Cherry Blossom Season in Hakone Gardens

If you live somewhere where Spring is in full effect (ie. not Colorado!) it's cherry blossom season!

When we lived in California one of my favorite annual events was Cherry Blossom Festival in San Francisco's Japantown. We'd go along every year to take in all the Japanese culture, the delicious food, the parade, and of course, the beautiful cherry blossoms. You can see some of our visits to Cherry Blossom Festival here, here and here. This year's Cherry Blossom Festival will be virtual (which means you can attend from anywhere!) but if you're in the Bay Area and keen to check out some cherry blossoms and a little Japanese culture in person I highly recommend visiting Hakone Gardens in Saratoga.

We visited Hakone Gardens a few months before we made the move to Colorado and I've been meaning to share our visit here ever since. It's such a beautiful place, especially in Spring when the many trees and shrubs are in bloom. Of course, Spring is the most popular time to visit, so it was rather crowded the day that we went. In fact, the staff told us that it had been their busiest day to date! Normally when we visit somewhere busy I like to take a little extra time with my photos to try and capture less people in them. This was pretty much impossible the day we visited Hakone Gardens, so expect to see lots of people in my pics. This was pre-covid, of course, so the crowds will likely be a little smaller now due to the fact that advance bookings are required to ensure social distancing.  

Let's take a look at our visit...

25 Kid Friendly San Francisco Bay Area Hikes

Ever since we moved from California to Colorado I've been dreaming of going back. I miss our life in the San Francisco Bay Area so much, but right now I'm grateful that here in Colorado we have a house and a yard, with plenty of space to spread out. In the Bay Area we'd be finding ourselves on lock down in a two bedroom apartment with no outdoor space of our own, which, as much as I want to move back, isn't particularly appealing right now.

For those of you who find yourself in that same position I'm sharing my favorite hikes in and around San Francisco. They're all kid friendly and area great way to get out and get a little exercise without traveling too far from home. As always, click the bold and underlined title for more information.

Please make sure to follow any and all Shelter in Place orders before heading out for a hike. Keep at least 6 feet away from other hikers and don't forget to pack the hand sanitzer. While parks are currently open this may change, so make sure to check online first.

Cal Day 2019

This past weekend we spent a day at UC Berkeley for the annual Cal Day event.

Cal Day is the university's open day, but it's not only for prospective students like you might think. While there is plenty on hand for students planning on attending Cal, it's also a day filled with fun activities for the whole the family. At Cal Day you'll find spirit rallies, musical performances, campus tours, booths from every club you could possibly imagine (and lots you would never imagine existed!), hands on science experiments, campus police displays, animals to pet, sporting events and so much more. In fact, there's so much on offer at Cal Day that's it's impossible to even see half of it.

Our Family Photos

Disclaimer: This post is brought to you thanks to San Francisco Bay Area Family Photographer, Sarah Sloboda. All opinions are my own. 

I'm so excited to share with you today the photos from our recent family photo shoot! This was the first time we'd ever had real family photos taken, and I'm so happy with how they turned out. 

For our family photos I booked a mini shoot with San Francisco Bay Area Photographer, Sarah Sloboda. Our shoot was held outside Lawrence Hall of Science in the Berkeley Hills, with the simple 1960s lines of the building as a backdrop.  

As you can see, it was a pretty rainy, grey day when we had our photo shoot. At first I had worried that we'd have to reschedule for a day with sunshine predicted, but Sarah assured me that the overcast weather would result in beautiful light. And she was right! No harsh shadows, no one squinting... Just lovely diffused light.  

We had a mix of photos taken; some with all five of us, and some with just the kids. Of course, there were plenty of silly faces from the kids, especially Mathilde, and a few grumpy faces from Lola (she wasn't happy about being out in the cold at first), but these made for fun candid shots.

The rain wasn't particularly heavy so we braved a few shots out in the open. I really love the falling rain in the shot below. It almost looks like snow! We can pretend, right?

Our photo shoot with Sarah was just right for our family. It was pretty relaxed and the kids felt very comfortable with Sarah. The 20 minute long mini session was the perfect amount of time - especially given how cold and rainy it was!

Sarah offers seasonal mini shoots throughout the year at selected locations, as well as one hour packages at the location of your choice. Wouldn't a booking for a family photo shoot make a wonderful Christmas gift? You can find more details about photo shoot packages and pricing at http://sarahsloboda.com/.

Thank you so much Sarah for our amazing photos!

Fall Family Photo Shoot

Disclaimer: This post is brought to you thanks to San Francisco Bay Area Family Photographer, Sarah Sloboda. All opinions are my own. 

Can you believe that we've never had family photos taken before? Crazy, right? We have plenty of terrible family vacation snaps taken at touristy spots by passing strangers (who never seem to be able to hold the camera still or compose the photo nicely!) but when it comes to professional photos the only ones we've ever had taken were newborn photos of Ava when she was two weeks old! Oh, and our wedding photos! Considering that we're now a family of five (and have been for two and a half years), I don't think either of those really count as family photos.

So this year I decided we needed to do something about our lack of family photos. I'm excited to say that we'll be working with San Francisco Bay Area Family Photographer Sarah Sloboda on a family photo shoot in November. I can't wait to share our photos with you, but in the meantime I want to share some of Sarah's work with you.

When I was a kid, family photo shoots meant dressing in semi formal outfits and standing awkwardly with your family in front of a pretend background in a studio. They also involved lots of forced smiles that looked more like grimaces! I can assure that I grimace every time I see the family photos at my parents' house. Sorry Mum! But, I can also assure you there will be none of this for our family photos. 

What I love about Sarah's family photography is that the personality of each person shines through. Her casual style results in photos that feel natural rather than forced. The little quirks are what make the photo in my opinion. That cute toddler poking her tongue out below? Totally the highlight for me! Knowing Mathilde, we'll definitely end up with more than one tongue poking out shot! And knowing Lola, there may just be duck face too.