South Beach/Chopsticks

On Wednesday we took Chelsea and William to South Beach. It stormed on us after about an hour and a half, but before that it was beautiful! Also, Chelsea and William got to see a topless lady and several thonged beach-goers. Here's Chelsea and William in the water.

William was proud of his Speedo! So were we. Note the sandy left leg.

Chelsea and William enjoying the Florida sun! It was probably good that we left because the storm was BAD! Also, a few of us were already getting burned...

Chelsea wanted to take a picture of Miami Ink, from the TV show. Here it is!


Friday night Mark and I took Chels to our favorite sushi spot, Matsuri. It's in a little shopping center by our old house. This is Mark starting the lesson on Chopsticks.

Chelsea is listening very intently! That's probably why she picked it up so quickly. Mark said she was a much better student than I was at the art of Chopsticks.

Close-up shot of the Chopstick hands. Chelsea really enjoyed the sushi rolls with tuna and avacado, so remember that if anyone ever goes to sushi with her!

Sisters! Hermanas! I'll be sad to see her go! But I'm very proud that she got on the plane and came down to see me! Hopefully this is only the first trip of many. I bet she will be happy to get back to her animals. She brought a framed picture of Jules to keep her company :) Oh, my Chelsea Tender Heart.

Chels and William - Day 1

Chelsea and William made it safely to Miami yesterday. This is a pic of them leaving the Fort Lauderdale airport. Chels looks happy to be on the ground!

After lunch and seeing the apartment, we decided to take the MetroMover to Bayfront Park. The MetroMover is a free shuttle that is above the city and has frequent stops so that it's easy to get around. Bayfront Park is on the bay (hence the name!) and there are lots of shops and restaurants to check out along the water. William MAY have bought a Speedo! Heheh. This is Mark and William waiting at the MetroMover station.

For dinner we went to a great Cuban place near our old house, Havana Harry's. William was satisfied with the giant portions. After that we came back to the apartment and chilled on the balcony.



Chelsea and William are at the Miami Metrozoo today. They took the MetroRail (the very fast train) and then switched to a bus to take them to the zoo. Hopefully they are having a fun little adventure! More updates to come.

Love!

My friend had a cocktail party, and...

here are some pics! Me and Mark, looking fancy.

We were the most brightly colored couple there...

Ginny, Becca, Tracy, and me.

Tracy and me.

Cocktail party at the Yacht Club! I met Becca in my bookclub, and now I've gotten to know her some and hang out with her fun friends. Most of them are Coast Guard people. Becca is originally from Bowling Green, KY, so we had an instant connection. She went to college in Connecticut, works and lives in Miami now, and in the fall she's headed to Seattle for law school. She lives about 3 blocks away from my new place, so I can hop on over to see her anytime.

Also, Happy late Birthday to Derek, one of my favorites! :)

It stormed last night for the first time in our new place. It was pretty crazy! We were basically in the cloud. It wasn't a bad storm really, but Mark was really into the "lightning tracker" on his computer. The sky did look very strangely colored, but it was pretty cool.

CHELSEA and WILLIAM come to visit in 5 DAYS! YAAAAAAAAAAAY!

Mark just booked our flights to TN this summer. I'll be home July 15-July 27. A little over two weeks. So YAY! I'm excited to see you all! Love from 37 stories above the ground.

New Camera.

I wanted to post some pics from my new camera. I upgraded myself today with a nicer, fancier camera, and I think it was a good buy. PLUS my topics for HelloMiami just expanded to business profiles, community profiles, and other "real news". I am also going to start posting photo albums of community events, so the local people can have a connection to the site. So here's a few pics! But I'm still learning, so I'm sure there will be more... Also, thanks for Mark for being such a pretty model! :)

(Check facebook for a few more.)

Love!

3724!

We're so happy to be in our new place! So happy that we're doing tricks!

I was trying to show you guys how big the balcony is in this picture. I'm at one end (the side that goes off the living room) and looking East towards the water, and that's where you come out from the bedroom.

Sorry there are only two. I tried to post more but the internet is being funny. I do have an internet connection now at my apartment, but I'm at the law firm as we speak. So tonight I'll get to work work work, and post pictures for you all to see!

Chelsea and William are coming in LESS THAN TWO WEEKS! They're coming May 25, and I couldn't be more excited. I can't wait to see my little sister and hang out and show her my new hood!

