A couple of months ago, we were invited to take a tour of Dodger Stadium. I make it sound like we are super cool and in some kind of inner circle, but really they just wanted to sell us a ticket package. And it almost worked. But even though we didn’t bite the bullet and buy in (I mean, we do live in Anaheim now, not exactly an easy drive most days), we all had a fantastic time on the tour and got to see some really cool stuff.
Sponsored post: I was compensated in the form of a discount, free product, or monetary payment in exchange for this post. All opinions are my own.
I love a good excuse for a mini getaway, and luckily for me, my cousin provided me with one at the end of last year when he got married in Westlake Village. Westlake Village is a gorgeous suburb of Los Angeles (if you’re a fan of the Bachelor, it’s Peter’s hometown). As soon as I found out the location of my cousin’s wedding, I knew I wanted to stay at Westlake Village Inn because it is one of the most stunning properties I’ve ever seen. I coordinated a wedding there a couple of years ago, and my other cousin got married onsite, and I’ve always absolutely loved the grounds.
We arrived onsite early because Matt needed to be able to watch the Oklahoma Sooners playoff football game which started at 1:00. They were so accommodating of our early check-in and it made our whole day go so much more smoothly. Walking from the lobby to our room allowed us to take in some of the absolutely stunning surroundings.
And this is what we saw when we opened the door to our room! I mean, I would have been happy holing up in this room for a straight week if they would have let me.
My first stop in a hotel room is always the bathroom and my jaw literally dropped when I walked into this one.
LOOK AT THIS TUB!!! This is where I spent the majority of the football game, after it became abundantly clear the Sooners were not going to come out on top. I dropped in a bath bomb, cued up some reality TV on my iPad, and I sat in this bad boy for probably an hour. And it was heavenly.
In addition to a stellar bathtub, the room also had this cute little patio (it was a little cold so we didn’t make use of it, but it would be amazing to sit here with a glass of wine during the summer).
And a fireplace! We don’t even have a fireplace in our house. It was the perfect weather for a fire, and it was *chef’s kiss*.
Aside from this huge and super comfy bed, we also had a little sitting area, which was great since part of the reason we checked in early was to watch the game.
I cannot say enough great things about the Westlake Village Inn, honestly. Trust me when I say I have never seen a more beautiful hotel, inside and out. Even Matt was thoroughly impressed with the gorgeous aesthetics! We had an awesome time at my cousin’s wedding, but we would have had just as good of a time hanging out in our room! In addition to the fabulous room, the staff of the hotel could not have been nicer and more helpful. If you have an occasion to visit Westlake Village, the Westlake Village Inn should be where you stay. You won’t be disappointed!
I was compensated in the form of money, discount, or free product/experience in exchange for this post. All opinions are my own.
So we were super stoked to head down to our first ever Brick or Treat at Legoland last weekend. Squirt is just starting to get into Halloween in a way that actually means something, and he is basically the world’s biggest Legoland fan so this was the perfect opportunity for us to celebrate. Matt and I hadn’t been back to the park since our trip last December, but Squirt was lucky enough to go with the grandparents a couple months ago (and he asks to go back pretty much every week). I was excited to get to explore some different areas of the park and see what tricks and treats were in store for us at Brick or Treat.
One of the first things I noticed when I was checking out the Legoland website was their inclusion of an aquarium on property. Squirt is obsessed with aquariums, sharks in particular, so I knew right away we had to make it part of our first trip to Legoland. When it came time to choose which pass to buy him, we automatically went for the one with Sea Life included. And we were not disappointed. We spent a good chunk of our day exploring the aquarium, and I know that it will be one of our must dos on all of our subsequent trips (of which there will be many-I bought the pass, we’re going!). Here are some highlights from our first trip around the Sea Life Aquarium!
This is a sponsored post. I was compensated in the form of a discount, free product, or monetary payment in exchange for this post. All opinions are my own.
Guys, Squirt has entered the Lego phase of life. I have been equal parts looking forward to this day (education toys! individual play time! learning while playing! Star Wars! Harry Potter! Marvel!) and dreading this day (stepping on Legos is no joke y’all). But whether my feet like it or not, the day has come, and it’s safe to say Squirt is obsessed (Matt’s not sad about it either, let’s be real). I come from a family of Lego lovers, but since Legoland didn’t open in California until I was already in high school, we never went as kids. We’ve been waiting for the right time to take Squirt, and now that we are based in Anaheim, we figured the time was right. The drive from home to Carlsbad was about an hour, which is what it used to take us from our old house to Disneyland, so all in all, not a terrible commute. I’m going to break down some of the highlights of our trip, but I’ll just say this now: Squirt has asked me LITERALLY every single day (most days multiple times a day) to go back. The kid freaking loved it.
I was invited to a hosted media preview in exchange for my review.
If you are hungry, you might want to stop reading this post. And if you’re not hungry, prepare to be, because by the time you get through this post, you’re gonna be ready for a delicious meal. If you live in Southern California, chances are you are familiar with Stonefire Grill. Growing up in Valencia (home of Weeds, tract homes, and the original Stonefire), I had the pleasure of eating Stonefire Grill all the time. Anytime anyone was having any sort of big party or gathering, every banquet at school, everything was catered by Stonefire. And you always knew, if you were getting Stonefire, it was going to be bomb. At our LA house, we didn’t have a Stonefire close by, but luckily, I still got my fix at a number of weddings, and I have always been super impressed with their catering staff. They are friendly, knowledgeable, and really go above and beyond every time.
So when I was invited to the media preview for Stonefire’s newest restaurant (conveniently located just ten minutes from our new place) and I was like sign. me. up. And of course, it did not disappoint. We were treated to a buffet of pretty much everything on the Stonefire menu (which is a lot of things) and everything was delicious. Matt got to accompany me, and suffice to say, he is now infinitely more tolerant of this whole “influencer” deal. (Of course he is, he got to eat all the food and doesn’t have to do any of the work ;o).) These are just a few of the items that we sampled at the preview. You have been warned…
As we come to the official end of our time living in LA, I’m starting to focus more and more on making our life here in the OC. Now that we are close to closing on our house, it’s time to turn our attention (and by that I mean, my attention) to finding the perfect place to live in Orange County. Right now we are mostly exploring different areas of Fullerton and Anaheim, and one of the musts on my list is close distance to cool shit. Preferably walkably close to cool shit. Even though our last house was just a short distance from all the happs in LA, it wasn’t walkable, and that is something I want to change when we find our next house. So part of my plan over the next couple of months is to scope out the hipsteriest places I can find, and look for houses around there! These are just a few of the locations I want to explore!
