tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1989993893711567312024-02-21T05:26:11.536-08:00The Kat in the HatFrom there to here and here to there, funny things are everywhere!
-Dr. SeussUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-36242295748285792462014-04-18T13:10:00.002-07:002014-04-18T13:10:54.879-07:00Sanibel Part IVIt's Friday already, and we're leaving for Richmond tomorrow :(. Ususally I'd be wallowing in tears right now, but I've decided not to think about our approaching check-out, and instead just live in the moment and enjoy what time we have left!<br />
Yesterday, Thursday, we woke up to a beautifully warm and sunny morning! After a quick breakfast, we pulled our beach chairs down to the sand and got right to sunbathing. I wish I had some pictures, but we literally spent the.entire.day. out on the beach doing absolutely nothing interesting-a lot of reading and sleeping-but hey, I'm not complaining! To me, <i>this </i>is a vacation. We concluded the day with some shell-hunting. The tide was just beginning to recede, leaving behind piles and piles of conch shells! We scooped up all that we could find, and laid them out on the table back at the cottage.<br />
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You could say we're "conched" out (haha get it, like conked-out? So punny)</div>
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Anyways, we made it back just as a storm started coming, and sat on our screened porch to watch</div>
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At first it looked like the storm was just going to roll over us, but then it started quickly picking up...<br />
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After only a few minutes, we were all soaked! But the storm ended just as soon as it started, leaving behind a very pretty view.<br />
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I spy a rainbow!</div>
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The last of the rain stopped just in time for us to head over to Sanibel Fish House for dinner. I ordered the seared ahi tuna (by far one of my favorite dishes ever) and it definitely lived up to my expectations! I also tried the conch chowder (too tomato-ey for me), and the conch fritters (fantastic! Like a cross between calamari and a hush puppy). We then stopped at Dairy Queen, where I got a delicious limited-time-only birthday cake blizzard. Overall, a very satisfying day! </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-58782263279650743332014-04-18T12:57:00.001-07:002014-04-18T12:57:13.656-07:00Sanibel Part III4 days already??? It's Friday as I write this, and let me tell you: I am sunburnt, bug bitten, my hair's a rat's nest and my manicure is all but completely chipped off. But give it, I'm at the beach and that's all that matters! On Wednesday, we woke up to clouds and chilly temperatures. Since it definitely didn't seem like all too well of a beach day, we decided to hop in the car and drive over to one of the cute shops we'd had our eye on.<br />
<i>She Sells Sea Shells </i>is an adorable little shell shop in Sanibel. We popped in, and were greeted with rows upon rows of shelves like these:<br />
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However, we'd found so many seashells on our own, we didn't really want to buy any, but luckily the store had several other crafts to look at, too.</div>
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It's Mr. Puff! (Spongebob reference)</div>
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Thankfully the sun came out that afternoon, so we spent a few hours sunbathing and enjoying the Florida weather! At one point we were visited by this guy, asking for food...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-l3dTOH6EpzIMYmISoI8hyphenhyphencxdMwN3TUGqLGJe6trUTbJK6o88jCeK8zsCU2P-qtXeNGkIe86KpQ1gZDGmMqcC_1DoCzd29FvsAmkzO-2CW-dKHv6URXVkc37KXOybC5BbDdcND_iO9EM/s1600/Sanibel31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-l3dTOH6EpzIMYmISoI8hyphenhyphencxdMwN3TUGqLGJe6trUTbJK6o88jCeK8zsCU2P-qtXeNGkIe86KpQ1gZDGmMqcC_1DoCzd29FvsAmkzO-2CW-dKHv6URXVkc37KXOybC5BbDdcND_iO9EM/s1600/Sanibel31.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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He finally got the hint that we didn't have anything to offer, and flew away. But soon afterwards, I looked out at the water and was convinced I'd spotted a fin sticking out. Sure enough, two dolphins were playing in the waves not even 20 feet from the shore! They splashed around for a little bit before swimming back out to sea-too quickly for me to get a picture. </div>
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Eventually we decided to get up and look for shells, before going back to the cottage to survey our findings.</div>
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I feel like we robbed that poor beach! Turns out a few of them still had little critters living inside, so we quickly set those free in the water. </div>
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Afterwards, we went out to dinner at Matzaluna, a local Italian restaurant. I had a 5-cheese artichoke pizza, and it was delicious! I definitely could go for some nice seafood though-we are in Sanibel after all!</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-89947408184655525702014-04-16T09:00:00.001-07:002014-04-16T09:00:41.511-07:00Sanibel Part IIThe best thing about vacation for me is having absolutely no plans. I can't stand "vacations" where you have one activity here, another there, and everything is so go-go-go. I love being able to sit back, relax, and do whatever I want whenever I want, with no pressure to go anywhere. Here, the only thing we have to worry about is that breakfast closes at 10 (much too early for my taste), but even then we can just eat in the room if we oversleep!<br />
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The second-best thing about beach vacations is that no one cares what you look like. I love letting my hair turn into a knotty mess, wearing no makeup, and getting that freckly, semi-burnt, sun-kissed skin that most people make every effort to cover up. I love not being under pressure to look prim and proper and well-kept (a good thing, considering I didn't have any makeup or toiletries until 10pm last night). Even when going out to dinner, you can just throw on a nice shirt and you're good to go! And that's exactly what I did yesterday.</div>
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Everyone slowly rolled out of bed, making our way over to the inn's complimentary continental breakfast (hard-boiled eggs and fruit all the way!) Afterwards we spent the morning hunting for shells, but it was high-tide so there wasn't all too much to see. We did manage to collect a few pounds, though! But soon we got tired and returned to the cottage, where I did some blogging while everyone else lounged around. After a quick bite of lunch, we decided to hop in the car and explore the island a little bit. </div>
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We stopped into an old, used bookstore called the Island Book Nook. Everyone in my family has a deep love for books and bookstores, but sadly not many people agree. It was incredibly upsetting to see a sign on the door, stating that they were going out of business soon. </div>
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The shop was very cozy, with several shelves lining the room. It was owned by two women, and an adorably calm Jack Russell terrier named Shiloh. He sat in his chair all day, bravely guarding the door and doing some people-watching.</div>
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As we scanned the shelves, several people walked in to talk to the owners. They were all completely devastated that the shop was closing down, and it was clear that they'd all grown to love that little used bookstore. We made our purchases and left, but on the bright side we were given a coupon for free ice cream next door! That opportunity was too good to pass up, so we stopped by for a scoop before leaving. </div>
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Now that low-tide was about to peak, we went back out to the beach to look for more shells.</div>
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Let's just say, I heard angels singing.</div>
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So. Many. Shells!</div>
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Look at that-that's a good 6 inches deep!</div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Absolutely incredible-that's the only way to describe it. </span></div>
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After we collected our fair share of shells, we went home to review our haul from that morning</div>
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I'm tell myself I'm going to make something with them, but in all honesty I'm not very crafty and have no idea what'd I would make! </div>
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Someone got very creative and decorated an old bush with their findings. I considered adding to it, but I'm selfish and couldn't bear to part with any of my shells! </div>
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We stayed out shell-hunting until our legs hurt from crouching and our sunglasses were splattered with water. I headed back to shower, throw on a decent-looking blouse borrowed from my mom, and we went out to dinner at one of Sanibel's most popular restaurants, the Island Cow. It was there that I tried alligator for the first time, and it was incredibly delicious! Some people say it tastes like chicken, but I'd compare it to popcorn shrimp. Very good! </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-84443215378202805662014-04-16T07:26:00.001-07:002014-04-16T07:26:17.160-07:00Sanibel Part ISo Spring Break has finally rolled around (as if we haven't gotten enough days off this year), and I really have been counting down the days! This year my mom, sister, and I took a girls trip down and escaped down to Sanibel Island, Florida. My mom had spent all of last week at her organization's annual meeting, and was in desperate need of a vacation. My sister and I were set to fly down to Miami to meet her, before renting a car and driving up to Sanibel.<br />
This is where things went a little haywire.<br />
You see, the plane was delayed one hour. We didn't care, because it allowed us to "sleep in" until 5:30am (a step up from 4:30!) But after we boarded the plane, we sat and waited. And waited. And waited. This is an additional 2 hours of sitting on the tarmac doing <i>nothing</i>. They eventually came over the intercom and informed us that the fire extinguishing mechanism in the cargo hold of the plane wasn't working, and after 2 hours they managed to decide there was nothing they could do to fix it. Ridiculous already, added to the fact that they then told us they couldn't carry any checked bags on the plane, because they might start a fire. So we finally took off, 3 hours behind schedule, with no bags. Let me tell you how aggravating <i>that </i>was. And now my luggage was mistakenly sent to Dallas (I have to say, it seems airports cannot do a single thing right), so it's not getting in for another day and a half.<br />
On the bright side, I did manage to get a few pics out the window.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqO8C1d-sfvuM6xQA41XfUzrSqUzmuaV0eoxo4UyEH0IBoYMI3i2Pb4YNpkzNanodhiTd7l49e-ONI3NyRf7tS0MCnm7A62EkTayBXFketp_RSz0e8hd55L5t3FfvCgDjEFTZt82p3E-0/s1600/Sanibel1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqO8C1d-sfvuM6xQA41XfUzrSqUzmuaV0eoxo4UyEH0IBoYMI3i2Pb4YNpkzNanodhiTd7l49e-ONI3NyRf7tS0MCnm7A62EkTayBXFketp_RSz0e8hd55L5t3FfvCgDjEFTZt82p3E-0/s1600/Sanibel1.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuwMgrv2vw7LhqLzlbmLN780eMQS8etyBcGIdb-WMYLwZZJPNK9Sr5LNULACrYg2gaqczWVpJlKBMuZ61ul_TURH54GYxNWqwQ12pg8T3Dmcn85DjXuYClh3Ic3ie2LH2JCb0oQCPlsnA/s1600/Sanibel2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuwMgrv2vw7LhqLzlbmLN780eMQS8etyBcGIdb-WMYLwZZJPNK9Sr5LNULACrYg2gaqczWVpJlKBMuZ61ul_TURH54GYxNWqwQ12pg8T3Dmcn85DjXuYClh3Ic3ie2LH2JCb0oQCPlsnA/s1600/Sanibel2.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a><br />
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Anyways, we eventually landed in Miami and started the drive up to Sanibel Island. But on the way, we had to stop for some "local cuisine" ;)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3xDsWF7LYTOprjprQg497pEXJFvN8Qrj9qBjVmMFVkN3DAOC_z4u5jOwU2exqCq9pIAAmzpwZ-Fc9mx-8GcAWDViAZgbTddCsmCTjr0rfYRK6GwMkOhx7kfuXLqfWY4pgOiP5xNYeziI/s1600/Sanibel4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3xDsWF7LYTOprjprQg497pEXJFvN8Qrj9qBjVmMFVkN3DAOC_z4u5jOwU2exqCq9pIAAmzpwZ-Fc9mx-8GcAWDViAZgbTddCsmCTjr0rfYRK6GwMkOhx7kfuXLqfWY4pgOiP5xNYeziI/s1600/Sanibel4.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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Okay, I don't care where you are- a strawberry-banana smoothie will <i>always</i> be a strawberry-banana smoothie, and they are always delicious.</div>
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After finishing up some last-minute shopping, we pulled into Sanibel. You see, I've only been to Florida once before. We stayed at the Breaker's Hotel in Palm Beach. There, designer sundresses are the norm, and people spend the day swishing cocktails on the veranda and chatting about their yacht clubs and whatnot. I always figured that there were 2 sides of Florida-that side (rich, sophisticated, socialites), and then the party-hard college side. </div>
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Sanibel doesn't fit either one of those descriptions. Nestled just off the coast of Ft. Meyers, it has an incredibly vintage, low-key vibe. It seems that the island didn't quite catch up to the 21st century. Here, resorts are small and family-owned, boutiques and cafes lay back behind overgrown underbrush. The speed limit is 30mph, so you barely move faster than the couples riding down the bike paths. There isn't a chain-restaurant, high-rise hotel, or mega-mart in sight. Perfect for 3 girls looking to relax! In fact, Sanibel is so retro that we passed by the one franchise on the island, Dairy Queen, and my mom cried out, "Hey! That's the Dairy Queen I went to 40 years ago! It looks <i>exactly</i> the same!" It seems even the most enterprised corporations haven't bothered to update since the 1960s. Why would they? </div>
