fall

i love fall. i wish we had a little more of a change in fl but i still love fall. pumpkin and halloween are two of my favorite things. here are a few reasons why you should love pumpkin too!

tennis anyone?

So in less than an hour i have a tennis lesson at the local tennis center. i am so stoked. i have not played much lately and miss it dearly. my love gave me a gift certificate to the tennis center knowing i miss it and would love to get back into the swing of it. ;) sooo, tennis anyone?

labor day love

today was fantastic. the love and i spent the entire day together, just the two of us. we started the day with a dog walk (okay i lied our beautiful ladies were with us for most of it) in which ideas were created in our minds.
we ventured to the beach to enjoy a beautiful day in the sun. after settling in with our mexican rasta blanket and a couple of drinks, we enjoyed a lovely game of paddle ball. this is by far the best way to get some sun and exercise! the sun gods were in our favor today as it was just breezy enough and amazingly bright! the ocean was a bit murky but that definitely did not stop jt and sr from entering. nothing beats swimming in the ocean on a hot summer day.
after deciding we were a little hungry we packed up and headed home. followed by another lovely dog walk and some more beverages, after all it IS labor day and we are both off! we have only used the cornhole set i bought him a few times since xmas and thus decided to break it out. a few games later and we are ready for dinner. my chef is making us homemade calzones as i type allowing me to brush up and improve on my hooping skills!   such a simple day with so many smiles.

east coast lovin'

we made it! the love and i spent a good bit of two weeks on the road but we have arrived in new hampshire! from south fl--->jville--->south carolina--->asheville, nc--->pennsylvania--->nyc--->saratoga springs, ny--->new hampshire!
we have had SO MUCH FUN every step of the way.
stopping in jville was lovely and over due. i miss my family every day and am glad we were able to spend a little time with them.
killing two birds with one stop, i was able to hang with my sista from another mista! so many days go by that i wish her and i could live in the same town and hang on a daily basis. everytime i see her is just a breathe of fresh air... ahhhh someone DOES get me. :)
i received the most awesome birthday gift from her while stopping through. a modern polaroid camera with my very own smash book! i cannot wait to fill said book with beautiful photographs and lasting memories.
asheville NC was our next big stop where we did some hiking, swimming in waterfalls, camping (hendersonville was the actual town we did this in), live music listening, dancing, and visiting with my cousin who i love dearly. the last morning in town we shared the most remarkable breakfast at a place next to my cousin's house called homegrown. everything was home made and local.


with no time to spare, we headed to the big apple. good times had by all. more laughter, dancing and much needed one on one time with my childhood bff. she took me to coney island for the first time & although i didn't get 'Big'  after having my fortune read by Zoltar it was an awesome experience. we visited the NY aquarium and got matching (airbrush) bff mermaid tattoos. i had the pleasure of meeting my sister's new beau (pronounced BO!) and enjoying some good old NY pizza! YUMMO!
then it was off to Saratoga Springs for some camping and live music!
the fun definitely didn't stop there. these past few weeks have been outrageously entertaining and much needed. since in nh we managed to enjoy lovely meals with friends and family, swim in rivers and lakes, play some volley ball, get a massage, see an in theater play ( 9-5 ), and briefly visit st. johnsbury vermont. the activities are never ending.  today we are joining friends at the volley ball court for a few games and then swimming in the river followed by a meeting at another's casa for a dinner party. sunday funday here we come...

summer road trip

this summer, my beau and i are taking a road trip up the east coast. obviously, starting in south florida and working our way up to northern new hampshire and even maine. along the way we are going to  see friends, family, wildlife, beautiful scenery, stay in hotels, camp, hike and experience many other extremely exciting things. we are looking to kick start the whole trip this week. our first stop we will see my family and (hopefully) best friend for a night. not too sure where the second stop will be, but that is the beauty in it all. we do plan on stopping in NY (where sister and dana live) for a few nights and eventually new hampshire. we take this trip every summer but this is our first time driving. our main goal is to leave the tacoma up in nh, where it is looking more and more as if we will call it home for a few years. that being said, we are flying back to fl.

i am becoming really excited and a tad nervous for our adventures. many good vibes would be appreciated but i think we are set to have a great time! 

 i plan on updating and posting while we are away, but you know how that goes sometimes.

live your life

another year has come and gone. so many amazing things happened during my 25th year and alas, i have a new set of goals.

veintiseis.

1. drink lots of water

2. dance more

3. take longer walks

4. limit alcohol to a glass (or 2) of red wine

5. eat more fruits and veggies

6. only purchase things i NEED

7. laugh a lot (fact: i snort when i laugh)

8. be natural (coconut oil, tea tree, little meds., hair color...)

9. eat less meat

basically just be happy, be free and be healthy.

"all good things are wild and free." -henry david thoreau

june bug

LiVE iN THE SUNSHiNE SWiM iN THE SEA DRiNK THE WiLD AiR. -emerson June is HERE and it is my favorite month! it is no wonder my sun soaked, cuban/italian ass decided to enter the world this month. summertime makes me happy. it means bike rides with my honey to the beach and tan skin. It means watermelon and swimming and sun and LOVE! it's def. a scorching month for florida, but that is part of what makes it oh so splendid!

so!

so! april is here and spring has sprung and my allergies have gone BUCKWILD. seriously.

so many exciting things happening in the up and coming months i just can't contain my joy!

on a completely different and equally exciting note, caitlin and varno's photoshoot happened last weekend on april fool's day.
nope, not a joke, it really happened & here are a few of my favorite photos from said event.







this is just a very small selected few of the 300 + others! if you like what you see you can check the rest out on my fb page at http://www.facebook.com/#!/jetphotography

so far so good

since march is coming to a screeching halt, i decided to update how i have done with my march goals.

