Friend Making Mondays 2-28-11

Woo hooo, another FMM, even though I miss last week's {due to the whole hubby needing a Dr. thing} which I though it was very interesting, I can't let this one pass by. Of course we are going with a MOVIE theme (LOVE).

Movie Questions

1) What is your favorite movie? Gosh, there are so many since I like pretty much anything, but I love, love, love "Interview with a Vampire" and "Rocky IV"..."if I can change, and you can change...EVERYBODY CAN CHANGE!" Classic.



2) If you could trade lives with an actor or actress for one day, who would you choose? And why? Probably Kate Winslet for being so gorgeous, humble, real and just fabulous.She seems like a normal person you could go shopping with. Also Lauren Graham, even though she does more TV than anything.I fell in love with her Lorelai Gilmore character, plus she is so beautiful.


3) Who is your favorite actor/actress? I love anything with Sandra Bullock, it doesn't hurt that she has worked twice with my main crush Keanu Reeves. Anything with Antony Hopkins is golden to me.



So there you have it, it took some time to think things because I do love so many movies and actors{ hello? Bette Middler, Susan Sarandon, Hugh Jackman, Emily Blunt}. The make our little tiny fantasies a little bit more vivid and fantastic. By the way Tim Burton, I so want to have lunch with ya'- and you can certainly invite Johnny *wink*


Over & Out

Reality has no place in our world!

Ah, the joys of having an insane family. Love it. wouldn't trade it for the world...well, maybe I would trade that crazy ex-older-sister for shoes...or cupcakes :) I'm evil like that. Or annoying like my oldest says. conversations like these make me happy:
Me: Ali (nickname) please come here and take this off.
him: why?
me: nine hours of labor,that is why!
He loves me though. We spent sometime out and about with the little guy, mostly at the playground so he can interact with more children aka speak gibberish together. So cute. Hubs got me new feather earrings and leggings (for $4.50!!!) from Forever 21...probably few of the things I can actually get from this store. I also got my manicure done, lovely new favorite O.P.I
"Have you seen my Limo" loves!!!



Not the best picture...but look at the color on this image (found on Polishchest blog)


Love it so much, is kind of a duo chrome.
I was also itching to do something creative and working on Aiden's scrapbook is sooooooo slow that I decided to recreated something I saw on blog land @ The Magic of Ordinary things. I got a bunch of fabric samples from a century ago when I was doing Interior design

Spent sometime doing this

so I could get this: TAAAADAAAAAAAAAA


The lighting is terrible but is so pretty IRL. Even the boys liked it {or so they say after I questioned them 20 times asking them if they liked it, semantics really}. I still don't know if it's going in the door or maybe the window...will see.

OH, and we also finally got one of these!


which told me I lost a little over 5lbs.OK no earth shattering but better than gaining. Hubs is actually doing so much better and I am so proud of him for committing to do this. He has a deal with me that if he looses 64lbs by November he gets a new NY Knicks shirt. Hecks, whatever I can do to motivate him.

I'm off to exercise and make dinner!

Over & out

I don't wanna, and you can't make me!

Sigh.
Let's just say the last couple of days have been a little stressful. I'm going to start with a question for you: Is there something you hate to do but know you.have.to? Now we know we all have those little things and before I go into a rant about what's been happening I'm going to be mature about it and tell you about me: I hate brushing my teeth.






Seriously. I hate it. This has not always been the case since I have Six (yeah 6!!!) Dentists in my family, and not distant relatives...I'm talking about my sister, another sister's husband, 3 cousins, and aunt...etc. Oh, and next year my Hubs brother will graduate a DDS as well. I even remember when my sister was in college (she is 13 yrs older) and had to do free clinics and some of them was in our church, my mother will send us alone to go get our teeth cleaned (it was 2 blocks away). So I always done it gladly, heck I rather go to the dentist than the bank. I hate banks. OK, I'm going off again.

