Case of the Mondays

I have had a case of the Monday's bad today.  Not sure why?  Maybe it is because I had such a nice weekend.

Friday I left work early so I could head out to The B@r Method class in West LA.  This was my first class.  I have been dying to go for months, but just never got around to it. For whatever reason I decided that today was going to be the day.  It was awesome; such an amazing workout!  I can see why it is so popular.  In a couple months I am going to join {They offer a deal to all new members: 30 days for $100}.  I am on a running kick right now and want to continue focusing on that for the time being.  Once bathing suit season approaches I am going to join so I can tone up more.  As of now this is my plan.

After class, MAG and I headed out to Miso Sushi in Westwood. {Sidenote: When we lived in Burbank we found the best sushi restaurant ever called Niko Niko.  We would walk there every Friday night for dinner. Since we moved to Santa Monica we have been looking for a new Niko Niko but nothing has come close.} MAG picked this place out after reading amazing reviews on Yelp.  Miso Sushi was yummy, but no NN:(  We decided that from now on we are going to trek it to West Hollywood and go to the NN there.  The menus aren't exactly the same, but it is super yummy and we can find new favorites!

Saturday was a fun pampering day for me {or so I thought}.  Weeks ago I bought a Groupon for discounted waxing services.  I made my appointment for my eyebrows, upper lip {gross I know, but I do have some fuzzy that needs to be taken care of every once in a while} & a Brazilian bikini wax {my first time}. I will NEVER get this done again {the bikini wax}. It was the most painful experience ever.  My LA BF, C, works for a dermatologist and does laser hair removal.  From now on I will be going to see her-I don't care the price!  After my wonderful experience I picked up MAG and we headed to The Massage Place for massages.  They were amazing.  I am so glad we treated ourselves to them since we rarely do anything like this.  That night we went out with some friends to Barney's Beanery for dinner.  It was fun, but I am kind of over it.  We go there a lot.  MAG and I are on a mission to find amazing, price friendly restaurants in LA.  They have to be out there somewhere!

Sunday MAG was hungover so we spent the day on the couch.  I was a little irritated because he told me he was going to start running with me yesterday.  We ended up not going so I made him watch all the Oprah goes to Australia episodes:)

I need to get better at taking pictures on the weekends!

Girls Night

Once a week my LA besties get together for a girls night that contains wine and The Bachelor.  Each of us look forward to it every week.  It is a place for us to unwind and talk about all girly things that our husbands don't want to listen to ;)

Last night I had a surprise for the girls...clothes!  Working for a large fashion company has its perks.  I receive a lot of samples therefore my closet is jammed to the max.  Yesterday I was over it!  I had items in there that I haven't worn in forever and didn't fit me correctly.  I brought over a large shopping bag, dumped it on the floor and told the girls to take whatever they want and the rest I will donate.

I was happy to clean my closet and see their smiling faces as they were ooing and ahhing over everything.

Side note: I am taking my first Bar Method class tonight.  Super excited and I am actually looking forward to being sore tomorrow.

Can't Focus

For the past few weeks I have been MAJOR ADD so bullets kind of describe my life right now...

• On Wednesday of last week I got Smokin Hot Essie nail polish.  I love it.  I think it might be my new favorite.

Taken from my iphone and yes I do have a thumb

• After waiting for 8 weeks I finally got my raise for my new position.  I am over the moon with excitement. Looking forward to that back-pay check :)
• I haven't run once this week.  Tonight the treadmill and I will be reunited.
• This week has been crazy busy!  The plus is this week if flying by.
• My boss approved my time off for my besties bachelorette party and wedding.  I think plane tickets are going to be the death of me.  Why do they have to be so expensive and change everyday? Super annoying.
• Our Hawaii trip might get pushed back to the fall.  We really want some of our friends to come with us so we are willing to wait if they don't flake out ;)
• This means MAG and I need to plan a long weekend vacation in April.  We are thinking SF/Napa for 4 days.  I don't care where we go just as long as we go somewhere and wine is involved!
• I am not sure why blogger is messing up my pictures?!  Annoyed just a little.

OSCAR Nominations

Photo Credit

If you live in our house then you know when the OSCAR nominations come out, have the Academy Awards ceremony marked on your calendar months in advance and are planning on who we want to watch it with.  Yes, we are those people who LOVE the Oscars.  While MAG was in college in NC I planned my Feb/March trip around what weekend they fell on.  This will be our 13th ceremony we will watch together.

