My life as a wifey

TV? What TV?

2014-12-05T07:45:00.001+00:00

So, I've been at this whole mommy-hood deal for a little over a year now. It's been awesome. I've learned so much about myself, about motherhood, and about how patient I can be. I found that it doesn't matter that your house isn't always clean, that you can't always nap when you want to, dressing cute is not a necessity at all times (Although I try my best), and that your TV is no longer yours.

Yep, I gained a son, lost an electronic. TV was my outlet to see what craziness was going on in the world, be it with the news, reality TV, or cooking shows. I used it to see what the current fashion trend was, how people wore their hair, the current slang, music, etc. Now, learning about Elmo's favorite way to color, or how fast a snail can go, or how Team Umi Zoomi helped their friend Charlie put a sub sandwich together seems to be my daily dose of what's in the know for today's society.

I remember pre-child days, after a long day of work, I used to watch trashy talk shows, reality TV shows, or a good foreign movie to help unwind and relax. It was my way to let my brain relax from the stressful day I had. I would totally veg out on the couch...and it was great! Now, after a long day of working on creating paper goods, or cleaning the house, I have to sit and unwind to the sounds of various renditions of the ABC's, Elmo counting, or even Gangna, Style (Youtube shiz). And sometimes during the day, I find myself singing kid TV show opening songs, like so.....

Got this song stuck in your head didn't I?

And then when you try and change the channel because your little person seems to be occupied, all of a sudden you are the worst person in the world, because now your child is flailing his arms around crying on the floor bloody murder because you changed the channel! Bad parent.

I so missed the days where I was able to watch my favorite reality TV show, then discuss about how much you hate one of the characters on the show with your mate. Or having your friends recite a line from a movie, and you would know what movie it came from, because movies were your thang. I was that person. Movies were my thang! Talking ish about a TV character was my thang. I totally lost my mojo. Now, when my friends recite movie lines and look at me to say the title, I just shrug my shoulders and say, "Turbo!" I feel like such a has-been.

Before I became a mom, I swore up and down that I would never lose touch with society. I will always know all cool dance moves, songs, movies, etc. But these little people tend to take over your life and take that away from you. But I can see it as a good thing. That means you're being selfless....putting this god given gift before you. Their needs are more important than yours.....At least that's what I tell myself to compensate for my lack of TV time.....

I'm Alive!

2014-12-04T05:52:00.000+00:00

So it's been months... years....and butt loads of hours and days....but guess what? I'M ALIVE!!!! My bad for not keeping up with this wonderful virtual diary for the public...but so much has happened, that literally, my life as a wifey has forbade me time to keep this blog updated. Well....here I am, with time, all caught up...and hopefully I will keep up. Anywhos.....let me catch up, cliff notes style::

I have since had a little boy, named Camden. Because of this little boy, I have become more responsible, and patient, and I have become one of those parents whose phones are infested with videos and pictures like so:

Random baby body part pictures of your little one that only you and your hubby can enjoy, but think everyone else will squeal just as much as you do....

Mommy and baby selfies....so that it doesn't look so self absorbed....but yet you really want people to see how cute you are because your'e a mom.

So yeah....I'm a parent. Never thought of me as a parent type, but turns out I love it!

Secondly, I am no longer residing in beautiful rainy England. Meh. Our time ran out, and were destined to move farther away...this time Asian style. We are now residents of Japan. Land of the rising sun, peace signs, and sushi galore.

Although my tastebuds are loving life right now....I'm not so sure this part of the world is my cup of Tea. I would much rather get a taste of Earl Grey rather than Brown Rice. I mean, don't get me wrong, the landscapes are BEEE-U-TEE-FUL, the people are amazingly nice, and the culture is rich and inspiring....but like I said...I'm a more Earl Grey type of chick. Just trying to make the best of what life has given us, which is the only thing to do with life. Otherwise, I'd be the grumpiest most unpleasant person you could meet, that would curse the world whilst carrying huge signs condemning all people who are happy. And, I mean, life is too short to live with that type of attitude.

But I must say, Japan is pretty quirky, and I learned to love all its quirkiness. I mean, what other country would sell kid pants with the word, "Bitch," sewed on the pant leg, or ear plugs that looks like someone is growing out of your ear? To them, that's normal, for me, that's pretty badass.

OK, so baby: check, Japan: check, Money making: here we go....

So, on top of being a mother, housewife, and having a social life, I decided that, that wasn't enough and that I would like to pursue my business a bit more whilst living over here. So, Aimes Design has been resurrected and more of my time has been invested in creating something that allows me to create for others.

I love my business. It makes me happy to see that my creations make other people happy, and their parties look pretty. It's just an awesome feeling. And creating has always been very therapeutic for me. It's a blessing. A blessing that can stress me out when business gets busy, but still a blessing. Can I show you what I have made? If you don't, scroll down, cause I'm gonna post my shiz anyway , HA!

From Ninja parties...

....to Milkaholic baby showers.....

.....to TMNT.....

....to Willy Wonka.

I'm everywhere when it comes to orders....but I love it!

I kinda also became a bit of a Arts and crafts Bazaar whore while at it too. Can't help myself. I love makin paper!

So with my son, housewife duties, and money making duties.....it was impossible to catch up on this blog biz over here. Seriously, I'm hoping that I keep this up, it's tons of fun doing this, and I love having people see what kind of life us military wives living overseas live, no matter how hard or blessed it may be.

So Cheers to life! I'll see you soon!

