Project Runway

If you're like me and love everything Project Runway you have to check out this post from the amazing Darci @ With This Ring Weddings.

I was so thrilled when I read her blog today because Carol Hannah was my favorite contestant this year. Hands down! Her collection was amazing and wearable. I think I would wear every single thing she sent down the runway.

Her Etsy shop is just darling, and I wish I could buy almost everything she features. Her wedding collection preview dresses are amazing and affordable and I want the dress below! Santa?!

Girl's Guide to Movies

I started hearing a lot of buzz about this film a few weeks ago and couldn't wait until I got a chance to see it for myself. I can't quite describe to you my feelings about this film. It is heart wrenching, depressing, funny, sad, and amazing film. I walked out of the theater with a heavy heart for Precious Jones, and I can't imagine anyone seeing this film and feeling any different. It is not at all a light hearted film. It is probably one of the most depressing films I've ever seen in my life. Yet, I can still say I enjoyed watching this film. Precious is played by first time actress Gabourey Sidibe - and WOW what a talented girl. The other cast members included Mo'Nique, Mariah Carey, and Lenny Kravitz who all did amazing jobs. While this movie is incredibly sad, it is about hope and perseverance. If you want a deep film that's really going to make you think, go see this movie. (If you want fluff, I don't recommend it for you!)

Girl's Grade: A
Boy's Grade: A

Happy Turkey!

We are enjoying a relaxing day off (yay!) a delicious potluck Thanksgiving dinner with friends, and telling each other all the things were thankful for.

I am thankful for Chinese food, cute clothes, Christmas decorations, and holiday drinks at Starbucks.

I am also thankful for my wonderful family, darling friends, amazing husband, and my health.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Big Ten Pub Crawl

On Saturday morning I had the day off, instead of sleeping in and enjoying a relaxing day.. I woke up at 7:00 am and traveled to Redondo Beach for the annual Big Ten Pub Crawl. My beloved Ohio State Buckeyes played the disgusting Michigan Wolverines this weekend.

We arrived at the Pier in Redondo Beach around 9:00 am and started drinking mimosas.


Enjoyed watching our Buckeyes beat (for the sixth time in a row, I might add) the disgusting team from the north.


It smells like roses! We are so excited for our Buckeyes to play in Pasadena on New Years Day!

I am..

In case you need to catch up on my life I am currently...

excited about decorating our new apartment for Christmas!
worried about finding said apartment in time to move in by December 5th. (yea, that's soon)
reading websites with recipes for Thanksgiving turkey.
creating cheesy potatoes!
loving relaxing nights with Peter.
hating busy schedules.
wondering how I will survive the cold when I go home for Christmas!
craving time with my family.
listening to the 500 days of summer soundtrack on repeat.
watching anything with Kristen Wiig (I want to be her BFF, for real)!

DVR-ing Grey's Anatomy, Project Runway, Friday Night Lights, The Hills

(this list was adapted from one of my favorite bloggers Kerry @ your wishcake)

Holiday Fireworks!

While relaxing on the couch with hubby tonight, watching last night's SNL we heard a super loud BANG! which sounded like a gunshot. We looked at each other with fear in our eyes. A second later, another BOOM! and then we realized.. it's fireworks from the Christmas (or should I say Holiday?) Tree Lighting Ceremony at the Grove tonight!

We just enjoyed an amazing (and completely random) fireworks show from our backyard. Holiday fireworks? Only in LA.. I love it here!

The Search Is On..

So, our lease is up at the end of this month and we're on the big hunt for a new place. I think that apartment shopping is one of the most annoying things in the world. If I could make a list of the most annoying things they would be; apartment shopping, looking for flights, doing dishes, and laundry. All four of those things have to be done, and often, but nonetheless they are always annoying to me.

Anyway, we are currently living close to Hollywood in a rather large apartment complex. We are pretty unhappy with the complex, how much we're paying for rent, and the way we've been treated by the management. In turn, we're moving! We definitely decided we want to be closer to the westside. For those of you unfamiliar with LA that means.. close to the beach!


We are so excited to move that way. We love the neighborhoods in the Venice and Marina Del Ray area. We think it fits our personality and we can't wait to walk to the beach together next summer!


We spent all day Saturday apartment shopping and luckily found some really great places! We are encouraged and excited to actually be saving money and to live someplace that we feel happier.

Halloween 09

I dressed up 3 times for Halloween this year. I think that is an all time record for me.

October 30th = "zombie cheerleader & band geek" inspired by some amazing band uniforms we found at a thrift store in Hollywood.


October 31st daytime = "hippie" I don't have any photos of this since it is the (poorly executed) costume I wore to work during the day.

