I'm back!!

Crystal: OMG Wow...it's been awhile since I wrote on this blog! I have been wrapped up in tons of photoshoots, editing, burning cds, marketing, not to mention my full-time job that has kept me swimming in work the past few months, my family whom I have been desperately trying to make time for outside of all of the above, and my sanity which has been definitely lacking lately....

but now, I finally have a little time to breathe. I can actually say that i've been a little bored lately ::gasp!!::.

So I wanted to get back on here and say HELLO! to everyone, and that I hope to get back into the blogging mode if Jen is up for it. :) :)

For those who remember my post awhile back about Disneyworld...the countdown is on...19 more days til we go!! We've gotten our luggage tags in the mail, coupons for goodies, tons of emails with tips from friends, maps with our must-see's marked on them, a spreadsheet with restaurant reservations for 24 different restaurants (we are going to be fat and happy when we come back!), a new point and shoot camera to take along so I don't have to carry around my giant camera...and I think we're just about ready to go!!

Christmas next week, Avery's birthday the following week, New Year's Eve as well, then the next week it's time to go!!! I can't believe it's finally here. :) :) :)

Jen: Here *raising my hand*! Welcome back! I know it's been busy for us both, but I'm hoping to make more time for Beachy Keen, as well as Haute Whimsy. I miss them both!

I'm so excited for you guys! Disney World is going to be amazing! I can't wait to live vicariously through your vacation photos ;) By the way, what point and shoot did you choose? I just got one, too. It's a Sony Cybershot.

Crystal: I got the Canon Powershot. So far it's good...I've used it a bit - hard to not be biased when I'm so used to using my nicer camera, but I think it's good...my eyes are trained differently now, so things that I previously thought looked nice, don't look so great anymore, lol...so it's kinda hard for me to say! But it's the baby blue one which I LOVE, and it's tiny, and fits in my purse....and I'm just so happy to always have a camera handy now instead of just my iPhone! :)

Work has been a bit slow with the holidays here and some big meetings that takes my boss out of town...so I finally got to catch up on work and have a little bit of downtime...I'm hoping it continues so i can blog more, but I'm not sure....will have to play it by ear and hope for the best! :)

Jen: It really is nice to have a small camera that's always handy. I really miss my lost Nikon. Joe bought me a newer Nikon for my birthday, but it took TERRIBLE pictures, so I got the Cybershot last month. It's not my old Nikon, but it'll do :)

Frantic Holidays

Jen: Happy December everyone! Who's glad that November has come and gone? *hand raised* It was a hectic month around here with NaNoWriMo and family, birthdays and work. I'm not sure that I have much to show for these past 30 days, other than a look of utter confusion! Hopefully, December will be a little more under control.

Disgruntled Farmer

Jen: Apparently, farmers in Brussels are not too happy about falling milk prices. They protested at the European Union's headquarters by burning bails of hay and squirting officers with milk straight from their cow's udders! I had to laugh when I saw the photo!

Disneyworld

Crystal: OK I'm motivated now. :) :) I'm gonna book my Disneyworld vacation tonight!

Does anyone have any tips for me on anything Disneyworld related????? :) :) :)

Jen: Yes! I hear tale that somewhere in Epcot is a grapefruit cake! Erin, Joe's brother's girlfriend, has been to Disney World more times that I could ever count, and she brought home the recipe! It's absolutely amazing!

Where Are They Now?

Jen: Crystal and I are having a bit of a Beachy Keen dry spell, so I thought I'd stop by to explain why :) If nothing else, you'll at least have a little insight into what makes Beachy Keen's authors tick these days!

I have been incredibly busy with a new job, home hunting (still unsure if this home will come in the form of a house, apartment or condo), and intense work over at Haute Whimsy. I've been taking sponsors and doing giveaways on that blog, and while it's great fun, it's also a lot of work!

I'll give Crystal a nudge and get her over here to give her side of the story ;)

Crystal: Sorry! I've been on an ad hoc hiatus lately....there's a LOT going on in the world of Crystal...catching up on 20+ photoshoots from August, organizing a huge fundraiser for a local school, moving to a new apartment, my 40hr a week day-job, and my regular day-to-day upkeep (bills, Avon selling, etc etc etc).....it just seems never-ending right now....I think once I catch up on my backlog of photoshoots, everything else will be a little easier to catch up on as well....plus the move is tomorrow, so once that's behind us then I don't have to worry there either.

There's a light at the end of the tunnel, it's just not here yet. :) :)

Poor Beachy Keen blog, I will reunite with you soon!!! :)

Nobody Puts Baby in the Corner

Jen: Just as so many others, I am heartbroken about Patrick Swayze's passing :( I grew up crushing on him, and my crush turned into unconditional respect as I watched this gentleman do good for the world, love his wife madly and fight his cancer with grace and dignity.

I was constantly amazed by his calmness and positive thinking throughout his battle, even while the disgusting tabloids headlined his impending doom week after week. It's humbling to witness such humanity. I think we're all very lucky to have "known" this man.


Crystal: I never considered myself a "fan" really of his...I didn't dislike him by any means, just wasn't really aware of a lot of his work besides Ghost I think. I never watched Dirty Dancing (gasp!!) and I think that's where a lot of his fanbase grew from, at least from what i can see....

But, I did see an interview with him a year or so ago, along with his wife, and was also amazed at his positive thinking. He was so sure he was going to come out on the other side of this, even though I don't think very many people, if anyone, do....I was also highly impressed that he made a whole tv series while in the midst of chemo and whatever other treatments he was on...that is AMAZING.

I didn't know much about his type of cancer until a friend/co-worker's step-father was diagnosed with it about a year and a half ago or so...she would come to work telling me about the disease and how severe it is, and how quickly it takes hold of the body and ultimately kills people. From the time her step-father was diagnosed (on a routine doctor's visit I think) to the time of his passing, it had been less than a year I believe. It just came through like a freight train and took over his life, and then took his life. It's such a horrible disease and it breaks my heart to know there's not a cure. :(

Rest in peace Mr. Swayze.

