The weather today was forecast to be the nicest weather of our trip. California has been having some massive rain storms over the past couple of months. Looking at the forecast, we were going to experience one of their "atmospheric river" moments over the course of the weekend.
We had to take full advantage of the weather today.
We started our first day looking for parking in Little Italy to go to the Farmer's Market. It was BUSY! After driving around and around, we finally decided to park in one of the pay lots. As we entered, a lady motioned for us to roll down our windows. "Here, it is to expensive here." She handed us her parking ticket which was good for the whole day. That just saved us $25!
We walked a couple of blocks north from the lot and began to meander through the market. The market was held in the center of the street that had been blocked off over 4 to 5 blocks.
We saw lots of fresh produce, flowers, Mexican food, candle shops and some clothing spots. The girls bought a baguette and some drinks, but mostly we just browsed.
It was close to lunch time so we stopped at the Little Italy Food Hall. It had a bunch of vendors, so we had a little bit of fried chicken, pizza, salad and tacos.
We stopped for more groceries at Ralph's. From there, we dropped the girls off at the beach, and Chris and I took the groceries back to the rental. We found a great parking spot and suggested the girls bring the beach chairs closer to the parking spot. Chris went to find them once he and I dropped stuff at the beach.
The beach was packed with people. That's what I often hear about the drawbacks to living in California. Once you decide on a cool place to visit, it will be packed with hundreds of people—locals and tourists—by the time you get there. If you find a parking spot, grab it.
We hung out at the beach for a couple of hours and soaked up the sun. Misha and Kristen even braved the chilly ocean waters.
Since we had a family photo shoot scheduled for 6:30 pm, we left the beach around 4 pm to go get ready. We had to drive up to Solana Beach about 40 minutes away to meet up with a photographer that had been recommended by a friend who used to live in California.
We met our photographer, Christy Odom, at Cardiff State Beach by Lifeguard Tower #10. We even arrived early which was perfect since it was a cloudy evening and Christy could start a little earlier. Even though we only signed up for a half hour time slot, she spent well over an hour with us.
She was very great at telling us how to pose, fixing our hair or clothing if it was out of place. Even Chris said he enjoyed the experience much more than our previous family photo shoots.
We should have pictures back within a week or so. Looking forward to some fun looks for us.
It was dark when we left Cardiff Beach. We found some dinner at Rubio's Mexican Grill.
Again, Amy and Kristen stayed up to watch tv. Misha, Chris, and I went to bed.