Travel Must-Haves

1. Biodegradable sunscreen – This kind of sunscreen protects coral reefs. It does not have chemicals that damage ocean life, and have eco-friendly ingredients. Even if I am not planning to swim near a coral reef, I still use this sunscreen to be eco-friendly! I use the brand, Jason.

2. Travel book bag – It is good to have a travel size book bag to carry essentials that you will need for your day. Whether you are on the plane, or on a tour it is good to have a bag where you can throw what you need for the day.

3. Travel size EVERYTHING – Travel size makeup, shampoo, tooth paste etc. Having at least one of each will come in handy.

4. Zip log bags – I like to carry my jewelry, and make-up in zip log bags. It helps me have everything organized, and helps me manage if I forgot anything.

5. Selfie stick – Although it sounds like a dumb idea selfie sticks are pretty cool. If you are traveling alone, or with just a partner it can take great pictures without having to ask a stranger to take a picture.

6. Neck pillow, small blanket, sleeping masks – Sometimes you go on an airplane, and you think it is just a few hours I do not need anything. But, you will regret that decision when you get on the plane. I once got on a plane, and thought 3 hours was nothing (I didn’t even take a sweater!). I regretted every moment of it. Now, I make sure I take a sweater, neck pillow, a small blanket, and socks. Sounds high maintenance, but if I plan to sleep the whole way there I need to be comfortable!

When things change...

Once in a while life throws a curve ball at you. It can be a regular day, and out of nowhere something throws you off your usual routine. You can feel anxious, depressed, or feel lost at the moment. But, you have to remember that life waits for no one. Meaning deal with the situation, whether it does not get fixed in days, weeks, or months from now. Keep a positive outlook, and do not get attached to material things, or things out of your control. There is a lesson to learn in every experience of life. Figure out what the universe is trying to teach you, learn from it, and move on. Do not let one set back, set you back ten times more.

  

                                                                          Good luck in your journey. 

From my home to yours: Recipe to make a Jibarito sandwich

• 1 green plantain
• ½ cup of canola oil
• 1 pound of skirt steak (thinly sliced)
• ½ onion
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• ½ tsp. adobo
• ½ tsp. parsley
• ½ tsp garlic salt
• 4 cloves of garlic (cut into thin slices)
• 3 slices of tomato
• 1/2 a cup of lettuce
• 2 slices of American yellow cheese
• 1 tbsp. of mayo

Preparation time: 45 minutes (preparing items and cooking)

The Jibarito Sandwich originated in Chicago, IL at Borinquen Restaurant. Juan “Peter Figueroa” introduced the Jibarito in 1996, and it is now a part of restaurants across Chicago. You can go to any Puerto Rican restaurant, or even a Latin restaurant, and find Jibarito on their menu. This delicious plantain sandwich can be easily made at home. My favorite part of eating a Jibarito is the texture of the crunchy plantain, with a pinch of garlic taste, tender meat, and melted cheese all in one bite!

Jibarito Steak Sandwich:

Season the skirt steak with Adobo, parsley, and a bit of garlic salt (not too much garlic salt, because the meat will come out salty). I like to massage the seasoning onto the meat. Then, heat up a medium sized pan, and a large pan with canola oil. Cut 2 cloves of garlic into thin pieces, and let it cook in the medium sized pan where you will put the meat. Put the skirt steak to cook. The steak should cook for about 20 minutes, or until your liking. I like to throw in onions in the last 10 minutes of the skirt steak cooking. It adds more flavor to the meat, and I put the sautéed onions on my sandwich (it’s a win win situation).  

Then cut 2 more gloves of garlic in to small pieces, add to a small bowl, and pour 1 tsp. of canola oil, and stir. Save this for later.

Cut the tips of the plantain, and peel the skin off. Once this is done, cut the plantain in half (vertically). Then fry the 2 halves of the plantain in the large pan. Cook the plantains on high, and once you see them turn light brown take them out. While the fried plantains cool down (about 5 – 7 minutes), cut the next plantains, and put them to fry (depending on how many you are making).

Grab 2 cutting boards. Place one plantain slice on a cutting board, with the inside of the plantain facing up. Then grab the second cutting board, and carefully/slowly squish the plantain. After squishing the plantain it should look wide and long.  Once all the plantains have been fried and squished, put the squished plantains back in the pan to be fried a second time. I like my plantains crispy, or until they are brownish.

Now you are ready to build your sandwich!

