Thanksgiving and Ry Ry

We have so much to be thankful this year. We are both so grateful to have our health, amazing friends and family and of course EACH OTHER!

We were particularly thankful that we were able to spend our first Thanksgiving as Mr. and Mrs. with family. Tom, Diana and Katie arrived on Wednesday night, while Karen and Randy drove from Thousand Oaks on Thursday morning. I'll be honest, Mike did most of the work in the kitchen but hosting Thanksgiving really makes me appreciate my mom for hosting all these years. It is really hard work!! We did a pretty good job for first timers, most impressing was getting all the food on the table and warm at the same time. I was disappointed with my stuffing, but Mike did an amazing job on the bird. Another thing I'm so thankful for- my husband is such an awesome cook!

Anxiously awaiting dinner :)

A man with a mission!

Yum!

We had a great time with our McDermott family. I think my favorite part was trying Mama Testas, a restaurant we saw on the food channel where Bobby Flay hosted a throw down for fish tacos. According to Mike, they were the best he's had here in San Diego. In addition, we did a little shopping, bike riding (with only one spill!) and just good, quality time together. We are excited for their next visit, and even more excited for upcoming Christmas festivities with both families in just a few short weeks!

It has been a busy month for visitors here in the McD house and we were thrilled with our most impromptu visitor- Ryan or "Ry Ry" as we so affectionately call him :) Ryan made a quick decision to visit us when Mike got really great tickets to see the Lakers vs. the Heat this past Friday. We were so happy he came to see us! We had a fun weekend that involved possibly a little too much drinking and a lot of singing!

Mike and Ryan had a great time at a very exciting game- Kobe Bryant hit the game winning shot at the buzzer!

The three musketeers ;)

Best Buds

Dance party to Lady Gaga--and yes, I made Ryan put on the Snuggie!

Totes Magotes

The fun, visitor filled month of November continued with the arrival one of Mike and I’s best friends and former roomie, Jaime. She arrived on November 14^th, just in time to go out to celebrate Cathy’s birthday! It was a great night and nice to have a bunch of the girls together. We enjoyed meeting an Olympic discus thrower (“So, do you girls like the Olympics?”…nice line), making Cathy ride a mechanical bull (lets just say she had WAY more class than some of the girls up there…yuck) and capping off the evening with a good old-fashioned sleepover. We also picked up our favorite catch phrase of the week-- "totes magotes"-- as defined by Urban Dictionary to mean "An awkward way to say "totally" when trying to act cool"

It was so great having Jaime in town for so long! It almost felt like she lived here too! We had some great quality time walking through Balboa Park, lunch in OB with Linda, shopping in PB, In N Out Burger, Mike making her a cheesecake from scratch and watching the beautiful sunsets by the water. All of this before she embarked on the true reason for her visit: to complete the Susan G. Koman 60 mile walk in honor of her mother, Linda Tomkins.

I stopped in to walk with the girls (for about a mile!) and to eat lunch with them one day. This event was like nothing I’d ever seen. The energy, excitement and sheer dedication was astonishing. It was like a sea of pink everywhere, with so many supporters there to cheer the walkers on. I’m really proud of the girls (Jaime, Whit, Cathy and Linda) for completing the walk- it was not easy- I saw the blisters/cuts and how they limped on after about 25 miles. It is because of their dedication that someday we will hopefully be able to find a cure for this horrible disease. Thank you, ladies, for hopefully get us one step closer with the money you raised!

Here are just a few photos from Jaime's visit! Was it an amazing time?? Totes Magotes!

Next up: The McDermotts come to town TONIGHT!

Meredith Comes to Town

When we decided that we were moving to San Diego, there was one friend that came to mind that I just knew would visit. Sure enough, before we had even moved from VA, Meredith had booked her visit to sunny San Diego. Last Friday she arrived around 8pm and we really had such a fantastic weekend! Meredith is just plain fun to be around and she never has a shortage of hilarious stories that keeps everyone laughing!

