Thoughts of a Diva

So I purchased some black soap from YER OWN SKIN last month and I started using it this morning. Here's my "before" face. I have some discoloration from past acne and even after using prescription face creams, my skin is still not as smooth as I want it to be. I'm going document my journey here on my blog. #StayTuned .

Hey y’all! I really hope that 2016 has been good to you thus far. I haven’t posted in FOREVER. I’ve let time get away from me, but writing is my relaxation and I vow to relax more often. So Anyway – let me jump right into my first post of 2016 and my first post in a looooooong ass time! So….I have a boo. Yea, yea more on that in a future post. But let me tell you guys dating is already scary but dating with kids is super scary because it’s not just my life that I might be messing up. So I’m not going to sit her and lie and say that I took all of these things into account before I started my current relationship but these things have been on my list of ‘must haves’ for a while. Back up back up, now I haven’t dated in FOREVER! I haven’t been in a relationship since 2003. Listen, believe what I tell you and ignore the fact that I have a 9-year-old son. Ha, that too is yet another post. (He was created in the beginnings of a relationship reboot that didn’t fully reboot due to lies and o...

Today I started the Iaso tea. No offense to anyone selling the tea but I'm really trying to get away from fad type diets and learn to live healthy. I tried Omnitrition and was really disappointed because the person who signed me up has loss a TON of weight and I couldn't lose more than 10 or 12 eating on 500 calories a day! I think it's a mental thing. Anyway I'm going to do the Iaso tea which is NOT a weight loss tea as much as it's a detox tea. Detoxing hasn't worked well for me in the past either. Like my body doesn't respond well to the different products I've used. I'm hoping the Iaso tea will at least 'loosen' things up for me and then I'm going to follow up with Nature's Secret 7-Day Ultimate Cleanse. I've procrastinated (as usual) and now I need to lose at least 10 lbs in 19 days! I want to look at least a bit sleeker for my book release party. I also set some small goals and I hope that'll help me by not seeming...

OMG...If you 'follow' my blog then you know that I have a tendency to start over, fall on my face, sulk and start over again. Welp, guess where we are now. You got it, I'm about to start over again. Or at least that's what I'm telling myself in my head. I've procrastinated ALL of 2015 so far and it's about time I put my foot in my own ass and get it together. My first post of 2015 was scheduled to be about my 2015 goals list. I've been operating all year with absolutely NO goals. What's up with that girl?  So here's my list. Most of these revolve around my health because it's been a little out of control lately. I'm also keeping in mind that 1/3 of the year is gone bye bye.  LOSE WEIGHT (doctor's orders, blood pressure problems, diabetes scare, self esteem booster - yeah ALL THAT) Publish a book. (I wrote and now I gots to sell it) Build my Simply Unique brand.  Re-Launch Diva's Connection 1 Family Vacation (just me a...

I think I'll participate in lent this year.  I need to practice will power. I plan to give up 3-5 things  in hopes that I'll make it the entire 40 days w/ at least one.  Lent starts Wednesday and right now I'm contemplating letting go of: negativity, Social Media (unless business related), texting,  alcohol, romantic relationships,  television, music recorded  after 1985 (music is the soundtrack of my life so I can't give it up completely), fake hair (I'm natural so that would mean no protective styling) spending money outside of preexisting  bills.... I  have about 12 hours to decide and prep myself.  Are you giving up anything for Lent? If so what?

I'm down another 2 lbs. If I lose 1 more lb I'll be at a milestone that I'll share with you when it happens. I'm hoping to look up some recipes and spice up the VLCD (Very Low Calorie Diet) this weekend. If I come across something delicious I'll be sure to share it here. I can control myself at work for the most part even though there's temptation all over the place here. The real victory will be if I manage this weekend. Oh  and my Nite Lite (Omnitrition Nighttime formula) which supposedly helps you rest better and causes you to lose lbs while you sleep came in along with my Omnitrition Hair & Nails. I'm excited to add these to my routine this weekend. I do not believe that I will have to use ALL of the Omni products to lose weight. I will probably try them all because I'm a distributor and I would like to know the products I sell but I'm not in it for the extra cash. If it comes it comes. More importantly I need a jump start. I need to ...

