As all great things, they unfortunately come to an end. By the end of the week christinaflis.com will be coming to an end as well. When we started the website there were so many major things going on in my life that having my own website was the best way to tie everything together. There were also several friends of mine that I really wanted to help pursue their dreams, and the website was a great way to help them as well as to show off the totally random fields of work that I excel in. I really loved working with food and music, in addition to writing but that ship has sailed.

Life is funny, one minute you have an amazing big family and in an instant it’s taken away. No matter how many people agree on a single perfect life, there really isn’t one that is meant for everyone. This is something that can only be understood through experience and to do so, unfortunately I must fly blind and have faith that the universe does have my back and I’m making the best decision not only for myself but for my family as well.

I normally like to keep aspects of my personal life to myself and those close to me. Unfortunately the decision to shut down my website and social media outlets is due to my horrid in laws. If you were a fan of mine on Facebook I’m sure you saw the e-cards and statuses that begged them to just please go away and leave us alone (with a few nasty ones thrown in). It appears as if having a website with all of my social media outlets easily accessible has given them more options to try to weasel their way back into our lives.

As if stalking and harassment for years on end wasn’t enough bringing it online has officially brought it too far. We tried moving counties, two cities and now we have even left the state. I have done everything that I can do therefor unfortunately I am shutting everything down so I can live my life without having to deal with them and the reminders of what they have done. Sometimes the best thing to do is leave a situation. We’ve tried freeing ourselves of them however every time we turn around something else happens.

Life lessons aren’t always fun and trust me this lesson sure has not been. All I can tell you is that I learned that you can’t trust everyone and the ones you can, you need to hold on to them tight. Tell them how much you love them and that they mean everything to you. So, to everyone else thank you so much for your love and support. I’ll be saving all of my comments some of them absolutely made my day. I’m going to miss it but my children and their safety comes first.

I wish this final blog had a happy ending alas it does not. Until the day my mother in law and her husband, brother in law and his girlfriend, grandmother in law, and father in law and his wife begin to understand boundaries christinaflis.com is no longer. You can’t seriously expect to make a false DSS report (and want to have us to have anything to do with you) and not only admit to making the report but continuing to admit and apologize for it. Why? Because that  is disgusting. Not only is it disgusting but it is also a felony AND you totally betrayed your son. The only grandson that you have will never know you because of what you did. When he’s old enough to understand what happened he will be able to make the right decision. As far as the girlfriends concerned, looking at your profile and laughing at how fat my brother in law has gotten (karma) one time does not qualify as Facebook stalking. I wouldn’t have even known your name if it weren’t for the snarky comments and random “likes” on my business page to be able to GO to your page. I’m actually glad that you decided to stick your nose in our business (that by the way, you have NO idea what the truth is) because I can finally get rid of those horrible people and keep them away from my children. There is no need for the smart ass e-cards about me and there’s certainly no reason to call my father impersonating me, any of my family and especially me. There is also no need to write friends (who also don’t know you) and put them in awkward positions because you don’t want to have anything to do with people who associate with me. You’ve never even met me before, who are you to judge me? If you don’t want to have anything to do with me, don’t. It’s very simple. But since you all can not comprehend I’ll just eliminate ways for you to bother us. I really hope you can find a new hobby or something else to entertain your lives with.

I know that I’ve talked about quitting smoking for the past 10 months now, but I’m not so sure if I’ve ever told you about the company I use. Vapor 4 Life is amazing! During the course of our many attempts to quit smoking we tried several different brands and have now come to the realization that Vapor 4 Life is by far the best. I have some friends who will disagree, but to each their own! I’m just so glad to see so many friends, family members and random people who ask about them when we’re out making the switch. We were checking out sales because we were considering buying another starter kit when I ran across this contest that they are doing for Valentine’s Day, and there’s nothing I’d love more for Valentine’s Day is for my hubby to have a brand new shiny green “puffer” that has all of the pieces and doesn’t look like it’s been run over by a truck. Hell, even my photographer who snapped this (even though I asked her not to haha) tried mine and really liked it. If your still smoking you should definitely give Vapor 4 Life a try. I tell everyone that we’ve made the switch so I figured I’d open up and put my entry for a new Vapor 4 Life starter kit out to the public and see how many more people we can get to make the switch!!

