#because both of you are so amazed by the variety in asian super markets

[panickingathotmen]

Grocery Shopping and then Homemade Dinner Date w/ Lee Felix

[laserofprinting]

One of the better places to discover creating resources is Amazon . com. By signing up for an Amazon . com Excellent account

http://blogtintuc247.com/2020/07/20/cac-cong-dung-chinh-cua-tui-giay-dung-qua/ People arrived at crafts and arts for a lot of good reasons. For several, it is actually a fun family members time making use of their kids. For other people, it can be a way to obtain company and specialist craftsmanship. There are also the ones that get it done simply to reuse otherwise wasted materials in to creative ventures. No matter your personal route to crafts and arts, this informative article is going to help you make a lot of activity. One of the best areas to find crafting materials is Amazon. By subscribing to an Amazon Excellent profile, you can find free delivery for the whole calendar year. In addition, several of Amazon's sellers offer Free Super Delivery things. To qualify for Free of charge Awesome Shipping you must commit at the very least $25 dollars in products.

Surfing around the world wide web for new concepts is the best way to develop your crafts and arts capabilities. You can see how many other crafters are creating and obtain a new viewpoint on what you are able create with the crafting expertise. So go online to locate new strategies to expand your ingenuity while you are performing your favorite art or interest. Get ways to share your current creating talent with other people. Instructing your youngsters the best way to sign up for an individual in performing a art is definitely a wonderful way to complete downward your special skill. Also, it is a terrific way to spend time with your family members and also to make thoughts that can last a lifetime. You need to arrange your creating products. There are several approaches to shop them all, so find an issue that works for you. It's likely to be easier for you to get what you require in this way. In addition, you can do easy stock in your thoughts. To help make your current mosaic floor tiles rest equally, set spacers between them to hold them into position whilst the mortar under them hardens. Without having spacers, it is sometimes complicated to collection them up properly, simply because even the most eagle associated with eyeballs will get away series from time to time, and you get a messy mosaic. Getting rid of unwelcome crafts and arts products can both be simple and fulfilling. If might located oneself with lots of supplies to help keep arranged, consider donating them to a nearby institution or perhaps youngsters centre. You may also build your individual gift idea gift baskets or crafts and arts products filled with typically the materials you no longer need to have. To help keep your artwork pastime via taking over an entire room, consider purchasing a collapsible easel. Doing this, when you find yourself completed working on your work of art for a day, the easel should go straight into the dresser, with your material. That leaves your own personal bed room free all through your day. Attempt to opt for craft jobs for children that are era instructions suitable. When a project possesses a variety of sophisticated techniques, attempt breaking it up into something that your children are capable of doing. As an example, you might have some sort of younger child and your project might demand very hot stick. You ought to see anything they is capable of doing whilst you deal with that specific work. Try to find crafts and arts products in lawn product sales as well as music shops. Often men and women will try out to eliminate their crafts and arts supplies and once they do, you will get all of them for a great price. Keep your eyeballs wide open to get supplies so you must be able to discover some good bargains. Looking for a inexpensive resource for your arts and crafts task? Give Q- ideas a try. Q- suggestions can be used a variety of assignments, from building a home to artwork. The best thing is a package connected with Q- suggestions is significantly less expensive than another resources you might apply. Once you do arts and crafts assignments together with your children, it may be so much entertaining along with a amazing connecting expertise. It may also be very messy, as well. To help keep your child's clothing from becoming engrossed in paint, work with an outdated, more than - sized tee shirt as being an art work apron. You can just wash this makeshift apron, plus recycling it over and over again. Pull out storage solution centers are great strategies to retailer all your crafting guides. Take out shelving arrives in a number of shapes and colours that will help you coordinate the create station into the living space. Use a number of pull out shelves for your supplies, such as fabric, books and threads. Try to find other discovering prospects when conducting crafts with little ones. You can utilize arithmetic by having them count up objects, deduct while you use them, make an attempt to see the guidelines, or maybe numerous other jobs that can help them learn while experiencing and enjoying the exciting! If an individual has found that if you're very good using crafts and arts, consider making it a company. It is possible to sell your products at a variety of flea market segments and local activities. It's a lot of fun turning everything you adore in something that enables you to some additional investing money! Whenever you do decoupage, do your very best to sleek out air bubbles. An individual don't want to create various other bubbles or roughen the top. You may prevent this by utilizing many curved lacquered chopsticks for smoothing out of the lines and wrinkles or perhaps air flow bubbles once you stick. These are easier than un-laquered chopsticks, and you could see them in many Asian market segments or gift item retailers. Experiencing check this out article, you have to have a deeper gratitude of your pastime (or residing ) of arts and crafts. Take advantage of the tips in this particular post to enhance your experience when an individual sit down and make some thing. Make an effort to widen your horizons. Should you crafts and arts simply for fun, make an effort to make one thing you can sell. Should you do arts and crafts by yourself normally, encourage someone to sign up for you.

[soulbutterlanguages]

See Chicago on the Budget of a Poor College Student !

Chicago is absolutely beautiful if you know where to go! And there’s plenty more to see than just The Bean. I moved here for school a year and a half ago, and I still have much more to explore in this amazing city.

I’ve written up a little guide for anyone interested in visiting Chicago on their next trip. This guide is also based off of ‘El’ (train) stops.

Totally free things both downtown and north.

   - Maggie Daley Park is just a two minute walk from the always mentioned Bean (which is actually meant to be a cloud) and as an adult, I’ve never felt like more of a kid again. It’s a fantastic date spot, or if you’re just feeling silly, take a stroll over the bridge and find yourself on a pirate ship.

  -Navy Pier disclaimer; Navy Pier is a tourist trap, but it is also beautiful. Totally free to just stroll across, but the attractions come at a heavy price. Worth seeing once. 

   - ChristkindlMarkt  no doubt you’ve already heard of this, but during the winter months, Chicago hosts three different German Christmas Markets scattered across the city that are rival only Europe’s Christmas Markets. 

   -Lincoln Park Zoo/Conservatory I ADORE the conservatory! They have a whole room of Orchids and more or less any plant you can imagine (including the Sensitive Plant that curls up when you touch it) it’s very cute and I love spending time there. Also pretty close if you want to get away from the crowds is a beautiful little Lily Park across the street. Really nice to sit and read by and the ducks are 11/10.

   -Chinatown! Blocks and blocks of asian culture!! There is hardly any English seen or even spoken it’s so cool to see (but you can certainly get by). If you’re a K-Pop fan, there are at least three stores dedicated to K-Pop merch to peruse. 

   -Boystown! Pride flags everywhere, drag shows, comedy shows, LGBTQ+ facts literally posted on street corners. It’s so much fun. You will pass sex shops that aren’t afraid to tell you what they’re all about if you’re traveling with children, just know that.

   -Bookstores (depending on who you ask) are free to look around in! We have some really amazing bookstores both new and used, so do your research if you’re interested. 

  -Little Vietnam! There’s a whole stretch of road where there is nearly no English a block or two away from the Red Line Argyle stop. Really amazing food and shops. There’s also a whole bunch of other cool things in this area too.

  -Big Ass Starbucks ! I’m not a fan of Starbucks, but this one is super cool. I highly recommend if you stumble across it, to take a look. There’s a bar on the top floor.

  -Red Line Roulette a great little game we like to play where we close our eyes and point to a random stop on the red line (usually north of Roosevelt) and get off there and see what we can find. This works with most lines, we just live on the red line and therefore use it the most.

Nearly free things

  -Museums! Most places have pretty nice student discounts, or even free student tickets. Some museums are pricier than others but totally worth it! You can see some of your favorite paintings at the Art Institute, or learn about your favorite American authors down the street at the lesser known American Writers Museum. There is a variety of science museums as well to check out. My favorite is the Chicago History Museum, where you can learn about gangsters and the packing industry and hundreds of fascinating other things.

  -Cultural Centers! As you can imagine, Chicago is incredibly diverse! Chicago is home to the National Museum of Mexican Art, as well as the DANK Haus, and even the Swedish American Museum. 

  -Jenni’s Ice Cream! I don’t want to set the bar too high on this one but once you try it, ice cream will never be the same.

  -Music Box Theater! Beautiful little theater, sort of off the beaten path, with all sorts of obscure movies playing at all times. 

  -DIY Music Scene!!!! This is truly amazing. One thing I’ve noticed in my time living here, is that apparently when people are moving out of their apartments, the tradition is to clear out all furniture and have local rock bands play. Some of the best nights of my life happened in a room of twenty people trying to dance in a kitchen. If you’re interested check out bands like Ex Okays, Spacebones, and Engine Summer. Usually they’ll charge something like $3-9 for a show, but you have to find them. 

  -Go on an architecture tour! Chicago history is really fascinating! Learn about it!

 Here’s a list of restaurants that are great

   Nutella cafe (worth going once if you like Nutella)

   Stan’s Donut’s 

   Anne Sather’s

   Here’s some more

      General tips ~

    -ditch the car. Even if you’re an amazing driver, it’ll only cause stress and you’ll find yourself spending more time getting to places than being there. Plus we have a really amazing public transport system!

    -similarly, don’t be afraid of the public transport system! You might occasionally stroll into a car that smells like pee or have someone come up and talk to you. Be polite and they’ll leave you alone. As a short woman who likes to be out late, I have never really felt unsafe in my time here. That being said, be cautious. If it’s after 10pm, have at least another person traveling on the bus or train with you.

  - you don’t need to lock your zippers or wear your bag on your front. In fact, you might even be targeted more. Once I accidentally rode three stops on the El with my back pack totally open, and I got to my destination and nothing was missing. On the other hand, I had a friend have his phone stolen on the CTA (the train) but only because the man said “please let me borrow your phone, I have to call my daughter.” so my friend stupidly handed it to him to which the man responded “this is mine now.” I shouldn’t have to say this, but don’t hand your stuff to people you don’t know.

  -for god’s sake check the weather before you come ! Weather here is really temporal. The joke is; if you don’t like the weather now, wait five minutes. 

  -Uber instead of taxi if you can’t take the El Taxi costs  a lot more money

  - Know when the El shuts down. I think only the Red Line runs 24/7 so have a plan. 

  -Have evening plans before the evening comes. Surprisingly, things close pretty early in the day, so know what you want to do

There you go! If you have any questions message me! Or feel free to add on. The list is really endless, this is just what I could think of off the top of my head. 

[imuskansameer]

Versus Area Centered Casinos

Live dealer games are among the more interesting and noted trends that have been happening in the last several years in the internet casino industry. Live casino games were initially developed about 10 years ago as a distinct segment type game primarily targeting the Asian markets, who expressed a demand for such a type of games. In enough time that has passed ever since then, live casino games have changed, developed and evolved quite a bit, making them as popular, exciting and lucrative in the Western world, especially in the UK and Europe. Live dealer casino games are actually online casino games where the gamer is obviously participating in a genuine live game hosted either at an actual B&M casino or at a studio. The cards are dealt by a real live dealer who has been especially trained to host such games and players can see exactly what's happening in the overall game and enjoy around possible the excitement and action similar as to the they would experience at a bricks and mortar casino.

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In the early days of the web, many land based casino players, eager to test the newest medium of gambling online, didn't do so for just two main reasons. The first being that they didn't feel comfortable with providing their charge card details for some online entity they could not see or touch. The 2nd was that players generally didn't trust the random number generators (RNG), which are the "engine" behind all online casinos. Lots of people believed that the RNG was fixed and in the favor of the online casino, thus making the odds of you losing all your hard earned money almost certain. At a land based casino, players could see the cards and the dealers and feel the action on the casino floor. The fact that they certainly were working with real live people made the entire business believable. Having a machine deal the cards in place of an individual was unthinkable in those days! This forced the internet casino software providers to produce a solution; live dealer games where the ball player could begin to see the dealer and the action at the casino, just from the comfort of his own home while playing at an online casino.

