Shopping in Marina

Living in the Fort Ord boonies means I need to get creative and plan ahead when I want to buy gas or go grocery, clothes, or crafts shopping. The closest grocery store is the Commissary, which I can't even shop in because I am not in the military!

Only one Hwy 1 stop north of mine, there's this huge development with Best Buy, Kohl's, REI, Target, Michael's, and Bed Bath & Beyond. Michael's Arts & Crafts (121 General Stillwell Dr, Marina) is huge and has a terrific baking section. They sell a lot of Wilton products and have tons of cupcake liners, food coloring gels, fondants, gum pastes, you name it. I joined their online coupon email system, which is both good and bad. I'll save money, but also be tempted to walk in the store more often (and thus, spend more precious dollar$$). It's all for my future cupcake business' R&D though...

In the same complex is this humongous Target (133 General Stillwell Dr, Marina). I bought a new swimsuit the last time I went; clearance, $15 for both pieces... cutest thing ever. Ya'll will see it in Vegas. I also bought some discounted Easter sprinkles, a bright orange top that I can wear out and to work (booya!), some containers, gum, and presents for friends :) I really liked this Target. When I was growing up, my mom and I would always shop at the Target in Milpitas. Then, when I was about 13, we stopped shopping there and devoted ourselves to Macy's/Valley Fair/Safeway/Rite Aid. Target really is the one stop spot. Gotta give it more loving.

When I was making banana peanut butter cupcakes I desperately wanted to decorate them with banana runts. Do you know how hard it is to find a box of runts when you are looking for one? After checking both the Savemart and CVS Pharmacy in Marina, both failures, I decided to just check Walgreens (226 Reservation Rd, Marina) really quickly. This was my second time making a purchase in Walgreens\. The first time I bought cranberry juice, raisins, and pills! (After eating at Tico's with Nat & Sarah!) Welp, this time... LOOK!

They had Runts! Too bad I only needed the banana parts. Anyone want some Runts minus bananas?

Trader Joe's Monterey

Trader Joe's is one of my favorite grocery store chains, simply because they stock mini peanut butter cups. Those things are deadly! They are also the reason why I've learned to avoid TJ's because if I let myself go inside, I just can't help buying them! Two hours later I've inhaled 3/4 of the container and feel sick to my stomach. No self control when peanut butter and chocolate is involved!

The downtown Monterey location (570 Munras Ave, Monterey) is moderately sized and has a bit of a wonky floor plan with an almost hidden cereal aisle. Tyler, Dave, and I stopped at TJ's after Easter mass in Carmel. I was hoping to find some quality white vinegar (for Red Velvet cupcakes :), but they didn't have any! No white vinegar whatsoever! Can you believe that? There's a Peet's Coffee in the same shopping center, so the parking lot can get busy. It's also next door to a pharmacy and R.G. Burger (<-- read about my wonderful experience).

After grabbing the mini peanut butter cups, I strolled over to the baking aisle and was saddened to see that it was a mere four feet wide. I just wasn't winning. In addition to needing white vinegar, I was also looking to find some Dutch processed unsweetened cocoa. No luck here.



However, I did spot a Trader Joe's version of unsweetened cocoa (with cupcakes on the label!) and added it to my cart. I grabbed a thing of eggs, baking powder, and baking soda. Now I know that when I need baking supplies, this is not the best place to go looking. I'm excited to try out the cocoa though!

Coach Store, Downtown Carmel

My mom, sister, and I always find great deals at the Coach factory store (San Carlos St & Ocean Ave, Carmel). Once we had chowed down on the slice of chocolate cherry cheesecake from Cafe Carmel, it was time to go handbag shopping. The last time the three of us went to Coach, Nicole and I got matching wallets (hers brown, mine black). This time we got matching "swingbacks" (hers black, mine brown). I got the Penelope Signature Swingback for ~$70 (online it retails for $140). They gave us the above coupon when we walked in, so our total purchase was discounted even further after picking out seven items (some were gifts!)

Read their Yelp reviews here.

