Fall in Sonoma County

It is no secret that we don't really have a Fall season here in San Francisco so, in order to get the color, the sound of dry leaves being crunched under your feet, the cooler weather and the smell of Fall in the air, we headed inland to Sonoma county. Once in Sonoma, we drove downtown to get some amazing bread and coffee at the Basque Boulangerie Cafe and then decided to pick a road off the map and drive up it. We found Fall at the the end of a narrow and windy road. It was beautiful!


Enjoy these photos! You can find more on my Etsy store or on my website.

Hiking Up Mount Davidson in San Francisco

As it turns out, our new house is only 0.9 miles from the trailhead that goes up to the top of Mt. Davidson. From the trailhead to the top there is an additional climb of about 0.5 miles (according to the health app on my phone, the total climb is equivalent to going up 40 floors!).  Well, as I realized that, I decided that would be the hike that would replace the walk to Lafayette Park I used to do when we lived up in Nob Hill. For the past couple of days, I have loaded my 27 lbs baby onto the Ergo carrier and up we've gone. He loves it and I do too. I joke that he was the reason I got out of shape and now he is helping me get back in shape by acting as an almost 30-pound pack!

Anyway, here are some photos I've taken on my way up. Most of these were taken with my phone because I don't really feel like adding the weight of my camera on top of that of my kid!

Hope you enjoy these photos. The walk is lovely. It goes up winding roads and secret narrow alleyways. Once of top, you get the most amazing panoramic view of San Francisco, the East Bay, the bay and even Mount Diablo! Just lovely! And, the fact that we leave before the sun rises, makes everything even more beautiful!

Fall Colors in Paris

San Francisco doesn't have much of a Fall. We are lucky if there happens to be a tree in the park or the neighborhood that will change colors in late October. Otherwise, if we want to enjoy the colors of the season, we need to drive East, mostly towards the Yosemite area where colors are stunning.

It doesn't look like we'll be able to make it to Yosemite this year. We are trying to sneak in a trip to Napa to see the vineyards, which are also supposed to change colors nicely. In the meantime, here are some photos I dug out from last year when I was in Paris enjoying the beauty of Fall and its colors!

Enjoy these photos. For more fun photos, visit my Etsy store or go to my website.

Pumpkin Patch: Pumpkins of all Colors

It's been a couple of weeks since I posted some photos on my blog. Life has certainly been busy on my end!

I have been looking forward to the arrival of October since last October and I'm so happy it's finally here, even if life has been crazy! My plans for this month included visiting a pumpkin patch (first time for our 9-month old!), wine tasting in Sonoma, photographing Fall foliage and going to an apple orchard. So far, I've only had the opportunity to get to the pumpkin patch. I have big plans for this upcoming weekend!!!

This was also my first time visiting a pumpkin patch and I loved it (so did our son!)! SF has a lovely patch in the heart of the city.

I hope you enjoy these photos. Fore more photos, go to my Etsy store or visit my website.

 

Hot Air Balloons at Sunrise

This year I decided I really wanted to go to a hot air balloon festival. Unfortunately, by the time I had the time to start looking for one to go to, most of them had already happened. I was lucky enough, however, to find a very small festival taking place in Clovis, CA, a very small town right next to Fresno. With my husband, we looked at the dates, booked a hotel and planned a family trip to Clovis Fest!

Hope you enjoy these photos of hot air balloons. I really loved photographing these beauties!! The colors were gorgeous, the sunrising and the light were perfect! Totally worth being there before 6:00 a.m.!

I'm hoping to go to other festivals like this next year. Sonoma has a festival with about 30 balloons. Ultimately, I would love to go to the one in New Mexico where about 700 balloons launch every October!

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Monarch Butterflies in Santa Barbara

When we lived in Santa Barbara, we used to go to Alice Keck Park memorial gardens to spend some time in the sun, watching the hummingbirds zoom by and the monarch butterflies fly from flower to flower. It is no surprise that last month, when we visited Santa Barbara after 3 years of having moved out, we also went to the memorial gardens to do the same. Here are some images of beautiful monarch butterflies. I hope you'll enjoy them!

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Escape the City in San Francisco

One thing I absolutely love about living in San Francisco is that you can escape the city anytime without having to drive or walk too far away. The city has so many parks, you only have to walk a few walks to reach one of them. Many of them sit atop of hills, so the views are usually spectacular!

As a peninsula, San Francisco is not short on waterfronts. Whether you hit the Bay or the Ocean, you will for sure find a great peaceful place to relax away from the noise of the city.

And then, there is the Golden Gate park. This park is so big and awesome, you can get literally lost in it!

In the Presidio, you can walk in a eucalyptus forest that quietly grows in the city.