Establishing A Morning Routine

I really needed that 3 day weekend but it feels like Monday again lol. I had to remind myself that it was Tuesday but we do have a short work week. I am happy to get back to the weekend.

At the beginning of the year, I set out to establish a morning routine. I honestly didn’t have one to begin with and always started the day off in chaos. I would wake up late, run around trying to find something to wear, fight with my son to get up and dressed and so on. It wasn’t a good way to start out the day. I had some success with preparing things the night before but eventually feel off. Now that we are in the middle of this quarantine, I kinda let the morning routine go since I wasn’t commuting anywhere but still started the day off in chaos. I was not prepared for things and just winging it. I thought about how important it is to still have a morning routine. Even though we are just going from the bed to the office, dining room table or living room office, we still need to set ourselves up for success.

One of the main questions you want to ask yourself is what do you want to accomplish in the morning? Do you want to get up early enough to exercise, meditate, clean or enjoy some quiet time? How do you want to set the tone for the day? My main goal for a morning routine is to be organized and start the day off on a positive note. I notice when I was unorganized, waking up late and running around like a crazy person, I would start off being in such a bad mood and it effected the work I did. When I did have things together, I was ready to start my day on the right foot.

I honestly wanted to be one of those moms/wives who got up at 5am, got washed up and dressed, cleaned the house and cooked breakfast before anyone got up. I love my sleep more than anything so this version wasn’t going to work. I am working on waking up as early as I can. Here is my typical morning routine:

I wake up, pray, hop in the shower, wash my face, brush my teeth, lotion, get dressed, make coffee, check person emails and social media and have some quiet time for logging into work. I want to work on incorporating some exercising or something else within that routine but it has been working for me so far.

Try asking yourself what you want to accomplish in the morning and try to create a routine if you don’t have one already or try to make improvements to the one you already have. We should all be starting the day off on a positive note despite what is currently going on.

Do you have a morning routine? How are you making out with it? Let me know and see you Thursday!

May Current Obsessions

I honestly have to keep reminding myself what day it is. I woke up the other day thinking it was later in the week and it was only Tuesday ugh! I’ll get it together at some point…hopefully.

Today I am sharing my current obsessions on my YouTube channel. If you are new to Naturalle Drea, my current obsessions are basically my monthly favorites that I share every other month. They are the products I have been basically obsessed with, couldn’t stop using and just blew me away the first time I used it. My current obsessions range from skincare to beauty to fashion and even a few snacks may sneak in there lol. Here are the products I have been obsessed with over the past couple months:

Boscia Sake White Peel Off Mask

Akoyn Beauty Papaya and Turmeric Facial Bar

ELF Cosmetics Instant Lift Brow Pencil

Taupe Coat Melt My Heart Nail Polish

Fenty Beauty Full Frontal Mascara

Sugar Goddess Snap Back Body Scrub

Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb in Glass Slipper

Melanin HairCare Multi Use Leave In Conditioner

Have you tried any of these products? What are you currently loving? Also make sure you are subscribed to my YouTube channel so you don’t miss any videos from me every Friday 12pm EST.

New Skincare Items

You know, I miss rolling up to Sephora every once in while and walking around. I miss swatching all the new makeup, reading about the newest skincare items and just seeing what is in the store. I always walk out with something lol (always when Fenty drops something new lol) but these days it’s about online shopping.

In some previous posts, I talked about getting my skincare routine together and just taking better care of my skin. I recently picked up some things online from Sephora to try out. I did start using some of the items and some I haven’t yet but a more detailed post and review of each product is coming soon. I want to use them for a few weeks to see how my skin reacts to them, if I see any improvements and stuff like that. I love that some of these brands offer the smaller sizes of their products so you don’t waste your money if you don’t like it or have a reaction to the product. I think all skincare brands need to do this as well.

Kiehl’s Midnight Recovery Concentrate – I am trying to get back into using serums again and saw this one on the sight. This one came in variety box of other skincare items that I wanted to try.

Fresh Black Tea Kombucha Facial Treatment Essence – I’ve tried an essence before and loved it. I saw the reviews on this one and it seemed highly recommended. You basically use this after your toner and before your serums and moisturizer.

Biossance Squalane and Vitamin C Rose Oil – This facial oil was also in that variety box with the Kiehl’s serum. I heard a lot of good things about this brand and it comes with a pretty high price tag. I’ll see if it is worth the 72.00 for the full size.