Question of the Week 9-15-09

Crystal: I am completely slacking...sorry! I was out of town last week and have been playing catch-up ever since at work...and my after work schedule is a whole other story....I'm just BUSY. I need another word for "busy" because I'm tired of saying it to everyone.

Anyways - question for this week (this is for all of our readers as well!):

What book are you reading right now?

Me? Surprisingly I am reading a book right now...usually my "busy-ness" doesn't allow me the room, but I started reading it on the plane last week and now I need to finish it! So I am currently reading Dean Koontz' Velocity. I love Dean Koontz' books...I've read quite a few to date...although there's many more to read still! I love the mystery books, and his usually entails a bit of supernatural along with the morbidity of human capabilities. So they're half realistic and half "out there"...and a whole lot of 'interesting'. :)

Whatcha reading Jen?? Readers??

Jen: I still need to give Dean Koontz a try. I keep saying I will, but I always forget once I enter the wonderland that is Borders!

I just started reading Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain! I don't know if you watch his show "No Reservations" on the Travel Channel, but he's awesome! Crass, controversial, politically incorrect and hysterical- I love him!

From my understanding, this book is what put him on the map. It gives you a low-down and dirty backstage pass to what really goes on in high-end restaurants. "A deliciously funny, delectably shocking banquet of wild-but-true tales of life in the culinary trade from Chef Anthony Bourdain, laying out his more than a quarter-century of drugs, sex, and haute cuisine."

I Can Hardly Wait!

{via Michael Hogan Photography}

Jen: I'm writing this from my newly rearranged living room, and this is the first day that I've been able to work from home since the fires in my city here in California! It's so nice to feel the drop in temperature and to smell clean air again!

I'm incredibly excited about the Fall season this year! October has always been my favorite month because of my birthday and Halloween, but this year I'll also be celebrating my niece's first birthday! Between carving pumpkins and eating pumpkin scones from Starbucks, I'm going to have to say that October also brings the best culinary options for me. I recently discovered a salad at California Pizza Kitchen that has some amazing Fall ties, such as baked and chilled acorn squash, dried cranberries and dates in a light champagne vinaigrette- yum! I'm definitely going to be making that throughout the season!

Crystal is on a work retreat right now (lucky her!) but perhaps when she returns she'll be up to sharing some of her reasons for looking forward to Fall this year!

Crystal: I'm afraid I don't share your love of fall. Maybe because I'm a June baby and so summer is therefore my month. :) :)

To me, fall basically means that summer is over. :( :( I don't like the drop in temperature...I prefer the lovely, warm, heat. :)

But, having a child, Halloween is much more fun for me. While I'm not big into dressing up at all, it's so fun to see how happy my son gets when trying on a Halloween costume, saying "trick or treat", and getting all kinds of candy. This year we'll be going to the Disney Trick or Treat event again at Disneyland California...we loved it last year, so we'll be returning....next Friday actually. :)

And I believe we've narrowed down his costume to Peter Pan. We couldn't find one that I liked, and I did find this adorable knight costume from the Narnia: Prince Caspian movie that i loved...but Caydan didn't like it. He wants to be Peter Pan. So we're just gonna go back and get the one from the Disney store as it was the best quality one...but I didn't like the color of it. Oh well, he'll be a cute Peter Pan. :)

Other than that though, fall means football to me....which I am not a fan of, but my fiance is...and he spends most of his time watching it - which means I can't watch my t.v., and we have to base our schedules around game times....this does not make a happy Crystal. :)

Happy Labor Day!

Jen: Happy Labor Day! What is everyone doing today? I'm heading over to my mom's house for a small family BBQ, doing laundry, and then coming home to plan my birthday shenanigans for next month. Low key and relaxing :)

Question of the Week 9-1-09

What makes for a perfect vacation?

Jen: I love getting away more than anything! I don't look for relaxation though (I can do that on my couch). I want adventure and sights, shopping and dining! I love visiting the downtown area in every city I vacation in.

Crystal: I think I'm exactly like you. My vacations usually end with needing a vacation to recoup from my vacation. Even though we use our timeshare places a lot lately, and they're gorgeous with full amenities - the type of place you go to just hang out at the resort and relax...we usually don't spend much time in our rooms or on-site....we usually get in, drop off our stuff, then go to our first destination.

For me personally, I like to plan my dream vacations around amusement parks. I'm a huge amusement park person....and my lifelong dream vacation has been Disney World.......luckily, that dream is FINALLY coming true....28 years later! This December we will be taking a really nice vacation there...sparing no expenses....it's gonna be a blast. I'm so excited. :) :)

Ablaze

Jen: Los Angeles has been having its share of summer wildfires. Last year, San Diego got the brunt of it; the year before was San Bernardino's turn. This time, it's close to our Beachy Keen home :(

One of the two recent/current fires hit my city, and soon to be Crystal's city. It's unnerving to be told by the news and authorities to get your prized possessions and animals ready for a possible evacuation.

Sadly, the current fire further in Los Angeles is still raging, and the lives of firefighters are being lost :( We have a constant reminder of the dire situation in the form of this surreal white cloud-looking smoke that can be seen for hundreds of miles.

Question of the Week 8-25-09

What is your favorite restaurant and dish they serve?

Crystal: LoL...I notice a lot of our posts commonly revolve around food. :)

My favorite restaurant would probably be based more around my favorite dish than vice versa....I go to a location for the food more than I do for the ambience, lol. :)

With that said...On the Border is one of my favorites because I LOOOVE their beef empanadas. They are right up my alley and I was so bummed to find out the one nearest me at the Howard Hughes center closed down....

My other favorite might be Chili's because they have the best chocolate lava cake that I've had to date...I'm always looking for some runner-ups...but I haven't found any that top Chili's yet. :)

Jen: I love Claim Jumper for the atmosphere, mainly because I tend to celebrate random accomplishments there! My favorite dish would have to be the Whiskey Chicken- chicken with a whiskey applesauce, mashed potatoes, stuffing and a biscuit with honey-butter. Yum!

I also love their Lemon Drops and carrot cake. In fact, they have one of the most fantastic drink menus ever!

