AZ - SLO - Saratoga

We hopped on the road Thursday morning on our way to SLO (San Luis Obispo, CA for those of you unfamiliar with the term SLO).  Bish's friends Johnny and Eileen live there with their 3 boys (the 3 Ms - Max, Mathew, and Miles).  It's an 8 hour drive over, but we took 10 hours with stops, gas, etc.  We even got to sit in some traffic while passing through LA! (shocker!)

On the road again!

We arrived at the Casa de Calandro Clan, and promptly unloaded and headed into the weekly farmers market kin downtown SLO.  It is one of the better farmer's markets we've been to, and is always a treat to go to while in town.  We strolled around the farmer's market and got some BBQ, and I had to introduce the girls to McClintock's turkey nuts too!  Who doesn't love a good deep fried turkey nut as a snack?  You can get Rocky Mountain Oysters's in Texas and other places, but McClintock's is the only place I've ever found turkey nuts!  I actually ran into a guy I knew from the golf biz at the farmers market.  I said hi, but he's kind of a tool, so didn't' waste too much effort talking to him.  I might even call him a turkey nut actually?

The Bubble Gum Wall in downtown SLO.

The Slackettes with Miles (aka M3) in front of the Madonna Inn with the local art.

It is always fun to see the Calandro Clan as they are all very fun!  Max, the oldest just finished his first year as a Banana Slug at USSC.  Mathew is still in high school and had water polo practice while we were there.  Miles is Danica's age so hung out and screwed around with the girls that evening.  Mathew and Miles took the girls over to the local Junior High (where Johnny is the principal) to shoot some hoops.  Miles introduced us to the "street ball" version where there are no rules!

Desserts from the Madonna Inn!

The next morning we went up the coast to San Simeon to visit Hearst Castle.  It is a very unique place and a beautiful setting along the central coast.  I visited it years ago, but had forgotten a lot about how it was built, etc.  Our tour guide/docent lady was kind of uppity about the whole place.

Turkey Nuts from McClintock's in SLO.

After Heart Castle, we headed North to Patti & Bob's place in Saratoga, which will be our home away from home for the next few days as we introduce the girls to the Bay Area some more.  Bish and I met in the area back in 1996.  She lived in Mountain View, and I lived in Campbell.  We bought a house in Campbell after we got married in 2000.  It was a fun time living in the area, and we have a lot of close friends from our time there still that we hope to see.

Slack Family Travel Blog - Summer 2018

Initial entry ~ June 21st, 2018

                We had so much fun last summer on our cross country trip, that we've decided to do a similar trip this summer, only up/down the West coast.  We plan to be gone approximately a month this year, and will drive through California and stay with friends in the Bay area, and then head up the coast eventually to Portland and then Seattle.  We plan to work our way back down going by Bend, Crater Lake, Chico, Sacramento, Lake Tahoe, Yosemite, and then Lake Arrowhead before coming back home.  Not nearly as many states as we visited last summer, nor the miles we covered last summer too!  We are all looking forward to some cooler temps for a month though as its been heating up in AZ of late.

                Thank you to our friends Tim McGinty and The Malkemus's for taking care of Maori while we are gone.  While I again would love to bring Maori along, it adds a lot of difficulty to traveling. 

                Best, worst, funniest - Bish compiled a list of everyone's thought's on these three on most days that we traveled last summer.  Here are some highlights from these lists...

Best

·         McIlhenny Tabasco tour

·         Beignets and good food in Nawlins

·         Coke World

·         Catching fireflies at Jen's

·         Nick's Kitchen BPTs

·         Desserts from Cara/Blackberry Market

·         Gas station cheese curds

·         Dinner on the deck at Maynard's with Fahning and Malooly

·         Both girls - "Cleaning out the wort at Snake River Brewing with Keith the brewer!"

·         Abigail's (Darby friend from Odyssey that moved to SLC) response "A bit obsessed!"

Worst

·         Andy driving in rainstorm

·         Leaving Rehoboth Beach for probably the last time

·         Dad's speeding ticket in Indiana

Funniest

·         Danica shrieking in the Insectarium

·         "Dinner with Dad's friends!"  Gick and Becky

·         Presley's energy

·         Sowing grass seed on Max's grave

·         Listening to MHS/dad stories from Troy, Cara, and Tracey

·         Dad getting attacked by birds at camp site

·         Tent collapsing in wind storm

·         Seeing a mouse in the bathroom and chasing it around!

We are looking forward to our next family driving adventure, and feel fortunate that we can have this experience with the Slackettes!