Coronado

Last weekend Andrew and I joined my parents on a trip to Coronado to visit Mark. It was a long weekend with a lot of driving but it was completely worth it! Mark graduated on Friday morning and to celebrate we went skydiving in the afternoon!

Marissa and I before we jumped

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All smiles! It was amazing!!! 

Mark wanted to make sure we had the Tac Air Ops sign in the picture :)

We spent Saturday afternoon at the beach on Coronado.

We got a little sunburnt on the trip but it was so nice to have warm weather and spend time with family. 

Gardening

It seems like Andrew and I are getting a little stir crazy. It might be from summer starting and we are getting anxious for our trips to Oregon or it might be from living in the city for too long and we aren't city people. Either way, we are a little crazy; I mean, we are attempting to start a garden in our kitchen.

Last week Jana asked me what I do for fun in SF. Well, Jana, Andrew and I look at plants and flowers and talk about which ones we could grow when we have property. Then we think, why couldn't we grow them now? We have amazing windows and our current plants thrive here. So we end up buying seeds, potting soil, and a couple pots to (hopefully) grow our lettuce, spinach, and tomatoes once they sprout. Yes, we are going to attempt growing tomatoes indoors. 

A few days after we planted the seedings I saw a pineapple plant when I was shopping. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to grow a pineapple. I love pineapple. So... I walked home with a crazy looking pineapple plant and ignored the double-takes that people passing me did. Once I was asked what it was and I had to explain but I didn't care, I'm going to have pineapple!

Strawberry Days

The wonderful organic farm that we receive our farm share boxes from, Eatwell Farm, invited its members out for a strawberry picking day yesterday. So of course we went for the all you can eat berries in the field and the chance to personally see the farm. The weather was great, 92 degrees! After living in the foggy city for nine months now being in the hot sun with a light breeze was fantastic! 

One of the strawberry fields

Andrew and I picked two flats of strawberries in about an hour and took a tour of the small farm. 

Rhubarb!

There is a pet turkey that lives with the chickens.

Since Eatwell Farm is about 10 miles from Vacaville we were able to see the Carpenters! We had a wonderful visit and were even able to hold their new kittens! For us animal deprived city dwellers, getting to pet two adorable kittens was amazing. Btw, their names are Bruce and Pip.

I have the best sister in the world (and soon to be brother-in-law). She knew that I loved this dresser that my cousin Tamara, owner of A Perfect Treasure, made so Laura and Sheldon bought it for me (and Andrew) as a late wedding gift. It's beautiful! I had no idea until Tamara took me into her showroom and pointed to a sign on it that said "to Rachel and Andrew". I absolutely love it! Now I have 3 of her pieces :)

Andrew and I both had today off so we started working on the delicious strawberries.    

We cut and vacuum packed the berries after setting some aside for a cobbler Andrew wanted to make.

It was delicious! There's really nothing better than organic fruit.

Some of the strawberries in the freezer. We need a bigger freezer! 

I love getting out of the city especially to see family or to do something fun- like berry picking! It really helps break up the monotony of everyday life. :)