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We crossed over the bridge just before sunset</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc1dxcghm_AlG9Fkc9n36stsqBNPMYTtdGgFtOmgfOnZ0QtWdP7yVL0l0uLGdMIbfPrUEhdWV3b1DRJwQ46BfYbwpFgKVBn2tuT-2BQ5UgbXqIq6dqvJ7DWHBjwSLIYlGvJirX6Xx5kv0/s1600/Sanibel8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc1dxcghm_AlG9Fkc9n36stsqBNPMYTtdGgFtOmgfOnZ0QtWdP7yVL0l0uLGdMIbfPrUEhdWV3b1DRJwQ46BfYbwpFgKVBn2tuT-2BQ5UgbXqIq6dqvJ7DWHBjwSLIYlGvJirX6Xx5kv0/s1600/Sanibel8.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5jl3zc_NUB__WPGJdZuZTp1Nvy_0cPEcf4m2ZFsQxZMm77iXra_WhyphenhyphenpQuQ8z_KpXfTdNaQ2UvSrLeQs7yxJHBhPprML1aj-tyjcF3LDT2141J30sWKkot6F4vXk_V39C6k67OpwIV4rg/s1600/Sanibel7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5jl3zc_NUB__WPGJdZuZTp1Nvy_0cPEcf4m2ZFsQxZMm77iXra_WhyphenhyphenpQuQ8z_KpXfTdNaQ2UvSrLeQs7yxJHBhPprML1aj-tyjcF3LDT2141J30sWKkot6F4vXk_V39C6k67OpwIV4rg/s1600/Sanibel7.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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We accidentally took a wrong turn at some point and ended up in a wildlife refuge, where I found this lovely sign:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq2dHQC9e92qXchNCKwJatt3KUuOaQzIR1EEhnfQc5yKdqozyT3fAZYyoKKdWxJ2VsyUsb0AiYq8DzjQj5IVwa_miN-L2kmj2pD3Ey2ukQg23aunOuhsy5JrW2GARMNzn7Qu_Y-Atdcxs/s1600/Sanibel5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq2dHQC9e92qXchNCKwJatt3KUuOaQzIR1EEhnfQc5yKdqozyT3fAZYyoKKdWxJ2VsyUsb0AiYq8DzjQj5IVwa_miN-L2kmj2pD3Ey2ukQg23aunOuhsy5JrW2GARMNzn7Qu_Y-Atdcxs/s1600/Sanibel5.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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In Florida, they have to tell you not to feed the Alligators. I don't know about you guys, but if I saw a gator all I'd be thinking about is how not to <i>become</i> its food!</div>
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We then checked into our hotel-a small inn made up of several condos and cottages (I promise to provide a more in-depth picture eventually), and ran right outside for some shell-hunting.</div>
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In my family, we're all shell nerds. The whole reason we picked Sanibel in the first place was because it's famous for its amazing seashells. So as the sun set we walked along the surf, scouring the beach. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYDvF7Z9tbqP_jRHbUr_QF8_wh1S3prriPioByRHNbYgpB0qIM9NjJNhiX8sjCkr3Y9ZEakikyMXbDZq3DN-OBqW4xqn6ZIF1EJOsGqe5aDimSFzyWKNZLQeYn3pDu_n7rCqN_cDriX4o/s1600/Sanibel15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYDvF7Z9tbqP_jRHbUr_QF8_wh1S3prriPioByRHNbYgpB0qIM9NjJNhiX8sjCkr3Y9ZEakikyMXbDZq3DN-OBqW4xqn6ZIF1EJOsGqe5aDimSFzyWKNZLQeYn3pDu_n7rCqN_cDriX4o/s1600/Sanibel15.jpg" height="400" width="297" /></a></div>
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We found sandcastles,</div>
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Ponderous Arks (yes, I know the exact names of most seashells)</div>
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Egg cases </div>
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Most of the time you'd come across piles like this, and spend a while digging through to find the good stuff</div>
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A couple of pelicans going home for the night</div>
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A lovely sunset </div>
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Some broken conch shells (the real jewels are the ones completely intact)</div>
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Every now and then you'd find a perfect shell, only to discover it's already been claimed :)</div>
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We'd then set the little critter down in the sand and watch it scuttle away. </div>
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Stay tuned for more of my Sanibel adventures!</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-4709278618852391182014-03-29T19:09:00.000-07:002014-03-29T19:09:06.261-07:00Ski Bunnies (kinda)Last weekend, as a finale to an incredibly crazy winter, my family took a spontaneous trip to Snowshoe, West Virginia. The next few days might just have been the most painful, yet most fun times I've ever had!<br />
I missed part of school on Friday so we could get on the road early and wouldn't be driving up the mountain in pitch darkness. Because the upperclassmen had standardized testing in the morning, my first 2 class periods were combined, and I knew we would essentially be doing busywork the entire time so I slept in a little bit...it'll be our little secret ;). Let the record show that I didn't want to miss taking notes on World War I, my Geometry quiz, or my Biology test, so I came to school for 3 class periods because I'm just that dedicated.<br />
After Biology we got in the car and headed west to Snowshoe for some fun on the slopes!<br />
Snowshoe Mountain is a large, very popular ski resort in West Virginia. They're known for being incredibly fun and well-maintained, and I was incredibly excited. We got in just before 6 and checked in to our small but cozy condo. It was just a few yards from the slopes, so you could practically ski out the door!<br />
Not 5 minutes after arriving, we came to the terrible realization that there was absolutely no cell service-not even 4G. The horror! The only time I was able to access my phone was in the village, which we only went to a few times during our stay. So we were forced to rough it, and survive off the spotty Wi-Fi only accessed by laptop.<br />
Anyways, after a delicious dinner at a local barbecue restaurant, where I had some warm chili perfect for a cold day in the mountains, we curled up in beds and tried to sleep in the "high-altitude" (it's high in comparison to Richmond, which sits at just barely above sea level). If you've never had to sleep at a high elevation, let me be the first to tell you how difficult it is. For some reason, it makes getting to bed nearly impossible!<br />
After a fitful night of trying to get some half-decent shut-eye, I was woken up at 7:30 in the morning. Despite my considerable lack of sleep, I was ready and eager to get rentals and start my snowboarding lesson!<br />
At 15 years old, you'd think I'd know how to ski/snowboard by now. Even though most of my childhood weekends were spent at our vacation home in the Blue Ridge Mountains, for some reason my parents never got around to getting me lessons, despite our frequent trips to the neighboring ski resort to go tubing. Nevertheless, it's better late than never, right?<br />
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We were placed in a group with about 5 other teenagers, plus my mom. She got lots of compliments that day for being cool enough to try snowboarding with her daughters! We got in a circle as our instructor, Allan showed us the basics.<br />
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Once we understood how to clip and unclip, "keep our sandwich stacked," and one-foot skate, we headed out to the mini-halfpipe for some serious skills. </div>
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As you can see by the 5-year-olds in the background, only advanced snowboarders like us can handle the mini-halfpipe ;). Then we made our way over to the ski-lift, which didn't exactly go over well. Getting off that thing is harder than it looks!</div>
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As you can see, I lasted approximately .00004 seconds before falling, and everyone laughed at me. But hey, embarrassing moments make great stories!</div>
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When our lessons were over, we stayed on the Bunny Slope for a little longer before heading inside and promptly falling asleep. I mean we were all out.cold. I understand now the trick to sleeping at high-altitude: wear yourself out first! Now well-rested, we stayed up late running throughout the lodge playing hide n' seek, all while a group of boys not-so-subtly tried to get our attention ;). </div>
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The next day was slightly harder.</div>
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Reason A) There was fresh snow from the previous night, so while the first day was hard-packed and semi-slush (good for learning as it allows you to dig your board into the snow easier), on Sunday it was windy, the snow was powdery, and every move you made carved little ridges throughout the ground. When you snowboarded over these ridges, your board would catch like train tracks and send you veering off in all different directions.</div>
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Reason B) We were already incredibly sore from the day before, resorting to getting around in a serious of fits, starts, and groans, and we all moved like robots in desperate need of re-tuning. </div>
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Reason C) I was <i>way</i> too confident in my board skills, thinking that I could make it off the bunny slope after only a few hours of experience. The slopes at Snowshoe are infamously steep, and even the green slopes leave people in crumpled heaps after wiping out. </div>
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I tried what was believed to be the most benign, mellow, easy green-slope on the mountain, and it was awful! There's nothing I hate more than feeling out of control, and that's exactly how I felt going down that slope. It certainly wasn't mellow by my standards! But then again, it was my 2nd day and I had now clue how to slow down or stop, so I'd resort to purposely falling to avoid hitting people. Needless to say, this got very frustrating, very fast. I have an awful habit that, when I try something new, I expect to be really good right from the start. Whenever I start to struggle, I get frustrated that I'm not getting the hang of it fast enough. Ridiculous, I know, but it lead to me taking off my snowboard and absolutely <i>hating</i> that slope as I walked to the bottom. But by the time the lift took us back up to the top, I was determined to go to the bunny slope (which, to clarify, is NOT the slope I was just on. The bunny slope, also called the Skidder, is man-made and predominantly for absolute beginners like me.), and perfect my skills before re-attempting the green slope that I had such a hard time on. While I stayed on the bunny slope for the rest of the day, I am determined to ace that green-slope the next time I'm at Snowshoe! I know now that getting the hang of snowboarding is a hard process, and I need to work hard to not get too frustrated with myself when I don't pick it up immediately. </div>
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We headed home that afternoon, but learning to snowboard was by far one of the most incredible things I've done, and I can't wait to go back!!</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-56332611270941850752014-03-15T20:01:00.002-07:002014-03-15T20:01:20.937-07:00Playing HookyI know I know, I'm so rebellious...<br />
...Everytime I say that, I just have to think about the fact that my school mascot is the Rebels, so it's only fitting ;).<br />
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Anyways, I technically didn't skip school. My mom had a doctor's appointment in Baltimore and didn't want to go alone, since her pupils were getting dilated and she wasn't sure how well her vision would be afterwards. Since I'm such a wonderful daughter, I made the extremely difficult decision to miss school Thursday to see that she got home safely. As much as I just love going to school every day, family has to look out for each other right? I mean we only had two snow days that week, and God forbid I have to go to school <i>three days in a row</i>. The horror! P.S. We're expecting even more snow next week, so stay tuned for Winter Break Part 6!<br />
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Anyways, we woke up at 4:45 in the morning and made our way to the train station. Let me tell you, there are some very interesting people getting off the train in the middle of the night! Anyways, we quickly took our seats in the quiet car for some sleep...only for me to discover that it's impossible for me to sleep in a train. Same with planes, cars, it's a wonder I managed to sleep on our cruise last spring break! Actually, I don't know if it's that I can't sleep in moving transport, or just the fact that once I'm up, I'm up. Even if that's before 5am.<br />
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We got to John's Hopkins and my mom's appointment was finished at noon, so we checked our backpacks at some hotel and wandered around Baltimore for a little bit. At some point, the smell of baking bread completely overwhelmed us (and I really do mean overwhelmed-baking bread has to be the best smell in the world!) and we found ourselves across the street from the H&S bakery. Unfortunately the bakery is purely for production, so we couldn't go inside. Instead, we went across the street to the bakery outlet, where I came across none other than Berger cookies.<br />
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I had heard about Bergers from Pinterest, the blogger claiming that these cookies (which you can only find in Baltimore) are the best she'd ever had. Eager to see what all the hype was about, my mom and I bought 2 boxes. Oh. My. God. Boy did these babies live up to my expectations! A thin shortbread/sugar cookie, literally drowning in a dense chocolate icing. Actually, it's more like a cross between icing and rich chocolate fudge. Needless to say, these truly are my favorite cookies now! I only wish we'd gotten more boxes...<br />
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Anyways, after stopping by Whole Foods to get some goat cheese apparently only sold in Maryland (we're big on exclusive foods in my family), our stomachs started rumbling so we went over to my mom's favorite restaurant in Baltimore-Bertha's.<br />
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Bertha's is very...whimsical. It's made up of a few 19th century houses that had been remodeled into a restaurant. You wind through several different rooms and hallways-it's incredibly easy to get lost! The decor is so fun to look at-it seems like they could find somewhere to place anything, no matter how random.<br />
