(picture above: blueplate oysterette in santa monica)

SO if you know me, you know that I love food and love trying new restaurants. Once upon a time I even started a food blog with two of my best friends, which was fun while it lasted but hard to keep up when we had lives outside of our eating adventures (life outside of food?! I know). 

There is nothing better than enjoying a dinner with good friends and good food.  Nothing.  I’m such a nerd that I even have a list on my phone titled “Favorite Restaurants” and another titled “Restaurants I Want To Try”.  I guess I’m here to share that list in hope that others will share their lists with me :)  So go ahead…share the foody love.

Favorite Restaurants:

Rustic Canyon- Santa Monica. just go.

Son Of A Gun- West Hollywood. same owner as Animal..so good. go.

Chateau Marmont- West Hollywood. always a scene, beautiful, relaxing, good food.

Josie- Santa Monica.  fancy, upscale restaurant you’ll want to go w your parents.

M Cafe- West Hollywood. fast, macrobiotic, healthy deliciousness.

Veggie Grill- West Hollywood. fast, vegetarian..basically your vegetarian version of Mickey D’s.

Upperwest- Santa Monica. good veggie burger.  good for a group and drinks.

A Votre Sante- Brentwood.  healthy, great menu, veggie options..one of my favs.

Bottega Louie- Downtown LA. good for lunch or dinner. gooood food, cool scene.

Mohawk Bend- Silverlake.  fun, good food, good drinks, tons of beer & veggie options.

Planchas- West Hollywood.  quick mexi food…health options (fish tacos in lettuce wrap)

Sugarfish- Brentwood.  best sushi in LA.  “TRUST ME” ;)

Native Foods- Westwood. good fake meat options. similar to veggie grill.

Blueplate Oysterette- Santa Monica. best seafood and beach atmosphere. super cute.

Little Doms- Los Feliz. BEST italian food and atmosphere. very hipster, cozy..love.

Madeline Bistro- Tarzana. this place is never open, if you can go, go! Vegetarian heaven.

James Beach- Venice. fancy part inside and fun bar outside.  pick your mood…

A Frame- Culver City. creative american food…sweet potato fries. good drinks, communal tables. fun

Restaurants I Want To Try/Take Me Here:

Ink- West Hollywood

Artisan House- Downtown LA

Cafe Figaro- Los Feliz

Red Medicine- ?

Flore Vegan- Silverlake

Elf Cafe- Silverlake

Cube- Los Angeles/La Brea area

Doomies- West Hollywood?

Red O- West Hollywood…also basically next door to my house

Wolf In Sheeps Clothing- Venice

Cafe Stella- Silverlake

Rickis Fish Tacos- Downtown LA?

Apple Pan- West Los Angeles

ENJOY YOUR WEEKEND & HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Life isn’t always so cute..but it’s our job to keep it cozy.  Keep all the beauty and laughter around you and I think you’ll stay on track. Here are some shots that do it perfectly for me…

Rachel Ashwell Malibu Home View

Gardenia On My Front Porch

L & B love

My Cozy Home

Beauty of hiking…

Not the cutest taste..blech! BUT I MAKE IT LOOK DELICIOUS AND COZY! haha

London..super quaint & cozy!

pretty pretty..cozy? Sure!

Friends & Food. Hi Tar :)

Duh…I always leave you with this. I mean it!

Currently listening to: My Girls by Animal Collective.

Cool video if you want to check it outtt.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zol2MJf6XNE

Keep it cozy people or in other words…”Keep Cozy And Carry On”

A few weeks ago I was hanging out at my friend Gordon’s house having a relaxing day by the pool and he just casually put on this amazing beach like heavenly music. I was so happy he shared this wonderfully sounding music with me and now…I have to share!!!

Tycho will instantly make you feel like you’re at the beach on a perfectly breezy sunny day.  I feel 10 times lighter when I listen to it. 

