The Holidays & A Little Puppy Named Leo!

I hope everyone's holidays were merry and bright! I had planned on putting up several holiday themed posts but alas, time got away from me. Since it has been so long since my last post I thought it would be best to post a summary of the holidays and what's been happening around here. 

Thanksgiving:

This year Joe and I went to Austin for Thanksgiving. We are originally from Austin and our families still live there. I would've loved to host dinner this year, but now that we live 5 hours away instead of 3 hours, it's harder to get people to come visit. This year we had to split Thanksgiving three ways and it was a little hectic. Hopefully we will get the hang of it and next year will go more smoothly. 

Holiday shopping and crafting:

Between Thanksgiving and Christmas my mom came down to McAllen. It was wonderful, we went shopping, fussed over her new puppy (more about him later), and did some crafts. When she was here, I got all of my Christmas shopping done! That's a big accomplishment for me, normally I'm still out shopping on the 23rd. 

 

Christmas:

We went to Austin for Christmas. Joe's brother and his wife came down from New York for the holiday, they don't always get to come so it was a real treat to have them with us.  Ok, so quick side note, I adore my sister-in-law! She got me the sweetest gift, it's a bracelet that spells out sister with beads in Morse code. Isn't that cool? I think so. We had a very nice Christmas, nothing too eventful, just good times with family. A few days after Christmas I had lunch with my best friend. She lives in California now and we don't get to see each other very often, which of course makes me sad. So getting to see her, even if it was only for lunch, was wonderful!  




Now on to some exciting news: as I mentioned above, my mom got a puppy!

 He is the cutest!!! His name is Leo and he's a dachshund mix. We think he is probably a chiweenie, which is a mix between a dachshund and a chihuahua, but we're not sure. She got him from a shelter in Austin. He had some health problems when my mom first got him, but now he is all better and being a rascal (chewing, nipping, you know the normal puppy stuff). I posted some more pics of him below (I'm very attached to him even though he isn't even my puppy):

Movie Review: Gravity

 I saw this movie in 3D at the theater. 

Gravity

This film is the story of astronauts dealing with catastrophic events that occur during a spacewalk. Without giving too much away, it's a story about the strength of hope and the human spirit. Wow! This movie was awesome, I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. As a child I wanted to be an astronaut, I no longer wish that dream had come true. Not only did this movie make me realize I don't want to go to space, it also made me feel like I had been to space. Sandra Bullock's acting is superb, it would have been easy to overact and make this role melodramatic and unbelievable. George Clooney is charming as usual (feel like he always plays himself, you know, charismatic, handsome, funny). The special effects were fantastic, again it made me feel like I had been to space. My prediction is that this movie is going to be a major contender at the Oscars (lots of people have predicted this). I highly recommend seeing the movie in 3D. If there is a theater near you that's playing it, go see it. Now. 

Rating : A+

DIY: Luminaries

Halloween is over and that makes me sad. I love Halloween for many reasons, costumes, candy, cooler weather (some of the time), jack-o-laterns, parties, scary movies on t.v., and the decorations, just to name a few of them. Not many people know my love for Halloween because unfortunately we have very few Halloween decorations. Every year we carve a pumpkin but that's really it as far as our decorating goes. This year I decided to rectify this situation. A DIY project that could be used for indoor or outdoor decor would be perfect and after some research I decided to make luminaries! You know the paper bags with designs cut out and candles inside illuminating them. I posted a picture of a lit luminaria I made in my Halloween post.

Here is what you will need: 

• Paper bags- I found that gift bags with no handles work best. I got the ones pictured below at Michaels for about $3. 
• A design to cut out of your bags- I picked out a skull design for mine. Just remember the more intricate the design the  more difficult it will be to cut out, also it will take longer to do.
• Scissors, x-acto knife, thumb tack-the thumb tack is for really small holes.
• Tape-to secure your design to the front of the bag.
• Tea candles- I used the fake plastic ones, they don't look too bad in the bag and they are A LOT safer.
• Sand- or something to weigh the bag down.

    

Instructions:

1. With small pieces of tape, tape the design to the front of the bag (the front is the side without the seam). If you cut your design out on the side with the seam, it will show up as a dark line when lit. 

2. Using the x-acto knife, scissors, and thumb tack cut your design out. Be careful not to puncture the other side of the bag, I put a folded up newspaper inside the bag to prevent this. 

3. When you have finished cutting out your design, carefully remove the tape and design from the front of the bag. 

4. Next place about 2-3 inches of sand in the bottom of the bag. If you are not using real candles then you can use something else to weigh bag down. I used two lemons in mine. 

5. Lite the candle (or turn it on if you're using the fake ones). Enjoy!

Important: if using real candles, NEVER leave your luminaria unattended! Paper bags are extremely flammable, so again be careful when using real candles!

Luminaria without lit candle.

I loved the way the luminaries turned out and lucky for me the skull design I picked works for Halloween and Dia de los Muertos!

Happy Halloween!

A Luminaria I made :)

Nail Time!: Black Matte French Tip Nails

Gearing up for a Halloween with this month's manicure! Recently I purchased OPI Matte Top Coat and this was the first time I used it. I LOVE IT! Although I would recommend doing several coats of color and letting them dry completely before applying the matte top coat.

Book Review: The Cuckoo's Calling

I have to admit, I read this book because I heard that J.K. Rowling wrote it under a Pseudonym (which is true).

The Cuckoo's Calling 

A down on his luck P.I., Cormoran Strike, reluctantly agrees to investigate the death of a supermodel. At first glance, the case seems straightforward, like a completed puzzle, but soon the detective notices something amiss, some of the pieces don't fit flush. To help sift through the clues of the case, he begrudgingly accepts the help of his new office temp. From there, the story pulls you in, the questions build, suspects seem more and more suspicious, and soon you're trying to decipher every movement they make. J.K. Rowling does an excellent job of creating a life and world you can enter (we already knew she could do this from the Harry Potter Series). There are several plot twists: some were surprising, some were predictable. The ending, which can make or break a mystery, was good.  But that's it, just good. The main character arrived at some conclusions and I couldn't quite see how he had. Nevertheless, I would recommend this book. Rumor has it that this is the first in a series, and we all know what kind of luck J.K. Rowling has had with those.

Rating: B+

Nail Time!: blue nails with criss-cross accent nail

I love painting my nails, but I'm not sure I love my creation this time. The metallic blue looks a little too Dallas Cowboys to me, especially with the white criss-cross pattern on the left ring finger. What do you think?

Left hand

Right hand