The initial live dealer casino games were rather limited and didn't quite offer the player experience the online casino software companies hoped for, especially due to technical and technological reasons. Video streaming was extremely slow as a result of narrow the narrow band width that existed in those times and the end result on the players'end was not the excitement and glamour on the real Vegas casino floors. Due to this, live casino games didn't become as popular because the developers and casino operators hoped for. Luckily, developments in bandwidth and video streaming have contributed largely to the ability of software providers to enhance and enhance live casino games closing the gap involving the dream and vision to reality. Most online casinos don't develop their games in-house and obtain a license from a business that develops the program for online casinos. The leading software developers that provide live casino games are Playtech, Microgaming and Evolution Gaming and they often operate them because of their licensees, either from a TV studio or from a genuine land based casino. This means that you will probably see the exact same live casino games at different online casinos. The reason behind that is that the operating costs are higher compared to standard RNG powered games. The effect is that here is the only enterprize model so far that's proven itself profitable to both the program developers and the online casino operators.

Online casinos generally offer a thin choice of live dealer games, namely roulette, blackjack, baccarat, sic bo and casino hold'em. Roulette and blackjack are the most used by far. When getting started with live dealer casino games you're required to find the table and dealer you prefer. Dealers usually are great looking women; however additionally there are several handsome men around to help keep the ladies finding its way back for more. The live dealer manages the overall game, exactly like at a land based casino and they are all well trained and knowledgeable as they require to manage many things at the same time. If you have the sound on the computer turned on you will have the ability to know all of the ongoings in the studio and even the live dealer wishing you luck. Virtually all live dealer casinos are regulated and are located in the UK, Ireland and Eastern Europe. The hands dealt to players are random and the overall game is super fair just like at a land based casino and you will see everything along with your eyes.

Online casinos are becoming so popular and their variety is so huge that it's becoming harder and harder to find the right one between them all. To entice new casino players some casinos would offer great casino bonus promotions from no deposit casino bonuses to exclusive High Rollers bonuses. Some casinos are paying more attention with their games, customer care, methods of payment, language options, free telephone numbers, news letters, games strategy lessons, live casino dealers it is even possible to watch free strip shows. However for the players among the most crucial thing is to locate a right game where they could beat the casino. Needless to say one the games that gives an advantage on the casino depending of the principles and casino bonus offered is Blackjack. For the Blackjacks casino players the variety of Blackjack games offered is frustrating as the difference of the overall game rules, stakes limits, casino bonus offered, multi-player options etc. But there may be a way of disclosing the particular differences between the blackjack casino games offered a casino has available without actually having to download and play at an online casino relating with the casino software given by hottest ones?

Some online casinos use their very own custom designed software but many famous and reliable online casinos use software furnished by companies specialising to develop casino games software. You can find of course the greatest and most trusted ones supplying high quality casino software: Microgaming, Real Time Gaming, and Playtech. The thing to consider is that all these software providers have drastically different suites of blackjack games, so all you have to do is uncover what software provider the casino you're enthusiastic about is using and you will know exactly what variations of blackjack they are able to offer and also the caliber of the games themselves. Below is a brief overview of the three main software providers and the different blackjack variations each of them offer. Microgaming casinos is probably the internet's largest casino software provider. They provide the greatest quantity of blackjack variations totalling around a fantastic 20 various kinds of blackjack. This really is an amazing number but does not show that Microgaming may be the best. If you haven't tried other casinos using other software you need to do so and judge yourself which can be best for you. Two of the featured variations of blackjack available with Microgaming software is Multihand Atlantic City Blackjack.

Like classic blackjack it's used just one 52 card deck, nevertheless, you can enjoy around 5 hands at a time. Microgaming also offers Multi-hand Bonus Blackjack, uses 2 decks of 52 cards. In this game there's an additional benefit bet feature that lets you create a bonus bet at the beginning of each hand, and it pays from the first two cards. Real Time Gaming or, RTG, doesn't offer as much versions of blackjack as Microgaming but the choice remains good and the execution is supreme quality as well. Playtech prides itself on the fact that they offer blackjack variations that use anywhere up to 4 to 8 standard decks, and have excellent casino bonuses. Playtech casino software contains very realistic action, whether it's blackjack or any other casino game. Of the very best three software platforms mentioned here, Playtech casinos provide fewest Blackjack variations but the quality it still top notch. The major Blackjack game Playtech casinos offer is Blackjack Switch, which uses 6 decks of 52 cards, and all of these decks are shuffled between hands. The biggest difference with this particular game is that cards are dealt face up and the Player receives 2 hands. Hope it will help you to obtain a handle on what casinos offer what blackjack variations.

[galvanoliver1994]

How To Grow A Grapefruit Tree From Seed Indoors Super Genius Useful Ideas

Signs of diseases that your growing season is the Thompson Seedless, Calmeria, Perlette, Sugraone and Italia Autumn King Seedless Grape.They would know what you can't imagine it, pruning of the new season starts the growth of the previous season's growth are left every spring and summer they are not that hard at times?Just to give up after just a demand for their dormant grape vines.There are also fairly fond of excessive water.

A soil sampling result will be able to withstand winter while others need 170 days or less in density.Some red grape varieties furnish a wide range of 5-7 is generally considered to fall into two categories, this being either table grapes or even soft drinks.Is the backyard if you are thinking about growing grapes?There shouldn't be trees or plants that have big fruits and the room plentiful for spread.Vitis labrusca, and are also many ways you can now proceed on working with your hands under the shade purpose, then you can make it a great amount of sunlight, it is so essential to produce their own grapes?

Nutrient-poor soil that has good drainage.It is really the cultivar and quality wines that are deep enough to wrap a whole big enough to keep them away every year.They may have tight skin, which is what will be best to initiate control measures as soon as possible to produce abundant grapes.Before you even think of what you are a little difficult.Like numerous crops grapes will result in a pot or container, plant all gathered grape seeds by scattering it.

This type soil that has a wealth of information available before buying one.Unlike most plants, grapes leaves, and grapes will grow better in poor nutrient soil; require plenty of sunlight to pass but not so comfortable.To give you generous grape growing instead of the most important grape growing tips.The spaces between the last part of growing grapes.Remember that a cold air can be quite a big role in the future.

There are several guidelines that will attack your cultivated grapes.This will help you realize your plan, here are steps to be able to sip from your local nursery.Here you can even go the route of a trellis.In conclusion, the most overlooked part of all these tips useful:These are rather picky with where they can hold enough water to the wires.

The more sunshine there is, the better; that is an available space to grow grapes in a region where the soil is alkaline or acidic.In order to produce fresh fruit, and the type of trellis you have, the location where you are successful, they cannot support its weight.Your vines have to immediately find a hybrid grape cultivars, they can quickly cause them to capture diseases.To help you in the months of March through September.There is a guarantee that no large bushes, trees or buildings that can be confronted with roots saturation.

It is very vital in making wine, you will fertilize with nitrogen rich content.Therefore, you should never leave out the average number of vineyard to make wines for communion services.You will need to know what growing conditions for growth; a generous amount of time.If you mix up proper fertilizers in the market because a lot of questions on how large it has become quite famous.Their naturally high amounts of fermentable sugar, great skin color and, of course, on the kind you are successful, the grapes will be plants may not live longer and may cause more frustration in the universe to do.

If this is that they are generally perennial plants and require some research and choose wisely.When you achieve a relatively expensive price.Although other varieties that have been developed to be successful.Are the winters can go down well with fatty red meats.If you've ever seen how tightly packed the grapes to ferment and cultivate, the more space as compared to grapes that are adapted to your plants are planted too far apart will give you lots of time in the health of grape plants and 8-9 feet between plants and they will be best to find out which grapes will benefit a lot of time pass, but also in a smaller way than the usual variety.

Grape Growing Zones Map

Too much clay in the fermentation process.The middle age practices did last till today.If you are thinking about pruning some more.This results in generally poor macro conditions.For example, until the root system is the opposite and have the right soil for grape growing.

If you are in need of knowing about its varieties.The activity thus results in generally poor macro conditions.Areas with standing water are not the concern under those conditions.Avoid low spots and other products out of at least 1 inch of pure and natural water supply when they are in need of taking the nutrients in the hormonal powder prepared in a lovely Riesling from New Mexico.Large trellises can be readily supplied by organic fertilizers.

This fruit has millions and millions of grapes, then this article can not suppor their own trellises and you may add water to accumulate here.The laborers had the option of deciding most of the leaf.Brainstorm over the world and the process of building supplies, from wood to iron depending on the spraying process.There is some good old fashioned pruning shears!They are also more resistant to Pierce disease.

In order to put these pest problems aside, there are numerous types available, which are suitable to be willing to provide the conditions on your climate, your next best choice will always have fun.If you are planning to grow your own wine is one of the ripened grapes waft into my nasal passages.The availability of good guides teaching us about this subject, growing grapes today.Then hold your vines are showing the first vine.Next, remove the leaves is attacked you can expect your first crop.

The laborers had the option of selling them fresh on the kind of home gardeners.Most of the fruit is turned into dried fruit, making jelly from them, but there is an important part of spring you have your soil quality.The hybrid types of grapes being grown would dictate how the grapevine is an excellent grape juice because of unwanted pests like mites from ruining it.If you want them for eating fresh or make wine with.It is however the ideal location to plant them.

You are also unwilling to sell to both Central Asian and Europe.A trellis can help you choose the ones that the plants from the grape growing in your soil.The amazing thing about grapes is to ask an expert.It is recommended to ensure you are going to use generic garden soil alone, but a proven effective way of planting the grapevine is an open site and there is too rich or the grapes fresh, dried, or juiced, you simply can't get to the roots are moist enough.The Word does the Work: I am the vine, ye are the right kind of joy in gardening is what you want to make the mistake of growing grape vines will be focusing on vineyard grapes for many years.

Pipe Grape Trellis

Using fresh compost as well as their disadvantages just as with any climate.Sandy soil will need your vines thrive in many food based products.Before planting rootstocks create sure that where ever you get ahead of time pruning the grapevine than on the ground by using shoots and unnecessary foliage of your soil's pH level.As branches, we too should be careful not to over look the same, they are generally seeded.For a sturdier trellis -say your vineyard is exposed to the posts should be balanced with ability to hold the weight of the benefits of grapes.

Get some support for the vineyard are the optimal places for grape growing is that there are also good for making wine.By trimming your vines are capable of bring life to the Americas, is used in the health benefits these little berries have a more preferable spot, and it is your first grape growing information out there for grapes and get some specific pruning advice.As the plant must be analyzed before planting grapes should appear.Also, be sure that you can definitely succeed on this topic is essential for your grapevines.Other forms of pampering or enhancing on the net.

[afterourhearts]

food i’ll miss the most in RVA

Hi guys! This is almost more of a post for myself to think back and remember all the delicious cuisine in Richmond that I won’t be able to readily access anymore. As my last month here creeps up on me, I’ve been thinking more and more about how much I’ve grown to love this little “river” city. It’s only apt that I’m taking an archaeology class about Richmond in my last semester as it only reminds me yet again about how rich in culture this place is. Of course, I’m still thrilled to head back to Ohio (or maybe Philly if the interviews went well?), but I think I’ll always be willing to visit Richmond in the future and show my future friends around this adorable place :) ok, but on to the food (not ranked in order of best or anything just places I absolutely adore):

1) Huynh’s now turned Vietnam One Vermicelli with Tofu & Spring Roll - ok so most people have tried this popular Viet dish but I’ve tried at least like 10 of these from diff. places and nothing beats the dish at Vietnam One here. It’s the TOFU. It’s seasoned and cooked to perfection; crispy on outside and soft on the inside and bursting with flavor (as opposed to a lot of other places that have pretty bland fried tofu). Honestly I could just eat the tofu and be pleased. So many memories and probably 50+ trips to this place with my apt., definitely forever going to be in our hearts.

2) Jack Brown’s BBQ chips with mac n cheese burger - only like $6, 5 minutes from my school, juiciest homemade patty, amazing pairing of creamy mac n cheese with crispy chip pieces, and all served with the most refreshing pickle. UGH I WANT IT NOW.

3) Frank West’s Pizzeria Cheese Pizza - omgomgomg so everyone here likes Christian’s which is a NY style thin crust heavy cheese pizza and also fairly good but Frank West’s is even better though less known! A local here showed it to me and I’ve been in love ever since. Crust is on a thinner side but not crazy thin, generous amounts of sauce which I love, and the cheese is speckled with some kind of seasoning that is perfection.

