I made a post a few months ago about "Waiting for Wicked" and how excited I was to FINALLY be seeing it. IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT. It was AMAZING. I had such a great time and it was worth every penny. If you ever get the chance to go see Wicked...grab your Best Girlfriend and GO. Seriously, like right now...you should be looking up where you can go see it. We went to go see it at the Fox Theater in St. Louis.
The Ceiling was Breath Taking
This was my first time being to this Theater and it was a spectacular surprise. I had no idea how elegant this place was. I wore a cocktail dress and felt a little under dressed. This is saying something because I am usually over dressed. I easily could have worn one of my evening gowns and fit in marvelously (I know for next time!). The coolest thing about this theater is that it has it's own separate "Women's Lounge". This Women's Lounge includes a beautiful spiral staircase that leads down into a parlor/sitting area and leads into a restroom and drinking area. When I was walking down the stair case I am not going to lie...I totally pretended I was on the Titanic...before it went down of course :p
They had a Wicked themed Christmas Tree!
The whole experience was wonderful and hopefully I will be able to go back to the Fox soon!
My friend Nina and I have made a bit of a tradition since moving to St. Louis. Each year on our Birthdays we take each other to Bailey's Chocolate Bar! We LOVE it. The atmosphere is amazing, the food taste like it fell out of heaven, and everyone is friendly and accommodating.
"Tiphanie being a HAM" is how Nina titled this one. I think it is accurate. :D
Almost every time we go we get the exact same thing. We are such creatures of habit sometimes, lol.
We get either the Cheese Platter/The Aphrodisiacs Platter and then some kind of dessert or BLT Sandwich. Their BLT's are amazing! This time around we got the cheese platter. As you can see below it comes with a lot of food!
The Cheese Platter! It comes with bread, three kinds of cheeses, and dried fruit and nuts.
We were feeling really full after the Cheese Platter so this time around we settled for a Cream Soda instead of a dessert or Chocolate Martini (what they are famous for).
The Cream Soda here was AMAZING. I need to find this brand in stores!
Our next date will be around July for Nina's Birthday and I can't WAIT. If you are in the St. Louis area this is definitely one of my highest recommended places to visit!
Our Table Setting
We got ham to go with our cheese platter and we made mini-sandwiches- delicious!
I love candles! They make everything more fun...and they are great hand warmers.
My First Snowman...why yes, he DOES have an Icicle Mohawk, a leaf mustache, Celery stick eyebrows, and Girl Scout Cookie Thin Mints as eyes...and yes we did eat them later. You just can't let Thin Mints go to waste even for a snow man as cool as this. :D
Most everyone has goals and dreams that they work towards throughout this crazy journey we call life. Some people even categorize these goals and dreams into a list of things they want to accomplish before they "kick the bucket". Thus, we have the Bucket List. This is my personal bucket list. I hope to one day accomplish most of these goals but if I do not it will also be okay. These are goals to work towards but over time sometimes goals change, are accomplished (then you acquire new ones), or are simply forgotten or were just not priorities.
I was looking over a Bucket List I made back around 2009. I was surprised to see that many of my Goals on that list had been completed! Goals such as: Get Married, Have a Baby, Carve a Pumpkin, Visit a Foreign Country, Buy a House, Own my own Car, ect. So, maybe in 6-7 years from now I will look back at this list and see that many of these goals have been accomplished! Or maybe I will be productive and move things from the Bucket List to the Accomplished List as I do them. Who knows? ;p That would be amazing. Anyways, here is my Bucket List. Enjoy!
