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Monday, December 19, 2011

Life is good today.

Did everyone have a great weekend? I hope so. Christmas is in five days! Holy cow! That means five more days to shop, so get moving if you haven't finished. ;)

Last Thursday Jim and I went out to Perricone's Marketplace and Cafe. This Italian restaurant in downtown Miami is fantastic. We always go on Thursday nights with some of our friends because they have $10 pasta dishes. If you ever make your way to Miami, definitely check this place out if you're in the mood for Italian food. It's casual, it's quaint. It's got a rustic atmosphere, and if I may be so bold, even a whimsical feel, especially if you happen to sit outside. Their marketplace is swarming with cheeses and meats, salads, chocolate, and gelato. Their chocolates are adorable - usually they are shaped like little animals. Because it's almost Christmas, last Thursday I saw penguins and Christmas trees.

Their food, holy crap. It's divine. Their desserts? Even better. I want to specifically point out one of their pasta dishes - Fiocchi Gorgonzola. "Purse-shaped pasta stuffed with fresh pear and Gorgonzola cheese. Served with a walnut Gorgonzola sauce." Appealing? Or maybe it doesn't sound so good to you? Well forget you ever had that thought. You HAVE to try this. I have gone to this restaurant so many times, wanting to order this dish because I knew how wonderful it tastes, only to chicken out. Mainly because I'd only ever had one bite (thanks to a friend). But I finally got it this past Thursday and man, it's truly sinful. I'm making myself hungry, and it's only 9:30AM. I'm really sorry I have no pictures for you guys, usually the lighting is very dark and it makes taking pictures difficult with my crappy little Samsung.

For dessert I always order the Tiramisu -"traditional luxurious Italian dessert. Imported mascarpone cheese and lady fingers delicately soaked in alternating layers of espresso and Kahlua." I couldn't help myself. It was so perfect.

What I'm trying to say is, if you're in Miami, GO THERE. You won't regret it. :)

I'm going to skip on over Friday, because Jim and I ate sushi, which I talk about way too much. But know it was delish.

SATURDAY, we took Shadow to the dog park, and on the drive back, the AC in our car broke, so we headed over to Volkswagen to get it fixed. Luckily they could fit us in that day, but that meant a little trip to the mall right next door. And thus, I purchased a couple little items at Sephora to make myself feel better, since we were stranded while the car was being fixed.
By the way, I just need to show you guys a picture of my lover's car. We took this photo a couple weeks back, on our way back from Key Biscayne.


I feel like it looks photoshopped, or on a set. Haha. Anyways....







Ok, so no matter the lighting, I couldn't for the life of me take a picture that showed the right color of this Sephora Collection Rouge lipstick. It's "Mmmm...17", which is listed as a muted sandy pink. I love this color. It's now officially my go to lipstick.

The Urban Decay eyeliner I was kind of disappointed with, only because after about an hour it got all up in my eye's business. It smoothed on really nice, but its staying power failed me. I do have very oily lids, but my eye primer just couldn't get this one to stay. I have a couple different primer's so I'm going to try another one today...see how that works.


In three days I'll be headed up to Charleston, SC, for Christmas, and I'll be up there for about a week and a half. When I return to Miami, my parents are following me back down. Needless to say, I will probably be on a holiday hiatus. I will try to do some photo posts and share the city of Charleston with you lovely people. But I can't promise. Either way, I'll definitely see you guys when the new year hits. Love you all! :)

xx

Thursday, December 15, 2011

What Would You Love to Do Tag

So Teli over at Pink Confessions did a "Things I've wanted to do my whole life/What would you love to do" tag. I thought it was so great, so I've decided to participate. Her's really cheered me up. I might have done something like this before, I can't quite remember. But oh well. I haven't been having such a great week. I've been really frustrated with my diet and exercise. I'm still sorta stuck at a plateau, and even though I've stepped up my game, the scale barely seems to budge. I did manage to lose a pound and a half last week..but thanks to weekend festivities, that came right back. Lol. Why am I trying to do this during the holiday season? I'm practically setting myself up for failure.

Oh, and when I went outside to run this morning, before I even started, some woman brought her two dogs outside to the path I run on and let go of their leashes. She had a Golden Retriever, and a large Beagle. A very large Beagle, must have been a mix. My dog Shadow, is a Lab/Pointer Mix, and she's only about 50 pounds. Well, the lady's dogs suddenly attacked Shadow. Listen...my dog has always had confidence issues, since the day we got her. I feel like this just set her back. The woman started screaming at her dogs and rushed over to retrieve them, but she then proceeded to stare me down like it was my fault for simply BEING there. And she didn't even have the decency to apologize. I wasn't about to baby or coddle Shadow because I was concerned for her, instead I just left and ran off all the rage. I was so mad. And so upset. Luckily, Shadow wasn't hurt or scratched. She's perfectly fine. I'll just have to take some extra steps to socialize her more now because her confidence has lowered again.

Anyway, I gotta stay positive. Christmas is on its way, I'll get to see my family, I'm moving soon. I've got too many great things in my life, I can't stay angry.

Soooo. Here are some things I've wanted to do my whole life. I suppose its like a bucket list. ;) In no particular order...

1. Travel to Japan
2. Learn to breakdance. I see those people on TV and think, man, that would be so friggin cool.
3. Volunteer or put together an organization that helps the US military. I probably will once I move.
4. Help rehabilitate dogs. Kinda like Cesar Millan!