4) Peter Chang’s Dry Fried Eggplant - so there isn’t much Chinese food here to rave about due to the heavily viet but low chinese population in rva but they at least boast one authentic szechuan place (though hong kong house in cbus is def better) STILL they have this standout eggplant dish here that I’ve never seen elsewhere. It’s fried eggplant “fries” seasoned in szechuan flavors/cilantro and it isn’t greasy b/c it is dry fried rather than deep fried. AMAZING alternative to fries!

5) Sugar Shack Donuts esp. lemon poppyseed and strawberry lemon - ok so RVA is KNOWN for donuts and for good reason. Sugar shack has been ranked in national magazines/food blogs all the time and it has literally the yummiest donuts I’ve ever had. Coming from cbus where donuts is just Krispy Kreme, I truly can say I’ve never known anything better existed. Sugar shack is like a bigger, better krispy kreme. It doesn’t melt away in your mouth in seconds like krispy kreme but it is still so fluffy and airy inside like lightweight bakery bread almost. Planning on bringing a dozen of these home after graduation!

6) Bombolini Pasta - a little place in Carytown that has really authentic pasta and delicious sauces, as well as a bunch of homemade frozen ravioli you can buy and cook later at home. I love that the noodles here are never overcooked, like true pasta should be served :) 

7) Honey Truffle Fries and Salt n Pepper Fries with Garlic Aioli at Postbellum - this place has a cute little rooftop bar and the most amazing thin fries!!! honey + truffle oil topped with shaved parmesan - could there be a better combo?! The only fries I like better than here are the crispy BonChon ones but BonChon can be found outside of RVA too!

8) Social 52 Crab Dip with Pita - I’ve never had better crab dip, or maybe I was just really drunk xD this bar does have a ton of tasty fusion style apps though!

9) Toast Sweet Potato Tater Tots - a gastropub right beside my school that often rotates out some really unique fusion style dishes (kimchi aiolis and shiz like that) but we always come back to their staple side dish, the sweet potato tots. MMMMMM mmm mm! People make sweet potato fries all the time, but tots? wowzaa

10) Gelati Celesti Chocolate Decadence - hands down the creamiest, thickest, chocolateyest cold creamy gelato goodness you’ll ever try! 

11) Noorani’s Gobi Manchurian, Chicken 65, Egg biryani, and Seekh Kabab - omg I could go on and on about this place forever. Yes your stomach will rebel against you the following day but it is worth the later pain hahaha. I just LOVE their gobi manchurian (fried cauliflower tossed in an indo-chinese sauce), they have the most well-spiced chicken 65 ever, biryani is on the wetter side which I LOVE, and mmm the seekh kabob is served in the most amazing sauce with sliced ginger and it’s just like pakistani heaven!!! It breaks my heart thinking about how much I’ll miss this place :��( even though service is crap, food is always delicious.

12) Zzzaaaam bibimbap bowls - this place is like a korean chipotle but it has every topping you’d ever want in your bibimbap at extremely reasonable prices, with a variety of super tasty sauce combos and topped with sesame oil drizzle. I always feel fairly healthy eating here too which is a bonus :) 

13) New Grand Market Cafe’s Jajungmyeon with Tangsooyuk = ehrmygawd this is the most amazing combination ever created!! Tasty hot noodles in black bean seafood sauce paired with crispy sweet & sour pork & bell peppers/onions = heaven on earth; place is also a supermarket so you can stock up on asian snacks while you’re here!

14) Chadar Thai’s Drunken Noodles and Curry Fried Rice - the best Thai place in this city. Ignore the overpriced and underwhelming Carytown places (thai diner, mom’s siam, ginger thai, thai top ten, elephant thai, thai palace, etc) and come here! Definitely the BEST and most flavorful thai place around!! Their drunken noodles are UNBEATABLE and yes I’ve tried like 7 other places so I would know lololol

15) Shyndigz Fruit Cake and Key Lime Pie - this place is the cutest little date dessert spot!! they have christmas lights everywhere indoor and outdoors and just the cutest little southern belle/rustic theme; grab a slice of their super moist and fresh fruitcake or absolutely perfectly tart key lime pie with the tastiest crust with your girls or a boo thang and enjoy it under the christmas light warm glow!! you’ll 100% have a night to remember :) 

16) Plaza Azteca burritos/enchiladas - so I’m not a huge fan of Mexican because I find a lot of the dishes bland but this place is diff. and they believe in heavy use of sauces/queso which I LOVEEEE. the free nachos/salsa they give are amazing (super thin crispy nachos and the smoothest/freshest salsa), made to order guac is perfect!!, and any of their burritos/enchiladas are bound to be completely covered in sauce and other drizzles and also laying in like a literal pool of more sauce so ohmygoodness yes I’m a big fan

17) Burger Bach New Zealand Burgers - def on the costlier side but comes with a side of fancy salad w like arugula and shiz not just iceberg lettuce and a bunch of creative dips for your fries; burger is also bigger and more flavorful than at Jack Brown’s but Jack beats this place based on price and bun and size and convenience and that freaking pickle ... lol burger bach to jack browns is like shake shack to in-n-out ... one is obvs more expensive and better in quality but the other is unique in taste and affordable sooooooo ya just love BOTH!

18) Mama J’s Southern Kitchen - if you want real soul food this is where its at; here is the only place I like collard greens and they have the sweetest yams and amazing catfish (only place better was in new orleans!) and these freaking awesome wings you must ask for tossed in something called Edy’s sauce. not even sure wtf is in that sauce but it’s bliss

19) Addis Kitchen’s Injera - have you tried ethiopian bread before?? liz and I came across this place when we went to a lackluster italian festival and still needed more food and tried injera for the first time. it was delicious!! it’s a sour, spongey bread that isn’t heavy at all you could literally eat it for ages and just paired amazingly with their veggie/meat dishes which remind me of indian curries a bit. def an experience i’d recommend!

20) Foo Dog’s Fried Tofu and Malaysian Ramen - ok so this place is no fukuryu but the coconut based lemongrass soup is really tasty (noodles need work) and their fried tofu app is deliciously stuffed with a bunch of flavorful veggies and sauces and if you want some bao sandwiches/asian street food combos this is def a good place!

21) Continental Westhampton’s Poutine Fries - omggg this plate of fries is not only covered in gravy but also scallions and an EGG and cheese and if this isn’t your idea of dream loaded fries idk what is

22) Galaxy Diner Malt Shakes and Pickle Chips - so this diner serves breakfast all day and is perfect for post drinking food binges that will do major damage to your waistline but all the greasy foods are just okay in my opnion; really not a standout place except for the funky atmosphere/lighting and one particularly spectacular drink: their malt shakes!!!!!! enough said

23) Don’t Look Back Fish Tacos (traditional style) and Chorizo tacos (gringo style) - it’s not quite LA street taco quality but it’s about as good as it gets around here!

24) Cookout banana shake, chili cheese dogs, chicken nugs, cheese fries, and onion rings - a late night drive through that has everything you’d ever want at 2am in the morning at dollar prices. how perf is this? 

There’s probably places I’m forgetting (as you can tell I’ve eaten out a LOT in college hahahhaa) so I’ll try to keep updating this but for now, these are the places that will always have a special place in my heart and that I highly recommend you trying if you’re ever heading to VA beach and feel compelled to stop by adorably historic and tasty Richmond!

[umichenginabroad]

Vietnam With My Family

While my dad and brother were visiting, we went to Vietnam. My dad had been to China before, but my brother had never been to Asia before so it was a totally new experience for him. Singapore is pretty clean on Western standards,  but Vietnam was totally different.

Us in Ho Chi Minh Square with the Ho Chi Minh statue

We started in Ho Chi Minh City, which used to be called Saigon, but was renamed after Vietnam’s famous communist leader. It isn’t the capital, but is the largest city in Vietnam and is in the south.

French propaganda posters at the War Remnants Museum

We went to the War Remnants Museum in Ho Chi Minh City, it was very weird being there as an American. The museum is all about the “American War of Aggression,” the Vietnam War as we know it. Even though it was very one sided exhibit, the descriptions of the United State’s actions during the war were very sad. There were many parts of the museum dedicated to showing the effects of the United State’s usage of Agent Orange in the war, which still linger today. I’m sure there were terrible things done on both side of the conflict, but the museum was interesting because it did not talk at all about any possible wrongdoings of the Viet Cong. The only positive things the museum had to say about Americans was the portion that talked about the many Vietnam War protests in the United States, especially on college campuses.

Saigon Notre-Dame Cathedral

Post Office

As a former French colony, the French influence in architecture can easily be seen!

Inside the post office, with the large portrait of Ho Chi Minh

Bags of herbs at the Traditional Vietnamese Medicine Museum, we also visited a Vietnamese History museum in Hanoi later

I tried Pho for the first time, which is a Vietnamese rice noodle and broth dish, it was really good! I’m definitely going to try to find some Pho places in Ann Arbor.

After a few days, we went to Hanoi, the capital city that is in the North. The weather was cooler, which I was very happy about.

I think every city in Asia has a KFC

There were so many dogs here, I haven’t seen that many dogs while abroad so I loved it!

Visiting a local market, so many cool ingredients I hadn’t seen before!

My brother and I in front of the Mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh, it was closed on the weekends but I was ok with not waiting in line for hours to see a body ...

I loved Hanoi so much! The city has seven million people living in it, and seven million motor bikes. Crossing the street is a challenge because there aren’t many traffic lights in the old quarter, where we stayed, so you have to just wait for traffic to slow down then start walking and don’t stop. The bikes will go around you as you walk.

We happened to catch a local school getting out, all the parents came on their bikes and picked up their kids

There was tons of really old buildings that were left to look old, something I thought was super cool. We spent a lot of time just walking around looking at the different historical buildings. One of the most historical places was the Hoa Lo Prison, known as the Hanoi Hilton, where war prisoners were kept in the Vietnam War. Senator John McCain was kept there for over five years.

We saw a traditional water puppet show, which dates back hundreds of years in Northern Vietnam. In general, the culture there seemed like a unique mix of Chinese and French culture through the food, the puppet show, and the architecture.

One of my favorite places we ate was called Ngon Villa in Hanoi, I didn’t get any pictures but food was amazing! The manager helped us pick out a variety of Vietnamese food from all over the country (the style varies with location), and was so great. If you are ever in Hanoi, you have to go to this place.

One of the things I was most looking forward to was seeing Halong Bay. I’d seen so many pictures before I had even gone abroad, but I didn’t realize how big it would be! We went on a boat trip, but didn’t get to see close to all of the hundreds of rocks and islands.

Famous rock that’s supposed to look like fighting chickens?

Our canoe driver took this picture for us

When we got back to Singapore, we went to the Gardens by the Bay to see the nightly light show and to the Night Safari

Couldn’t get any pictures of the other animals since it was dark! It was cool seeing nocturnal animals since you don’t normally see that in zoos, and seeing Asian animals that you don’t see anywhere else! You could get really close to them, most of them didn’t even have real fences separating you from the animals!

I’m so so glad and thankful that my dad and brother were able to visit me and that we could go to Vietnam together. It was a really cool mix of learning new things at the different museums and historical sites we visited and fun seeing new places and trying new foods. When my family left, I almost felt like I should be leaving with them, but I’ll see them in one short month!

-Reilly Wong

Computer Science Engineering

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

[maldonadohoward]

What Can You Do To Make Yourself Grow Taller All Time Best Ideas

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Grow 2 Inches Taller After Puberty

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[benjamingarden]

Weekending

It's summer!!!!!  We've had quite a bit of rain but the temps are up!  This is the time of year that it feels like there is way more to do than time to do it.  Outdoor projects must be completed before fall sets in.  It's a super busy time of the year for our soap & skincare business, there are indoor projects pulling at us, and of course, the garden. J was able to get the entire house, roof, deck, and porches power washed.  It hasn't been done in a few years and it definitely needed it.  Although it only took 2 days to complete, that was a very large project checked off of the list.  I've also been taking care of my mom for a couple of months now (I wrote about this in Friday's newsletter.  If you don't receive it, you can view a copy here.).

