Today I want to show you where I spent my Easter weekend...
... my husband and I went to two differnt cities in the federal state of Thuringia (in East Germany). Its close to where we live but still we never went there so we thought its time :)
First we went to the city of Jena where we spent Saturday; drinking coffee, going shopping and eating out in a really good Thai restaurant. That day I did not take many pictures, since I was too busy enjoying our solo time. On Sunday we went to the small town of Naumburg (after having a long a really good breakfast in our hotel) and from this town I would like to share some pictures...
We had actually no idea what to expect from Naumburg and we were so surprised when we found out that the town is very well known for its Cathedral (known in German as the Naumburger Dom), which was built between the 13th and 15th centuries. Its a little embarrasing that we did not even know that we live so close to this landmark, but hey, at least we know it now ;)
What else I really like about Naumburg are the contrasts between really beautiful and huge buildings and decaying houses and streets... these contrats can actually be found in almost every town in Eastern Germany. And I guess this is also why I like it around here. In Northern Germany, where I lived most of my life villages and cities are really different from here and I am always fascinated again and again, when visiting new places in Eastern Germany.
Naumburg is really small so we just spent some three hours there, but it was really nice exploring the old town and having some tea and cake on the market place :)
I hope you had a nice Easter weekend too! What have you been up to?
I wish you all a wonderful start in the new week!
It was cold when I took of my coat to take these pictures...
...the weather these days is crazy; its hails, rains, a heavy wind blows and its cold. Still I wanted to take some pictures so I took of my Winter coat for five minutes so that my husband could shoot some pictures really quick. We took advantage of some fiveteen minutes where there was neither rain nor hail and we hurried to get back home again after taking the pictures. This is really not what Spring is supposed to be like, I think.
So, I am wearing a H&M maternity skirt here, which I bought second hand online. I am also wearing my really old handbag (second hand) and my old and comfy sneakers, which I bought back in 2010 on a market in Paris, where I used to live at the time. I rarely wear them but these days (pregnancy, you know...) I am happy to have them :)
The blouse is actually a new-in from the ONLY online shop. Its so oversized that I can wear it now and I am curious to see what it will look like when I am no longer pregant :D
I actually bought two new blouses from the ONLY online shop, but one is a little tight over the belly so I will wait a few weeks until I show it to you. I also want to show you my other new-ins in some outfit posts soon. At the end of the month I am again going to make a budget overview of March and April with all the things I bought in these two months.
For now, I wish all of you a most wonderful Easter holiday and a happy Easter celebration! I hope you spend a wonderful time with your family and friends!
My husband and I are on a small getaway for Easter and I will be back with some pictures from a lovely small town that I am going to discover and explore... I am really looking forward to the cute hotel we booked, good food, a little bit of shopping and just to spend time with my husband - a last weekend just for ourselves, before the baby arrives :)
Sending you much love!
Today I want to share with you a few of my favorite books...
...recently I got more and more questions here on my blog about my vegan diet. I am more than happy to receive and answer these questions! And today I am going to start by sharing some of the books which inspired my the most when it comes to WHY to be vegan. Whenever I have a question regarding my diet, I look in these books, whenever I feel like I need more arguments or information on my lifestyle, I look in these books and whenver someone asks me why I am eating a vegan diet, I refer to these books.
In a little while I may share a few other books with you on HOW to be veegan (recipe books and those kind of things :))
The first book, and for me the most important one, is the China Study. The China Study examines the relationship between the consumption of animal products and illnesses such as coronary heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Reading this book is essential if you want to understand what animal products do to your organism. Its really easy to read even though there are hundreds of studies cited in the book. This book was and still is the most important for me!
Another one which I truely love is the Starch Solution. I have to say that I do not like the cover because it looks like a guide to how to loose weight. But its actually just a side effect of eating a low fat vegan diet that you get your ideal weight. There are other factors which I think are far more important and they are all covered by this book. Whereas the China Study is written by a PhD in biochemistry, the starch solution is written by a physician and therefore somehow "closer to the reader". McDougall goes even beyond Campbells China Study since he also refers to lots of studies (and personal experiences as a physcian) regarding the weaknesses of a high fat plant based diet (whereas the China Study is referring to animal products only).