Heaven Sent

2012-02-06T17:39:00.000+00:00

After seeing Madam Madonna's Superbowl halftime performance and getting totally blown away....I had to look back in the Madonna archives and watch her past amazingness.

Being totally mesmorized by her ability to inspire and express herself in her own Madonna kind of away, I only HAD to post one of her classic videos that made way for various present artists nowadays.

This being my most favorite music video of hers, and was the video that caused me to wear crosses as accessories as a youngster....yeah....it did. I thought this was the best way to represent just how true and raw this bitch is. Madonna, greatly known for expressing herself in super sexual and controversial ways, created a story and told it as truthful as she could. She told it in a truth that scared the population back in the day. ANd I'm really glad that she scared the public, because if she didn't, we'd still be in denial about what really is happening around us in society.

Being a faithful little catholic chick, this video related to me like hell. First of all....It had the big boss....Jesus, but what I liked about it was that he was of color. Second of all, she wasn't all sexualized in this video....she was super natural, it related to real life, and she expressed her story in such a way, it imprinted itself into your mind without direct words....just through strong images....

Anyways....I may not be making any sense or what not, but just watch the video, let the chick entrance you, and dance bitches!

Let it snow....PLEASE!

2012-02-05T10:34:00.000+00:00

Awwwww Ships!!!!

IT'S SNOWING!!!!!! And you want to know something else more exciting about the snow??? I don't have to go to work!!!!

Yup, it's my first Snow day EVER! Which means that although I am on the schedule to work today, this beautiful snow cockblocked my work day...but in a good day. This excites me so. Reals.

Being a girl of Cali, and the Sun is my friend 80% of the year, snow is something quite new to me. Although it may seem like something as little as overcast clouds to the Brits, the snow makes this happy little wifey giggle with glee. AND it makes me go into overdrive giggle mode that work has been cancelled due to this fluffy white cold happiness! I tell you...it's the little things.

But anyways.....I've been working tons this past week. Be it work on base...or work with my Aimes Design site. http://www.etsy.com/shop/Aimes88 (quick plug) I was about to tear my body apart because I was shattered with tiredness.

Sooooo....after work yesterday, I sit on the couch.....rested for 5 minutes, and took a look outside....and to my best surprise....I see small little white specks falling from the sky. Booooy....I tell you. I almost did a touchdown dance at the sight of those little pieces of frost. So, after working a little more on a few orders...I rushed upstairs, tucked myself into bed and forced myself to sleep like a kid on Christmas Eve.

And guess what I saw when I woke up?

Yeeeeyah buddy!!! So.....hearing about these situations about work being cancelled due to snow days....and knowing that I had work today....I had no bloody clue what to do. Should I risk driving to base to work? What if I get into an accident? What if the base was closed? What if I had work, and didn't go....I might get fired? Who do I call to find out? And I must admit...I tried the FB thing with posting questions on my status hoping to get it answered. And I appreciate those who have tried to help. *Gratitude*

So after pacing around my house and letting the dog play a bit to kill time....

...I call my work. I was praying someone would be there...and to my delight there was. One of the managers was there and wasn't sure if we were to come into work or not. When I hard him answer the phone though....my heart dropped. I was like, "damn, if he's there....I might have to trudge the cold sludge and work." He said he was going to call me back in about 10 mins to give me the word. Staring at my phone until it rang, 2 minutes later......BAM! PARTY TIME!!!! No work for me! * Touchdown dance!*

I was elated. I finally get a chance to gather up my energy and get things done SON! I must say....snow is a beautiful thing.

HAPPY SNOW DAY!!!!!

England's Got Good News

2012-02-04T10:57:00.000+00:00

I used to always hate watching the News.

Before the life of marriage, when I was a single independent working woman and my parents were my housemates, I would come home after a long day of work, sit down to a full home cooked dinner and dine with my breeders accompanied by the evening news. I always looked forward to sitting down and catching up with my parentals about the day's events and digesting home cooked goodness....but then my satisfied mind would soon be corrupted by all that the TV displayed.

Being a lover of all things animated and happy, everytime I watched the news, I discovered that the world wasn't the happy place I always dreamt it to be. EVERY single day, I would sit down to dinner and learn on the telly that ANOTHER person has been stabbed, there has been another shooting in a neighboring city, ANOTHER child had become missing, people got burgled, etc, etc, sad, depressing, disturbing. Another thing that got me was that, 99% of these instances took place in cities 30 minutes away....some even in my own hood.

I used to always vent to my parents that I wanted to move out of Cali, because life was just too damn G H E T T O for me over there. I mean, I started to be afraid to walk to my car after choir practice at night, I hated going to the neighboring mall all by myself because someone might try to stab me, I was even scared to honk at people on the freeway because of all the shootings I heard about because of someone honking. It was muy reDONKulous.

Welp, now I'm married, living overseas....and the News and violence are like teddy bears and candy in a happy little field.

First of all, the events in the news about my neighboring city rarely gets a spot in the paper. The stuff that happens over here is as boring as fungus growing on a tree. Yeah, we do get a random arrest or stabbing scattered once or twice a year, but it's child's play. And that makes me happy.

I mean, the biggest thing in the news right now is David Beckham's new underwear line and his HUGE billboard in posted in London.

And quite frankly...I think all news should be about something like so....jus sayen....

Also....another thing in the news that was quite the debate was the ban of this beer name Hotty Totty in council or something like that. They wanted to ban the beer because they thought the name was degrading to women and apparently it was a huge discussion and such. IDK....it had me snickering at work because the things they were saying were all minor and child's play....and I liked it.