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Even if that means turning a tuba into a chandelier. Somehow, though, all these random odds and end work together perfectly! Not to mention the fact that they have a delicious menu...</div>
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They're famous for their mussels, imported from Canada, so we each got an order.</div>
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They offer all sorts of different dipping sauces, ranging from capers to basil to garlic. However, I've always liked my seafood as plain as possible-I just love the true <i>flavor</i> of the seafood itself, and don't like anything to mask it. So I opted for plain butter, barely using any of it. I guess I'm just boring!</div>
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After our delicious late lunch, we tried to wander around the city for a little longer, but the fact that we were running on hardly any sleep soon kicked in, and we stopped in Barnes & Noble to relax a little. </div>
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The Baltimore Barnes & Noble is actually pretty cool! It's built from an old power plant, so massive rusted columns climb up the center of the bookstore.</div>
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The columns have been hollowed out, and on the inside they've put in some murals of the city's history. </div>
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My favorite photo-the Preakness Stakes!</div>
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After flipping through books for a while, I came across this one, which I would have bought if it didn't weigh more than I did!</div>
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1001 Ways to Cook Southern...the things I could make with this book! I probably spent upwards of 30 minutes imagining the recipes I could whip up. </div>
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I also came across this quote, and found it very relatable :)</div>
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That evening, though, it was time to catch our train and head home after a very eventful day. Still unable to sleep, I resorted to eating Berger cookies and excessively Snapchatting my friends</div>
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Get it? From Catching Fire? I was on a train...I had to take advantage of it.</div>
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And finally...the answer to the riddle from my last blog post. Just as a refresher, this was the hint:</div>
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<i>We're five little items of an everyday sort, you'll find us all in a tennis court.</i></div>
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And the answer is...drumroll...</div>
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The vowels! A, E, I, O, and U...all of them are in the phrase "A Tennis Court!" I thought that was pretty clever ;)</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-52127173533133254062014-03-08T13:05:00.000-08:002014-03-08T13:05:11.512-08:00Dinner & a SleepoverThis year, I've started to notice somewhat of a pattern. I've made lots of friends and love spending time with them, but every so often there will be a lull and we'll go weeks without doing anything together outside of school. Then, something clicks and we realize just how long we've spent apart, and that brings on a string of constant sleepovers, movies, dinners, and everything else! I go from days of endlessly watching Netflix alone to desperately trying to squeeze in just <i>one more</i> friend into my already packed house. As a girl who loves spending time with friends but also needs her alone time, finding the balance can be pretty hard.<br />
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Anyways, lately I've found myself right in the middle of one of these strings of sleepovers, so per usual after school on Friday I piled into a car with 3 friends and headed out!</div>
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Our first stop was for frozen yogurt-we all have A-block lunch at 11:34 and school doesn't let out until 3:55, so we were all absolutely starving! No pictures here, since everyone downed theirs in a matter of minutes. We got to my friend Elena's house and did our fair share of small-talk and gossip before playing a few rounds of Just Dance-because what else are you going to do with a bunch of girls on a sugar rush?</div>
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Eventually our stomachs started rumbling again, so we opted to go to a local hibachi restaurant for dinner.</div>
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If you've never eaten hibachi, you're missing out on a very unique, very fun experience!</div>
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Basically, everyone sits around a massive table in a sort of semi-circle shape.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXZ_Fg5WTh5GEkxK592N5azTlRuYKc8z24CDvY0-FjW4VPZVOvTH1q1YCp9vzqwK4nM4JI8k2HulrLpOvgHQIYNwDY36WcJVXaAveCH_dYqaexcMWMahEzvwoTan8EfQZ060cveN2-aqY/s1600/hibachi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXZ_Fg5WTh5GEkxK592N5azTlRuYKc8z24CDvY0-FjW4VPZVOvTH1q1YCp9vzqwK4nM4JI8k2HulrLpOvgHQIYNwDY36WcJVXaAveCH_dYqaexcMWMahEzvwoTan8EfQZ060cveN2-aqY/s1600/hibachi.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></div>
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A very funny and friendly chef stands in the middle. He whips up each order individually on the hibachi grill, stopping occasionally to do some tricks with his spatula, flip bites of food into your mouth, and all sorts of other shenanigans! Meanwhile, you get to chow down on some traditional Japanese soup and salad.</div>
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Having a cute waiter is always a bonus ;). He kept us entertained with riddles while we waited for our food-kinda dorky, but very fun. We ended up giving <i>him </i>one to solve at the end of the meal...</div>
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<i>"We're five little items of an everyday sort, you'll find us all in a tennis court"</i></div>
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I'll put the answer in the next blog post!</div>
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Anyways, we quickly gobbled up our food, giggling like little schoolgirls whenever our waiter came by (then again, we <i>are</i> schoolgirls, so we have an excuse).</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmNmQAAreKdgeDhhaJluR1n988HX3kInpOyneuXD7A-brWHT2tsfXh4w6i9DhN59z86uOFqy24OK9zUVijjjpkMesC2tJhlge2bIJ-YLeZgj2jxIUtkmw6PpgAPDAK4r5PrV7_aISuH0E/s1600/hibachi3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmNmQAAreKdgeDhhaJluR1n988HX3kInpOyneuXD7A-brWHT2tsfXh4w6i9DhN59z86uOFqy24OK9zUVijjjpkMesC2tJhlge2bIJ-YLeZgj2jxIUtkmw6PpgAPDAK4r5PrV7_aISuH0E/s1600/hibachi3.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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At the end of the meal he gave each of us these little origami birds! I'd like to think he made them himself-he is in art school after all. After dinner, we posed in front of the restaurant for some obligatory girls-night-out group photos.</div>
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We then headed home to watch Mean Girls for the 5,000,000th time. That movie really never gets old. Of course, once we changed into our PJs we just <i>had </i>to take some more obligatory selfies (be warned-there's a lot)</div>
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Super sexy...and they all taken within a matter of 30 seconds, which is real talent. We're just that photogenic!</div>
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The next week was going to be foreign language week, so the rest of the weekend was dedicated to making my dish for the banquet on Monday. I'm taking French, and I get extra credit if I bring in food native to a French-speaking country, and the same goes to anyone who takes a foreign language. Then we all get to come to school Monday evening and have a proper feast! Foods from German, Spanish, Latin, Chinese, and French speaking countries, I cant wait! </div>
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I have a passion for cooking (I cook dinner every night!) so I wanted to challenge myself for this one. I chose to make Haitian patties. They are a sort of puff-pastry native to Haiti (if you couldn't tell ;)). They are filled with a meat/tomato mixture and are absolutely delicious! They took 2 days to make since I made the puff pastry by hand, and that required a lot of rolling, folding, and chilling the dough! But Sunday afternoon, they were finally pulled out of the oven and man-oh-man were they good!</div>
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Don't those look yummy?? I'll be sure to post the recipe soon!</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-63065699022825792792014-03-01T13:59:00.001-08:002014-03-01T13:59:07.131-08:00The Point, President's DayI know I'm just a little late uploading this one, since President's Day was last weekend, but better late than never, right?<br />
...Anyways, usually my county gives us President's Day off. But on account of Snow-mageddon blasting through the east coast (we've only had 7 full days of school in 2014 so far), they decided to take away our beloved 3-day weekend. Then again, we had Thursday and Friday off for snow that week, so technically they just changed our 5-day weekend down to a 4-day. Such a shame.<br />
The thing is that we'd already made plans. We were going to have a family reunion down in North Carolina, and couldn't just cancel it. Therefore I got to miss school Monday regardless, and had a lovely 6-day weekend.<br />
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Friday afternoon we picked up my cousin and began our 4-hour drive to Emerald Isle. Usually I can't stand car rides, but for some reason this one wasn't so bad! The sun had finally come out after 2+ weeks of straight clouds, making everyone just a little giddy.<br />
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Friday also happened to be Valentine's Day. I was a little disappointed that I wouldn't be able celebrate much. Usually my mom, sister, and I load up on chocolate, decorate the house with hearts-do <i>something</i> to bring some color to this god-awful winter. But after stopping at Bojangles for a quick snack, we were all incredibly excited to unwrap our food and see this:<br />
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In honor of Valentine's Day, Bojangles made these deliciously heart-shaped biscuits! They were delicious, too! After arriving in Emerald Isle we were all a little tired from all that driving (I'm not sure why sitting in a car all day makes you so groggy), so we were treated to some delicious spaghetti before heading to bed.</div>
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The next day, some storms hit the island pretty early in the morning, but luckily we were all so tired that we slept straight through them. Something about laying in bed listening to thunder rumbling, waves crashing, and rain hitting the window screens makes you never want to get up! Eventually the rain cleared, and we decided to take a walk just as the last of the rain clouds passed overhead. As we were walking down the beach a small break in the clouds formed, and all of a sudden our little section of sand was illuminated in blinding sunlight, all while surrounded by dark storms. It was surreal-something about it was so mystical that I felt like we were on another planet entirely! I raced back to the cottage to get the camera, but by the time I came back the clouds has closed again. I did manage snap this picture a little later though:</div>
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Pretty cool, huh? </div>
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We spent the rest of the morning lounging around watching Netflix and eating mega-stuffed Oreos, until we decided to take a trip down to the Point. The Point is at the northernmost tip of the island, where the beach rounds off at a little...point (hence the name;)). The entrance is nothing special....</div>
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But once you get over the hill you're in for an incredible sight </div>
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Nothing but sand for miles-no houses, no people, and the wind was blowing steadily towards the sea. It was amazing, as always!</div>
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After a little wandering around, we decided to head back and get ready for dinner at one of the greatest restaurants I've ever been to- Tsunami's. I hope I can go back soon and dedicate an entire post to it, it's that good! Tsunami's is an all-you-can-eat Asian buffet. It's sketchy, it's run-down, the food is questionable, but man oh man is it heavenly. It's essentially a massive room filled with buffet tables piled high with every Chinese or Japanese food you can dream of. They have at least 10 different varieties of sushi, 15 varieties of chicken, there's egg rolls, dumplings, sashimi, and everything in between. They also have a massive salad bar and stir-fry station, where you pile your plate high and hand it to a hibachi chef behind the counter, where they cook it right in front of you! And to top it off, it's only $10 a person! If you're looking for high-end, fine dining from world-renowned chefs, don't go here. But if you want a all new experience of two-star buffet with 5-star food, take a risk and go for it! I haven't gotten food poisoning yet...;)</div>
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Everyone loaded up-and by that, I mean someone getting 4 plates was considered eating light. As for me, I lost count after 6. I wish I had pictures, but the food was just too good to photograph, we ate it so fast!</div>
