30 Days of Me: Day 6

Whatever tickles my fancy:

Whatever tickles my fancy eh? LOL... that could be dangerous... ;) ok, ok... we wont go there (just yet). But since I was just talking about tattoos yesterday. How would you like to see them? Oh, you would? GREAT! cause that's what this post is all about! ;) I personally love tattoos... I think I speak for alot of tattooed people when I say "they are art and we are the canvas". I love looking at them, I like going to conventions about them... and your always surprised by the people who have them... like the last time I went in to get tattooed and the person who was getting inked by my artist was an 83 year old lady...ZOMG! Rock on! ;) One thing I absolutely cannot tolerate is prejudice against them... like in the work place for example. Before becoming a stay at home mom, I used to (and have always) worked in the medical field and as most medical professionals know, tattoos usually must be covered. I cannot stand that! I get it... I totally understand if you don't want your x-ray done by this guy....

Sheesh! But to make the majority of us "cover up" one or two or of our exposing tattoos or even a full sleeve is ridiculous! So long as were not looking like Mr. Cool over there. LOL!

So below are mine and yes, I plan on getting more... how many? or as my husband likes to put it... "when are you gonna stop?" (not because he doesn't like them on me... he just knows how expensive they are) the answer to that is... I dunno... I'll stop when Im ready or have run out of things I want to remember permanently. So yeah, here goes and hope you enjoy the show.

# 1... my cherry popper so to speak ;) Done at Pleasures of the Flesh in Florida. Its the crest of the city I was born in (Heilbronn, Germany) and also where my mom and our family is from. I got because Im proud to be German... took me along time to not be afraid of that, especially when I went through a majority of my childhood being called "Nazi Kid". I also got it to remind me of where I come from and where a part of my heart will always be.

# 2 Veritas & Aequitas... means truth and justice in Latin... two words I believe in very strongly. EVERYONE asks if I got it because of Boondock Saints. No... not exactly, I mean I do love the movie but not that much. I got it because of the words literally. Without truth justice will fail and within real justice lies the truth. ;) This was done by first amendment in Oklahoma City (while we were stationed at Tinker AFB) Oklahoma. Did you know that Oklahoma was a dry ink state for 4 decades? Yup, that's right it was illegal to tattoo someone in the state of Oklahoma unless if was medical purposes and given by a doctor, up until 2007. Guess who just got lucky ;)

# 3 & 4 (Got them both together) Freshly inked, Freshly glossed, and Fresh outta the wrapper!
Oooh and just look at that prickly skin! LOL! Who said tattoos never hurt? Actually I never really felt it hurt until I got my lower back done... even the one I got on my stomach just made me giggle... yeah, seriously. The lower back though, ooh watch out! NERVE CITY! Anyway... these 2 are representatives for my loves, my husband on my back with the bat symbol and the tribal heart around it. (Yes, he considers himself to be Batman in alot of ways) and the bottom pic is for my daughter. The girl is Harley Quinn (from the DC comics), which is her middle name sake. The baby blocks Harley Quinn sits on has her initials inside them. These were both done at Studio 13 in Augusta, Georgia and while we were stationed at Fort Gordon, Army Post and were both drawn by yours truly.
# 5 (Hey! Im half way to 10 now!) A matching tattoo with my mom. Because I always wanted to get one done with her and one that matched. My mom and I are so close and I hate being away from her with this military lifestyle. Shes my best friend... and I miss her everyday Im away from her... So I have this butterfly on me that reminds me that she is always with me as am I with her.
What will my next be? I haven't quite decided on it just yet. But I do know I would like it in Sailor Jerry style! I have always loved that style and its one I haven't got yet. :)

30 Days of Me: Day 5

Allllllmost forgot...

Your favorite Quote:

Call me a geek but that is what I am... there is no denying it. So my quote is of course something geek-e-ly related...

"It's not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me" --Batman/Bruce Wayne (From the movie Batman Begins)

I love it because it holds true, for both myself and the hubs. I'd like to hope that people view me for what I can do or have done instead of simply what they see me as. In other words get to know the real me. Take a good long look beyond just the rough edges... see what I have done, where I have been, the things I have made good and then tell me what you really see me as.

Someday I'd love to get this tattooed on me... as if I didn't have enough batman/comic book related tattoos already. ;)

FANGtastic Friday!