Stabbings are a rarity, shootings are just unheard of. I mean, to show you how safe it is over there, the cops don't even carry guns. They went all Demolition man and are armed with their trusty baton. When my hubby and I decide to act young and go out in town to party hardy, by the end of the night, instead of seeing dozens of police lights, and drunkies beating the hell out of eachother, you see belligerent British blokes who can't hold their liquor being scolded by an unarmed cop like a parent and the drunk punk complying with them. It's CUH RAAAAZEEE!!!!

I mean, the way the cops yell and manhandle the drunkies is totally unheard of in the states. The fuzz have no problem shoving these guys, pushing them up against the wall, yelling all kind of bad stuff at them. I mean, if a cop back home were to attempt that with a citizen, ooooo boy....LAWSUIT! Reals. But like I said, these blokes comply with the abusive cops and go home to mummy and daddy.

But anyways, yeah. It's pretty dang safe over here, and quite frankly I must say, because of the lack of violence, I'm a happier person and my life is fill with rainbows and unicorns again.

Happy HUMP DAY!!!!

2012-01-25T14:17:00.001+00:00

Aaaaaaaand, speaking of humps, let me share this song with you all on this fabulous Wednesday.

As always, this hot latin sexy piece of a man has put me in a good mood, and caused my big o' booty to shimmy shake shake. Hope it does the same for you all!

HAPPY HUMP DAY!!!!

BTW....if by any chance Mr. 305 has come upon this blog entry right here via bing or google, I just want you to know that you are gorgeous, you are yummy, and you blow my mind with your music. And I have a TINY crush on you. Please comment if you would like to say thank you. :) BAAAIYYEEE!!!

Warrior woman

2012-01-24T00:22:00.000+00:00

Pretty monthly, I tend to have obsessions. Maybe it may have something to do with my womanly estrogen characteristics, but for some reason I tend to get a major obsession that seems to take over my mind and will not go away, until I satisfy it in any way I can. Be it food, clothing, music, TV shows, housewares, hobbies, I always find myself running through a dark tunnel with no end until I have either eaten, bought, watched, or heard that current craving multiple times. And it will continue to satisfy that craving until it becomes my, "so last month" item.

With that being explained, my obsession for the month is Aztec print.
I. LOVE. THIS. F'N. PRINT. No lie.

Whenever I enter any type of place where you can exchange money for goods, I am on a scavenger hunt for that beautiful ancient pattern. I will be on the hunt for a good hour or more, until I feed my need for that pattern, or until I see an angry face on my impatient husband....

This past month, I have accumulated beautiful accessories and pieces of clothing that can make me pass for an Aztec warrior goddess. True story. It's pretty insane on how much this pattern tickles my fashion button. But I cannot get enough.

What I love most about this style trend right now is that, not only does it seem so raw and entertaining my eyes, I love the complexity of the shapes, and awesomeness of the color combos. It's like a kaleidoscope of aztec eye candy that keeps me entertained for days. And it adds so much zing to an outfit when you feel like dressing "blah," but still want to add a hint of "fashion trendy."

I must say, I must extend my gratitude to all the clever fashion designers, because if it weren't for them I would have had to rock Aztec patterns in outfits like these

if in order to represent the beautiful patterns in public. But because clothing designers are cool like that, they have created a way for us to rock this beautiful pattern with sick pieces of clothing like these.

And thank God for that, because me and a headdress don't mingle like that.

Anyway, just thought I'd share with you all my thoughts about this FAB fashion trend right now. It's awesome.

PRETTY SALES!!!

2012-01-19T22:49:00.000+00:00

So my time in the UK is beginning to lessen and my collection of Pretty wonders has continued to grow. Therefore, to prevent less treasure to pack, I have started my PRETTY SALES!!!!

Selected items in my shop will be marked down to $5, and will remain that price until sold, or until my move to Italy. Yes, my friends, Italia will be my home in July. :)

Also, throughout the next few months, I will be selecting certain items to partake in the sale and will only be apart of the $5 party for a limited time. Which items will they be????? Keep checking my store to find out!

Cheers!!!!

PS....I apologize for another leave of absence from my beloved blog. I promise from here on out, I will be a better mother to this creation of mine..... again CHEERS!

Happy Holidays!!!!!

2011-12-03T12:24:00.001+00:00

This right hurrrr...is my most favorite commercial for the Christmas season. It sparked the hand on heart with an, "awwwww," and *gasp* reaction. It's pretty long, but everytime it comes on the telly, I get all juiced and shizz. Please watch it....it will change your life. HA!

Happy Holidays!!!!!

Keeper

2011-10-22T12:45:00.000+01:00

Many a times, I tend to complain about the hubby and certain actions he commits and makes me question what I was thinking the day we wedded. Other times, I am head over heels and am so thankful for the man that I have in my life.

I'm having one of the good times.

So my lover is a firefighter. Unlike many other married couples, where they sleep together every night in the same bed, I get that every other day. See, because their occupation consists of them saving other people's lives and to be on call whenever a "stranger danger" type deal happens. Their occupation requires that they reside at their job place for at least 24 hours. Which means, my husband goes to work at 7am in the morning, and does not return until 8am the next morning. Yay me.

So anyways, today is the man's off day. Being that it is normal for the wife to cook the husband dinner after a long day's work, every other morning I tend to my breakfast cooking duties for my hungry firefighter.

