To Monterey With Love

In Monterey we were in a bubble to happiness- Saba and Giancarlo had brought baby Sofia, and we got to show Brandy and Conor more of the Pacific Coast. It was a day of strollers, nemo, co-parenting, penguinos, diaper changing, and sunset beaches. Conor and Brandy had been in San Francisco for a few days prior, and it was a family day to visit Monterey Bay Aquarium, the Big Sur, and Carmel-by-the-sea.

The most fun was watching the little ones switch from a position of squirm to then being frozen, mesmerized by the otters and sharks as we all hummed together the annoyingly fun “baby shark” mantra. However, since Conor’s shirt had a shark jumping out of a banana peel, the song became “banana shark” (and it will now forever be).

We had snacks and popcorn to quell the animals that were Conor and Sofia, and we parked strollers as we searched for the sea creatures. After lunch was over, we then went to spend time with the ocean itself. The children slept as we took the strollers off road to walk the trails at Point Lobos, where we overlooked the cliff sides and coves that began the Big Sur. When the children woke up, we did stroller races which we will not hereafter admit to.

As sunset skirted the horizon, we took our coffee and our candies to put our feet in the water at Carmel-by-the-sea. It was a day of parental leisure - where we had more hands than children and no end to the fun of old friends, family, and sand between our toes. Photos were taken, of course, as we ran amuck.

It was such a treat to visit these places with people we love so much, and while Conor and Sofia may one day never remember it, we will remember their tiny eyes and huge smiles as the waves would crash before us.