Kelocity.com

A runner with an appetite for adventure!

Hollywood Date Night February 20, 2014

Filed under: Los Angeles,Love — Kelocity @ 2:21 pm
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To keep the momentum of Valentine’s Day weekend going, Irving and I had a fun date night planned for Sunday night! We hired a babysitter and headed into Hollywood for dinner and a play! We even valeted the car! (HAHAHA We would usually choose to park 2 miles away and walk than do this, but tonight was a special occasion… date night!) I wore a new black lace dress too! Fancy! (still wore my flats instead of heels though, gotta keep it real, right?)
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We ate at Fabiolus on Susnset Boulevard. We skipped the appetizers and went straight to the wine. We ordered a bottle of the house white. (We had never done that ever either!) It was fun!
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Cheers!
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I had a great pesto linguine and Irving ordered a chicken dish. Both were great! We had a great conversation about parenting, Adele, life, work and the future. I very much enjoyed the company of this guy.
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Then we headed up the street to the Pantages Theater to see Book of Mormom!
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We had been there once or twice before, but the theater really is breathtaking. Brings you back in time a bit and makes you appreciate ‘old hollywood’. It opened in 1930!

[Fun Fact: The Oscars took place here from 1949 to 1959!]

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We really liked the play. It was a musical and the songs were great. I thought the story could have used more depth, but it definitely had some great lines and characters.
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What a wonderful night with my perfect valentine. xo

 

Pretty at the Tea Party February 19, 2014

Filed under: Baby,Love,Mom,Motherhood — Kelocity @ 8:20 pm
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Saturday morning, Adele and I had a date for a ‘Mommy and Me Tea Party’! It was an event that was hosted by Club Momme. Their events have always looked really fun but because they are a bit pricey by playdate standards (this one came to $27.50), I was holding out til the right one popped up. This one sounded fun though, it included tea time with your toddler, a photo session, goodie bag, and use of the indoor playspace at Pamper & Play. I finally convinced myself it was worth it and bought a ticket a week in advance.  I had been looking forward to it all week long. You’ll see below that it didn’t quite live up to my expectations, but we had a good time nonetheless.

It was all the way over the hill, near Beverly Hills (my first clue that maybe this event wasn’t for me). I found street parking and then saw that Adele was fast asleep in her carseat! She hasn’t taken a morning nap in MONTHS! I unbuckled her and she continued to sleep on my shoulder during the two-block walk to the venue. And then slept on me for another half hour or so until I eventually had to wake her up! This was the first time EVER she’s slept on my lap without being in the ergo carrier! Even as an infant, she never did unless she was swaddled. This was a special moment for me! I cherished it with all my heart! I thought to myself the whole day was already worth it just for this!
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Once Adele was up, it was our turn for the photo session. I think they got some great shots, but then later found out that the session was free… but the actual photos were not. The 4×6 prints START at $115. Um, no.

I was sitting next to a mom who was hastily brushing her daughter’s hair and I overheard her telling her, “You know, you just don’t look pretty enough to take pictures today”. The daughter didn’t seem bothered by it, but it really made me mad. I immediately squeezed Adele a little tighter and whispered into her ear, “You’re the most pretty little girl in the whole world, I love you”. I know there’s all kinds of discussion out there about how instead of telling our girls they are ‘pretty’ or ‘beautiful’, we should use words like ‘brave’, ‘smart’ and ‘strong’. But I would never not tell my girl she is ‘pretty’! Come on, moms! Let’s give these girls the confidence, self-esteem and self-worth they need to be successful in this world!
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The ‘Tea Party’ was sort of a joke. They had one kind of hot tea and one kind of iced tea… served in little sample cups (i.e. a few sips and you’re done). They did have some really nice, but fragile tea cups that I would never in a million years trust Adele with. And for sandwiches, they only had two kinds (a turkey/cheese one and a strawberry/peanut butter one). No snacks, no kid options, nothing else! Not even chips or cookies! What kind of tea party is this? But they did have some pouches and snack bars in the goodie bag, so Adele enjoyed that.
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We spent the rest of our time there playing with some blocks and toys. I think she had a good time. And then I won the first raffle prize which redeemed part of the day for me. I was really glad I went though. It was quiet the experience for the people watching alone.

Oh, one more story..right before I left, another mom stopped me to tell me she LOVED Adele’s dress and then asked me who designed it. BAHAHAHA I almost burst out laughing and then I realized she was serious. Turns out it actually was designer… but it was a hand-me-down from a very generous friend (I had no idea!). Guess I shouldn’t have let Adele get strawberries and peanut butter on it from lunch, huh? But she did look really cute (ahem– PRETTY) in it, don’t you think?
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The moms over in that part of LA ain’t got nothing on my Valley Moms though. I’m so thankful for my amazing village of amazing mothers we’ve met over the past two years. Cheers to you, moms. Thank you for raising strong, confident children that I am honored Adele gets to be friends with. You know who you are. xo

 

A Weekend of Love February 18, 2014

Filed under: Baby,Love — Kelocity @ 9:50 pm
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We had such a great Valentine’s Weekend! And it was a long weekend too, due to the holiday on Monday! Now that’s love.  Adele had a potluck at her school, so I made mini tea sandwiches (inspired by my Downton Abbey party!). These were berry cream cheese on white bread!
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The cream cheese was pink which made a pretty little party sandwich! Not sure if the kids liked them at school, but Adele LOVED them!
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She gave her friends little puppy and kitty valentines, along with a bag of teddy grahams. The tags said “BEAR HUGS TO XXXXX, LOVE, ADELE”. I saw it on Pinterest and I was so excited! Adele called them ‘cookie bears’. ha.
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I got out of work early on Friday, which gave us a head start to the weekend of loooooove! We met up with some friends at Pint Size Kids for an afternoon of pretend play!
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Doing a little produce shopping…

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Putting them in her cart…

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And taking money out of the ATM to pay for it all… My, she’s like a grownup!IMG_4338

 

 

 

Then she did a load of laundry…

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And even ironed it too!
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Then she filled up her SUV with gas.
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We also practiced pushing our dollies…

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And taking excellent care of them.

