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The Oosterdam in Grand Turks and Caicos, December 2015

   For many of you that have been following this blog and my photography page, you know that my family and I are avid cruisers. My parents met on a cruise and since 2004, the family has used cruising as our mode for vacationing. As time went by, our family had the privilege of trying several different cruise lines varying from Norwegian, Carnival, and now Holland America. With my parents getting older, the craziness of Carnival Cruise Lines became unappealing for them and they wanted something more relaxing. Of course when I first heard the news that we were going to go on a Holland America Cruise in 2013 I freaked out.  "Isn't that an old people cruise?", I asked my parents. They laughed and reminded me that they were now what I referred too as 'old people' and that this would be the perfect cruise for the whole family because of its relaxing atmosphere.

The Oosterdam in Bonaire, December 2015

1. The staff: Our family has gone on Holland both during the holidays (Christmas to be exact) and during the off season and EVERY TIME the staff has been over the top exceptional. From the time you enter the ship  you know that the staff are here to help you have a good time. From the extra little details of placing Christmas cookies in our state room, to the staff members befriending us and just overall attitude makes each trip refreshingly amazing. The staff has honestly become a part of our family. My family and I have celebrated the holidays, college graduations, and birthdays on Holland's cruises, and the staff have always made those moments extra special with their hard work and positive attitudes. My sister and I are now more excited to see our friends on the ship than what is going to be at the buffet.

   Posing with one of our Lido staff friends!

2. The food: After you go on one of these ships you'll understand why the rest of cruises foods are more so like a floating Old Country Buffet rather than a five star restaurant. Whether you're eating at the buffet or at the restaurant for dinner, each night is themed and catered to where you are visiting. Whether you are in Maine eating Lobster, in the Key West eating tangy Key lime Pie, or native fish in the Caribbean; each trip features different local dishes that allows you to experience the culture, customs, and delicacies of each visiting location.

   Indonesian tea-One of the great meals/activities provided by Holland America

3. The Spa: I'm not big on pampering myself but once I saw the spa on Holland's ships I couldn't resist but try out the thermal rooms that they had to offer. Unlike other ships, Holland offers a pass that gives you access to their thermal rooms for the entirety of the cruise. This includes access to the sauna, thermal rooms, thermal chairs, and a giant hydro pool. My worries of playing bridge with old women went away in a second when I realized that I could spend my days in the spa.

Taking a selfie in the Spa

Onboard the Oosterdam December 2015 pre-dinner

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   So overall you could say that my favorite cruise line is Holland America. Yes there are other factors such as the locations the cruises go to, the entertainment and the lack of rowdy kids are great. If you have any questions please feel free to post them below. In case you are going on a Holland America cruise in the near future (or are considering) here are the ships I've been on in the past with them.
   Currently, my family has gone on three different ships with Holland America.
   (1) The Ryndam- Central America for Christmas
   (2) The Maasdam- Summer Canadian Cruise
   (3) The Oosterdam- Southern Caribbean for Christmas



Until next time,

 

     If you watch an unhealthy amount of TV or are engrossed with People or Us weekly magazine, you know that with a new year comes a new body. You might remember on my previous blog posts that I have struggled with loosing weight. With the help of Weight Watchers (no endorsement here) and changing my intake of meat to solely fish, I was able to loose 50 pounds. Now, almost a year and a half later I'm back to the original weight that I started off at. It honestly came out of the blue. I knew that after I had studied abroad in France I had gained weight. With all the wine and cheese it was bound to happen. With summer and the want to get back into my bikini I became toned and got back to my weight. Then the dreaded senior year came. Priorities shifted and I became more stressed out then I could remember. I still exercised (I actually have started lap swimming in the mornings at 6:30 am!) and was eating pretty healthy (because everyone has a cheat day now and then). Still, I was surprised that somehow this could happen.

@khloekardashian Instagram

  So I looked for some motivation. I looked at social media accounts like Demi Lovato and Khloe Kardashian who publicly aired out on social media there body confidence and journey to being healthy. I looked at their social media success- what did they do that was so different than mine? I did the same work-out as them and even ate the same food.  It was the attitude that made it different and allowed for them to maintain their success. Unlike the first time that I started my weight loss journey, I started this one off with a positive attitude. I didn't get mad at myself like before, I just started doing it. Yes there have been some bumps on the road- but isn't that life? It's one of the curse and blessings that life will give you; the unexpected.

@ddlovato Instagram

   Now, 27 days into the new year I have begun to change my attitude, and along with it so have the pounds. I'm taking every day one step at a time. I've learned that sometimes its okay not to work out till I want to pass out but instead to work on my mind, body, and soul. In my next health post, I'll be talking about what workout plans I've been doing in order to maintain a great mind, body, and soul.

Until then check out my Instagram for motivational post @theprincessfusion!
 

Happy 2016!


   It's crazy to think that I've been using this blog as a medium to write about my life for 6 years. A lot has happened in this period of time. Many milestones such as prom, finding a college, studying abroad, rants about finding love, self-confidence and more have been chronicled on this blog. For those of you who have been on the journey since the beginning- THANK YOU! You are a main motivation for your continuing readership every week (and month, because honestly how often have I really posted in the past months?!?).

Celebrating my 22nd birthday last month on a Holland America Cruise

    With that being said, I have accomplished a pretty big milestone that I believe will help make this blogging journey even more exciting and fresh than ever before! I graduated this December from College with a degree in French and Communications with a Certificate in International Journalism. YAY! This of course means that with the lack of papers that I'll have and books, I can now focus on things that I WANT TO DO. How liberating right? I've done a lot of self contemplating this month about the blog and my projects. With College being over I wanted to take the time and think about my passions and how I can really expand upon them. This blog has become a true passion of mine. Even though I might not write in it as much as I should, I have truly loved working on it and cannot wait to see how this new journey of my life will help develop the blog as well as myself.

Post-College Life Hiking in the Dominican Republic with my mother

   One way that I thought would be great in developing the "PrincessFusion" business is to create a website were readers can see in an easier format my past and current projects. As you can probably see on this blog, I write and vlog about a lot of different content on this blog as well as on Youtube. That's why the blog was named 'Fusion'- because I wanted it to be a collection of things, rather than me just rambling about the latest trends that I'm wearing today. Because as great as it is to tell you about my new Clark boots that are super comfortable that I got today, I find those blogs that consist just of fashion to be well...superficial. Yes, at times I will post about my favorite red-carpet looks or hot Nick Jonas is at the moment (because I could write about that FOREVER), but I also want to write about what makes me tick- politics, health, and just plain old rants. After all, that's what this blog was created for- to show you a bit about my life as a Midwestern girl.


  So here's to yet another start of a new journey with you guys. I can honestly say that I could not be more excited about revamping the blog and making it the best that it could be. So who's ready?


I know I am!

-Until next time