Taking A Moment To Stop & Smell The Roses ...

Life is just so Beautiful, as long as you take a moment to appreciate it!

Happy Saturday everyone! What a beautiful day! Today is sunny, a bit on the cooler side (only 58 right now) and a perfect day for a walk! The hubby and I left the apt at about 10am with all intentions of just going for a quick walk to the coffee shop around the corner.  We made it to the coffee shop, happily purchased our coffees and then decided to turn left and walk through the Farmers Market that lines the street every Saturday morning.  We were enjoying ourselves & our walk so much that we decided to keep walking (on the hunt for a quick bite) but we found ourselves exploring a whole different part of Santa Monica, where it seems every runner, biker, jogger, kickboxer likes to spend their Saturdays as well!  We even stumbled upon "The Stairs" that everyone has told us to check out for an amazing workout and we did them with our flip-flops on (I was not too keen on this idea, in fact I was being a big brat about doing this but then realized.. Why not?) We ended up walking around town for over 3.5 hours and loved every moment!! We saw the most gorgeous paths, houses, flowers and parts of Santa Monica that we hadn't had the chance to check out! It's adventures like this (when you go off the beaten path) that help remind us how beautiful our surroundings are when we take a moment to stop and smell the roses!!

Stroll through the Farmers Market.

I had never seen this before.. it's like a regular tree and then these big broom like bristles hang down. Very cool looking. 

After we did the stairs, Jeff and I huffed and puffed trying to catch our breath until this house took our breath away. Very pretty.

These are THE STAIRS. It's a fierce workout and they seem to go on forever. I was very angry with Jeff for thinking we can participate in doing them with flip flops on. The "Stairs People" are very serious about their workouts. I struggled to get to the top but I'm so glad we found them & did them.  Thanks hubby!

I love the cacti out here. Can't get enough. this one was GIGANTIC!

Cali loves their cars and their cars with chickens?

We climbed a secret staircase (that led to some amazing mansions tucked into this hill) and it was so pretty.  It was so lush with plants and ivy. Most likely, we were trespassing.

The first Trespassor. I only followed because I'm a good wife.  

Checking out the water - so BLUE today. 

Some of my favorite things in life. Seeing the ocean & my hubby.

Man. I can't get enough of Palm Trees. I wish I could "borrow" one for our deck.

This is one of the many dream houses we found. 

Since we walked & did the stairs - it was time for some lunch! I almost PUKED on my menu when I saw the ShowOff Burger.  Who has ever eaten a burger that costs $10,000.60?!!?! INSANE! If it was $10,000 that's one thing but that sixty cents is just unbelievably overpriced.  We forgot to ask them but we can only assume that this is a joke?