My husband and I made a spur of the moment switch from smoking to vaping after being asked by our then 5 year old to quit smoking. Since then (March 31st 2012) we dropped our Camel Crushes and picked up some Vapor Titan’s and have been vaping ever since. We have had a couple of issues with mine (I think perhaps of the diamond tip) and I always wind up using one of my husbands when I have one that dies. His poor ecigs. They were green when we bought them but he works so hard he has completely scratched all of the color off! His tips have fallen off from the bottom and I’m surprised it even works at all! We are on our 2nd set of starter kits and have been quit smoking for 10 months and 5 days!! We have also convinced several friends, neighbors, and even my dad and brother to put down the cigarettes and pick up a Vapor Titan. My husband has smoked on occasion, mainly for me so that I could have the ecig while he was at work since we found it is proven it’s harder for women to quit then men. I really want to buy him another starter kit, but we just don’t have the money to right now. I just know that I don’t want him picking up a cigarette because he doesn’t have his “puffer” anymore. He’s my best friend, the love of my life, and the reason why I’ve kept strong after smoking for 12 years. I couldn’t have done this without him and I think he deserves a new starter kit so we can continue to live our lives smoke free and live longer for each other and our children.

One of my closest friends from middle school has now become one of my favorite photographers in WNC. Her company’s motto is “Beauty In Anything” and I absolutely love it. In such an ugly world why focus on that when you CAN find beauty in anything? She’s brilliant! I was first drawn to all of her nature pictures that she kept uploading to her Facebook page. We live in such a beautiful area to photograph. Then one day it just seemed as if she just took off doing a variety of sessions including: children, nature, maternity, engagement, nature and weddings. She just recently launched her website Beauty In Anything where she shows off her various different styles of photography. Make sure that you keep an eye out for more pictures because I know that she has a lot lined up.

I can’t believe my dear friend has so much talent at her fingertips! She has turned into quite an amazing photographer and I couldn’t be more proud. It seems like just yesterday we were in high school having sleepovers and watching movies and now she is taking spectacular pictures of my family, my children, and myself! I just had my first photo shoot with her two weeks ago, and we are already working on planning some more! I can’t wait to get my disk full of pictures I’m going to be helping her out a little bit with some social media, we’re going to her her business page up on Twitter and Pinterest so you don’t miss out on a single one of her amazing pictures. If you live in WNC or are coming to Asheville for your next vacation, make sure you get pictures from Beauty In Anything before you leave. I promise you won’t regret it! There are so many beautiful things to see and places to go here in WNC so make sure you have a great photographer with you so that you don’t miss out a single moment of your family fun time and let Jenna focus on finding Beauty In Anything!

The end of November and all of December were so busy this year! My friend Jennifer and I got an extra early head start on our Christmas baking (luckily) since we both have so much family to bake for. We also got a great head start on our Christmas shopping and got everything that we needed before Thanksgiving was over, for baking and gifts for others! I also had decided earlier in the year to make treat bags for all of the kids in my son’s class, just to make sure everybody got at least a little something this holiday season! He was so happy to help put all of the bags together, and even happier to have us in his classroom. The day we delivered all of the goodies for the kids, PTA called and they needed a hand with some baked goods for the teachers so I threw together a few platters of deliciousness to make sure that the teachers were well taken care of too! Hey, it’s the least I can do for them taking such good care of my little guy when I can’t be with him! I have a few pictures of what I did posted on Pinterest, if you aren’t following my food blogging board now is a good time to do so! We have a lot of fun, new and exciting things planned for this year after the holidays and our early January birthday festivities are over. Well, now that my living room is filled with wrapping paper and boxes I guess it’s time for me to go play with some new toys and start making some cinnamon rolls, one of my favorite holiday traditions! From our family to yours, I hope you all have Happy Holidays and here’s to a happy and successful New Years with new beginnings!

