My first Blog Give away!! Coach Keychain!

Hey y'all!!!

As you know, I just celebrated my 18th birthday... with 12 years experience! :)  So, like anyone celebrating a mile marker birthday, I got to thinking about quite a bit of things.  One of the things I thought about is doing a give away on my blog.  I remember when I was in high school, my boyfriend gave ME a present on HIS birthday, and when I asked him why he gave me a present on his day, he said it was because he wanted to share his birthday with me.  I thought it was soooo sweet! Besides, who doesn't like getting presents?  

So for my birthday, I'm going to share a gift with one special winner.  It's a Coach signature flower keyring in PINK and GREEN! I think it's a perfect reminder that spring is right around the corner, it's in my favorite colors, and it's Coach.  I can't even tell you how many Coach bags I have.  So in a sense, I'm sharing something that is symbolic of some of my favorite things...

The description of the key ring:

Smooth, pretty, shiny, and pink and green.  Ideal for Spring.

Metal, pave and Enamel

1 1/4” attached split key ring

Back also has "Coach" engraved

How to Enter:

Entering is easy, 

• Become a follower of my blog and leave a comment! If you're a follower, you've already got one entry, just leave a comment! 

To make things more fun and give you more opportunities to enter to win the giveaway: 

• Tweet the giveaway (copy me @Vynuss) for 1 extra entry.
• Announce the giveaway on Facebook for 1 extra entry.
• Post the giveaway on your blog for 1 extra entry.

You can have up to 4 entries. Please be sure to let me know how many entries to give to you in your comments below this post.  I will be using random.org to choose a winner.  I will draw the name of the winner on Friday, March 5, 2010. Please be sure to check back to see if you've won!

Good luck!!!

XOXO- Vynuss

 

Monkeys... I LOVE 'em!!

Monkeys, Monkeys, Monkeys!!!

If you know me, you probably already know that I love monkeys!  Why do I love monkeys?

1. I was born the year of the Monkey (Chinese Zodiac)
2. They are so human-like and cute.
3. They are such intelligent animals.
4. They're funny especially when they get drunk (see YouTube video below)
5. They climb trees and can hang by their tails (some species)
6. They remind me of the tropics.
7. They make some funny noises... ooh oooh ahhha ahh!!!
8. They're evil monkeys like the ones in Wizard of Oz, and cute adorable ones like Curious George.
9. I used to want to be a monkey, eat bananas and climb trees, and was always just as curious as they are.
10. Tommy proposed with a barrel of Monkeys (Tommy loves monkeys too)

 So today, while looking online, found a cute new site: http://www.monkeyaday.com/

This site posts something everyday related to monkeys. Some really cute stuff that you can buy like this Jac Zagoory Pen Stand Write No Evil. You have see so evil, hear no evil, speak no evil, and then lastly you have write no evil.  I  LOVE it! I wanna get this for my desk!

Or Tea picked by Monkeys YES, tea that's picked by Monkeys in China! The tops of the trees are too high to pick the leaves, so they've trained monkeys to pick the tea leaves!!! After all, monkeys can climb trees with ease and can hold on and pick leaves at the same time. How cool is that! See, I told you they're smart! I'd like to try this tea, I wonder if it's good?

Or something neat and practical like this Monkey peeler. We actually have one of these. I think Tommy got it as a gift from someone. It's just something bright and whimsical to have in the kitchen. :)

And these really cute wine corks from Forzieri. These remind me of Mario Brothers. They look like they could be in the video game. :)

There's also some neat dinnerware with a little French monkey.  It's called Petit Singe by Juliska. This would be cool for our everyday dining! :)  How cute!!!!