Groupon

Crystal: OK, my new favorite website right now is http://www.groupon.com/

This is the absolute best thing to happen to big city, coupon-lovers since the Grocery Game and Google. :) :)

The basis of it is that a vendor can offer a coupon on this site (usually for 24 - 48 hours) for a deep discount (usually at least 50% but varies), and they can do this because mass amounts of people purchase it and it makes it all worthwhile for the vendor in terms of marketing and repeat business.

Some of the things that have been up there are like - pay $25 for $50 worth of food at xyz restaurant (usually more upscale or never-heard-of restaurants)....I bought two tickets to a wine tasting for $50 and it includes the wine and appetizers at a cute little winery in downtown L.A.

They also have coupons for massages, activities (I got one for a rock-climbing facility called Hangar 18), headshots for actors, sporting events, and the list keeps growing.

I'm definitely going to do something for Avery James Photography through this company in the near future...I just don't have the bandwidth in my life right now to take on any mass amounts of clients (or that's what I'm hoping will happen at least!!).

Bottom line - AWESOME deal financially, and you get to explore new places you probably didn't know about!

They have the program in several big cities...so if it's not in yours yet, just keep checking back. :)

Jen: So it's one sponsored coupon per day?

Crystal: Correct. Every day they have a new vendor with a new offer...although it depends on your city - some of the newer places they have this program for don't have enough offers to do it every day, but the L.A. area definitely does...and I think it originated in Chicago so they have tons there.
And then on the weekends they don't have any - so Friday's offer is extended through the weekend (obviously a better day to your ad because you get 3 days of advertising!)...

And you can subscribe via email so the new offers pop up in your inbox first thing in the morning...it's a great thing to wake up to :)

Question of the Week 8-18-09

What has been your biggest hair horror story to date?

Jen: I've had quite a few, but I think the whopper was when I had red hair and I told my stylist that I wanted to go back to blonde. She actually whined about how much work it was going to be, and when she turned me around to the mirror in the end, it was brown! I asked her what happened and she said said decided to go brown because it was easier! The worst part was that it was actually slightly green, too. I left the salon completely mind-boggled. I mean, who does that??? I let my hair rest for a few days and then marched back in there and made her fix it.

Crystal: You have definitely had some of the craziest hair horror stories...I know that much....that one is pretty bad though - the nerve of that stylist! How dare she call herself a stylist actually....

I don't have many hair horror stories...I did my fair share of dying my hair when I was young, but I played it pretty safe for the most part...I do remember something about doing streaks (maybe it was with you??) and having this giant white-blonde streaks in the front near my face and it looked horrible on me (blonde is definitely not my color)....and the last time I got highlights I said I wanted a light brown color and they were orangey-white....horrible.

I don't dye my hair anymore though. :) I'm just gonna keep it au naturale. :)

Theme Stores

Jen: I went to a restaurant called The Stinking Rose over the weekend. It is a garlic themed restaurant in Beverly Hills, from their drinks to their food and even to their dessert! As you go to leave the building, you'll find a little store that sells fun and garlicy souvenirs to remember your unique dining experience by!

It got me thinking about other randomly themed stores, such as the Purple Store at Ports O' Call Village in San Pedro, CA. Purple was my favorite color as a child, so this was a dream come true for me!

Do you know of any quirky stores?

Crystal: That sounds sooooo yummy! I love garlic! Although I don't know about garlic dessert...that doesn't sound so yummy. :)

And I've never heard of the Purple Store! I'm gonna have to go check that out though considering my love for purple. :)

I can't really think of any themed stores off the top of my head...just the popular ones, like the M&Ms Store in Las Vegas...LOVE that place!

Hmm...that's a tough one! I'll come back to this if I think of one. :)

Jen: I have no idea if The Purple Store is still around. I remember it from my childhood. As for M&Ms, blec! It's one of my least favorite candies! I have fallen in love with Palmers Candy recently, though. They always seem to have knock-offs of the popular brands, so maybe they have an M&M-like treat! If only there was a Palmers store!

Crystal: I'm not a fan of plain M&M's, but I love the Peanut M&Ms and i LOOOOOOVVVEEEE the Peanut Butter M&Ms.....they are heaven. :) You should try them if you haven't already. :) :)

I haven't a clue what Palmers Candy is though...it doesn't sound very tasty to me though, lol. I all of a sudden got an image of the grandfather commercial with the butterscoth candies...Werthers I think...lol....don't know why, that's just what came to mind. :)

Question of the Week 8-11-09

Crystal: Better late than never I say :) :)

Hopefully by the end of this week and then for the next couple of weeks I will be able to keep up on this blog a lot more than I have been!! I should have a little more downtime....I'm looking forward to it!!

So the question this week is:

What is your favorite Etsy shop and why?? (Yes - it can be your own!)

Mine...currently, besides Jennifer's lovely lomo shop, is BeeLoveLee. I just got my pouch in the mail the other day and I am in love with it!! I use it for my makeup and it just makes me smile when I pull it out of my purse...I posted a blog about it before, but I hadn't seen any of the products in person til now...not to mention her prices are absolutely affordable!!! :)

Jen: I love The Black Apple shop on Etsy! I adore the art and they have periodic sales that keep me coming back for more!

This shop has had over 24,000 sales, so I'm not the only fan!

Crystal: Wow - that's a neat shop! It seems like it's right up your alley in terms of style. It reminds me of those books...uhmmm...what are they called???? The 3 little kids with all the bad luck or whatever....oh! A Series of Unfortunate Events....yea - the style reminds me of the art in those books. Very neat! :)

Cravings!

{Chicken Tikka Masala}

Jen: I've been craving Pakistani food for weeks now! I love the creamy curries and baked naan for dipping. Tandoori oven-cooked meats and honey based desserts. Yum! Joe and I are planning on picking up a huge order this weekend and stuffing ourselves until we never want to eat again (yeah, right!). What is your favorite "ethnic" food?

