Disney tips

Hello blog, I wanted to make a post about Disney and how to make the trip a little less stressful. We just got back from a short 3 night trip, which was amazingly fun, but hot and tiring. I hope you find my tips helpful!

1. Bring a poncho/umbrella. Ponchos can be very expensive in the parks and you can find ones for less than $10 at Wal-Mart. The weather in Orlando is so unpredictable, so you will definitely be glad that you came prepared. Also in this group of things, bring sunscreen. The Florida sun is blistering, and you will get burned if you don't. Everything at Disney costs more, so if you already come with sunscreen you can save some money. 

2. By the same token, bring comfortable shoes that can withstand miles of walking, and also inclement weather. Your poor feet will most likely get a few blisters by the end of your trip. 

3. Band-aids for those blistered feet will help. I didn't bring any and had to buy some at the Polynesian gift shop. 

4. If you have children that are 7 and younger, I would recommend bringing a stroller. Even if they haven't been in a stroller in years, their little feet will get very tired of walking. I aways rent from Kingdom Strollers. They are so easy and convenient, because they drop off the stroller at the hotel you are staying at, and all you have to do is leave it at your hotel when your trip is over. Plus, the plastic Disney strollers are not comfortable, and you have to return them when you leave the park. It's not convenient if you want to go out shopping or to Disney Springs after a day at the parks. Kingdom Strollers also has an optional rain cover for the stroller, which is necessary. 

5. Get a portable charger. I can't tell you how many times my phone was almost dead after a long day at the parks. A portable charger ensures that your battery will never die. I scrambled to find outlets that didn't exist when we stopped for a little bit. 

6. Do the Disney Dining Plan. It can seem expensive, but when you are spending over $100 a meal on a family of four without the plan, it would have been a good thing to get the plan. 

7. Don't try to do everything. Disney is exhausting, and you won't be able to do it all even if you have the time. Plan what you must do and avoid the rest. Take breaks at your resort and recharge. 

8. Reserve Fastpass + and dining ASAP. These two things will fill up fast, especially for the more popular rides and restaurants. 

9. Bring a fan/mister, especially if you are traveling to Disney in the summer. I don't know if you know this, but Florida is HOT. You will sweat, and it will be miserable. A fan/mister ensures that you can have a little relief during those hot summer months. 

10. Above all, have fun! 

The Legend of Tarzan: Movie Review

It has been years since the man once known as Tarzan (Alexander Skarsgård) left the jungles of Africa behind for a gentrified life as John Clayton III, Lord Greystoke, with his beloved wife, Jane (Margot Robbie) at his side. Now, he has been invited back to the Congo to serve as a trade emissary of Parliament, unaware that he is a pawn in a deadly convergence of greed and revenge, masterminded by the Belgian, Captain Leon Rom (Christoph Waltz). But those behind the murderous plot have no idea what they are about to unleash.

 After a week of trying to see this movie with no success with my fiancé, we finally saw it during a kid free weekend courtesy of my mother. 

I'm going to be honest, I really mainly wanted to see this because of shirtless Alexander Skarsgård  running around the jungle being really badass and sweaty. I didn't expect it to be a cinematic masterpiece, but it definitely had its surprising moments. 

The movie starts out showing Lord Greystoke, AKA, John Clayton, AKA,Tarzan, as an English gentleman in London. It's been 10 years since he left the jungle, and he has fully acclimated to life as an English lord. But, the Congo and its people are in trouble, so John Clayton must answer the call and help. 

By his side during the journey is the fiery Jane, and of course Samuel L. Jackson as Dr. Williams. 

Speaking of Jane, I actually liked Margot Robbie's Jane. She wasn't the scared damsel from the Disney version. LoT Jane was feisty and able to hold her own, even when she was taken prisoner by the creepy Leon Rom. She knew her husband was going to get her so she wasn't worried. 

I also loved the chemistry between Jane and John. You can that their love felt very real. 

Cinematic wise, LoT was visually stunning. The Congolese landscape was so beautiful, and the wide shots added to the beauty. The nighttime jungle scenes were dark and ominous, just like the creatures that inhabited them. 

There was definitely a lot of CGI present but it was done really well. The Mangani, which were the ape like hybrids created by Edgar Rice Burroughs, were positively frightening because of how intelligent and human like they were. 

The only things I didn't really like was how slow it was in the beginning and I wish we had gotten to know what happened in the 10 years since John Clayton left the jungle. How was his period of adjustment? How was the start of his marriage to Jane? It would have been nice to have had that information but all in all it was still a good movie. I will definitely buy it on Blu-Ray when it comes out. 