Saturday we had a low key day- working out, riding bikes around the neighborhood, lunch in La Jolla and just a little bit of shopping. It was just so great catching up with her- take me back to my 1101 days in college.

On Saturday evening- Meredith and I embarked on what would become a real life video game challenge (think the Sims or Super Mario Cart) of sorts to get to the Civic Theater downtown to see the Lion King. “You know how to get there because you went to see Wicked there, right?” you may ask. It is true that I have in fact been there- but I can tell you I had no idea how to get there- not a shocking surprise to anyone who has been exposed to my abysmal sense of direction. Not to mention that this place is the most confusing place on earth to find. I watched the clock tick anxiously as it grew closer to the start of the opening number as we dodged various obstacles (again, we were in a video game) and drove around for what seemed like forever. Finally we found it. We got parking and raced to the ticket collector. One problem…wrong theater. So off we ran, in our heels and dresses down the street overshooting our destination by about 3 blocks, as a nice police officer kindly told us.

So now we are running back and FINALLY reach the Civic Theater. We were unable to go in because the opening number had begun so we were forced to wait patiently until the theater worker told us we were able to go in. Finally, we were able to enter the dark theater as Zazu the bird enters the stage and the play was continuing on. I’d seriously been grasping to the tickets we needed to get in for the last hour and sure enough, as soon as we stepped into the dark theater- I couldn't’t find them. I’m was dropping things out of my purse on the floor, eventually finding the tickets to stand up just in time to see some random woman taking the Playbill out of Meredith’s and asking if she can have two. She definitely thought Meredith worked at the theater. The look on Meredith’s face was priceless. After crawling over people in the dark, we finally got to our seats and enjoyed what I think is one of the most imaginative and well done plays I’ve ever seen.

On Sunday, Meredith and I jumped on the highway and started driving North- our destinations: LA, Beverly Hills and Hollywood. We shopped like the stars (Kitson, Tory Burch) and ate like the starts (at The Ivy) and with “Pretty Woman” playing in our heads, we drove down the fabulous Rodeo Drive. I shouldn't forget we also made a pit stop for the yummy Pinkberry!

Mimosas and $20 eggs at The Ivy. Such a cute place!

Hollywood was like nothing I’d ever seen (well, except probably Times Square in New York). There were so many people there- tourists, street performers, impersonators, weirdos, etc. The ultimate people watching spot. Madame Tussauds Wax Museum was so much fun. We couldn't’t get over how real they looked! It was kind of freaky!

Mere and George snuggling

Hanging with the Fresh Prince

Brit from the VMAs- the start of her triumphant comeback

On Monday, we made a visit to the San Diego Zoo. It was awesome! I can’t wait to take my little nieces when they come for a visit. They animals all seemed reasonably happy (compared to those at the National Zoo in DC) and we saw everything we wanted to see. I think our favorites were the rhinos that chased each other around, the pandas, the giraffes and probably the cute meerkats. I can’t wait to try the Wild Animal Park too!

It really was a great visit. The best part is Meredith is already talking about her next visit. Just what I like to hear!

The Line Up

November is going to be a FUN month! Mike and I have plenty of great friends and family coming to visit and we cannot wait to show them our new home!

The line up:

Tomorrow (Nov 6): One of my dear college friends and sorority sisters, Meredith, is coming from Charlotte, NC. I cannot wait to see her! Meredith and I always have such a great time and she never fails to keep me laughing.

Nov 14: Jaime is making her annual trip out west where she will be participating in the Susan G. Komen Three Day breast cancer walk. I'm so inspired to Jaime's dedication to this great cause. I hope to do it with her next year.

Nov 25: Mike's parents and youngest sister, Katie, will be out here for Thanksgiving. I can't wait to make my very own Thanksgiving dinner as a wife. Sounds kind of old fashioned for this working woman, but oh well :) We will miss Kelly and Nick (and Polo of course!) but it should be a lot of fun and especially nice to host family on our first Thanksgiving as a married couple.