The reason I am so obsessed with this is because our dream is to be there one day-not as celebrities.  If you were to ask any filmmaker what their ultimate goal you might get a variety of answers:

-Write, Direct, Produce their own project

-Make a film with a budget of $1M or more

-Work with talent they have admired for years

-Be nominated for an Academy Award

-Win an Academy Award

All these are goals of MAG, but the last two would be icing on the cake!  The way I look at it is if you are going to dream, DREAM BIG!  Needless to say, you will know where we are on February 27th:)

Weekend Wrap-Up!

Hi Lovelies!  I hope you had a wonderful weekend.  Mine was packed with friends, drinks and sunshine!  Can't really complain about that:)

Friday some girls from work and I headed down to Manhattan Beach for Happy Hour at the Shade Hotel.  This hotel is beautiful and the drinks/food is amazing.  I had the Honey Lemonade {Vodka, Honey, Lemonade over ice}, it was delish.  We ordered a few apps that were also yummy!  Ahi-Tacos, Pork Sliders, Bacon Mac & Cheese.  That night none of us were on diets!

Photo Credit

Saturday MAG and I walked to Western Bagel by our apartment.  We have lived in the same place for 15 months and didn't know there was a bagel place within walking distance.  Major fail on our part!  After breakfast we headed to the gym.  I started week 3 of C25K.  Let me tell you, week 3 is hard!  My butt was kicked.  The best part of my workout was when I stepped on the scale at the gym and realized I have LOST 8 POUNDS since the end of December!  Needless to say I was super excited.  I haven't lost that much weight ever.  It proves that if you put the time in you will be rewarded.  I have 10-14 more pounds to lose to be at my goal weight.  Bathing suit season is approaching quickly!

Photo Credit

Saturday night MAG and I went out with my boss, his girlfriend and some of his friends.  We had dinner and drinks at My Father's Office.  If you are ever in Santa Monica you have to check this place out.  They have the best burger and sweet potato fries ever.  After dinner we headed to another bar to meet up with some more friends.  It was my first night out to a bar in about a month!  It was such a nice change of scenery from our apartment.

Photo Credit

Sunday we headed down to Main Street in Venice for Brunch at World Cafe.  They have the most amazing patio and it was 74 yesterday so it was no brainier to spend our Sunday afternoon here.  After brunch we walked around and bar hopped a little.

Photo Credit

Did you do anything fun this weekend?

Smokin Hot

I am kind of a loser and follower Real Housewives Personalities on Twitter.  Today Kelly Ben$imon painted her nails Smokin Hot by E$$ie.  Well I fell in love with the gray...after work I am heading to Bed, Bath & Beyond to get it.

{Photo Credit}

*I know in this picture it looks more brown.

Mumble Jumble

Since last Wednesday I have been sick with a head cold.  It has been awful.  Most of my weekend was spent inside watching football and movies.  If you saw the weather forecast for this past weekend in LA then you would be depressed too if you spent the majority of your weekend indoors!  I want a weekend do-over:)

Life has been pretty boring lately.  Nothing new or exciting going on which is fine because the spring is going to be a little busy with travel, weddings, birthdays, conferences-fun stuff!  MAG and I are trying to get our Hawaii trip on the books soon.  Until then I will be staring at my screensaver dreaming about white sandy beaches, clear water and beautiful sunsets.

Photo Credit

For the past year I have been on the hunt for new throw pillows for our couch.  I found this Etsy store a few months ago and fell in love, but never pulled the trigger.  I am thinking now is the time to invest in them.  The theme of our family room is color and Alfred Hitchcock.  Strange-yes, but it incorporates both of us perfectly.

Photo Credit

HGTV Dream Home 2011

In June 2000, MAG and I traveled to Stowe, Vermont for his grandparents 50th Wedding Anniversary.  His entire family rented two homes for a week and we had family dinners & movie nights, went hiking, visited the Ben & Jerry's Factory and the Van Trap Family Lodge.  It felt so clean and and non-commercialized you can't help that you want to go back.

This year HGTV's Dream Home is in Stowe.  I don't know about you, but I LOVE watching the hour special on New Year's Day.  Could you imagine owing a ski-in/ski-out home that can sleep 16?  OMG that would be amazing.

