Sweet Magnolia Place

Megacon: The Costumes

2012-02-21T11:39:00.007-08:00

I like going to Megacon or Comic style conferences because I'm a geek like that. We signed up to attend all 3 days this year, since we knew that we wanted to attend some of the panels, and the boys wanted to go to the Saturday night rave.

I love people watching at these types of events, because people go crazy and really get creative. While walking around the show floor I found a Con Bingo card, this encouraged me to find the people dressed up like certain characters. I had a blast trying to find all the different costumes on the card, and taking pictures of most of them.

Megacon: The Art

2012-02-21T09:59:00.003-08:00

Megacon is a conference that is similar to Comic Con. It comes around once a year to Orlando, my first time attending was last year. This year, thanks to Groupon, I reserved a Hotel on I-drive and Travis, Daniel and I stayed for the weekend.

Last year, I bought a ridiculous amount of art to put on the walls in my home. This year we bought two major pieces to add to our home. I bought a 3D piece made of wood of a Space cat and mouse. The artist wrote a fun message on the back.

"To Justice,

In Space there are a lot of Cats, if you feed the cats they will follow you home, Do not feed the cats"

Last year, Daniel and I bought a couple pieces by Mike Maydak. His art is extremely unique and we both just really like it. This year Daniel searched the floor to find more of his art. He immediately fell in love with one of his largest most popular pieces of Boba Fett. I said "absolutely not, no it is way too expensive and we do not have a place to put it". Daniel would not let it go. The entire weekend jokes were constantly being made that "If only he had Boba.." Finally, on the last day Daniel made the decision to buy the art, and make Boba apart of our family.

We celebrated by watching Star Wars Episode 1 in 3D

Concert (Mardi Gras): Kelly Clarkson

2012-02-21T06:24:00.007-08:00

This was an insanely busy weekend!

One thing I love about living in Orlando is having season tickets to Universal, especially during Mardi Gras time. There are some great bands playing in this year's line up. This weekend Kelly Clarkson played and surprisingly it wasn't jam packed. We had great spots.

One of my favorite parts of her performance was how she explained to the audience that she just bought these cute new pants but they had chains at the bottom of them, so every time she jumped it felt as if her feet were being stabbed with metal (She was barefoot). In the middle between songs she ran off stage and came back with different pants on, then said "I changed out of the pants from hell"

Concert: Yonder Mountain

2012-02-17T06:14:00.004-08:00

It's been a long time since our whole group has been out on a "school night" but our good friend invited us to see Yonder Mountain, a Blue Grass jam band. None of us had heard of the band but we were all up for it, and had a great time.

Beer of the Week: Boddingtons Pub Ale

2012-02-16T07:43:00.004-08:00

Appearance:

Golden, filtered, with a thick creamy nitro head

Aroma:

Honey, sweet malt

Palate/taste:

Buttery cream texture with hint of sweet malt, an easy hop finish

Overall Impression:

Very good on Draft, typical pub ale taste, great for going out. nothing special

Bad Movie Review: My Bloody Valentine

2012-02-16T06:15:00.004-08:00

Theres something about watching a low budget Canadian Slasher film that just screams Valentines.
Would I recommend this movie? I'll leave you with a question to ponder on that - who wouldn't want go down into a dangerous coal mine on a date?

Happy Valentine's Day

2012-02-14T06:27:00.007-08:00

Roses are #FF0000

Violets are #0000FF

Even though Daniel claims we didn't make our relationship official until April, I always look at Valentine's day 2008 as our official first date.

Where did we go? To the movies to see The Hanna Montana Concert Movie in 3D. Although I know now he would probably rather gauge is eyes then see that movie again, I enjoyed it a lot and I know he was trying to impress me.

This morning I was surprised to see he left me a pretty pink plant (I said I didn't want flowers since they end up dying)

Then when I got to work and someone left me a cupcake:)

Happy Valentine's Day

Bathroom Decor

2012-02-13T08:19:00.000-08:00

I really enjoy how I redid my guest bathroom, It looks good. I've found that through google searching and looking for ideas, it is difficult to find "Small" Bathrooms unless it is a powder room. This bathroom is a normal size, but its defiantly not very big.

Because we don't use this bathroom very often It really didn't need too much effort to be put into it, So I only bought a few knick knacks, including the tall vase, hand soap and shower curtain to match the towels and Mexican paintings I already owned. Total cost was about $35

What do you think?

Sunday Morning Breakfast

2012-02-13T06:17:00.000-08:00

This weekend we hosted breakfast at our house, and by hosted I mean this was amazing hangover food from a sophisticated night of Zaya and Old Republic. We made a Spanish breakfast with a spanish tortilla, and Tostadas topped with Quail egg and Chirizo with a side of Expresso Balsamic Strawberries.

Spanish Tortilla :

You will need
6 Eggs

1/4 Cup Heavy Cream

1/2 Cup Olive Oil

1/2 Yellow Onion Sliced

2 small zucchini coined

4 Small Yellow Potatoes coined

Salt, Pepper and paprika

1.) Beat Eggs, Cream and Seasoning together well

2.) In a medium pan, sauté Onions, zucchini, and potatoes

3.) after vegetables are cooked add to egg mixture while hot

4.) Put all items in Skillet and let sit, Make sure the pan is oiled to not stick

5.) When bottom is cooked, Flip omelet to cook opposite side (We do this by getting a big plate, flipping it onto that then putting it back onto the skillet.

6.) Season

You will Need:

Cuban Baguette

Quail Eggs

Sliced Chorizo Sausage

pinch of Paprika, salt and pepper

Olive Oil

1.) Slice the baguette in small pieces

2.) Drizzle olive oil on top of bread, top with Chorizo

3.) Toast in Oven for 5-10 minutes

4.) Cook Quail eggs, as you would over hard chicken eggs

5.) Top Toasted pieces

6.) Season with Paprika salt and pepper

---------------------------------

Balsamic Strawberries

You will need:

2 Cups of Strawberries Cut

1/4 Cup of Expresso Balsamic Vinegar

2 Tbs of Sugar

1.) Rinse and Cut Strawberries

2.) Drizzle Vinegar and mix

3.) Add sugar and mix

---------------------------------

Refurbishing My Kitchen Table

2012-02-10T06:22:00.000-08:00

Like most of my posts lately this one again has to do with since the roommates moved out...They took their kitchen table with them, and we needed to buy one. So while garage saling I found this great wood table, for only $20! It was slightly scratched and such, but for the most part in great shape. So to jazz it up slightly I painted the bottom a turquoise to match the colors of the living room. I think it came out pretty good, not great but it does the job for now.

This is what the Table looked like before:

How I painted the legs

What do you think?

Beer of the Week: Beckenridge Agave Wheat

2012-02-09T12:34:00.000-08:00

Appearance:

Red unfiltered, medium carbonation

Aroma:

Herbal Sweet Wheat

Palate/taste:

Sweet Wheat beginning with a very tart bitter finish

Overall Impression:

Very unique flavor, defiantly could taste the Agave, It was good, however I don't think I could drink an entire pint of it.

Bad Movie Review: Piranha 3D

2012-02-09T07:54:00.000-08:00

This guilty pleasure movie is full of ridiculousness. Similar to Jaws, the premise of this movie takes place during Spring break, hundreds of tourists flood to an Arizona lake, not knowing that a school Ancient Piranhas are taking over the waters preying on anyone who enters.

I defiantly recommend this movie, it's a good laugh, just don't take it seriously.

Thick Eyebrows and Ombrose HairStyle

2012-02-08T11:29:00.000-08:00

I really don't undersand the "Ombrose hairstyle" Personally it looks like their highlights grew out too long and they didn't have time to retouch it. However this new style I am ok with because rather than using the excuse "I am too poor to get my highlights retouched right now" or "I haven't had time to get my hair done", I can reply with "This is the Ombrose style, its really chic right now."

In addition, I was reading my copy of Instyle last night and something caught my eye. "Brow Makeovers - Why Not go Thicker!"--- really Thicker?

Between Ombrose hair, thick eyebrows, and Pajama Jeans (Yes I own a pair and LOVE them), fashion just brought laziness to a new level with me. One can only hope that chipped nails and no make up will be next.

I am a Founding member

2012-02-07T12:26:00.001-08:00

I got this in my email the other day. How fun:)

How to plant a Hydroponic House Plant (Simplified)

2012-02-06T09:13:00.000-08:00

The other day for Archer Night, Daniel had all the windows open. Confused by this I asked "Um.. Why are all the windows open?" "The House kind of smelled like cat" .....oh gross.