So today is Photoshop fun day! Ever want to give yourself fangs? I did... and heres how you can too...

This video runs through a suuuuuuper easy tutorial.



If you do try it out please, blog it... I'd love to see how yours turned out!

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In

1. What is the longest road trip you've ever taken?

The longest road trip I've ever taken was literally across country.

It was from here:To there...

It was when a friend and I drove my friend's brother's car up to him in Fort Lewis, WA . We took 2 cars and it was about 3,700 some miles. It was fun but loooong! On the way back we took this route...

With a side pit stop in Vegas :)

2. Do you collect anything? Tell us a bit about it.

I sure do... I collect postcards! I have little over 1,000 postcards. I go through a website called postcrossing.com (you can see the link on my side bar) and swap postcards with people all over the world. Best postcard I ever got was from Hell, Norway ;) Yes there really is a Hell and its apparently in Norway! LOL I also collect pressed pennies. Yeah, you've seen them mostly at touristy type places and souvenir shops.

Welcome to Hell, watch out for the trolls! ;)

This is a few of pennies in my collection, I think I have over 150 now.

3. What is your favorite part about being an adult?

That's easy to answer... being a mom. Not that you HAVE to be an adult to be a good mom. I honestly believe this was something I was always meant to be. I love everyday that I'm with my little munchkin and I'm hate the days when we have to be apart, which is also why I choose to be a SAHM. I will be honestly depressed a bit when she goes off to Kindergarten next year. I can't wait to have another!!!

4. What song brings a tear to your eye?

Hmmmm... Songs usually don't make me cry... I mean I do get emotional over them but I usually don't cry. But one that does hit the heart is Nickleback's If Today was your last day. It just reminds me of Jim and it makes me sad.

5. Describe your first plane ride (how old you were, where you were heading, etc).

Oh that would be the big move from Germany to the States. I was 5 and Dad retired from the Army and we were headed to the states to live. ZOMG! I remember feeling so nervous! It was the first time I would meet my grandparents on my dad's side and any of my dad's family. It was also my first time going to an American Kindergarten. Oh and I didn't speak any English! You see my mom is German and my dad is American. My mom's English vocabulary was VERY limited and seeing how my dad's MOS (*cough* *cough* special forces) kept him from me ALOT when I was little I grew up speaking German as a first language. When we got to the states mom and I learned English together ;)

30 Days of Me: Day 4

Favorite Book: I have to be honest here and say that this whole "pick only one" thing to write about has me struggling! LOL

Ok so I love comic books, and those I categorize separately from regular books because...well... their...special. :D

My favorite comics are DC comcis. Im a HUUUUUUGE DC fan, and a HUUUUUUGE fan of Alex Ross and therefor love Kingdom Come. I also love graphic novels like Preludes and Knock-Knock Jokes.... Im a great big fan of Harley Quinn (so much that I have a tattoo of her on my right calf) I also love Catwoman: When in Rome. My faves out of all the batman comics have been obviously Detective Comics and Batman Confidential. The kiddo loves the new Brave and Bold series and any comic she can get her hands on that features Hawk Girl. (That is her idol) ;)



Recently my favorite series has become Gotham City Sirens... this series has me anxious and running to my favorite local comic book shop every Wednesday to grab up the newest in the series! I haven't felt that way about a comic in a long time... *sigh* This series has GREAT writing by Paul Dini and fantastic art work by Guillem March.




As far as regular novels go... I am totally in love with the works of Charlaine Harris. I love the way she writes the Sookie Stackhouse novels, she had me at "Sookeh is Miiiiiiine". If you like vampire novels and haven't yet read these... do please read them, they will not disappoint!

I love books so much that, last year hubs decided to buy me a nook for Christmas! I think honestly he was just tired of seeing the pile upon piles of books everywhere... Now all my books are neatly contained in this little baby...


An so I crafted the sleeve that holds my little nook (yes, shameless self promotion... so kill me! lol) seriouslythough arent these cute?



But it really does keep your nook from getting scratched and looking drab ;) I still do enjoy reading regular books and when I do get the urge to hoard, I mean buy books again, I head to one of the most fantastic book shops I have ever been to; The Chamblin Bookmine (http://www.chamblinbookmine.com/) in Jacksonville, Florida. The place is fantastic, it has literally miles of books. When I go, I clear my schedule for the day because I seriously get lost in this...

