PIE & BEER DAY

This Sunday Utahns will be celebrating Pioneer Day. It's a huge holiday here, almost as big as the Fourth of July. Pioneer Day honors Brigham Young and the Mormon pioneers that traveled thousands of miles to the Salt Lake Valley in 1847. There are countless activities to do this weekend but if you're looking for a less traditional option then Pie & Beer Day is for you. We've found the top 4 places in Salt Lake below.

LEON BRIDGES AT THE DEPOT

Last month we went to see Leon Bridges at The Depot in Salt Lake. I haven't been to many concerts but this one was one of my favorites! Leon Bridges is from Fort Worth, Texas. He's a vintage, soulful, gospel-like artist. I first heard him on Apple Radio and I loved him immediately. I love his whole album but some of my favorites are Coming Home, Smooth Sailin', Better Man, There She Goes, and River. If you haven't heard of him you seriously need to check him out! Click here to see his music and videos.

HONEYMOON IN CABO SAN LUCAS

Last month we were finally able to go on our honeymoon. We spent five long days in Cabo San Lucas. We booked an all inclusive package at Marquis Los Cabos and it was absolutely amazing! We already want to make plans to go next year. Check out our pics from our stay at the resort.

MARINE CORP. GRADUATION IN SAN DIEGO

This post is long overdue, two months to be exact. In February, my younger brother Jonny graduated from the Marine Corp in San Diego. Kevin and I hitched a ride with my family. We left on a Tuesday night and spent the night Buffalo Bill's in Primm Valley. We decided to split the trip in half rather than do a straight shot. We had a few hours to kill so we drove down the coast on our way to San Diego. We stopped in Oceanside and took a walk along the beach. It is so beautiful in this area.

A NEW MEMBER TO THE GARCIA FAMILY

Say hello to Otis! He is the newest member to our little family. He is a 11 week old Catahoula Lab mix. He's been a lot of work these last three weeks, but we wouldn't have it any other way. I had never heard of this breed before. You can read more about Catahoulas here.

Getting Otis felt like it was meant to be. We went to the Puppy Barn in American Fork and saw him there first. The Puppy Barn, as you might imagine, only sell puppies. We were just looking around, with no actual intentions of buying. I petted a few puppies and even played with Otis for a few minutes. It wasn't long before we saw a couple adopt him. We even saw his picture posted on their Facebook page.

Two days later I was looking at listings when I spotted Otis... again! I double checked and sure enough it was him. The couple who adopted him weren't able to keep him and were selling him online. We decided to text them only to be disappointed. There were already two people who were interested. Because we couldn't meet them earlier we were sure we wouldn't be able to get him. Luckily they texted us within the hour offering to hold him for us after all. We picked him up the next evening and I'm absolutely in love. He's the craziest yet cutest little thing.

CHRISTMAS TREE CUTTING

In my family we've always had real or natural Christmas trees. My parents were against the artificial ones and argued they were a fire hazard. I believe Kevin's dad said the opposite. All I know is that real, natural Christmas trees are my favorite. I love the smell of pine, it's tradition, and to me is part of the whole celebration.

We cut our very own Christmas tree in 2002 near Vernon, Utah. Five years ago we went near Strawberry Reservoir. The Forrest Service sells permits each year around the first week of November across a handful of different ranger stations. These last few years we've had to buy trees because I always forget when they go on sale. It usually means waiting in line for 30-60 minutes in the cold just for a permit.

This year we went to the Spanish Fork district and bought a permit for $10. This year it took hours of driving to find it. Next  year I plan to go to the Heber/Kamas Ranger Station. The map of the area is below. The green is all the areas open to cutting, the white is private property, and the blue thick lines are the areas we went to. It was a struggle, but fun.

SUNDAY AT THE AQUARIUM

We went to the Living Planet Aquarium. It opened a few months ago and finally got around to going. Kevin mainly wanted to go for the Penguins. It was super fun with plenty of exhibits. Check it out. 

LAVA HOT SPRINGS

So I haven't gone camping in years and have never been to Idaho, but managed to do it twice in one month. Hurray! We went camping at the Lava Hot Springs during the Labor Day weekend. This time with Kevin's parents and uncle. Like our trip before it was just for one night, but it was great. It was especially hard to wake up that morning and was completely unprepared. I hadn't packed anything the night before. I was so groggy all I threw in our duffel bag was a pair of leggings and a t-shirt. Thankfully Kevin grabbed clothes for me. In that rush I forgot my phone, Kevin's phone died just before we got there and forgot his charger.

