fun photo friday.

one of my favorite pictures of my dad.
had a dream about him last night.... it's going to be a good day.

happy friday blog readers.

MLS All Star Game.

I am back from Houston.
I am tired.
I have hundreds of emails to sort.
It's Thursday but feels like Sunday.
I don't know why? It's weird.
The stadium was packed with 70,000 people.
It reminded me of South Africa.
Brought back a lot of good memories.
American Idol Alum Kimberly Caldwell sang the national anthem.
it was the best i have ever heard.
game was a bummer since we lost 5-2.
but the crowd was fun.
and the post parties were fun too!

(Box Seats at the All Star game)

(Omar and Me "air DJ-ing")

not going to lie, i should be a professional DJ-er.
i am pretty fun with my gangster headphones on.
i am off to answer a thousand emails.
happy Thursday to all.

Houston or bust.


I am in Texas for the MLS All Star Game and to switch up work spaces for a few days.
It's hot here. Humid hot.
Which isn't a good combo.
I got to sleep in today. Amazing.

And now I am currently working on my iPad in the comfort of my hotel room, in pjs, eating room service food. Clearly I haven't figured out how to blog on my iPad since this post is boring.
Sorry. No colors. Nothing.
Tonight we will head to the pre parties at the stadium, watch the all star game, then post parties.

I also ran today. Which is good considering in 2 months I'll be running 26.2 miles.

Well i am just saying hi from Houston.
Happy hump day to all.

not me monday.

can you believe it's Monday, again?
it's almost august. yikes.
these days of summer are going by a little too fast for my liking.

well, here it goes!
all the things i did not do this week.
for the newbies, pretend it's opposite day.


i did not love house hunting and not finding the perfect house. not yet. but it will happen. i feel it.
i did not love my 6am runs. man, the marathon is sneaking up on me!!
i did not love katsuya, galaxy game and out with the peeps Thursday.
i did not love having the most random night with some of the most fun people.
i did not love laughing so hard about the most random night.
oh man. great memories.
i did not love going to C & O's in Venice (yummmmm butter balls) then movie night with the girls. still full.
i did not love going to the magic castle in Hollywood.
i am still in shock by some of the magic.
i am officially a believer.
i did not love sleeping in on Sunday! it was AMAZING.
i did not love brunch w/ the crew Sunday. sangria, yes please!!
i however did not love missing Chelsea this week! love my bestie.
i did not love becoming more obsessed with my ipad. it's getting ridiculous.
i did not love getting to spend some quality time with brother bear. i just love him.
i did not love booking Houston for the MLS all star game, Vegas for my 25th, home for 5 days, and Chicago for the marathon.
life is flying by........... not a fan.
i did not love learning that a dear friend lost her baby boston terrier. breaks my heart. i actually hated this.
i did not love getting a stomach ache over too much watermelon. i just can't get enough.
i did not love eating my first cupcake since the cleanse. probably a bad idea because now i just want more. a lot more.
i did not love the massive amounts of emails i woke up to this morning.
happy Monday to me.


post your not me Mondays!
it's so much cheaper than therapy.

magic castle.

Over the weekend we went to the world famous magic castle in Hollywood.
um, google it.
this place is UN-REAL.
i don't really believe in magic, but let's be honest...
anyone who can make a $20 bill (that i have written on) appear later INSIDE a Splenda packet (sealed and all) is my new hero.

it was amazing.
and we had a wonderful sit down meal that was delicious!!!
we even ran into jason sudeikis - one of my most favorite SNL peeps.

it's a member's only club (you gotta know a magician)
thankfully for us, we do!

i want to go back.
i love magic now.

summer treat.

it is safe to say i might turn into a watermelon pretty soon.

it is my ultimate summer treat.

lately i have been eating it for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

obviously i am eating other foods as well....

but every time I have watermelon I am utterly confused as to why I ever eat anything else.

do yourself a favor and pick up a watermelon next time you are out getting groceries.

you won't regret it.

summer reading.

i am really into reading right now.
like obsessively reading.
i guess i can thank mr. ipad.
i don't watch TV anymore (besides summer TV isn't good)
i read eat pray love and can't wait for the movie to come out.
julia roberts will kill it i am sure.
i am currently reading something borrowed.
i love it.
and also can't wait for the movie to come out.
perfect casting of kate hudson & gennifer goodwin.
and i think i will read charlie st. cloud
(but mainly because i will read anything with zac efron's face on it)

i have a list of 50+ books i want to read.
please feel free to add a book you think is a "must read"
you can never have too many books on your list.

have a lovely Thursday everyone.

relaxed.

this past weekend was the most relaxed i had been in a long time.
we did everything i wanted to do, which was nothing at all.
we drank margaritas & coronas.
we laid out and read.
we ate {a lot} of watermelon.
friends came over to join us.
we floated under the sun and i never wanted to leave.