Today's an exception and I got lucky. Being that it's my day off and it's a Saturday, I like to take advantage of that and sleep in and be lazy all morning. It's only right. And because my husband is so amazing, he made it happen. What made it even better was that I didn't ask him to make breakfast, he did it on his own.

What was awesome was that he actually came home with a bag full of groceries and became iron chef. He fried bacon, sausages, toasted bread, cooked eggs, and grilled some mushrooms and created a full english breakfast. Fatty Girl is H.A.P.P.Y!

Today's technique that he used to create such a wonderful breakfast was move his tongs to the sound of loud music. Whatever works for him, and if loud music helps him create such delish dishes like this...

...then more power to him.

Anyways, after seeing him set the table full of condiments and napkins placed pretty under silverware, I realized what a good guy I got....now if only he would just stop being annoying.....

How to make an amateur look Professional

2011-10-21T23:44:00.001+01:00

You gotta love lazy money hungry Americans! Reals! If it weren't for those 2 factors, illiterate cooking people, like me would never be able to bake or cook good looking and tasting food.

See, I have a past. Me and food never got along in the kitchen. It was like an Ike and Tina relationship. Someone always left physically hurt. And most of the time, I played the part of Tina. Actually....make it ALL the time. But after I entered married world, my cooking has improved....but never really stayed consistent. But I found that cooking with a handicap, AKA, using gadgets or concoctions that made cooking a lot more possible, my kitchen skills have thus improved.

So yeah, thanks to the Americans that are lazy and money hungry, I was able to make these yummy puppies, post it on Facebook, and look like I knew what I was doing::

Brownies with buried chocolate skeletons. Sounds enticing doesn't it? Tastes pretty damn good too.

Knowing my cooking past, I obviously did not make all this from scratch. Because if I did, it WOULD look like scratch. Chicken scratch....and possibly not only look but taste like shit as well. FO' reals. I mean, yeah, I am an artsy fartsy type of chick who loves nothing more but to create things from nothing with my hands and shizz like so, but when it comes to cooking, all that creativity suddenly decides that it don't know me no more, and I am just weak sauce. No pun intended.

Let me explain how I was able to pretend that I knew what the hell I was doing.

For the good tasting brownies, the magic that created those chocolate flufflies was Betty Crocker. Nuff said.

Now for the good looks

Being that I work at the arts and crafts center on base now, my eyes have been opened to even more types of possibilities in creativity. One being baking and making candy and stuff.

One of the most popular things that we sell, and seems to be hot shit right now are candy molds. What they look like is this::

And what you do is this:

Pretty spiffy, I think. Also, looks pretty harmless as well...

And this is the packaging cover. The selling point. THIS picture right here not only made me "ooooh" and "aaaah" with delight, but it gave me ideas. Ideas which were way over my head and out of my league. But because there was an, "everything in the store is 50% off" sale, I continued with my optimism and said, "what the hell, let's try it."

So I made it.....and above was the outcome. Although the concept was really easy, Amy, being Amy, still made major boo boos during the process. After successfully warming up the chocolate in the microwave, pretending I was on Martha Stewart status, I mixed the melted chocolate with a silicone spatula, poured the chocolate into a squeeze bag thingy, and copied the instructions.

This was the turn of events to follow my Martha Stewart mode: I burned my hand from the hot chocolate in the bag, some black stuff popped out of the spout ( I have no idea where it came from), I somehow burned something, because something smelled like it was burning, green chocolate started to infest our kitchen counters, broken skeleton limbs, and this.....

I simply gave up took the easy way out. After creating 2 skeleton brownies, I simply took the remainder of the chocolate and just smeared them on top of the brownies.

I'm useless....but I'm trying, and being that this was my first time at using these candy molds, and considering the baggage in my cooking past, I think I did ok. Also...I got a bit better at my smearing technique.

Once again, thank you America for helping this amateur pretend that she is a professional in something way out of her league. My self esteem has been lifted because of you.

Who needs coffee in the morning....

2011-10-18T15:10:00.000+01:00

...When you have song like this to wake you up!

Please feel free to play this video whilst reading this blog...it makes it a lot more enjoyable.

Anyways, pretty ironically I woke up with the Folger's jingle in my head...therefore subliminally making me want coffee to liven up my still sleeping brain. Well....due to the fact that it was muy early, I have lazy tendencies, and I just plain didn't feel like it, I passed on that vote and decided to let a good shower do the trick. So I proceeded with my shower ritual. Turn on my Ipod in my room and peel off my sleepy time outfit. As I was sloooowlyyyyy pulling off my clothing layers, this song popped on. "The A Team" by Ed Sheeran. And you know what? I kid you not, my brain suddenly woke up, I felt like a fuzzy little kitten, and I was ready for a new day.

One of the things that I've always loved about England was the music. Ever since the days of 80's Brit pop, the land of the Queen got me. No matter what the music was about, it always had a happy beat. Like take this song for example, I had no idea that this song was about a woman addicted to cocaine until I watched the video. I thought it was a weh weh love song about what he loved about the woman he was jocking or something like that. It just sounded like a tune that would be about something as corny as such. I should have known better than that. The Brits are whitty and cool ass people that would never succumb to things cornbeef like that. They're too posh and hip for that type of beef.

So anyways, I suggest whenever you feel that extra umph in the morning, put some British in your music cup. It's way better than Folger's.

Yes....

