Have you ever noticed the fine line between boasting and “sharing” in the course of referencing a recent trip to a warm location during the winter months?  I’ve been tempted too many times to delete (Facebook) a friend all together who is posting pictures of “Trip to Antigua” or “Our Fun in Maui” just in a moment of temporary spite.  I assure you I’m not trying to taunt, but I did find some cool things to share via a recent trip to Laguna Beach.

A short two hour flight has us skidding onto the runway of John Wayne airport (possibly the world’s easiest airport to navigate), and into a (upgrading opportunity ceased!) Stang convertible, and then down the P.C.H. into the charming little town of Laguna Beach.

As the primary motivation of the trip was drinking in as much sunshine in every way possible, imagine my delight when coming across this little gem of a boutique, with the slogan in the window,

“One Part Clouds, Two Parts Sunshine, Wish You Were Here” Of course, I had to check it out.  The storefront is called Lala, and it is one of Kerry Cassill creations.  This shop speaks my language…unique, feminine, hip and modern.  I couldn’t resist buying a crazy soft Indian fabric duster as a perfect almost Spring jacket. This is the place to bring some “California Cool” and a spot of sunshine into your homes (all kinds of beautiful textiles for beds, tables, etc.) and wardrobes.

Onto sustenance.  When in The OC one must resist the temptation to eat in one of the many big box restaurants.  I must give props to a delicious teeny tiny sushi spot called 242 Cafe Fusion Sushi right on the Main strip that combines two quintessential Cali. elements; sushi and surfing (as some of the tables are repurposed surf boards)..  The rolls are outrageously good, innovative and inspired.  The gal that opened it trained with Matsuhisa, need I say more? YUM!

Alright, this is probably enough for a Monday, but I will be humming for the rest of the day that I hope to be ‘Goin’ back to Cali, Cali, Cali… (in the words of LL Cool J.) “

Freshly on the heels of a visit to The Sundance Film Festival, my of-the-moment "luckier" half, traveled there for work but also had a covert assignment. The mission: to provide detailed feedback of all the fashion trends sported by celebs and the those creative, "in the business" as they saw in Hollywood, types etc. The term "Mountain Chic" he reported back. Go Babe! What good use of terminology to provide the perfect visual.

We've all been there. Trying to look hot on the slopes and not too haggard trying to stay warm–so as to still look good for the all-important apres activities.

Some of my favorite looks to sport that "mountain chic" vibe:

#1 Hunter Boots. Classic and cool (these are snake embossed, oh yeah!) AND you can further accessorize with extra cozy, deliciously fleecy sock liners, called Welly Warmers. These should be -sported over (of course) some skinnies, like black leggings or jeans.

Oh P.S. these are extremely practical for living in Seattle as well, as much as the cliche is true…

#2 Outerwear, I really like this Juicy Couture Puffer. The white (which I keep hearing is the new black) makes it look fresh of course fur is a MUST and I'd throw an elastic belt around to cinch the waist a bit.

#3 and finally I love these chic arm warmers; Functional for keeping warm and for keeping a firm grasp on those lattes and warm warm rum drinks.

Two Lost Souls Swimmin' In a Fishbowl…

Alright maybe not quite so dramatic, but we were badly in need of some added chi, in the home front to support some feng shui and free flowing elements. So adding a fish bowl and a couple of fish as pets for the kids, seemed like a simple enough idea (two birds with one stone and all).

So off to the local pet store we go, as I'm dreading the design of what I'm imagining current fish tanks to look like these days as they somewhat seemed to go together with 80's style water beds in my mind….And as choosing a habitat with a filter was the only option for giving our best shot to keep these newly acquired pets alive (for reasons too raw to elaborate upon now). Imagine my surprise when I come across the sleek and cool Baby Biorb!

From a design standpoint, I think honestly it adds rather than detracts. And how cute is it that they also sell these baby biorb swap tops in sassy shades, like canary yellow, lime green, baby blue and a sweet shade of pink?

Overall the whole process was pretty painless, despite the fact that the fish cost about .27/each and the whole outfitting of the Biorb was at least a Benjamin, because of course I had to have the $30 coral piece. I'm pretty pysched, for our new day glo friends.

Long live fishies…(status updates upon request)

Let's face it, theme parties rock. Or really any chance to combine
partying and dressing up–oh how I miss those "Barbarian" TG's, So man
up people. And Seattle friends (you know who you are) host a fun theme
party. I would love to stroll a red carpet on into one of your living
rooms for the upcoming Oscars.

Custom invitations also rock so resist the temptation to be vanilla and Evite and check out a cute little local shop like, Paper Delights to show your guests that they will be in for something special.

Our Annual Holiday party, better, known as Sweatermas is a chance to
scour the local Goodwill store or even worse, wear a Cosby sweater that
you already own while getting fully into the holiday spirit. This
party really is a stitch, (or an sequiny-adorned snowman, as the more
three dimensional the better). We encourage sweater vests,
sweatshirts, anything remotely North Pole-ish, the tackier and more over
the top the better.

(I fully expect to be forced to take this photo down shortly after my launch–love the shoes by the way)

We've really invested in this party, complete with a pine cone
stenciled punch bowl and reindeer mugs (for the inaugural) and advanced
to the white russian's made with egg nog this year, as spiked punch is a must. Of course there are prizes and they are usually
very fancy items that can only be purchased by infomercial.

11 months and counting till Sweatermas '10!

Who needs a little fun? What a challenging and relative subject to write about, but I'm pretty sure we all need a little more of it. Some days, it hardly takes more than a pair or sweatpants and a gossip magazine to be declared "a fun evening", but lately I have to admit, I'm perma-day-dreaming of escape plans to interesting locales. VACATION baby! Universally accepted as "fun"

Step #1 Shop for flights on Bing price predictor. I love this tool, and most you are probably laughing that this was woven in, but really truly you should check it out: bing travel. The technology for fare-casting is really cool it tells you whether to wait or buy now based on flights rising or declining.

Step #2 Accommodations. As part of the 5 million changes and adjustments to our post-kid lifestyle, gone are the days of vacationing comfortably in hotels. Spending a night or two in a boutique hotel with 2 toddlers and 2 adults in one room, and the requisite "gear" ,is pretty much like being in a torture chamber. Remind me to tell you about the room service in the hallway scenario as we attempted to wait out a screaming baby trying to fall asleep in a pack in play around midnight…to this day I am amazed we didn't get booted on out of there.

Fear not, there is a wonderful solution. Vacation rental by owner, or vrbo. This has been a savior for us. Depending on where you are going there is usually an abundance of inventory that spans from modest to luxe. I tend to only go with those where lots of photos are posted and when I feel a good rapport with the homeowner through email and phone exchanges. We recently rented this little gem. A French cottage by the sea: http://www.vrbo.com/175923 I would return here again and again!

Do I miss room service? A little. C'est la vie and Happy Vacay.