Fueling Up for Shopping

Going down to stay at Balboa Island

during my kids' Thanksgiving vacation

is a nice "tradition" my family has had

for the past several years.

It is a great time to get a jump on my holiday shopping.

Fashion Island, Roger's Gardens, & South Coast Plaza

are all just minutes away.

In addition, there are many darling shops on

the Island itself.

I always travel down to Balboa with a list of gift ideas.

Then, I add to that when I see creative gifts on display

which I know will be perfect for the people in my life.

When Bestie M and Bestie D came down,

we brought along a couple of our daughters (2 of 5).

We began our time together at Fashion Island.

We all agreed we needed some nourishment

before we started shopping.

So, we began our time together at the restaurant, Lemonade.

It is a trendy, upscale "cafeteria".

 You grab a tray and go down the line to choose your food

from a variety of delicious choices.

It's FANTASTIC!

There are so many really good things to eat,

it is hard to choose.

For example, Lemonade offers a curried cauliflower with toasted pine nuts that is sensational!

(P.S. Many of the Lemonade recipes are on Pinterest - FYI.

I now make the curried cauliflower at home

and it's become a family favorite.)

 The variety is amazing.

It's a great place for vegetarians and meat-eaters alike.

 Then, of course, Lemonade offers their

delectable specialty lemonades.

YUM!

I've tried several and they have ALL been fantastic.

This time, I had the blood orange lemonade.

(If you can't have lemonade,

there are other beverage choices.)

After our meal, we were READY to GO!

More on our shopping trip to come...

Au Revoir,

Michelle