London is a long way to travel for a wedding. We went back and forth as to whether we could afford the time and the travel to head over the pond for our friend's wedding earlier this month.
We decided to go as a family - and we had THE BEST TIME. Spending time in London with lots of people we love and going to the most amazing country wedding for our friends.
So glad we did it!
It may not have been the most practical choice - but it was meaningful and worth it!
hope to see you there! cyndi
We recently stayed at the Hotel Roosevelt in Hollywood - cashing in a gift certificate we had won at the silent auction for PAL. As I pulled in to the valet, our friend Brian who had invited us to the PAL event was right behind me. After I checked in (to room 647), they told me that the manager wanted to show me up to the room. In the elevator, he pushed 11th floor. He let me into this HUGE suite with a separate bedroom, living room area, dining area and kitchen.
My first thought was "Brian must have had them upgrade us" then I looked at the dining table which was set with food and a bottle of wine, and I realized there was probably a mix up.
If I said nothing, what could they do? I could jump on the bed and drink the wine and linger in the plush room. But I am not that person.
The manager called down to the front desk and tried to play it off that he took me to room 1147 instead of 647 on accident (that was not the room number of the suite we were in, but he gets an A for effort!). We continued down the elevator to my room which was totally fine, but nothing special.
"I think I like the other room better" I say, casually taunting him. He tells me to sit tight while he finds out what the mix up is. So i don't unpack, and wait. An hour passes and I need to order food and sign up for internet and get to work. I track down the manager who aplogizes for the mistakes and offers to send me up a bottle of wine, which was very nice.
The anticipation of the upgrade, the frustration with wasted time, the nice bottle of wine, not knowing who messed up, and not wanting to get anyone in trouble- all made this night away a little more complicated. Would you have stayed in the room, or would you have fessed up?
go to the beach. go to trapeze school. read books. have a girls weekend with my friends who I grew up with. drink some adult beverages. get back to the gym. get back to pilates. spend time with friends. teach jack to ride his bike. have an intown retreat with my working mom friends. circle. take photos. go to london.
If you are ever driving up PCH from Malibu to Santa Barbara, plan to stop at the big sand hill and climb up! It is a great view, a great workout, and running down the hill is a thrill.
LOVE this photo of my daughter flying down the hill! Ahhhh...summer is right around the corner!
My grandmother (Mema) was so ahead of her time. She graduated from high school at 16, college at 19, and was teaching kids older than her after she graduated.
Later, she had success on tv game shows. She was on gambit and hollywood squares - where she won a piano, a bunch of trips, cough drops, and so much more. She was as smart as they come - and an amazing cook.
I learned to play piano on the one she won. She also won 2 cars (she got a vanity plate that said hwd 2 - for Hollywood Squares.
My good friend Maya Brenner is incredible. I met her thru my friend Marika -many years ago when we all went to the korean spa together.
I have been her personal photographer of sorts for years and also her friend. I have had the honor of photographing her wedding ,her pregnancies, her first born, her family portraits - as well as catering parties for her. She is one of my favorite people in the world - and she has taught me so much.
She helps me see beyond my own ways to work smarter, be more current, and have fun. She is a girls girl who is beautiful, brave, and so much fun to know.
She is the reason, I started to hire more people to help me with my catering jobs - which led to growing my company. She came to my house one day and I was prepping for a party - where I was doing everything myself. She helped me see outside of the day to day and look at the bigger picture.
She is the reason, I finally took a digital photo. I was dedicated to film photography and unwilling to go digital, until she needed a portrait for her book that she wrote and they needed the photo in London in one day. So I rented a camera and the we shot, downloaded, and emailed the photo with ease. I have never looked back.
This is one of my favorite photos from her wedding.
She is a jewelry designer whose work is amazing. This past year was a really great month for her business - after being featured on the today show, she received over 20 thousand orders.
She is one of my favorite people and I could not be happier for her success!
me and maya in Mexico this week!
a week with my family on vacation
time to connect and play and reboot
perfect
my daughter telling me she loves me all day
priceless
