Month: August 2009

San Diego Day 2

5 Comments

It was a great day in San Diego, the nice, cool weather is a great break from Tucson’s heat this time of year.  The morning was very relaxing.  We walked along La Jolla to see the seals and just enjoy the scenery, like the cool  hibiscus flowers.

09_0808-hibiscus-flower

We then went to Bread and Cie, a famous bakery in San Diego.  We went last time we came at the suggestions of Ben and Kara.  This time I was actually able to try the Brie, bacon and honey sandwich Kara said would change your life.  It was awesome!

09_0808-bread-and-cie

09_0808-brie-and-bacon-with-honey

We then drove over to Coronado to show Mary the Hotel Coronado and go to a dog beach we read about.  Walcott had a great time at the beach.  I didn’t think he was ever going to run out of energy.  It was great to see him so fearless about jumping into the waves after he was so timid the first time he went to the ocean in San Carlos.  I think if we lived in San Diego that Beth and I could actually get a tan, because we’d spend half our time out there.

09_0808-walcott-dog-beach

It’s really sad that we will be leaving tomorrow, but this was a great (much needed) break.

San Diego Night 1

6 Comments

Beth, Mary and I decided to make an impromptu trip to San Diego this weekend to visit one of Mary’s friends and just to relax a bit.  We got out of town a little late and after missing the exit for Int 8 we didn’t get in quite as early as we had hoped.  We did have a good ride and Walcott really seemed to enjoy it.

09_0807-walcott-car-ride

We did make it in just in time for dinner, so Mary went to meet up with her friend and Beth, Walcott and I headed down to La Jolla Point to enjoy some chicken salad sandwiches and a nice sunset.  It was awesome.

09_0807-beth-sunset

09_0807-la-jolla-sunset

Walcott really enjoyed it when we went to play in the waves, however the tide was coming in quickly and we soon ran out of beach.  So we abandoned the beach and walked a ways to Froglander’s and enjoyed an excellent banana split with Reece’s peanut butter yogurt.

IKEA and Jackfruit

3 Comments

Beth’s Mom came to visit this weekend and it was pretty packed, which is why I’m just now writing about it.  It’s always really great to have family come visit and get to see a little of what our life is like out here in Arizona.  Beth and I really enjoy it (especially when free breakfast is in the deal).

After she arrived on Thursday, we had dinner and then when to BTO (which is quickly becoming a staple in our life).  Beth, her mom and Mary Frances all went to the Grant Stone Market, which is an oriental market near our house and got all sorts of interesting foods, including the jackfruit pictured below.  I had never heard of one before, but the fruit is actually very good, although it requires a decent bit of work to extract.  It tasted like a mix of peach and mango.

09_0731-jackfruit

On Friday, she and Beth hung out and I  joined them at her hotel’s pool after work.  We then quickly got ready and went to Lis’ birthday party at the Saxton’s.  It was a lot of fun and I’m glad she got a chance to meet so many of the people that we are with regularly.  I don’t know when exactly the picture below was taken but there must have been something funny going on, because I could only find 1 out of 8 that didn’t have someone with a weird facial expression or closed eyes due to laughter.

09_0731-mrs-marantos-visit1

Saturday morning we went to Phoenix to pick up a washer and dryer we found on Craigslist.  We also took a detour to IKEA to allow Beth’s mom and Mary Frances to get a taste of the craziness that is IKEA.  I’m convinced you could essentially build your house from IKEA.  Anyway, after a few hours perusing the showroom, studying layouts of kitchens, and eating Sweedish meatballs, I think we were all ready for a quick nap.  However, Beth and Mary must have just gotten too comfortable in the bedroom section and crashed out on this nice round bed (that Beth keeps bugging me to get for the new house).

09_0801-ikea-trip

We capped off the weekend with a Sunday afternoon trip to the Trout’s house for some lunch, swimming and ping pong.  I really enjoyed playing Beth’s mom at ping pong (she’s a pro) , but I think that Walcott takes the cake with his swimming pool antics.

09_0802-walcott-pool

It really was a great weekend and I know Beth and I are sad to see life get back to “normal”.  Hopefully we’ll be able to spend some time with our family again soon.