My Weekend Recap

Most part of my weekend was spent indoors.

Friday was too cold to go anywhere and

snowed all day on Saturday.

We pretty much camped in our living room,

Sophia played with her toys, 

hubby and I lounged in the couch with

our blankets and watched TV. 

We occasionally glanced at our window

to see the beautiful snow falling so gracefully.

The look on Sophia face was priceless after all 

it was her first time seeing the snow falling.

Our Sunday just flew by,

I went shopping for winter clothes for Sophia

and also got her an adorable little pair

of pink boots. Got some groceries, had lunch

at my parents house and we went to the church service.

I can't believe how time just went by

and it's already Monday.

A Happy Monday to All!

 

Craft Inspiration

Lately I've been doing a couple of different

craft projects and loving it!

I must admit before I was married, I would never

 do a craft project but it seems inspiration

has finally pop in my life.

I already did a post where I said I've picked knitting

and ever since I've been making some beautiful

scarves, I think I might even started my very own online business at Etsy.

I'm very excited with the possibility! (doing my happy dance, lol).

Here's my little model with the little pink scarf I made for her.

She looks adorable!

My Five Fall Beauty Tips

The Fall season trends for this year are all about looking
fresh, healthy and achieving an effortless look.
Just have fun when getting all dressed up.
Here are my five Fall beauty tips:

1. Pink blush:

Think pink! pink cheeks are perfect for this season,

giving you a fresh and healthy look.

2. Neutral nail polish:
To achieve a clean and feminine look
 try neutral nail polish, they look great with anything.

3. Natural tinted glosses:

I love the natural tinted glosses,

 in fact I wear all the time but they're big this season.

4. Metallic eye shadow:

It's time to invest in metallic eye shadow, it's time to shimmer!

 but remember not to go overboard when putting on, a little goes a long way.

5. Loose braid:

Try the laid back natural look this Fall with

a loose braid or long locks tossed in a bun.

Friday...Pick Me Up!

You know when you have a feeling

so deeply in your heart that aches for

comfort words, a sense of direction, wisdom

and an absolutely certainty that everything

is going to be alright.

That's what I need right now.

A Friday pick me up!

Day Trip: NYC Part 2

So, here's the second part of our trip to NYC.

We had the chance to go up in the Empire State Building

and made a quick stop at Times Square.

I was wanted  to visit the Empire State Building ever since

watching Sleepless in Seattle. Now I can cross it out of my bucket list.

Take a look:

1. The Empire State Building.

2. Sister & I.

3. Hubby & I.

4, 5 & 6. View from the top of the building.

We paid $22 dollars per person and had to wait about

an hour in line to board the elevator.

The only thing I would recommend is try doing this during a 

weekday instead of the weekend, it's less people and

you don't have to wait for so long.

But it's totally worth it.

1. Entrance. 2. My pregnant belly getting bigger.

3, 4 & 6. Beautiful views from the top.

5. The antenna at the top.

7 & 8. We were fortunate enough to see the sunset from the top. Stunning!

The Empire State Building all light up and our quick stop

at Times Square before catching the train and head home.

Hope you enjoyed my photos from my day trip to NYC,

I certainly did!



Day Trip: NYC Part 1

NYC is one of my favorite cities to visit.

I live about 2 hours away from NYC, so

I always get a chance to visit this

exciting and vibrant place.

Last week we took a little day trip 

to go sightseeing. We planned to visit
the Statue of Liberty, but to wait in line
was going to be over 2 hours then we decided
to change plans.

We took a few far away pictures of the Statue of Liberty
and decided to walk around NYC instead.
We took the subway and arrived at The Staten Island Ferry,
right by Battery Park.

Here are the places we saw during our little day trip!
(Photos taken by my sister Carine).

1. At the subway. 2. Entrance to the Staten Island Ferry. 3. Far view of the Statue of Liberty.
4. Hubby & I. 5. Cruise to the Statue. 6 & 7. At Battery Park.

The Sphere sculpture at Battery Park.

1 & 2. Beautiful buildings. 3 & 4. Wall Street protest. 5. Trinity Church.

The Freedom Tower and 9/11 sculpture near the site.

At the 9/11 Memorial Preview Site.

I'll post the rest of the photos tomorrow.
 It includes the Empire State Building and beautiful view
 from the top and Times Squares.

Getting My Knitting On

I recently discovered how much I love to knit.

I'm just a beginner but I'm having so much

fun and it helps to pass the time.

To start, I bought a basic knitting kit which includes:

knitting needles, darning needle, yarn and illustrated instructions.

I felt kind lost at first but I was fortunate enough to find

great tutorials videos on Youtube.

Now, I'm totally hooked!