Crystal: So I'm confused...I didn't know that was Pakistani food...I thought those were all Indian foods...? Or are they similar and am I an idiot? I know that a bunch of us went to this Indian restaurant in downtown El Segundo a few months ago, and I was encouraged to try the chicken Tikka Masala, which I did...and it was sooooo yummy! I didn't think I'd like it, but I really really did.

And - because of that experience, last week I went to Fresh and Easy to get something for lunch and decided to try their chicken masala dish (pre-made, you just heat it up) and it was FABULOUS! And I typically get weird about microwaved chicken, but it was really good quality, not gross at all, and super yummy! I'm starting to crave it now actually! :) :)

My favorite ethnic food...hmmm, well I love anything teriyaki...I actually LOVE the Korean BBQ Beef at The Loft in Torrance...it's Hawaiian food I think, despite the Korean name being in it...?? It's soooooo good. And I love Kung Pao chicken from PF Chang's....and I loooove looove looove Mochi Ice Cream....yummm. So I guess my greatest influence and love is for Asian foods...although I think the ones I like are pretty American-ized...so not so ethnic....but I'd like to think they are. :)

Other than that, I'm not very adventurous with ethnic foods...if I didn't grow up eating it, I probably won't try it...........unless it's a pretty safe dish.

Oh - I just remembered, Carmen makes this absolutely wonderful Peruvian dish - I think she said it's called Chicken Pudding....it's basically a thick, chicken sauce/cream with bread and pieces of chicken in it with Peruvian spices....it is to die for!!!!! :) :)

Jen: Yum! Carmen's dish sounds lovely! I love anything saucy and dip-able. In fact, I bamboozled Joe into picking up Al Noor on his way home tonight!

Pakistani food is basically Indian food, just slightly spicier from my understanding. Indian cuisine also seems to have a sweetness that I don't care for too much. I've noticed that they use a lot of raisins.

Question of the Week

What is your most ridiculous and irrational pet peeve?

Jen: I hate washing cheese graters. Hate with a passion! Nothing will get me muttering under my breath like a crusty grater!

Crystal: That's a good one! I don't own a cheese grater - but I have in the past and I remember them being horrible....kinda like a colander if you get pasta pieces stuck in it or something - I always feel like I can never really get it clean and then I'm grossed out by it!

I have many pet peeves....a ridiculous and irrational one though...hmmmm....

Well I was talking about this recently, but I HATE to do things twice or backtrack at all...goes for everything whether it's telling a story to 2 different people (why I love facebook and blogs because i can post it once and just refer people to it), driving somewhere and then having to backtrack on the same road to get somewhere else - sometimes I'll purposely go the longer way just to not have to drive on the same road again...writing an email or blog only to send/post it and receive an error and then it's lost!! Most times I just won't rewrite it...I'll give up because I can't stand to write the same thing over again!

This probably bugs most people, but for me I think it's a little more extreme in terms of how it affects me, lol.

And another quick one - I hate when cars stop at a light and leave a whole car's length or two in front of them....for whatever reason it bugs the crap out of me...just move up! You're not gonna hit the car and you're already stopped, so I don't think the car length rule applies here!!

Jen: Backtracking seems like a pretty normal pet peeve, but with you I know it's different! Going the long way just so you don't have to take the same road twice is a little extreme- or OCD, lol! Isn't it funny how we're all crazy in our own wacky ways?! I embrace the crazy, though.

Different, but the same?

Jen: I've been delving into my heritage a bit, so I thought it would be fun to do a post on our nationalities this week!

I have a few key relatives who are great at maintaining family trees and are willing to do the research, but even more who are clueless. I've had a difficult time finding a starting point in my search, but I've recently been able to find out that I have quite a bit of Native American in me- specifically Cherokee and Chickasaw/Choctaw!

I've always been curious as to where my eye shape came from because it doesn't quite match anyone in my family. In fact, I've had countless people ask about my heritage because they say my eyes look "ethnic". Perhaps the Native American came into play there.

What has always cracked me up is how when our hair color is similar, people say that Crystal and I look like we could be sisters. I look at them like they're total loons and ask if they realize that I'm Caucasian and she is half Japanese?!


Crystal: Yea, I definitely look Japanese in that picture. :) But normally I don't look as Asian as that....and I love that people think we look like sisters! They must just be able to sense that sisterly love we have :) :) :)

And that's awesome you have some Native American in you...nothing like some diversity to make beautiful people. :) And you say Choctaw and I immediately think of Tim McGraw, lol......country music lovers will know what I'm talking about :) Other than that though I guess I've never heard of Choktaw.....cool all the same!

I'd love to do some genealogy research and find out my history....I think I know my nationality....half Jap and Half Irish/German....but with those European backgrounds they tend to be pretty mixed and everyone ends up just saying they're Irish/German unless they really know, lol. :)

It'd be fun to see if there's any famous/historical people in your history!! Sounds like a lot of work though! :)

Question of the week

Crystal: So i was sitting here trying to come up with another blog topic....major blogger's-block right now....and I decided to google 'question of the day' and see what came up....

And just to give credit where credit is due, this is one of the sites that popped up: http://questions.vox.com/

And the first question says: If you could eat only one cereal for the rest of your life, which one would you pick?

So I'm thinking maybe we start a question of the week post...? And we'll come up with (or find if our minds are being blocked by the unknown) an interesting question every Tuesday (??) and post it for our answers as well as our reader's answers :)

So here's mine:

I'd have to say...Honey Bunches of Oats. It's one cereal that I never seem to really get sick of....I usually go on trends where I'll eat boxes of one cereal for a couple weeks, and then I'll get sick of it and switch to a new one, but then eventually switch back to the original one...........but I think Honey Bunches of Oats is ALWAYS good. :) :)

What about you Jen?

And our readers??

Jen: I love the "questions of the week" idea, and Tuesdays work for me!

If I could eat one cereal for the rest of my life, it would have to be Frosted Mini Wheats (preferably the brown sugar variety)! I never get tired of them!

Starbucks

Jen: How do you feel about Starbucks? I ask because today they are giving away a free pastry, and I have Starbucks on my mind! I enjoy the convenience of having someone else make my coffee, and tend to like the ridiculously fattening additions that Starbucks is known for.