Cottage of Sweets, revisited.

My first blog post about the Cottage of Sweets was back in the beginning of February. You can read about it here in case you missed it!

Tucked between Monte Verde and Lincoln streets in Carmel, lies a rustic cottage. Stuffed full of succulent fudges, truffles, sours, and sweets, this place is on my Must Visit list when I have visitors. While at the happy hour at Carmel Mission Inn, both Natalie and I were baffled when Sarah told us that she had never been before. Wha? No WAY! But what about that time when we.... Nope.

As we strolled down Ocean Avenue, I spotted this cute lamp shade in a window. Much of Carmel's allure comes from the countless window shopping opportunities. As we got closer to the Cottage of Sweets, we saw this old car and decided to get all goofy touristy and pose with it :)

The Cottage of Sweets is the peanut butter to my tummy's jelly. It is the black to my white. It is my favorite candy store... ever. How adorable is this?

I bought a bag of their Peanut Butter Malt balls. OH MY GOODNESS. Delicious! I've never seen anything like them... I was ridiculously pleased with my purchase. You bite in to the chocolate outside, assuming it's all normal. BUT! There is actually a whole other layer between the chocolate layer and malt inside that is oozing with peanut buttery goodness. The only problem is that they disappeared in merely a day :( I also got two of my go-to peanut butter squares. I also tried the cappuccino square. I didn't think either square was as good as I hoped. The peanut butter square seemed a little off that day (unusual, because normally that's my favorite) and the cappuccino one had barely any hint of espresso/coffee/anything.

Natalie did most of her orders from this side of the shop (below). She bought sour patch kids and chocolate covered gummy bears, one of her favorite things the cottage carries. Sarah had a dark chocolate turtle (I think?) and something else. Why did I not pay attention and/or take pictures? Can somebody answer that for me? I blame the PB Malt Balls!

Here's us enjoying our tasty treats! The adventure continued up the street at Carmel Bakery and Coffee Co... you can read about it here.

Vegas III: SaturDAY strip walking

Ringing phone. So Loud. Dark of night. 
L: WHYYyyYYYy are you calling meeEEee? It's like 5 in the morning!
K: What? No it's not.....
L: Yesssss it isssssss..... ughhhh
K: It's 10:30...
L: .... ... wha? oh. It's juuuust so dark out! - still - sleeping ... bye.

The second time I woke up on Saturday, closer to noon, Taylor said the funniest thing: she said that she needed to get the Treasure Island drapes in her room. Those things are so potent! You shut them, go out at night, come back to the room, fall asleep, and then before you know it, it's 3:37pm and it's just about time to start gearing up for the next night! Luckily we all woke up around noon, got dressed, and headed down to grab food.

Kelly and I were the first ones out of the room and we went to Treasure Island's Coffee House, a 24 hour casual dining spot in the middle of the casino floor. (Yelp) This comfort food was just what the doctor ordered! Holy moly! I ordered a stack of pancakes of course! Pancakes McGee! For $10.50 I got a fatty stack coated in mixed berries. MMmmMMmm. Has anyone caught on yet that I'm sort of a pancake fanatic? Where has this trend come from? Growing up my sister was the french toast girl, and we never had a waffle maker... I think I only ate belgian waffles when I was in Oregon. I digress.... Kelly ordered an omelet, I can't remember which one though... it looked good!

The other girls met up with Starbucks in hand (there was one in the hotel), and the four of them split two omelets. After they ate, we began traipsing down the strip. We posed for several "day" pictures, all for the adoring fans of 32above. Wait a second... I have no fans? Sad...

We eventually went into the Forum Shops at Caesar's Palace and walked around for hours like camels. First we bought Fat Tuesday's before heading inside. Oh wait - no we didn't. I guess I dreamed about that. Fat Tuesday's are glorious - must get one for the next trip April 23/24/25! I think we went into half of the 160 boutiques/shops. My favorite thing: silver sparkly hats! I wish I bought one. The girls bought shoes, scarves, and gelato while I contemplated the possibility of returning to purchase the sparkly hat and wear it out to the club with my galactic one-shoulder dress. Zenon much?