2011-10-17T23:43:00.000+01:00

...I am still alive. I just wanted to confirm that I am still kicking and breathing and that I do apologize for my long leave of absence. I blame it on the 2 year anni trip that I took with the hubby back in August. Because ever since then, my mind didn't feel like going into blogging mode.

Now, that I am with sickness, stuck on the couch, doing nothing, and I have the chance to channel my inner blogger, here I am, and here is my blog.

I must warn you however, this blog will not consist of anything with any steady content, rather, it's going to be a bit of cliff notes from the past few months that I went MIA.
With that said...here's what happened::

Me and the hubby celebrated our 2 years of happiness in Fes, Morocco. There, we saw the beautiful and poo-poo (quite literally) smelling tanneries, one of the many wonders I wanted to lay my eyes on. This place is where they put extensive amounts of labor like

this

to make beautiful products like this.

At this one tannery/leather shop, me and the main squeeze not only sprinkled some of our monetary greens in exchange for leather goodies like so, but because me and the man love meeting new people, the workers at the shop hooked it up with free leather shizz and created a friendship so meaningful, that we departed with sincere hugs and super kind words. I will never forget Morocco.

After looking through pictures to post on the blog....I realized that there was so much more to talk about with Morocco....so please be prepared to read a blog about this beautiful place in the near future, although it's been so 3 months ago. I like to bring things back into fashion.

The second part of our anni trip consisted of a wonderful place called Amsterdam and a sick stomach poisoned with a fig. I will explain more in the latter Morocco blog.

Anywho...part 2 of the trip - Amsterdam. Despite that fig messing up my insides, it did not mess up my good times mode over there.

We got to see the infamous Red Light district and all the naked prostitutes and perves that it holds. I really wanted to take a picture of one of the women that posed behind windows like a lingerie mannequin in a shopping mall, but I was seriously scared that pimps were going to come up to me, break my camera and then Bitch slap me after that. I didn't feel like crying on this trip. The redlight district also caused my mouth to hang everytime I saw a nasty perverted man enter the glass room that was soon hidden by a red curtain. All kinds of nasty thoughts ran through my head which made me shiver with disgust, but wanted to see what went on. It was one of those kind of moments. I also had to make sure that I didn't leave my mouth open too long. Who knew what kind of diseases were floating around the air.

Then comes the 3rd part ::

Brugge

Not only did this place consist of the beautiful Cathedral that starred in the movie "In Brugge," but it produced all kinds of chocolate and hip increasing edibles. I will be going back....after I lose the 5 pounds I gained from it.

One of the things that me and my hubby have been doing quite frequently these past few months were being Carboot whores. So much so, we got a bag especially for this Sunday Occasion:

And of course, we bought that bag at a carboot.

One of the main reasons of our whoring around is to constantly update my PRETTYrubbish store.....

http://www.etsy.com/shop/PRETTYrubbish?ref=pr_shop_more

....aaaand also because we are penny pinching cheapies. Hey....there's nothing wrong with that, plus, it's amazing what kinds of treasures you can find...and under retail price!

And then another thing that has been occupying my life is of course, the job force. Although at the beginning of the past 3 months, I was working 2 jobs, one onbase, and another off base. I am happy to day that I have quit the one off base. Being a workaholic wasn't a blast in a glass, and I smile a lot more now.

A couple weeks ago, I just came back from the beautiful Bay Area, which I will forever call home.

I spent my time with my friends por vida,

discovered that Gay clubs are the place to be, watched my beautiful cousin get locked dow- er I mean married :p

Eat the best tasting Tacos on a Tuesday, and just laughed, talked, caught up, and just be in the presence of most of the people I love and cherish.

And now I'm all caught up with this blog up in herrrre and that was my past 3 months in a nutshell. Hope you enjoyed catching up with me as much as I did sharing, see you on the next blog!

PEACE!

Hell yeah

2011-08-05T07:43:00.001+01:00

Wanna know why Europe is so badass in my mind?

This::

How cool is this piece of art? How even cooler is it that it's in display on the middle of a town. Yessir men and women of this beautiful world, this large woman submerged in European water is art.

This sculpture was made by artist Oliver Voss, and is on display in the Alster River in Hamburg, Germany.

I must say....the artwork is pretty dang gorgeous. He made this pouting woman look beautiful.....and the fact that she's supposed to be naked in water....she doesn't look trampy at all. Very classy!

I'm pretty bummed, because I would love to see this in person.

But due to the fact that it's only on display until August 12th, and I'll be coming back from vacay at that time, my travels do not permit me to do so.

Oh well...badass....

2 years....and counting

2011-08-02T23:32:00.000+01:00

Next week marks 2 blissful years of being a wifey. So what better way to celebrate this joyous occasion than to take advantage of our location and galavant on foreign territory. Yes, me and the lover are going roam amongst natives, become tourists, "oooh," "aaaah" at everything, digest all kinds of yumminess, be lost in translation, and indulge so much culture our heads will explode. I'm. Super. Excited.

Anyways....here's itinerary

First stop::

Fez, Morocco

I've always wanted to go to Morocco.....for this one reason

To see these stinky bad boys. Tanneries. I'm actually looking forward to experiencing that bad smell that I always hear about.....Also, these look so pleasing to the eye, that I always wanted to capture my own rendition on my own camera.

I also love the design of many Moroccan creations, therefore visiting these

...the markets, is only natural.

Stop number 2::

Amsterdam, Holland

I've just always wanted to go here. Red light District, "Coffee shops," bicycles galore, Oh my....GOODNESS!!!! I'm excited!