Many argue that the price is practically a crime. I agree- to a point. When you go to Starbucks, you're going for the experience in addition to the coffee. Soccer moms and execs alike love to be pampered and have their name written on the famous green cup before it's filled and handed over.

What are your thoughts on this, Crystal?

Crystal: Perhaps I'm not the best person to ask about this....I don't particularly like coffee....actually, I just plain don't like it....I think the only times I've drank it were mainly because I was bored and just wanted to get something that was free to drink, or I was sleepy and have heard these rumors about caffeine keeping you awake - yet it does nothing except make me sick.....

So in my mind...paying ridiculous prices to get a cup of coffee at Starbucks when you could go next door to 7-Eleven or McDonald's (who I hear has very good coffee) for a fraction of the cost - just seems silly.

With that said though...I find Starbucks to be a fantastic meeting spot. I've had a couple of business meetings for my photography company at a Starbucks before, and I've even had job interviews in the past that took place at a Starbucks...with that said, buying a cup of expensive coffee is paying more for the venue (kinda like a rental fee?) and is more worthwhile.....

...and while I never buy coffee from there, I do buy frapuccinos (java chip...yummm!) and I find those very much worth the money that I pay for them.

Jen: I know that some may want to throw stones at me for saying this, but I think that the McDonald's iced coffees are vile! 7-Eleven, on the other hand, rocks my socks off!

Crystal: I tasted the iced coffees at McD's once because it was free and it was disgusting - but that's coming from someone who doesn't like iced coffee...Dan liked it.
But when I said McDonald's coffee above I was actually referring to their original hot coffee...not the McCafe line......I've heard their coffee is good....??

BeeLoveLee

Crystal: I talked about posting this Etsy shop ages ago for one of my photography clients and I just got completely sidetracked and forgot....so I just looked at her shop right now and was blown away by how gorgeous the fabrics are that she chose for her pouches...and super cheap too!

I thought you might like the cupcake designs she has. :)

I think this might be my favorite though - Birds of Norway

And I don't know if Blanca is reading, but she might like this one :)

Here's the link to her whole shop: BeeLoveLee

Jen: I love it all! I would probably buy the Birds of Norway for myself, but everything is adorable! And yes, I think that last one is perfect for Blanca! It's awesome to see so many of our readers comment with their love of these products and the BeeLoveLee shop!

Honest Scrap Award

A huge thank you to Carole at Art Plus for this award! Crystal and I are going to combine our blog picks for this award and each choose a few. As usual, mine (Jen) will be in red, and Crystal's in purple:

We are suppose to select seven of our favorite blogs and tell you why we like them, so here goes:
(Presented in no particular order)

Let Them Eat Cupcakes- This blog is full of fashionable goodies, and has a Marie Antoinette theme, which completely speaks to me!

Sarah Says Awesome- Sarah has an unrivaled amount of sass and spunk that keeps me coming back for more!

Circling My Head- Renee floors me with her timeless posts about her amazing (and large!) family. She takes me out of my world and places me in her's with such ease that sometimes it's jolting when her post comes to an end and I find myself back in my reality. I love it!

A Fanciful Twist- Vanessa sees the world in colors we can't even imagine! To step into her blog is to step into another world, full of whimsy and delight!

The second requirement to accept this award is to tell you things about ourselves:

1. Thriller was my favorite video as a very young child!

2. My favorite fairytale is The Twelve Dancing Princesses, closely followed by Rapunzel.

3. I'm 27 years old and my wisdom teeth are just starting to bother me. It sucks. A lot.

4. I'm afraid of clowns. I thought that this was an irrational fear until I discovered photos of me (that I obviously blocked out) at a pumpkin patch with the scariest looking clown I've ever seen! Poor little me looked absolutely terrified as I bit my nails and was bending as far away from the "creatures" as possible. Oddly, pumpkins are amongst my favorite things.

5. I always seem to have panties in my purse, but it's because I lug my laundry to my mom's house and a pair always tends to fall out of the laundry basket into my backseat. I will notice this a couple days later and stuff them into my purse to put away when I get upstairs. And then I forget! And then I rediscover them at the most inopportune times!


And now for my (Crystal) favorites :)

Haute Whimsy - not just because she's my bestie...but because she is full of talent and creative and amusing thoughts...I am constantly entertained when reading her blog. :)

Palos Verdes Daily Blog - As a photographer I started checking out this blog to find some new interesting locations in my local area...and then found myself so amused at all the different things that are right around me that I didn't even know about! :)

Five Moms and a Blog - Well I really just ADORED their blog banner....but the blog itself is very well written and quite interesting!

Just Add Glitter and Stir - Another blog with a fantastic banner...and I LOOOVE the blog name. But over all of that she has some great craft highlights! :)

Now...5 things about me :)

1. I can be a bit obsessive. I like to collect and attain EVERYTHING...from collecting figurines and coffee cups to insisting on watching every single movie and tv show that's available on Netflix.

2. I get very frustrated very easily when things don't go as planned...but I am a solution seeker as well

3. I am an entrepreneur at heart...I've been devising money-making tactics since I was a wee-one. :)

4. I am a geek...I was a thespian in high school, I'm a member of Toastmasters here at my work, I love computers, the Internet, and the Sims or anything similar to the Sims....and I love fantasy stories/movies like Harry Potter, Chronicles of Narnia, Lord of the Rings, etc. :)

5. I love macaroni and cheese and will order it at any restaurant that serves it regardless of how high class the place is. :)

So - Jen...I think we're supposed to tell the people we awarded that they got it right? Did you do yours already? I'll do mine shortly....

Jen: I didn't realize we could post each other's blogs! I amend my list by adding Avery James Photography! Beautiful photos and anecdotes written by the famous Crystal Henning!!! And yes, she really is famous! She even has an imdb page (although it only has one thing listed and needs to be filled, ahem!)

EasyBloom

Crystal: So I've developed this great love for plants and flowers and just anything that grows over the years....as some know, we redid my grandfather's backyard and memorialized it as "Avery's Garden" about 3 years ago. We dug everything up, replanted grass, flowers, trees, shrubs, etc.

