Thirty!

Linky Love:

20 Things to Know Before You're 30

20 Things 30-Year- Olds Should Remember

Sagittarius

Though I may not read my horoscope daily, I still believe that I am a true Sagittarius. Don't know what that means? Here are some traits that are usually associated with Sagittarius:

Optimistic/ Idealistic:
Sagittarius  are often very successful at what they try to do. This is partly due to their optimistic outlook and self-confidence. They often have big dreams. They may also be quick to fall in love and easily disappointed.

Restless/ Loves to travel:
They often enjoy exploring new places and meeting new people. The more Sagittarius  learn and experience the happier they are. Sagittarians' closest relationships are often based on a shared love of adventure. Basically the Sagittarius can be defined as one who seeks to reach a particular goal and once she accomplishes that she will work toward accomplishing another goal in his/her life.

Blunt/ Tactless:
They sometimes lack tact and diplomacy and can be brutally honest. She says what she thinks and how she acts shows what she feels. This bluntness may cost her heavily at times. Usually, she is very calm and composed. However, when you become rude to her or offend her, she may become like the fire-spitting dragon. A Sagittarian  may pass the most sarcastic comments when she is angry, but she will forget the resentment soon enough. Then, she won't understand why are you so upset.

{This has actually happened to me}

Philosophical/ Intellectual:
Sagittarius is the truth seeker of the Zodiac. They will strive to find the truth about everything, and are naturally curious and inquisitive about everything. They need constant intellectual stimulation and challenge. In situations where they do not have enough to keep their minds occupied, they are prone to getting bored easily. As a result a loss of interest in a situation may cause them to become irritable. One of the things Sagittarius women look for in relationships is intellectual compatibility.

Unemotional:
This is not an overly-sensitive sign, and when criticized, they listen carefully to the feedback. The Sagittarius woman is very sentimental and emotional, though it seems otherwise. It's just that, where her feelings are concerned, she becomes too shy. She is enthusiastic about life and trusts easily. In fact, this extreme belief makes her heart vulnerable and defenseless. It gets broken too often, but then, she knows how to move on with life. She will be on to Plan B in no time. She would act as if she's not hurt at all and it is just one of the many harmless flirtations she's had. People will even believe all this, while inside she will be weeping and nursing her wounds. All this time, she will be analyzing what went wrong and when.

Energetic:
This is in line with the ruling element of the sign which is fire. Sagittarius women have incredible staminas which other signs may find difficult to keep up with.

Other stuff:

The Sagittarius woman is very enterprising and resourceful. She is always on the look for ways she can fulfill her dreams. She is also very adventurous with an abundance of creative fire and the need for excitement and different ways to widen her horizons.
By any means necessary is one of my mottos. 

The Sagittarius woman is usually attracted to those she feels are in distress because this allows her to provide help to someone else. Sagittarians are generous with their time and energy, and genuinely like helping other people succeed.
This explains why I wanted to be a school psychologist and/or guidance counselor, and even a recruiter.

Completely impartial, her friendships come from all walks of life and are made up of people of all nationalities and cultures.
Yup, completely true. Which makes large get togethers somewhat difficult- so many different personalities!

Her attitude to beauty is "if it's all natural, it's all good". She can be great fun at slumber parties, cajoling everyone into trying avocado face packs and making their own night creams. She may even sit still long enough for a pedicure. But in normal circumstances, her beauty routine is haphazard and the only thing she can be counted on to wear is sun block.

Completely haphazard- some days I'll be fully made up, other days I have nothing on my face at all, and don't care!

If you want to get something done from a Sagittarian female, just ask her; don't order. She will never ever do it. She is your better half and don't you dare forget that. On the other hand, she doesn't want a sissy for a husband or boyfriend. He has to be a real man, who has his ego and won't stand for nonsense. So, you will be expected to balance politeness with firmness.

I REALLY don't like being ordered around; you will get much farther with me if you just ask. And I like for a guy to be able to stand up for himself, but who doesn't?!

What's your sign? Do you agree with it?

"In December every sign has it’s own mode

I was in love with a Sagittarius

See the emotions he put me through

I was in love with a Sagittarius he blew my mind

He also had a flip side too much like a Gemini

He was freaky like a Taurus the way he handled me yeah

Flirtatious like and Aries

I can’t explain why I love him

Bossy like Leo’s do

Got game like an Aquarius

Switch moves after he’s been with you

Fun like a Libra

He stays on my mind

He’s so unpredictable

He reminds me of every sign"

Beyonce- Signs

Weekend Update: Family, Friends, and Football

Friday: RJ and I were supposed to have a cute NYC date, but there was freezing rain. So we met with a few of his friends for some karaoke, and then went to see his other friend DJ nearby. I also had one of the best shots ever. I forget what it was called, but I kid you not, it tasted like Christmas. It was amazing. And I don't even like shots!