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The next day we drove down to Wilmington for a family reunion. I would write more, but honestly that was probably the least-exciting part of the whole vacation, even if it was the whole point for taking it! </div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-73350442518245703972014-01-30T12:01:00.002-08:002014-01-30T12:01:15.576-08:00A Birthday Celebration<b>**Notice: I'm not sure why, but this never got published!!! Keep in mind this took place during <i>November</i>, so no I'm not seeing Catching Fire in January. I saw it opening weekend, like every other teenage girl ;)**</b><br />
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So this week was my 15th birthday...<br />
I love birthdays. Seeing how many people truly care about you, seeing how many people are willing to do something nice for you, it's so incredibly heartwarming! It makes me want to do the same thing for other people, seeing them smile because of you is so great!<br />
My birthday was during the schoolweek, so obviously I wasn't planning on doing anything fun. I mean, now that winter track has started I rarely make it home before 6:30 anyways. Nevertheless, my friends just <i>had </i>to take advantage of an opportunity to bake!<br />
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A brownie cake with marshmallow frosting. Um, yes. </div>
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This is just one of the many delicacies I received that day-white chocolate chip and chocolate chip cookies, Oreo and Mexican brownies, all eaten before the day was over! </div>
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But the end of the week, I faced a whole new celebration of calories. </div>
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Carytown Burgers and Fries have by far the best hamburgers I've ever eaten. They're a household name in Richmond- <i>everyone</i> has stopped by once or twice! Carytown is the cute, vintage, hipster district of Richmond. Their businesses are small, local, and packed with personality! This restaurant is no exception. Nestled tightly between two nondescript shops, you'd walk right by it if it weren't for the bright, neon sign and ever-present line of people out the door. </div>
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Since it was 7pm on a Saturday night, of course there was going to be a crowd, so we were fully prepared when we were warned of the 45 minute wait. We'd come all the way out here, there was no turning back! Luckily there was a large collection of coloring pages right by us, which we took full advantage of. Also, we decided to sample the various condiments sitting on our table. </div>
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If you're not a fan of spicy foods, I would recommend staying far, far away from this one! The harmless-looking green tint is entirely too deceptive...</div>
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Aside from the condiments, the menu is an enormous list of mouthwatering combinations. My burger of choice is usually the Greek Geek- Tzatziki sauce, feta cheese, roasted red peppers and crushed garlic. But, since this was my birthday dinner, I tried to go for the wildest thing I could find. </div>
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This folks, is the Flying Squirrel. Cheddar cheese, bacon, and peanut butter on Texas Toast. Of course I had to order it. </div>
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I was extremely excited to taste such an unusual combination. It was delicious, but I found that the peanut butter overpowered the other flavors, and I barely tasted the cheddar. Nevertheless, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed it! I can't wait to come back to try their other burgers-my next choice will definitely be the "Poncho Villa." Check out their menu if you're interested! </div>
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After we had our fill, it was time to pick up my best friend in the whole world. She'd been off at boarding school for the past few months, but was finally home for Thanksgiving break! So we stopped by her house to steal her away before returning home. </div>
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And then, it was time for cake.</div>
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I made it clear that I didn't want a big, elaborate cake for my birthday. There were only 4 people eating it, and the leftovers would just sit on our counter and go stale. So we stopped by the grocery store and picked up this beauty-a triple-chocolate tiger cake, just big enough for 4 people to split! Needless to say, it was delicious. </div>
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And then, because we apparently hadn't had enough fun, it was time for...</div>
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Catching Fire!</div>
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I've been a huge Hunger Games fan since the 5th grade. I'd read it months before it was "cool," so I had to wait even longer than most for the movies! With the exception of the Hunger Games, all of the other movies come out within 3 days of my birthday every year for the forseable future. We managed to snag two tickets for the 10pm showing. We were both so excited that we showed up at 9:30. Thank goodness we did, because we ended up getting amazing seats! You know the seats that are right in front of that metal bar, so you can put your feet up? Yeah, those were ours. It totally beats last year's seats, which were the very. front. row. </div>
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Anyways, the movie finished up around 12:30, which was perfect for two girls having a sleepover! </div>
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Thanks to everyone for making this birthday so wonderful, see you in 6 months when I get my learners! </div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-64206651141052270182014-01-29T20:10:00.001-08:002014-01-29T20:14:40.665-08:00Welcome to the Ice AgeI'm serious, I'm calling BS on global warming.<br />
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I've been spending the day catching up on all that's been happening in southern cities such as Atlanta during this freak blizzard. For those of you that don't know, there are people that have been stuck in the worst traffic jam in American history for over <i>sixteen hours. </i>Some people are walking 5+ miles through the snow to get home, others are spending the night on the floor of grocery stores, kids are having to spend the night on buses/at school. There's one woman who delivered a baby in the traffic for goodness sake! I can't even begin to process how completely traumatic this is for so many people. If you want more details on this as well as some pretty surreal pictures, click <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/atlanta-traffic-jam-2014-1?utm_source=socialreader&utm_medium=referral" target="_blank">here </a>to read the article I did.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the pictures from the Article-people sleeping on the floor of CVS!</td></tr>
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I do have a feeling that people up north are, when you get past how dire this situation is, laughing hysterically right now. I mean this all happened because of <i>2 inches of snow</i>. It's not like people are getting buried in snowdrifts. But this is the South, and we don't get snow that often. Our cities aren't equipped for weather that happens every once in a blue moon. So when it does, the results can be disastrous. </div>
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A couple years ago a 5.9 magnitude Earthquake hit Richmond, and people lost their minds. I mean seriously, this thing made national headlines. I swear I still have PTSD from it-but in my defense I was 12 years old at my best friend's house and her parents weren't home. We panicked and ran half a mile barefoot to an apartment complex to get help. But regardless, while everyone in Richmond was screaming <i>"The Apocalypse! It's upon us!" </i>I'm sure everyone over on the west coast was sitting there, laughing and going "5.9? You sure it wasn't just a helicopter flying too low?"</div>
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But in all seriousness, if there's one good thing that came out of this it's that it showed the true compassion and kindness people have for each other in disasters like this. Opening up their homes and stores for people in need, driving complete strangers to safety, it warms my heart to know how much people look out for one another-and it makes me wish that we could reach out to people like this all the time.</div>
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Oh, also, there's another good thing that came out of this (for my city at least). Living in Richmond, we seemed to get the best bargain of all. If we lived any farther north, our city would be so used to winter weather that we wouldn't have been affected at all. If we lived farther south, well, you know by now what would have happened, and my school definitely doesn't seem like a fun place to spend the night. So for us, all we got is 2 weeks worth of snow days (with one day of school that hardly counted), oh and also our MIDTERMS WERE CANCELLED. What are the odds that this happens on the exact week that we were scheduled to take the hardest tests of the semester that also counted for 20% of our grade? Honestly I think it's safe to say that we're some of the luckiest people in the country right now.</div>
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This whole experience has been a bunch of mixed emotions, but I hope it teaches us to stick together even when there isn't a natural disaster. Generally be a good person all year round, and hopefully you'll be able to make a difference in people's lives. </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-91317396708581150822013-11-05T07:48:00.001-08:002013-11-05T07:48:15.216-08:00At the OrchardTwo posts in two days...say what?! I know, I know, you can thank me later ;).<br />
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Anyways, this was the last football game of the season, so of course everyone had to go. However, we were playing another inner-city school that no one had heard of, it was cold, and it was senior recognition night. That means literally every.single.senior. in the marching band, chorus, and color guard, as well as every player on the football team would get individually introduced and congratulated. If you're a senior, and you know who all of these people are, I'm guessing you would enjoy it since this is your last high school football game <i>ever</i>. But when you're a freshman, all that talking gets pretty boring, so we ended up leaving during the third quarter, in favor of a much more enjoyable venue.<br />
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I also discovered that Krispy Kreme donuts, as delicious as they are, somehow taste even better at 11pm after you've been standing on freezing bleachers for 3 hours. Also, if you haven't tried the Pumpkin Spice donuts yet, do.it.now. If you like the old-fashioned donuts from Starbucks, and you like pumpkin, you'll be <i>very</i> happy with these. </div>
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The next day I got up extra-early (not intentionally, but it Daylight Savings Time started and threw me off), and went with two of my friends to Carter Mountain to go apple picking! It's about an hour's drive nearly straight up the side of the mountain. </div>
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In this picture there are guardrails along the edge, but believe me when I say that in about 30 seconds those rails disappeared and the road starting rising straight up. The fact that we essentially risked our lives for some apples says a lot about how delicious they are. Well, we also went for the apple cider and Carter Mountain's world-famous apple cider donuts (I don't have a picture-the four of us gobbled up an entire dozen of them before I could get my camera out!). We sat down at the picnic tables and struggled to keep our hair down in the freezing wind as we sipped our apple cider and ate our donuts. Sitting at the top of that mountain, the view of the valley beneath us nearly took our breath away. </div>
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After we'd had our fill of the view (and the food), we hiked up to the orchards. We headed straight for my favorite apples, fuji! Luckily this section of the orchard had just been opened up for the season, so we practically got first pick. </div>
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After we'd picked more apples than we could carry, I bought another half-dozen donuts to take home for my family (I ended up eating most of them ;)), and we headed on home. There's just nothing better than apple picking in the fall! </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-32832059870941001252013-11-04T17:56:00.002-08:002013-11-04T17:56:39.859-08:00School ProjectsI know, I know, I haven't posted anything in maybe a decade (okay, two weeks, but in the blogging world those are basically the same thing). Honestly I just haven't been doing anything really blog-worthy lately, and have been so swamped with schoolwork that I all I've had time to do is study. It seems that since the first marking period ends this week, all of my teachers are frantically cramming in the required number of tests, quizzes, and projects that they somehow forgot to factor into the rest of the term. Which means that instead of giving you guys a great post about Halloween, I spent the entire night at home finishing a formal lab write-up due the next day. This lab counts as three test grades, and my teacher forgot to give us the rubric for it until the <i>day before it was due</i>, which coincidentally happened to be Halloween, and I had specifically gotten all of my homework done on Wednesday just so I would be able to go out with my friends. Sidenote: this is also the teacher that <i>lost</i> my quiz before she could grade it, so she gave me a zero. <div>
On a separate note, in World History we're learning about the Exploration (Columbus, the New World, etc. etc.). But because I'm in this accelerated program at my school, instead of taking a test on the unit, we had two projects instead. </div>
