a few weeks ago phillip and i traveled to the great state of california to celebrate my birthday with extended family. phillip has visited places near and far, but this trip was his first to the golden state. ah, what a thrill! to share such special things with him made our vacation that much better. he couldn’t get enough of the weather and coastlines, and as such, he was the official picture taker of the weekend. i may have also secretly deemed him the official picture taker of all events, but let’s keep that between you and me. 😉
i knew we’d want to share some of the trip’s excitement with you, but i also didn’t want to spend my birthday vacation with my head down in my journal in an attempt to capture every emotion of each moment. so with that, we give you the highlights of our adventure as told through pictures. enjoy!
day 1: joy that we are going on vacation, misery after a rough flight, and phillip’s first in-n-out experience at nearly one a.m. pacific time.
day 2: my birthday!
brunch at catalina bistro with aunt cindy and uncle craig.
pictures at the trump golf resort. mm, we so fancy!
a tour of beautiful wayfarers chapel.
a leisurely stroll through point fermin park.
lots of coastline pictures.
a quick stop at a-1 imports to get cevapcici for my birthday dinner. uuuggghhh, i’m drooling just remembering how they taste!
tour of uncle jeff’s first mcdonald’s and, yes, the making of our very own big macs!!!
popping into amalfitano bakery to pick up my birthday cake and then the subsequent eating of my birthday cake. yummo!
day 3: venice beach, pch, and santa barbara.
an incredibly necessary stop at venice beach.
the pacific in all its glory!
fried oreosssss!!!
muscle beach. what a stud!
a late lunch at neptune’s net.
a fabulous welcome to santa barbara (our first visit to this adorable town for the both of us).
dinner with sara and christian at outpost of the goodland hotel.
day 4: more santa barbara and all the good things there.
a toursity walk through local santa barbara.
stop at the mission for a quick history lesson.
lunch at the brewhouse.
wine and truffle tasting at riverbench winery’s tasting room.
figueroa mountain brewing company beer. tasty.
drinks and piano fun at seven.
sunset views from the pier.
a final round of drinks at joe’s per milo’s recommendation (of course).
kelsey v 
I enjoyed your trip all over again via Philip’s photos!
Cindy