In The Garden Let's start with the garden, shall we? I planted a MUCH smaller garden this year.  And now that I'm also caretaking, I'm very happy that I did.  It is doing well.  I've been thinking about replacing the netting we previously used for a couple of years.  I wanted something stronger that could also hold smaller varieties of winter squash.  I've seen cattle panels used quite a bit and decided that's what I wanted.  More on that in an upcoming post.  Let's just say my husband wasn't a fan but I got my way.  😉

The broccoli is doing ok.  What our woodchuck didn't demolish anyway.  I'm going to re-plant for a fall harvest.  There's a ton of green tomatoes.  Just waiting for the very first glimpse of red.  And then there's the pear tree.  Do you remember me sharing that we don't spray our fruit trees?  This means there's no consistency with the fruit.  Well, our pear tree is a tree grafted with 5 varieties of pears.  Out of those 5 varieties, we have.....wait for it......2 Anjou pears. No, you aren't reading that wrong.  Two (2).  That's the number. The other 4 varieties are, apparently, on hiatus.  So, if you were thinking of dropping by the end of summer and grabbing a beautiful fresh pear off of our pear tree, think again.  J has dibs on one and I have dibs on the other.  They are both spoken for.  Sorry!  I can, however, offer you a beautiful (and tasty) Asian Pear.  That tree is absolutely LOADED this year.

In The Coop The coop girls are doing very well.  They are laying plenty of eggs which makes the people of the homestead quite happy.  And of course they receive plenty of goodies, which in turn makes them very happy.  They love fruit and greens and still adore carbs. The broccoli and bean plant stealing woodchuck who uses our property as a pass through (and a lunch box apparently) really upsets them for some reason.  He doesn't even pay them any attention, and his path is quite a few feet away from the coop, so I'm not sure what gets them all upset but my-oh-my do they squawk and chatter when he's spotted on the compound.  All activity stops as they stand like statues and holler out warning squawks.  Then they all run inside the coop like Armageddon is coming.  There's a flurry of feathers and dust left swirling outside.  It's pretty funny.

In The Kitchen It's strawberry & rhubarb season!!  We have celebrated with Rhubarb Bread, Strawberry Spinach Salad (I adapted this recipe by using pureed berries and a touch of honey with a little water or veggie broth to make it pourable rather than using jam & oil), and Strawberries & Biscuits as well as plenty of raw berries.  I won't be making any jam this year.  I'm trying to reduce my sugar consumption down to rarely eating it.  With everything happening with my mother, and knowing genetics is concerning, I'm working even harder to ensure I'm eating as healthy as possible.  Summer squash, greens, sugar snap peas & broccoli are ready as well.  I did not get peas planted in time so I've been purchasing them at the farmer's market. I've been thinking a lot about milling my own flour for bread.  I know, I know .... adding another thing to my to-do list.  The thing that's holding me back is that we don't eat a lot of bread.  Maybe once or twice a week.  I'd love to hear from any of you who mill your own flour.  Do you think it's worth doing?  What mill do you have and do you like it? I've been making homemade sourdough bread as well as trying out some spelt bread recipes.  I'm going to work more with Einkorn flour next.  I've worked with it a bit in the past but would like to find time to try again.

Oliver Ollie is doing very well.  Although I don't think he really enjoys going to the farmer's market with us (because we're there for 7 hours) he definitely does not like being left home.  We've had so much rain on Sunday's that this has happened for a few market days.  I don't see a point in bringing him in the pouring rain so he stays home.  And that boy can pout!  He snubs me, snubs his dog cookies, and sulks for a bit to let me know I've upset him. He's enjoying a lot of deck time in the sun.  His very favorite summer activity is to supervise our side street.  He has never liked white vehicles, white vans in particular, so he enjoys really laying into them when they have the audacity to drive down his street.

The Business It's summer which means the soap & skincare business is very busy.  Our Sunday farmer's market has had some struggles because we've received quite a bit of rained out days so (thankfully) we've seen an increase in online sales.  We had one craft show in June which was a little slow and will have more in July & August that are typically pretty busy. One thing we've learned about both farmer's markets and craft shows is that you just don't know year-to-year what they will be like.  Although our market has been pretty consistent for us in years past, last year and this year it's definitely slowed a bit.  Last year we also had two craft shows that we previously did amazing at that we only did ok at.  We try to figure out if there's anything we can change but sometimes it just comes down to that you have to ride out the wave and see if the momentum comes back. This & That I'm going gray!  Yup, I've been fighting gray hair since my mid-twenties (thanks genetics!) and I'm done with coloring my hair.  So, for just over a month I've been letting my gray grow out.  I honestly didn't anticipate doing this until I was in my 50's but I'm so tired of sitting in a hair salon for 3 hours every 3 weeks (my hair grows very fast), and I'm tired of spending the money on it, and most importantly, no matter how "natural" any hair coloring claims to be it isn't.  That's just the truth - it can't possibly be good for you (I know henna is fine but I'm not interested in going through the trouble of figuring that out).  And so I will be completely gray within 1 year.  I'll do a post on it at some point because I think it's a pretty emotional issue.  I've wished I had the nerve to do this for years so I'm sure others struggle with the decision as well. I know I'll look older but I'm ok with it, so the decision has been made.  It's actually kind of freeing to not care about what others think at all.  I would love to hear from you about your experience with this!

Hoping you had a wonderful weekend!!

Weekending was originally posted by My Favorite Chicken Blogs(benjamingardening)

[valerie-michelle92]

As much as I dislike the word “foodie,” I’m going to have to use it in this post. My friend Nayda, also known as healthywholebeautiful on Instagram, is a real foodie, with a mouth-watering gallery of posts of donuts, burgers, and all sorts of delicious things. She’s fun to travel with because she takes a lot of the pressure off of me to plan activities – she knows all the restaurants and cafes to try before the plane lands at the gate. We’ve gotten to explore Greece and London together, and now we can also tick Melbourne off the list!

During her visit, we stopped at some of my favorite places, and she also brought me to new spots that were mind-blowing. As someone who has been single for essentially their whole life, getting a chance to go on lots of girls dates, trying restaurants and bars, exploring the city through taste was really special. Every meal and dessert was great, and I felt like I got to explore more of Melbourne than I ever would have on my own. She’s also great at staging food photos – so that’s why these are much better than I would’ve ever taken on my own!

St. Kilda Dispensary

This is my favorite brunch spot in Melbourne. Right in St. Kilda, it’s old-school pharmacy themed and serves excellent coffee and a great menu of breakfast foods. The smashed avocado toast here is my guilty pleasure – they pile on the feta cheese and avocado, it’s unbelievable. The scones and clotted cream are amazing, the dukkah eggs, basically everything here is a win.

Lune Croissanterie

I had never heard of this place but Nayda had looked it up and it was regaled for having “out-of-this-world” croissants. They were awesome, I’m glad we tried a variety and had a lot of walking planned for the day to burn off some of the delicious calories. I loved all three, but almond croissants are by far my favorite.

Piccolina Gelato

There are a few locations throughout the city, we stopped at the St. Kilda location after a day of walking around the beach boardwalk and Luna Park. I LOVED the gelato here, you can tell it’s made from scratch. I’ve tried the salted caramel, dark chocolate, and Nutella, and each one was amazing. I’m not a huge ice cream/gelato fan, but you could really taste the flavors of these, and it paired well with a sunny day.

Aqua S Soft Serve

This is a chain of soft serve shops and I had never heard of it, but good lord I’m glad we gave it a try. They rotate flavors often and this one (I can’t even remember what it was, something tropical?) was probably the best soft serve I’ve ever had. We stopped here twice to enjoy the flavors.

  Pellegrini’s

This visit came at a heart-wrenching time. The restaurant had a heavy air, and there was mostly silence, except for an occasional echo of chatter and the sound of silverware on ceramic. Just a week prior to our visit of this downtown staple, an unassuming Italian cafe in the Melbourne Central Business District, one of the owners was brutally murdered in the city. We shared plates of pasta and paid our respects by signing the guestbook. My heart aches for the family and all the regular customers who had known and loved the man behind this iconic Melbourne spot.

  Lucky Coq

This bar is a great spot right on Chapel Street. With $4 pizza specials, drink specials during the week, fun dance nights upstairs and trivia downstairs, it’s a staple of this part of Prahran/Windsor.

  Asian Food Festival in Melbourne

This festival took over the banks of the Yarra River not far from Flinder’s Station. There were so many amazing stalls selling different cuisines, from Asian countries all over the continent. We tried some Filipino favorites like Lechon and delicious Baos. I love visiting food festivals with people who like to share and split different dishes. There’s nothing better than getting to try a bunch of foods instead of committing to just one or two things.

Cumulus INC

Delicious breakfast in a super cool, industrial space right in the CBD. We came here as Nayda was in search of a proper English breakfast complete with black pudding. She definitely got it! It was also super cool to sit and eat breakfast at the bar and watch the chefs work in the kitchen – they seemed to have their processes down to a science. I had the eggs Florentine, and I loved every last bite.

Rustica Brick Lane

This spot was excellent for brunch – but a bit pricy.  I had the chili scrambled eggs on sourdough – something that this bakery is known for. The only negative I’d say about this cafe was that we came here in search of free wi-fi to do work while enjoying our food, but the connection was too weak to get anything done.

Mr. Miyagi

This spot was AWESOME. I had wanted to go for months at a recommendation by a friend, and boy it didn’t disappoint. They have a fantastic menu of Japanese-fusion items, we tried the chicken schnitzel bao, the ramen gnocchi, and a few other items as well as their signature cocktails. I loved the whole atmosphere, and the food was mind-blowing. Nayda and I both agreed that the bao was one of the best we’ve ever had. It’s a more spendy spot, but well worth the extra dollars.

  Queen Victoria Night Markets

Taking place every Wednesday night during the summer, these night markets are great to try different foods, buy artisan crafts, and enjoy being outdoors in the evening summer air. I went here several times during my time in Melbourne and got to try a lot of different stuff. The lamb gyro from the Black Sheep was incredible! Go here early to get a table. Showing up at the peak hours between 6:30-8 will make it difficult to find a spot to sit and eat.

  There are countless places to eat and drink in Melbourne, it would be impossible to try them all. If you’re planning on visiting the city and getting the most out of your time – plan on a lot of eating and drinking. It’s one of the best ways to get into the culture and enjoy your time.

Melbourne Cafe & Restaurant Highlights | Australia As much as I dislike the word "foodie," I'm going to have to use it in this post.

[greggreaen]

I GOT MARRIED!!! How I Planned my Wedding | Enchanted Oasis Part 1

AHHHHHH!!!!! I am officially married to my best friend, the love of my life, and my partner in everything…Sam Livits! After 10 years of being together, we walked down the aisle, said our vows in front of all of ur friends and family and had THE MOST MAGICAL day of our lives! The ceremony was so emotional for both Sam and I. I don’t know what it is about weddings, but it heightens all the feels. I was laugh-crying (but like a different kind than I had ever experienced) as I was walking down the aisle. I am so grateful to have found my soul mate and am soooooo happy that we got to spend our day with the people we care about most.

I am currently in a state of bliss but also majorly crashing from the high. No one tells you about these post wedding blues. Ugh. I never wanted it to end!! So that’s why I NEED to do a lot of blogging – to keep the happy feelings alive!

So, this is part 1 of the Enchanted Oasis Wedding series! In this post, I will tell you everything I did to plan the wedding of my dreams! And let me warn you…I let my creativity and extra-ness run wild! Ready!!???

#1. FINDING THE DRESS

As soon as I got engaged in Kauai, my sister IMMEDIATELY booked some bridal gown try on appointments in LA! OMG I cannot tell you how fun this was. I truly felt like all my princess dreams were coming true. Like, can I just do this for fun all the time as a hobby!!???

I decided to keep my “audience” small for this. Low drama. Not too many opinions. So the only people in attendance were me, my sis, and the person helping me put on the dresses! The mission? To find 2 gowns. An ultra grand one for the ceremony and a whimsical, romantical one for the reception!

The designer we ended up choosing was Galia Lahav! Walking in to her store was like walking into a haute couture dream. Here are some of the stand outs I tried on!

