What do I want to do this year?

Baby Steps at getting back to work:
I want to, plan to get back to full-time work when Baby Girl goes to "big school"....meanwhile, when she is at playgroup, I am working on some freelance assignments. 2015 has begun on a good note. Baby steps indeed.

Travel a lot within India:
When we lived in France, we traveled all over Europe ( almost!) but realized that we had not seen half of India, our homeland! Now that we are back here, I want to go to all the lovely places we missed so far. Baby Girl has begun to enjoy traveling and is always ready to go "doin doin" in the car or "jhoom-Jhoom" in the plane! A girl after my own heart! 

Spend some alone-time with S:
Since we became parents, our whole world revolves around Baby Girl, rightfully and it will always be that way. But I realized that we are so absorbed with her that we seem to catch up on conversations in-between and miss out on important stuff. 

Fortunately, we are each other's closest friend and often discuss and share anything and everything under the sun. We still do, but in installments. So we have decided to at least take one day off a month(reasonable!) - baby-free and just spend time with each other, talk or just enjoy the silence.

Patience
I am much better than I used to be, in the "patience" area but i can definitely do better. I really want to acquire this skill so I can be a better person, a pleasant daughter, wife and mother coz with everyone else in the outside world I am a vision of pleasantry and sunshine! ..and then I think to myself, should'nt i make an effort to be pleasant to my loved ones first? 

I also want to stop reacting to various things and people, often not pleasant ones. I know its impossible for me to just not react at all...but i can make an effort to react less.

What are you planning to do this year?

Skincare:What has worked for me!

Wish all you readers a very happy, prosperous, healthy and a successful new year 2015. For a change, this year I begin with a post related to beauty, skincare specifically.

I was not blessed with great skin. I used to have a bit of acne in my teens due to PCOD and hormonal imbalances. Gradually, it began to improve as we moved cities and later countries. The levels of pollution definitely has a direct impact on your skin.

Having Baby Girl has not only helped me get fitter, she has also made it possible to get rid of my hormonal imbalances. Touchwood. So I try to care for my skin and spend about 5-10 mins before going to bed and it has helped a great deal. Here's what I do:

Moisturize

I live in a hilly region and the climate is extremely dry. So from someone with oily skin, i now have very dry skin. In fact, during winter, I have dark patches near the lips or eyebrows - it is that dry. So I moisturize regularly throughout the day. It helps a great deal.

Night Cream

I have to admit, I have started using a night cream very recently, after the dark patch episode. I was mortified initially and desperately began to seek a solution for the same, when I read on a beauty blog that using a night cream can be amazing for dry skin especially. So I went ahead and bought the Olay Special Effects Night Cream though its a tad expensive. I must admit that the jar lasts for a long period though.

In just about a couple of days, the dark patches and bruises just disappeared. Its an amazing product and i strongly recommend it. When I wake up in the morning, my skin is plump and looks very healthy and well rested.

Rose water spray

This is my very own idea before this gulabari came along, anyway! I buy regular rose water from the grocery store and fill up a spritzer and spray it on my face - whether I am wearing make up or just moisturizer.

The most important and obvious change or routine that is a must is to remove all makeup. Never go to bed with makeup on, it is the worst thing you can do to your skin.