Disney Descendants Polyvore Sets for Halloween

In the spirit of Halloween, I decided to do a set for each of the kids who were rotten to the core: 

Mal's outfit is a simple dress with a black leather jacket. Her earrings are the exact product used in the film, and I used her icon for the background. 

More details here: 

http://www.polyvore.com/mal_disney_descendants/set?.embedder=3527081&.src=share_app&.svc=pinterest&id=177401194

Evie is a fan of mirrors, so her look, a coronation dress costume and a few details (the blue hair and nail polish) was easy to organise. The necklace is a fan made product on etsy, and the tiara and bracelet are random finds on Polyvore. 

More details here: 

http://www.polyvore.com/evie_disney_descendants/set?.embedder=3527081&.src=share_app&.svc=pinterest&id=177404685

Carlos didn't even have a costume! So I used a simple color palatte from his formal outfit in the film. I added the stuffed dog for a prop, and used a black and white background for obvious reasons. 

More details here: 

http://www.polyvore.com/carlos_disney_descendants/set?.embedder=3527081&.src=share_app&.svc=pinterest&id=177395590

Jay's outfit was a color pallate of red, blue and yellow. I threw in the Aladdin lamp necklace for a signature prop.

More details here: 

http://www.polyvore.com/descendants_jay/set?id=177393068

These sets were a lot of fun to make, and I hope I did each character justice. I might do a set for the Auradon Prep kids in the future. If you have any requests, let me know. :) 

A Funny Fairytale

A few years ago, I posted this short story. 

Today I decided to launch it on Wattpad. ^_^

This story was fun to write, and I may write more, depending on how it is recieved. 

I'm working on a collection of poetry now. 

The original post for this story is here: 

http://crystallizedheart.blogspot.com/2011/06/fantasy-fridays-2-funny-fairytale.html

You can read it on Wattpad here: 

http://w.tt/1ESSKqe

The Journey

There is never a wrong time

to leave it all behind.

To find your courage

and discover your strength.

To walk your own path

no matter its length.

Be the one

who rises above

the naysayers,

the bullies,

the hypocrites,

and the jerks

Don't bully yourself.

Appreciate the quirks.

Accept your good.

Accept your bad.

Allow yourself to be happy.

Allow yourself to be sad.

It's human to want.

It's human to fear.

It's human to get the hell out of here.

It's a declaration

and a pact with yourself. 

Stop ignoring 

those dreams you put on the shelf.

What's holding you back?

Can you answer this true?

You know that it's all about

how you treat you.

Don't wait.

Don't just wish.

Get out there

Follow your bliss.

This year has only just begun. 

Stop waiting for life.

Journey and have fun. 

Who knows what you'll learn.

Who knows where you'll go.

But if you never try,

then you will never know. 

GO!

What really matters

I learned a valuable lesson today. It's better to be honest right away than let things build up in your mind. I'm so lucky to have wonderful friends and family who understand when I'm being ridiculous and who encourage me to be upfront and honest. 

I have this really bad habit of viewing everything negatively. It's a pain, and more often causes more problems than I know how to deal with. But I'm working on what I can do to break this habit, and to just enjoy life more, than constantly expect negative outcomes and always be on my guard. 

Believe it or not, always being negative saps a ton of energy, and often makes small things seem huge in your eyes. I'll admit that this is one my faults, to blow things out of proportion and let them sit there, unresolved until I eventually blow up.

It's not one of my best qualities, and certainly not one of my favorite things to admit. But I find that the more I face my faults, and the more I do to improve them, the less energy I waste and the more I can enjoy the things that really matter in life.  

The Second Canoe Adventure

Yesterday my parents and I went out for a canoe trip. We went to Rampart Lake, and I realized we hadn't been there since the fire that started near the park last year. We also had Haley at the time, and it was her first canoe ride. 

The weather was fair, and a little cloudy. Traffic on the way wasn't too bad, but when we got there, we discovered that the boat ramp was closed, and the ticket taker told my Dad that we'd have to walk the canoe down to the lake. It didn't seem to be an issue until we arrived at the very crowded parking lot and discovered that the lake was visible from a fairly steep hill and a small hiking trail. Dad parked the car and got out, walking around while Mom and I tried to calm Dingo from the car ride. He returned, telling us that the walk with the canoe was doable, and we did have wheels to help us out. We untied the canoe, strapped to our new Subaru, and fixed from one slip incident on the dirt road, and prepared to make the hike down to the lake. Did I mention it was a narrow hiking trail? We got down the sandy part okay, but then tree roots were stiking out as we got closer to the water. once we reached a tree, with a long trunk stuck in the ground in front of us, the wheels stopped working, and we were portaging a step slippery root maze with a steep, small hill waiting for us. Mom and I had the back of the canoe, while Dad held up the front. Dingo was in the car, just waiting for us to come back and get him. Once we reached those roots, Mom made a noise and I looked up, shocked to see her tumbling down the hill. While both Dad and I asked if she was okay, and the people fishing, who by now probably knew we were crazy for doing this, stared at us, Mom burst out laughing, and appeared to be okay, saying that she knew how to fall. 