Oh and on another visitor note- the Petersons will be making their way out here in early February! Wahoo!

Pumpkin Carving!

With the weather holding steady at between 65-75 degrees and sunny every single day and the palm trees not changing the autumn colors that I'm used to seeing, I was worried that it may not feel like Fall/Halloween. I was wrong. People in California love some Halloween! All the store windows have decorations, some people go all out on their houses and I've heard advertisements for about 50 "haunted trails". On Friday, Mike and I decided to go to a local pumpkin patch to pick out our pumpkin :0) The patch was small but had a lot of choices, hot apple cider and the carving knives needed to make a masterpiece.

See the results below...it's clear who we are rooting for this Sunday...

My side of the pumpkin- Go Giants!

Mike's side of the pumpkin- Go Yankees!

We had a fun time and after we made some pumpkin seeds to eat! Takes me back to my childhood days...YUM!

A perfect desert getaway!

One of the things Mike and I were most excited about when we moved to California was the opportunity to see so many areas we'd never seen before- in a part of the country we really hadn't spent ANY time in. Well we got our chance to experience a perfect little desert getaway when Kathleen and Martin invited us to join them in Palm Springs this past weekend. A Wiggins' family friend has a house there and was so kind to let us use it for the weekend.

It was an amazing time! The mountains really were breathtaking and I loved the (VERY!!) warm desert weather- about 100 degrees each day. We ate, drank (lots of wine), laughed, hiked, star gazed and just had a really relaxing time.

The set up. I know, ridiculous! Pool, hot tub, palm trees and a mountain backdrop that looks so beautiful, it almost looks fake!

The newlyweds.

The lovely Martin and Kat. They're so darn cute!

So, like I've been saying, I loved those mountains and wanted to experience a little hiking while we were there. After nagging the boys, Kat and I convinced them to come with us. It was gorgeous. I really enjoyed seeing the town of Palm Springs from above. I also realized that if I was ever stuck in the desert (like Survivor Man or Bear Grills) I would never survive. No chance.

One word of advice: don't go hiking in 100 degree weather in the desert after drinking multiple bottles of wine the night before. Just not really the best idea. Needless to say, the hike really wasn't that long!

Thank you again, Martin and Kathleen! It was a great weekend and we can't wait to go again sometime....maybe next time we'll get that smoothie ;)

Best. Hair Experience. Ever.

You never realize how much research you need to do when you move to a new city- new doctor, new dentist, new gym...new hair salon. As many may know, I hate getting my hair done. It takes a ridiculously long time and I end up spending a ton of money. Well I found a real gem here in San Diego. It is a chic little place called Paper Doll Salon located on Garnet in Pacific Beach. I loved it! The decor is super cool/funky, the pricing is reasonable and best of all....they give you wine! So within less than two hours (very efficient for my unruly mane) and 3 glasses of wine, I was no longer channeling Madonna circa 1986 with my awful roots and had a little buzz. Hair and happy hour...I like! Another plus- the hair stylist engaged in just the right amount of conversation- not too much, not too little. I hate when they want to chit chat and all I want to do is read my trashy celeb magazine!

Salon down- now on to doctor and dentist...good thing I knocked out the important one first! ;)

A mini herb garden

Living in an apartment doesn't exactly give you a whole lot of room for a garden, so we needed to get a little creative :) A couple weeks ago, Mike took it upon himself to transform our balcony to host a little, mini herb garden. He did a great job! We are now the proud growers of basil, rosemary, chives, cilantro, peppers and aloe! It is really nice to be able to walk outside and snip some fresh basil for a caprese salad and use fresh cilantro in some homemade guacamole. Our next home, however, will have a much bigger garden!

Our little garden

Serrano and Jalapeno Peppers

Our aloe plant- inspired by the Aloe Man we met in Antigua while on our honeymoon. The guy carried a huge aloe plant on his head and walked around the beach selling it to people. He would skin the plant right in front of you, rendering a jar full of aloe, and sell it for 10 bucks. Not a bad deal considering - according to Aloe Man- it is not only good for sunburns but for pretty much every disease and aliment known to man.

