Mexico Travel Diary

I'm sorry I took a little hiatus from the blog! I have a good excuse for not posting though, I was on my honeymoon in beautiful Cabo San Lucas, Mexico ; ). It was a very late honeymoon (we got married last September) but better late than never! We decided to go to Cabo because we heard it was absolutely beautiful there and we'd never been before. I wanted the weather to be perfect and it didn't disappoint - there was no rain and we enjoyed clear blue skies and the hot sun every day. It was also a short flight to get there (less than 5 hours)! I took a ton of pictures and wanted to share some with you guys!

My California Travel Diary

Besides getting hitched in California, we also had time for a little vacation fun and I thought I'd share my travel diary with you all. I LOVE California, it's my favorite place in the world, I think I may have lived there in a previous life or something because it always feels like home to me when I visit! I love the sunshine, the palm trees, the warm weather, the ocean, the healthy food, I could go on and on and ON. But I won't, instead I'll just explain some of these photos ; ).

Clockwise starting from the top left-hand corner: After landing at LAX we rented a car and drove to Santa Barbara. We stopped in Malibu on the way for lunch and unfortunately I didn't run into Cindy Crawford again like I did last time : (. , palm trees in Montecito, my favorite green juice from Pressed Juicery (it's so good!), D. after we picked up our marriage license at the Santa Barbara Courthouse.

More palm trees (I'm obsessed!), enjoying the sunshine with our friends at Butterfly Beach, my bridesmaids the morning of my wedding walking around the Four Seasons Biltmore (which we did not stay at, but we pretended we were guests at tee hee), hanging out by the pool.

We had a beach day the day after the wedding with all of our friends and family, which was so much fun! The next day we took a drive through the Santa Ynez Valley, that's me at the Santa Cruz County Fair (which was closed, we were there too early), another photo from the fairgrounds. This is where "The Lost Boys" was filmed so we had to stop!

After we left Santa Barbara D. and I drove North up the coast to San Simian where I almost drove our rental car off the cliff because I didn't put it in park (oops) and then through Big Sur (that's the top right-hand photo) which was absolutely beautiful! We stayed in Carmel which is just outside of Big Sur and went to a vegetarian restaurant one night in Pacific Grove called Julia's, it was the best vegan food we've ever had! And it was funny because the host was also the server AND the chef, it was a one-man band! Last photo is of my handsome new hubby driving, on our way to San Francisco ; ),

The Golden Gate Bridge! My cousin Lisa and I. She lives just outside of San Fran and I'm so happy we got to spend time with her and her lovely hubby! They took us on a tour because D. had never been there before so we got to see Mrs. Doubtfire's House which made me happy but sad, too. (RIP Robin Williams.) And then we took in the sight of the houses that you see at the beginning of every "Full House" episode, they're called the Seven Sisters except my photo only shows 3 of them ; ). Couldn't fit them all in!

Like every vacation, ours was too short but we're planning to take an official honeymoon when it's -30 degrees and miserable here, in January or February, somewhere hot!

Thanks for reading! And thanks for all your comments in my last post, you guys are the best!

xo

My California Adventure!

Helloooo everyone! Sorry for the lack of posts! I have a good reason for not blogging though: I was on vacation in sunny California last week with D. We had an amazing time! We flew in to San Diego and stayed with my relatives for two days (I miss them already!). Then we rented a car and drove up to Long Beach, stayed there for a couple of nights, then drove up to Santa Barbara and stayed for three days, then made our way back down to L.A. and flew out of LAX last Sunday. These are pictures from my iPhone and Instagram, funny enough they turned out better than the pics I took with my DSLR. (I blame the photographer - me!) Clockwise starting from top left: My Aunt and Uncle took us on a tour of San Diego and we stopped in beautiful La Jolla to see the ocean, walking in Venice Beach (it's a bit of a freak show down there), hanging out on our rooftop of our hotel in Long Beach, a smoothie and a juice from Cafe Gratitude in Venice Beach. (So good!)

I met fellow blogger Carrie from This Free Bird! We had become friends through the internet and have been following each other on our blogs and social media for about 3 years so it was so nice to meet her in person! D. and I met her at her boyfriend's restaurant, The Corner in Hungtington Beach. The food was AMAZING! And he customized a dessert for me, vegan and gluten-free! After Long Beach, we drove up the coast and stopped in Malibu and put our feet in the ocean. I also went into the All Saints store there where I found these boots! Sadly, I did not buy them : (.

It was soooo easy to eat a vegan and gluten-free diet in California, which I was worried about before leaving on vacation. But they have juice bars, smoothie shops and serve acai bowls everywhere, which is what you see in that first picture. While in Santa Barbara we drove to the Santa Ynez Valley and went to Sunstone Winery I didn't drink any wine (I just don't like the taste) but I drank a lot of Pressed juices while in California, this green one was my favorite. The last pic is of a Santa Barbara sunset one night. Breathtaking, isn't it?!