Once the excitement was over, Mom went back to the car to get Dingo, and Dad went back to the car to get all the canoe gear and our picnic snacks. 

I have to admit it was a lovely sight, not many boats were on the water, and a nice breeze was blowing subtly through the air. I looked over while Mom and Dad were gone to see a family of five with an inflatable raft, and I couldn't help laughing, realizing how that must have been easy compared to what we just did. But I guess that just meant we were stubborn Goldens. 

Once everything was ready, we shoved off and began our voyage through the lake. Some of the National Forest had burned since our last visit, and one particular hill had green trees on one side, and  burnt wood on the other. The trees were like stick drawings placed on a sky blue background. 

It was nice and peaceful, with barely anyone on the lake, and most of the people were finishing. As we went to the other side of the lake, we stopped, took a snack break and Mom and I took pictures of flowers. Once we got back to the water, is was sprinkling. Not too far from our picnic spot, we discovered a lake, with a bright orange bobber shining in the sunlight. Naturally, we had to explore that, and I suggested we claim it, which Dingo did, and Mom named it Bobber Island. 

We stayed on Bobber Island for a little while, taking more flower pictures and chatting, then we headed out to go to the other side of the lake, where we saw bicyclists, and one even said hi. We also saw a couple with a dog, who threw a stick for the dog to catch, and the dog stared right at us as if to say, "You're already on the water. You can get that for me."

Once the sky darkened with clouds, it was time for the other adventure: getting the canoe out of the water. 

By the time we arrived, we noticed that our "boat ramp" was taken. A blue chair with a fishing pole was right in our way, so we went out and around to find a better option. Only a rock covered shore with big steep steps seemed to be a possibility, so we went back to the clearly unhappy fishers and apologized as we attempted to bring the canoe in to shore. They complained for awhile, but we were busy, taking everything  out of the boat, including the dog, and getting ready for the hike uphill, carrying a canoe. The hike up hill was much more successful than the hike downhill, and by the time we finished, the canoe was next to the car, ready to be lifted back on it, and thunder echoed through the air. It looked like we packed up just in time.

While we lifted the canoe on the top of the car, we saw all the people fishing, including the ones we had disturbed, head for the cars, pack up and drive off. 

All in all it was a successful day, and we spent more time on the lake than the last time we tried to attempt a canoe trip. 

But this is just my side of the story :)

Here's Dad's: http://www.cosmicconservative.com/weblog/?p=10871

Fruits Basket 20 day challenge day 7: Have you ever had a fruits Basketwallpaper before?

Of course I have! This is my favorite wallpaper and I take a break from it every now and then, but I always manage to reuse it.
Another favorite fruits basket wallpaper I've used is the official wallpaper with the gang in the rain with umbrellas:

I've gone through several Fruits Basket wallpapers, mostly of the trio and Kyo, but I did find a cute Kisa and Hiro one:

And I used this one for awhile, because it's gorgeous, but it was too bright:

I believe the majority of my wallpapers on my computer and phone have been Fruits Basket, Final Fantasy X and Avatar the Last Airbender

Eating Soumen with everyone

I'm currently rereading Fruits Basket, and this quote stood out to me. Like many of the wise advice and statements from the story, it related directly to what I was going through. Something I think anyone can relate to: worrying about the future. Where will I live? What will I do? Where will I go? Who will I be? All this "laundry" was going through my head, drowning me in anxiety and stressing me to the max. It just so happened that I decided to contine rereading Fruits Basket, and I came to this moment where Tohru was doing the exact thing I was: stressing out and worrying about the future. This is another intersting theme in the quarter life crisis as well. We are constantly worried about the future. Acheiving what's expected of us, getting the right job, finding the one, and working our way to the job we want are all thoughts that fill our heads day after day. In my case, I was doing more worrying than planning. I had become very discouraged, with the instability of my future hanging over my head like a giant looming spider, just waiting to strike. It was lucky I decided to try to chill out, otherwise I would have been tripping all over the "laundry" and probably created more. More questions that needed answering, more goals I haven't achieved, more criticisms to burden myself with. So when I came to this moment, it was like an answer to a prayer. This was exactly the piece of advice I was looking for, and even with all these worries hanging over me, I began to understand the phrase "One game at a time." from Wreck it Ralph. 

You can't solve big problems in one big action. There's no washing machine to make the job easier either. Everything that you want to achieve is done through small steps. 