There's also some rather ODD things like this Sock Monkey dress which sells for $1500! WOW. It's custom made, done on a knitting machine and has 30 monkey faces on the skirt. It was originally created for the Walker Teen Arts Council for an fashion show, The Walker Un-Prom. Would you rock this??? I don't think I could. :)

Anyways, just thought I'd share my newest Monkey find! I've added them to my blog list, so I'm sure I'll keep finding such cute monkey items!  Hopefully something we can integrate into our wedding... :) Don't worry, I already have some great ideas!

And here's the YouTube of the documentary of the drunk vervet monkeys:

Isn't that just hilarious!!! :) They're just like humans when we get drunk!
Hope y'all have a great day!
I'll just be hangin' 'round. Leave a comment, say Hi, tell me what's your fav, animal!

XOXO- Vynuss

Wedding GOWN and dresses!

Hey y'all!!!

I'm sooooo excited! Saturday after my trip to Florida, I went wedding gown and bridesmaids dress shopping with Krystal.  We went to the one place I knew I would go to first, Bobbie's Bridal in Fairfax, VA.  I worked at Bobbie's a few years ago for a number of years.  Bobbie became like a second or third mom to me.  Her daughter, Vinita, who also worked at the shop, became one of my best girlfriends.  In fact, she's now one of my bridesmaids!!

So anyways, we went to Bobbie's and picked out a couple gowns to try on, actually only 4.  I already had an idea as to what style I wanted, and working there for a few years, I knew exactly what I didn't want.  Since I had Krystal and Vinita there to help, it made it so much easier to pick out a couple dresses.  I tried on all 4 dresses.  Vinita did to me what I'd done to many brides in the past, save the best for last.  The last one was "the one".  I knew it when i put it on.  I had a feeling before I could see it based on Krystal's face and her reaction to the gown before I even walked out the dressing room.  When I saw it, I knew.  It's a little out of our proposed budget, but with a couple cut backs here and there, we'll make this work.  I'd like to keep this gown a surprise, so I'm not posting it anywhere or giving any hints.  Everyone will have to wait until October 9, 2010. :) Bobbie's is truly a one stop shop.  For those of you reading this that are brides to be in the area, you should definitely go to Bobbie's. She does Gowns, Bridesmaids, mothers, flower girls, grooms, gifts, shoes, purses, veils, tiaras, flowers for your hair, hats (for the 20's look), and of course alterations!! Bobbie is really helpful and honest, that's why she's been around 24 years!

We were also successful in finding the bridesmaids dresses.  They are Alfred Angelo dresses and they'll be in expresso.  Both Krystal and Vinita tried the dress on, and they've both agreed on the dress.  It's awesome. I'm glad they can agree! :) Makes it so much easier for me.  I'm not a bridezilla or very picky. I told them, they could pick out whatever they wanted, as long as they agreed, and it came in the colors I wanted.  Now, the dress they picked comes in one color only, we'll just have to figure out how we can add the accent colors. Krystal's idea was really great- to have shawls, since it's an October wedding, and could be chilly.  She found some really awesome inexpensive ones online. 

Looks like the next thing to do is shop for flower girl dresses. My flower girls, Angelina and Keenan, are going to be great! They are both so girly! I konw they'll really enjoy being flower girls! They both love pink... I'm thinking they might want to both be in pink!

Maybe something like these:

I like how they have little flowers on the waist which mimics the bridesmaids dresses.

We've already got the flower baskets, they are chocolate and ivory, so it's right in the color scheme. It's all starting to come together... It's getting exciting.  I just can't wait!!!

XOXO- Vynuss

Amelia Island Ritz...

Hi everyone...

I've just gotten back from a very short trip to Amelia Island, Florida! :) 

It was so nice to get out of DC for a couple days, escape the snow.  I had to go there for a day and a half of meetings with our company.  (I got to plan the whole thing!!) The highs were in the 50s on Thursday and by Friday, it was in the 60s.  It was warm enough for me to go to the beach and walk along the water with a 3/4 sleeve t-shirt.