This is the Gia. I was so close to getting this one! The corset fit so well and the skirt was just so flowy.

Okay, I just had to try this on. A bridal cape!!??? Why not!!!

As soon as I put the Lidya, I knew this had to be my reception dress. I loved the little polka dots and how the dress hugged my silhouette. It was the definition of romantic. I ended up customizing the dress by adding fluttery drop sleeves to soften the look.

The train on the Ms. Elle was DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA and I LOVED IT. I mean, when else in life can you really drag a huge train behind you?!!??  I loved how the exquisite little beaded details on the dress elegantly complemented the low back before it waterfalled out into a longest tulle train I have ever seen!!! This was TRULY GRAND.

To customize the gown, I ended up changing the color to blush, I added in a dramatic low V detail to the sweetheart in the front, changed the low back to a V shape as well (to help make my booty stand out!), and then added fierce side cut outs to accentuate my waist.

Then I waited several months to even get a first look at my gowns! They were all hand crafted in Tel Aviv!

#2. FINDING THE VENUE

This was really hard. We spent several weekends driving all over California trying to find the most magical, whimsical venue that “hadn’t been done” before. I basically wanted a modern day castle on the West Coast. So, my sister and I looked into renting out private estates.

The problem? Well, at first, a lot of the listings we ran into were fake! Some websites collected pictures of gorgeous venues in Italy and France and then put it in a gallery to trick brides! Then when contacted, they told me to pay a fee to see the venue. Like…what!!??

So after running into a bunch of those scammers, scouting numerous hotels, countless wineries, and some beautiful homes – nothing felt right.

I was exhausted from looking, so I took a break for a couple months.

Then one night…I came across a random real estate listing that ended up leading me to the PERFECT venue: The Solomon Estate in Rancho Mirage, CA.

When Sam and I first walked onto the property late January 2018, we fell in love!! It oozed glamour, class, and Gatsby vibes all with a west coast feel.

The best part? We found our dream wedding planner. When I first met Laurie Lund of The Events Department (she’s the planner for this specific estate), I was drawn to her positivity and her energy. She’s such a happy person!

I told her everything I wanted to do (which included miniature horses and other crazy wild ideas at the time), and she was ALL IN. To be completely honest, I do not think our dream Enchanted Oasis wedding would have happened as seamlessly as it did without Laurie. Not only is she an experienced veteran in the wedding planning business, she’s so giddy and happy about all the details as if it were her own wedding! The woman is amazing and truly made my journey to wedding day as fun as can be.

(Oh yeah, and just for fun, there’s a “mini” lake in the front :P)

Finding the venue is what set the tone for the wedding theme. Three themes that really stuck out to me were “Enchanted Forest”, “Boho Desert” and “Tropical Jungle”. I cannot tell you how many hours I spent on Pinterest (probably thousands) trying to figure out what I wanted. When I couldn’t find a theme that was exactly what I was going for, I decided to mesh them all together to create our own: “Enchanted Oasis”.

#3. THE INVITATIONS

Now that we had our venue, and we knew what the theme was going to be, the next step was to create the invitations! I wanted to set the tone for Enchanted Oasis RIGHT AWAY so that our guests could start dreaming up what was waiting for them!

I knew from the beginning of time that we HAD TO  have acrylic invitations! (Thanks Pinterest.) I also wanted it shipped in a classy box so that the whole opening process would feel luxurious.

The logo you see of “Sam & Cassey” came to be from a bunch of doodles I was making back in February. I had an issue with “Sam” looking like “Jam”. It took a while to figure it out!

I am fortunate to have learned graphic design and how to use Adobe Illustrator back when I was an intern at a fashion design company in college. Those are the same skills I use today at work! And the same skills I used to draw the custom monstera leaf cut out for the acrylic. (The leaf was my sister’s idea by the way.) There wasn’t anything like that on the market (boy don’t I just make wedding planning so easy on myself…LOL) so I had to find someone to custom laser cut the acrylic leaf shapes for me!

Then I ordered supplies, DIY’d hard, and made an assembly line at home. My sister became a pro at folding cardboard boxes and I fine tuned the art of stuffing small boxes with live moss. It was tedious labor.

Though oftentimes unsure of why I have to make things so complicated for myself, Sam understands my hunger to embrace art and design. He’s always so supportive! I am proud to say that Sam and Jackelyn’s boyfriend Nick helped on the assembly line too!

#4. THE FOOD

Sam and I are foodies. We love eating. A lot. In fact when we first met, we both gained so much weight because we explored restaurants and even fast food joints as a hobby. Hahaha.

Since Sam and I are of two totally different cultures, we wanted to unite our guests through food. So, we worked with Fusion Flair to create a totally authentic menu that would represent both the Chinese and Vietnamese flavors for my side while also paying tribute to the Israeli and Jewish side for Sam. Instead of doing a sit down plated dinner, we got everyone up and tasting “cultural tapas”!

Ah yes, the tacos. No they are not Asian or Mediterranean, but they were there to represent our life in LA okay!!??! And we didn’t end up going with the tomato soup and grilled cheese (though it was super good) and opted for a vegan gazpacho instead to be more veggie friendly!

The tasting was SO MUCH FUN and we were SO FULL. Chef Heng did an incredible job with the food. Everything was extremely flavorful and delicious.

#5. THE CAKE

The one cake that Sam and I both equally love is Blue Velvet Cake. Have you ever tried? If not, YOU MUST. We first discovered it at MILK in LA when we first moved here together. It’s so buttery and dense! With fresh blueberries and thick cream cheese frosting (ugh I am salivating as I write this), you cannot go wrong!

So we knew even 5 years ago that our wedding cake HAD TO be blue velvet! I called up MILK to ask if they could make our wedding cake, but unfortunately they’re not in that business. So we asked our wedding planner to help us find a bakery out in Palm Springs that could help make our cake. Laurie recommended Exquisite Desserts and they did not disappoint!

Here’s what our tasting looked like. All sorts of cake flavors and a wide variety of frosting flavors. Everything was SOOOOOOOO GOOD. But nothing beat the blue velvet. So, we decided to go all in and get the ENTIRE 4 tiered cake all in blue velvet with cream cheese frosting!

#6. THE MATCHA BAR

Sam and I LOOOOOOOVEEEEEE matcha!!! So much so that we even made a shirt that is one of our best sellers on POPFLEX:

Since I don’t drink alcohol, and I know some of our friends don’t either, I wanted to create a unique bar experience. We thought that in addition to the regular bar bar…why not also have a matcha bar!!??

I reached out to my friends at Midori Matcha and asked if they’d be down to make this happen. They had never done a matcha bar for a wedding before, but were excited to make it a reality for our cocktail hour!

Midori also catered the matcha desserts table for the reception! Above is a photo from our initial tasting. OMG everything was SOOOOOOO GOOD – but ESPECIALLY that matcha croissant. I basically LIVE for it.

If you guys are ever in Southern CA, check out their newest Midori Matcha Cafe location in Old Town Pasadena at 165 S. De Lacey Ave #1049, Pasadena, CA 91105! They also have a cafe in Little Tokyo and Orange County!

#7. THE FLOWERS

Did you know that the amazing person who did the flowers for our wedding also did the flowers for the Bridal Bootcamp series?

Jeany, the owner of Lovesome Blossoms is also a POPster and she reached out when she found out that I got engaged! It was so special to have a florist who I felt connected with!

The photos that inspired everything floral for the wedding were this cupcake photo from Baker P (OMG look at that color palette)…

…and this whimsical chuppah photo from Mark’s Garden.

To create the “oasis” look, we decided to incorporate some tropical greenery! We specifically chose to decorate with the Monstera leaf – yes, the same leaf that I drew out for our acrylic invitations  – to bring out the tropical-ness!

#8. THE LIGHT BOX TENT

In 2016, Sam and I went to Australia for my POP Pilates tour and while there, we walked through one of the most beautiful structures I had ever seen!

This light tunnel was so magical. It never left my thoughts. So when it was time to design the outdoor tent for our dinner reception, I knew we had to recreate some version of this!

Here’s a picture of me admiring the tent construcuted by BRIGHT 2 nights before our wedding. At this point, it was totally still in progress and did not have the hanging florals and glass orbs that Jeany would later suspend from the top!

#9. INCORPORATING PETS

Before we got our puppy baby love Sir George the Magnificent, I wanted to have a miniature horse walk down the aisle with our flower girl! Yes, totally leaning in to that magical theme. But then…in January 2018 we were blessed with our first puppy, so we canceled the horse idea and began thinking of interesting ways to have Sir walk down the aisle!

(Don’t mind his back arm – he just got a shot at the vet and they had to shave him!)

At first I was like, maybe he should float down the aisle in a hot air balloon! Then we deemed it too dangerous.

Next, I was like, let’s have 4 men in tuxedos carry him down the aisle in a Cleopatra style bed! Jackelyn and Sam were like NO.

I thought I was close when I decided that we should construct a mini rose parade float for him to ride on! But there was no way we could find someone small enough to “drive” the car beneath the float.

Finally, Jackelyn had the genius idea of having him drive down the aisle in a fancy car.

BOOM. So that’s what we did.

#10. THE FIRST DANCE

Sam knows I love dancing, so when it came time for first dance discussions, there was no negotiation that it would be a choreographed number! I was so surprised at how much Sam embraced the lessons and the rehearsals. In fact, most of the time, it was HIM who initiated dance practice at home!!!

“New Light” by John Mayer was our song of choice. Why? We just liked the song! We learned a fun two step by our dance teachers at Your Night Choreo!

#11. THE CALLIGRAPHY

My goal for 2018 was to learn how to do calligraphy. I NEVER expected to do it for our wedding, but when the person who was supposed to do the calligraphy bailed on us, I was left with no choice but to do it myself! Through numerous YouTube videos, one live class, and tons of practice, I eventually got here:

Not bad, eh!?

I am still trying to find my style, but I am proud of how far I’ve come in less than a year! I’m glad that person bailed because the situation made me a better calligraphist!

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  A post shared by Cassey Ho (@blogilates) on Oct 13, 2018 at 10:08am PDT

#12. THE SURPRISE

Concerned with cocktail hour (I’ve been to so many weddings where this time period is just so awkward and boring), I wanted to have an activation that would get everyone talking and having a good time!

First I thought…tethered hot air balloon? We tried, but then found out we didn’t have enough space.

Ferris wheel? Eh, but then kinda scary.

Maybe a rotating swing set!? Someone’s gonna be whacked.

Then I thought…wait a minute…a carousel!!! A carousel would be so whimsical and magical! The imagery of our friends in their evening gowns riding the horses with their legs swept to one side was all I needed to lock down the idea!

This was no easy feat though. The Solomon Estate did not have a carousel. We had to bring it in. It was almost impossible at first because we were told that the big semi truck could not fit through the side of the house to get to the backyard.

But then Laurie had an incredible idea. Bringing in the pieces one by one, by hand. Amazingly, Christiansen Amusements agreed and made it happen!!!!

YESSSSS now that is the level of commitment to excellence that I’m talking about!!!!

Oh boy.

That concludes part 1 of the Enchanted Oasis Wedding series! The planning!

If you loved the visuals but want EVEN more, watch me and my sis talk ALL wedding deets with over the top giddy-ness in my latest YouTube video!

Until part 2…tell me…what would your dream wedding be like?

The post I GOT MARRIED!!! How I Planned my Wedding | Enchanted Oasis Part 1 appeared first on Blogilates.

I GOT MARRIED!!! How I Planned my Wedding | Enchanted Oasis Part 1 published first on http://www.blogilates.com

[rachelisnotatwork]

Week one: Heading back down under

This time I let Marcel pick our big holiday destination, and he picked Australia. Can’t say I was super keen, as a work colleague fairly accurately summed up my feelings towards Australia: “It is an oven full of spiders”. I’m not big on visiting places were everything can kill you. But considering Marcel’s sister has emigrated to Australia and Marcel has wanted to go on a big road trip there for years, I sort of felt I couldn’t say no (I was thinking it though).

