In the Pursuit of Parties, Washi Tape, & Sparkly Nails

     Saturday evening Jaymee and I headed over to "The Boss" 's house. Her and her husband were making dinner for us before we all headed out to Westlake for a birthday party @ Bogies. Sabina LOVES to entertain... more than Spongebob loves jellyfishing. She served Ribeye steaks with a coffee rub, juicy chicken breasts, HUGE garlic shrimp, asparagus, green beans & my favorite... kale chips. Like potato chips... but greener.

 

This coffee rub was amazing! It was her second time using this Bobby Flay recipe. You can check it out here.

All you need is one head of kale, 2 tbsp olive oil & sea salt. Just strip the leaves from the rib of the kale, and toss with the olive oil and salt on a baking sheet. Bake @ 275 until crisp (about 20 minutes)... flipping the leaves halfway through. Be careful with the salt. Both times I've had these they've been a bit too salty for me.

     It was our co-worker's, Deanna,  33rd birthday. I felt bad cuz I thought she was 35. Oops... sorry Deanna. You do NOT look a day over 27. I just momentarily had poor math skills. We had celebrated her birthday there 2 years ago and I thought she celebrated her 33rd birthday THEN. My memory is suffering with the math, I see.

     There were lots of fun people at her get-together. As fun people usually do... we danced and had fun. And... as usual... I was asked to dance by the oldest men in the joint. They were in their 70's or 80's. Very sweet, but I politely declined. One of them insisted I take a picture with him.

 Not really diggin' my new lipstick here. It looks like I was sucking on pink sidewalk chalk.

Jaymee & I relaxin' in the booth.

     The birthday girl appeared to have a lovely night and hope she was able to remember it. She was so far gone, she kept having me put on and remove her heels for her. Not sure why. They were brand new hot pink Madden's with rhinestone studded heels. If they hadn't been 2 sizes too small for me, they would've come up missing.

We made the drive home and got there about 2am. That was the time to let my hair down and knock out. 

Actually... my hair doesn't easily go down after being up... it kinda wants to go out!

     Now on a completely separate note... and day... today I got my first GEL MANICURE! GOSH I'M SO EXCITED. I cannot take my eyes off the super sparkly shineyness. I have a rough time with my nails. 2 years ago I took my acrylic nails off after having them for many many years. They were fine at first, but began to become ridgy and would peel easily if they grew out from super shortness. I dunno. It's probably my diet. But needless to say... it's almost IMPOSSIBLE to keep regular nail polish on without it chipping after one day!

 

I got a color to match my ring... and of course, my hair.

     Now when I say it's my FIRST gel mani... I mean by a pro. I've tried it myself... but I get it everywhere and then it lifts and peels. All my friends get it done at a place by my house called Beth's Nails for only $18! I think that's the cheapest place in Santa Clarita Valley! They are way sweet there too. And busy! Combine that with superb Yelp reviews... and that's a recipe for yummy nails!

     Anyone who knows me is aware I have a deep, sometimes complicated love affair with paper. I say "complicated" cuz I am not very monogamous in my paper relationships... or "paperlationships" because I love all types. And I'm weak. So you know it killed me to stop at the craft supply store before heading home to get some frickin' cute paper for some presents I'm making for 2 lovely girls. Who are sisters. Who no longer live in CA. Cuz they left without me. So now I send gifts to fill the void they have left.*

(*Does not indicate guilt)

But really... any excuse to buy paper tickles the shit outta me. 

I also wanna add how much I love that photo fix tape pictured above. I use so much of it. It has replaced all glue sticks in my life.

   And one last thing. I have been really loving washi tape recently. But I don't wanna buy just ONE kind. I need MANY patterns... or I don't want any. There are some sellers on Etsy that offer a variety... but then it gets pricey. So in my washi research... I found a way to make my own! Crafty and cheap. HELL YES! Thanks to GoodLookCookbook.. I have tons of cute washi tape. I downloaded THIS template from Avery and did my fancy fingerwork in Photoshop. I went with a pastel theme and used clear labels to get the slightly transparent look common with washi tapes.

Now I gotta go do grown-up stuff and drink coffee, watch Regular Show & do laundry.

Eh... almost grown-up.