Plants are basically like nature's air freshener, they take in CO2 and let out O2 as a waste product. If you have a room that is generally stuffy its good to get some natural foliage to help clear up the air. So naturally this weekend I went out and bought a bunch of plants to put in the Cat Bathroom.

I enjoy plants that are hydroponic, because it they are cleaner and easier to maintain. I also think it is more aesthetic to look at.

To plant a Hydroponic plant:

1.) buy a simple to grow, more waxy leafed plant examples: Peace Lily, Pathos Devil's Ivy, Dumbcane, Philodendron, etc. Basically I just looked at a plant that looked nice green and wax leafy, that I thought would have thick roots and went with it. This one was about $3.50.

2.) Get a Large Vase (I like getting Clear vases because it looks cool to see the roots- and as a bonus I got to get a Beta fish) Fill it about 3/4th's of the way full of water.

3.) Take the plant out of the pot, and clean all of the Soil completely off of the roots.

4.) Submerge the Roots in the Vase

(Optional) Add your Beta Fish. (The fish will eat off the plant so you don't need to feed it daily, just whenever you think of it aprox. once a week)

Thats all your done!

hmmm.... What should I name my new Fish?

Post Superbowl

2012-02-06T05:38:00.000-08:00

Did anyone else feel like this was a Dejavu of 2007? Since my family is from NY, I of course was routing for the Giants, but honestly I went for the Food and excuse to enjoy a good party.

Daniel made delicious wings, and I made my colorful Corn Salsa.

How was your Super Bowl?

Organizing the Refrigerator

2012-02-03T05:58:00.000-08:00

Reflecting on how I organized my life.

I finally finished cleaning out the Refrigerator.

From the mystery items, and the science projects to the abundance of empty sauces and containers, we were left with a quite bit of cleaning to do.

Don't worry. I kept the Essentials, Cookie Dough and Beer.

Just Kidding.

That was when we first moved in, I haven't gotten a chance to take pictures of the Cleaned Refrigerator.

Beer of the Week: Key West Southern Most Wheat

2012-02-02T12:15:00.001-08:00

Appearance:

Light unfiltered, low carbonation

Aroma:

Citrus and Wheat

Palate/taste:

Tart with a sweet wheat finish

Overall Impression:

A Thirst quenching beer that is perfect for summertime, or when you don't want something heavy. They redid their logo, to be more "Retro" looking, really like the overall new look.

I love this beer, but in reality there is nothing overly special about it to give it higher than a 3.

Bad Movie Review (Guilty Pleasure): Groundhog Day

2012-02-02T06:24:00.001-08:00

Groundhog Day 2012: Punxsutawney Phil sees shadow, 6 more weeks of winter

We watched guilty pleasure film Groundhog Day in honor of the weatherman who is only 39% accurate tradition. If you haven't seen this movie, the story is weatherman Phil and his crew go to Puxsutawney Penn. to do a story on GroundHogs day. Phil lives his own nightmare and wakes up everyday having to relive the same day over and over and over again.

Our group had chatted over the fact that someone had did some research and to know everything that Phil had known it would be about 40 years. Not sure if thats true or not but What would you do if you knew you were going to wake up and have the same day to do over?

Happy Groundhogs Day:)

Outside Press

2012-02-01T05:37:00.000-08:00

I have some exciting serious games press:

"If you're training for a new job someday soon with a video game controller in your hands, thank Constance Steinkuehler."

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/story/2012-01-26/edcuational-video-games-white-house/52908052/1

"The Serious Games Showcase was part of the Interservice/Interindustry Training and Simulation Education Conference (I/ITSEC), and was held in Orlando, Fla., from November 28 through December 1."

http://gamepolitics.com/2012/01/30/first-person-cultural-trainer-wins-serious-games-showcase-award

Help support Serious Gaming by embracing this as a learning tool, games are more than fun they provide structure, drive ongoing motivation, reinforce learning objectives, promote shared learning, encourage creativity, support learning by doing and much more.

February: A New Hope

2012-01-31T10:17:00.000-08:00

As you can see on this blog I have officially 2 followers, and although I don't care, I would love to have the support of readers to guide me on where I should take my blog next? Would more pictures be more appealing? Writing more, or maybe elaborating on a subject? Do you want to see my outfits? More crazy adventures? Updating more often? etc...

So, I've taken the initiative to get my blog out there, so I can get more measurement.

I chose to Sponsor a few Lifestyle blogs this month, that I support and love.

These include:

Jess from Crafting Happiness: jessicasgotthis.blogspot.com

I recently stumbled upon this blog, and really enjoyed how Jess breaks down her life, and handles stress through blogging. I found it inspirational and perfect for organizing my life through the month of January. Oh and she goes to UWV, Big East Represent!

Sarah at Silly girl. Sarah is not only a designer like me, but she is an Aerialist for Weird Sisters Circus, Something I've ALWAYS wanted to do (Seriously "Go to Circus School" is on my bucket list it will happen someday.)

Elizabeth from Delightfully Tacky. Again she is a designer and creative mind like me, I really enjoy reading for inspirational ideas for crafting projects as well as deciding what to wear.

Aside from potentially providing more traffic here, it gave me the opportunity to talk to some of the people I read on a daily basis.

Blogging Goals I would like to expand upon are:

1. Blogging once or twice a day providing quality full thoughts

2. Expanding into more "articles" for opinions, lessons learned and showcasing

3. Be more myself, without worry to who may read this

So... If you read my blog, Support me by making it official and "Following" :)

W.O.W...no literally.

2012-01-31T09:43:00.000-08:00

This morning I recieved this email from Daniel.

Starting next month, his W.O.W account has been canceled. Congrats Babe, I'm proud of you!

too Cute: Dixie lazy dog

2012-01-30T09:33:00.000-08:00

This is my parents Dog "Dixie" she lazily plays fetch. Very cute.

Girls Night Out -er in.

2012-01-30T06:29:00.001-08:00

My good friends Craig and Stacey are getting Married on March 16th. If you remember I made their wedding invitations and save the dates, with the St. Patrick's day theme. I was really excited to be invited to her bachelorette party. We spent the night in a hotel and had a "grown up" slumber party, full of alcohol, party games and sharing. It was low key but a ton of fun.

January - The month for Organizing

2012-01-27T14:23:00.000-08:00

I realize that we're getting to the end of the month I finally feel like I have most of my life in a start to get into order. I really want to recap, what I've done. Since my life was a mess, I needed to tackle it one problem at a time, I organized the biggest issues into 3 categories to not get overwhelmed and went from there.

1. Money
Probably the most important, before I did anything to organize my life, I needed to get my finances in shape. This was achieved by
-Organizing a Budget

-Making a plan to get out of debt

-Making a payment schedule for when Items are due, with Reminders put into my calendar.

2.) Wanting to have my house clean, after the Roommate move out this resulting in:

-Purging of clutter and unnecessary items

-Organizing the Pantry and Refrigerator/Freezer

-Cleaning and organizing the Garage

-Pre-planning for decorating

3.) Calendar and List of things to do

-Graphically draw out items on the calendar to not forget.

-Keep on Schedule with items (Work and Play)

-Creating personal and professional goals for the year

Beer of the Week: Kona Brew KoKo Brown (toasted coconut)

2012-01-26T16:30:00.000-08:00

Appearance:

Dark Caramel with a slight carbonated head

Aroma:

Nut and Malt

Palate/taste:

Nutty with a Sweet Malty taste a bitter hop finish

Overall Impression:

Refreshing and flavorful, we both really enjoyed this beer. It is a good taste for a Florida Winter.

Bad Movie Review: Breeders

2012-01-25T20:20:00.000-08:00

*Image from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breeders (film) (Sorry tried to get a trailer but there was literally

not one I could find with out any nudity.

This classic low budget sci-fi horror movie contained an abundance of 80's nudity and poor acting. The plot was about an alien creature living under the island of Manhattan who rapes innocent women. I can't say I recommend this movie, but between the horrible acting, bad tan lines, predictable scenes and lack of extras, it definatly is a good laugh. Our favorite scene was at the end, when the creature is actually shown.

You can watch this 1986 flick on Netflix streaming.

Organizing my pantry

2012-01-25T08:05:00.000-08:00

Since the roommates moved out, I wanted to start fresh by getting rid of the majority of food that consumed my pantry. This included going through the mess that was thrown in there, donating food that we don't eat or wasn't ours, rearranging the shelves and putting things in reusable cases.

