girl and boy walking over an open field of green grass

Apple Valley Park, Atascadero

I plan to share the pros and cons of all of the North County’s parks, but for this post I’ll focus on the not-so-known Apple Valley Park in Atascadero.
This park is tucked into The Colony At Apple Valley, a suburban neighborhood off Del Rio Road. That’s the Highway 101 exit for Big Lots for all you moms like me who use shopping landmarks for directions.

Monarch Butterfly Grove Pismo Beach California

Monarch Butterfly Grove & Meadow Creek Trail, Pismo Beach

This adventure is one of my favorites — but also not. It was beautiful, different than our everyday routine and I got a milkshake from In & Out Burger at the end of it. On the other hand, I wasn’t prepared for the length of the trip once we were there or the surprise trail leading to the beach. Usually we just go with the flow but this time the latter was particularly exhausting, especially while baby-wearing. Lesson learned.