Tuesday, January 24, 2012

GREECE!

  We are mesmirized by the beauty, food, and culture of Greece and the Greek people. We want to go there more than anywhere else in the world (and we want to go many places, we love traveling and learning other cultures). We have been to India because our dad is from there, but we want to go everywhere at least once. We are going to discuss some history, cultural aspects, the food, and some beautiful destinations that will make you all want to visit!



    Greece is located in the southern portion of Europe. The country borders Albania, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria to the North, and Turkey to the East. The Aegean Sea lies to the East of Greece. The Ionian Sea to the West. The Mediterranean is to the South. It contains many islands, and 80% of the country is mountains.



    They are the birthplace for democracy, the Olympic Games, Western literature and historiography, university education, western drama (including tragedy and comedy), among others. Greece was established in 1830 after the Greek War of Independance. Athens is the capital. Greece is a developed country with an advanced, high-income economy, and very high standards of living. 94% of the population is Greek, 4% is Albanian, and 2% are other. Their legislature is a parliament. Their population now is around 10,787,690.

    This is the Parthenon, located in the Athenian Acropolis, a temple, dedicated the the Greek goddess, Athena. It's construction was completed in 438 BC, and the most important surviving of classical Greece. It is one of the beautiful architectural destinations among many other of their destinations.



    This is a memorial with the text of the Declaration of Independance, signed on January 1, 1822 at the First National Assembly at Epidaurus.


  
    This is a picture of  Navagio (shipwreck) bay, in Zakynthos. How pretty!



    This is a view of Mount Olympus!


    Greece primarily has a Mediterranean climate, featuring mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers. Yay, Beach Weather! LOL

    Greece is a parliamentary republic.

    This is a picture of Athens, the capital of Greece.


     This is a picture of a Stemnitsa, a typical village in Peloponnese.


    This a picture of  the Holy Trinity monastery,in Mereora, Thessaly.


    This picture of The Academy of Athens is Greece's national academy and the highest research establishment in the country.


    The ancient theatre of Epidaurus continues to be used for staging ancient Greek plays.


    Greek cuisine is a healthy Mediterranean diet, also known as a cretan diet. I love greek salads and Baklava, which is layers of phyllo dough and a honey and nut mixture! I want to try one of the most popular greek dishes, which is called Moussaka, and is ground beef and eggplant baked in a creamy cheesy marinara sauce. Their food is so delicious and many of their foods are healthy.

    Here is a picture of the delicious Baklava!


    This is a picture of traditional Cretan dancers.


    Panathenaic Stadium at the first day of the 1896 Summer Olympics (bottom) and the Olympic Stadium of Athens, during the 2004 games (top).


    This is a picture of the view in Santorini. So beautiful!


    This is a picture of one of the greek islands. So gorgeous!


    I hope this information and pictures make you want to go here as much as we do. It is so beautiful and has a lot of history, I do not know anyone who would not want to visit Greece!

Monday, January 23, 2012

Dollhouse Review

    Today we are going to review a book that we think all girls that love the Kardashians should check out! We are going to review some of our favorite books, movies, and shows weekly.

    Many of you know who the Kardashians are and either love them or hate them. We LOVE them. This week we are doing a book review on their book, Dollhouse. It is by Kim, Kourtney, and Khloe Kardashian. When we started reading this novel, we believed that it was going to be a replica of the way they became famous. You will soon realize it is not. Some similarities are the personalities and ages of the 3 main characters; Kass, Kamille, and Kyle, are almost dead on to Kourtney, Kim, and Khloe. Another similarity is that Kamille is the one that got discovered and became famous first and Kim was the same way. However, there are differences also. One is that they did not have a brother like Rob, did not have half sisters like Kendall and Kylie, and only had 2 half siblings (a brother and sister) not 3 brothers and 1 sister. Also their dad died in a storm out in the sea not from cancer. There are other similarities and differences, but we don't want to give the story away. At first we thought this book was pointless, air-heady, and questioned if we even wanted to read it; however, if you get through the first 5 chapters you will not want to put it down! We loved this book! Also there is a huge cliffhanger ending, and we can not wait until the sequel! If there is one that is!

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Sequin Trend

    We are really feeling the sequin trend lately. It is so cute and you can find it almost anywhere, even low price places that will not break your bank. Here are some items that we fell in love with when we saw them AND are affordable!


         We love this grey hoodie with sequin stripes. It is from Forever 21 and only $27.80.


    This grey/black sequin shirt is so cute and would look fab tucked into a royal blue skirt! It is also from Forever 21 and only $19.80.

    This silver sequin belt is so cute and would give any outfit a little pop. It is from Wet Seal and only $8.50.