Anyways, while pregnant with my little guy I was sick all the time, all 40 weeks. Morning, afternoon, evening, middle of the night. On top of it brushing my teeth meant guarantee puking. From then on I associate brushing my teeth with getting sick so I don't enjoy it. I do it, I do the whole shebang of flossing, brushing, teeth whitening, and I'm one of those freaks with 2 types of gum and Altoids in her purse. Don't you go there thinking I have a dragon mouth. I do it because I know I must. My point is that we all do things we don't want to.

But my husband is a little boy having a tantrum when it comes to the Doctor. Wanna see a picture of him?






That's my hubs. I have been so streessed because I'm trying to get him to get checked again. When I was pregnant with the little guy, one night while I was laying in bed watching TV, I heard rumbling, like when things are moving in an earthquake. I got up to find the hubs sitting at the computer desk, shaking, like he was having an epileptic attack. That was a scary scene. I kept calling him and trying to hold him. A few seconds later he stopped shaking and kept saying he was ok. He refused to go to the ER but I manage to convince him to see a Dr.

He had a non-epileptic seizure. He was listening to a podcast online and was laughing. Apparently as he was laughing so hard, he stop sending enough oxygen to his brain causing the seizure. I didn't even know that could happen. He was given a cat scan, an EKG (that came irregular), a hearing test- which prove that hes getting deaf, and was diagnose with Thyroid problems. He was also supposed to loose weight.

Fast forward to now. He is not taking his medication, has not gotten his hearing aid, has gained more weight and his sleep apnea is getting worse. He is also getting sluggish and tired a lot. He seems to think all this is ok, but is not and is got me so scared. I finally had to call reinforcements and together we convinced him to go back to the Dr.

The shocker of it all is that he still thinks I'm making a big deal out of nothing. He is taking it easy. Blood work has been done and has a referral for a Cardiologist and a sleep disorder test. He is finally back on his medication, but may have to be adjusted. Seems to me like I have no choice but to be the annoying motherly wife and keep bugging him about this stuff.

The scary thing was the conversation about his weight. The Dr. sees that he is not making any effort to loose the weight and even though he is tall he is 289lbs. BMI of 41.5; the borderline for normal is under 25. He was told he MUST loose 8lbs a month as soon as the Cardiologist clears him off , if he doesn't would be sent to an Bariatric Surgeon to be consider for Gastric bypass. That was a shock to me that he even qualifies for that. The Dr. said to us "if he doesn't loose the weight and get this under control he could die, we are trying to save his life. This is serious".
SAY WHAT?!!!!

I can't believe this. He keeps telling me " you know I'm gonna be ok" but I tell him I don't know that. He has always refused to do anything about it, he gets mad when I ask him not to eat junk food or drink so much soda. But my heart is breaking at the thought of waiting all my life to find him, my best friend, my soul-mate, the father of my children, only to loose him to junk food.

Let me tell you...no Oreo, brownies or chips taste that good.
I don't want to seem like a drama queen and I sure as hell going to do everything I can to make sure we get pass this, and I know is not a terminal disease (God forbid) but it lighted a fired under my ars and show me how much this can truly affect all of us.

I have been striving to be a good home maker and wife, the type that makes home made food like back home, trying to be attentive to him; but I guess now it would have to be with a grilled chicken and a salad.
{pictures are of a recent Shrimp Gumbo from the homeland that I made for us}



This has been one long dramatic post. Sorry.
Let me go off to bed since I've been doing better at getting my sleep back...although my oldest manage to take this little shoot of me today- I was supposed to be watching HGTV...

ZZZzzzz

Over & out

If that's my conscience calling, tell it enough already,

Yeah, she has been calling and I been hanging up on her. OK so this week SUCKED for my healthy new habits. We had a little glitch that prevented me from working out (but oh...can I say I missed it? I did) . My goal is to loose weight by my next birthday in September.
I cannot focus on what I failed to do but instead on what I can do better.

Above all we did have a great weekend now that the weather has greatly improved. I Had a chance to go out with the kiddo to the playground, did some cooking and baking. Wanna see our weekend?



