Numbers, numbers, numbers...

In high school I was never good at math, in fact I sucked at it. I pretty much struggled during the whole time to get good grades on the subject, so my Mom had a tutor for me one an off and I managed to pass every year, Thanks Mom!

Then I graduated, went to college (for something that wasn't at all related to numbers). Life went one and now when I think about the hard times I went through in high school trying to understand math and specially algebra, I realize now, I don't use about 95 percent of what I learned.... But numbers, those are still around, in everything, every day and at every hours.

We need numbers pretty much for anything; so you can read time, dial a telephone number, add up your money, (expenses or savings if any!), to use a computer, to pay for things at the store, to get paid the correct amount, to ask your boss for a raise... you name it.

Oh, but also you need numbers to keep track of your weight, yuck! Did I mentioned I've been on a diet for about a week and half? I've lost about 4 pounds so far and I will like to loose at least 6 more.

 

The main reason I want to loose the weight is because I gained it while on vacation in July (10 WHOLE pounds), plus if I am 10 pounds lighter everything fits me better and I feel better as well.

Haven't you notice that when you put on weight everything makes you tired? I hate that... It's even hard to breath.

The problem with me nowadays is that I cannot exercise, after I came back from Mexico in July I had some sort of back spasm that after a CT Scan it revealed that I have something called a Bulging Disk in my lower back, so I have been going to physio and finally now starting to do some exercises but nothing major.

So, because of this condition my numbers on the scale are taking even longer to go down and for the very first time in my life and I'm starting to reach back to math and actually keeping track of the calories I eat every day, hoping this method will help me loose the rest of the pounds. I am trying to eat balanced meals, healthy snacks and drink lots of water (I always do so don't have a problem with that)...

Oh! I am also replacing one cup of coffee a day with some green tea... Soon I'll be picture perfect!!!

SMILE, it's Saturday!!!!

Friday Off

Today I am home and not working, I will working tomorrow 9am to 3pm instead and then having Sunday off again, so it's a split weekend for me.

Usually I am pretty o.k. with work changing my schedule, specially because they are very good about accommodating ours if needed, like next weekend that I'm fling back home and they are giving me Monday off....

Today I have a few things on schedule;

First; I am coloring my hair because I am sort of getting a little gray "tiara" around my head and with this wedding thing coming up even though I will be wearing silver shoes, hand bag and "bling,bling" I think the tiara is just too much accessorizing, LOL!

Second; need to take the dress I going to be wearing to my cousin's wedding next week, to the cleaners.

Here's a picture of me wearing my awesome Calvin Klein dress, I took a picture the on Sunday when it finally fit me again (after being on a diet for some days now (hence the double chin).... still on a diet!). I want to still loose a couple of more pounds so then it fits even better...

 
Also today I need to go shopping for a wedding gift, I already have some idea of what I'm getting them so it should be pretty easy.

Well, that should be all for today my Friday Off, weather is on and off nice because of the very indecisive Tropical Storm Richard that is hanging around the Caribbean with not apparent path yet, hope it's not coming towards us or threading any other land.

Have a wonderful weekend!!!

orange u lovely?

Well, it's time again for another Window Shopping Wednesday and today I have an orange heart, because it's October, it's fall (somewhere else, although not here in the Caribbean) and because I've always liked orange...

My kitchen would be a much nicer place if I had this vintage plates to serve some delicious salads...

And this Salt & Pepper shakers are a "mush" have....

Besides those beautiful finds for my kitchen, I found some other stuff that I would love to own and wear, like this sexy piece of swimwear (but first I might need a new and improved body for it).

I'm also loving this dress; a simple, fresh look that would be perfect to just lounge around the house on the weekends.

 Now, what about accessories?

vintage ring

I've always loved flowers in my hair but how about this beautiful headband, would love to have one for my hair!

 And I can always use a new bag, like this funky one...

Anyway, I love orange and any or all of these items will be fabulous to own... orange u going to agree??