I just found out that Tycho is touring with Little Dragon (another one of my favorites)…which is SUCH a bummer based on the fact that I almost attended a Little Dragon show in LA 2 weeks ago.  Oh well…for now, the sounds of Tycho alone will do, just fine.

Their latest album, Dive, is so necessary..so please, check it out and Dive into your own little beach world fantasy.  Enjoy!

Some sweet pictures that make me smile.

Sweet=as in “aww cute”, not sweeet as in “sweet brah”

…Enjoy :)))

Pretty & sweet..instantly relaxes me.

Me & my love.

Midnight In Paris. Halloween hint.

“Sweet” Living Room- redoing my living room. Living rooms on my mind..

Hope…always on my mind.

Cupcakes..Sweeeet. 

My Garden. Sweeeeeeeeeet.

Yoga..goodness.

My home one day..frenchie heaven.

Black & white Cuccio family love.  Sweeet cowboy boots.

Some magical place I’d like to visit.

My mantra.

New York, New York. So much life and spontaneity! The past few years I’ve been debating if I should move to New York.. Give it a try. As much as I love NY and feel somewhat home there, due to my entire family being from there, I know that I’m a Cali girl at heart. A little too relaxed for the New York life. I love “my places”- my yoga, my beach, my home, my parents, my dogs, my friends, my beautiful weather, my car… I can go on and on. This time I definitely saw a different part of New York… A different part of Long Island than I was used to. The Hamptons… So different than my grandma’s house in Valley Stream. This part of New York I could get used to! 

We stayed at the Surf Lodge in Montauk, a small beach town in the Hamptons. Being that my sister only had a week off we wanted something close enough to the city but still felt like we were getting away. And getting away we did! Our wonderful quiet room with a beautiful lake view. We loved our walks to town..filled with yoga, farmers market, Jonies-the main lunch spot, beach, “the sloppy tuna” bar, etc. So amazing in the simplest way. Just add some Bob Marley playing in the background and if you ask me, it’s heaven!  

The Surf Lodge was such a unique little place…and the food!!! Dinner at Surf Lodge is so delicious! I really treasured my time there with my sister who barely gets any time off now that she is a doctor. Look at the sis…we were in heaven!!!

Loved Montauk and really hope everyone visits this perfectly cute, quaint and cozy town once in his or her life :) Such a perfect getaway.  Now back to reality…maybe I can get a job somewhere as beautiful as Montauk.  Work wouldn’t be so bad now would it?

Now playing: Bob Marley. Jamming

Summer so far…has been good. More than good. 

I’ve been doing everything that I want to be doing.  What can be better than that?  My summer has been filled with sun, yoga, friends, tons of time with my frenchies, reading…In the picture above, I am reading “Eat Pray Love”.  I’m not going to lie, it’s a bit hard to get into and I’m still not sure if I’m going to ever finish it.  While I put that one on pause, I’m reading two other books and studying for my final set of tests at school. Wrapping beauty school up with a big pretty bow. Onto the next chapter…a job, more yoga, more teaching yoga booty ballet (I like to call it yoga BEAUTY ballet now :), more friends & family time, more traveling…

Next trip: Mid August. NYC & The Hamptons. !!!

I am learning a lot about change and life.  It is crazy how the one thing we cannot change in life is change itself.  I am learning to accept that and welcome it with open arms.  When we realize that we can’t avoid change, we face the world in a different way. It almost forces us to act with humility and face the fact that some things just can’t be definite. With change, we open ourselves up to growth.  That sounds good to me…Better versions of ourselves?  More to life than what we have been seeing?  YES!  Why would we not want to change and grow? I am open to it all and am learning more every day. It always works out so you might as well have faith in that and enjoy the journey! 

Hope you are all enjoying your summers.  Keep feeding yourself with what you love and maybe try to push yourself with something new and exciting. With that, grow grow grow.

En joy living in joy people :) 

Listening to: Brush The Heat by Little Dragon.