Camera can't cut it...

So, I've owned the Nikon Coolpix s210 for maybe 1.5 years now. At first I was super excited because I have a Nikon d40 SLR that I absolutely LOVE.  I figured, coming from Nikon, this point and shoot camera should be awesome...not so much.  In the time that I've owned it, the spring on the battery door broke, the quality of pics has significantly diminished and the flash has stopped working.  It is  now sitting on my desk in my office collecting dust.  I thought maybe I just got a lemon....turns out they are pretty much all like that.  My friend owns the exact same camera and has had the exact same problem. She was lucky enough to still have it under warranty and was able to have it repaired. She has sworn that the minute the camera breaks again, she's moving on.

My advice: stay away from this particular model. It was pricey and really not worth the money.  My hubby suggested I buy a cheap camera for my everyday shots.  I did exactly that...found a Kodak 10.1 megapixel on Woot.com for $50. So far so good!

Nikon Coolpix: Pricey and worthless!

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Need inspiration?

Do you need a reason to get up in the morning? Are you feeling down because of what life has thrown your way? Or are you just having a bad day? I encourage you to watch the following video for a guaranteed pick me up.

This man is truly an inspiration. After wiping away the tears from my face, I realized that my "problems" were not THAT bad. It's all in the attitude! It's like he says: Attitude is Altitude! I'm definitely downloading this to my iphone so the next time I start to complain about something insignificant, I can remember that it's not worth getting worked up about.

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Lady Gaga?

Sorry I've been on hiatus....I've been busy trying to clean up my yard for Vodka Friday's (more on that another day). In the meantime check out this HIGHlarious parody of Lady Gaga's "Telephone" video. Enjoy!

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Beannachtai na Feile Padraig!!! (Happy St. Patrick's Day in Gaelic)

This is one of my favorite days of the year. I  look forward to hanging out with friends and family at our usual spot, Griff's Shenanigans Bar in Montrose.

Each year my friends and I make sure we have the day off to prepare (i know...we're dorks!).  Last night I went above what I usually do and painted my nails..have a look:

you like?

















I know it's only 10:00 am but I've been waiting weeks for one of these:

can't wait!














Here's wishing you the best St. Patty's day ever and stay safe out there!

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Things are always bigger in Texas...

We had a great weekend with friends in San Antonio, as you can see in the pics below.  We stayed at the Indigo Hotel.  It was a very nice boutique hotel on the Riverwalk. However, it is at the end of the Riverwalk and not in the best part of town.  That being said, I would definitely stay here again, as long as I was accompanied by my husband.  :)

This is my hubby with his Texas sized margarita...they were pretty tasty, but we should have shared one! They were REALLY big!

This is a 42" pizza from Big Lou's pizza. Bill and I saw this on Man vs. Food and told our friends about it. We decided to try it out. While there was over an hour wait, it was worth the experience. Quite honestly, I didn't expect the pizza to be all that great considering its size. I was shocked... it was pretty damn good! Our waitress said that each piece was equivalent to 3-4 pieces of pizza! Bill ate 3 pieces...OMG...that equaled 9-12 pieces of pizza! If you're in San Antonio, go visit Big Lou!

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So long, farewell, adios, avedazane, etc.

It's been one of those days! Luckily, I'm about to get outta this joint! I probably won't post anything until Monday, unless by chance, I get to a computer before then :)

Here's wishing you a safe and wonderful Spring Break! MWAH!

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Kandee

Kandee Johnson

She is one of my fav make-up artists and I follow her religiously. She always has the best tutorials. This one is awesome. I think I'm going to try this tomorrow for my trip!

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New Etsy items for sale

New items added today

Click here to visit my etsy shop

   

 

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Traveling and scammers...BEWARE!

The thought of a mini vacay excited me when my friend mentioned they were going to San Antonio, Texas for the weekend. She invited us along, so I agreed (without talking to the hubby....whoops!).  We thought we would be able to get this special deal through a friend of ours, but it fell through.

