The week in review.

What a fun week I've had, catching up with my friends!

On Monday, the ever-lovely Karina came over and we set out to creat some wonderfully delicious mushroom and onion mini-pizzas on tasty whole-wheat pizza dough - which actually reminds me: I've been chronicling my homecooked meals on my tumblr. They've all been so delicious - I never knew I could cook, so I'm proud. :P

Voila!

The finished product. Seriously so good!

Tuesday night we schmoozed it up before he, my dad and I headed out to San Francisco for the Giants game.

It was a chilly night! I was almost shivering in my beret and wool coat!

Didn't stop my dad from snagging this foul ball, hit by Nate Schierholtz.

My dad held onto it long enough to pose with it. And then gave it to me. :D

We don't look alike do we? :P Check out those noses!

They won against the Diamondbacks, thank goodness. Although they would lose [horribly] the next night, we've yet to be at a loss this season!

Wednesday I met up with Kandace, who is amazing. We, sadly, didn't photograph the event, but I had an awesome time catching up with her - she's such a good listener and also gives super advice. She's about to leave to study abroad for four months in Spain. Good luck, Kandace! :]

Friday marked the nineteenth birthday of the almighty Audrey! Background info: three weeks ago Audrey and I were contemplating the differences between macaroons and French macarons - vowing to one day try the latter. On her birthday, I arranged to meet up with her and secretly brought our elusive friend Tiffany - because Audrey has visited me on numerous occasions and always surprises me by bringing Tiff. THE TABLES ARE TURNED. Who knows who will surprise who next?

Anyway, long story short - we went to Pamplemousse Patisserie et Cafe and got our hands on these babies...

Raspberry, chocolate, chocolate mint, coconut, amaretto, and mango.

They were chewy. This photo doesn't do Tiffany's beauty justice!
The signature pamplemousse macaron!

The adorable birthday girl! Please blame my unfortunate bangs on the 104 degree weather. I tried. Really, I did.

Pretty lady!

And then I rushed home and got ready for our second Giants game of the week. This time, Tim Lincecum was the starting pitcher and we were playing our current rivals in the Wild Card race, the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad Colorado Rockies!

A sleepy Ethan deemed himself "unphotographable" for the evening, saying this photo of my head in his hand would have to suffice.

But I sneaked a shot anyway. He's midchew and clearly in distress. I look like an elf, so we're even.

Let me just tell you what a beautiful night it was in San Francisco! Eighty degrees. No beret and wool coat necessary. It was just perfect! It was made all the better by the Giants' victory. There is something so invigorating about being at the ballpark, but maybe it's just because I love baseball. I could never like a sport more than I like baseball. But I won't preach.

Enough for now. It's a lovely day so I'm going to go enjoy it. :]

Thursday Word: Romans 5:1-2.

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God." Romans 5:1-2.via my flickr.

Vacation Recap: Part Five.

The last installment of a series of posts I didn't anticipate as cumbersome to post and less-than-exhilarating to read. :]

The next day we made the trip to nearby San Simeon to visit Hearst Castle.

Ready for her '80s close up.

The outdoor Neptune Pool.

The very top of Casa Grande, complete with an amazing carved teak wood awning.

In the living room. Tucker was clearly enthused.

Classic pieces of art are peppered and posted all throughout the homes at Hearst Castle.

The dining room cieling and windows.
The in-home movie theatre. And some heads. :]
The Roman Pool. All surfaces of the room are tiled in a mosaic fashion. The tiles are either blue, orange, or infused with real gold. Pretty cool!
There were zebras roaming around. ZEBRAS. Give me a break, right? I could get used to seeing these little fellows outside my window.

Post-Castle lunch at ... an establishment of which I have forgotten the name. This appetizer is lumpia in the Vietnamese style.

Don't let its delicious apperance fool you. Although my mom and brother enjoyed the same dish with no complaints, my chicken tacos were more chicken gristle than chicken. Also, I found a twig in one of them. Well, I found it in my mouth. But still. NAST.
Enjoying our last night in Cambria. As the sun was beginning to set behind uss, my mom snapped this silhouette-style photo of Tucker, me, Dad, and a diving pelican behind us. :P
Tucker and Dad peruse Moonstone Beach, right across the street from our hotel. We enjoyed a lot of marine life while we were there - pelicans, otters, and even dolphins!
Sunset, part one.

Sunset, part two.

Sunset, part three.

Sunset, part four.

Cambria - though very much so removed from the surrounding area - was lovely, and we made the pretty drive up the coast to come home. Our whole vacation was filled with beautiful sights and experiences. So thankful that my family was able to get away together this summer. :]

Vacation Recap: Part Four.

Note bene: I really must apologize. Even I'm growing weary of these posts. But I can't rightly start and not finish. So hang in there because we're alllmost done!

We spent a day hanging around downtown Coronado and lounging about the hotel, which was nothing short of amazing.

Just a taste of the amazing woodwork inside the lobby of this amazing place, built over 120 years ago!

Being awesome.

The view off our balcony, which I guess actually was more of a spacious veranda - so nice! We got to watch a wedding happen on that grass, as well. We probably saw about four wedding parties in the two days we were there. :]

Cheesy fresh crab topped with green mushroom served with rosemary-dusted French bread. This is the best food photo I've taken, I think. It's my favorite!

An interesting combo, but I enjoyed it: rustic chicken noodle soup served with a steak and shrimp quesadilla.

I know right? A four-layer chocolate velvet cake with light and lemony cream cheese frosting topped with milk and white chocolate shavings and served with fresh berries.

"Some Like It Hot," starring Marilyn Monroe, was filmed at the hotel fifty-something years ago. Tucker poses with the postcard in the same location, because Marilyn and Tucker are practically one and the same.

My dad snapped this photo of the historic hotel from the beach. Isn't it beautiful? Such an experience.

We left San Diego and headed up to Santa Barbara. We checked into a little hotel with a pond outside of our room! It was lovely.

Fishies.

Excited for dinner.

Parents will be parents!

Filet mignon at Holdren's Steaks and Seafood.

Best dessert ever. Allow me to explain.

That blue thing? Gel fuel, lit and giving off flames. For $8.00 we were given skewered marshmallows, chocolate pieces, fresh strawberries and graham crackers to make s'mores right at our table. Such a cute (and delicious) dessert idea that I might steal for sometime in the future!

A decadent flourless chocolate cake that was also delicious.

This is what an ATV looks like. Kind of intimidating, which is why my mom and I were kinda freaked out by my brother's pleas for us all to try them out.

And yet, we decided to do it. My mom looks crazy rebellious.

Dad's got this.

And as for Tucker and me? We are pros.

This is a small dune, among the first we tried to ride. My brother was fearless, as was my dad (probably a little too fearless!). My mom and I hung back until we said, "What the hey?" and we were ridin' with the big guys.

Some dunes fenced off from riders... They're so pretty!

I had such a fun time riding those ATVs. There's something strangely exhilarating about zooming around on loud gas-powered vehicles on the coast at pretty Pismo Beach. And it didn't hurt that afterward, we drove up to a beautiful little inn in Cambria...