BUT! I must admit, although I do come from a VERY free-spirited kind of place in California....the Bay Area....yeah....I still have a queasy stomach when it comes to certain events that cross my eyesight.

Like....I'm hoping I don't encounter this

Because, you know how these Amsterdam people be.....VERY open and comfortable with themselves....and apparently they don't really give a flying fig.....so, yeah.....

Third and Final stop::

Brugge, Belgium

I must admit, until the movie came out, I had NO idea this place existed. I knew Belgium and its chocolates existed....but not this picturesque town. I swoon over every picture I look at.

So yeah.....2 year anniversary....I can't wait!

Har Har Har

2011-08-01T09:37:00.000+01:00

This commercial, or "advert" is my all time faves here in England! Everytime I see this in between shows, my abs get a major workout. LAV it!

RIP to a true artist

2011-07-31T22:16:00.000+01:00

Artists and their work, come and go. TRUE artists and the work that gets produced from their heart and soul, last for eternity....

As many know already, a true artist with an amazing gift of creating and expressing their art has sadly passed away. Amy Whinehouse.

Of all the artists that we have lost these past few years....this one has really made my heart sunk. Despite, her troubled past, I really had MAD respect for this woman. She was so unique. She had so much soul. And expressed her heart in such a way, nothing about her was fake.

Anyways....being that I'm blessed to be living in this beautiful country called England, and this same country birthed this woman and housed her....I was able to pay my respects to Miss Whinehouse in the best way I could. In front of her house.

When I arrived, I was overwhelmed with all the love and support that was paid to her.

There were all kinds of momentos of Amy....newpapers....personal photos of her and the people who left them

There were fans blasting her music from their car, drinking drunk melodies of her amazing music....

This was her actual house. When I first saw it....I felt this darkened aura surround me. It was such a weird feeling. The house just expressed sadness and loss.

These drawings and photos were posted and left right in front of her front gate. It was guarded by 2 security guards who only allowed you to cross if you asked for their permission or had something to leave there.

People left the singer cans of beer and cider, books,

tons of flowers,

personal letters written to her,

more cans of beer, drawings, collages,

framed photos of her,

more flowers, candles, it was insane. Yet very touching.

There was even an Amy Whine house look-a-like. I dunno, this BZ hit a bad nerve with me. I felt as though she was disrespecting Amy. When she was interviewing with these Croatian TV people, her "sadness" over the artist seemed so fake. She was even trying to say that she was just like Amy Whinehouse. How she felt as though she and her had a connection. This connection was brought on by their similarities in looks, the fact this this broad liked jazz music, they had the same birth date, rubbish, rubbish, rubbish, fake, fake, fake. I seriously wanted to cut that beehive off her head.

Also, people were actually coming up to her taking pictures with her. And although she at first looked too sad to take a picture with them, she managed to pose with her hand on her waist. Whatevs.

Another thing that got me all grrrrrrr, was this guy in a wheelchair. First of all, he was drunk. Second of all, he was yelling that he was her friend. AND he then tried is darndest to attract the Croatian TV people, so that they could interview him. Then all of a sudden, as soon as that microphone was in front of his mouth.....robotic drunk tears started flowing and lies about him and his "good friend" Amy flowed out of his mouth. Again. Rubbish.

Anyways....

RIP Amy Whinehouse, your talent, your gift, your voice, and your music will truly be missed.....

I....Am....Spartan....

2011-07-29T10:12:00.000+01:00

Guess what? I'm still alive. My husband's plan of trying to get me killed didn't fall through. I survived the toughest obstacle ever, and I must say, I am pretty damn proud of myself. I survived the Spartan Race.

Although I do have a MAJOR war wound, surrounded my little other ones, my heart is still beating, my blood is still flowing, and I'm still walking....just with a temporary pimp swag for now. Whilst trying to complete an obstacle, which consisted of me carrying a car tire on my shoulder and walking up and down a hill three times, I lost footing during one of my journeys down the hill and my right knee decided to bend in a way that sprained the darn thing. And being that it was only the second obstacle out of many more, and less than 20 minutes into the 5 mile race, I completed the sucker with a messed up knee, therefore messing it up even more. Rwar!

Throughout this race, I had to tackle obstacles that involved the tire and hill gig that messed up my knee, crawling under barbed wire, carrying a bucket full of concrete, climbing 8 foot walls, jumping over fire, walking through a concrete tunnel that only allowed me to walk bent over for a 100 meters in pitch black. I must say, that one was the worst. I seriously almost had my first panic attack and felt claustrophobic for the first time. Never again. Onwards, I walked through waist deep water that was cold like ice, crawled over a sandbox of ice, whilst have barbed wire over me, did pull ups, TRIED to climb a rope, get hit by 2 gladiators with jousters, and climb over a wobbly bridge of cases over ice cold water, and swim through that same water to the safety of land.

Here's a pic of that::
file:///Users/amylyngines/Desktop/CambSpartan2011%20photo%20gallery%20-%20Wobbly%20Bridge%20&%20Swim%20(Women)%20-%20a%20professional%20photo%20gallery%20powered%20by%20Photobox.webarchive

I must apologize for the lack of photos of my experience. Bringing a camera through water, and mud and what not wasn't safe for my electronic.

Anyways, if you found all that I described like good ol fashion fun, you are mental. I kid, I kid. But if you would like to join in on the next race....here's their website.
http://www.spartanrace.com/

I must say you do not leave empty handed, you do go home with a legit medal, and a cool t-shirt, and of course....war wounds like these

a super swollen knee....pretty

The other wifeys.....

