Snapshots of Los Angeles

Night 1 - Went out to dinner at Prado in Larchmont with my aunt, uncle, cousins, significant others, and their kids...unfortunately no photos.

Day 2 - Disneyland! Took my fiance to the "happiest place on earth," (he'd never been!). We did all my faves: Space Mountain, Big Thunder Mt. Railroad, It's A Small World, Materhorn, and beyond...

Night 2 - Dinner and drinks with my fiance, my sister, her bf, and my friend Lindsay at Katie's fave Mexican joint, El Carmen - known for its super spicy jalapeno margaritas, and man were they spicy!

Day 3 - Visited my sister at on the Fox/Fx lot where she works. What a cool job, huh? Unfortunately didn't see anyone famous (just my luck) but did get to tour the lot and some impressive fake facades where they film shows like It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Modern Family.

Night 3 - Sushi happy hour at La Grande Orange in Santa Monica, followed by a night out on the town in Santa Monica with a big group of friends (unfortunately didn't get a group shot). We ended up at a chill bar on Main Street, drank some vino, and had a fun time.

Last day - Went on a bike ride with my sister through the Venice Beach canals while the boys went surfing. My fiance's first time surfing!

Doesn't he look like a pro in the wetsuit?

All in all a great trip, and a perfect way to escape the rainy cold (and snow) that was happening in Seattle. Can't wait to visit again!

The Engagement Story

Okay, time for the details!! I'm still floating on Cloud 9 thinking about the fact that I'M ENGAGED!!!!!!! It's been a whirlwind 48 hours of pure bliss.

So, the morning of the engagement, it was a gorgeous, crisp Saturday - no rain clouds in sight, but a touch of wind. He and I went to my favorite French bakery for a late breakfast and picked up some croissants to take later for a picnic at the park. We drove to Carkeek Park (for those of you who aren't familiar - this is a beautiful park in North Seattle that has a little bit of everything, wooded trails through the forest, beach access to Puget Sound, and stunning bluffs that overlook the mountains all in one).

First we took a stroll down to the beach, but the windy was blowing so crazy, I felt like we were going to blow away. (I later found out, he had wanted to propose on the beach, but the wind had kind of "blown" that plan - haha, pun intended).

So we continued back up through the picturesque trails, chatting and walking hand in hand with our coffees. We walked up this steep trail to a beautiful clearing that overlooked the sea, the mountains - and it was in a protected nook so we were sheltered from the blustery wind. We sat down on one of the picnic benches and ate our croissants and talked, and just as we were about to leave, he stopped and said, "Before we go, I need to ask you a question." Now he says my eyes went WIDE and I froze, as he got down on one knee and told me all these wonderful lovey-dovey things and then popped the big question, "Will you marry me?"

Of course I said yes, and he took my glove off and put the gorgeous ring on my finger. It was so exciting and overwhelming, I started smiling and don't think I've stopped since. I surprisingly didn't cry, but I think I was just so stunned and excited I didn't even think of it! We hugged and kissed and hugged some more, and then ran to the warm car to call everyone.

The best part was after we shared our big news, we came back to our house where he had flowers and champagne waiting, and we just got to kick back and enjoy our new status as "engaged fiances," for a few hours all to ourselves. Later, we went out to a romantic dinner at one of our favorite restaurants and then met up with friends to celebrate at another friend's birthday party.

It truly was the best day, and I'm so excited for what lies ahead!! Thanks for all the kind wishes and excited reactions - we am so lucky in love and couldn't be happier!!

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I'm Engaged!!!

I'm engaged, it's true! My boyfriend popped the question Saturday afternoon on our day date around Seattle. I'm just bursting with happiness, excitement, and joy!!! The entire day was AMAZING, truly the best day ever. Later that evening, we got to celebrate our news with a few close friends - and it was exciting see see my friends' thrilled reactions!! (Also, I can't stop staring at my shiny ring)...More details to follow soon!

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Happy Friday

This is the last weekend of summer vacation...School starts bright and early Monday morning. How did it fly by so fast? Spending today tying up loose ends, making sure kids names are on their cubbies, mailboxes, folders, etc. and then enjoying the weekend with my boyfriend and our families. Have a good one!

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Playing House

I've been playing house with my new roomie for a week and it's been so much fun! This weekend, we made the trek down to Ikea to pick up some new furniture to accommodate the incredible amount of combined stuff we have. We did have some testing trials with one certain beaudoir that just didn't want to fit through the doorway. For most of the weekend, our living room was cluttered with cardboard boxes, random odds & ends, tools, and finally, it's starting to materialize as furniture (to house all of our stuff)!

It's been a fun transition, having him here everyday. I've enjoyed all the little things we now do together everyday; making dinner, watching our favorite shows, and setting up house. I'll keep you posted as we continue to settle into this new chapter.

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