October 31st night = "roller derby girl & her coach" inspired by the film, Whip It! My name was Cupcake Killa (thanks to Jon!) and I was pretty rad if I do say so myself.

What did you dress up as for Halloween?

Life Update #2

We decided to celebrate fall by attending an apple orchard in Oak Glen about an hour away from LA. It ended up being about 95 degrees the Saturday we attended the orchard which made it feel less than fallish and a bit more like we were in an apple orchard desert. Luck wasn't with us that day because when we arrived at the orchard they were out of apples. What kind of orchard runs out of apples?! At least we got some cute pictures of the girls in some bonnets and myself in a creepy rabbit hat.



We didn't end up getting any apples. We did purchase a pumpkin picked fresh from the path, drank way too much apple cider, and enjoyed a few delicious doughnuts. Oh fall in Los Angeles... you are nothing like the fall I know in Ohio, but don't worry I love you nonetheless.

Life Update #1

So, apparently I took about a sabbatical from blogging. I miss writing, sharing my life, and my blog friends so I'm officially back! First I will have a series of posts about what I've been doing for the past two months and then hopefully jump back into regular updates!

About a month ago we went camping in Little Lakes Valley a few hours north of LA. We hiked in to the park with HUGE (and I seriously mean HUGE, like I'm going to pass out HUGE) bags on our backs. We hiked several miles to our campground overlooking a beautiful lake, surrounded by mountains. It was literally the most beautiful and peaceful place I've ever been. At night, the stars.. oh my I can't even explain how amazing the stars were.


Here is a picture of the whole group at our lovely campsite in our "kitchen" where we spent most of our time enjoying pitas, peanut butter, and dehydrated meals (which were surprising delicious, or maybe we were just surprisingly hungry and willing to eat anything..).


This was probably one of the toughest and most physically draining weekend's I ever experienced. I wouldn't say I'm the most "out-doorsy" of girls but I actually did enjoy my time in the wilderness. It was nice to get out of LaLa Land for the weekend and enjoy the fresh air.

I'll be missing you..

I miss blogging. I'll be back soon, I promise.

I'm sorry for my the sabbatical.

Big news in my life.. today it rained in LaLa Land. It feels like fall and I'm wearing boots.

Open Letters

Dear Blog,

Contrary to popular belief, I did not forget about you. I've been a very busy girl with little time to do much of anything. I haven't been to the grocery store or done laundry in weeks, let alone have time to write some blog posts. Please know, my dear, I'll be back soon with tons of excitement. (I even traveled up north to do some hardcore camping and hiking!) Please stick with me, blog, I promise I still love you.

All my love,
Ali in LaLa Land

Dear Job,

You are taking over my life. I'm tired. Retail is hard work. I need new shoes.

Love,
Ali in Job Land

Dear Fall,

Today is apparently the first day of you, but it's almost 100 degrees outside. I know I bragged a lot when it was warm in the winter, but I'm ready for some cooler weather already. I'd like to pull out my boots and sweaters again.

Love,
Ali in Summer Land

Weekend Plans

I am so excited, we have so many fun things planned, including my mom visiting LaLa Land for the weekend! We're planning a trip to the Getty Center, the beach, a hike, a college football party, and the Dave Matthews Band concert on Sunday! Whew! Mom's going to leave exhausted.

On Saturday our beloved Buckeyes..



Are playing the team from my new city..


I'm sorry Southern California, on game day I don't love you quite as much... GO BUCKEYES!

Girl's Guide to Movies

Ok, so I had some requests to review Taking Woodstock and I thought I better do that before the weekend comes and you're trying to decide what movie to see and you're cursing Ali in LaLa Land for not reviewing any movies this week. (Ok, that's a stretch, you probably won't do that.)

Moving on.. I don't know if everyone will like this movie. I thought it was a little slow but overall it was good. The relationship between the family at the center of the movie is funny and endearing. I definitely enjoyed that. I also enjoyed the main character and his quest to take care of his family but still have a good life.

The Good: Awesome description of the actual Woodstock, I hope that if I was a young person living then I would have been there. It looked like a great (albeit crazy) time!

The Bad: It was slow, at some points it was just going along too long and I was thinking "wrap it up!"

The Ugly: If you have sensitive eye's you may not enjoy the nudity or the drug scenes.

If I were you, I'd probably wait until it comes out on DVD.

Girl's Grade: C
Boy's Grade: C+

Tuesday Morning Ramblings

• I'm fairly certain that if Peter didn't beg for meals 2-4 times a day I could (and would) sustain myself on wheat thins, cheese, diet coke, and dill pickles. I'd also probably enjoy some sushi, wine, and chocolate chip cookies from time to time. But alas, I have a hungry husband who apparently needs more than just cheese and crackers from me.