The campsite there was so nice. There's green grass, tables, running water, and bathrooms. Across the road is the small town with hotels, market, restaurant, and arcade. All along the main road there are hot springs. One place charges $10 for an all day pass. There are some pools as hot as 102 degrees! They also have a small river where you can't rent tubes and go down. I was a little scared to go at first. The water was so cold and I was afraid of tipping over. Kevin and I went by ourselves, lost our flip flops and flipped over towards the end. I got a bruise on my shin, but I had a blast. I can only imagine how ridiculous we must have looked when we flipped.

BEAR LAKE

Three weeks ago we went camping with my family, uncle, aunt, and cousins at Bear Lake. We stayed at the North Beach Campground in Idaho. We left at six in the morning Saturday and got there just before nine. Surprisingly the three hour trip didn't feel that long. My parents and uncle had arrived the day before. The campground overlooks, but is at 5-10 minute walk. We ate breakfast packed up and headed to the beach in my parent's truck. They set up a gazebo right on the edge of the water. The kids had a blast swimming. I took that time to sunbathe. We ended up making dinner there, and my brother rented two paddle boards. Even Kevin who was so sick went paddling. We were probably there from 10am to 7pm. It was only after that I realized how bad my sunburn was. I was peeling for two weeks. Gross I know! Anyway, I had a great time and can't wait to go back next year.

SANTA BARBARA

This place is amazing. We were in Santa Barbara for a few hours, but I hope to go back someday!

VENICE

After going to Porto's in Burbank we all went to Venice Beach with Kevin's cousins and friend from junior high. The vibe there is one I had never seen before. It's definitely Muscle Beach. There are shops on the promenade or boardwalk. Artists sell their artwork on the sidewalk across from the shops. We walked along the beach and almost reached Santa Monica before turning back. It's a great experience.

LOS ANGELES

After leaving the observatory we headed downtown. We drove by Angels Flight the "Shortest Railway" in the world. It's a part of historic Bunker Hill. In the early twentieth century the wealthy residents of LA lived in huge Victorian Mansions and took the railway to get down the steep hill. Now it's caught between high rises. Rides used to cost 25 or 50 cents. Sadly, it's been closed for a few years, but you can take the stairs next to if you want. 

One Bunker Hill

GRIFFITH OBSERVATORY

This has to be one of the best places in Los Angeles! It's my absolute favorite. The grounds are beautiful, the Art Deco style and architecture is phenomenal, and the views, well they're awesome of course! Kevin had an awesome idea to watch the sunrise there. I love everything about this place. There are trails, picnic tables, Greek Theater, and grassy areas. That morning there were a good number of people jogging up, a group of elderly men setting up their chess board on a picnic table, and a group doing yoga in the front of the observatory. 

Going in the morning was a great experience. There's plenty of parking and no where near the type of crowds you find later in the day. It felt like we had the place to ourselves. There were only a handful of people and photographers on the grounds and terrace. The observatory itself doesn't open until noon Tuesday though Friday (10am - 10pm on Saturday and Sunday). Being there so early, we didn't have a chance to go inside this time around. Inside there's a Tesla Coil (my favorite) and different exhibits of tides, and eclipses, stars, a pendulum and more. You can also go on the roof and look at their telescopes. In the evenings you can see Jupiter and its moons!

ZUMA BEACH

From the beginning we knew we didn't want to repeat Spring Break and drive for ten straight hours. We decided to split the trip by driving half way on Sunday. After a long day of road work, one lane, traffic and flash flood warnings; we finally made it to Buffalo Bill's in Primm Valley. No,seriously. A trip that should have taken us five and a half hours turned out to be over seven! Determined to beat traffic we left at five in the morning the next day. Aside from a small patch of dense fog we made great time. 

It was too early to check in to our hotel so we decided to go to Zuma Beach in Malibu. We had never to been to Malibu and it was a great experience to check out the area. It's a great place to take the family. It's clean and there are plenty of lifeguards. 

