costumes delight!

Like I mentioned yesterday, the Halloween Party we attended was awesome, now today I am sharing some pictures of the costumes, starting with my very own "Mexican Sugar Skull".

How about our hosts? I think their costumes were AWESOME!

Dave as "Mexican Wrestler" and Tarah as "Bettlejuice"

Tennis player, Dorothy and a weird pirate

Chinese Take out and another pirate

And the winner for the best costume of the night...

he was dressed as a "one nightstand" LOL!

Fun stuff... Have a great Wednesday :)

now, that was a party!

We made to yesterday's Halloween Party at Dave & Tarah's... It was SPOOCK-TACULAR!!!!

Here are some pictures to prove it...

our pre-party shot, with my brother (Osama) and his wrench!

Decorations were THE BEST!

The welcoming pumpkin

the graveyard

part of the hunted house area... blogger refuses to upload it correctly, FREAKY!

the bathroom area in the hunted house

the cooler was a coffin... another pic that blogger refuses to post right!

I tell you, it was a great party, the hostess thought of everything... more to share but will wait until tomorrow... Have a great Tuesday!

I-LOVE-(He)en!

If anybody is able to find a way to make Halloween romantic, that for sure is my amazing husband.

Perhaps is because he is a cutie (but just don't tell him I say so), o perhaps it's just his zombie personality that comes out with the best of him during today's holiday, which is specially made for all things creepy, freaky and scary, LOL!

Anyway, he did a fine job on today's celebration with an amazing post that I for once cannot top.

This morning as soon as I read his blog, he made my Halloween, my day and my year worthwhile... (but the truth of this is, that he had me "at hello" from the very first day we met).

Now, I am sure there are lots of kids (and adults) getting ready for some trick or treat today. As far as celebrations on our island, nobody does trick or treat, I guess kids dress up for school and adults dress up for partying the night away.

We have been invited to a major Halloween Party tonight, but officially to right now we don't really have any costumes, so our attending the party depends on my ability to pull off something to wear for tonight... We shall see!


Anyway, if you feel like some romance on such a "scary" day like Halloween, please ck out my husband's post today, so just click HERE!

Happy Halloween!!!

happy weekend

Whether you have some big Halloween party plans or if you are only planning to make it as far as the grocery store, may your weekend be a wonderful one!!!

I am starting my weekend on a good note, today at 3 I am treating myself to an hour massage and a 1/2 hour facial... Happy Weekend to me... and of course You!!!

let the celebrations begin

It's only Oct. 27th and already the stores here in Grand Cayman are packed with Christmas decorations, lights, trees and all things red & green.

The other day I walked into a store and it looked like both Santa Claus and Rudolph went partying the night before and then came in a barfed all over it, so much Christmas stuff, that it actually gave me a headache!

I know economy is down and places have the do their best to attract business, but c'mon Christmas decor in October?!?!?

I guess next year, once you take down the 4th of July decor, it's about time to start looking for the Christmas tree, LOL!

So, my point is; if we are going to start decorating/celebrating Christmas from two months before, I think it's in order to start celebrating my birthday in December since the actual day is in late February, don't you agree?

Which is why, I will be available to receive gifts as of Dec. 1st... I am sure I am going to love your, LOL!

Have a wonderful day and oh well, Merry Christmas as well!!!

Wordless Wednesday Video

Grand Pumpkin Island

Yesterday I visited my very first pumpkin patch, right here in the Caribbean Island of Grand Cayman [believe it or not].

Of course, this pumpkin patch isn't an actual pumpkin plantation, but one patch at a nursery, still very much worth visiting!

I managed to pick 3 awesome pumpkins that I brought home to carve for the very first time!

By the time I got home it was getting kind of late, so we only managed to carved one each.

So being my first time carving a pumpkin, I was very excited so I got right to it...

Meanwhile my husband carved his own with our dog Sheba paying close attention to the process...

And now for the final result... [Insert drum roll here]

Pretty nice result, eh? I loved carving my very first pumpkin, I am going to try and carve the last one of the three tomorrow... Hoping for better weather although Hurricane Rina is roaming the neighborhood, hopefully it will stay away from our little island.

Well, I guess we are ready for Halloween.... Happy Tuesday : )

Expo done but weekend gone...

Even though I live in the Caribbean, I don't quite remember when was the last time I saw the sun shinning.