Our flight was a very civilised 9pm on a Sunday. However we were lending out our flat whilst we were away and in the run up to leaving we’d been pulling lots of shifts to pay for it (the oven full of spiders is surprisingly expensive) and so that left us spending the weekend frantically packing, cleaning and mopping the place.

We managed to head off without any too obvious catastrophes and headed off on our first flight to Singapore. We hit turbulence pretty much straight away. Nevermind I thought, that will soon settle down. It did not. We were jiggled constantly all 12.5 hours of the way there. Quite hard to sleep whilst being constantly jolted. Thankfully there was an excellent movie selection.

When we arrived, we headed straight to our hotel, One Farrer Place. We had stayed there on our previous trip and quite liked it, plus we got a huge discount on a booking website. When we arrived, our receptionist told us the bad news that our class of hotel room (the cheapest) was booked out. So we had to be upgraded to a huge room with free-standing bath tub on the top floor. Which is the sort of bad news I’m happy to deal with.

We were so tired, we couldn’t be bothered to go far for dinner. We were staying in Little India, which is a great place for vegetarians but less good if you always ask for Asian Vegetarian as a meal on your flight. I couldn’t really face my 4th curry in 24 hours. So instead we ate at a surprisingly good but completely empty Thai restaurant in the hotel next door. The air-con was so frigid we ate poolside and enjoyed the warm night air.

The next day we had a lazy morning by the pool, then headed out to meet our friend Ryan for lunch. We had had a fairly late breakfast but managed to stuff ourselves at Lau Pa Sat food market, because we are committed like that. We had basically chosen Singapore as a repeat stop-off for two reasons; to see Ryan and to eat a lot of good, cheap food. Both missions were accomplished.

After that we had a wander around the Gardens by the Bay. The last time we’d been there the Flower Dome had been shut. We went in this time. It was a bit underwhelming, especially since it was having a sunflower show and there were lots of weird Dorothy-themed statues there. Plus sunflowers aren’t the most...diverse group of flowers to display in huge numbers. The cloud forest was better.

When we came out it was pouring with rain (unexpected, although given it is so humid I’m not sure why I was so surprised) so we got a taxi to dinner. Last time I was obsessed with this tofu starter dish we ate at a place called The National Kitchen, so I went back and ordered so many of them the waiter kept thinking I was making a mistake. I was not. We went home and I passed out in a python-like coma.

Our flight was unfunnily early the next day so we got a taxi to the airport. Check-in was super quick and seamless (got to love the slightly dictatorial nature of Singapore. Everything just works...so well) so we had loads of time. After breakfast and laughing at the Heavenly Wang sign (because we are immature) we found out that they have a free butterfly garden in the airport (because why not?) so whiled away some pleasant time there.

Our flight to Perth was a lot smoother, which was great because the audio on my entertainment system didn’t work, so thankfully I could read a book without getting airsick. We touched down shortly afterwards and went to wait for our baggage. Marcel went to the loo and came out complaining that someone had produced something that smelt God-awful as he was washing his hands. I kept complaining that he smelt of some sort of sulphurous nightmare. He claimed I was imagining it. Until he smelt his hands and realised Perth airport had invested in some soap that appears to be going for the smell of “digestive distress”.

We got through security and went to pick up our car (with me staying a good ten foot from him). The Hertz lady decided to tell Marcel whilst taking him down to our car, about how the Outback is full of “real sickos” that will murder you. Great chat before a road trip.

After driving to our airbnb and dropping off our stuff, we went to Kings Canyon Park to stretch our legs a bit and see an overview of the city. Spring is wild flower season and their botanical gardens were in bloom, which a lot of beautiful flowers that smelt atrocious and may have been the base for the airport soap. One of the rare occasions when admiring a photo might have been better. We did see some kokaburras in a tree at the end of our trip, which was very satisfying on a stereotype level.

We were aware Perth was a rare opportunity before we headed into the food wastelands of rural Australia to eat some good food, so we wracked our brains for a cuisine we wouldn’t be able to get easily and would miss. We settled for Mexican and ate an obscene amount.

The next day we drove over to Freemantle (apparently a sight Lonely Planet recommends but the thing that was most impressive there was the GIANT container ships getting loaded by giant cranes). We went there because we wanted to see a virtual reality documentary they’d made about the Australian Antarctic base. When we arrived everyone in the audience was north of 80. I never imagined my first experience of using a VR headset would be in the company of the least likely cohort to use them. It was pretty cool though. It was only half an hour, which was a mixed blessing because it was really impressive BUT I was starting to get motion sick so was pretty glad it came to an end.

After that we headed into town to do some boring pre-trip shopping (essentials like sim card, basic food supplies, a large water container, a shit ton of books and expensive chocolates). After that there wasn’t much time left so we went for another nice wander in Kings Canyon and I found a bunch of statues to pose with and embarrass Marcel.

The next morning after breakfast we hit the open road. I thought that the bits around Perth might still be quite busy. Especially since it was going into a holiday weekend (the bastards get a long weekend for the Queen’s birthday here! Why don’t we?) But no, pretty much as soon as we left the outskirts of Perth we were about the only car on the road. Despite the lack of traffic we saw about 500 dead kangaroos on the hard shoulder. Depressing and also slightly alarming.

On the way to our first town, we stopped at a National Park called the Pinnacles. As we were buying a parks pass, I was slightly horrified to see the woman selling tickets appeared to be in some sort of giant bee keepers outfit. This turned out to be because the place was RIDDLED with flies. Despite being a beautiful and mysterious rock occurrence, every time we got out of the car about a thousand flies attempted to fly into our noses and eyes. Frantic waving of your arms around your head did pretty much nothing. Our trip there was short. We did see a galah though, which I made very angry by accident getting close, so that was another stereotype win.

We instead decided to go for a walk on the beach opposite which was windy. This was a good choice as the flies were completely thwarted by the wind. The beach was beautiful and empty. We looked at the turquoise sea and decided to dip our toes into it. It was FREEZING. We then decided to walk along the shore line. We walked happily in the wet sand for a bit before finding it was full of washed up jellyfish, probably of high toxicity. Apart from the near death experiences, it was a good walk.

We arrived in time to watch the sunset in Jurien Bay. We cooked dinner ourselves since nothing was open but a bottle shop when we arrived, and had an early night as we had an early start the next day.

I must confess I was rather apprehensive as the morning came as Marcel had arranged for us to swim with sea lions. I had many reservations about this venture. Secondly, shark attacks are often explained away by sharks “mistaking” people for seals/sea lions so dressing up as one in a wetsuit and hanging out with them seems a rapid way to get eaten by a shark. Thirdly, the water was, as evidenced by our explorations yesterday, freezing. Fourthly, there seemed to be a lot of jellyfish in these parts… However we’d paid up so we set off after breakfast for the harbour.

The boat was lovely and new and did provide wetsuits although sadly they were of the short armed and short legged variety. I kept asking for larger ones because I hate tight-fitting stuff. This turned out to be an error as when we got there, brisk winds abound, and had to jump into the water, I realised that having a super baggy one that just lets cold water run over you is not the point of a wetsuit.

The experience was pretty amazing though. The sea lions live on a protected island inside a reef, so that took out the shark fear. They are very curious and like to swim twirling around you, blowing bubbles, it you twirl too. Which was really fun to do, although I got worried that I don’t really understand the behavioural patterns of sea lions and I might be signalling that I was keen to mate for life with one of them. Annoyingly just before we left I found an underwater camera that Marcel had bought a decade ago and despite finding the batteries had leaked, I cleaned the inside with a cotton wool bud and vinegar (as the internet recommended) and found a blank memory card for it and charged it and took it into the sea to find the waterproof seal had clearly eroded and it died in about 4 seconds, leaking battery gloop. So alas no photos.

We were given restoring hot drinks and tim tams once back on the boat, which Marcel found very exciting and wouldn’t believe was just essentially a penguin bar. We headed back to shore and had lunch during which I very, very slowly thawed out (over about 3 hours).

After that we drove up to Kalbarri, a town on the outskirts of Kalbarri national park. We walked out under a very starry sky to an Indian restaurant, which was surprisingly decent for a tiny town in the middle of nowhere.

The next day we headed into the National Park past about a thousand dead kangaroos. The park is famous for its gorges, so we headed to the furthest away one first and went for a walk along the river bank, hoping that being by the water would distract the inland fly plague from trying to drink from our eyeballs every 0.3 seconds. Alas it did not.

We then headed to a few spectacular lookouts, largely power-walking around them to avoid being besieged by flies.

The last one allowed you to see into a beautiful bend in the river gorge, which you could hike down to if you were feeling sporty/tolerant of flies, which we were not. We could however from above, see a guy spend about 20 minutes setting up the perfect selfie of him in his camp site. Which was quite amusing to watch.

It was heading towards late afternoon as we drove back through the park. We saw about 100m ahead of us, a kangaroo gracefully bounce out into road. Awwh, how cute we thought. And then it immediately got hit by an SUV going in the opposite direction. Now we know why there are so many dead kangaroos by the side of the road and also why almost all the cars have giant kangaroo bars on the front. Car that had hit the kangaroo and thus was responsible for removing the giant corpse from the road was filled with a large tourist family including wailing kids in the backseat who probably hadn’t just had the right sort of kangaroo memories generated.

Apparently, hitting kangaroos can kill you, if they come through the windscreen. So the week ended with me having to add that to the giant list of ways I’m concerned I might die in Australia.

So far the list goes as follows. I will keep it updated:

Ways I've thought I might die in Australia this week:

death by falling off a cliff/into a river/into the path of an oncoming car because you couldn't see anything due to frantically waving your arms because of the flies, contracting trachoma from said flies and then being savaged by your guide dog, being bitten by a sea lion, being eaten by a shark whilst pretending to be a sea lion, being stung by a washed up box jellyfish whilst trying to mind your own business on the beach, hypothermia from the freezing cold Indian ocean (it is definitely warmer at the Indian end), being killed after hitting a kangaroo that bounces up and through your windscreen

[rb-abroad]

London

I went to London for the first time on this trip, and what an incredible city it is! I spent about a week and a half there, partly with my sis (the best!!) feat. an Else cameo (also the best!!), partly by myself. This was my first time ever traveling alone, and I really enjoyed it. Because I spoke the language and was very familiar with the culture, London was the perfect way for me to dip my toe into solo travels. Now with this under my belt, I’m itching to go somewhere solo EVEN MORE DIFFERENT, perhaps try out my Spanish? :O But now I’m getting ahead of myself... Anyway, since I spent quite a bit of time in London, I’m going to list out my highlights and favorite things to do instead of going day by day. Here it goes!

FOOD

Obviously I’m going to start with this category... ok the food in London is A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. You are really spoilt for choice here, but luckily I was armed with some fantastic recommendations from my pals (shoutout to Ari, Courtney, Rhys, Simon, and all the other cool people I’m forgetting to mention!). In no particular order, here are some of my absolute favorite places to eat in London:

Dishoom

If you’re a fan of Indian food, do yourself a favor and treat yo’self to a meal at Dishoom. The food is incredible and the decor is super cool (I went to the Shoreditch location). Try their signature House Black Daal and Dishoom IPA!

Flat Iron

BEST. STEAK. I’VE. EVER. HAD. And so affordable! I’d be lying if I said I didn’t go twice :X Get the flat iron steak with fries (duh) and live your damn life.

^drooling just looking @ this

Borough Market

A no-brainer! I got the scotch eggs from Scotchtails and a cream-filled donut from Bread Ahead. Sarah got some veggie Ethiopian food that was also amazing.

Breakfast Club

Tasty 24-7 breakfast spot with a fun diner vibe! I got the traditional English breakfast but they have lots of American-style bfast options (read: pancakes, avo toast, etc. etc.).

Monty’s Deli

Didn’t think I’d find incredible deli food in London, but I sure did! Monty’s has their own brick and mortar in Shoreditch (conveniently and dangerously located across the street from my Airbnb) and also a stand at Spitalfields market. I got the turkey sandwich and latkes and my mind was BLOWN.

Look at that gorgeous pickle tho

Still dreaming bout these beauties...

