Let's backtrack a few weeks, beginning of March when I went on my FIRST cruise, where I traveled for 9 days with my boyfriend and 2 other couples along the Mexican Riviera. We ported out of beautiful San Diego, CA and had a few days at sea, elegant nights, spectacular ocean view, divine cuisine that never ended and memorable excursions.
For anyone who is a bit hesitant to get on a huge vessel that travels the sea that you would never want to be stranded in especially if you are oddly scared of sharks...I mean, I am ODDLY scared of sharks, as in, I still believe that hidden below a swimming pool is a secret gate where a swarm of sharks are just maliciously swimming back and forth waiting for me to swim to the bottom of said pool to have me as a tasty snack... I digress.
No Sharks Allowed!
Let me assure you that after all the news reports before we left for our cruise about boats tipping over in the coast of Italy and guests being held up by gun point while on a paid excursion, I still was all gung-ho to set sail. The Carnaval cruise was the BEST VACATION EVER!
Macaws in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
I (unlike Crystal) am quite the planner and I get giddy when there are events mapped out for me to coordinate what I shall wear, what I shall eat, and what dancing I can do. Luckily, there was a daily agenda with a plethora of activities and lounging to partake in along with a towel creature every night on our bed.
A turtle towel creature
Yes - That is succulent lobster tail and finger licking shrimps!
A cruise is quite the operation and there is little planning that you have to do if you want to lounge, EAT, drink cocktails, play some put-put golf or watch Broadway type shows, then you can do all or some.
A few of the highlights from our 4 stops in the Mexican Riviera were in Manzanillo sitting on the beach and taking in the view (and being bombarded by vendors), in Puerto Vallarta we swam with dolphins and got kissed by sea lions, in Cabo San Lucas we toured a secluded beach and snorkeled with a bonus trip out to the Pacific to see 2 lovely Hump Back Whales swimming, and in Ensenada we had a cultural city tour and stopped to shop at La Bufadora (Blow Hole) market where I received a beautiful Sterling Silver ring from my charming boyfriend.
I really did swim with the dolphins
Lover's Beach and snorkeling in Cabo
Love birds in Cabo...get it?
Sterling Silver ring with Alexandrite and white Topazes from Ensenada
Now I am ready to plan my next cruise and believe me, I have a passport ready to get some more worldly stamps pressed in it to show off one day. Perhaps the Mediterranean 12-day cruise is something I should put on my MUST-DO list for 2013. Hold me to it!
It goes without saying that I am late for things and that's just me although, I try to make up for that with my super lengthy stories and cooking. So please excuse my tardiness. Since this is my first post I will make it short and sweet, like me. Just a little "how do ya do?" so we can break the ice and move on to the good and tasty stuff a.k.a. FOOD.
With a cool iPad in tow I have found this new fondness for staying organized, connected, and in the know all within a little tablet. I also have yet another way to document the things that get me all sorts of excited...like food. :) Plus, now I can get in touch with you that much easier to make the inspirations more fluid.
So, first off, Hello there! I am looking forward to sharing random stories that may inspire you, recipes that have been boyfriend and roommate tested and approved, and some creative juices through this blog with my dear friends, Katie and Crystal.
Healthier option -- Mediterranean Barley Salad
Get your appetites ready for some unique and health conscious recipe items with a few guilty pleasures along the way.
Sweetier & guiltier option -- Strawberry cream cheese cinnamon french toast (heart shaped, of course)
And now to say 'tchau for now" with my introduction: I read the back of a Papyrus card with the description of the hummingbird which states:
"Legends say that hummingbirds float free of time, carrying our hopes for love, joy, and celebration. The hummingbird's delicate grace reminds us that life is rich, beauty is everywhere, every personal connection has meaning and that laughter is life's sweetest creation."
I'm getting married. In, like, 5 months or something.
This past week, my younger sister/Maid of Honor and I went down to Florida to do some wedding planning. It was right on the heels of my job ending, and my sister was on her Spring Break, so it seemed like the perfect time to getaway. We had two days of scheduled meetings, then two days of relaxation.
Let me share with you that I'm not the greatest planner. I like almost everything, so I have a hard time deciding on...anything. Lucky for me, I have an awesome fiance who suggested we hire a wedding planner to help with everything. Bingo!
The two days flew by in a stream of questions and making decisions. I will not bore everyone with the details, but just say that we talked a lot about food, flowers, fabrics, and photos.
After all the wedding planning, we were both ready for some quality beach time...and a cold, fruity beverage.
I got this bathing suit at the GAP outlet. While I'm not normally a
"ruffly" lady, I was in need of a strapless top to avoid tan lines in
the wedding dress.
The beach time was definitely good for our souls. And we had our own personal chef for the week as well (aka my future mother-in-law, who's an amazing cook!), so we indulged.
I'm now officially devising plans for us to somehow end up in Destin, FL. I thought maybe if I just stayed, E would eventually have to come and get me, and then he would realize he wanted to stay too. Simple, right? Alas, I got on the plane back to VA like a good girl...
I have not been naked for the past few months, however, it is a very rare occasion when I've worn something worthy of seeing the light of day. Since I've moved, I've had the opportunity to work from home, so I may see the projects I've been working on to completion (now that those are finished, my last day is tomorrow, and then I'll really be unemployed - eek!!). Anyway, when I'm home all day, it can be difficult to find the motivation to put on actual clothes. So I've found myself staying in pajamas most of the day, changing into shorts and a t-shirt to go to the gym...but there haven't been very many instances where I'm looking through my closet to put an outfit together (which is actually something I love doing!).
Last night, E and I were invited to celebrate a friend's Birthday at a local Mexican restaurant. I immediately took this opportunity to wear something real!