Happy Wednesday!

all images from etsy.com 

email me if you'll like exact location of any item

Randomness...

I am very excited because my cousin is getting married at the end of the month and I am going back home for the wedding. It's going to be a super short visit from Friday to Monday, but oh well, at least I will get to spend two full days with my family and hopefully some friends.

For the wedding I will be wearing a fabulous Calvin Klein navy blue satin dress (picture later) and I would love to buy this hand bag to go with it...

image@etsy

Unfortunately when you live in a place like the Caribbean ordering things take a while, so I will not have enough time to get it before the wedding. But isn't it cute? I think I might get it for later, I specially love the fact that no foxes were harm in the making of it, LOL!

This morning I woke up thinking it's Wed. and just now realized we are not even there yet...

In other news, there's some kind we weather thing forming off the coast of Nicaragua so I am keeping my fingers crossed that it doesn't develop into anything coming out way, like Philippines that wasn't were lucky this week and got hit by Cat. 5 Typhoon Megi, yikes! God bless us all and protect us from that crazy weather.

Have a great Tuesday!!!

DO NOT feed the fish...

The weekend was nice and the weather beautiful, on Sat. we went snorkeling to a place call Cemetery Reef close to were we used to live, it was nice but the fish were harassing us (specially the Sergent Major).

On the snorkeling 101 course I believe the number one rule should be: DO NOT FEED THE FISH!

Well, I guess some snorkelers have overlooked that rule and being feeling them, so now when they see people all the think about is; food!, food!, food! and they get all over you... Here's the proof of how close they get to you.

And in the following short video you can see how close they get to the camera and then I manage to scare them away with my fins, then you'll see how many really are around me... My husband wasn't as lucky as me, as he got bitten by another type of fish which is also around and gets all over you, ck out his post yesterday, click here (not recommended if you don't like to see blood!).

Pretty crazy, uh? but mostly sad and scary how humans can change the behavior of animals so easily, the worst part is that people don't realize the huge impact small things like these can affect them... more about this issue later.

Now, is off to work. Have a wonderful week!

enjoying day & night...

It's time for the weekend, time of enjoy each and every minute of our day and night. Although we don't really need to wait for the weekend to do this.  We just need to focus on the fact that every single thing that surround us was created by God in perfection, and if only we stop ourselves from focusing on what we don't have, or what we don't like, I am sure we can find beauty and enjoyment in all...

If don't believe what I am saying, just watch the following video and you'll know what I say is true...

So, whatever you do, take time to really enjoy it to the max. Perhaps this weekend there is an opportunity to meet somebody new, to do something that you've never done before or simply to enjoy being alive!

Have a wonderful weekend!!!

a flash of global joy!

Yesterday was a pretty amazing day for 33 miners, but also for their families, friends, the country of Chile and even the rest of the world as we watched them being rescued.

I didn't really followed much of what was going on during the time they were trapped, I knew it was going on and I felt really bad for them and their situation and although I don't consider myself claustrophobic, I am sure I will have a hard dealing with something like this was to happen to me.

capsule in which the miners traveled about 15min back to the surface

On the other hand my husband was constantly keeping track of what was going on and even posting on his blog about it several times. Even the night before (Tuesday) when we were watching the local news he got irate because they said that the miners were already rescued when in fact the rescue wasn't even started yet...

when there still about 8 left to be rescued

I am just in general very happy with the outcome of their situation, that people have been making so much effort to take them out safe and sound, and I cannot even start to imagine the feelings of their family member to embrace them one more time...

rescued miner #25 hugging his wife

So in a time when you turn on the news and it's mostly all about violence, war, terrorism and many other human tragedies, I believe the rescue of those miner was a definitely flash of global joy.

With God taking care of them down there for about 70 days (the longest ever record of somebody survive trapped underground) and the perseverance of the rescue team as well as the government of Chile, this had the best outcome possible.

