Make Way For Ducklings

I love Boston's public gardens.  One of the iconic sites in the gardens is the set of Make Way for Ducklings statues.  What I love most is that the ducklings are often decked out in cute garb to celebrate the season.  You may remember this duck from the winter and my post on sparkly things.  

Around the Super Bowl all the ducks were decked out in these tee-shirts that I didn't really understand at first.  Then Paloma told me that it was a reference to Patriots player Rob Gronkowski.  

Recently there was this incarnation in honor of Easter and the beginning of spring, which I think is the most adorable to date.

And then on Marathon Monday the ducks donned these capes and masks.  The capes spelled out 

M-A-K-E    W-A-Y-!

The fact that the costumes stay on the ducks for so long is testament to how much Boston residents respect and enjoy the ducks and I can't wait to see what the rest of the year has in store for me and the ducklings!

Stolen from Facebook/G-Chat

You know, sometimes being witty and creative is a lot of work.  So I'm being lazy and reposting things from the internet that other people have posted.  I love social media!

Awesome credit: Kristen Jones Campbell

Awesome credit: Meredith Burks

Awesome credit: Tom Macmillan

And now for a special selection of items from Anjali's Gchat status.  Because that woman really knows how to find awesome stuff on the internet

Awesome credit: Anjali Yakkundi

That's right, humans help raise a baby panda, in panda suits. 

Photo Credit: Reuters

Awesome Credit: Anjali Yakkundi

So that we may all mock, I mean mourn, the end of an epic love.

San Francisco's Beautiful Neighborhoods

I've already done a post on the Mission District, but San Francisco is full of so many beautiful neighborhoods I wanted to highlight a few more here.

The Castro, famous for it's gay culture -

Chinatown, home of handmade fortune cookies and delicious food -

Alamo Square, with the beautiful Victorian 'painted ladies' -

San Francisco Tourist Central

I couldn't leave San Fran without doing the whole tourist thing.  So we hit up the Ferry Building, Fisherman's Wharf and Ghirardelli Square.

The Ferry Building is full of foodie stalls selling artisanal cheese, olive oil, chocolate - really anything you could ever want.  And on our way we found this cool fountain that you can walk around.

Fisherman's Wharf and Ghirardelli were good places to find souvenirs and get a sweet treat.  The actual Ghirardelli factory is no longer here, but it's a destination nonetheless.

The lines were always too long to consider a cable car ride, but it was fun seeing this iconic mode of transport anyway.  

San Francisco's Great Outdoors

What is it about iconic bridges that is so fun?  I mean it's just a bridge - and yet...the Golden Gate Bridge is so beautiful and so San Francisco, like the Brooklyn Bridge it's a destination all its own.

And then just a few miles past the bridge is Muir Woods.  This beautiful nature preserve is full of massive, old trees.  It was a bit muddy when we went so I suggest some decent footwear, but this out of the way sight is a great place to take photographs and get away from the busy city for a while.

San Francisco's Mission District

One of our first stops was the Mission district.  Famous for it's Mexican/Latin heritage, this neighborhood is full of vibrant, beautiful and political murals.  Many are concentrated in Balmey and Clarion alleys, but they're scattered throughout the neighborhood as well.

Balmey alley's murals have a more traditional style and tend to pay homage to earlier struggles of indigenous people.

Whereas Clarion alley has a more modern, graffiti feel.  It's political messages are more overt and the designs are bold and urban.

Both places are really breathtaking and inspiring.  After working up an appetite walking through the neighborhood definitely enjoy one of the many taquerias that line the streets.

Sara Heads West

I had never been to the West Coast, until last week.  I got a great opportunity to go to a conference for work in San Francisco and extended it to see some old friends and experience a new city.  It was so fun and I thought, what a great way to kick start the blog again after my long hiatus!

Throughout the week I'll detail my travels here so keep checking back for more adventures in (sometimes) sunny California.

Planting a Seed

A couple weeks ago when it was really warm I decided I wanted to plant flowers on our balcony.  I bought dirt and seeds and planters.  Of course since then it's gotten cold again, but we're past the threat of frost now so today I muddied my hands and braved the chill to plant some seeds.  It felt like a fitting way to celebrate both Easter and spring.  

Here are the before photos.  I got these great hanging planters at Crate and Barrel.  Hopefully in a few weeks I'll be able to show you the after.  

I planted a variety of flowers and herbs.  One is supposed to attract monarch butterflies and another is supposed to drape over the planter.  

I'm so excited for warmer weather so I can enjoy sitting out on my balcony, hopefully surrounded by beautiful flowers!

Toffee Matzo

We didn't really do  much for Easter or Passover, but we did celebrate in our own little ways.  I made this delicious toffee matzo with walnuts and chocolate, recipe courtesy of my girl Martha.

Sugar burns easily so watch your toffee carefully.  Mine only needed about seven minutes in the oven, not the recommended thirty.  Enjoy!