Yesterday was our last day with my family. They were the reason we came out here as they had a time share at a resort in Escondido and invited us to share the week with them. It was bitter sweet because we had a great last day, but it was really hard to see them go. We needed to do a little shopping for our Mom's birthday so we headed out to Fashion Valley Mall. Like so many malls around here it was outdoors, with rows of endless shops, outdoor escalators, coffee shops at every turn and plenty of palm trees. The boys wandered into the Apple store where they camped out for a bit ogling over the Iphone and I found myself in Express, buying a really cute dress and top.

After a short distraction there, we headed out to Torre Pines, a beautiful state park with breathtaking views of the ocean, lush vegetation and... rattlesnakes. We didn't see any of those, (thankfully!) but the scenery was amazing and it was a great place to get a little exercise. The beach nearby is amazing.


I still can't believe those of you who live here get this kind of weather every day! Those of you not from CA, I kid you not, every single day here is gorgeous open blue skies without a single cloud. Even if the morning is a little overcast, by 11am it brightens up into the most perfect day ever. I am head over heels for this place.


This morning, we left the resort in Escondido for our hotel in downtown San Diego. We spent the day touring the gas lamp district and the seaside port area. What a beautiful immaculate city! The streets are spotless and there are trees and flowers everywhere. The buildings are all revitalized or brand new, each with their own character. Most of the shops were closed today, which is probably a good thing as my visa has been getting quite the workout, but we enjoyed a leisurely lunch at Fred's Mexican Cafe, followed by the best chocolate icecream I've ever had at Ghirardelli's.

So much exploring to do, but only a couple of days left!