5 on Friday

1. I am in a total travel mood right now! I want to stay at all of these hotels! Please, please, please travel Gods...make one of these happen for us! ...even for only one night...

Hotel Kakslauttanen, Finland

Ladera Resort, St. Lucia

2. I am not sure how I feel about this...the people and the cars are what gives San Francisco her beauty!

3. This is such a beautiful sentiment! Love is so important in our lives whether it be romantic or platonic.

4. I am loving this song!

4. This is totally precious! Mom/Daughter relationships are too cute!

5.I have gone to the gym 4 days this week - not today because we were out late - and I plan to go at least once this weekend in addition to a self defense class I am taking tomorrow! Watch out Arnold, my guns are comin' for ya!

*5 on Friday Link Up 

Confessions on Wednesday

I saw this on a few blogs this morning and thought I'd join in!

I cannot say 'no' to Sea Salt & Vinegar chips

Seriously. It's a love/hate relationship. They taste oh-so-good but make my tummy oh-so-upset. They will be the death of me, as well as give me a stomach ache every time I eat them. You'd think I'd learn...nope, keep 'em coming.

I totally believe in mind over matter

 If you believe you are happy, you will be happy. Some may call this 'fake it 'til you make it,' I call it 'life, enjoy it'.

I really really really want to be a runner...

But I just don't like running. Like, the act of running. I would rather spend an hour on the stair master than run . I'd rather do the dishes, clean the house and vacuum than run. I don't know what it is about it. I love how I feel afterward, but actually doing it is like pulling teeth.

Sometimes blogging scares me

I enjoy writing this blog, but sometimes I wonder why I do it. Who is reading it. Should said people be reading it.

I have an overactive imagination

i.e. I have terrible dreams most nights out of the week and I sometimes imagine unspeakable things happening to me. Does that make you uncomfortable? Yeah, me too!

I want, more than anything, to live abroad

Rich and I have talked a lot about what we will do after Law School. It is such a loaded question because we have no idea what we will want or who we will be in 3 years time. So much unknown gives me anxiety.

I am totally type-A

Case and point: I wanted to eat at all of the restaurants on the 7x7 Big East 2014 list that San Francisco has put out for this year. So, of course, I downloaded the app, opened it up in map view and created a spreadsheet where I listed every restaurant that was in a walkable area of each other. This way I can knock out multiple spots at a time..is that soo bad? No! It's efficient!

I think that I have confessed enough for today. Whew, I feel soo much better!

Missing this gal

My childhood friend went to the Peace Corps in October. 

Karly was the first person I met when we moved to the bay area and she was the first friend I made. We were virtually inseparable throughout middle and high school and would talk on the phone our freshman year of college - I stayed in the bay and she moved south. Once college life got started and busy we would use our vacations and holidays off of school to catch up, have sleepovers and learn about each others lives. 

When I moved down south and she was still there we started a routine where we would get together once a month for lunch in Long Beach - smack in between the two of us - and we would typically spend the entire day together. We would try new restaurants, catch up on life, offer a listening ear and a whole lotta love and support on making important decisions. 

On Friday night, I got to talk to her! It was such a treat to catch up with her and two of my other close friends from childhood. What an awesome thing technology is! 

What she is doing is truly inspiring and I am so proud of the woman she has become and I can't wait to 'meet' her again when she returns in 2015 from Lesotho!

Happy Birthday to my Sweet Love!

My sweet husband turns 27 today. While I am here at work, he is off at school and we plan to meet up at a brewery later this evening.

Rich doesn't like to make a big fuss about his birthday. Fortunately enough for him, he married someone who loves to make a big fuss about his birthday!! I know he feels the love and I love showering him with birthday love, so it is a win/win for both of us! 

Last weekend, I was thinking to myself and then panicked...Oh my gosh! What should I get Rich for his birthday?! I thought about it for a little while and decided to check the SF Symphony website to see if a show was going on. Fortunately I was in luck, and was able to score some awesome tickets to the SF Symphony! I had never been and Rich has mentioned to me that he has wanted to go on multiple occasions. 

So, I bought the tickets. Then I had to find a restaurant. There are tons of restaurants near Davie's Symphony Hall. There were a few restaurants that I checked and all of their reservations were booked and I finally stumbled upon Espetus Churrascaria a Brazilian Steak house. The restaurant was amazing! Definitely check it out for a special occasion!

After I made all of the reservations and planned the evening out, I decided to add another layer to the entire event - I was going to surprise Rich! I wrote out 4 'clues/hints' and gave him one each day starting on Wednesday.

