GilletteMarlys

Snow Day L.A.

Snow Day LA. Adventuring through Los Angeles, CA. Things to do while you are in L.A. Winter time activities

Looking for something fun to do in Los Angeles during Christmas time? I suggest you check out Snow Day L.A.

It is held near Downtown Los Angeles, right by the Dodger stadium. The hike up the hill wasn’t too bad, but as you turn the corner they had a big sign out front.

I went with my roommate and we opted for the VIP deal which included $1 off sparkly beer, Penguin onesies, and you get to go through the VIP lines for tubing which is quicker than waiting in the normal lines.

Here are the sparkly beers…

Not the best quality, but I took a joy ride down the hill on a tube, it was fun! They had 3 hills to choose from. We only rode two of them due to the lines being so long, but the longer hill was my favorite.

Here we are posing in our Penguin outfits. They were super cute and soft!

The price was a little steep for the activities that were there, however, it seemed like it was worth it with the onesies included. Next year, I’d probably opt for the cheaper pass and wear my Penguin onesie again.

The park was lit up with Christmas lights everywhere, they had music playing, a dance area, and bubbles everywhere creating a magical winter wonderland. They even had a place to take pictures.

The snow was actually bubbles which made it look like a winter wonderland.

Hope you have a fun adventure as well…Thanks for reading!

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Teeth Whitening for Sensitive Teeth

When you see someone for the first time, don’t you typically check out their smile? I know I do. I am a teeth person for sure. I am always drawn to people with nice smiles and white teeth, hence why I am always on the hunt for the best whitening products on the market. When Smile Brilliant reached out to me I was a bit skeptical at first to try it. I always hear about how great whitening products are, but I was worried about the sensitivity. I spoke with someone who works there for a while asking every question I could think of. She told me that their gel not only whitens, but they also have desensitizing gel they supply to keep you comfortable and pain-free while you whiten. So, I thought I’d give it a try.

They sent me a package which included a bite tray that you create yourself. It is some type of clay that you mix together, then put it in the bite tray. From there it creates the mold of your teeth. Next, you send it off in the mail to the dentist who will create custom-fitted trays for your bleaching system.

Once I got my teeth molds back I tried them on, they were a perfect fit. I put some gel in and tried it for 45 minutes because I was worried about the pain. I’ve whitened so many times for much less time and had such sensitive teeth for days. So this time I was going to be smart about it. I felt a little bit of sensitivity after whitening, so from there, I moved to step 2 which is the desensitizing step. You fill the same tray and use the second gel which is only a 20-minute process. This really helped take away any nerve pain I was feeling.

Before: 🙈

I continuously bleached within the week without pain. I noticed a relatively quick difference in the color of my teeth. I also noticed that my bonded teeth were lightening up as well, which surprised me because usually bonded teeth don’t change color with bleach.

After: 😁

I ultimately would recommend this product with continued use, it was a great kit and was comfortable to wear and use. I am partnering up with them to giveaway a whitening kit. To enter go to:

COUPON & GIVEAWAY DETAILS:
15% off coupon code: gillettemarlys15
Giveaway link: www.smilebrilliant.com/g/gillettemarlys
– The giveaway is for a $149 Smile Brilliant credit. It is open for 2 weeks (14 days after blog post date) and open to USA, UK, Australia and Canadian residents.

Good LUCK!!

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Glamping at Conestoga Ranch in Utah

Glamping at Conestoga Ranch in Utah. Near the border of Idaho by Bear Lake.

Camping is not my general idea of a good time. Thinking about the bugs that will be crawling in and around the tent as well as the rocky ground and horrible sleep you get… it just doesn’t sound fun. So when I heard we were going “Glamping” that perked my interests. I hadn’t ever been Glamping before so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I had heard about “Glamping” from those “House Wives” shows on tv but wasn’t sure how similar the experience would be.

My friend Megan got married so she invited a group of her closest friends to come to her wedding reception brunch and glamping for the weekend to celebrate. I am not much of a camper so I decided I’d give it a go since she’s one of my dearest friends.

