Driving Lexus performance vehicles on Chuckwalla Valley Raceway

Photos marked with an * were professional photos from the event. 

I’m sure you’ve all been wondering how the whole Palm Springs trip came about, and how it all went down!

PassportI have to tell you, this little Canadian was excited to hop on an airplane and head down south where the palm trees are taller, and the weather it hotter. Giving my praise and appreciation to Jasmine of Simply Real Moms to trust someone she’s never met, to represent her and her brand for an entire event.

Delsey-luggageI packed my Delsey luggage to go on its second airplane ride (my husband used it first to go back to Canada for a few days), and surprisingly it received a lot of attention. Four different people came up to me to compliment the suitcase!

DesleyWore a silly Hello LA tee, and layered my Superdry hoodie over top for extra warmth, since no matter the temperature I seem to have a constant chill.

RCFWhen I first arrived to the Ritz Carlton, Rancho Mirage in Palm Springs I paired up with Melanie the first afternoon to drive in this Lexus RC F 2 door coupe right before we got ready for the presentation and supper.

12357114_10156261513955176_5289841702882844679_oView from my room!

As I stated on Simply Real Mom’s blog post (read my article here), we all (bloggers, influencers and car enthusiasts) gathered for an all women’s Lexus Performance Driving experience in the Lexus F-Sport vehicles (the RC F coupe, and GS F sedan) on the Chuckwalla Valley Raceway.

But before the adrenaline rush of driving on a track in the desert happened, there was a presentation showing us some behind-the-scenes happening at Lexus. They’re actually coming out with a designer line of women’s clothing for their associates to wear, to feel more stylish in, rather than wearing polo shirts to work all the time. The professional photographer snapped this one below*. _JD41619

And just outside the presentation room, there was this gorgeous Lexus LFA.

spiffykerms in Lexus LFAIt’s my husband’s favourite car, and as soon as I sent him this photo of me sitting in it, I knew immediately what his reaction would be: jaw dropping emoji’s flooding through. It’s a $500,000 car, made almost all out of carbon fiber and only 500 of them available in the WORLD. My husband and I visited a Lexus dealership with an LFA in the showroom in Canada when we lived there, but we weren’t allowed to sit in it. Just look. So sitting in it this time, was pretty incredible. Now you see why I mentioned the jaw dropping emojis? Lol.

_JD41995The next morning we were instructed to follow the Lexus GPS and drive out 70 miles east to the racetrack. Rene from Good Enough Mother, and I getting ready to hit the road!*

ChuckwallaEveryone teamed up in two’s to drive 70 miles to Chuckwalla Valley Raceway. Rene and I ended up taking the IS 250 out and once we got to the track, we had to do those obligatory photos. You know it!!

_JD42069The Heels + Wheels ladies lined up ready to drive*

Two types of the Lexus F sport vehicles, the Lexus RC F coupe, and GS F sedan were just waiting for us to take them out for a spin on the track. But firstly, everyone needed to learn how to drive on the track properly, and efficiently so professional driving instructors took us all under their wings and showed us the ropes roads. I don’t know much about cars to be honest, but I do know I love to drive them. So hearing that the Lexus F-brand vehicles are the highest Lexus performing vehicles allowed on roads! Nuts, and so awesome at the same time.

12375121_10156261550885176_6243242416865427425_oLexus lunch tent*

Lunch was served, and we all gathered in for a buffet style feast — everything tasted excellent and was top notch. Though, I must admit I wolfed down my lunch in order to get more track-time in under my belt. You couldn’t hold me back! I wanted to learn everything I could, not to mention I have the need for speed.

4-ladies-lined-up

helmets-onEach loop I went out on, on the Chuckwalla Valley Raceway, I requested a professional driving instructor to come with me. I wanted to learn as much as I could, as I drove. Jeff was my favourite instructor, as he had some excellent tips to fine tune my driving, not for the track racing, but for the regular streets too. Not to mention the fact, because when with someone I could play a little harder and push the pedal to the metal when I knew there was someone telling me that I could giv’er on the straight-aways. I’m not-so-surprised that I’ve been told I was a confident driver. I suppose it’s all the Canadian winters I’ve driven in since moving to California, knowing exactly when to let off the throttle if I was going in for a too steep of a turn.

_JD42729

_JD42602A couple of photos of me in the RC F, and GS F out on the track!! *

Lexus, I gotta say you make some exceptional vehicles. It was definitely a spirited driving experience out on Chuckwalla last week. The F-Brand sport vehicles certainly hug your curves while hugging the turns and bends in the road, and what fun it is to drive. I felt confident in the cars ability to make each turn without thinking of its lack of performance.

My adrenaline rush is coming back through my hands, reliving the moment as I type this out. I mean, can we do it all over again? I’m ready for it!

Chuckwalla-Raceway

Leaving-Palm-SpringsCouldn’t wipe that smile off my face even leaving the Ritz Carlton in Palm Springs. But don’t be fooled by my grin. I was sad to leave, but happy that this experience happened, and I’m still on Cloud 9 you guys!

Delsey-ChateletDon’t forget to check out the videos I posted: Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3 on my YouTube channel.

Huge hugs and huge thanks to Jasmine for sending me to represent Simply Real Moms, and to Delsey luggage for supplying me with gorgeous luggage.

