The Good News: February, 2016

I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS AND THIS HAS BEEN A LONG TIME COMING.

The lowdown:

Ok, so I have always been all for being positive and optimistic
(read about my take on The Importance of Positivity ☺️).
A long time back, I had the idea of doing a blogpost series called 'The Good News'.

The news and current affairs of our world is so important, it is crucial we keep updated on what is happening around us.

BUT...
A lot of that tends to focus on what is going wrong.

And, although it is necessary to think about what is wrong in order to right it,
I think we could stand to gain a lot from appreciating what is already right, or getting good, as well!


And, so without too much more rambling on (I need to learn to shush up! :P), I begin my new monthly series of...

THE GOOD NEWS!

February, 2016

...

 Nurse brings snow and smiles inside for sick kids

Lucy, 7, a patient at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Centre, watched the snow fall. Being a massive 'Frozen' fan, the doctors thought she could go outside for a bit. 
However, due to the condition of the weather and her fragile health condition (from a bone marrow transplant six weeks ago) the outside trip was cancelled. 

Nurse Alex Classen, 26, brainstormed and realised if the kids couldn't go outside, she could bring the snow inside to them! Braving a blizzard several times she scooped up lots of snow for Lucy and the other kids.

“We have a bunch of patients who are really sick and can’t necessarily go out and play in the snow like normal kids.” 

“So I thought it would be fun for them to be able to touch and play and experience the snow."

“Anything I can do to make these kids smile is awesome...So whenever they’re happy, it just makes my day.”

 ...

 Students awaiting test scores got an important and inspiring letter


I have nothing to add to this, except for - HOW AMAZING. So much admiration for the staff who came up with this idea and the school for making this happen!

...

Zimbabwe bans child marriage: Former child brides win against court!

Via

"I really am happy that we have played an instrumental part in making Zimbabwe a safe place for girls." - Mudzuru, married at 16 and with two children before 18.
Credit: The Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, which covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, corruption and climate change.

...

 Boy becomes a Valentine for 900 High School girls


"So I did a thing today.
Today I passed out 900 carnations, one to every girl at SVHS and it was totally worth it. I don't think anything can compare to seeing every girl in your life holding a flower as they walk through the halls."

...

 Russia's suicide rates lowest in 50 years

Via

Attributed to anti-alcohol campaigns and improved quality of life!

...

 Ordinary Citizens deliver water in drought stricken South Africa


"Operation Hydrate has distributed over seven million litres of water in five provinces thus far."

---

That was some of The Good News for February! ☺️

What were you surprised to hear about? Do you have a favourite?
Do you like listening to some Good News? ☺️

New blog post will be up next Tuesday!!! 

Until then, you can: Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Or follow me below at - 
They're all linked so you should just be able to click on them! :)


❤️, Raashi

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Introductions, Impressions and Insecurities


All within the first 8 minutes and 30 seconds of meeting another human being?

Sounds a bit overwhelming, no?

It was for these two, Kelsey and Nick.



But I feel like for every part of this that was potentially quite uncomfortable,
it was just as potentially rewarding, and quite liberating?

The premise: 
{THE AND} Blind Date │ Nick & Kelsey, 2 strangers on a blind date who might've never had the chance to meet each other, playfully break through first impressions and unravel each other's insecurities.

Now, my friend sent me this video a little while back and I had no idea what I was clicking on, but I got so hooked and so intrigued, very quickly.

It truly is super interesting.

Both individuals acknowledge from quite early on that there are obvious differences between them,
yet they generate some amazing chemistry,
within less than 9 minutes.

I know for sure some people in society would view them as such a "different couple", and think at first glance that they're probably not meant for each other.

But that's what I love about videos like this.
It boils everything down to just the genuine attraction and chemistry between two human beings, physically, intellectually, emotionally.

One of my friends made a great point about how this shows why dating apps like Tinder aren't ideal:
"If they had seen each other just in pictures, would they have really swiped right? Probably not, because by social norms, they wouldn't have seemed compatible".

It was interesting to see these two individuals quite openly and honestly address their differences.
Followed by their weaknesses.
And their needs.

Imagine if everyone talked about deeper, more vulnerable stuff straight after we met each other?

And on the note of that question,
here's to the end of another contemplative post by Raashi :P

Would LOVE to hear your thoughts in the comments below 
on this interesting social experiment!  ☺️ 

New blog post will be up next Tuesday!!! 

Until then, you can: Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Or follow me below at - 
They're all linked so you should just be able to click on them! :)

❤️, Raashi
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Get to know me!

Hi guys! ☺️

Hope you all had/are having a lovely Valentine's Day! ❤️
---
I'm not gonna lie, I'm such a big believer that it's lovely if you have someone special you want to spend the day with, and it is NOT a big deal at all if you don't, haha.

