Nicole Carina

From my favorite movie, Amelie. This is how I feel these days....

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 15:40:47 -0500

From my favorite movie, Amelie. This is how I feel these days. :)

I’ve made some progress on my dress, so far I’ve got...

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:24:59 -0500

I’ve made some progress on my dress, so far I’ve got the top and the middle done. It’s turning out to be both harder and easier than I thought. Trying to read and understand the pattern has been crazy, and then I had some problems with the thread bunching on my sewing machine. But once I actually started putting the pieces together and sewing, it actually made sense. Hopefully I’ll have some more time to finish it this week, once I attach the two top pieces I think the rest will be pretty easy.

Looks like I’ve decided to take on sewing again. I was...

Sun, 19 Feb 2012 20:31:43 -0500

Looks like I’ve decided to take on sewing again. I was looking at dresses online and thinking how I wish I could make the same dresses myself, so I thought I’d give it a shot. I already have a sewing machine that I’ve only used about a dozen times but thankfully I remembered how to thread it and even make a bobbin.

So to begin I thought I’d practice by making a couple skirts with this video tutorial. I made them both pretty easily, but neither actually looks good when I wear them lol. The black and white fabric is too thick so it looks like I’m wearing something I made from window drapes, lol. The tan fabric is thinner but bunches weirdly around my waist. I’m not to worried though, they were really just practice pieces.

Today I got brave and bought some cute fabric and a dress pattern. We’ll see whether or not it turns out wearable but I think it will be fun either way.

Somebody buy me this car, pretty please????

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 14:40:46 -0500

Somebody buy me this car, pretty please????

I can’t stop staring at my beautiful roses and...

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 10:30:06 -0500

I can’t stop staring at my beautiful roses and Valentine’s Day card that Sal gave me. I brought them to work so I could enjoy seeing them all day. :) To see more about how we spent our Valentine’s Day see our blog post at SalandNicole.com

Just got a Valentine package from my Dad, he’s so sweet. I...

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:15:04 -0500

Just got a Valentine package from my Dad, he’s so sweet. I love knowing that no matter how old I get I’ll always be “Daddy’s Little Girl”. :)

Time for bed, goodnight. :)

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 23:33:23 -0500

Time for bed, goodnight. :)

The 25th Anniversary performance of The Phantom of the Opera at...

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 14:55:19 -0500

The 25th Anniversary performance of The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Music Hall came out on Blu Ray last week so Sal was sweet enough to buy it for me the day it came out as an early Valentine’s Day gift. Phantom has been my all-time favorite musical since high school and I’ve seen in live 4 times, each time was just as wonderful as the last.

This recording of the 25th anniversary performance is so amazing, and with all the great camera angles and close ups, it’s like you have your own private performance. All the actors were superb, especially the one who played Christine. At the end of the performance Andrew Lloyd Weber comes out and and speaks and brings out Sarah Brightman and Michael Crawford (the original Christine and Phantom). Sarah Brightman even sings the Phantom of the Opera theme song with some of the singers who’ve played the phantom in the past.

Sal had never seen it before and really enjoyed it as well. We’re planning to see it live in Vegas next month so I’m glad I got the chance to show him how wonderful it is and why I love it so much before we go. The Blu Ray is the BEST way to see The Phantom of the Opera at home and I’m so glad he got it for me. Now I can watch see Phantom whenever I want. :)

Hahahaha This is so perfect for me.

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:46:47 -0500

Hahahaha This is so perfect for me.

I finished my lacy cowl from the Zuzu’s Petals pattern...

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:20:42 -0500

I finished my lacy cowl from the Zuzu’s Petals pattern last night and decided to wear it today. It was a pretty quick and easy knit, and it turned out pretty nice. I only wish I’d knit it on size 7 or 8 needles instead of 9 so it would have turned out a little smaller like in the pics on the pattern page. I love quick small projects like this, I finished it over only a few days. Now that this is finished I’m trying to decide whether to start something new or pick up one of my old unfinished projects.

If you’re a knitter be sure to check out my Ravelry page: http://www.ravelry.com/people/NicoleCarina and add me as a friend! :)

I’ve got the knitting bug again! I found this cute cowl...

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:41:00 -0500

I’ve got the knitting bug again! I found this cute cowl pattern on Ravelry and just couldn’t resist. It’s called ZuZu’s Petals and I’m using a cotton silk blend in a soft cream color that I had leftover from a scarf I made last year. Having the pattern as a PDF on my iPad makes it so convenient to take it with me. I cast on during the Super Bowl last night and I’m already about a third done, can’t wait to finish it.

