wan say relax

i was thinking about it the other day and i came to the realization that i'm like a freaking smear of nutella on a big ass bagel - i am spread pretty damn thin. i mean, think about it - i juggle a shitload of stuff. i have a teen, a toddler, a husband, a dog, a great handful of friends & family, a part-time office job, two home-based businesses, my blog, i'm in my first year of junior league membership, and i was recently tapped to help out with the local school district's parent-led foundation (separate from the usual PTA). this doesn't include buckets of laundry, cooking, and general housecleaning (at least, the parts that MIL doesn't get to first). not that i'm complaining, though. i'm really enjoying my life, and i wouldn't want it any other way.

of course, that doesn't mean i couldn't use some extra pampering and relaxing now and then. and i'm grateful that the hub totally gets the value of a little time at the spa - in fact, i'd never really been treated to many spa treatments until i met him. so when he suggested that the teen and i go for facials, we both jumped at the chance.

now, you know i'm all about saving a buck or two whenever possible. i'd just gotten a discount card for a whole slew of local businesses, so i scanned it to see if there were any good deals for spa treatments. as luck would have it, the skin care shop in monrovia was listed with a pretty sweet deal - 30% off all services. so after a bit of back-and-forth on the phone, trying to finagle appointments for both of us at the same time, we were set. we arrived here:

as we stepped in, the two ladies at the front desk offered smiles and greetings. they were really friendly, so we were off to a great start. it was a cute little space, decorated nicely, with a few shelves of products for sale.

besides my "relaxation facial," i treated myself to a lavender paraffin dip for my hands, which were (as they usually are) dryer than the effing sahara. even my esthetician, elena, remarked on their sad condition while i shrank into the chair in shame. ha! no, she was really sweet about it, and we got to know each other while she performed an eyebrow wax that was so way overdue. i really liked her, and grabbed her card as i made an appointment for my next waxing session. in fact, as i told her about my new stella & dot venture, she was the one who suggested that i check out the wine bar where this saturday's launch party is taking place. i love elena.


while i sat out front, chatting with the two at the desk, waiting for the teen to emerge from her own facial, the shop owner came in and offered to make a pinkberry run for everyone. i declined at first, but she insisted - and, well, you know how much i love me some pinkberry. heh. she even poked her head into the teen's room and took orders from her and her esthetician. so nice!


so the fantastic service, on top of everyone's friendliness (and not to mention my super excellent discount), will definitely bring us back to the skin care shop. yay!