i have started (today) to become more conscious about my sugar intake. it may have taken 27 days to get this one going but hey, better late than never.

drinking water is now much more prominent in my daily rituals as well as taking the dogs for longer walks.

as far as sunshine goes, i am in it as much as possible in any way possible. march examples: beach time, st. patty's parade, dog walks, reading, etc.

also (today) i started jillian michael's 30 day shred. thanks to a little inspiration from the bff who has also started this challenge. i feel good about it, and hopefully totally satisfied in (approximately) 30 days.
may holds many great festivities for me so i am hoping to have said workout complete and a noticeably tone body by cinco de simon.

so, i would say, so far so good with the march goals.

hoopsmiles

so i am well aware that i have already touched this subject recently but i just learned of some pretty rad hula hoop tutorials. my girl jazzy hoops recommended that i watch his video's and i'm so glad she did. the instructor's name is jon coyne and he is from seattle, washington. he uses the alias hoopsmiles and can be found on youtube. he teaches hoop in a funny and entertaining manner not to mention good looking. here is one i came across and wanted to share, though he has many more.

lunch hour

most days i sit at starbucks and catch up on emails, homework, blogging, etc. during my lunch break. i am lucky enough to have a starbucks with a drive thru window but i usually sit inside and explore the web. today is no different.


p.s.
am i the only one who misses when sbux put inspirational quotes on their mugs?

there's too much green to feel blue

this past weekend was so glorious. my best friend and her awesome fiance came to south florida for a MUCH NEEDED st. patty's day visit! so much fun was had by all. they arrived late friday & we did not waste a minute. shortly after their arrival we skipped over to the surf cafe where my loving boyfriend was soon to be off work. but before he ended his shift he brought out some delicious snacks including mini burgers and french fries. we kicked back a few drinks and before we knew it we were off to our next destination of the night, dada. i had been wanting to take erin to this adorable restaurant which is set up in an old house and decorative with dada art. they are known for their mojitos (so needless to say we ordered one). next thing we knew it was 2 am and we were being asked to leave because the place was closing. i guess the saying time flies when you're drinking rum held true that night. ;)
enough about that, now on to st. patty's day! after our late night adventures the gang was a little slow moving & a few may or may not have been a little on the grumpy side. i made breakfast sammies for all to enjoy and we headed downtown for some parade madness. we happened to get the luck o' the irish when it came to parking for many other cars had been circling for (who knows how long) ever and we got a spot right away. this year we were in the parade on the delivery dude float, which happened to have a band on it (pulled my viejo verde aka simon's truck). if you ask me, we had the best float out, but "that's just like my opinion, man." so we drank, walked, danced, sang, laughed, accumulated green beads, & held our hands over our hearts as kendra (the singer of the band) sang the national anthem. the aftermath consisted of more drinking and setting up the float and band only to hear them play a few songs. food was had and cait and varno drove down! it was awesome to have the three of us together on this day o' fun once again. it was long awaited but well worth it.

all in all i would call it a pretty successful sea of green.








sunday morning was surprisingly productive as erin helped me figure out the best way to use the space we have in our bedroom. this is something i have been working on for over a year and i FINALLY love spending time in said room. i couldn't be more grateful to have such a talented best friend. <3 as we organized, dusted, and re arranged, we worked up a serious appetite. the four of us rode downtown only to find out the place we had our hearts set on for breakfast was closing. we reluctantly stumbled into dolce amore. lucky us, it was an adorable restaurant just a few doors down with killer food & much needed cappuccino's. the service was poor but the food and good company made up for it.

so sad to see erin and jake go, but thankfully we have an event coming up that happens to fall on cinco de simon. <3

happy hooping

tonight was the first time i tried any real "hoopnotica". the hoopers at the festivals and show make it look so easy and therapeutic. not the case as a beginner. it was a little frustrating. i must have spent at least an hour of continuous "practice" to say the least. this video tutorial is one of many i viewed and TRIED to mimic tonight. i cannot tell you how many bruises i acquired (not to mention a fat lip)



oh well... practice makes perfect, right?

maybe someday...

diy

so lately i have been looking for a cute diy idea for my free time.
i think i finally found one worth (on a budget) tackling.
this super crafty idea involves scrap wood of any shape or kind, paint &paint brush, and a favorite quote.

here are the few steps needed to complete this project:
1.)lay wood out on newspaper (preferably outside)
2.)paint to desired color
3.)let dry
4.)once dry paint on (alphabet stickers would work too) your favorite quote with just a few words on each piece of wood.
5.)let dry & hang on wall.
6.)enjoy your masterpiece. :)

aura

this weekend the love and i ventured to st. cloud florida for aura music festival. it was quite the beautiful adventure. the campgrounds alone were so breath-taking. forever florida is a "4700 acre eco-ranch and wildlife conservation area boasting beautifully untamed wilderness, natural streams, wetlands and dense cypress forests." a true camera was not at hand for this little girl but i did snap a few pics. with my phone capturing memories of this wonderful experience. many familiar friends traveled to forever florida where the 3 day festival is held. filled with music, yoga, dancing, food, art, laughter and great company an amazing time is bound to be had. the music played was anything from jazz, to jam/funk, to reggae.

ever since i came across the 'hoop scene' at a previous festival i have longed for one of my own so i could become the master of my own destiny. lucky for me, aura was the perfect time to purchase said hoop. my hand-made hoop is black, red, sparkly gold and green with several lady bug stickers along the seems. :) finally i can dance, hoop, & exercise my life away. <3

here are the few photos i managed to get:


emily and i waiting for dopapod to begin.


camp neighbors


<3


enjoying my rainboots.