Unfortunately, the soil at my grandfather's house isn't great, it gets really hot in the summer and really cold in the winter (for Southern California standards at least) and my fiance and I know know little to nothing about plantlife....so more than half of everything we've planted has died, including the grass :(

I just came across this awesome product which I will hopefully some day own...it's not a huge investment, but on top of everything else we NEED right now, this is towards the bottom of the list...but eventually..........................I sooooo could use this product:

EasyBloom http://www.easybloom.com/buy/overview.html

You basically stick it in the ground where you want to plant something, leave it there for a day or two (gotta read the directions), it measures the air temperature, moisture, drainage, etc.....then you plug it in to your computer and it tells you what kind of plants to grow there based on your location and the data it collected...and I think I even read somewhere that it alerts you when you need to water!

How handy is that....? I might never kill a plant again with this thing. :)

Oh - unfortunately for our global readers, it says it only works in the U.S. :( But maybe there's something similar already out there for your country....

Jen: I think this is about the best thing I've ever heard of! I'll pull out the handy cliche and say it might be the best thing since sliced bread!

It's funny that I should read this now, because I'm currently watching my mom through her window as she's trying to salvage her garden. One of the downsides to living 5 miles from the beach is that the soil is very sandy- not a good growing environment.

Easy Bloom sounds like something to put on your Christmas list ;)

P.S. I just found this from one of the founders of EasyBloom:

Hi,
I’m one of the founders of Easybloom. I wanted to answer your question about working out side of the United States. One of the thing that the sensor does, is ‘normalize’ lighting conditions based on cloud cover. For instance a cloudy day might look very “shady” to a plant. So if the sensor detects shady conditions, but it is actually in the middle of a field, then the reading would be inaccurate. For that reason the website checks the cloud cover for the area where the sensor was in the ground and ‘normalizes’ the data based on actual cloud cover.

We do not yet have a feed of the cloud cover by postal code in Europe, which is why it wouldn’t work well there.

I hope that this helps.

Best,
Matt

Sears Tower

Jen: Could you do this?! I think it would be a really cool experience, but I was clenching my fists so tight while watching the video that I actually hurt my thumb! I'm somewhat afraid of heights, but not enough to keep me from something like this. I'm more afraid of being high up without enclosures- bungee jumping, bridges, etc.

Crystal: I can't see the video...it's just a blank box :( But from the sound of your post, I'm doubting I would do it...I don't do anything scary and definitely not things that involve heights.......what is it???

Jen: Hmm, I guess the video was removed. Basically, they created an enclosed glass box at the top of the Sears Tower, much like a balcony. You can step inside and feel like you're floating x amount of stories above ground!

Katherine Plumer Fine Art

Crystal: I just came across this link on another blogger's site (alis grave nil) and was just checking it out and I'm amazed by how nice this product looks....

Katherine Plumer Fine Art: http://www.katherineplumer.com/index2.html

She can draw a picture of your pet by hand...with either colored pencils, graphite, charcoal, etc. depending on what you want, and it looks so realistic and beautiful...price doesn't look too bad either although it's priced per square inch and my math ain't so great....so maybe it's more than I think....but either way, an artist's work is invaluable. :)

I don't have any pets (nor do I want any) but it would make a great gift for someone who does have a pet...or maybe someone who lost a pet as she'll draw them from a photograph....

Jen: I was just about to give you grief for not wanting pets, but then my cat hacked up a fur ball, so I guess I get it ;)

This woman's artwork is phenomenal, but I just can't see myself paying $350+ (starting price!) for a portrait of my pet. My digital camera works just fine ;)

Crystal: I didn't do the calculations...that is a bit hefty, but for an artist's time I think it's reasonable. :) I think of it like the portrait of Avery that someone had commissioned an artist to do for me....a drawing, painting, etc. is so much different than just a picture....it just adds a different element to it. :)

Plus, if your beloved pet has passed away, you can't take any more photos of it...so like the drawing of Avery...it kinda just gives you something new to look at, even if it is a rendition of an old photo. :) That in itself is priceless. :)

Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett

Jen: I'm stunned after hearing about Michael Jackson's passing. I can't believe this happened the same day that we lose Farrah Fawcett. It truly is a sad day :(

Crystal: It's starting to sink in a little more now...the MJ thing at least. I wasn't as familiar with Farrah's work and so I don't think her death affected me AS MUCH as MJ's....

Dan and I were talking about it as we drove to the Palm Springs area this past Thursday as we were on the road and heard about MJ going to the hospital and then kept up on TMZ on my iphone to see the latest because I figured he was going to pass based on the reports.....this was basically like the Elvis or the Beatles of our generation....this was going to be one of those things 20 years from now where someone goes: 'where were you when Michael Jackson died?'....well we were driving to Indio, CA. for a vacation in the sun.

The one benefit from this whole thing is that I have re-fallen in love with so many of Michael's songs that I just haven't heard in ages. The whole weekend in Indio we watched videos on tv and listened to him on the radio...he was truly talented. I'm mostly disappointed that he will not be able to continue to make beautiful music for the world to hear...and that his children will grow up without a father...

...but otherwise, I feel that he lived a life that was filled with both good and bad....and that in his short 50 or so years he lived more than most of us....whether all of it was good is probably not the case, but perhaps he is happier now where he is. :)

Jen: Joe and I played his albums all day on Sunday, and I was a little surprised to find how much I still loved his music! I kind of figured that it was a phase when I was younger, but apparently not! I even tried my hand at Moon Walking (and failed!), and it hit hard that MJ was so very much like Elvis. Funny that he was married to Elvis' daughter!

What's truly sad was his horrid relationship with his father- the man who so obviously turned him into the idiosyncratic person that he was. It disturbs me that reports say his father was there when he died. I mean, MJ didn't even put him in his will, and that's coming from a VERY giving man! And now his father is using this publicity to plug his new record label. It makes me sick.

