Mother's Day in Livermore

Mother's Day always makes me a little bit sad that I do not live near my Mama. I called her earlier in the day and left her messages, but she unfortunately had to work the weekend at the hospital. My aunts texted me that they all had went and had coffee together before she headed off to work. Luckily, later that day I was able to talk to her on the phone and catch up on the latest family gossip. I miss her so much and I can't wait until I get to visit her later this month! 

I spent the day with Z's family and we made his mom breakfast in the morning. We had an Italian Frittata (sausage, bell peppers, tomatoes, pesto, mushrooms, spinach), hash browns, fruit salad, and freshly squeezed mimosas! Afterwards, we drove out East to Livermore to check out 4 different wineries. My favorite wineries on this tour were the Singing Winemaker at Tesla Vinters and Fenestra Winery.  The first winery not only offered generous tastings, but provided entertainment in the form of the Owner/Winemaker himself singing all the greatest hits! The second winery was more rustic and had a beautiful picnic area to share some wine, cheese, and appetizers with friends/family. I would highly recommend these wineries if you're ever in the area, which I am not sure why you would be since Livermore is way the heck out there. Hope you had a lovely Mother's Day!

Pug Sunday!

They're squat, fat, and prone to a myriad of health issues. They resemble miniature Ewoks and can be heard blocks away by their heavy snorting and grunting. Of course the people of San Francisco want to dedicate one day each month to this creature, the pug. Pug owners, enthusiasts, and friends of the pug gather every first Sunday of the month at Alta Plaza Park in Pacific Heights to play, socialize, and butt sniff. As many as 75 pugs are known to take over the park. All breeds are welcome to the gathering as long as they're pug friendly. Some people (pugophiles?) even like to lay down a blanket, have a picnic, and simply enjoy the pugs in the sun. 

On this day, Z and I set up a blanket and let Finnegan run loose. He hopped over to every pug and picnicking owner in order to try and ham it up for a few pats on the head. At times, it was a bit difficult to capture Finnegan's photo because he kept darting back and forth trying to get pugs to chase him. We saw so many pugs of all shapes and sizes. We even saw Winston and his owner Susan of Modcloth! This is probably my favorite day of the month because I get to "ooh" and "ahh" over the myriads of pugs and not feel out of place. Hope that you can come and check out Pug Sunday next time you're in the area. Maybe you'll see the chunky black pug wearing a stripped harness prancing around, trying to sneak some food out of your picnic basket.

Guys, You Know What?

Enjoy Finnegan's take on this meme.

Beached Whale Pug

After hiking through McNee Ranch State Park, we headed down to the Montara State beach located across the way on PCH. Whenever Finnegan first steps in sand, he freaks out a little bit, squats down (like the downward dog yoga position), and his tail spins around like a helicopter. When in this "frisky puppy  mode", he runs around and kicks up sand everywhere. This in turn makes him run around even more, trying to play with the sand--something that we don't have the heart to tell him will never reciprocate his playful advances. This is exactly what happened once we made our way down the steps to one of the most beautiful beaches with soft white sand. After inhaling more sand than he could handle, Finnegan finally plopped himself down behind me (since I could provide him adequate shade from the sun--a human umbrella if you will) and took a quick nap sprawled out on his side. Finnegan's body form actually looked similar to a beached whale. His snoring did pique the interest of children passing by, trying to get their kites to soar in the air.  Z decided to relax as well and we had a quick break from the hike before driving back into the city to pick up some much needed coffee. Can't wait until this weekend. It is the monthly "Pug Sunday" at Alta Plaza Park in the city and Finnegan can roam around grass hills with his fellow pugs. I'm looking forward to being surrounded by tons of pugs to fully confirm the fact that I am a crazy pug lady.