San Diego: Part I

I can't believe we have been here 2 weeks now!  Time is flying and we aren't ready to come home yet.  So much to do here.  Have I ever mentioned that I love San Diego and Im so happy we have family here??  There has been lots of back yard hanging and Play Doh.  

Lots and lots of Play Doh. Play Doh with abuela, Play Doh with tata, Play Doh with mami y papi, Play Doh with cousins....basically anyone and everyone! 

{Juliana & Mateo enjoy some naked PlayDoh time}

We had a couple cloudy days last week, so looked for something indoors where Mateo expend some energy.   The New Children's Museum (200 West Island Ave, in downtown San Diego)  fit the bill.

  

This place is awesome!  First off the building is so modern and bright that you don't feel trapped indoors.  In fact, some of the activity stations are outside, so you can really enjoy the mild San Diego weather.

It is packed with many fun activities for little guys, not to mention live chickens, gardening classes,  and a paper making studio.  They have different workshops and a summer camp.  If we were going to be here all summer, I would enroll Mateo.  It was really impressive! 

And boy did it keep him happy & busy....a mother's dream!

When we walked out of the museum there was a bus sitting out front.  The driver saw Mateo staring in amazement and asked if he wanted to get on.  He hopped up the stairs and walked down the long empty isle.  The driver told him to get up on a seat to wave at us out of the window.  He talked about it for hours.

That night Ernesto and I enjoyed an adult night out at Petco Park with our niece Cariza.  (thanks for inviting us girl!)  Boy did we need that! 

There is no shortage of nightlife in downtown, so afterwards we hopped over to Urban for a few drinks, then ate at Strip Club (not what it sounds like)

On Memorial Day we hung out in Coronado.  The beach is so wide here that even when there are tons of people, you never feel too crowded.  And driving across the Coronado bridge is like entering a totally different city.  Ok, so it is really a peninsula, not an island, but it feels like one.  It is like a resort town.  Strolling the streets in beach wear, shopping, people watching, and grabbing something to eat are all simple pleasures here.

We were told the weather was "unbearably hot" the week before we got here, but the temps have been perfect since we arrived!  The water is still freezing, but we got our feet wet and played in the sand.  Mateo warned us whenever the water would get close though.  He is not a fan of the cold water.  

My goal everyday is to wear out Mateo.  We need to take him somewhere in the mornings to let him run!  

There is a nice playground close to mis suegras house, but hands down the best we have been to so far is the new waterfront park downtown along the embarcadero (in front of the court house).  

The boys splashed around and had a great time.  We wore their little butts out (mission accomplished!) and then cruised up the street to have lunch in Little Italy.  There is one beautiful restaurant after another - all with cute outdoor patios.  We sat outside at Napizza and enjoyed a few slices of pizza and a caprese panini and a couple IPA's. #ilovemylife

While walking around, we spotted this awesome (new-ish?) restaurant called Ironside.  What first got my attention was the awesome succulent wall at the front door.  

We decided we would come back for a "date night" later in the week...because besides beautiful plants, they specialize in oysters & beer. Sold!

A couple days later, although not a "date" technically, we were able to sit down here while the kids slept in the stroller. 

Guys, if you live in San Diego or are planning to visit, you must check this place out!  First of all, I have never (ever!) loved the inside of a restaurant more than here. Brass, brass and more brass ...

...paired with a mint green bar and benches, a huge carrara marble family style table and walls, tumbling block design on the cement floor tiles.  All the fixtures were gorgeous and unique...and BRASS.  (My love affair with brass is never ending!)  We happened to show up in time for happy hour which was $1 raw oysters. Hello! They were delicious!  Unfortunately the raw bar was all that was available while they transitioned  from lunch to dinner, but there were some things on the menu that would draw us back.

It took a lot to get both of the boys sleeping in the stroller at the same time.  A lot of walking that is. Earlier that day we were hanging out at Balboa Park.

We took them into 'Kid City' inside the Science Center and they had a blast.  We had coffee.

We had brought Mateo here before and he loved it.  Marcelo loved exploring too.  They were beat afterwards so we walked around hoping they would fall asleep so we could sit down outside and have a beer somewhere.  Well, we ended up walking and walking..like a couple hours of walking. Finally they both fell asleep.

On that walk though we did something really cool and different.  Not that I know every area of San Diego (hardly!) but I was surprised that we had never been here before.  Oh! And it's been here since 1912!!

 The Spruce Street Suspension Bridge only took a couple of minutes to cross, but it had my knees shaking.  I am a little scared of heights, you see.  That doesn't mean I avoid heights, it just means my knees get weak.  I am glad we were the only ones crossing it, as jumping kids would have seriously made me nervous!  It is 70 feet up above a canyon.  Anyhoo, it was a quick thrill that lead to the most UGLY houses in Bankers Hill.  Why haven't I walked through this neighborhood before and what do you people do anyway??
Let me just show you one of the many houses I would die for...

 Let's move on to something less depressing shall we?  How about we talk about Mateo's bedtime "routine" out here.  Ha! Well no, that's not depressing, it's just plain old frustrating.  He is in and out of bed and I have never missed locking a door so bad.  Last night we took him to bed at 9p and he finally went to sleep at 11p.  Ugh!
That is quality blogging time right out the weekend. Hence the delayed posts.

On the other hand of the scale Marcelo takes 2 seconds.  We read a quick book,  pull the elephants tail [for a lullaby] and close the door.  You don't hear another peep out of him.  Same for naps.  EASY.
Maybe he will not enter terrible twos, but he is going to be a toddler any time now!

He is standing on his own for longer and longer.  Ernesto said he even took two little steps the other day, but that doesn't count that because I didn't see it:)

Hope you guys are having a great start to your Summer too!

Eleven Months {Marcelo's Monthly Photo}

From Ohio to San Diego!

{my partners in crime after a full day of sale-ing}

Ernesto and I split up at the airport last week.  He flew with Mateo to San Diego and left him at abuela y tatas for a few days while he went to Vegas for a golf tournament.  I flew to Canton with Marcelo for the girls annual yard sales extravaganza.  Fun was had by all! 

I am sure you are dying to know what I scored at the yard sales.  I won't bore you with the slew of cute clothing I got for the boys, the little gray converse shoes for Marcelo and the mango wood tray for me...but the 5x8 (ish) Bolivian Alpaca is worth bragging about! 

There was a sticker on it saying "make offer."
me: what kind of offer are you expecting?
them: oh I don't know, how much were you thinking?
me: not very much
them:  oh just say something
(although I was thinking I would say $10 for a lowball offer which they would counter, but I spit out...)
me:  $5?
them: sounds good
SCOOOOOOOORE!

Five years ago, I gave my friend $300 to buy me one for my [queen size] bed while she was in Peru (where she is from) and she could not do it.  They were much more expensive!  Again I say...SCORE!  It is soft and luxurious and although has a couple small tears at seams [that I can stitch easily] it is clean and pretty perfect.

That was my best find of the day, but I have to say I am really excited for the plants I bought too.  

(I am my mothers daughter)

Yes, I bought plants in Ohio so I could check them on the plane to California and take care of them for several weeks before returning to Georgia to plant them in my garden.  That is, if they are still alive I will plant them.  

Since I was already checking plants, I dug up some favorites from my mom's garden too.  So I will be coming home with several succulents, lady's mantle, dwarf iris, sedum, and lupine.  Add those to the    jade plants and succulents I always get when I am in San Diego and I will have quite the shipment.   

Beside the yard sales I hit a few thrift stores.  Goodwill in Ohio have some deal with Target and they sell brand new stuff from the store.  I bought 2 huge Nate Berkus bath towels (regularly $25) for $5, a couple summer dresses, a small couch bag for $6 and these two beauties.

Is is just me or is the thrifting pretty good in Ohio? 

You may have seen on my Instagram that I was having a hard time getting on a flight from Atlanta to San Diego, but I am happy to report that Marcelo and I arrived Sunday morning!

Oh the magic of flying!  Thank you Delta!   I am so happy to be reunited with the rest of my little family.  

Although life was a lot easier with one little boy for 5 days,  it was tooooo long to be separated from the other little boy!  Abuela said that Mateo was very very well behaved the whole time.  He didn't whine at mimi (bed) time or get out of bed once the lights were out,  he sat still to eat all of his food, and he didn't want the ipad much.  Abuela es bueno! I am glad he got to spend quality time with her [and tata!] plus he played a lot with his primos too!

We will probably be out here for 2-3 weeks.  No plans yet (shocker!), but the weather is PERFECT right now!  Im sure we will do all of our regular fun San Diego things like go to the beach, climb the mountain,  hang out in La Jolla,  and stuff ourselves with the best Mexican food!  (right here at casa Espinoza) We are also thinking its about time Mateo experiences Sea World.  Updates to come!!

Happy Mothers Day!

Happy Mothers Day to all the ladies out there who have embarked on this crazy journey of motherhood!  But especially Happy mothers day to this special lady...

{the best mom ever!}

I love you mom!  Thanks for your unconditional love and support.  You have always been a great role model.  You are a constant inspiration and I am so glad we are great friends.  Also thanks for passing on your creativity and love of gardening.  I will forever credit you! 

The importance of having a loving mother goes beyond words, and Ernesto and I both hit the jackpot. 

We feel so lucky to be able to spend a lot of "quality time" with our mothers the last 6 years and are so excited that our kids know them so well too.  

Although mi suegra is across the country (in California), I feel very close to her and know that I can count on her for anything.  

{the best suegra ever!}

As a matter of fact, she will be babysitting Mateo for 3 days next week (get your rest now mama!) while I go to Ohio (with Marcelo) for the annual Navarre Yard Sales and Ernesto goes to Las Vegas for a golf tournament. We will meet up next weekend in San Diego and stay for several weeks.  

Can you say vacation time?! Yeah!

I also want to say a special mothers day to my sister Jenny!  

She is an inspiration for me as she has already raised a beautiful (in every way!) daughter.  I know I can get good parenting advice and lots of chuckles in any situation!  Thanks for always being there for me Fred!  

A special shout out to the other mothers in my family as well:  Barbie, Michelle, Adrianna, Veronica, Erin, and Beth.  I hope you were spoiled yesterday! 

Mothers day was delightful!  We did our usual thing Sunday morning and strolled (with our neighbors) to our farmers market.  While the kids napped in the afternoon, mi amiga Beth and I, slipped away for pedicures, Bucky-Bucks and Marshalls and Target run. What a treat!

Ernesto planned a little surprise dinner and when we pulled up my mouth just started watering.  

Behold the #1 reason that I would never be a vegetarian. 

This Brazilian steakhouse is a serious treat.  I always walk out feeling like I ate my share of the $50/pp price tag.  The gauchos come around with the meat on spits and cut your slice just how you like it (medium rare please!)  Mateo was fascinated by this and was pretty good at grabbing his cut with the little tongs.

After dinner (or late lunch rather!) we stopped for Paolo's gelato in Virginia Highlands.  A perfect ending to a perfect day.