Zxenarea

Hello Hello

2012-01-27T14:56:00.000-08:00

Hello all my darlings! I know it's been a while but I just wanted to let you know I'm still here!
I haven't abandoned any of you.
I've merged this blog with the one I will be using from Wordpress from now on. All posts, one blog! Tres maginifique!
I hope to see all you lovelies stop by and check it out!

Oana Thompson Photography

Sisterly Love

2011-06-03T12:17:00.000-07:00

Looking at the title you're probably wondering is that actually what my post is about? And yes it is!

Last week my best friend, my sister came to visit me for a few days. This trip was supposed to have happened last year and has been planned and rescheduled for what seemed like forever, so to finally have had her here still seems surreal.
She is my best friend, my sister, my confidant. Nobody knows me the way she does. There's things I tell her that I can't even tell my own mother!!

You know what I'm talking about. A friend who never lets you down and when she does is quick to make up for it. A friend who you can go without seeing or talking to for months at a time and then finally one day you both get together and it's as if no time has passed between you two at all! She is that friend for me.
I love you sis!

I made this sign for her while waiting at the airport, only her flight got there before I did so I had it sitting on the passenger side of the car for her with a pink feather boa.

We went to restaurants and cafes and taste tested what ever we wanted. Bring on the sweets...and coffee...and a little bit of everything!

I gave her a little scenic tour of my favorite little town Fort Langley as we were on our way to the movies...

We got there extra early because we wanted to make sure we got good seats. Bridesmaids! Excellent girls night out movie. Ladies if you haven't seen it yet, it will make you laugh and cry at the same time.

We went out for a hike with the dogs...of course I brought my camera and started shooting away...

She tried to flatten a tree with her bare palms...lol

We chilled at Crescent Beach...

...while eating cupcakes. Mine was the Cookies and Cream, she had the Chocolate Chip Mint. They were to die for!

We watched a little sailboat capsize....ok more like the wind blew it over.

We played pretty and...

...gave ourselves pedicures.

We also prettied ourselves up for each other...aren't we sexy?!?

You're my best friend, my sister, and I Love ya!!

XoXo,

Zxen

Giveaway Winner!

2011-05-18T20:25:00.000-07:00

Jasmine1485

You are the Mini Giveaway Winner!

you will be contacted by email shortly

Please keep checking back for more blog updates and new giveaways :)

Mini Giveaway

2011-05-01T09:27:00.000-07:00

Hello Darling Divas!

I am doing a small giveaway of a few products I bought to try.
Normally when I try new things I always buy a second to give to a friend so we can try it together. This gives me someone to compare it with. Keeping with that spirit I went to Bath and Body Works across the border and bought a few candles (for those of you that know me you know I LOVE to burn candles). Bath and Body Works had a hugs sale happening but because I've never bought from them before I only bought small trial sized candles, until I get a feel for their products and decide if I officially like them or not.

One of you will get to try three of their scents with me :) Isn't that exciting?

The Giveaway

as well as:

The rules

1. Be a follower of this blog

2. Tell us what your favorite candle scent is

3. Tweet about this giveaway (for extra entry)

I realize it might not be a BIG giveaway, but it's a cute one, and big or small, we ALL love getting something in the mail :)

Contest closes May 15th @8pm Pacific Time and is open internationally

30 Day Song Challenge = Complete

2011-04-30T20:28:00.000-07:00

It comes as no surprise that lately I've been such a bad blogger. Bad blogger! In saying that I'm instantly thinking of The Emperors New Groove where he calls himself a bad llama. Bad llama!

Haha, come on, it was pretty funny, admit it. You laughed, just a little :) I LOVE that movie!

I'm gonna take the time to finish anything I've left unattended for a while, like my 30 Day Song Challenge.
I've left off at Day 23...so...

Day 23 - a song that you want to play at your wedding

Considering that I'm already married and to be honest it was such a whirlwind, one song I would have loved to have heard back then is...

...and just for good measure here's one of our wedding pictures :)

Maybe not my best lol, let me just say it was a good night! :)

Day 24 - a song that you want to play at your funeral

Well that's morbid. I never thought about that before.

Ok, so I have Glee on the brain. But in an ironic way it would be a perfect song for a funeral.