sometimes when i have a million things going on, i think of that moment.
the moment where all 3 of us were laughing in the pool not thinking about the devastating year we have been through,

but rather living in that moment...
with each other.
how lucky are we to have each other?
and he was there too.
he always is.


ps. how cute is my mom & brother's matching hats.
such dorks, but i love them.

not me monday {on tuesday}

when you are busy you tend to forget what day of the week it is.
everyone has the problem sooner or later.
it's a part of life.
so here it goes.
it's not me monday {on tuesday today}
yes, i know. i am a day late, you should see my work space.
organizing galore today.


i did not love kings of leon nor did i love playing "your sex is on fire" on repeat 1,000 times.
i did not love the espys and definitely did not love meeting all the people i met. literally. everyone and their mom was there.
i did not love geeking out at my ONE ON ONE at the apple store. i am learning so much!
nerd alert.
i did not love 2 back to back days off. i know? i am amazed i didn't open my email once. okay, maybe once. but still.
a much needed vacay back home.
i did not love laying poolside, margarita in hand, watermelon, chips & guac, and my family by my side. perfect weekend.
i did not love attending a wedding in 105 degree heat. sweat was everywhere.
i did not love booking vegas for my 25th. oh boy.
i did not love watching hot tub time machine on my ipad on the plane. i definitely did not laugh when the scenes on the screen were a little rated R for the people sitting next to me. oooops. serves them right for watching over my shoulder.
i did not love learning i have 2.5 months until the marathon. yikes.
i did not love creeping out on meeting zac efron.
i mean he wanted to tell me he loved me, i saw it in his eyes.
i did not love the BIG DRE roll being the #1 special for the night at mikuni. best surprise ever.
i did not love being able to eat real food all week. loved the cleanse, but really? a girl has got to eat!!
i did not love all the donations we are getting in for our marathon in October - to donate & read my dad's story: http://www.active.com/donate/runtoremember2010/JRobin9

i definitely did not love 2 days with both my mom & brother.
i just love them oh so much.


post your not me mondays!
it's so much cheaper than therapy.

fun photo friday.

(jesse williams from greys - he is just the cutest)

i am still recouping from the ESPYs.
it has definitely been a crazy few weeks for me.
so i have asked for the weekend off.
i am heading to SACRAMENTO tonight to visit with momma and brother.
my two favorite people.
i couldn't ask for a better way to spend my weekend....


mikunis.
laying poolside with a margarita (and salt) in hand.
cold watermelon.
chips & guacamole.
rachel's wedding.
hanging out.
telling stories about dad.
laughing.
gossiping.
and of course, planning our next weekend together.


life is good today.

ESPYs.

i went to the ESPYs last night.

my boss was up for 3 nominations (a clean sweep i may add)
it was a LOT of work during the day.....
but when the sun went down it was all fun!

me and Carly (she works the ESPYs every year)
she is just the cutest.



i have never met so many people in my life.
so many famous people. everywhere.

you would see one, meet one, then see 5 more. and so on.
it was pretty cool.
i didn't know ALL the athletes. but i knew enough to be impressed.

the show was hilarious.

and i have also never been so creepy with picture taking. ever.

see exhibit A:

yes, this is zac efron (hello 12 year old school girl crush)

but to be fair, after meeting him, i was to embarrassed to ask for a photo (weird, i know)
so this is what happened.
i took this and became an instant stage five creeper.

i was okay with it. he is beautiful.

one of the post parties had a special performance by Robin Thicke.
i have never seen a performer sweat so much.

we danced. and danced. and danced.

oh, and i am in love with the W hotel.
breathtaking.

what a fun night.

Kings of Leon.

I should have titled this:

new. favorite. band.

i seriously have been rocking out to them all day.

yesterday at 2pm i got invited to go to the KOL concert.
the concert was in 5 hours.
at first i said no because i have piles and piles of work to do.
but then realized, why not go and just not sleep.

perfect plan.

needless to say i was a little tired today.
but totally worth it.

goodbye busy weekend. hello busy week.

this weekend was busy.
mostly fun. but busy.
(let's be honest here, my work is crazy but i love it, so that counts as fun. right?)

Friday night we headed to long beach to celebrate the vow renewal of a dear friend.
isn't she stunning. and by stunning, i mean perfect?

some of my favorite long beach gals.

wedding gift to Rachel & Hubby Linds

I worked all day Saturday... did something I have NEVER done before...
and saw Karate Kid.
great movie.

On Sunday my boss was throwing out the first pitch at the Dodger game.

Ran into a few well known peeps. including Demi Lovato.
She is a huge fan of my boss. it was cute.


Demi Lovato and Eden.

our seats, not bad huh?

in between the fun, i managed to somehow work. work. work.

