Cali Getaway

Getting prepped to leave Leo and Drew for a long weekend deserved a vacation in itself! It ain't easy, but it was totally worth it.

I'm still nursing Drew, so I had been pumping everyday to prepare for this trip. She had tons of extra milk, so that helped me feel ok about leaving. Plus, my parents, in laws, and Joel know the routine as well as I do, so I truly was able to leave and relax.

Thursday morning, I hit the road with a full ipad full of shows and movies, a few new magazines, ordered a drink on the plane and had a perfect flight into Los Angeles.

My best friend Shelby picked me up at the airport and we headed straight for lunch at The Strand in Manhattan Beach. 

 

We split a bottle of Rose and a burger, and then decided to do a little shopping before heading home to freshen up.

 

Our first night out was with my two other best girlfriends - Erin and Dawn. The mall I used to live by in LA got a hugggge overhaul, so I was eager to see it. We ended up having an awesome dinner at Javier's and I couldn't recommend it more.  

 

We had a long dinner, a few drinks and then took all of our mom butts home before 9pm so that we could get a good nights sleep. My how things have changed ;)

Friday morning Shelby and I got up and went to yoga sculpt at Core Power. We used to take the class together every Friday morning so it was so bittersweet to do it again a year later.

After yoga we hit up Marshalls - because it's literally the best Marshall's I've ever been to, and we got a bunch of house stuff for Shelby. 

We stopped in all of our sweaty clothes for my favorite salad ever at Napa Valley Grille, sat outside, and just enjoyed a leisurely lunch.  

 

After lunch, we decorated Shelby's place with all of the fun stuff we found and then went to a foot spa just a few blocks away from where I used to live. It was the most heavenly hour - just perfect.

After our massages, we went home, showered, and then met Dawn and Erin for dinner at Katsuya in Brentwood. 

We had such a fun girls dinner - and I feel so lucky that we can all pick up right where we left off.  

Saturday morning we had planned to do the Santa Monica stairs, but the weather in California was cruddy the entire time, so we decided to go back to CorePower and do another yoga sculpt class. I'm still soooo sore but it felt so good to get in a couple great workouts while I was away indulging in all of the food and booze. 

After yoga, we went to Coral Tree Cafe for brunch with my cousin, his new son, and my aunt and uncle who happened to be in town visiting too. 

After a long brunch, we made a quick pit stop back at Marshalls for just a few more things and then showered up so we could meet my darling girlfriend Ami at the new Waldorf Astoria for drinks.

 

The Waldorf had been under construction for probably the last 2 years that we were living in LA, and its now done and seriously spectacular. The rooftop is a must-see if you are in LA. The three of us split a bottle of champagne, caught up, laughed, and had a pretty amazing time people watching (including spotting Dr. Phil and his wife).

After happy hour, we raced back home, and ordered pizza with Dawn and Erin's babies and husbands - which was the perfect way to cap off my weekend in LA.

 

These people in LA (and one of my best friends was out of town, so Beth - if you're reading this - it wasn't the same without you) are truly my family and it was so fun, relaxing, amazing, sad, fun, and perfect to be with all of them. 

I took a 6:30am flight home so that I could be reunited with my babies by lunchtime and I'm so glad I did. 

 

We celebrated Mother's Day very causally with my parents and sisters - grilled out at my parents house - and then got home and relaxed - it couldn't have been a more perfect weekend and I'm so, so thankful for it.