A Few More Lake Days

We are squeezing in a few more lake days before Back To School.  Love this place...

Our Happy Place!

Back Stage Chicken

We finally recovered from the California jet-lag and are ready to enjoy our last few days of summer.  I mean, where did it go?  I think this may quite possibly be the fastest fly by summer in history.

Okay, so get ready for this, it's kind of amazing, and I'm sure something you will want to give a try.  I am always in search of new places to see and do with the kids, especially during the summer.  We have done it all locally, so I was completely shocked and totally stoked when I found a Back Stage Chick-fil-a Tour!  How have I missed this?

We all know Chick-fil-a is famous for their hospitality {and of course their chicken}.  The tour was just that, completely hospitable and lovely.

We were a group of three families and had our engaging tour guide all to ourselves.  She didn't miss a beat and kept the kids full attention the entire time.

A couple favorite stops included Truett Cathy's car collection...

His actual office...

A mock original diner....

And a real billboard....{come on, don't tell me you've never wanted to see those giant cows up close}...

Post tour, we made our way down to the Original Dwarf House Chick-fil-a.  We sat on the side of the restaurant where a waitress serves you just for the experience.  The kids and the adults were amazed by the menu...waffles, fried okra, mac n' cheese, and even hamburgers!

I'm not even embarrassed to say, we ordered one of everything just to try it!  Spoiler alert...the mac'n cheese is coming to the restaurants next year.

So much fun...now to fill these last few days of summer vaca!

California Coast

We left our hearts in San Francisco and embarked on the second half of our journey.  Hello HWY 1...

Our drive down the California Coast was absolutely stunning.  And although, I was pointing out every beautiful sight to the kids they were more entertained with pretzel fights and karaoke competitions in the back seat.  Needless to say, several quick stops were in order.

Once we arrived at our planned destination the kids were wide eyed and ready to check out the scenery. It might have had something to do with the giant Ferris wheel in view, apparently that is more appealing than crashing Pacific waves and giant rock formations .  The Santa Cruz Boardwalk was for sure the highlight of the drive for them.  We ate a yunmmy seafood lunch and had our fill of carnival fun.

This stop was totally worth that excruciating, yet beautiful drive.  I mean those smiles!...they say it all!  After our juvenile stop, we hopped back in the car for the second leg of our road trip.  Our final destination was Carmel Valley which we arrived to in less than two hours.

We checked into the Carmel Valley Ranch and were greeted by the gorgeous rolling hills and farmland of California.  A much different scene from city life just a few miles up the road.

Again, everyone was wiped out!  Me more so mentally from being cooped up in the car with wound up kids.  Geez!  But, we made it and it was such a serene location.

The next morning we woke up to fresh air, an amazing breakfast, and a nice quiet ranch.  We all put on our tennies and got ready for a day of outdoor adventuring.

We spent most of it visiting Point San Lobos Park, Big Sur, and a local garden.

Quite the contrast from San Fransisco!

Our late afternoon was spent around the Carmel Valley Ranch.  There is so much to do on property.  The girls and I attended a bath bomb making workshop, while the boys golfed.  We all met back in the evening for swimming and dinner.

The next morning we awoke for our final full day of Cali and headed off to Monterey.

We started our adventure at the Monterey Bay Aquarium with a guided family tour.  Apparently, it is a must do.  We were semi-impressed and did get a quick behind the scenes look.

From there, we roamed around the town and ate lunch before catching an afternoon sail of Monterey Bay.  The weather was fabulous and I imagine if I were a sailor, I'd say a perfect day for sailing.

The cruise literally took us within touching distance to all kinds of wildlife.  Sea Lions, Harbor Seals and even Otters.  I mean who needs the aquarium, when you can do this?

After our lovely cruise, we explored the pier{if you're counting, it was about our 5th of the trip} and and made a stop in Carmel {which is darling}.

We made it back to the ranch just in time for an evening of swimming, dinner, and campfire s'mores.  Not a bad way to end an action packed week.

Our final day was a "travel day".  Ugh, I'm not so crazy about those.  We drove back to San Fran {all interstate this time} and then took the long flight back home.  Once again, that time change did a number on us for a few days once we were home.

After we recovered, we spent some time looking at pictures of our trip and reliving all the excitement.  To my surprise, the kids DID get something out of it...they actually learned a little bit and remembered details, and totally loved their week in California.

Just a few short weeks left of summer vacation...