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Project 1: Two mock-trials, where Christopher Columbus and Francisco Pizarro were being charged for crimes against humanity against the natives of the Americas. You were assigned a part for one of the trials (defense/prosecution witness or defense/prosecution attorney), and you would serve on the jury for whichever trial you weren't apart of. We spent a week researching our character (I was a Peninsular, a defense witness, which is a member of the top social rank of Spaniards in the New World), and then would be tried in the court. It was actually really fun! It was a little intimidating to be questioned in front of the entire class (especially when, as a Peninsular, I had to defend the use of slavery and the murder of thousands of Incan natives), but overall I'd say it was <i>much </i>cooler than a test, and we learned a lot. Plus, the jury found Pizarro not guilty (both juries had to base their rulings solely on the evidence provided during the trial, even if they knew that it wasn't accurate), and we won the case! </div>
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Project 2: Everyone created a dish that used ingredients from the New World and the Old World. We all brought in the food on Monday, and we spend the entire class eating! Needless to say, this was definitely one of my favorite projects <i>ever</i>. I made Nutella rolls with cream cheese icing, and made the biscuit dough myself. These sound good, but they came out disappointingly bland. However, I remade the recipe using a pumpkin-cream cheese filling I developed, and they are amazing-recipe coming soon! </div>
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Anyways, I just wanted to throw a quick post out there to let you all know I'm alive, and will post something much more interesting shortly! </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-55132790603522707652013-10-20T10:35:00.001-07:002013-10-20T10:35:29.790-07:00Eagle Huntin' and Pumpkin Pickin'Sorry I've been somewhat off the grid this past week...a girl's life can only be so interesting. In case you haven't read Neal Schusterman's series <i>Unwind</i>, I would highly recommend giving it a go, especially if you loved Divergent and/or the Hunger Games! The third book in the Unwind series came out this week, and I've spent the past few days holed up on the sofa, completely absorbed. I had read somewhere that the book had to be split into two because it was so long, and I could <i>definitely</i> tell. Virtually none of the conflicts were resolved, and quite honestly the ending felt more like it should be the middle of the book, which makes sense in a way.<br />
Anyways, I finished all 400-some pages just in time for yet another football game. Because what else is there to do on a Friday night in suburban Virginia? This time though, I wasn't going to cheer on my fellow rebels. I'm enrolled in an accelerated program that isn't at my zoned high school, and all of my friends go to the school that just happens to be our biggest rival. Nevertheless, I thought I'd risk stopping by their homecoming game to do some under-cover eagle hunting ;).<br />
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I almost wore one of my Rebel shirts, but realized I'd probably get beaten up by the upperclassmen. </div>
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The game started off with a homecoming parade. Nothing impressive, but I did get some quality catch-up time with my friends. </div>
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I know it looks like we're in the middle of the road, but I promise you we were sitting on the median, and traffic was stopped anyways! </div>
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Since it's an unspoken rule that you aren't supposed to play a good football team for your homecoming game, they took on a urban school from an hour away. Their fan base was very impressive:</div>
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A whole 30 people, folks. And about 20 of those are the band, who have to come for a participation grade. </div>
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We (not exactly "we," since I'd never call myself an Eagle fan, but the side I was standing on) won 23-12, and the fact that this team managed to sneak in 12 points says a lot about the Eagle's football team. No wonder we beat them last week. Anyways, while it was nice to see my old friends again, the game itself was pretty dull, since I didn't have an attachment to either team. </div>
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But I did take some sexy Snapchats :)</div>
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I don't know about you guys, but I completely count football games as exercise- that was exhausting! Standing for 3 and a half hours while wearing knockoff Keds turned out to be a bit more painful than I thought. You'd think I'd have learned by now. </div>
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The next day started out with a "nutritious" breakfast at Waffle House (sidenote: they now display calorie information next to every item on the menu, and frankly I find it pretty depressing. If I'm going to Waffle House for breakfast, do you honestly think I want to know how many calories I'm eating?). I went for the usual, hashbrowns (drowned in ketchup of course) and a grilled chicken biscuit. If you ever find yourself sitting in a Waffle House, keep in mind that their biscuits are out of this world! </div>
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Once we were back home, we had a couple hours to be productive (as productive as you can be on a Saturday morning), before pumpkin picking! </div>
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Of course, no trip to the pumpkin patch is complete without ridiculous hats. How else are you supposed to find everyone in those endless fields? We got lots of compliments, thank you very much.</div>
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The whole group shamelessly kept their hats on the whole time, with one exception: </div>
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But honestly, would you pass up the opportunity to dress up as two ghost riding in an apple-mobile? Me neither. </div>
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In the fields, I came across this beauty sitting all by its lonesome, and I just had to snap a picture. </div>
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After everyone had made their selections, we piled them into a wheelbarrow and went on our merry little way.</div>
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Ready to go!</div>
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But those poor pumpkins had no idea that they were about to be cut into ribbons.</div>
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Or rather, into jack o' lanterns! My masterpiece is the one on the right, and I'm pretty impressed with my handiwork if I do say so myself. But since it's only the middle of October, I'm 90% sure these babies aren't going to last until Halloween. Oh well, there's always next year! </div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-57306772702114499762013-10-08T17:14:00.001-07:002013-10-08T17:14:10.263-07:00What I did Instead of Homecoming This weekend was my school's homecoming weekend. There's a parade, a football game, a dance, you name it. My school even had an entire spirit <i>week,</i> where each day you were told to come to school dressed for some theme completely unrelated to homecoming, but whatever. I'm always up for an excuse to look ridiculous! This is evidenced by my attempt at an being M&M for "you are what you eat" day. I didn't have a roll of white duct tape, but I just happened to have a gold one laying around. I'm so high-class. Only the <i>really</i> classy people use gold duct tape, right? Silver just won't do.<br />
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I also was too lazy to buy a new green shirt, so I figured I'd just tape the "M" over my Frog Day shirt from summer camp. And if that wasn't classy enough, we also took this picture in the school cafeteria, 3 feet from the bathroom. </div>
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Anyways, I didn't really bother putting in a ton of effort to prep for homecoming, because I wasn't even going to be there. I know what you're thinking. "This is the first-ever homecoming of your high school career, how can you <i>not</i> be going?" Well the rest of my family was going down to Emerald Isle for the annual North Carolina Seafood Festival, and who was I to pass up an entire day dedicated to eating my favorite foods? So while everyone else was trying on dresses and posing for pictures, I was packing my bags and heading for the beach, baby! </div>
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We arrived in Emerald Isle Friday night just in time to catch the sunset, but unfortunately I didn't manage to snap any pictures. The next morning we rolled into the cute little beach town of Morehead, North Carolina. The air was humid, the crowds were tight, and the music was loud, but luckily we were able to find refuge in the chef's tent, were we got to watch a demonstration on how to prepare my favorite food, ceviche! Since I prefer mild ceviche, I was a little disappointed with how spicy it was. But nevertheless, it was ceviche and ceviche is delicious. </div>
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After the demonstration we ventured back out into the crowds and attempted to visit the various booths. But it was getting close to lunchtime, and a hungry Katie is definitely not a happy Katie. While the rest of us thought long and hard about which of the hundreds of delicacies before us we wanted to eat, my sister ran straight for the funnel cakes, but quickly abandoned it for the rest of us to share, while she chowed down on none other than a fried Twinkie.</div>
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Battered, deep fried, dusted with powdered sugar and drizzled with chocolate syrup. Welcome to 'merica. I went for a slightly healthier crab cake sandwich, but was still feeling a little grumpy. That's when I spotted none other than my long-lost, one true love. </div>
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All hail to fried Oreos. Once again, they were fresh from the fryer and piping hot, just the way I like 'em. After I wolfed down these bad boys, I felt <i>much</i> better. The crowds instantly seemed thinner, the music seemed quieter, and my headache disappeared. I don't care what they say about fried stuff- these things were a life saver!</div>
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While my sister ate her fried chicken and french fries (you'll quickly learn she absolutely does not understand the meaning of "I'm full." How she stays so thin is a mystery to us all), we continued through the fair, wandering from booth to booth. Eventually we stumbled into the oldest bookstore in the state, and I instantly fell in love (though that may just have been from the air conditioning) </div>
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The infamous Dee Gee's bookstore; 80 years and counting. It just so happened that they carried a book I'd been looking for for ages, which wasn't available at Barnes and Noble <i>or</i> Amazon! I also came across a little book called "Lessons from a Turtle: the Little Book of Life." It was the cutest little book, and each page offered a little quote like this one: </div>
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How can you not accept life lessons from a turtle? But after we had gotten our fill of books we headed over to Parson's General Store across the train tracks, where we were greeted by its absolutely wonderful shopkeepers. If you ever have a chance, I'd definitely recommend stopping by! They also had great ice cream, and of course my sister (who clearly hadn't eaten enough that day), ordered a double-scoop. Luckily she wasn't able to finish, and I got to polish off the cup for her. Who thought Cappuccino and Moose Tracks were so delicious together? </div>
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Once none of us could handle the crowds any longer we headed home, but not before popping into a little beachside burger shack for a drink. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL_5_q6Ak2uOA5DBjST07vs0TdkgcT4-KmuUPvPkXCMGsli22okRZhxeVeRxysj4veuEF0Cf_7U7E5PvM_PSc4EgTL_aQcjmwJXeM7_ECFE11xd-FN_EOooWfrpa27Fp9-fO6g_xZSpfU/s1600/null_zps905907dc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL_5_q6Ak2uOA5DBjST07vs0TdkgcT4-KmuUPvPkXCMGsli22okRZhxeVeRxysj4veuEF0Cf_7U7E5PvM_PSc4EgTL_aQcjmwJXeM7_ECFE11xd-FN_EOooWfrpa27Fp9-fO6g_xZSpfU/s1600/null_zps905907dc.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Please excuse my blurry fingers, but basically we took a seat along the side of the pier, and I got to spend a half our or so sipping iced tea, watching the ocean, and not miss homecoming weekend at all. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpohxlINSuJrDzaEdBvrZgfXiw56JNn2g5OAUbZNzqeuH8sErB4PDSuWrkJOV6h09FsE3lonfW3LdfgH9ECsg8HJipECEhPKEyIxp1fFOpGTxMOXqErPJOcedW3o5S4BiA0taIIwOdX-E/s1600/null_zps30cf1d49.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpohxlINSuJrDzaEdBvrZgfXiw56JNn2g5OAUbZNzqeuH8sErB4PDSuWrkJOV6h09FsE3lonfW3LdfgH9ECsg8HJipECEhPKEyIxp1fFOpGTxMOXqErPJOcedW3o5S4BiA0taIIwOdX-E/s1600/null_zps30cf1d49.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Seafood, fried Oreos, and the beach. I think we know who got the sweeter end of the deal here. </div>
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Once we were back at the cottage, the rest of my afternoon was spent lounging in bed, listening to music. Do any of you notice how whenever you're at the beach, there's always that peaceful, quiet part of the day in the late afternoon? Everyone is reading, dozing, or just taking a little time to relax for a while before the evening excitement starts up again. For us, that meant heading back out to a steakhouse for dinner. It was dingy and unimpressive, but we were all so full from earlier that no one wanted more than just a bite or so. After the bacon biscuit, funnel cake, fried oreos, crab cake sandwich, and ice cream I'd eaten during the day, I decided to go a little healthy and order some grilled scallops with vegetables. Okay, so I also had a slice of Texas toast, but we won't count that. </div>
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Tomorrow I'll go on a diet...</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-29431567001863078312013-09-28T20:04:00.001-07:002013-09-28T20:05:12.734-07:00A Day at the Fair I took a few more pictures this time, I promise!<br />
