A little love note...

Things have been...hectic. To say the least. My summer school schedule has been kicking my butt, and when things get busy, the blog is the first thing to go (along with exercise, and cleaning my house). I've missed being here, but at the same time, it's been nice to come home from work and just turn off my brain, be outside, cook, read, and hang. I finish classes on July 25, and then we're planning to get out of town to celebrate our 3rd anniversary, so I might be away from the blog a little while longer (back the first week of August?). In the meantime, happy summer! xo

{4th of July Fireworks at Summer Pops, 2014}

Noted on a Friday

Welp, this shirt pretty much sums it up. I have been slammed at work and we've had some fun after-work commitments, and I haven't been feeling that well, so I am looking forward to indulging in some much-needed downtime in the next couple days. We are co-hosting a garage sale tomorrow morning at our place, and then I'm looking forward to reading, watching movies, and a nap, or three. Happy summer solstice! xo

A few things that made my week...

This guy. Love him.

A "Welcome Summer!" bonfire with friends, s'mores, and music at Fiesta Island.

Chilling with my lady and some 'Say Yes to the Dress'

World Cup shopping, Flavio representing. Vamos Mexico!

Around Here

Hello there! It was a relaxing, fun week in this fair city. It really feels like summer around these parts, and it's delightful. My brother and nephew came for a visit last weekend, so we hit up some good eats, and Flavio took the first part of last week off to hang with me. Staycation bliss. This past weekend treated us well - dinner with Jan and Gary, a little shopping, and lots of time outside in this gorgeous weather. I am back to work today, but figured I'd pop in with some lunchtime procrastination.

Lately I've been:

Researching a possible anniversary camping trip for July. Beach or mountains?

Waiting for a good movie to come out, and excited to see this one in September.

Reading Operating Instructions and cracking up. Thank god I'm not the only one who catastrophizes everything.

Taking less pictures. Sometimes I just want to be in the moment.

Feeling nervous about the next 7 weeks. Summer school is always good, but so.much.work.

Feeling excited that might parents might be moving closer to us. At least temporarily.

Listening to bits of Passenger's new album. A lot. Buying it tomorrow.

Hoping I can come up with some actual blog posts that might be useful or informative to others. I'm in a blogging slump. It's just so sunny out, I don't want to be on my computer. We shall see.

Waiting to go home at 4PM to play with my little lady. See her sweet new summer 'do below.

Happy week. xo

Before and after.

We've been into playing cards and board games in the evenings. Feels like summer camp.

I interviewed my mother in law about her dad, professional soccer player Rodolfo Torres. Facinating. Blurry photo, but isn't Flavio his clone?

We celebrated National Doughnut Day last week with an early early morning date.

Noted on a Friday

Well, I did it. The Spring semester is over. Woot! I had really great students this time around, and the end is always bittersweet, but I am looking forward to a little time off before the summer session starts. It wasn't a terribly busy work week, so I'm not sure where all my time went... Actually, that's a lie. I've been busy working my way through three seasons of Call the Midwife (so sad it's over!);  we drank and jacuzzi'd and brunched with friends for Memorial Day weekend; Guiri and I have spent hours in the sunshine; and we've been hitting up some new restaurants (Circa, meh; Brooklyn Girl, delightful; Queenstown Public House, love!). Other than that, looking forward to ringing in June (OMG) with a visit from my brother and nephew tonight and having the next 10 days off. I hope you have a great weekend. xo

A few random fun moments from this week...

Sunday morning football at the park.

Park followed by a new ritual: heavenly croissants and good, caffeinated coffee at Cafe Madeleine.

Channeling our Mexico trip with this sweet papaya.

Guiri waits for dad every evening.

The best dinner: a cheese platter made from whatever you have in the house.

Noted on a Friday

This was a let's-just-get-through-it kinda week. The end of the semester is always my busiest time (grading and meetings and more grading) and Flavio has been slammed, so I couldn't be happier about the three-day weekend ahead. My plans are having no plans at all and I can't wait to disconnect, relax, and see what fun pops up in the next few days. Happy (looong) weekend. xo

A few little things that made my week...

Celebrating my half-birthday last Sunday with half a leftover, defrosted cake - delicious.

Cake accompanied by this classic. "I got worms."

An after-work walk past our neighborhood's heavenly wall o'jasmine. Smells like summer.

I'm excited about the burgeoning blackberries in a neighbor's yard.

Dog-friendly dining at Carnitas' Snack Shack. Guiri recommends the pork belly.

Noted on a Friday

I had a disappointment this week, and I'm learning that's okay. As someone who likes to control how things play out, I find myself constantly (and irritatingly) challenged with lessons in flexibility and living in the present. Fact: Things will not always go as planned/hoped, but worrying what "could be" takes away the ability to see what should be, a.k.a. what actually IS. Life lessons in progress over here. Anyway, happy weekend. xo

Some little things that made my week...

Playing around on Instagram as you can see (not sure I'll stick with it). But loving all the Jacaranda this time of year.

Thursday was National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day. I celebrated accordingly.

 Festive bloodys at Mother's Day brunch.

And this reminder.

Windblown

The Santa Ana winds have blown in and there's an electricity in the air. I am at my desk with a stack of work to do, but wish I was home listening to the wind blow outside, feeding Guiri ice cubes. While I am over this triple-digit heat and the surrounding brush fires, the Santa Anas are sort of beautiful in their own way.. they make your hair stand on end, and dry up everything in their path. Anyway, it wouldn't be Southern California without them. Declaration: Flav is off tomorrow and I decided I am taking Thursday afternoon off!!! Dog beach or bust.

Update at 2:00 PM - I have been holed up in an office all day and just learned So Cal is on fire. Shit. The above post feels insensitive. Stay safe, San Diego.

 {citrus infused water}