We started searching for vacation rentals near the area because the hotels on the river walk during spring break were outrageous! Being the Craigslist enthusiast that I am, I found an amazing deal! 3 bedroom, 3 bath, private apartment for $150 a night. AWESOME right? That's what I thought. We got all excited when we found out the place was actually available (that should have been the first red flag).  I asked the lady (all through email) how much the deposit was and how to pay it. She responded by sending me the contract and a picture of her Texas drivers license. I thought, ok, she's trying to seem legit (2nd flag should have gone up here).  As I'm reading through the email she asked for the deposit to be wired via Western Union (FINALLY, the flag went up!).

Now it was time for some detective work....internet search for Dea Lazo (yes, I'm calling her out like that). Well, well, well, some interesting finds after googling her name.  I found a forum where a lot of people claimed they were scammed by this lady. Some for over $300! I thank God I had the sense enough to check this out before booking with her.  I am outraged at these people trying to take advantage of someone who is trying to take a vacation to RELAX! I sent her a nasty little email after receiving one from her saying she was waiting on me to book.  Thanks for letting me rant! On to better things....

This is what I will be doing this weekend....

and what I will be drinking...

and who will be with me: me on the left and Grace

my hubby on the left and Tino (Grace's hubby)

ah...the life!

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Grocery shopping and my never ending Chinese food obsession

Today was supposed to be a "light" grocery shopping day. Note: do NOT, I repeat, do NOT, take your teenage son with you to the grocery store. A simple grocery list turns into more money spent at the end of the trip. UGH!

While adding more to my cart for my son, I thought I might as well try and cook my own Chinese food at home with all the take-out I've been doing lately. It may save myself some money in the end. Browsing the frozen section and looking through my coupon (an absolute must in my household), I noticed that I had a coupon for Wanchai Ferry frozen dinners. They also happen to be on sale, so I bought 2 of the sweet and spicy shrimp. Right next to that was Chung's frozen shrimp egg rolls. How could I pass this up? I've been craving egg rolls and they were on sale. I was hoping between the two, it would be a match made in heaven.

I finally got everything cooked. The Wanchai Ferry was decent. The sauce was a bit too sweet for my taste. The Chung's egg rolls......WOWSA! That's it in a nutshell. Great flavor, great sauce and didn't take long at all to cook. They now have a customer for life! I highly recommend these. I'm not sure about the other flavors because I am a pescetarian. If they are half as good as the shrimp, then they are delish!

Do not leave these little gems off your grocery list!

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Etsy

Before opening my vintage accessory store, I had no idea of the existence of Etsy. WOW! I was definitely missing out!  They have the most amazing sellers on there. I love to read the spotlight on the different sellers they have.  It's amazing to hear about their stories. It's so inspiring to hear about people who work for corporate America during the day and start their own little business on the side just selling items they either love to make or find at estate sales or garage sales.  This one lady did that and her store just took off! She was able to quit her day job and work from home doing what she loves.  I hope to accomplish sales like hers. Mine has started off slowly and hasn't generated enough income to make up my previous full time job, but I am grateful for my hubby allowing me the opportunity to quit my job while being with my son his last year at home.

Etsy allows you to discover so many talented people in the world too.  I've browsed through a lot of jewelry and I am impressed at the creativity of some people.

Check out my Etsy store online now for some great deals!

www.etsy.com/shop/LdyLux

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New beginnings

I say new beginnings because my son (who just turned 18 yesterday) will be going off to college in August.  These will be new beginnings for the both of us. He's not your traditional 18 year old. He's an old soul in a teens body.  Funny thing is he realizes and accepts it.  He doesn't have his driver's license yet and is in really no hurry to get it. He rarely goes out. I've told my friends he reminds me of the kid on "Sixteen Candles" where the parents try and force him to go to the dance and he runs out saying "but I just want to be with you guys!".  How times have changed from my days. I couldn't wait to get out of the house to party with my friends.  It's actually comforting knowing that he's safe though.

I've decided to start this blog because of the simple fact that he is leaving and I will need something to take my mind off the fact that he won't be here :)  Besides that, I love to share my ideas for fashion, parties and crafts!

I will also be doing testing and reporting on trendy, stylish and budget friendly products that you may be interested in.  Look out for them!

This is my son. Isn't he handsome? Everyone says he looks like Joe Jonas and he HATES that! I laugh every time!

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