I can stop thinking about how much joy those miners feel today after seeing the light of day again, to hug a loved one and for something as basic as having a bed to sleep in, God Bless them and their families as well as all of the people that helped physically and with prayers!

Let's all have a wonderful day!!!

Wordless Wednesday

Happy Hump Day!

STOP and think...

What feelings do you get when you see these images?

tenderness?

happiness or freedom?

wonder?

love?

Well, how about the feelings of guilt, shame, sadness and regret?

Sounds like weird feeling to describe those beautiful bunnies, right? Well not really.

I believe these should be the feelings that us humans should have towards rabbits (as well as many other species of animals) nowadays. And all because we are still using and abusing many species (including rabbits) by performing lab testings on them, and all  for the soul purpose of our own enjoyment of many products that are available in the market, like soaps, cleaners, fragrances and specially cosmetic products.

If you were to do a search for google images of animals testing, I am sure it would be like watching a scary movie, in fact probably worst, because in movies mostly is people who get killed or abuse and not so much animals.

Why are we still doing this?

click here for another very useful list of do and don't animal testing companies

If you would like a list of the current product on the market that still do animal testing please click here.

I know for a fact that only awareness about this sort of issues make a difference, I myself stopped buying shampoo, first because of the chemicals on it and also because most manufactures of such products do animal testing on them, now I make my own shampoo and I love it!

Although, I have to admit that it's so hard and frustrating when (like in my case), you live on a place where not many products are available, so basically you either buy the product from companies that abuse animals and test products on them or you don't.

But, there's always the option of becoming greener, it's all about choices. With the kind of information available to us through the internet I believe if you want, you can make a difference. Down the road it's also better to not have so many chemicals in your life; it's better for the environment, better for your health but also for the health of many animals out there... So, NO demand, NO market, that's why we should STOP and think to start making a difference.

Just some FFT (food for thought!)...  Have a nice day!

Libelulas

illustration by Warwick Goble

Lately I've notice there are lots of Dragon flies around, I guess it's the season but don't know why there are so many.

The weekend we were in Cayman Brac I notice them there as well, I wonder what is it that brings them out this time of year, maybe it's their matting season?

But then, where do they disappear to afterward? To me, Dragon Flies are very mystical insects, unlike any other around.When I was a little girl I always loved to catch them but they I would always release them again without harming them. In Costa Rica most Dragon flies are very small and have different colors; green, brown, blue and yellow.

In Spanish we call them "Libelulas" and my favorites to catch were the blue ones!

I love them, they are very magical creatures. Do you have them where you live? I wonder how many different species there are and what do they eat, pollen from flowers like the bees? If you know more about them, I would love more info.

Have a wonderful week!

Sat. Around the world

Even though I don't usually post on Saturday, today I am here because I decided to participate on a fabulous idea from another blog, so today I've join Amanda & Don's Blog Party! Saturday Around the world. 

Don't really have much to post about, so I will just post some random pictures from the island that I think I have never posted before.

baby green turtle @ the Turtle Farm

Smith Cove Beach

Art @ Governors local show

Pirates Week Festival 2009

For those visiting for the very first time, I hope you liked with pictures and the same for my regular visitors. Have a great weekend!!!

this is Friday...

Today I want to start this Friday and the weekend with something like this...

Isn't this nice? Of course it might all sound very simple but it is something that most of us have to work on every day of our lives... The good news is that we have our whole life ahead of us regardless of our age, as none of us know when our expiration date is due, all we need to do is LIVE for as long as God wants us to!

Have a wonderful weekend and remember This is your LIFE, live it well!!!!

Under the Weather

Today I am at home, I've taken a sick day because I haven't been feeling so well lately, and with today's weather I am literally feeling under the weather!

My back is being giving me problems for a couple of months now and after some test the doctors say I have a "slip disc" on my lower back, so I have been going to physio again for a few week. But since I've now being feeling well (specially yesterday) that has trigger the back spams again.

