Venue Searching in San Diego

Nothing makes coming back to work on Monday feel a worse than having the best weekend ever! Jeff and I headed down to San Diego early Saturday morning to look at wedding venues.  We woke up, packed and headed down by about 8 am.  We got to there a little early, so first we went by the church that we are having the ceremony at beforehand.  I can't believe I am getting married here!!  This is The Immaculata on campus at USD.  It is absolutely breathtaking.

 After we checked out the church, we were STILL early for our appointment.  We weren't sure if we were going to hit traffic or not, so we left super early.  Thankfully, it was such a smooth drive, there was barely any.  We stopped in at the hotel bar for a couple bloody mary's. :)

We then met with three different venues.  Two in downtown San Diego in the Gaslamp and one on Coronado Island.  The first was the Manchester Grand Hyatt.  This is where my entire family stayed when I graduated from college, so it is a little special to me.  Brings me back to how excited I was to start real life. :) (Little did I know!)  But, I do have to say we were really disappointed there.  The sales manager that I had been working with was unavailable so we had to meet with a different woman, who was nice, but not great.  The spaces that she showed us were TINY, there was absolutely no way were fitting 200 people in there for a seated dinner.  The ball rooms were so narrow, had hideous carpet, and had absolutely no view of the water.  One of them didn't even have any windows.  I wasn't happy about that, as the one thing (besides the number of people that we were inviting) that I said was very important to me, I wanted a view of the water.  I decided not to make a pros and cons list for this one, because I knew that we would not be getting married there. 

We left the Hyatt a little disappointed and headed to the Coronado Island Marriott Resort & Spa.  I was a little nervous for this one, my mom "doesn't love" the idea of having everyone drive over the bridge.  The second that we valeted the car, everything turned around.  The attendant was so nice and as soon as Jeff told him what were there for he congratulated us and gave us directions as to what to next.  Unlike the Hyatt where the guy took 10 minutes to spell my name on the valet ticket and was not helpful.  You can see the ocean from the time you walk in through the front doors!  It was definitely more laid back than the Hyatt, with a very resort-y feel to the place.  We were early (we didn't stay long at the previous venue) so we found some chairs out by the water and sat out there for about 45 minutes.  I can't count how many times I said "This is the life!"  

We had a great tour of outdoor space where the tent would be constructed.  I loved how close it is to the water.  We met with Kristina and she was SO helpful, answering most of our questions before we were even able to ask!  It was an awesome experience that completely changed the day!

PROS

• Beautiful tent included in per head cost
• One hour of hosted bar included
• They offer a variety of table sizes/shaped (included)
• Proximity to water
• View from reception space- bridge, and all of downtown San Diego
• Resort feel
• All guest rooms are currently being renovated 

CONS

• Location--Coronado is beautiful, but this is the furthest from the church
• Cocktail hour is on the lawn in front of the tent; I don't love that for a couple of reasons -- first of all, it is completely uneven and almost tilts downward.  Secondly, it is a wedding, people are going to be wearing heels and I don't want them getting stuck in grass.
• The cocktail area is also very small; it can be upgraded, but we don't think that is something that we want to spend extra money on.
• Tent draping is not included in per head cost. 

Other Notes

• Event can run until 11 pm
• Flooring under the tent is concrete.  They will power wash it prior.  It was filled with bird poop when we looked (kinda gross).
• This is the only venue that would include a tent that was not there for us to view.  
• White folding chairs included.  
• Can provide cost-effective ways to do piece-y drapery. 

We left this Marriott and headed to their sister property, the Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina.  This was another beautiful property.  We found out that we definitely want a tent.  The tent on this property was on the fourth floor on a private terrace.  There was an outdoor space to have the cocktail hour, which also included a couple of sets of outdoor furniture, which were cute.  The tent was already set up here, so it was great to see more of what it would actually look like.  We met with Marianna and she was amazing.  She walked us through everything, and went through all of the pricing and packages with us again at the end, which was helpful too.

PROS

• Tent is included
• Tent is ALREADY fully draped, and it is really pretty
• AMAZING view of coronado, bay and harbor
• Variety of table sizes/shapes included
• One hour of hosted bar included 
• Resort feel, but still in the middle of downtown
• Guests will have a lot of other things to do.  This is important to me since everyone will be traveling.  I want to make sure that they are able to have a vacation for themselves when they are in San Diego.

