Bold & Bella

So many people are living unsatisfied. They wake up, they go to work, they pay their bills, but there's something missing. Most of us need a reason to get up in the morning. Not just any reason, but one that compels us to get up and get going. A purpose. So many people are frustrated because they haven't found their purpose, and they will keep going around in circles until they realize a fundamental truth. See, your life's purpose isn't something that you figure out. That implies that you're just supposed to stumble upon it, or that the heavens will open up one day and you'll be able to look up and see exactly what you're supposed to be doing with your life. That sounds amazing, but it's made for movies, not for real life. You get to CHOOSE how you want to live.  What's going to get you out of bed every morning? What excites and motivates you? What do you WANT your life to stand for? Choose that thing and then live to fulfill it on purpose. Then...

DevaCurl was my go-to holy grail for curly hair. I read The Curly Girl Method, bought all of the products, and followed the directions to the T to develop my curls into beautiful, defined little ringlets. Any time someone asked me how I took care of my curls, I would strongly suggest investing in this brand and gush about how it was worth every single penny. SO, needless to say, I found myself in quite the pickle after the whole scandal that happened back in January (February?...definitely earlier this year. Honestly, 2020 has been so long that it feels like all of this happened years ago but ANYWAY).  Fortunately, I'd experimented for years with different products and routines (shout out to my fellow product junkies!) I was trying to find alternatives to DevaCurl's prices, and I finally understood that I have to switch things up every now and then, as any die hard Curly Girl knows. I knew I could use lines like Kinky Curly and Not Your Mother's Curl Talk, but I was...

Your affirmations are either working for your or against you, depending on how you use them.  I read this quote in a book that I've been meaning to read for years but just barely got around to, The Miracle Morning, by Hal Elrod. When I first read it, my immediate thought was: All. The. Yessess!!! ...or something along those lines. There's such a surprisingly negative connotation to the word, "affirmations," as if the only people that use them are weirdos who like to talk to themselves, or hippies. To be clear, though, anything you say out loud about yourself (or repeat constantly in your mind) is an affirmation. You repeat it enough times and it will become part of your subconscious, and ultimately impact your level of success in life. (Yes, I am aware of the hippie-ness of what I just said, but stay with me). If that sounds odd to you, let's add some perspective. How many healthy, successful people do you hear saying things like, "I'm so br...

Let me tell you a story... Several years ago (I think I was actually pregnant with my firstborn, and he's 8 now) I went to get the brakes checked on my mom's car. I'm an extremely chatty and friendly person, and so I'm talking to the guy who's helping me and he's telling me about how he changed his entire life by juicing. He'd watched a documentary, decided to change his life, bought a juicer, and there he was, standing in front of me, a full 80 lbs lighter than when he'd started "just eight months ago!" Fascinated, I listened intently, looked at his before and after pictures, and when he asked me if I'd like to try some of the juice that he just happened to have in the employee break room, I said, "Of course I would!" I followed him to the refrigerator took the cup he handed me with a little bit of this orange liquid and despite the fact that my mama taught me better than to take strange drinks from literal strangers, I t...

Let me tell you a story... When I was 11 years old, my mom came home from the store, burst into my bedroom and, with the widest smile on her face, told me, "I have a surprise for you!" I can't remember what I was holding, but I dropped it, stood up and ran to where she stood, asking what it was and when I could see it. Beaming, she told me that it was something I'd wanted my whole life, and then told me to shut my eyes. "Open them," she said. When I did, she had her hand extended out toward me, holding a tiny book with orange, purple, and pink blocks, and a mirror shaped like a heart on the cover. "It's a diary!" she exclaimed, turning it over so that I could see the lock on the side and handing me two, tiny keys.  Excited, but confused, I asked her what I'm supposed to do with it. "You can write anything you want in there, and then you lock it so that nobody else can read it."  "Like secrets?" I asked. ...

As a mom, the issues/crises affecting our world today hit me differently. I don't just worry about myself, but about my children, their future children, and their future children's children. I worry about the world that they will inherit, and the fact that it's my job to teach them how to navigate it. To say that it's a huge responsibility is a gross understatement. This weight that I carry on my heart is heavy enough to make me catch my breath and lie awake at night, eventually sneaking into my babies' rooms to watch them sleep. How on Earth can I guard that peace? I can't. There is SO much about my children's lives that will have absolutely nothing to do with me. They will have their own experiences, be influenced by different people, and eventually create their own beliefs. Sure, now that they're small I have a lot of say-so over the who, what and when in their day-to-day, but that won't always be the case. My role is to be their gui...

A few weeks into the #quarantinelife, I found myself struggling with my curls. After two consecutive weeks of straightening (thanks to the quicker-than-me-panic-buyers who snagged all of the curly girl products), my curls were SEVERELY damaged and I thought I was going to have to start my healthy hair journey all over again. I was desperate to repair the damage so I gave myself my first-ever DIY curly girl cut (I know we weren't supposed to cut our own hair but...I did it anyway), and then tried a DIY rice water rinse. (You can read all about that first experience here ). The results were pretty spectacular! I was so excited and I posted this picture of myself on my Instagram: I got a LOT of questions about what exactly I'd done and how I did it, so here I am, back with a step-by-step guide, for those of you who want to try it for yourselves. First, let's clarify what exactly I mean by "rice water rinse" and why it's even worth your time. What is R...

Practice makes perfect. That's how the saying goes, right? Time and time again, from a very young age, we are told that if we just put in enough work, we will eventually achieve perfection. Well, excuse my language, but that's a bunch of bullsh*t. Perfection is, first of all, not a real thing, and second of all, not the actual goal. We shouldn't ever aim to be perfect, but to be a better version of ourselves today than we were yesterday. When you're starting something new, it's easy to talk yourself out of giving it a real shot because, well, you're not perfect. All the other people who do this thing are amazing at it and you, quite frankly, suck, so why even bother? The answer is simple: The only way to get better at something is to keep doing it.  Annoying, I know. Nobody likes doing something that they're not good at. It's highly tempting, and far more satisfying, to stay away from this new thing and stick to what you're good at. Then yo...