Olea...

Not too far away from us, there's a super fun place called Olea. It's an olive farm. They have their own olive trees, make their own olive oil & other olive oil products like lotions... It's owned by a VERY knowledgeable French couple who are more than happy to explain the process of making oil & all the different kinds they make. Perhaps the best part is the free olive oil tasting! It will seriously change your perspective on olive oil forever... It's so much better than most brands!

I recently tried their olive oil body wash & it might be the best thing ever! It's super moisturizing (but doesn't feel like oil) & it smells amazing!

Their lip balm is amazing too!

As an added bonus, they sell different vinegars, spices & jams as well as olive oil. My favorite so far is the Fig Balsamic vinegar! So good!

It's right down the road from Happy Acres Farm & several wineries! That's the perfect day if you ask me :)

Decor

One of my favorite parts of moving is the decorating! I'd been collecting things for a while now, but didn't really want to redecorate till we were fully in. So, I've started with some small, but really fun changes.

My first update was changing the knobs on my dresser. I actually really liked the originals, but was in the mood for something new. I swapped the original gold knobs with these black & white knobs from anthro!

This is not the best picture quality (I need to stop using my phone for pics!), but I really love the way it came out! It makes my antique dresser feel a little more contemporary.

We also got a new shower curtain for my bathroom. I haven't shared a bathroom for quite a long time (my bathroom is also the guest bathroom), so it took a little longer to find something my mom & I both liked, but I am so happy with what we found (it's from Urban Outfitters)!
We are still not completely done, but I'm happy to be doing the fun part of moving finally!

Central Coast Eateries...

I've been to some really fun restaurants/coffee places lately. Here are two of the restaurants:

My parents & I went to Steamers to celebrate finally being in our new house! We got there a little too late for a great view (it was pretty dark), but we still had a fabulous time. The food was amazing! Most memorable for me was probably the creme brule! It reminded us all of Dukes in Huntington Beach. I would definitely recommend it!

Some friends & I went to Spyglass the other night. It was also delicious. It's a little more relaxed than Steamers, but still has good food & a great view! We even got free dessert! I took my delicious flourless chocolate cake home :)

Move Update...

We can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. These past 2 weeks have been absolutely insane. We've moved most everything from the old house to the new house (with some amazing helpers!), went to see Garrison Keillor in Cerritos, shopped till we dropped for new home things (we had to go down to SoCal because the shopping is so much better! We hit Anthro, Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn, Z Gallerie, Target...), started setting up the new place, painted, installed fans/Internet/phones, and today we had a giant garage sale!

We didn't really expect to sell that much, but we probably sold about 90% of what we put out. We were obviously ecstatic. We also had a lot of fun just visiting & meeting people. People from this area really just love to chat & share their life stories. We learned more than we ever cared to know about strangers all day, but it was honestly really fun! We decided to take the afternoon off from all the work (we are so sore!), so we went to SLO, ate Chipotle & enjoyed the gorgeous weather. We are in the home stretch though... Can't wait till we are fully moved in & can put down roots. So far we are all in love with our new house (and all of our neighbors are fabulous!).

Happiness...

SLO was voted the happiest place in the nation! Oprah had a show on happiness, and in it they visited SLO & toured all around. It was so exciting to see places I actually knew. They decided it was the happiest place because it was commuter friendly, people knew their neighbors, people worked for themselves, and there were wineries & beaches nearby! I would have to agree with all of those reasons. It's great to live 15 minutes away from the nations happiest city.

Moving

The move has officially begun!

We are SO HAPPY with our house.

The painting is almost finished.

Now it's time to move all of our junk :(

Luckily we have 2 weeks.

Let the exhaustion begin!

Farm Fresh

I thought I'd become pretty accustomed to life in the central coast these past few months, but sometimes I am still amazed that I actually live in a place like this. Today, my dad went out to get eggs (to make delicious gluten free pancakes!), so he went down the street to Windmill Farms. I think it is truly amazing that the first place we think to get produce & other products is no longer just the store. I also think it's amazing that there are farms this close to us! The best part of the story is that there were no eggs in stock, so the owner went outside, grabbed a few, washed them off, and gave them to us. I honestly don't think it could get any fresher. They were so beautiful too! My cell phone picture doesn't do them justice. Today was just another reminder that I have so much to learn & get used to up here.

Coastal Christmas...

