I don’t really care for rum or coconut flavors alone, however, the lava flow just tastes like summer and a vacation. And so I drink it…and love it.

Ingredients/Directions

1 oz light rum
1 oz coconut rum
2 oz strawberries
1 banana
2 oz pineapple juice
2 oz coconut cream

Blend banana, coconut cream, and pineapple juice in a blender and set aside.
In the bottom of a hurricane glass, stir together both rums and strawberries.

Pour banana/coconut/pineapple mix slowly into the glass. The strawberry/rum mix
should creep up the sides of the glass to make a wonderful looking (and tasting)
summertime cocktail!

Several years ago, we found the Teralani. The boat beaches right on Ka’anapali Beach around 4:30 and its guests run on board as the tide goes out. There are numerous cocktails to be imbibed, heavy hors d’oeuvre to be eaten, and great conversations with other vacationers to be had (I’m FB friends with people I’ve met on these cruises!).

Watching the sun go down over the ocean is majestic…the sky never seems to meet the sea. It’s beautiful, special, and unlike any experience on the water I’ve ever had.

Every time we visit, we meet someone from Orange County and I know this year will be no different.

So, I’m looking to you. What should my challenge be?

Should I ditch my family one night? Should I do a group snorkeling excursion on my own? Should I just hang out at the swim up bar and chat up all the dudes that swim by?

Give me some ideas…help me get my flirt on in paradise!!!

The moment I saw this dress at Macy’s, I knew I had to have it. This dress had vibrant colors (that I LIKED!) and a full swingy skirt…it was made for me.

On Sunday, I met up with some girlfriends for an afternoon of shopping, walking, chocolate eating, and chatting in Malibu and before I even knew our agenda, I planned to wear my cute new dress. When I was stopped by a lady to compliment me, find out where I’d purchased the dress and who it was by (Calvin Klein), it confirmed I’d chosen well.

Paired with my favorite Coach aviators, a Stella & Dot bracelet, and new Corso Como sandals, I felt confident, breezy, but still put together!

Dork alert!

Spending time with Laura and Abby is what really made this a fun afternoon. These soul sisters nourish me in a unique way and I’m blessed to call them my friends!!!

Linking up with Abby for Dress for the Day
and Lindsey for What I Wore Wednesday!

My little sister and two of our friends, also sisters, like to get together and drink wine and catch up, while soaking in a hot tub. I was informed last week that they’d be coming over to my house for another fun sisterfest, so I planned a healthy menu (in hopes I would start Memorial Day Weekend on a good foot – too bad that only lasted one night). I made a chicken, a salad, quinoa with corn, and green beans – watch out, Rachel Ray! Due to my healthy dinner, I knew I needed to rock out a sweet dessert, otherwise my sister and sister friends would have staged a revolt!

We loved these and I know you will, too. If you like strawberry cheesecake, please try these…you won’t be disappointed!

Start by cutting the ends off fresh strawberries and core out the middles. In a bowl, mix 8 ounces of 1/3 fat cream cheese, a container of light vanilla yogurt, and a little powdered sugar. Mix it together and add to a plastic bag with a corner cut off. Fill the strawberries and then dust them with 2 crumbled graham cracker cookies. Then…stuff your face!

JJ’s Recommended Wineries in Paso Robles

Linne Calodo
Halter Ranch
Tablas Creek
Adelaida
Opolo
Oso Libre
Cass Vineyards
Turley Wine Cellars

We are vivacious and outgoing, we’re idea people, we’re often the life of the party…and we’re highly susceptible to distraction. 

As many of my ENFP sisters and I have learned over time and through maturation, there are a number of ways we harness our inherent characteristics for good and minimize the ones that can get us into trouble.

As a successful professional, I am pretty confident with my work persona that I’ve cultivated over the last 15 years. However, there are areas of my personal life that don’t get the same disciplined treatment. (Please don’t ever look in my closets, cupboards, or under my bed.) 

About once every six months, I get on a healthy living kick. I learn about something new and I am SO PUMPED.

I buy new sports bras and leggings.

I download home workout planners from Pinterest.

I briefly consider buying something stupid like this:

I talk to my trainer about new things to focus on.

I set crazy goals.

I throw out all the crap in my fridge and then hit the Whole Foods.

I pin things like this assuming I’ll eat more veggies if they’re cute:

I’ll wear an exercise monitor under my clothes each day.

I’ll get on a roll until one day, I’m at a golf tournament and just five minutes after I’ve finished bragging to my foursome about my new fabulous ultra-healthy lifestyle, the stupid beverage cart girl comes around with world famous DoubleTree Hotel warm chocolate chip and walnut cookies.

And I’m all diet, what diet?!

I do and have for as long as I can remember.

Now, I should tell you that my dreams are not prophetic or remarkable, so please don’t be misled.

No, my dreams are silly and weird and usually only funny to me.

Quite often, I awake with a jump to the reenk reenk reenk of my alarm clock and try to remember where I am. As soon as I wipe the sleep from my eyes and head towards the shower, I will stop and remember what nonsense was swimming around in my head just moments earlier.

• I am constantly falling off of a curb or slipping and falling in public. These are the nights when I am twitchy and awake feeling less than rested.
• Sometimes I fight with friends or coworkers about things that would NEVER happen. Many years ago, while working in Congress, I dreamed that we had a kitchen in our legislative office and my director was yelling at me for making macaroni and cheese the wrong way.
• I never see the future in my dreams, unless they involve me marrying a handsome movie star who was in a film I’d just seen the night before. I’m sure Jeremy Renner and I will live happily ever after.
• Sometimes I dream in cartoon. My sister recently reminded me that I once dreamed of cartoon penises. I’m sure this has something to do with the herbal scents all around me at the Dave Matthews concert that night.

Friends of mine have prophetic dreams that are SO CLEAR no interpretation is required. Others have dreams about fights with their husbands that are so real, it takes hours before letting their grudges go! Some tell me they’ve NEVER recalled a single dream. How our minds work during our sleeping hours is boggling.

On Friday, knowing I’d be seeing a certain someone over the weekend who I often feel tension with, I had a pretty big dream. I was getting ready to lay down the law and tell her exactly how I felt. In my dream, I was furthering my angst by telling everyone else what I was planning to do. But then, when the moment of confrontation came, my mouth was FULL of toothpaste and I couldn’t speak. I took that as a sign to keep my trap shut. 

So, how about you? Do you dream? If so, do you ever consult dream dictionaries? One of my favorites is www.dreammoods.com – I’m sure it’s absolute bunk, but it sure is fun to figure out what all the goofiness could mean!

We hadn’t spoken for a few days, which was not the norm for us. I emailed a cooking question, which she would typically respond to right away. She’d been sick, so when I didn’t hear from her, I didn’t give it much thought. A few days after that, I called to check in on her – no response. A week later, now sensing something wasn’t right, I sent another email asking what was going on in her life and telling her that I missed her.

Finally, I got a call back.

But it really wasn’t the kind of call I wanted to receive. Rather than catching up over the phone, she wanted to meet in person and to tell me some things that had been on her heart.

I got that antsy feeling in my gut. Something wasn’t right, but I couldn’t pinpoint what it was. I replayed all of our recent interactions and nothing stood out.

To read more, please visit A Deeper Family!