Our end of the Summer mini-vacation included an amazing meal at Plow and Angel at the San Ysidro Ranch. It is just so beautiful there. I wore a J. Crew dress that I featured in Stripes and Paisley on the Vineyard. This time swapping the pops of pink for my favorite leopard print. The dress is so easy to wear and is a great neutral shirting stripe that can be styled so many ways.
Enjoying the beautiful grounds after dinner.
Dinner at or absolute favorite restaurant. It is rare to find a place with such amazing food for adults and healthy options that are appealing to kids too.
Plow and Angel at the San Ysidro Ranch
Then we headed back to Butterfly Beach and The Biltmore for sunset.
It is nearly impossible not to feel “in the pink” in Santa Barbara, especially at The Biltmore, overlooking Butterfly Beach. The Biltmore was built in 1928 and epitomized Southern California glamour and was a favorite retreat of old Hollywood. The grounds are just so beautiful and Butterfly Beach is a favorite of ours. The butterflies actually left soon after the construction and care was put it to the landscaping and trees so that they would return. We learned about this in the beautiful children’s book “Butterfly Beach” by Polly Caldwell Bookwalter that we purchased in the gift shop for vacation bedtime reading. We spotted a few butterflies on one of our morning walks. The beach walks were so beautiful that I even managed to win my weekly Fitbit step contest against several competitive New Yorkers.
Saying goodbye to summer is hard. Last week we got away for an end of the summer mini-vacation to Santa Barbara and had so much fun. We stayed in Montecito where my husband and I were engaged and married as I mentioned in Pom-Poms at the Courthouse. We had a great time with a visit to the Santa Barbara Zoo, beach and pool time, and some great meals.
I decided to add a pop of pink (wild flamingo to be exact according to J. Crew speak) to my navy in this outfit to reflect both my end of summer blues and my excitement for fall. These photos were taken at the Montecito Inn, which was built by Charlie Chaplin in 1928. You can read more about the history here. The hotel is so charming and I love the archways.
From the time I can remember my earliest memory, I wanted to be a mother. I thought about what my kids would be like, where I would live and taking them to school. I pictured at least three to four kids. I did not waver from this. I wanted a career as well and wanted to establish that first and then juggle it all. I carefully watched others in the workplace do their juggling act and had concerns about how it would be done and where the sacrifices would be made.
I took me a long time to find my husband and along the way I had multiple careers. We had our son later in life and it was not easy to get pregnant. I feel so grateful that I am now a mother and also know that Mother’s Day is a tough day for a lot of people. My third date with my husband was the night before Mother’s Day, ten years ago. He had lost his mother twelve years before that. It was a hard day for him. For many years it was hard for me too, waiting for my turn and wondering when and if it would happen.
I feel honored and lucky to be the mother of my incredible son. He constantly surprises me with his old soul knowledge and then follows it up with silly Kindergarten antics. He and my husband planned a very special day for me that included a drive to Santa Barbara and a lovely brunch at The Stonehouse at San Ysidro Ranch. We had recently celebrated our Anniversary with an amazing meal at their other restaurant Plow and Angel . My husband had the brilliant idea to do a day trip for their Mother’s Day Brunch. It was flawless.
XO,
JAE
Quick stop at the Biltmore to look at Beanie BabiesBeautiful menu at The StonehouseEntrance to The San Ysidro RanchAmazing MealGorgeous Dessert BuffetLearning to make Creme Brulee
Exploring the San Ysidro Adobe built in 1825Always about the shoes
the navy leopard 