brit's graduation

Brtini graduated from high school today. The same one her sister Leanne, Kat and I graduated from 10 years ago. Our 10 year reunion just passed. Crazy. I feel so old.

soirée avec gina

Every few months, my two best friends and I have dinner with our favorite professor of all time, Gina Gruwell. She was out high school French professor who took us abroad after our senior year, and she was the one that taught us all how to backpack and travel. She and her husband Rod have been our mentors and inspirations since we met them 14 years ago. It's amazing to me that this year is our 10 year high school reunion, and we still keep in touch with all the people we treasured the most from that time. I'm very blessed to have these relationships still...and cheers to many more years of wining, dining, and traveling!!!!

gorgeous table settings

Me digging into the caprese salad and Kat opens the Prisoner, a group favorite red.

Gina made the most amazing dinner. 2 in thick steaks with mash potatoes and veggies, topped with an insanely delicious peppercorn sauce. [she tweaked the recipe from Morton's but I personally think her reduction is much better than Morton's]. We brought over 5 bottles of wine from our latest trip to Napa, but Gina had a chilled bottle of white waiting when we got there, then opened one of HER favorites called Grey Wolf after we finished off ours, and then topped off the night with a malt scotch whiskey tasting. Goodness, i'm getting drunk just thinking about it...

Oh, and she also made amazing portobello mushrooms for the vegans! i wanted to eat this whole as well.

the original 4, but we've expanded to include the boys as well *_*

I got a new Club Monaco dress that fit this occasion perfectly, but I'll have to do the outfit shoot later. I also forgot to do a group photo! =/ Next time, we are going to go out to a Thai restaurant, my favorite one, so I will have to be sure to take one!

carhartt winery

Carhartt was once of our favorite tasting rooms on this trip. Although the wines were just alright, we had the best time here. It's the smallest tasting room in Los Olivos, literally a small walkway, and out into the back patio area. We went in about 5 times, and then left about 5 times to do other stuff. When we came back the last time, Mike Carhartt good-naturedly gave us the tastings, and also goofed around with us for tons of fun photos. On the way out, we think we saw John Cleese as well! ... but we are not certain. I blackberry googled John Cleese's pic, and it looked a TON like him!

The beginning of a million shots of us and the door

1st tasting


ready for the 8 tastings!


zooolander face


Mike Carhartt's zoolander face cracked me up


I think this is the shot that converted me to a 50mm fixed lens


cheeers!




the above sign made me laugh...and what tien said about it made me laugh harder


I LOVE this pic of Kat and Leanne!


...and I LOVE this pic of me and Tien


taking pics of each other

easter dinner

Easter dinner at Michelle's!!! Since we are starting out on our own, we have been starting our own traditions and hosting our own holiday parties. So grown up! Michelle and I have traded off on holiday get togethers, and Michelle wanted to do Easter. She made roast beef with all the fixin's and we all contributed in the best way we know how: wine and dessert!

I promise we had dinner before dessert, but these pics are too fun, so I switched them around. Michelle thinks she looks like a stepford wife, and it is fantastic!! At the last minute, I changed into a babydoll white dress instead of a more fitted one. [i AM going to eat!!]

I'm wearing a Benetton summer white dress that's too big for me

This wonderful little dessert was taught to us in Santa Barbara. It's vanilla ice cream, strawberries, and 18 year old aged balsamic vinegar from Foley Winery. We also had frozen custard from Stricklands, which we have been wanting to try since we got back from Seattle's Old School Frozen Custard. The rocky road was so delicious, I finished off the pint without a pic.

We started with wine and cheese! The wines are mostly cabernet sauvignons. We had a Humboldt Fog and a Brie cheese. The Humboldt Fog is insanely good. Our friend brought some pastries from 85 degrees in Irvine, and when you pair that with the cheese, oooh my goodness it's delicious.

THIS is the roast beef!! There were two actually, and we ate both!!!

yummmy salad

my plate!!!

oooh yea, yummy food!

omg we are sooo full

bacchus, be good to me tonight

We went to Bacchus, a wine cellar in the depths of Irvine tonight, and I have to say, I am quite impressed with the wine selection. The WAC [Wine Appreciation Club] field trip was basically a huge success!! We ordered food as well, but most of the food comes from the restaurants surrounding the wine bar, and they are just ok, nothing worth mentioning. However, the selection of wine does deserve some recognition. On my last trip to Napa with the girls, we tried to get an appointment at Orin Swift but was unable to get in. They have the coveted Prisoner here as well as the Papillon. I also got a flight tasting of a pinot noir from Tuscany that I'll have to get the name of later. Read Yelp reviews here.

food and tons of wine...what more can i girl want?


picking my next bottle...


rhett checking out the potential bottles to purchase


Crostini flight with bruschetta, olive tapenade, smoked salmon, and mushroom with goat cheese


the back part of the cellar for the more private party

when we were still civil and orderly

Onto the outfit post. I took these pics right before I left for the cellar when the sun was still out, so I was thinking ahead!! This black sweater dress is a little late for fall, but the nights can still be chilly, so I am still pulling it out! My favorite part of this dress is, of course, the shoulders! My mom would love this because the shoulder pads are back and i am sporting these strong shoulders with bold fuchsia platform heels to the max! When i got to Bacchus, my friend Michelle told me at least 3 times during the night that I look like my mum...I wonder if I showed this dress to mom, would she take it and not give it back...

h&m black studded sweater dress; jessica simpson fuchsia heels, aldo clutch, h&m earrings