Heyyy yaa! This post is going to be heavily picture laden- but not as heavy on the words (at least as much as usual 😉 ). This week has been busy running around getting ready to go back to Ohio this weekend, BUT I am going to try to squeeze this post out before we take off!
Soooo where did we leave off? I believe it was Thursday the 22nd… DJ and I headed to BW3 (Buffalo Wild Wings) in the evening to meet up with his coworkers. It was a blast, and I can’t wait to see them all again for another get together mid July.
Friday the 23rd kicked off a tremendous weekend. I started the morning (as I have every morning) with some avocado toast using Oren’s Hummus Shop whole wheat pita, hummus, and mashed avocado with pink Himalayan salt & pepper. I can’t get enough of this.
After an Insanity workout, DJ and I headed to Santana Row to do some shopping for him. I was thankful I didn’t have to look for anything for myself because I am overrrrr it! But I always love going with DJ just to tag along & have an excuse to find a cup a jo’ somewhere.
In the evening we drove into SF to attend our Church’s annual conference called If Not For the Hand of God at the Regency Ballroom. We had Mack Brock in the house & a ton of phenomenal speakers over the weekend. Every second was incredible. My notebook is filled with pages and pages of wisdom and conviction from these Pastors.
I also loved getting to see my sweet friend, Tammy, if only briefly Friday night!
DJ and I woke up around 6 am on Saturday morning, the 23rd. We decided we had enough time to try to squeeze in an awesome breakfast before a busy jam-packed day.
I have wanted to try Kitchen Story for a while- it’s one of those well known “Must try” brunch places in SF.
We were seated immediately since it was only 8 am on a Saturday (give it 2 hours and you are looking at least an hour wait).
DJ tried their millionaire bacon. The last time he had the bacon was at Sweet Maple. We had to see how this stacked up.
I had the Primavera with egg whites, spinach, mushrooms, and blistered tomatoes, a croissant, and rainbow potatoes. Such a wonderful start to the day!
DJ had their ricotta pancakes and said they were some of the best he’s had in the city.
Overall, we both agreed we still liked Sweet Maple better… but it was a fantastic breakfast nonetheless.
We attended the first session of conference at 9:30 am, then during the lunch break we scarfed down a couple complimentary sandwiches and decided to explore.
We stumbled across Japantown, a destination in the city we have never been before.
I’d love to come back and try some of these restaurants.
After the afternoon session, we decided to go to the 16th Avenue Tiled steps- a tourist spot we have never explored.
Apparently there was a lady stealing plants from the steps, and they had a picture “shaming” her for stealing. It seemed both ridiculous and hilarious.
After the steps we went to Twin Peaks. You may remember I went on my own a couple months back, and I knew DJ would love the views.
He had no clue I was taking these pictures of him, sorry deej! Hehe.
Last on the list for the day was Haight-Ashbury street… a step back in time to the 60s. It is known for being the origin of the hippie culture.
We decided to stop and grab a quick bite to eat to tide us over before heading home. We went to the first place we saw- Magnolia.
DJ had their house burger.
I decided to just have the house salad- I wasn’t super hungry since I had been nibbling on snacks I had in my purse all day- any other grandmas in the house?! I have food on me at ALL times.
Haight-Ashbury is also known for the Piedmont Boutique with the flailing-out-the-window-legs. What a hoot.
It truly felt like a step back in time… one of the craziest streets I’ve ever been on. Everyone was exceptionally friendly though- I will say that..
Sunday morning, the 24th, Tammy and I went on a loooong hike at Big Basin in the Santa Cruz mountains!
I’ve been wanting to do this hike for a while and finally a good time we both could go!
I have never seen Redwoods in person before and was BLOWN away. I have never seen anything so gargantuan in my whole life.
We had an hearty laugh over this form we had to put on our dashboard. This just instilled allll the confidence in us!
We set out to do the longest hike the Berry Creek Falls- Skyline to the Sea-Sunset loop.
Take a look at this bee hive!!!
The falls were stunning, located about five miles deep into the hike. The pictures cannot do them justice.
Whoever said “Don’t go chasing waterfalls” was just plain wrong.
Is it a Black Bear? Nope, it’s a MACK bear.
We hiked from about 10:45 am to 4:00 pm. It was a phenomenal and strenuous hike (the sign did not lie). The weather was perfect and the views were breathtaking. No greater therapy than nature.
Monday I cleaned up the house, did a load of laundry, and ran some errands. In the evening I made butternut squash pasta with lemon, garlic, and olive oil topped with sprinkled parmesan, a quinoa medley, and I also decided to make stuffed jalapeños for DJ (with Monterey cheese blend, white onion, and bacon).
Tammy came over to watch the Bachelorette and we snacked and chatted. So thankful for the time we were able to have together this weekend! As the show started, I had this giant salad that I’ve been eating on repeat this week with a black bean burger, tons of veggies, hummus, and balsamic vinegar.
Yesterday, the 26th, I spent the day getting together packages to ship that I sold on Ebay and Poshmark. I also went for a nice long eight-miler. It’s so funny around here- I swear we have two springs… the flowers go into full bloom early in spring then die then all of a sudden bam.. have a full bloom again. Not mad one bit about it.
Today, the 27th, I knocked out a little bit of the remainder of my to-do, meal prepped for when I’m gone next week but DJ is home, and started packing for Ohio! Anyone have any fun weekend plans you’re looking forward to?!
xo <3