Crystal: LoL I would have loved to see you trying to moonwalk! :) And Dan said the same thing about his music...when we were listening to all the songs and videos he said he forgot how much he really liked MJ's music...he had thought maybe it was just a couple he liked, but then realized he liked just about every song being played. :)

I did find that really coincidental that he was married to Elvis' daughter....although a strange relationship and some think it was a publicity ploy...but who knows...she said it was real.

The whole father/son relationship between MJ and his dad is a strange one...I don't know what went on between them two...I've heard stories of abuse or just stage-dad drama....but sometimes I wonder if it went further than that just based on the way MJ was and his personality (what we could publicly see at least)....very strange, a little disturbing...mysterious, and we'll probably never know the true stories unless someone in the family publishes a tell-all memoir on their deathbed someday..............

Gumdrop Cookie Shop

Crystal: OK these are ridiculously expensive for someone of my status, but for those who can afford it or just want to splurge, these are absolutely ADORABLE...

The online store is called Gumdrop Cookie Shop...they also have cookies that the kids can decorate with edible marker colors called "Van Gogh Gumdrops".

The cookies are about $40 - $45 depending on what you get....but they are so darn adorable and great party favors! :)

They even have a couture line....gorgeous

Here's their link: http://www.gumdropcookieshop.com/

Jen: I am usually not a fan of these types of cookies, but the couture line is super cute! Definitely a fun party favor, but I wonder how they taste.

Crystal: Yea..not so sure about the taste...it might be one of those things better left to look at than to eat....but I can never eat things that pretty anyways! :)

And to some of the commenters...yes, they are definitely not cheap....for most of the U.S. population in this economy they're not even affordable....but based on their portfolio and business cookies they show, I don't think the average consumer is their target market. They're likely aimed towards the higher end clientele that can afford to pay $5 a cookie or whatever........that isn't me, but I sure wish it was. :)

Alice in Wonderland

Crystal: So I'm guessing if you've been on AOL today you've seen this already...but just in case, pics from the upcoming Alice in Wonderland movie with Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter have been released. :) :) Very Tim Burton-esque.

Link: http://www.usatoday.com/life/l090623_alice_in_wonderland/flash.htm?gid=1057

Link: http://www.examiner.com/x-13447-Hartford-Horror-Movies-Examiner~y2009m6d22-Tim-Burtons-Alice-in-Wonderland-new-photos-released

So are Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter going to be in every Tim Burton movie going forward or what? I like the trio, but I'm starting to think it's getting a bit old...I'm not a huge fan of Helena's either....

What do you think?

Jen: I am thrilled about this movie! I feel like I've been waiting forever for its release! It love Burton and Depp, and am okay with Carter (although she looks dreadful in this Alice adaption)

Check out this fan-made trailer:

Busy Weekend

Jen: I'm pretty sure I can speak for both of us when I say this weekend is going to be complete chaos! Tonight we're going to Macaroni Grill for my brother's birthday dinner (he's bringing a huge group of friends, so I'll be surrounded by a hoard of teenage boys- earplugs please!). Tomorrow we're having a family BBQ at my mom's house. Then Sunday is Father's Day, so we'll be occupied then too! All of the events revolve around food, so I think next week is going to be a diet week ;)


Crystal: I love events revolving around food...I actually realized just recently that I think my whole life revolves around food. My sister is visiting from PA right now and we have been trying to figure out what to do in the evenings....and all I can keep coming up with is that we could go to a restaurant to have dinner...we could go to BJ's and get a Pizookie, we could go to Pinkberry and get froyo, Starbucks for Frapuccinos......and that's about the extent of my imagination. What else is there to do around here? lol

And busy doesn't quite explain my life right now. There needs to be a word that emphasizes something beyond busy. I'm about 10 photoshoots behind in editing, I have my sister from PA and Dan's daughter from PA both visiting, we're going out of town to Indio Thursday through the weekend and then I come back early Sunday for a photoshoot, not to mention I work a full time job during the day....then next week is Avery's angel anniversary and the 4th of July which I need to plan for..........

Yea.

Jen: Hmm, what to do ... what to do. Well, of course there is Hollywood and all that jazz. See a movie at the El Capitan? Downtown Disney District. Universal City Walk. Hollywood Park. And you have to take her to Venice Beach to see the "talent", lol. Have you checked out UCLA and USC to see if they have any events going on while she's here? Those are more like weekend events though.

Is she a mall rat at all? Ooo, and what about Redondo Pier? I'll keep thinking :)

Most importantly though, she MUST go to Sprinkles for cupcakes while she's here!

Crystal: She just hasn't seemed to be too interested in sight-seeing...I think she's more interested in boy-watching and making friends. She found a new friend...my sister's friend's sister and her friends....and she's been hanging out with them going to the beach and the mall....typical teenage things. We decided just to let her do her own thing and she can let us know if she wants our help.

I haven't even been to Sprinkles myself!! Although I have had one of their cupcakes at Blanca's bachelorette party when Carey brought some :) They were delish!! :)

Freaky

Jen: Okay, I have this issue that's freaking me out. I think I have sleep paralysis! I always thought I was a "DILD" lucid dreamer, but now I'm thinking it's sleep paralysis. Nearly every sign fits, and last night was the third time this year that it's happened for sure. You can read about it here.

I have always argued that I start to dream as soon as I fall asleep, even though experts say that it takes 30 minutes (I think) to hit the REM stage and start dreaming. Now, I find out that there's a correlation between sleep onset REM and sleep paralysis. Crazy!

Anyway, it's just about the scariest thing you can experience, and last night was the worst of any I've experienced thus far. I'm going to need to make some lifestyle changes and hope that it fixes this- a real bedtime, maybe some rearranging for a less chaotic ambiance, more exercise and maybe yoga.

Crystal: Uhmm...thats a bit scary....have you seen a doctor about it? Are there any risks or anything with this besides that it's really scary?

Jen: I haven't seen a doctor. They can't do anything unless it happens at least once a week, which it doesn't. There aren't any side effects though, so it's just a fear issue. And once you know what it is, it isn't so scary.

Lakers Parade

Jen: We've been pretty lax about discussing issues lately, and have gone product crazy on Beachy Keen. Let's bring it back to the debate floor for a post!

