Trying to Find the Balance

I imagine I'm not alone in saying this. I am having a difficult time balancing the different areas of my life. I'm blessed with a great life. My career is starting to take off and I have great family and friends not to mention a fabulous boyfriend and hobbies I genuinely enjoy.

However, lately I've been feeling like my time is being snatched away by a secret time bandit. Basketball has started to take off and we're signed up for 8 tournaments and twice a week practices through the summer. I love coaching but to to be honest, a piece of me seriously cringed when I saw my summer weekends evaporate!

It's not all gloom and doom... The sun is shining and this weekend I am looking forward to finally moving all the way out of my Queen Anne apt. I'm such a procrastinator and I have finished moving out or cleaned the place yet!

I'm very excieted to wakeboard, lay out in the sun, and BBQ and catch up with some fun friends from high school! Definitely looking forward to seeing those girls!

Memorial Weekend

Wow- Memorial Weekend went by way too fast. Boyfriend and I filled our time up home projects, gardening, visiting family and friends, dog sitting my boss' labs, and BBQing. I'm looking forward to a four day work week!

New Song Obssession!

I love Jason Mraz and could listen to him on repeat. This song called Shy That Way came up recently on Pandora and I'm obsessed! It's an artist who I'm not familiar with named Tristan Prettyman and it features Jason Mraz. I reccommend you download asap!

Lo Photo Shoot

This is a very Jennifer Aniston pose/look

I love love this dress!

Ok so here's a guilty confession / secret. I totally heart The Hills and Lo Bosworth has been my fave since Laguna Beach. She recently did a photo shoot with OK Magazine and these are the pics. I have been badgering my girlfriends about spending a day shooting our own photos for fun. I love the idea of recreating professional shoots using their hair, make-up, and wardrobe as inspirations. This shoot looks like it could easily be recreated in Kirkland or off my parents dock. I'll have to look into it!

Last night my mom and I went to Palamino's and then saw Grease at the 5th Ave. theatre. Grease is such a fun production! You can sing along and dance through most of the songs plus the costumes are so fun. Taylor Hicks was in the production. It's crazy becuase he's heavily hyped on the Marquee and advertising but he plays the teen angel and is only in one scene. I'm not a huge A.I. fan so it didn't make much difference to me but there were some audience members who treated Taylor Hicks' introduction like he was Justin Timberlake or something.

All in all it's a fun and fabulous way to kick-off summer and I definitely reccommend it!

Dinner with Friends

Last night boyfriend and I met up with our friends B and Steve. We went to Purple Cafe downtown (after I forgot to make reservations at Wild Ginger.) Purple is one of my fave Seattle restaurants. We started off with the baked brie apetizer which is delish! For dinner I had the pear and goat cheese pizza and it was amazing. Steve ordered goat cheese ice cream for dessert... it was ummmm interesting.

It was so fun catching up with Brandy and Steve. I hardly ever get to see her because she's a busy lady. We all had a great time at dinner. B and I traded war stories from Ruth Dykeman and it was fun listening to Steve chime in and try to relate with tax stories... somehow a disgruntled tax client pales in comparison to crazy teenagers who try to blow up buildings.

All in all it was a great night and I hope we get to do it again soon.

The Kick-off To Summer

Aww that's a cute pic!

Yikes! Not my best pic... that whole photogenic thing continues to evade me:-)

Love the purse Darren!

Last night Kim, Darrn, Tay, Dave, boyfriend and I headed out to Peso's to celebrate Kim finishing her second year of law school and becoming a 3L and Tay finishing her finals and only having a year left until she finishes her masters. I have smart friends! Peso's was fun and yummy. I had a couple of cocktails and a quesadilla that was faboosh!

Die Bier Stube

Last night my coworkers and I headed to a German bar in Ravenna called Die Bier Stube. I'm not really a beer drinker and their menu beer heavy and a little intimidating because it was all in German. I pointed to a cocktail called the Uber Tang thinking it had a fun name! It ended up being the German equivalent of a Vodka Red Bull and totally broght me back to my college days! I was a little wired when I got home.

Madre's Day

I have a fabulous mother. She is kind and selfless. She has a wicked sense of humor and doesn't take herself or life too seriously. My favorite thing about my mom is that she is who she is. No apologies or heirs about her. She is usually the life of the party... not to mention the planner and host! She loves our family unconditionally and she has a huge heart. She's a pretty cool lady and I'm very lucky to call her mom.