Before:

After:

After seeing on Pinterest, to put Cans in a Magazine Holder. I thought that was a great idea, however when I tried to put my cans inside the magazine holder, they didn't fit, so I thought another great use for it would be to organize the quick and easy bagged sides. (Like Rice, Pasta, Spices, Etc) -Works great. I chose to put faster making meals, and primary ingredients (like canned beans, pasta, rice, and PBJ) on a shelf at eye level, because generally when I go to the pantry, I either know what I want and need to grab it, or am starving and searching for something quick to eat.

I got rid of all my cluttered boxes of pasta and put them in reusable jars, this allows me to see what type of pasta I already have, and also allows for faster use.

I immediately put "Unhealthy" snacks like cookies, brownies, fruit snacks and baking items up high on the top shelf, so I couldn't see them. I put "healthier" snacks like apple sauce, popcorn, natural fruit roll ups, Nori, and chips and salsa just below eye level, so when I am starving, I can go for something better for me.

I used a wire basket to hold together general purpose items, like Flour, oil, and sugar. It is easier to use it like a drawer and looks better than having them all cluttered in the corner.

What is this?

2012-01-25T06:01:00.000-08:00

Every early morning when I go to work, specifically on more foggy days, There is this strange Web all over the trees in my neighborhood. I'm not really sure what it is though, I think its made by either spiders, caterpillars, or maybe bats?

What ever this creature is I may need to call the HOA to Spray so they don't come near inside my house.

And then there were 2

2012-01-24T10:31:00.000-08:00

You probably already knew but in the 3 years that Daniel and I have been living together we've never lived alone. When I moved in with him, we had always had 3 other roommates. At one point we even had 5 people living in the house. When we moved into the house I purchased our roommates moved in with us. So for a while in our 1700 sq ft home had 5 people living in the house with 2 cats and a big fish. Eventually one moved out, and this past weekend our final roommates moved out. Taking their cat and fish.

So now, its just me, Daniel and Justice. I have to say I feel like a weight has been lifted off of my shoulders, now I do not have to worry about doing random dishes left from the previous night, a pile of mail that will never be opened being left on the counter, a million shoes being piled up by the stairs, the refrigerator and pantry always being full of crap that I don't eat, and the list could go on. I'm not saying our time was horrible together, because to be honest I love hanging out with my old roommates. There just comes a point when eventually it's time to move on and live with only one other person or on your own.

Happy Chinese New Year!

2012-01-23T07:57:00.000-08:00

Today is the end of the Lunar New Year. This is the year of the Dragon. I am the year of the Rat. I plan to celebrate with some take out lunch.

Story of the Need for a New Washer.

2012-01-17T09:40:00.000-08:00

As I was about to do laundry about over a week ago, I noticed after putting my laundry in the washer, that the latch would not hold. Knowing full well that I did not break it from last time I did laundry, and that Daniel didn't break it because I do his laundry, my conclusion was set that it was obviously one of my roommates. After exchanging words, and placing blame. We finally decided that it was only fair that we share the cost of fixing the Washer. Since although it officially was not broken by us, prior to it being fully broken there had been a crack in the door, which is where the problem stemmed from.

After calling several places, we found a guy that would come and look at the washer for only $55, most other places were over $80. After receiving an estimate of $380 to fix the washer, I decided that it was probably best to put that money towards a new washer rather than fixing a 5 year old washer. So with that we started looking for a new washer. After searching for the best types and looking at them in different locations, we decided on a Samsung 3.7 Cu. Ft. 9 Cycle Ultra Capacity High Efficiency Steam Washer.

It is on sale at Best Buy, with an 18 Month Zero Interest Financing Option, And we will get $40 in Reward Bucks.

So the new Washer arrived yesterday, and was put in its new home:)

I still haven't used the steam feature but so far it washed my clothes fine. The down side to what I've seen with this washer so far, is it leaves my clothes SOAKED afterwards. I may have to see if this is a faulty problem, or if that is the way it actually is.

But in all, I am happy that we can finally do laundry again.

MLK Holiday

2012-01-17T07:17:00.001-08:00

Yesterday I bowled by far my best game, Do you see the 4 X's and Spare? Yeah thats me! It went down hill after the Spare, but I'm still proud.

Friday the 13th!!

2012-01-13T12:25:00.001-08:00

Friday the 13th, is supposedly an unlucky day. But Today was actually a Great day! I actually got to cross step towards a Goal on my New Years resolution list.

I also got into a Transmedia Story Creation class, which was closed out.

Aaand, there is a food truck bizarre tonight. In all I call tonight a win.

Now Tuesday the 13th, in March I'll have to watch out for...

The Cat

2012-01-11T12:34:00.000-08:00

Sometimes she just looks so sweet....
But then again... I did forget to feed her this morning.

He has Style

2012-01-09T10:13:00.000-08:00

I've seen a lot of Style Bloggers for women, however its something I haven't seen much for men. I thought that because Daniel has a good style sense, I'd showcase his outfits. this weekend While at a Theme Park, he wore this.

Today he starts a Weight Loss Challenge at work. The buy in was $10. For every pound you gain from the first buy in, you add $2, The person who has the most weight percentage at the end of 4 months, wins the money pool. Good luck!

Bad Movie Review: Tucker and Dale vs Evil

2012-01-05T06:19:00.000-08:00

This year, I'm adding another section to my Blog. Every week a group of my friends get together and we watch a weekly "Bad Movie" or "Guilty Pleasure Movie". I thought this would be fun to blog about because I could look back on what I've watched, and potentially open the opportunity to get other suggestions.

This week's movie was Tucker and Dale vs. Evil

This low budget film actually has a few "big" stars in it, such as Alan Tudyk (Steve the Pirate from Dodgeball), Tyler Labine (Reaper, Mad Love) and Katrina Bowden (Cerie from 30-Rock)

It's a classic miscommunication comedic plot. Hillbilly types, Tucker and Dale are heading up to the woods to put hard work into a recently purchased vacation fixer upper. A group of college kids, are also headed up to the woods to do some camping and enjoy spring break. As they meet through out the movie, Tucker and Dale are put in situations where they look like psycho killers to the college kids.

This bad movie, could have been a bit more ridiculous, but in all I enjoyed it and would recommend it. You can see it via netflix streaming.

New Fitness Schedule

2012-01-04T07:56:00.001-08:00

I normally am a very active person, I did Spring board Diving and Trampoline/Tumbling for Years. After my tumbling coach quit,~~and it got creepy for me to continue~~, I decided to just do regular gym membership classes. So I did, But just before the Holidays I went into a fitness rut. I'm talking I just didn't want to go near it. I was SO over my regular routine and So bored of running, spinning kick boxing all the regular classes, that I just decided I was going on a complete break for a while. I needed to. I realized, I wasn't being challenged and I had no goal that I was setting to achieve other than looking good.

So with the new year, I am going back to fun classes that I enjoy. I want to get be challenged over time and allow me to express myself. Dance. Because I am no where near the shape I was in 2 years ago when I quit tumbling, I am going to need to get back to basics, Flexibility and Strength.

This includes taking Dance Technique classes and Beginners ballet. To continue cardio, I will still run, and take spinning or kickboxing classes because that was what I enjoyed most.

I'm signed up till March so we'll see where it goes from there.

It's freakin cold outside

2012-01-04T07:10:00.000-08:00

You Northerners can say whatever you want, but I'm freakin cold! I have my space heater going so my legs are toasty warm, Turtle neck sweater and a hat. Dang it and I forgot to bring my plants in so they will probably die.

A Toast to the New Year

2012-01-03T06:34:00.000-08:00

Our New Years was spent at a house party, where we didn't get wild and crazy, but dressed sophisticated, and enjoyed Champagne and a Blackwater Porter from a Growler.

Coming into the new Year Daniel and I have a new addiction, Star Wars- the Old Republic. Somehow I got talked into playing this MMO, and am really enjoying creating characters and following the story lines. Because the game, allows you to play either Republic or Sith, and choose between 4-5 different character types so you have different stories to follow, which makes the game more interesting. A Negative aspect that I don't care for is the constant reloading of Bad guys, I mean really EA do you need to kill the same guys 5 times? If your playing let me know what server you're on and we can meet up in world for some heroics .

New Years Resolutions

2011-12-31T09:23:00.000-08:00

1.) Being a Creative person its strange to say that I have an issue with over stressing and over analyzing life. I guess you can say I have a hard time "having fun". I like and want to be in control of everything, but when things don't go my way I become fierce and in some situations literally sick. I want to work on balancing becoming more open, honest and carefree. Being able live in the moment, and allow myself to see my blessings as they are instead of worrying about what's next, or my regrets of what I haven't done.