I did manage a few healthy bites. Above is red and green peppers, red onions, tomatoes, low fat shredded cheese and grilled chicken. Yummo. Great on a wrap, pita or sandwich.


Mixing ingredients with the little Princess.

awwww, the fruits of our labor: Brownie covered Oreos!. Thankfully, dear Sis kept most of them to send it to her Hubs coworkers. (above is just the first batch)

Above...My little man ready for our outing...

...and having Dinosaur time. His favorite thing right now is having me sing "we are the Dinosaurs" By Laurie Bekner. I also manage to do a little Pedicure. Love my Ms.Pedicure mint scrub, then a little body butter follow by O.P.I "Bogota Black cherry". I have a few great reds but I tend not to do them often because I hate reds on Christmas or Vdays...seems so cliche to me.

This one makes me happy; maybe I'll even do my manicure with it next.
Hubs is off Monday and I think going for a long walk is in order. Hope
your conscience has been better than mine :)

Over & out

HEAVY- a rambling of sorts

Have you seen this show HEAVY on A&E? It is so amazing to me what people can do if they get their mind to it. I sure hope that all participants keep their weight loss. This is a journey and a hard one that we certainly need to keep on everyday.

It seems to me that we as humans are always looking for something to make us happy. Some times is a partner, some times is to loose/gain weight, some times is a better job. Everyday we tell our selves: "I'll be happier if I had more money, if I loose weight, if I find a boy/girlfriend" when the fact is we need to make ourselves happy first and the rest will come.

Gosh, that almost sounded like I knew what I was talking about. I believe that weight gain has a lot to do with emotions. We eat when we are happy, when we are lonely, when we have a broken heart, when we celebrate, when we are stressed. I know that some people around me may have the weight I would dream to have, but they are also looking to finally get marry, to have kids, to be happy.

I know that I may be lucky that my weight is 180lbs {there, I said it, now I'm accounted for it} but being 5 ft tall that is a ton of weight to carry. I hate being the one heavy sibling, I hate that my brother keep pinching my love handles when I went to visit... he kept making comments about it until finally, it drove me to tell him to fuck off. I hate that some "friend" of mine told me she was going to save money so she could pay for my Lipo. I forgave the comment since I know that she is unhappy with her life*sigh*.

Even though I know that I have implemented a lot of healthy habits: drinking more water, exercising, have fruit and veggies daily, and a better knowledge of portion control, I often wonder: where is it that I go wrong?

After seeing a particular episode on HEAVY this man kept making excuses for himself "I have a new baby, we are moving, etc". He always had an excuse. I have found that I lately I've been doing the same. After my emotional breakdown back in December I have been suffering from insomnia, and so far I get 4-5 hours of sleep if I'm lucky.



The consequence is that around midnight I get super hungry to the point of having stomach cramps. I try to eat some cereal and milk to control it, but lately I have been eating everything in sight. I guess is easier to eat when no one is watching me.
I haven't gain any weight because of the other stuff that I do right, but I don't think I would loose the weight that I want if I don't stop. Most of all, I need to be honest with my self and not make any excuses if I want to succeed.

Today I've made a decision to be accountable for what I eat and for what I do at all times. I'm going to get some Tylenol PM to see if it helps me adjust the sleeping and continue to write what I eat. I know I can do this!

Over & out

How OCD is making me nuts and a tiny Haul

Last night after I finished my bath routine I realized I have waaaaay to many things to do to prep for bed, beauty wise that is. I think the other stuff is pretty normal: check doors, stove, baby, etc. but the bath routine has like 100 steps. Am I the only 35 yr old with this problem? Please say that you also have 20,000 steps to beautify yourself? I've always love taking a bath/shower at night before bed. It refreshes me, relaxes me and if Hubs attacks I'm ready to go. {what? I'm happily married, remember?}So let's review:

• First off I wash my face, floss, brush my teeth and use a whitening gel (that way is on while I shower).

