Birthday Recap

As I mentioned before, I wasn't able to get my actual birthday off of work, so I celebrated the day before, last Wednesday. It's really funny how things work out... the two ladies who requested vacation time for Thursday and Friday didn't end up taking the days off after all (read: I could've had them off!). The funny thing is that Wednesday was a beautiful day with gorgeous weather, but Thursday was rainy and cold! Just goes to show that everything happens for a reason!

Brandon and I had a great day at the LA Zoo!

We were fascinated by the awkward flamingos. We even picked one out that reminded us of Izzie, it was constantly and strangely scratching its' head.

We loved the gorilla exhibit

These two were posing so perfectly for the picture

The orangutans were really entertaining! They had just gotten fed and were full of energy. A few of them got right up to the glass, it felt like one was literally looking me in the eyes! This guy gave us a peep show during his after lunch siesta lol

Since it was the middle of the week, there were lots of school groups at the zoo. Check out the detail in this kids' hair! We were impressed...

On Thursday night we went for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. mmm cheeeeseeeecake mmm I had the white chocolate, macadamia nut and caramel cheesecake. Pretty much an orgasm on a plate.

Izzie and I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend! Here she is showing you her sleepy face after all our weekend festivities! =D

Woven Cloche Hat

I crocheted this hat a few weeks back and finally got around to taking pictures of it today. Its for a spring inspired hat swap. What do you think?

Details:

Yarn - Libertina Yarns; Mohair and Wool Blend, produced in Ontario Canada

Pattern - E.L. Brimmed Hat (ravelry link)

I'm currently felting another cloche which I made last week. I just put it in the wash for a third time. It's not shrinking up as much as I thought it would. Pictures soon to come!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! Yesterday we had a pool party/BBQ consisting of sangria, fruit salad, hot dogs and hamburgers. Simple and delicious. Today is a lazy day. I've literally been in my swimsuit all day because it is so darn hot! At least I can get stuff done around the house, I am very thankful for air conditioning! Tomorrow I hope to dust off my sewing machine and attack a pattern that I purchased almost 2 years ago! Wish me luck! =D

Another One Bites the Dust

Last weekend we went to the second of 4 weddings we've been invited to this year. Brandon was a groomsman, the two of them have been friends since childhood. He was also in our wedding. It was an estate wedding held at McCormicks Ranch in Camarillo. It was a really cute and lush setting with pretty little gardens and pathways to explore - even sheep on the premises. It was really cold and all outside on grass so I had to reconsider the little black dress and stiletto heels that I bought to wear there. We had a really great time! Lets recap with pictures:

The handsome groomsmen

Their ginormous wedding party

Us with the newlyweds! So happy for them! (gosh i'm short!)

With my inlaws

Working off our In N' Out dinner by partying it up on the dance floor!

So Thursday is my birthday and I'm not able to get it off of work like I had hoped. Someone else already requested that day =( Instead, Brandon and I are taking tomorrow off and going to The Griddle for a delicious pancake breakfast and then to the LA Zoo to visit the giraffes, elephants, and monkeys! Unfortunately, I just heard that tomorrow might rain - just my luck! .... oh I really hope it doesn't!!

To follow the gorgeously sunny and warm weekend we had, the past two days have been overcast, cold, and rainy. VERY out of character for SoCal in May. I thought April showers were supposed to bring May flowers? All I want to do is go home and snuggle up on the couch with Izzie pup, and/or my husband, light a fire, read, and eat tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich. That is my all time favorite rainy day meal.

Speaking of reading, I've been compiling a summer book list for myself, just like my teachers used to do in elementary school (which I never read, but now I will!). I would love your suggestions on what to add to it. I was never much of a reader until recently so I have a lot of catching up to do. What are your all time favorite books? Have you read one recently that pulled you in and you couldn't put down? Please share!

Even great weekends must come to an end

It's Monday morning, back to the grind. =( This weekend was fantastic! It was chock full of friends, food, and of course wine. Here's a quick recap with pictures:
On Friday after work, Brandon and I went to our local farmers market. We stocked up on all fresh, locally grown produce as well as some fantastic flavored nuts. mmm lemon almonds mmm. Then we went out to celebrate Kristen's graduation. She now has a masters in clinical psychology and is going on to get her doctorate next fall! If you have a chance, hop on over to her hilariously witty blog and send her some words of encouragement and congratulations. She deserves it! The celebration consisted of getting plumped up on margarita pizza from Bucca di Beppo and throwing back some glasses of vino. If you've never tried that pizza, I highly recommend it! yummo

Saturday was absolutely GORGEOUS! I took advantage of the California sun and did our laundry by drying all the clothes outside instead of using the dryer. We don't have a clothes line, but I improvised. I'm sure it was a sight to see having all our shirts, socks, pants and undies hanging from our patio cover, and over our chairs. They dried in to time at all and it felt great to have a green laundry day. While the clothes dried I soaked up the sun and read my new book. That night I saw "Letters to Juliet". Please friends, don't let the cute commercials/previews fool you, this movie is not worth the $11.50 it costs to see it. Probably one of the cheesiest, and most predictable movies I've seen in a long time. We contemplated leaving on multiple occiasions, but hoped that it would get better. It didn't. On the other hand, "Date Night" is hilarious, I recommend seeing that one instead.

We had two parties on Sunday. The first was for baby Jackson's first birthday, and the second was a wine club pick up party. We are members of Malibu Family Winery's wine club. Once a year they have a pick up party for all the members with free food, entertainment, and wine. The event was held at the Saddlerock Ranch, a gigantic ranch property tucked away in the hills of Malibu.