What a short trip it was, I flew down on Thursday and flew back Friday night.  It was a really productive day work-wise and wedding wise too! I was in non stop meetings from noon- 5PM on Thursday.  Later that evening, I scheduled a dinner reservations at Salt.  Salt is one of just five AAA five-diamond restaurants in Florida.  It boasts over 30 different types of salt all over the world, some are hand infused at the restaurant!  I was able to try about 11 different salts!

 My favorite is the vanilla infused salt from Kona, Hawaii!  I actually added this to my creme brulee and it was really tasty.  It had a salty sweet and tart taste to it. The creme brulee had mango pieces and passion fruit sorbet on top. It was totally delish!!!

I ended up buying the vanilla Kona salt as well as a Black Garlic Mediterranean Salt.  I had so much salt at dinner (I love salt) that sometime during the night, around 3 AM, I woke up with the worst charlie horse cramp in my left calf.  It hurt so bad I was crying.  I should have countered all the salt with a lot of water.

The Ritz Carlton at Amelia Island was just a wonderful place!  As with any resort they have cute little boutiques and shops.  On my way to one of my meetings after dropping off my luggage in my room, I passed a boutique with ocean and sea inspired gifts.  No time to stop, I made note of it and decided to come check it out after my meetings.  What really caught my eye was the coral plate displayed in the window.   After my meetings, I ventured back to the store to find the awesome coral plate I'd eyed was no longer in the display window.  I was a heartbroken. I was too late. :(  So, I walk around the store to see what souvenirs I can bring back.  In the case behind the register, I saw the plate I wanted.  In fact, it was part of  a set.  I ask about it, and find that they were on sale!  The large plate itself was $375.  The lady at the boutique told me that if i really wanted, she'd make me an amazing offer to take all 5 sets she had.  I couldn't believe it! She made me an amazing offer I couldn't refuse! So I bought 10 coral plates.  I'm going to use them them as part of my centerpieces at our wedding.  I'm probably going to use tall clear pillars, candles, shells, starfish, etc to create a really neat beachy centerpiece.

The beach at Amelia Island was pretty. I love seeing palm trees... we don't get much of those up in Virginia. One of the joys of the beach for me, is collecting seashells.  I found such an abundance of shells on the beach.  Unfortunately, I only had about 15 minutes on the beach before I had to catch the bus to the airport.  But the first shell I laid my eyes on was this one:

I KID YOU NOT!  It was a heart shaped shell! I found it just as its shown in the picture!  It was so symbolic of my love of the ocean and the beach, I couldn't believe it! (Of course, it's now part of my shell collection!! ) I think we're going to try to incorporate this picture in our wedding somehow, either as a background to something or part of our programs.  We'll see. I think it's just really beautiful!

All in all, it was a short, but good trip! I'd love to go back... for fun!

XOXO- Vynuss

Ashes to Ashes...

Happy Ash Wednesday!!!

Normally, I like to do Wedding Wednesdays... but this week, we'll take a break and reflect on something higher.  Today is officially the beginning of Lent; it's Ash Wednesday. Growing up Catholic and still as a practicing Catholic, it's the time we begin preparation for Easter.  Lent is a time of prayer, penitence, and almsgiving.  It lasts for 40 days, which represents the days that Jesus spent in the desert and fought temptation from Satan.  Traditionally we  give up something for lent, usually it's something that is hard to give up.  And for the 40 days, you try to resist the temptation to indulge in the thing you decide to give up- this is the penitence part.  Another thing we do is to fast on Fridays and refrain from eating meat. We are allowed to eat 1 meatless meal and 2 smaller meals for subsistence, but nothing more.  This only applies to those Catholics between 18 and 60 years old.  For this years Lent, Tommy and I have decided that we'd give up meat except for 1 day a week.  The reason we did the 1 day a week is because there are times where we'll be visiting someone who's cooking, and we really do not want to inconvenience them.  The plan is to avoid, but if once a week, we eat meat, it's within our goal.  One of the reasons we are doing this, is because a lot of meat is not really good for you. We're really going to try to be healthy and take care of our bodies.  It'll almost be like a cleansing for us.  One thing I'm also going to do for Lent is to donate. Whether it be time, clothing, food, etc, I'm going to donate so that others less fortunate may have.