2.) Every year I make the same resolution to lose weight, this year, I don't want to make that resolution. This year I want to make the resolution to change my eating habits to eat healthy, locally and whole and controlling my portions. I want to really work on eating at home daily and cooking wholesome meals. We joined a food co-op to start in January, and with our fridge and pantry no longer being shared, I think that this is something we can accomplish. However along with that, I really do want to comfortably fit back into my size 4 jeans and dresses.

3.) I want to work on Details, the little things that help the big picture to be more professional, more focused and more aesthetically pleasing. I am the type of person who doesn't get deep into details when it comes to life. I do whats best for me. This year I want to focus on details for several areas of my life.
-Details in my work
-Details in my art/design
-Details in my wardrobe

4.) As I said before, 2011 was an Expensive year (House, Car, Vacations..). This year, I am focusing on not only paying off debts from 2011, but budgeting, and saving.

5.) I started this blog, to break away from my design blog to document my life and adventures. I want to expand more, by writing more often, and adding video blogs.

I'm looking forward to what I can accomplish in 2012, and will stick to my resolutions.

2011 ReCap

2011-12-29T20:13:00.001-08:00

As we close the end of 2011, I always enjoy to reflect on the significant events that happened through out the year. After going through pictures and reminiscing about this past year, I realized, that more than anything, we Traveled a lot this year.

We started the year out right, at the Liberty Bowl, in Memphis, TN. Watching The UCF Knights Take on the GA Bulldogs - and we won.

We joined our friends on a bouldering rock climbing trip up to Rocktown, GA, which is on the border near Chattanooga.

We were invited to take a trip to Spain, which was a rare experience, that we were fortunate to join.

It was really difficult to Narrow down over 500 pictures to these 10, but I assure you these pictures do not do the amazing visual settings justice.
A point to note, is the gardens, we visited so many gardens and beautifully landscaped areas in Spain, that as soon as I got back I was inspired to plant and tend a garden of my own. Something I still remember that has changed the way I keep my home.

Being able to practice our Spanish was something we both enjoyed. Especially when we had occurrences on our own, where we had issues of not knowing completely what the people were talking about. One of my favorite memories, was trying to call the San Miguel factory to ask for a guided tour and to see when their hours were. My other favorite story was accidentally ordering 3 Huge sandwiches, because we didn't realize that "Bocadillos" meant Sandwiches, - and Not Tapas.

We also Traveled on a 3Day Cruise to the Bahamas with Daniel's family and friends.

Our trip to the Bahamas with Daniel's family was So Much Fun! We got a lot of sun, drank, had no plans and just had a great time. I even checked something off my bucketlist - Riding on a Banana Boat. A significant memory from this trip was being able to watch the Last Shuttle Launch from Cape Canaveral from the boat, not many people can even say they've even seen the shuttle launch, however since I had always seen it from in my back yard growing up, seeing the last one was memorable and significant.

I Also can't forget a few other trips where I had an amazing time, including St. Augustine, Pensacola, and San Francisco. Pensacola was significant because I also checked off another bucketlist Item - I Rode on the Back of a Motorcycle. Scary but thrilling.

2011, was a Year that I had a few firsts.

This included, my first trip to Megacon (a big nerd convention that I loved!), My first time on an Air Boat ride, and My first time to Medieval Times.
A few other firsts, I had spoke at a my first conference in March, and then was able to speak again in November. I moved into my First Home, and I bought my first car.

2011, was a good (expensive) Year.. I had a lot of fun and am curious as to what 2012 will Bring.

Visiting the Aquarium

2011-12-28T09:12:00.001-08:00

I took these pictures a while back when we were in San Francisco however, I never for whatever reason took them off of my camera. These images came out beautiful though so I had to share. Daniel and I had such a fun time at the aquarium, just checking out everything and playing with the activities. It was a great experience.

A Run-Around Town Christmas

2011-12-27T16:04:00.000-08:00

We had a fun typical Christmas Eve with my family:

On Christmas Day we had an interesting run around Orlando, Starting at his sisters house, then at ours, but wound up to this amazing view at his Dad's while we ate a delicious meal cooked by Daniel on the Roof of the building with his family.

How was your Christmas? Did you do something typical or interesting?

Updated: Christmas Shopping List.

2011-12-22T07:52:00.001-08:00

*Need to get 2 Clothing Boxes and 3 Big Boxes and probably 1 more roll of Wrapping paper and I'll be good to go.

I'm starting my New Years resolution List next.

I love Seinfeld.

2011-12-16T09:32:00.000-08:00

Via: CableTV.com

Christmas Shopping

2011-12-15T12:49:00.000-08:00

Home Made BBQ

2011-12-14T07:37:00.001-08:00

If there is one thing that Daniel knows how to do well, its cook some good BBQ. The other night we had Home made Brisket with home made BBQ Sauce and Fried Okra. The night previously we had the Sirloin steak which he dry rubbed with Expresso Coffee. While eating it I mentioned that it would be good as a brisket, so we took the remaining meat and let it slow roast for another few hours. It came out great.

Winter Decor

2011-12-12T06:37:00.000-08:00

Christmas time is one of my favorites to decorate, I haven't put a tree up, primarily because I don't want to buy one, and the one I usually use is at my parents house. We did hang the lights up outside, however I haven't taken a picture yet because its been raining. I decided to do Aqua and silver colors in the living room because it would carry over into January since its more "winter" than "Christmas".

Daniel's Christmas List

2011-12-08T05:54:00.001-08:00

1.) Yes Style Jacket

2.) Dehydrator

3.) Blender

4.)Blue Rays: Cowboys & Aliens and Hangover 2

5.) Star Wars the Old Republic

6.) Asus Transformer Prime 2 Tablet

Jennie's Christmas List

2011-12-07T13:52:00.001-08:00

Wow, Can you believe that it is only 19 or so days until Christmas? This whole half of the year has literally flown by! I've barely had a chance to prepare for the Holidays. So, finally I was able to breathe and think about what I really wanted for Christmas and made my imaginary if I can have anything I wanted List. Fortunately the only fantasy item this year is the Wacom Cintiq 24 HD Tablet. Realistically I would be happy with Small Sketch pads and then scan them in.

1.) Stainless Steel Trash can with a Recycling area2.) Steam Mop3.) Car Organizer4.) Prisma Colored Markers5.) Teal or Red (or even Brown) Throw Blanket6.) Jack's Mannequin People and Things7.) Amazon Kindle Touch

The Story of the New Car

2011-12-05T07:07:00.000-08:00

It's been a while coming, but I finally needed to make the decision to put down my old car. It was very emotional for me, my bug-a-boo has been with me for almost 10 years, and been through so much including all of college, the beginning of my career, and now. Road trips, crazy antics, random things falling off, random problems, it was a fun experience and honestly I loved that car.

On Friday, I took my car into get serviced because I had a couple extra lights flashing, that didn't include the 3 that were already always on. After waiting about 2 hours, and even test driving a VW Tiguan my service guy Mike came to talk to me to tell me whats wrong with my car. He said to get my car safely drivable it was going to take

at least $2000 worth of repairs and that didn't include having my AC fixed (which by the way had been out for 2 years), putting a new Catalytic converter in, oh and the random air bag that needed to be replaced for the passenger seat. Basically he told me that it wasn't worth putting any more into my car, and that I should start looking for a new one because the way it was now I would at least get a trade in for it. So, receiving the bad news I of course got really emotional and started explaining that I wasn't ready not only financially but that the car was with me through so much and that I didn't want to get rid of it. It basically came down to I wasn't ready leave my Beetle my first real car I grew up with. He was really great about everything and said that he wanted to see me taken care of and that he had worked in the area for a while so that while I was out looking for a new car to call his cell phone and ask him for advice or any help, regardless if it was VW, Honda, Toyota.

So... The next day I set out to find a new car. I love the look of the Fit, and had test driven it after my accident in 2008, I also was interested in the CR-V, and Daniel had convinced me to try a Civic. I test drove all of the cars, and surprisingly liked the Civic the best. It was very driver friendly, in my price range and had a little kick. In their used car lot they had a 2011 Jetta TDI Wagon with 5K miles on it. I had sworn off Jetta's because I test drove one in 2008 also, and just didn't think it was right for me. But being that Daniel is very bias towards VW, so he said just to humor him and please test drive it. So I did, and surprisingly I liked it. I didn't want to like it, but I did. We sat at the Honda Dealership and ran the numbers for the Civic and the Jetta. Both of them in my price range and an amount I was comfortable with.