Yep, I'm excited. Internet, meet one of my favorite dresses. I bought this dress at the Starfish Boutique in Venice, CA one of the first days I moved to California. We had a love affair that summer - I cheated on almost every other one of my dresses to wear this one. It saw me through some good and bad times. It's been there for me. Last night I wore it with a cardigan and scarf, since it's still March and all.
These boots, though, are pretty much on their last leg. These Steve Maddens have lasted three winters with me - more than any other boot I've owned. That probably speaks more poorly about the owner than the boots. But the treatment on these has worn off, and the redone heels are starting to wear down again. It's about time I say goodbye.
On a happier note - I'd like to tell you all about our first child! Her name is Canon Rebel EOS T3i. We played around with her while the sun was setting to practice snapping photos.
Just for kicks and giggles (is that the saying?), here's my favorite from the Birthday extravaganza. Yes friends, expect to see more of this guy. I can't help it - the camera loves him. It must be a daddy's girl.
Last week was just...one of those weeks. We all have them. It was something like this:
Then an unwanted Midwestern March weekend of snow, snow, and more snow. The emotional dregs of the last part of winter ensued...mild depression, anxiety, all of that fun human crap that results from too little sunshine.
It all left me feeling very...ugh.
And then today happened.
It was like I was sitting in the stuffiest, smelliest, ugliest, darkest room you can imagine--and then someone opened a window. And the room was bathed in light. And I realized that there was all this cool stuff in the room that I missed before, because it was so dark and smelly and whatnot.
Today was absolutely, unseasonably beautiful. Full sun, all day, 60 degrees...my sleeves were rolled up, my car windows were rolled down, and I even went so far as to buy a milkshake. That's right. Premature summer craving, what up.
In the spirit of my newfound joy and inspiration, I thought I'd share some songs that popped up randomly today, on the radio and in conversation--some of my favorites. A sure sign from the universe that things are looking up, and spring is truly on its way.
First up, "Home" by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. This is a feel-good song if ever there was one.
Then, "I'd Run Away" by the Jayhawks. Not only do I love this song and adore this band, but this music video is so very, very summery that it made me feel doubly happy when I watched it.
Next, the haunting and ethereal "Hide and Seek" by the oh-so-talented Imogen Heap.
And finally, "Sideways" by Citizen Cope. Crystal introduced me to this song years ago. Was so excited to hear these last two songs, back to back, on the local student radio station today.
I'll leave by pointing you to a little gem of a video I found, featuring the crazy-infectious song by Florence and the Machine.
Hello everyone! My name is Crystal, and I'm going to apologize upfront that my first post on our newborn blog will not be as creative and imaginative as our friend Katie's have been so far. (Seriously, Katie - you're going to make us look bad if you keep up with this ridiculously awesome ideas!) Allow me to give you a glimpse of how my life has looked for the past two months...
...Crazy, right?! I can assure you I am not a homeless person, but I have been living out of boxes (which I would not recommend doing if you don't have to - a word to the wise). A few months ago, I packed up my life in LA and moved to a small town in Virginia. Why, you ask?
Meet the love of my life and husband-to-be, Eric. He moved last June for work, and I apparently can't live without this guy. Anyway, now that we've finally moved into our new and improved apartment, that means there will be plenty of opportunities for some projects! And I promise, I will share them with you all.
I'm very excited to have a place to share with two of my favorite people (and hopefully other interested parties) where we can chronicle our lives and creations. Let the journey begin!!
Cold Saturdays are a good time for drinking coffee, doing yoga, and making postcards to send to your totally awesome entourage of friends and family.
This is a great upcyling project--you get to use the rando cardboard you have lying around your house (in the form of the almost-empty cracker/tampon/pepsi boxes I know you have) and the old magazines you've been hanging onto because you aren't done with them yet but won't ever actually read through again.
You can use:
Any kind of thin cardboard--I seriously raided my recycling bin and scavenged for almost-empty boxes around my house
Any kind of paper or image--magazines, scrapbook paper, photographs, newspaper--whatever
Double-sided tape (of course)
Decorative tape/electrician's tape/duct tape/masking tap/scotch tape--this will cover the edges of your postcard, so choose according to your aesthetic
Crayons/markers
Plain paper or stationary to use for the writing side (especially if your cardboard doesn't have a plain side)
The good thing about postcards is that they can be pretty much any size (within reason). So cut up your cardboard into postcard-size rectangles.
Choose the images for your postcards. This is the fun part--you'll start seeing things in old magazines that jump out at you for different people. You can choose one large image per postcard or do some with a collage of smaller things. Alternatively, have some of your own photos printed and use those. They're your art!
Cover your postcards with the images/photos/paper you've chosen. This is why I love double-sided tape. I pretty much buy it in bulk these days. Make sure to cover the printed side of the cardboard, not the plain side. You'll use that for writing. You don't want to be writing on a glossy Nabisco box top.
Tape around the edges. You don't want two layers of paper, you want one cohesive postcard. Get creative with the taping. It can add to the look.
Then, your postcards are ready to be written on, adorned, and addressed! First things first: draw an address box in the bottom right corner, and draw yourself a little square for the stamp so you don't have to cover any of your writing with these necessities later.
Write message, fill in address, and then either go nuts with the crayons (or markers, or whatever floats your boat) or just leave it plain. If you're using crayons, write your note first or you'll be writing over wax.
Some examples:
Your friends will be thrilled to get their totally original, personalized, awesome postcard in the mail from you. People love getting good mail. And people love knowing that something was handmade, just for them. I know this for a fact. Go--embrace the art of snail mail!
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