You can read more about this trip here:

SUMMER LA GETAWAY

ZUMA BEACH

GRIFFITH OBSERVATORY

VENICE

SANTA BARBARA

SUMMER LA GETAWAY

Kevin and I went to Southern California, Santa Barbara and Las Vegas this past week. We've been able to travel with friends and family in the past, but this was our first trip by ourselves. Kevin was an absolute saint and did all the driving. He put up with me when I didn't if we heading north or south.Traveling with others is awesome, but spending time with Kevin was priceless. He gets me like no one else. Period. We shared so many laughs and had fun exploring new places.

In an attempt to keep things short and sweet I decided to share our travels in eight posts. Crazy I know, but it would be worse to include it all in one. I'll try to include one post each day and include a shortcut for them all for reference in each one. Thanks for stopping by!

ZUMA BEACH

GRIFFITH OBSERVATORY

LOS ANGELES

VENICE

SANTA BARBARA

PUPPIES FOR RENT

Last Sunday we rented a puppy. Yes a puppy! We can't have pets at our apartment and were just dying to get one. We had been planning on doing this for almost a month, but finally got around to doing it. It's a great opportunity for these puppies to be adopted by a loving family. You can pick a puppy, date, and time. If I remember correctly you can rent one for at least an hour. We rented Jerry for the whole four hours. Our friend Leslie and my younger sister Melissa joined us to play with Jerry. Meh was so cute and playful. 

I can't even begin to explain how excited I was. At first I thought someone with Jerry was at the door. When I opened the door it turned out to be Kevin's brother Julio. I was so excited it didn't quite register for a few seconds. I just stood there withe probably the silliest look on my face. I went crazy when I got to hold him! Seriously you guys! I'm way too crazy over puppies. 

We're not sure what breed he is. He kind of looks like a dachshund and a lab, but what do I know. 

SAN FRANCISCO 2014

Hey everyone!! Spring Break is over and it was extremely hard to go back to school and work. It felt absolutely amazing to get out of town. I was especially excited to spend four whole days with Kevin in one of my favorite places. I seriously can't get over how much I love San Francisco!! Last year we were only there for a day and was dying to come again.

We left on Wednesday evening and Kevin drove the entire way. Yes, TWELVE straight hours!! We got there just before six in the morning in Daly City where Kevin's cousin, Byron lives. From Thursday to Sunday we walked for hours all over the place and saw tons of landmarks and popular places. I'll apologize for the picture overload now. Most of them are random or just blurry. I took pictures of anything and everything.

On Thursday we went to Fort Funston, City Hall, two bars, the Cheesecake Factory, the Palace of Fine Arts and Twin Peaks. I've split up the rest of our trips in to five different posts. Make sure to check them all out.  

San Francisco 2014 (this post)

Friday

The Presidio

Golden Gate Bridge & Sausalito

Lombard Street & More

After breakfast we headed to the beach. It's actually a dog beach (Fort Funston) packed with owners, dog walkers, and hundreds of dogs. Kevin and Byron had a great time reenacting a Titanic scene before heading to the water. My phone died right after so sadly I don't have more pictures. 

SAN FRANCISCO 2014: FRIDAY

Friday was probably the busiest day. We walked for hours and went to tons of different places. We first headed to Japantown. 

Afterward we started walking around and stopped at St. Dominic's. We were able to go inside and it was absolutely beautiful. The stone and woodwork was amazing!

Then we went to Alta Plaza Park just a few blocks way. It kind of looks like a step pyramid. There's a pathway and stairs that go all around it. Once you get to the top you get a great view of the city.

Byron then took us to Bob's Donuts. I don't know how they do it, but they're ridiculously huge and oh so delicious. 

We got our donuts and headed to Golden Gate Park. This place is huge! The California Academy of Sciences is there with an art museum, aquarium, conservatory of flowers, lake, Japanese tea garden, and who knows what else. We got there at six so the tea gardens and conservatory were closed, but it we had a great time walking around. I swear I saw more wildlife here in the city than I do back home!

Byron took a selfie before taking our picture haha.

Check out other posts from this trip.

San Francisco 2014 

Friday

The Presidio (this post)

Golden Gate Bridge & Sausalito

Lombard Street & More 

San Francisco 2014

Friday (this post)

The Presidio

Golden Gate Bridge & Sausalito

Lombard Street & More