Friday night I went to my first ever away-game. That's right folks, I follow my team wherever they go! Even if it's just a few miles down the road, but whatever.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcvSUaSUEsp2wLEPyVRss2z0LWFqUEMdoeQwHBAUJrd2amtpzMVCvbaMsc7cEgBNKQenUqjPyAywTrEbtVMSIWzHO7MjFfauk421JzZ4ycyLTWBwCZvEotpSC9PJkmIO-UCzIua4BuMLY/s1600/null_zpsc199e664.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcvSUaSUEsp2wLEPyVRss2z0LWFqUEMdoeQwHBAUJrd2amtpzMVCvbaMsc7cEgBNKQenUqjPyAywTrEbtVMSIWzHO7MjFfauk421JzZ4ycyLTWBwCZvEotpSC9PJkmIO-UCzIua4BuMLY/s1600/null_zpsc199e664.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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After asking a very understanding police officer for a group picture, we realized just how well we had coordinated our outfits. Believe me when I say that this was <i>not</i> planned! Anyways, we continued to cheer on the Rebels as they conquered yet another team that didn't stand a chance against us. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvTYKjmoqkxXvlId5amjW6t6lTISi20Zu5leiRoju3P3fJDcDbmgsgwTYeT2l-jm74k0ER3HkFTlH1PKYGN6r9Z2hU29P7vRM9SwZkgAoUS5to9CtTGL7W8ju4_iDZrO_sRU9CRXLFADQ/s1600/null_zps5c4eedc2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvTYKjmoqkxXvlId5amjW6t6lTISi20Zu5leiRoju3P3fJDcDbmgsgwTYeT2l-jm74k0ER3HkFTlH1PKYGN6r9Z2hU29P7vRM9SwZkgAoUS5to9CtTGL7W8ju4_iDZrO_sRU9CRXLFADQ/s1600/null_zps5c4eedc2.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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No one was paying attention during the last quarter, but last time I checked the score we were up 24-0. Like seriously, what else is new? Since we quickly realized that away-games aren't nearly as exciting as home ones, we left early to go to a bonfire. No pictures (sorry!), but the rest of the night basically consisted of Netflix discussions, Instagram catch-ups, and wayyy too many s'mores. But all those calories didn't stop of the next day when...</div>
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We went to the State Fair!!</div>
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Yes, it's tacky. Yes, it's gross. Yes, it's fattening. But yes, it was a blast.</div>
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We rode every rickety, sketchy ride we could manage. These included the Supernova (teacups on steroids), the Extreme, and those infamous swings that spin around a million miles up in the air. Later on we rode a rollercoaster, but I hadn't noticed the bar that we were supposed to have over our laps hadn't been secured! I managed to push it down right before the big drop, otherwise God knows what could have happened! you can never trust those carnival rides... </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyKqy0CV6M6-DCJQeDXWlObpSeSO-6m9zdYX9PXeCc9SmxZQ6JqHeU3qZ_sDrUEXGpP-rx6XTXUrmNJvz0BZz4C21ch5LsdzarQbYrY8G3lUoFjoFvEaA9LmqF5sYPUK_nD1-rX3lzd1o/s1600/null_zpsf89423b1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyKqy0CV6M6-DCJQeDXWlObpSeSO-6m9zdYX9PXeCc9SmxZQ6JqHeU3qZ_sDrUEXGpP-rx6XTXUrmNJvz0BZz4C21ch5LsdzarQbYrY8G3lUoFjoFvEaA9LmqF5sYPUK_nD1-rX3lzd1o/s1600/null_zpsf89423b1.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Of course, no trip to the fair is complete without a ride on the Ferris wheel!</div>
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We were also in that lucky cart that got to stop at the very tippy top, so I had time to snap this snazzy pic:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWelFDbK-zsE7dFIVmaovZ8dYcvOhwfG5nhHHST-XX-FdXTSfP11hqY9LkSOQ50UVVHPc5J3JVbCakg5sTxduZh05cYyuAtSb51h_GO6VsmCY522d_RgUv6vBUKoMl-PKCzAl0NI3r5ag/s1600/null_zps12b4d811.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWelFDbK-zsE7dFIVmaovZ8dYcvOhwfG5nhHHST-XX-FdXTSfP11hqY9LkSOQ50UVVHPc5J3JVbCakg5sTxduZh05cYyuAtSb51h_GO6VsmCY522d_RgUv6vBUKoMl-PKCzAl0NI3r5ag/s1600/null_zps12b4d811.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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Not gonna lie, it was pretty sweet.</div>
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After we'd had our fill of dizzying, semi-safe rides, we decided to listen to our rumbling stomachs and grab some food. I forgot to get any pictures, but I had a corn dog and...drumroll...six fried Oreos. Six. Where are my fat pants?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8udNXkAgbGEogwl9X-sn1_I9kvUaHGVhTCsOL5uouuqPWzHVhApBrYdBnl-zdvgL1RNQqehrbeEzq8arSc8o8oVCl8qtUALAyFwGA6o2rXznc1dmxc5nOa-JTMTPWsnEJlCVsp4WNy0Y/s1600/null_zpsd22521d0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8udNXkAgbGEogwl9X-sn1_I9kvUaHGVhTCsOL5uouuqPWzHVhApBrYdBnl-zdvgL1RNQqehrbeEzq8arSc8o8oVCl8qtUALAyFwGA6o2rXznc1dmxc5nOa-JTMTPWsnEJlCVsp4WNy0Y/s1600/null_zpsd22521d0.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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Enjoy this last picture of me weighing under 300 pounds. As I'm typing this, I'm coming down with a "fried food" headache. But let me be the first to tell you, it was 100% worth it. I got a batch of Oreos fresh from the deep-fryer, so they were hot, soft, and delicious. Seriously, these could quite possibly be my new favorite food, like ever. The fried dough does something magical to the chocolate cookie, and I swear angels sang when I took my first bite! If we'd had more time I would've tried fried Reese's cups and fried cookie dough (umm, yum!), but the lines were just too long. Next year, they'll be at the top of my list! If your local state fair is in town, I would definitely recommend stopping by for a few hours, it's definitely worth your time!</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-72880712615175121452013-09-24T17:43:00.000-07:002013-09-24T17:44:24.308-07:00Beaches and Ballgames (Your Typical High School Weekend)This past Friday, I went to a football game...<br />
...and not just any football game, my first high school football game. ever.<br />
I apologize for the severe lack of pictures, I promise to have more the next time around!<br />
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We started the night off watching our team kick butt against a little rural farm school from the middle of nowhere. They tried to hold their chins high as they watched their team fall into the clutches of the Rebels, but they just didn't stand a chance.<br />
Also, as Freshman, we were confined to the upper rows of the bleachers, packed in tighter than sardines. But eventually the chilly, windy night began to set in, and we started to be pretty grateful for all that body heat.<br />
Plus we won 24-14, so score.<br />
Anyways, I only managed to snap one photo, and it may just win the title "Katie's worst photo of 2013"<br />
<img alt=" photo null_zps6a4aed41.jpg" src="http://i1282.photobucket.com/albums/a536/katierowe1717/null_zps6a4aed41.jpg?t=1380067502" height="300" width="400" /><br />
I promise, I promise I'm not usually that awkward-looking. Oh wait, yes I am.<br />
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Oh, and by the way, a friend I went to middle school with was having a slumber party that night, and I had told her I was going to shoot over to her house the second the game was over.<br />
But there's a frozen yogurt shop five blocks from my school, so of course I just <i>had</i> to stop by, right? I mean <i>everyone </i>was going. I'm a horrible person.<br />
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Nevertheless, I did eventually manage to show up at my friend's house. At 11pm. 3 hours late.<br />
<img alt=" photo d73a37d9-3806-4866-a730-805373fc7319_zps05126ac2.jpg" src="http://i1282.photobucket.com/albums/a536/katierowe1717/d73a37d9-3806-4866-a730-805373fc7319_zps05126ac2.jpg?t=1380068708" height="388" width="400" /><br />
But hey, the party don't start 'till I walk in anyways.<br />
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The next morning, most people went home, but one other friend and I got to go with the birthday girl to Virginia beach. Not to mention the fact that while it was warm and sunny there, we were going to be skipping town on the coldest, rainiest day of the week, so extra points!<br />
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Again sorry for the lack of pictures, but basically we spent the entire day boogie boarding and sun soaking, so eventually we were bound to get hungry, right? We went to grab a slice at a little pizza joint across the street, but we were silly enough to walk their in our bikini tops! Clearly we forgot about the "no shirt no shoes no service" rule. Thankfully a T-shirt shop next door was selling shirts for $2 a piece, plus they had free saltwater taffy! Random right? Funny how things work out. After we decided our pizza wasn't quite filling enough, we decided to pop into the Ben n' Jerry's next door...<br />
<img alt=" photo null_zps11be6671.jpg" src="http://i1282.photobucket.com/albums/a536/katierowe1717/null_zps11be6671.jpg?t=1380067495" height="400" width="300" /><br />
Beaches, pizza, and cookie dough ice cream. It just doesn't get any better than this.<br />
Is it bad that an oatmeal cookie was the healthiest thing I ate that day? Nah. Totally worth it.<br />
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Eventually we had to get back to reality, since we all had our textbooks to read and quizzes to study for. Leave it to high school to ruin your fun.<br />
We left just in time though, because that was right when all that rain that had been hitting back home finally rolled in!<br />
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Another football game this weekend, and more pictures are promised to follow!<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-47633773270771971652013-09-11T18:36:00.000-07:002013-09-11T18:36:52.555-07:00Starbucks' Secret MenuFor those of you that live under a rock, there have been several new Starbucks drinks circulating around known as the "Starbucks Secret Menu." They're basically a list of mochas, frappes, and lattes that people have customized to create delicious new flavors. Needless to say, I've gotten obsessed! I've made it my mission to scour the internet and pick out the best drinks. These ones look delicious but are relatively easy to make (I have to feel bad for those poor baristas trying to add a million different syrups to each drinks!)<br />
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I know there aren't a ton of drinks at the moment, but know that as soon as I find more I will add them to the list. Also, if you have any suggestions for new combinations, leave them in the comments-I'd love to hear your ideas!!<br />
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Also, as a disclaimer, make sure to describe the drink when you order it instead of just ordering an "Oreo Frappuccino," because most likely the baristas won't have any idea what you're talking about, and it will just create a ton of confusion. Nothing is worse than holding up the line during the morning coffee rush! Another disclaimer is I didn't come up with any of these drinks, and full credit goes to their original creators (the vast, vast majority of these come from <a href="http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/" target="_blank">here</a>.)<br />
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And now, without further ado, I give you <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1aPBhRXK5YHSjR83U7lfEMfPbiywfioIp5J080Tp5Rh7j39ietTS15tPdYKrkN3jz24boy5OJ5mA2wv_Bwco9LIqOx-lYWfpBMLEGde1E1Sy2rLWwWugGklhuemTOYVxqWrJ7qwOez-o/s1600/starbucks-coffee-logoJKJ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1aPBhRXK5YHSjR83U7lfEMfPbiywfioIp5J080Tp5Rh7j39ietTS15tPdYKrkN3jz24boy5OJ5mA2wv_Bwco9LIqOx-lYWfpBMLEGde1E1Sy2rLWwWugGklhuemTOYVxqWrJ7qwOez-o/s1600/starbucks-coffee-logoJKJ.jpg" height="320" width="313" /></a></div>
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<b>Frappuccinos</b><br />
If you want an <b>Oreo Frappuccino...</b><br />
<img alt="7721315862_124a2523c6_z" src="http://larryfire.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/7721315862_124a2523c6_z.jpg?w=580&h=580" height="200" width="200" /><br />
...Order a Double Chocolate Chip Frappuccino with white mocha syrup instead of the regular syrup.<br />
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If you want a <b>Cinnamon Roll Frappuccino...</b><br />
<img src="http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/cinnamon-roll-frappuccino1.jpg" height="151" width="200" /><br />
...Order a Vanilla Bean Frappuccino with a pump of cinnamon dolce (pronounced DOLE-chay) syrup.<br />
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If you want a <b>Peppermint Chocolate Frappuccino...</b><br />
<img alt="peppermint chocolate chip frappuccino" src="http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/peppermint-chocolate-chip-frappuccino.jpg" height="200" width="161" /><br />
...Order a Vanilla Bean Frappuccino with a pump of peppermint syrup and java chips.<br />
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If you want a <b>Snickerdoodle Frappuccino...</b><br />
<img alt="snickerdoodle frappuccino" src="http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/snickerdoodle-frappuccino.jpg" height="191" width="200" /><br />
...Order a Chai Creme Frappuccino with a pump of cinnamon dolce syrup.<br />
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If you want a <b>Samoa Cookie Frappuccino...</b><br />
<img alt="samoa frappuccino" src="http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/samoa-cookie-frappuccino.jpg" height="200" width="170" /><br />
...Order a Coconut Mocha Frappuccino with a pump of caramel syrup.<br />
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If you want a <b>Chocolate Covered Strawberry Frappuccino...</b><br />
<img alt="chocolate covered strawberry frappuccino" src="http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/chocolate-strawberry-frappuccino.jpg" height="200" width="164" /><br />
...Order a Strawberries n' Cream Frappuccino with java chips and a mocha drizzle.<br />
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<b>Other Drinks</b><br />
If you want a <b>Pumpkin Chocolate Latte</b>...<br />
<img src="http://secretmenu.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/chocolate-pumpkin-foods-photo-u1.jpg" height="200" width="200" /><br />