We were lucky enough this year to celebrate part of Christmas up on the central coast. Andrew flew into Santa Barbara so he would be able to spend a little more time up here before we went to down to LA to spend Christmas with the family. Andrew said he's jealous we moved here after he had already moved out :) It had been raining for what seemed like weeks, so when we had one clear day we definitely took full advantage of it. We ate at Giovanni's in Morro Bay, went wine tasting, and explored of bit of Montana de Oro.

The tide was low enough we were able to go see some of the caves! We had to cross through some water & it was FREEZING, but the caves were so amazing.

We took the scenic route home and came upon this breathtaking view! I definitely live in one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Smith Family Christmas Party

We survived the Smith Family Christmas Party! We went down to southern California for a little over a week to fit in all our Christmas festivities. Sunday started with grandma's birthday. The next week consisted of days & days filled with family get togethers :) The biggest Christmas event we have is the Smith Family Christmas Party. I think we figured out we've been having this party for over 50 years! Pretty impressive. The party was a huge success though. We had 55 people, my aunt won the quilt, and I walked away with some ridiculous bingo gifts... That's what I call a successful party!

Ceramics.

Last night was our last ceramics class. It felt like elementary school because we had a little party! Everyone finished off any glazing they had left & just snacked a visited. All in all it was a really great experience. Unfortunately every good thing I made broke :( I guess that's the name of the game with ceramics. Our teacher had all of his work out for us to browse/buy. He's SO GOOD with colors & glazing. My mom and I each bought a piece (we couldn't control ourselves!). My choice is the green & blue vase... Isn't it great! I think it would take a few more classes for me to be able to do that :)

New Frontiers

While the central coast is severely lacking in decent regular shopping, we're actually doing pretty well in the grocery shopping department. It just got much much better though! A New Frontiers opened in SLO! New Frontiers is very similar to Whole Foods. It's basically heaven for those with any type of food allergy! They also have a really amazing ready made food area & coffee/juice bar. They have gluten free sandwiches, pastas, cupcakes, soups, salads... It's so tasty!


One of the things I have missed the most since giving up gluten is ravioli. I finally found someone who makes really good gluten free ravioli! Is it sad to say that a grocery store is my new favorite restaurant?

Yosemite!

We had a gorgeous & snowy Thanksgiving!

I think this was my 4th National Park of the year. I really want to visit every single one now! I have all the details of our Thanksgiving on my other blog here!

Volunteering.

Yesterday was my first day volunteering at the Santa Maria Valley Humane Society. I think I'm going to really enjoy it. Before I went my mom told me under no circumstances may I bring a dog home... But let me tell you about Bear, the dog I would bring home if I could!

Our job as volunteers is basically to take dogs out of their pens and give them play time in the yard (which is an awesome job! I played with dogs for 3 hours yesterday!). It was really funny seeing all the dogs personalities when you got them in an open space. Some dogs just ran back and forth as fast as they could, some were very interested in the other dogs playing at the same time... But Bear wasn't concerned about anything but me. He actually reminded me of Henry. He just desperately wanted a belly rub! So, if your looking for a dog... : )

Monterey/Carmel by the Sea

We've been wanting to go up to Monterey since we moved up here (it's now only like 2 1/2 hours away), so we decided to make a Christmas shopping trip out of it. We left at 8 to ensure plenty of shopping time :)

We decided to stop at Bubba Gumps for an early lunch. There were not too many people there so we got a table by the window. The view was gorgeous! The food was also really good. We had eaten at that Bubba Gumps once before on a family trip, but I had never seen Forrest Gump. So, this time I appreciated the ambiance more after finally watching the movie!

After lunch we took 17 mile drive through Pebble Beach. We stopped along the way to pick up sea glass. We were able to find some great pieces!

It was a gorgeous day!

After our beautiful drive through Pebble Beach we did some shopping at Carmel by the Sea. It was a perfect day!

Val's 3rd Trip!

Val officially wins the prize of friend to visit the most! This is her 3rd trip up!

The first night she got here we decided to go to dinner at New Frontiers (kinda like Whole Foods)... That's one of the reasons I love Val so much - she's up for anything! One our way to SLO we happened to witness a beautiful sunset! We pulled off the freeway and were able to take some pictures...

After dinner we stopped at Doc Burnstein's Ice Cream! It's become a tradition when Val comes. We had Honey Almond ice cream & I might argue it's the best flavor I've had there yet!
Saturday we had a harvest day! We went to Avila Valley Barn to see the animals, pumpkins, and general cuteness of the store!
Then we headed to See Canyon for all things apples! Val got to do an apple tasting too...