8 month Mirena update.

I haven't given a Mirena update in a while, so here it is.

I've been really pleased with my experience so far. The initials issues disappeared around January-February time frame. I no longer have cramps associated with it, and my periods are light as can be. They are not even a full two days long, with occasional spotting, so I can't really call it a period.

That has honestly been my favorite thing about the Mirena.

As far as side effects go, I haven't gained crazy weight or had my hair fall out, but I do experience occasional cystic acne on my face every month. Slowly it goes away though.

My plan is to keep it in for about 5-6 after we get married because I don't want to get pregnant right away. That will put me at having it in for just over 2 years.

I'm hopeful that once we start trying for a baby, it will be easy, but you never know. I'm also hoping that Zika won't be an issue by then.

Mirena has definitely been a positive for me so far, and I am very glad I decided to get it instead of going back on the pill.

It's been awhile.

I'm so horrible with this blogging thing.

I honestly thought I would write 1-2 posts a week about things, but that obviously hasn't worked out. In my defense, I have been busy wedding planning, working, and being a mom. It's tiring, not going to lie.

But I do need to do a better job about keeping up with this blog. We just have so much going on this year and next year. It's going to be a lot of changes.

For instance, next summer I'm getting married. After that we will most likely go on our honeymoon and then after that, my daughter and I will be joining my husband in our new state. It's crazy. I haven't lived anywhere else since I was 12-13. It will be a huge change for me, but also for my daughter because she hasn't lived anywhere else either.

I'm hoping that the transition will be smooth, but you never know. There are always unforeseen circumstances.

Big life changes.....

So, a couple weeks ago on Easter ago my life changed for the better.

I got engaged to the man I have been waiting for all my life! He asked me on Easter after we had done an egg hunt at the neighbor's house and even had my daughter involved in the proposal. It made it even more special.

I cannot wait to spend the rest of my life with this man, because he has brought so much happiness to our lives. We are truly blessed!

Rent The Runway experience

Hello everyone,

Yes, I'm back again. Sorry for the absence again.

Today I will be talking about my latest Rent The Runway  experience. If you have not heard of RTR, you need to look it up ASAP. It's an amazing website where you can rent dresses, jewelry, and accessories for a small amount and then return them easily. The dresses are designer, and they give you the option to pick two sizes when you order. To start, you pick your item and then choose the date that you want to rent it for. Then, you choose either a 4 or 8 day rental. Once that day comes, the items are shipped to you in an easy zip garment bag. It comes with a return label and a lock for when it is time to return the items.

For a friend's wedding last week, I chose the Navy Constellation gown from Badgley Mischka.

Isn't it gorgeous? The day came when it arrived and as I had ordered a 2 and a 4, I was shocked when both were too big! Of course I started panicking because the wedding was the next day. Luckily RTR has a great exchange policy. I called them and explained the situation and when I asked if they had a 0, they said they would overnight it to me for just the cost of shipping.

The next day came and my dress was on my doorstep before 12PM! I was so happy. And, it fit! The Monday after the wedding I threw the dress into the garment bag, zipped it up, locked the zippers together, and slapped the return label on and gave it to UPS. It's that easy. The company dry cleans it and you even get to keep the hanger. I seriously recommend Rent The Runway to everyone because of their wonderful designer options and great customer service.

Am I a failure?

When I first found out I was getting divorced, one if the first thoughts that was constantly racing through my mind was, "What did I do? What could I have done to prevent this?"

The answer was nothing. It was not my fault. I was not the one that wanted my marriage to end, even though I was unhappy. When I got married, I honestly wanted it to be my only marriage. I did not even want to think about divorce, but things happen that are out of our control. As I have said before, if one person is trying to make the marriage work, it won't work. Marriage is 50-50. Both sides have to commit.

I'm hearing more and more from friends who are going through divorce that they had done everything possible to save the marriage, but their partner was not interested in saving it. I told them that it wasn't their fault. None of it was. If you are trying to fix it, you have done all you can do.

If you are going through a divorce and you are struggling to figure out what you could have done to save it, please stop right now. You will only beat yourself up over it when it is not your problem. All you can do is accept what is happening to realize that better things are on the horizon.

In the words of Sierra Boggess,"You are enough. You are so enough. It's unbelievable how enough you are."

A Phoenix reborn from the ashes

I realized that this month would have been six years of marriage if we had made it this far.

