mermaid libations.

You know life is honestly too awesome when you don't even blog about it anymore. Yes, I'm saying it's that cool. Awesome husband, awesome surfing, awesome friends, awesome cities, & awesome vibes all around. We even get 'season-ish' weather here. 50's give or take, and half of the leaves change. Occasional rain, but nothing too hearty. It's great, really. I mean, you all know I'm a summer year round kind of gal myself, but this isn't too shabby.

Which leads me to the following question.

Slurpee & sun, or cocoa & rain?

I'm the first type no doubt. And really wish it was slurpee weather. That said, I would like to thank 7-11 for meeting both of my libation needs POST surf, year round. Hot or cold. A mermaid needs a good bevi, and you definitely deliver. It also helps that you're generally located on every other block in hippie coastal towns. So thank you.

*slurpee

High five.

hungry.

I've been trying out a lot of recipes found on the ever handy pinterest. And man have they been tasty! Although the peaches & creme (or half&half as it were) were completely impromptue, they were definitely pin worthy.

In addition I decided to try out three different recipes for a Sunday dinner party with our friends Ariel, Mike, & Atlas. *A frozen, fresh lemonade, spinach lasagna rolls, & a cucumber salad. And even though our apartment is probably equivalent in size to the cupboard under the stairs that Harry Potter grew up in, our yard did prove to be more than appropriate for hosting said dinner party.

All of the recipes turned out to be delicious, and will be put on repeat soon enough. You can find them here.

My most recent trial was just pulled from the oven. No doubt with the history of quality pins, this one will be just as satisfying.

Happy fooding.
Air.

Rome.

Rome. Roam.. which ever. Ideally I'd be roaming in Rome right now, so both. I just watched Eat.Pray.Love. and had a decent idea of what to expect, however what I wasn't expecting was to have 2 of my top 5 places to see sometime in my life, to be a huge part of the movie (obviously I haven't read the book, but I should). Italy, and Bali (although I'd be content with the Eastern islands/Indo in general).

So on the blog, 'Endless Summer' continues via my mood board. Lets all pretend we're sitting in that summery-tangerine round chair, sipping a cool italian soda, under the warm breeze and Tuscan sun, with a good book. You down?

Ahh.. feeling better already. (:
Cheers.

Neuro

You heard it here first.. these are legit. Mighty tasty, too if I might add. So far I've tried (and only see a need for currently) NeuroSleep (works!), NeuroBliss (good vibes but weird aftertaste), and NeuroSonic (SERIOUSLY makes me focus & feel more alert, I honestly do my homework better!).

Sip it, down it, love it people.
They just caught my attention at the grocery store, and now I've bought one or two every time since. So I figured I'd be nice and share my new secret with you guys. Give them a go if you feel like you could use the boost.

Food Flow Charts

Ahhhahaa. These are awesome, they help you narrow down your choices of what to eat. This is especially useful for an indecisive person like myself.

Check the rest of them out here..
However, I thought I'd share this one.. it's quite humorous..

Slow Cooker

I would like to add this to my kitchen appliances..
We don't have a slow cooker, and this one is quite attractive.
Just put your fresh food inside, slide it in the oven.. and BAM, a cooked and steamed meal, still full of the good vitamins and nutrients you were hoping for.
..use the plate, or the bowl. you choose. (:

{via BLTD}

RSVP Straws

We use straws in this house. Okay, I use straws in this house. For smoothies, hot chocolate & chocolate milk, rooibos tea, and what not (drink connoisseur.. always)..
I hate that cruddy disposable ones from fast food places crack and break, and most have a tacky stripe or two running down the side.

How beautiful are these.. and COMPLETELY reusable friendly!?
Did anyone out there KNOW that these even existed? Not to mention I bet they keep your drink nice and cool on the way up!

I want a set.
Thanks, Santa. (;

PS. I have those glasses, so I think it's fate.
(However, I don't recommend purchasing the glasses shown above.. we've broken more than half of them in the most retarded ways, meaning.. they shouldn't have broken when they did)

{via Amazon}

Post-Challenge

{photo via Flickr}

Well folks.. we made it. We cheated once or twice for school/work and a date for some gelato that was 'going out of business' the next day.. but other than that.. we definitely lived off of food storage. Andrew was joking around and said we probably got a C (I thought more along the lines of a B) but with a standard "BYU curve" in place, that would have bumped us to at least a B+ or A- hahaha. But yes, it was nice to filter through our food I guess, but man oh man am I excited to buy goods and fresh produce... IN SOME SERIOUS BULK. Yes, I think we learned a thing or two.. like what should we really stock up on, and what will we miss when it's gone, and how the poo would we eat if the electricity was out? (yeah.. we're going to have to get some propane burners or something)... so thank you Bishop for the challenge, even if you WERE/ARE on a 2 week cruise in the Bahamas!! (TRUE STORY).. that sly man. So there you have it. So as a word to the wise... basically it's always a good idea to stock up when places like Bath and Body Works do the crazy soap sales (by 10 for a nickle).. and stuff like that. Haha.. because you never know when you might run out and when disaster might STRIKE!

