oh hey el lay.

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Hello and happy Monday :) I’m back in New York and ready to kick off what is going to be an amazing week. But first – here’s a (will try to keep it) brief recap of my mini vacation in California.

Short version: the three day trip was everything I hoped it’d be. I got to see and experience just about everything Los Angeles has to offer, and I didn’t realize how much I desperately needed an escape from NYC!

And now…the long version.

Wednesday: after a perfect early morning flight (I am now a total Virgin snob), I landed at around 11am and said hello to an overcast-yet-still-lovely LA.

I was starving by the time I arrived, so our first stop was for lunch at the cutest little spot – Aroma Cafe.

We took it pretty easy for the rest of the day relaxing at the house and having a nice dinner with friends at Firefly.

Thursday: I woke up bright and early, so excited to get started on my first full day in LA. Thankfully the weather was absolute perfection.

On the agenda for the day was a grand tour of the city. And a grand tour it was. But first up was a quick and healthy breakfast at Breakroom Cafe.

Then…we were off. We covered Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Rodeo Drive, the Sunset Strip, etc. I had no preconceived ideas of what LA even looked like, so it was all completely new and exciting to see.

After another couple of hours back at the house relaxing by the pool…

…we headed to Kaffe Rouge for my first ever hookah experience. Um, what has taken me so long..?! I’m no smoker, but I now love me some hookah.

Friday: I think it’s safe to say that this was my favorite day of the trip. We headed out in the morning for Santa Monica, and the weather could not have been more beautiful.

After a quick breakfast we hopped on some bikes and headed toward Venice Beach.

The beach day ended with an oyster lunch. Perfection.

On Friday night a group of us had dinner at Katsuya, which I can honestly say was the best sushi meal I’ve ever had.

Afterward more friends joined and we hopped to a couple of bars to wrap up the amazing last day of my trip.

(By the way - if you follow me on Vine I have some fun videos from the trip too!)

I arrived back in New York at around midnight on Saturday. As much as I could’ve used a few more days away, I’m glad to be home and get life back in order and figured out before the new month. Is it seriously already almost May…?!

Hope you all have an incredible and (dare I say) life-changing week. Will leave you will some inspiration for this Monday…

Have you ever been to Los Angeles? What’s the last place you travelled to?

from ny to pa.

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Hello from Pennsylvania! I came here for a couple of days to celebrate the (belated) birthday of my lovely mom. But let’s rewind a bit first, shall we?

On Thursday I paid a visit to Arrojo to get my blonde locks all freshened up. Mission accomplished.

(If you’re looking for a colorist in New York you have to try Nadia at Arrojo. She’s amazing!)

Later that night Jessi and I headed to Hudson Common for a special karaoke party. But not just any karaoke party…

Karaoke Killed the Cat hosted what was hands down the most fun karaoke I’ve ever experienced. They’ve made karaoke less of an awkward (sometimes boring) performance and turned it into an interactive, silly, and FUN party.

(Check out some more pictures and videos from the night on the FreelyBe Facebook page.)

On Friday Jessi and I had a handful of meetings all over the city. A few miles walked and a forgotten lunch later, we were starving for dinner by 5pm. So after our last meeting our destination was an obvious one – to head to Murray Hill for dinner at Baby Bo’s.

Baby Bo’s has some of the best authentic Mexican food in the city. Tip: always ask for the extra dipping sauces with your tortilla chips!

I usually get enchiladas or a burrito, but I decided to switch it up and try their Chile Rellenos (one with beef, one with shrimp), served with rice and beans. It looks a bit messy, but it was so, so good. I think I may have a new favorite meal.

It was still gorgeous outside when we left, so we decided to take the 30-minute walk home. By the time we got back to the apartment we were pretty exhausted from the long day, so a movie chick flick night it was!


Bachelorette was…good. Definitely funny and cute at times, but sort of unnecessarily crude at others. Definitely entertaining, though!

After sleeping until 11am yesterday morning (who am I?) I headed to the train station where my beautiful sister Katie picked me up.


We had such a fun afternoon together stopping at her apartment, visiting our friend Sara, and running some errands before setting up camp at mom and dad’s. Laziness, ice cream, and quality family time ensued.

And now here I am on Sunday morning, about to get ready for church and the day ahead :) Enjoy the rest of your weekend, friends!

Have you ever done karaoke? What’s your go-to song?
How’s your weekend so far?

weekend wrap up.

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As if the first half of my weekend wasn’t good enough, the second half turned out to be just as lovely.

On Saturday after brunch I decided to opt for a less-than-productive afternoon. It was a good decision.

90 minutes of napping later, I was ready for the night ahead. Monica came over and we split a ginormous salad topped with salmon, shrimp, and avocado.

Then we headed out for the night. Silly cab ride photos ensued, naturally.

Our first stop: Jane Hotel for a friend’s birthday party.

Second stop: Mister H for a friend’s birthday party.

Third stop: Marquee for…party.

And then there was Sunday. Ohh Sunday…way to be the most beautiful day ever. I enjoyed the gorgeous weather by brunching outside with some babes.

…followed by a stroll along the water to enjoy the sights of spring, and stopping to lay on the grass concrete.

Last but not least, probably the highlight of my weekend was getting to take my first ride on Starburst. We rode to and from church in the evening, which totaled just about 10 miles! Guess I’m going to have to get back in shape, ha.

Now here I am on this Monday morning, with a full heart and excited for the week ahead. I’ll leave with you a snippet from yesterday’s devo…

Enjoy your Monday, friends :)

Do you try to be productive on weekends, or use them for fun/rest?