the bargeron explorers | 3 days in San Francisco.

 My family and I spent ten days in sunny California this summer, and it was unforgettable! We began in San Diego, continued on to Anaheim/LA, and then headed to the final destination of our adventure...

San Francisco!

This was extra exciting, because it was a first for all of us. None of us had ever been to San Francisco before, not even the grown ups, and it was all we hoped it would be and more! We had heard mixed reviews about this popular city, which caused us to be a little guarded with tempered expectations about what we would experience. Thankfully, we held what others told us with a loose grip, and it was confirmed that we are wise to take what other people say (for worse or for better) with a grain of salt, because our time in San Francisco was absolute magic!

We stayed at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco in the Embarcadero area of the city, which offered us incredible views of the SF Bay and the Bay Bridge. It was, also, a great location in terms of walkability, too. The only thing we were disappointed in was the abbreviated hours offered in the Regency Club, especially since club access was something we were looking forward to as a way to stretch our vacation budget. But even with the limited club access, we would still stay there again!

We walk along the Bay over and over again, and we really loved Fisherman's Wharf. We walked there on our first day, and that was the first of many times we visited that fun, memorable area. The sea lions at Pier 39 were as iconic and entertaining as I'd envisioned they would be, too! Truly, there wasn't any place we walked that we weren't instantly charmed by. My eyes pricked with tears *the instant* I saw the Golden Gate Bridge come into view! What a memory.

On our first full day in the city, we ate breakfast early and then walked two miles miles to begin a bucket list experience: biking the Golden Gate Bridge! We rented our bikes through Blazing Saddles Bicycles, and spent the next nine hours biking to and from Sausalito, CA via the beautiful red bridge that everyone knows and loves. What a feeling! It was a gorgeous trek, and it was moderately difficult for us, too. Bethany rode tandem with TJ on the way there and with me on the way back, and Braxton biked the whole thing all by himself -- both of which made us so proud as their parents. We love that they find joy in adventuring like this with their mom & dad!

To celebrate such a great and grueling experience, we treated ourselves to ice cream at the San Francisco Chocolate Store back at Fisherman's Wharf after dropping our bikes back off. The way to gobbled those cones up!!

One our last full day of the city, we checked off the last few "must do" things on our list. This included the Painted Ladies (hello to all my 90s sitcom dreams!!), the house that was used as the Full House house (eeeeek!), and crossing the bridge via car for an afternoon adventure at Muir Woods! We hiked around 3.5 miles beneath the stunning Redwood trees in Muir Woods, and it was breath-taking. Now that we've seen a glimpse of those towering beauties, we all want to see more. If you ever have the opportunity to visit this magical place, I hope you do it!

Also, pro tip: don't count on Uber to get you back to the city from Muir Woods. We learned this the hard way and were graciously blessed by a park employee who helped us avoid a $150 taxi bill and get to a place where we had cell phone service. What a story, LOL! What we should have done was pre-purchased shuttle tickets to and from Muir Woods months in advance, so I recommend that for that for visitors who don't rent a car.

Our last night in the city was bittersweet, but we were ready. Ten full days on the west coast was one of dreams, and we lived every day to the fullest! We loved each stop we made, and I think we'll be reliving these days for a long, long time.

The next day, we woke up slow, ate breakfast, walked down to the bay a final time, and then caught an afternoon flight to LAX. There were no Southwest flights from SFO back to our home airport, so we opted for a single night back in LAX after leaving San Francisco and an early flight the next morning. We didn't leave the hotel (the Hyatt Regency LAX) that last night except for a mile-long walk for a farewell dinner at In-n-Out, and then it was time to head home.

Our trip highlights were:

• San Diego Zoo

• La Jolla

• Mission Beach

• Angel Stadium

• In-n-Out Burger

• Disneyland

• Disney California Adventure

• Hollywood Sign

• Downtown LA

• Hollywood Walk of Fame

• Beverly Hills

• Rodeo Drive

• Santa Monica Pier

• Pier 39 in San Francisco

• Fisherman’s Wharf

• Golden Gate Bridge

• Painted Ladies

• Muir Woods

This summer was definitely one for the books, and this adventure through Cali was the perfect ending. So thankful for all the wonderful memories we made. Next time we visit this beautiful state, I’ve got my heart set on Yosemite or (and?) Big Sur.

Have you been to CA before? What’s your favorite part of the state, if so?

I’d love to hear!!

the bargeron explorers | 4 days in & around Anaheim.

 After spending two glorious days in San Diego, we continued our tour through California and settled in for the next 4 days in...

Anaheim & Los Angeles!