• I went to Target on Sunday (note to self: never go to Target on a Sunday again, holy crowdedness) and only spent $10. I think that's a first.
  
  
  
  

• On said trip to Target I spent some time in the greeting card aisle trying to pick out a few cards. I was really disappointing in the selection and left empty-handed. Can we please get a little less corny, card makers?
  

• We saw two movies on our Friday "double dip" movie night. First, "Taking Woodstock" then "Extract" I'm conducting a very unofficial poll to see which one you'd like to see a review of first. Please comment your answer. I know how much you all look forward to my movie reviews since I'm such a great critic (again with the sarcasm here).

Fire

This is the worst title for a blog I've ever seen. Also, I've come to the conclusion that I need to start doing some cooler things so I have something to blog about.

I'm sure by now you've all heard about the fire's in the La Canada area of Los Angeles. No need to worry, about the fires affecting our home, nor are they anywhere close to us, we're very safe here in the city.

While we're safe, it's very very very hot out and the air is very smokey. I've never experienced anything like this!

We have air conditioning in the living room of our apartment and since we're on the first floor, we don't have a great breeze coming through our windows. For the past few nights our living room couch has become our bedroom. It feels like a sleepover every night!

On Saturday there was a huge billowing smoke cloud in the air all day and that night we were able to see the fire's burning from our friend's roof all the way in Venice! Below is a picture of the smoke clouds I took with my cellphone.


While I write this rather lightly, I'm not forgetting about the families that are being personally affected by the fires and have lost their homes. We are and will continue to be praying for them, and I hope you will to.

Football

I'm admittedly not the sportiest or most athletic girl on the planet. I also didn't know anything about sports until a certain guy with a certain sports obsession came into my life several years ago.

With that being said, another reason I'm excited for fall is the return of college football! (I'm not a huge fan of the NFL, although I end up knowing a lot about it due to the guy mentioned above and his tendencies to talk to me about fantasy football every Sunday. It's a real joy, folks.)

We'll be rooting for our beloved Ohio State Buckeyes all the way from California. No, we will NEVER be Trojans fans, never ever. This house will always bleed scarlet & gray.



What's your college football team?

Fall Wish List:

Boots:

Shirt Dresses:

Beautiful skirts with tights and boots:

Comfy sweaters:

Pretty necklaces:

all images via anthropologie

What are you dreaming about for the fall? Jeans and boots? Comfy sweaters? Do tell!

The Best Cookies Ever

My cousin Darci gave me the best recipe for chocolate chip cookies. They are delicious (like I eat 6 at a time delicious) and I think you should make them too! I was in the mood to do some baking and somehow I convinced Peter that it would be fun if he helped. I think he mostly enjoyed eating the cookie dough.


Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs (room temp if possible)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt (I added 2 teaspoons of sea salt for a sweet/salty creation!)
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream butter, brown sugar and white sugar together in a mixer (I'm not cool enough to have a fancy mixer, so I just use my hand mixer.) Then add the eggs, one at a time. Beat until creamy. Add the vanilla.

In another bowl mix the dry ingredients together before slowly adding them to the creamed mixture. When combined, stop the mixer and add the semi-sweet chips. Mix up and then drop by the teaspoonful onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Mold them into a ball as best as you can with the spoon for a more shaped cookie.

Bake on 350 degrees for 8 minutes. Place on wire rack to cool. Enjoy!

(Thanks for the great recipe Darci!)



I forgot to take a picture of the finished cookies. This is reason #23 why I'm the lamest blogger ever. I guess you'll just have to make some to see (and enjoy) the final product!

Thoughts..

I'm sitting at my computer trying to write about our trip to Ohio but I've deleted my work 4 times now. I simply don't know how to put it into words, not because it was so amazing and not because it was horrible it was just..

Are we happy in Ohio? Yes, it's home, we know it and the people there like the back of our hands. On the flip side, are we happy in LA? Yes! It's exciting, new, adventure, we don't know what each day will bring us. We are honestly happy in both places.

We were asked countless times, "how long are you going to be in California?" or "are you ever coming back to Ohio?" We have no answer for these questions.

If we were still in Ohio we would be buying a house, starting a family, working comfortable jobs and while all that sounds very appealing that is simply not where we are right now. We're still soaring through the opportunities, enjoying our youth, and exploring each new turn in California. Sure, we've broken down a few times and had a few "what the hell were we thinking" moments but we have also made new friends, tried new things, found ourselves outside our comfort zone, and discovered new paths. We've also learned how very important it is to be best friends. No one understands me like Peter, and that's because we've experienced this journey together.

I had a great week in Ohio, I love my friends, family, and the simpler (and much less expensive) life of Ohio. But ultimately I'm happy to be back to our new home in California and excited to see what comes next.