CONS

• $3,500 venue fee on top of food & beverage.  She told us that it would cost around that much to drape the tent at the other Marriott--I should probably check on the cost for that.
• Event must close down at 10pm.  There's a noise ordinance in place for the city, and since it is outside, we can't play music past 10pm here.  

Other notes: 

• Flooring is like an outdoor tile, nothing spectacular, but good enough
• White folding chairs included
• Includes two "lounge areas"

By the end of the third tour, we were pretty tired.  We headed to our hotel, checked in and relaxed for a bit.  We stayed at the Hyatt Regency Mission Bay Spa and Marina on the 14th floor and had an amazing view.

We sat out on our balcony and then got ready to go to dinner at my FAVORITE restaurant in Pacific Beach, World Famous.  Just as we were about to head out the door, I got a call from the restaurant saying that they didn't have electricity and that they weren't going to be able to host any one tonight!  At this point we were starving and didn't want to search for somewhere else to eat, so we ordered a cheese plate from room service and FaceTimed with Jeff's family for a bit before heading to Red Marlin, the hotel restaurant.  We ended up sitting at a fire pit to eat and it was really fun!  The food was good, nothing REALLY great, but we still had a great time. 

We headed back up to the room and rented Gone Girl.  I read the book about a year ago, and have been dying to see it.  I am embarrassed to say that I fell asleep about an hour in-- I didn't realize it was so long!  I woke up and tried to stay awake but took a couple cat naps throughout. :)  Jeff didn't like it, but I think I will give it another shot when I'm not so tired.  We went to bed and I set my alarm, we had two more venues to look at on Sunday!

Sunday we looked at The Ultimate Skybox in Gaslamp, and then had an appointment at the Hyatt Regency Mission Bay, which is where we stayed.  I will post the Pros & Cons of those two properties tomorrow.  Saturday went really well, and I went to bed thinking that I already had two options that I really really liked. It was a really good feeling to complete our first real step into this whole "marriage" thing! ha  

XO Nicci

Back to blogging!

After an almost 7 month hiatus, I am back! SO MUCH has changed since my last post, and a lot of is stuff that I definitely want to remember. :)  As I ease back into the blogging world, there are a few life events that haven taken place since I last posted.

First of all, Jeff and I finally moved to Los Angeles!  We were actually able to rent this house from m family, and I absolutely love it.  It definitely could use some updating, and we had to paint EVERY SINGLE wall when we moved in, but it is definitely coming together...many many small projects later.  We have been here since late June and still have a couple of things that we are tackling.  The picture below is from Google..currently, we are having some issues with our lawn.  Because this is our first HOUSE together, we are still getting used to having a yard.  With a broken sprinkler just a month after we moved in, we are still trying to get our grass to be GREEN!  I'll post interior pics later (once I have time to clean!)

Second, I got a new job!  I commuted from LA to Newport for the first 3 or 4 months, but it turned out to be unbearable.  The commute mixed with the fact that I felt like I had limited upward mobility at my last job led me on a search for something new.  I started working at WeddingWire in October and absolutely love it so far.  The office is currently in Long Beach, but I will be working from home for February & March while our new office is being built out in Torrance. 

  Lastly, and most importantly, Jeff and I GOT ENGAGED!!!!!!  Just over a month ago :)  Details on the story of how it happened to come.  This is the main reason why I decided to start blogging again, I want to make sure I remember everything!  I have the church booked for the ceremony, and this weekend we will start venue shopping in San Diego!

XO Nicci

Friday Giveaway!

Skipping 5 on Friday this week, but still linking up for my AllieClay giveaway! Have a great 3 day weekend! Happy Memorial Day! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Friday Giveaway!

Happy Friday!! Today is the first day this week where the weather isn't supposed to be in the 100's!  Everyone is constantly complaining about the heat, but it is a dry heat and I not-so-secretly LOVE it.  It reminds me of summers in Bakersfield growing up, where 100 degrees is the average. Here are 5 other things that I am currently loving!

-ONE-

 AllieClay Giveaway!

Don't forget to enter the AllieClay giveaway! (Posted Wednesday)  We're giving away a PERSONALIZED small cosmetic bag and a kroakie.  Browse through her Etsy shop and look at all of the adorable fabric options.  