We decided to get some drinks at Rhumbar (3400 Las Vegas Blvd S.), an outdoor lounge near the entrance to the Mirage from Caesar's Palace. They had a very stylish outdoor patio with heat lamps! Thank the lord! We sat down next to two silver foxes, and they proceeded to offer us lemon drop shooters because they just wanted us to "have a good time."

They were actually really sweet and not sketchy at all. Prices were high, so I just had the free gifted lemon drop. The others had either a glass of wine or a mixed drink. I liked how laid back the place was, and yet it was still very classy. I could see all of us here, again, in 2020, with money to spend on delicious mojitos. Note: Rhumbar is the destination of very snazzy people from LMU. If you see one, you should go up to him/her and complement him/her on his/her amazingly creative outfit!

Last Chance Mercantile

As I was driving home (Seaside) from home (San Jose) I made the impromptu decision to find the Marina Dump. As part of the Green Team at work, I go to bi-weekly meetings and help plan the Green Fair (April 15th).





At the last meeting, somebody mentioned Last Chance Mercantile (14201 Del Monte Boulevard, Marina). It is a store near the dump that sells random items for ridiculously cheap prices. Basically - the last chance to purchase these items before they end up like the brave little toaster or his blankey friend.

I remembered hearing that it was near the Dole Factory, so I turned off at Marina's Del Monte Blvd exit.

Dole's cooling, packaging, shipping facility

I got lost, so I pulled over and asked a farmer tending to his rideable lawn mower for directions. He kindly told me to turn around and make a left at the stop sign just past the Dole plant. I began to see signs for the landfill and waste management facility. Fancy terms for DUMP!

The drive into the dump was oddly beautiful. There were rolling green hills with blossoming wild flowers, towering trees with shadows that veiled the pavement, farmers in the distance piloting tractors and tilling their land. The most picturesque landfill access road I could possibly imagine. Before the gates of the slag heap, I turned right at the sign and parked in front of the Last Chance Mercantile.

LCM had sporting goods - lots of old golf clubs and balls, auto parts, clothes, books, mulch, compost, paints, bakeware, and more! I purchased measuring cups ($1), a nice glass serving platter ($1), five $1 tin trays, and one $2 tin tray that was a bit more intricate than the others. My total was a little over $9 after tax.

My dad agreed to help me turn my 6 platters into a cupcake stand. Can't wait to drill some holes through these babies! My cupcake stand will be one of a kind and look super duper snazzy! Snap!

LCM is a great place for DIY fanatics, bargain hunters, remodelers, or the unemployed. The resale shop has extremely affordable prices and, with a little imagination, you can turn trash to treasure. It would be fun to get together with friends, each contribute $2, and spend the remainder of your day building something crazy on a $10 budget. Yes? No? Any takers?

Operating hours:
Monday - Friday: 8 am to 5 pm
Saturday: 8 am to 4:30 pm
Sunday: Closed

Tommy's! Shopping!

Yesterday I went shopping with my roommate. Fun but very tiring!

1. Walmart (Marina)

2. Michaels (Seaside)

3. Bed Bath & Beyond (Seaside)

4. Target (Seaside)

5. Home Depot (Sand City)

Our place is looking amazing though! I need some visitors!

Before we started our shopping adventure, we grabbed a late breakfast at Tommy's (204 Cypress Ave, Marina). Follow the link to the Yelp reviews and you'll see other reasons why Tommy's is a total winner.

We both ordered the Tommy's Special for $2.95. For under $3 bucks we got 2 eggs, hash browns, 3 pancakes and a choice of bacon, sausage, or ham. As seen in the picture, you could even get 2 eggs, hash browns, and toast for $0.99! Sarah recommended the bacon, and I'm a bacon girl anyways. It was good!!! My favorite part was the pancakes. Everything came out to us so fast too! It is a family run business, a hole in the wall, and absolutely amazing!

The unbelievable menu!

Next time I'm ordering the French Toast for $1.99!