I did look at a few other Bucket List for some ideas and these were my favorites:
http://bucketlistjourney.net/my-bucket-list/
https://www.pinterest.com/explore/bucket-lists/
Bucket List 2015
Have a Second Baby
Have a Book Published
Read the Whole Bible
Adopt a Shelter Pet
Adopt a Child
Ride a Hot Air Balloon
Paint a Painting...that I actually want to hang up :p
Have a Legit Garden (I shared a Garden this Year, I would like to have my own at some point)
Own Chickens
Volunteer for Habitat for Humanity
Learn a Foreign Language
Go on a Mission Trip
Volunteer
Go to a Wine Tasting
Visit Japan (See the Cheery Blossoms, visit the Pokemon and other Gaming stores, Tour Studio Ghibli, Visit a Shrine, Attend a Tea Ceremony, have a Geisha Makeover, Relax in a Natural Hot Spring, Sing at Karaoke)
Visit New York (eat at Cheeseburger Cheeseburger, have Breakfast at Tiffany's, Spend a day in Central Park, See a Show on Broadway)
Learn how to play at least one song on a Piano
Learn how to play at least one song on a Guitar
Learn about more charities
Do a Color Run
Run for a Cause
Learn how to Ballroom Dance, Tango, or any kind of partner dance really
Go to a Lantern Festival (yes, like in Tangled)
Visit Australia and New Zealand (Dive the Great Barrier Reef, Visit Hobbiton, Explore the Cave of Wonders, Catch a Wave Surfing, Try Vegemite)
Stay at the Ice Hotel in Sweden
Read 100 MORE books (I already read the first 100 from the 2009 Bucket List)
Visit Italy (Ride in a Gondola, Eat Spaghetti and Pizza, St. Peter's Basilica, Feed the Birds)
Go Play Paintball
Have a Spa Day
Go to Carnival in Rio de Janeiro
Swim/Stand under a Waterfall
Visit a Castle
Make 50 Tie Blankets and Donate to a Shelter
Name a Star
Go to a Shooting Range
Send a Message in a Bottle
Start a Blog (oh WAIT...CHECK :)
Do a Road Trip across America
Serve Meals to the Homeless
Donate Blood (or convince someone else to if I can not)
Dog Sled
Indoor Skydiving (I am too chicken for the real thing, lol)
Ride ATV's
Stay in a Cabin while it Snows
Go White Water Rafting
See an active volcano
Fly a Kite
Horse Back ride on the Beach
Ride in a Horse and Carriage
Take a Falconry Class
Witness a Solar Eclipse
Create a Flower Arrangement
Throw a Surprise Party
Be Surprised
Take a Specific Cooking Class (Cake Decorating, Italian)
Be a Cartoon Voice or Extra in a Movie
Complete the IMDB Top 100 Movies
Eat Food from a Food Truck (They actually have these IN St. Louis, gotta try one!)
Attend a Murder Mystery Dinner Show (Have this in St. Louis!)
Be a part of a Scavenger Hunt (I actually put together an AMAZING one for my Bridesmaids..SO FUN...now I would like to be in one I didn't make up :p)
Go Camping for more than one night
Try out more cocktails
Have a Signature Cocktail like in Black and White Movies
Have a "Usual" at a store/restaurant
Learn one recipe from each culture
Celebrate MORE Holidays from other countries (I already do Chinese New Year, but Day of the Dead would be fun!)
Make a Geocache (I have gone to find Geocache's but I have always wanted to make one)
Go to a Renaissance Faire
Attend a Convention of every Genre I like: Comic, Anime, Gamers, Literature, Sci-fy, and Technology (Most of these have Cons in St. Louis! Would be so much fun!
Learn to shoot a gun
Learn to shoot with a Bow
Go Flounder Gigging (again! I did this when I was a child but I would love to do it as an adult now)
Take my daughter to Disney World and see it through her eyes
Renew my Boating License and take a boat for a drive!
Ride in an Airplane (idk...I am really afraid of heights, maybe I put this on here more as an incentive to get OVER my fear of heights, lol)
Go Star Gazing late into the night
Play in the rain (with my children...I need to get rain coats!)
Take my children to see plays (I want them to love the theater as much as I do)
Ride in a Limo
Draw a Picture for each day of the year
Write a Poem for each day of the year
Write a Quote for each day of the year
Take a Picture for each day of the year
Design a Dress and then have someone make the real thing!
Learn to make Homemade Soap
Milk an animal
Bring a horse to a gallop (while riding!)
