Welcome to another installment of my personal travels with the husband. To celebrate summer and the start of a very busy summer wedding season, we took a few days off to adventure around the Santa Barbara wine country. We decided to partake on a bit of the “Sideways” tour, by visiting certain landmarks from the movie, while also visiting a few fave spots and a few never before visited places. The husband decided to call this trip the “No Reservations” adventure. This trip was planned very last minute and thus, we made no reservations (but we did have a back up plan just in case).

Our adventure started with a bit of driving – through Los Angeles to the Los Padres National Forest for a day of hiking and camping, where we planned to look for an open camp site for the night.  Voila we found two camp sites, picked our favorite and settled in for the day.  We came upon the Paradise Store, where we grabbed a quick bite, food for the night and snapped a few photographs for memories sake.  Afterwards…we indulged in a bit of swimming at a small water spot in the canyon and then we came upon a small little tavern in the middle of nowhere…truly paradise.  This trip was starting off fabulously, which is a great thing!

The next morning, we drove into the small towns of Los Olivos, Solvang, Buellton and Los Alamos.  There, we wandered around, shopped through antique stores, perused through local family owned farms for fresh fare, and went wine tasting.  We found the most interesting places, tasted some amazing wine and made friendlies with the locals.

A little blog love for some of the places that we stopped in…if you ever have a chance to visit these places, spread some love and enjoy!

Foxen Winery, Santa Maria

Enjoy Cupcakes, Los Olivos

Alma Rosa Winery & Vineyard, Buellton

Full of Life Flatbread, Los Alamos

Skyview Motel, Los Alamos

Ostrichland USA, Buellton

Needless to say, this trip was amazing.  This adventure provided a bit of everything for me…therapy, motivation, inspiration, relaxation, spending time with my best friend, and falling in love with the locals. Check out some of our fun…

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The hubby and I have always tried (really hard!) to be healthy eaters.  We get comments from people in our lives about the food decisions that we make all the time.  I admit, eating healthy is very difficult, especially when other food choices are available at every corner.  All of my friends and family know that my downfall is ice cream…anything that ends with cream, actually, would be the harbinger of any of my many diets that resulted in “falling off the wagon.”

We’ve often perused through the countless stalls of veggies at our local UC Irvine farmer’s market (every Saturday across from UC Irvine’s campus – highly recommended!) and we decided, during one of our visits, to figure out just how we could make the farmer’s market a part of our daily routine.  In comes Local Harvest, a website which connects the community to nearby farms that supply their harvests to the public!

We have currently become a part of the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program.  Want to know more about CSA?  Per Local Harvest, here’s what they’ve got to say…

Over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of “shares” to the public. Typically the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a “membership” or a “subscription”) and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.

CSA is an amazing program!  We pick up our basket from South Coast Farms every other Thursday at our favorite local restaurant, which coincidentally was a drop site for our farm.  The baskets are fabulous – full of seasonal fresh fruits and vegetables, with some flowers on the side!  I’ve learned that fresh fruits and vegetables don’t look as pretty as the fruits & veggies that you buy at the supermarket, which kind of makes you think…OH, and the hubby laughs every time I see a caterpillar in our greens (I’m not so good with animals…haha).  We have taken on the bi-weekly challenge of identifying fruits & veggies that we have never seen (or eaten before).  It really makes you think about what we eat and what is truly in season as Mother Nature has intended!

So, check it out, if you’d like!!  :)  Maybe some photos from our last basket will set you on your way…enjoy!

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As an East Coast girl, a white Christmas is the best way to enjoy the holidays and to end the year.  Living in California, you don’t have any opportunities to see a white Christmas ever.  This year, we were back in Draper, Utah visiting family and taking in the cold, cold fresh air and enjoying life as we know it.  To end the year, we decided to capture the Ongman family at their best…dressed in their winter jackets, having fun, and freezing their buns off.

We spent 4 days in Draper with Heidi and her family, it was such an awesome Christmas and I’m so thankful to have Heidi and her family in my life.  The entire family was in tow…my mom & brother along with Heidi and her family, Mama & Papa Lempert and the husband and yours truly (plus the two dogs).  It was a full house and a fabulous visit – stay tuned for the next post…the video that the hubby put together that sums up our family vacation fabulously…

Anywho…check out the fun we had at Draper Park with Heidi and family!!!