I love lazy Saturdays… It was such a dreary gray day that...

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 23:46:28 -0500

I love lazy Saturdays… It was such a dreary gray day that Sal and I spent most of the day just relaxing at home. I cooked us a late breakfast and then Sal did some research online to help me pick out a Blu Ray player. I won a best buy gift card last month at work and decided to finally get one today. After dinner at Lilly’s Pizza (LOVE their pizza) we went out to buy one. I love the Studio Ghibli movies so we went to a few places in order to find Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind on Blu Ray. I also found The Cat Returns so I bought that and Sal bought me Nausicaa. So now we’re back home, relaxing and watching movies. (Well, I’m watching Nausicaa and Sal fell asleep, lol)

Photo

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:39:38 -0500

Waiting for the Sunday morning yoga class to start at Lululemon

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 10:58:28 -0500

Waiting for the Sunday morning yoga class to start at Lululemon

"Instead of complaining that the rose bush is full of thorns, be happy the thorn bush has roses."

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 16:11:13 -0500

“Instead of complaining that the rose bush is full of thorns, be happy the thorn bush has roses.”

- ~Proverb

I took this the other day, Isabelle LOVES playing in the sheets...

Wed, 11 Jan 2012 16:13:35 -0500

I took this the other day, Isabelle LOVES playing in the sheets and blankets when I make the bed. Then she’ll just sit there half under the covers and purr, like it’s the coziest spot and never wants to leave.

Dad just sent me an extra Christmas gift, another Hello Kitty...

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 11:36:11 -0500

Dad just sent me an extra Christmas gift, another Hello Kitty ornament! I love it! :) I’ve got so many I’ll have to have a Hello Kitty tree next year, lol!

Haha! I hope I’m able to stick to my healthy eating and...

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 10:40:06 -0500

Haha! I hope I’m able to stick to my healthy eating and exercise resolutions a little better than this.

Hello 2012! It’s hard to believe another year is over. I...

Mon, 02 Jan 2012 14:03:05 -0500

Hello 2012!

It’s hard to believe another year is over. I like to start off a new year by reflecting on the one before and everything that I went through and learned from it. 2011 was definitely a roller coaster of a year, the first half being pretty difficult and the second half being pretty amazing. After a breakup in March I had to find a new place to live and a new job. It was a tough time for me. Not exactly what I expected after leaving everything behind in Wilmington and moving to Raleigh only a year earlier. But thankfully I had friends and family who were there for me and supported me, and also helped me find a great new job and a new place to live. On June 1st I started my new job (that I love) and had my first date with Sal (who I also love). I’m still very happy with both, especially my relationship with Sal. I can truly say he’s one of the best things to happen to me in a long time. So basically since June things have really fallen into place and I’ve never been more grateful in my life.

Overall I’m really optimistic and looking forward to what 2012 will bring me. I hope for good things while knowing I’m strong enough to handle the bad. I have ideas and plans for this year but also know how life can take those and throw them out the window… sometimes in order to give you something even better than you imagined.

Even with all the positive changes I had last year I still love the feeling of new opportunities that come with a new year. I thought it was time for a change, so I updated my blog. I got a new layout and am going to try and start blogging more regularly again. And speaking of changes, I wanted post about a few I’d like to make this year. Yep, my New Year’s Resolutions. Sal and I made these together and are going to help and encourage each other. I think goals are much easier to meet when you’ve got a partner that shares them and you work together.

So here they are:

1. Save Money (mostly for traveling this year)

We came up with this one together, since we started dating we’ve been eating out a lot and doing a bit of shopping so we’ve decided to start being more frugal and saving money towards some trips we’d like to take.

2. Eat Healthier/Work Out

This one was Sal’s idea, since we’re going to be saving money by eating less fancy meals we might as well make them healthy too. We’re also going to work out together (so Sal can encourage me, he already works out but I don’t really like to) at least 3 times a week.

3. Go To Church More Often

I came up with this one, Sal and I LOVE sleeping in on weekends so we don’t make it to church on Sundays as often as we should. So this year we’re going to try to go more regularly since we recently found a church we really like.

Nothing fancy but I feel they’re all pretty important. My plan is to get a calendar to stick on my wall and keep track of how well we stick to our goals, hopefully having a visual reminder will help me stay on track. I admit, I’m not the best at sticking to my long term goals but this year I feel pretty optimistic. Wish me luck!

Photo

Tue, 27 Dec 2011 16:23:38 -0500