Photo Op... Almost Forgotten

Who could pass up the card called "Photo Op"? This is what I live for.

Earlier in the week, Kevin mentioned it was going to be brutally hot in Oakland and suggested a family beach trip...Half Moon Bay or Stinson? I jumped at HMB. I had a plan. Lunch at the Flying Fish Grill, a little shopping, and time at the beach. Let's go!

I threw my bathing suit on and a cute little dress and was ready to go. We had hoped Charlie would utilize the hour long trip and nap, but luck wasn't on our side. Not to mention, everyone and their brother had the same idea...BEACH! It took us a while to get there, but it gave me time to enjoy the scenery and reminisce. Half Moon Bay is one of my favorite places and it provides many great memories thanks to Gina and Lauren. We've spent many a day there at the beach, shopping, or dancing the night away at the Half Moon Bay Brewery (ok..so it's in El Granada, but it's close enough).

Luckily, at the peak of lunch, we were seated right away at the Flying Fish and Kevin got his fish tacos, I got my California wrap (filled with fried Shrimp and a mango salsa), and Charlie got his sweet potato fries. Why is it that when you are so excited about something and you finally get it, it's never as good as you remember? The next time we visit, we'll bring a picnic lunch and save the $30.00. However, I did get a thrill out of watching Charlie as he stuffed his mouth full of orange potatoes and Kevin hum as he was in fish taco heaven.

On Main St. we wandered through various stores admiring furniture that was well out of our price range. We are looking for that perfect dining room table and chairs for our next home. Sure it'll be a while, but we might as well be prepared. Actually, we found it at Wooden Duck, but still we love to look. Charlie was a rock star for the most part, but wanted out to walk around. It's tough on the streets when there are a ton of tourists doing the same thing we are. He loves to push his stroller, but if a cop were around he'd get pulled over for a DUI even though he is completely sober. As we walked into my favorite place, Have to Have It, a place with lots of crap (see photos), but stuff that is just super fun, I realized oh, shit this was supposed to be a "date night" and I completely forgot. Good thing Have to Have It is the perfect place for a photo op and I wasn't the only one there with the same idea. There was a girl taking one photo after another. I think it was a class assignment, but who knows. The first shot I saw was from behind the fence. Pumpkin planters in July, really?

Kevin looked at me as if I were crazy. His look saying, "Shouldn't I just be enjoying "family day" just because we were together? Why does every time we are on a date are you thinking of your damn blog?" Okay, so he would never say this nor would he even think this...maybe this is my guilt saying, "enjoy the day and don't worry about what you are going to write about later."

Kevin had a blast in Have to Have It. He found all kinds of antique furniture, old posters, and best of all, an old telephone booth that "if I had a bar, this would be in it." He enjoyed himself so much and I got a kick out of watching "my kid in a candy store". I loved taking photos of random "stuff" and think I may even use a couple on my website. Yeah, I need to create a new one, but that is a whole other story.

After browsing, we headed back down the street looking for coffee when I heard a really loud, rude voice. I turned and loudly cleared my throat hoping to get her attention letting her know she should keep it down. She thought I was being rude and then noticed who I was and laughed. I knew from the get-go that it was Ginny (a WMMS colleague), but was thrilled to see Sally and Sandy as well.

After coffee and a cookie, we jumped in the car and realized while it was perfect weather to be at the coast, it was too cold to go to the beach. We decided to head to Pescadero to go look at our favorite furniture store, Made in Pescadero. Kevin had picked up a flyer stating there was a Barn sale...there were a dozen or so yard sales in the town. Unfortunately, we arrived as everyone was packing up and there was nothing worth looking at. The funny thing is that neither Kevin or I give two cents about yard sales and yet, we wanted to see what sort of crap people were selling. After drooling over a $5,000 dining table (note: chairs NOT included), we headed home, but this time decided to go home over the Bay Bridge enjoying new scenery and avoiding the traffic going over the San Mateo bridge. And did Charlie utilize this time to get in a late afternoon nap...I think NOT!