Saturday:

My aunt was recently in the hospital, but she just got out, so my mom and I went to visit her. But first we went to the mall by Columbus Circle to get a little gift. These beautiful stars changed colors! I also got a few early bday presents! I'll share those soon!

Sunday: My girlfriend and I got a great deal from Living Social to see the NY Jets! Even though I'm an Eagles fan I still went, because I just love going to football games, and this was my second one ever! It was super cold out (30 degrees, but felt like 20, according to TWC), and we were in the nose bleed section (literally one row away from the back wall of the stadium!) but it was still fun. It was my first time at this stadium, and they won! Woot woot!

How was your weekend?

The Happiness Report #48

- live football games
- funny text convos
- Chinese food
- love notes
- sleepovers
- cancelled plans
- slow dancing in my living room
- karaoke
- early birthday presents
- Netflix streaming plan


Linky Love:
Making Friends at 30 and Beyond
What's your Birth Number?
Who Doesn't Love Birthday Freebies?

December: Favorite Things

Here are a few of my favorite things this month!

December Favorite Things by lildesiqua featuring christmas holiday decorations

1. Victoria's Secret thermal pj's
2. My two favorite Christmas movies, Elf and Love Actually
3. Essie's Wicked
4. hot chocolate/ cozy mugs
5. fuzzy slippers
6. the smell of live Christmas trees
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You're such a mystery

I just want to stand and stare
Nibble on your ear
And smell the ocean in your hair (Ocean in your hair, ocean in your hair)
I know you damage me
You leave me tangled in a knot (Oh-oh-oh-oh)
But when you reappear
I see Neptunian blues that eyes forgot (Eyes forgot)
Neptunian blues that eyes forgot (Blues that eyes forgot, eyes forgot)

Still, I only feel alive when the VU is flashing
Alarms going off in my head
I want to grab you and just kiss you
Maybe I should sit down
No sense in cashing us now
Yeah, I only feel all right when the VU is flashing
And bombs going off in my head
I want to grab you, want to scream at you, no icing me down
The party's crashing us now"



Linking up with Lipgloss and Lunges and A. Liz Adventures

Cheers- The Ivrester Award!

In honor of Thirsty Thursday, and the fact that this has been sitting as a draft for literally six months, I give you...

1. Acknowledge who nominated you. Thanks Jordan (sorry I'm 6 months late!)

2. Answer the 10 questions below 

3. Nominate 10 bloggers you think are excellent drinkers

4. Do not change the questions.

5. Don't nominate the blog that nominated you. That's it.

What is your favorite drinking game and why? 
This is a throwback one, but I will always love King's Cup!

It is your birthday, what is your idea of the perfect evening?
Dinner with friends followed by karaoke or dancing, which is exactly what I plan on doing!

Money is no object, what is your go to drink of choice at a bar?
If it's available, a rose martini. But it's usually not, so beer. Or some gin or whiskey concoction

Take this alcohol screening quiz here, what score did you receive?
You answered 5 items out of 20 Yes.

Your score is 25%. According to the Office of Health Care Programs, Johns Hopkins University Hospital, developers of this screening quiz, if you answered 3 of these questions with a Yes it is a definite sign that your drinking patterns are harmful and possibly considered alcohol dependent or alcoholic. You may want to seek an evaluation by a healthcare professional.

What is your favorite memory with alcohol?
Is this a trick question??! There are a whole lot! My 21st was pretty awesome. As was drinking on the beach in India while smoking hookah... good times! 

What is your favorite song about drinking? Or song to drink to?
Bottoms Up- Trey Songz ft. Nicki Minaj
Cheers (I'll Drink to That)- Rihanna
Beer on the Table- Josh Thompson

What is your favorite activity to do while drinking (i.e. boating, bowling, golf, trivia, etc.)
dancing/singing/live music
game nights
watching football
laying on the beach

In your opinion, which is the number one party school in the country and why?
My alma mater!! We had "The Hill"- where alllll the frats and sororities were. You could literally find a place to drink any time, any day, no matter what. 

When do you know you have had too much to drink? What are your signals?
My under eye area gets a little puffy, my eyes get a little squinty, and I get LOUD! And cuddly. And too honest!

And my nominees are :

Kenya- Life with Giggles
Michael- Crazy Tragic Almost Magic
Jennifer- Crazy Shenanigans
Kelly- Big Apple, Little Bites
Lauren- The Peanut Program
Emma- Bubbly Muppet
Karla- Forever Newly Wedded
Misfit- Adventures of a Misfit Librarian
Amber- Brunch with Amber
Lindsay- Life on the Countryside

Cheers!