Day 25 - a song that makes you laugh

LOL!

Day 26 - a song that you can play on an instrument

Does it have to be the whole song I wonder? I taught myself on the piano how to play...

So the truth is I can't play it that good but I can still play it and that counts for something, right?

Day 27 - a song that you wish you could play

Day 28 - a song that makes you feel guilty

Of what? har har. Ok Ok...hmmm...

So I do have a few things to feel guilty about afterall and this song is very fitting of that feeling.

Day 29 - a song from your childhood

I grew up on Michael Jackson. He was, and will always be a legend. I remember stealing my dads cassettes late at night so I could listen to them. Oh yeah, I was a bad ass.

Day 30 - your favorite song at this time last year

You expect me to remember that? I'm lucky to remember what I had for supper yesterday!
I'm gonna dig real deep and see if anything comes to mind, anything at all.

Ok, so it's not exactly last years favorite at this exact time, but I did have it on ipod list last year and I still do now. Close enough :)

Remember, to see the complete list of the 30 Day Song challenge, click here :)

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 22

2011-04-10T17:56:00.000-07:00

Day 22 - a song that you listen to when you're sad

When I'm sad, I'm sad, not really sure what I listen to. If I'm that sad the last thing on my mind is to put some music on but I do listen to even sadder music. It may sound weird but sometimes I just need to get all the 'sad' out of my system so I can move on, a sad ballad does just that.

"sniff sniff" What do you listen to when you're sad?

For a complete list of the 30 Day Song Challenge, click here.

XoXo,
Zxen

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 21

2011-04-09T18:59:00.000-07:00

Day 21 - a song that you listen to when you're happy

Lately I've been listening to one song that I've heard on the radio, wether I'm happy or sad, I listen to it. wether I'm working or doing house chores, I listen to it. Wether I'm driving, or at the gym, I...well you get the idea :)

Tell me this isn't catchy?! Elly totally rocks it!!
So yes, I've been listening to this when I'm in a good mood, or at the very least it puts me in a good mood :)

For a complete list of the 30 Day Song Challenge, click here.

XoXo,
Zxen

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 20

2011-04-08T11:31:00.000-07:00

Day 20 - a song that you listen to when you're angry

This is a really tough one. Usually if I'm mad I go to the gym to work out my frustrations and listen to whatever is on my playlist which varies daily. I guess I would say I would listen to motivational music because it helps to calm me down and reminds me that for whatever reason I'm angry it isn't worth it.

A good one would be:

This always gives me an extra push to pump harder, run faster, add an extra five minutes to whatever I'm doing :) So catchy! Of course it always helps to visualize Kevin Bacon dancing in the warehouse :) Oh yes it does!!

For a full list of the 30 Day Song Challenge click here.

Join in, it's fun! :)

XoXo,
Zxen

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 12, and 13, 14, 15, and 16, 17, 18 and 19!

2011-04-07T23:17:00.001-07:00

Yikes! How did I fall so far behind?!
Anyways, here we go! We got a lot of catching up to do! :)

Day 12 - a song from a band you hate

I wouldn't necessarily say I hate any music, but there is some that I dislike and would rather NOT listen to, for instance:

and this is just an example...nothing personal against this band...it's more all heavy music, I love the guitar solos but all the screaming and raving is lost on me.

Day 13 - a song that is a guilty pleasure

there's actually two :)

I'm so 80's!! LOVE it!! In every way possible!! :)

and the second is

Day 14 - a song that no one would expect you to love

Day 15 - a song that describes you

That's a tough one. I can't think of any song that describes me except one, it seems like I'm always searching for this:

always in pursuit of happiness!!

Day 16 - a song that you used to love but now hate

bleh! that's all I'm gonna say.

Day 17 - a song that you hear often on the radio

:) :) :)

Day 18 - a song that you wish you heard on the radio

everybody boogie wonderland..... :)

Day 19 - a song from your favorite album

LOVE this song!! Somedays I keep it on repeat!!

And we're all caught up, that wasn't painful was it? Of course not :)

Remember, if you want to join in on the 30 Day Song Challenge click here.