{All Photo Credits}

We already decided that if we win we are going to spend every Christmas here, a week in the summer, and rent it out the rest of the time:)  What? I like to dream!  Visitors are always welcome.

Check out my two favorite ones were New Mexico and Islamorada.

In no way, shape or form did HGTV ask me to publish this post.

Random Monday

• Today I wish I lived in Atlanta.  They have a snow day.  When I talked to my mom this morning she said they might be out of school for the entire week!  LA never gets snow:(
• The Ocean Black hit 10,000 views on Y0uTube last night.  MAG and I popped open a bottle of champagne to celebrate.  Two months ago he said, "I want 10,000 views. That will make me happy." 
• My boss is out of the office this week traveling for business which leaves me with very little to do.  I am not complaining at all.  It wouldn't be so bad if I could come in late or leave early, but I clock-in and out still. Arg!
• Some girl from the first season of Laguna Beach started in our office. Had no clue who she was until someone pointed her out to me.
• Tonight is the National Championship Game.  Excited that the SEC is represented, but not excited that it is Auburn. Just not a fan of Cam.
• I can't wait to get our W-2 and file taxes.  We had extra taken out this year so we could buy a new App!e 27' Mac.  Our PowerBook is on its last leg.  That computer has lasted us over 7 years, 3 short films and lots and lots of FB time. 
• We have started planning our Hawaii trip for May.  I can't wait to have it booked so we have something to look forward to.
• I fit into my skinny jeans yesterday!!! Woo-hoo! This was such a great feeling.  They are still a little tight though.  This proves that C25K is really working.
• I heard the Br!tney Spears single today on the radio.  I thought it was pretty good.  Very club-ish which will be great for working out to.

I hope you are having a wonderful Monday!  To my friends in the south, please be safe.

Special Powers

I have never been one for sci-fi or fantasy, but recently {well, I guess for the past 2 years} I have really wanted to have the ability to teleport!  I want to be able to skip traffic, go home during my lunch breaks, never have to fly on a plane again, and see loved ones whenever I want-just to name a few perks of this special power.  To me this tops flying, being invisible or trying to save the world {lets be honest Batman, Spiderman, and Superman all have their flaws.}  If this wish ever comes true I will let you know;)  Until then you can find me stuck on the 10W Monday-Friday at 5:30 surfing the radio wishing I could teleport.

{Photo Credit} 

Kind of Like M.A.S.H.

Three weeks ago my company had our holiday extravaganza party.  It was truly amazing.  They had carnival games for the kids, an ice skating rink, six or seven food trucks, Santa, and our annual raffle.  Unfortunately I didn’t win anything this year.  Last year I won a $250 gift card!  There was one special guest this year, Rebecca, a psychic! She is not just any psychic, she is the owners personal psychic.  {Yes, this is a little strange, but whatever.} 

I had met Rebecca before. She came into our office about 4 months ago to do a reading for some employees.  Although I didn’t formally sit down with her she told me that I would have 2 houses, one by a body of water in the South, two children, the name Kathy kept coming up as well.  She also told me to be patient.  At the time I thought it was cool, but never gave it a lot of thought.

MAG and I waited in line to see her for an hour.  He was less than pleased with me, but I wanted to get our readings done.  Once it was my turn she told me the following:

*You are in a very loving relationship. You will be together for the rest of your life.  Sometimes it will be hard, but you know each other very well and will get through it.

*You will own a house.  It won’t be a mansion, but it will be a nice size and you will need help with it.  {Yes, in my mind this means I get a maid!}

*She saw 2 kids in my future, maybe 3.  She also said that MAG and I need to be very careful right now if we don’t want to get preggers!  

*She told me to stop stressing about my weight; it will come off naturally and in time. {I have done this and have lost a few lbs.}

*She told me she saw the name Kathy {weird!}

*She told me a man name Jeff was in the room.  My mom’s bother was named Jeff.  He was killed in Vietnam.  {That was probably the strangest part about the whole thing.}

MAG’s Turn

*She said she saw a lot of writing. {This was really strange because he had just finished The Ocean Black script 2 days prior.}

*She told him to make sure there are contracts, even if it is with friends.  {Another weird point because he and his writing partner were discussing contracts the day before.}

*She said he will get a manager soon. {This is in the works.}

*Babies will come later in life.

*Someone named Teri will be very influential with your career.