It's a bit crazy the amount of pressure this holiday can create on couples to act a certain way, gift certain things and plan a day or night out.
It's also a bit crazy the amount of undue pressure single people can feel or bring upon on themselves, haha.

But - my boss did get engaged this past weekend so that could be the reason I was in such a 
lovey-dovey mood and totally embracing what the Valentine's Day spirit can bring. Nothing wrong with a day dedicated to acknowledging and embracing love, even more than we should every single other day of the year, right? ;) 

But, that's just my two cents on it all. :P
---
And now that you know my thoughts on that, time for me to tell you even more about what I think! :P

The lovely Trishna, over at TipsCapsule, did a Get to Know Me Tag and I love reading posts like this, so I thought I would hop on the bandwagon and do the same ☺️
Check hers out here!

And onto my version of it!

 R for Raashi ☺️

1. Do you have a middle name?
I don't :( I don't really know why, it just wasn't done!

2. What was your favourite subject in school?
Oooh in school, I loved English (all the reading and analysis and commentary). Psychology was definitely at the same level, I was lucky enough to study it for 3 years during high school!
And now at uni, I am still doing Psych, doing some Journalism - and some business as well! ☺️

3. What’s your favourite drink?
So, I'm not a massive soft drink person by any means. Love me some plain, good ol' water.
But oh my gosh, SMOOTHIES. LOVE. 
If you guys know of Boost Juice wherever you are in the world, that place is honestly one of the ways to my heart. 
Hot chocolate, Iced Chocolate, Chai Lattes, Iced Teas - ain't too bad either ;)

4. What’s your favourite song at the moment?
Ok, so Trishna mentioned Pillow Talk here. Which I most definitely have to agree with.
I'm also absolutely loving these three random picks!

Gold - Kiiara



Me, Myself & I - G-Eazy X Bebe Rexha



Lush Life - Zara Larsson 


5. What would you name your children?
I can honestly say I haven't really thought about this at all. 
I think Ria was in the mix when I was being named and I have always loved that name, 
but let's just wait till we reach that stage :P

6. Do you participate in any sports?
I played Netball a fair bit when I was younger and hopefully will be starting back up this year!
But I've tried a bit of everything when I was younger - tennis, swimming, horse riding, lots of dance. 

7. What’s your favourite book? 
I will always, always say my favourite childhood book which was the Faraway Tree Series 
by Enid Blyton :P 
But with that being said, I used to read a lot and this year I'm making a conscious effort to do more of that (more on this to come in the near future!).
I also adore reading motivational, self-help books - nothing like an extra bit of positive energy in your life ☺️

8. What’s your favourite colour?
It changes a bit :P 
I love bright colours in general, but the most consistent has probably been purple. Maybe also red. Recently, I really like turquoise and gold. I adore white, as well. 
Okay, you know what? 
GLITTER IS MY FAVOURITE COLOUR. ✨

9. What’s your favourite animal?
This is hard! Maybe elephants?

10. What’s your favourite perfume?
I CAN ANSWER THIS QUESTION NOW! I never really used to be able to:
OPIUM by Yves Saint Laurent.

11. What’s your favourite holiday? 
I love everything about the Christmas Spirit! 

12. Have you graduated from High School?
I have! I'm about to head into my 3rd year out of High School which is a bit crazy, haha. 

13. Have you been out of the country?
A lot. I lived in Holland for two years when I was little, and during that we travelled all over Europe.
U.K., Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland, France, Italy, Germany, and more.
Haha, and then also going back to India (through Singapore or Dubai) for family holidays and events!

14. Do you speak any other languages?
 I speak Hindi, and I learnt French for 5 years in High School, so I can do that a bit! :P

15. Do you have any siblings?
I have an older brother!

16. What’s your favourite store?
How on earth can I be expected to decide on just one? There's just so many, and I will shop from anywhere if I like something (and if they are some good bargains :P).

17. What’s your favourite restaurant?
I am definitely a bit of a foodie, and I love Italian anything. But favourite restaurant?
Just because I know those of you from the U.K. will know what I'm talking about, and cause I'm still suffering from withdrawals after it shut down all over Australia, Wagamamas.
The struggle is so real. :( 

18. Do you like school?
I loved school a whole lot, I was super involved in tonnes of activities and groups since always.
That being said, I adore the Uni lifestyle so, so much now.

19. Who are some of your favourite YouTubers?
I don't watch YouTubers as much as I would like to! 
Zoe Sugg at Zoella is definitely on that list though, Tanya Burr, Jim Chapman, that whole crew!
Love YouTube Beauty Vloggers as well when I get the chance to check them out.