...Order a Pumpkin Spice Latte with chocolate syrup.<br />
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If you want a <b>Raspberry Cheesecake Mocha...</b><br />
<img src="http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/raspberry-cheesecake-frappuccino-262x350.jpg" height="200" width="149" /><br />
...Order a White Chocolate Mocha with a pump of raspberry syrup.<br />
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If you want a <b>Blackforest Hot Chocolate...</b><br />
<img alt="the cadbury blackforest" src="http://starbuckssecretmenu.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/the-cadbury-blackforest.jpg" height="200" width="169" /><br />
...Order a Signature Hot Chocolate with a pump of raspberry syrup.<br />
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Hopefully, we can turn this into the ultimate mega-list of Starbucks drinks! Let me know if you have any suggestions :)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-58396715314236081672013-09-07T09:24:00.002-07:002013-09-08T07:42:06.073-07:005 Things I Learned after my First Week of High SchoolIt's official...I somehow managed to survive the first week of Freshman year. Just barely. In a sense, it was similar to how I was expecting it to be, but also different in a few ways. Since I'm going to a special program that isn't at my zone high school, I didn't know a single person. Not one. And now that my heart-rate has gone back down to a semi-normal speed, I thought I'd share with you the 5 things I learned after my first weekof high school. For those of you still in middle school, maybe you'll learn a few things; for those of you in high school, maybe you can give me some encouragement that I'll be able to get through the rest of the year unscathed!<div>(I know the picture says 10...it's 5)</div><div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixoyz87WmrHnRgea-msrb7k_VmLYGy2O6GS5ZW2WBMy7OAF0c2ex6hBaQwvCl6u7GFzHmSG2Ts9adrRTmc9wDGIJV0z_91gr6670_BJtAlLxSM3UgSko97a3yXeckLCkRliR5n_lDFiCY/s1600/MacKenzie-High-School-Hallway-amber-the-penguin-3181kk7408-500-333.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixoyz87WmrHnRgea-msrb7k_VmLYGy2O6GS5ZW2WBMy7OAF0c2ex6hBaQwvCl6u7GFzHmSG2Ts9adrRTmc9wDGIJV0z_91gr6670_BJtAlLxSM3UgSko97a3yXeckLCkRliR5n_lDFiCY/s1600/MacKenzie-High-School-Hallway-amber-the-penguin-3181kk7408-500-333.jpg" height="266" width="400"></a></div>
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<li><u>You will never feel smaller than you do in 9th grade.</u> You just spent your entire 8th grade year at the top of the food chain, and nothing keeps your ego in check like getting smacked back down to the very bottom again. The seniors are big and scary, and they strut through those halls like they own the place. You're a scrawny 14 year old feeling more out of place than a polar bear in the Sahara. It sucks, but hey, it's all part of the Freshman experience!</li>
<li><u>High school is sketchy.</u> Some people (like myself) went to a sheltered, suburban middle school where texting in class was considered a felony and cough drops were contraband drugs. For those of you who went to a more inner city middle school, just know that the term "sketchy" takes a whole new meaning when you get to high school. My first day I walked into the gym bathroom, only to start feeling a little lightheaded and dizzy. Next thing I know another girl comes in after me and says, "oh gawd, someone was smokin' some pot in here!" I've officially done secondhand marijuana. </li>
<li><u>Your teachers move five times faster.</u> The thing about high school is you get 2 or 3 days to review what you learned the year before, and then get thrown headfirst into a whole pool of new material. Like seriously, I have to give a 3 minute public speech on Monday. This is the second week of school- don't you usually wait until the second semester for this stuff?? </li>
<li><u>Not everyone wants to be your friend</u>. Coming from someone who has been the new kid a few times, I can tell you right now that in high school it's a whole lot harder to find your group of people. Why? Because high school is cliquey! It's as simple as that. But just know that if your high school is as big as mine is, your group is bound to be out there somewhere, and it might take a little bit before you find them. I know that in seventh grade it wasn't until the second semester that I found the people I could really identify with, and from then on it was a breeze! </li>
<li><u>This is it</u>. Take a look around- these are the same people you'll see on your graduation day. These are the same hallways you'll walk down as a senior. These are the same bleachers you'll cheer from when you're 16, 17, 18, maybe even years later when you're watching your kids run down that same field. You'll make more memories in this school than you will anywhere else these next four years. You're still a kid, enjoying your last run before you have to move out and start your adult life. If you're anything like me, this realization will hit you the minute you step into school your first day, and it'll make you want to high-tail it back to your kindergarten teacher and beg her to take you back. </li>
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For those of you who haven't started high school yet, I hope I've scared you enough that you'll want to take full advantage of your last year of middle school. For those of you already in high school, I hope you can relate to these, and if you have any more lessons feel free to share them! But honestly, high school is one of the most exciting and nerve-wracking experiences I've had so far, even though I'm only 5 days in. You'll hate it, but at the same time you'll love it, because for the first time you finally start to feel like you're growing up, and it's great! Enjoy the good and embrace the bad, it's all part of the experience!<br>
<br></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-11948732688043764832013-08-31T07:09:00.002-07:002013-08-31T07:09:31.286-07:00DIY Binder Covers<div style="text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://i1282.photobucket.com/albums/a536/katierowe1717/null_zps0da200f2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://i1282.photobucket.com/albums/a536/katierowe1717/null_zps0da200f2.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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(The monograms on mine messed up when I emailed them to my mom so she could print them, oh well!)</div>
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For most of you, school has already started. For the rest, it's rapidly approaching. My school starts on the third, and I've spent the past two weeks in a desperate scramble to get everything done. So far, it's been a flurry of clothes shopping, last-minute summer reading, and, of course, searching for school supplies that are both cute and durable. Believe it or not, that task is a lot easier said than done. Luckily, I've created some adorable covers for the front of my binders, and to kick off the start of my new blog, I thought I'd show you how to make them too!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbdodIiFTurxBBhxEVssPQFojCi3nBwrqoiwJhfBXG68HWUJ2mI6OVOczrMQC2XSzDYZwuqoa4aKhy2M1yvMa0Cae7vj5ZDZF8E1Iw1WELoiKmhyphenhyphenGW7DYtPiirKqNgGZ59PbbMIpH0Fs/s1600/Binder+Covers-+completed.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbdodIiFTurxBBhxEVssPQFojCi3nBwrqoiwJhfBXG68HWUJ2mI6OVOczrMQC2XSzDYZwuqoa4aKhy2M1yvMa0Cae7vj5ZDZF8E1Iw1WELoiKmhyphenhyphenGW7DYtPiirKqNgGZ59PbbMIpH0Fs/s1600/Binder+Covers-+completed.PNG" height="320" width="260" /></a></div>
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They're personalized, and can be easily altered to look however you want them too! As an example, I'm going to create a binder cover for my Geometry, Honors Biology, and French II binder (I combine three subjects into one 1.5 inch binder to save space in my backpack, since most of our work is done online anyway).</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir_rB2GoeDgbKkKKYJru5cWUNTUBLzwmtJjG05XnBC4XGWqqTDoaVJpDDbFMtwgvGNZp2mQjmU9iBscjAO0fKTLibIoCcqoUDkNjbVrcnee99UQBgeYAqfHiZ5mb3HQcSBOKJMbKU-r0M/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Blank+Document.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir_rB2GoeDgbKkKKYJru5cWUNTUBLzwmtJjG05XnBC4XGWqqTDoaVJpDDbFMtwgvGNZp2mQjmU9iBscjAO0fKTLibIoCcqoUDkNjbVrcnee99UQBgeYAqfHiZ5mb3HQcSBOKJMbKU-r0M/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Blank+Document.PNG" height="344" width="640" /></a></div>
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1. Open up Microsoft Word on your computer (Note: This tutorial is being done on a PC, and unfortunately I'm not sure how differently things are set up on Macs. However, all you Mac-users should be able to figure it out on your own, I believe in you!). </div>
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2. Select the "Shapes" button, and draw a large rectangle. Change the "Shape Fill" and "Shape Outline" to whatever you want- I chose pink. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbSEcthUe3CIC_rt-6CHVuf0DtOUrr6iReSoifQC-pqhoMxPkxuxRrAsbgZYiMlVJvdH3YqGqgQRnDWowfZJscFWKNbvryPxtq9nHGukFW66TuCRKdLLbeyONHK4pCcHyflhS5f4XJFs/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Pink+Rectangle.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAbSEcthUe3CIC_rt-6CHVuf0DtOUrr6iReSoifQC-pqhoMxPkxuxRrAsbgZYiMlVJvdH3YqGqgQRnDWowfZJscFWKNbvryPxtq9nHGukFW66TuCRKdLLbeyONHK4pCcHyflhS5f4XJFs/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Pink+Rectangle.PNG" height="320" width="266" /></a></div>
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3. Create a second rectangle inside the first. </div>
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4. In the "Shape Fill" button, select the same color you used for the first rectangle. </div>
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5. In the "Shape Outline" button, select a second color of your choice- I chose white. </div>
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6. Also in the "Shape Outline" button, mouse over the button labeled "Weight", and select "3 pt."</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHzn1jiUmvWlbLjJkickOOnYltk6Qf0xOEny6z3-BSfGp7uAyaoiMnJMX8CyeWbq4kfACFApUC7Z_pPY69VRaRmfXGT-fBFesFzRVcYBFGs9M2BxitBXgeMeKaINeQqaIxBTZrcpbwXHk/s1600/Binder+Covers-+White+Outline.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHzn1jiUmvWlbLjJkickOOnYltk6Qf0xOEny6z3-BSfGp7uAyaoiMnJMX8CyeWbq4kfACFApUC7Z_pPY69VRaRmfXGT-fBFesFzRVcYBFGs9M2BxitBXgeMeKaINeQqaIxBTZrcpbwXHk/s1600/Binder+Covers-+White+Outline.PNG" height="320" width="253" /></a></div>
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7. Repeat steps 2-6 towards the bottom of the page, but make it considerably smaller. Alter the colors to your liking- I chose green.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq_Pu4fBEQDogWpPrs-iGKiUWw-jad8s7MW3icFbYvLCmfhK4ISs04MglWje5nNLUJs0SDGOIRgcbqaacvBK2N1UM-9s5q9ig2d_NIjdNcxhBcBKH1t1wJHpnHs1AfEDSauPw8Wd2ysyw/s1600/Binder+covers-+Bottom+rectangles.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq_Pu4fBEQDogWpPrs-iGKiUWw-jad8s7MW3icFbYvLCmfhK4ISs04MglWje5nNLUJs0SDGOIRgcbqaacvBK2N1UM-9s5q9ig2d_NIjdNcxhBcBKH1t1wJHpnHs1AfEDSauPw8Wd2ysyw/s1600/Binder+covers-+Bottom+rectangles.PNG" height="320" width="258" /></a></div>
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8. Now, go back up to the top rectangle and draw a text box.</div>
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9. Alter the "Shape Fill" and "Shape Outline" to match the background color. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5khgkzLko9GnbLqJX4hq72YBofPG3p806T7MHIViUALR4-DAIItmzpLUWa8v4EnhxEBoPD9cWbWUR-Km_d3tU-CoZZhsjzgLMCTWdLKMfSd2UeU-Sngk_blfGkP0LInc_7akgW4yw5v4/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Text+box.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5khgkzLko9GnbLqJX4hq72YBofPG3p806T7MHIViUALR4-DAIItmzpLUWa8v4EnhxEBoPD9cWbWUR-Km_d3tU-CoZZhsjzgLMCTWdLKMfSd2UeU-Sngk_blfGkP0LInc_7akgW4yw5v4/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Text+box.PNG" height="320" width="257" /></a></div>
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10. Using any font you like (I used <a href="http://www.fontsquirrel.com/fonts/Cicle" target="_blank">Cicle Gordita</a>, off FontSquirrel), Type the name of your binder inside the circle. Make sure it's big enough to be read easily (I used size 42), and centered. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-APN0a4WL1AOIvv_4-aMfIZg5PSJjqMPGsyoIcnr6rPNyv_vyoDiRzgOgTUxvqKI3LvcIf3DW6lmp4LNZHqbAgthh7eFcZQy7SQ-SVC8TPSrqcQGr4WdVX4JZ1DybQU6atpbMcIfYf34/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Binder+titles.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-APN0a4WL1AOIvv_4-aMfIZg5PSJjqMPGsyoIcnr6rPNyv_vyoDiRzgOgTUxvqKI3LvcIf3DW6lmp4LNZHqbAgthh7eFcZQy7SQ-SVC8TPSrqcQGr4WdVX4JZ1DybQU6atpbMcIfYf34/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Binder+titles.PNG" height="320" width="254" /></a></div>
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11. Repeat steps 8 and 9 with the smaller rectangle towards the bottom of the page. </div>
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12. Using the same font you used for the title, type your first and last name. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3fbJh78210kIfXB7FVoGXvkxPXoWO37KYfhPnk6anEfXBV9W9kLwtvgKCPssEdHk7S-DA5iJGl_bfFnpw_FF6vwvKCfKyt1pg2tjEyEySKLJmiCcaC3bVgIxyO1IotQA1eL22QlDifiQ/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Bottom+titles.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3fbJh78210kIfXB7FVoGXvkxPXoWO37KYfhPnk6anEfXBV9W9kLwtvgKCPssEdHk7S-DA5iJGl_bfFnpw_FF6vwvKCfKyt1pg2tjEyEySKLJmiCcaC3bVgIxyO1IotQA1eL22QlDifiQ/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Bottom+titles.PNG" height="320" width="260" /></a></div>
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13. You're almost done! Now find a monogram font that you like (I used <a href="http://www.dafont.com/monogram-kk.font" target="_blank">Monogram KK Font</a>, off dafont.com).</div>
