Stir, Sauté and Love...

Valentines Day 2017! 

I know, I know.... valentines day is a fake holiday, we still celebrate it! Its not worth it to be so sour about holidays that bring people together. Plus, this is our first valentines day being married, our 10th all together. Just like the others, it was fabulous! 

We started off the morning with breakfast in bed...A little side story, for one of our anniversaries Anthony decided to make me breakfast in bed. I was high on nyquil after being sick for a couple days and really dazed out. I felt horrible but when he woke me up, I didn't know what was going on and I sleepily said "I don't want, come back to sleep". He did not let me live this down. I felt horrible but its something hilarious to look back on now. Lets take a look at the awesome effort ...

There was chicken sausage, turkey bacon and lets give a little drum roll (pretend to hear a little drum roll in your head) NUTELLA!!! I mean, nutella is still healthy, stop judging!  Whats breakfast and strawberries with out nutella. Those that know, know. Nutella is life! 

We spent a few hours later that day binging on netflix. We got out fix of Bates Motel and decided to head out. 

Anthony reserved seats for Sur La Table's cooking classes. We've always walked into the store and seen the classes going on but never had the time to go. It was perfect. They paired us off with another couple and set us up at our cooking stations. It literally was my dream kitchen, hearts and all. 

Our chef was Chef Karyn Vega and the theme of the night was 'Italian Romance'. For the menu of the night there was an appetizer, burrata and olive tapenade crostini. The main course, steak tagliata with arugula and fried capers and risotto with pancetta and shrimp. Finally, for dessert, dark chocolate-espresso budino. Our first thing to make was the budino. Budino is Italian for custard or pudding. 

There was a lot of stirring but it is definitely fun to make together. 

It was then time to start making the Risotto. This was definitely a team effort when it got down to stirring and adding the hot chicken broth. 

Let me not forget to add... I have my own salt bae! 

While I was working on the risotto, the rest of the team worked on cutting up the ingredients for the tapenade. I have never tasted tapenade before but after that night, I am definitely making this more often! 

Also, anything with cheese is my favorite! 

Of course, we had to pause being America's best chef's to take a selfie...

Off to grill some steak...

and shrimp...

and dinner is served !

The whole experience was awesome. Really, anything we do together is awesome with such busy work schedules but I do recommend it. We always look for different things to try to make together but are also always hesitant to make things we never heard of. Its nice to try things out of your comfort zone and still have fun. We are planning on taking more classes just for fun and I definitely recommend you try. It doesn't have to be with your significant other, it can be a group of friends or even with your kids. They send you home with a recipe pamphlet so that you can make things on your own. Lets be real, I didn't remember half of the ingredients we threw into the pot so this was great. 

We ended the night off with some more netflix and much needed relaxation after that food coma we were sent home with...

-ttyl, Faneeza ;) 

A Week in Paradise...

Our honeymoon... AH-MAY-ZING! 

I want to go back so bad but unfortunately, life. Our week in this beautiful paradise was amazing and I thought it was going to be just like the other tropical places we have traveled to before but no. There is something about going to a relaxing place that makes stressing over a wedding for a year and a half ten times more relaxing. 

Our trip started off with us at the beach. For those of you that know me, know that Faneeza and water do not mix. I cannot swim to save my life but luckily, my husband was a trained lifeguard back in the day. This helped a bit but there were still times I freaked out...

These big yellow rings were practically my best friend at the beach when I wasn't holding on to Anthony's arm. The water wasn't that bad but it was definitely relaxing to just hang on and float. But back to the whole being terrified of water thing, this picture explains it all. 

I tried it! I freaked out a little but as you see, I had a pretty tight grip onto Anthony's leg ALL of the time. It was amazing to see the ocean life in Grenada. I didn't realize how close the fish swam to us but it was amazing. They swim around your legs as you walk (or swim) without being scared or swimming away. 

Later that night, we explored the resort a little. The resort we choose was Sandals LaSource Grenada. They have a few different restaurants to choose from and a variety of activities you can sign up for. At night, there is usually some sort of show where every night is themed differently. 

