September Confessions

I have read any of the Harry Potter book or seen any of the movies.

Whenever my hubby would tell me I have no depth perception, I thought he was saying "death" perception. I couldn't understand why anyone would want to know when and how they would be dying.

I have never actually listened to Eminem's lyrics but while in Jamaica on the beach, I listened to You're Never Over and bawled my eyes out.

I can't drink Nestle bottled water. The taste bothers me but I bet you if you put Nestle in a glass, along with other brands of bottled water and even filtered water, I probably would not be able to tell the difference.

As much as my heart broke when Kanye pulled that ridiculous stunt on Taylor Swift at last years vmas, her music all sounds the same. She bores me, so now i understand why Kanye made a big stink but he didn't have to go about it that why.

After watching Letters to Juliet and Eat, Pray, Love, I now want to go to Italy. I even downloaded an app to teach me how to speak Italian.

In order for me to eat fruit, I must have someone cut it for me. Sadly at work, I have to ask my coworker to cut it up for me .

I add a star to blog posts that I would like to comment on. I'll comment at a later date. This is because I read blogs though the mobile reader app on my iPhone and it's very difficult to comment with such a a small device.

Does this count as cheating???

Totally not what you think. I am not cheating on my diet and I am not cheating on my husband. I have been cheating on this blog and writing for the other blog I share with my husband. Asides from being busy at work with a new boss who started yesterday and cleaning out our storage locker, I was given two "assignments" from my husband. Assignment #1 was to write a review for the resort we stayed at in Jamaica and Assignment #2 was to write up our top 10 favorite foods at the all-inclusive resorts we have stayed it.

If you need a break from the fluff I normally write on this blog, head over to Beach Junkies to read my review and look at some food porn...that's right, 10 mouth-watering photos of the delicious food we have eaten.

RESORT REVIEW: Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton

Top 10 Favorite Foods at All-Inclusive Resorts

So, does it count as cheating???

Monday Memories: Movie nights

Remember when you were younger,  you probably went to the movies a lot with your friends when you wanted that break from clubbing.  I've been spending most of my time going through all my junk that's been stored in our storage room so for the next couple of Mondays, I will be sharing with you some of my finds. The first one is the bunch of movie stubs I collected from my dating days with Mike. Some of them were from our dates but there are other when we went with friends. If you noticed, we seemed to like to go to the movies for midnight showings. I don't think they even do these midnight shows anymore, or maybe they do but I can never stay up that late.

My first date with Mike.

1:30 in the morning? The whole BC Crew watched this movie. We pretty took up a whole row. We all fell asleep except for Mike, who watched the ENTIRE movie.

Mike picked this stupid movie to watch. I think it was payback because I made him watch Swimfan.

We watched this movie because Mike and our four friends, Richie, Ken, Mr. Dee and Jonny were extras in this movie that was filmed in Toronto.

Again, a movie at 1:00 am...this was Ryan Phillippe in his prime.

Freddie Prinze Jr. In his prime too!

I can't believe how many movies we would watch around 1:00 am.

My favorite Ben Affleck movie (besides The Town).

Did you keep some of your movie ticket stubs from back in the day?

Fill in the Blank Friday

It's Friday again! Hooray!!! To join in the fun, check out Lauren's blog and don't forget to link yourself up. It's a great way to discover new blogs.

1. In the story of my life the actor who would play me would be Lauren Conrad. Why? Because I love her. Wait, is she even considered an actor? After all, she was on The Hills and Laguna Beach (So what if they were reality shows) -- honestly, this was a tough one to answer.


2. If I could change one thing about the world it would be the ability to allow kids to roam free. There are so many crazies out there that kids can't enjoy themselves without having to worry if they will be abused, assaulted or kidnapped. I remember when I was younger, I was allowed to play outside with my friends on the street until late at night.

3. Yesterday was awesome. I met up with boys that I use to hang out with in high school. They are still the same jokers and it was so fun to reminisce about the stupid things we did. 15 years later, I am glad we are still friends and get together every so often.

4. My favorite comfort food is homemade macaroni and cheese. Although these days I can't eat cheese so I would have to say, a warm loaf of bread with butter, oh wait, I can't eat bread either. I guess I don't really have a comfort food since there are many things these days I can't eat.
5. My new favorite blog find is Sogni e Sorrisi. She blogs about style and does fabulous giveaways. I love that she also reads my blog and comments too!