-TWO-

MAC Studio Scultp Lash

I have been using this mascara for about a month now and I absolutely LOVE it.  I went to the eye doctor earlier this week and she asked me if I had been using Latisse because my lashes looked so long!  Nope no Latisse, just this.  I already have fairly long lashes, but my main problem is clumps.  Spider lashes that are all clumped together in sections. The reason I love this mascara is because it does an awesome job at separating and extending the lashes.  I use multiple coats.

-THREE-

One Day Contacts

 After some eye issues, and several different doctor visits later, I switched to 1 Day contacts.  My eyes were constantly red and I was getting the worst headaches and didn't know why.  No drops seemed to take away the redness.  I made an appointment at an optometrist near my work and went in during my lunch break and he did not see anything wrong and told me it was "probably allergies."  I had no other reactions, no stuffy nose, my eyes weren't watery, nothing.  Long story short, I ended up in urgent care with severely red eyes and in pain. She didn't see anything either, but gave me antibiotics drop and told me to use them for 24 hours and if there was no improvement to see an ophthalmologist (who knew this existed...not me!)  The drops helped a little bit but I ended up going to see the ophthalmologist, who was a God send.  If anyone is in the Newport Beach area, her name is Dr. Carla Barnett.  She looked at my eyes for maybe 2 minutes and knew exactly what was wrong.  She said that my eyes could no longer handle the toxicity of the solution used to clean my lenses!  I told her I had been wearing those lenses and using the same solution for 10 years, but she said it is something that happens over time.  So I have been wearing the 1 Day for 3 days now and really like them.  They are more expensive, but totally worth it to have healthy eyes finally!  She said it may take a full month to clear up completely, but the redness has already gone away and no more headaches! Woohoo!

-FOUR-   

Oil Pulling?

Has anyone tried it!?  I tried it for about a week, but I haven't seen many changes.  20 minutes is a LONG TIME to swish it around!  I have opted to do 10 minutes in the morning and 10 minutes at night. But, I'm not so sure I will continue to do it unless I know I will see some results (it isn't the most enjoyable thing).

-FIVE-

Crazy Baby!!

We are babysitting this crazy baby on Saturday!  I haven't seen her since Easter, but there were so many people at my parent's house and she was running around the entire day.  My sister and brother in law have a wedding so I said we would drive up for the day and spend the night.  We will have a long day of swimming and snow cones!  Can't wait.  Also, my younger sister will be in town from San Francisco, so I am excited for that.

Lastly, (SIX!?)  Here are the pictures I promised last week of Jeff's golf basket. 

I made him take this right after he woke up!  I had it set up so that was the first thing that he saw when he walked out of the bedroom.  We had a great day!

Have a great weekend! 

XO Nicci

ALLIECLAY GIVEAWAY!!!

Happy Tuesday!!  AllieClay is giving away one PERSONALIZED small cosmetic bag, along with a PERSONALIZED kroakie!  The giveaway will begin tonight at 12:00 AM PST.  You can enter a total of 6 times!!  The giveaway will end MONDAY, MAY 19th so make sure to enter by then!!

There are so many different fabric options available, you can design these items anyway you want with any choice of fabrics, thread colors, and fonts.  Take a look at her Etsy shop to view all of the different options available!  The winner will have the change to choose any available fabric/color scheme!

AllieClay creates monogrammed cosmetics bags that are unique, one-of-a-kind, gifts. Each product is made to order and is entirely handmade by me specially for each customers design.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

XO Nicci

FRIDAY!

Yay it's Friday again!  It seems like Fridays are the only days I feel obligated to write, but I am making it my goal to change that and post at least twice a week.  Tomorrow is Jeff's 24th birthday!  He is finally catching up with me...now he can't make any more comments about me being a "cradle robber" (I'm 5 months older than him)!  Unfortunately, he has to work this weekend, but I still have some fun planned for him.  How perfect is it that his birthday falls on a Saturday, aka our cheat day! I am going to make a run to Nekter Saturday morning and get his favorite acai bowl.  Then I'll give him his gift when I get back!  Early afternoon we will head to Marina del Rey for a work get-together that he has.  Then we will head to an early dinner before going to see a performance at a small nearby venue.  Sunday I plan on spending some time at the pool because it is forecasted to be  91 degrees!! My perfect weather!  Here are my 5 for this week!!