I know at the beginning of November, everyone started posting daily their 30 Days of Thanks. I just haven’t had the time for it this year so I sporadically started jotting things down throughout the month that I was thankful for and figured I’d throw it all together, on the last day of the month to say all of the things I am thankful for. With my schedule it’s a lot easier for me to go ahead and do my whole 30 Days of Thanks in one day rather than trying to keep up each day of the month! November is officially the start of holiday mayhem in the Flis household, but I have a lot to be thankful for. So on this last day of November, here are my 30 Days of Thanks.

30 Days of Thanks

1. Waking up each morning. You never know what life will throw your way and with my long list of health issues, I thank God every morning I wake up and get to hug my husband and my kids. My PD might make me grumpy in the mornings but I’m still thankful.

2. My husband. We sure have had our fair shares of ups and downs (and then some) but he is still my rock. He is still by my side and we just continue getting stronger everyday. I’m so thankful he’s mine. He is my superman and I don’t know where I’d be without him.

3. Our children. My life. My world. My everything. The main reason I want to pull my hair out (as my toddler stands on the computer chair behind me pulling my ponytail) but both my boys are so amazing in their own special ways. I am thankful to be their mother and that they have so much love for each other. I was told my whole life I would never have children and God blessed me with two beautiful and healthy sons to teach and watch grow up. I am thankful for the most rewarding and demanding experience ever.

4. Our apartment. It may be small but we love it. It’s warm, it’s safe, it’s in a great school district and it is perfect for us while we are trying to decide which state we want to buy a house in. So many people in the city I live in can’t afford housing so I am thankful that my husband makes sure we have a roof over our heads.

5. Our car. We may only have one and it may be older but we don’t care. So many memories have been made in that car, and even though it doesn’t like the cold it’s OK because we don’t either so we’re moving to a warmer climate by the water. Then we will all be happy I’m thankful our car is paid off so we have one less bill to pay.

6. My siblings. I have learned a lot from them, mostly bad (haha) but isn’t that what siblings are for?! I love them both more than they will possibly know, we aren’t a family who shows a lot of emotion. Calling my brother an asshole is our way of saying hey. I love you. But I don’t want to say it. But I do. I may not see them or talk to them as often as I’d like but no matter how long it is between phone calls and visits I am a very lucky little sister.

7. My parents. Of course without them I wouldn’t A) Be here or B) have my siblings! We may not see eye to eye on all things or be as close I wish but I love them dearly and they always support me and my decisions no matter how good or bad they may be. They love my children and would do anything for them and that’s what TRUE grandparents do. I am very thankful for this.

8. My friends. They may be few and far between but the ones who are still left are the truest of all friends. Especially my BEST friend. We have seen each other through a lot the past 11 years and is practically an Aunt to my children. I hope one day to make her the Godmother of my boys. She is the only one who could possibly love them as much as my husband and I do. I don’t know what I’d do without her friendship, I’m very thankful to have such great friends.

9. My “boss”. My other best friend. The only person who will literally drop anything on a dime to pick me up if I need her…or should I say when I need her. I would be nowhere without her help and guidance and I’m thankful we can carry such a strong friendship through our fields of work.

10. My cousins. We may not be as close as we were when we were kids but we still manage to keep in touch. I’m thankful to have such awesome cousins and I can’t wait until we are all closer together.

11. My Aunts and Uncles. They have taught me so much about life, expressed their points of views, and have given me clarity on many different situations that are hard to talk about. Most of them are scattered all over the US and I wish I had the money to go visit everybody!

12. Food.I love food. I love cooking. I love baking. I love catering. I’m thankful my husband shares my passion of food and can provide us with plenty of ingredients for us to cook delicious food and that I can share it with everybody.

13. Beautiful days in the mountains. I’ve lived here twenty years off and on, however my time here is almost over. But Good Morning Nailed it when they called our city one of the most beautiful cities in America.

