A Quick Beach Trip

I messed up! I thought today we were hosting a big giveaway for one of my FAVORITE shops today but it's actually next week. I haven't gotten much sleep these last few days because on top of my usual late nights the girls have had awful head colds and not been sleeping well either which makes for some really LONG nights. Jon and I are like walking zombies - haha! Anyway, I am so sorry about that. I have three project posts planned for next week but had to scramble to find something to post instead today seeing how I was wrong about the giveaway date. So sorry about that. I promise we will have it for you next Friday though! And we have a giveaway scheduled the Friday after that as well! Because all of my project ones are next week and I haven't photographed any of Lola's party projects yet and I am not quite finished with my furniture project I don't have much to show you today, so I just thought I would share a few of our beach pictures from our little trip two weeks ago. I only took my real camera out for about five minutes so some of these are phone pics so they are not very crisp. We had so much fun though!

Lola LOVED the roasted marshmallows! And Lillie loved making them for her. It was one of my favorite parts of our trip!

 Also we are putting our fleurs pillow covers on sale today!

I hope you have a wonderful Friday!

Strong Arms Saturday!

This Strong-Arms-Saturday is brought to you by Crissy Fields. A new neighbor friend just told us about Crissy Fields. We have passed them in the hall on their way to this beach with their dog a few times, so we finally tagged along. Our dogs have decided to be best friends (the best way to meet people!), so obviously now we are friends. They showed us a non-crowded, non-touristy part of the Crissy Fields beach and our dogs had a wonderful time. It was also a great, clear day to see the Golden Gate Bridge and watch all the sailboats coming in and out. Gosh, I love the beach!

What exciting things do you have planned for Saturday? Feel like snapping a picture of your own Strong-Arms-Saturday, send me a picture and I'll post it along with a little story and a link to your website or blog (if you have one):  E-mail Me!

 That is Alcatraz to the right of Andy.

Big Sur post two, Highway One Beaches

A few days ago I posted about our backpacking trip to Big Sur. We took one day to backpack and camp, and one day to explore the area and Highway One. We have heard from countless people that Big Sur is the outdoorsy place to be around here. Well, other than Napa, Lake Tahoe, Muir Woods...oh wait, this whole area is scenic and beautiful!

Big Sur is about 2.5-3 hours south of the Bay Area, but totally worth the drive. A lot of the drive was boring highway, but once we hit Highway One the scenery started. We drove up and down Highway One stopping every few miles to get out and enjoy the coastal beauty. Some places the water was transparent blue, and other places we saw huge seals. There were cresting waves, miles of rocky shoreline, pristine white beaches, fog, sun, waterfalls, pine trees. Oh beauty!

It was an incredible day exploring Highway One in the Big Sur area. We did a few hikes right off the highway, and enjoyed the abandoned rugged beaches. We also stopped for lunch at a beautiful rooftop gallery restaurant that had some of the best bacon mac and cheese we've ever tasted. There are no words for that kind of delicious! We enjoyed lunch and beer in the blazing February sun with a view of Highway One and the Pacific Ocean. Does it get much better than that? I know I say that every time we get out and explore the area, but really, California has so much to offer.

 Check out the waterfall on the left side of this picture. Andy wanted to go bathe in it, but the trail didn't have beach access.

Peninsula Beaches

Ahh the beaches of the San Francisco Peninsula! Last weekend was the first 'real' weekend that Andy and I have had in the Bay Area. Our first weekend we moved in, then it was New Years, so finally we had a nothing-to-do weekend. It was great! We started by driving to Half Moon Bay. It was a lovely drive through green hills and past little farms and flower stands. We also passed a few vineyards that we hope to go back and visit. From Half Moon Bay, we drove up highway 1 and stopped at a few more beaches. It was a wonderful leisurely day of overcast skies, playing on the beach, watching surfers, and sampling the local cuisine (crab). I love that this is home now!

What are you doing this weekend? I think we plan on heading to the slopes...Lake Tahoe!