The Ins and Outs of Cosmetics in Australia, From an American's Perspective + Must Have Items from Australian Pharmacies

Well, hey there! Long time no post! I think I have a good excuse though, since I am now living in Australia! Yes, I am now living in Perth, Western Australia, with my husband while the spouse visa goes through. We sent it in right before I left, and the waiting game is currently being played. Since that topic is one that worries me and stresses me out a little bit, let's move on to what this blog post is all about! 
Cosmetics!
Unless you've been to Australia, or you know someone who has, you probably don't know how much Australia has to offer when it comes to cosmetics you typically can't find in America. 
There's three stores that offer Korean cosmetics, one of which is the cutest little Kawaii-themed shop you'll ever see, called Morning Glory in Perth on Hay Street. One of the others is the ever popular Face Shop, which is present also in NYC. The last (and least hehe) is a supermarket in Southlands shopping centre which stocks Missha brand. I still prefer to order off of w2beauty.com, though, even though that takes super long to get here as it is from Korea. However, if you're in a pinch and you just need Korean cosmetics, a quick dash into Morning Glory is just right.
So, there's more Asian cosmetics here. Alright, that definitely makes me happy, and kept me pacified for the month I've been here. It wasn't until we housesat for my brother-in-law and sister-in-law and I saw a can of Avene thermal water that I realized maybe it just wasn't only Korean makeup that they have more of here. I didn't get my hopes up, though, thinking maybe she got it elsewhere or had a French friend that brought it back from France for her. I did, however, get to Priceline (the best store in the world for anything cosmetics related by far, sorry Ulta) ASAP, and to my wonder and excitement, found they carry the entire Avene line, Bioderma line, LaRoche Posay line, Bourjois, Nuxe, and I'm sure MANY others I have yet to look at. All brands you can usually, to my knowledge, only get from French pharmacies. They even have the travel sized Bioderma. So here is a list of things you NEED to get from Priceline, if you ever visit Australia.
1. Bioderma Micellar Water
2. Bourjois Healthy Mix Foundation
3. Nuxe Reve De Miel lip balm
4. Avene thermal water
5. Avene cicalfate restorative skin cream
This is a very short list, however, I really have enjoyed these products. Some items I wouldn't recommend are the Nude by Nature powder foundations, and also the Natio liquid mineral foundation. I don't find them to be as good as Bare Minerals, and they are a bit on the pricey side. I know I have SO much more to try, however, my budget cannot take such a blow right now! I think I've already overdone it quite a lot!
I hope this helped you a bit, and also, I hope to write more blog posts as I discover more beauty products, and also as I adventure more! Au revoir! ;)

More Updates + New Phone!

The spouse visa is still plugging away, and the date Oscar can finally come back is still unknown. However, we are getting through it together, even though we are 12,000 miles apart.

My Samsung Galaxy s3 finally saw its last days, and I got an LG G3, which is really a great phone. The screen is massive, about the same size as my entire s3! And, I thought the s3 had a big screen! The G3 has the ability to control basically any TV or cable box, which comes in handy. I have it linked with the living room TV, and the TV in my bedroom. I actually chose this phone over the iPhone 6 Plus. I'm very glad I did. If you're looking for a new phone, I highly recommend this one.

Update... Sorry I've Been MIA

I'm FINALLY having a good day, so I am FINALLY writing a blog post. I know it's been ages since I've posted. A lot has changed since I last posted, and no, I'm not getting a divorce or having a baby or anything else. Things have just been extremely busy, and then two weeks ago, I ended up in hospital for acute pancreatitis. For the last two weeks, I've felt sick and really didn't want to address this issue, but now, I feel I can and I am brave enough. They are unsure what exactly caused it, but we have pinpointed two other times it's happened. I cannot eat fatty foods, so basically I am not bothering with the low-carb diet anymore, but I've been eating healthier than I ever have before. One thing is certain, my body does not process fats well, since all times were after eating fatty foods. So, I am staying away from that. My first week was okay, but I only had a couple good days. Then, this second week, I got progressively worse. I have figured out it is the medicine they put me on to help me. I decided today to not take the medicine anymore, and so far, I have felt perfect. 

Anyway, I'll go more into what acute pancreatitis is. It's caused *usually* by excessive drinking or smoking, or gallstones. However, those were not the reasons it happened, so I'm apparently, so far, in the (un) lucky 30% that they don't know what caused it. 

When pancreatitis happens, it's because the pancreas is not adequately doing its job to aid in digestion with its enzymes it produces. Then, it freaks out and over-produces enzymes, which leads to it attacking itself, causing inflammation, low blood pressure, pain, bloating, and in extreme cases, pancreatic bleeding and death of pancreatic tissue.

Thank God, my case was not serious, and my GI doctor said 1-10, how bad my case was would be a 1-2, 3 at the most. Which is fantastic.