All pooped out after the photo shoot…

Now, you may be wondering how in the world I got the four kiddos to cooperate and last almost an hour, posing for tons of photos…here’s how the email conversation went between me and Heidi…Heidi:  “We’ll have to figure out how to get the kids to stand still and pose for photos…”  Me:  “Well, we can bribe them with something…maybe?”  Heidi:  “What do you think we should do?”  Me:  “Well in the olden days, wouldn’t they sacrifice a human for promise of good things to come?”  Heidi:  “That sounds like a good idea, who should we sacrifice?”  Me:  “Well the kiddos love Uncle Cool, let’s sacrifice him after the photo shoot…”

Luckily, it worked out…the hubby was my lovely assistant, making the kiddos laugh and assisting with demonstrating how to pose for a photo…

And when we were finally done, the promise of a human sacrifice was paid forward and we let the kiddos loose on Uncle Cool…

The End…another great end to another great shoot.  Thanks Ongman crew, we love you!  Cheers!

A few weeks ago, the family decided to get together.  Well, we decided a few months ago but a few weeks ago, we got together.  The Lempert crew found themselves at Zion National Park for a weekend filled with family fun, a bit of wrestling, and some hiking.  The husband and I drove out the night before Lempert-fest, as we decided that bright Friday morning, we would be hiking Angels Landing, one of Zion National Park‘s most popular (and scarier) hikes.

Friday morning, we woke up in St. George, a quaint little town that I wish we could have spent a bit more time in.  Our hike was awaiting, so we got to Zion National Park, jumped on the shuttle & in a few minutes were dropped off at the trail marker.  The first part of the hike wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, but when we started the ascend up to Angels Landing, I’d have to say that my fear of heights got the best of me.  Wanting to turn back and wait for the hubby to finish, he convinced me to keep on as he believed that I would regret not getting to the top.  And an hour or so later…we got to the top…check out some of the photos taken by me and some by the oh-so-talented husband o’mine…

Don’t let the smile fool you here…we were about half-way up the ascent and I almost cried a few seconds before this photo was taken…

And shortly after…we made it to the top!  I would definitely recommend this hike to all of you out there but be forewarned!  It is not a lie when they tell you it’s not recommended for people with an intense fear of heights!

After the Angels Landing hike, we met up with the rest of the family at the Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort.  There, we made camp by putting up our tent & settling in, while Mom & Dad Lempert made themselves comfy in their Cowboy Cabin and Heidi and family were nestled comfortably in their RV.  I was looking forward to a good weekend of hiking and hi-jinx with the kids.  Here are a few photos of Saturday & Sunday…

This one is the OFFICIAL Lempert Family vacation portrait (off the point & shoot)…

On our way home…there were deer alongside the road, but by the time we whipped the camera out, we only managed to get a small peek at them…

A great weekend with great memories!  More Lempert Family Adventures to come…cheers!

A tent that sleeps two, sleeping bags, a propane stove top, and a bear-resistant food storage container…yes, the Lempert’s have become campers.  At first, I thought that the hubby had just wanted to “try it out” and it soon became “…where should we go next?”

I must admit, camping does wonderful things for you.  FREE (yes, FREE) from the internet, the computer, the editing, the emails, the cell phones, and the television.  It really takes you away from what happens in your daily routine and man, it feels great!  And you really, really get to know each other since you’re only other source of conversation (besides Roscoe, the dog) is your significant other.

This past weekend, we road tripped to Rock Creek Lake, located in the Eastern Sierras.  It was absolutely amazing – even the drive was amazing!  The air was so clean and fresh, the hikes were amazing and the scenery was mind blowing.  What was not so amazing…the mosquitos!  The minute you stood still, you were swarmed by every mosquito in the wilderness.  Nonetheless, it was an amazing time and the Lempert’s will be back again.

Check out the latest Lempert family adventure…

The husband and I traveled to my mother’s home town back in December (I know, I’m behind on blogging the personals!).  We spent two weeks traveling up, down, and around the island.  It’s absolutely beautiful and totally such a sight to see.  We ran across many temples, random HUGE Buddahs in the middle of town, and just your everyday Taiwanese environment.  Needless to say, it was an amazing trip – visiting family (tons of family), scooting around the East Coast on a rented scooter wearing rain gear designed for scooter riders, learning about their subway systems and riding the Bullet Train.  Whew!  Just gets me out of breath just thinking about it again!  Check out a few of our random scenes: