If you're ever in Irvine, CA . . .

. . . You've got to check out the 85 Degrees Cafe. The only one in the US is minutes away from my parent's house, the rest are in Taiwan, China and Australia. It's a unique coffee shop and bakery. The moment I stepped through the door I felt like I was in another country. There are interesting baked goods, non of which are labeled, and fun asian-y coffee and tea drinks. I tried this little thing which ended up being a really light cake with blueberry stuff in it. The inside was almost completely hollow which made it seem like a much more manageable dessert for me.

The drink they are famous for, and what got this place listed in some magazine as one of the top 10 places to visit on the west coast, is their sea salt coffee. Yep, sea salt. Nathan opted to try this one. The coffee itself is a tad sweet, but the foam on top is foamed with sea salt in it. The combo is really unique, and I almost didn't know how to handle the fact that the coffee had an aftertaste that tasted like salted butter. Definitely an experience though.

I on the other hand decided to try an iced grapefruit green tea with boba. It was awesome and super tart. It even had the little chunks that grapefruit juice has. I could go for one of those right now . . .

I'm a little behind . . .

After more than 2 weeks away, 5 different Christmas celebrations, 1,500 miles driven, 2 more dentist visits, and getting engaged . . . needless to say I've been pretty busy and blogging has fallen to the wayside recently. But here's the beginning of catching up. Here was my Christmas card that I sent out for 2010. It was the first one I've sent out on my own, and I have my wonderful sister to thank for helping me design it and make it.