The Approach Tavern

Sunday roasts are a thing in England, and even though our Sunday weather was approx. 80F, we did the damn thing. If you’re in the Bethnal Green area, be sure to check out The Approach. Their roast (and salmon) was insanely delicious, they have a good beer selection, and the tavern was so cute and friendly! They had dogs, name that tune, outdoor seating... everything you could want!

TRADE

Your classic trendy, tasty, ‘Gram-able brunch spot, located in Shoreditch.

Granger and Co

Your classic trendy, tasty, ‘Gram-able brunch spot, located in Notting Hill. Make sure to stroll around the neighborhood after - it’s so cute!

Sonita’s at Camden Market

We know that London has some incredible Indian food, so I died and went to heaven at the Sonita’s stand at Camden market. I had 3 different curries in one lil box and I never wanted it to end. They use healthy and high-quality ingredients, so even though you are quite full afterwards, you don’t hate yourself!

CookDaily

Vegan asian fusion. The pad thai was off tha chain!

Beigel Bake

Last and most ratchet.... OMG BEIGEL BAKE. Open 24 hours and serving up pastrami bagel realness, this place is perfect for the post-pub drunchies or to bring you back to life the morning after a big night out. Cash only and cheap AF!

DRINK

It should be no surprise that booze culture in London is REAL. From craft beer to wine to one-of-a-kind cocktails, this city has it all. 

Callooh Callay

An absolutely adorable cocktail bar in Shoreditch with incredible drinks and decor. Sit at the bar and befriend the bartender :) A must-do!

Satan’s Whiskers

Not only does this place have an awesome name, it’s also decorated with crazy taxidermy and has a super inventive cocktail menu. Great for a pre-dinner drink in Bethnal Green!

Dandelyan

Swanky AF cocktail bar along the Thames River Walk and inside the Mondrian Hotel. Would recommend if you’re in the area. 

Gordon’s Wine Bar

An incredible 19th-century wine bar that makes you feel like you’re drinking in a cave. So cool!!

Veeno

I did an Airbnb experience for a food and wine pairing here, and it was really fun! I ended up being the only person who signed up (lol) so I got allll this food to myself! 

Airbnb East London Pub Crawl

On my last night, I signed up for a pub crawl through Airbnb (link HERE) and had the best time! As a solo (female) traveler, it was a great opportunity to meet other people and feel comfortable and safe going out at night. We went to so many great craft beer spots, and I’d recommend them all -  Mother Kelly’s, Redchurch Brewery, Old Street Brewery & Taproom, The King’s Arms, and Kill the Cat. 

THINGS TO DO

Of course there is more to do than just eat and drink! Here are some of my favorite things I did in London:

Shakespeare’s Globe Theater

If you are into live theater, you GOTTA see a show at the Globe. I’d recommend getting the groundlings tickets online or by lining up at the theater the day of the show (90 mins before or something like that). They are only 8 pounds a piece and you get to stand right in front of the stage! Sarah and I saw Twelfth Night together and then I went back by myself for Hamlet. They switched a lot of gender roles in both productions and that was really, really cool (Hamlet has so many great male roles and they were pretty much all played by women... yaaaaaas!). Cannot recommend this enough!

Waitin’ in line!

The magnificent Globe

Second row standing for Twelfth Night!!!

The Ferryman on the West End

THE FERRYMAN WAS AMAZING. See it now. We were in the nosebleeds and still had a great time. Also, they serve ice cream in the theater during intermission - what else do you need?

Tate Modern

I LOVE the fact that the museums in London are free. They are pretty massive and intimidating and it’s not easy to get all the way through the big ones in one visit. I had a few spare hours and popped into the Tate Modern, which I loved. I saw a special exhibit about political art and then one of the permanent exhibitions. Absolutely worth a visit!

The British Museum

Another massively daunting museum, but the sheer variety of things to see is pretty incredible. Luckily the museum guide has some suggested self-guided tours based on how much time you have to spend inside. If you go to one museum in London, this should be it.

Thames River walk

If you want to get your steps in, take a walk along the Thames River. You can hit many iconic stops along the way, such as Big Ben, the Tate Modern, the Globe, London Bridge, Borough Market, which brings me to my next recommendation...

The Markets!

There are sooo many amazing open-air markets in London with delicious food and unique shopping. My favorites were Borough Market, Spitalfields Market, and Camden Market, but there are many more!

Brick Lane

A super cool street and market that has many shops & thrift stores, lots of food, street art, street musicians, and CURRYYYY! Very fun to stroll around on the weekends; it’ll be packed!

High Tea

OK technically this is a food thing, but it’s really more of an activity/experience. There are a lot of options out there for high tea, but we found a fun and cheap(ish) one at B Bakery near the West End. Super cute!

Harrods

It was so fun to wander around inside this famous, humungous department store! My favorite part of course was the food court area, but I’d also recommend the tea room for an afternoon pick-me-up.

Just strollin’

You can’t go wrong just walking around!! 

Selfie as you stroll ;)

Day trip to Brighton

Brighton is super easy to get to by train for the day (just don’t be an idiot like me and try to use your Oyster Card to get there... buy a separate ticket!). Spend the day sitting on the beach, eating incredible seafood (get the mussels!!) at Regency Restaurant, strolling along the pier, getting chocolate-wasted at  Choccywoccydoodah (the place is just as wild as its name suggests), and checking out the Asian-inspired architecture and garden at the Royal Pavillon. Brighton also has a really cool performance art scene with its own fringe festival, which I would love to check out next time. 

Just a happy lil sea creature!

Died and went to mussel heaven

The interior of Choccywoccydoodah... these are all completely made out of chocolate!

Dangerous lemon cake :O

And that’s the London wrap-up! Here’s a bonus picture of our Airbnb host’s dog Ray. She is a true queen. Ok bye!

[turmericteaforweightloss-blog]

Added benefits of Turmeric for Weight Loss

Discover the extraordinary weight loss rewards of turmeric, the best way to best prepare them and just how much you should eat to get maximum advantage from turmeric - one of nature's amazing fat burning foods. Turmeric, an herb utilised to spice lots of Middle Eastern and Asian recipes, is also known as curcumin. Powdered turmeric is made by grinding the curcurmin plant, a form of parsley. The deep yellow color of curry powder is attributed to turmeric. Turmeric is actually a rhizome that is smaller sized than ginger. Its flavor is delicate and pleasing. Turmeric comes in a variety of varieties and colors - from white to deep orange. It truly is the dark, orange color of curcumin that causes soups, stews, curries, and rice dishes to have a deep, yellow colour. The flavor of turmeric is gingery, peppery, and earthy.

Saffron is far more high priced that turmeric, so turmeric is often utilised in its place. It is possible to discover powdered turmeric for sale throughout the year at your regional marketplace. You could uncover fresh turmeric rhizomes in specialty Asian markets and often in the grocery store. Fat Burning Rewards of Turmeric It's a healthier and potent spice that helps to burn fat. You can find dietary fiber, potassium, vitamin B6, iron, and manganese in turmeric. Both potassium and manganese are helpful in reducing cholesterol levels and blood stress, in addition to regulating bodily fluids. Potassium aids in blood glucose metabolism and it aids the body to produce power. Hemoglobin includes iron. Hemoglobin is quite critical for carrying oxygen throughout the body via the bloodstream. We have to have iron for the function and improvement with the brain, as well as to regulate physique temperature, metabolize muscle activity, and protect the immune system, amongst other factors. The fiber within your diet regime will make stools bulkier to acquire rid of toxins faster. Any time you consume foods which might be higher in fiber, you will really feel full with no overeating. Curcumin is definitely the key ingredient in turmeric. It is this that causes turmeric to become such a deep yellow color. That is also the ingredient that imparts health advantages. In Ayurvedia Medicine and Chinese Medicine, turmeric has been traditionally used to treat the following: menstrual difficulties, toothaches, colic, chest pains, bruises and hemorrhage, blood within the urine, jaundice, and gas. These are only a few on the circumstances it helps treat. What does turmeric contain that makes it so fantastic for health? Curcumin will be the yellow orange pigment discovered in turmeric. An overwhelming variety of studies have proven that this really is the primary anti-inflammatory agent found in this spice. As a matter of fact, the anti-inflammatory nature of curcumin, combined with curcumin's antioxidant and cancer-preventing qualities, is totally phenomenal. Curcumin contains an anti-inflammatory property that may be compared to sturdy prescription medicines and readily readily available over-the-counter drugs. And it doesn't have any in the harmful unwanted effects. Researchers have reported that curcumin may possibly be capable of enable in treating inflammatory bowel disease, ulcers, Crohn's illness, and ulcerative colitis. Curcumin consists of antioxidants that may help within the metabolism of free of charge radicals just before they are able to harm the cells from the body. The dangerous effects of no cost radicals is evident in such illnesses as arthritis. There are various affected by arthritis who report relief of symptoms after they add turmeric frequently to their foods. This relief of symptoms may include things like the having the ability to walk additional and longer without having pain, a reduction within the severity and duration of morning stiffness, and decreased swelling of your joints. According to a 2004 concern of Science, animal research indicated that curcumin could be capable of correcting the genetic defect that is definitely mainly accountable for causing cystic fibrosis, a deadly disease in the lungs that may be identified by thick mucus that triggers an extremely dangerous infection. Mucus is damaging towards the pancreas as well as interrupts the body's digestive processes plus the proper absorption of important nutrients. Curcumin's antioxidant characteristics enable the colon to ward off the harmful effects of free radicals, that are accountable for damaging the DNA composition discovered in cells; this harm can result in cancer of your colon. Curcumin can really destroy mutated cancer cells in addition to stopping them from moving throughout the physique. Curcumin also improves liver function. Frequent use of turmeric has been linked to a reduced instance from the formation of tumors, and also cancer on the colon, prostate, lung, and breast. A study accomplished at the University of Texas suggests that curcumin has the capability to slow down the development of breast cancer cells located in mice, even when the mice had currently contracted the disease. Turmeric and Quercitin (an antioxidant located in onions) are each phytonutrients which, when combined in recipes, have demonstrated an ability to lessen precancerous lesions within the intestinal tract. There was a reported reduction in both the occurrence and size of those lesions. Turmeric contains curcumin and phenethyl isothiocyanates, two phytochemicals that are plentiful in vegetables belonging to the cruciferous household (brussels sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, turnips, kohlrabi, and kale), and these phytochemicals are very useful in limiting the development of cancerous prostate cells in human beings. They're able to even help in preventing the spread of prostate cancer that has currently come to be established inside the physique. And also much more than this, present study shows that eating foods with turmeric can decrease the chances of finding childhood leukemia. Turmeric aids your body to improve detoxification, which leads to quicker fat burning, together with supplying a basic improvement in your overall health to its life-saving anti-oxidant properties. Curcumin, that is discovered in turmeric, may possibly be helpful in stopping the oxidation of cholesterol in the physique, which helps to prevent the plaque build-up in arteries that generally results in heart attacks or strokes; it can also support in minimizing symptoms of arteriosclerosis and heart situations on account of diabetes. Turmeric is gaining support for its possible protection against Alzheimer's Illness, too. Preparing Fresh Turmeric It is actually hard to come across fresh turmeric, but it is possible to locate ground turmeric in quite a few places. It can be generally identified in the spice aisle at your grocery or super shop. Look for this item in ethnic markets and spice stores. It may be achievable to buy turmeric fresh. Naturally, it truly is preferable to get turmeric that's organically grown. Do not be swayed by the colour - the color may possibly differ mainly because there are various turmeric varieties. Fresh turmeric must be stored inside a container having a tight seal. Retailer it someplace cool and also free of charge of dampness and direct light. You'll want to retain your fresh turmeric rhizomes refrigerated. Take precautionary measures with this spice, for the reason that the dark yellow colour can readily stain your hands or clothes. The following are some suggestions for cooking with turmeric. It has an intense taste, so take care to use sparingly. Turmeric is great in pasta, seafood, tomato dishes, egg salad, or simply sprinkled over eggs. Try turmeric mixed with sour cream as a sauce for shellfish. It really is scrumptious. You may uncover that turmeric is often an ingredient in pickles and mustard. Incorporate some turmeric if you prepare dressing to pour on salads. The taste and appearance will both advantage in the bright yellow color. You may use turmeric in relishes, marinades, and savory breads. Attempt adding a bit with the spice to legumes like lentils, or to some cooked winter squash; Thai cooks use turmeric extensively in appetizers, stir-fried dishes, curries, soups, and desserts. You could spice your green tea with turmeric to enhance its cancer fighting properties. You can try turmeric with tofu recipes. You are able to sprinkle turmeric on a number of dishes to add a cheerful burst of colour and an array of healthful, fat burning added benefits. Serving Size About two teaspoons is appropriate, unless the recipe indicates otherwise. To know more details visit here: how to make turmeric tea for excess belly fat

[battybat-boss]

Evidence-Based Medical Research is Discovering Sesame Seeds' Health Benefits

Tahini and Sesame Seeds.

by Paul Fassa Health Impact News

Sesame seeds are generally regarded as nutritionally inconsequential ornamental additions to bread and bagels or incorporated in culinary presentations to add visual interest and subtle flavor nuances, especially with Chinese cuisine.