Our First Visitors!

Well, it has been a while since I’ve posted- very bad form in the blogging world, I know. I have a good excuse though: we had our very first visitors to our new home in San Diego…the wonderful Mom and Dad Valluzzo!

The parental units arrived on Wednesday evening after their luxurious flight in first class. They got a free upgrade, but still oh so glamorous, Fran and Steph. Did you know you get free drinks up there!? Anyways, we picked them up from the airport and I was just so excited to show them around my new home. I know my mom misses her “baby” and I think she enjoyed seeing where we live, what our neighborhood is like, etc.

On Thursday Mom and Dad went off on their own to downtown San Diego and to Seaport Village, since I had to work. I left work a bit early and we enjoyed a very yummy dinner at the neighborhood eatery, Beaumont’s. That place is super cute, good food and a fun atmosphere. Good times were had by all :)

On Friday we ventured out to Temecula to do a little wine tasting! We had so much fun trying three different wineries: Thorton, Maurice Car'rie and La Cereza.

Thorton

This place was just gorgeous with a huge herb garden that Mike loved (more to come on our own herb garden!). We shared some great appetizers and tasted 4 types of wine and 4 types of sparkling wine (aka champagne). Some were good, some were not my cup of tea.

Yummy!

Beautiful!

The tasting room!

Lovies

Maurice Carie

This was a suggestion from Kathleen and it was great. I loved the big house with the huge wrap around porch. We tasted 6 types of wine here and really liked most of them! We had nice picnic out on the porch including cheese and crackers and some kiwi. Unfortunately, since it was Friday and not a weekend, they were not serving their famous home cooked sourdough bread with brie that Kat raved about. To my surprise and delight, my mom was able to purchase the sourdough, complete with cooking instructions and we were able to make it at home. I loved it!

THE bread

My two favorite guys

La Cereza

This place looked just like a little Tuscan villa…which of course won me over from the start. But most importantly, we found our favorite drink of the day here- a peach sparkling wine that was just so refreshing! Mike even ended up loving it so we bought a couple bottles.

A little cigar tastin' too!

Saturday we walked around Bird Rock and got some beach time in as well. It was a gorgeous day and nice and warm.

The last time my parents came to San Diego, which was in 1994 for a business meeting my Dad was attending, they went out to an exquisite dinner at a place called the Marine Room. Although it had been 15 years, they said we just had to try it- the food had been amazing and the restaurant itself was literally right on the beach. On high tide mornings, the water actually hits the side of the restaurant. Well, the Marine Room did not disappoint. Mike even said it was the best meal he had ever had. I would probably have to agree…it was AMAZING! We even celebrated Mike’s birthday about 5 months early- my Mom’s ridiculous rationalization for spending so much money on a fancy dinner. Happy (VERY) early birthday, Mike!

Sunday we just relaxed and with peach champagne in hand, watched a ton of football.

We really had such a great visit. Can’t wait for the next time they come out!

Great Friends, Great Sausage

Last weekend, Mike and I packed up the 4 Runner and drove the hour and 15 minutes or so to Newport Beach to see our friends Kathleen and Martin. Boy am I glad we bought the 4 Runner! We were able to fit a surfboard, two beach bikes, a beach chair and our over night bag all in the back! It was so nice to have our bikes there, since the last time I was there I was riding an extra bike that was way too big for me, which proved to be somewhat dangerous, particularly after alcohol consumption.

We had a great beach day just relaxing and hanging out. What Martin claimed to be "great learners waves" ended up being a bit more difficult (and bigger!) then he originally thought.

After showering up we rode our bikes to a YUMMY Italian dinner at a place called Sabatino's. I loved it! Sabatino's makes it own sausage, both mild and spicy, and it was amazing...probably the best sausage I've ever had. The whole time I kept thinking that my Dad would love this sausage! It was a really nice dinner with lots of laughs, some red wine, great friends and great sausage!!