A lot of people ask what are the ashes for? The ashes reminds us of our own mortality and calls us to repentance. In the olden days, Ash Wednesday was the day on which those who had sinned, and wanted to be readmitted to the Church, would begin their public penance.The ashes are a reminder of our own sinfulness, and many Catholics leave them on their foreheads all day as a sign of humility.  Unfortunately, I was not able to get my ashes today. I had to work all day, followed by school.  Tommy and I tried to go to 2 different churches tonight after my class, but both church parking lots were completely packed and there wasn't anywhere else to park.  The roads still aren't plowed well enough.  The snow banks are ridiculous, some are piled twice a car's height high!  Unfortunately, there were others in the same boat as us as they too were circling around or just turning around and going home.   Fortunately, when I got home, I was a bit relieved to find that Ash Wednesday is NOT a Holy Day of Obligation. Holy Days of Obligation for Catholics, are the days that all practicing Catholics must attend church. Days like Easter and Christmas, as well as the Immaculate Conception are some of the Holy Days.

Lent is a good time to reflect on life and how you can become closer to God.  It's so easy to in our society to forget to pray.  Some people only pray when they need something.  We're too busy to pray.  My plan is to not be to busy to pray.  At night when all is calm, I try to pray and relax my mind.  What will you take this time to reflect on? What are you giving up for Lent?

XOXO- Vynuss

Laissez les bon temps rouler!!!

Happy Fat Tuesday to everyone!!! :) 

I was a very lucky and surprised girl this past weekend.  As you've read in my previous post, this past weekend was the first weekend Tommy and I were home for an entire weekend.  We'd planned to go register at Bed Bath and Beyond for our wedding on Saturday, but I awoke on (late) morning around 10:30 feeling sick. So he talked me into staying at home and resting up.  I slept until about 2:30PM and  went to the grocery store. We'd talked about going to Honey Pig in Annandale, VA for Valentine's dinner, followed by the Mardi Gras Madness at the State Theater. Honey Pig is a Korean BBQ place that we'd gone to once before and we both liked it and decided to go back.  The State Theater in Falls Church, VA is where bands come to play. This night they had Crowded Streets (Dave Matthews Cover band) and Gonzo's Nose (80s/90s cover band).  Well, when we got to the restaurant, and I checked us in for 2 people under my name.  It was going to be a 10-15 minute wait. Tommy was on the phone walking around, not answering my, "Who are you talking to?" and "What are you doing?" questions. He finally said, "Maybe [our friends] Brendan and Susan might meet us here; I think they might already be here. Wait here, I'll check".  He walks to the back of the restaurant and motions for me to come.  When I turn the corner to our table, I'm greeted by a whole slew of my friends all decked out in mardi gras beads and masks!!! SURPRISE & HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! I just about cried! Just earlier this week, I had cried to Tommy about how we didn't have anything planned for my big 30th birthday, and how it was getting too late to plan anything.  He and my cousin Krystal had been planning this for weeks, if not months... ever since I had mentioned something about a Mardi Gras themed birthday party.  It really was a great time! I really didn't expect it.  I am so lucky to have such great friends (Vesna, Ken, Brendon, Susan, Mike, Sarah, JoJo, Jamie, and of course the planners: Tommy and Krystal) to come out on a night they could do a Valentine's celebration, yet instead, spend it with me.  After dinner, we went to the State Theater and had a blast dancing the night away, and having a few drinks. Both bands were awesome!!! Crowded Streets were just amazing and sounded just like DMB.  Gonzo's Nose was a great party band. They played all kinds of great songs and are very talented! The energy in the theater was pumping.  I had maybe one too many hurricanes, but they were just so good!!!  I definitely paid for it the next day.  One thing about getting older... you definitely don't bounce back and recover quickly from a night out.  In fact, it took me a good day and a half.  I never knew what was in a hurricane, but looked it up.  All I can say is "WOW".  If only I knew it had 151 in it!!! I'm more of a 2-3 drink girl.  5+ was a lot harder to recover from.  For those of you who may want to make yourself one for Mardi Gras: (don't say I didn't warn ya!!!)