6. If I could meet any blog friend (who I haven't met yet) in real life, I'd choose to meet Elisse from Für Elisse -- she sends me very thoughtful care packages, Margarita from Fab Brunette -- she is the first blog I started following and she makes delicious cupcakes; and of course, Lauren from the little things we do -- I enjoy reading her blog so much. But honestly, there are so many other blog friends I would love to meet. This list could go on forever.

7. My favorite breakfast food is french toast and bacon. A lovely combination of sweet and salty!

Blog Friend Friday: Meet the Reni from my so-called life

 

I find the more you explore and comment on other blogs and the more you participate in various blog series, like Fill in the Blank Fridays, you tend to come across really cool bloggers. Reni commented on one of my posts which lead me to her blog, my so-called life. We share a love for Lauren Conrad. You have to check out her blog, what drew me to follow her was these delicious volcano rolls she posted.


1) When and why did you start blogging?
I started blogging in November of 2009.  I was inspired by a couple of friends, Lauren & Tina, to start a blog.  I had a great time reading about their adventures and other interests online, so I thought, "Why not?!"  Plus , I've always enjoyed writing about anything under the sun.  It's also a great stress reliever for me.

2) Where do you live?
I currently live in the Pacific Northwest, in the state of Oregon.  To be quite honest, I am missing the sunny weather back home in Los Angeles.

3) What do you for a living and what do you do in your spare time when you are not blogging?
I work as an Education Coordinator for two non-profit schools on the east side part of town. If I'm not blogging, I'm probably at work! Ha ha!  On my leisure time, I love to read (I like a lot of mystery/suspense novels, such as John Grisham and Robert Ludlum books), wander through local events in the city, bask under the sun while listening to my iPod, go wine tasting, dance, hike, camp, work out, karaoke and relax with friends.

4) What is your favorite website to visit daily?
I like to read the news online, so the google news website is my home page both at work and home.  But, I also love reading about my favorite sports teams - lakers, dodgers, red sox and usc trojan football.  Of course, I visit my daily blog reads {or I try to, anyway}.  I like to browse at American Eagle, Gap, eBay like it's going out of style and yes, I Facebook, too :)
 
5) What is your favorite vacation spot and why?
I really enjoyed my visit to Amsterdam and Brussels.  I loved the architecture, ambiance and the abundance of museums around the city.  Beer and Pomme Frites beats everything else.

6) Name your top three favorite songs.
My current favorite songs include California Gurls by Katy Perry, Right Round by Flo Rida and Just A Dream by Nelly

7) Who is your favourite celebrity to stalk?
I'm not a stalker :)  But, I do love some reality tv trash, such as "The City", "Chad Ochocinco: The Ultimate Catch", "The T.O. Show", and "The Hills" when LC was still there.  I also love watching Kenny Santucci, from the Real World/Road Rules Fresh Meat Challenge.

8) What's your favorite drink?
Amaretto Sour, Pina Colada and any blended fruity cocktails and margaritas :)

9) What is your latest obsession?
Lately, I really want a St. Bernard dog. The significant other said yes, but not till 2 years from now.  He thinks I'm not ready to be a doggie-momma.  Racerback tank tops and teal/bluish colored nail polish are also on top of the O-list (O, for obsession).

10) What would your last meal be?
Everything fatty and dangerous such as southern style Mac N' Cheese, Naked Burger w/ blue cheese crumbles (no buns and other condiments), grilled lobster with warm butter, creme brulee and some other french pastry and of course, fruity margaritas.  I know, too much, right?  After all, it is my last meal of this lifetime.

Random photos

I didn't have a scheduled post for today. Sometimes I feel like I might be posting too much. If you tell me that you like having something to read everyday, I will try my best to keep you entertained.

For today, I would like to share some photos...

My co-worker just came back from Hong Kong and got me this cute mini mug from Starbucks.

This is a Marc Jacobs tote my BFF bought for me.

You can't really tell in this photo but it perfectly holds magazines.

I have been playing City Story for a while now but I am also liking Farm Story.