This particular day was extra special because it was our 13th wedding anniversary! It felt so special to spend our day making memories one of the most fun adventures of our lives, and we loved being able to celebrate with our kiddos. We always heard the same phrase over and over again when we first go married: "You better do it now, because you won't be able to do it after you have kids." Instead of accepting that as a fact, we accepted it as a reverse challenge. See as much of the world with our children, even while they are young? Yes please! Celebrating our anniversary while across the country with our kiddos is proof of our values, and that makes me proud. The best part: being together at the happiest place on Earth!

We ate a final breakfast and loaded up our rental car in San Diego, and then drove two hours north. This was our second stop during our two-week adventure, and we were really excited about the things we had on our agenda while there. We drove straight to our first two Anaheim must-dos upon arrival:

First, we visited the Anaheim Angels stadium and team store. Our baseball-loving family was excited about this, especially the two boys. I went to a game here back in 2010, and it felt surreal to be back again years later with my own family.

Second, we introduced the kids to the the best burger place there is: In-n-Out! We all got burgers, fries, and a drink, and it was delightful. The kiddos were instant big fans, and TJ and I were downright giddy to experience it again after so long. Fun fact: this was the first place I took TJ after he landed when he visited me in 2010. So fun!

The next thing we did was actually the thing that we spent the next two full days doing, as well...

DISNEYLAND!

We spent a total of 2.5 days between Disneyland and Disney California Adventure.
Oh, what fun!

Truthfully, it wasn't all fun, because the littlest boy got hit with a fast and furious stomach virus while we were waiting in line for the Snow White ride at Disneyland only a little bit after we entered the park. TJ went back to the hotel with him, and the girls spent the rest of the day trying to make the best of our time without our other halves. We still had fun, and we rode so many rides. We saw lots of characters out and about, too!

The next day, Bethany and I had another girls day while the boys hung back at the hotel with a still-sick kiddo. We lived out best Disneyland lives, and we were happy when TJ and Braxton joined us for about an hour. Our reunion didn't last long, but we were grateful to at least be in the same place at the same time for that hour. Our hotel was the Hyatt House Anaheim, which was only about a mile walk to and from the parks, so it made for easy coming and going (especially if you snagged an Uber). We would stay again here in a heartbeat!

Battling and recovering from sickness wasn't on our agenda for this trip, of course, but we made the most of it. Braxton felt puny and awful, and TJ felt sad to be missing out on the fun, but this little hiccup gave us grown ups an opportunity to serve each of our kiddos in ways that were unique to their needs at the time. I felt extra grateful to be married to a good man on these divide-and-conquer days, even though we would have rather been together. <3

Thankfully, after two days of rest, Braxton felt much better and stronger, and we were able to all experience another park together...

DISNEY CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE!

Long story short: we were all OBSESSED with this park. The vibes were amazing, and we seriously had one of the best days of our lives while here! Every area of DCA felt like it's own little world, which was so cool. Cars Land literally made us feel like we were characters in Cars, Avengers land literally made us feel like we were Avengers, and so on. The Pixar Pier was especially fabulous, and the World of Color made me cry. I think everyone should experience all that DCA has to offer at least once in their life -- it was THAT good. As bold as this statement may be, we all agreed that it's a strong contender for our all-time favorite Disney park!

One our last full day in Anaheim, we roadtripped through Los Angeles!

Our first stop was the Hollywood sign at the Mulholland View Point where you can see the Hollywood sign and downtown LA off in the distance. We weren't here long, but it was the perfect beginning to our tourist-tastic day!

Next up, we drove to Hollywood Boulevard to see the Walk of Fame.

From there, we went into Beverly Hills & walked along Rodeo Drive (baby).

And to round out our big day in LA, we went to the Santa Monica Pier.

This whole day was very nostalgic for me, because I spent a wonderful summer driving these iconic streets and making the most of all those glorious months gave me. As nostalgic as it was, it was, also, the most frustrating day we had. After big days in San Diego and at Disney and being sick, our kids were tired and grumpy this day. We had been going, going, going for a week at this point, so it definitely wasn't unexpected; but it was hard for all of us for various reasons. It was still a fun day, but the pictures don't tell the whole story so I wanted to make sure to fill in gaps. Family travel isn't immune to big emotions; no, we bring them with us no matter where you go. But it's worth it when you love who you're with and you're excited about where you are.

We felt like we spent just the right amount of time to do what we wanted to do for this leg of the trip, although it would have been nice to explore more of the beaches before leaving. Experiencing these fun things together as a family in Anaheim and Los Angeles was incredible, and I hope we get to do it again one day.

After those four days, it was time to pack up for an early flight to our final stop of our grand California expedition! Stay tuned for where we headed next.