And this...

Show your Stuff!

I have seen some of the best crafts, projects, and tutorials at:



And right now they are hosting a show your stuff party! Yup, everyone gets together to show off their craftiness. So if you've got something you wanted to show off or just want to check out some of the other cool things other people have made, head on over to her blog and check out:

Halloween Crafty-Ness & Premeditated Murder!

I went thrifting today (shopping at the thrift store) if you like thriftiness like I do and are lucky enough to have an "American Thrift Store" near you that you haven't been to yet, I urge you to check it out. I love this store and can ALWAYS find what Im looking for in there! For CHEEEEEAP! And with my thriftiness I decided to craft up a Halloween Candelabra!


So here we have the parts (minus the base which was an old round top candle holder.. sorry forgot to include it in the pic before pic) to make said candelabra... the green glass votive was actually 1 of 4 and I got them for $1.00. The sconce you see, I bought for .79 cents, the mardi Gras Beads I had left over from this past February and was glad to see my hoarding went to good use! The round top candle holder (thats not pictured) was $1.50. I also bought mini plastic skulls, some silk fall colored leaves and a small black crow to hot glue to the center which was $1.00 each at the dollar tree.

I hot glued the old sconce to old round top candle holder that I used as the base. I then spray painted it all over with one of my many cans of black spray paint and covered the ugly lumpy hot glue parts with the silk fall leaves. I hot glued the crow and the skulls to the middle of the base, draped the old Mardi Gras beads and attached the votives to the sconce.

And Walah!...

Now I have a beautiful Candelabra to adorn my table for Halloween and Murder Mystery Party Night.


The crow I dubbed Edgar ;) "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary."

The other night the hubbers and I have decided we are doing it this year... we are throwing a Halloween bash! I can hardly wait! We have also decided to host a Murder Mystery with the party. If any of you have ever hosted or been to one before then you know how much fun this is, and for those of you who have never been to one before, I HIGHLY recommend throwing one or going to one. They are SOOOOO much fun. We started going to them while the hubs and I were stationed at our old base; Fort Gordon, Army Post in Georgia and had some of the best times! In fact we had so much good fun, we started throwing them ourselves!

Heres a few pics to enlighten you as to how much fun and laughs you can have with these parties!


The very first murder mystery party the hubs and I were invited to... The "Sour Grapes of Wrath" were I played a psychologist and hubs played the ever so sexy and hilarious "Enrique the Farm Hand".

Holy 80's! Yes this was a 80's style murder mystery! It was awesome... hubs played "Chris-Kick-Ass Karate" and I was LaDonna...


Hubs and I as "Chris-Kick-Ass-Karate" and LaDonna

This was the one we threw... Rockin 50's! And by far the best yet!

I cant wait to see how this one goes, this year's will be 'halloween themed" and I am already starting to collect an decorate for it!!

30 Days of Me: Day 3

Favorite T.V. Show



This one is pretty easy to answer... it would be True Blood! I absolutely LOVE the show. And since I know all my fellow trubies are wondering if I am Team Eric or Team Bill... it is most definitely Team Eric! Mr. Northman you may have your way with me any day of the week! The show is really great, and it is Looosely, and by having watched season 3 I mean very loosely based on the Sookie Stackhouse Novels by Charlaine Harris. Some of my favorite characters include: Eric Northman (Alexander Skarsgard)...obviously LOL! Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), Jason Stackhouse (Ryan Kwanten) and Lafayette Reynolds (Nelsan Ellis). I airs on HBO usually at 10pm on Sunday nights (and there is a reason its on after 10...because it does get a bit *ahem* steamy) The show just finished up its 3rd season and will be returning for a 4th season sometime next year.

And just to show you how Epic Mr. Eric Northman is... here's a little peek just from me to you. ;)



Now I ask you, what woman in her right mind would'nt want that laying beside her... vampire or no vampire... YUM! lol!

Oh and P.S...

My favorite "Classic" T.V. Show... one that to this day keeps me laughing is... The Munsters!



Ohhh Herman! Bahahahah! :D (Grandpa is really my favorite)

30 Days of Me: Day 2

Day 2: Favorite Movie

Again, here I am having to "amend" this one to... there are just too, too many that I love
to list just one. So I'm just gonna give you the run down of the ones, I would be pissed if
TMO would lose while moving us. LOL

So staring without any particular order...