Bike Riding

Kat and Kara at Dinner

This weekend will be pretty laid back...maybe some beach time, maybe a little riding around Pacific Beach and of course preparing for the Giants game on Sunday. Go Giants! :)

Too Cute Not To Post

I just can’t even stand the cuteness of this picture. I love Josie and K-Dog’s matching PJs!!

So a little back story on K-Dog. On my 21st birthday, Mike got me a Coach purse and he did a Build-A-Bear (more specifically a Build-A-Dog) that looked like my beloved dog, Cassie. As many of you know I always got teased because Cassie and I looked alike, so he named the dog K-Dog, complete with a little birth certificate and everything. Not a bad present for having been dating for like one week!

Anyways, K-Dog kicked around for years and I just couldn’t bring myself to get rid of her, based on sentimental reasons. Finally I gave her over to my niece, Josie, who took an immediately liking to her. Apparently Jes had some baby pajamas that no longer fit Abby and….BAM….an insanely cute picture was born!

Birthday Girls!

The blogging has been a bit slow lately due to the lack of camera. Blog posts just aren't really that interesting if there isn't any imagery to go with them! We will get a new camera soon; we desperately need to!

In the meantime, I thought I'd mention three special ladies in my life that have recently celebrated their birthdays!

On September 7th one of my best friends and rapping bridesmaid, Jaime Tomkins, celebrated her 27th birthday! Mike and I were sad to not be there with Jaime, as we've always considered her the best third wheel a relationship could ever have :) We've spent a lot of time together the three of us, and Mike and I are very grateful for her wonderful friendship!

(Note: for some reason it won't let me upload a picture! UGH!)

Second, my wonderful mother celebrated the big 6-0 on September 8th! She is really living it up for this big birthday, as she should! She is having a girls weekend down at the beach house with her sisters/cousin AND traveling to Chicago with her best friends the Beach Babes (aka 60-year-old version of PIAB). My Mom really is the most generous person I know, as I'm sure many of you reading this have benefited from shopping at "Stephanie's Place". I appreciate my Mom so much more than I probably show it. Happy Birthday Mom!

Also celebrating a big birthday is my Grandma Zanzal, turning 85 years young on September 12th. She is a true matriarch of our family and one of the smartest ladies I know. I've really admired my Grandmother's strength and perseverance in the last couple years, but most of all I look up to my Grandmother for the wonderful example of love and loyalty that she has set for our family. She and my Grandfather were married for over 50 years, through good times and bad, sickness and in health. I always enjoy talking with my Grandma and of course getting advice on good books to read. She's so hip, she even follows this blog!

Happy 85th Birthday Grandma!

Hey people going through traffic circles: CHILL OUT!

Although Mike and I love our location in the middle of Bird Rock, there is one slight down fall. Our apartment is located right at one of the several traffic circles going down La Jolla Boulevard. Traffic circles really aren't too difficult- if there is a car coming all the way around the circle, you yield, if not you continue through without stopping. Well apparently people don't know how this works and because of that we often hear angry people not so kindly trying to tell them how it works. Most commonly heard yells include "It's not a stop sign!", "Come on!!" and "Keep going!"

I know it is annoying when someone stops when they shouldn't...but really the yelling out your car window, within feet of our open balcony door...not needed.

Not a huge deal, I'm just sayin'...CHILL OUT!!

PS. Also turn your radios down.

PPS. RIP camera. There is no coming back from sand damage :(

Highlights from the weekend

A pretty relaxing weekend! Here are some highlights:

1.) Meeting Linda in Ocean Beach (OB) for drinks on Friday! It was fun to see where she lives and check out her part of town. OB is a cute little area- exactly what I would think of when envisioning a beachy California town. And it was fun to see our little Whitty Kitty (Whitney Milne) in action working to promote one of her clients- Newcastle- and their Summer Ale.