XoXo,
Zxen

Long Overdue Blog Award

2011-04-07T22:09:00.001-07:00

Waaaay back at the beginning of the year I was awarded a second blog award by one of my lovely and talented followers Alicia from Liquored on Lacquer.

Please forgive me as it has taken me this long to properly thank you and post it on my blog. I am so grateful to have received this award (though I feel so undeserving for having left it for so long).

As I always say, better late (in this case waaay late) than never!

I have been awarded the Stylish blogger Award and truly I am honored.

I have to admit I check from time to time to see how many followers I have, let's face it, we all want to know that we don't spend all this time blogging and sharing our interests (or lack there of for me recently, my bad!) for ourselves. We all want to be accepted and to know that there are people out there who look up to us, appreciate what we have to say or simply enjoy whatever it is we blog about and I am one of those people. I don't want to be the crazy lady at the super market who talks to herself or laughs crazily to things in her head. Do I want justification for my life on this earth? Hell yeah! Though it would be great to be as popular as DulceCandy or JessicaHarlowe or perhaps even Michelle Phan, I wonder, is it really all it's cracked up to be? Either way, I want to send out a huge thank you to all my loyal followers, it means the world to me that you would stick by my side even when I'm MIA (sorry!)

Back to the award!

There are some rules:

Thank and link back to the person who sent the award
Share 7 things about yourself
Award 15 (really?) recently discovered bloggers
Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award

First - 7 things about myself:

I went back to school (taking a night course on photography and fell in love with it!!!)
I bought my own car (yay! it's been long over due)
I'm finally coming out of my shell and getting in contact with other fellow photographers (difficult and intimidating since in person I can be very shy and reserved, but I'm doing it!)
I love to have one day a week where I do NOTHING!!
I love my husband but man some days I wish I could smack him upside the head!
I will turn 30 at the end of the month (yikes!)
very frustrated with my weight loss, going soooooo slowly sometimes I just want to pack it all in and give up

And tonight's award goes to:

Curvy Girl Chic

Drey Jewelry

Cherry Chan 108

Glamour Girl Boutique (who introduced me to Adele <3)

Onna's Little Blog

Polish, Perfumes and More

The World Through My Lens

Makeup Junkie 88 (she already has one but here's a second)

ELLE Hearts Blogs

I realize that's not exactly 15 blogs but it's all I got.

Thanks again Alicia <3

Metallic Madness

2011-04-07T13:10:00.002-07:00

It's been a while since I've done a make-up post and my little sister (my best friend but we call each other sisters, we even got sisters tattoo's together) has asked me to do a simple tutorial using non expensive drug store make-up, so that's what I did.

My little sister is just starting to experiment with some make-up so she requested a more earthy tone. I went and got Maybeline New York Modern Metallic 50Q in Sunlit Bronze. Basic earthy tones but with a metallic twist which I think will be great for this summer. You can keep it neutral with just a hint of jazzy sparkle. Dare to be different? I do!

I used a few other products I already had in my home but since she's just starting and maybe you are too, to get just the eye look finished cost me under $30 dollars and that includes tax. Not bad right? Playing with make-up doesn't have to cost you an arm and a leg after all.

This is what we will be using for our eyes.

*swatches in natural daylight and inside the house*

I started with a fresh face already, meaning I already applied concealer and foundation, not a must but it depends on how you feel or how much coverage you want. After that I applied lid primer, I LOVE Smashbox Photo Finish!!
By applying lid primer it helps to really make the colours from the eyeshadow pop and it helps it last longer before it needs to be touched up.

I applied primer to my lids and under my brow bone.

Using the base color (and it tells you right on the shadow, it has a number and says, Base, Crease, Lid, etc.) I apply it to the whole eye area, top to bottom.

Next I use the lid colour and apply it only to my lids.

#3 or Crease colour gets applied directly to the crease of the eye, but I like to feather it out at the edges and bring it up a bit under the brow bone for a more smokey metallic look.

Lastly to finish the eyeshadow part apply the liner colour as close to your lashes as you can to line them. I use a really small fine brush for this. Remember, at night you can omit this step and use real liner to line your eyes to really take it from a day to night look.

Next I like to fill in my brows, because they're so thin and sparse a nice brow shape really helps to smoothen your look out.

