Almost due: spending the day at Half Moon Bay

I'm due in less than two weeks, but starting to feel a little home-bound. Nate and I decided to get out of the house and spend the day at Half Moon Bay.

We first took a stroll along the Half Moon Bay State Beach. It was our first time visiting this particular beach, and we found it to be really nice. There were several families out playing frisbee and volleyball. We just soaked in the sun and read for a bit on a blanket.

After enjoying the sand, we head to Barbara's Fish Trap for a bite to eat. I'd been here once before with my parents and really enjoyed it. It has a typical seafood shack feel, casual yet with delicious food. I ordered the salmon burger and Nate had traditional fish and chips. Both of our meals were tasty! We made the mistake of forgetting to bring cash however (they don't accept credit cards), so Nate had to sprint across the street to hit an ATM.

If you head to this restaurant, be sure to take a stop in the bathroom (if you are a woman). The walls are painted with a beautiful underwater theme, and are worth taking a look at!

After a nice day out, we head back to San Carlos for the evening.

Fresh recipe of the month: Steamed artichokes (from our garden!)

We have been growing an artichoke plant for two years now. That's right, two years and no flowers to show for it. This year, with all of the rain, the plant really took off, and for the first time we had two beautiful artichokes arise. This weekend we decided to finally enjoy them. We went with a simple recipe, steaming the artichokes and eating them with a nice lemon butter.

- 2 fresh artichokes

- 2 tablespoons meyer lemon juice

- 1 tablespoon butter

Rinse the artichokes, remove damaged leaves, and trim the stem. Steam artichokes on the stove using 6 cups of water for about 45 minutes. For the dipping sauce, melt the lemon juice and butter in the microwave. You are ready to eat and enjoy!

Mother's day dinner in Menlo Park

For Mother's Day we joined my aunt and uncle at their favorite Italian restaurant in the area-- Angelo Mio. We've been here several times before with the group and have always enjoyed the food and service. I ordered the ravioli with pink sauce, and it was delicious. We'll definitely be back.

Hot Harvest Nights in San Carlos

I love the summer months in San Carlos, because every Thursday we can head to the downtown to enjoy Hot Harvest Nights. Laurel Street is blocked from car traffic and local venders set up booths to stroll and explore. This week was the first week of the year and the fun will continue through early September.

We love to take our dogs along. They go crazy over the kettle popcorn that lands on the street! This week we decided to get some fresh flowers and tasty dates.

Fresh recipe of the month: Chicken with Meyer lemon and capers

Again with our ever-producing Meyer lemon tree we came up with a great lemony entree: sauteed chicken with lemon and capers. This resulted in very tender meat and a very tasty flavor combination.

- 2 chicken breasts

- 1/2 cup flour

- 1 teaspoon salt

- 1/4 teaspoon paprika

- 4 tablespoons white wine

- 4 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice

- 3 tablespoons capers

Flatten the chicken breasts and dredge in mixture of flour, salt and paprika. Saute in a skillet in butter, about 4 minutes per side and remove chicken from pan. Add white wine and lemon juice to skillet and simmer for 5 minutes to make sauce. Add sauce and capers to chicken and serve.

String beans in our garden

We planted some seeds for string beans this year and the plants are starting to come up fast! I just love to be able to grow fresh veggies in our yard and am so excited to have string beans!