I’ve lived in Utah most of my life and been to Bear lake one other time as a child. Bear Lake is lake bordering Utah and Idaho which many locals from Utah drift to in the Summer for a nice beach day to cool down, boat, fish, and ultimately just get away from the city and heat for the weekend.

Conestoga Ranch is where we stayed. From the moment we arrived, we all giggled when we saw the “Old School” wagons which for the next 3 days we’d call home. The Resort was extremely clean and welcoming upon arrival. They were very kind offering free bikes to ride (with consent forms signed) and golf carts to help us with our luggage to the tents and wagons. (Note: You can’t take the golf carts for your own personal joy ride… I asked…lol).

Once we unpacked the car we went to our wagon, we chose the one that slept 6, however, there are other wagons that sleep more or less.

The man showing us around said they have only the very best beds and sheets that are usually meant for fine hotels. He wasn’t wrong, I haven’t slept so soundly as I did on those beds. We had 4 bunk beds as well as I believe a queen/king for the other 2 people to share fitting 6 people quite comfy in a wagon.

Megan and her new Husband Brian shared a huge tent for just the two of them. They are living that luxury married life now, lol. Their tent made us all envious. From the clawfoot tub to the luxurious fireplace, they had all the amenities fit for glamping royalty.

At the time of check-in, we noticed Conestoga Ranch was offering $10 yoga so I signed up. The view at sunset made the class worth it, but the instructor was also fabulous so that didn’t hurt.

Firepits at sunset were started and put out later at night by the staff so that was nice to not have to worry about anything just bringing out the smores (which they also provided us upon check-in). Anything you need, the staff was a phone call away to providing it for us. That was pretty nice.

There was a full building designated to bathrooms and showers, they were brand new and beautiful. It was nice they had so many you never had to wait in line. The showers were hot and after a cold water beach day it was luxury…most of us took really long showers merely because it was so relaxing, they even provide towels and soap should you leave yours at home.

They have roping set up if you want to practice your skills outside the bathrooms, which I gave a try, but wasn’t very good at.

The Campfire Grill Restaurant where we ate was delicious. The chef made me a truffle cheeseburger I’ll never forget. We also ate breakfast there, I recommend the banana brulé oatmeal, it was delish! The brunch was delicious as well, it was buffet style and the staff was very attentive.

All in all, I’d say glamping is more my speed. I live for the adventure, but I also like to have electricity and heat. I’d recommend you check out Conestoga Ranch if you are ever in Bear Lake, it was one of the best trips I’ve taken to date.

Giving the Gift of a Wooden Watch this Summer

Looking for a great summer wooden watch, check out Jord. Enter for a chance to win.

As many of you know, I am a watch fanatic! I usually gravitate towards men or unisex watches since I have dainty wrists, I guess I like to make them look a little bigger and watches assist in that. When I saw this Zebrawood and Maple watch I had to have it. I had another wood watch that was heavy and hurt my wrists so I decided to try a new one. This one is crafted with Zebrawood maple which gives it a unique characteristic of Zebra-striped wood adding that extra pizzaz I was looking for in a watch.

The watch is lightweight and doesn’t hurt my wrist like that other wood watch did, so I absolutely love it. The watch can be styled with many different outfits since it has both light and dark wood in one! You should definitely check out their selection if you are looking for a top quality wood watch. They are manufactured strong and resilient. I’m quite clumsy and have hit it against a few things already and let me just tell you the wear is incredible. The watches are also water resistant to an extent so I can afford to get splashed at the pool laying out and it will be fine. (Not good for swimming in since its real wood).

The package they send includes a wooden box with magnets to store your beautiful wooden watch in. In my case they included watch oil and a soft cloth to keep it looking perfect and cared for.

This is my JORD WATCH. So if you are looking to try out an excellent summer wooden watch, I totally suggest you try JORD watches out. I’m loving mine. I’ve also partnered up with them to give away $100 towards one of their watches. Giveaway goes until 7/29/18. Even if you don’t win, you will still get a code for 10% off your order!

Use my link: https://www.woodwatches.com/g/gillettemarlys

Go check them out, and GOOD LUCK!!