HELLO COSTCO & SMITHS!
I can't wait to greet you tomorrow. I'm going to dress up because it's been so long since we've seen each other.. (:

Copco Bag Caps

There are wise people that have solved the.. "hey, why do they even package powdered & brown sugar in bags anyway?" question.

Tah Dah! The answer is.. "who cares, their weirdies.. but we've created a solution!"


It wouldn't make much sense to use these on a bag of chips or something that will go quickly, but for these purposes.. genius.

{via The Kitchn}

PB&J Pancakes

I'm practically starving right now, and I stumbled upon THIS shot of Sunny Anderson's goodness.. and practically pass out.
Yeah, and I don't even like pancakes. In fact, I hate them.. but these look so heaven sent!

Oh gosh, I need to go get some food.

{Recipe HERE}

'Edemonays'

I asked Andrew to write down what I needed to pick up for him at the grocery store, and this is what he gave me..

Perfect, banananananas & love. Haha.
I'll get right on it boyfriend. (:

Refreshing

I love these drink dispensers. They're both cute, and would go well with a nice barbecue (the second would have even gone well with my wedding.. flowers, lemons, & limes underneath). Father's already been on the grill, and it's been lovely.
Now time to go swim in the ocean blue..

Cheers!
{via The Kitchn}

Creme au Caramel Rooibos

Rooibos (pronounced 'roy.bus') is a naturally caffeine free herbal tea from South Africa. And just as wonderful, is the caramel flavoring of this mixture. My friend Kelsie showed me the joy that this tasty libation can bring, and HOLY COW am I hooked!! Oh and don't you worry, it's got at LEAST twice the amount of antioxidants that green tea provides, it's healing to the skin, aides in digestion, relieves nausea, lowers cholesterol, and is proven to help with insomnia. AND SO MUCH MORE.. (these are all facts that the local South African woman from ProTea Cottage told us.. we like her.) She even told us (upon seeing Kelsie's pregnant belly) that it is "sooo good for the baby" and that in South Africa they usually feed it to the infants during the hot days of summer.
Now I ask you, why NOT sip at this beverage?!
Anyway, I like mine iced & latte style (it sure is insanely scrumptious with a dash of milk & caramel). I want one now! I plan on buying some bags so I can brew it myself. ..Kels, let's go! (:

{info via here, image via here}

Not Too Late

Although I've been extremely giddy about spring being present, there are STILL a few cold days left scattered amongst the changes. There are some nice brisk & rainy days ahead that I am actually ALSO excited for (you know, since I'm calling the weather shots these days)..

Image found in Moon Goddess Earth's photostream

..which calls for the last sips of hot cocoa. Be sure to get on the train before it leaves! Summer will be here sooner than you know it. I plan on taking advantage of 'cuddling up' in sweats with some hot chocolate right now. :)

Cheers!

Table For One?

found via google images

Yes. It's just me. Why is that so strange? Why have we decided as a society that if someone wants to sit down in a restaurant.. alone.. that it's really odd, nay.. depressing? I quite enjoy eating out by myself. Sometimes I wonder if those around me are constantly on edge waiting to see who meets me. Or if my server feels sorry for me because I don't have any friends who would join me. NOT THE CASE PEOPLE. I just enjoy a meal once in a while, in solidarity. Whenever Andrew & I are out, and we happen upon a man or someone sitting at a table alone, Andrew generally says something along the lines of.. "poor guy, let's invite him over." (ok, so the invitation is a bit of an exaggeration on most accounts. ..but I'm sure he's said it at least once). It's not a sad thing to do! Maybe I'm just strange. Maybe I am the only person in this world that enjoys once in a while, eating out without trying to get a story out inbetween every bite.

Oh well, I'll keep at it. If you see me alone, in a restaurant someday, don't be sad for me.
The end.

Is it really so strange??

Sushi

Love it, or hate it??