However, I wasn't comfortable with outright buying the car, and not talking to my parents - who were on a cruise, or test driving anything else, like the Matrix, which I was also interested in.

So after leaving around 5pm, I told Daniel I had test drove the Tiguan and wanted to look at it again, and while we were there, that I wanted to talk to Mike, who had been so helpful with my old car, and to have him look at the used Jetta Wagon from Honda. So, we went to the Service department first and had him look it over. He told us a couple things about the car, and then went to the other side of the dealership for a little while, when he came back he said "Would you be interested in a Brand New one if I could match that price?" I said "well yeah" So he said "ok, I'll let you test drive it let me pull it around" So, he pulls the car around and when he shows it to me says ".....And its in a Unique color, like your bug"

A TDI Jetta Wagon in chameleon colored White, Silver, Gold. I literally started crying and said "It's a grown up Jennie Car".

So...... we took it for a test drive, and I just was comfortable and happy, I knew it was the right car.

The Dealership not only gave me a great deal on the car, but they stayed with me for an extra 2-3 hours after closing and filling out paperwork to show me all the extra features and how everything works. And Mike through in a few extra accessories in the back of the trunk like all weather floor mats, First Aid Kit, and Place Bag holders. It was really such a good experience buying my car that I really feel like I was treated like family. (Seriously if anyone is interested in buying a VW go to David Maus on Lee Road they are AMAZING! and go above and beyond.)

With out further adue Here is my new car:

Oh, and it's a TDI, so it has a little kick to it but still gets 40-50 MPG:)

Taylor Swift

2011-11-14T10:30:00.000-08:00

It was another pretty active weekend, asside from working and a couple Epcot nights to close out the food and wine fest, the highlight of my weekend was going down to Miamii to see Taylor Swift in Concert.
I went last year to her fearless tour, and the speak now tour also left me speechless.

When you see Taylor Swift in concert, you are literally transported into a Fantasy world, where it is just you and Taylor in a land of love, Prince Charmings, Glitter, and emotional melody. It is pretty epic, whether you enjoy her music or not the concert is defiantly the epitome of a well created experience.

Feeling comfortable with the Audience, she walks from the stage to the opposite side of the arena, bringing the audience closer and making you feel welcomed and loved by her voice.

A spectacle of dance numbers and aerial arts fly throughout

Several explosions of confetti filled the air distracting you and making the experience closer to the audience.

The finale concludes with her floating on a low hanging balcony that moves her around the entire arena.

San Francisco - Work and Play

2011-11-10T11:20:00.000-08:00

I've been missing for the past week because I had a little work and play in San Francisco. I started the week with the StoryWorld conference. This conference was a huge for my internal growth. I was very proud of myself to break out of my shell and really allow myself to network and well - talk to people! The conference itself was good, I met a lot of interesting people and learned about the business of transmedia. It didn't quite fit what I was trying to look into but I think that it has a lot of potential for the future. As my conference ended the HOW interaction design conference began (at the same location). So I blended in, and networked with some more people. I met a couple of graphic designers and we had a blast going out that night.

Daniel joined me the next night, and we did typical tacky tourist things, some highlights were getting tickets for the traveling Cirque Du Soliel, Totem, visiting China and Japan town, and the Speak Easy Brewery.

We visited some of my family in San Jose, and enjoyed dinner together. Daniel got really sick that night but he sucked it up and Sunday we ventured to the Raiders Stadium to watch the Bronco's play the Raiders.

We were kind of afraid of the Ghetto fans jumping us, but we survived and even secretly routed for Tebow.

The last night I was extremely sick and Daniel was getting over being sick......so we only packed and passed out.

And thats whats been going on here with us.

Halloween Horror Nights 21

2011-10-28T07:52:00.000-07:00

Halloween, my favorite holiday and time of year. An Orlando Halloween event I always look forward to is Universal's Halloween Horror Nights. Being the 21st anniversary the theme for the event was 21, "Don't mess with Lady Luck"

I think that the creators really did a good job with the theme and the event.

The Scare Zones

Grown Evil, an evil garden scare zone inhabiting creatures ready to prey. The scare zone, is very dark and foggy, the natural trees give it an eery feel, and the creatures come from all angles.

The Canyon of Dark Souls, was probably the lamest scare zone out of all of them, It contained black sheets or tarps, with crypt keeper characters who were on stilts. Very slow moving, not too intense.

"your luck has run out" Scare zone, featured scary Lady luck and deathly casino items. The demonic ladies would come from the dark to scare the attendees. Guarding this scare zone were of course the chain saw guys.

The Acid Assault scare zone, although was extremely fictional was really done very cool. The Walls of the buildings were animated to look as if they were decaying and crumble to the ground. The characters all had their faces burned and would come from behind to scare attendees.

My favorite Scare zone was "7" It featured the 7 deadly sins. The description describes this scare zone quite well. "As daylight shines upon our temptresses their appearance through evil allows you the spectacle of beauty. As Night falls, these 7 temptresses will show their true colors and take on their fatal evil forms." Basically the temptresses along with the music and atmosphere change form through out the night.

The Night maze scare zone, was too dark for me to get an image of, this scare zone was scary because it was very disorienting. The fences move and there is a lot of flashing lights around so it is very hard to see.

Houses
The houses this year were done well, my favorite was the comedic "HR Bloodngutz" containing Holiday Horrors and "Easter Eggs" If you check Four-Square, you are able to interact with certain parts of the house. The In Between is interesting because it utilizes 3D glasses, what I really think this house's underlying theme is a bad drug trip, because you begin in what looks like a dorm room, the 3D glasses really disorient you, and it is very psychedelic. The Winter's night was Chilling. Night Ales Blood prey, made you feel as if you were in real trenches during the civil war. The thing was realistic to the movie. Nevermore, the Forsaken, and Saws and Steam into the machine were all the typical houses.

A few tips for survival....

-If you act scared, the characters will chase you, and they love that.

-Buy a Blood Bag they are delicious

-Take time to go to the Bill and Ted Show

-Remember, its just for fun

Weekend Update: Veg Fest

2011-10-25T06:31:00.001-07:00

This past weekend was surprisingly busy, but a lot of fun.

Friday Night we were invited to "Sidewalk Happy Hour" Basically a spontaneous block party with our neighbors. Daniel partook in too much of the beer of the week, and ended up out of it for the rest of the weekend.

So I hung out with my friend Tej. Saturday morning we went garage sailing around the community. I got a few things including random jewelry, a futon, fold up sewing table, and a knock hockey set. But she got the deal of the day paying only $5 for a Kids miniature kitchen.

Afterwards we hit up the Veg Fest.

I was disappointed that it was a lot smaller then I was expecting, and there really was not all that much food. It still was fun just hanging out and enjoying the beautiful weather though. Plus it was great networking for her business.

My favorite Vendor was selling these hand made flip flops, they are macrome'd by Haitian's and made from Recycled Tires, all of the procedes go to the artists. Sunday my Best friend came into town, so we went to Halloween Horror Nights at Universal. I think they did a good job this year, but I plan on talking about that later this week.

I guess that was my weekend, how was yours?

Ice Cream Muffins

2011-10-20T05:54:00.000-07:00

Kind of how I am addicted to Pinterest, Daniel is addicted to Reddit. He found a recipe that people have been sharing for Ice Cream Muffins.
This simple recipe included taking 1 pint of ice cream (whatever kind you want), and adding it to 2 Cups of Self rising flour. We found that using 2 cups of self rising flour was a tad too much, so I would recommend using only 1.5 cups instead.

Take ice cream and stir it up, and smooth it out, slowly add in the flour to the ice cream, mix all up well.

After the mixture is mixed, place in cupcake trays, the mixture is super doughy and sticky so I recommend using 2 spoons.

Pop it in the oven at 375 degrees for approximately 15 minutes (depending on your oven)

Let cool for 5 minutes and VWalla!

Ice cream Muffins!

Who loves shoes more?

2011-10-18T09:55:00.000-07:00

Through a recent discovery of online discount shops and a previous passion for wanting unique shoes, Daniel bought 5 new pairs of shoes over the past week. Although he still has not hit the number of shoes that I own, he's getting pretty close, especially since a good number of my shoes I've had since high school.
I have to say, one of the favorite pairs that both he and I enjoy are his light up Teva Flip Flops. I mean, why wouldn't someone need light up flip flops?

