Jacksonville Zoo

Jacksonville Zoo
Jacksonville, FL
Date of Visit: April 15, 2012

Cost: $14.95 person (50% of for FONZ Members)

Website

This zoo was awesome! It was one of the coolest zoos we have been to. Everything about this zoo was great and we didn't even see everything about it because we were on a tight schedule.

Highlights: Jaguar exhibit! The black jaguar was really neat looking and I bet you will agree when you look at our photos. The jaguar wasn't even the coolest part, because we got to see a komodo dragon feeding! Those two things alone made this a 5 star zoo and it had so much more to offer. There was an awesome penguin exhibit, lots of African animals, Australian animals, South American animals and even a wild FL exhibit. That just scratches the surface of what Jacksonville Zoo has to offer. You have got to check this place out. We will definitely be going back.

Disappointments: You had to pay for the sting ray tank. AKA we didn't go. Also the cheetah didn't seem to be in a good place. It was mostly swamp water and the cheetah didn't appear to have a lot of room to roam. The cheetah exhibit appeared like it should have been a crocodile exhibit and the cheetah should be elsewhere. Two of our favorite animals elephants and rhino were there, but we didn't get good pictures. That is our fault though and not the zoos and we loved this place.

Pictures

Beautiful Jaguars. This is one of the coolest exhibits we have seen.

Komodo Dragon Feeding! Very Cool!

Anaconda

Snapping Turtle

Flamingos

Bald Eagles

Anteaters

Giraffe and Young Giraffe

More Giraffes

Kangaroos

Penguins

Rating

We gave this zoo a 5 out of 5 rating

Can not ask for much more out of a zoo.

What a cool place to go. We highly recommend it.

-No & Jenna

Movie Monday: The Avengers

I am so excited for this Review!

The Avengers

This movie was awesome! We went on Friday around 4:30pm to beat the crowds! Well maybe you didn't grow up watching these crazy super heroes.. the way my husband did. But I bet you've heard of them: Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk, Hawk Eye, & Black Widow! Well here is the trailer: 

I thought it would be nice if you had a male's opinion on the movie... here's what my amazing husband had to say: 

The Avengers was a brilliant movie. It is now my favorite superhero movie and that is saying something. I convinced Jenna that we should have many superhero movies and that would probably be our number 1 movie genre besides maybe Disney movies. I guess technically marvel movies are Disney movies so they dominate our movie list.

Anyways, this movie was great and has everything we look for in a movie. It had an incredibly well developed storyline and each Avenger played very well off of each other. I thought Cap and Iron Man fit the best together and I loved some of their back and forth. Marvel could not have had a better pick for those two that I can think of. Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans are amazing as Iron Man and Captain America respectively.

 It was cool how Coulson loved Cap too. Captain America is my all-time favorite superhero so I was glad to see someone share my fandom. This movie did a fantastic job with the Hulk as well. Hulk was used perfectly in this film and it really helped bring the movie along.

 I also thought Loki was the best developed villain of the Marvel movies thus far. It seems like they might do even better with the next Avengers movie given the teaser scene during the credits. I won’t give it away, but I recommend seeing it if you are a fan of Marvel Comics and what they do.

Negatives: The only thing I didn't really like was how they used Hawkeye. I think he could have been developed a little better because he didn't have his own movie and was used the least in previous movies. Thought they could have done a better job with him.

 It would have been nice to see the Black Panther in this movie as well. He is my second favorite avenger so that would have been cool. Maybe next time. There was one other part I disliked when Loki killed somebody, but I don’t want to give it away for those that haven’t seen yet. You should see it soon though; Jenna and I will probably go again very soon...

Thanks hubs! The only things I have to add: The special effects were awesome! We saw it in 3D and I feel like if you like action movies, you will love it either way! It also had a lot of humorous parts! We really enjoyed it! I hope you will share your opinion if you saw it! 

That's all for this Movie Monday! Thanks for stoppin by!

xoxo Jen.