Hurricane Drink Recipe

(www.drinksmixer.com)

 

1 oz vodka
1/4 oz grenadine syrup
1 oz gin
1 oz light rum
1/2 oz Bacardi® 151 rum
1 oz amaretto almond liqueur
1 oz triple sec
grapefruit juice
pineapple juice

Pour all but the juices, in order listed, into a hurricane glass three-quarters filled with ice. Fill with equal parts of grapefruit and pineapple juice, and serve.

Laissez les bon temps rouler!!!
XOXO- Vynuss

Wedding Planning Wednesday

It is definitely a WHITE OUT Wednesday.  We're in the middle of a blizzard here in the Mid Atlantic.  Looking off my balcony all I see is white snow. It's everywhere!  The wind has definitely reduced visibility. I read a report this morning that there were wind gusts of up to 60MPH! Just crazy! You can hear the wind howling!

Since I'm working from home, I'm getting a lot done.  I'm much more productive. I can do all my work related items and in between requests etc, I can also do some wedding planning and I just might do my taxes today too! :)
Tommy and I were talking about what to do this weekend since it's Valentine's day weekend and Chinese New Year.  We're actually going to be home this weekend.   We haven't spent a weekend home in such a long time with all the traveling we've done. It will be nice.  So Saturday, we're going to go do something all newly engaged couples love to do- register for gifts!  We're going to do the standard Target and Bed, Bath, and Beyond registries.  I believe every town now has either one of these stores, and if not, they're also found online.  I've been told that registries are are good for things that you'd never buy for yourself, linens, China ware, or things a new couple would need to for their new home together.  Hummmm. Well, At least I know I'll have fun pointing that scanner gun at some chinaware!  I've already found some styles I like: like the Kate Spade June Lane by Lennox.  I just love the little dragonfly motif, it's one of my favorite icons.  Dragonflies remind me so much of spring/summer, and amazingly, I'm not afraid of them.  I think they're good luck! My mom and dad would catch them for me when I was young. As an adult now, I love it when they're flying back and forth near me. There's also matching stemware!!!

You can never go wrong with Vera Wang. :)  Here's her Vera Lace dinnerware collection by Wedgwood. It's very classic looking and was inspired by bridal gowns and lace.  Nobody does weddings like Vera does weddings. She's the icon of what is wedding!!! ;)  Vera wedding gown, Vera plates, Vera... haha Of course this is what I like, we'll have to see what Tommy actually likes too.

I've also been shopping around for toasting flutes and cake cutters.  I guess it'll depend on what Tommy likes for our chinaware because some of the sets actually have matching stemware and serving ware. At least once we pick a style out, I can go ahead and get our toasting flutes and the knife and cake cutter for our wedding day.  That'll be another thing to mark off the list of things to do for the wedding.
With only 8 months away, its starting to seem like there's so much to do still, even though I've done a lot already like book my DJ, photographer, venue, and cake.  I've still got to get the save the dates out... which I might actually start working on shortly.  It's going to be designed by me and I have it all in my head already... I just need to get it designed and on paper. Being snowed in should help motivate me to do it!!! Well, I'm off to be more productive today.

Hope all my friends and family in the Mid Atlantic and North are doing well and are staying safe with this crazy weather.  My sister, brother, and mom in Northern Illinois is alright from the 3.8 magnitude earthquake that occurred this morning just before 4AM as well.  They just said the house shook, but nothing too crazy. Hopefully there aren't any major aftershocks.