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Holiday Gift Guide: the In-Laws

In-LawsOnto my second instalment of the Spiffykerms Holiday Gift Guide 2015! My gift guides will be coming out fast and furious the next few weeks. I have a lot of ideas to share. Today, we’re talking ‘n thinking about gifts for your in-laws.

I actually find it quite easy to shop for my in-laws, since they all have similar taste to me, or so we tell one another when we all go shopping together. I grew up with one older brother, so I never had much girl-time with any female siblings…because duh I was the only female! Lol.

I lucked into having three sister-in-laws upon marriages happening. My brother is married to an Irish woman, and my husband has two sisters. I honestly feel like they could all be my sisters. I love hanging out with each of them one-on-one and having that special bond with the three of them.

My parents-in-laws are awesome too. My Mother-In-Law bakes like no other. Her cheesecakes are to die for, I always said they were like “restaurant quality” and could definitely open up her own bake-shop if she wanted. I am craving a chocolate cheesecake from her now! Good thing we are heading home for Christmas.

My Father-in-law (FIL) and I share a general interest in rocks together. I grew up with a neighbour who was a geologist, and that neighbour and I always chatted about rocks. I even thought about going into geology! Obviously I don’t know as much as my FIL about geology (he has a large collection of incredible pieces and takes good care of them all), but I love having that similar interest with him. Did you guys know I used to have a rock collection? Like a legitimate one – rocks from all over the world. I ended up gifting it to my nephew when he turned 7 or 8, because he too, shows an interest in it. Even had this homemade box to keep them all labelled separately and in their own little cube so to speak.

Alright, let’s get into those holiday gift ideas! (Some items in this post were sent for review. Opinions are my own!) 

PIL-gift1

PIL-gift2For the parents-in-laws
Yes! Two photos for the parents-in-laws. Luckily my husbands parents are fairly easy to buy for, come Christmas time. Last time I was in Newfoundland, I ended up giving my Mother-In-Law Dior + Bioderma products and she seemed to really enjoy it! Plus, I usually like to think that whatever I like, in general — a lot of other people would too, no? I mean, who doesn’t want to try out Love With Food (an organic + all natural snacking monthly subscription box) to arrive on their door step each month? And another unique gift idea I love is to incorporate their pets (or Alfie, their grand-pet in this case, hee hee!) and have a CaseApp skin on their ipad? Don’t forget about liquid resistant placemats for the pets at home too, that one’s from JC Penny. Or cute festive Owl pillows (how cute is the one with the Santa hat?!) I also love giving luxury skincare items that people may or may not have heard of before, both Aesop and Antipodes are fantastic brands.

Products shown in first photo for parents-in-laws: 

Products shown in second photo for parents-in-laws: 

BIL-HolidayFor your brother-in-laws:
Because I feel like a lot of guys don’t necessarily take care of their hair until someone steps in. For instance, I had no idea my husband didn’t use conditioner until I asked him about it! Sheesh, take care of your boys here ladies and gents. The scent of the kelp & mint duo is unreal, kind of reminds me of something from Aveda,if you know that scent. Mmm-mmm, music to my ears. The hand wash is also gorgeous smelling and I feel like it would look really great in a bachelor’s kitchen, or bathroom to fancy and pretty things up a bit. Plus I feel like foaming hand washes last a lot longer than the regular ones. Anyone else feel that way? And tell me more about those iHome headphones I’m hearing you say! They’re wireless. They’re bluetooth. They’ll love you forever for getting that for them, and thinking you spent a lot more than you actually did.

That box of Boardwalk Food Company Craft Beer Snack Mix (shown: pretzel in rosemary sea salt) is such an awesome idea. And so easy to make for a dude’s party. I guarantee they’ve never seen something like this before. You can make them in 30 minutes… WITH BEER. Gah! Genius.

You guys know I love that Juniper Ridge brand, which I included in my previous gift guide, heehee! And let’s talk about practcal gifts here. Those AllerEase pillow protectors. I know, I know. You’re thinking its’ a strange gift. It kinda is, I agree, but aren’t a lot of guys super practical? I know for sure my husband, brother and father are. They want something they know they will use. And who KNOWS how old their pillows are. Eeeehhhhw.

Products shown for brother-in-laws: 

Delsey-LuggageIf you’re feeling extra generous or happen to have a bigger wallet than I, you could always give the gift of a luxury suitcase. This one is from Delsey, and it’s the 19″ Chatelet carry-on spinner trolly. I’ll be talking more about it in depth in a future blog post, so stay tuned for that too!

SIL-Holiday

For the sister-in-laws:
Although three of them are quite different from one another, I can guarantee that my three sister-in-law’s would love any (or multiple) gifts of the above shown, especially something by bareMinerals because I took my SIL there a few weeks ago (see!!). I would have loved to include these adorable bunny slippers from ardene, or even a clothing piece. One of my sister-in-laws cycles as much as her brother/my husband does. So keep in mind what their interests are, and branch out from there.

Products shown for sister-in-laws: 

The three gift guides shown above (sister-in-laws, brother-in-laws, and parents-in-laws) are all somewhat gender neutral and could be used/given to either male or females. I mean, man-buns…hello? They need hair ties and hair spray. Some dude’s are totally into nail polish too you know. And I know the Sephora male employees know how to contour better than I ever will. Plus, this is to give you some ideas and what brands to keep an eye out for while shopping this Christmas (or which ever holiday you celebrate).

 

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