Seaside Escapades

On Saturday my Mommy #2 and Auntie B took me to the BEACH. They HAD TO. It was such a beautiful day and the weatherperson SAID it was a BEACH day. So in a way, we were ordered to head WEST.

We left kinda early in the morning to avoid the OVERTHEHILL traffic. It can be really bad on nice days like Saturday. And of course, it WAS the weekend! We hit just a smattering of traffic, nothing to even fuss about. And Mommy, who was driving, kept the windows open so we had a lot of FRESH air as we headed coastside.

This is what awaited us. Look at that view! No fog, mild waves, light breeze. It was absolutely what we all needed. We drove to Manresa Beach which is south of Santa Cruz but north of Watsonville. Those of you from places OTHER than NorCal have no idea what I am saying. Let's suffice it to say this is PRIME beach area. Mommy and Auntie B like Manresa because dogs are allowed on the beach. This is not true on all beaches in Cali. In fact, it is sadly the exception to the rule. I don't get it but I am admittedly BIASED being a pug and all.

Mommy brought her wagon because we had a lot of stuff. She brought chairs for all three of us (I didn't like mine as I will show you later), towels, hats, umbrella (Mommy and I are too fair to sit in the sun for long), and FOOD. She said she COULD have carried it but chose not too. Considering how hard she worked to move the wagon in the sand and UP the ramp, I wonder which was actually the better choice.

We found the perfect spot close to the water but out of high tide range. Mommy and Auntie B set up the chairs and the umbrella, Mommy slathered herself with sunscreen, and then we took off for a nice walk along the shore.

This is Mommy's chair. I like sitting on it WITH her

I don't know about you but I LOVES LOVES LOVES the ocean water. Especially NorCal water because it is cool and refreshing. A lot of HUMANS think it is too icy cold. But to me, Mommy and Auntie B it is PERFECT. We walked a long time and looked for seashells along the way. Oddly enough we found none that were good enough to collect. They were all broken. Sad, huh. Not that we have a lack of collected seashells. But when you go to the shore, that is what you do.

See Mom's foot? Auntie B tried to NOT get Mommy in the pic
but a certain VELCRO PUG kept heading back to Mommy
whenever she stopped

After our LONG walk we just lounged on our chairs enjoying the sweet smell of the ocean breeze (Mommy almost hyperventilated she was breathing it in so much. She said it was delicious). Mommy and I took a little sun and then we had to settle in the shade. Auntie B stayed in the sun the whole time. Mommy used to but she would burn. Even with heavy duty sunscreen she burns after about 30 mins. So she covers up or sits under an umbrella. ME? I can't handle too much sun once the temps top 70.

Isn't the view magnificent? We even saw a sea lion frolicking with the surfers. It was pretty funny. Every once in a while he/she would poke out his/her head and take a look around. I am sure all of those furless bodies laying in the sun looked pretty funny to him/her.

 I fussed from my chair for quite a while and then Mommy put me on her lap. People thought it was pretty funny for a "dog" to be on her human's lap but for me it made PERFECT sense. Not only was I where I wanted to be (touching Mommy) but I had a FIRST CLASS vantage point for watching the waves roll in.

My favorite lap

It was heading into mid-afternoon and we left the beach to go see about strawberries. Manresa is not far from Crystal Bay Farms which Auntie B said has the sweetest berries in the world. She swears they water with sugar water! Unfortunately since it was afternoon, the farm was kinda picked out. Mommy and Auntie B were tenacious, though, and they managed to pick a basket each. They opted for smaller berries as they are sweeter. Who needs those giant berries unless you are gonna dip them in chocolate?

Aren't these lovely?

 We made one more stop in Aptos where Mommy and Auntie B got ice cream. Mommy gave me a small taste of her macapuno ice cream (baby coconut) which was heavenly. We walked for a while along the bluff above Sea Cliff Beach and then headed home.

Magically we hit very little traffic going home as well. I snoozed in the back seat of the car because all of that walking wore me out. It was a heavenly day, though, and I hope I can recreate it again soon.

And now for a little AFFIRMATION