4th of July

We started the day with a game of Five Crowns, but have yet to play the final round (13-card hand, kings are wild). Then swim team practice at AG High. We knew there was going to be a parade going through Nipomo and tried to avoid it, but as it turned out, we end up IN the parade, at least for a short while. Lastly, we all went to Gibson's house for all kinds of afternoon gaming (volleyball, horseshoes, etc.), dinner, and fireworks. And, of course, meeting up with all the Reguscis who made it to town the day before. All the day's photos start here. The new Yeti and some dry ice kept the ice cream sandwiches solid for hours!

Smoky Pineapple and Tequila Punch

We had to make a special run to Von's in Grover Beach for Orgeat, a key ingredient to the cold-smoked pineapple libation Trevor found in Food and Wine magazine. So, why not stop in at Lido for breakfast!? Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the girls were whipping up about 60 cupcakes for tomorrow's 4th of July party. We also made another batch of 12 dozen oatmeal raisin and chocolate chip cookies for the 4th. Dinner was from Me and Ed's in downtown Nipomo. We finished off the day watching the Dodgers beat the Pirates. All the day's photos start here.

Cookies, Games, Sushi, and Fireworks

It took a while, but we cranked out the first gross of Oatmeal Raisin Chocolate Chip Cookies for our 4th of July extravaganza. Batch #2 is tomorrow. We also (re-)learned how to play Five Crowns. After a fabulous dinner at Kanpai Sushi in Shell Beach, we visited a firework stand in preparation for the 4th.

Batch #1 of Oatmeal Raisin Chocoloate Chip Cookies

Five Crowns

Swim Meet and Bubbly

Swim Meet at Arroyo Grande High School! Hannah and Abby both swam several races. Nana and Papa followed up with a stop at Laetitia Winery for some bubbly. We cruised through the rest of the day with a Dodgers/Royals baseball game, a jerked chicken dinner, and the last half of Kindergarten Cop. All the day's photos start here.

Matteo, can you print one of these?!

 

Santa Barbara by Train

This was a favorite getaway for us when we lived in California... A day trip to Santa Barbara by train! We got into Santa Barbara a little before 9am, and did whatever inspired us for the day, which today included: breakfast at Moby Dick's on the wharf, the Sea Center also on the wharf, the amphibious tour of Santa Barbara on the Land Shark Tour, the Brewhouse with its fabulous peanut butter whipped cream pie, and re-exploring the huge Moreton Bay Fig at the train station before returning home. All the day's 200+ photos start here.

Moreton Bay Fig at the train station

PTA Luncheon and SLO Railroad Museum

While Lynn had lunch with the "old" PTA mom group, Jamie took some outside shots at the San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum. We both enjoyed a stop at the bar at Ventana Grill on the way back to Nipomo. Home-cooked short ribs for dinner! All the day's photos start here.

The Betsy, who we met at the Ventana Grill.
Lemon juice, 1 part agave syrup, 2 parts Vodka.

From Brewhouse to Melodrama

First things first... Lunch! At Shell Beach Brewhouse, a favorite for many reasons including the Elvis Lives burger complete with peanut butter and banana slices! After a stroll and drive around Shell Beach and by our old house down by the water, we headed to Peacock Cellars on Los Berros Road. It's a fun winery with a huge gift shop of antiquey kinds of stuff and some produce, breads, nuts, etc. Nana managed to find a fun little wall hanging that said, "Home is where the herd is." Some amazing red tomatoes, too. We capped off the evening with a trip to the Great American Melodrama. Got to chat with Toby Tropper a bit after the show. Erik Stein was there, too, along with a gaggle of folks from PCPA, as well as Ed and Rebecca Avila. Erik wrote and directed the show, Under the Boardwalk. We discovered a fun, fruity beer - CaliSqueeze.

Strawberry Mud Pie at the Brewhouse