For mother's day we celebrated with a backyard BBQ and a few rounds of croquette. Boyfriend was introduced to the sport and was able to see where my competitiveness comes from! It was a fun Sunday!

Moving Day

Saturday was moving day and we were armed with a fabulous crew. Many thanks go out to my brother who drove in from Ellensburg and graced us with his professional moving skills! My mom brought over lunch and my fabulous dad spent all Saturday helping us out. It was much appreciated and I'm incredibly grateful for such a fabulous family. They always say "keep the friends who help you move!" I'm lucky to have a family who does it!

I Heart Coscto

Costco was doling out the best samples today! I'm such a sucker for Costco samples. btw - this pic does not do it justice!

Title IX

I recently ran across an article that outlined the role of Title IX and questioned how far we have come. Some interesting facts: On a collegiate level, while 55 percent of college students are female, women’s teams receive only 38 percent of college sports operating dollars and 33 percent of college athletic team recruitment spending. For a WNBA player in the 2009 season, the minimum salary was $35,190; the maximum salary was $99,500; and the team salary cap was $803,000. For NBA players in the 2008-2009 season, the minimum salary was $442,114; the maximum salary was $13,758,000; and the team salary cap was $58 million.

The accessibility and oppurtunity for girls and women to participate in sports is important. It looks like we still have a ways to go in our pursuit towards equality. If you have a chance support a female athlete. Every fan makes a difference.

Pics from the Met

The Bad

Andre Leon Talley in Isabella Toledo

Winona Ryder in Marc Jacobs

Kirsten Dunst in Chanel

Madonna in Louis Vuitton

Leighton Meester in Loius Vuitton

Molly Simms in Dolce and Gabbana

Stella McCartney in Stella McCartney

Anne Hathaway in Marc Jacobs

Donatella Versace and Cindy Crawford in Versace

Fabiola Beracasa in Chanel

I know I'm a bit of a hater but some of the choices were hideous. I mean seriously, Leighton Meester how are you going to make your Met debut in reworked gothic curtains? The fit is weird. The bow tied shoes are weird. The pantsuit is weird. Every piece of that was hiedous layer over hideous layer. Madonna looks like a punk troll. The House of Versace could not look any less relevant than the Little Mermaid inspired creations above. I know it's a little harsh to include Anne Hathaway but she's usually so right on with her fashion choices. I don't hate the dress it's just the over the top styling that is distracting.

Pics from the Met

The Good

Kate Beckinsale - Marchesa

Eva Longoria - Diane Von Furstenburger

Katy Perry Tommy Hillfiger

Eva Mendes Calvin Klein

Ashley Olsen The Row

Jessica Biel in Versace

First Day as W. Seattlelites

(pic from the restaurant wall)

Last night boyfriend and I met our friends Kim and Tay and their boys. They came over bearing a bottle of wine (so thoughtful) and checked out our new empty home. We then went out to Peurta Vallarta in West Seattle. Our first official day as West Seattlelites was off to a great start. Thanks friends!

Keys!!

We have keys! Our fabulous real estate agent dropped off a beautiful and thoughtful gift and keys to our new place!

So Sweet and Thoughtful

Yesterday I was feeling a little bummed out by my car accident until I received the most thoughtful surprise. Boyfriend bought me a generous gift certificate so I could shop my way out the blues and then took me to Jillian's We played arcade games and air hockey last night. It was so much fun. I felt very lucky to have such a great guy. I felt so grateful I even let him win at the basketball game!

Some Pics from the Weekend

Boyfriend and I house sat for my cousin and her super cute dog Sam.. We had a great time!

Scary Scary...

This weekend I was involved in a car crash on 5-20. It was pretty scary but luckily everyone was ok. Just a good reminder that accidents happen and it's important to be aware... yikes!

Dahlia Lounge / Dining out for Life

Last night boyfriend and I tried a new restaurant that was participating in Dining Out for Life. 30% of las nights proceeds supported the fight to end AIDS. The restaurant had a neet vibe and the food was delish! I had crab cakes with asparagas and couscous. Boyfriend ordered halibut that was fabulous! For dessert he had their specialty donughts (random right) and I ordered the rhubarb shortcake. It was super good. All in all in was a very fun night!