Hanging Tomato Plants with Flowers

Trying to buy the tv version of those upside down hanging tomato plants didn’t work, so we decided to build our own DIY upside down hanging tomato plants with flowers.

The first step, buy empty hanging pots, or use ones from previous years like I did. (Don’t mind the dirt).

1.1 — Step 1: Find hanging pots or buy them

You will also need to purchase a couple of coffee filters.

I chose small ones, next you will cut half way through.

Set that aside, and find the hole at the bottom of the pot. Its best if its 1-2″ so that you can shove the tomato through without too much trouble.

Next you will need to purchase or grow some tomatoes to put through the bottom section. It worked so well last year, that I decided to buy 2 plants to put through the bottom.

Push through the hole, then hold it steady. If you decide to put another tomato through push it to the side to make room and shove the next one in. (Repeat process.)

Next you will put the filter INSIDE the pot and around the roots so that it will secure the roots and keep the dirt and tomatoes from falling out. From there, open the roots (tear them slightly) to make them wider and give them more space to grow.

Wrap coffee filter on the bottom to keep tomato+dirt from coming out of the bottom

Add some dirt until its about half way full.

It gets so hot here, I bought some polymer to put in the plants mid way through. This is sold at plant stores. It helps the pots retain water, so they don’t dry out and die.

Next fill a little more dirt then add your flower selection. I make sure I always add a Marigold. They attract bees, thrive well with the tomatoes, and add a nice pop of color. The other flowers added were merely to add more color.

I add a little more dirt after that to secure the flowers and water with Miracle Grow for the first time to give it that extra something.

This is the final result:

Note: I hung these and added a drip line to ensure they are watered properly daily.

Fenway & The Boston Marathon

Fenway Park Baseball game and The 2018 Boston Marathon

My Trip to The Boston Marathon 2018 & Fenway Park.

When your friend tells you they raised over $12,000 for Massachusetts General (Mass General) Hospital and they are running the Boston Marathon, you jump on a plane and go support them, or at least that’s what I did anyway. Caitlin Burchill is one of my newer friends and is such a great inspiration to those from her hometown of (Walpole) Boston, let alone her new Utah family.

So I got on the red-eye Saturday night and arrived early Sunday morning. She had to go the expo center to pick up all of her gear and running stuff so I decided although raining I was going to head to Fenway Park and go see a Sox game. But before I did, I met up with Caitlin and her mom to go check out the finish line and take some pictures of this momentous occasion.

We walked around, took pictures, and saw the memorial shrines being placed for all those that had lost their lives from the bombing at the Boston Marathon only a few years prior. I tagged along and the ladies ventured off through Copley Square to sightsee where we eventually stopped at Whiskey’s Bar and had a beverage before I’d venture off by myself to the game.

I lucked out last year and bought a ticket to the World Series from a bum on the street for super cheap, so that was my game plan again for this game. I found a man offering cheap tickets, the game had already started, so I haggled him down to $25 for the $50 ticket. Please do this with caution as many of them sell fake tickets or postdated tickets. He offered to walk me to the gate so that’s usually a good sign he wasn’t selling me a fake ticket. I had a nosebleed chair of course, so I looked down and since it was raining there wasn’t a lot of people in the chairs. I grabbed a beer and casually walked down to the front rows like I had a ticket. Ya, ya, I know, not right..blah blah blah…I didn’t care it was raining the chair was empty, no big deal.

I sat next to some drunk people who made the game especially fun. Eventually, everyone had followed suit and came to sit near the front of the game. All the chairs next to me were full by the end. Soaking wet, the Sox won, the game was over and I decided to head across the street to a bar called Beerworks. They make their own beers there and I, of course, had a great time sampling a few. I left a happy lady, I decided to take an UBER pool home, which we don’t have in Utah, so I jumped in the car with 2 other ladies.

SIDE NOTE: All I can say is when you’ve had a couple of beverages, don’t EVER take a “pool”. I didn’t realize it would take nearly an hour to get home. You have to stop at each person’s location and if you are 3rd in the car you are last. Poor choice, I fell asleep on the way home, kind of funny, like a child you drive around the block to get back to sleep. However, I’m an adult and made it back safely.

