Poor & Pretty » travel

California

Sami — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 23:34:35 +0000

So sorry I haven’t updated in a while. As I said on Facebook, I’ve been crazy busy with the trip to California {which was actually as much business as it was pleasure} and moving into an apartment with Stan! :D Here are a few photos from the California trip. See more after the jump!

On Thursday, {December 30th}, Stan and I went to Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier to get my fortune from Rajah the Mystic Oracle and also hang out in the “sea of red” with University of Wisconsin fans {my uncle, who we stayed with, is an alum}. We’re not really into the football scene, but it was nice being outside after spending almost all of the previous day in planes and airports. Plus, look at that sunshine!

Friday, we did some heavy shopping in downtown L.A. Actually, to both my and my aunt’s suprise, Stan did most of the shopping! He bought 5 really nice shirts and a few ties for his new job. I don’t have any photos of us shopping, but I do have this awesome one that I took in the car on the way there {above}. Because our bodies were still on eastern time, we went to bed before it was officially 2011 in California, but it was in Connecticut!

Saturday, we went to the Rose Parade in Pasadena and saw some really intricate floats. It had been a while since I’d actually gone to a parade, so it was fun… except for the part where we had to be out of the house super early.

Later in the day, we headed to Venice Beach to check out the street performers {Stan was picked as a volunteer by one street performer; he had to dance and carry the performer}, watch some skater boys, and… hug some trees?

The next few days, we mostly hung around and worked on my uncle’s website. Monday night, we saw Black Swan at the Landmark Theatres, which was the coolest movie theater I’ve ever been to. They have a few theaters that are set up essentially like living rooms with huge TVs in them. The screen is the same size you would see at a regular theater, but they have couches, love seats, and arm chairs instead of the stadium seating we’re used to. It was amazing.

On Tuesday, we checked out the J. Paul Getty Museum, which is really interesting architecturally because the galleries are set up so that you have to walk through these hallways in which the walls are made entirely of windows or you can go outside, so you get really amazing landscape views.

There’s also a big outdoor garden, which my aunt says is a hundred times more beautiful during the spring {but I thought it was really nice in the winter, too}:

And, of course, Stan caused more trouble, climbing walls and running toward me at top speed:

Afterward, we stopped for delicious cupcakes from Sprinkles, where the cupcake revolution began.

Aaaand on Wednesday, my uncle’s friend {who works for CBS} gave us a studio tour {lunch included!}, where we got to see the executive meeting rooms, we hung out on the set of The Young and the Restless {during filming!}, and sat in the audience for The Price is Right! We were in the second row, directly behind the contestants… look for my super cheesy grin January 26th!

I hope everyone’s new year is off to a great start! Check back soon for apartment pics :)

Friday Faves: Michigan Editigan {read: Michigan Edish-igan}

Sami — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 14:14:00 +0000

Sorry about the tacky headline; I couldn’t resist! I also must apologize about the lack of posts this month. July has been crazy for me — Stan & I moved, I started an online class, then we went to Michigan to visit two really good friends, Ben & Marcus. Here are some highlights from the trip {in no particular order}:

1. Kensington Metropark — Ben & Marcus to us to this great park that surrounds Lake Kent, where we visited their farm center, treated ourselves to delicious ice cream treats, and rented a paddleboat {and Ben took about 30 photos of swans}. We got lectured for not wearing life jackets {after we came back perfectly safe…}, but it was lots of fun! Except that Stan fed my sunglasses to Lake Kent :(

2. Marcus made me this gorgeous necklace! He is a truly crafty, talented guy, who can also cook {see image 6} and make amazing hand/body lotion. At first, the charm on the necklace reminded me of an acorn, but I also see it as a green cupcake or a mushroom.

3. Belle is the best cat EVER. She’s not bulimic {like one of my cats} or a sociopath {like my other cat}, and she loves cuddling. She doesn’t try to attack you all the time, and is generally very low key and loving. She also likes to lay in boxes and feel like she’s included in things, which is why she set herself down in the Apples to Apples box as we played it. She does NOT like the flash though — she ran off very quickly after this shot.

4. Risk in silly hats. Even though Risk takes forever, we had lots of fun playing. Or, at least I did because I won both times we played! {Okay, to be fair, I won by default — the first time, Belle messed up the board after we decided to give up at 3am and in the second game, we didn’t read the directions properly so I had an advantage that I didn’t technically deserve}. I played in Ben’s safari hat, Marcus played in an elephant hat, Ben wore his Ash Ketchum hat that he made when he went as the Pokemon master for Halloween a few years ago, and Stan wore a sailor hat. These hats definitely improved gameplay.

5. Sava’s State Street Cafe in Ann Arbor had delicious food, but a wonky waiter. He messed up our food order twice, and we think he may have been on something, but I loved the restaurant nonetheless. The restaurant is named after its owner/chef, Sava Lelcaj, and the food is just amazing. Dishes range from rosemary chicken, pierogis, and butternut squash ravioli to pancakes, crepes, and delicious salads, all very reasonably priced. If you’re visiting Michigan any time soon, please stop by Sava’s, you’ll be glad you did!

6. Marcus made amazing sweet and sour chicken stir fry, with a homemade sauce that had pineapples in it. I won’t say much about it because I’ll be posting the recipe next week {written by Marcus himself!}.

7. We found the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile! We couldn’t figure out why it would be randomly parked in a parking lot, but I found out later that they were promoting the “Good Mood Mission,” where the company asked customers, “what puts you in a good mood?” and turned their answers into good deeds, as well as donating 3 million pounds of food to Feeding America. Because I was without my sunglasses {see #1}, I had a hard time keeping my eyes open for the camera as the sun was shining right into my retinas.

8. And, of course, cupcakes! More on these next week, but if you’re hunting for cupcakes in Michigan, make sure you stop by The Cupcake Station and Just Baked.

Poor & Pretty Take NYC!

The Gals — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 19:13:07 +0000

Hi readers!

We are super pumped to share some awesome news with you! This weekend, from Saturday – Tuesday, Poor & Pretty will be hanging out in New York City! Mish is going for business and Sami is going for pleasure, but we’re both planning on having some fun. Check us out as we liveblog and tweet our search for budget-friendly fashion, hair tips, and of course, cupcakes!

Have any suggestions for shops, restaurants, or bakeries for us to check out? We’d love to hear them! Leave us a comment!

xoxo,
Mish & Sami