2011-07-21T12:07:00.000+01:00

As I am sitting here in my home, on my day off....this wifey can finally fixate a real smile on her customer service face. In blunt terms, what I mean by that, is that I am finally free from being fake to annoying military wives that I encounter at work each day. Sorry....but it's true. Well.....85 percent of the time.

I mean, don't get me wrong, there are some military wives that are really cool and very laid back and easy to talk to. BUT, you have another population of them who think that because their husbands are serving time for their country, and they won't have to work, and live off the blood, sweat, and tears salary of their hubbies, they feel it's right to act like they are Michelle Obama's BFF, and that no one can say anything mean to them because they are made out of gold or something. But this is just my opinion. I mean come on, my husband does the exact same thing as theirs, except he doesn't flirt or cheat with other women behind my back....jus sayen..... The tudes these wives exude towards me tend to hit that one nerve in my body that make my eyes want to do a 360. I must say, trying to prevent my eyes from rolling when dealing with these type of ladies, must work my eye muscles to its max.

Again, before I get accused of talking shizz, (which I don't believe I am, it's the truth...and frankly the truth affects those only who are guilty of the matter) there are the wives that are normal. The ones that act right, and treat other people with the respect they deserve, and who can hold decent convos with another. I'm just targeting the ones that don't know how to treat the human race, who are annoying and superficial, and who are just spoiled and sheltered.

I love my jobs. One is a one a day job working off base at a store name Boots.

They have products sold around the world, I believe. What my job entails is merchandising baby clothes for the line Miniclub.

Merchandising is my favorite, hence the job has become mine too. Plus, I make scrilla in pounds. That's a huge HOLLA in my mind.

My other job is at the Arts and Crafts center on Base. Being that I love all things arts and crafts, I cannot help but love the environment I work at. That is, until I have to deal with those "special" wifeys. Now, I don't hate these ladies that come in, I just hate the way they go on about their lives. I mean, coming in with the newest Coach purse from the BX (which, I might add is usually not up to date with the latest trends, just sayen....), or shopping with a bunch of other fellow housewives pushing strollers during a workday, does not make you high and mighty. Also, because you live in another country and knit or scrapbook all day, and have lunch with your girlfriends whilst other people work, is no excuse to treat anyone like they are the bubble gum stuck under your shoe.

First of all, a majority of these women that come in are usually in their early twenties who don't know any better, and are very sheltered from the world. I kind of feel sorry for them for being so unexperienced and naive, but my sympathy soon vanishes when I hear all the, "well MY husband is a staff so and so, and I think I should receive better service," or all the gossiping and ish talking about other wives, or if I don't get a "hello" in return after greeting them as nicely as I can. Sorry, but if I don't get acknowledged for being nice, my bitch side immediately dominates my innocent looking face, and according to the hubby, it's not nice.

Another thing that pinches my annoyance nerve is some of the way these ladies treat their kids. Now, I know I shouldn't be judging their parental skills, being that I am without child and all, but yelling at your kids from across the store whilst talking on your bluetooth is not classy. Also, allowing your kids to play with fragile glass awards on display or thinking it's ok for them to empty out an entire tube of acrylic paint is not cute. SMH. Pure birth control. Reals.

Anyways.....those are just a few opinions coming from my thoughtful mind. I don't mean to offend anyone, I just hope that some of these wives that are guilty of some of these instances should maybe sit back and try to realize how you really are. I mean, I'm sure deep down inside they may be a nice person....otherwise someone wouldn't have loved and married them, unless they did it for your "easy" going personality....only sayen....

Love thy Neighbors.....

2011-07-19T21:35:00.000+01:00

I love England. I love (most) English people. I love my neighborhood. I love my neighbors...

So, being that my Aimes Design business shizz has been doing pretty swell lately....(hence, the reason for my lack of blogging activity, http://www.etsy.com/shop/Aimes88, which I apologize for, and will seriously make up) my poor paper cutter's life has been slowly coming to an end. So in replacement to my dying paper cutter, I did a Woody and Buzz Lightyear and upgraded my outdated cutter with a bigger and better one with better blades. I. LOVE. IT.

Since I am no longer labeled as a housewife because I am with job, my house has transformed from 90% occupied, to 90% vacant. Today was one of those days of the 90% vacant. Usually, back in the states, when something was delivered to your house and you weren't home, you are usually given 2 notices that your item came. After those 2 notices, you then receive a, "shit out of luck" note where you would have to drive to the nearest post office to pick up your package. Not something that sounds very pleasing to your work tired body that still needs to run an errand before business hours are over. But I'm just sayen...

Well....Because England is so wonderful, this is what they do. If you are not home, and you have a package, the happy little mail man (who, btw, does not lazily drive around to each mail box, but who pushes a red cart to EACH and EVERY house to drop it into the door slot) leaves a nice little note saying that they have left your package with your neighbor. And being that in my hood, all the English people are super friendly and shizz like that, they hold your package until you come by to pick it up, or if you haven't picked it up, they drop it off to you. HOW. FREAKIN. COOL. IS. THAT? Very....I think.

So anyway, I just thought I'd share that little tidbit about English life with ya'll. This whole event just blows my socks off my size 38 feet. Holla!

Boys

2011-07-14T09:28:00.000+01:00

I came across a picture of this little boy with so much swag, whilst eye shopping on various fashion blogs.

How cool is he????

