Mimosa Party B)

I remember when the Saint's & Sinner's crew would go out for Brunch on Sunday's and we'd get Mimosa's at Overland Cafe and we always had a blast.  Those bottles of Champles (champagne) wouldn't stop coming until 4 pm when Brunch was over and we would all leave giggly and sleepy after an awesome afternoon with friends.

Cuppy-Cakes

For my Birthday a couple years ago I started my Mimosa Sunday Party where I had friends come over, we'd eat snacks, appetizers, and cupcakes, and drink all kinds of Mimosa's.  Last year I did a BBQ and this year I made a couple different things since I just invited a few people to hang out.  I found a couple recipes on Pinterest, one for Cherry Beergarita's which involved, Tequila, Lime, Cherry Soda, and Beer which turned out very sweet but delicious.  I also made a Funfetti Dessert Dip for Animal Crackers that was super low on fat, since I used Fat Free Plain Yogurt and Cool Whip.  It's my new favorite dip!  I mixed together a couple types of salsa's, one spicy with beans, another with corn, and then a third with papaya and mango.  I also made cupcakes with bright blue frosting and little 'fishy's' swimming on top.  I was pretty proud of my spread :)

Jess & Lynds

So my friends and I sat by the pool, enjoyed some tasty food and snacks, sipped on some yummy mimosa's (I had Mango Juice, OJ, and Cran-Peach-Strawberry Juice), and finally the sun came out to play!  It was very chill and a perfect way to spend my Sunday after an insane work-week, and knowing I had work the next 7 days in a row, in addition to all the Birthday Party fun the previous week.

As much fun as my 30th Birthday Week was, I was happy to go back to normal and take a little break from drinking after Sunday.  I knew I was heading to Punta Cana in a couple weeks so I wanted to get back to eating healthy.  But I had such a great Birthday and was so happy to spend it with so many different friends and celebrate.  Thanks to all my friends for joining me during my Birthday festivities, to those who called, Facebooked, or texted me, and also to my family for making my 30th Birthday so very special!  I can't wait to see what happens during this year ahead!

Acquah and I give it Two Thumbs Up for an Awesome 30th Birthday Week

My Black & White 30th Birthday Party!

After a wonderful 30th Birthday at Gabe's for Karaoke I knew I still had a couple more parties the rest of the week and needed to prep for the next few nights.  I made it to work on Thursday morning, though the shots I had the night before tried to stop me, the Bloody Mary I had a couple hours after arriving at Irish Times got me back on track along with a little encouragement from Aimee!

Saint's & Sinner's Crew!

I had my actual Birthday Party at The Garage and it was a Black & White Party where everyone wears black and white, black, or white.  I was happy to see everyone showed up looking all spiffy and awesome and in proper Black & White Birthday Party attire ;)  Carolyn had given me the idea for it a couple years ago on her 30th Birthday Party, with all of us in our black and white, and she came in, in a beautiful Red dress.  I knew I was doing this a month prior to my party, and it was a matter of finding the perfect dress, and thanks to Emily for shopping with me the previous week we found it, and I loved my Hot Pink and Black Dress!

Roommates...Em & I!

Emily had gone early and decorated in The Motor Club as well as baked 2 different cakes so the place looked fantastic!  It was so great to see all my friends coming by, people I met nearly 8 years ago when I first moved to LA, or people I hadn't seen in a long time, and some of my closest friends and co-workers.  I tried to take as many pictures as possible since it's rare that we get to be all dressed up and looking fancy!

Around midnight, Emily brought out the cakes and everyone sang to me.  She had also set up this Birthday card which everyone signed and I loved reading all the fun little notes the next morning!  There were cocktails and shots, lots of Rumchata, but because I was making sure to get to chat with everyone, it was a very low-key drinking night, and I was happy to go home and soberly make Ramen (considering just a couple months ago, I gave myself 2nd degree burns on a late night Ramen-fest...ooops)!

Turning 30 was a big deal this year, (clearly since I was having a mini-mid-life crisis for a couple months leading up to it) but it was totally worthwhile when I realized my favorite thing about my Birthday was knowing it gave people a reason to come out and celebrate, people I haven't seen in a long time, and it's just nice to catch up with those friends.  I felt so lucky to have so many friends stop by, even if it was just a quick hello; it meant a lot and made me feel very special on my 30th Birthday!

Friends on my 30th Birthday!

