It's Been a While...

So much has happened and I haven't had a chance to document and upload to share with you! That frustrates me so I decided to make this entry to say hello and let you know of posts I'm working on that will come soon!!

Decorating

• I've been a busy bee, never really stop, renovating our home and decorating. Our master bedroom is about 90% completed and so is my closet. These are the very first rooms I had my mind set from the beginning. Even though they are not 100% complete I'll have separate posts where I'll share the progress & decor themes.
• Basement and walk-out patio area, these two are not completed but well on their way, these areas have also been very much well enjoyed throughout the Spring/Summer and will continue to be enjoyed till the last day of fall.
• I'll have a monthly posting sharing my addiction to one of my favorite decor store, Home Goods, it will showcase new treasures I find and how I use them in my home or simply beautiful findings on my daily shopping visits.
• I'll post daily inspirational beautiful rooms, home decor is one of my major passions and I would love to share new blogs, designs and rooms I come across.

Makeup

• Lately I haven't been to active in trying new products, but when I do I'll share my thoughts but I will be trying looks and sharing them or let you know some of daily go-to products.

Cooking

• Fall is in the air! I'll be sharing hearty meals and recipes.
• I'm enrolling into some fun cooking/baking classes locally and will share my experience and new learned food and meals! 
• Entertaining set-ups and ideas for you enjoy with family & friends!

Can't wait to share my little world with everyone and learn from you and other bloggers out there! Stay tuned.

Switch-A-Roo

I hate having to go return/exchange items. I mean you run into a store you find something you love you make your way to the register out you walk with a bag and smile on your face. That should be the end of that story, right? Just the thought of having to drive all the way back to the store, not to mention in this horrible last-minute holiday shopping frenzy, head to the counter and explain why you could not get it right the first time and now have to return/exchange the item. I know to some folks, no big deal, and for bigger purchases I am like that totally I mean you should love the item/service if you are putting a good amount down.

During our NYC trip as soon as we stepped out the bus we headed to Macy's for my MAC concealer, handed the lady my current one and she gave me the little box so I go to pay, didn't even check if it was the same color, I mean I gave her my container...what's to get wrong?!?
Fast forward, I have been using my new concealer for 3 days and I began to notice how blotchy my complication is looking, maybe from the cold winter? NO !! I start to suspect my concealer is a couple shades to dark for me, so yesterday as soon as I go home I check my old container & new one...I was right !!! I'm a NW20 and the one she gave me was NW25, so now I'm stuck going back to Macy's and getting this exchanged...fun times.

N.Y.C. Winter Trip

The hubby & I were able to squeeze in a trip to our favorite city, New York City!, it was a quick visit full of activities. Looking at the calendar the weekend of the 10th & 11th fit us best, still can't believe we are in the last week before Christmas, craziness! Mainly we wanted to visit Rockefeller Center and view the famous window displays and do a little shopping and eating along the way :o) . We have officially decided to make this trip part of our yearly Christmas tradition!

I wanted to recap our trip and share some photos since we did not take many during our summer N.Y.C. trip, enjoy! 

Walking the concrete jungle

Cool looking building

Rockefeller Center!

I was able to do a little shopping also, I'll post my mini haul soon so stayed connected! Do you live in or have visited N.Y.C? what are your fav. places to grab a bite, do a little shopping, tour or visit when your on vacay ?

Thanksgiving Recap

Thanksgiving 2010 has come and gone, still ridiculous to me, but this shows us how quickly time can fly by. We should not only use this time to reflect on all we have to be grateful for but also enjoy each and every cherished moment, with friends and family.

Every year we have made a trip down to N.C. to visit my mother-in-law and we would cook and eat together however, this year we decided to stay home and host Thanksgiving. I did miss visiting my mother-in-law but I must say I certainly did not miss dealing with all that traffic! and it was nice to stay home and host Thanksgiving for the very first time! We put our tree up and decorated for the holidays, I set up our Thanksgiving table and began to prep dinner.

The Set-Up 

Sweet Potato with sugared pecans topping 

Cranberry Sauce (yummy!)

Tres Leches Cake

Stuffed Turkey

Set Table

Setting the Mood

Cheers!

What are some of your Thanksgiving traditions? What are some of your most liked dishes?

'Fall'-ing in Love with the Season !!

Fall is absolutely my favorite season and time of the year !  followed closely by a Winter Christmas (yes...I'm an east coast baby ;-] ) and how beautiful is it to have your favorite seasons back to back with that wonderful transition.

Fall decorating is my favorite, followed by the cool crisp air, beautiful foliage, and taking out those beloved boots and sweaters is just so divine! I also enjoy the hearty cooking and family meals enjoyed together inside a cozy warm home. Just think about the warm nutmeg, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice scents in the air. Another great thing is making a trip to an orchard with family & friends, craft projects and movie nights from the comfort of your couch with a blanket while sipping on your hot chocolate!

With the craziness of Summer over, I have more time to concentrate on sharing tips and updates with you and catching up on my fellow bloggers, so excited and long overdue! I will soon be posting more on fall decor, meals and activities to share ! In the meantime I wanted to share with you a couple useful links:

• Decor Glittered Pumpkins Project
• Visit a local Orchard!
• Sweet Potato Recipes
• Cozy up to a hot drink
• Build your fall movie list !