The China Study and the Starch Solution are my two favorite books and I can SO recommend them to everyone who is intersted in a vegan diet, a healthier life and a healthier planet!!!
Peace Food is a German book by a German author which I loved to read when I started thinking about eating a vegan diet but which is now no longer profound enough for me. However, I liked it in the beginning and I am still recommending it to everyone new in the area of a plant based diet. Unfortunatly I dont think there is an English version yet.
Whole is a book for those of you who like to go deeper into the whole issue of the nutrition industry. Its pretty profound with lots of studies and citations, so I think its really mainly for those who are deeply intersted (like me :)) or who just need some really sound arguments for why the whole food industry is messing around incredibly and what exactly the animal product does it the organism. It goes more into detail on how cancer develops or how metabolism works and thereby filling some of the small gaps the China Study leaves. Its tough to read to some extent, but its worth it!
I hope you enjoyed this small overview of my favorite books! I would SO love to get to know more good books - so please let me know if you know any! If you have read any of these books, I would love to know your opinion on them!
Still no Spring weather around here...
...so I still wear pink to cheer myself up :)
Here I am wearing my pink blazer which I actually bought back in 2013 somewhere in a mall in Connecticut. Since, I only wore it ONCE! I have no idea why. Maybe I was afraid of the pink color, maybe I was afraid of the shape, I really dont know. But the other day I looked at it and I thought if I do not wear it now I will have to sell it - so I wore it :)
The dress is from the H&M maternity section and I bought it second hand a few months ago. I am also wearing my super comfy prego leggings and my super old and super comfy booties. Comfort is getting more and more important these days, when I choose my outfits. Now, a few weeks before delivering I really feel like an ooooold lady which needs lots and lots of comfort ;)
How do you like this look? I am curious about your opinion!
I wish you all a wonderful week and sending you much love!
Benecos natural cosmetics just launched a few new vegan products...
... and since I love benecos since I got to try them for the first time a couple of weeks ago, I am exited to present these new products to you :)
About the brand benecos:
For a long time, natural cosmetics had a colourless eco look, the product choice was limited and prices were generally high. No longer!
Because we offer you an alternative: benecos. Modern, natural
cosmetics. benecos is stylish and modern. Urban and trendy. Elegant and
fashionable.
With controlled natural cosmetics we put the shiny colours of the metropolis of this world in your make-up case!
benecos products are attractive, BDIH certified and their prices are irresistible.
You may remember the eyeshadow from my last benecos review!? Now next to the eyeshadow benecos launched a new eyebrow-designer and two new mascaras. All products are vegan and 100% organic and natural. You can check them out at http://www.benecos.eu/ where you can also find more information about the ingredients used by benecos.
Here is a quote from the website:
Everything we put on our skin is absorbed by our body. For many
substances used in conventional cosmetics, this may even be harmful to
our health. That is why we should use cosmetics in which only
ingredients are used that do not harm our body. We think this is only
possible with substances that are just like the human body: natural.
Vegetal oils and waxes – like those used in benecos products – have a
composition that is similar to skin fat and support the natural
regulation processes of the skin through different active ingredients
from within. They are harmless on the skin, contributing to the
generation of a natural protective film, biodegradable and, finally,
environmentally friendly and resource-saving.
BDIH-certified benecos products do not contain – guaranteed – any
mineral oils or derivatives / silicones / parabens / synthetic
emulsifiers or their derivatives (PEG/PEG derivatives) / synthetic
colorants or aromatic substances. These substances have no place in
natural cosmetics!
I am especially exited about the eyebrow-designer since I find it so hard to find an eyebrow-pencil with a color suiting my real eyebrow color. So up to now I just used a darker pencil and I always had to be careful not to use too much of it so that the color of my eyebrows is not getting too dark. Well now I do not have this problem any longer, since the eyebrow-designer does just have the perfect color for my light eyebrows. Love it!