*Thanks to Em for decorating for my party and making my 30th Birthday so incredible, and not scary at all, and to Bethany for setting up all the details and specials for all my friends in The Motor Club in addition to lending me the perfect necklace, and to Kristina for taking pictures all night long so I have memories on an incredible day :)  And thanks to everyone else for coming and making me smile! Cheers :)

Birthday Karaoke!

On June 19th, 2013 I turned 30 years old.  The couple months leading up to it were a little stressful; I was anxious and worried that I wasn't where I was supposed to be, that I should have accomplished so much more, and just sad for some reason.  As soon as the clock struck Midnight late Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning, I felt a sense of relief, an excitement, and contentment that I am doing great and I'm proud of all I've done and where I am.

Wednesday night I hosted Karaoke for my 80's Themed Party!  No costumes were required, just 80's music, all night long!  I had picked up a pair of Green Peep Toe 5 inch heels I had found a couple weeks prior and finally decided to buy them and knew they would be perfect for an 80's style outfit.  A bunch of my friends showed up and sang 80's music all night long, I was so happy to have them there and celebrate.  There were plenty of shots, and I tried to stick to vodka as much as I could, and I was just happy I had a designated drive to and from Gabe's.  Thanks Aimee and Andy :)

Aimee, Andy, and I at Gabe's for 80's Birthday Karaoke

 I started the night off with Joan Jett's 'I Hate Myself for Loving You' and then got a request for some Cher, so I did 'If I Could Turn Back Time.'  I did a couple new songs when everyone showed up, and getting the whole crew involved singing 'Here I Go Again' by Whitesnake and then did Taylor Dayne's 'Tell It To My Heart.'  McCracken and I did a duet of 'Faithfully' per his request, and I'm actually happy we did it, because I'm not a huge fan of that song, but us singing it together made it fun and fresh.  I closed out the night with 'Separate Ways' by Journey since that song debuted in 1983, and I was happy to sing songs from different year's throughout the 80's.  It was a blast!

Birthday Shots with Carolyn!

Judy baked me a cake and I got so many flowers my entire kitchen table was practically covered in vases and gorgeous bouquets!  It was great to hear some new and different 80's songs and just get to catch up with friends and have a great Birthday!  It was the perfect way to celebrate my 30th Birthday...thank you friends!

The last day of my 20's...

It has been almost a week since I turned 30 and as scared as I was for the past couple of months leading up to it, when I woke up on Wednesday morning and walked into the living room, my roommate was awaiting me with a Cupcake and Mimosa's as I proclaimed 'I'm 30, woo hoo!'  It's only just begun, but as far as I can tell, the next 30 years are going to be great, but the cupcake and candle were a nice start!

I'm 30!! (Well, almost...last Photo Shoot of my 20's in Venice!)

Can't believe I fit in there!

The previous night (just hours of being 29 were left) included a wonderful Birthday Dinner at La Piazza complete wtih Pesto Farfalle & Shrimp Risotto, Wine, Chocolate Lava Cake, and later on drinks at Bar Lubitsch because Marisa was covering my Friday shift that weekend since I was scheduled at The Garage as well.  No rest for the Birthday girl, I worked my normal schedule all week long in addition to party planning!  The night ended with me hiding in my pantry because that's what 30 year-olds do...having fun and always a kid at heart ;)

Mom had made sure to call me at 10 pm in LA, because it was midnight in Wisconsin, then midnight in LA, and once again at 3:44 am because that was when I was actually born.  She's so thoughtful and I always love hearing the story of her going to the hospital and having me!  Thanks for sharing it every year with me, Mom!

Since Tuesday was the last day of my 20's, Kristina and I met up at her place in Venice and headed towards the beach for my final photo shoot of my 20's.  She had a bright purple/fuchsia wall that we planned on shooting at as well as the graffiti walls by the beach.  It was a great day for a photo shoot aside from the wind down by the ocean; my hair was blowing every which way, covering my face, in my lip gloss, and I was worried the pictures were just going to be complete chaos but I was so happy when I saw that it worked for the photos and they ended up turning out beautifully!  I couldn't have been happier with the photos; Kristina was a great photographer and we had a blast.  I can't wait to shoot with her again soon! 

Venice Beach Photo Shoot with Kristina!

All in all I ended my 20's with a bang, hanging out with friends, doing something creative, and enjoying those last moments before my fabulous 30's begin.  I'm certainly a lucky girl!