Okay, universe.

I hadn't posted in a while because, well, I just keep getting knocked down by this year called 2014 and keep having to pick myself up again. I keep having to remind myself that God won't give me more than I can handle. That being said, I am not sure how much more I can handle. (So, universe, how about we take a little break for a while...please? At least 30 years, to be exact)

I have always heard that bad things happen in 3's. And I was talking to a friend and she said that once those 3 things happen, you are okay for 30 years. That sounds about right to me, right? I will take it!

Shortly after I posted about my divorce, I was laid off from my job. Yup, that's right. I moved into my new house and then two weeks later was laid off. Boo.

A week or so after I was laid off, my family cat died. Double boo.

Right after my birthday, one of my best friends from childhood died. Triple boo.

Now, if I am counting right, that is four things. So, that means that I took one extra, for the team, and I am not sure how 'okay' I am with that, but I can't change the past, so I hope that this only means I get at least 40 years of goodness, right? I mean that is the only thing that makes sense.

On the bright side of all of this, I have been truly happier. I have been enjoying my time with my family and friends and I have been smiling. Having to go through these hardships is forcing me to remember and think about all of the good and the positive that is in my life. I am so blessed to be surrounded by amazing, kind, supportive, loving people.

Lake Tahoe Autumn Food & Wine Festival at Northstar

For my birthday, I went to Lake Tahoe with my mom and one of her best friends from law school. Well to be honest, they had already made plans and I just tagged along and crashed their girls weekend :-) It was a gorgeous weekend in Lake Tahoe and we got to eat some amazing food and drink delicious wine and cocktails.

The first night we went to The Art of the Cocktail. The bartenders at the Ritz Carlton at Northstar made us three delicious prohibition cocktails, a mojito with gin, an old fashioned and a fancy moscow mule. They were all delicious and very strong!

We enjoyed our cocktails on big comfy couches at the Ritz and then took the gondola down to Northstar village and had a yummy pizza dinner.

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On Saturday morning we took a much needed stroll along the beach in Tahoe. The weather was better than perfect and the water was temperate. 

We got dressed after our stroll and we headed to Northstar Village for our Wine Makers Luncheon. Petra Wine Bar hosted the luncheon and paired up with FARM Napa Valley wines. The food was delicious and the wines were great. We even got to sit and talk with the wine maker. We will definitely be visiting FARM in Napa!

After the lunch we sat out on the patio with our new friends and drank wine. It was so relaxing!

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We headed back to the hotel, did a quick wardrobe change and headed back to Northstar Village for our Charbay and Caviar pairings. Charbay brought vodka, tequila and rum and paired it with different caviar dishes. For me, caviar is a bit too fishy and salty for me, it was not my favorite. After the pairing we sat outside by the fire and relaxed. It was perfect.

On Sunday morning we headed to the beach and laid out in the sun for about an hour, packed up, stopped at Gar Woods for lunch and headed home. It was a perfect weekend with two of my favorite ladies and we had such a blast! I can't wait to go back next year!