Paging Lauren Conrad

After spending pretty much every spare moment last week glued to the latest on Joran van der Sloot (don't get me started), and thus surviving on lettuce leaves and chocolate covered almond clusters from Trader Joe's, I awoke Saturday morning to the grim reality that all my pants were falling off and I needed a new belt.  (how's that for a creative reasoning?)

Rather than hoofing it into LA - seeing as the Chef may not have many weekends left to hang with me and he's been through enough shopping hell after that denim debacle - we opted to spend the afternoon in Laguna Beach, peruse the shops as quickly as possible to retrieve said belt, and then lounge leisurely over afternoon cocktails at one of our most favorite spots.  I have to say there is a reason people love to live in and visit Laguna.  I often wonder how difficult it must have been for LC, Lo and everyone to leave (the tv show was a guilty pleasure of mine)...remember when Lauren left SF to come back home?  Well, looky looky here - I could understand the homesickness seeing as the town is built around this:

Seriously.  There's a boardwalk that curves around the beach and usually it's packed.  I used this tranquil photo so as not to let the crowds scare you off if you're considering visiting.  But wait...on the opposite side of the beach is the town itself...

Yep.  See what I mean?  There's the main beach/boardwalk on the left and the shops and restaurants to the right.  In the daytime the beach is filled with volleyball nets and players as well as people on the basketball courts and laying out on the sand.  I'm not much about the sports so you'll usually see me doing this move:

      (note my attempt at summer hippie hair)

I call it the "hey, you mind if I run in there for a sec?" and it's usually x5 or 20 or something. The Chef much prefers this move:

He calls it the "turn a blind eye and keep on walkin' girlfriend".  There's a lot of goodies in Laguna Beach so ya gotta keep a grip on your wallet or it'll be emptied out all over in the cute shops.  After I grabbed my belt (to be displayed in future posts, I'm sure) we headed over to grab a bite.

I do believe the sign speaks for itself.  What's best about this spot is a. there is parking (not an easy thing to come by on a weekend in Laguna) b. the cocktails

                                                          adult lemonade and buddha's hand margarita, anyone? 
                                                         (love is wrapping your cocktail in a paper bag hobo style )

                                                (how about a strawberry smash or a lychee mojito?)

and c. the view.  It is amazing from inside as well, but I refuse to turn into the crazy camera person who's shooting pictures from inside every establishment so you'll just have to take my word on it.  Uh, yeah.  We used to come here every Sunday morning for brunch and love it to pieces.  Thanks for nothing recession!  Here's a little idea of what you get outside:

Sick, huh?  You can walk up and down the streets for hours with this view right at your fingertips.

Anyway, by the time we finished lounging, relaxing and chatting it up with a fab surfing couple it was getting a little late so we headed over to grab a bench and take in the view for a bit.

Okay and laugh a little or a lot. Oh, and there's a little bag of treasures resting comfortably beneath the bench too.  ahhhh treasures.

 On a serious note though - how about that view?  Here it is from the other side:

Super relaxing and beautiful. Not nearly as many people as earlier in the day either.  Before you knew it we were heading back to the car as it got dark quickly.

                          (home in the hills anyone? lauren's parents, neighbors, i'm available for tea...)

On the way home we stopped off at my grandma's house for a bite to eat.

I KID, I KID!!! I just couldn't resist!  We pulled up to our fave Mexican restaurant and were greeted by a gaggle of motorbikes.  Good thing it wasn't earlier in the day after cocktails or I mighta asked for a spin.  woops!

Hope everyone had a fun and relaxing weekend.  Onward and upward into Tuesday...is it Saturday yet?

Outfit details:  James Perse Double Layer Twisted Skirt, Fluxus Burnout Pocket Tank, Gap Favorite Cami, Matt Bernson KM Gladiators, Anna Corinna (now Foley+Corinna) City Tote, Tom Ford Bianca Sunglasses, Melinda Maria Jewelry mixed in with leather strips and straps from around the house.