When I started this blog, I had so many fun and exciting topics I wanted to share with you. Some of my favorite beauty tips and tricks, quick ways to feel beautiful and confident for the busy lady, and of course my personal passion of sharing uplifting stories and life events with my audience. Like most bloggers, I really just wanted to invite whoever had similar interests into my little world. But sometimes, sadness overcomes our lives and we retreat back into our caves in order to protect ourselves. But I am human, after all, and as much fun as I have with my business and this blog…there’s a few things you ought to know.

My first major project as a self-proclaimed beginner blogger was/is the Beauty Box Dilemma. I have been so grateful to the companies who have sent me boxes to unbox and share with you. It’s been so fun and I really appreciate all the hard work that goes into all of these boxes! I can also say that I am much more confident in which boxes to refer to my diverse set of clients, and for that I’m so grateful. However, I’ve been missing in action these past few weeks because of a few setbacks in my personal life. I am using this post as a personal apology to those companies who have sent me a box but haven’t received the credit yet. It has taken me nearly a month to figure out how to word and share this with you but there’s no real easy way.

This online world is one where we brand ourselves to portray what we want others to see and know about our lives. Looking at my social media feeds, you’d never guess I am in the most devastating time in my life. If you looked at my social media, you’d see I just “ran” the Nike Women’s Marathon in beautiful San Fran and that I’ve been site-seeing with dear friends in downtown Monterey but behind all those pictures and miles are tears.

Social media {for the most part} shows lives without hardships or heartbreaks, where we only post the flattering pictures of ourselves and hide the unflattering ones, where we control exactly what we want people to see and know about our lives, and hide things we’d rather keep private.

However, I cannot in good faith let you believe that I am not human. I don’t want to mislead you. Sometimes life throws hardships your way…hardships you’d never imagine for yourselves.

So with all of that being said, I am still Natalie. I still love all things beauty and still have tons of fun topics to share with you. I will pick up where I left of in the Beauty Box Dilemma project and will complete the posts I started but haven’t finished. I’ll be back and it’ll be just as real and as authentic as I’ve ever been. I just wanted you to know and understand that I am going through some stuff that has taken me away from other stuff. I am after all, human.