Weather is been so rainy that I feel as I'm starting to get green musk behind my ears!

Saturday was our last day for the Chamber of Commerce Expo, we had a great time and we managed to collect over 710 signatures for the Grouper Moon Petition, so with just that the whole effort of participating on the expo, made it worth it!

Here are some random pictures of the Expo.

Our booth

Just random people visiting the Expo

the girls from Morritz Tortuga Resort (booth across from us!)

Paradise Coffee booth... yuuumy stuff!

Mr. Electric, winner of Best Small Exhibit

perhaps they won cause they had this secret weapon?!?!?

On Saturday evening after the Expo (and despite my tiredness), we went to a Mystery Murder Dinner Party- 'Till Death Do us Part, at our friend Julia's house, we had a great time.

This game was giving to our friend Patrick as a Christmas gift from his parents that live in Texas, the funniest part is that is all based in the Cayman Islands!

I played Chatty Bodden-Ebanks, a columnist from a local newspaper and paparazzi at all events, I was a non suspect, so I didn't get many clues during the whole deal, but it was still very much fun.

My husband played a singer/entertainment from Las Vegas called Newton Polyester, I think he really enjoyed getting this role.

So, it was a great weekend, rain, tiredness and all... Now, I am not sure if I am ready to start another week just yet, but here I go again...

Happy Monday!!!
 

Wake up and live!

What would you get when you mix my favorite singer with one of my favorite drinks???

Yeah mon' Bob Marley coffee drink!

Now drink, wake up and live!!!

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S2 Mobile

Expo day 2

Isn't our booth awesome?

Our booth

Well, the judges didn't think so, which means we did not win the best booth category, bummer :(

But you know what they say: "It's not about winning, but about participating..."

We did have a pretty good night though with a big crowd.

We managed to collect about 75 more signatures for our petition to continue the protection law on the Nassau Grouper Spawning sites, and that is just in on the first night.

designated signing area for our petition

Now, today is day 2 and in previous years for this event, the busiest day.

Weather is still crappy and I hope that won't prevent people from coming out and visit the Expo.

Happy Friday and weekend to all!!!

ready, set...

and about ready to go!

Everything is just about set up on our booth for the Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce Business Expo.

This will be the first time we participate so we are hoping for a good crowd, with lots of interest in our products and perhaps a few good sales.

Tonight is the official opening with a VIP party and the price for best booth (which we are hoping to win!).

Business Expo 2010 (source)

Don't have any pictures to share yet, but hopefully I will catch up on the weekend.

The weather today is dreadful out there, lots of heavy rain, the ocean is very strong with some major surge.

Hopefully these are the last rains we will see during hurricane season, although we still have about a month to go, so can't call it a victory just yet.

Happy Thursday to you, wherever you are reading this today!

stuck but moving forward

When at times we feel as if we are not moving forward or we are just stuck in the same old routine that barely makes us feel alive, we need to keep on going.

Or perhaps we just need to stop for a bit, take a full breath and think about all the small and big blessings that surround us.

It is for us to acknowledge that they’re out there, somewhere. 

Even inside of ourselves.

So, when times are hard, let’s just ask around and see if anybody out there has any spare hugs for us? Or maybe just a friendly hand that we can hold and walk around in good company.

 

Because no matter if we are in fact moving forward or standing still, a hug or a friendly hand, is full of that “half full” energy that we can all use and share with others to better our daily dealing with life dissapointments.

 

 

The scheduled meeting I had yesterday to meet my new “little sister” was unfortunately cancelled, so again, I am not sure when it’s going to happen or if it would ever happen at all.

Like I mentioned a couple of days ago, I started this process more than a year ago, I've been patience and at times I've even had my doubts that it would become possible, now I must wait again because I will be very busy at work starting tomorrow with the CI Chamber of Commerce Business Expo.

So I guess for now, there's nothing else but ask God for patience and perseverance, I know that He is holding my hand while I walk and although I cannot feel Him hugging me, I do feel his love through all the special people in my life and the blessings that surround me.

Have a Wonderful Blessed Wednesday!!!

funny or what?

"If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands... If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands".

But, if you are not happy or perhaps you are but could use a little laugh, make sure to watch the following video, it's sure to at least make you smile.



Wasn't that funny? I hope it made you smile...

Happy Tuesday!

Projects, projects, projects...

