Summer's End

Summer is quickly coming to a close,

and I'm holding on to every last bit of it I can.

I'm holding on to tank tops, jean cut-offs, bathing suits,
sand at my feet and sun on my shoulders.

I'm holding on to quiet days at the beach,
where I find myself reminiscing about the very close past,
just inches away from the present.



I'm holding on to warm nights out,
quiet days in,
afternoon naps and late night ice cream fixes.

I'm holding on to all of it.

But I admit, I'm being a bit greedy,
as it's been an over-indulgent Summer.

We've had our share of road trips

 & birthday celebrations.

Travis' 30th Birthday at Mahe.

My 31st Birthday. A day out on the Duffy boat in Naples
with some of my best girlfriends and their handsome men.


We enjoyed multiple dinners out with family.

Travis' 30th birthday. Here's Trav with his Mom, Pop,
and sister, Tami at our favorite Chinese food restaurant.

Travis & I at Mahe, our favorite surf & turf restaurant.

My fam and stuff.

Brian & Trav are there, but not in pic. :(

We spent a weekend away with friends at Big Bear Lake.

We rented a pontoon boat.

We fished.

We played over the line and boccie ball.

We bonfired. We BBQ'd.

We played an epic game of jenga.

We had a long weekend away in Cambria with Travis' family.

We went wine tasting.

Beer tasting.

And ate at Main Street Grill like 5 times.

What? It's just so good!



We got to see our dear friends, Jessica and Ross,

who were on a visit home from their 18 month stint in Israel.

Yay!

Aren't they supremely cute?

 

We had to celebrate with Jameson shots,
a fav that Jessica has not been able to enjoy in Israel.
Unless, of course, she was up for throwin' down some serious cash.

Travis went to Las Vegas.
Twice!
(Sorry, no pics. Because you know what they say, 
What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.)

I've had my share of beach days. . . 

. . . and my beloved evening runs with my pups
while the sun still shines at such an hour.

(Soon we will be back in our reflective gear for our night runs.)

Our last trip of the Summer
 was a weekend up to Santa Barbara

to celebrate our friend Mikey's 30th birthday.

Mi-key!
(He was catching up on some much needed sleep.)

We stayed at a small ranch house about 10 minutes from the beach

and across the street from a nature preserve in an amazing neighborhood.

The ranch had a beautiful horse named Peaches. 

Mikey and Peaches.

And an adorably charming miniature donkey, 
Oliver, who liked to try to eat your pants.

Look at him moving in for it!

I think it was his way of showing affection.
Like, Thanks for petting my ears, I want to eat your jeans.
Seems logical right?

There was a dog named Logan, a cat named Hunter (ahh, no pics!),

about 20 chickens, 10 baby chicks, and 1 very loud Rooster.

I could've gone without the Rooster at four in the morning.

And again at 5, and 5:30, and 6, and 6:30 and 7... basically I could've
shot the Rooster for disturbing my weekend sleep-in sesh.

But all in all we enjoyed that lil' ranch. 

 The morning walks at the nature preserve.

Aren't the trees lovely?

The backyard pool. 

And the gorgeous beach.

The sand was fine and the water calm, excellent for intermittent dipping.

It was the perfect trip to end a pretty perfect Summer.

And I am grateful for all of it.

So very grateful.

Because I know it's fleeting.

Fall is upon us.

And although I'm a fan of Fall leaves,

Fall fashion and Fall holidays. . .

. . . the reality is,
 I'll take Summer over Fall any day.

But I know Fall, Winter and Spring
only make Summer that much sweeter.
And sometimes you just gotta give in,
and let go.

So I guess I'll do just that.
I'll get ready to break out
 my boots, scarves, and sweaters. . .

. . . breathe in the cooler night air,
and embrace that Fall is just around the corner.

I know this Summer is going to be hard to top next year,

but I have a gut feeling it might be even sweeter.

Happy End of Summer friends! 

XOXO
Aimee