California... knows how to party!

I was fortunate enough to be able to fly to California last weekend to help my college friend, Lisa, celebrate her 40th birthday.  I flew out Friday afternoon in the middle of a blizzard that ended up dropping 20 inches in our neck of the woods.  Yikes!  I was happy to only have to shovel once before I left.  Jeff and the kids spent a LOT of time outside shoveling, sledding and playing in the snow.  I was happy to be away from it all!

When I got to Cali, Lisa picked me up at the airport.  We went back to her condo where I dropped off my bags and we walked to the community pool to relax.  It felt wonderful!  That night, we played cards and had some "beeritas"... a combination of beer and margaritas.  It sounds weird, but it was really tasty!  Lisa's mom, aunt, 2 sisters, 1 brother and a friend were also in town.  On Saturday, we went to the flea market where we picked up souvenirs for our families and walked around looking at all of the fun stuff for sale. 

After that, Lisa, her friend, Karen, and I went to Huntington Beach for lunch followed by pedicures and massages.  Ahhhhhhhhhh!  Finally, it was time to head to Dave & Buster's for Lisa's 40th birthday party.  Her family did a great job organizing a fun party!  It was nice to hear all the wonderful things people had to say about Lisa.  She is truly a special person. 

On Sunday, we went to the beach.  We ate cupcakes from Sprinkles, played volleyball on the beach, took LOTS of pictures, walked around on the rocks and saw the tide pools where there were anemones and hermit crabs, had a picnic lunch and relaxed.  It was pretty much an awesome day!  It was especially awesome considering that if I was at home, I would have been freezing my rear off!!!
 

After the beach, we headed back to Lisa's to watch the SuperBowl. We did it Cali-style... we pulled the TV, couch and chairs outside on her patio. What a life! It was a spectacular weekend and I was sad to see it end. I'm so glad I got to celebrate with my wonderful friend!!!