Well it's Day 2 and I've lost 5 lbs! Bye Bye loading troubles. Imagine if I'm as successful the rest of week! Did I mention a cheated. I know, I know that's horrible BUT the job got me cake and ice cream. So I had a bit. But I stuck to my guns the rest of the day and boy was temptation EVERYWHERE. I had George Foreman grilled chicken and raw spinach for both lunch and dinner. Lunch was so bleh. I couldn't eat all of the spinach because I'm not allowed dressing and well that's just inhumane. I've got to look into recipes but when it came down to it I just want to do it already and I did not want to procrastinate under the disguise of looking for recipes. Anyway, thank God for Frank's Red Hot (it is allowed on the diet).  I used it on the chicken AND spinach for dinner and it was quite enjoyable. I've packed it in my Hello Kitty lunchbox since today's menu is the same. I'm allergic to raw apples so last night I warmed an apple with c...

       So today one of my Facebook friends shared an article about loving someone you can never be with. It was an interesting read and made me think of a situation that I am in. Not a situation where I am necessarily in love with a person that I can never be with so much so as not even knowing if you and the other person can ever be together. What happens to love deferred? If you click with someone and there's not just the click but also a spark between the two of you but for one reason or another you NEVER even get to go out on a date what happens. I mean I guess in some situations you won't necessarily talk to the person again but in my situation I do still talk to the person. We have a decent enough friendship but a part of me wonders if we're really good friends or are we holding on to this in limbo relationship in hopes that one day our situations will change and we can give it a shot.      I kind of want to have him...

I was sorting through a box I found in the back of my closet and found this piece of paper that I'd written 10 things that make the PERFECT snuggly boo (BAE, boyfriend, boo, lovebug,etc.) It was apparently written a while ago but the things on my list remain the same. These are in no particular order.  Must have a belief system including morals and values that are compatible to mine . He can't worship the devil, he can't belong to a cult, he can't be so devoted to his religion that he despises me if I miss a Sunday (and trust me I will miss a Sunday or two....or three). As long as he knows that I'm a good person and I always try to choose right over wrong and I know the same about him...we're good. #TeamGoodGuys Must be cute (to me).  If you were to look at the guys I've dated/pined for you will see that they have few, if any, physical characteristics in common. I don't care if other people think they're cute or not. I've dated ...

    I'm not a petty person by definition. Usually. But a thought crossed my mind after going through a situation with a certain somebody that was so petty it shocked me that I'd even had the thought. I'm still on the fence about taking action on this thought so I thought I'd bring it to my blog readers (though quiet, I know ya'll are out there...I see my stats) and Facebook to help me decide.     Before I can present you with the actual question I need to provide you with a little background.   First, I wrote a book. A cute little non fiction number about 5 women and a beauty shop. I've been writing this book for about 2 years. Not because it was that difficult to write but because I'm a perpetual procrastinator and I foolishly yet wholeheartedly believe that I work best under pressure.   Okay. So a few months ago I decided to toss out my procrastinator way of life and just finish the damn book already! I started working on the book lik...

  So when you think of the term 'friends with benefits' you usually think of someone claiming to just be friends but actually getting the benefits of a relationship. These benefits are usually related to sexual acts. My situation is a little different. See I have a situation with a guy that I've known for years that I label as friends with benefits. However, his benefits package has not included physical contact. See the benefits that he seeks are my undivided attention. He wants my opinion on everything, he expects me to answer when he calls and when I don't it seems that he feels entitled to an explanation.  What's up with that? Maybe I'm just reading it wrong. Maybe this is what friendship between a girl and guy is like. I'm a firm believer that it's highly unlikely for a man and woman to be friends just friends from beginning to end without one of them at least thinking about making a move on the other. And I think that in this kind ...

Hello boys and girls! I am just checking in with a weight loss update. I'm back on Weight Watchers. I've been doing it for 3 weeks so far and I've loss 6 lbs. I've actually loss 8 but I gained 2 back :(  Anyway, this method seems to work for me. Better than MFP even though Weight Watchers is a paid program and MFP is free. I really wanted MFP to work but it just didn't. I'm a snacker and a sweet lover so I need to get over those...then I'm sure I'll see the number on the scale go down. I'm starting the 30 Day Shred this week....Whenever I get my mind right...Maybe tonight. I'll be posting pics the entire way so I can have a record of my progress. 

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Because I haven't posted in a while AND I've been on a quest to get new readers, I thought I'd post a fun little about me Questionnaire. I hope you enjoy it. About Me Name:                                     Latina Renee Age:                                        34 Relationship status:           Single (but married to T.I. in my head) Height:                                  5 feet and 6 ½ inches Weight:   ...