Let's also not forget to mention that i did a 5 day juice cleanse.
i survived.
i had an avocado (the cleanse says you can, and my friend Shauna was SO sweet to indulge me) but the rest of the days, all juices.
i am NOT kidding. i almost cried the avocado tasted so good.
happy to say 5 days was well worth how great i feel.
it was stupid. but amazing.
SO much energy. it's a good thing because i will be working long days this week.

and yes, i am exhausted and just got invited to go to a concert tonight. no sleep for me. awesome.

when your boss says, "COME!! live a little"
i'm going..............

oh boy, busy week ahead!!!

fun photo friday.

happy wedding day to you two lovebirds.

Brain Dump.

-I am back from South Africa, and watching the World Cup on TV just isn't the same. it makes me a little depressed actually.

-i am getting an ipad and the new macbook pro laptop tomorrow. compliments of my bosses. i mean, i totally deserve it BUT so nice to be appreciated in (apple) form. won't say no to that. ever.

-i started a 5 day cleanse today. all liquids. 5 days. yes, you read that right. blue print cleanse is gonna kick my butt. day 1 down was good! tomorrow might be a MUCH different story. stay tuned.

-i saw my mom's twin at the gym recently. i mean, my mom is much cuter, but i totally did a double take as if my mom came to manhattan beach and didn't call me to hang out.



-i need to find a dress for the ESPYS. hopefully my friend's closets will suffice. and hopefully i meet my future husband as well.

-my friend rachel is getting married Friday. then my other friend rachel is getting married the following Saturday. i hope i don't switch their gifts.

-i hate summer tv. and the bachelorette is not good this season.

-i've been thinking how fast time can fly but at the same time it goes by so slow.
my dad has been in heaven for 11 months. i feel like it was just yesterday. but some days i feel like it's been forever. i wonder if the pain will ever get easier?

-i have really good friends. like the best of friends. Example, i wrote "61 reasons" for my dad's 61st (you might have seen it on my blog). the next thing i knew i had "61 reasons" in my inbox that my friend wrote about me. i mean, i cried, laughed, and cried some more. nicest thing ever.

-vienna and jake had a yelling match on monday night. they are obviously broken up. it's sad what people will do for money. just sad.

- when i am off my cleanse, i want this garden burger.



- i want to buy a beach cruiser. 2 for the price of one. who's in?

-a little over 3 months from now i will be running in the chicago marathon. i immediately regret this decision. if i wasn't running for my dad, i would have backed out already. must. keep. running.

-i am going home next weekend and i can already smell mikuni.

-my boss is throwing out the first pitch at the dodgers game sunday. not gonna lie, had to google where "dugout" seats were. don't judge. i'm still excited!

-i am almost done with the 4th twilight book. yes, i have been saying this for months.

-my new found favorite friends are moving to manhattan beach soon. i'm contemplating building a paper chain (like i do for Christmas) and counting down the days until their arrival.

-i can't even tell you what i am doing saturday because no one would believe me.

- i can't get over how cute my family is. seriously? i want to bite them.



-if you are reading this and haven't booked your flight to vegas for my birthday celebration labor day weekend... then we might be fighting.

-my back has small scars from my skin test. cool. remember when the doc said "absolutely no way will it leave scars" awesome.

-this was the longest brain dump ever.

happy hump day to all.

a weekend in pictures.

hi all!
i hope you all had a fabulous 4th of July weekend.
mine was amazing.
i EVEN took a few days off.
crazy right?

let's recap, shall we?

this is how it went down...

Saturday i went dress shopping for my little sisters Quinceañera.
(we are not really related, but i met her from the big brother/big sister's program while i was in college, she's the best)


While searching for a dress i called my friend tiff to say hi.
and this is what happened:

me: "hey tiff, how are you?"
tiff: i'm good! you?
me: good! what are you doing this weekend?"
tiff: "nothing really"
me: "how about you buy a flight and come visit me?"
tiff: "okay"
me: "great, see you soon"

last minute impromptu visit.
and what a FUN visit we had.

the festivities...

Quinceañera. check.

me and lupe.


me signing her guest book.


her party dress.

4th of july celebrations in Long Beach. check.


Olive garden for a classy meal. check.
(didn't get any pictures, but let's just say: unlimited bread sticks and salad. amazing)

galaxy game w/ fireworks. check


checking into a REALLY great hotel for a pretend vacay (1 mile away from my home). check.

dance parties at my favorite spot - BEACHES. check.

sleeping in with an ocean side view. check.



eating as much as we can while all not feeling so hot. double check.


gosh, i love fun impromptu weekends.
miss my brother and tiff already.

back to reality................

fun photo friday.

i would pay good money to be back in South Africa...
on this safari...
watching this elephant almost come into our car.

good memories.

and yes, i took this picture.
i'm that good.

is national geographic hiring?
i think they would be impressed.