Highly Anticipated Travels

While I consider myself fortunate to have gone on a considerable amount of mini-vacations throughout the year, I can barely contain my excitement for my "real" vacations coming up in the near future. First on the agenda is my annual pilgrimage to the city of sin, to visit my bestest best friend.  It's a little over a month away, and I'm literally counting down the days...

Next up is a weeklong jaunt to the Lone Star state.  My boyfriend and I are going to Austin in November to experience all that 6th Street  this amazing city has to offer! I'll get a chance to visit some family, and also find out if we'd like to possibly relocate to this fair land. :)

Last but not least, I just surprised my honey with a cruise to the Eastern Caribbean for our 5 year anniversary in January!  Our ships leaves from Miami, and stops in Half Moon Cay, St. Thomas, Puerto Rico, & Grand Turk. He was pleasantly surprised, to say the least. We've never been on a cruise, so any tips and advice are welcome!

Do you have any exciting trips coming up? Any tips for the places I'll be traveling to? I'd love to hear :)

Summer Reading List

I sincerely apologize for the lengthy absence...sometimes my brain requires a little vacation, if you will. I return with vigor, and a great deal of excitement/inspiration for upcoming posts! I am currently inspired by some recent thrifty finds at my local book store. You all know my affection for coffee table books, and these lovelies, (in the bargain bin, at that!) could not be ignored.

Detailing the extensive career of one of America's most noted mid-century artists, this book about Alberto Vargas showcases some of his most famous works of art. Breathtaking in every realistic detail, every drawing has a life of its own. 

 My absolute favorite period of modern art is illustrated in every striking page of this book.   Stunning, to say the least.

 Ummm....and did I mention? The Bible has arrived in the form of Vogue's September issue, & I can't wait to leaf through all 758 pages!

What have you been reading lately? I hope it's something that stirs your soul; that you can't take your hands off of!

My Weekend, Via Instagram

Some down-home fun @ the Jason Aldean concert

Yummy ice cream on a lovely Sunday

Side Up Bike Expo...which really made me want to pimp out my cruiser even more...plus get more tattoos =/

Lovely architecture at a local historical park 

This past Friday, I ventured off to Santa Cruz for some solo soul (and retail) therapy on the beach.  It felt like I had a 2 hour massage, which was very necessary after a hectic week, which included dealing with obnoxious country boppers & sitting in traffic for 1.5 hours (only to drive 4 miles) to see the amazing Jason Aldean in concert.

On Saturday, my boyfriend and I did a little jewelry shopping :) and went to a hole-in-the-wall (did I mention awesome?) Korean lounge for his coworker's farewell party. 

Sunday we spent time with his family and went to a ridiculously rad local bike expo, followed by some of the best BBQ in the world.  I started running/exercising hardcore a couple weeks ago, so I'm always hungry! 

I hope you all had a lovely summer weekend :)

xo

D

Drunk in SF (Because that's the most accurate title)

So...my boyfriend and I planned a lovely little day in San Francisco on Sunday. (We even spent hours painstakingly tracking the MUNI route so we could travel via public transportation all day!) Everything started off as planned: we paid a visit to The Buena Vista, a small restaurant that Roehl's been dying to visit, one that just so happens to serve up some lethal "world famous" Irish coffee.

Let me just start off by saying that this is not going to be one of those typical oh-how-lovely-and-glorious-life-is posts.  I'm going to conclude that thought with the wise words of an old friend: "Never mix your liquor. Just DON'T. DO. IT." Now you know, kids. Moving on...

After my little Irish coffee experience, I had quite a decent buzz going, and I was ready to tackle our next destination- brunch. We dined at Paul K, because this is one of the better places to get your bottomless mimosa on, and we all know how much I love a good bottomless mimosa sesh. Here's where that whole "no mixing" thing came into play. After 4 glasses, I was embarrassingly sloshed with an oncoming mimosa coma. Roehl was smart and didn't want to get tired, so he had opted out of said self-induced mimosa coma.

At one point, I even broke a champagne glass in half with my obnoxious drunk girl strength, as I was literally just setting it down on the table (I swear!) The rest of the day had all gone to shit, and I had no desire to partake in vintage shop festivities, which is unheard of for this gal. I was tired, disoriented, and just plain drunk. It sucked.

I got a few good pictures out of it though...

I wish I had a more lively story to tell you, but that's the truth folks.  Plain & simple.  I suppose a do-over is in order. If any of you have some good old-fashioned daytime drunk stories, please share! We can commiserate together. :)

My First Time Whale Watching...

Along with the wedding on Saturday, we jam-packed our weekend with other adventures, including sake bombs on Friday for my friend's birthday, and whale watching on Sunday.  Other than dragging on for 5+ hours, it was a pretty cool experience.  I tried my best not to puke my brains out as the small boat bounced mercilessly along the Pacific  Ocean.  After a quick nap and 2 cup o' noodles, I felt a bit better and managed to have a good time.  We saw quite a few sea beasts, and even managed to snap a decent up-close shot, (see photo # 2.) 

Obviously, I was ecstatic to be back on land, so we ventured out to lunch at one of our favorite Carmel restaurants, and then to the beach, of course!

I don't think I'll ever feel the need to go whale watching ever again; I'm somewhat more of an adrenaline junkie.  That's why I can't wait to finally go white water rafting in a few weeks!  God, I love Cali...it's going to take a lot of adjustment if we ever decide to move.  Hope you all had a fun-filled dreamy weekend!

:)

Lauren & Joey's Winery Wedding

If there's one thing I absolutely love, it's a beautiful wedding.  My beyond-gorgeous friend Lauren just got married on Saturday at a local winery and everything was breathtaking! (Remember the bachelorette party?) The setting and details were so perfectly curated; I wish I had better photos to post of their lovely nuptials! For now, here are some snapshots from the awesome photo booth:

Mr. & Mrs.

 And of course, our hilarious friends!

 I wouldn't expect anything less from these newlyweds...It was the party of a lifetime! :)

A Lovely Day For A Picnic

Ah, what beautiful summer weather we're having!  (Actually it's not quite as warm as I'd like,) but it was still the perfect day for a picnic at the park yesterday.  I gathered my pearls together for a luscious spread of cheeses, meats, baguettes, & champagne cocktails.  (A mere scoop of peach sorbet in a glass of champagne; simple and delicious!)

I love a good 'cheers' shot ;)

After our yummy picnic, we headed up to Ali's beautiful hilltop home.  (I could come here every single day!)  We strolled downhill to catch a glimpse of the gorgeous countryside & city lights after the sun set. 

Princess snuck out of the house and followed us, naturally.  What a sweet and loving little girl she is! 

Here's hoping you're enjoying all that summer has to offer, wherever you may be!

:)