il dolce far niente - The Sweetness of Doing Nothing

I've been in Florida a week now, and I can say I've accomplished a lot, and also next to nothing, haha!  But what I decided to do this morning surprised even me - I decided to wake up and cook breakfast for myself, and then lounge around and casually surf the internet.  il dolce far niente <3

I thought about this as I sat down and looked at my plate of food.  It's delicious, filled with fried potatoes, poached eggs and fresh apples with some chai tea, and I suddenly felt like Julia Roberts in "Eat, Pray, Love", and it's an amazing feeling. 

I have nothing specific to do today, no where to go and no one to see, and because of that, I'm going to take my time.  Far too often I rush around and try to fit too many things into my day, because I think "You only live once!"  It's true, you do, but why live life in such a frantic rush that the little things pass you by?  The little things in life are the things that if you stop and really think about them, make life worth living.  A hug, a compliment, a great dinner, the smell of fresh cut grass, being in the presence of friends, laughter, amazing memories.  Those are a few of the things I know I don't take enough time to appreciate, and it's time I did.  With this new life in Florida, I plan on taking a little time each week to just sit and enjoy something, while doing nothing.

Through My Lense 2

This weeks installment!  In the last week I went to SeaWorld with the love of my life, I made some fantastic food, finished watching the first season of "Game of Thrones", developed a new hobby (or 2...), drove across 5 states & stayed the night in the French Quarter in New Orleans, had a "reunion" of sorts of a lot of my really good friends, finally got to my new job, laid on the beach, and had deep conversation with some amazing people.

These are some of my pics from the last week...

I've been planning to do a picture frame like this one for FOREVER!  I was even saving the bottle caps for a LONG time, and then I found them!  So while I was home, I decided it was time to make the proper use of them for the purpose they were created!  Hurray for finishing a crafty project that I planned to start (6 years later... haha!)

So, you wonder what these are don't you?  I call them "Girl Scout Cookie Cupcakes." They're authentic, made with real girl scouts!  HAHA!  J/k!  But seriously - they're made with girl scout cookies.  The back ones are a french vanilla cupcake topped with Samoas, and the front ones are Thin Mints (which also have thin mints baked into the batter of a french vanilla cupcake).  SUPER YUMMY!!! <3

Saturday's breakfast: Apple Cinnamon Pancakes, maple sausage and coffee.  My boyfriend ALWAYS asks that I make these every time I'm around on a weekend, they're a favorite, and SIMPLE!  Take a packed of Hungry Jack pancake mix (really any pancake mix works), add a little milk, a little water, and replace the rest of the water with apple cinnamon apple sauce until you like the consistancy of the pancakes!  Be careful not to burn them tho, the sugar in the apple sauce makes them burn faster!

Habibi and I saw this at Bed, Bath & Beyond.  It's PERFECT for me, very modern looking, and centered around traveling.  LOVE IT!

Sunday's Breakfast: Scrambled Eggs, Rosmary Potatoes, and 12 Grain Toast topped with Pistachio Honey Butter and fresh fruit!  YUMMY!

One of my new hobbies: Bezel Bracelets!!  I love them, and I'm considering starting an Etsy shop and selling them online... not only would they give me a creative outlet, but I could make a little money doing something I love!!

Habibi and I went to SeaWorld with his roommate and his g/f - we had a blast!  This is the picture of the set for one of the shows that we watched - it was SO CUTE!  Very "slapstick" comedy like, but the animals were so well trained it was like you didn't even notice the cheesy comedy!  Just adorable animals and a cute story!  We had a good laugh!

One of my favorite views in America:  The St. Louis Cathedral in the French Quarter, New Orleans.  Everytime I'm in NOLA, I go to Cafe du Monde and buy a large Cafe au Lait and some Beignet and sit across from the Cathedral, covering myself in powdered sugar and enjoying the sight of beautiful architecture.

My Cafe au Lait & delicious beignet!

My hotel room at Hotel Provincial in the French Quarter.  Apparently, this building of the hotel is haunted - but I didn't really have any problems.  If my room was haunted, it left me alone!

That sign says "Florida" on it.  And that, my friends, it a beautiful thing.

************************************

That's that!  Part of my last week in picture!  I like doing this I think - I believe I'm going to keep trying to stick with this series every Monday!  Til next time!

Through My Lense

I have so many pictures that I want to share, but I'll only put them up a few at a time...

Me, getting ready to go out Salsa Dancing with my good friend Josie, in Spokane, WA.  My hair normally isn't that "BIG" - but I thought it would be fun to spice up my look a bit, and I loved it!

Inside of Rosa's Cafe, San Angelo, TX.  I had to take a picture of the decorative furniture.  It felt like everything in that restaurant was a work of art, they didn't even need art on the walls, just the furniture! (and the food wasn't bad either!)

D-Ray's, San Angelo, TX.  This was my favorite burger joint of all time in San Angelo!  I went here several times with multiple friends so they could all experience the deliciousness that I did :)

This little Salt & Pepper Shaker that I found at Pier 1 Imports in San Antonio, TX is just ADORABLE!  I think it would be so much fun to have lots of different salt & pepper shakers with all different themes to display during a different parties - like this one for a cookout :)

This.... is a direct result of the Dryer Goblins.  As you can see, I have 5 socks, each with a different color ring on top.  Cool. Thanks.  I wonder what they do with the others?

I bought this dress off of Ebay, but I haven't actually had a reason to wear it yet :(  It's cute tho!

*************************************************

And that is this weeks edition of "Through My Lense".  Not all of these pictures have been taken in the last week, but my goal is to start a weekly "Through My Lense" every Monday of pictures that I have taken in the last week!