City Rambling

San Francisco in the springtime is so beautiful. I love wandering around the city & taking in all the views. Even though I’ve lived here for nine years San Francisco ceases to amaze me, I feel like I’m still finding new sweet spots in the city. Some of these pictures are from earlier this week when a few friends & I did a little urban hiking around nob hill / pac heights. The rest of the pictures are from this past Saturday when Chris & I took Juno out to Crissy Beach to meet up with some friends for a little dog date! Don’t let the sunshine fool you, it was freezing by the water, barely breaking 50 degrees! Despite the cool weather it was a great weekend hanging out at home & just enjoying this wonderful city. Saturday night we snuck away for dinner at favorite spot of ours in the mission. Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend! We’re just a couple weeks away from trip to Spain & Portugal! Can’t wait!

Our Best Black Friday Purchase – Ever!

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One year ago on our way home from my parents we picked up our sweet black lab Juno. I’ve never been one for black friday shopping but this by far was our best black friday deal ever! In some ways the last year feels like it’s flown by, but at the same time it’s hard to remember what life was like before we had this sweet girl. I’m certaintly a little nostalgic being a couple states away this year celebrating Thanksgiving in Texas. But we’re sure to celebrate Juno’s adoption day when we get back home. For now she’s enjoy Thanksgiving break in suburia with my best friends family & their two dogs! It’s crazy to think our eighty pound labrador was once 15 pounds of pure puppy! Time flies! Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving & shared it surrounded by loved ones.

 

Carmel By The Sea

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^French 75’s by fire light!img_9362



This past weekend we celebrated Chris’ 31st birthday in Carmel, if this sounds familiar it is, last year for Chris’ 30th we splurged and stayed at Carmel Valley Ranch, which was wonderful but this year we decided we wanted to spend more time in Carmel proper. This seaside town is so quaint, filled with little cobblestone alley ways, italian eateries & wine pours as far as the eye can see. There are no street numbers in Carmel, so all the places just say what street they’re on and which streets they’re in between. We stayed at The Hideaway which is located right in the heart of Carmel. Everything, including the beach was walking distance. One of the best parts about Carmel is how dog friendly it is! We brought Juno along on this trip & it was a blast. She has so much fun roaming around new places & on Saturday she swam in the ocean for almost two hours. So many restaurants let you bring your dog and have them lay on the ground next to you & you can find dog friendly shops, and even wine tasting rooms. We got to Carmel on Friday afternoon & just enjoyed walking around and exploring. Our hotel offered a complimentary happy hour with wine & light snacks. So we sat in the courtyard and just enjoyed the fire pit & some free wine (score!). Saturday morning we got up early and headed to the beach. Carmel Beach is one of the few truly dog friendly beaches that allows you to have your dog off leash. So needless to say Juno was in HEAVEN, as I’m sure you can tell by the photos. After the beach we made it our mission to end up back in the same serene courtyard we found the first time we visited. Sure enough we were able to locate it & we sat outside enjoying the awesome weather. Next up we took a quick nap & then headed back to the complimentary happy hour. Finally we ended our evening with a super romantic dinner at Casanova. We ate at this place last year, but unfortunately I was ill at dinner & really couldn’t enjoy my food, however I am pleased to report that it completely lived up to the hype and might be my favorite restaurant in carmel!! Anyways hope everyone had an awesome weekend, I know I’m already dreaming of being back at this little seaside escape.

 

Mendocino Lake

IMG_5162IMG_5139^^ heart eyesIMG_5152IMG_5142^^ Juno’s Frenchie Boyfriend Jax IMG_5163IMG_5156IMG_5161IMG_5158IMG_5164IMG_5159IMG_5153IMG_5141IMG_5155IMG_5170IMG_5138Driving home through vineyards…IMG_5137

This weekend we camped in Mendocino Lake, about 120 miles north of San Francisco, through wine country. It was absolutely beautiful & the weather was spectacular. It is so nice to get out of San Francisco’s mid to high 60’s & actually experience some summer heat. I always forget how great camping is, it just really makes it feel like summer. And I must admit I think it’s a lot more fun with a dog. Juno got to hang out with her Frenchie boyfriend Jax & a 1 year old golden retriever so needless to say she had a phenomenal time. Although sharing a 3 person tent with a seventy pound labrador puppy is less than ideal. It was so nice to unplug and just enjoy being outside with good friends. Hope everyone had a great weekend!