The City by the Bay

Doug and I spent Labor Day weekend in San Francisco, and we had a fabulous time! Doug grew up in the Bay Area, but it was my first time there so we made sure to see all of the typical tourist spots. Prepare yourselves- this post is picture heavy! :)

The view from our room. We stayed at Parc 55 and LOVED it! Such a great location. One huge tip we have in case you're planning a trip to SF- parking fees are insane in the city (our hotel's was almost $60/DAY!) so we parked at a BART station on the other side of the bay and took that into the city. Parking was free, and our tickets totaled to less than $25! 

Chinatown

My favorite part of the trip was seeing Alcatraz. I have a weird fascination with all things scandalous, so this includes anything jail-related. (Anyone else love the show Lockup? :) Our advice for this- take the earliest tour you can! We did the first one, and by the time we were leaving it was already getting so crowded. 

It was cloudy and ominous during our time on Alcatraz, which was very fitting. 

The one thing I didn't get to see was the Golden Gate Bridge...it was hiding in this fog all weekend :(

Next, we headed over to Pier 39. It was so much bigger than I had expected!

And then we walked around Fisherman's Wharf...

...where the Bushman just about scared me to death! (He has been doing this since 1980!)

After he scared me, we watched him scare everyone else. There was also this adorable seal patiently waiting to be fed.

Then, it was time for my beloved Ghirardelli. 

Lombard Street

It was a very short trip, but we managed to see everything except for Chinatown in one day. On our way back home, we took the semi-scenic route on the 101 to see Santa Barbara. 

We found the most adorable restaurant right on the beach. This is the view from our table.

And that was our trip! One last piece of advice- PREPARE YOURSELF if you plan to visit this beautiful city. My calves are still killing me from all of those hills! ;)

Be The Match

Bone marrow donation is something I really knew nothing about until my brother decided to join the registry and become a donor. In fact, he was matched up with someone and donated for the first time just last week! Once I heard that he joined the registry, I started to look into it more and decide if it was something that I could commit to. After reading through the information on their website, I knew that it was definitely something I wanted to do. So I signed up, got my swab kit in the mail, and am now waiting for the official confirmation that I'm on the registry! 

I wanted to share this information with y'all, not to toot my own horn, but to increase awareness. It was something that I never heard about, and I'm guessing it may be the same for y'all. All that to say, it's a huge commitment and something that shouldn't be taken lightly. If it's something you are considering, I just encourage you to make sure you're ready to fully commit. They have a great website with all of the information you need, and you can read through the FAQs here. 

Isn't it incredible to think that if you're matched up with someone, you could save their life? I think that's pretty amazing! 

I hope y'all have a great week, I'll be in Atlanta enjoying time with my family!

*The winner of the $50 Shabby Apple giveaway is Stephanie Gregory!*