Overall it was a pretty weird experience.  Are we believers in the psychic power?  Maybe we are a little less skeptical now.  Have you ever seen a psychic?  What do you believe?

If You Love the Bachelor...

...you must check out this website.  Lincee will have you rolling on the floor laughing with her recaps of this horrible train wreck that we all watch!  She know exactly what we are thinking and then adds her two cents about it.  She has been doing this for years and I swear each year she gets better.  Head on over and check her out.

Favorite Part of Your Day

I have become kinda obsessed with Tw!tter. {Follow me here!}  Never in a million years did I think that I would like reading or posting random thoughts about my life.  Surprising I really like it.  Yesterday a fellow blogger who I follow Tweeted, "What is your favorite part of the day?"  This got me thinking...

My day is long.  I work from about 7:30 am to 5:30 pm Monday-Friday + the gym + LA traffic, so I am pretty much away from my lovely husband & apartment the majority of the day.  The one moment that I savor everyday is when my alarm goes off {I hit the snooze at least once}, MAG rolls over and we cuddle until it goes off again.  This also makes me not want to get out of bed.  Especially since he gets to sleep another 2 hours, but it is that 8 minutes in the morning that I love.

The best part of my workday is lunch with the girls, of course, and my one-on-one time with my boss in the afternoon.  He is great at what he does and I am learning a lot from him.  I am being exposed to a lot on the operations side which I love!  It is so nice to have a job I enjoy.  Don't get me wrong, some days are better than others, but for the most part I can say I am happy.

What about you, what is your favorite part of the day?

The Ocean Black Update

January 2011 is what we have been waiting for in The Garcia household!  2010 was an amazing year for MAG with the ability to figure out the path he wanted for his career.  In December his writing partner flew out to LA from Boston to finish the script.  I am happy to announce the script and business plan is finished and meetings are starting to take place!

It is so crazy to think that there is potential for TOB to be made this year!  I am not going to lie, being married to an aspiring director is hard.  He is so passionate about his craft.  We talk about film about 75% of the time in our household.  I know way more than I should about it.  He stays up until all hours of the night studying scenes, finding look samples, watching DVD extras, he always has 3 or 4 projects/ideas he is working on, but this is our way of life.  I wouldn't change it for anything in the world!

If you haven't checked out The Ocean Black check it out here!

On a side note, one of our dear friends has a huge meeting at the end of this month to see if MTV is going to pick up their show for a season.  I am so proud of them! Break a leg guys!!

New Years Eve-Mad Men Style

MAG and I had a wonderful NYE this year.  We rang it in with style and our best friends at a house party in Hollywood.  Matty V is one of MAG's friends from film school and he just so happens to be born on NYE!  How cool is that?  He decided to throw a Mad Men themed NYE/Birthday Party.  For us there was no other event that would top this.

2011 Goals

Can you believe it is already time to go back to work tomorrow?!  As much as I love my job, I could use another week.  I thoroughly enjoyed having this past week off.  On Monday I was worried that I wouldn't know what to do with myself, since I get bored quite easily.  MAG told me to do whatever I wanted.  I never get time off by myself, so I worked out, made some new recipes, caught up on Friday Night Lights and cleaned.  It was perfect!!

I am super excited for 2011.  The first quarter is going to be packed with work functions, traveling, and balancing life.  Here are a couple of my goals for 2011:

1. Plan and stick to a weekly menu that MAG and I put together.  We spend way too much time and money at the grocery store.  This will help us eat healthier, save money & time.
2. Pay down credit card debt.  We did a pretty good job with this towards the end of last year, but now it is time to really focus.  My goal is to pay it down so I can get a new car.  Even though we can afford a car payment I feel like the money should be going towards debt, not something that I want.
3. Continue to run and lift more weights.
4. Build more friendships.  LA is really hard to make friends.  I have some girls that I love working with and I want to build better relationships with them.
5. Watch less TV and read more!  I am not a reader at all, well I read blogs, does that count?  I would like to read 12 books this year.  I am starting with Love The One Your With by Emily Giffin.

What are your goals for 2011?  Good luck!

Pillows

As you know I am obsessed with finding the perfect pillows for our couch.  I have known exactly what I want for almost a year but have been unable to find them, until now.  They are $180!  Can we say OVERPRICED! Sorry I am just a little annoyed right now.

Happy New Year!