Today I got up early to call into work and tell them I wasn't coming, then I ate some light breakfast and went back to bed again until now (midday) that I got out of bed and decided to write something on my blog.

Weather is terrible today, yesterday was too, last night the wind had about 50mph gusts (almost hurricane strength!), now the wind has stopped as well as the rain but is very cloudy still.

In other news, I have finished my latest "Amigurumi" project and I am very proud of this one. With permission from the owner (my husband Mark) here's my latest creation:

miniature horse

Well, I guess it's off to bed for me again and just taking it easy. Have a nice day!

B. I. T. C. H.

are you a...?

Beautiful

Individual

in

Total

Control 

of

Herself

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and being that my life was directly affected by this disease already, I make a very important point to honor this attitude of complete awareness and very seriously want to approach this horrible disease with a very strong "B.I.T.C.H" attitude, and so should every woman (and even Men!).


When I first found out my Mom had a lump on her left breast, I felt as if my world was falling apart, because my Mom is such a HUGE part of my life.


When she told me at the time (more than 10 yrs ago) that statics show that 6 out of 10 women survive and recover from the disease if it's found in the early stages (like hers) so that's when it hit me... She was part of those 6 and not one of the not so lucky 4. And guess what? I was right!


But even if her recovery, this was a very tough test for her as well as my family and down the road I am happy to say in a very remote way it was a blessing in disguise. I have always being very close to my Mom, but after seeing that she was very close to not being around for very long, my bond with her was of total and absolute trust and love.


Breast cancer made us even closer. During that time, the 2 of us made a deal, I wanted to be 100% honest with her, tell her all my fears, doubts and concerns. But specially I wanted to her to do the same, to not bottle up anything at any point; to complain when needed, to be happy and smile if she felt like, to cry when in pain or when in sorrow... Of course this wasn't an easy thing to do, but I guess it help her realized that even though I wasn't feeling physically the same symptoms as her, in my heart and soul I was going through the same process as her...


I am happy to say we have a survivor in my family, I look up to her and even in her weakest moment, she was still the most amazing woman I have known and this process made her in my eyes just most beautiful, wonderful and never for a minute I wasn't proud to be the daughter of a "B.I.T.C.H.".... I love you mami!!!

So, my point here is, we all need to have a "B.I.T.C.Hy" attitude towards this horrible disease and act when needed, because if it's too late the process as well as the outcome might be very different from my Moms.

Let's think about it today, tomorrow and every day, we cannot put our guard down and we all need to remind each other to check ourselves and that could make a big difference in our lives.

Have a wonderful day!

the Brac in Pics

A weekend away is not the same without proof of visit, meaning photographs.

During this visit I mainly took pictures on the flight there, the scenery and some wild life, I didn't take many pictures of us or our friends, but anyway, here are some...

aerial view of Owen Island in Little Cayman

Cayman Brac Ducks

Ducky love!

Freedom flight

hotel's pond (full of birds!)

ahhhh, finally relaxing @ the hammock!

lonely palm tree

As you can imagine by the pictures, there's a lot of wild life in Cayman Brac and almost 2 years since the devastating Hurricane Paloma the scenery as well as the wild life is finally back with full force...

I really enjoy the weekend and realized how much I miss being surrounded by so much nature!

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Back from the Brac

We are back from our short trip to the sister island of Cayman Brac, it was so nice to see the "old place" again, see people and friends that I made while I lived there. In a way it felt like if I was back home visiting, seeing my old apartment, where I used to work and my Brac Family, it was short but great!

The hotel I used to work and live at is fully rebuilt after the devastation of Hurricane Paloma in 2008. We stayed at one of the new Junior Suites and it was very nice. In the room they had this lovely little poem...

Is it lovely? I really liked it, because I believe it to also be true. Islands change people's lives, there's just something about them that is very special, and it's one of the reason why I always wanted to live on one, and now I do!

I have pictures to share and I will get around to it this week... meanwhile have a wonderful Monday!!!