Love Potions

When I think of Jamaica, I think of my favorite bartender at Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton and how Sedrick got us drunk one morning with "his drink" - Love Potion. When we first started drinking Tuesday morning, it was with mimosas (we pretty much started every morning at 10 am after breakfast with a mimosa), then Red Stripe beer. We got daring and asked for a Dirty Banana. Then came the Love Potions, one after another, after another until Ms Lyn got sick. I'll spare you from the gross but hilarious details because I don't want to embarrass my drinking partner. Let's just say after all this drinking on a Tuesday, the following day, we took it easy. Part of the reason was Sedrick was off on Wednesday.  We were disappointed that we wouldn't get to see our favorite bartender but we did make friends with another one, Oneal. He got kicks from the fact that we were always ordering drinks for ourselves but water for our husband/boyfriend.

Thursday comes rolling along and Sedrick is nowhere to be found. He is not at our usual bar. Later on in the afternoon, we find him at the pool bar. We catch his attention and he starts yelling "LADIES..." and begins to mix up his Love Potion for us. Many Love Potions and a pool dance later, we find him at the bar again with more drinks waiting for us. He asks Ms Lyn and I, "Ladies, I have been making you my Love Potion all week. Now tell me, have you fallen in love with me yet???" - Isn't that the most adorable line you have ever heard in your entire life? It's not a sleazy pick up line, it's not a turn off. We had to respond, "Yes and that is why we want to take a picture with you!!!"

Sadly, he never asked for our names. He just knew us by face and greeted us with a smile and love potions every day. We noticed that he did have other groupies so we knew not to feel so special. On our last day, we were upset and disappointed that we didn't get to see him to say goodbye. It was his day off. Who knew that a bartender could make your vacation just that much fun???

Movie Review: The Town

I don't know why I watched two heist/bank robbery movies back to back but The Town is much better than Takers. Sure, Takers had the hot guys in it but The Town has more of a story and Ben Affleck. Take a look at this one scene that lasted only about five seconds. I would have liked at least five minutes of this...

Back to the movie...Ben Affleck co-wrote, directed and starred in The Town. He plays Doug McRay, a thief who wants to change his life around and get out of Charlestown. When something goes wrong at the end of the first robbery, Doug decides to accidentally bump into the bank manager they took as a hostage. He starts to develop a relationship with her and that's when all the trouble begins. Throughout the movie, you see the relationships (past and current) that Doug has with the people he grew up with and also the developing one with the bank manager. He opens up to her about his life that he would never normally talk about. As he finally decides to move on with his life and leave Charlestown, there's one last job he must do...but things get a little messy.

Not expecting much from the movie but hearing rave reviews about it, I was quite pleased with what I saw. There were emotions, lots of shooting and revealing answers to the questions that Doug has been searching for his entire life. I highly recommend watching this movie, if anything, do it just to see Ben's abs of steel for a mere couple of seconds. It's worth it, trust me!

Monday Memories: Cancun 2000

** Please don't mind the really crappy photos. They are from back in the day when we used 35 mm cameras or even the dreaded disposable cameras. All of these photos were scanned with a crap scanner **

Ten years ago, 17 of us went to Cancun, Mexico for a week of sun, sand and lots and lots of drinking. We stayed at Oasis Cancun, which is pretty much known as the party hotel. Ask anyone you know who went to Cancun in their younger years and they will probably tell you that, they too, stayed at this resort.

Here are some photos from our trip:

 

Some of the memories I take away from this trip:

Being at the airport at 4 am all bright eyed and filled with a rush of adrenalin

Tequila poppers

La Boom, Daddy O's, Slices

Getting sunburnt and Mike spending the day peeling off my face

All dolled and ready to go clubbing only to find my twin at the lobby bar

Arguing with Chukie resulting in me crying and staying in that night

Shopping and leaving Mr. Dee behind because he partied too much all week. He woke up to find that everyone left him

Jonny and Mike battling it out with DMX look-a-like

Calling Judy from a pay phone at the end of the road and screaming at the top of our lungs into the phone to say hi

It would have been cool to do a ten year reunion of this trip. Two years ago we talked about it but it never materialized. Most of us now have kids and it would be impossible for all of us to get the time off. I am glad that back in January 2000 we started planning so that we could go in May of that year. How it ended up being 17 of us going is beyond me but I am glad that we all made the effort to go away because it was an experience and a trip that can never be replicated.