Thanksgiving Weekend Update and an Introduction

What a freakin week it's been! After the conference one week, then coming back to work for 2 days last week, and then Thanksgiving I am tired!!! Here's a run down of what I've been up to lately...

Wednesday: I was off, and didn't do anything. I mean, I uploaded a few pics, and attempted a blog post, but nothing of real substance. And it was GLORIOUS. And then at night my girl friend made dinner, and then I had my first experience at Hooters for trivia night. Can I just say-- I don't know what all the fuss is over that place. The girls didn't even have big boobs, and the wings weren't that great. I don't get it. But anyway. Afterwards, I headed a few doors down to my old hometown bar. I hadn't been back since sometime in college. It was exactly the same, and I saw a lot of familiar faces... in a good way. Perfect ending to the night!

Thursday/Thanksgiving: Soooo I decided to host Thanksgiving this year. And cook everything. And by host, I mean my mom came over and we hung out and cooked. I wanted to make everything, but when I woke up Thursday morning, I realized the inside of my turkey was still frozen... oops. So the turkey wasn't really done until 9pm. And by that time, we didn't feel like eating it! But I learned how to cook a turkey for the first time!, and we ate all the sides and watched a bunch of romcoms like all day... until fighting happened as it usually does, and then she went home. But overall it was ok. And ya know, there was wine, so that helped!

My turkey!

Friday: I was NOT doing the whole leaveThanksgivingearlyandstartshopping madness. Instead, I met with two friends in the city and FINALLY saw Catching Fire! I was a little worried because everyone had said it was really good and it was hyped up, but I was pleasantly surprised that is was freakin awesome. It was also cool because it has been so long since I read the book, and yet everything came rushing back- I love how true it stayed to the book (minus the necklace bit). I had totally forgotten all the twists! However, and I know most of you will disagree, and I do really like Peeta, but I'm still #TeamGale!

The movie ended at like 3, and we were off, so what did we do? An impromptu bar crawl towards home. We started at like 63rd Street and worked our way down to 34th Street. The only rule was that the happy hour specials had to be really good (think $2 drafts) and it had to be places none of us had been to before. 

OMG. What a freakin hot mess.

I have no words. But I did make it home, so that was a major plus!

Saturday: Um. I actually don't remember what I did during the day, but I met up with some friends in the evening for some beers and good conversation- it was a chill night, which was perfect after the shitshow that was Friday!

Sunday: Mom came by for a little while, and then I met up with a few friends  to see Thor 2. I'm not that much into action movies, and hadn't seen the first one, but it was pretty good! And ya know, staring at Chris Hemsworth for 2 hours ain't so bad either! I didn't know Natalie Portman was in it, which was a nice surprise- I think she's a great actress. And Kat Denning added some great comic relief!

And now introducing..... ::drum roll:: ....
RJ, my new beau!!

RJ and I met 3 weeks ago at my friend's birthday party. He is actually my bff from high school's younger brother, but I never knew him back then. I knew who he was when I walked into the party only because my bff had posted pics of him on FB. I actually approached him, and we hit it off instantly! He walked me home after the party, and we've been pretty much inseparable since then!

More about him: he teaches Autistic kids, volunteers at a homeless shelter, loves music, zombies, movies, sports (duh), cold beers, and his friends (like loves his friends a lot- he sees his best friends almost weekly, which I think is good). He can cook really well (thank G*d), he's super sweet, and he makes me laugh all the time... I'm sure there's more, but that's all you get for now!

Soooo that's what I've been up to! What have I missed in these parts?

December Goals

- Stick to budget!: FAIL. Big fat fail. Thanks in part to San Diego....meh. 

- Save $300: Almost! $250!

- Do at least half of Christmas/gift shopping: DONE! I think I only have one or two left to purchase before I'm done!

- Complete at least one craft: Fail. 

- Finish unpacking FO REALZ: DONE! 

- Buy a scale...and use it: Fail. Instead I got a knife set... I think it was a fair trade off.

- Try 3 new recipes... and blog them: Haha.... fail.

- Finish at least two books: DONE!

- Work on crossing some things off of my Fall Bucket List: Check!

- Host Thanksgiving and/or Friendsgiving: Success!

- Make plans for my birthday!: Success!

-Stick. To. Budget. 

(maybe if I keep writing it, I'll actually do it?)

-Complete a craft

- Finish the Goodreads Challenge

- Create a Winter Bucket List

- Try 2 new recipes and blog them

- Buy a couch (Merry Christmas to meeee!)