Cry Baby: My beyond favorite movie with Johnny Depp... I love the 50's era and the
quirkiness of of John Waters direction. Besides who can resist at movie that has
Johnny Depp, Traci Lords, Iggy Pop and Ricki Lake in it! It has some of the best music
too! "Synopsis Says" Drape Wade Walker, also known as Cry Baby for his ability to shed a single tear, falls head over heels for square
Allison Vernon-Williams who, incidentally, is tired of being good!

Domino: Starring Keira Knightley, Mickey Rourke, Delroy Lindo, Mo'Nique, Macy Gray and the oh so yummy Edgar ramirez! This movie is loosely based on the life of bounty hunter (and personal my personal role model) Domino Harvey. Its a great tale and
shot by one of my all time favorite directors Mr. Tony Scott, his style just rocks my world! His movies are like being on a candy apple acid trip!

Batman, Batman Returns, Batman Forever, Batman Begins & Dark Knight: Note how Batman & Robin are not listed... yeah thats because Joel-freakin-Schumacher ruined the franchise when he put nipples in the bat suit!... If I ever meet him one day... Im gonna ask him Joel... WTF were you thinking! And then punch him straight in the nose! And George Clooney? Seriously....
He just makes me wanna puke! As for the others... I have and will always love Michael Keaton as batman, he is the reason I have fallen in love with Batman... he just made it come to life for me. Christian Bale plays an excellent batman and I am extremely pleased with the way Christopher Nolan has told the story in his new franchise. If you read the comics, he hasnt
totally done justice to them but then again there are so many ways to tell Batman's story that you could hardly pick one way. Never the less I think hes done a great job. And let us not forget the best joker known to man... Mr. Heath Ledger. Oh how I wish you were still among us.

Top Gun: Ok this one is a given... its my favorite Tom Cruise movie of all time. This is the movie I grew up watching and made
me answer "fighter pilot" to Mrs. Elswick's question of what I wanted to be when I grew up, in the 1st grade. Oooh so many lines that I could quote... unless you count that one time while I was really drunk and made a bet to... uh... nevermind ;) but lets just say I'll never forget that its "I feel the need, the need for speed not I HAVE the need for speed" ;)

All The Right Moves: Another Tom Cruise favorite. This one is a just a given too... because its shot in my dad's home town of Johnstown, PA. I fact both my parents are in the movie as extra's in a scene where its shot at my dads old high school.

A Life Less Ordinary: Another one of my quirky favorites! A tale of star crossed lovers in a sense of extraordinary measures. Has a great story line and stars Cameron Diaz and Ewan McGregor.

Four Rooms; Two words; Tim Roth! A story of hilarious mishap in a famous hotel on New Years Eve... and you'll never guess the ending! Another interesting fact is that this movie has 4 writers and directors ;)

Green Card; GREAT 90's film, starring Gerard Depardieu and Andie MacDowell. He wants a green card, she wants a green house...what to do? Oh lets get married... and see what happens!

Le Divorce: I have to admit the book by Diane Johnson is way better but the movie is great too. It stars Kate Hudson, Naomi Watts, and Stockard Channing.

Green Street Hooligans: An awesome movie about my favorite (European) Football team: West Ham United! This movie gives a great insider eye as to what "football" hooliganism is all about. And it has some good eye candy in it too.

XXX & The Marine: This is totally bias but my favorite hunky men are Vin Diesel & John Cena!

Where the Heart is: Cute little chick flick also based on a book by Bettie Letts. Starring Natalie Portman and Stockard Channing.

Bend it like Beckam: Girls playing soccer that equals kick ass in my book... seeing is how I used to play. I also love the directing style of Gurinder Chada... she also does a fantastic bollywood film called Bride and Prejuice which a cute Indian styled version of ... yup you guessed it, Pride & Prejudice.

Adams Family & Adams Family Values: Because thier ceepy and thier cookey and all together spooky. That makes a pretty good flick in my opinion. :)

The Back to the Future Trilogy: Yes, because Doc Brown ROCKS! This is the film that made me beg my mom and dad to buy a deloran! We had this on Betamax by the way... LOL!