To the BC Crew - we may only see each other at a baptism or a kid's birthday party. There are no longer Kris Kringle parties or celebrations of our actual birthdays. Times have changed and our lives have changed...that's cool but it doesn't stop us from being the crew that we once were. We have many memories not only from Cancun but from the many years we spent just hanging out. I may not pick up the phone or send an email as often as I should but I do think about you guys and all those good times we had. Cancun seemed like only yesterday but man, it was ten years ago. Maybe one day, we can do a reunion trip, even if it means that we are senior citizens going on a cruise. That day will come...should we start to plan it now???

mailbox surprises and cool manicures

On Friday I worked from home in my cute Paul Frank romper (it's actually kid's pajamas). Knowing that I couldn't step out of our condo to check the mail, my poor hubby had to go downstairs to check the mail twice (the first time he went the mail was late and they were just putting the mail into the mailboxes). I had no idea that I was going to be receiving a little package from a blogger friend of mine.

Elisse sent me a lovely handmade cupcake card with a stamp set and bookmark. Very unexpected and thoughtful. I met Elisse last fall through the blogging community and we instantly connected. She took a break from blogging and I missed her dearly. She is slowly easing her way back and I am truly happy that she decided to start posting again. Thanks Elisse for the cute care package, you always know what little things will put a smile on my face. For someone who I haven't yet met in person, you are very kind to me. I hope one day I'll make it to Vancouver again and get a chance to finally meet you.

All week I have been reading the September issue of Glamour. I came across a photo of a cool twist to a french manicure. I went to a salon by my work and requested OPI's Bid Red Apple and Lincoln Park After Dark on my tips.

I'm a little embarrassed of this photo since my hubby said my hands look old.

Sorry for the crappy iPhone photo

I was very happy with the end result. I got to work and two hours later, I ruined it. I was taking a bowl of chili out of the microwave. The bowl was so hot, it melted the tips of my manicure. Lucky for me, I have a small bottle of Lincoln Park After Dark so I was able to fix it.

What polish shades will you be wearing for the fall?

I plan on wearing Essie's new Fall collection - Sew Psyched, Merino Cool and Velvet Voyeur

Next vacation: Cuba vs. California

 Cayo Santa Maria

Back in April, I won a trip from Metro News to Melia Cayo Santa Maria. This resort is okay, not one that's on our list of must-stay resorts (seeing that we have already been to Royal Hideaway Ensenachos, which in my opinion is the best resort in that area - Santa Maria/Cayo Ensenachos). The resort does have an awesome beachfront, the water is stunning and the beach has powdery white sand. I have a year to use this trip and with my work schedule, summer time is really the only time that works for me. Well, we already had a planned vacation to Samana, DR scheduled in June (our annual trip), so we were thinking of using the free trip at the end of August. Plans changed and we ended up in Jamaica. I glad we went to Jamaica instead because it's one of my top vacations.

I work for a law association and I organize continuing legal education for lawyers, therefore we run programs like a regular school year. This makes it difficult for me to schedule vacation outside of the summer and Christmas break. But...I found a two week period in mid-November when I can manage to take a week off work. This would be the perfect time to go to Cuba. With vacation time booked through work, I was going to book the free trip this week, until my husband saw this on a Trip Advisor review:

"We got a great deal on this hotel... travel to the hotel is a bit of a culture shock... the beach was stunning the food is good for Cuban standard. The cats were a little unsanitary. I mostly felt guilty during my stay.." 

Please look at the sentence in bold.  The cats were a little unsanitary??? How am I suppose to interpret that? I dislike cats and I am terrified of them. I would have a heart attack if I saw this or this or especially this. These are all photos that we have come across from the reviews but there was one in particular that really grossed me out and I can't find it. It's a photo of a woman sitting on a bench and there's about five cats swarming her.  I know the trip is free but I rather save myself from the anxiety, panic attacks and my fingernails digging into my hubby's hand and pass up on this opportunity. I would gladly give this trip away if I could but sadly, it's non-transferable. Will I ever use it? Maybe...if I am deseprate for a vacation and have no money. But if April comes and we haven't use it...let's just say I won't be upset about it.