Then we headed a little farther to Pirate's Cove. Yes, we found out there is indeed a nude beach in Pirate's Cove, but rest assured we stayed away... There were some absolutely beautiful views & we met some interesting people :)

We were tired and hungry after our hike so we went to Thai Talay. It was SO GOOD! I absolutely loved it, and the people who worked there were so helpful...

Sunday morning we headed to Edna Valley Vineyards (don't worry we went to church Saturday night!). I think it's hands down the most beautiful vineyard we've been to so far. It was a gorgeous day!

It was such a fun trip. I can't wait for Val to come back & explore some more!

Ostrichland!

Welcome to Ostrich Land! We accidentally discovered this place on our way home from Solvang last week. There were a tons of cars in the parking lot, and it just looked too fun to pass up. The owners of Ostrich Land are very smart people, because to even see an ostrich you have to pay a $4 entrance fee. We decided it was worth it & bought some ostrich feed too. The rules were copious, so I didn't read all of them - but they were clear that an ostrich will bite you!
I actually thought they were kind of pretty. Some of them were HUGE! They had all different age birds, so we got to see babies through full grown adults.

The best part by far was feeding them! I've seen too many episodes of America's Funniest Videos, so I fully expected to be pecked by one, but they were super friendly. You had to use some muscle to hang on to the feed bowl though, they have super strong necks! So, all in all it was a very fun adventure! I always recommend feeding any animal you get a chance to feed!

Give Thanks...

We are having a rare extended family-less Thanksgiving, so we are hitting the road! We just made reservations to go to Yosemite! I haven't been since I was 2, so I'm looking forward to a trip I can actually remember. I've ordered hiking shoes & am hoping for some chilly weather. My favorite part of this whole thing is that Henry has to come with us! We have never vacationed with him before, but I think it will be SO fun...

Here's to hoping we don't encounter any bears... If we do, Henry doesn't stand a chance!

Southern California Trip...

I've spent the last week down in Orange County! We were just supposed to be down for a long weekend, but our trip kept getting extended - which I was totally fine with because it meant I got to see more people!

Thursday night I was able to do lunch & Pedi's with Val, followed by Starbucks/Target with Sarah & Deb! I love spending time with these girls... They are so much fun!

Then I headed to San Clemente with Shell & Kenz! We had the ultimate relaxing weekend! We watched great TV, had great meals, learned how to carve pumpkins & made caramel apples! Did I mention we listened to Taylor Swift over & over!

Finally, I got to go to Disneyland with Jeanna! It was hot, but so fun! We managed to laugh the entire time & embarrass each other greatly!

I also was able to do some shopping (yay anthro!), see my cousin Greg, and have breakfast & leisure world time with aunts, uncles, great aunts, 2nd cousins, and friends! It was so refreshing & exhausting at the same time... Can't wait for my next trip!

Back to School!

Well, our first ceramics class was a success! When we arrived at the class our teacher told us that it wasn't actually a class, but more of studio time. It was kinda scary at first because I haven't worked with clay since I was in 8th grade, but then I realized that it would allow for some real creativity! We listened to 70's music and just played around with the clay for 3 hours... I destroyed most of the things I created, but I came away with a small pinch pot and my mom and I did a collaborative effort ( I'll post pics later!). Now let's talk about the other people in the class. The average age of the students is about 65... I'm getting used to being the youngest in the room by like 30 years. Most of them have been in the class for several sessions, so they are old pro's, but they were so welcoming. There were only 4 of us newbies. One of the newbies chomped her gum the WHOLE time, but the other one is my new bestie, Mary. Mary is probably about 90 years old. She can't really hear, so you have to yell when you talk to her. She is the sweetest lady in the world. Love her! I can't wait to continue to create and learn... hopefully I won't sit next to the gum chomper next week.

Heads or Tails?

We knew we needed an adventure today, but were not full of inspiration. So we flipped a coin! Heads we go north, tails we go south. It was heads, so we set out going north on the 101. We hadn't really been beyond Paso Robles, so we were curious as to what was out there. There is NOTHING. We ended up like 70 miles north of SLO, and had to turn around because we weren't finding anything. So after a long (but pretty) drive, we headed back to Paso Robles (which doesn't look cute from the freeway, but has a darling downtown). We had an amazing lunch at this place called Thomas Hill Organics (as people with food allergies, organic is a keyword we look for!). They own their own farm, so they change their menu everyday based on what is growing.

Then we explored some of the antique shops! It was HOT, so we only went through a few, but they had really fun stuff.

As we headed inland, we were driving in a cloud... Literally. It was so crazy, but an awesome end to our extremely random day.