Book Review: The Red Tent

I haven't done a book review in a while so I've decided its time to get back in the swing of things. Time to start reading again! A few years ago, I took a class on Women and Religion. It was really interesting and I learned a lot. This is one of the books we had to read for the class and to this day, I absolutely love this book!

Here's the teaser plot set-up on the back of the book: 

Her name is Dinah. In the Bible, her life is only hinted at in a brief and violent detour within the more familiar chapters of the Book of Genesis that are about her father, Jacob, and his dozen sons. Told in Dinah's voice, this novel reveals the traditions and turmoils of ancient womanhood--the world of the red tent. It begins with the story of her mothers--Leah, Rachel, Zilpah, and Bilhah--the four wives of Jacob. They love Dinah and give her gifts that sustain her through a hard-working youth, a calling to midwifery, and a new home in a foreign land. Dinah's story reaches out from a remarkable period of early history and creates an intimate connection with the past. Deeply affecting, The Red Tentcombines rich storytelling with a valuable achievement in modern fiction: a new view of biblical women's society.

Plot better explained: This is a fiction novel written by Anita Diamant. She takes the characters from Genesis and gives a woman's perspective of the time. Even if it is untrue, it is so captivating. The four wives of Jacob: Leah, Rachel, Zilpah and Bilhah all have unique personalities that lend help and friendship to their only daughter Dinah! Each month when the women of the tribe experience their monthly period, they spend their time together in The Red Tent. Diamant never changes the story of the bible, she just wraps her story within that story and add details. It was interesting and I couldn't put this book down.

Opinion/Critique:  I loved this book so much I wish it were a true story. I went back and read the biblical passage and I would recommend reading the passage before reading the book. My only critique would be for the reader to be knowledgeable that this is just a story, NOT TRUE. It just opens up perspective for characters mentioned in the bible that you never hear more than a sentence about. When one's name is mentioned, it allows the reader to reflect on the importance of that life, even if the individual is only mentioned in one sentence of such an important and holy book.

I was reading reviews on Good reads and a lot of folks are pretty critical regarding this book because it does not stick solely to the biblical narrative but ventures off to create it's own story. As a Christian, that kind of what I loved about it. It is a novel and Diamant is in no way saying its true, she is just trying to captivate an audience with an entertaining story. I think she could have spent more time developing the male characters but overall I could tell she focused her story mainly on women. 

I'll have to update my good reads account and add it to the sidebar if you all are on there.. I love reading..More book reviews to come in the future! Have you read this book? If so, I'd love to hear your opinion!

That's all for now! Thanks for stoppin' by

xoxo Jen.

DIY T-shirt Tassel Scarf

Hey Everyone! Yesterday I made the cutest scarf so I thought I'd share it with you today!

Its simple. All you need is an old t-shirt and some scissors:

Directions: 

1. Cut the shirt under the sleeves. You will use the bottom half for this scarf. 

2. You can discard the top part or put aside for a different project.

3. Now to add your tassels! You can make them as long or short as you want:

4. Once you have your tassels cut... Pull each one gently. Not too gentle. 

5. When you're done, it will look like this: 

6. Now wear it!

&

cute huh? I wore mine yesterday! Love it!

Leave me a comment and let me know what you think!

If you have a fun post, I'd love you to share it at my link up party here

Thanks for stoppin by, 

xoxo Jen.

Linking Up with these wonderful Parties!

Momnivores Dilemma, Shabby Creek Cottage, A Glimpse inside Blog, 36th Avenue, Seven Alive, Delightful Order, 52 Mantels, Loving this Crazy Life, Somewhat Simple, 733 blog, House of Hepworths, Yesterday on Tuesday, Allie Makes, Crafty Blog Stalker, Rhinestone Beagle, Christina's Adventures, Fireflys and Jellybeans, the shabby nest, at the picket fence, simply designing, chic on a shoestring decorating, happy hour projects, delicate construction, kojo-designs, The Artsy Girl Connection, Craftionary, One Artsy Mama, Little Becky Homecky, Cherished Bliss

SPICY Link Up #3

Yay! It's official! Party #3!