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If you haven’t been to this place yet, you should check it out. It has everything toddlers could imagine. Including books and train sets too! Adele LOVED the choo choos!
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And they have GIANT teddy bears. The things toddler dreams are made of.

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It was so much fun. We’ll be back soon for sure!
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Once the three of us got back home, we had a Valentine’s day picnic lunch on the living room floor. Complete with cheese, crackers, olives, salad and raisins! We laughed so hard because it was sort of a disaster. Adele was stepping on everything and making quite the mess. But it was fun and I’m hoping this was a beginning of fun Valentine’s Day tradition! Only next year, I hope there is less sock lint on my plate and smooched crackers on the rug. =)
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Our Valentine’s Weekend of Love didn’t end there! Stay tuned for Part 2!

 

 

 

 

 

The Hallowedding October 30, 2013

One of my favorite friends from Emerson got married last weekend in an epic event dubbed “The Hallowedding”. It was one of the most unique weddings I’ve ever been to! Michelle and Alex are the funnest couple I know, their love for life and each other is contagious. I had a blast!
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It took place at the Carousel on the Santa Monica Pier. How cool is that!! We got to ride the Merry-Go-Round all night long!! That right there makes it the best night ever.
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It was fun hanging out with my friends Noah and Janet too!
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Oh, you’re probably wondering why they have Sheep hats on…I forgot to mention… since it was the Hallowedding, all the guests had to come in costume! And if anyone knows Emerson, you know people take their costumes seriously. Janet and Noah were “Sheep in a Jeep”!

There were some amazing costumes there, some of the best I’ve ever seen! Made mine look so amateur. I forgot I was in Hollywood, among some of the most creative people in the industry. But I had fun with my costume… I went as a Silent Movie Star.
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Black lipstick. Hmmm. there’s a first time for everything!
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But enough about me, let’s talk about how gorgeous the bride was!
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They put some much thought into all of the details. They had a “Flipbook Photo Booth” where all the guests did a 7 second skit in front of a camera and it prints out an actual paper flipbook of your actions!! And they got video files of everyone’s hilarious acting.

There was also a beer pong tournament, a polaroid camera guestbook, and a bar… but not just any bar… they turned the merry-go-round ice cream parlor into the bar! Which meant you could order milkshakes or sundaes… spiked with alcohol. I should have tried one! Now I wish I did!

But I did have my share of sweets from the awesome dessert buffet. S’Mores cookies and Cookie Dough cupcakes? Yes please!
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They promised “surprises” throughout the night, and that included a midnight delivery from Taco Bell! I can officially say that my first Taco Bell taco EVER was consumed at the Hallowedding. Yes, I know. How did i go 30 years without ever trying one. It was pretty awesome.

It was a great night out and I was so thankful to be a part of Michelle and Alex’s special night. Congratulations to you guys! And as I said in my guestbook message: “May your marriage be as fun as your wedding.” It was fantastic!
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Congratulations!

 

Four Years Strong July 13, 2013

Filed under: Love — Kelocity @ 4:21 pm

This week, Irving and I celebrated our FOUR year wedding anniversary! I feel like it was just yesterday we were standing hand in hand, overlooking the lake, exchanging vows. Our wedding day was the best day of my life and it still feels like yesterday.

I remember before I got married, lots of people told me to relax and try to slow down the day because it will go by so fast. That was the best advice and because of that, I have so many vivid memories from the day. Moments I will never forget. No regrets here!

Our first three years of marriage were filled with travel, work and fun. But our Fourth will go down in the books as being the busiest and most rewarding year yet. The year we brought Adele into our lives and became a family of three.

For the Fourth Anniversary, the traditional gift is Fruit or Flowers. The modern gift is an electrical appliance. We did just get a new garbage disposal and I joked that we could call that our gift, but we decided against it. Instead, we went the ‘fruit’ route. So last night, we headed to the Melting Pot to celebrate. (Fruit+Melted Chocolate Dessert! That works, right?!)

There are no pictures to commemorate our Anniversary Dinner. Why? Because somewhere in the irrational part of our brains, we thought it would be a good idea to bring Adele along to our four-hour, four-course dinner extravaganza. We arrived at 6:15p and didn’t get home until after 10p. It wasn’t easy to logistically eat fondue with a 1-year old since the whole table is basically a hot cooking surface (you cook the food yourself). But Irving and I each ordered a cocktail and we made it through together by passing the baby back and forth and forcing yummy food into her otherwise screaming mouth. Yea. We were surely a sight to behold. It was kind of exhausting. And awesome. Irving and I did a lot of reflecting on how our lives have changed since we got married. But in the best way possible.

This photo was taken at the “Melting Pot” in 2008. Our date last night did not look like this. We had sippy cups on the floor, carrots and broccoli under a high chair, baby books on the table, napkins everywhere…. you get the idea. But let’s just pretend it looked like this:
7 Year Date-A-Versary (6)The only thing that was the same from this picture were the strawberries, bananas and poundcake we got to dip into delicious chocolate. MMmmm.

Happy Anniversary, Irving! There’s no one else I’d rather share this circus with. Glad we’re enjoying this ride together. =)

 

 
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