5. I have a genuine need to make people happy, but sometimes I don't always know how to execute that. I want to be able to step outside my comfort zone and give of myself. It's fear that's holding me back. And it's hard, but I try each day.
6. I would love to work at a botanical park or museum of some sorts.
7. Going along with number 5, influencing someone, even just one person, or changing a person's perspective, or genuinely making someone smile. I had a woman come up to me while running once, and she introduced herself to me, saying she just wanted to say hi because I always have a smile on my face. I want that - everyday. Not for my happiness, but for others.
8. Travel to the Great Wall of China, and China in general.
9. Learn how to drive manual. Jim started teaching me once, but then he traded in his car for an automatic. I want to be in control of the car! This A5 will do, lol!

10. Travel to wine country in CA and spend a few days tasting all that glorious wine. This is a reality that will happen once I move to CA!
11. Take a few classes on Interior Design.
12. And a few baking classes. I love baking.
13. Become better at piano. I took lessons and played from 8th grade all the way up through college, but since I've moved down to Miami, I don't have a piano anymore. I miss it. :(
14. Travel to Germany.
15. Last, but not least, write a best-seller. That's been on my list for so long. :)

I've been meaning to mention that I passed 100 followers. This is unbelievable to me. You guys make me so happy. Honestly. This newly found community that I stumbled upon in September has embraced me openly. I am thankful for each and every one of you. So thank you so much!

Hope you all are having a great week!

<3

Monday, December 12, 2011

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

Just kidding, it's 80 degrees here.












All images courtesy Pinterest.

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Four glasses of wine.

Hello lovelies! The Army Navy Game is on right now, so I made some soup and snacks for Jim and I to munch on. Wine and beer are also participating in our festivities. I made some peanut butter blossoms because I was feeling cranky earlier, and baking is constructive for me haha. I also did my nails.

Go Navy!





Sally Hansen's Sheer French Color with NYC Starry Silver Glitter and Rimmel Top Coat Pro.


The NYC glitter polish isn't so great, as it took me a couple coats just to get a few sequins on my nails, but it was inexpensive and the look is subtle, so I'm content. Hope you all are having a fantastic weekend! :)

xx

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Christmas Wishlist

Last night Jim and I got some meager Christmas decorations for the apartment to put us in a festive mood. I've been doing so much organizing and cleaning and getting rid of things, and since the apartment has been looking pretty bare, I desperately wanted to add just a few little holiday touches. A little bit of garland, some lights, and this cute little word block here:


Christmas this year is going to be very frugal for us, but I would rather spend quality time with Jim and my family than receive gifts. I know Christmas is very commercialized, and I will be the first to say how wonderful it is to receive gifts. But it makes me so upset to not be able to splurge on presents for all my loved ones because I simply can't afford to. That being said, I was hesitant to do a Christmas Wishlist, but for the fun of window shopping, I did one anyway. Plus maybe you all will like some of the items and maybe get ideas for yourselves or others.
So here's my wishlist. :)

Christmas Wishlist


Button cardigan, $54
Spiked jacket, $90
Jane Norman shiny skirt, £28
Jessica Simpson round toe pumps, $79
Five Fingers five finger shoes, $100
Clutch hand bag, $37
Bangles jewelry, $25
Stack rings jewelry, $14
SEPHORA COLLECTION Prestige Brush Set ($325 Value) Prestige Brush Set, $125
LUSH Fresh Handmade Cosmetics | USA, $23


And, I'm pretty positive I might get those Vibram Five Finger shoes. Jim knows I desperately need new sneakers.

Even though I can't splurge on gifts for my family and friends, I'll be doing some frugal shopping for them regardless, and baking cookies of course! Because I always have flour. ;)

Friday, December 2, 2011

Holiday gag gifts / stocking stuffers ideas

I can foresee lots of holiday posts coming. Here are some gag gift/stocking stuffer ideas or just some home inspiration for you all. I can also foresee my credit card getting maxed out...


Owl Be Home Ornament Set - $24.99


Holiday Fun-gi Ornament - $8.99


Cane You Join Me Tea Infuser - $12.99



Make It Reindeer Plush -$19.99


Chilled to the Bone Dog Scarf - $17.99


Unicorn-ament Set - $20.99



Woodland Holiday Apron - $33.99

All of the above from Modcloth



Reindeer and Snowman wine bottle toppers - $4.95 each, Pier 1


Charlie Brown Christmas Tree? Yes please. $20, Fredflare.com


Starlight Mint Earrings - $12.00, Fredflare.com


Gingerbread House Timer - $9.99, Fredflare.com


19 days until I head to Charleston, SC, and I will be doing some more Christmas posts soon, including while I'm up there.

Thanks for checking out my blog. I hope you all have a great weekend! :)

<3

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Gaga's Workshop Collection

Happy Wednesday! I wanted to share with you guys something I've been scouring over this morning. As controversial as she is, I'm a huge fan of Lady Gaga. And have any of you heard about Gaga's Workshop? It's through Barneys New York, and you can check it out here. The items in this project are only available for a limited time, so go check them out! Here are some of my favorites.


Little Monster plushies

Monster Red lipstick

Bird eyelashes

Gaga Tote

Tea cup!

Gold Shards of Glass Earrings

Silver Shards of Glass Bracelet

Python Cuff

Sioux Lace Sunglasses



Gaga Press-on Nails

Motorcycle Jacket

Boot Stocking for the holidays!

Unicorn Stocking :)

Edible Chocolate Lipstick

Dark Chocolate Poker Face Chips

Shoe cookies


Some items are inexpensive, whereas others range pretty high. Still, if you want to get your Gaga holiday on, check out this special collection, because there's lots more! I'll have to remember those shoe cookies when I'm baking my holiday cookies. :)

xx