Now, it's not like I've never heard this advice, and it's not like I haven't applied it in a few areas of my life, but I didn't realise just how important this advice is until now. 

Yes, I'm still worrying, but I try to have fun in the mean time: hang out with friends, write, watch a movie and of course plan. Hopefully a little of my problems will drift away as I continue to move forward. 

The thing is, I already understood this quote for the most part. But for me, it isn't easy to "take a break", "watch tv" or "eat soumen with everyone." During those moments, my worries creep up on me, only to attack after the fun is over. 

The other part of this quote was to "live in the moment". Yes, the future is coming, and moving forward is a good thing to do, but if we never "live in the moment", life will fly by and we won't notice until it's too late. 

It's like a day off from work where you feel guilty for not doing any work, when, in reality, you deserved the break. Sometimes "living in the moment" includes patting yourself on the back, looking at all you've accomplished, and being proud of where you are. 

So, I'm adding this quote to my important Fruits Basket tips, and hopefully, if I work at it, I can learn to take a break and just appreciate how far I've come. I've already done some laundry, and soon I'll have an open space to stand, look at the things I've accomplished and be proud of them.

FF 30 day challenge day 20: Favorite Chocobo theme?

No version tops this one :)
 
The Final Fantasy Song by Legendary Frog

Book earrings!

I made these earrings today from charms at Hobby Lobby :)
They also came with Romeo and Juliet charms which I might sell as a set on etsy.
If you can't find the charms in store, you can order them online as part of the fairytale line.

Haley, Dingo and the Thunder Monster

The thunder crashed outside as Haley, a fourteen year old black lab, lifted her head. Not too far from Haley, sat Dingo, a three year old bundle of energy.
"What's that?" Dingo asked while he perked up his ears.
"Thunder." Haley replied with a yawn. It was usually best to take a nap during a thunder storm. Dingo had a different plan. After a good scratch, he wandered around the room, sniffing and listening. Haley sighed. Where did he get that energy?
The humans were out for the day, and Haley had hoped to take a snooze before they returned.
"Aren't you coming?" Dingo asked while he stopped at the door.
"No thanks," Haley replied, "I've done that plenty of times."
Dingo titled his head.
"And?"
"I never found the source of the thunder. Whatever it is, it's not in the house."
“You sure?”
“Positive.”
Haley yawned again, while Dingo walked out the door. He searched upstairs, downstairs and even watched the door, but the thunder monster was nowhere to be found. Once the sound stopped, Dingo wagged his tail and went back to Haley.
“I scared it away!” he proclaimed with pride.
“Nice job” Haley said while she rolled over.
Dingo yawned and stretched, all energy spent.
"Now I'm kind of tired" Dingo said, while Haley closed her eyes.
Both dogs curled up for a nap while the rain pattered against the window.
Finally, after all the excitement, a nice moment of peace and quiet.

Chocolate Castle

One of my roommates at the Disney College Program introduced me to this game. It's cute and addicting so I thought I would share. You can download the free demo here ^_^

Chocolate Castle game

Cookie Blob experiment

Since I was a kid, I always wondered what would happen if the pillsbury cookie dough roll went in the oven, without being cut into thinner cookies. My friends and I decided to give it a try, and this was the result! The middle part of the cookie blob isn't all the way cooked, but the dough turns into a cookie cake with cookie dough filling. It was a fun experiment!

Materials needed:

Cookie sheet
Oven
Pillsbury cookie dough roll
(reminder: do not cut up the dough!)
Friends and sugar!

The Tale of the Castle Festis

One day, the three creators decided that a beach would not be complete without a castle. One of the creators, master of water, had never made one before. The masters of fire and earth were shocked to hear that their fellow creator was inexperienced in castle making. They set off to collect their materials to build the great castle Festis. They found a plastic fork, stick, broken pink shovel, wooden chef spoon, pink shoe, piece of wood and a Styrofoam cup. And thus, the great castle Festis was built.

Silly Saturdays 2: A tale of Louie and Louisa

There once were two monkeys
named Louie and Louisa.
They both ate bananas
like teens eat pizza
Banana Pudding
Banana Chips
They even had
Banana cookies and dips
You'd think they would tire
Of the same flavor,
but these silly monkeys
would only savor
every dish they created with flair.
But one day. . . the bananas weren't there!
With no fruit to eat, the moneys were sad.
A life without bananas, to a monkey, is bad.
So off they went
in search for salvation.
They traveled to the tree monkey train station.
Once they arrived, they noticed one thing.
None of the monkeys were there to swing
The vines were empty, the bananas were gone.
For Louie and Louisa, this was simply wrong.
They searched for the lion, king of the land,
hoping the he would come up with a plan.
But the lion was also away from his lair.
They sighed and cried, and picked eachother's hair.
It was time for bed, and the moneys were lost.
This was as normal as jungle frost.
But as they arrived to their very own tree
They heard a roar and a shout of "WHOOOOPEEEE!".
The lion and tree monkeys laughed in their wake.
The bananas had become a giant cake.
Louie and Louisa grinned in delight.
And Louie dove in to have the first bite.