Go on a mini shopping spree for a new wardrobe
Write with a Quill and Feather Ink Pen
Things Accomplished:
Learn to Can Foods
Learn about health foods/fitness
Have you ever been to an Ice Festival? Me either! Until today that is. St. Louis hosts an Ice Festival every year in the St. Louis Loop for families and friends to get together and enjoy. There was amazing Ice Sculptors, Ice Slides for the Kiddos, lots of free samples and giveaways to try out, and even a giant Zip Line. Even though the weather was a little bit chilly it really was a beautiful day to be out and about enjoying the sights and sounds of a festival.
White Hot Chocolate! Yum!
We are hoping to go again next year! We hope to see you there! :D
So, I tried out a new restaurant today! Yay! I was in the St. Louis Loop for the Ice Festival and it was time for lunch after all the playing and walking and other various shenanigans. My normal go to is Fitz's. Seriously. I LOVE Fitz's. I will do a post on it at some point, I promise! Anyways, I was feeling adventurous today and I wanted to try something new. The Loop is full of interesting restaurants to try out. We walked down the road and eventually passed a place that caught my eye.
Corner 17 Noodles and Bubble Tea. Being that I have never tried Bubble Tea I knew this was going to sate my curiosity about it AND my need to be adventurous...because going out in cold weather to an Ice Festival with a 2 year old could never be considered adventurous enough (sarcasm). :P
I was very excited to try Bubble Tea but I had NO idea the choice tornado I was going to find myself in. Who knew there were SO many different kinds of Bubble Teas? From the flavors, the choices to go IN the tea, and the KIND of tea...I was so lost. Luckily our waiter, Yan, was very patient with me. I told him what kind of things I liked and he suggested I try the Coconut Milk Bubble Tea with boba. Well, he picked the perfect one for me! It was DELICIOUS! I am sooooo ready for another one! Okay, well, I did forget to ask about the amount of Caffeine in them so maybe not the best thing to binge on if you are like me and have bad reactions to caffeinated beverages. Still, wonderful for a splurge!
Then there was the nom noms part of the meal to decide. I went with the pan seared noodles with chicken. You can actually watch them make the noodles from scratch from a window close to where you are seated (I am a nerd okay and I like learning new things). I was not disappointed with this meal. The noodles were somehow a mixture of savory, sweet, and the perfect texture. These are the best noodles I have ever had. They were delicious! Oh, and did I mention, they were only $8.99?! On the Loop that is extremely reasonable for a meal and I personally was able to make it TWO meals because I had enough for left overs.
Sigh. It is going to make trying new things on the Loop even more difficult now that I have another favorite place to eat...and drink because that tea was amazing. I would definintly recommend trying this place out if you have not. The wait staff was extraordinary (a waiter brought my daughter fortune cookies to snack on until the food was brought out), the food was great, and the specialty tea was unique and fun to try! :)
I am SO excited to share this! I am DOING IT! Woohoo! I have been practicing and training to do a 5K and I finally bought a ticket. This run really just looked too fun to pass up. Bubbles? Who doesn't love bubbles? I still have a few months to get in even better shape though and shave some of my run time off hopefully. I started looking at 5k's offered in the St. Louis area and it has SO many amazing races to choose from that I had to make a spread sheet to keep up with all the info! Of course, choices are never a bad thing.
I tend to want to do charity runs more so than just "fun" ones because then I know my money is also going to help someone. Running for a cause if you will. I don't believe this one is charity driven, but like I said it was in the right time, right price, and right amount of FUN zones for me to take the leap.
Hopefully I will be posting some pictures from this in April/May! Wish me luck! :D
So, I had a very interesting and unfortunate thing happen to me the other night. If you have not gathered what from the title then let me explain.
My cats are not allowed on the kitchen counters. Ever. That is my pet peeve when it comes to cats (teehee...pet peeve). I do not want an animal that steps all over and buries its feces running around on a surface that I fix food on. It is just a major yuck factor for me. The cats are very aware that they are not allowed on the counters. They have been reminded with sprays from a water bottle and verbal reprimands every time. I like to be consistent. This isn't a huge issue but sometimes they try to test their boundaries.
Anyways, the other night I was feeling a little restless. Everyone else was asleep but I felt like I needed to get up and check things (I do this occasionally...I know I am strange). I am making my way around the house turning off lights that we may have forgotten.
