Holy cow it’s Monday.

This was one of those weekends when I feel like I just blacked out and it was over.  Did it even happen?  (Yes, I know it did, because I was at one of my two jobs for most of it.  I have a time slip to prove it.)

Such is the holiday season, though.  There are events on your days off.  There is shopping and decorating and baking and planning to be done.

There isn’t much downtime.

(What a freaking month for this NaBloPoMo stuff.  I obviously have not kept up as well as I should have…)

But Friday, I didn’t have any plans other than to just be there for Brad.  After the tragic news of his uncle’s passing on Thursday, I wanted to help Brad celebrate or mourn Ernie in whatever way he wanted to.  If it meant sitting on the couch and watching movies, we would do that.

If it meant going out to get a tattoo…  Well maybe Brad already did that on Thursday.

So… We wouldn’t do that again.  One impulsive (yet heartfelt and awesome) tattoo is enough for one weekend.

I tagged along on the ride down to Manhattan Beach, as he had to go in for an afternoon meeting.  And while Brad was occupied, I wandered around the peaceful little beach town and took a little time to reconnect with myself…

And drink some green juice.  If there is ever a Pressed Juicery along the way, you know I’m stopping.

I walked along the boardwalk for a while and gawked at the insane houses that sat quietly beachfront.

And the “decent” views even if you happened to get stuck living a block away from the beach, instead.

As the sun started setting and Brad’s meeting ended, it got chilly and Brad didn’t have a coat, so we headed back to Santa Monica.

But the sun was setting.  And we were at the beach.

So Brad pulled over and we sat in the warmth of the CRV, watching the sun slip behind the Atlantic.

We get so spoiled living right right to the ocean.  I remember when views like this were reserved for summer vacations at the beach.  Even then, I grew up on the east coast so you would see spectacular sun rises over the ocean.

And I am not a morning person.  So I did not often see those spectacular ocean views…

Afterward, we were craving pasta, so we stopped in for a brief pasta tasting menu up at the bar at Superba in Venice.

Four pasta plates, four snacks, a few extras from the chef, and two desserts later – I thought I was going to explode.

Needless to say, Brad and I were both stuffed and on the couch watching movies the rest of the night.

It was the best way to wind down our tumultuous “weekend”, and just relax and recharge together.  The food at Superba was so incredible, and it even knocked a little joy into Brad to get him geared up for his work weekend ahead.

Thank you all for the love you sent since Thursday.  Brad and I are lucky to have each and every one of you.

xoxo