Due to what is apparently bad side effects from the medicine, I was having bad discomfort after eating for the past two weeks, which was permitting me to only eat about on average, 500-600 calories a day. Some days, even less. I will admit I also have been afraid to eat, which is a big side effect of pancreatitis, which, can in some cases, lead to anorexia. Even without anorexia, I have lost 20 pounds in the last two weeks. Something, which I am finding as a silver lining to all of this.

As for mentally hurting me, this has been the scariest medical thing I have ever personally dealt with. It has truly taught me to cherish every second.

My Response to My 15 Year Old Self

So, I came across a diary post from when I was 15. I would like to answer to myself. This is for every girl that feels like she isn't good enough. This is a very personal thing for me to post, but I feel really compelled to post it. I was going to post my first entry from April 2010, but it was too personal for me to post, and too embarrassing at how miserable I actually was with myself at that point in time. So I will simply post my reply to myself.

"Well, Angela Complainy Pants (what I signed as my name in my last entry in the diary), you're married now. Your name is Angela Bird, and you did find someone who finds you to be the most beautiful girl in the world. He's from Australia, and it's hard sometimes. But you love him, and he loves you. The guys you thought were great are in all actuality, jerks. But that doesn't matter anymore. I want to tell you this. You will have worried for nothing. Here's my advice. Stop worrying, and live life."

Low Carb Banana Nut Bread

I know I haven't posted in ages, but I have been busy! I am not focusing on gluten free, since most everything low carb and Paleo is gluten free anyway. So I am now officially only low carb and mostly Paleo. I was craving some good old banana nut bread, had just gotten some almond flour and coconut flour, and decided to put it to good use! Here is my take on low carb banana nut bread, and it turns out quite well if I do say so myself! Even my mom, who cringes at the mention of traditional flourless bread, loved it!

Low Carb Banana Bread

2 cups almond flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup chopped almonds or pecans (I use pecans)
1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
2 eggs
2 bananas, mashed
1/3 cup Splenda brown sugar

Directions: Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix dry ingredients thoroughly first, then mix in the coconut oil, eggs, and mashed banana. Pour batter into a lightly greased bread pan. Put in oven and let bake for 25-30 mins or until golden brown and firm.

Dinner tonight

I had mentioned that I was starting a new way of eating-low carb, low fat, gluten free paleo. After a long day of errands (I had to go get another marriage certificate way up near Albany and then get some posted signs and cat food, then mail something out) I wasn't feeling like stopping by Walmart to pick up some food to make for dinner. So, when I got home, I made myself some broccoli, then instead of butter I used some olive oil and salt. It was very yummy. :) I find cooking for myself is simple and easy, however, once Oscar is here permanently, cooking for the two of us will definitely be a challenge. He definitely has different tastes in food than I do. For example, I can do perfectly fine without meat, and have in the past as I've been vegetarian (and even vegan) on and off for a few years. He cannot go without meat. I think that being paleo can be a nice in between ground. All I had to say was he can eat meat on this diet, and he was sold. ;) If any of you have good paleo recipes, that would be great.

Cowashing Details-Requested

I had a reader ask for me to go into more detail about my cowashing routine. Like I'm pretty sure I stated before, when beginning cowashing, you should look for a silicone and sulfate free conditioner. I personally swear by Tresemme Naturals, however that may not work best for you. Shea Moisture (a 100% natural hair care line) makes a conditioner specifically for cowashing, and you can find it at some pharmacies or places like Target and Walmart. Sally's Beauty Supply sells it as well, along with other cowashes I've seen. You can usually find them in the "ethnic" hair care section, or the natural section. Suave Naturals also makes silicone free condish that I've actually never tried. Burt's bee's is another. If you are really looking to get into cowashing, look up "the curly girl method." This will bring up several sites that will really be a great place to gather information about how to go about cowashing, and what will probably work best for your hair type. Anyway, some of the silicones to look out for are cetearyl methicone, cetyl dimethicone, dimethicone, dimethiconol, stearyl dimethicone, amodimethicone, cyclomethicone/cyclopentasiloxane, trimethylsilylamodimethicone, behenoxy dimethicone, and stearoxy dimethicone. Don't be alarmed by methylisothiazolinone or methylchloroisothiazolinone. They are not silicones, but they are safe preservatives. Basically the sulfate you want to look for is anything that has "lauryl sulfate" in it. Most conditioners don't have sulfates in them, anyway, though. In addition to using conditioner to wash my hair, I use henna treatments to keep my hair healthy. By the way, if you are looking into Wen, don't use it! It's expensive, and creates build-up on my hair. It has also been linked to extreme hair loss in individuals that never previously experienced hair loss. I wouldn't ever trust my hair to it. It's much cheaper to just pick up a bottle of Tresemme, or Suave. Vo5 makes silicone free condish too, however I didn't like it as much as I like Tresemme. I hoped this helped, and if anyone has any other questions, I'd be more than happy to answer them in the comments below!