I know what you're thinking...31 days in the city and we escaped?

I believe my appreciation for the city deepens when I leave what I love

knowing I will return shortly.

Shauna Pilgreen

So here's how we left...

Just kidding, of course. Ben is the spontaneous one, not myself, yet I took on the mindset as we decided the night before to head south of the city to Monterey for a one night stay. We booked a hotel through Priceline (Ben's hobby) and got a great deal. We threw the essentials into a suitcase and headed south.

The boys enjoyed luxuries like TV with the Disney Channel, swimming (which of course was 53 degrees with a heated pool), and a fast food breakfast at McDonalds.

We explored Monterey and here's some of our findings...

First of all, we rented a bike for 5 and Ben and I pedaled our legs out! Our one hour rental turned into 30 minutes! So much for thinking we were in shape by walking so much in the city!

Is this normal? Two seals on a date on a boat? We confirmed they were on a date when they started kissing each other. It ended pretty quickly as one jumped back into the water and the other stayed on deck!

Seals doing their thing. Lounging on the rocks in Monterey Bay.

Crystal clear. Jagged rocks. Cliffs to the left and the right. No one swimming. Too cold. Welcome to northern California. It's raw and natural.

Sam and I started a conversation with a couple digging in the sand and discovered they were searching for sea glass. We found interest quickly and began collecting sea glass in colors of brown, white, and green. Sam and I have started our jar of sea glass. For now, it only covers the bottom of a pickle jar, but Sam has said, "We will find more, mom."

Do you see any below?

We drove further south along the California 1 Hwy to Carmel-by-the-Sea.

The homes along the beach at Carmel were amazing and ranged from ultra modern to Snow White's cottage. Regardless of style, they all had an amazing view of the beach and that has to be figured into their multi-million dollar value!

View of Pebble Beach Golf Course.

And what we think is on every California beach....a surfer.

But if you look like a surfer and never get in the water are you a surfer?

I think this guy was contemplating this very question.

A good escape indeed. Now back to our home in the city where every day is an adventure,

some just worth blogging about!