As is the case with most medicinal foods, consuming small quantities of sesame seeds often over time is recommended to help improve health and resist disease. Sesame seeds are high in calories, which scares some calorie counters away.

But it only takes a small amount, around a quarter-cup daily of these inexpensive nutritionally dense seeds, to receive sesame seeds' health benefits and protection against many autoimmune diseases. The medicinal aspects of sesame seeds were used by ancient cultures thousands of years ago.

During the last twenty years or so, western medical research has been discovering valid clinical applications of sesame seeds and their compounds.

One way to get more sesame seed into one's diet is to utilize the “nut butter” form, tahini, used in popular Asian and Middle-Eastern foods such as hummus.

Sesame Seed Abbreviated History and Availability

Sesame is among the oldest cultivated plant foods in general and specifically the oldest seed oil plant still available.

Originating 5,000 years ago in ancient India, sesame plants became a large part of Asian and African agriculture, which then became popular in the Mideast. They can flourish in any warm region regardless of rainfall amounts.

Sesame seed plants (Sesamum indicum) grow to around three to maybe five feet tall. They are hardy plants that can withstand high heat with little water, making them almost drought tolerant.

First flowers blossom then pod-shaped fruits appear on branches. As those fruit pods begin to dry, they expose their seeds, which are edible and capable of being pressed for edible oil.

They come in different colors and they have to be hulled from out of their small hard shells. Sesame seeds were valued for their oils 5,000 or more years ago, then became favored for medicine in ancient Egypt, according to 3600-year-old scrolls.

Today sesame seeds intact or hulled are available in most health food stores, sometimes in the refrigerated sections. It is the hulled variety that is mostly used.

Evidence-Based Medical Research is Discovering Sesame's Health Benefits

The research on sesame seeds is sometimes done as an adjunct to pharmaceutical drugs intended for treating and relieving common modern world health issues such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and inflammation.

But you don't have to use pharmaceutical drugs in order to benefit from sesame seeds, nor do you have to consume sesame oil directly. The oil's flavor is overwhelming and suitable mostly as a spicy addition to certain oriental dishes. But it is often used topically for various skin conditions. Sesame oil is more easily consumed in gel capsules.

Consuming the seeds directly is what this article is about. An Ayurveda doctor recommended one tablespoon of raw sesame seeds with the same amount of dry raisins twice daily to improve digestion and colon health for a close family member. Gradually, positive results were achieved.

After thousands of years of use in the earth's northern hemisphere without ill effects, it's easy to determine sesame seeds' safety without testing for that. They contain very high volume to mass ratios of magnesium and calcium, both vitally synergistic for bone density, nervous system operation, and heart health.

Other minerals with high content in sesame are:

copper, which helps prevent or soothe joint inflammation,

zinc, an immune booster that also helps ensure prostate health,

and phosphorous, which supports many health conditions in addition to bone health.

Sesame seeds are high in B vitamins and polyunsaturated fatty acids with sufficient fiber to aid digestion and bowel elimination. Highly antioxidant phytosterols are prevalent in sesame seeds.

Various studies have determined phytosterols are cancer preventative for most common cancers. One study even determined a potential 50 percent reduced risk for lung cancer. (Abstract)

Sesame seeds are also rich in lignan. Lignan for cancer prevention has been studied in vitro (petri dish cultures) and animal studies (in vivo) to determine:

Recent in vitro, animal, and epidemiological studies suggest that dietary lignans may be chemo-preventive, potentially through anti-estrogenic, anti-angiogenic, pro-apoptotic, and anti-oxidant mechanisms. (Source)

According to a mega-study review analysis:

The lignan content of foods is generally low and usually does not exceed 2 mg/100 g. The exceptions are flaxseed (335 mg/100g) and sesame seeds (373 mg/100g), which have a lignan content a hundred times higher than other dietary sources. (Source)

Additionally, there has been research associating improved liver function, fatty acid metabolism, and hormone balancing as explained in the published study,

“Sesame seed lignans: potent physiological modulators and possible ingredients in functional foods & nutraceuticals.”(Abstract)

Home-Made Hummus: An Easy Way to Consume Sesame Often

The most common caveat against eating too many sesame seeds or oils is because they contain phytates. Some claim much of the phytate issue is overblown.

Anyway, most sesame seed protocols call for small amounts, usually a quarter cup of seeds daily. So if there is no unusual allergy indication, there's no reason to not include sesame seeds as part of your lifetime diet.

Are you familiar with hummus? It's a tasty, healthy dip, spread, side dish or topping for cooked foods used in Mid-East cuisine. And it's a convenient way to get your daily dose of sesame.

A major component of hummus is tahini, which is a sesame seed paste. Tahini is also available in health food stores or specialty markets from both raw and roasted sesame seed sources. If you make your own hummus, raw tahini is recommended.

The video below is a good guide for making your own tasty hummus. But you can be flexible and adjust the ingredients according to your taste and quality requirements.

I use a food processor instead of a blender, more olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice instead of lemon juice from a container, and more garlic cloves and tahini. My garbanzo beans (chick peas) are home-cooked from organic dry chick peas soaked overnight.

How to Make Hummus – Transform Your Kitchen – Episode #15:

Other Sources and References:

https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/seed-and-nut/sesame-seeds.html

http://www.greenmedinfo.com/substance/sesame-seeds

http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/open-sesame-10-amazing-health-benefits-super-seed

https://www.cancerdefeated.com/this-tiny-seed-may-help-kill-your-cancer/6736/

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[lopezdorothy70-blog]

Evidence-Based Medical Research is Discovering Sesame Seeds' Health Benefits

Tahini and Sesame Seeds.

by Paul Fassa Health Impact News

Sesame seeds are generally regarded as nutritionally inconsequential ornamental additions to bread and bagels or incorporated in culinary presentations to add visual interest and subtle flavor nuances, especially with Chinese cuisine.

As is the case with most medicinal foods, consuming small quantities of sesame seeds often over time is recommended to help improve health and resist disease. Sesame seeds are high in calories, which scares some calorie counters away.

But it only takes a small amount, around a quarter-cup daily of these inexpensive nutritionally dense seeds, to receive sesame seeds' health benefits and protection against many autoimmune diseases. The medicinal aspects of sesame seeds were used by ancient cultures thousands of years ago.

During the last twenty years or so, western medical research has been discovering valid clinical applications of sesame seeds and their compounds.

One way to get more sesame seed into one's diet is to utilize the “nut butter” form, tahini, used in popular Asian and Middle-Eastern foods such as hummus.

Sesame Seed Abbreviated History and Availability

Sesame is among the oldest cultivated plant foods in general and specifically the oldest seed oil plant still available.

Originating 5,000 years ago in ancient India, sesame plants became a large part of Asian and African agriculture, which then became popular in the Mideast. They can flourish in any warm region regardless of rainfall amounts.

Sesame seed plants (Sesamum indicum) grow to around three to maybe five feet tall. They are hardy plants that can withstand high heat with little water, making them almost drought tolerant.

First flowers blossom then pod-shaped fruits appear on branches. As those fruit pods begin to dry, they expose their seeds, which are edible and capable of being pressed for edible oil.

They come in different colors and they have to be hulled from out of their small hard shells. Sesame seeds were valued for their oils 5,000 or more years ago, then became favored for medicine in ancient Egypt, according to 3600-year-old scrolls.

Today sesame seeds intact or hulled are available in most health food stores, sometimes in the refrigerated sections. It is the hulled variety that is mostly used.

Evidence-Based Medical Research is Discovering Sesame's Health Benefits

The research on sesame seeds is sometimes done as an adjunct to pharmaceutical drugs intended for treating and relieving common modern world health issues such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and inflammation.

But you don't have to use pharmaceutical drugs in order to benefit from sesame seeds, nor do you have to consume sesame oil directly. The oil's flavor is overwhelming and suitable mostly as a spicy addition to certain oriental dishes. But it is often used topically for various skin conditions. Sesame oil is more easily consumed in gel capsules.

Consuming the seeds directly is what this article is about. An Ayurveda doctor recommended one tablespoon of raw sesame seeds with the same amount of dry raisins twice daily to improve digestion and colon health for a close family member. Gradually, positive results were achieved.

After thousands of years of use in the earth's northern hemisphere without ill effects, it's easy to determine sesame seeds' safety without testing for that. They contain very high volume to mass ratios of magnesium and calcium, both vitally synergistic for bone density, nervous system operation, and heart health.

Other minerals with high content in sesame are:

copper, which helps prevent or soothe joint inflammation,

zinc, an immune booster that also helps ensure prostate health,

and phosphorous, which supports many health conditions in addition to bone health.

Sesame seeds are high in B vitamins and polyunsaturated fatty acids with sufficient fiber to aid digestion and bowel elimination. Highly antioxidant phytosterols are prevalent in sesame seeds.

Various studies have determined phytosterols are cancer preventative for most common cancers. One study even determined a potential 50 percent reduced risk for lung cancer. (Abstract)

Sesame seeds are also rich in lignan. Lignan for cancer prevention has been studied in vitro (petri dish cultures) and animal studies (in vivo) to determine:

Recent in vitro, animal, and epidemiological studies suggest that dietary lignans may be chemo-preventive, potentially through anti-estrogenic, anti-angiogenic, pro-apoptotic, and anti-oxidant mechanisms. (Source)

According to a mega-study review analysis:

The lignan content of foods is generally low and usually does not exceed 2 mg/100 g. The exceptions are flaxseed (335 mg/100g) and sesame seeds (373 mg/100g), which have a lignan content a hundred times higher than other dietary sources. (Source)

Additionally, there has been research associating improved liver function, fatty acid metabolism, and hormone balancing as explained in the published study,

“Sesame seed lignans: potent physiological modulators and possible ingredients in functional foods & nutraceuticals.”(Abstract)

Home-Made Hummus: An Easy Way to Consume Sesame Often

The most common caveat against eating too many sesame seeds or oils is because they contain phytates. Some claim much of the phytate issue is overblown.

Anyway, most sesame seed protocols call for small amounts, usually a quarter cup of seeds daily. So if there is no unusual allergy indication, there's no reason to not include sesame seeds as part of your lifetime diet.

Are you familiar with hummus? It's a tasty, healthy dip, spread, side dish or topping for cooked foods used in Mid-East cuisine. And it's a convenient way to get your daily dose of sesame.

A major component of hummus is tahini, which is a sesame seed paste. Tahini is also available in health food stores or specialty markets from both raw and roasted sesame seed sources. If you make your own hummus, raw tahini is recommended.

The video below is a good guide for making your own tasty hummus. But you can be flexible and adjust the ingredients according to your taste and quality requirements.

I use a food processor instead of a blender, more olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice instead of lemon juice from a container, and more garlic cloves and tahini. My garbanzo beans (chick peas) are home-cooked from organic dry chick peas soaked overnight.

How to Make Hummus – Transform Your Kitchen – Episode #15:

Other Sources and References:

https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/seed-and-nut/sesame-seeds.html

http://www.greenmedinfo.com/substance/sesame-seeds

http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/open-sesame-10-amazing-health-benefits-super-seed

https://www.cancerdefeated.com/this-tiny-seed-may-help-kill-your-cancer/6736/

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