Ketchup: Life in San Francisco

Wow, so it's been a while. Time has flown and plenty has happened, while I struggle to find whether it is blog worthy or not, we have come to the conclusion that it all is. So in conclusion, here is a brief recap of what my photo library has to offer.

Greek Food Festival in town 

Ran a Zombie themed 5K as the character from Shaun of the Dead 

Celebrated in the streets after the Giants won the World Series

Carved pumpkins for Halloween

Welcomed Jen's parents for a quick visit in SF. 

 Unfortunately, there are not more pictures from this weekend visit, but we accomplished quite a bit. Took a mini tour of the city from seeing the lively musical revue at Beach Blanket Babylon, a visit to Half Moon Bay, a few well placed dinners, tour of Golden Gate Park and much more.

Made a trip back to NY for a close friends wedding with the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy still all around us. A lovely reminder of the resilience of all who attended the wonderful union.

 A Thanksgiving getaway to Bakersfield, CA for what is known as "Friendsgiving" where close friends from my sister Julie and her husband all join forces for Thanksgiving. Everyone makes a dish, so no one has to assume the entire workload and we all have a wonderful time with plenty of wine, laughs and games with the kids. A madhouse for several days, but all the better with wonderful people.

After a day of indulging on Turkey and many other things, a power nap was called for.  

Jen had a little scare one afternoon, when she cut herself on a sharp can lid and needed a trip to the ER and 6 stitches to close the deep cut. Plenty of tears and a little anesthesia and she was as good as new.  

We started hiking more and taking a new trail every time. Sometimes we get lost or can't find the correct starting point, but we always find something by chance or just hike until we find something beautiful. There is no shortage of excellent vantage points and trails for great exercise. 

View of Sausalito 

 We take Louloudi to Ocean Beach, only a short train ride away.

Bits of awesome

Life doesn't generally blow you away to get you in a great mood, but little bits of awesome will always be appreciated. This post is to document the little bits of awesome that make me think about all the great things in my life.

 Jen and I were two of the lucky few who snatched some tickets to a quickly sold out impromptu performance!

 Louloudi has a collar that has old Greek drachmas. We found this collar very, very randomly from a shirtless weird German guy selling street art in Berkeley. She is truly a Greek dog now!

 Louloudi is my constant companion as I work. We have 3-4 walks a day!

Louloudi completed basic training at SPCA and is a little pro with her recall now. NOT eating homeless people's litter is the next habit to correct. 

 Zoe just had cleft lip surgery 4 days ago from this picture, you wouldn't notice it a bit with her scab already gone and her amazing fortitude! Also, I got this dress for her and I think it's pretty rocking.

Athena had an amazing song recital for her kindergarten class and was super excited about her songs! 

Julie, the mother of 3 gorgeous children, never seems to have much luck getting them to focus come group picture time, but she is such a trooper for always trying!

There are a couple of winners that come from about two dozen attempts!

 Mimi rocks because she is about to embark on her first cross country trip!

 These girls are amazing with their constant intelligent banter, outrageous humor and never ending kindness. 

And to my special bond with Zoe who is the reason I came down to Bakersfield this week as a means of solace and comfort after her surgery. She is an inspiration to me for her ability to bounce back so fast and keep a good face (and even milk the situation to get unlimited Gogurts!

Sorry for the abundance of exclamation points! I think it's the awesome coffee!!!

Palm Springs with the boys

As many of you may know, Jen used to be a nanny to two great little English boys a while back. She has stayed in touch over the years and their friendship seems to move from different corners of the world. The young boys', Bryan and Gabriel, routinely move between homes in Madrid, London, Los Angeles, New York and the newest addition to the homes, Palm Springs. We were invited to join the family for a part of their Spring Break vacation and had a fantastic time. There were lazy days lounging by the pool, filled with lunches, dinners and games of football with the boys. It was nice to take it easy and disconnect for a bit, as I've been working like a mad man lately.

 Backyard garden with heated pool

 Beautiful living room

 The surrounding mountains with snow and desert like floor were a nice contrast.

Eager to reclaim a little of our Parian tans. 

 I could have stayed there all day.

 Lots of love for her little men

 Jen and Andrew take on the champs Bryan and Tony.

 Gabe was fond of the white horse

 Haven't been on a horse in close to a decade...

 Ole!

Jen and Gabe