Yestesday, I took a little trip to Jo-Ann's and got

a bunch of yarn. The only thing I know how to knit

right now are scarves but I hope to learn new things as well.

I'll do another post later with photos of my scarves!

they look cute in my opinion. =] 

Playing Dress Up: Scarf Style

I had seen this video on Youtube months ago,

I really think is super interesting.

It teaches 25 ways to wear a scarf in 4.5 minutes!

I love scarves, it's one of my favorite accessories to wear.

You can create many different looks but simply

changing the style of the scarf.

This video is from Wendy Nguyen and

 her channel is the Wendy's Look Book.

Be sure to check it out, she has great style tips.

 

Butternut Squash with Garlic and Onion

Ingredients:
1 medium butternut squash (peeled, seeds removed, cut into 1-inch pieces)
1/2 white onion, diced
2 gloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons of parsley, finely chopped
2 tablespoons of olive oil
salt and pepper

Directions:
In a medium pot, combine the butternut squash and enough salted cold water to cover. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until tender. Drain well. Dry the pot you were using, put it over medium heat, add the olive oil, garlic and onions. Cook until the onions are translucent. Add the butternut squash and parsley, toss really well. Season with salt and pepper. Serve.

DIY Project: Painted Pumpkins

By now you know how much

I love the Fall season and everything about it,

specially the decor.

One of the things I noticed this Fall are

the painted pumpkins.

It super easy to make and all you need

is your creativity and let your imagination flow.

You can try using anything:  

spray paint, ribbon, leaf, glitter and even thumb tacks.

Take a look at the photos below and get inspired!

Have fun!

Create a gorgeous Fall painted pumpkin display.

Thumb tacks + painted pumpkin = pretty!

Even create a centerpiece, just like this one.

How creative! A candy corn pumpkin.

This is my favorite.
A tree display of pumpkins, really thinking outside the box.

The Versatile Blogger Award

I am thrilled to say that Musings of a Bored Housewife has blessed me with the Versatile Blogger Award.  Thank you so much for this honor!  I hope everyone will take time out to hop on over to her blog, or visit Musings of a Bored Housewife on Facebook.

The rules for the award are as follows,

1. Thank and Link back to the person that gave it to you!

2. Share 7 things about yourself.

3. Send the Versatile Blogger Award on to 15 other bloggers and let them know you have awarded them!

So the seven things about me?

1. I'm a mother to a sweet little girl named Sophia and I'm currently waiting for the arrival of my second child, a baby boy. I'm currently six months pregnant.
2. I was born in Brazil and came to the USA when I was 12 yrs old.
3. I love to cook, bake and take care of my family.
4. I absolutely love to travel. My dream vacation would be to visit Italy.
5. I love to eat cupcakes and drink tea.
6. My favorite flowers are tulips and sunflowers.
7. I love to watch films, specially classic ones and musicals. Love the TCM channel.

15 blogs that will receive the award are:

1. Joy in the Jumble
2. La-Dee-Da Crafter
3. Inspire Me, Beautiful
4. It's the Little Things
5. Keeping Up with Kristi
6. Baby Talk without the Babble
7. The Spring Mount 6 Pack
8. Ramblings of a Christian Mom
9. My Saving Game
10. Knitting Adventures
11. A Dance for 5
12. An Irish Italian Blessing
13. Happy Go Lucky
14. Mom's Best Nest
15. Le Chateau des Fleurs

Before You Speak: THINK

I learned early in life to always

be careful with what I say and

how I say it.

To always be kind and if I don't have

anything nice to say, don't say anything at all.

Words have power and you're the one that gives its power.

If you speak with kindness, you'll receive kindness.

If you speak with harshness, you'll receive harshness.

Words can be uplifting, build ourselves and our confidences,
even help us heal our hearts and wounds.
But, it can also break us down, destroy self-confidence
and hurt so deeply.

So, before you speak: THINK!
Think about what you are really saying. 

Carrot Cake with Chocolate Ganache

Cake
Ingredients:
3 medium carrots (peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks)

3 eggs

1 cup of canola oil

1 cup of milk

1 cup of sugar

3 cups of flour

2 teaspoons  of baking powder

Directions:
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a blender, add the carrots, eggs, oil and milk and beat really well (make sure the carrots are all grated). Pour the mixture into a bowl. Using a hand electric mixer, add the sugar and beat. While beating, start adding one cup of flour at a time. Last, add the baking powder. Pour the batter into a buttered 9x13 baking pan. Bake for 35-45 minutes. Let the cake cool completely, spread the chocolate ganache on top of cake. Enjoy!

Chocolate Ganache
Ingredients:

8 ounces of semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup of heavy cream 

Directions: 

Cook the chocolate chips and heavy cream in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until smooth and warm, stirring occasionally.