14. Road trips. Considering I was born in NH and have family in Mass and Maine, moved down to NC, out to CA and back, then down to Florida I have had my fair share of road trips. I feel lucky, blessed, and thankful I have been able to enjoy the ride down the entire eastcoast and to the westcoast

15. The ability to be able to work from home. I don’t want to miss out on a single minute of my precious angles growing up. However, I was very independent before I had the children so it’s important for me to be able to try to help out my husband whenever possible. Sure it’s hard to juggle (as I’m not being spun in circles) but somehow I’ve managed to be able to make it work and for that I am thankful.

16. Teacher work days. I know my baby is only in kindergarten but man, his little brother and I sure miss him while he’s at school. Days off with both my boys are far from productive but it’s totally worth all the fun and mess we make!

17. Memories. May they be good or bad, they have made me into the woman I am today. I’m far from perfect and have been doing a lot physically and mentally to make myself a better person, wife and mother. I am thankful for the memories I have that can help me become the best that I can be.

18. My jobs. In this economy it’s not much but it is definitely something, and better yet it’s something I can enjoy. Catering and food blogging feed my passion for food and writing is my release from the world and my thoughts. It’s nice to be able to construct something so beautiful either edible or with a pen and paper and I am very thankful for those talents God has given to me.

19. Bath and Body Works. Yes. This is really something that should be on this list! The only 15-20 minutes of absolute quiet time I ever get is in the shower. Thankfully they have an amazing line of True Blue Spa products that my husband has completely overfilled our bathroom with. Between the True Blue Spa, Shea Cashmere, and aromatherapy candles and oil burners all over our house my skin and mentality are very thankful for this store!

20. Quitting smoking!! Tomorrow will be 8 months that I’ve been smoke free. I won’t lie, I did have a cigarette and half of a black n mild during that time but for someone who smoked for 12 years this is a major accomplishment. My girl is will have been smoke free for an entire YEAR on the 5th and I couldn’t be prouder. In addition, my brother has quit as well! Maybe one day we will put down our “puffers” but we are all doing something great for our health and I couldn’t be more proud or thankful for the extra years of life added by this life changing decision.

21. Naps. Between being so sick, the kids being sick, my husband being sick, and pretty much my life constantly being go go go I have learned to really love naps. Whether I’m snuggled up with a child or two or hogging the bed to myself, every minute of extra sleep really helps! I am thankful for any opportunity that pops up that I can nap!

22. Weekends. Again, I won’t lie. I used to despise them. When my husband and I went through our rough patch last August, we clearly never resolved it the proper way and we used to argue every weekend. However, now are lives are coming back together after falling apart and I LOVE having the weekends with all 3 of my favorite guys.

23. Pizza and movie nights on Fridays. A new tradition in the Flis family. Back in the day we used to have TGIF but now we like to keep it simple. We make homemade pizza (or calzones) since we are boycotting Papa Johns (and mines better anyways) and watching a movie. It’s a great way to start the weekend and I’m thankful we have that time to spend together as a family.

24. Curious George. Man, I really get a lot of work done when that little monkey is on TV. Both the boys love him and so do I! I might even get to finish this blog without having my hair pulled or being spun around and for THAT I am thankful!!

25. My Droid. It was my “nice” Valentines gift from my husband and I absolutely love it. I am thankful WordPress has an app so I can work if my computer isn’t or if I am not at home and I am thankful for the Pinterest app!!

26. Nights we can enjoy dinner together as a family. Cooking and eating are a big part of our lives and luckily my husband is typically home from work in time for dinner. The nights that he isn’t here are very lonely. I always say, a family that eats together stays together. I am thankful that 98% of the time we get to enjoy dinner together.

27. Lazy days in PJ’s. I love my PJ’s and since I work from home I generally stay in them until the kids are asleep and I can finally take a shower. But I am the MOST thankful for those days we can stay in our PJ’s all day and do absolutely nothing but eat and have fun!

28. Peanut butter crackers. I just noticed I was getting a little shaky and pulled some out of my desk drawer to help level me out! I am thankful that something so delicious can help me feel better!

29. Swagbucks. I love swagbucks. I’ve been using their search engine for well over a year and have saved all of the gift cards I’ve earned for Christmas gifts. I have saved so much money just by using swagbucks instead of Google! I love saving money so I am thankful I can search the web and save money at the same time!

