San Diego, day I

When a few months ago hubby announced that we were going to San Diego, i was all 'oooo, it borders Tijuana, Mexico, that's cool'. I swear, this proximity to the scariest place (in my mind) was the only thing I knew to be interesting about San Diego.

Boy, was I wrong!

Just our hotel alone has more going on around it than out little village at home has in a year. For starters, it's one of the biggest waterfront hotels on the west coast. There is a tower on top of it which offers views of Mexico. There is the Kansas City Barbecue right across the street, where Top Gun was filmed, there's the little courtyard that used to be a police station in the 30s-40s and still has some original sells for public viewing. From our room we can see USS Midway and that famous WWII statue of a sailor kissing a nurse. 

On our first day, after a delicious breakfast at Brickyard Coffee&Tea. 

Then we did a city tour that included a ride along the harbor. Turns out military is the number 1 industry in San Diego, with the city housing 40% of all US Navy.

We made a quick trip to Balboa Park, which is home to a lot of museums and is a certified botanical garden. Lot's of history in this place. During the war it was overtaken by military. There is this beautiful reflecting pool there, that not only served for physical therapy during the war, but was also used to teach some marines how to swim (yep:)). There are also lots of Spanish style Baroque building that originally weren't meant to be permanent, but were reconstructed to last, because the locals were so enamored with them they wouldn't let them be demolished:)

We then headed to Old Town for lunch at an adorable Mexican restaurant called Casa Guadalajara. So good, oh my goodness. After lunch, instead of returning to our hotel with the buses, we decided to stay and walk around Old Town a little bit longer. A few blisters and some blood on my feet, we took a trolley back to the hotel happy to have gleaned a little history of San Diego.

We ended the day with a waterfront dinner at The Fish Market.

All of a sudden, proximity to the drug cartels of Tijuana is forgotten and I'm so in love with this city, I know I will want to be back. 

It's time to work on your Christmas cards, friends!

The day after Halloween the famous red cup made its appearance at Starbucks. I giggled and giggled over it, not unlike my 2-year-old giggles over the word “treat”. But then I panicked.   I HAVE LESS THAN A MONTH TO BRING MY DIY CHRISTMAS BOARD ON PINTEREST TO LIFE. Excuse my shouting, but if that’s not THE reason to panic, I don’t know what is.

First things first! Holiday cards. For years I would put this off till the last minute. Once, friends received our cards at the end of January. I have no shame. This year, the moment the first leaf fell on the ground, I told my family to jump! They didn’t respond with “how high”, so it took some convincing. But that’s another story.

I do a little bit of photography on the side and have had a few Holiday sessions. Every time I just look forward to seeing what outfits and locations people choose. I myself put a lot of thought into those life-or-death matters as well and would like to share my two cents:)

As far as outfits are concerned, I think picking one color to stand out is the trick. Last year, for example, I chose the oh-so-then-popular mustard yellow. This jacket on my hubby (my favorite), this dress on my Annika… And I myself opted for a simple headband. No need to go overboard:) 

How great would this picture fit with this modern card design below? Minimal holiday cheer does not overwhelm all the colors and textures in the photo.

The year before that I actually went with simple gray as the accent. The little touch of red makes it look wintery and festive:)

With the simple colors, you can go all out on the card. How about this fun one?

I love continuity in Christmas cards, so I try to match at least one color from my picture with the color of the card design (like gold-orangish in the first example and red in the second). I’m not type-A, I swear.

Can’t think of a specific color? Consider black and white photos.

This was a revelation to me until I got a beautiful black-and-white card last year. I can just see this photo with my daughter on this Christmas card from Tiny Prints. It’s so classy, simple, and yet festive.

As far as location is concerned, I find that most people choose fall scenery for their holiday card photos. And no wonder, it’s gorgeous (in most of the country). It’s great if your city has a trail in the woods where fall trees and leaves are in abundance. Fields are great, too, whether it’s an open field or a corn fields. Or maybe an apple orchard (photo below)? The trees are bare in late fall, but they are usually so perfectly lined up and look very picturesque.

You can also have fun inside. Put on your Christmas jammies and snuggle with your loved ones over a steaming cup of hot cocoa (with those little marshmallows floating on top, of course:)) or over a Christmas book. Candid, real, cozy!

No matter what, your friends will LOVE getting a Christmas card from you. I can just picture them saying, “Awe, look how nicely the shade of her headband matches her daughter’s dress!”.

I kid, of course .

And here comes the most astounding secret to perfect Christmas pictures: smile and have fun! I know, I know, a shocker, but I don’t think there is a greater feeling than seeing all those happy faces displayed on your fridge as you reach for that eggnog.

Happy Holidays!