I am also really happy about the vegan wonder natural mascara steel grey. I do not really like to use black mascara because its too "hard" for my skin and hair tone. Usually I use dark brown mascara and I always wanted to try a grey one. However, I could never find any one which was vegan and organic! What a lucky gal I am that I got to try the vegan wonder natural mascara steel grey.I like its color and the natural way it shapes and colores my eyelashes without making them look "painted" or simply unnatural. I have to say though that there are only 5,5ml in the mascara which I find is not that much (especially since there are 8ml or even 10ml in the other mascaras from benecos). I wonder if its more expensive to create a grey color instead of a black one or whats the reason for why it has the same price as the other mascaras, yet less content!?
About the quattro eyeshadow I already wrote something in my last review and my opinion did not change since - I still love the eyeshadow and I use it almost every day.
So here are my eyes and eyebrows, wearing the steel grey mascara, the eyeshadow and the eyebrow-designer.
How do you like this kind of natural make up? As most of you know, I do not like to wear much make up, however, I LOVE to wear a little, in a way that makes me look like I am not wearing anything. Modern but natural :)
Benecos and other organic brands are perfect for these kinds of looks and this is why I like them much more than all the other brands out there. Besides, I prefer to use vegan cosmetics and almost ALL the "big brands" out there are NOT vegan and they are all testing their products on animals. I am actually not willing to support that. This is why I am so happy and grateful that more and more companies emerge, using organic ingredients and renounce animal testing. I really want to support these kinds of brands and this is why I like to share these kinds of reviews with you! Its not because I get stuff for free that I write all these positive things about benecos but its because I really want this company, like other ones, to grow and flourish!
So feel free to spread the message and have a look at benecos on the net.
Sending you all much love on this grey and rainy Sunday!
My belly is growing enormously these days...
... look at the difference from this post from three weeks ago and today! Every morning, I wake up and I feel like I grew bigger again over night :)
Well, its only some four weeks left so its okay that the baby is growing a lot, it needs to be strong when it arrives in this world, so it better gains some extra weight in these last few weeks. The closer the due date gets, the more we are getting impatient. I really want to get to know my baby, I want to see it, hear it, smell it, everything! We really can`t wait for it to arrive.
Anyway, about the outfit - we actually took these pictures in the park next to the birth clinic where we went last week to register and get to know the doctor and midwifes. The clinic is really beautiful and surrounded by a beautiful park and I am actually looking forward to give birth there.
I am wearing a Lands End
blouse and a maternity Jeans from H&M. The white tee is from
C&A. The glasses are from firmoo like all my glasses.
I wonder if I am the only one wearing Lands End clothes!? A
friend of mine keeps telling me that its an old ladies shop and
sometimes laughs at me when I order something there. But I actually
really like the awesome quality and I just bought two new Lands End tops
online (I will show them to you soon!). Did you ever buy anything from
Lands End or do you also think its an old ladies shop ;)????
I hope you are doing well and enjoying this Spring weather :)! I wish you all a wonderful rest of the week!
Today I want to share some of my favorite pregnancy body oils with you...
... I heard a lot of people say that women can be proud of stretch marks from their pregnancy and I agree that there is nothing bad about having stretch marks. Still, I preferred not to get them and I am really happy that I did not (its four weeks til my due date so I think I will not get them anymore now...)!
Here are the products I used to avoid getting stretch marks:
Weleda Pregnancy Body Oil
Dr Hauschka Blackthorn Toning Body Oil
Love me Green Relaxing Massage Oil
I began using pregnancy oils from the beginning of my pregancy. I used the oil by Weleda especially in the beginning and I switched later on to the one by Dr Hauschka. The one by Love me Green I usually took with me, when I spent a night at a friends place or when I travelled to visit my family. The one by Love me Green is easiest to carry since its in a plastic bottle which is not too big. I like all three oils a lot and I think they all helped me to keep my skin soft and smooth and to avoid stretch marks. Anyway, I like the one by Dr. Hauschka best, since I love its thick texture. Its a little expensive and I was lucky enough to get two bottles as a gift from my mother. I think I will use all my leftovers after pregnancy, since all oils are great to use for non-pregnant women too. They all contain natural ingredients only which is really important to me, as you know :)
What kind of oils did you use during pregnancy, if any? And if you have never been pregnant, do you like to use body oils in general? I love them, especially after taking a bath :)
Have a great start into the first official week of Spring!
Sending you all much love!