Here's some popular posts from last week:

Polka Dots & Pregnancy from Pretty, Polished, Perfect

My Lush Experience from The Life of a Not so Ordinary Wife

What I wore Wednesday & Social Media at The Foley Fam!

Snicker Doodle Candy Cups... My mouth is watering. This post can be found at Couponing & Cooking

Alright, I made some new buttons! Grab as you wish but its not mandatory!

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or you can use this one if you are linking up to the party

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or you can click the buttons tab at the top and grab a button from there!
PS. Blogger likes to insert space where I did not *Enter* so I apologize for gaps in this post!

Party Rules are few: 

1. You must be a follower through GFC or Linky followers!

2. Link up whatever you want! --as many different posts as you want!

3. Tweet, FB, Spread the word & Please link back to my page at the bottom of your post! You can use a new button or just add a link!
4. Visit others and leave some love in their comments section!

Enjoy! Can't wait to see what you've been up to!

Mote Marine Laboratory

Mote Marine Laboratory
Sarasota, FL
Date of Visit: April 11, 2012

Cost of Admission: $17 (free for Fonz members)

Website

The Mote Marine Labratory in Sarasota was an interesting place to go. It was kind of disappointing though. The parking was free, but it was so cramed and packed that we barely got a spot. It took us quite a while to find parking. I personally would have rather paid for it, than have people create their own spots and box others in. The aquarium was very small as well so it would have gotten 0 stars if it wasn't free. It did have some good parts, but I don't think we'll be going again and I do not recommend it.

Highlights: The Penguins were really cool, but they are at the majority of zoos and aquariums in Florida. These African penguins can be seen at Jacksonville Zoo and Lowry Park Zoo among others. Both of those zoos have way better exhibits for the penguins also. Plus this exhibit is only temporary at Mote Marine Labratory. They did have a barracuda that you could see from a cool angle so that was really neat. Unfortunately, no picture of that. That was the only saving grace for this place besides the price being right.

Pictures

Jellyfish

Lionfish

Needlefish

More Jellies

Shrimp

Sea Turtle

We barely gave this zoo 2 elephants out of 5. The barracuda/shark exhibit and the fact that we got in free were the main reasons it got any elephants at all. This is the worst zoo or aquarium we have rated to this point. I also got sick from the food served at the aquarium making everything worse. Only go if you are in the area. Don't make a special trip.

-Noland

Movie Monday: Winnie the Pooh

I'm starting a new weekly blog schedule... This is our first Movie Monday! 

And this week I'm talking about Winnie the Pooh! 

Have you seen it? 

It's so cute! My husband and I loved it. Although we have a little bun in the oven, we will definitely be purchasing this one in the future. Winnie the Pooh is one of our favorites.. and boy or girl, we know our little one is going to love Pooh bear!

Plot Summary: During an ordinary day in Hundred Acre Wood, Winnie the Pooh sets out to find some honey. Misinterpreting a note from Christopher Robin, Owl convinces Tigger, Rabbit, Piglet,Pooh, Kanga, Roo, and Eeyore that their young friend has been captured by a creature named "Backsoon" and they set out to save him. (from imdb)

Our Review: This movie is definitely for kids! According to Rotten Tomatoes, it scored at 91% out of 100%! My husband and I loved it. Anyone who watches it has to keep in mind that this is a children's movie. So open your mind to see through the eyes of a child, and you'll love it too! Pooh is so friendly and love-able! We'd like to recommend it to ya! Enjoy and leave me a comment with your opinion!

One of my favorite things about this movie is the soundtrack! Zooey Deschanel does the theme song and a few other songs... Here is "So Long" by Zooey! Take a listen here: 

That's all I have for today! Hope you will check it out if you have some kiddos or just enjoy kids movies! 

Next Monday's movie: The Avengers!

Going with the hubs this weekend to see it! Can't wait! 

Thanks for stoppin' by:

xoxo Jen.