Grease and Grease 2: Theres singing, theres dancing, theres John Travoltra, Oliva Newton John, Michelle Pfeifer and Maxwell Caulfield... not to mention it takes place in the 50s!

The Crow: Ohhhh Brandon Lee oh so yummy! I love insanely hot vigilanties! it has an awesome story line too.

The Punisher: I love the badass-ness of Frank Castle (played by Thomas Jane) it shows what any man would do had his family been taken from him. Dont you just love when justice prvails? Espeically by your own hand. ;)

Zombieland: Just my opinion but GREATEST zombie film known to man! Ok ok, I love George Romero's flicks too but this one I love especially for the "Billy Murray" scene... you know which one. I always tell my husband when he makes zombie type noises... "Dont make me Bill Murray you!"

And last but not least...

Boondock Saints: Oooh super yummy eye candy Norman Reedus and Sean Patrick Flannery... this movie holds dear to my heart for many many reasons... can you tell I have a thing for vigilantism? LOL!

So that sums up my list... yeah sums... LOL! Ok... ok.. so I could go on all day, what can I say I love movies! In fact I love them so much their usually something I give away as a gift. Mostly for birthdays and at Christmas... I put together a popcorn bucket of goodies like bags of pop corn, cinema candy like snowcaps and sour patch kids and a few movies that I think the person would like... and viol-la! You've got a great gift that's sure to be a hit! ... btw... thats our little secret , mmmm-kay ;)

I totally heart movies!

30 Days of Me: Day 1

So I have been introduced to 30 days of Me by a fellow blogger Christina at Christina's Crazy World. She is also doing the 30 days of Me challenge. I figured what better way for you guys to get to know me than this!... and since I never made a formal introduction, I decided this might be a little perfect. So without further ado..



Day 1: Favorite Song

This I HAVE to amend... because I cannot come up with just one song. I'm not a one song person... I love music, music is the key to my emotions. There are different song that mean different things and make me feel different ways for each one of them.

I like songs that make me feel, one that comes to mind is Broken by Seether feat. Amy Lee. I have always loved this song, it describes a very hard time in my life and I could relate to the lyrics very easily.

One song I have been very emotional over lately is Nickleback's If today was your last day. This song came on the radio the day after one of my best friends passed away just last month and it has never held more meaning for me until that day. If Jim could have given any last advice it would be to live without regret, love with all your heart, and take the path less traveled... because this is all there is Jess.. who you are in this life is who you'll ever be, so make the most of this time on earth. Jim was one of the best people I've ever known and I count him among my stars at night now. I hope to see him again someday.

I also like music I can just cut loose too, songs that I can "shake it" to and as they say "dance like no one is watching" ooh yeah... cause I so WILL bust out the sprinkler... LOL! Those songs as of lately include... artists like 3Oh!3, Katy Perry, Nelly, Taio Cruz, etc.

I hold a very soft spot in my heart for the band Journey... its because of my Mom. It was our first concert we ever went to together, and it was the moment we built the bridge of common. The moment where I stopped being a perpetual teenage punk and start seeing my mom as my best friend.

And on that note I also share a love for Aerosmith, The Stones, Zepplin and other "classic rock" bands... and that is a big thanks to dad. Although I am starting to see recently that some of the bands I grew up on are being played on classic rock radio stations... Oy vay!

I also love the works of Linkin Park (the new stuff is sloooooowly growing on me, and the jury is still out as to which I love the new album or not) and Metallic, Megadeath, Pantera, and Tool.

And lets not forget sweet techno, like: Crystal Meth, DJ Z Trip (Espcially Walking Dead feat. Chester Bennington (YUM!), Scooter, Schiller, and Orbital (Especailly Halycon) which of course will always make me think of mine an the hubbers first date. ;)

Then there is my love for the classics... favorite oldie song of all time... Ben E. King's Stand By Me. Bobby Fuller's I fought the law, The Righteous Brothers You've lost that loving feeling and of course Elvis's Jailhouse Rock and all of Johnny Cash!

Seeing how I am a child of the 80's I cannot hide that I also love the music from this era.. Yes, bring on Madonna, Eddie Money, Bruce Springsteen, U2, Mister Mister, Tears for Fears, Roxette, Def Leopard, Bon Jovi, The Cure, Billy Idol, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and Blondie!