- Save $300

- Have an awesome birthday!

- ...and a very Merry Christmas!

- and a Happy New Years Eve/Day! 

Do you have any goals for December?

The Happiness Report #47

- Thanksgiving food! Serious my favorite meal. Love it!
- A super short work week... 2 days?! I'll take it!
- Dress down days at work
- when friends visit you at work!
- surprises
- payday
- winning a week in fantasy football! Especially after losing like, 10!
- wine
- cuddles
- Netflix streaming

Linky Love:
Thirty Lessons You Learned After Twenty - soooo true!

Friday Confessions and Back That Azz Up!

I confess...

I love Thanksgiving food, but not really a fan of the whole "holiday" aspect.

Same with Christmas... something always goes terrible and I spend the next day/week trying to forget it happened.

I still haven't bought milk... or gone to the grocery store for that matter.

I ran into 2 exes on Wednesday night and for one of the first times it wasn't weird at all.

This is one reason I don't go to "hometown" bars.

I'm going to see Catching Fire today and I'm TOO EXCITED!

I've been off since Wednesday and really haven't done jack shit. And it's been awesome.

Happiness Report #46

Things Making Me Smile This Week...

pugs
Fall
crockpot meals
Zumba
lots of awesome friend time
Insurgent
fuzzy throw blankets
the first snow
low-key hangouts
great deals

Linky Love:
Thanks to Karla for letting me know about the 10dollarmall.
Ashten is Miss Independent, and knows the difference between being stubborn and independent.
Erin Elizabeth's dad teaches The Dice Rule.
They are doing it on purpose! Starbucks names.
Marriage Isn't For You
It Matters Who You Marry- some of this was eye-opening. Thanks Nikki!

What's making YOU smile this week?

Confessions + Back That Azz Up

via

I confess...

I ran out of milk about a week ago. It's ok though, I've learned to like black coffee.

Being an adult is overrated. Except for the drinking part, that part is pretty awesome.

I am so ready for a vacation!

I've officially started planning for my birthday- Dirty Flirty 30 here I come!

I know this song is completely ridiculous, but I kinda sorta love it...

Weekend Wednesday

My oh my how time has flown! I can't believe it's Wednesday already, and I'm still recovering from the weekend. Here is why....

Wednesday: Went out for some Korean BBQ with my BB. She introduced me to this awesome little restaurant in Korea Town called KyoChon where we had delicious soy garlic fried chicken wings and potato wedges. Seriously, so freakin good! And they had giant screens playing American and Korean music videos, which was pretty cool.

Thursday: Had a work happy hour... no pics, my bad

Friday: Went out with a girlfriend for $2 beers. And free pasta. And a free drink of your choice if you say the Word of the Day [which was Kahuna]....? Yes pleaseandthankyou!

Saturday: Pretended to be an adult and actually went grocery shopping and did laundry.

And cooked salsa chicken for some yummy chicken tacos. [Recipe next week!]

My mom came over with a 20% off coupon for HomeGoods and I finally bought a knife set and cutting board. Yay for real knives! Now I can finally try recipes where cutting things is involved! Oh, and I picked up a roaster for Thanksgiving. And I found these cute little sauce to go bottles, but I didn't buy them.

I picked up this crappy looking dresser, and I plan on refurbishing it. The lady who gave it to me also gave me a bag full of cool looking handles for it too. Thanks Freecycle! and Hello, winter project!

My friend's birthday party was that night, and though I didn't feel like going, I'm really glad I did- it was a great time! (no pics...it's really for the best in this case).

Sunday: Was up bright and early for brunch in Hoboken. We headed to Elysian Cafe. It was super crowded (like 45 min wait crowded), but I can see why. The Food. Was. Bangin. I had Cinnamon- Amaretto French Toast-- if you go there, I would definitely recommend it! 

Sunday afternoon I headed to another friend's birthday. That guy in the picture shaking that thing? That thing is a paint can. Like, a real one. Which was filled with "Crunk Juice." Lemon, lime and orange juice, and a half of a bottle of whiskey. Dangerous stuff, fo reals. I had 2 cups and was done. 

So yeah, busy busy couple of days! I gotta keep my butt home and relax a little before my trip next week- can't wait to see San Diego! I've been watching THIS constantly... how can you not? So flippin cute! 

Book Club and Back That Azz Up!

This Week I'm Sharing...

From Goodreads:
"This is the story of how a haughty former sorority girl went from having a household income of almost a quarter-million dollars to being evicted from a ghetto apartment... It's a modern Greek tragedy, as defined by Roger Dunkle in The Classical Origins of Western Culture: a story in which "the central character, called a tragic protagonist or hero, suffers some serious misfortune which is not accidental and therefore meaningless, but is significant in that the misfortune is logically connected."