XOXO- Vynuss

Wedding dresses...

It's a white out of a night! The snow is coming down here in NoVa. We're expected to get another 10-20 inches.  The snow started coming down again today around 4PM and isn't supposed to stop until tomorrow night sometime.  From my apartment, looking out, I can see very few cars on the road and visibility out is low.
All I can do is try and think Spring will be here soon!!! Maybe if I click my stilettos and chant "Spring come quickly, Spring come quickly, Spring come quickly" it just might come quicker! :)
So speaking of white, I decided to take some time to check out some wedding dresses.  I won't put up the one I REALLY like because I can't risk having the beloved fiance catching eye of it! :)  As much as I wanted white growing up, I've decided that pure white would be too stark, and I'd like to go with an off-white/ivory gown. It will also go well with my colors: chocolate, Tiffany blue, and pink. Spending some time working in a bridal shop, I've gotten a lot of time to look at and on more than just an occasion or two...try on gowns! It was one of my favorite things to do.  On more than one occasion, I felt like that "Friends" episode when the girls just tried on wedding gowns because they wanted to.
My ideal gown is more of princess gown. Full skirt, very girly, lots of fabric.  I love Carrie's almost wedding gown in the Sex and City movie!  The Vivienne Westwood gown is to die for! The beautiful folds of the ivory silk satin and draping of the taffeta skirt... It was just very romantic. I love fabric with texture and depth.

"You don't alter Vera to fit you, you alter yourself to fit Vera!"-Bride WarsVera Wang is another to die for gown designer.  Oh, if only i could afford Vera... Here's another gown I'd like. It's from Vera's Spring 2010 collection. From the brides.com website "This dress is from the runway and may not be available to purchase." Go figure. Maybe Vera would just give me a gown. Ha, in my dreams. LOL

The good thing about wedding gowns is that there are so many designers, and a lot of them will come up with similar designs.  So as much as I love the Vivienne or Vera and would die to have either, there are designers with similar styles. Like this one by Mary's : It's somewhat similar to Vera's in the soft organza skirt and the sweetheart neckline.  It's definitely not just like the Vera, but you have some similarities to give the same feel.

It will just be a matter of trying on gowns and seeing what will look the best on me. I'm scheduled to go gown shopping on February 20th with my MOH and one of my BMs, and maybe my FMIL.  It should be a good time. I'm very excited, and can't wait!!  This reminds me... I definitely need to get my butt in gear and tone up so I can look like a princess on my wedding day... 8 months to the day away!!!

And to add a little music to go with my wedding gown shopping....


Enjoy!
XOXO-Vynuss

Yum! Coconut M&M's

I hope that everyone is having a pretty good start to their week.  It looks like I'm working from home for the majority of this week due to all the snow that has descended in DC!! 2 feet plus already and another 10-20" expected starting tomorrow through Wednesday night.  Tommy and I were lucky to make it home today, so we wouldn't be driving in the snowstorm.  Thank goodness!  Now, to wait till the 3rd major snowstorm in our area... Will it ever stop???

Anyhow, think happy thoughts, think tropics....I know I shouldn't be eating these, but they were just too tempting to pass up... COCONUT M&Ms!!!
Tommy, Danny, and I went to Blockbuster to rent movies the other night, and I saw the new white package of M&M's.  The different package caught my eye, then the palm tree, then when the words "Coconut" caught my eye, and I was SOLD!  I love coconut, and I love chocolate...I thought, why pass this up? It was only in a small bag (1.5oz) so, it wouldn't really put any damage to my diet. Plus it's a limited edition!