Instead, we barely made it to two. It wasn't for lack of trying on my end though. I tried everything to make a crappy marriage work, and it didn't. I am so glad that it did not work out. When you are 21 you think you know it all. I was so naive to think my marriage at 21 would be my only marriage. It seems I wasn't alone in that thought process. Many people I know that got married that young are getting divorced or already divorced. Maybe it was for stupid reasons or maybe it was for more serious issues like cheating, abuse, etc. Whatever the case may be, it's the season for divorce. Yes, it sucks, but good things are coming.

I took my relationship and marriage with my ex as a huge learning experience. It taught me what I did and did not deserve in a relationship. It taught me not to settle. It taught me that even though one person will try their hardest to make things work, if the other person does not put in any effort, it will not save anything. It taught me that I am worth more than I know.

So, I guess I should thank my ex for reducing me to the lowest point in my life. Because of you I was able to rise from that low point and come out a stronger, and better person.

I should say that it took time. I was angry and hurt at first for awhile. I thought there was no coming back from such a crappy situation. Boy, was I wrong. Here I am four years later and I am thriving and happier than ever. I think his intention was to break me down so badly so that I would never recover, but the joke is on him. My daughter and I are perfectly happy now, and I will never forget how much I grew and what I learned from my "marriage" and divorce.

To everyone out there who is married and going through a divorce, it gets better. You might not think so right now, but it does. Hang in there. <3

I'm a slacker

Sorry for the lack of posting. I sometimes try to do a million things but then the other things I need to do get neglected along the way.

I promise I'll be posting more in the coming weeks. In the meantime, bear with me.

3-Month Mirena Update

February marks 3-months of having the Mirena IUD. I thought I would do a post detailing how it has been since I had it put in.

So, what is Mirena? From the Mirena website:

An IUD, or intrauterine device, is a small, T-shaped device that is placed into the uterusby a trained healthcare provider during a routine office visit. It provides continuous,highly effective birth control. Keep in mind that no birth control is 100% effective.
Mirena is a hormone-releasing IUD thatreleases small amounts of a progestin hormone called levonorgestrel locally into the uterus. Mirena lasts for as long as you want, for up to 5 years.

Weekend + Target haul

Hello lovelies. Little M and I had a really nice Saturday and Sunday with the boyfriend.

We stayed at his house last night, which was her first time spending the night over at his place. I was very nervous that she would not do well because she had only been there for a few hours each time we would go, never a whole night. Surprisingly she did very well. We had plans to do something but when we got there it wasn't what we thought it would be so he had the bright idea to get some frozen yogurt and then to a Dave and Buster's type game place. M loved it and didn't want to leave, but by then it was dinnertime and we were all hungry. We went back to the house and boyfriend made spaghetti with vodka sauce for me and spaghetti with marinara sauce for the little one. She and I loved it! (He's the cook in this relationship and neither of us mind) Then it was time for bed and this part was trickier because she did not want to go to sleep even though she was clearly exhausted. I finally got her to sleep and by then I was ready for bed too. Someone was already sleeping on the couch *cough* but he came up soon after.

Today was also very nice. M slept through the night thankfully and was very well behaved this morning. We got ready and went out and got some more frozen yogurt and then hit up everyone's favorite place to spend money-Target!

That's my favorite cartoon of Target because it's so true! I went in just looking for a pillowcase (which I found) but I also managed to find some super cute planner goodies, because we all know I can't resist those. Here's a picture of what I got, minus the pillowcases and Kids Bop CD for the little one.

Cute right? The pink one has a little notepad in it with a space for the date and the white one has each month's calendar and then a Notes and List section. I already have an Emily Ley planner so I did not need another one, but these are just for jotting down little notes. 

After our Target session it was time for M and I to head home. We live about an hour away from my boyfriend, which sucks, but it's not so bad. I get to see him 1-3 times a week depending. Anyway, that was our Saturday and Sunday. Another great weekend came and went. I can't wait to see what the next one has in store for us. :) 

Tips on how to become a background actor, also known as an "EXTRA"

Hello lovelies,

I thought I would dive into some familiar territory and make a post about the 411 of being an extra in the film industry. I have not been in anything since Halloween of 2014, which saddens me. I really miss being on set with friends, but our film industry is so small now, which is a shame. Anyway, here are some tips on how to become an "EXTRA" and what to do when you get a part.

Introduction + Welcome!

Hi there! My name is Angelique and I am a 27 year old single mom. I have an adorable little girl, who is obviously my world.

I wanted to start a blog (again) to share my journey with people. I find blogs to be a great outlet to express one's creativity, so hopefully I can do that here.

Not only will I be blogging about motherhood, but also about life in general, trips, product reviews, etc.  

So, on to my backstory.