Looks like October is a project month for me, got lots going on.

When it comes to my crochet/amigurumi project... Ahhhh, I still remember when I set my mind to learn how to crochet. Got myself some books and with the help of the many, many YouTube videos that show you every possible crochet stitch, I finally managed to learn.

Now, about a year later, I've come to the point where I have more than one project going on at once.

Lately I'm into starting one long one that I can go to for a few minutes/hours and then leave it to perhaps work on a much smaller and faster one.

I've been working pretty hard on another hand bag, but still long ways to go.

Yesterday I finished an amigurumi Panda Bear that I will be giving as a gift to my newly appointed "little sister" from the Big Brothers & Big Sisters mentor program, and whom I am schedule to meet tomorrow evening.

I have to say that I'm super excited to start this new mentor project/program and specially to meet my new "little sister".

She is a 10 year old Caymanian girl, her name is Yannique. Looks like she is a very active girl, who loves sports, the ocean, reading and specially loves animals (she wants to be a Vet- just like I wanted!).

So, I am really looking forward to start this mentor program as it's been more than a year since I started to the whole process and they have finally match me with somebody.

As I said, I am very excited and bit nervous, but praying to God that He gives the strength, inspiration and dedication necessary to make a positive difference in this little girl's life, but also welcoming what my relationship with her will bring to my own life.

So, tomorrow is the BIG meeting day, hoping for everything to go well, will share the news on Wednesday.

Other projects I have going on are for work, today and tomorrow we have 2 more school visits for the Grouper Moon and starting on Wed. our gallery/store is participating on the Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce Business Expo for the very first time...

Wednesday is set up day and then we officially start on Thursday [when we are hoping to win the "Best Booth" category] and ends of Saturday afternoon. So, I might not have much time to post but I will try to share a bit of this project in the next few days...

Besides all those projects, I have already started working on my next blog giveaway that hopefully will be ready in the next few weeks. As always it's going to be hand made [by: moi] and very special... so stay tuned!

Have a great Monday and rest of the week! :)

a fruit a day

It is a fact that I don't eat as much fruit as I should.

During certain times in my life -like when I did the Atkins diet- I barely ate any at all...

Yes. I know that is not good.

But now, I think I do [somehow] better, but still, I don't eat as much as I should.

And the thing about fruit is that it's packed with vitamins and minerals, plus also they are delicious gifts from nature, so there should not be any real reason (other than economic) why I should deprive myself of these jewels of nature, right?

So while analyzing that fruit is such a vital part of our nutritional needs, I've been thinking that I need to come up with an idea of how to eat more fruit and different kinds as well.

Now, when it comes to fruit variety I know there's lot of different types available, unfortunately in my case, I always tend to buy the same ones.

My top choices are usually; Strawberries, Raspberries (my favorite among all berries), Blueberries, Bananas, Apples and the occasional Mangoes.

So, what can I do to improve my amount of fruit consumption and variety????

Well, I have come up with an idea that I am going to implement starting tomorrow.

As of tomorrow Sat. October 14th, 2011 I will be eating a different type of fruit every week. And how am I going to decide which fruit to eat???

Well, I am going to do it in alphabetical order.

I will buy enough fruit for a whole week and will eat at least 1 fruit a day (perhaps 1/2 a day, depending on how expensive certain ones are- as I live on an island that pretty much imports everything, meaning EXPEN$IVE!)

My overall goal is that in aprox. 26 weeks I would have eaten all sorts of fruits, perhaps some that I haven't even tried before... Plus remember 26 weeks is exactly 1/2 a year, so if this works out I can do the entire process twice in a year.

I am excited to start and I am looking forward to try new fruit but specially get all the great healthy benefits that each one will bring me.

How are you in your fruit consumption? What's your favorite fruit? Have any tips for me???

Have a wonderful weekend... Tomorrow I will be buying some APPLES!

where do we draw the line?

Last night we watched a documentary called "The End of the Line", a shocking, very explicit film that reveals the impact of overfishing in our oceans, something that (as a species), we've been doing for at least 50 years.

Now, this is not a film for the faint of heart, or for those people that only eat fish (as meat) because of animal cruelty... well, actually, this is a film for EVERYBODY that walks on this earth and swims in our oceans.

