Pre-Birthday Beach Day

I don't know anyone who doesn't get excited for their birthday. I definitely get excited for mine and obviously spend as much of it with the people I love as possible. This past Saturday I celebrated early with a few of my best friends and my boyfriend in Santa Cruz.

We started with brunch at The Harbor Cafe, where we indulged in bloody mary's and greyhounds outside on their patio while we waited for our table. When we finally got seated I ordered their Cali Bene which was a delicious eggs benedict over a croissant with bacon and avocado. (Unfortunately I didn't bring in my camera, which I am obviously regretting now because the food was so delicious!) 

After brunch we went to a favorite beach spot of mine and relaxed and people watched. It was surprisingly not as crowded as we thought it would be and really enjoyed the amount of space we had on the beach. It was so relaxing that my friend Nicole's boyfriend Manny took a nap on the beach, while the rest of us chatted while basking in the sun. 

I can't wait for the rest of the week because there are a few more birthday shenanigans I am going to get into. Dinner @ Flour + Water in the city & a Moroccan Meal with the family Wednesday for my actual birthday. 

dress: aritzia  / sandals: zara (old)  / hat: f21 / necklace: f21, etsy

What are your birthday plans this year? 

xx

Siobhain 

Phil's Fish Market

One of my favorite places to visit when I go to the coast is Phil's Fish Market in Moss Landing. I can't really describe the euphoria I feel when I walk into Phil's but it's just this little kid before Disney excitement.

My boyfriend's family introduced me to this place on a visit to the coast when we started dating and now we try to make a trip at least once or twice a year for their phenomenal seafood Cioppino (which was actually featured on that one show with Bobby Flay where he tries to make his own better version and of course typically loses out to the hometown favorites).

All of their food is pretty amazing and if the Cioppino weren't so good I'd gladly swap for some fish and chips, but it is, so I don't.

(**As a random side note if you decide to visit Phil's bring an appetite because the portions are large. My boyfriend and I can usually split a 20$ cioppino that comes with salad and garlic bread and feel totally satisfied. You can swap out items if you're not a fan of mussels or scallops or something and replace it with more shrimp or crab which is awesome)

"This is not a fashion show, this is Phil's" - My boyfriend Jon regarding this lovely photo below:

And here's a lonely cup of clam chowder because it's actually really good and we pretty much always get a cup because more than that would be way too much combined with that giant seafood bowl of Cioppino (You can't not get the chowder, I'm pretty sure it's sacrilegious). 

What is your favorite getaway indulgence? 

Cheers! 

Siobhain 

Wilder Ranch National Park

My weekends are crazy sometimes. This weekend in particular was jam packed with things to do. I work 6 days a week including Saturdays, so I really have to make the most of the little time off that I do have which means cramming every activity into Sunday. 

The last few months my boyfriend Jon and I have been particularly lazy not getting anything done until past 2pm on Sundays so we decided this weekend we wanted to make a change and got up at 9 and headed out to Santa Cruz to enjoy this trail that sits on the edge of the coast and is extremely breathtaking. 

It seriously reminds me of how beautiful California is and I feel extremely lucky to be 30-45 minutes away from this place. 

 

Until next weekend...

xo

Siobhain