2.) Joining Costco! This must mean we are getting old if we get excited about that...but I'm really glad we joined! I'll tell ya though, you have to get in and out pretty quick on a Saturday before suffering an anxiety attack due to the overcrowding of people wanting to buy items in bulk. As I was walking through the aisles, I couldn't help but think of our good friends Brad and Ashley West who just love Costco! It may take some time before we can handle that place like the pros that they are. We got a 32' flat screen TV for our bedroom- very exciting!

3.) Lunch with Aunt Karen and Uncle Randy! We met Karen and Randy in Irvine, about half way between San Diego and Thousand Oaks. It was about an hour and a half and not too bad of a drive. We went to this amazing outdoor mall- don't even know what it is called- but I know I would like to go back! We ate at Javier's- a great Mexican restaurant, with very yummy fajitas. It was nice to see some family! :)

Hopefully our camera will be working soon. It is still out of commission due to sand damage :(

I usually hate this phrase but... "Sunday Funday"

Sorry for the delay in posting- we dropped our camera in the sand it has been acting weird since!

Mike and I had a fabulous day this past Sunday so I just have to blog about it! We went to Blacks Beach, which is about a half mile hike down through a canyon to get to a great beach. It was a gorgeous little hike, not too hard but definitely had my heart pumping. I couldn't believe how many surfers where going up and down barefoot!

When we got down to the beach, we realized that what we had heard was true. If you walked to the left, it was a great expansive beach, not too crowded with some awesome surfers to watch. If you walked to the right, however, there was dozens of NAKED people. Apparently, that part is a nude beach! We got a good laugh and felt slightly weirded out by people just hanging out completely naked on the beach, so we quickly went to the left and averted our eyes.

Beautiful Water!

After Black's Beach we headed to a nice lunch in Del Mar and hit another beach nearby. What a beautiful town! I definitely want to go back to try some more of the restaurants there!

All in all, an amazing Sunday. We were exhausted by the end of the day and ready to settle in and continue watching the whole series of Sopranos. Why didn't I watch this show when it was on TV? Love it!

Wicked!

Last night, Mike and I went downtown to see the play Wicked! As many know, I’m an avid musical lover, having grown up going to see many plays when they came to D.C. Wicked did not disappoint! It is a prequel to the Wizard of Oz so it basically went through how the two witches became wicked and good, respectively. I will say I didn’t find myself wanting to dance in the aisle like I did when I saw Mama Mia or cry my eyes out like when I saw Les Miserables, but there were some great songs and the whole production was just really well done.

Someone who didn’t appreciate it as much: Mike. That’s an understatement. He actually hated it. I believe his exact words after the play were “what a heinous form of entertainment”. So needless to say, I don’t think he will be going back to any more musicals with me. I will say though…it was awfully sweet of him to come with me!

This One's For Jaime!

I forgot to mention something very exciting about our arrival to San Diego. When we arrived, waiting at my door step was a box addressed to Kara McDermott. Of course, I figured it was a wedding gift…perhaps some more of our everyday dishes or some wine glasses. I was wrong. As I tore into the package, I came to find out it was my very own Snuggie, sent to me from my dear friend Jaime. If you don’t know what a Snuggie is, then you haven’t been watching enough TV. The infomercial is on ALL the time. The Snuggie is a blanket with arms! Because it is just SO annoying when you have to do something and your blanket falls off! Mostly, I just love the infomercial. It is really hilarious and corny and I particularly love the scene where a whole family is wearing their Snuggies at a sporting event.

Jaime and I have always talked about how I should get a Snuggie because I’m always cold. Thanks Jaime for the thoughtful gift!

Enjoy some pics :)

We got a car!

Well, technically, Mike got a car! Right before we left VA, Mike said good-bye to his Altima knowing he would be looking for a new car here in San Diego. We found it last night! It is a 2006 Toyota 4 Runner and we love it! It is a great car with plenty of space to load up our bikes, surf boards, beach chairs...and in a couple years maybe some little ones, but don't get any ideas yet, Mom V and McD! ;) 

It will be nice to have a bigger car and still have our small, more fuel-efficient Civic.