ready to be confused? nicolaus and i had chose to go california last weekend to save some money getting his surfboards to australia. 

but it makes more sense than you think...we are going to australia this christmas and us flying the boards down there would have cost $200 each way (!!!) and my sister taking them on her flight is going to be free because her airline isn't a fun hater. and since her family is flying out of california, we swung a little weekend road trip down there to store the boards at her in-laws for them to take when they meet us in australia.

and i'm happy it all worked out in that weird, confusing way because we got a really fun trip out of it! we drove down to ventura thursday night with our friends bryan and kevin, slept at their house for a few hours, then went straight to the beach. where the boys surfed and i slept/lay out in a happy beach coma for a solid five hours. then we got some mexican food and hung out for a little longer before nicolaus and i headed down to encinitas. we hit some traffic driving through venice, so when i spotted general store (who i have cyber-stalked for awhile now), we made a pit stop and i drooled over every single item in the shop (it is like pinterest/instagram heaven in there). i turned 100% superfan and luckily the girl working was so sweet and instead of making fun of me/thinking i was a big weirdo/just fanned out right alongside me. haha nicolaus also entertained my craziness and helped pick out the most beautiful wall hanging!

we made one more pit stop along the way at huntington beach and met up with a few friends to have a bonfire and roast some hot dogs and marshmallows. it was so fun to see jake and ashley and their babes and meet a few of their friends! and eventually we made it down to encinitas where we stayed up for a bit chatting before crashing for the night.

the next morning, nicolaus woke up early to go surfing with our friend clayton, and i woke up early to go yard sale-ing with my sister's mother-in-law, laurie. we both had excellent times and i have quite a few treasures to prove it! ranging from a possum skull to ceramic dishes to harry potter books. laurie is a master yard-saler and i always love going with her when we're down there.

that afternoon, nicolaus and i headed down to the beach and soaked in some more sun and i even tried surfing! i've tried maybe twice before and never had much success, but this time i was able to stand up a few times and even ride out an entire wave!! it was SO much fun and i felt so accomplished. even though most times i popped up from the water only to hear nick's hyena laugh over how silly i looked flailing about when i fell off the board. haha and i don't blame him even a little bit..

aaanyways this post is turning into way more of a novel than i had planned, but the rest of the time was filled with chocolatey drinks from chuao, browsing through an incredible home store filled with the most beautiful scandanavian designs, dinner with friends, fresh donuts, late night chats, outlet shopping and lots and lots of driving to good music and good conversation. have i mentioned that i love road trips? they are mine and nick's happy place. 

p.s. while i was at a yard sale, i met the sweetest lady who was raising money for a service dog for her son with autism. and this is link to her campaign if you would like to check it out!