-ONE-

Jeff's Golf Inspired Birthday Basket

[I forgot to take a picture of the basket this morning, but will post a picture of it when I give it to him on Saturday!]

I love doing gifts like this!  Although the recipient doesn't get to rip off the wrapping paper, I think it is even better.  I had Jeff choose the clubs that he wanted a few weeks ago, because I know nothing about golf and wanted to make sure he got the exact ones he wanted. I got him these TaylorMade irons from Sport Chalet. I also got him this putting game where it spits the ball back out to you, which just looked so fun to me!  Also included are TaylorMade golf balls and glove.  I liked some of the Nike stuff, but I figured since the clubs he wanted were TaylorMade, I would stick with one brand.  Lastly, I got him a couple of golf polos and shorts and some golf tees!  And I am definitely going to take the basket for myself after he takes everything out :)

-TWO-

Nekter Acai Bowls

I know that acai isn't as popular everywhere else as it is in Southern California, but everyone who hasn't tried it is truly missing out!  I've acai bowls at several different places, but I am definitely in a Nekter phase right now.  Jeff (who tries his hardest to stick to his New Jersey roots) even loves them!  I always get the Acai Tropical, but there are several different toppings you can choose from.  If you don't have anywhere that has acai on the menu, you can order the frozen acai puree online and make your own.  It is a little pricey, but SO GOOD!  It's even available on Amazon.  I have tried the Sambazon brand before, and it is so tasty.

-THREE-
Light Pink Nails

This is my go to color for summer.  It's not too bright and a perfect summer shade!  What are other good summer colors?

-FOUR-
All White

Check out these Pinterest inspired looks!

I am loving this all white look for summer!  It is so clean and cute.  Adding statement jewelry, a purse, or shoes can add nice little pop of color if you feel uncomfortable with all white.  I love it with just tan or nude accessories to keep it muted.

-FIVE-

GIVEAWAY!!!

Remember I mentioned my love for AllieClay's Etsy Shop last week?  Well get ready for an AMAZING giveaway coming up on WEDNESDAY of next week! YAY, so excited!

Have a great weekend!!
XO Nicci

five on friday

Happy Friday! It's May, which means summer is almost here!  The weather down here has been beyond bizarre!  It is 95 degrees and windy.  I love it!! Here are 5 things I am currently loving!

-ONE-

AllieClay Etsy Shop

This shop has the most adorable monogrammed bags, and of course I love a good monogram.  They range from small, medium, or large makeup/cosmetic bags up to this large tote.  I ordered Jeff's mom and sisters the monogrammed cosmetic bags for Christmas and they loved them.  One of my close friends is graduated from Fresno State at the end of the month and I ordered her this large tote with a matching small makeup bag.  What a perfect graduation gift.  I can't wait to get it!  Also, Allie is such a sweetheart!!  

-TWO-

Chanel - Chance Eau de Parfum Spray

My go-to scent!  It is perfect for any season.  I got a new bottle and can't get enough of it.  It stays throughout the entire day!

-THREE-
Burlap Wreaths

I made this wreath for Jeff's mom for her birthday and loved how it turned out!  I ended up making them for my mom, sister, and nonna for Mother's Day as well.  They are fairly easy to make, and a perfect gift!

-FOUR-
Jeff and I returned from New Jersey late Monday night from a long weekend with his family.  I hadn't been out there since last June!  We had a great time, but of course it always seems too short.

Jeff & I with his parents

With Jeff's grandma

-FIVE-

I am re-doing my bedroom!  I have had pretty the same bedroom for the past 4 years, which is a very long time for me.  Right now, it is pretty much all neutrals; white, tan, and gold.  We need a new duvet cover, our current one is white and is definitely worn.

This is my dream room:

 I love the calmness of it.  And I absolutely love the canopy connected to the ceiling.  Since we will be moving into a new apartment next month, we can't do everything that we would do if we had our own house.   But I think we would be able to do the canopy.  And as of now, we have no headboard so I am debating between staying with our current tones (white, gold, tan/nude) or changing to white and gray.  I know, such a huge change, haha.

Have a great weekend!
XO Nicci