Well, as soon as I round the corner...there he is. Up on the kitchen counter. Sneaky little devil! So, I rush towards where I keep the water bottle, which is very close to him, and then it happens. Right there, on my pristine kitchen counter, he poops! Okay...maybe not "pristine" exactly, but certainly better off before there was poop! I was in shock. My cat literally just pooped on my counter!
Needless to say I did not go back to bed for awhile and I was very grumpy at a certain adorable fluff ball named Firefly. I had no idea that this could happen to cats but according to google it does happen. I am hoping one day I can look back on this and laugh but for now we can leave it at Firefly:1 Tiphanie:0
Welp, that is it ladies and gents. Another year has come and gone and I have to say it was a good one. My family and I are in North Carolina vacationing and visiting with family. I am excited to say that I brought in the New Year with a peaceful Bubble Bath and book...that was swiftly turned pool party when my 2 year old joined me. Best way to start off a New Year in this Mommy's opinion! Happy New Year! :D Oh, and there was also yummy pie... :p
So, I wrote a Thanksgiving Poem this year. I have been so busy that I did not get around to posting it on here, even though it did find it's way onto some of my other "social media" places. I wrote this poem because I have a strong dislike of Thanksgiving being taken over by Black Friday shopping. I mean, I LOVE Black Friday! LOVE IT! Shopping, deals, the rush, SO much fun! ...but why does it have to now start on Thursday? Anyways, I had to put in my two cents because pennies burn my hands. :p
It is December! As if you couldn't tell from all the LACK of posting happening on this Blog. I have been SUPER busy. Between caroling, cooking, attending Christmas Parties, Church Events, Volunteering, and visiting with friends and family it has been crazy...and tons of fun of course! Anyways, in those snatches of time I enjoy listening to the Radio while I bake, do chores or cruise in the car. I enjoy listening to Christmas music the whole month of December...and maybe September, October, and November... Religious, Fun, Traditional...I don't care I love it all! Anyways, this is my top 10 list for this year. Basically the songs I keep having stuck in my head. I hope you think it is a fun list and get to experience a new one along with some old faves. :D
I am posting these videos via Youtube. I do not take credit for ANY of it. I did not make the video, sing the songs, write the songs, or post the videos. Thank you to all who did. :D
1. So, I am not gonna lie, I have cried many MANY times listening to this . I just heard it for the first time this year (I believe it is new). This is my top pick for Christmas 2015. It is "Just a Girl" by Brandon Heath.
2. This song is also sad but I keep finding it stuck in my head and I love her version of it. This was released in 2014 and I somehow missed it last year so now I am loving it this year. It is "River" by Idina Menzel.
3. I really love the group Pentatonix and I first discovered them because of this song. This song is so clear and beautiful...it often gives me chills. This song is nothing but their voices! Pretty amazing! I hope you enjoy it. "Little Drummer Boy" by Pentatonix.
4. This song has been stuck in my head on and off and I have even randomly started singing "you look naughty, but I'm sure your nice" to a few select friends. lol. "Christmas in the Sand" by Colbie Caillat.
5. This song has not even been stuck in my head for Christmas. I have been listening to this song all year. I absolutely love the story in this song. You can almost hear the pain and anyone with a lost love can relate. You have probably heard it before but I love it and wanted to share it. At number 5 I have "Same Old Lang Syne" by Dan Fogelberg.
6. So, if you haven't noticed by now I love a good story in a song. This one has a pretty great one and the song is fairly catchy. Number 6 is "His Favorite Christmas Story" by Capitol Lights.
7. The video to this one is great! This has Charlie Brown, Christmas, and old people all mixed in! What isn't to love?! "Charlie Brown Medley" performed by The Piano Guys.
8. I love Lindsey Sterling. I usually love her for her Video Game medleys/performances/videos but I also found I love her Christmas music too. This is "What Child is This" performed by Lindsey Sterling.
9. I also enjoy Nightcore songs, which are basically sped up and "chipmunk-a-fied" as some of my friends have described, lol. So, here is a Nightcore version of "Carol of the Bells" by Barlow Girl.
10. Owl City is always a great listen. At number 10 we have "Peppermint Winter" by Owl City.
