The Gift of Paper

For our first anniversary, I wanted to give my Husband something sweet and meaningful. Because we spent the weekend at the Peninsula and we're also going to Europe to celebrate, we both agreed not to spend too much on gifts. Then I came across the perfect idea at Poetic Home, via this other really cute blog, Design Sponge. It is a vintage card catalog box with "library cards" depicting meaningful dates and memories. It is also a great idea because the traditional first anniversary gift is paper! I got the box off Ebay, had it engraved with a message and the date on the back and then spent time making cards with my favorite memories of the past year. You can be creative and in place of publishers and editors, you can put locations of these moments (ie: Central Park: NY). If you click on the link, there is a website that will generate whatever you type into library card format. If you have a typewriter, even better! You can also keep adding to it in the future. All our special memories will be kept in one place and when we're old and gray we can look back and enjoy the memories.

It's Been an Amazing Year!

I can't believe it has already been a year since J and I got married. Time really flies when you're in love! Every moment has been amazing. We celebrated our anniversary last weekend by spending the weekend at the place where it all started: The Peninsula, Beverly Hills. This is the most amazing hotel with even more spectacular service. They have so many celebrities and VIP guests, but they treat everyone like they are their only guest. All the workers in the hotel not only greeted us by name each time they saw us, but they also wished us a Happy Anniversary each time. There is a reason that this hotel has the most 5 diamond ratings of all the hotels in Los Angeles. (Yes, more than the Four Seasons and more than the Beverly Hills Hotel). Here are some pictures of our stay.

Thank you J for a beautiful weekend. I can't remember my life before you and I can't imagine life without you. I love you!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter!!

Quick Dinners

So, last week I started a new job and I realized that it is going to be difficult to make dinner each night. On some nights Husband and I will both be coming home late and we won't have a lot of time to cook. So I will have to figure out some short cuts and learn some quick dinner menus. The other night we tried Trader Joe's Braised Short Ribs that is already made and all you do is heat it up. I know this sounds terrible to serve my Husband for dinner, (don't judge me!), but in a pinch it worked out great! It was very tasty and the best part about it, was that it was quick. I served it with a side of healthy veggies to make up for the "instant" dinner. I will definitely keep this in my freezer for those nights we both come home late.

Hollywood Bowl 2010

I was so excited to see the Hollywood Bowl calendar for this summer in the mail. I love summers in LA and the Hollywood Bowl is a big part of why. It will still be dark for a few more months, but here are a few performances that I'm looking forward to: Regulars: Bugs Bunny at the Symphony, Mozart nights, Carmen, Tchaikovsky Spectacular, John Williams New: Planet Earth Live, Rent

1st Day of Spring

Spring is officially here and I'm determined to develop a green thumb. I have a few plants on my balcony and a few mini plants that I keep indoors. My Mother often brings me mini rose plants which are sweet for a few weeks, but shortly thereafter wither and die. I'm determined not to let this happen to these. I will keep you updated. I've also planted a few Calla Lily bulbs on my balcony and will take pictures once something breaks through the soil.

Birthday Dinner

This is the last birthday post. I'm trying to squeeze it all in before it turns midnight. Tonight my parents came over for dinner to celebrate with me and J. My mom wanted me to take it easy today and relax so she prepared dinner at her house and shuttled it over at dinner time. I was just in charge of the decorations. I love these Martha Stewart paper lanterns. They take a second to put up and take down, but they add a lot of zest. I just hung them from the ceiling with varying lengths of twine, but they are really cute when clustered around the chandelier.

 

My mom had a really fun idea for dinner tonight. She created a make-your-own sushi party. We had a main platter of different types of sashimi, shrimp, squid, eel, cucumber and avocado. Each person had their own rice bowl and strips of seaweed and also a bowl of a soy sauce, wasabi mixture. It is so fun and you can experiment with different creations. It is great for when people come over and you can put out whatever fillings you like. I bet a vegetarian one with tofu and different veggies would be fun and a meat-lovers could be good too. It really is up to you. Have fun with it!