More to come, enjoy !!

Journey to a Pretty Smile

I don't think I have bad teeth. What I do have is an overbite, meaning my top teeth do not alighn with the bottom, they protrude out a bit. Mostly you can't really tell tho, I've been told I have nice teeth actually, thankfully it is because I don't have big teeth and for the most part they are where they need to be. I don't have extra or missplaced ones. I did need braces when I was younger but I kept putting it off! oh how I wish I had gotten them back when I was 14.

Oscar Picks

So how exciting were the Oscar Academy Awards last night? One of my fav. stage set ups ever! I could not get over how beautiful they set up that stage, with the surrounding hanging crystals and soft blue light and the design of the actual stage with all those steps (which I'm sure all the ladies were extra careful with). I personally thought Steve Martin & Alec Bladwin did a great job hosting, even if there were the occasionally predictable jokes here and there, but still I loved them both and I enjoyed their silliness. So Red Carpet Recap!

Best Stage EVER! haha

Not Feeling:

Personalized Gifts

I love the whole gift giving process, always have. I guess it's because it involves a lot of the creative touches from getting to know your subject (or victim...hehe) what they like and prefer then hunting down the perfect gift for them! And watching them open it for the reaction. I also think presentation is key, how often have you received a gift that looked so perfectly wrapped and bowed up you'd much rather simply stare at it...or not. The best part is you don't have to spend a bundle to give really great gifts, awesome right? When it comes down to it the thought really does count - if that thought is executed properly :-)

My mother-in-law bday was this past week and she really loves Roses, almost anytime we are over she usually has fresh pink roses on her foyer table...so this was an easy one, Pink Roses! To personalize this I went hunting down to one of my all time favorite stores, Home Goods, for an elegant vase. Here is what I found:

Brushed white ceremic vase, looks so elegant & chic. I also loved the white color it is neutral and flows into any decor setting.

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I prepared and arranged the pink roses in this beautiful vase, which was a steal by the way!, and tied up some curly bows to the side, pretty no?

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Another thing she loves is Tres Leches Cake, so I decided to bust out my baking tools & get to work.

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So here is the complete package, a personalized gift without breaking the bank, yippy!

What's been the most meaningful gift you have recieved or given? Follow Glitter Mango and share below ♥

Weekend Recap!

What a weekend! Usually my weekends are not this socially packed, which in a way is a good thing or else I would not be able to get much done, but it was really fun! Here's what went on

Friday: After work went right home to finish up the Tres Leches cake for my mother in laws bday party & arranged her flowers in the beautiful vase I found, then hubby & I rushed over to the party. Had a blast & got home pretty late.

Saturday: Tax lady's house to turn in last forms missing, ekk!,

hanged out with Mom & cousin, then rushed home to get ready for George Lopez show! we were so excited, we took metro into DC then went out for IHOP after show that ended @ 11pm, we were starving!. Here are some pics:

Of course there was an annoying guy, but true to their word they threw his a$$ out, lol

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My cousin & I before the show!

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Hubby & I

Sunday: Church, lunch and I had to take a nap when we got home :)

Share your weekend with Glitter Mango, follow & comment below.

Zumba ♥ Zumba

So I've decided that the time has come...yes it is time to stop coming up with a zillion plus one excuses on why I shouldn't be getting back in shape. I've pretty much been in deniel. See I'm going to be hitting 26 this April, to me that is passing that halfway point heading down towards 30 (which is not bad, just a significant milestone for us girls) I feel like I really should be living a healthy lifestyle if I want to stay in great shape. Almost like a blueprint for my 30s, not to mention if I want to pop out a kid I want to be at my smallest to be able to bounce right back!

So I decided with the new birth of my blog why not start and dedicate myself to a healthy lifestyle? I can set up goals and post my progress or vent on my setbacks. See before we got married (♥8/8/08♥) the hubby & I set goals to be healthy & fit for our honeymoon, which we did accomplish by me losing 20lbs & he 50lbs in just 2 months! I know!! but shortly after some time we got too comfortable in our new bodies and of course recieveing all the compliments we started thinking, 'hey we're skinny minnies so we can eat this burger & fries..no biggie!' So now I find myself back to square one.

Luckily, during my health craze I found a true passion of mine in the fitness world. Not only did I find myself getting a super great workout (burn 500-800 calories an hour)but being able to release stress and surround myself with positive vibes! there was an extra spring in my step, happier at work and really loving life. the answer? Zumba. check out there official website Visit Zumba

In a nutshell Zumba is a dance aerobics class, usually running for an hour including pre & post workout streching, with the basis in Latin music: Salsa, Merengue, Bachata, Samba, Cumbia, Reggaton but it branches out to Belly Dancing, Caribbean Calypso, Dance, Hip Hop and more depending on your instructor. You really do feel like you are in a party and the best part - as intimading as it sounds for the ones asking themselves 'I couldnt dance to save my life' You dont have to know! you can modify the workout intensity to your level! Naturally the more you do it the better you get! I love it and am committing to jump right into my health & fitness goal the motivation of Zumba in my life & soul. I live in the DC metro area and am lucky to have this 'underground studio' led by Asuka Boucher close by,Get more info here

Let ♥Glitter Mango♥ know how you like staying in shape, follow & comment us!