Also....I came across another boy that exuded yumminess

He's actually not a boy. He's a sexy, handsome, gorgeous piece of a man.

Just thought I'd share these 2 pictures with you.

My husband's trying to kill me

2011-07-13T22:10:00.000+01:00

No....I didn't marry an Ax Murderer. But I did marry a muscle man. Therefore, involving me in various things that involve becoming fit.

Well....this morning, whilst I was peacefully making coffee and preparing my healthy little breakfast, I get a call from my firefighter. He asks if I wanted to register for a marathon. Me, being a virgin to the marathon world, and a naive little girl, I said yes.

I highly regret that answer. I mean, I should have known what kind of marathon it was by just the name. SPARTAN RACE. "Spartan" should have been the giveaway. I guess, with my current obsession with the TV show "Spartacus," anything to do with Roman warrior type characters didn't seem all that bad. I was wrong.

After a whole day of work, and peaceful errands, I finally got to check out what this marathon was all about. This is what I saw

http://www.spartanrace.com/

And This is how I will be looking like, but in a woman form during the race.

And I probably will be feeling like this at the finish line

After I watched that intimidating trailer, my legs went numb. I already felt my back go out. And my arms felt like spaghetti. I mean, from going to no marathons, to doing a crazy one like this, it's like doing a Jon and Kate plus 8. From no kids to a gazillion, and wearing yourself out. No bueno.

I'm scared out of my mind. I better survive.

Inspiration

2011-07-11T09:15:00.000+01:00

So amazing....

Fashionista mode

2011-06-30T09:56:00.001+01:00

Feeling all inspired now that I have just shopped like mad over the weekend, I'm gonna get all fashion magazine editor on you all.

Nothing inspires me more than fashion. It inspires me creatively, it somehow motivates me to see the world, and it makes me feel good inside. Let me create the equation that fits into those three things that cause me to be inspired.

Creatively :: Putting clothes together, to me, is like putting fonts and colors, and shapes together to create a beautiful design. With clothes, I tend to experiment with different textures and colors, like I would with fonts and shapes, and try to create something pleasing to all those various eyes I encounter on the street. Also, seeing unique and trendy outfits, turn on my creative mode, and inspires me. Like this outfit

The way she paired up the ripped jeans with the casual navy top, only to spice it up with those layered rhinestone bracelets and beautiful bold flower necklace, is a great example of how to express yourself creatively through threads and accessories.

Worldwide travel motivation:: Every country has their own staple of style.

This one reminds of of Savannah, Georgia for some reason. This whole picture, complete with the casual flats and loose fitting blouse, the summer hat, dressed down even more with that leather buckle belt, and then adding the southern bell touch with the feminine skirt shoots me into a down south type of mode. I hear crickets when I see this pic. But that's just me....

Then this picture here brought me back to my Academy of Art college days. Most of the students from Hong Kong and Japan tended to wear outfits like so. And yes.....they did wear heels to school. The colors they wore were so, "OMG, I would have never thought of pairing those together, but it looks damn cute!" They always surprised me with what they pulled out of their closets each day. So yeah, this is one of those outfits that amazed me, and hence making me want to mingle amongst all the asian fashionistas in their coordinating countries.

These 2 pics remind me of the 2 sides of Italy. One of the countries I absolutely fell in love with, not only for their beautiful people, but their beautiful clothes, accessories, history, scenery, food, so on and so forth

This chic right here brought me back to the time I went clubbing in Italy. All the women were dead sexy like her. I felt like such a hobnob dancing within the sea of effortless gorgousness. I wanted to go up to all of them and call them, "Bitch" out of envy. I mean, the way she paired up the cool rocker tee and the short shorts to show off her long envious legs, only to accentuate those bad boys even more with those sexy "fuck me" heels, and then to rock the outfit even more with her boyish rocker haircut, makes me want to slap the hoe for looking so sexy. I bet you if I were to wear that same outfit and have the same hair, people would as why that "boy" is wearing heels. SMH...

This other outfit reminds me of Italia as well. This brought me back to the time when I shopped in Rome. Again, effortless beauty. She looks so comfortable in her flowy threads, but looks so well put together. sigh.....Italia

Now, just ignore the written part of the picture and try to think what foreign country this picture reminds me of....

Yup....good ol' Paris. The femininity and the drama in this outfit screams, "Paris, best dressed Bitches!" But in a more elegant way of course. I love how the dramatic lace sleeves add the elegance to this black dress, along with the volume in the skirt. Only to be toned down with the girly flats. Also, notice she isn't wearing any jewelry to make it more than it should be. I tell yah, these French girls were born with cute outfits on.

Feel good inside:: Fashion is my way of expressing how I feel each day. If I'm feeling blah, obviously sweats and trainers would be my outfit of choice. If I were feeling girly, a dress with the right accessories to make it a "me" outfit would suit my needs. I'm my own canvas, the clothes are my paint, and my mood is the artist.

I'm so happy that clothes were invented. I could not imagine walking around naked. I think if we still were walking around naked or draped with rags, I would die an unhappy and uninspired person. So thank you Fashion. You're fab.

Giveaway

2011-06-23T21:58:00.000+01:00

Ladies and Gentlemen!

I have been fortunate to be included in a giveaway by friend and birthday twin. Please check out my friend's blog to win any design of your choice from my Aimes Design Etsy Shop!

Enjoy and good luck!

http://www.onedomesticateddiva.com/2011/06/its-a-giveaway/

BTW, I love her blog. She gives great recipes and tips!