A Few of My Favorite Things

This is partly a recap of my adventures at the Hoover Dam + Las Vegas, with a detour on a few of my favorite things (one of which is travel, so I’m not really veering that far off topic)!

I’m not going to lie. Living out of a backpack and a carry-on and moving every 2 weeks to a different town and/or state isn’t always easy, but it’s still been a pretty awesome adventure thus far. I think it helps that I try to squeeze in some time to explore a new place or visit friends I haven’t seen in months to years.

During the weekend between my rotation in Arizona, I decided to go with Martha (the other med student auditioning at the clinic!) on some semi-nearby adventures! She’d never been to Vegas, and I’d never been to Sedona, so we decided to throw both into the mix over the weekend. There were snow showers on Saturday in Sedona, so we opted for Las Vegas first.

Our first stop was at the Hoover Dam! …we were trading phones all day to take pictures, so I just realized that I don’t have an actual picture of the dam. …Oops. But I overheard that rubbing the toes on this statue would bring good fortune, and if there’s ever a time for me to need that…well, it’d be right around now! I’d love to know where I’m going to be for the next 3 years!

Since Martha had never been to Vegas, we decided to just walk all over the strip! I think we got to about 19,000 steps by the end of the day. :O

The Bellagio ceiling!

Martha joked that we should try to double our student loans, and we both started cackling maniacally. :[ But look! Sheldon and soft kitty!

I’ve never been to Vegas without my family, and we’ve also never gone during the holiday season. The decorations were all so pretty and festive!

We may or may not have had sorbet/gelato for lunch…

I got mango + strawberry sorbet with marscapone pistachio gelato!

Remember what movie this is from!?

Sadly, I did not get to watch this (sigh)…but yay for being in the same general vicinity!?

Hello, adorable penguin holding a hand sanitizer! <3

Outside Mandalay Bay!

I had an ulterior purpose for making it to Mandalay Bay. (…They have a Lush store!) I’ve talked before about my love for Lush skin care products…so guess what? I’m at it again!

LUSH Celestial

Best suited for sensitive or dry skin. My skin’s generally more of the latter, and I love this facial moisturizer! It’s suitable as a daily moisturizer, but I use it as a night cream. It has a very light vanilla scent–ingredients include vanilla water, almond oil, almond milk, fair trade organic cocoa butter + fresh dove orchid extract!

LUSH Charity Pot

Pick a charity to support!

I love volunteering and companies that give back! This is one of my newest purchases, and has a self-preserving formula that smells lightly of ylang ylang + rosewood oils. 100% of the proceeds (minus taxes) are donated to small grassroots organizations that work to help with environmental conservation, animal welfare, and human rights! :] Comes in two sizes–I couldn’t get the giant tub because I’m traveling, but the little tub is perfect for that!

What with the lack of water in California and all the traveling, liquids aren’t as convenient to cart around, and I accidentally squirted a very generous amount of what I thought was shampoo but was actually sunscreen into my hair. (That was during my week of interviews.) :O Oh, life. Hooray for being tired.

LUSH Honey I Washed My Hair

This nondescript little macaron-lookin’ thing smells heavenly. For serious. I actually meant to purchase another shampoo bar, but couldn’t pass up this one after I smelled it. It leaves your hair super soft, shiny, light (my hair’s really thick, so this was especially nice) + smellin’ amazing!

drew co. Total Betty Solid Butter

I won this in Amanda’s giveaway a couple months ago! I love fruity scents, and passionfruit anything, and this is both! It smells amaaaaazing, a delicious blend of orange, rose + passionfruit–it makes me want to keep sniffing my hands! It’s preservative-free, and ingredients include beeswax, organic coconut oil, fair trade organic cocoa butter, mango butter, shea butter, and jojoba oil!

• What are some of your favorite things?
• Stay tuned for tomorrow’s post on a super fun and gorgeous hike! :]