In other words? The bitch had it coming."

My Thoughts:

This is the first book I've read from Jen Lancaster (of the ever famous Jennsylvania).  I've wanted to read this (along with her others) for a long time. However, it was just ok. I don't know, I thought I'd be more into it, but there wasn't anything to make me fall in love with her. I thought we would be more similar,... boy was I wrong. First of all, I thought the tone was generally whiny. "Woe is me, once I was an exec, now I'm taking my Coach bag to the unemployment line." "Boo-hoo, my parents (finally) cut me off from their money because I'm a hopeless shopaholic." No, just no.  I thought her drunken stories would make me laugh out loud, instead they just made me feel sorry for her. I did like her husband (someone with some common sense), until he admitted to just hiding bills instead of dealing with them. 

I gave it three stars, but I thought even that was a bit gracious. I won't say don't read it, but it is completely mindless chick-lit.
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November Favorites

1. It's candle season! And being a lover of pumpkin everything, this pumpkin spice one sounds like it would smell divine!

2. Pumpkin pie. By far my favorite dessert! And I do make a pretty excellent one if I do say so myself. Which I do.

3. Ohhh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree... Ok, I know it's a little early to be talking about Christmas, but I just found this fantastic deal where you can get a tree delivered to your home (or apartment, in my case)! This is awesome since I love real trees, but lack a car to get said tree home!

4. Riding boots. They are so comfortable, they match just about anything, and they cane be worn with jeans or dresses/skirts. Oh, and they keep my legs warm!

5. Football season. Even though my fantasy team is completely sucking right now, I still love the game.

6. Infinity scarves, especially chunky styles like this one!

7. All the rich colors of the trees turning, especially here in the Northeast- it's so pretty!

What are some of you favorite things this season?

Taste of Tuesday: Oreo Pumpkin Cheesecakes

Ok, I'm going to admit today's post is a bit of a cop-out, because I posted around this time last year. However, they were such a hit that I made them again this year at Halloween for work. And they were gone within 5 minutes (not even exaggerating). Also, I have pictures this time. I'm sharing them again- enjoy!!

What you need:

1-8 oz. package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup pureed pumpkin
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
pinch of salt
12 Halloween Oreos [I don't like the Halloween version, so I just used regular...tastes just as good!]
1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional- for decoration)

Here's what you do: 

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. 

2. Line 12 muffin tins with paper liners. Place 1 Oreo in the bottom of each muffin tin. Set aside. 

3. In large bowl, whip cream cheese and sugar together until smooth. Stir in vanilla, pumpkin, egg, cinnamon, nutmeg, flour and salt until combined. Scrape sides of bowl and whip mixture until completely smooth. Spoon mixture evenly over Oreo. 

4.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until cheesecakes have set. Remove from oven to cool. Once cheesecakes are cool enough to handle, remove from muffin tin. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Optional Design: Microwave chocolate chips until smooth and completely melted. Spoon chocolate into a piping bag with a small round tip. Pipe melted chocolate in concentric circles on top of cheesecakes. Drag the end of a toothpick through the chocolate to create a spiders web look. Repeat with remaining cheesecakes.

via

November Goals

First, a review of my October Goals:

- Re-do budget: Semi-success! I redid it, I just didn't exactly stick to it. Baby steps...
- Save $300: Fail.
- Make $50 {side hustles}: Fail.
- Complete at least one craft: Fail.
- Finish unpacking: Fail. I only unpacked one more box. Oof.
- gain "x" lbs: No idea? I forgot to buy a scale... oops.
- No Spend October!: Success! Ok, so I bought hangers for $1, and shutter shades for my North West costume $4, but other than that, no extra spending!
- Try 5 new recipes... and blog them!: Semi-Success! I did 5 recipes, just didn't get a chance to blog them all yet!
- Finish at least one book: Success! The Ocean at the End of the Lane
- Restart Line-A-Day: Success! Well, almost every day, but I'm counting it!
- Work on crossing some things off of my Fall Bucket List : Success!
- Sing and Dance... just because!: Success (especially while cooking/waiting on food to be done!) 

- Stick to budget!

- Save $300

- Do at least half of Christmas/gift shopping

- Complete at least one craft

- Finish unpacking FO REALZ

-buy a scale...and use it

- Try 3 new recipes... and blog them

- Finish at least two books

- work on crossing some things off of my Fall Bucket List

- Host Thanksgiving and/or Friendsgiving

- Make plans for my birthday!

Do you have any goals for November?