And last but not least... Long Live Punk Rock and Rockabilly!!! I love the works of The Ramones (Sheena Is a Punk Rocker was like my theme song all through high school!) , The Sex Pistols, Iggy Pop, Drop Kick Murphy's, Flogging Molly, The Clash, Horror Pops, Racing for Pinks (Local Band) Hell Cat and the Prowl and I completely and utterly adore the Cry Baby soundtrack.... oh please Mr. Jailer!


So there you have it folks... the soundtrack to my life, and that's just a slice of it ;)

Negative in a big way.

So I couldn't stand it any longer and I took a test. Mother natures gift is supposed to be given to me today, but I don't see that happening anytime soon. I have no symptoms and no signs of "it" coming at all and I dunno what to do. To say that I am disapointed that the test was negative is an understatement. I should have known better... not to get my hopes up to high... hell, who gets pregnant on the first try anyway right?... Oh wait... I know who... all the worthless bitches of the world. I can count on both hands how many worthless, wanna-be mothers I know that have children and are getting pregnant. I know I shouldn't whine and cry about this... I know I should be happy that I have the chance, but is that really the truth? Do I really have the chance? That's just it... I don't know. Well one thing is for certain... I am calling the appointment line tomorrow and getting a doc appointment straight away... I don't think I can handle going through months and months of disappointment like this. I guess the only thing I can say that will be good coming out of all this is that I will probably lose a ridiculously, drastic amount of weight from all this hurt. What hurts the most is this is all Ive ever wanted... to create life... I am a mom to a wonderful 4 year old, that I wouldn't trade for the world but I feel incredible sadness that I cannot provide her a brother or sister. I see the struggles she has of being an only child, they are the same struggles I went through as a child myself. If I'm not meant to create life, then what good am I?

So here's to trying to have a baby before your 30! Its so unfair... FML

Fall Farm, Corn Maze & The Great Pumpkin Patch

Today we ventured to Kiln Mississippi its about a 45 min. drive North of us. We took the munchkin and our BFF family to Southern Promiseland Farm. They had a HUGE corn maze, a pumpkin patch, hay rides, and lots of fun activities for the kids to do. The weather couldn't have been more beautiful either. All in all it was a fantastic day... but I'll let the pics speak for themselves. :)

Ahhhh! Look out! Its Corn Man! (ok, so its really just the hubbers) But, I'd still run for your life if I were you ;) LOL!


Lewis & Clark leading us through the great corn expedition. :)

I am also proud to note that she can successfully rope a steer. I wonder if she can hog tie too?...


And last but not least... my favorite. The hallmark of the day :)

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In

1. What is the silliest get-up you have ever worn outside of a Halloween party? (from To The Nth)
Hmmm, I dont think I've ever worn a costume publicly unless it was Halloween, so I have to think back to my high school days when it was "Spirit Week" and we did clash day. ZOMG! I had some crazy outfits!

2. What is something that you gave up in order to live the military lifestyle? (from Pennies from Heaven)
Seeing my family all the time, it especially kills me to not be close to my mom. My friends, my home town and all the comforts of what use to be home. On the other hand, I wouldn't trade it for the world. When I married my husband not only did I get the man of my dreams but I got an awesome future with it, a chance to see different places, become well rounded , and make lots of friends in lots of places.

3. If money wasn’t a factor and you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be? And why? (from Life and Times of a Displaced Jersey Girl)
Oooh this is so easy for me to answer! It would be to Africa! Ive always wanted to see Africa and its culture & people. Id love to see the Serengeti and climb Mount Kilimanjaro!

4. If you were going to join the military, what branch would you join? Or which MOS/rating would you choose? (from And You Never Did Think)
The Air Force... that was my dream along time ago. And at the time I wanted to be a pilot. And now if I could pick my job it would be Medic. :)

5. What is your favorite thing to make for dinner? (from Armendinger Party of 4)
My moms food... which is usually German. Stuff like Schnitzel, Goulasch &... Curry Wurst. I also love to make food that my friends have taught me how to make. Recently I made one of my BFF's dishes of Picadillo with Plantain Chips. She was back door neighbor (like literally she lived across the grass from me) she is from Cuba and this is one my favorite dishes that she makes. Its comfort food really... when I miss my mom or my friends, I make it. <3