Our first night...

  the steak house for dinner...

and another night at dinner,  hibachi styled. 

One of my favorite and most scary excursions that we did in Grenada was the 'drive your own boat' tour. It was my favorite because it pushed me way out of my comfort zone and it was something we did together versus being on a boat and someone else driving. 

It was all cool when we first got into the boat. I had my life vest, I was holding on super tight and I had confidence that it wasn't going to be that bad. I was wrong, take a look at this next picture...

We were in the freakin air!  I was screaming and scared out of my mind to be bobbing up and down in the water with nothing to hold me to the boat or save my life (yes I know I had a life vest on, doesn't matter, I was scared! ). We were in the water for four hours to our destination where there was a tour of the famous underwater museum (link to the website here because we didn't get any actual photos). Of course, I didn't get off the boat but Anthony caught some amazing footage of the statues underwater. Then it was off to one of Grenada's most famous public beaches, Grand Anse.  

I had the opportunity to hold a squid but I freaked out because I didn't expect it to be so slimy... excuse my face. 

But then we get to the nice pictures. I refused to wear a bathing suit as an excuse to not get off the boat when it came time to the underwater tour... 

one of my favs...

 gopro's are amazing by the way...

Majority of the time in Grenada, we spent enjoying each others company. We had an on-the-beach room where our back door was our own entrance to the beach and unlimited drinks. Towards the end of the trip we were approached by one of Sandals amazing photographers to book a photoshoot. We said hey, whats a couple more hundred pictures to add to the 2016 photo file. Here they are...

Just advertising, you know...

typical bollywood movie scene...

It was the hottest its been all week but I was really pleased with all the photos. Our week in paradise sadly came to an end and was in shock when we hit NYC with the traffic and cold weather. I definitely recommend you visit Grenada and participate in all the excursions even if your scared of water like I am. I can't wait to go on our next vaca...

-ttyl, Faneeza <3

A Wedding and A Degree...

2016 itself has been pretty interesting. For some, there were a lot of tragic things that happened... trump, was the biggest disaster if I say so myself. Though for my family and I, there were bigger strives made this year than most. In one year alone, there was a high of emotion, a high of stress, a high of cash credited to someone else's account, and definitely a high of alcohol. Now don't take me wrong, we aren't alcoholics but we definitely did party A LOT. 

Even though we have been planning this wedding for a year and a half, you'll never fully feel prepared for the things that come with planning a wedding on your own. I'm very much a DIY type of person so I categorized it as one big DIY project but THIS, this was more than a mere Pinterest DIY or a design a sticker project. No, this involved a guest list, family drama, huge lists of what seemed to be impossible tasks, headaches, sleepless nights, more opinions than wanted and lots and lots of coffee. Oh, and in the middle of all this chaos, I was at the end of my bachelors degree program. 

Traditionally, before weddings, the family members of the bride and groom's parents rub a mixture of turmeric powder and baby oil on the married couple to be. This poses as a cleanse and a reason to start the party. This stuff does not come off easy! We were basically minions for a few days but it was definitely fun. 

Before the dye night, as they call it, we had Indian wedding-esque pictures taken with the whole family. It was amazing to see Anthony's family dress up in traditional indian wear and meet us at the park. I have actual professional pictures but this picture suits our personalities the best. 

Finally, September came around and it was time to party ! On September 3, 2016, I became a Geronimo and married my best friend and my high school sweetheart. Literally, the night flew by so fast it was incredible to believe that a year and  a half worth of planning was over in a couple of hours. The details, the music, the vision, EVERYTHING became a reality living outside of my head and it was amazing!

I did say there was a degree that came out of all this madness, didn't I? Well yes, a week later, as if we didn't celebrate enough at this point, I graduated with a bachelors of science in psychology. This has been many years coming along with many times of wanting to quit. There are no quitters here my crazy people, this is what we do, we work through it all and come out with what we want, success! 