Yes, that is a pig with a bit of a mohawk whom we met on a bike ride, being pushed in a camo baby stroller. He was very friendly! ; ) We went on a ferry ride to Coronado Island while in San Diego with my Aunt and Uncle, that's D. riding on the bike path in Santa Barbara (I am in LOVE with palm trees), the last pic is another one of the winery.

So we met this hippie dude in a parking lot (he was as high as a kite) and I had to take a picture of his van. He glued all these little figurines on it. Crazy, hey? We stayed at a Bed & Breakfast while in Santa Barbara, called the Harbor House Inn which was just lovely and they provide bikes for all their guests so D. and I rode our bikes all around the city. When we were in L.A. we went to see stand-up comics perform at the Laugh Factory and everyone was hilarious, there was one comedienne, Iliza Schlesinger, who almost made me pee my pants. We also drove around Bevery Hills that day, that's The Beverly Hills Hotel.

My favorite beach, Butterfly Beach in Montecito (where Oprah has a house!), another pic on the beach (with my crazy, frizzy, naturally curly hair!), the infamous Chateau Marmont Hotel! (I tried lying my way to get in but security was too tight.) And another juice!

CELEBRITY SIGHTINGS!! Wherever I was in California I was always on the lookout for celebrities! I actually put it out into the Universe: "Universe, please let me see some famous people while I'm in California." We saw a few: pregnant Tammin Sursok, who plays Jenna on 'Pretty Little Liars' came out of a store in Venice Beach while we were driving past, Dustin very proudly pointed out Brent Spiner who played Data on 'Star Strek' when we were at Malibu Country Mart, Edward Furlong stepped on Dustin's foot while walking on Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood (he looked really strung out) and I chatted with CINDY FRICKEN CRAWFORD in a Malibu Starbucks!! She was in line behind me and I turned and saw that famous mole on her face and was like, "OH MY GOD, CINDY CRAWFORD IS BEHIND ME!" She was on her cell phone. Once she got off, I couldn't NOT say something to her, I mean she was RIGHT THERE. So without thinking about what I was going to say, I turned to her and said, "I just have to say I LOVED your workout tape from the '90's with Radu." (Radu was her trainer, click here for the workout video.) She laughed and said, "That was a long time ago! That workout was hard, it's still hard!" I told her I used to do it all the time when I was a teenager. She said, "That's too funny!" Then I left and went outside to meet D. I told him, "Cindy Crawford is in Starbucks, Oh My God, you HAVE to take a photo of us, I talked to her, we're like besties now!" So we waited but when she came out she was on her cell phone so I didn't want to bother her. But she smiled and waved at me and said "bye" when she left! She was so nice! The last celebrity we spotted was Mila Kunis at LAX (sans Ashton). We saw her going through security and then ended up sitting right behind her at a restaurant in the airport. She was with an assistant I think. D. would not let me ask her for a photo, he said she looked like she didn't want to be bothered which was true. Actually he begged me not to ask for one and asked me if I could act normal. So I obliged, you're welcome D.! But I did take a picture of him instead and in the background you can see the back of her head. She was wearing a ball cap.

Although it was exciting seeing all these celebrities, my favorite part of the trip (besides spending time with my relatives) was when we spent time in Santa Barbara and Montecito, which is right next door to SB. We absolutely loved it there! It is such a beautiful place and we hope to go back soon!

I hope you're all having a great week! What's new with everyone?

 

I'm Leaving

 I don't think she wants me to go

I haven't had a real vacation (as in more than three days out of town) since February 2010 so I'm overdue for a holiday. I am beyond excited to be going to Phoenix, Arizona Saturday for a week with D. and my family! In addition to all the shopping I'll be doing (and there will be LOTS of it because I hear Phoenix has some amazing outlet stores) I plan on doing some sightseeing, going to a national baseball game, relaxing by the pool and eating out at different restaurants. And did I say shopping???

I can't tell you how excited I am to see these! I love palm trees more than I love H & M.

via

Ok so I have a silly confession to make. Apparently, according to some religions, the world is going to end this Saturday at 6 p.m. because it's Judgment Day and at 6 o'clock I'll be in an airplane which kind of freaks me out! I don't really believe in this stuff and think it's ridiculous but I would be lying if I told you I haven't thought about it. But hopefully everyone will be fine and God will let us live a little longer...so I can make it to those outlet stores ; ).

I won't be blogging while I'm away because I don't think I'll have internet access but I have two scheduled posts for next week so check back soon! Have a great weekend! If we all make it through! Just kidding. Kinda.

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Weekend Fun

This past weekend I took a drive by myself out to my brother's place for a visit. He lives on a beautiful ranch not too far outside the city where I live. I know this post isn't fashion/beauty/entertainment - related but I thought I'd share something different with my readers : ). Here are some pics from last Sunday...