• Then shower, shave, scrub if needed.
• Off to using a light self tanner for the legs because they are pale.as.a.ghost and is noticeable different from other body parts. Then apply body butter. My all time favorite is The Body shop Coconut cream, it reminds me of home (remember, island girl here) this one has shimmer in it and it was on sale for 50% off.

• Then apply night serum on face, then eye cream, followed by my night moisturizer...uff, still with me?.

• Then I use an elbow whitening cream ~yes, you read right: ELBOW , because after baby my elbows are horrible, seriously BAD and dark, so my oldest Sis gave me this little gem below called Dermaline.
  

• Then cuticle balm "Burts Bees" lemon
  

• Foot cream to soften.
• Lip balm
• *breathe, breathe, breathe*
• If I wash my hair I wait and hour so it air dries for the most part and then blow dry {which has a few steps in itself} the rest.

I'm not even including the plucking and waxing that takes some more time since I don't do that everyday. And let us not forget my obsession with Vicks Vapor Rub...You would think I'm Heidi Klum for all the stuff I do, but seriously, I'm 35 I need some help, I want to be smelling good, protecting my skin and taking care of myself. My bath time is the time for me, to relax. I just realized is a lot more steps than I wanted them to be. Beauty, apparently takes time.

I remember when all I used was my Nivea cream or Noxema and be done with it....ahhh to be young again.

And talking about products, I got another neat little package from Fortune Cookies Soaps (LOVE THEM) I usually wait until Groupon has a coupon to buy, with that of us being on a budget. This time it was pay $10 and get $30 of product...heck yeah! So this is what I got:




2 fortune cookies soaps: Blue Lagoon-smells like a fancy spa, and Honeymoon which is so tropical and fruity, feels like you should have a drink with a tiny umbrella.

Heart shaped Bath melt "coquito" (3 in a pack)which is also a traditional Caribbean drink, YUMM!

Square bath Fizz "Strawberry fields- is actually pink and green and is smells like pure strawberries.

Whipped cream "Something Tropical" fruity, delicious, Papaya? maybe. But again, amazing, very thick although I tough the tube was a little small. They also sent me a sample of their Body whipped cream "Melon Cucumber" a scent that shouldn't attract me but it does, is so fresh! I may have to get this one next time. I think I'm craving summer more than I thought because every smell was tropical related.

When I opened the package my whole rooms smelled divine, and if they can impress my 18 yr old, they are winners to me.

Their Service is amazing, and I would compare their products to Lush, which I love but can be a little pricey. Oh, and they are all natural! So now I have even more stuff to put on, shower time should be fun :)

Hope you have a wonderful, smelly, delicious bath!

Over & out

Friend Making Monday-Valentine edition

I'm joining again Kenz famous Friend Making Monday; the questions today: How will you celebrate today? Are you in love? Do you love/hate this holiday?

I am deeply in love with my best friend, a person who laughs if I fart in front of him, who gets how nail polish is so important to me, a guy that does not mind that I take FOR-EV-AR in the shampoo isle or that I stop dead on my tracks when I see some pretty shoes.


So far today I spent the day researching colleges for my eldest and food shopping. Other than that I really don't care either way for this Holiday. I use to in my younger years when I felt insecure if that person loved me the same way,and when I was looking for some sort of reassurance on our relationship. And to be fair I used to be a tad clingy too.

These days to me is more special when he comes home with a book he knows I've been wanting, or flowers just because. we usually don't give each other gifts on holidays but rather pick a random day and just surprise one another. But I did gave him a card last night. I will make a nice dinner for all four of us, including dessert (Is a dipped apple so I get some fruit in there as well).

Have a wonderful holiday!

Over & out

How does a Mommy look like?

I have said so many times that it amazes me how rude people are, openly criticizing and being mean to one another just because you are behind a PC but to now judge how we look kinds of reminds me of High school.

