Swimming With Mantees

The highlight of my trip to Florida was swimming with manatees at crystal river. It's a crazy thought to be swimming and interacting with wild animals that are more than twice your size, but I would definitely recommend it if you are like me and have exhausted your fair share of Orlando theme parks.

There are quite a few companies in the area that allow you to swim with manatees. My sister had a groupon with the American Pro Diving Center. You basically go to the shop, fill out out some forms, rent gear, and watch a short video on manatee conservation. The dive master will meet you on the pier where they take you by boat to wherever they see manatees. It's then a two hour swim with these animals where you can watch them and touch them if you want. When you first get there everyone is really excited to have found them so you all fight for a spot around a single manatee or pair of manatees. The best part, in my opinion, is towards the end when everyone has gotten a chance to interact with them and you can find a manatee on your own and just swim with it without worrying about other people. It was a really peaceful experience and I am 100% glad that I went.

DIY: Clip-In Hair Bows

I've been seeing hair bows pop up everywhere lately, and I think that they are a really pretty touch to add to an outfit. They are also usually super overpriced. BUT they are easy and cheap to make at home, and you can add your own personal touches if you choose to do it yourself, without even picking up a needle. I also think that these could be equally as adorable as a bow-tie for a little boy and I would make a ton if I had one.

What you'll need:

Fabric (1/4 yard is sufficient for three or four or more bows depending on the size)

Fabric Glue

Alligator Clips

Scissors

Step 1: Fold over the 1/4 yard fabric lengthwise one time, the desired width of your bow.

Step 2: Fold that same side over one more time to get a neater edge.

Step 3: Cut the fabric right at the edge of the fold.

Step 4: Fold over one end to the middle of the fabric, and apply fabric glue.

Step 5: Fold the other half of the fabric to meet the previous fold, overlapping slightly.

Step 6: Cut a strip off the original fabric to be used for the center of the bow. It should be about 3 times the desired width of the center.

Step 7: Apply fabric glue to the edge of this newly cut fabric strip.

Step 8: Fold the fabric in thirds, pressing down lightly so the glue sticks.

Step 9: Take the body of the bow and pinch it in the center.

Step 10: Wrap around the center of the bow with the middle fabric, cut to a reasonable length, and glue down.

Step 11: Glue on an alligator clip to the back, and allow to dry.

That's it! There are numerous sizes you can make and patterns you can use. Just be creative with it and enjoy!

Summer Scrapbook: May

May was really exciting for me. The first week or so was extremely stressful because of finals, but after that I had a lot of time to do things that I really missed doing that working and being a full time grad student doesn't really allow you to do too often. Even though it's not really hot enough to feel like summer yet here in Chicago, I crammed a lot of stuff into the past few weeks because I knew I would be starting a full time internship today. I worked mostly on the weekends so I had free time to go out in the city, clean, catch up on tv shows, and I even took a trip out to Florida to visit my sister. Overall, I had a blast. Even though I will be working two jobs, I am excited to see what the rest of the summer brings.