4th Anniversary

Jase and I celebrated our 4th Anniversary on September 24th. We took a quick trip down to our favorite spot, Monterey, from Thursday to Friday.

We decided we weren't quite ready to leave Madison with someone else overnight, so she came along, too! On Thursday she opted not to nap and make things difficult, so we went ahead and left in the late morning anyway and she fell right to sleep while we cruised down 17 toward Santa Cruz. We were craving some Zachary's for brunch and had to indulge. Madison was a huge hit. She kept flirting and talking to the other tables of people who engaged her. This one table of 4 kept waving and smiling at her and of course our little Princess was eatin' it up.

From 2009 - 09 - September

From 2009 - 09 - September

From 2009 - 09 - September

From 2009 - 09 - September

After a Junior Mike's Mess and Basic Breakfast w/ Steak, we took our stuffed selves outside for a walk around downtown. I swear people watching in Santa Cruz is the best. Talk about entertainment!

Next stop: The Clement Hotel in Monterey. Mads took her second nap on the scenic drive down Highway 1 and was in a great mood by the time we reached our destination.

The staff was wonderful and the (brand new) hotel was beautiful. And we got an AWESOME deal through Priceline's bidding system! I definitely recommend this hotel to anyone who's interested in an upscale/modern hotel in the middle of Cannery Row (it's next door to the aquarium!)

Maddie was in a good mood when we arrived!

From 2009 - 09 - September

Then it was playtime/phototime before we headed out:

From 2009 - 09 - September

These were taken right outside of our room. It opened onto the big events balcony.

From 2009 - 09 - September

From 2009 - 09 - September

From 2009 - 09 - September

From 2009 - 09 - September

Shortly after, we went next door to the aquarium to watch the 4:00 kelp forest exhibit feeding. A scuba diver friend of ours, Kim, is also a Presbyterian minister and married us exactly 4 years prior! He volunteers every other Thursday as the diver in the show and the date just happened to work out! It was fun watching him do the show and he even mentioned Jason & I in the middle of it!

From 2009 - 09 - September

From 2009 - 09 - September

It was a little funny having Madison there with no babysitter because as soon as 5:45 came around, at least one of us had to be back in the hotel for the rest of the night. So we got Madison all ready and put her down to sleep. She was out quickly and I went down to the Sea Harvest Fish Market for some food to-go and to pick up a bottle of wine from A Taste of Monterey and we had a romantic dinner in. Madison slept AWESOME and we had a really good dinner.

On Friday, we packed up our stuff...

From 2009 - 09 - September

...and enjoyed the cool day. Beach, sea lions, yummy food, and another stop at the aquarium.

Oh and while Madison was taking her first nap in the morning, there was a wedding going on right outside our room! It was beautiful and totally appropriate for our anniversary. :)

From 2009 - 09 - September

One more big laugh before heading out.

From 2009 - 09 - September

There were LOTS of baby sea lions on Coast Guard Pier.

From 2009 - 09 - September

And lots of Sea Nettles.

From 2009 - 09 - September

And even an otter with a face full of kelp.

From 2009 - 09 - September

From 2009 - 09 - September

From 2009 - 09 - September

From 2009 - 09 - September

One of the best parts of the whole trip is that while it was BURNING hot in San Jose, it was COLD in Monterey and we were LOVING it. There were clouds and fog and wind chills! Perfection. :) Such a great mini-vacation. I can't wait for next year.