I hope everyone is well. Sounds like Aunt Becky had a great week camping (wish I could be there camping!) and all the babies are looking beautiful and playful. I can't wait to see you all. I'll be home in July for a wedding, so maybe we can have a party for Pappy's birthday and I can see EVERYONE! :)

So our apartment is just getting better and better, and I know when Mom comes down to visit she'll have it decorated and even more cozy. More pictures to come, but for now, enjoy! I'm waiting on my food to be delivered. I ordered a sushi roll, spicy tuna, delicious.

My new address is:
1111 SW 1st Avenue
Unit #3724
Miami, Florida 33130

Love to all!
jess

One week 'til my new place, and yay for KK and the new baby, maybe Mitchy can have a lil' sis?!

Sorry that title was so long; I couldn't help myself. This is me, at my desk, excited. Mark is in the background hitting the books.

One week from today I should be in my new apartment! I'm so excited, but there are many miles to go before I sleep, or relax on my balcony. Mark is really stressed about exams and the end of the semester. It's getting down to the wire and he's not having much time to think about moving. So I'm trying to be the big girl and get everything in order. With 60 hours of work a week, it's pretty hard! Plus trying to have a little time for myself, reading or drawing or whatever.

Oh, my drawing class that I took at Miami-Dade College has come to an end. I learned a lot! And maybe I'll bring some of my drawings home so you all can critique me ;) since we have such a crafty and creative family. I'm going to take the next level, but I want to get settled in and *hopefully* try and find a new gig, maybe even a part time thing so I can write for Hello Miami more and quit the law firm (where I make less money per hour and have to wake up early and dress up...)! So hopefully I can take Intermediate Drawing in the fall and have a fun, relaxing summer.

More Miami news -- Chelsea and William are coming for a visit!!!!!!!!!!! I'm so excited, and Chelsea and I have already been brainstorming things to do. It should be an adventurous trip. They want to parasail, ride bikes in the everglades through Shark Valley, hit the beach of course, go to the Seaquarium...hmmm...I can't think of the other things, but I know there is more. I'm really pumped to have my little sissy come visit and I can't wait to show her around Miami and cook veggie meals for her! We'll have to take William to the Cuban spots with gigantic pieces of meat and yummy yummy rice and beans. She will get to stay almost a week, and William will get to stay several days (he has to go back earlier because of work, bummer!), so everyone wish Chelsea a safe and fantastic trip! Well, it's not now, but I can't help being overly excited. They are coming Monday, May 25 - Memorial Day! Wooooooooooo!

Alright, enough procrastinating, I'm going to get to work on HelloMiami now. Those that are still reading, gracias! It is much appreciated.

love,
j

Earth Day 2009

Happy Earth Day everyone! Let's take small steps (or greater steps!) to lower our consumption and reduce waste.

THREE very simple Earth-Huggin' things you can do:


(1) This CFL [Compact Fluorescent Lighting] bulb uses 80% less energy and lasts up to 10,000 hours. Mark and I only use these light bulbs in the house, and since I've been living there, we haven't needed to replace one! Our bathroom now have 5 places for bulbs - for what?! Mark put one CFL bulb in the middle spot, and it brightens the entire bathroom easily. Plus I'm pretty sure it keeps our electricity bill a little lower as well.



(2) Plastic Bottles: Eight out of ten plastic bottles end up in the landfill. Yikes. Try and use a refillable plastic water bottle that does not release chemicals. Even if you recycle all the water bottles that are disposable, it will still take a great amount of oil in the process to break down the plastic to be recycled. The problem is not only that we're not recycling as much as we could, but we're PRODUCING more than we need. So recycle what you have, and do a little water-bottle research. This will also save you money. And if you like purified water, buy a Britta to keep in your refrigerator to refill your bottle.



(3) Earth Hour: Well Earth Hour happened in March, and a large portion of the world participated! OVER a billion people! If you didn't, or if you want more, there's still time! Turn the lights off, unplug everything, and sit on your porch for an hour. Play cards, read a book, paint a picture, but don't rely on energy for ONE WHOLE HOUR! Can you do it?! See results here from this past year.


Check out this BLOG - it's a really good source for greener, healthier living. Seventh Generation tries to live by this Iroquois quote from YEARS and YEARS ago: “In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations.”


Happy Earth-Lovin' Day!

jb