There are six horses altogether(including a miniature one that my nephew rides) but a few of them were M.I.A.

Please excuse my un-washed hair and bare face. Sundays are my lazy days ; )

Canola Field

Kitty

Peanut is on the left, Rudder is lying down.

I was surrounded by hundreds of insects while taking these pics and of course did NOT mange to escape unscathed. I counted 7 mosquito bites.

We get amazing sunsets in the summer!

Ok I had to post this pic. What's in this bag you ask? My sister-in-law's wedding dress! Has anyone heard of Store Smart Bags? Maybe I've been living under a rock but I hadn't up until a few days ago. The bag acts like a vacuum and sucks your clothes in so you have more room for storage. What does that mean? There's room for even MORE clothes! Brilliant? I think so.

My goofy nephew

This is what happens when you turn your back on a two-year-old for 2 seconds.

Back to Life, Back to Reality

The Aria Hotel

DON'T try this at home (woman in the audience at Viva Elvis)

dress - H & M Garden Collection

My Mama and Aunt

Well, I'm back from Vegas and back to Reality. (Sigh.) I had a wonderful time with my mom and aunt from San Diego who I go with every year. The weather was extremely hot so we lounged by the pool in the mornings and afternoons and gambled/went to shows in the evening. The first show we saw was comedian Vinnie Favorito at The Flamingo where we were staying. His show was highly offensive and raunchy but hilarious at the same time. It was an interactive show and he basically made fun of people in the audience for about 80 minutes. I found myself turning to complete strangers sitting beside us with the look of "Oh my GOD, did he just SAY that???" on my face. At the end of his routine he gave away tickets to another comedy show playing on the strip and I won them by literally screaming like an idiot. (I was the loudest.) So he brought me up on stage and made fun of me being a blonde. At the end of his shtick he told me to kiss him on the cheek as a thank you for the tickets and as I leaned in for the kiss he quickly turned his head and kissed me on the lips! Hardy har har. Too bad the show I won the tickets for sucked. As in BAD. Stinky cheese-bad. But that's okay, that night we saw Cirque Du Soleil's Viva Elvis show at the new Aria Hotel and it was amazing! I also did some shopping in Sin City at the Premium Outlet Mall and at Victoria's Secret which we do not have in Canada yet. And I bought some awesome (but expensive) skin care products at a kiosk in the Planet Hollywood Mall that I will share with you in an upcoming post. I played the slots too and lost some money but at least I didn't go home entirely broke! Oh, and I still got a bit of a tan, even wearing SPF 100! ; ) I hope you had a great week! Stay tuned for a giveaway shortly!

Vegas, Here I Come!

Well I am flying to one of my favorite cities in the world this afternoon for a min-vacation! I can already hear the "ding, ding, ding"-ing of the slot machines - it's music to my ears : ) For awhile anyway. Until I want to take a sledge hammer and smash them to pieces. This will depend upon whether I win or not ; ) I'll let you know. Besides shopping, lounging by the pool and touring I am really excited to see the new Cirque show "Viva Elvis." Has anyone seen it?  I also can't wait to see palm trees! They make me so HAPPY! Yes, I'm a nerd. But it's the little things that give me the most joy in life. Those of you who live in a climate where palm trees can thrive are so lucky, you have no idea what I would give to be able to transplant a few back to Canada. They're so beautiful, tropical and exotic. I never see them unless I'm on vacation so when I'm surrounded by them I'm in heaven. Ok, enough about vegetation. If there are any cool places/attractions you recommend I see while I'm in L.V. (besides the usual touristy jaunts as I've been to Vegas many times) please let me know! Thanks! )

Have a wonderful week and I will be back in a few days! And remember: what happens in Vegas, doesn't stay in Vegas - it comes back home with me so I can post it on this blog ; ) So I guess I better behave!

Vancouver Continued

Here are the last of my Vancouver pics I'll be posting. I didn't take a lot of scenic shots because it was bloody raining the whole weekend and I didn't want to get my new Nikon D3000 wet. Oh well. The city was still beautiful! (The rings above are from Aldo and a gift from my friend K.)

Our view from the top floor of our hotel.

We caused a scene at the Starbucks drive-thru. And I think I need some chapstick. Why I am wearing sunglasses when it's cloudy and raining outside I don't know. Because it's fashionable???

Jenessa

Me & Kristin at dinner

Dessert. We swore the 3 of us wouldn't be able to eat much of this delicious, rich chocolate cake after our amazing, filling dinner. We had two pieces. Oops.

J. feeling K's pregnant belly. Baby was kicking like mad! We get to meet him in June!

In any city that I visit I gravitate towards taking pictures of really old, historic churches. I have a fascination with them, I think they are absolutely beautiful. Does anyone else share this fascination?




My buds! Don't know what I'd do without them.