Lets not forget our lashes. I LOVE my L'Oreal Lash Explosion and as you can see from the picture and faded name brand I use it quite a bit. Again you can dramatically change this look by adding false lashes before applying mascara and take it to a whole other level.

Dab a bit of blush to your cheeks.

Add some colour to your kisser.

(Because the eyes aren't as heavily noticeable with these metallics a bold lip colour contrasts really well)

And.......

Voila!

Your look is complete.

A neutral colour with a daring dash of metallic sparkle!

I hope you've enjoyed this look.

What colours will you be sporting this summer??

XoXo,
Zxenarea

Drey Jewelry Review

2011-04-03T14:54:00.000-07:00

I've been following Audrey from Drey Jewelry for a few months now and have been meaning to get myself a piece of her jewelry. Since I have been MIA for a bit I hadn't kept up to date with her latest productions, but then I visited her blog a couple of weeks ago and saw the most adorable pair of butterfly earings I had to have them!! They are just darling!!

I placed an order and I kid you not, not more than a week later they were delivered to my mailbox.
Thank you Audrey, for all that you do, for my gorgeous earings and for being you.

I can't wait to see what else you come up with :)

Seriously you should check out her jewelry. It's quaint, cute, not over the top gaudy and you can dress her pieces up or down.
I also found that her jewelry is very affordable and the quality is fantastic! I'm a happy customer!
Drey Jewelry Design.

This is how it was wrapped inside a little box

Thank you for the sweetest note Audrey :)

I now keep your card pinned to my to do list on my wall in my office :)

Aren't they just darling?! :) I love that they're not all gold and they're not all black, perfect for dressing up or down.

I'm not here to sell anybody on anything but if you have a few minutes you really should visit her blog if you want.

Her pieces are one of a kind and she doesn't recycle the same design with different colors. Each piece is unique.

Drey Jewelry Design

XoXo,
Zxen

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 7, 8, and 9, 10, and finally 11 Booyah!

2011-03-31T20:38:00.000-07:00

Day 7 - a song that reminds you of a certain event

Well there's lots of songs that do that, but ultimately there's only one event when I hear this...

Weddings! Helloooo! I'm such a hopeless romantic. I'm talking dancing where the groom takes the brides hand and they dance elegantly across the floor, sigh...

Day 8 - a song that you know all the words to

There's lots of songs really but only one that I always keep coming back to time and time again. Let's see if you know it.

I LOVE this song! Always reminds me of all my friends whom I love equally! I'm so lucky to call them my friends :)

Day 9 - a song that you can dance to

Honestly I can't dance, not very well, but who can't...

...I mean really...lol

Day 10 - a song that makes you fall asleep

There's actually two songs I listen to at bedtime that I absolutely adore and I would like nothing more than to share them with you.

The first one is...

and the second is...

...they sound both very similar but so very different. They give me visions of fairies and candy and knights and princesses, I'm still very much a little girl at heart :)

Day 11 - a song from your favorite band

I go through music so much that I never really ever just like one performer or one band per say, but I'd have to say this is it...

Wow that's a lot of music to go through but there it is :)

If you'd like to join in on this tag here's a full list of the 30 Day Song Challenge, click here.

XoXo,
Zxen

Remember, music makes life interesting!

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 5 & 6

2011-03-25T19:31:00.000-07:00

Day 5 - a song that reminds you of someone

There was a very popular song about three months ago that used to play non stop and it ALWAYS reminded me of my co-worker, the reason being that when ever he was around, this song would always come on the radio and it just suited him to a tee! It was actually kind of eerie.
I can't for the life of me remember who it was by so runner up is.....

....and believe it or not this reminds me of another co-worker because eerily enough, this plays non stop when ever he's around too!

Weird!!

Day 6 - a song that reminds you of somewhere

That's easy!

This totally reminds me of my trip to Jamaica and just because I'm a picture whore here's a few photos from that memorable trip.

Mmmmm...they had the most amazing food! So rich in flavor!

The beach water was way too salty for me, really good for your skin but I'd go to wipe my mouth and it wouldn't make a difference because the salt water was all over my hands..bleh!

The beach that belonged to the resort was soooooo nice and relazing.

