have my eye on a cashmere hoodie... 

Friday, November 9, 2018

The Golden Sequence: A Manual for Reclaiming Our Humanity Book Review

This post contains affiliate links, and www.andreaswellnessnotes.com will benefit from actions taken on the links.
 
A few weeks ago I was provided a review copy of The Golden Sequence: A Manual for Reclaiming Our Humanity. The book is written by Jonni Pollard, whose work is focused on mindfulness.


 

The book is filled with very interesting and thought-provoking information and lends itself to being reread and studied again and again. Below I highlight some of the topics the author discusses in detail and illustrates with many examples.

Pollard starts off by telling his own history with organized religion, his eventual rejection of it and finally his realization that there has to be more to life. He ended up traveling to India and studied in the Vedic Tradition: "The Vedic perspective of reality states that our existence is governed by an unlimited creative intelligence that pervades all levels of our physical and nonphysical universe as one whole unified reality" (p. Xvii). If we feel connected to the universe, we can tap into our intuition.

The author sees himself as a guru (and discusses the negative connotations that have become associated with the term) that helps humanity. He stresses that the golden sequence that he outlines is a practice and it is not enough just to acquire knowledge about it.

Pollard goes on to point out that most of us are disconnected from the world around us and that leads to dehumanization, stress, anxiety, depression and health problems. And instead of dealing with our situation, we usually either try to escape or put blame elsewhere. He also states that the isolated way we live today does not match the way we have evolved - living in small tribes totally connected to nature. As a result we live in an age of depression. Many readers can probably relate to these points.

He goes on to discuss the Four Golden Insights:

  • life is sacred - we are all connected and essentially the same because we all depend on the same life support system; everyone has the same right to the sacredness of life
  • love is our nature - by nature the author means our spontaneous and automatic responses that are innate; love makes us nurture connections with ourselves and others
  • wisdom is our power - first, wisdom is not dependent on age or experience; rather, wisdom is intuitive intelligence that is expressed within love; when we are wise we love ourselves and those around us; he gives the example of when we know in our gut that something is true and right, this feeling is not a fluke but something we can cultivate. A large part of the book discusses how to access our wisdom.
  • fulfillment is our purpose - the author points out the importance of having a purpose, finding what fulfills us the most.
Pollard outlines twelve ways of wisdom. He points out that the terminology he uses does not matter all that much but what he means by each, and he describes each one in detail and gives many examples:
  • witnessing
  • insight
  • devotion
  • discernment
  • grace
  • compassion
  • creativity 
  • benevolence 
  • enthusiasm 
  • generosity 
  • friendliness 
  • humor

The Golden Sequence is filled with many insights and encourages the reader to turn the sequence into a practice, not simply have knowledge of it. I think that is a very important point. But I also believe by reading the book we can gain much from it immediately and start to question our own practices and how we live our lives, often disconnected. We can then start to be more present and reconnect with ourselves, those around us and nature. And in the process we can live the connected life that we are meant to live.


Be well,
Andrea





Wednesday, November 7, 2018

Harry Potter in Concert and Sushi at The Fairmont San Jose

On Saturday, we went to see Harry Potter in Concert at the Center for the Performing Arts in downtown San Jose. It was a great experience and a wonderful introduction to a live concert for the kid.




I had been wearing my new camo jeans for about a week, and it was a nice opportunity to get dressed up a bit. I opted for faux leather leggings with a silk tunic. 



Here is the tunic from the back. I like that it is long enough to cover my behind.


After the performance, we walked over to The Fairmont San Jose to get some California rolls, avocado rolls, edamame and tofu in the Lobby Lounge.

And we couldn't resist the cheesecake, which was decadent and satisfying.
The lobby of The Fairmont is stunning and always has the most beautiful flower arrangements; this time it was orchids.
It's our tradition to get sushi in the Fairmont Lobby Lounge during Christmas in the Park, and we are already looking forward to returning. 

Question: What was the last performance you saw? 

Click here to check out the fabulous bloggers I’m linking up with.   

Be well,
Andrea

Thursday, November 1, 2018

Sentence a Day: October 2018

Here are my sentences for October 2018. Since I practiced yoga every day of the month (and will do so until the end of the year), I didn't mention the yoga challenge very often so that I wouldn't bore you (and myself). You can read my past sentences on my Sentence a Day Page.

Monday, October 1, 2018
I had a million things on my to-do list but then got unexpectedly stuck working on an assignment for my physiology class for six hours straight; Jodie and I also started an end-of-the-year yoga challenge (simple rule: practice yoga every day for the rest of the year; no time limit, etc.). It's not too late to join us! We motivate ourselves and each other daily by posting about the challenge on our Instagram stories.



