Sophie and I recently returned from five days in Cabo San Lucas at Esperanza. It was a magical trip- I loved spending time with Sophie, Cabo is gorgeous, and it was terrific to just get away. I wanted to share a bit about our trip and perhaps inspire you to plan a Mexican getaway when you feel comfortable doing so.
Continue reading “Five days in Cabo San Lucas with my beautiful daughter”Steve and I ventured out for some wine tasting in Santa Ynez Valley this past weekend. After reading our blog for a while, you probably have guessed that we love wine tasting; you can check out our earlier post on tasting at Au Bon Climat in Santa Barbara earlier this summer.
At most wineries you need to make appointments so they can ensure social distancing.
It was a great day, and it almost felt like “normal”. Whatever that means! We’ve been wine tasting in Santa Ynez Valley for years now, and it was great to see the wineries open and bustling.
Continue reading “Wine tasting in Santa Ynez Valley”
After three days in Santa Barbara, I was excited to spend three days in Ojai with Dear Husband (DH). We rarely get time away by ourselves, so we leapt at the chance to leave Sophie and Cheddar with Kate and Steve in Santa Barbara for a three day getaway at the Ojai Valley Inn.
Ojai Valley Inn (OVR) is only a 40 min drive from Santa Barbara in the very small town of Ojai. Ojai is known for its orange groves, avocado orchards, and my personal favorite, the movie Easy A with Emma Stone. She is just adorable in that movie!
Continue reading “Three days in Ojai with dear husband”
Cute pool and beach cover-ups can be hard to find, and when you do find one you like, it can be crazy expensive. So here’s a tip for you: Matches Fashion is having a great sale on beach cover-ups (along with everything else). Some things are 80% off!
Continue reading “Amuse Bouche*: beach cover-ups”Packing for a beach vacation doesn’t seem like a controversial topic, but these days the very idea of going on vacation seems risky and potentially out-of-bounds for some people. At the same time, you want to make sure you have everything you’ll need- so you don’t have to buy things once you get there.
Don’t get me wrong; we have been lucky to take a few trips this summer. We’ve spent a few days in Carmel, Santa Barbara and Ojai over the past 6 weeks. It has been wonderful to get out of the house with my family to see friends and new places.
Continue reading “Packing the essentials for an easy beach vacation”Road trip tacos are the perfect lunch after a few hours of driving on Highway 101 between the Bay Area and Santa Barbara. And there aren’t a ton of great food options along the way. But after our recent Santa Barbara trip, we found a great taqueria in King City called Tacos La Potranca de Jalisco (about a mile off the highway) that serves terrific Mexican food and the perfect road trip tacos. And the burritos aren’t drippy, which is an important consideration when eating while driving! 🙂
Continue reading “Amuse Bouche*: road trip tacos”
The family just returned from three days in Santa Barbara, and I’d to share some of our activities and restaurants picks from our trip.
A few times each year, we (me, Sophie, Cheddar and Dear Husband) make the trek from the East Bay to Santa Barbara to see Kate and Steve (and their dogs!) When our Airbnb rental in Mendocino was cancelled due to sheltering-in-place rules in Mendocino County, we changed plans and drove south instead of north.
Continue reading “Three days in Santa Barbara at my sister’s house”It was terrific to get out of the house and experience some new Carmel restaurants during our three day weekend. Kate has given you the lowdown on our cottage rental and activities last weekend, and I’ll be sharing our food and restaurant choices.
First stop was Parker Lusseau in Monterey. Sophie and I left the Bay Area around noon, before having lunch, so we were very happy to find this lovely bakery around 2pm. We snagged a couple of sandwiches on brioche (tuna and egg salads), some macarons, and a lemon tart for Kate, who would be joining us at our cottage at Holman Ranch later that afternoon.
Continue reading “Eating our way across a few Carmel restaurants”
Three days in Carmel Valley was just what the doctor ordered! Amy and I may both live in beautiful locations, but after 4+ months stuck at home, we both needed a change of venue. My niece, 15 year old Sophie, was also ready for a much needed break. And our husbands definitely needed a break from us too! 🙂
Continue reading “Summer weekend in Carmel Valley with the girls”