30. You. Whoever reading this. I don’t know who you are, I don’t know if you just clicked on the link or if you’ve actually read all the way to the bottom but without my family, friends, fans, pinterest, I wouldn’t be doing this. I am thankful for you, I am thankful that my job can bring you to my website or the Foodie Blog I work with to enjoy something delicious with your family.

So there you are, my 30 Days of Thanks. I have much more in life to be thankful for but that wasn’t the challenge! Did you do a 30 Day of Thanks this year?!

Despite the pain and misery I’ve been going through the past couple of months, I was pleasantly surprised and humbled when I saw my random birthday coffee concoction (My Starbucks Frappuccino Recipe) was up to 2,032 repins! I had no idea there were so many people who love these frappaccino’s as much as I do! I can’t believe it’s been repinned 2000 times in just 4 months. I’d love to see that number keep going up!

Thank you so much for turning my birthday drink (which I think is not only delicious but cost effective) into more than just a frappaccino recipe but a gift that I could share with you guys and one that keeps giving back to me. Each repin and comment just absolutely makes my day.

I do apologize for not responding to comments as quickly as I’d like, as I said in my last blog and earlier I’ve been very ill and I can’t keep up with the comments fast enough, they just keep flooding in. As soon as I am back to feeling like myself again, I’m going to get back to the experimenting process by making several pitchers. I’ll also be working on trying to figure out a single serving. Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten about the various different questions, and requests. Throughout the holiday season I’ll also be experimenting with other seasonal flavor combinations.

Thank you again everybody but for now I must run. It’s SoulCole Saturday! My favorite radio DJ out in Hollywood, California’s program “what’s REALLY good” is on my 7-9 my time (eastcoast rep!) and 4-6 on the leftcoast. I love how his show showcases so many different styles of music, there’s something for everyone and of course he plays my boys from CrazyHorse & Colston! You should check him out on TuneIn Radio on KCLA FM 99.3. Have a great weekend!

I feel like I’ve neglected you guys! Life has been so busy the past couple of months I haven’t even had time to turn on my computer. I just thought I’d throw together a quick blog to let you guys know what’s been going on in the past few months since it’s been so long that  I’ve been able to blog. It feels good to be back to myself again! It’s been so long since I’ve had enough time and patience to be able to sit and write. I absolutely love being back!

I spent the majority of August with my kids and getting to know our awesome new neighbors. My girl Sam is awesome! We got lucky with this move. My oldest son also started school and I wanted to make sure he had an amazing summer while preparing him for kindergarten.  It’s absolutely amazing how quickly they grow up. He is doing so well, I couldn’t be more proud of him! He is even doing well with his Cookie Dough Fundraiser for his school (you know you want some). I couldn’t be more thankful for such an amazing little boy! Where does the time go? I can’t believe I’ll be doing it again in 3 years! It’s been so long that I’ve been in school, and it’s really making me want to go back so that we can do it together.

In addition, all four of us are sick with different symptoms. It’s been a vicious month of cold tag. Our big guy brought home every sickness from school possible (just kidding). However, I am finally starting to feel a little bit better! I’ve replied to all of the comments on my Starbucks Frappuccino Recipe, and I’m slowly catching up on all my social media networks. Ideas for Music Mondays have started rolling through my mind so keep an eye out. Just because it’s been so long doesn’t mean I won’t be back soon!

It’s already that time of year again, time for the Mountain Xpress Best of 2012! The Mountain Xpress is by far the BEST magazine for anything and everything Asheville. Whether it’s local news, local music, local art (I love their cartoonist) , or local events The Mountain Xpress is the one place where you can find it all. Every year they have the “Best of WNC” poll where they ask their readers to go here and start voting for all of their favorite things Asheville. Whether you are from here, or come here to vacation there’s bound to be something here that you will fall in love with. The voting is broken down 11 sections and 261 categories. They say it’s best to vote for 30+ to make sure your ballot is counted. You can vote for basically anything there is to do in Asheville including music, which is why for Music Monday we must give mad props to The Mountain Xpress, for making this extraordinary magazine and voting possible for the newest local legends. My boys CrazyHorse & Colston were honored to come in 3rd place for Best Local Hip Hop and I’m hoping to see them claim that number one spot that they deserve! After the release of “Backroads & Bonfires” and their performance at Bele Chere, it should be a piece of cake! Make sure you go vote for the in the Mountain Xpress Best of 2012 for Best Local Hip Hop!!