Grab 2 plantains slices (just like bread), spread the mayo, add 1 slice of yellow cheese, 2 pieces of skirt steak (one on each side of plantain), add lettuce (I added spinach and kale instead), a few slices of tomato, sautéed onions, and half a slice of yellow cheese on top (can you tell I love cheese?), then put the other slice of plantains on top. My last topping is the chopped up garlic with oil. I spread that on the top “bun”. Cut the sandwich in half, and your sandwich is all done J

Improvise the sandwich to your liking, or substitute items. For example, instead of adding lettuce I added spinach/kale instead. You can also make the Jibarito with chicken. The options are endless!


Enjoy!

What makes me feel like a woman?

Many women have their opinions/reasons on what makes them feel like a woman. To me, feeling like a woman is not wearing make-up, high heels, or a dress. I feel like I am a woman when I am weight training. When I am training I feel like I can take on the world, I feel like I can win anything, I feel stronger, and that to me is being a woman!

I have been weight training for a few months now, and all I can ask myself is why did I not know about this earlier in life?! Since weight training I feel fit, less stressed, and more confident. I still have a lot to learn, and every day I see my body change for the better. Magazines have always shown that to be sexy you need to be skinny. Screw that! To me sexy is having muscle AND BOOTY!

Here are some benefits to weight training according to muscleandstrength.com:

https://www.muscleandstrength.com/articles/5-reasons-why-women-should-love-weight-training

I do not even know where to begin on San Diego, CA. There are many things to do, and many places to see. Below are some of the places I visited, and I will give a brief summary about each. Enjoy!

San Diego Zoo – This zoo makes you feel like you are in Jurassic World! It is huge! They make the environment as natural as they can. They even have a bird cage where you can walk into, and different kinds of birds are flying around you. The Orangutans were hilarious! One of them was eating a leaf, and rolling around the ground at the same time! They have cute little Koala bears. The Koala bear section has a lot of information about a Koala’s life. I went on a  Skyfari Aerial Tram which takes you from the back of the zoo to the front. And if you want to have some extra fun they sell margaritas! I would definitely plan a whole day or two at the zoo (2 days if you have kids). The best part? You get to see pandas!!!

Old Town San Diego – This was one of my favorite places in SD! It looks like…you guessed it…an old town! It is extremely rich in Mexican culture. There are beautiful shops with amazing items to buy. They sell Mexican sugar skulls for Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos), Mexican candy, pottery, hats, and much more. A mariachi band named Divinas (all woman group) played music from 8:30 – 9 p.m. It was very entertaining. Towards the end people got up to dance! We ate at “El Patio De Oldtown”, the food was great! I am Mexican, I know a good taco when I taste it! I ordered flautas and my boyfriend ordered tacos. Both meals were mouthwatering. By the way, the tortillas are handmade! All the waiters/waitresses are dressed like we were in the past. They have a live guitar player. Also, there is a haunted house you can visit in Old Town! The list of activities are endless.

Mission Bay – If you love adventure this is the place for you. There are people everywhere! Lots of surfing and bike shops. They have a small well known amusement park called Belmont Park. Admission is free at Belmont. You pay per ride if you decide to get on one. I got on the Giant Dipper, and it was so much fun (it was built in 1925!) ! They have zip lining, bikes, henna tattoos, paddling surf boards, canoeing, and games. Mission Bay beach is absolutely stunning. Get there early to get a good spot!

La Jolla Cove – La Jolla was very scenic with nice beaches. There are high fashion shops and restaurants which, you can walk around and explore. It is hard to find parking, make sure you are there early.  You can either set up a canopy at a beach, or on the grass area. We went to the Children’s beach. Behind the beach there was construction going on, but other than that it was nice.  Also, a baby seal swam by! It was amazing to see! As I was walking around La Jolla I came across some rocks, and on those rocks there were seals! There were about ten seals sleeping. Be careful when you step on those rocks, because there will be seal poop and pee! They also sneeze so try not to get to close! I almost got sprayed!

Seaport Village – This place is at the top of my list! We got there early, therefore parking was easy to find. There are many different tours you can take. You can take a bus/boat ride in Seaport Village called, “San Diego Seal Tours by Land & Sea Adventures”. It sells out by 1 p.m., it is best to buy tickets early. I did not get on it, but it did look extremely fun! Instead we walked around, and came across a bike carriage. We did a 30 minute tour on the bike carriage. I enjoyed it, because the guy gave us fun historical facts. I am not a seafood fanatic, but if you are this is the place to be! They have a fish market on Saturday mornings. Also, there is a navy base which you can pay for a tour in one of the navy ships. Near the base they have a statue of a navy man kissing a girl called "Unconditional Surrender". The story behind the statute is that after the war a navy man jumped out of the ship, and kissed the first girl he saw. Someone was able to snap a picture of it, which was then made into a statute.

Balboa Park –This incredible Park is the definition of date night. There is a big beautiful pond with nice fishes (coming from a person that does not like fish), there are small museums you can explore, caricature artists, a flower garden, a fine dining restaurant, and much more. There were a few photo shoots going on while I was there! That should tell you how beautiful it is!

