The food.

Lots and lots of delicious food. And, we can't forget about the drinks. 

Prepare yourself for food overload, and if you are hungry…go eat, then come back and look at the pictures. I'll wait. 

Okay, you done? 

I mean, what is Mexico without nachos, queso and guacamole? 

Fresh catch of the day, my favorite fish…Mahi Mahi

Our nightly round of sushi appetizers before heading to dinner

Ahh, there's some greens. 

A good mix of American and Mexican breakfast 

Need I say more? 

This one needs no explanation. 

Steak burritos….

Our sweet waiter surprised us and made fresh shrimp right in front of us.

One of my favorite Mexican breakfasts…. very traditional to the country and so yummy!

My daily dose of greens so that I didn't feel as guilty about eating allll of the chips and salsa. 

One of the best pizzas I've had…pesto, parmesan and mozzarella. And yes, we will definitely be recreating this on our Big Green Egg.  

Frozen Pina Colada 

Hmmm, filet mignon. 

Fresh paella made right on the beach...

…And sangria to go with it! 

Quesadillas and french fries…oh, and guac. Doesn't get much better.

More sushi

Fresh lobster with grilled veggies

One of our sweet waiters, Noe, prepared a special coffee for me that involved fire...

…and funny bunny ears! 

I seriously ate beans with every breakfast. I am obsessed with any kind of bean (especially black and pinto) so why not eat with breakfast? 

On our last night, the resort had an "Asian" themed dinner with hibachi on the grill, veggies and meats in the wok, nigiri, sashimi, sushi, fried rice, springs rolls….the whole deal! 

If all of that wasn't enough, the chefs prepared daily "snacks" and brought out to all of the guests on the beach. From shrimp ceviche to paella to guacamole and chips, it was all amazing! 

Now that I have gained approximately 34 pounds that went straight to my hips and thighs, I need to go on a serious diet. But, was it worth it? 100 percent. 

Mexico Recap: Part One

We're baaack! Sadly, the trip went by extremely fast as vacations always do, but it was well worth the time and money spent. 

Looking back, I don't think I ever actually told you where we were exactly going or staying.  My husband is a huge fan of planning, researching and mastering an Excel spreadsheet, so he had the honors of planning our entire vacation. And, I was totally fine with that. To be honest, it kind of stresses me out to plan a vacation so I was cool with basically just showing up and enjoying the trip.

After a few weeks of research and reviews, Andrew picked The Beloved Hotel in Playa Mujeres, Mexico. And, he couldn't have done a better job.

Beloved is a boutique hotel which basically means that it is a smaller, all inclusive resort that is more of a contemporary style. With only 109 rooms and only about 75% occupancy, the resort felt very intimate and exclusive. Children are welcome, however, with it being nearly October and off-season, there were hardly any children due to school being in. 

The views, food, activities and hospitable staff completely made our trip memorable. I will be sharing our food in a different post because let's be real, that is the majority of my pictures! The staff was incredible and we were so impressed with their ability to speak our English language so clearly. I briefly lived in Spain years and years ago and was completely fluent in the language. But, because I haven't used the language in a long time, I have slowly lost it. It makes me really sad because it was something I truly enjoyed, but it did make me happy to be able to somewhat understand and speak Spanish to the staff. 

 The resort offers so many activities but because activity typically equals work, and we came on a vacation… remember? For us, this was a trip to relax and basically be lazy, so that's exactly what we did. 

Our day consisted of waking up early, getting ready for the beach, either calling in room service or heading to one of the restaurants for breakfast, then picking out our bed and chairs on the beach. We got to the beach around 8:30 am each morning to allow us plenty of time to eat, drink and get a Mexican suntan. Andrew read a couple of books being the speed reader he is. And, I did nothing but relax. I really wish I was a good reader, but reading for fun just isn't really my thing. Watching trashy tv? Now we're speaking my language. I caught up on sleep and went back and forth from the ocean to the swim up bar at the pool.

The hotel has several bars throughout the resort that include a Natura bar that makes smoothies, crepes, ice cream and more "natural" foods. Surrounding the bar, they had pool tables, foosball and ping pong tables so we enjoyed doing that while taking a break from the beach.

One of my most favorite things about the trip was the nightly music. We would get a margarita or fancy cocktail from our favorite bartender, then head outside to the Lupita Lounge and enjoy jazz, Latin and other forms of entertainment. 

They were so amazing and I would honestly pay money to hear them again. 