California just spent 2 million+ on the Lakers victory parade, and now Californians are angry because our state is in dire straights. They don't feel that our money should have been spent on a parade.

I'll hold off on my opinion and let you go first! What do you think?


Crystal: Well first off....I was a bit annoyed with the whole situation intially....but then I heard on the news that the Lakers were putting up half of the cost ($1m approx) and then there were a couple of private donors who donated a total of around $800K or so....I'm sure I don't have the numbers exact, but it was around there....

So in the end, the city still had to put up some money, but not as much as originally expected....so initially I'm thinking - well that's still ridiculous. We can't pay teachers but we can put up money for a parade....

BUT - then you think of what the money is going to....we're not just putting up a couple hundred thousand dollars so that we can give Kobe some extra pocket change....it's going towards the police force, vendors for decorations, the port-a-potty vendors (lol), trash pick-up people, etc. It's still going towards our local and/or national businesses and workers...it's keeping several people in work, it's paying our police officers overtime, it's stimulating our economy.

On top of that - it's bringing hundreds of thousands of people (aka customers) to the coliseum area where they will inevitably eat, buy souveniers, pay for parking, go shopping, etc.

This is a huge city stimulus that both gets money rotating in the economy AND raises morale in the city (minus the rioting and looting)...so in the end, yes - the teachers are losing out because what are they gaining? But there are many other people in our community that are actually benefiting from the government's spending which in the end doesn't turn out to be that much.

Your thoughts Jen?
Our readers thoughts?

Oh - and I wanted to add - I think there were like 90,000 people at the coliseum or something like that....if they would have just charged $5.00 to get in - I'm sure people would have paid the 5 bucks as it's not much, and the city could have made $450K!!! Uhmmm, this event would have paid for itself!!

Jen: Excellent point on revenue that the event itself brought in. I hadn't thought of that aspect, as I was focused on what the team brings to our community year round. At first, I was quick to jump on the "pissy" bandwagon because my mind couldn't wrap itself around spending that amount of money on a party while our state is struggling. My question was "why isn't the NBA paying for it's winning team to celebrate?" Shouldn't that fall under the umbrella of their responsibilities?

A minute or so later I allowed myself to backtrack because it dawned on me that the Lakers as a whole bring our city and state an incredible amount of money with ticket sales which are taxed, as well as all the merchandise sales which are taxed, not to mention the tourism that they generate.

Think of the hotels and restaurants that profit off of tourists, the airlines, etc. And look at the training facility that they use in El Segundo, and the Staples Center ... lots of jobs generated from there.

So if this team creates opportunity for our local businesses and citizens, then is it really so bad that we support/praise this commodity??

Disneyland

Jen: I just wrote two posts over on Haute Whimsy (6 Years and Disneyland/California Adventure) about my anniversary trip to Disneyland over the weekend. Originally, we were just going to go on Monday, but we ended up going on Sunday and staying at the Disneyland Hotel.

Sunday was spent perusing Downtown Disney, and then we went to the actual parks on Monday. I know you were going to Disneyland on Sunday. How were the crowds? They were a nightmare on Monday!

Crystal: OMG the crowds were horrible when we went on Sunday....the Pirates line was all the way lined up by the water area...I've never seen it so bad. We got fast passes for a few things, but basically just tried to find the shortest lines at the best times and sucked it up and waited....

Normally we wouldn't wait for any rides if the lines are long - we would just walk around and trade pins, but we brought Emily this time and it would be the only time all summer she could come, and it was going to be the last time we would go til probably next year since we're blocked out all summer and expire in August and probably won't renew til next year.....so we wanted to get some good rides in.....we got to ride a lot still :) Emily and Dan rode a bunch of the big rides together and me and Caydan rode the little ones. :)

Jen: Did you know that they have a monthly payment plan for annual passes now? I'm thinking of doing that next year so I can get the premium pass. They keep raising the prices and it's so ridiculous the amount of money you have to spend.

And here's something crappy: in the past, if you had a pass and went on a blockout day, they would charge you $25 to get in. It's now $40!!!

Crystal: I think I remember you saying that it didn't cost much for the blockout pass - but I had remembered reading it somewhere and it was expensive (i.e. the $40) - which is why I thought it shocking when you guys were going to go on a blockout day awhile back I think...i can't remember the situation now.....

And I did consider the monthly payment plan....but I said that when i renewed i wanted to get the deluxe pass...and the monthly payment for that is like $35/month or something similar....which for 2 of us is $70/month....thats still a LOT of money.....I think i feel better about passes if I pay one big bulk sum, get it out of the way, then feel like i'm going for free the whole next year....vs paying every month and feeling like i NEED to go every month to get my money's worth. Takes the fun out of it. :)

Jen: Haha! I crack up at the mental games we play with ourselves!

The Story

Jen: Here's a little Jen and Crystal history ...

I went to Denker Elementary K-the beginning of 3rd grade, then switched schools. Crystal started Denker in the 3rd grade.

I went to Casmir Middle School. Crystal went to Magruder Middle School. Our schools were rivals!

Crystal and I met at North High School our freshman year in our Algebra class, and quickly became best friends. Odd, right?

Well, listen to this!

Both of our moms were single moms. Our dads lived out of state. We each had 2 younger siblings. Our siblings were the same ages!

Although our siblings started out at different elementary schools, they did attend the same middle school and now high school. That means that Crystal and I get to share in all the graduations together!!!

{Crystal and Jen @ Liz and Johnny's middle school graduation}

{Johnny and Lz}

{Jen and Crystal @ Joey and Michelle's high school graduation}

{Joey and Michelle}

I wish I could find Joey and Michelle's middle school grad pics. Do you have any, Crystal? And the last set will come in 2 years when Johnny and Liz graduate from high school!

Crystal: LOVE this post :) :)

And I definitely have pics from Michelle and Joey's middle school grad....that was when Avery was still here so I know I have them somewhere...I'll have to sift through my files and post them from home. :)

I love our friendship....and I love that we get to partake in so many family-type things...not just going out and having a drink or whatever....but the real stuff that matters. :) :)