Now since my hubby and I have already booked time off, my mom happily paid for the two of us to come and visit her in California. We will be spending two days in San Francisco with my cousin and the other six days with my mom and my stepdad in San Jose. Thank you mom for saving me from the cats. Instead of having to fear for my life at a cat-infested resort, I get to shop until I drop and be silly with my mom again - I hear a Singstar competition coming on!!!

San Francisco

Fill in the Blank Friday (More randomness)

I live for Fridays for many reasons - the start to the weekend, last day of work for the week, Blog Friend Fridays and of course, Fill in the Blank Friday. If you are like me and shut down for the weekend at about two in the afternoon, check out Lauren's blog and maybe even join in the Fill in the Blank fun. Have a good weekend everyone!

1.  When I get a day to myself I like to lie in bed and catch up on some blogging, get a massage and watch a movie matinee by myself.

2.  High school was....a bore. I hated school but my social life was awesome. I hung out a lot with all sorts of friends - the mall, pool hall, friend's houses, house parties and parks. I went clubbing a lot (all ages) and met tons of people. The school part sucked. I went to school but never went to class. I did enjoy the passing of notes during and in between classes, Civies Day, the locker I shared with about 10 people, school dances, candy grams, the french fries in the cafeteria and smoking instead of going to gym class.

3.  A little dream I have is to find a job in a more creative field and maybe have a baby or two.

4.  A big dream I have is to live out the rest of my life on an island with my hubby and maybe with a baby or two.

5.  If I could drive any car my pick would be hmmm...maybe I will have to get my licence before I can answer this question but I would pick an Escalade - tinted windows, rims and all decked out on the inside.

6.  A time that I felt really and truly beautiful was recently for my brother's friend's wedding. I felt skinny and my hair just worked the way I wanted it to. Plus, my bangs were just perfectly cut.

7.  Tomorrow I will....sleep in and then watch Vampire Diaries since I missed it last night.

Blog Friend Friday: Meet the Food Junkie from Chronicles of a Food Junkie

I am not sure if I can disclose the real name of this Food Junkie, so I will for now refer to her at S. I met S at a tweet up dinner in the summer. We have a couple of things in common, a love for food and we both hail from Mississauga. She loves trying out new restaurants and has an eye for shooting great food pics. Make sure to check out her blog, Chronicles of a Food Junkie. I guarantee that once you read through a couple of her posts, you will want to go out to the restaurants she blogs about.


1) When and why did you start blogging?
April 2010

2) Where do you live?
Mississauga, Ontario

3) What do you for a living and what do you do in your spare time when you are not blogging?
Tax / accounting consultant. I like to cook, bake, read, watch movies, knit / crochet, hang out with friends.

4) What is your favorite website to visit daily?
Facebook.
 
5) What is your favorite vacation spot and why?
Punta Cana. Loved lying on the beach thinking about absolutely nothing!

6) Name your top three favorite songs
More than Words (Extreme), All My Life (K-Ci & JoJo), Hero (Mariah Carey)

7) Who is your favorite celebrity to stalk?
sorry can't say I have one.

8) What's your favorite drink? 
Cesar (extra spicy)

9) What is your latest obsession?
Getting my hands on an iPhone 4

10) What would your last meal be?
an 8oz blue rare filet mignon from Ruth's Chris.

Blogging

 

I just found out that one of my friends is going to take a more active role blogging. She is thinking about doing Life in Technicolor's 30 Day Blogging Challenge. I have another friend who is doing this same challenge. It makes me wonder if I should do it too...

My aunt also informed me that she is going to start blogging. She hasn't given me the go ahead to check out her blog but I found it. She has been reading my blog for almost a year now and has always talked about starting one up. Kudos for her to finally taking the plunge.

So, why do I blog?

• I needed to find something, a hobby, to fill my time.
• I wanted an outlet for my thoughts.
• I thought blogging would be a great way to communicate with friends, rather than telling the same story or info over and over again.
• I enjoy meeting bloggers from all over the world.
• I find bloggers with the same interests as me and we communicate over comments and emails.
• I get all giddy when new people follow me and even when they comment on my posts.
• I keep my mother in the loop of what's going in my life since she has recently moved to the West coast.
• I have memories written on my blog so I won't forget them.
• I love being part of the blogging community. 