Weekend Update: Unexpected Concert

2011-10-17T13:01:00.000-07:00

This weekend was fairly busy. Friday Daniel went to MLG, so since he was busy with the boys, I went out with one of my girl friends. We started going to an Octoberfest, but it was a little lame so instead we painted pottery.

Saturday we went to the EPCOT Food and Wine festival again, (yeah..we are kind of obsessed)

It was going to be a typical Sunday, but our roommate gave me 2 tickets to see Jack's Mannequin with Motion City Soundtrack. I've seen both bands numerous times, but they both always put on a good show, so even though I couldn't find someone to go with me, I went to the concert by myself (--Yes I went by myself.)

I really enjoy Motion City's music, live they are ok they sound great but don't put too much into their shows, nothing special. - Although on Halloween one time they dressed up as batman.
First let me say - I am not a Huge fan of Jack's Mannequin's music, I am a hard core Something Corporate Fan (Probably still my favorite band), but even though they have the same lead singer, I just can't listen to Jack's Mannequin on Repeat over and over and over again, as I was able to with Something Corporate. Maybe it's their lyrics, maybe it's their popularity either way, Its just a personal preference that I prefer the one over the other.

That being said, I still get swept away at their concerts because Andrew McMahon literally serenades me. Their shows are incredible, and I would say defiantly recommend seeing this band live if you've never seen them.

Spider Invasion

2011-10-13T09:14:00.001-07:00

The other day we had a crazy event take place. A spider crawled into the house (not so unusual we do live in Florida..) The boys went to kill the big spider, but when our friend stomped on the spider to kill it an explosion of baby spiders came out! Freaking out, Daniel got a lighter and burned the baby spiders.
I still am nervous one of them is going to come out at me while I'm asleep on the couch. ick.

Happy Birthday to me (yesterday)

2011-10-12T12:18:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was my birthday, Daniel was sweet and came home with Flowers and a balloon.

Bright colored Gerber daisy's are my favorite

We had a relaxing night, went to EPCOT for food and wine fest for dinner, nothing too exciting but that was all I wanted.

Weekend Update: A Rainy Weekend

2011-10-11T11:57:00.000-07:00

This weekend Florida was hit by a Tropical Depression... No one I personally know, knew about this until after it had already hit, but it Rained... and Rained... and Rained.. and RAINED, ALL WEEKEND LONG. Although it Rained, we still went to the Football game, and watched the knights beat Marshall 16-6. It was quite miserable for the entire first half, but I had my cute Pink rain boots on (Which was good because it was a UKnight in Pink! Game!) It still wouldn't stop raining so we finally called it quits and left to go to the MOAT to watch the rest of the game.

Sunday, My parents came over and took me out for my birthday. They brought Dixie their puppy over as well, but left her at my house while we went to a late lunch. Unfortunately when we got home, the puppy had chewed up part of my carpet and peed on the floor.

Monday was a Holiday, And luckily the Rain FINALLY stopped! so I went with my brother and roommate to Busch Gardens. I haven't been in Years, probably since 2006, so it was a bit of a treat to me. I was interested to see all the animals, and ride all the new roller coasters. The best one was defiantly Cheetah hunt, Great Relaxing Roller coaster. Loved it!

And that was my Birthday weekend, How was yours?

Food this Week: Fried Green Tomatoes

2011-10-07T05:50:00.000-07:00

For as crazy of a week as this was, we did a fair amount of cooking. Tuesday a few friends came over and we made some sushi rolls, wednesday we had asian dumplings and asparagus. Last night we made tacos.

My favorite thing we made was fried green tomatoes, which we topped with chirozo, and I added fresh mozzarella, It kind of tasted like a mini pizza. either way very good.

Beer of the Week: Orlando Red Ale

2011-10-06T11:05:00.000-07:00

Appearance:

Red Amber with a sparkly copper tint, carbonated head

Aroma:

Hoppy with a grain scent

Palate/taste:

Very smooth, with sweet caramel malt  

Overall Impression:

One of the only USDA certified organic Beers in the country, amazing taste we both love this beer

Epcot Food and Wine

2011-10-04T11:25:00.000-07:00

Last night we met up with my family and had dinner at the Epcot Food and Wine Festival we arrived around 7pm, so a full experience will have to be at a future date, however from the few hours we spent I noticed improvements in standing areas/ places to eat, more food vendors, an interactive multimedia element and more beers to choose from -Pleasantly pleased, and looking forward to going back.

Still disappointed in the expensive prices and the crowds of people on a monday night, but its a theme park so really why would I expect anything different?

Weekend Update: Welcome to fall

2011-10-03T10:11:00.001-07:00

Its weekends like this opening October weekend that I love living in Florida. It finally started to feel like fall with a high in the low 80's. I was actually able to open my windows and let the fresh air in. Beautiful!

Over the weekend we stayed fairly busy. Friday we went up to the Orlando Brewery, it was a "Hop"ing place because of Beer-30, Oktoberfest and a concert.

Saturday in the morning we went to the farmers market for some groceries. The city decided to go Pink for breast cancer awareness, so all over there are Pink Flamingos representing those who have had breast cancer. Daniel's favorite part about going to the farmers market is being able to get an everything bagel with Salmon Lox and vegetables. He loaded his up with Fresh tomato, red onion, sprouts and capers. It looked good, however I personally hate salmon and knew we were going out for a big dinner later so I skipped the bagel.
Knowing tomatoes are in season, I was excited to get some Green Tomatoes, we also ended getting Asparagus, Figs and a few other veggies.

Later that evening we had a lovely time at the Oktoberfest. They didn't have as many vendors as they normally do, and unfortunately we've tried many of the beers that they had available, but we still had a good time and enjoyed the nice weather.

We've declared Sunday as "lazy day" we didn't do very much and just relax, homework, food shopping and clipping coupons.
(I'm still trying to extreme coupon, however I don't have the patience or the time to spend on figuring that out, so when I saved $27 at the grocery store this weekend, I was somewhat satisfied. )

That was my Weekend, How was yours??

Weekend Update: How to cope with bordem

2011-09-26T06:16:00.000-07:00

Let me tell you, when Daniel is not around for me to play with, my life is BORING! I had to entertain myself over this weekend because he was busy doing Homework, sleeping and playing warcrap I mean craft.

So... I did a lot of unnecessary shopping... I read about 1/2 the books I got from the library (You know you can like - get books for free there? I just rediscovered that). Oh! and I painted our bathroom (- but more on that later).

How do you cope with bordem?

Beer of the Week: 5am. Saint

2011-09-22T05:50:00.000-07:00

Appearance:

High carbonation some what cloudy Red Amber with foamy head

Aroma:

Very sweet floral smell

Palate/taste:

Somewhat tart but flavorful with fruit and malt, finishing with pine and grass 

Overall Impression:

American Amber or Red Ale with an acquired taste.

Halloween Decorating for a small home

2011-09-20T07:40:00.000-07:00

Welcome Fall!! In the South, it really doesn't get cool until late October/Early November, so one way that my family has incorporated the experience of fall is by decorating. This is the first fall and Halloween in my small home, so I was excited to finally take my fall box out of the garage and decorate. My home is very modest, so with space being an issue I knew it would be important to plan the areas that would be available for decoration, and not hinder from the "Hot Spots" of the house. I narrowed it down to two primary areas a Shoe cabinate and the Piano. I thought both of these areas resembled a mantle the most.

After getting ideas from Pinterest, I designed over the area showing what I wanted to do. This helped me in knowing what I wanted to do, so I would stick to a budget.

After coming up with my idea, I made the Flag Garland, and upcycled Candle Holders, then placed everything as accordingly.

Over the piano I was able to place a few larger items, I also draped orange and sheer black material left over from last years halloween party

Weekend Update: Blogger Brilliance

2011-09-19T08:01:00.000-07:00

This weekend I took the opportunity to meet up with other Florida Bloggers at Blogger Brilliance. This small conference was an informative question answer session with a group of panelists to discuss best blogging practices.
It was insightful to learn what I've been doing wrong and get ideas from other bloggers, as well as network.
Here are a few pictures from the event...
After the Panelists was over we headed to the local mall to watch a fashion show, which was hosted by Tim Gunn!

Daniel had an eventful weekend as well. He went with the boys to play Laser Tag. He said the place was a lot of fun, with twelve different types of realistic weighted guns and different scenario rooms including an office, house, colosseum and warehouse.