The cool kids looking at you, comparing brands and who is cooler than who, only now we have grown people telling us "you are a Mom now, you can't wear that". Now if you are getting all gussied up with a leather tube top and Britney-look-a-like- low-rider-jeans, YES, that may not be the outfit for the next PTA but seriously, when was it said we all have to go and get MOM jeans and haircuts?


Seriously, have we gotten completely bonkers?
I have kids and there is NO WAY IN HELL you will catch me with this look. None of my sister's do either. Most of my friends have kids but they haven't forgotten they are also women (married by the way, let us not forget there is so much rollers and cold cream the hubs can take). So why can I be a mommy and dress like this?



yes, about 6 sizes up but still. I want to look cute and presentable. Even today going to run some errands alone I put on my Boot cut jeans, brown boots- much like the one's above, a gray sweater and a nice herringbone coat. I saw a guy checking me out and is not what I want to atract, but I want my Hubs to remember he got married to a hot tamale.

And yes, I am even going to defend Kate Gosselin because the poor soul deserved to do her nails and get her hair done. The look of just sweat pans when the show first started is understandable, after all she has 8 kids, but she also has to have time for herself. Is she a little nuts? yes, but I don't want to walk a mile in her shoes so I give her props for not going completely nuts. And yes, I even like the other hair style that everyone made fun off.



I even remember how many mean comments our dear NieNie got when she decided to get her nails and hair done. Seriously? we can't do that when we become mothers?
Look here:
This beautiful, gorgeous girl below is the proud mommy of 4 kids.


Some people posted on FB and her blog she should dress like a Mom now. Uhm, what exactly does that looks like? I think the shot above was for portfolio since she is a makeup artist and very talented, and she posted other looks as well. You should look her up since she is AMAZING.
Kandee Johnson.

Do you remember when Celine Dion took pictures with her first born? I do



I remember thinking: THIS IS CELINE DION for Pete's sake! I thought she look fabulous, and yes I get that some people said it was not realistic with all her luxury but this is HER reality; and frankly I would be disappointed if she looked like me. It just seemed to me like nice family pictures, rich family but family none the less.





Have I gotten out in my sweat pans for a quick run? yes
Have I gone out to drop the hubs in my PJ's {with a coat on top}? yeap, that was me.
Did I spent the first few weeks after having the little one with a stylish collection of sweats and comfortable outfits? yes indeed




But I also like make up, I like doing my nails, I like a new pair of sexy heels. And I do not believe that has anything to do with the fact I'm a mommy or my abilities to take care of my husband and kids. I have so many wonderful women around me, they look amazing, sexy, strong and confident and they are all mommy's. All we have to do is look around us, even on blog land, and see that just because you are a mommy you have to let yourself go.

So here's to all my confident, beautiful, modern mommies out there. Because you all deserve to look your best.

Over & out

When free is a high price to pay

It never ceases to amazed me how mean can people be to one another, how much we judge without knowing that person and how quickly, ready and able we are to tell them off.

It is apparent the most BIG blogs get stuff for free, and honestly I don't see much harm in it. I do wonder what happens if you really hate the product would you still give it a fair review?

I have found several AMAZING companies because someone did a review on them {hellu Fortune Cookies soap} and I think is a great form of marketing -after all in another life I was a Marketing Major...and then Interior Design...err...let's continue.

Yesterday a very popular makeup guru made a HUGE mistake when not only did she posted about the beautiful Petunia Pickle Bottom she had gotten for free, thanks to some readers that emailed the company, but then she erased part of the post making it seem like the Co. contacted her and she erased the name of the followers. It was so strange.And then WW Three started. Dear lord, they are WAAAAYYYY too many women out there with nothing better to do than to criticized and hate on others. They called her selfish, greedy, bad mother, and one even made some comment about her maybe being too loose. They sent so many hurtful words because apparently she asked people for stuff {I've never seen these post they claim} but I say to myself: "she can ask but that doesn't mean you are going to give, and if you do why would you REQUEST that she post a public thank you about?"