    This black lacy and sequiny shirt is the cutest and has everything you would want in a shirt! It is also from wet seal and is only $10.00.

   We love this silver sequin dress and in this dress you would catch every eye in the room. It is from Rue 21 and only $29.99.


    This clutch is so adorable and will compliment any outfit! It is also from Rue 21 and only $9.99.

    These boots are our favorite. They will go with tons of outfits and make them pop! They are from Delia's and only $19.50.

    These silver sequin oxfords are so cute and I would wear them everwhere! They are from Francesca's Collections and only $38.00.

    This is an adorable multicolored sequin scarf and we love it so much! It is from Urban Outfitters and only $14.99.

    This romper is perfect for a date night or a night out with the girls. You could dress it up or down with heels or a blazer and scarf! It is from Urban Outfitters and only $29.99.



    This weekender is so cute and you could take it anywhere, anytime. It would look great with a neutral colored outfit. It is from Urban Outfitters also and only $49.99.




    This sequin skirt is perfect for a night out and could be paired with heels or or flats to dress up or down. It is also from Urban Outfitters and is a little bit of a splurge for $69.00.



    This sequin jacket is also a splurge but it is too adorable to pass up. It is from Urban Outfitters also for $79.99.

    I hope you enjoy these items and run out and get them yourself because this is a hot trend right now!

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Chocolate Chip and Oreo Cookie Brownie a la Mode

    Amiee tried out a new dessert recipe last week and it was so delicous. We found it on pinterest.com. Our whole family ate at least 4 pieces of it! It was so delicious and rich and we wanted to share it with all of you.

    What you will need:
        1 Box of Brownie Mix
        1 Box of Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix
        2 Eggs
        2 Packs of Oreos (double stuffed)
        Spray Oil
        Spray Whipped Cream (Ready Whip)
        Jar of Hot Fudge
        Vanilla Ice Cream
        Deep Glass Pan
        Wax Paper

    Directions:
        Preheat Oven to 350.
        Line your pan with wax paper. (Sadly we were out and they did stick without it.)
        Follow the directions on the cookie mix and when it is combined well and gooey press into the bottom of the pan.


       
    Next cover the cookie dough layer with a layer of oreos.



    Now follow the directions on the brownie batter. When that is mixed well until creamy add 1/4 cup of hot fudge to the batter. Then pour over the oreos.





    Bake for 30 minutes. (Our pan was smaller so ours was deeper and took well into an hour to cook through.) It varies in pans. When a toothpick is inserted through the layers and comes out clean it is done. Our cookie dough went through the oreos and brownies to the top, but it was still scrumptious.



    Let cool for around half an hour, cut and serve with vanilla ice cream, hot fudge drizzled on top, and whipped cream.


    I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as Our family and us! :)

DIY BEDROOMS!

     Our first blog post! How exciting! Recently we redecorated both of our bedrooms from boring to chic and stylish. If you like to get the best deals on things like we do then you came to the right place! Amiee decorated hers in an old hollywood/vintage theme. Meena's is more of a girly, glamorous theme.

    First we painted our rooms. Meena painted her room pink. The bucket of paint was only $16. We painted Amiee's room with extra white paint laying around. However, if we had to go buy some it probably wouldn't have cost much.

     Next we bought our comforters off Amazon.com. This place is a life saver.

     Amiee bought her comforter for $69.99 plus shipping. It included the comforter, 2 shams, bed skirt, and 3 throw pillows. For all that there is no way you could find that at the wal-mart with the design.



        Meena got hers for $63.99 plus shipping. It included the same things.


    Then we made little adjustments to the room with decorations.

    Amiee added a vintage mirror to her room and I think it really ties the old hollywood theme together!



    Another adjustment she made was adding a storage book. It looks like a book but actually has storage inside. It's so adorable, and contributes to the theme. It was a total steal, only $3.99 at ROSS.



    The last decoration we added in Amiee's room was a Audrey Hepburn painting. It was also at ROSS and was only $19.99.


   Meena's first decoration was a wall decal. It says 'Be your own kind of Beautiful'. It was from Amazon and only $2 plus shipping.



    The next decorations we added was a picture that was only $25.99 from Hobby Lobby. The emblem was only $9.99 and also from Hobby Lobby.


    Some more things we added are these cute wall ornaments. They were only $3.99 a piece and also from Hobby Lobby. One says Faith and the other says Believe.


   The last decoration Meena added in her room is a glammed out suede storage trunk that has embellishments on it. It was only $12.99 at ROSS. Our favorite item in the room!




   We were lucky to get these amazing deals and hopefully you can steal these deals too!