I popped the first M&M in my mouth, and boy, was I in for a surprise! They were tasty! :) I could smell the coconut just before it hit my tongue.  I love the mix of chocolate and coconut, not too coconut-y and just what you'd expect of M&Ms  Some of the M&Ms were imprinted with hibiscus flowers, coconut drinks, and umbrellas.  It was a nice little taste of the tropics in this winter wonderland that has covered the mid-Atlantic.  I just hope I can find more!!! Or maybe M&Ms will make it a permanent addition to their M&M Collection! :)  Let me know if you guys find any and what you think.
XOXO- Vynuss

Tasting Saturday

Hope everyone is having a good weekend!!! The weather in the Mid Atlantic is crazy!!!! I've heard that we have 25 inches of snow and counting back home in NoVa!  I was pretty lucky to escape the heart of the snowpocalypse! I drove down to Hampton Roads, VA Friday around 11:30 AM when the snow started to come down.  It was pretty rough driving down, I was in snow till about Fredericksburg.  Then it died down a bit.  Getting closer to Richmond, it turned to rain/sleet. When I hit Richmond, it started snowing again and then it just snowed and sleeted the rest of the way home.  Anyhow, I made it down safe and sound.  Why did I brave this weather to come down? Why for our tasting of course!!! :)
We've been looking at 2 caterers, the only 2 approved caterers for the Half Moone. Today was our tasting with Catering Concepts in Virginia Beach.  When we left Poquoson, VA it was just started to snow.  As we got closer to Virginia Beach, it started to come down harder.  We walk in to meet our event specialist, Conie Duncan.  I just love her!! :) She had our table all set up and ready for us.  She showed us the plates and silverware we'd be using.  Then after the first meal came out, we went over displays, layouts, colors, fabrics, etc. And Tommy enjoyed the food.  It was really good food too!!!  We're going with a very asian inspired buffet.  We decided to go with a buffet style reception because we wanted people to be up and about, mingling.  I've not always been a fan going to a wedding and having assigned seating.  What's more uncomfortable than sitting at a table with a person you don't have anything in common with and having a constant awkward silence? Or sitting at a table with a drunk obnoxious person who just won't shut up?  We wanted our guests to be able to sit wherever they want, get whatever they want to eat, and if they want to move between tables and visit with each other, they can feel completely comfortable doing so.  It's a family and friends affair. (with a bit of focus on me and Tommy :) ) Sometimes a wedding is the only time family members can all get together, so why isolate each person to a single seat? That's our thought process, anyhow.  I will miss being able to do the name tags and table numbers, I kind of looked forward to doing that... Well at least I can do the "reserved" signs for the bridal party, parents, and grandparents. :)

We got to meet Chef Eddie Byrne and Sous Chef Marco Lepiz when they brought out the second meal.  Chef Eddie made this carrot garnish thing that was amazing!  I'm not a huge fan of carrots, at least not cooked carrots, but the way he shred it, blanched it, and seasoned it with honey and 5 spice.... oh it was yummy.  I could eat it all day long! It might be the Chinese 5 spice I loved.  I'm really big on tradition and had to explain to him one of the items I really want to make sure we have on our menu- Roast Pig.  At a lot of our family events, we always have a roast pig.  It's definitely become a sort of family tradition. I'm sure they'll be able to do this, as I had explained to chef that it's not so much as pulled pork barbeque, but cubed roasted pig.  I even hooked them up with an Asian store in the area that had roast pig so they could try it and sent pictures. All in all, everything went very well. We've got a couple more edits to make to the menu and we should be all set.  I'm very pleased with Catering Concepts so far. 

