"Let us go on and take the adventures that shall fall to us." ~C.S. Lewis
When you tell people that you're heading to Alaska in the wintertime, you will probably be met with a long pause, a confused look, and then with "Alaska? In the winter?...Why?" At least that was the reaction that I got from most people when I announced where I was going. And I guess I can [...]
There is something really special about the end of a year and the letting go of one year and looking forward to the next. I love these days after Christmas and before the end of the year comes. For me it is such a reflective and tender time when I look back and marvel at [...]
"Boys and Girls of every age, would you like to see something strange, come with us and you will see, in our town of Halloween..." Happy Halloween! Because my birthday falls just a few days before Halloween, this is always a favorite time of year for me. But when it comes to Halloween, I generally [...]
Our last stop in our Central Coast tour was the Old Mission Santa Barbara. This is one of ten Spanish missions in this area that were constructed in hopes of converting the people of the Chumash-Barbareño tribe of Native Americans. Originally built in 1786, this is the only mission to still be under the leadership [...]
Are you ready for the other extreme of the day? From the opulence of Madonna Inn to the far other end of the spectrum of places, I bring you Bubblegum Alley. In the beautiful downtown area of San Luis Obispo there is Bubble Alley where the walls are covered in chewed gum. The alley is [...]
Our last day in California was a day of extremes, starting with the lavish opulence of the Madonna Inn. This landmark hotel was first opened in 1958 by local entrepreneur Alex Madonna and his wife Phyllis. From the beginning this has been a key point in the Central Coast and one that everyone has to [...]
After the state parks we kept moving our way down the coast until we came to Moonstone Beach which is aptly named in that this is the best place to find moonstones along the beach. You can easily find hundreds of small beautiful moonstones in the sand on this beach. Moonstones are opalescent gems that [...]
After playing in the waves at the first state park, we then made our way up to the next state park- Morro Bay State Park. This park is known for the large domed rock right next to the bay. We drove all the way up the hill to see the bay from the top of [...]
The next day of our California weekend was dedicated to a couple of state parks. We made our way to Montaña de Oro State Park to a small area called Spooner's Cove. This was a great place to meet up with some friends and let the little ones play in the water. A small pool a [...]
Our weekend in California started off with the charming town of Solvang. This community was established by Danish immigrants who brought a little bit of home with them to California and the generations of their families that still live here. This town is so wonderful to walk through, home to wonderful bakeries and shops, streets [...]