Next Day: RACE DAY (Monday 4/16/18) The Boston Marathon

Caitlin had signed up for the race in memory of her grandpa which she called “Poppy”. He had passed one year prior due to cancer. He gave her that special inspiration to run and give back in his honor.

She has been training for nearly the whole year, running every half marathon, 10k, 5k, anything she could run to, HELL even to her mailbox! lol. She was definitely ready for the occasion, however, on race day it was basically a monsoon. I grew up in Utah, I’ve seen my rain and snow storms, but I tell you, I’ve never seen rain and wind like these runners were sprinting through.

However, there was an upside, free showers for everyone.

We waited along mile 21 for her to run through so we could cheer her on.

She was so highly spirited you would have thought this was mile 1 while she ran though smiling.

All of the runners were soaking wet, freezing, and some were even bleeding. I give tremendous props to all those runners who ran through that freezing rain and wind. What an accomplishment. I stayed with her family as she ran the rest of the way. Her mom was so sweet she packed snacks and drinks for us to wait in the car out of the rain while she finished. We tried to drive to see her at the finish line, but of course all the roads were blocked and we met her instead at the family meeting area. I will never forget seeing her, somewhat loopy and raving about how good the Hawaiian rolls were they had just given her at the finish line. I swear she was shoving those rolls in quicker than she could chew and had never been so happy. I just love her.

Later we met up with the rest of her family. She had gone to shower, aka defrost and we all changed into sweatpants provided by her brother because we were all soaking wet from cheering her and the other runners on.

Later we went down the road to celebrate. The whole fam and I tagging along went to a cute restaurant in (Southie) South Boston. Great food, great drinks, and great company. I’d say that this trip was probably the most influential trip I’ve taken. You don’t realize how much training goes into something like that. I felt lazy, even 80-year-olds were running the race. I don’t think I could do it, but I sure am proud Caitlin did it. Her mom says Caitlin aged her 15 years by stressing her out, it was pretty funny. So many people will benefit from the money she raised.

So proud of you Caitlin, 26.2 MILES … you killed it!

Meanwhile, the next day I spent 15 hours at the airport missing a record 10 flights. You gotta love standby flights. I panicked after I missed the last flight of the day. I even had a little bit of a break down at the airport where I may or may not have cried like a baby in a chair when I didn’t get on the plane and was stranded. However, I tried to be positive. I booked a hotel nearby the airport so I could try to make the 5am flight in the morning and try the whole “standby” thing again. I eventually did get on the flight that morning, and well now I’m typing this from an airplane way high up in the sky. Thanks mom for hooking me up with a flight home! Now back to reality.

Thanks for reading,
Xo-G

My Fitness Journey and the Bar Method

Fitness journey, Barre, Bar Method workout

The Bar Method or Barre for those ballet gurus is a fitness class I started about a year ago and am completely obsessed with! Fitness has always been a part of my life. I was brought up in dance class where my coordination was not on my side, so I transitioned into gymnastics. I trained for many years before becoming very ill and having to quit all physical activity as I was almost hospitalized. Years later I was on the cheer and dance teams from Junior High to College while still teaching Karate and tumbling on the weekends.

I have been pretty skinny most of my life, however once out of college after losing my dad a lot of the weight really packed on to my stomach, love handles, and upper thighs. I know, I know, I am still little, however I am what you would call “skinny fat”. The bad habits I had created; poor nutrition, depression, and no physical activity really led me down that tumultuous road. I was sad most of the time and would eat junk food and sit on the couch.

Last year, a friend of mine Cayte, asked a bunch of coworkers to try this class called “The Bar Method.” Instant fear of how badly coordinated I was passed through my mind. I didn’t want to go, but I forced myself to…and I’m so glad I did!

What is the Bar Method, Click the link below!