Why do you blog?

It's okay...

...to like Ke$ha new song, Take It Off...to find Blake Lively hot...to post three blog entries in one day...to want to go on vacation again when you just came back from one 23 days ago...to eat a mini blizzard two days in a row and join the Blizzard Fan Club...

*I am taking a page out of Glamour's magazine and doing my own, it's sort of like confessions.

Monday Memories: Sanrio Stuff

Remember way back when you couldn't get Sanrio stuff in Canada (well, maybe in Vancouver and maybe even in Toronto - but I grew up in Whitehorse)? I would anxiously wait for a package to be sent to me from my cousin in the States or wait for someone from the Philippines to visit so that I could receive some cool Sanrio treats - anything from stationary, pillows, picture frames, photo albums, pens, pencils, etc...

photo credit

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Did you have a favorite Sanrio character?

Mine was Keroppi.

My weekend

It's Sunday night and I am getting ready to watch the VMA's. It's the pre-show right now so I feel like I should do up a blog post before the actual awards start.

New addition to the Solon Massive. Thursday night we anxiously waited in Aurora for the arrival of my sister-in-law and her extreme hubby's little girl. She didn't arrive until Sept 10 at 1:25 am. We finally got to meet her on Saturday. She is tiny and so far, she seems very quiet to me, just sleeping all through the madness of the Solon Massive. She has to get use to the noise because Mike's family can get very loud. Meet Baby Hannah Grace. Her parents are beaming huge smiles and are totally in love with her.

Hannah Grace S-C-O

 
Silly bandz. These are all the rage according to my other sister-in-law, who is a high school teacher. Teens are wearing these bandz (although my sister-in-law doesn't know if there is some meaning as to why and how many bandz you wear). I wore four little bandz that my niece gave me but at the end of the day, I had to give back three of them because she was getting in trouble from her mom. The next day, while reading the September issue of Glamour, I read that Mary-Kate Olsen has been seen wearing Silly Bandz. Wow, my four year old niece is a little fashionista and ahead of her times.

Belle being silly wearing her silly bandz on her nose

Killers. After a full day playing with our niece and nephew, hubby and I decided to spend the evening in bed and watch Killers. The movie started off very slow and I was actually annoyed with it. The only thing that kept me going was that Aston Kutcher was kinda hot in the movie. I am glad that I waited to watch it on DVD rather than pay to watch it in the theatre. There was a lot of shooting, not much funny parts and a very predictable ending.

City Story. I am addicted to this game on my iPhone. City Story is your typical game where you build a city. You can add residences, businesses and even produce different items in a factory to make some money. You get coins and points for cleaning other cities. So, yes, you need wifi or 3G to play. If you are also playing this game, add me as a neighbor - Buddyville.

Buddyville

Good Reads. There is nothing better than waking up on Sunday morning and receiving an email from Good Reads. Out of 987 entries, I won a copy of Lauren Conrad's Style Book.  I am a huge fan of LC and I was going to pre-order this book sometime this week but looks like I won't have to, well, I will still have to order Sugar & Spice, the third installment to Lauren's books. I just love winning stuff!

I didn't end up going to the theatre to watch a movie with Maureen. We are taking a rain check for this coming weekend. Thanks to everyone who voted. It was fun to see the results. I may just have to re-post the poll again in case there are some good movies that come out this weekend. (I know that the votes went to Salt but we were going to go watch Going the Distance)

Eminem is about to open up the VMA's. I need to sit my butt on the couch and enjoy the performances. I hope you all had a good weekend. I'll leave you with some questions:

What iPhone game are you currently playing?

Did you watch a movie over the weekend?

Will you be watching the VMA's tonight?

Wine Charm giveaway

photo credit

Head over to Lovely Life of Leah and enter to win wine charms made by Making Stuff is Fun.

Fill in the Blank Friday (Randomness)

1.  The strangest thing I've ever eaten is tripe. I don't think I have ever eaten anything really strange but I would try something strange for the heck of it, if I can stomach it. 

