We’ll be meeting in the restaurant of this fabulous winery but don’t feel like you need to down a few. The reason we hold these get-togethers is so we can meet and support each other. Enjoy lunch or do a little wine tasting. Or just come and laugh… we do a lot of that around here.
Hope to see you all.
Carolyn
Megan
Sidney
Today we get to travel all over Southern California with our Progressive Dinner blog hop!
The most romantic holiday of the year is coming up, and whether you plan on sharing it with a spouse, a partner, a special someone or your whole family, we have some mouth-watering dinner ideas!
Here we have the links to every recipe in our progressive dinner, or take a trip through the whole meal by starting at the first blog and clicking your way through! Each blog has the link to the next recipe and also links back to here.
Love these recipes? Pin these great recipes on Pinterest!
To start, sip on Sparkling Pomegranate Jubilee from Someday I’ll Learn
A nice romantic appetizer can be eaten by hand while gazing into each other’s eyes. Try the Strawberry Bruschetta from The Wonder Years or the Bruschetta Hearts from The Jolly Tomato.
‘Lettuce’ take it a step further with Baby Baby Lemon‘s Sweetheart Salad.
The Gonzo Gourmet offers an intimate main with Steakhouse Steaks for Two. Or, offer a creamy family-style dish with Sarcastic, Funny and Brutally Honest’s Creamy Chicken Florentine.
Love these recipes? Pin these great recipes on Pinterest!
Do you have a special recipe you love to make for a romantic evening?
Tell us about it!
There is something that bonds bloggers together. I don’t know if it’s the struggle with writers block, the fear of blog post backlash, or the constant fear that technology will turn on you and you’ll wake up one day with no blog, no facebook friends and no twitter followers. Or… it could just be as simple as a Sunday lunch with some really great gals and a whole lot of laughs.
From left to right: Ricca, Sidney, A.J., Carolyn, Erin
On Sunday, we had a great time getting to know each other at Wood Ranch in Northridge, CA. A huge shout-out to our server, Becky, who put up with all our craziness. I think SoCal Lady Bloggers now has our own official drink: The Ginger Ale and Gin (courtesy of Sidney).
I am constantly impressed by all the amazing bloggers I have had the fortune to meet since SoCal Lady Bloggers began. What a genuinely nice, honest, down-to-earth group of women. I can’t wait for our next event. You ladies Rock!
Carolyn
Get ready ladies… we’re meeting for lunch and you’re invited.
WHO: Southern California Lady Bloggers
WHERE: Wood Ranch BBQ, 9301 Tampa Avenue, Northridge
WHEN: Sunday, January 29, 2012 at 1:00 pm
WHY: Because we’re awesome and need a break from the house/kids/spouse/insert reason here
Take a break and join us. If you are coming for sure, leave a comment so we can reserve enough space. This is an informal get-together, just us girls having a chance to get to know each other better. Would love to see all of you.
The stores are full of red hearts, romantic decorations and Pinterest is full of candy-holding card ideas.
Valentine’s Day is approaching, and we have a fun event we’d like to share with all of you.
We will soon be hosting a romantic progressive dinner here and would love for you to come!
We already have some culinary-minded bloggers who are committed to posting romance-minded recipes on their blogs. Looking for a new dish to share with a loved one? Stumped on what might make a meal feel special? This will be the place for you!
The progressive dinner will be linked up in its entirety here, but each blogger will feature links to the next course in the meal. It’s bound to be delicious!
The date has not been finalized, as we are looking for a few more ladies to host a course on their blogs.
Interested?
We are still looking for appetizers, beverages, sides, mains and desserts. The progressive dinner needs to be an original post, although it does not have to be a new recipe to your blog.
Please email us at socalladybloggers@gmail.com with your first and second preference on course you would like to host on your blog. We will respond with more information about the progressive dinner soon.
SoCal Lady Bloggers took a much needed rest over the holidays. When we started this site we had no idea what direction it would go but we knew we wanted to be able to support all the amazing and talented bloggers we have here in Southern California.
