LA Find: Loews, Santa Monica

Over this past weekend I got together with my girlfriends and we decided to have drinks and dinner at Loews Hotel in Santa Monica.  This hotel is right off the beach and over looks the ocean and the Santa Monica Pier. 

They have a happy hour on Saturday called  6 on the Beach (click on the link to see their happy hour menu).  Those of you LA locals know that it is rare to have a happy hour on the weekends by the beach or anywhere for that matter..  The happy hour is till 7 and worth the early dinner and cocktails.  They have a $6 menu till 7 pm, it was fun because we were able to order a bunch of different food and cocktails to share for more than half of the price.  We had Duck Taquitos, Pepper Seared Beef, Firecracker Shrimp, Spicy Tuna Sushi Roll, and there were a few others to choose from. 

They also have a deck outside that over looks the ocean with glass fire pits where you can eat dinner and enjoy your cocktails.  Definitely a fun change to our typical girls night out and worth the drive if it is not a local spot for you.  Valet is $6 for the first 3 hours with validation with your pruchase of food or drink.

Here are some fun pictures of the evening and the view.

Home Away from Home

Ever since my mom was 3 years old, each year we take a trip to Lake Tahoe during the summer.  While I have yet to make it there in the winter time, I plan to do that sometime this year.  Tahoe is a place that always brings me back and reminds me what is important and family.  Over the year I have brought multiple friends and people with me up to see what my family looks forward to every year and they fall in love with it just as much as my family already has.  This place holds a special place in my heart and I would love to live there one day.  Here are some fun pictures of my most recent trip.

 

I am also happy to announce how excited I am for one of my best friends Laura and Eric, they are expecting and I thought I would catch a cute picture of them by the water since it technically it is  "Babies first Tahoe."

Happiness

Sometimes I run so fast I forget what each step feels like… sometimes I just need to take a break and enjoy the simple pleasures in life, to remind myself what really makes me happy.  So this past three day weekend, I decided to unplug from the world…   I did not open my work computer, or my personal one, I tried to stay off my phone as much as possible, and just really took time to enjoy everything around me.  I spent the weekend with close friends whom I adore and feel I don’t get to see enough of and even ran into a couple friends that I have not seen in forever.  My weekend happiness included:  Paradise Cove, mimosas, Corona Lights (tall can, I didn’t even know they made these), everything baked pretzels (my new obsession), shrimp (which was not as good as it sounded but we still ate it anyways), Venice Beach, watermelon soaked in vodka, watching my friends play football on the beach, fresh taco bar, lemonade & mint vodka cocktails, laughs, hugs, tons of pictures, rum cake that my girlfriend made, pool party, hot dogs & hamburgers, chips & salsa, 4^th of July cupcakes, and I closed the day off with some fireworks from my neighbors back yard.

At the end of the weekend I wanted to capture this weekend in a way so that I could always remember what a perfect weekend felt like and all of the small details that made me happy, so needless to say I was looking forward to blogging about it.  People work their whole lives to reach happiness, like it is a destination.  Happiness is not a destination, it is an emotion you experience along your journey to the destination. 

Don’t forget to memorize what happiness feels like and the importance of each moment to just be.

   

17 Days!

The countdown continues, I will be sitting on this beach watching the sun come up and watching the sun go down for 14 glorious days.  Words cannot express how excited I am for this yearly vacation with family, friends, beach, smores, campfires, tents, thunder storms, gambling, wake boarding, Red Sand Beach, PDQ deli sandwiches, and Sand Harbor.  (Just to name a few)