I was on the fence yesterday. ..and I guess you could say that I still am. I had my first 'sushi' experience and actually really liked it. Some might say it wasn't real sushi, because everything was cooked in my rolls. Sushi or not, I liked it. I have yet to know if I enjoy the gnarly raw stuff, but until then, I'm in favor. Will I be one of those crazy obsessive humans and be like "LET'S GET SUSHI, I WANT IT NOW. IT'S THE COOL THING TO DO!"..? Of course not. It was decent. Tasty. Bearable.. and sort of strange. Regardless.. it went well.

Image found via Flickr

Your thoughts?
Hate it. Love it..?

Costa Vida

Here's the deal. My boyfriend really loves what he considers to be a "Mexican food salad" from Cafe Rio & Costa Vida. Now, we (myself being a Californian especially) understand that first of all, these are NOT, I repeat NOT Mexican food places. Now that that is understood, I would like to take Cafe Rio out of the equation. Costa Vida has decided to implement what they consider the 'Baja surf' lifestyle into their un-Mexican like food chain. Now that's all fine and dandy, and to be honest this isn't a complaint, it's actually more of a 'thank you.' ..I'll get to that in a moment..
Now why they feel the need to hang expensive surfboards on the ceiling, & play surf movies on their big screens in a land-locked state is beyond me. ..but I'll take it. It may mean nothing to most Utah'ns, but it actually feeds my fuel tank and warms my soul. For those few moments I stand in line, or the time I'm taking to eat my food at one of their tables.. I just so happen to feel at home.. sort of. Well, I enjoy a good surf flick at the bare minimum.
So thank you Costa Vida, for being much out of place, in a place where us land-locked surfers could really use your hospitality and food.

The end.

Beverages

If you know me, then it's possible that you know me for a beverage connoisseur.

I just LOOVE tasty libations.
So I thought that I would share with you just a couple of which sooth my soul..

left to right, top to bottom: Shirley temple, Starbucks' Vanilla Bean Frappuccino (it's coffee free), Jamba Juice's Orange Dream Machine, Hot Chocolate from Denny's (it's bottomless!), & good ol' Egg Nog.

Note: none of these are figure/innards friendly.. but they do taste, smell, & feel lovely on the way down. :)

Cheesecake Factory

..mashed potatoes.

MMMmmmMmmm..

Yeah, they're SO yummy that I found the recipe here and plan on making them for Thanksgiving. Since Drew & I will be up here in Utah, rather than traveling home.. we plan to make our own Thanksgiving meal for the first time EVER. :)
..and since we have redskin potatoes lying around, I figure what better use to get out of them than THESE!

So here's the makings of these 'to die for' taters in case you're interested!

Ingredients:
- 4 cups cubed redskin potatoes
- 2 heaping Tbsp. horseradish
- 1/2 cup butter (softened)
- 1 teaspoon salt and to taste
- 1 cup shredded Gouda cheese

Boil potatoes until very soft and drain off water. Add butter, salt and whip with a rotary beater until butter melts. Whip in remaining ingredients. Adjust seasoning.

..and Vuah-la! :)

image from yahoo! food

Enjoy!

Father puts it best

In this letter.. couldn't have summed it up better myself.

Dear Councilman Madaffer,

Irresponsible permissiveness can be misinterpreted for "Love" . A parent would be "irresponsibly permissive" by giving in to a young impressionable pleading teenager to "please, please let me go on this weekend trip with my new friends." The parent having factual information that his teenage son's "new friends" are blatant heavy drug users would be anything but wise and loving by not not standing his ground and firmly telling the crying, begging youth "NO." The parent would no doubt be labeled by the immature selfish son as "MEAN, UNCARING, HATEFUL, JUDGMENTAL" and so forth.

If the parent were to ignore the true knowledge of his son's "new friends," their bad character and dangerous influence potentially resulting in the son's life struggle with drug addiction, the parent would certainly be unwise and simply WRONG.

God is a parent who does not give way to so called persuasive, sophisticated and enlightened arguments wherein he is called a "MEAN, UNCARING, HATEFUL, JUDGMENTAL and UNLOVING," parent by His children. He sees things as they were, as the are and as they are to come.

While I understand that many of His children struggle with same sex attraction I can promise you that many have been tempted in to such life styles by an increasingly permissive sinful society wherein we have continually pushed God's commandments aside and are now paying the consequences. I can also assure you that many of God's children struggling with being homosexual have turned their heart's to God and are on the right track in keeping His commandments and have peace in their life because of it.

If gay marriage is allowed to continue to envelope this nation than I believe strongly that God's protection of it will cease and His judgments will be unleashed on this state and country in a way that has never heretofore been seen before. I know God is real and that He is truly LOVING and that His commandments while firm and unbending are an extension of His TRUE LOVE to protect His children.

Sincerely,

Eric Monroe
California Citizen for
Yes on Prop 8