This is a view of part of the resort from the balcony outside our door to our room. Hidden by the trees there was about four or five different pools and half of them had water slides, build in pool tables and swim up to the bar. Also hidden is their hot tubs which were way too hot for us. The had a fake outdoor skating rink with real skates, that was really neat, skating in your biki.

We found these all over the hotel, towel swans, panda bears, hearts, etc.

Yup, I got sun burned quite badly the first couple of days, after that it wasn't so bad. It peeled away to an awesome tan!

Dorin got burned too, felt really bad for my little bubba but he had so much fun he didn't care.

We didn't want to go. I loved sharing those two magical weeks with my mom. She was a hoot to bring along! I LOVE you mom!

For a full list of the 30 Day Song Challenge click here

XoXo,
Zxen

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 4

2011-03-23T20:06:00.000-07:00

Day 4 - a song that makes you sad.

When I first heard this song was during my favorite t.v. show at the time, Smallville. I know I know what you're thinking. Smallville? Really? Yes!! For a while I was on a huge kick for(on) Superman and the show really wasn't all that bad. Unfortunately like with so many shows once they do really well and compete with other programs the networks decide to change what times/what networks it should play on and sadly I still to this day haven't seen all the seasons! I left off at season 7, I think.
Anyway, back to this one episode when Clark's dad dies was the saddest scene and I actually balled my eyes out! Rest assured nothing is wrong with me but I find during sad scenes when they play the right music how can it not affect you? It's all about the music.
Forever to this day I am reminded of that one episode.

Saddest episode in the history of Smallville! Rip my heart out and feed it to the sharks why don't you.
Now I must go dry my eyes.

For a full list of the 30 Day Song Challenge click here

XoXo,
Zxen

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 3

2011-03-22T17:20:00.000-07:00

Day 3 - a song that makes you happy

I'd have to say by far Frank Sinatra's Under My Skin. It doesn't matter what mood I'm in this song always brings me out of my funk and makes me happy. Even if I'm already happy it makes me even more so. I'm drawn to it's charm, it's lyrics and honestly it makes me feel good and wanna get up and dance, old school style :)

For a full list of the 30 Day Song Challenge click here

XoXo,
Zxen

30 Day Song Challenge - Day 2

2011-03-21T12:06:00.003-07:00

Day 2 - your least favorite song

I'd have to say this is my least favorite song at the moment due to my husband who decided to give Rock Band a try one night. Low and behold this song was on the game which wasn't so bad the first time he tried it, or even the second, five hours later and he was barely getting the jist of it while I wanted to wrap a noose around my head. I do LOVE the guitar solo in it tho...

For a full list of the 30 Day Song Challenge click here

XoXo,
Zxen

30 Day Song Challenge

2011-03-20T12:02:00.014-07:00

I found this Tag on Moonbeamstarlight's blog. Please check it out for some awesome posts and random moments.
Apparently this tag has been floating around on facebook and even though I do have facebook I usually just scan my messages and see what my friends are up to so I haven't really been paying attention to what's been going on.
Isn't that terrible?!

Back to the tag...

If you want to join in too, here is the list of the full 30 days!

day 01 - your favourite song

day 02 - your least favourite song

day 03 - a song that makes you happy

day 04 - a song that makes you sad

day 05 - a song that reminds you of someone

day 06 - a song that reminds you of somewhere

day 07 - a song that reminds you of a certain event

day 08 - a song that you know all the words to

day 09 - a song that you can dance to

day 10 - a song that makes you fall asleep

day 11 - a song from your favourite band

day 12 - a song from a band you hate

day 13 - a song that is a guilty pleasure

day 14 - a song that no one would expect you to love

day 15 - a song that describes you

day 16 - a song that you used to love but now hate

day 17 - a song that you hear often on the radio

day 18 - a song that you wish you heard on the radio

day 19 - a song from your favourite album

day 20 - a song that you listen to when you’re angry

day 21 - a song that you listen to when you’re happy

day 22 - a song that you listen to when you’re sad

day 23 - a song that you want to play at your wedding

day 24 - a song that you want to play at your funeral

day 25 - a song that makes you laugh

day 26 - a song that you can play on an instrument

day 27 - a song that you wish you could play

day 28 - a song that makes you feel guilty

day 29 - a song from your childhood

day 30 - your favourite song at this time last year

I'm guessing there has to be a story as to why that song and I will try and post a short blurb about each one.