There were acres upon acres of vineyards and had many different animals residing there too: horses, zebras, camels, llamas, sheep and more. I even saw my own personal National Geographic/Discovery show as a llama made love to a camel. I couldn't believe what my eyes were seeing!

That was one very confused llama!

Here's to another work week - lets hope its a fast one! Cheers!

Friday Follow

Hey y'all, it is my first Friday Follow! This is an awesome blog hop that allows you to see other blogs, and allows other people to see yours. A great way to meet people! To join the Friday Follow celebration:
-- Go to One 2 Try, ink up your blog name and URL using the MckLinky below. Only need to add on one blog to be seen on all the blog hops.
--Grab the Friday Follow button and include on your Friday Follow blog post
--Follow the Friday Follow hostesses listed in the first 3 slots.
--Follow as many other blogs on the linky as you'd like.
--Take a moment to comment on the blogs telling them you're from Friday Follow.
--Follow back when you get a new follower through Friday Follow.

This list is new each week. The links do not carry over. Please link up each week for new participants to find your blogs. The list is only open to add your blog links on Fridays. It will be visible all week to visit the blogs listed. Have fun!

Fabitty Fab!

There are lots of exciting things going on right now! First, I've been featured in an Etsy treasury "Dreamy and Whimsical"!! Isn't it gorgeous? I'm so honored to be included!

Secondly, The Tarr Pit is hosting a Knots by Ashley giveaway! One lucky winner will receive $25 towards anything in my shop! Entries will be accepted until 5/27 (which coincidently is my birthday) so hop on over, show some love, and enter the giveaway!

Happy Tuesday!!

Beach day!

Today was my first beach day of the year and it was absolutely gorgeous!!

Izzie was working on her tan ;-)

Strawberries are one of my favorite things about summertime. The drive to the beach is through a large agricultural area. The roads are lined with crop fields, and produce vendors. I couldn't resist! They were picked fresh this morning.

Nature's candy, they are so delicious! A million times better than the ones at the grocery store, no sugar needed. The basket was completely empty by the time I got home.

Let's pretend you don't notice my wind blown beach hair =P

Hope you're all having a wonderful weekend!

Little Black Dress

Hi Shopping, I've missed you. Since we've been on a spending budget I haven't bought clothes for myself in a really long time. After unsuccessfully rummaging through my closet last weekend looking for a decent dress to wear I decided it was time to hit the stores. I was in dire need of a dress to wear to the 3 upcoming weddings we have this summer. Yes, three. First I went to Macys since I have a gift card there- no luck of course. Then I continued down the mall and found a fantastic store that I hadn't been in before: White House/Black Market. They had some gorgeous dresses! The price tags there were a little higher than I would normally spend, but of course I shopped the clearance/sales rack. I found the perfect outfit and all for under $100! Since I don't buy much besides yarn and food these days, I'm really excited about having a new dress & some sexy heels! The shoes are really out of my character (I'm usually all about the flats/comfort) but I couldn't pass these by - LOVE them! Seeing how long they stay on my feet will be a different story! =P

Now its time to exciting explore the world of Spanx!

I'm Currently...

Blocking this cloche:

Stopping to smell the roses:

(I love seeing the things I plant flourish!)

Eager to taste the fruit:

(This is the first time we've had fruit buds on this tree since we moved in. I'm excited to see what it is, peach? nectarine?)

Enjoying a cup of tea paired with an almond scone:

And reading:

Happy Hump Day!

Stuck.

Today I've really struggled with feeling stuck in a rut. I was browsing through my old pictures of Italy and reminiscing about my adventures. It's hard to believe that it was over 4 years ago! It feels like only yesterday that I stopped in a "bar" for my morning cappuccino, browsed the open air market, walked through the piazza del duomo and was completely surrounded tons of history, stunning art, and incredible architecture - all on the way to school! I miss it. Sometimes when I close my eyes I can bring myself right back to that period in my life. It was my first opportunity for independence and not living at my parents' house. I was able to explore foreign lands on my own, engulf myself in unique and dynamic cultures, try out my conversational Italian, meet distant family members for the first time, study art history while seeing the actual work, and shop in one of the world biggest fashion capitals! In addition to my own adventures, I got to spend half of my time there with Brandon. We both agree that it was the turning point in our relationship. That's when we realized we couldn't live apart from one another! aaawe =P

So why am I so unsettled today when I truly have a lot to be thankful for? I've got a wonderful husband, great friends, we own our own home, I have a steady well paying job, an adorable little pug, and I'm really getting into Yoga which makes me feel great! But, I feel stuck. I can't progress in my chosen career path until I start school, but for that to happen I just have to wait...wait... wait... I'm starting to come to the realization that I won't be in nursing school this upcoming fall (like I'd hoped) and I don't really want to get my hopes up that I will. I am still 1 of 20 students on the alternate list for the upcoming semester. In all honestly, I'll probably start in January; 3 years after I applied. That's just craziness. I ready to start. I've been ready for quite some time now. There's so much that I want to do and accomplish in life, and getting through school is a necessary step for me. I mean, how cool would it be to use my nursing degree and volunteer for something like this? totally rad. I'm getting stir crazy! I want another fun adventure, but until I win the lottery or graduate school I'll have to stick to my Internet vacations. An Internet vacation? Yes, I'm guilty of looking up plane tickets, hotels, and browsing pictures of sites I'd like to see and pretend I'm really there. I know, I'm a big nerd. Tonight I'll look up Ireland. =D

What's your dream vacation/adventure?