(If you made it to the end of this rambling post I applaud you, I know I don't usually talk about serious stuff on here, but it was what I needed today. You deserve a chocolate chip cookie.)

I'm on a boat...

I got my swim trunks, and my flippy floppys..


Yes, this weekend we'll be "on a boat!" but we won't be with Andy Samberg and T-Pain, we're spending the weekend with family on Lake Erie.

I plan to read my book, drink cocktails, swim, and enjoy family time before we head back to the city of angels Sunday night.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about or who Andy Samberg and T-Pain are, see this video. It's a joke, Mom.

Beauty Bar

In my humble opinion, the best salon in the whole world is right here in Ohio. It's called The Beauty Bar and is located in a beautiful old house in Toledo.


One of my best friends is a stylist at this amazing place and recently started a super cool blog called Behind the Chair at the Beauty Bar. On the blog she will be highlighting salon specials, product reviews, celebrity hair, and all kinds of exciting beauty information. Last week she featured OPI's new fall collection. I love OPI nailpolish and the new colors are beautiful!

Stop by the blog and say hello to Shannon, and if you're in the Toledo area I definitely recommend you checking out the Beauty Bar. You can visit her new blog here!

Where are we?

We're not in LaLa land this week folks. In fact, we are very very far away from LA..

So where in the world is Ali?

I'm in Ohio folks! It's hot and humid here, I'm afraid I may melt.

We spent the weekend with my family having a blast at the Marriot in Cincinatti. My family loves hotel rooms, we always spend our weekends together in hotels since we're all from different locations around the country (NYC, South Carolina, Chicago, Florida, San Fran, and LA!)



Now we're back in Toledo enjoying time with friends and hubby's family.

It's good to be home.

(but don't worry LaLa Land, I still love you!)

Take Me Out To The Ballgame!

We had such a great time at the Dodgers game! (I swear to you EVERY time I go to a baseball game it goes into extra innings, I think I'm a curse!) And even though the Dodgers lost, I really enjoyed getting back to my roots and cheering on the home team!

Here are some pictures from the game for your viewing pleasure!

This is where Dugout Daisy was sitting! Directly across the stadium from us!

Also, this is LA so there were of course some celebrities at the game. They did a little tribute to MJ because his brother Jermaine was there! And the best celeb of the night, the gorgeous Josh Duhamel!!

I Scream for Yogurt? (Part 2)

A long long time ago I told you about how much I love Pinkberry here. Well through the months of living in LaLa my love for Pinkberry and many other frozen yogurt establishments (Twist! Yogurtland!) has grown. Then a few months ago Pinkberry released 2 new flavors for summer; Passionfruit & Coconut.


I am in love. (The picture makes it look like it's no different from Original, but trust me, it is!)

I can't even begin to describe how much I love the coconut pinkberry with chocolate chips and strawberries. It's changed my life a little bit.

In case you're wondering there's a Pinkberry within walking distance from my apartment which also happens to be the mall I work at. Needless to say, I'm a fanatic.

My Bad

I'm sorry for my blogging break. I'm embarrassed and ashamed. I have an entire list of things to tell you about but I've been slacking. I don't want this to become a burden, because I really enjoy writing and sharing my life in LaLa Land with you.

For now.. I'm doing something very exciting tonight. One of my favorite summer pastimes, and this is my first time doing it in LA! I'm sure you can imagine my excitement.

I'm going here:

To see..

Play..

Next week I'll be back and full of exciting things to talk about, like Pinkberry flavors, shopping excursions, and even a trip to Ohio to see the fam. I'm sure you're all "totally stoked" but in the mean time, have a great weekend!

Girl's Guide to Movies

Here's the part where I admit to the internets that I've only seen the HP movies and I've never read the books. I'll lower my head in shame here and tell you that I don't think I can adequately review the movie based on that fact. So remember as I discus further, I don't have an amazingly well written book to compare and contrast, I only have the 5 other films.

(I plan to start reading the series as soon as a friend loans me book 1. I know I'm super late in the game, but I'm excited to begin reading and I know I'll love them.)

Anyway.. moving on to the review. I loved the movie! The actors are growing into young adults and having new emotions which creates fun new romantic story lines. There's a lot of humor in this book including an hilarious scene where Harry takes a potion to make him "lucky". There is suspense, and a scene so scary that I jumped and grabbed Peter's arm. And another scene so sad that I was in tears. HP 6 has all the things; humor, romance, suspense, and emotion that make a great film. My completely unbiased to the book opinion on the movie is that it was awesome. I can't wait to read the books so I can find out more about the story!

Girl's Grade: A
Boy's Grade: A-