It's a reality that is affecting every single one of us, whether we buy fish, we sell it, we catch it or even if we just like to go underwater and enjoy their beauty. And this is a problem that should concern each one of us because we are depleting our ocean of  many species and the most important ecosystems on our home planet.

So, then we tell ourselves- " Well, I'm not the one going out there and doing the overfishing, so it's not my responsibility". Well it is, because when we buy or eat fish from a restaurant we need to be conscious on our choices, find out which fishes are endangered, so if there's no demand, there's no market!

There are responsible seafood guides that are very helpful for when we need to find out what fishes are "green" to each, which ones are over fishes and the most critical endangered ones.

If you would like a seafood guide for your reference, the Guy Harvey Ocean foundation has one that you can download and print for you to keep that information handy, just click here.

Also, if you would like to get more involved, the end of the line website has many more options to offer, like reclaiming 2 hectares of ocean for ourselves to encourage governments to declare more protected areas (if you watch the documentary, you will learn that currently there's only a 0.4% of the entire ocean declared as protected areas, that means that more than a 99% is open for fishing- or should I say overfishing?).

Believe me, the power of one and the choices we make today, will have a direct impact on our future and the well being of our entire planet... This is our Ocean, we need to protect it.

Here's the trailer for the documentary, a must watch!!!

messages to be listen

There are certain messages that don't need to be long or very elaborated for us to capture what they are trying to make us aware of.

The message expressed in the following video, it's short, very clear but also a very sad one. 

Unfortunately there are still people out there, that need to hear it, in order to change their ways for good.

It is very sad to even think human beings are capable of such crimes against animals. 

The few times my dogs have gotten into an argument, it shakes up my soul in the most indescribable way, it makes me scared and sad... 

Now, I cannot imagine anybody making dogs fight until one kills the other, for, fun? entertainment? 

Can somebody explain that to me? 'Cause I just don't get it and I never will

Is it  that some humans have their hearts filled with violence and rage? Mine isn't

We need to wake up, treat animals with respect and starting giving back to animals and the environment what we have been abusing and taking from them, for so long...

Just saying... food for thought!

is it Friday yet?

It's only Tuesday and already I feel very tired.

Sunday to wake up Monday wasn't a very good night for me. Although I did get some sleep, I constantly felt as if I had "too much" on my mind and didn't get a good rest, so starting such a busy week at work on a "half gas tank" is not the best way to go.

So last night I went to bed early after having a few pieces of pizza we ordered when we came back from a short snorkeling at sunset...

photo not taken by me... but this much like our sunset snorkeling was!

It was so wonderful to spend a few minutes snorkeling right at the moment when there's a sunset on the west and the big Moon already rising on the east and with my favorite snorkeling buddy.... Loved it!

We saw an octopus coming out of his hole and a few flying gurnards - which I think is one of the weirdest looking fish - and perhaps yesterday was the only time I've seen them while snorkeling/diving here in Grand Cayman, although I have seen them before on the island of Cayman Brac...

photo source here

So, yesterday we not only saw one, but three of those, I think they are so exotic looking, like a Chinese Fan.

Anyway, today is another school visit and we have schedule 160 kids, it should be fun. Yesterday presentation went well, now we just have today's and tomorrow another school of 80 kids.

Happy Tuesday!

through my 3rd eye

Photos are such a huge part of my life that sometimes I feel like the camera is my 3rd eye and through it I can capture bits and piece of this amazing journey called LIFE.

My weekend was great, not very eventful, but that is not necessary a bad thing.

Now, today is the beginning of a very busy week at work, filled with school visits to keep promoting the passing of the Grouper Ban law.

Today, tomorrow and Wednesday we have a full schedule of school visits during the morning.Will make sure to capture some of the "action" with my "3rd eye" and then share the fun, right here!

But now, how about some random weekend pictures for your enjoyment? Here there are...

These past two days I finished two crochet project and a first time project in both cases, one is my very first (ever) crochet bag.

And the other is a brand new pattern of a Calla Lilly. I am very excited and I think it came out very nice, I am thinking of making a few and put together an arrangement that I can donate to my church.

This is the first of a few I am going to start working on.

And now for the random ones...

Ditto posing for the camera

Sheba cannot avoid the paparazzi

Jet plane going by my house

Sheba ALWAYS wanting the toy she can't have

Lilly in our front yard

Little One and Goldie on the car

Well, that's it for sharing my view through my 3rd eye, have a great Monday and a wonderful week!