Bar Method Benefits

The Bar Method

The first class was hard, but very rewarding. Newsflash, the classes never get easier, you just get stronger and better at the moves. The great thing about this fitness class is, you don’t have to be coordinated, you just have to follow instructions. I like this class mostly because you don’t realize you are working out. It’s fun, different, and always gives consistent results.

What do you do in class?

Typically you start out with some quick steps to get your heart rate up. Followed by weight lifts, push ups/planks, reverse push ups, and a quick series of stretches. A quick leg stretch at the bar usually follows, then thigh work.

Thigh work is my favorite/enemy all in the same sentence. Lol. It does wonders for your legs, but man does it hurt! Seat work is next (great for the buns), followed by more stretches and then ab work. It’s a total body workout, it challenges not only your body, but your mind!

I’ve posted a couple of photos of just a few months difference of consistently going and working out. (Mind you I’ve since cleaned up my eating, and am not filling my body completely full of junk food).

fullsizeoutput_b6 — Before: March 2016 (one year prior)

The Start:

fullsizeoutput_12b — First Day of fitness Journey

One month later:

Before and After:

Two months after:

My Progress:

Keep in mind fitness is a constant journey. I have my highs and lows, I still make bad choices on impulse food options or find myself working through the day and not eating at all. I have noticed however, that my depression and anxiety attacks have mostly diminished. I work on making myself lunches now so I don’t forget to eat, or eat poor food choices. I workout 3-5x a week at the bar method, go for a walk, do yoga, or make other fitness choices to keep my stress levels low. I hope you will give The Bar Method or any Barre class a try. First time is free, what do you have to lose?

Thanks for reading,

XO-G.

Traveling to Moab, Utah 2018

We traveled to Moab, Utah for 2 days. A couple of my friends decided they wanted to run the half marathon in Moab, Utah. We had planned a trip around them running this as a part going away trip for my friend Brittany. May I just tell you, this was one of the best trips I’ve taken. The scenery was majestic and the company was even better.

We decided after looking at hotels (considerably pricey) to forgo that and rent an Airbnb. The house was a condo they frequently rent out and it was fabulous. It went for about $150 a night and that between 7 people goes a long way, plus we could all be together and not in separate rooms. It was like a giant sleepover.

Here is what we did in our 2 days in Moab:

DAY 1:

We arrived late Friday night so we just slept once arriving. We got up early Saturday morning, a couple of the girls went to run the marathon while the rest of us went to Arches National Park. The fee per car at this National Park was $25 to drive in, good for 7 days. The Utah State Parks charge $15 per car, just a FYI. While driving to the Delicate Arch we saw many other famous rocks.

First we saw Balancing Rock.

We then drove past the Window. From there we drove directly to the Delicate Arch. The hike was listed as Moderate. It was mostly flat, with a few areas you had to step up onto rocks, as well as a few steep inclines. It was very doable. The total hike was 3 miles round trip. It takes roughly 2.5 hours, however once we were at the Delicate Arch we sat and just took it in for a few hours. While hiking we found another window. From this arch (window) you can see the main Delicate Arch.

From inside the Window Arch looking towards Delicate Arch

This window is a steep incline to get into, just a heads up. TOTALLY WORTH IT!

Next the Delicate Arche is just around the corner from here. About a 5 minute walk.

There was about 100 people waiting for their picture at the Arch so you basically have to wait in line or just jump in where you can.

Later that day we went to eat after the girls finished their marathon at a place called Peace Tree Cafe. The food was made fresh and was delicious, they even stamped their logo on the hamburger buns, it was cute. Brit wanted to go see the Dead Horse Point at sunset so we jumped in the car. I’d say its 30-45 min away from the Arches National Park entrance. We didn’t do a hike, we just went the scenic route on this one. There was 2 lookout points we made a stop at.

The first one:

Second stop further up the canyon: Dead Horse Point

Let me just say these pictures didn’t do it justice. (swoon)

Day 2:

We woke up to a lovely brunch cooked by Nicole. We had planned a day full of hikes, however the weather decided differently on our plans. It was quite a snow storm when we woke up so we waited some of it out before ultimately deciding to go to a hiking/lookout point to see if it was worth the hike.