2.  I wouldn't be caught dead with chipped nail polish. I will either fix it or remove it.
  
3.  When I am 75 I will....be living on an island, all tanned and relaxed.
   
4.  If I had to be named after a place I would want to be named Devon (England) or Madison (Wisconsin).    

5.  My name is Alysia. It's sort of a combination of my parent's name, Al and Lucia.

6.  My all time favorite photo is my hubby and I in Punta Cana - the trip when he proposed. I feel like it's the perfect picture. Clear blue sky, turquoise waters, white powdery sand and no one else in the picture!!!

    
7.  If I could afford it I would live on an island forever.

Help me decide on a movie

On Sunday, I am going to the movies with Maureen. We have no idea what to watch...please help us decide. There is a poll on the left, vote on what movie you think we should watch. Thanks everyone!

Blog Friend Friday: Meet Kathy from Dreamy Babies

Now, you may remember Kathy from a previous BFF. This time around, I wanted to feature her other blog, Dreamy Babies. This is a great site for yummy mummies. Kathy answers any baby-related questions and post very useful and practical information that help out first time moms. If and when the time goes for me, you know that I will be a frequent visitor of her site.

1) When and why did you start blogging?
I've blogged on/off since about 2003 (I think) but have not really dedicated my time until this year

2) Where do you live?
Markham, Ontario

3) What do you for a living and what do you do in your spare time when you are not blogging?
I am an IT consultant at a large telco company and when I'm not blogging, I'm spending time with my family, reading, relaxing, sleeping, or on the coomputer

4) What is your favorite website to visit daily?
I find I'm visiting a lot more forums lately and other people's blogs.  I like to lurk and see what's going on in the social media world

5) What is your favorite vacation spot and why?
I have to say Italy tops my vacation spot.  It was sort of our second honeymoon because our first honeymoon ended in a family tragedy so I don't count that one.  It's also the vacation that we threw caution to the wind and didn't care how much we spent because it was our vacation before we had the baby.  We spent about three and a half weeks roaming around Italy - it was awesome

6) Name your top three favorite songs.
I don't have favorite songs but I do have a favorite band, does that count?  Depeche Mode rules all

7) Who is your favorite celebrity to stalk?
I don't stalk celebrities

8) What's your favorite drink?
i love sangria - red or white

9) What is your latest obsession?
Sons of Anarchy! 

10) What would your last meal be?
a whole truck full of sashimi, some baby back ribs, kalbi and some kim chi

Loving fall vs dreading fall

Many bloggers have been expressing their love for the Fall season. Even most of my friends are welcoming the cool weather and are already planning their Autumn wardrobe.  I am indifferent about the upcoming season. I am not ready to welcome fall with open arms since summer is my favorite time of the year.

Why I am happy to see Fall:

• I love wearing scarves
• I also love wearing cardigans
• With cooler weather, I can wear my hair down. With hot, humid weather, it's always up in a ponytail or bun
• I can dye my hair black again
• Dark nail polishes can make an appearance

photo credit

photo credit

photo credit

Why I am not thrilled about Fall:

• Cooler weather - I love for the hot, humid weather
• No more warm morning sunshine to wake me up and now it gets dark earlier
• There are more commuters with the kids back at school
• Wearing close toe shoes

What do you love or hate about Fall?

Movie Review: Takers

I have been patiently waiting for this movie to be released. I wasn't in town on opening weekend but if I was, I would have wanted to be first in line to get tickets. I like action movies but normally, action movies involve a not-so-good-looking muscle head doing a bunch of stunts and shooting guns. Takers is different - there's lots of action but if not ONE but MANY hot guys. Just imagine, so many good looking guys on one screen...you just don't know where to look - Paul Walker, Jay Hernandez, Hayden Christensen, T.I., etc...

The movie opens with a wicked opening sequence and also closes with one. There's more story lines than just a planned heist. There's many shocking turn of events and heartbreaking moments. For Maureen and I, there were also a lot of funny parts. I think we were the only ones laughing in the theatre. I have to say that this movie rocked, don't know if it's because we went in with no expectations and were planning to just gawk at all the actors or if it really just was that good. It's a movie that a couple can go to watch because the boy will get his action fix and the girl will get her eye candy fix.

Includes a sexy scene when the guys walk away from an explosion...

...and a rooftop scene with guys in sexy suits

...also don't forget, nice cars and motorcycles.