I must say, accomplishments aren't accomplishments without your support system behind you. They may not always be there, but when you fall and hit rock bottom, the little screech you make, they can hear it from miles and miles away. I'm nothing without my support system, my family (yes, husband included). As a whole they might not always be in the best place or sometimes not even speak to each other, but thats what families do, thats what relationships are. Everyone sometimes needs a break. Most definitely, I would be nothing with out my parents, specially my mamma. This woman puts up with way more than she has to, so I strive to make her proud. And to my hubby, you've got my back and I got yours, I love you. I can finally say your my husband and threaten you anytime you drive me nuts! 

May 2017 bring double the accomplishments that 2016 has left us with. And to my family and friends reading this, NO babies yet, thank you very much! 

I cannot leave without this one picture, because its the best of all...

This was taken by one our our groomsmen, on an iPhone! 

ttyl- Faneeza 

2015- 2016 Erin Condren Life Planner Review

Hey ! Welcome back! 

So first let me start off by saying how much I LOVE this planner. For a long time when I was younger I used to use paper planners then I switched to my iPad. I love the calendar on my iPad but it just wasn't as colorful as i'd want it, so I went on a hunt. That's when I found this beauty! The Erin Condren Life Planner. Now some may say someone would be crazy to purchase a book with sections for 60 bucks, but the functionality is endless! (and plus I used a coupon! LOL)

So lets start off with the review. I first started getting into the Erin Condren Life Planner lines because I was looking for a creative way to plan my wedding. I am a scrapbooker and if i cannot use my washi tape on something I AM NOT SOLD. I was dazzled at all the amazing images that I saw on instagram and how the ladies of the planner community decorate their planners, so I got one. Not many had the wedding planner so I was still stuck but I was dedicated to waiting for the new rose gold planners. (who doesn't love rose gold, right?!) The planner comes in gorgeous boxes, they sent me pink (blah). I wished I had gotten purple, but that didn't stop my excitement!  

Isn't it so beautiful? So this year, with all the hype of the new rose gold Life Planner, there were some screw-ups when it came to people receiving the right orders and perfect planners. I am in no way bashing the Erin Condren company but I would think that for the price we pay for these things, when we receive then, they would be heavenly perfect. The only issue I had with my planner was that the coil, in some parts looks as if it was painted with rose gold spray paint and on some parts of the laminated cover was sort of cracked and tearing. The cover won't be an issue for be because the company sends you a $10 coupon to use to buy a new personalized cover which I was planning on doing anyways but the coil is going to bother a perfectionist like me. I already emailed the company and I'm just waiting on their reply. 

Erin Condren always sends a little extra with her planners so with this one came a mini planner (the peach colored book) which is like an on the go planner if you don't want to carry the bigger version around with you. There are also 3 thank you cards, 1 coil clip, 3 referral cards and a sampler sheet of stickers that Erin Condren makes. Personally, I would never purchase her stickers because they do look like something I can make myself (and center then way better may I add) and I mainly use washi tape. But I must say there are a lot of creative people on Etsy that sell stickers are are amazing. My favorite place to get washi from are WillowFields and Paperpanduh. Some of the washi shown are from Michael's. 

The reason why I love these planners are the way they are set up. If you type in the hashtag #eclp on instagram you will see how many creative ways there are to use one layout. I plan on making my own stickers for mine to spice up the color a little bit, but everything is gorgeous. There is a monthly spead as well as a weekly spread and it makes it hard to not stay organized. 

A few other things that come with this planner are a few sheets of stickers, a clip in ruler, a pocket in the back as well as a clip in pouch, and 18 months of full planning bliss. There are two choices. The 12 months, where it starts in January and the 18 months (since the planner release is in June ) which carries from July 2015 through December 2016. Although it is a little chunkie, I don't mind. 

The inspiring quotes that are placed all though out the planner are amazing and a joy to see. I hope that I inspired you all to think about getting a planner. They are an amazing way to keep your life in track as well as keep it creative. If you'd like to buy one you can click here to sign up and receive $10  off coupon in your email to use towards your order. 

Happy Planning! 

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