Rich was able to guess that we were eating at a Brazilian restaurant but couldn't guess that we were also seeing the Symphony. On Saturday morning we woke up, got coffee and Rich studied all day. We headed into SF around 5 for our 6pm dinner reservation and then headed to the Davie's Symphony Hall for the 8pm show. The symphony was seriously amazing. We both found ourselves saying WOW during and after each performance. If you have the chance to check out the SF Symphony, I would totally recommend it!

 

After the show we walked by City Hall which was all lit up. I just love love love San Francisco! 

We are celebrating again on Thursday with friends and again this weekend with my parents! I just love this guy's birthday!

5 on Friday!

1. This video is seriously amazing. Check out that talent! 

 

2. I can totally relate to these figure skating thoughts! I mean, seriously, how on earth do they do this?!

3. FRIENDS is my most favorite show. This is hilarious! #lobsterlove

4. Rich and I were talking over the weekend and we have decided that it would be best if we went on a fun trip over his winter break. We were originally talking about going before his summer internship, but we don't know when he is going to start and if we try to go once his internship ends we run into OCI (On Campus Interviews - for next summer). So by winter break he should already have a job lined up and he won't have to stress about finding one. Now...where should we go?! In December? Any ideas??

5. I have decided that I am going to accept this challenge. I am going off of what the app says, not this site...no, I don't understand why they aren't the same...

*5 on Friday Link Up 

I'm the kinda girl who...

 ...is her moms best friend, and vice versa

...is friendly, outgoing and would do anything for her friends and family

...goes out of her way to help strangers/tourists

...reads too deep into emails and text messages

...doesn't like the word 'hate'

...keeps in touch

...believes in something bigger and better than herself

...enjoys sitting on the couch and relaxing

...says 'guzuntight' instead of 'bless you'

...isn't your typical 'sorority girl'

...is very curious and isn't afraid to ask 'loaded questions'

...loves wine and cheese night and the special-occasion fondue

...is excited to try new things and go new places

...binge watches shows on netflix & amazon prime 

...is extra sensitive and gets her feelings hurt easily

...is passionate, driven and hardworking 

...loves her husband with her whole heart

...loves to smile

5 on Friday

1. Happy Valentine's Day! I hope you all are enjoying your day of love! I saw this and thought all of the cards were seriously amazing!

2. Were any of you, out there in cyberspace, an RA? Well, I was, and this article made me laugh out loud! Seriously, #14. This was amazingly true in my case! // This article is so interesting! // This is gross...and I will now be driving to work...

3. I said last week that my great aunt passed away. This week, we buried her. While it is always sad/hard to say good-bye, I have found that death can bring the living closer together, which in this case, it has brought some of our family much closer together. On Sunday, we had family in town and we took them to Napa. It was a fun day reminiscing and planning a girls trip for 2015! 

On Monday, I went to work and then met up with my family for lunch and then some touring around. It was so lovely!

 On Tuesday, we buried my aunt and then went to a lovely champagne lunch. It was a beautiful day and a beautiful celebration of her life.

4. Yesterday I had my "Finally Fit Forever" Coaching Session with the lovely Melissa from Real Nutrition Living. Since the start of my current job, I have been struggling a bit with my routine. My call with Melissa was enlightening and inspiring and has definitely gotten me excited to take better care of myself! More to come next week!

5. Is it just me, or is everyone super excited for the long weekend?! Tonight we are celebrating Valentine's Day IN with wine, cheese and more wine! I am seeing one of my best friends, we are going on a triple date, we are going to make a quick trip to the beach, I am going to catch up on my book and my shows and I plan to relax and gym at least once!

Happy Friday and Happy long weekend!

*5 on Friday Link Up 

5 on Friday

1. I am looking to order one of my very best friend's bridal shower invitations. I want to go with a local spot or with a shop on Etsy. Does anyone out there recommend a card maker?? Please help a girl out! ;-)

2. I am loving the 90s pop Pandora station. Like, seriously. // Who doesn't love wine?! This is awesome! My company is its own country!

3. Superbowl Sunday was my littlest brother's 13th birthday. The little guy is finally a teenager and I am pretty sure my parents are elated sad to not have any kids in the house anymore. #heartbreakersince2001

 4. Honestly, I haven't been much in the mood for blogging this week. Sadly, my family experienced a great loss last week and we are still recovering and celebrating the long life that was lived. Likely, there will be more to come sometime in the future. Always with death comes celebrations of life. I have been able to spend a little bit of time with my family, which has been a blessing.

5.Rich's classmate and fellow Marine has worked so hard to help his interpreter from Afghanistan get an American Visa and it finally happened! Read the article here. Mohammad has an incredible story and he is a kind and gentle man. Just a few days after he arrived in the US, I had the privileged of meeting him, sharing a glass of wine and listening to him speak. His story is one of perseverance and I know that his loved ones will join him here some day very soon!

*5 on Friday Link Up