Isn't giving supposed to be done from the heart without expecting anything? No? Maybe is just me. EVERY popular blogger out there gets free stuff. I've seen MAC send new collections for review...




I mean even ZOYA did the 3 free nail polish as a marketing plot. {I'll show you the one's I got in a bit} .
I personally think that yes, some of your honest reviews are going to get lost because the item was gifted but I don't see the harm on then getting the free stuff. And by Golly, who the hell died and make all these queens entitled to insult this woman for getting this bag? I mean I get it, it's a $300+ bag and people said she should have sold it. OK, I'm on a tiny teeny budget and I WOULD NOT have sold the bag. She should keep it, enjoy it, and delete the haters. By the way NieNie also got this bag and she doesn't have any current babies...just saying.

And for Christmas she also requested items to be sent for review, and not all got posted -and she even said she would not send them back- but people sent her stuff because they knew how many people would see these and was good advertising.

So should I not trust all this gurus because they are being gifted? Should I say you are a bad person because you got a plate hanging disk instead of buying it?
I think not. I think I'm smart enough to see that some post have more enthusiasm than others and that I can always research the product a bit more.

I, like many more out there, got these free polishes from ZOYA:

above is Karina, very sparkly. Had to get it because is my younger Sis name.

Above is moxie...meh...it remind me of another color I have OPI Manicurist of Seville-below.

And the bane of my existence: below is Laney. I didn't order this color but the company refuse to rectify it, so here it is.

I made a comment stating that a) at $7 I rather get the China Glaze for less than $3.
b) even though they where free the customer Service was AWFUL, and that is really important to me, therefore I would not recommend or be buying from them.

I GOT CRUCIFIED stating how ignorant and petty I was, that I should just take them and shut up. Haven't been bullied like that by grown {immature} women since...well...never. I laugh so hard about it but it also made me sad to see how angry people get over tiny things. So honest reviews need not to apply.

I do have to say that even though they are regular nail polishes they do dry super fast.
I'm still one of those that believe that all people are mostly good, and I don't mind if you get something for free, after all these companies are looking for a cheap way of advertising.
Hecks if Lush said :"hello there, amazingly smelling woman; Let us shower you -no pun intended-with free stuff, I'll be doing the Cabbage pack while screaming hells-to-the-yeah!!!!

Sorry, free stuff, like coupons excited me.
So what about you. does knowing that someone got an item for free change your view of them?
I wonder...
Let me go and cook some dinner while I ponder the meaning of free items.

Over & out

FMM- Superbowl edition

Again I'm joining for this week's Friend Making Monday from All the Weigh.

Here it is:
Did you watch the Superbowl? If so, did you enjoy it? If not, what did you do instead?
We did watch, we got together with Dear Sis family- the one that we had the Baby shower on Saturday. I don't care about football at ALL but hubs does. So my sis and I basically watched the kids played and look for the commercials.

We enjoyed family time eating Philly Cheese steaks, BBQ chicken winds, White chocolate mouse...and yes, I did very bad on my healthy eating but this weekend was about indulging and letting loose.

What did you do?

Over & Out

I have issues...I'm a subscriber

I've been so busy this week but it has been OH-SO-FREAKING-GOOD!!!
I had my Sis Baby shower yesterday and we had a really good time. I was so tired that Hubs was an angel and took the little guy and let me sleep until 11:30am!

Here are some of the shots from the day:



I had a cookie bar that was a hit, plus I baked chicken roll and Taco Dip. She was really surprised by it. I'm so glad we all got a chance to get together before her little guy comes. And here is a picture of our little man...

He had a blast too with the kids, so much that I did not mind when they turn my bedroom into a fort using our comforter :)
I've been really good with my eating and exercise but yesterday was a break deal since I was going to enjoy myself.
Today we are off to her house to watch the Superbowl, for me it means let the kids play while I watch the commercials.

P.S I used the free printables from Hostess with the Mostess Cirque du Bebe

Over & out