XOXO- Vynuss

Personas for Firefox | Beach Bum

Personas for Firefox | Beach Bum
Good Morning! It's still flurrying here and it looks like a WHITEOUT.  I can't see too far out off my balcony.  So I've decided to work from home this morning and possibly all day!  This morning while I was updating my work computer with all the stuff I can't access and download from work like MSN messenger and X-marks for Mozilla Firefox, I stumbled across Personas for Firefox.  It's just a little add on to dress up your browser with a design/image/theme.  I've already got the Lilly desktop background, so why not dress up my browser with Lilly too???  For my desktop background which I got from www.LillyPulitzer.com , I went with Dirty Shirley wallpaper. I just love the starfish, coral, and the sea anemone... AND IT'S PINK! And for my browser, I went with Beach Bum.  I just love all the beach/ocean inspired themes!!! After all, I am a beach girl at heart... even though I live in Northern VA. I can't wait for spring/summer to come!!! C'mon beach weather~~~

Why not dress up your computer? Enjoy!!!
 Posted using ShareThis

XOXO- Vynuss

New Toy, New Workout!

Hope that everyone is having a great week so far! I'm having a pretty good week.  It started snowing again today. We're currently under a Winter Storm Watch. We got some snow on Saturday about a few inches.. which hasn't melted yet.  Tonight, into tomorrow morning, we're supposed to get another 3-6 more inches.   I love the snow, but this is getting to be much.  My car doesn't handle well in the snow either.  Oh well, looks like I'll be working from home tomorrow.

Yesterday Tommy brought home a lil gift for me. We've been both wanting to get back in shape and have had our eyes on the kettlebell. It's supposed to be a great work out using weights that look like a weighted ball suspended just below a handle. It's all one unit, and comes in various sizes ranging from $15-$170!  There's tons of workout routines you can find online as well as in magazines. I think I first saw the kettlebell in Shape magazine or Self.  Well, instead of a full kettlebell, Tommy got me the Gaiam Kettlenetics Slim and Tone Kit.  It's kind of like a mini kettlebell (only 4 lbs) with a couple DVDs led by instructor Michelle Khai.  She's supposed to be a former dancer and a celebrity trainer. She works with ballet dancers and has created this "kbell" training to help tone and sculpt.


I put in DVD 1, the beginner's DVD to learn the techniques.  (This is AFTER doing 30 mins of cardio training)  Techniques were pretty easy to learn and do. So I decide to continue on with the "Flow motion basics" session.  I was sweating... ALOT!  Initially, I was thinking... "4 lbs weight, that's sooo girly".  Well 4 lbs of weight swinging and lifting and pushing combined with squats and lunges (ooh how I hate both) for 30 minutes can start to feel very heavy.  I definitely got a work out, and it was a nice change of a workout routine. Today, I was definitely sore all over, and it felt great! I really liked the fluidity of the motions and the weight added didn't make it feel so much like a aerobics routine.  I felt like I was really doing something and it did, because I can sure feel the burn! :)  Looks like I'm going to be trying out the cardio DVD tomorrow! :) 

Eggs gone by 30?!?

Driving in the car to work today, just 24 days from my 30th birthday, I hear the radio DJ say that there’s a report out that women will lose 90% of their eggs by the time they turn 30! Imagine my disappointment and panic! So they are telling me that in 24 days only 10% of my eggs remain? And less and less as I age? And so by the age of 40, only 3% remain?

“By the time a woman hits 30, nearly all of her ovarian eggs are gone for good, according a new study that says women who put off childbearing for too long could have difficulty ever conceiving.

The study published by the University of St. Andrews and Edinburgh University in Scotland found that women have lost 90 percent of their eggs by the time they are 30 years old, and only have about 3 percent remaining by the time they are 40. “

-From Good Morning America

YIKES!!! So I called Tommy right away and told him. He just told me to not get all worked up and everything will be okay. Not only did I already have a fear of not having kids, but this makes it even more likely!!! Looks like after the wedding, I’m going to have to start trying!!! :) I have to say that I can’t wait to be a mom! I think I’d be a really great one! At least there’s some technology out there. I’ve heard of people that have been told that they couldn’t have babies and voila, they’re pregnant and having babies. So there’s always a possibility. There’s always just that little percentage that’s still there. So I guess I just have to relax and wait till it’s time. Anyone else have any thoughts? Has anyone else ever had this fear?

XOXO- Vynuss