Let The Holidays Begin

Another warm and sunny weekend in Florida. We thought a cold front would be coming through but no such luck. The weekend was pretty relaxing and I only ventured out on Saturday to Kate's annual holiday party which was a blast. She really did it up with great food and drinks plus a photo booth and white elephant gift exchange which is always entertaining. So here's Saturday in photos...

The host and hostess.

I scored a pack of Cards Against Humanity from the white elephant gift exchange.

Festive Roxy

Lots of fun was had and I'm ready to take on more holiday parties ahead.

How was your weekend?

Joining the lovely Biana for her Weekending linkup.

Finally Friday

The broken record in me is here to say how happy I am we've finally made it to Friday and the weekend, of course. I finished up most of my gift shopping on Cyber Monday earlier this week so I'm so happy to check that off the list!

Then it was on to decorating the house with outside lights, stockings, random decorations, and of course the Christmas tree being the biggest time-consumer. All was completed this week and luckily my tree is fake and pre-lit so that makes the process a bit easier.

My online shopping haul from Express (all items 50% off last week) arrived and everything fits perfectly which is a huge relief since I guessed my sizes. A friend of mine was raving about how comfortable the mid-rise jeans and leggings are and she wasn't kidding. I purchased two pairs (here and here) and won't be going back to regular fit. I also bought a couple of their silky zipfront tops which come in a variety of pretty colors, a portofino blouse for work, and the softest tunic sweater for any occasion. 

Did you happen to catch my guest post over at MakeupHER's blog about some Wedding Day Tips for soon-to-be brides? I also included a picture recap of my wedding to relive my big day and give inspiration for future brides out there.

Ok here I am talking about shopping again but I love that Ulta has OPI nail polishes on sale right now for 3 for $19 (plus you can apply this coupon to get $3.50 off a $10 purchase).

I made my way over to the Ulta store on Wednesday night and they were sold out of a lot of the colors but these are the three that caught my eye: Suzy and the 7 Dusseldorfs, Peace, Love & OPI, and In The Cable Car Pool Lane.

I'll leave you with a weird fact about my Lola. She has a fear of iPhone cameras ever since we got her as a puppy. Well not fear but she shuns them and will look away as soon as you pull out your phone to take a photo. BUT as soon as I bring out my big girl camera, she will sit still and pose as if she's a Victoria's Secret model. She's has some work to do in the fashion model department and maybe some braces to boot (kidding) but I love that she'll let me take photos with one of my cameras!

Linking up with my fellow Floridian blogger, Amanda from Meet At The Barre.

Happy weekend everyone!

Swim Lover's Holiday Gift Guide

Luckily Florida doesn't stay cold for very long so beach/pool weather is usually in our favor. As you can probably tell from the name of my blog, I'm a big fan of swimsuits and beachwear in general. The holidays is the perfect time to stock up on some new suits for the year ahead and I usually pick up a thing or two for the husband and my girl friends as gifts.



SwimOutlet.com contacted me to review their online store and merchandise and of course I agreed. I purchased the Volcom Wild Marks Bikini top and matching Brazilian cut bikini bottom for myself and the Rusty Men's Boardshorts for K with the gift card they provided. I have to say the material of the bikini is so incredibly soft you can tell it's great quality. Actually same goes for the shorts. I also love that they kind of (not on purpose) match each other.



From growing up in the Caribbean I've always been a fan of good quality swimsuits and beach clothing that will withstand the salt and sun. Luckily SwimOutlet.com carries most of my favorite brands including Vix, Betsey Johnson, Volcom, Roxy and Kate Spade just to name a few. I picked some faves for Him and Her that would be perfect for gifts or just to gift yourself.

Gypsy Road Kimono / Wrap Bikini Top , Bikini Bottom / Pineapple Kaftan Cover Up
Free Spirit Dress / Jaime Bikini Top, Bikini Bottom / Pineapple Paradise Tank

Desert Fringe Crochet Shorts

Pineapple Paradise Beach Bag

One / Two / Three / Four / Five / Six

Garmin VIRB X Action Camera

They offer a whole lot more than just fashion swimwear like for competitive swimmers, techies, kids, and water sports such as surfing and water polo. The fashionista in me naturally drifted to the beach clothing and bikini sections of their online shop.

If you're looking for gift ideas, SwimOutlet.com's Holiday Gift Guide is a good place to start as they offer some great ideas for different types of swimwear and equipment. I also like that they offer free shipping on purchases over $49, which always helps to cut the cost of shopping online.

Making Our Way Around Epcot's Food & Wine Festival

I've been living in Florida for 13 years and this was the first year I made it to Epcot's Food & Wine Festival and we had a blast. My only complaint is that it gets very crowded but otherwise the food and drink samples are excellent and worth every calorie.

The Food & Wine Festival was a huge part of why we purchased annual passes in the first place. Sadly our passes just expired over Thanksgiving weekend but we definitely made good use of them over the year especially at Epcot since it's more adult-friendly and our favorite park because of the amazing food and drink options. Unfortunately I didn't get to try every marketplace at the festival but everything we did try was nothing short of amazing.

The Ocean Spray cranberry grower's display as you walk into the world showcase shares the history of cranberries, how they are grown and harvested and why cranberries are excellent for a healthy lifestyle. Not the most interesting showcase but nevertheless it shared some interesting facts.

 

We had some wine and an assorted cheese platter at the Wine & Cheese Studios. I forgot to snap a photo but the trio artisan cheese platter included:

- Karst cave-aged cheese served with honey

- La Bonne Vie goat cheese served with Craisin bread

- Rogue Creamer Oregan Blue Cheese with berry port compote

Photo credit

Greece:

Food: Chicken gyro with tzatziki sauce

Drink: Domaine Sigalas Assyrtiko Athiri

Brazil

Drink: Kaiser Brewery Xinghu Black Beer

Food: Escondidinho de carne (layered meat pie with mashed yucca)

Craft Beer:
Flight #2: Craft Beer Lovers
- 3 Daughter St Pete Beach Blonde Ale
- Florida Beer Company Passport
- Funky Buddha Vanilla Espresso Porter
- Shipyard Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout

Eat To The Beat Concert:
The performers change from week to week (2015 schedule) but we happened to catch Starship in concert back in October and they were amazing live. There are usually three show times per day and the concerts only last 35 minutes so it's not a long show and you can move on to exploring the rest of Epcot.



UK:
Drink: Snakebite (equal parts larger and cider).
You can get this all year long at the Rose & Crown Pub.

New Zealand:
Food: Lamb meatball with spicy tomato chutney
Drink: Kim Crawford Pinot Gris

Photo credit

Farm Fresh:
Drink: Florida Orange Groves, Key limen wine
Food: Loaded mac 'n' cheese topped with Nueske's pepper bacon, cheddar cheddar cheese, peppers and green onions.





Africa:
Food: Buttered chicken with micro cilantro and naan bread
Drink: Indaba Chenin Blanc

For anyone that has visited the Food & Wine Festival at Epcot, what's your favorite food or drink to sample?