I LOVE Tags! You should join in too!

Day 1 - My favorite song

and it's hard to pick just one because I LOVE music so much, but at the moment this is it!

I adore this song because it has a really catchy tune, and I ALWAYS find myself singing, plus it's Enrique, who wouldn't love that gorgeous man?!

April Goals

2011-03-18T16:33:00.002-07:00

April Fools! Yup, that time of year is coming again where I wonder what pranks people will play on me.
As of late I can't help but notice how naive I am. I always fall for everything! My father-in-law is the worst at pulling pranks on me because you would never think of your father figure pulling a fast one on you, he gets me every time tho let me tell you. It's never harmful (except to my ego) but always hilarious to the point that I laugh at myself. We all have someone like that in our lives.

Anyway, this random rant is to physically write (type) down some goals I'd like to set for myself for the Month of April, my birth month.

My first goal being that I won't hyperventilate when my birthday does roll around. I'll be the big 3 0!! My God, that feels like I've lived half my lifespan already but when I really sit and think about it there's still so much I want to do and I've yet so much to see and so many more people to meet. Birthdays don't really get me that excited or emotional anymore but for some reason turning 30 makes me break into a sweat. There's so much I've done with my life already, school, work, becoming a wife and mother, a good friend, a decent daughter (the best!!), I feel so old and yet so young. Much too young for mid-life crisis. Perhaps I'm just excited for a fresh year and saddened to see another gone.

My second goal is to shoot at least three sessions next month, be it child, engagement, couple, or family. I'm still working on my portfolio which means I'm extremely cheap, so if you're out there and you want to be my (victim :) ) willing participant I'd love to shoot you, with my camera of course. There's numerous ways to get hold of me, via twitter, facebook, email (nugget_092@hotmail.com) or comment below.

I also want to lose five pounds next month. It may not seem like much but at the rate I'm going it would be a giant roller coaster ride for me. I'm still doing weight watchers and it has been one of the best decisions of my life. I love everything about it and that's very rare. Normally I would have given up by now or found some fault with the program so I could give up and not (waste) spend my money. 12 pounds lost so far proves to me that it is working, and I'd rather lose the weight slowly and keep it off rather than quickly and put it all back on plus some. So five pounds should be attainable.

I start night school next mid month. Yeap, I joined night school, here we go again! Sometimes I feel like I spend more time at school than anywhere else. When we lived in Ontario I became certified as a Personal Support Worker (Health Care Aide), before that I was a prep chef, and now I'm really studying to become a professional photographer. Using art as an outlet has been huge for me, it has helped me to express myself. I still find it funny sometimes that I went from drawing artistically to photography but if I really sit and think about it everything I've ever done has been about expressing myself. Even as a prep chef I would make the effort to cut food precisely and make sure it looked good. While I worked as a PSW (Health Care Aide) I took pride in helping people and making them presentable. As a photographer I absolutely LOVE to capture the hidden moments between a couple, a family completely at ease with one another or the dimples in the cheeks of a new born baby. Everything has been about presenting something to the world. It makes me giddy with excitement to just sit here and type about it, so much so that now I must go out and shoot something.

Have a happy month everyone :)

XoXo,
Zxen

Giveaway Shmigaway!

2011-03-13T15:16:00.000-07:00

Hello all you gorgeous followers!
It has been a while hasn't it?
I hope you have all been productive and well.

You'll be happy to know that I've been out and about living my life and working on my photography business and I have to admit it's hard work! But I love being hands on.
Right now most of the sessions I have booked are by friends word of mouth. I truly believe that it takes any good business guru years to build the clientele they want and sometimes it's very frustrating and discouraging, but I have swore not to give up. This is something I truly want to do. A passion worth fighting for.

