Babymoon/Anniversary

Matt and I were fortunate enough to get away, just the two of us, this past weekend thanks to the generosity of my parents volunteering to stay home with Savannah.  The timing is great since this week we will be celebrating our fourth wedding anniversary.  We chose to venture down the coast to the San Luis Obispo area.  We drove down Hwy 1, which was one of the most beautiful drives I've ever taken but long and tedious enough that I never need to do it again.  As the morning fog burned off we were able to see the gorgeous California coastline, with its magnificent cliffs and turquoise waters.  We only stopped a couple times (not counting potty breaks), including a quick stop to see the elephant seals.  It was a quick stop because they are STINKY!!!!!!

Beautiful California coastline

Elephant Seals

After a quick drive through Cal Poly (my Alma Mater), our first destination was Pismo Beach.  Splash Cafe in Pismo Beach to be exact.  We stood in a ridiculously long line for our clam chowder bread bowls but it was worth it!  Pismo was chilly and windy, so we only stuck around long enough to take a few pictures of the beach.  Then we moved on to more exciting adventures...

World famous Splash Cafe in Pismo Beach

Pismo Beach!

Just south of Pismo Beach is the Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area!!!!!  We ventured down there to test out the limits of Matt's F350.  After being pulled over by the ranger and told not to drive IN the water (for no better reason than to protect the sand birds), we headed into some loose sand...and got stuck no more than 10 seconds later.  Luckily it was an easy fix of simply letting air out of the tires and we were back in business.  We spent an hour or so climbing sand dunes and discovering that we still had yet to test the full limits of our truck. 

Playing around on the Oceano Sand Dunes

After finding a car wash to clean off as much of the damaging salt and sand as possible, we headed back north to The Cliffs Resort in Shell Beach for drinks with a beautiful view.  This was a favorite Happy Hour location for me back in college (can't beat Taco Tuesday!).  Matt was hassled by a five-foot-nothing girl because he ordered a non-alcoholic Shirley Temple.  She backed off when he told her it was for his pregnant wife.

Beer and Preggatini at The Cliffs Resort

Beautiful cliff-side view in Shell Beach

Next on the tour was Firestone Grill back in San Luis Obispo, another favorite of mine!  Since I so rarely get to enjoy this delicious BBQ I had to talk Matt into ordering one of each of my favorite menu items...which is probably easily twice as much food as two people need.  I promised him I would eat it all, and I nearly succeeded.  It helps being pregnant and not having to worry about sucking in my gut after eat a big meal!  We completed the evening by wandering around downtown SLO and meeting up with my old college roommate Tina!

Delicious dinner at Firestone Grill

Day two began by sleeping in (no kid to wake us up!!!) and brunch with my cousin Scott at The Madonna Inn.  After brunch we headed out to the cliffs at Montana de Oro for a bit of hiking and beautiful views.  Matt and I came here shortly after we started dating, so it was fun to reminisce about how much has happened in the last five years.

Hiking in Montana de Oro

24 1/2 week baby (plus food) bump

Once the fog rolled in we decided to head back up the coast because I wanted to tour Hearst Castle.  I completely underestimated the scope of tourism involved with this place, and what I thought might be a 90 minute detour turned into a full evening.  The castle was disgustingly gaudy, the tickets overpriced, and the history behind Mr Hearst himself is quite discouraging.  He separated from his wife, spent 30 years building this fortress to house all his over-priced "art", and didn't even leave the property to his children.  The experience made us miss our daughter and we couldn't wait to get home to see her. 

The Neptune pool at Hearst Castle