Dermalogica Daily Microfoliant – This is another brand I’ve heard so many good things about and been wanting to try their products for a while. I will say the first time I used this, I was pretty impressed.

Farmacy Honeymoon Glow AHA Resurfacing Night Serum – This product was one of the main reasons for purchasing the variety box. I heard some good things about this company and also has a pretty price tag on their products.

Caudalie VinoPerfect Radiance Serum – I found this in my stash of hidden products lol and decided to try using it. I mainly use this serum at night and so far, so good.

Have you tried any of these products before? What skincare products are you currently using? Let me know!

How To Stay Sane During This Time

Welcome to day 529044 of social distancing and quarantine. I know a lot of us are pretty much tired and stressed out about this whole situation. We have to distance ourselves, wear masks, can’t get together, a lot of people had to cancel or reschedule their weddings, reunions, birthday parties and so on. The kids are at home with those of us who have them 24/7 and driving us crazy and it is just a lot.

We had to basically change how we operate our lives and adjust to this new normal. I don’t think things will feel like they used to for a while. It can be hard not being able to cruise the aisles of Home Goods, Home Sense or At Home (I miss those stores), having to wait in line to enter a store, not being able to just pop up at someone’s house and just be freely around others. I’ve had my moments of worry and stress but found a few things to help me during this pandemic.

Quiet Time/Meditation

I try to get up before everyone else in the house and just sit in stillness. I just sit quietly with no phone or social media to clear my mind and fill them with positive thoughts. It helps set the tone for the day so you don’t start it with chaos or negative thoughts. Sometimes I close my eyes and meditate for 5-10 minutes or just sit there with my coffee and be still. It honestly helps before you even start the day.

Go For A Walk, Get Some Fresh Air

Some people may be scared to be outside but you do need some fresh air. You can’t be cooped up in the house all day and all night. It helps to take a walk around the block, around your neighborhood or just in front of your your house. The weather is warming up and we should be enjoying outside even if its just sitting on your front porch or in the backyard. Stepping outside really helps with the stress of just being in the house for a period of time. You are getting some Vitamin D as well from the sun. It also helps if you open the windows and allow some fresh air to get inside the house.

Journal, Write Down Your Thoughts

It can be super stressful at times and you need an outlet to let those thoughts out. You may not be able to speak with anyone at the moment but just writing or journaling can be therapeutic. I actually have a Tumblr account dedicated to this when I am feeling some time of way. I hop on everyday and just write for as long as I need to. It helps to get those thoughts out and calm any anxiety you may have. It is not good to bottle feelings and stress up for too long.

Take A Break From Social Media

Social media can be a lot at times with everyone posting information about the pandemic, seeing the death of loved ones, what the frontline workers are going through and so on. It can be a lot. I’ve seen people complaining about how they are so tired the challenges being posted, people who are going live too much, seeing people having get togethers despite of the social distancing orders and honestly you just need to log off at that point and take a break. Go read a book, watch your favorite shows, clean, organize during that time. Social media may be an outlet for some to help them through this pandemic but if it is starting to drive you crazy, put the phone down.

Virtual Calls With Family and Friends

I am so used to people coming over, going to parties, seeing my family and just being around people in general. This has been tough but hopping on a virtual call with others weekly may help. My family has a Zoom call every Sunday to catch up, talk and just get each other through this and it has helped. We laugh, have fun, play games and just enjoy seeing each other. My friends hop on Zoom calls too or on this app called House Party. You can video chat while playing games with each other which has been so much fun. Even though we can’t physically see each other, we can still stay in touch. It has been really helpful for me.

I know we will all get through this pandemic. It has been a big change for us and I know it can get stressful at times. Just know you are not alone in this. Hopefully some of this tips will help you and let me know if you have any other additional tips that can help as well. See you guys Thursday!

~**Drea Notes**~

I am so sad How To Get Away With Murder is over! I loved that show and loved the series finale. It seems like the only show left from Shondaland is Grey’s Anatomy.

I am currently reading More Than Enough by Elaine Welteroth and I just can’t put it down. I am only on chapter 15 but just love what I read so far. Of course there will be a review but I highly recommend this book if you haven’t read it already.

What is good to watch on Netflix? I figured I got the time, I should check out some of these shows I see some of you guys posting about lol.