I would be forever honored and grateful if you guys would check out my photography blog and let me know what you think. Any input is appreciated. Is there something you like, something I can improve on? Please don't be afraid of being critical, this is after all how we learn.
Oana Thompson Photography

To promote my business I've decided to do a giveaway. One lucky winner (granted some of you if not most of you live across the border or internationally) will win a photo session of your choosing by me. It can be a wedding, glamor, boudoir or family session. This may seem impossible because of where you live, so if the lucky winner lives outside of the country/province I will edit some of your photos you have lying around. So many of us have thousands of photos uploaded on our computers and sometimes they're missing that pizazz, I will add the pizazz for you.
It may not seem fair but honestly spending time in photoshop is just as crucial as taking the photos themselves, so I promise I will make it work.

There are no rules to this giveaway. If you're interested simply leave a message below.
I will pick the lucky candidate at the end of the month.

This is a great way to have fun. Spread the word, tell your friends!

I'll be seeing/editing one of you lucky winner at the end of the month.

XoXo,
Zxen

February Fever Photo Shoot

2011-02-15T23:15:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone!

I hope that in my absence you have all been well and I especially hope that you all had a very happy Hearts Day on the 14th.

I've been focussing on my weight loss quite a bit and getting out there in the world and doing things even if it's running my son around from swimming lessons to Cub Scouts, and I'm enjoying every minute of it!!

I've also just recently had an amazing photo shoot with my bestie friend turned client and I just had to share the glorius pictures with you all because she's such a beautiful woman! Hard to believe she was nervous.

Doesn't she just have the most amazing infectious smile?

And just because I feel I don't advertise my photography enough, for those of you that are interested click the link below to go to my flikr account for all my photo sessions seen in brilliant color.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/drisphotography/

XoXo,

Zxen

365 Days - Photography

2011-01-26T14:59:00.000-08:00

Fantasy

Rice Cakes - Weight Watchers

2011-01-25T12:55:00.000-08:00

Italian Rice Cakes

3 points/serving

(Pic Heavy)

These rice cakes make a great side dish if you're itching to try something different and the best part is that they're low in points if you follow the weight watchers system.

I doubled the recipe so the pictures reflect this, but I will use the original recipe throughout this post.

Cook 1/2 cup of instant brown rice according to package directions omitting the butter

Mash 1/2 cup white kidney beans (rinsed and drained) in a medium bowl

Stir in 1/4 cup fat free marinara sauce

Add 1/4 cup of shredded part skim mozzarella cheese

2tbsp of Parmesan cheese

1 scallion finely chopped (I used an onion)

Stir cooked rice into bean mixture and season with pepper and very little salt

Combine 2tbsp of plain bread crumbs

and remaining 2tbsp of Parmesan cheese

Heat oil in large skillet

Mold rice and bean mixture into patties and roll into bread crumb and cheese mixture

Cooked until browned and heated through

Serve with your choice of meat and veggies

Enjoy!

XoXo,

Zxen

365 Days - Photography

2011-01-22T17:46:00.000-08:00

New Home = Happiness

2011-01-22T17:17:00.001-08:00

I know I said in my last post (seems like I start all my posts like this lately) before weight watchers week 4 that I would at least update a picture everyday to practice my photography, and I haven't been around for a week which in reality feels like months, but rest assured I have been keeping up with my photography. So the question still remains, where have I been? Not that some of you may care but we finally moved into the house we bought. Yay!
Who knew moving could be such a time demanding task? When I was a child and we moved with my parents everything was done by the time I'd get home from school, but now I'm the parent and it's so much fun to pick out furniture and pick where everything should go.

I spent some time exploring my new neighborhood and taking the girls out for a hike. Because our backyard backs onto a protected green belt there was much to see and do, granted it was a swampy rainy mess :)

I'm psyched and ready to go though already soaked to the bone.

A little blurry but I like the effect and all the dark brown, reminds me of chocolate lol

God I love mother nature, so pure!

Random signs make me laugh

Here's my Cookie and she wouldn't be her if she didn't have a stick in her mouth

I bought these sexy leopard water proof boots specifically for hiking and so it's easier to spot me should anything happen, just look for the boots

Here's Oreo, I can't trust her off the leash as much as Cookie, though she'll never run away she dive bombs right for the water and I didn't feel like bathing her after, but I had to anyway from our walk

Oooh! We're going under!

The graffiti underbelly

Whoop! We made it to the other side!

My squishy footprint

Peace!

Where have you explored lately?

XoXo,

Zxen