THE END

Fantasy Fridays 2: A funny fairytale

Since it is a fantasy story, I decided to post my funny fairytale for today :) Enjoy.

Inspired by this picture in Disney Princess Magazine:



A funny fairytale
Once upon a time there lived a handsome prince who was very rich and very bored. One day his parents told him he would have to marry. So the prince, who didn’t want to marry anytime soon, decided to create a challenge for a princess in order to become his bride. He had a very large slingshot that he was given on his birthday, so he decided to come up with an impossible task to keep him single for a long, long time. He declared that any girl who wanted to marry him would have to be brave enough to be slung in the slingshot, and if she could find her way back to him, he would marry her. The prince was very rich, so naturally girls flocked to the palace, but when they were given the challenge, not one agreed to be flown across the mountain region that the palace was built on. Even when they were told that they would have a parachute, they refused and left immediately. The prince was satisfied with this plan until one day when a girl requested an audience with the king. She was very smart and wanted the king’s help to allow her to attend college. The king replied that if she would marry his son, the girl would be given anything she wanted. With that, the girl rose to the challenge and accepted the conditions.
The prince was shocked that someone had accepted this ridiculous task, and tried to persuade her out of it. As she was given a parachute and sat in the slingshot, the girl only smiled and said, “I’ve always wanted an adventure.” So the prince watched with worry as the girl flew in the air and over the mountain range.
She landed in a village near the mountain and began her journey in determination. On the first day, she came across an old woman with a basket of apples.
“One bite,” the woman said, “and all your wishes will come true,”
The girl politely refused, never having believed in such things, and carried on. On the second day, she met a fairy with a spinning wheel.
“This wheel will spin the finest gold, and you will be rich,” the fairy offered. But the girl refused again, explaining that she wouldn’t be willing to give up her child or even prick her finger and fall asleep. The third day, she came across a frog that wanted a kiss. But the girl refused yet again, tired of meeting people. Lucky for her, she arrived at the palace on the fourth day. The people cheered for her bravery and persistence as she went straight to the castle.
The king greeted her with a smile, and the prince was now very surprised that his plan didn’t work.
“My dear,” the king smiled, “You have accepted the task and I will now reward you. What do you desire?”
The princess smiled and replied, “I want to go to college, and I ask a favor of my prince.”
The prince, by now, was thoroughly impressed with this girl, and replied, “What would you ask of me?”
The princess took him to the slingshot, gave him a parachute and with a dazzling smile replied, “Now it’s your turn.”
The End

Silly Saturdays 1

What I learned from You're Beautiful, the Korean drama: never get too carried away with your ipod in the country. A pig could be waiting around the corner!

Book Review: The Throne of Fire

Anyone who has read Percy Jackson knows that Rick Riordan has the ability to mix mythology, sarcasm and adventure all into one. His recent series The Kane Chronicles is told through Clever Carter and his sister Sadie. Now his new novel The Throne of Fire adds more action and sarcasm than the first.
From the beginning, we are reminded that the book is actually a recording and the last recording mentioned a red pyramid and a certain locker inside a school. In this recording, not only are we introduced to two new characters, apprentices of Sadie and Carter, but we also learn that New York is home to "other gods". Carter mentions that he might have seen a winged horse at one point. A new challenge presents itself for the Kane siblings. They must find the book of Ra which has been separated into three scrolls. But the gods are not all on their side. It's a race against the clock as both Carter and Sadie try to find the scrolls before the solstice, and avoid the gods and goddesses that are not so keen on their plan. I highly recommend this book to anyone that craves adventure, fun, chocolate and zebras, and I rate the "recording" five out of five Egyptian relics.
For more fun and adventures, visit the website: http://www.rickriordan.com/my-books/kane-chronicles/books/book-2.aspx

Something Blue 20

Yup I did it. I posted something blue :)

Something Blue 19 (The bugmobile)

Yes folks! It's real, its blue! It's The Bugmobile! Now you too can enjoy having bugs all over your car and getting strange looks from everyone around you! This vehicle is hard to miss when driving in public areas and easy to spot in the parking lot!

Backstory: While visiting my friend at her college campus, we happened to see this car, and I knew I had to write about it!

Epic fun :)

Two words for The Legend of the Guardians : The Owls of Ga'hoole movie:
Epic Owls
I give the movie four out of five owl feathers. It's not five because there was a little too much slow motion. Great Story, Characters and A lot of fun