With the new year comes new ideas and goals, one of which is to meet as many of you as possible. We all have busy lives and schedules but we also think it’s important to be part of a community of like-minded women. We wanted to share some of the things we are working on for the coming months.
Networking – We are working on some upcoming get-togethers where we can have a few drinks, a nosh or two and get to know each other on a more personal level. We all know that we have an amazing community of online friends… just imagine how much more wonderful they are in real life.
Education – Every blogger, from the newbies to the most experienced, have something to share. We can all learn new tips and techniques for building our blogs. We’d love to start publishing some posts about your experiences (good and bad) with blogging and what you’ve learned.
Events – There are large and small events going on throughout Southern California on a daily basis. We’d really like to spread the word if you know of something in your city that might be fun for other bloggers as well. These can be anything from social media events to seminars to art openings to ribbon cuttings to local family events. If you know of something coming up, email us and we’d love to include it on the blog.
If one of your resolutions was to grow your blog in 2012, you might want to look into doing #SITS31DBBB (SITS Girls 31 Days to Build a Better Blog). This is an online program offered for any member of SITS beginning on January 16th. SoCal Blogger Carolyn is going to be participating so let us know if you want to jump on the bandwagon.
There are so many blogging and other social media-related conferences that happen throughout the year.
SITS puts on amazing one-day seminars, Bloggy Boot Camp, throughout the U.S. and if you haven’t been to a blogging seminar or conference yet (and even if you have) this is a really good one to get your feet wet. The closest one to Southern California will be held on October 13, 2012 in Las Vegas at the South Point Hotel.
Next month is Blissdom in Nashville, and we already know some of our SoCal ladies are attending. For those who attend that conference, we can’t wait to hear about what you will be learning and hope you will share a little with us!
Also, we’d love to know who is planning on going to BlogHer’12 in New York City in August. Would love to meet up with you in the Big Apple. Let us know if you are thinking about going, have any questions or already have your ticket. Maybe we can work out some roommate issues as well.
As always, we welcome your ideas and guest posts.
Carolyn
Megan
Sidney
Megan, Carolyn & Sidney
I believe the truest, most honest and most intimate gift is a gift of yourself.
Rather than go into commentary of handmade gifts or volunteering, instead I will remind you of a gift that is truly a gift of self- the gift of life by donating blood.
Lifestream is the blood bank for San Bernardino and Riverside counties.
Lifestream says that every few seconds someone needs a blood transfusion, equaling 500 donations needed through its 5 donation centers in La Quinta, San Bernardino, Riverside, Hesperia and Ontario.
I’m sure now everyone reading this is thinking of someone who needed a transfusion through accident, surgery or childbirth. The national average for Americans who donate blood is five percent, with Southern California’s average three percent.
So this year, after the hubbub of the holidays is over, consider going to a donation center and donating, or looking for a nearby blood drive. All you need is to be a healthy adult weighing over 110 pounds, and as young as 15 can donate with parental consent.
The new year is only three weeks away- make a resolution to donate twice in the new year. Or more! Blood can be donated every eight weeks, and plasma and platelets even more often.
And enjoy that juice and cookie!
Megan blogs at Sunshine Wonderland. She is planning to have a snack at the blood bank a couple times next year.
My friend, and fellow Hart High Drill Team member, Mikelle Klapper, created Humble Helpers, and wanted to share it with you. She hopes you’ll share as well.
Humble Helpers For The Homeless
Changing hands and changing ways changes hearts; giving it away is the best way to get it back.
Please share your own abundance with your community and pay it forward.
HHH is requesting and welcoming donations to purchase the following items:
socks,
gloves,
scarves,
tarps,
sleeping bags,
jeans,
jackets,
sweaters,
blankets,
umbrellas,
flashlights,
beanies, or “touques” for you Canucks.
We give directly to the homeless on the street, and are currently serving, Oxnard, Ventura, Goleta, and Santa Barbara.
Contact Matt at:
805- 765-1113 or
Please have a warm holiday season, and pay it forward…
