Happy Friday guys! I’m heading off to San Diego this weekend for a wedding. It’ll be super fun, doubly so because I’ll get to see my aunt and her family as well. Don’t you just love seeing family and friends anywhere you go? I do!

Since I haven’t packed yet and we’re leaving tomorrow night right after I get off work I figured I’d make this entry short and sweet with five fun facts about the beautiful city of San Diego.

1. The San Diego Zoo is home to four giant pandas - the largest number of giant pandas in the United States! In 1999, Hua Mei was the first giant panda born in North America to survive to adulthood. Tons of people lined up for hours to visit Hua Mei and millions watched her grow up via the zoo’s Panda Cam. Now, affter watching Kung Fu Panda last week, I can’t help but secretly want to visit the zoo on Sunday if we have some time before our flight back to San Francisco.

2. San Diego is the second largest city in California behind Los Angeles. With about 1.3MM residents, this city sounds like it’s a West Coast version of Miami. Approximately 30% of the population are of Hispanic and/or Latino origin and the city resides among miles and miles of sunny beaches - 70 miles to be exact.

3. Since the early millennium, Indian gaming and casinos have been a fast growing industry in San Diego. For those of you who know me, you know that I enjoy a bit of gambling now and again (I’m going to Reno & Tahoe next week to visit Mom and hit the slots!). As of today, there are seven casinos in the local area - do you think I can sneak a couple of hours during my trip to see if I can win a jackpot?

4. Get your Dior fix at the upscale Fashion Valley Mall, tomorrow June 28th. I had a great time at this Allure Confessions of a Beauty Director event in San Francisco and met the lovely Joelle Russo. If you can, take advantage of it as well! Book your appointment with June’s featured beauty director Kari Larsen now before all the spots fill up! Tell them you want to try that foundation in a spray - Air Flash.

5. On January 30, 1979, yours truly was born in a sunny city in California they call San Diego. My parents had just come to the U.S. a few months earlier from Vietnam and were living with a family that had sponsored them to the States. I can only imagine how freaked out my mom was to have a baby in a new country! But I think she did great - thanks Mama!

This is me as a baby - I dunno if you can see, but check me out rockin’ the nail polish as a one-year-old!

What are your plans for this lovely weekend? I can’t wait to get it started because that means that I’ll be on vacation from work next week through July 4th - woo hoo!!!

I won’t leave you hanging for the weekend while I’m out of town so enjoy your weekly reads from my friends at the Beauty Blog Network!

Melissa from The Makeup Divas reviews and shares photos of eye shadows and slimshines from the Mac Cool Heat Collection.

A Touch of Blusher looks at Dior’s fall 2008 makeup collection.

Still confused about products that use the words NATURAL, ORGANIC and PURE on their packaging? Cybelesays discovers an organization that’s setting a standard with their seal and some big indy brands are joining up.

Beauty Banter uncovers the most important sweatproof beauty products of the summer - a sweaty face is SO 2007!!!

Are you ready for a Warm Chill? Roselyn from Makeup Makes Me Happy™ is also raving about the latest collection from MAC Cosmetics. Here she gives us another wonderful makeup tutorial featuring the cool blue hues from MAC’s Cool Heat.

Beauty Anonymous reviews La Mer The SPF 18 Fluid Tint.

15 Minute Beauty Fanatic finds her new favorite hot weather fragrance, Elizabeth Arden’s Green Tea Lotus!

The Muse decides to saw her Urban Decay Primer Potion in half and make the most of it!.

Beyond Beauty Basics is having a Burt’s Bees Radiance Kit Giveaway in honor of National Pollinator Week June 22-28. Comment and win an assortment of natural personal care products!

Makeup Moxie dishes on her favorite way to practice safe sun in this face sunscreen review.

Beauty Blogging Junkie tells you how to channel Gossip Girl’s Serena van der Woodsen here.

The Fragrance Fanatic tells you some great ways to Wear Your Fragrance.

Beautiful Makeup Search picks out some products from the Shu Uemura 25th Boutique Birthday collection.

Come join The Life of a Ladybug’s no!no! giveaway! All you have to do is enter your name and e-mail address and you have a chance to win a brand new no!no! hair removal device!

The fabulous ladies of Beauty in Real Life, have the details on the N.Y.C. Color Big Apple Bronze Summer Collection.

Have you tried Yes To Carrots Lip Balm? Face Candy tells you what she thinks of it.

Every day this week, Spoiled Pretty is giving away a chic summer bag, filled with beauty booty to help you beat the heat. This series of giveaways is all that and a bag of products! Enter today!

Summer heat doing a number on your skin? Beauty411 shares how the new June Jacobs Cooling and Soothing Masque can help you beat the heat and improve your skin!

Makeup Junkie shares a new Makeup Obsession!