20. What’s your favourite movie?
Um. Again. How on earth am I supposed to do this?
Parent Trap. Always.
Home Alone.
Aladdin.
Step Up :P
The Lizzie Mcguire Movie! Haha.
High School Musicals :P (Need to rewatch those!)
Mamma Mia.
The Giver!
But a recent one that I was SO impressed by, The Intern. 
Amazing movie, heartfelt, funny, meaningful, entertaining. Everything in one.

21. What are some of your favourite TV shows?
Ugh, guys, my friends know that I am so horrible with TV shows. I haven't started watching SO MANY because I am scared of the amount of time I will lose, haha.
The TV shows that have taken up my time though include:
GOSSIP GIRL ❤️
F.R.I.E.N.D.S. (Forever and always, a classic.)
The Fresh Prince of Bel Air
Saved by the Bell (Someone please tell me they know what I'm talking about!)
Parks and Recs
Modern Family
The Big Bang Theory
I really want to start Gilmore Girls!

22. PC or Mac?
I own a Mac now, so I should probably say that :P

23. What phone do you have?
My brother bought me an iPhone 5s for Christmas after high school ended, it was my first proper smartphone where I could actually use internet :P
THANK YOU, BROTHER.

24. How tall are you?
Can I ambitiously say 5 foot 4? :P 
Haha, I don't know to be honest but somewhere between 157-160cm.
Shortie life. 

25. Any pets?
We had fish for a while when we were younger, but I am holding out to buy a dog later in life ☺️

And that's the end of getting to know me! At least for now :P 
I'm not going to tag any of you specifically, but I would LOVE to read versions of this tag from you all, if you want to give it a go! 
If you do, make sure to leave me a link in the comments below so I can check it out!

New blog post will be up next Tuesday!!! 

Until then, you can: Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Or follow me below at - 
They're all linked so you should just be able to click on them! :)

❤️, Raashi
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Realistic and Diversified: Barbie Body Language

We all grew up with Barbies,
whether we liked them or not,
had them or not,
we all knew exactly what a Barbie doll looked like.

Something along the lines of that ^.
And although beautiful, she was only beautiful in one form of the word.
One representation of the word.

I am so excited that the new generation growing up with Barbie dolls, won't immediately think of this one image when they hear "Barbie".

I'm sure some of you have seen the recent news about Barbie, but I just had to share this on here.
Barbie has finally taken the term beautiful and represented it in many ways,
realistic and diversified ways.

Although there are so many things that could be discussed about the original Barbies (body image, sexualisation, ethnicity, symbolism of stereotypical "female" hobbies and occupations etc.), I don't really want to talk about those right now.

It might seem dumb, especially since I wasn't a massive Barbie fan as a kid, but I'm just so enthusiastic about the prospect that little kids will see the real and current world through their Barbie dolls - I want to celebrate that.

This isn't the first time Barbie has introduced different complexions and hairstyles into their range, but this recent launch has taken it to a whole new level.

All shapes, all sizes, all colours.
"4 body types, 7 skin tones, 22 eye colours, and 24 hairstyles"



Tall, Petite and Curvy Dolls included.

Greater variety in fashion, style, accessories (as you can see below!)




 Plus straight and curly hairstyles including afros, bobs, mohawks, bolder coloured hair, like purple and blue.

 ...

 Some words from Mattel:

 "Imagination comes in all shapes and sizes. That's why the world of Barbie is evolving."

 "It's so important that young people embrace diversity and feel happy with who they are, and the dolls Mattel are looking to do could really help that."

"We are excited to literally be changing the face of the brand - these new dolls represent a line that is more reflective of the world girls see around them - the variety in body type, skin tones and style allows girls to find a doll that speaks to them.

 ...

I don't know about you guys, but I just adore this change and evolution.
Thrilled about what Barbies will mean to future generations, and now ours too.

I'm such a fan of this whole new Barbie Body Language ☺️

#RepresentationMatters #TheDollEvolves 

What do you guys think? Would love to hear your thoughts!

New blog post will be up next Tuesday!!! 

Until then, you can: Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Or follow me below at - 
They're all linked so you should just be able to click on them! :)

❤️, Raashi
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What I got for my Birthday│2016│

And back to present life!!!



(But before that...)

---

If you haven't already checked out my last few posts they were ALL about my recent month long trip to India for a family wedding, and then just some good old fashioned family time! ☺️

1. India Trip│The Wedding!
2. India Trip│Lead up to the Wedding!
3. India Trip│Everything after The Wedding!

At the time these posts were getting uploaded my blog was having some issues with displaying photographs, and making them all blurry and ugly in the process :(


But it's all fixed now! :D So have a scroll through those posts to see some very colourful photos to say the least :P

---

AND BACK TO 2016! :P
Ahhh, it feels nice to be back in the present day on my blog ☺️

I love a new year because I always have so many goals I set for myself.