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14. In the middle of the page, draw a large text box. Using a size 300 font, press "Shift" and type your last initial. Change the color to whatever you would like- I chose orange</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSroJh4gnskDw16Qoa_9C6vQ-z9knmhyecEw9czIxzoz5uLGetkB8BdVWqYbvjD5dErVWBMlWDAiUmPEvdHdWDeXZgnflkgpRw6_tE5aORgn3YBCoyPYlyjbaSqlFwZTqtF_3YpNUCY8I/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Last+initial.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSroJh4gnskDw16Qoa_9C6vQ-z9knmhyecEw9czIxzoz5uLGetkB8BdVWqYbvjD5dErVWBMlWDAiUmPEvdHdWDeXZgnflkgpRw6_tE5aORgn3YBCoyPYlyjbaSqlFwZTqtF_3YpNUCY8I/s1600/Binder+Covers-+Last+initial.PNG" height="320" width="269" /></a></div>
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15. Create a second text box to the left and slightly above your last initial, and type your first initial in size 300, but without pressing "Shift" (it will still be uppercase, but will be smaller and the perfect size for your monogram!) Change the color to match your last initial</div>
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16. Repeat step 15 on the right side, and using your middle initial. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbdodIiFTurxBBhxEVssPQFojCi3nBwrqoiwJhfBXG68HWUJ2mI6OVOczrMQC2XSzDYZwuqoa4aKhy2M1yvMa0Cae7vj5ZDZF8E1Iw1WELoiKmhyphenhyphenGW7DYtPiirKqNgGZ59PbbMIpH0Fs/s1600/Binder+Covers-+completed.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbdodIiFTurxBBhxEVssPQFojCi3nBwrqoiwJhfBXG68HWUJ2mI6OVOczrMQC2XSzDYZwuqoa4aKhy2M1yvMa0Cae7vj5ZDZF8E1Iw1WELoiKmhyphenhyphenGW7DYtPiirKqNgGZ59PbbMIpH0Fs/s1600/Binder+Covers-+completed.PNG" height="320" width="260" /></a></div>
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And there you have it! No more scribbling "English" across your binder in Sharpie. You now have a way to create cute, personalized covers for all of your binders! </div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-63986732565046636072013-08-31T07:09:00.001-07:002013-08-31T07:09:24.654-07:00About MeHi there!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0WnVa31Ht1Jifjp7MRaEAqMwuG9oYTuks2cW2lFk5ve4h7rwxM51q_ifenvVkL5Dg5rNKckBaVTvZV5VP87o-RFFzqBPxpIwLFZU_z-hTs9eb3N-4BL_1TScInzi2DCBDtjhTWVomLjE/s1600/Meet+the+Kat+in+the+Hat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0WnVa31Ht1Jifjp7MRaEAqMwuG9oYTuks2cW2lFk5ve4h7rwxM51q_ifenvVkL5Dg5rNKckBaVTvZV5VP87o-RFFzqBPxpIwLFZU_z-hTs9eb3N-4BL_1TScInzi2DCBDtjhTWVomLjE/s1600/Meet+the+Kat+in+the+Hat.jpg" height="320" width="157" /></a></div>
Welcome to The Kat in the Hat! I'm Katie, Kat, Kathryn (I respond to all three ;)).<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWTrRt-0zf3JKyXmn66jtCOlJ8vTLH6oceBRlu3bO93Z65ejZ_71ovTB0pkGPO_pmEgrf-nT_6KmyPMXFjFcDkTT8tcVQSpUqgDPyfIZpJT1EaLV2VyuKswszBVTpX3q3gvohF1gXZv3I/s1600/Who+is+the+Kat+in+the+Hat1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWTrRt-0zf3JKyXmn66jtCOlJ8vTLH6oceBRlu3bO93Z65ejZ_71ovTB0pkGPO_pmEgrf-nT_6KmyPMXFjFcDkTT8tcVQSpUqgDPyfIZpJT1EaLV2VyuKswszBVTpX3q3gvohF1gXZv3I/s1600/Who+is+the+Kat+in+the+Hat1.jpg" height="320" width="272" /></a></div>
Yup...that's me in a nutshell-I also love the beach, as you can see below<br />
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I really, really love the beach</div>
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I have a passion for food, nutrition, and cooking, and I promise to provide you with recipes that range from completely guilt-free to absolutely sinful!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjqk2VCtU1LN1MkyAHTigSZa4DoRg9ApYWlsGu54uedmPDtuDqhcnsSPhaBlLPC5PQuUNt7odYjR0p3sk91XkL5OOEyH5un9dlahiCF9m9rtwGVx26mlzCTyKAr19QaguTCkMcX-J9iUM/s1600/My+Cupcake+Creation+Cropped.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjqk2VCtU1LN1MkyAHTigSZa4DoRg9ApYWlsGu54uedmPDtuDqhcnsSPhaBlLPC5PQuUNt7odYjR0p3sk91XkL5OOEyH5un9dlahiCF9m9rtwGVx26mlzCTyKAr19QaguTCkMcX-J9iUM/s1600/My+Cupcake+Creation+Cropped.jpg" height="365" width="400" /></a></div>
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Sometimes they don't exactly work out... (the product of my 14th birthday party)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxMPyKp1oRAV4z59kzjbwcTJzRYx2FU_yUdb8FKCTGxkgyD9TXECKICRLRsuhWbkYxyh5BIlrABKzhFSJfrEv0HbtM_2EWw_-MFX-xtEzVk9kCXURg_rMMumAhbYuwJwzJMvmHgNKDFCw/s1600/Christmas+Cupcakes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxMPyKp1oRAV4z59kzjbwcTJzRYx2FU_yUdb8FKCTGxkgyD9TXECKICRLRsuhWbkYxyh5BIlrABKzhFSJfrEv0HbtM_2EWw_-MFX-xtEzVk9kCXURg_rMMumAhbYuwJwzJMvmHgNKDFCw/s1600/Christmas+Cupcakes.jpg" height="333" width="400" /></a></div>
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Other times they work out quite nicely :)</div>
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(Just let the record show that my best friend and I made these in seventh grade, and they are a result of 6 hours of pure torture. And yes, the snowman next to Santa is sleeping on the job. Such a shame.)</div>
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<u>Navigating the pages on my blog:</u></div>
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<b>About</b>: You're here! Congrats</div>
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<b>Blogroll</b>: Blogs I love, and hope you will too!</div>
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<b>Food</b>: Recipes and other food-related goodness</div>
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<b>Health</b>: Fitness and nutrition</div>
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<b>Home Page</b>: Self-explanatory </div>
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<b>Life</b>: Posts about my (incredibly exciting ;)) daily life</div>
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<b>School</b>: Everything you need to survive the worst four years of your life (yay high school!)</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Want to get in touch with me?</span></div>
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Comments, questions, concerns, business inquiries, and anything else you want to share with me can be done so by emailing thekatinthehat17@gmail.com</div>
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I don't have any sort of mailing address or P.O. box to share with you at the moment, but I'm working on getting that changed as quickly as possible!</div>
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Have a great day, and happy reading! xoxo :)</div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-41687650771608575562013-08-31T07:09:00.000-07:002013-08-31T07:09:16.587-07:00BlogrollYou know that feeling when you find something after you've spent forever looking for it? Well that's the feeling I get when I find a new blog to follow. I'm fairly picky about them, so it takes me a while before I find one that I truly love. So far, these are the blogs that I follow, and I'm obsessed with every one of them!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip5Ir55brCj_b7q_0JmcWtKpbDZhTztfszdw6-U5McbWFYoXXkla_DSw0DPsCugYrG2PGLIO8f0cEpybB5ytQYMT1tqkH_A1WogRwgPzEwgZpzI7YZMI4BROjtZ8kQ3-izizBtF831-fo/s1600/cathead1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip5Ir55brCj_b7q_0JmcWtKpbDZhTztfszdw6-U5McbWFYoXXkla_DSw0DPsCugYrG2PGLIO8f0cEpybB5ytQYMT1tqkH_A1WogRwgPzEwgZpzI7YZMI4BROjtZ8kQ3-izizBtF831-fo/s200/cathead1.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a><a href="http://thebloggess.com/" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank"><b>The Bloggess</b></a><span style="text-align: center;"><b>.</b> Author of "Let's Pretend This Never Happened," Jenny is absolutely hilarious! I swear this woman is secretly a five year old, because this blog is wonderfully immature. When I first discovered it, I spent the entire day scrolling through page after page of posts. My personal favorites are her conversations with her husband, Victor. Also, make sure to check out her story about </span><a href="http://thebloggess.com/2011/06/and-thats-why-you-should-learn-to-pick-your-battles/" style="text-align: center;" target="_blank">Beyonce the chicken</a><span style="text-align: center;">-I couldn't stop laughing!</span></div>
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<b><a href="http://www.thelondoner.me/" target="_blank">The Londoner</a>.</b> A ridiculously chic blog about a lovely woman living in London, I'm a little obsessed with this one. I haven't yet made her infamous <a href="http://www.thelondoner.me/2011/06/slutty-brownies.html" target="_blank">Slutty</a><a href="http://www.thelondoner.me/2011/06/slutty-brownies.html" target="_blank"> </a><a href="http://www.thelondoner.me/2011/06/slutty-brownies.html" target="_blank">Brownies</a>, but something tells me I'll be whipping up a batch in the near future ;). Seriously, Rosie is a wonderful person and a great writer<u>!</u></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimo3bFnHu9_8cWdQMydFn30JQZCRxTbpGMSBvobkdZ0G3QOgc1HmSHn-1AzOR_oEvhM6AQp6dhiyAI3mwOVJzl37p0NhWMp98bu6dCT-_MgP43sOrYJZoqGVY1UStWB0Q4yJprGxvUBCo/s1600/tumblr_mpc6he4OUc1qggwnvo1_400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimo3bFnHu9_8cWdQMydFn30JQZCRxTbpGMSBvobkdZ0G3QOgc1HmSHn-1AzOR_oEvhM6AQp6dhiyAI3mwOVJzl37p0NhWMp98bu6dCT-_MgP43sOrYJZoqGVY1UStWB0Q4yJprGxvUBCo/s1600/tumblr_mpc6he4OUc1qggwnvo1_400.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.humansofnewyork.com/" style="font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">Humans of New York</a><b style="text-decoration: underline;">.</b> I have a strange fascination with the big apple, meaning this website is a good way to waste away the entire day. Brandon photographs people from all walks of life living in New York City, posting a simple interview with each one. This blog is incredibly moving and inspirational, and I made an entire post on it here. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6UfXtBuzQskJIAqmBn8JfMCyV5wfAaUmn0gUMaU1BC4d05ibi-hZ1hba5I1J9HhyphenhyphenNEEug-gTWNO-zOHT-3OJU_tzO_bFLpImFL_rEk0W1wNmD1318K_rxMof70BRlnBKfp5h8PRMviYc/s1600/Screen%252520Shot%2525202012-06-22%252520at%2525207.05.08%252520PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6UfXtBuzQskJIAqmBn8JfMCyV5wfAaUmn0gUMaU1BC4d05ibi-hZ1hba5I1J9HhyphenhyphenNEEug-gTWNO-zOHT-3OJU_tzO_bFLpImFL_rEk0W1wNmD1318K_rxMof70BRlnBKfp5h8PRMviYc/s1600/Screen%252520Shot%2525202012-06-22%252520at%2525207.05.08%252520PM.png" /></a></div>
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<b><a href="http://www.thecollegeprepster.com/" target="_blank">College Prep</a>.</b> I love Carly! She is a classy, preppy college student who describes herself as a "quirky, type A workaholic" which fits her perfectly! Her blog is great for DIY tips, style inspiration, and everything in between</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCKykR8n1iswVZFDsilE32Oa_xaW8c5MZPmn3yNtgMAyZlcZn53KhFDLkdpC5RljJ6E7yiVdk8JOSB_0eVkn2lsggHf8gPoy0ip4espqPRY8gvMJuuChejpScxqVw9-rE2MAjhpOAa5k/s1600/tumblr_m3w1hq4tZL1qezpw2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCKykR8n1iswVZFDsilE32Oa_xaW8c5MZPmn3yNtgMAyZlcZn53KhFDLkdpC5RljJ6E7yiVdk8JOSB_0eVkn2lsggHf8gPoy0ip4espqPRY8gvMJuuChejpScxqVw9-rE2MAjhpOAa5k/s200/tumblr_m3w1hq4tZL1qezpw2.jpg" height="200" width="133" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://goldfishkiss.com/" target="_blank">Goldfish Kiss</a>. Style, beauty, DIY, and fitness, Rebekah has a great blog about her life in Hawaii, but has recently moved to Seattle (quite the change!) Even though she doesn't live on the beach anymore, her blog is great for some tropical vacation-inspiration!</div>
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<a href="http://www.eat-yourself-skinny.com/" target="_blank">Eat Yourself Skinny.</a> I have made sooo many of Kelly's recipes. Her blog is devoted to delicious, healthy food you're sure to love! Even though I don't count calories, for those of you that do, she provides not only nutritional information and weight watchers points, but <i>serving sizes.</i> Not just "100 calories for 1/4 of the recipe" but "100 calories for 1/2 cup." So far, I my favorites are <a href="http://www.eat-yourself-skinny.com/2011/08/secret-recipe-club-chicken-piccata.html" target="_blank">chicken piccata</a>,<a href="http://www.eat-yourself-skinny.com/2012/03/herb-crusted-pork-chops.html" target="_blank"> herb crusted pork chops</a>, <a href="http://www.eat-yourself-skinny.com/2011/07/pork-chops-with-balsamic-peppers.html" target="_blank">pork chops with balsamic peppers</a>, and <a href="http://www.eat-yourself-skinny.com/2012/09/mini-pumpkin-swirl-cheesecakes.html" target="_blank">mini pumpkin swirl cheesecakes!</a> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_V8hITCmwCe17x7F9wfSErvtROVbW71pKvu_Wf93F9SArpQ3wNzic1E5URSZPHWScJMmMSp_FW3Cvo3_xVqiPIohw01E0z2IZsr3DPYq3veShAZ70OgF2aVh9j3iJuKHQwlhGf-fS_OY/s1600/Gina+Homolka.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_V8hITCmwCe17x7F9wfSErvtROVbW71pKvu_Wf93F9SArpQ3wNzic1E5URSZPHWScJMmMSp_FW3Cvo3_xVqiPIohw01E0z2IZsr3DPYq3veShAZ70OgF2aVh9j3iJuKHQwlhGf-fS_OY/s200/Gina+Homolka.jpg" height="200" width="135" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.skinnytaste.com/" target="_blank">Skinnytaste.</a> I think Gina is some sort of healthy recipe wizard, because she is just too good at coming up with healthy yet yummy meals! Everyone in my family is absolutely obsessed with her <a href="http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/04/healthy-baked-chicken-nuggets.html" target="_blank">healthy baked chicken nuggets</a>. These things taste <i>exactly</i> like Tyson chicken nuggets, only 50x better for you! Seriously, I can't get enough of this blog. </div>
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<u><a href="http://fit-personality.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">Fit Personality</a>.</u> This tumblog is awesome-Katy Grace is such a sweet, wonderful person! After going through a weight loss transformation, she created a blog all about fitness and living a healthy lifestyle. However, she shows you how to make it really enjoyable! I love how she has said she "doesn't like labels" when it comes to being a vegetarian, vegan, etc, because I totally agree with her! Not to mention she goes to the University of Hawaii, and I'm insanely jealous ;)<br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-27874043990231490672013-07-05T09:51:00.001-07:002013-07-05T09:51:06.166-07:00Bloglovin'<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/9742277/?claim=28mv6p8jy95">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-198999389371156731.post-67875800707943249212013-07-02T13:33:00.002-07:002013-07-14T12:44:42.190-07:00Test PostTest test test test<br />
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1