Tuesday, October 2, 2018
I started the day with yoga and then went on a walk while I called my aunt; the rest of the day I was busy getting work done, and in the evening I got the house in order and we went to Costco.

Wednesday, October 3, 2018
It rained for about five minutes at 3:00 a.m. (first rain since April) and the noise woke me up; since I couldn't get back to sleep, I got up and got work done and did a yoga practice before 6 a.m. Since I had gotten so much done, I indulged in a 4-mile walk after dropping the kid off at school.


Thursday, October 4, 2018
It was a busy day as the kid has minimum days for the next eight days which means I have two hours less to get my work done.

Friday, October 5, 2018
We had the kid's parent teacher conference and couldn't be prouder.

Saturday, October 6, 2018
This weekend is all about cleaning and getting organized, but we also briefly stopped by the Mt. View Oktoberfest, where I bought candied almonds, pretty much the only "candy" I liked as a kid.


Sunday, October 7, 2018
Another day of cleaning, getting organized and running errands; we also spent some time at the park.



Monday, October 8, 2018
I got up early to get work done as it's another minimum day; in the afternoon, I got my haircut.

Tuesday, October 9, 2018
Tried to remember to breathe today as there was so much to do and time just kept running away from me.

Wednesday, October 10, 2018
I'm fighting a bad cold but forced myself to get a good chunk of work done and also went to the store, where I picked up some pretzels to try out for our Oktoberfest on Saturday (they are kid-approved but he says they are "more of an American pretzel than a German pretzel.")




Thursday, October 11, 2018
I'm still fighting this cold but ran some more errands and did a couple hours of work in the morning before picking up the kid early since he still has minimum days.

Friday, October 12, 2018
We went to Fleming's Steakhouse for lunch to celebrate the birthday boys.





Saturday, October 13, 2018
The birthday celebrations continued with an Oktoberfest at home.




Sunday, October 14, 2018
It was a bit of a slow day after yesterday's celebrations.

Monday, October 15, 2018
The kid was off from school and we originally had plans to head to the beach with one of his friends, but they cancelled, so we decided to get caught up at home (and the kid "remembered" that he had to read an entire book for a quiz the next day!).

Tuesday, October 16, 2018
I've been dealing with an annoying calf injury for weeks that all of a sudden got really painful, so I tried to stay off my leg as much as possible; good thing I had to work on an assignment for my physiology class for most of the day...

Wednesday, October 17, 2018
The calf felt almost back to normal when I got up, but after 30 minutes it hurt again.

Thursday, October 18, 2018
Andy and I were invited to the Fairmont San Jose to preview their special menu celebrating the honey harvest - it's amazing that the hotel has 40,000 honeybees on its rooftop!


Friday, October 19, 2018
My calf is still bothering me a lot, but I'm very thankful that I was able to go on a short walk and enjoy the beautiful fall leaves.


Saturday, October 20, 2018
Andy and I got to preview some of Steins Beer Garden Cupertino's new menu items, and they were all delicious.

Sunday, October 21, 2018
After yesterday's indulgences, I started the day with a barre class, and in the afternoon the kid celebrated his birthday with his friends from school in a low-key way at home (they had the best time). 

Monday, October 22, 2018
I spent lots of time on my physiology class. 


Tuesday, October 23, 2018
I met up with Suzanne from Ask Suzanne Bell at Satura Cakes in Los Altos (cutest place with very tasty treats - I got the custard and LOVED it), and we had a great time catching up (it had been a year - way too long!). 


Wednesday, October 24, 2018
Suzanne from Ask Suzanne Bell and Kim from Northern California Style hosted a fun event at Trina Turk in Burlingame; I had the best time trying on different things (Trina Turk recap post). 


Thursday, October 25, 2018
I spent more time on my physiology class as we'll be away this weekend, and next week will be very busy. 


Friday, October 26, 2018
Andy and I started the day with a barre class and then had brunch at Kunjip; I spent the rest of the day getting caught up on work as we'll be gone this weekend. 

Saturday, October 27, 2018
We got up bright and early and drove to Avila Beach, where we spent a lovely time on the beach before heading to Pismo Beach for a long walk. 

Sunday, October 28, 2018
It was lovely waking up at the beach and going for another long walk (made even better by the fact that my calf didn't bother me).



Monday, October 29, 2018
I spent the day getting caught up with life after our trip.

Tuesday, October 30, 2018
My calf is still holding up okay, so I went to a barre class. Fingers crossed that the calf will hold up.



Wednesday, October 31, 2018
The kid is actually looking forward to trick or treating (after he thought he was too cool for it last year).

An InLinkz Link-up

Questions: What were your highlights in October? 

Be well,
Andrea