Another thing I really love is that I'm a January baby, it's nice for me that me being another year older coincides with all this growth that I'm planning/hoping to achieve!

Last week it was my birthday and I was so not overly excited for it, hahaha.

Last year everyone made a really big deal about my birthday, so this year I didn't even realise it was my birthday till a friend mentioned it to me 2 weeks before.

 All I really wanted was a night at home in pyjamas, with my TV and some yummy takeaway food :P.

Yeahhh, that didn't really happen...but I had an even better time thanks to the best friends and family I could ever ask for!

I always love seeing how other people got spoilt on their birthdays, so I thought it would be fun to show you what I got.

And man,

I got spoilt BEYOND. I was totally not expecting it one bit!

FRAGRANCES

I got two perfumes!



 Opium - Yves Saint Laurent

 A long time back Mum and I were shopping and smelt this, and adored it, but I never thought of getting it and didn't really think of it again. 
I AM SO GLAD mum remembered and got this for me.
I have never been that big of a perfume person,
but this is TOTALLY going to become my signature perfume,
100%.

I have worn it every day since my birthday and guys, go find this at the shops and smell it.
Then buy it.
And thank me later. :P

P.S. HOW EPIC IS THE BOTTLE!


Daisy - Marc Jacobs

Some of my best friends got me this and although I'm yet to try it, I'm so excited to!!!
I've always heard such great things about this perfume! :)

BEAUTY

I got some makeup bits and pieces!




Givenchy Palette Collection - Travel Exclusive
My dad picked this up for me during one of his travels and wow! Never tried Givenchy makeup before, so needless to say, I'm quite keen to give these a go! ☺️


My best friends picked me up:
Mecca Cosmetica Lip Protectant  - Smells sooo yummy and is super hydrating!
Estee Lauder Pure Colour High Gloss - So pretty and sheen-y, slight sparkle with staying power!
MAC Tinted Lip Balm - Haven't tried this yet! But excited to see how this colour works out!

JEWELLERY

In Jewellery, last year on my 18th birthday my neighbours got me a pandora bangle with an 18th charm on it. Since then, I have wanted to slowly but surely fill it up!
Definitely a whole lot closer to that now, with these GORGEOUS charms! ❤️


Pandora Charms
My family got me the two on the left, and one of my best friends got me the left one!
This photo does not do them justice, they are so, so beautiful.


Cartier Love Bracelet
 Guys, I'm not even going to pretend this is the real deal :P 
Hahaha, because for those of you who have seen this before, you would know they are insanely expensive...I'm talking like $6000+ crazy dollars! Insanity!

With that being said, who doesn't love a knock off!?! :P 
One of my besties just came from a Hong Kong trip and picked this up for me, hehe - I LOVE IT. 
Those who know me know I adore me some rose gold (more like, lots and lots of it!).
So, this is definitely getting added to my everyday jewellery! ☺️

PAMPER PACKAGE


A group of my closest and best friends made me the most adorable pamper basket filled with a candle, bath bombs, gels and a spa voucher.

I mean it when I say I was spoilt ROTTEN. I don't think I deserved nearly this much, but my friends and family were so, so very sweet to me.

They also got me...

MY TEDDY BEAR (!!!)


A video posted by Raashi Agarwal (@raashiagarwal) on
If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen what I consider to be 
The most exciting thing. EVER.

A GIANT TEDDY BEAR. 53 inches in all its glory.
(It's legit just a bit smaller than me :P)
A year ago I randomly mentioned how I LOVED them - but never, ever, ever was I expecting one! 
(As you can probably tell by my reaction :P) 

Guys,



I am OBSESSED with him.
I have nothing more to say.

EXCEPT! 
I need a name for him!!! 
But I'm gonna take my time with it because it needs to be absolutely PERFECT.
I can't wait to do a full on photo shoot with him, hehe.

Like I said, I was spoilt BEYOND and am so incredibly lucky and blessed to have some of the greatest friends and family, gifts aside.
Cheesy, I know. But it's so, so true. ❤️

P.S. Since coming back it's been so randomly hectic for me, because I'm still on university holidays there's always a million different things going on. But, I finally feel like I'm getting some routine back in terms of keeping up with blogs and my own, thank you guys for being so patient with me ☺️ 
Keen to be back and hopefully keeping very up to date with all your blogs!

New blog post will be up next Tuesday!!! 

Until then, you can: Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Or follow me below at - 
They're all linked so you should just be able to click on them! :)

❤️, Raashi
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