the last gasp of summer

well, shit.  i was doing pretty well for awhile there - and now it’s december and i’m still recapping august.  oops.

hello kitty night at dodger stadium is always a favorite outing with my friends, and with the giveaway for this one being a super cute clear hello kitty crossbody bag, we made sure to snag tickets as soon as they went on sale.  i just wish i could remember where i put mine when i got it home.

i managed to get cast as a background actor for a new disney+ tv show, which was super fun because not only did i get to dig out some of my disney gear to wear on camera, but i got to spend a full evening at disneyland AND get paid for it.  woohoo!

we celebrated our dear friend lilcee’s birthday at the gym.

the bean and i headed out to little tokyo for some lunch and found a fun new shop to browse through.

the hub took us out to the desert late one night and set up a comfy bed in the bed of his truck for us to watch a meteor shower.  it was a beautiful night, and i tried to soak in as much of it as i could.  with the bean starting senior year and looking at colleges for next year, i know that times like these are even more precious than ever, and you know i get emotional every time i think about it.

a few of my friends and i got together to see “& juliet” with a fun pre-show dinner at dama in the arts district.

the hub and i got out for at least one date night.

the bean and their friends shared an early morning senior sunset to kick off their last year of high school (sob).

and with that, summer 2025 officially came to an end.

date night is always a good idea

the hub and i managed to squeeze in one more date night before the bean came home from NYC.  and this time, we made it simple and headed to an old favorite - lawry’s prime rib.

i kicked it off with my current favorite drink…an espresso martini.

we went with their “steak lovers dinner” prix fixe menu, so we started off with their famous spinning bowl salad and a bowl of lobster bisque.

and we added a shrimp cocktail to share, because it sounded good (it was).

it’s always good to watch the silver bullet roll up to your table.  the carver confirmed our order, sliced off chunks of succulent prime rib, and served it up with their classic creamed corn, mashed potatoes and gravy and yorkshire pudding.  

for dessert we chose the dark chocolate fantasy cake (a la mode, of course) and the creme brulee.

in all honestly, it’s not as difficult to get away for date nights as it used to be.  the bean is practically an adult now and doesn’t need supervision anymore - hell, most of the time they’re off on their own adventures while the hub and i hang out at home.  and we really only have another year and a half until they’re out of the house for college…yikes.

i’m going to be the worst empty nester that ever was.

partying like rock stars

the hub and i headed out to hollywood one evening for a date night somewhere new (to us): grandmaster recorders.

this building was constructed in the 1930s and started out as a silent movie theater that eventually became a recording studio where artists from stevie wonder to david bowie to ringo starr to the red hot chili peppers and even kanye west wrote and recorded their music.  now it features a restaurant, event venue and rooftop bar.

the hub and i were seated in a cozy booth and decided to try the chef’s tasting menu.  we kicked it off with this fun cigar-shaped appetizer filled with crème fraiche and caviar.  it was delicious.

i washed it down with the most delicious espresso martini:

the antipasti course included some delicious small dishes - buffalo burrito with burnt honey, crunchy chili and served with fresh-baked focaccia:

grass-fed beef tartare with parmigiano reggiano on a caraway cracker:

and grilled squid with meyer lemon purée and hot chili oil.  this was all for the hub because i don’t do squid.

i just sat there and enjoyed my martini while he happily plowed through it.

this was an amazing pasta dish with dungeness crab and some other stuff that i don’t remember, but fully enjoyed.

we opted to upgrade our entree to the wagyu ribeye, which was served with house made mustard sauces and pickles.  so good.

dessert was tiramisu, adorned with an edible record label and a hard chocolate topper that was fun to crack open before digging in to the deliciousness.

after we were all done, we went upstairs to check out the rooftop bar.  there were a couple of large parties celebrating birthdays, and while we were able to snag some comfy chairs we decided to head on outta there and go home.  

dinner was really good, and it had been a lot of fun trying a new spot with so much cool history.  definitely recommend it if you’re looking for a fun date night spot!