Coronado – I did not get to explore Coronado much. But from what I saw it was beautiful, and had plenty of entertainment. You can get to Coronado by ferry or by driving. We drove over a large bridge. There was an area with bars, and restaurants playing music. We walked near the ocean, and got to see the beautiful San Diego Skyline. This would be a perfect ending to a date night!

I hope you enjoyed my post! Please feel free to leave comments or questions on San Diego, CA.

Shea Moisture Review

I was introduced to Shea Moisture a few years back, and ever since I have loved their products!

My newest obsession from Shea Moisture is “Olive & Green Tea Hand and Body Scrub”. It is anti-aging & ultra-moisturizing.  Even though it says it is for hand and body, I also use it on my face. The soap smells sooooo good! It keeps my face and body soft, and I do not need to apply lotion after my showers.

After I shower, I feel like I came out of a spa. Applying the soap on my face with warm water is very relaxing, especially after a long day of work! I wash my face in a circular motion to avoid stretching out my skin, and causing wrinkles in the future.

I hope this winter this will help my face and hands not dry up! (I'll keep you posted)

You can find Shea Moisture products almost anywhere like Walgreens, Ulta, Amazon, and Target (sometimes they have them on clearance).

These are there ingredients:

No Animal Testing, No Parabens, No Phthalates, No Paraffin, No Gluten, No Propylene Glycol, No Mineral Oil, No Synthetic Fragrance, No PABA, No Synthetic Color, No DEA, No Sulfates.

Here is a link to their website: http://www.sheamoisture.com/

I look forward to review more of their products in the future!

Simple Sofrito Recipe

Add all these ingredients into a blender, blend, and store. You can put it in a glass jar, or in ice trays, and freeze it (to last longer). It can also be stored in the refrigerator. If you would like to make a bigger batch you can simply add more of those same ingredients. 

Sofrito is used in many Puerto Rican dishes such as rice, soup, beans, and many more. It has a very strong and fresh smell. After you make it at home you might not want to go back to store bought Sofrito!

There are a variety of ways to make Sofrito. Some people add red pepper, olive oil, or plum tomatoes. There are also certain ingredients that you can add, but are hard to find in the United States one of them is cubanelle peppers.

Enjoy!

(Sofrito next to bacon)

• 1 can of Goya Green Pigeon Peas (better known as Gandules Verdes)
• 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil
• Bacon (about 20 - 30 pieces of bacon) (you can substitute for any kind of meat or none at all!)
• 1/2 cup white onion (cut into tiny pieces)
• 1/2 cup red pepper (cut into tiny pieces)
• 1/2 cup Cilantro (chop into small pieces)
• 2 packets of Sazon Goya
• 4 cups of water
• 2 big spoonful’s of Sofrito (can be bought at a store or made at home, recipe here)
• 1/4 teaspoon of Oregano or to liking
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt or to liking (OPTIONAL)

Puerto Rican food is a mixture of Taino (native Indians), Spanish (brought new ingredients), and African (frying the food) which is why Puerto Rican cooking is called Cocina Criolla (Creole Cooking). Before I get into a history lesson, let’s dive right into how to make a masterpiece! The following is a recipe from my grandma who is born and raised in Puerto Rico.

Walking through the south rim of the Grand Canyon I came across a small shop called Xanterra. I was wandering in the shop trying to find a souvenir that matched with my home. I could not find something meaningful to me. Do not get me wrong, they had beautiful things to buy such as hats, shirts, post cards, crystals, mugs, and even books on Mexican folktales. I wanted something different.

As I approached a corner in the back of the store, I found authentic Native American items (one of my shopping weaknesses!). The items looked like dream catchers but they were different kinds. All the items had their own meanings and purposes.

Also, in that section there were necklaces, bracelets, dolls, etc. (my younger sister bought an ankle bracelet that protects her from negative spirits). Each item had a tag that explained the meaning of the item.

I chose the first item that caught my eye! I loved what mine stated, and I knew it would be a great addition to my home.

This is the tag:

Hello all!

I am starting a 24-day ab challenge based off of the Brazen fit website (http://brazenfit.com/24-day-ab-challenge/). This is a challenge I started last year but I never finished. This month I am determined to get it done! I started again last night, and I will update this post with pictures of my progress. Although, it is only a 24-day challenge I will continue to do the challenge for about two months. My goal is to have completely flat abs! If you want to join in on the challenge, I would love to hear about it on the comments below. Also, keep in mind I work out 3 times a week boot camp style so, my results are not just based off the challenge, but as well as what I eat and do on a weekly basis. Cannot wait to see results!