We drove back to Canyonlands National Park to see the Mesa Arch. The hike was ranked ‘Easy’ and it about .6 miles round trip. We can all thank Caitlin for all of her extra clothes she randomly had in her car. We had not planned for a winter hike, but apparently she had. I borrowed her boots and thank goodness I did!! This could have been a cake walk hike minus the snow that made things a little slippery.

After this shot we hiked back out and headed home. This was a short trip, but filled with so many magnificent views and memories. Thanks for reading! Please like and follow my blog for more adventures to come! XO-G.

We took a Go Pro with us to capture the memories. Thanks to Nicole for filming and Jeremy for editing. Check it out!

Video of us dancing at Mesa Arch:

DIY -Bathroom Edition

DIY Bathroom remodel.

Do you ever get bored with looking at the same room day in and day out? Yea, me too! I was looking at my bathroom and it looked like a creamy peach color with a pedestal sink. It was outdated and boring. Basically, I thought this would be a quick weekend project that literally took me months to full complete. UGH!!

AFTER:

BEFORE:

Meanwhile, this photo was taken after that “DIY Itch” had taken over. This was the first step I took was Mudding all of the holes and unevenness that had occurred on the walls.

At this point I knew I wanted to paint it a grey tone, but as the professional that I am I went to Home Depot and selected a few paint colors to test with the lighting in the bathroom and stuck them on the wall to see which looked best.

I also knew I wanted to update the shelves in the bathroom to make it feel more “industrial”.

I also knew I wanted to somehow update the light fixtures and I was really feeling that Edison bulb vibe. Target Edison Bulb

So I unscrewed all the light bulbs and shoved paper towels in the sockets so I would spray that, and I found a black spray paint from Home Depot to spray the mirrored part with. I then found some Edison type of bulbs from Target that I put back in to finish the project up!

Next I decided on a paint color of white and grey. The Grey I decided on was called Dorian Grey (50 shades of grey) lol. I used Glidden Diamond paint. From there I knew I wanted stripes on the wall and thought to myself, “Ya this will be easy”. HA! Boy I was wrong. I ended up using Pinterest for help with this. So basically the next step was a doozy. If you do this yourself you will have to decide how thick you want the stripes and how many you want on the wall. From there you will need to measure the whole wall and start dividing out the numbers until you find which works best for that wall. Once I had done that I had to start marking the wall with a pencil for my tape lines. I used normal painters tape and it was an epic fail. I decided to buy the FROG tape and it was majestic. No blurred lines or bleeds, just perfect lines. Paint Lines

I also decided to spruce up the vanity with a new install. It involved cutting pipes and new fixtures, definitely a lot of YouTube watching to learn how to do it all, but I managed after being sprayed in the face several times to figure it out. #WORTHIT Vanity

Next I wanted to add a little pizzaz to the mirror so I decided to frame it. I bought 4 pieces of baseboard from Home Depot and had it cut to the dimensions along with 4 little box end pieces to put on the ends. I also bought a dark stain to match the cabinets of the new vanity. Here is the process I followed. Frame Mirror

I also updated the shelves by staining them with the same color as the vanity and replacing the wall brackets with metal (unpainted) ones to give it that “industrial vibe”.

From here I replaced the light in the bathroom to a track light to give the bathroom better lighting. This is a basement bathroom and the only natural light is from a tiny window that is under the deck. You can buy kits that are pretty easy to install. (Again watching YouTube) lol. Track Lighting

Next was the final step…besides decorating. I wanted to hang a mirror so I could see the back of my hair while standing in front of the other mirror. My grandma had always had a mirror hanging like this and I was always so envious. However, a medicine cabinet mirror was out of the question. I stained the mirror to match the vanity. I hung the mirror and it is fabulous!

I got to decorate now. My mom bought me a cute “G” with lights in it I hung in the window. I bought a few Buddha’s to place throughout the bathroom and a succulent to add a little life to my sink.

Rugs from Target. RUG

Finished Project:

Thanks for reading. Please like and Comment. Don’t forget to check out my social media for other updates and adventures.

XO-G