Speaking of number one spots, my friend Aaron LaFalce won for Best Radio Personality and also Singer/Songwriter in the Mountain Xpress Best of 2012 . Unfortunately there is no singer/songwriter category this year so I’m hoping to see him in the #1 spot again for Best Radio Personality!

I’m also extremely excited the my friend Ms. Laura Michaels has released her debut album “Words of Wisdom” and is diving into the Mountain Xpress Best of 2012 in hopes to claim that #1 spot for Acoustic/Folk Band.  I hope all of you in our area will take 5-10 minutes and show some love to The Mountain Xpress and make sure you get your votes for the Mountain Xpress Best of 2012!!

Tonight’s the night. The one we have been patiently (or in my case no so patiently) waiting for since April when we heard the good news! Not only are we going to have some kick ass hip hop at Bele Chere but the one and only CrazyHorse & Colston and going to be throwing it down tonight at 6:30!! I’m so stoked that there is actually going to be hip hop at Bele Chere this year. Once they hear CrazyHorse & Colston, they will be begging to have them back ever year. I highly suggest you get downtown early so that you have enough time to park so your not trying to run through the masses of people who have come to our area for this massive street party. If you missed my blog about The 20 Somethings, now is a GREAT time to go check out their blog. Tyler breaks Bele Chere down into normal Asheville terminology and will tell you exactly what you can expect if this is your first Bele Chere experience! I actually laughed pretty hard at the honest truth about our city during this crazy weekend in our little town! They have such a great blog, I highly suggest you check them out! I know I typically don’ t write anything this short and simple but hey, tonight’s the night! I have things to do, my stylist is coming over, and cleaning before the babysitter get’s here! Again, I really hope to see you there! If I am choosing to go to Bele Chere for the first time in 5 years then there is NO reason why you shouldn’t come join us at LEAST to watch CrazyHorse & Colston preform for the first time since they released their CD “Backroads & Bonfires”. I’m so excited that tonight’s the night!!!!

Hey everyone! I just wanted to take a minute to let everyone know about a give-a-way that’s going on over at It’s Foodtastic! which is where I’m a regular contributor! I know some of you were drawn to my page from my catering services, or just being around me and eating all my food in general or from my Starbucks Frappuccino Recipe (thanks Pinterest)! What some of you MAY not know is that the recipes that I’m not keeping to myself, or are being used for my catering business are going up at itsfoodtastic.com. The foodie blog was started by a very good friend of mine, combining her enthusiasm in food and writing and her husbands knowledge from being a culinary student. Early last year I started to do a few guest blogs for her and somehow I’m writing on the regular and loving every second of it! They started it two years ago, which is why we are doing a give a way! It’s really easy to enter to win also and I’m going to show you the EASIEST way to do it!

Easiest Way to Enter the $50 Restaurant.com E-Gift Card Give-A-Way

• Go become a fan of mine on Facebook here.
• The highlighted story posted right after this one is the link from itsfoodtastic.com
• Once you get to the specific blog post “Our 2nd Blogiversary!” at the bottom you will see  “Use the Rafflecopter below to enter”
• There are a few different things that you can do to earn entries. Each option gives you a different amount of points with a total of 14 possible entries.

Options for $50 Restaurant.com E-Gift Card Give-A-Way

• Leave a comment with your favorite It’s Foodtastic! recipe
• “Like” us on Facebook
• Follow us on Twitter
• Tweet about the give-a-way (you can do this daily for an extra entry)
• Subscribe to RSS feed
• “Like” or “Share” the original post about the give-a-way from the It’s Foodtastic! fan page.

It’s really that simple. I just checked an there are only 30 entries which means a higher odds of winning! Make sure you enter!