FEB 2022: An Olive Ranch, Antique Fair, & Official Engagement!

We’re Officially Engaged!

“Officially” should be emphasized because we decided awhile ago we wanted to get married. For those who know us, they know we’re a bit unconventional. We’ve already signed the contract for our dream wedding venue, our caterer is already locked in, and the wedding dress is already purchased!

A part of the discussions we had around marriage was that an “official proposal” was something we both wanted… and we both thought it’d be a fun goal to make it a “surprise”!

Mission accomplished: it was a surprise!

2.27.2022

The Proposal:

We became members to the UC Berkeley Botanical Gardens this year, so we decided to take a trip out to the gardens to enjoy “member mornings” on Sunday for coffee & Gingersnap cookies. We spent the first few hours enjoying the gardens and talking about the most random things like we always do. Our first trip to the gardens was in November, and we were given advice to make our way up to the Old Rose Garden to watch the sunset. Granted, roses aren’t in bloom in November, but the sunset was still beautiful.

When visited this month (in February), we knew there still wouldn’t be much to see at the rose garden since the roses aren’t usually in full-bloom until around May, but thought it would be worth going to anyways. To our pleasant surprise, the rose garden tunnel was covered in beautiful white blooms!

We walked into the tunnel to soak it in. After a couple minutes, Carlos got on one knee… and well, the rest is history.

Of course I said “YES”!…

It’s hard to top such exciting news, but the rest of the month has also been filled with amazing memories!

2.6.2022

Early in the month, we took a trip up to McEvoy Ranch for a tour of the property and olive mill. We originally heard about it through Alice Water’s Masterclass.

We’re definitely interested in history, so it was fun learning about the family's ties to The de Young Museum & the San Francisco Chronicle. Nan McEvoy founded the ranch but kept it private and reserved for friends and family. Now that the ranch is open to the public, we were able to enjoy a tour, wine tasting, olive oil tasting, and lunch! The olive oil was DELICIOUS. We came home with a few bottles: a bottle of the traditional Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Olio Nuovo, & Rosemary Olive Oil.

The property was stunning, and incredibly peaceful. Days like that make it tempting to buy a farm and start a whole new way of life. But then we remember all the things we love about living where we currently do. We’re so close to family & friends. But who knows what life has in store?

After visiting McEvoy Ranch, we made a detour to Nicasio Valley Cheese Company and Viansa.

2.13.2022

With our recent fascination with antiques, we’ve been interested in finding new places to shop, which is how we discovered the Sacramento Antique Fair! We hit the road early to be there when it opened at 6:30. Our favorite finds were a wall mounted rack with hooks & a set of copper canisters (for the open pantry we plan to build). We also found a few other things that brought us joy, including a table cloth with vegetables on it, a pear painting, a hefty pull handle, copper utensil holder, outdoor candle lantern, and a large basket for collecting vegetables from the garden!

While in Sacramento, we spent some time with family for the rest of the day (and even ended up acquiring a beautiful dining table that just needs a little TLC)!

2.14.2022

Like most people, we don’t enjoy the chaos that comes with going out for Valentines Day, so we chose to enjoy a home cooked meal with: bruschetta, pasta, & wine!

2.21.2022

We took another day trip to wine country (as we regularly do) and visited a new winery called Abbots Passage in Glen Ellen. When we made a reservation we knew very little about it, but were very happy with our decision shortly after we arrived. We learned they have an AMAZING chef who produces the best crudité/charcuterie board we’ve ever had (we forgot to mention we’re vegetarians, so it came out with some sliced meat). We also learned they produce field blends, have 80 year old Zinfandel vines on the property, they’re all about women owned businesses, and they’re run by a descendant of California’s oldest family owned winery: Gundlach Bundschu winery.

We enjoyed it so much that we ended up going home as Wine Club members. Later on, we ordered a ceramic serving bowl from one of their partners: Farm Shop Practice in Sonoma (where the bowl was handmade by Kitt Barkley Gauthier). To learn more about Kitt, click here.

2.27.2022

We got officially engaged on February 27th, and celebrated with lunch at Skipolini's Pizza in Walnut Creek & a dinner at Oculto in Castro Valley. The food at Oculto was phenomenal, but we were most impressed by the cocktails we ordered:

Flor del Desierto - Mezcal, Ancho Chile Liquor, Hibiscus Ancho Chile Syrup, & Lime

Oaxaca Old Fashioned - Aged Anejo Tequila, Mezcal, Agave, & Orange Bitters

(The food: Papas Bravas, Citrus & Fennel Salad, & Masa Gnocci)