BTW, today is Mingle Monday @ Life of Meg, can't wait to visit some beautiful blogs and if you feel like joining the fun, just click here and come mingle!!!

"In the jungle...

... the quiet jungle, the lion sleeps tonight".

I am so happy to share with everybody the progress I've made so far on my new hobby of creating crochet Amigurumis... so I present to you, Alex the Lion!!!!!

Isn't he a "cutie petutie"??? I think so myself and I am not only saying it cause it's made by my own 2 hands (well maybe in part I am) but because of the fact that it is true to say "he who perseveres conquers", right???

Can't wait to make more creations and eventually have some to give away, how fun!!!

In other news, weather is slowly improving and we are hoping by tomorrow there will be much better skies as we are traveling to Cayman Brac (one of the sister islands) and we are going on a propeller plane so we do not want much wind around....

Not sure when I will be posting again, but I'll keep u posted, hoping to share lots of pictures of our trip in the next few days!!!

Have a great day!!!

jinxed weather

Well, I have to admit that with Monday's post I have jinxed the weeks weather...

Yesterday was definitely a "wellies kind" of day,  it started raining non stop from Monday evening and it's been pretty rainy and cloudy all day and all night, meaning we have Depression Sixteen right on top of us!

But don't get me wrong I am not complaining, because this is the worst we've had the entire hurricane season so it's definitely much better than having any real storms coming close to us.

So our season this year like I just said it's been pretty good, even on Sunday when it was cloudy and gloomy we managed to get to the beach, did some snorkeling and although the water was pretty stired up and visibility was bad, I did take some pictures, here are the top 3!

juvenile french angel fish

big crab

beautiful elk horn coral head

Also I took some pictures while on the beach after snorkeling.

hermit crab

lonely beach flower

sunset on a cloudy day

Hoping that TD 16 will not be sticking around for much longer as we have plans to go to Cayman Brac on Friday for the weekend... Here's to good weather and that TD 16 doesn't develop into anything much bigger and that it doesn't affect anybody else.

Have a great day!

can u hear me now?

Isn't it nice when you have something to say or just want to vent and there's actually somebody on the other end of the conversation? Well, that's kind of how I feel when I blog...

When I post, I try to imagine that somebody, anybody out there is reading it. Maybe somebody will feel a connection or at least understand what I want say, maybe not...

Maybe some of the readers are just that, readers, people that do not like to comment, but they like to read...

Being that English is not my first language I constantly wonder if I make myself clear in my ideas...

Well, maybe I don't do so bad, as yesterday a fellow blogger with a lovely blog gave me a beautiful award with a wonderful name "A Blog with Substance", isn't it a great name?

And who doesn't want substance in life and in their blog? I know I do!!!

So, the award comes with some rules and are as follow:

1. Thank the blogger who gave you the award.. So, Thanks, Gracias, Merci,  Jessi!!!

2. Sum up your blogging philosophy, motivation and experience using five words...."This is how I blog!"

Now it's my turn to pass along this wonderful award to some very substantial blogs (in no particular order):

Gods Little People is a must read blog for all of us animal lovers!

Oh la la... it's a wonderful blog about design and decoration, mostly nowadays it's about Heidi's wonderful wedding, so if you feel like looking at some wedding bliss, hit here blog.

I just recently found Joey's Cafe and I have to say I am very happy to have found her, she lives very far from me in Malaysia, and I am sure to find more to discover about her and her culture... can't wait!

In the blog Days of Five Lives, Janelle share with us the life and wonders of a family, plenty of activities with 3 kids to look after, I love her adventures and the way she handles her family being that she is about my age...

And at last my favorite blogger, the one and only man of my dreams and my daily life, my husband at First Time... c'mon go check out his blog, it's awesome, love u babe!!!

So, once again, Thanks Jessi for this wonderful little token, it gives me substance to keep on living life to the fullest and telling about it on my blog!

Have a great Tuesday!