How beautiful is this view? I still can't get over how blue the water was and how white the sand. 

Andrew totally nailed it, and I can't wait for him to start planning our next trip. Hint, hint. In fact, we have already started our wish list of places to visit.

Be on the lookout for more related posts this week as I'll be recapping the food and a few more pictures!

Now, to say that going back to work tomorrow and going through my hundreds of emails excites me, is most definitely an understatement.

*a few of these pictures from this post were provided by the hotel's website

Mexico Here We Come

Don't mind me over here but I am recovering from a slight heart attack over tonight's football game. Our Tigers barely survived but we pulled a W in the end. And, that's all that matters. But darn, I about had an anxiety attack. 

Anyways, we've got a full weekend ahead of us. We are headed to Atlanta to celebrate some of our friends getting married and then we are jet setting to Mexico and I can. not. wait. 

Neither Andrew nor I have taken a full week of vacation since our honeymoon, and that was over 3 years ago. So it is a much, much needed vacation for the both of us. 

No, I haven't started packing and yes, that is stressing me out a little bit. But I'll just throw all my  dresses I've been loving this summer into a suitcase and call it a day. 

So, you can find me here for the next week. I'll be taking the week off from blogging but be sure to follow me on IG @lifeonmeyers to follow our trip!

Have a great week!!

xoxo

Essence Gel Polish Review

Hey y'all! Do I have a treat for you or what! You all know my love affair with nail polish and can read several posts here and here. 

I hit the jackpot with this one. 

Do you ever just walk aimlessly around stores? So do I. I was at Ulta one day and had heard of Essence Cosmetics but had never tried any products. I have been dying to get my hands on the Barry M gel polish but is sadly only sold in Europe. This polish seems like the closest comparison to the unattainable one. 

No lamp. No mess. And basically free. 

Add your favorite base coat, 2 coats of gel polish (I use 3 for the soft pink), and then add your favorite top coat. 

Yes, it is that simple. 

To begin, I am definitely not a professional and do not consider myself "good" at doing my own nails, but I actually never get a manicure because they can be pricey. I have taught myself over the years how to make my nails look decent, so I just prefer to do my own. However, I do a much less than perfect job at my toes, so I definitely splurge for a pedicure. 

Did I mention this polish is $1.99? Oh, just the cheapest nail polish I've ever found and it is one of the best. Yes, that is a bold statement and I'm not afraid to tell you that I like it just as much as any of my OPI, Essie, Chanel, Butter London or high end nail polishes. And maybe a little better. Ahh. I said it. 

The applicator is nice and thick and paints the nail very evenly. 

The polish is thick and you can tell it is not a regular polish and I love that. 

It lasts for daysssss. I feel like I wash my hands very often, but I am fairly easy on them. For that reason, nail polish lasts pretty long on my nails. The last picture is day 6 for me and I ended up taking it off at day 8. So, it might not last 2 weeks like a gel manicure at the salon, but it also costs $1.99 and not $30. 

| Day 5 |

| Day 4 |

| Day 6 | 

I am dying to try the rest of the colors, especially the copper and black! I think they will be great colors for the fall and winter. 

Have you tried these? If you haven't….run and go try them out!!

Another Weekend Goes By

Even though this past week was a short work week, Friday never looked better!

And, not to keep wishing for more weekends or anything, but in exactly one week…we'll be in Mexico! So, it is safe to say that I am ready for next weekend already.

When it is college football season, you can usually find us enjoying a low key Friday night, football alll day on Saturday and then recovering on Sunday. We've got it nailed by now. 

And, we killed it this weekend. 

We spent Friday night celebrating one of our good friend's birthday at one of our favorite restaurants downtown. 

Saturday was dedicated to Clemson and all things football. We played Appalachian State and ended it at 42-10 on top. I'd call that a win my books. 

| Photo by Chesson |

We woke up early on Sunday and had a fancy breakfast at Waffle House. Because we had such a light meal, straight back to bed we went. 

We woke up like it was a new day, cleaned the house up and down, mowed the lawn (clearly, that was not my job), and spent the afternoon walking around downtown. 

The weather was absolutely perfect and we couldn't have asked for anything better. Mid 70's with a slight breeze. I will have to admit, I actually got cold in the shade but loved the fallish chill. 

I've been a bad blogger lately and I've had many of you ask where I've been. Truth is, I really miss y'all and miss being able to read and comment on your blogs so I need to do a better job! Well, maybe after vacation! 

Linking up with Biana for Weekending.