California: Day 3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Birthday day! 

We woke up early and drove over to Herbivore (for the second time in three days!) for a big birthday brunch followed by a drive into the city. JP brought me to the bench at the highest point of Delores Park and we sat and overlooked the big and beautiful city. It was a gorgeous day in San Francisco. 

That afternoon we went to Union Square to go ice skating. It was JP's first time ever ice skating and one of my birthday wishes to go. So, JP made it happen and it was so much fun! It turns out that John-Paul is quite the professional skater. I'm sure we'll be seeing much more of him on the ice. 

We headed back to our hotel and changed into our fancy birthday outfits and headed to Millennium, a beautiful new vegan restaurant in SF where JP had made dinner reservations. Oh my goodness. As they walked us to our table there was a huge display of roses on the table, all a part of JP's secret birthday plans, and only the beginning of an incredible birthday weekend.

California: Day 2

Day two was declared a lazy day upon waking up. JP made breakfast for us; a scramble with tofu, soy chiroso, black beans, and homestyle potatoes. The rest of the afternoon was spent laying around reading and watching hockey games. Before picking up burritos for dinner, JP and I raced out to see the sunset over the mountains along one of his cycling routes. A beautiful end to a relaxing low-key day. Birthday festivities were planned to begin early the next morning, so we certainly needed our rest!

California: Day 1

After sleeping in a bit, JP and I went out for a delicious breakfast at Herbivore. Tofu scramble for him, french toast and blueberry cornbread to share. We then went for a walk around Berkeley and grabbed a cinnamon roll topped with lemon icing and blackberries at Cinnaholic. With full bellies, JP whisked us away to the Golden Gate Bridge. I was a little child jumping with excitement and smiling so much that my cheeks hurt. It was the most beautiful and wonderful day for a visit to the GGB. We walked across the big red bridge and took pictures galore. These were definitely some of my most treasured moments from the entire trip.

Cinnamon Toast

I've spent my whole life eating cinnamon toast the WRONG way. I had no idea until this woman brought it to my attention and I'm thankful she did. So, the following morning I tried cinnamon toast the RIGHT way (according to her, soon to be me, and probably you too). Oh my goodness! Who knew such a nice and simple treat could have such potential?!

You need to try this, seriously.

Cinnamon Toast - The Right Way (adapted from The Pioneer Woman, you can find the original recipe here)
*I altered the recipe to a single serving, replaced and omitted a couple items.
 
2 slices of whole wheat bread
1 Tbsp. Earth Balance, Softened
1/2 Tbsp. Sugar
1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Vanilla Extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Stir to completely combine the Earth Balance with a sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla.

Spread onto slices of bread, covering the entire surface, all the way to the edges.
Place the bread on a cookie sheet and bake for 3 or so minutes (I honestly didn't pay much attention to the time, but it was much less than her suggestion of 10 minutes).

Turn the broiler on and broil until golden brown and bubbling (be careful not to let it burn!).

Remove from oven and enjoy!

How simple is that?

Ooops

How did I forget about the photos from the end of the year picnic?! It's so strange that the school year ended two months ago and now we (amongst the group of us in the photos) are spread all across the country for the summer. Matt and Beth are married now (!!!) and living in Virginia, Blair and I are in South Carolina, Raul is in New Mexico, and Betsy is splitting her summer between Honduras and Washington. Here are photos from our picnic, before I forget about them again.

Fall's Park

Raul and Betsy

Bethany and Matt. Matt had just returned from an internship where he spent the entire semester away in Virginia. We were all  pretty happy see him (especially Bethany)!

Don't be fooled. Blair was having the time of her life.

Betsy, myself, Bethany, and Blair.

Another picnic is coming up this weekend. I just love summer picnics. If it were up to me, we would have picnics each and every day.

-K