Food this week

2011-09-16T05:49:00.001-07:00

This week we ended up eating out a lot. When we ate in this week, I was inspired by this recipe, however when I started to put the items together to make a lasagna out of it, I realized it was just going to be a big mess, and I didn't want to dirty any pans to put in the oven, so instead I turned it into Tacos. I used flour tortillas instead of corn because they were BOGO at the grocery store, however if given the choice corn would have tasted better. I topped it with left over plain coleslaw cabbage and feta. (Daniel doesn't eat cheese so I never mix cheese into our meals, Daniel added left over chopped meat from our roommates dinner he wasn't excited about a vegetarian dinner). In all it was ok, very filling but a little dry and bland.

Cat Toilet Training: Week 3

2011-09-15T12:54:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago, I started Potty Training my Cat. Things are going decently well using the Citi Kitty. I changed her flushable litter from Yesterdays news (a recycled newspapered based litter) to Worlds Best Litter. This helped a lot in cleaning the litter out and resolved a lot of smell that was a problem. The Worlds best litter seems to have minimal smell and is much easier to clean.

I've had issues with her doing #2 actually ON the toilet. What I didn't understand is that she is constantly having no issue with going #1 on the toilet, so why wasn't she doing the other?

After searching online through message boards, I found other people had the same issues. Someone mentioned that the problem was the way she was sitting on the toilet and wasn't able to grip. This made sense to me because from what I can see she goes on top of the toilet right before, but then jumps off and does her business on the floor instead. Someone suggested trying to use a soft toilet seat cover instead, this way she could hold her grip better. So yesterday I bought a soft toilet seat cover in hopes that she will use it for #2, this will help me in moving on to the next steps.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

2011-09-15T05:55:00.000-07:00

I will post my usual beer of the week later. But for Now a pretty picture of Cupcakes:) Because sometimes I randomly get the urge to bake.

Crafts: Knights Wreath

2011-09-14T11:16:00.000-07:00

As we come closer to the Fall season and the weather starts to become less humid and bearable, I've taken my Start of fall decorations out and started planning for what I want to do for my favorite month October.

Feeling crafty from Pinterest I decided I wanted to take a try at making a Football Themed Wreath. I would show the making of the wreath, but really all I did was pick out my items based on color and theme from JoAnn's, then I laid them out on a table and looked at placement, after that I hot glued down some of the areas or twined some of the items into the Wreath ring.

Weekend Update: Football

2011-09-12T15:16:00.000-07:00

Saturdays in Fall mean one thing for us. Football! Both Daniel and I are big UCF Knight fans. We watch every game. This weekend was a significant win for the Knights beating ACC's Boston College 30-3.

Burgers on the Grill (Those monsters were so good!)

Daniel the reining corn hole champion?

It was a beautiful "knight" in orlando as the sun set beyond the stadium.

A little on edge the first half, second half the team got it together and held strong.

A great win for the Knights! 30-3! 2-0 Hoping we keep it up, Next game FIU!

Choosing the best Food Trucks

2011-09-12T05:47:00.000-07:00

Sunday, I enjoyed the monthly food truck bazaar.

When going to the Food Truck Bazaar's there is so many choices, but with the size of the entree's its hard to try all of them. After learning last month how much food you get I didn't want to over indulge so I stuck with 1 Entree' truck and 1 dessert truck.

After hearing raves about the Korean BBQ taco Box, I needed to try one of their Boxes, My roommate and brother got a Spicy pork Taco box, while I decided to stay simple and try a Chicken Taco Box. Apparently I chose right because it was delicious and they said they weren't overly impressed with theirs. The chicken wings were heavily breaded and spicy, and the rice egg rolls were very good. One thing I was very disappointed with was the amount of time it took for my order to be ready. If you order from this truck plan to wait about 25 minutes. A Food Bazaar just isn't completely without a cupcake from Yum Yum Cupcakes, I got 6 to bring home, a Vegan Ginger Spiced Cupcake, KeyLime Slime, and Peanut butter chocolate.

The Sunset Ice truck specialized in italian ice, somewhat like sherbet. Daniel tried the Orange Creme and Gave me a taste of Watermelon. Both were ok, very artificial tasting but very refreshing since we were out in the heat.

The Island BBQ is another Central Florida Staple. They specialize in Jamaican style foods including jerk chicken and jerk style bbq pulled pork. They also had items such as Gator tail and mushrooms.The Big wheel had some interesting food truck items on the menu such as Crispy Cheese Grit cakes, they were soo good! I am craving them today. Daniel tried their Florida Avocado stuffed with lump crab with scallion and garden chili. He loved it.

One of our friends tried the brisket bus today. He had a Brisket sandwich with cheddar on garlic bread, It looked really good, but very greasy. I've had previously from them a pot roast sandwich, which I really enjoyed.

Food Truck Bazaar Tips:

So when visiting a Food Truck Pod I recommend bringing about $25, anything more than that would be too much food. We often set up a tailgate tent with tables and chairs. You should plan on going as early as you can, this way the items on the menu will not be sold out. If you want to try a lot of trucks, go with friends and share the food, this way you get a sample of different things and not fill up on one. Get something thats special for the day and not always on the menu. If you know where the Food trucks individually stop you can find their everyday items anytime. We always bring our own drinks, this saves in cost and allows you to have whatever you want.

Food this Week: How to make sushi

2011-09-09T11:30:00.000-07:00

Aside from having pop in the oven pizza, canned soup, and pasta we made sushi this week.

It wasn't as hard as I was expecting it to be, but I did find that it was very time consuming and although cheaper by the amount we had, I think in the end its probably more efficient to just eat at a Japanese restaurant for lunch, because you get more variety.

Lessons learned in Gardening

2011-09-09T06:24:00.001-07:00

Being my first year as a home owner, I decided at the beginning of summer I wanted to test my green thumb and start growing herbs. Previously I had a brown thumb, every plant I planted died. Then I learned of the importance of Shade (especially in Florida) and watering. I moved my plants from an area where they received afternoon-sun to an area where they receive morning sun. This immediately helped and perked up any wilting plants, I also make sure to water them 2 times daily, occasionally I will miss the afternoon or morning but watering twice a day is very important especially for the Basil.

The Basil Plant I found especially fussy. I have 3 different types of Basil: Regular, Lemon and Thai basil. The Thai Basil is the most difficult to take care of. This plant needs constant attention, and needs to be watered at least 2 times a day, if you don't the plant will be wilty and crying for water by the evening. Once you give it some water the leaves perk back up and are happy. The lemon basil gets dried out quickly as well. Although the Lemon Basil grows the fastest, it often turns brown and gets dried in the Stem. The Regular basil is the easiest. This plant is fine with watering 1 -2 times a day and as long as it is in the shade will do fine.

The next most difficult Plant that I have is Cilantro. Cilantro is fine with watering 1-2 times a day but I find the end leaves and stems have a tendency to dry out and turn brown if not watered. What I find interesting about this group of plants (Cilantro, Chive and Rosemary) is I originally had them in small separate pots (the ones they came in), I kept the plants in there for about 2 months but they wouldn't grow and stayed the same size they looked healthy just stayed small. I took the plants and replanted them into a larger pot. this allowed the plants to expand and now they are growing healthy. I do often however have to pull weeds from the planter more so then the other plants. My Thyme plant is by far the plant that won't stop growing. For whatever reason this plant grows like a weed. The Thyme had grown so much that I actually needed to replant half of the original plant into a new pot (shown above). It had taken over my large planter with 3 other plants (One a Thai Hot black pepper plant) Almost killing it, I removed my Thai black pepper plant and replanted it into another pot to separate it from the Thyme and it has finally begun to regrow its leaves.

I have two pepper plants. One is a Thai Hot cherry pepper plant with black leaves. I'm slowly waiting for this plant to re-grow since I replanted it. These peppers look a lot like Red Berries. They start out like Black spheres and then continue to grow until they are about the size of small blue berries they then turn a Bright red color.

My other pepper plant is a Scotch Bonnet Pepper (Similar to Habaneros) These peppers started out green and then turned red, they have been easy to take care of and similar to the Basil in watering schedule.

Beer of the Week: Victory Prima Pils

2011-09-08T06:42:00.001-07:00

Appearance:

Thick Unfiltered,golden color with thick foamy head

Aroma:

Sweet Malt smell with a hint of Zesty spices and citrus

Palate/taste:

Very Hoppy with a pine and spiced flavor

Overall Impression:

German Style Pilsner with a lot of flavor

Closet Cleanup before and After.

2011-09-07T05:21:00.000-07:00

I go through these cleaning phases where everything needs to be neat and in its place, however when life takes over, then I end up in a disaster area with clothes everywhere and a ton of junk I just don't need nor want anymore. It took me about a month before I actually decided it was time to be able to walk into the closet.

I Did a few minor changes, for example I moved my dresser from facing front, facing the side, this opened up a bit of room, and allowed me to put a cork board up, this way I can put outfit ideas on it. barely visible: I also added a magnetic board so I can hold ikea magnetic containers with buttons and bobby pins. My bathing suit rack (actually a clear over the door shoe rack which i cut in half) had fallen off several times, so I finally was able to heavy duty tape it and place a shelf over it, so hopefully it won't be falling anytime soon.

I like to plan things out and eventually execute them, I've drawn out what I'd like to eventually do in my closet. Of course its not drawn to scale but the idea is there.

Weekend Update

2011-09-06T06:46:00.000-07:00

How was your labor day weekend?

Unfortunately ours was not as exciting as it could have been. A lot of it revolved around Homework, Family and Cleaning.

Happy 80th Birthday to my Grandmother!

Yesterday we hit up Black Hammock for some Gator Bites and an Airboat Ride.

Oh Don't worry I didn't forget (just leaving the best for last)

This weekend the UCF Knights beat Charleston Southern 62-0, We are now according to the Coaches poll in USA today the Most impressive Team in Week 1 of College Football! We're still not ranked but maybe that will change.

Daniel had attended the first game Saturday, I'm looking forward to the Boston College game this weekend.

Beer of the Week: Star Hill The Love

2011-09-01T06:24:00.000-07:00

Appearance:

Unfiltered, light with small carbonation and generous head

Aroma:

An oat like Wheat scent

Palate/taste:

Very smooth wheat taste with hint of banana

Overall Impression:

Although last week was Daniel's favorite Hefewiezen's this is my favorite. Its very smooth, and refreshing

Cat Toilet Training

2011-08-29T10:02:00.000-07:00

This weekend was Cat-tastic. Meaning, we had a lot to do with Justice.

Saturday morning I needed to take the baby in to the vet for a check up.

The stupid Cat ended up scratching the vet and then was angry for the rest of the day and hid in the closet. Oh well..

I started toilet training Justice with the citi kitty

Step 1 was to bring the Cats litter box into the bathroom, since that step was set up, I decided put the citi kitty in the bathroom in addition next to her litter box, and would occasionally set her on it and praise her afterwards, however it wasn't until after taking away her litter box that she actually started to use it. It's probably this litter I'm using, but one thing I do not like is that it is a pain to clean and smells. I'm looking forward to not cleaning a litter box in the future.

The "Cat Powder room" is decorated to be a "Cat room"

This cute guy Welcomes you next to the sinkThe Cat teapot and mug hold cat treats and toysThe Two jars hold more cat toys and catnip

Other than that, we went to a Housewarming party, I got my hair did and I cleaned out my closet.

Food this Week: Asian Style Turkey Lettuce Wraps

2011-08-26T07:40:00.000-07:00

It's been a crazy week, school starting, me coming home from a weekend vacation and just general antics going on.

We made these Asian Style Turkey Lettuce Wraps which gave some left overs to eat the rest of the week.

Besides that we were all about Stoffers and Publix pre-made meals.

Beer of the Week: Magic Hat- Circus Boy

2011-08-25T06:23:00.000-07:00

Appearance:

Light with a dark yellow hue, mostly clear but not all the way through, low in carbon, no head.

Aroma:

Sweet Citrus scent

Palate/taste:

Very smooth with hint of citrus in the fore taste with a smooth wheat after taste

Overall Impression:

This is one of Daniel's favorite beers, I enjoy Hefewiezen's in general so it is very enjoyable for me. Very easy have in either spring or summer, good to pair with light meat, or salad.

The LAN party

2011-08-24T06:09:00.000-07:00

Got a hold of some pictures from Daniel's LAN party from the weekend, Looks like the boys had a good time.

a Silly Kitty

2011-08-23T06:42:00.000-07:00

Justice randomly likes to lay in the middle of the floor on her back and looks at you like "What? I'm just a cat" she'll meow to us softly and then fall back asleep.

Does your animal do anything silly?

Weekend Update

2011-08-22T08:03:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago I had bought plane tickets to go to Pensacola because they were on Sale and I wanted to visit my friend Rachael. I mentioned to Daniel I was going to go out of town for a Girls weekend so He planned a Man weekend (LAN Party). (The conversation was something as represented above)

Jennie's Weekend

I have a full understanding on why people hate traveling especially through ATL. I will never do a connecting flight to Pensacola again. Your TIME is worth the extra $60-$100 you save.

Have you ever had a bad experience when traveling?

In all I had a nice weekend we went Relaxing on the beach. Later that night we went to the Pensacola Brewery and ended the night at Flounders.

"There's always something to do even if you live in a Small town, you just need to be willing to try something new or out of your comfort zone and be willing to meet new people. It's your friends who make the experience not the location." What Fun things do you do in a small town?

Daniel's weekend

I'm not really sure why but I asked Daniel to take pictures to document his weekend, out of the 15 pictures he took about 5 of them were of this speckled moth. One would think there's a story there but in reality I think he just thought it looked cool and took pictures of it.

Did You have anything exciting going on this weekend? What was the best Brewery you have ever been to?

Food this Week: Crab Cake Recipe, and Peach Walnut Salad Recipe

2011-08-19T06:58:00.001-07:00

On a regular basis I will say that its common for Daniel and I to eat separate and very similar to that of an 18 yr old boy.

However, when time permits both Daniel and I enjoy cooking and trying new recipes. One of our favorite salads is a Strawberry Walnut salad, this week we did a new variation of this salad but instead of using strawberries we used Peaches/Nectarines. It tasted amazing.

I'd love to hear some of your altered recipes.
Last night we made crab cakes with coconut-lime rice, sided with sauteed zucchini and onions. Equally delicious, even for someone who doesn't care for crab meat.

1. Pre heat oven to Broil on High

2. Crush all herbs together and combine with Dijon Mustard

3. Whisk together egg and milk

4. Combine breadcrumbs, meat, herb mixture and eggs in a bowl massage together

5. create patty's and place on baking tray.

6. Broil for 5-7 minutes on each side

7. Serve

What is your favorite thing to eat during the week?

Beer of the week: Peak Organic Nut brown

2011-08-18T05:57:00.001-07:00

Appearance:

Medium dark almost red in color, full clarity all the way through, decent amount of carbon, foamy head.

Aroma:

Toasted and nutty yet Sweet and sugary

Palate/taste:

Very smooth with a sweet crisp toasted flavor with a hint of coffee with a bitter nut after taste

Overall Impression:

A very smooth beer, somewhat watered down. The Nut after taste is good but defiantly bitter. Easy to drink with red meats, or pork, my impression is it would make a good fall beer or transition to fall beer. It reminds me a lot of Newcastle.

Have you ever tried this beer? What did you think?

Who needs a Pinky toe anyways.

2011-08-17T05:41:00.001-07:00

Last night I stubbed my toe on a bowflex in the messy garage on my way to get paper towels (we were out of them in the kitchen). It hurt really bad so I went to Daniel hoping for some compassion, instead not looking up from his game once he says:

"If it were broken you'd be in excruciating pain right now", "You should go to the doctor and put some ice on it."

Passive aggressive Jennie decided to go for a 2 mile run instead.

Have you ever done something stupid to get back at someone?

Over the weekend

2011-08-15T10:39:00.000-07:00

Finally used the Groupon bought back in April for Passage to India. I decided I don't like curry, and Daniel decided that he doesn't like that they charge so much for such little amounts of meat. We probably won't be back there soon for those reasons.
After dinner we went to Laser Pink Floyd's the Wall. It was good, very psychedelic, Dark Side of the Moon is better, looking forward to seeing the Beatles.
Our buddy Travis picked us up and we headed to Magic Kingdom. Primarily stayed in Tomorrowland, avoided children and any long lines while casually walking around.
The Monthly Food Truck Bazaar was held at the local mall. The rain didn't hold us back from setting up a tent and standing in line for some delicious chicken and waffles, pulled pork and cup cakes.

Yum Yum Cupcake

Whats the best food truck your town?

Welcome, About us

2011-08-15T09:44:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Sweet Magnolia Place. This blog is dedicated to the lifestyle of Jennie, Daniel and Justice. We are two quirky, creative individuals, who make time to find frugal ways to have fun. Here we showcase food we've cooked, bad movies watched, favorite micro brew beers, going to theme parks, favorite video games, how the house has been decorated and traveling adventures.

I encourage commenting, advice and any questions you may have:)