Sacramento Zoo

One thing I love about having Peanut is the excuse to do all these things with him.

On our recent trip to Sacramento, while B was on a long ride,
some of the rest of us went to the zoo.



I loved the giraffes!

Even though I witnessed one drink the others pee mid-urination.

I'm sorry, I had to mention it because it was just as we were walking away
and I was thinking about how cute they were when it happened.




Alex had a half-day at school and was able to show Peanut around.



They had a great time together, as you can see.



I loved the otters!

He looks sleepy.

The otter utters by the lake, 
'tis getting hard to stay awake.



You know that feeling when you get out of the water and the sun feels sooo good?



I loved the flamingos!



Did you know that flamingos are pink because the beta-carotene in brine shrimp
 causes their feathers to turn pink?

I believe at zoos they add something artificial to their food to keep them pink.

I wonder if they could turn them blue and purple or red and green for Christmas, ya know?
I mean, since they are already artificially coloring them.

I'm just sayin'.



We actually took a little train ride around as well and he pretty much had this expression the whole time.

I loved the tiger!

He was awesome just lounging around.

So close to us, it was kind of odd.

At one point I was taking a picture and looking thru my camera when he
stood up and turned around.
It sort of startled me.

This big face looking at me.

Then he got sleepy.

But not as sleepy as Peanut.

Look at those eyes.

This was our second day there and he was still too excited for napping...
so this is what we got mid-day.

So go to sleep, my sleepy child
the tiger whispers in the wild.


As tired as he obviously is, he only slept in the car ride home and
I could not get him down at the house.
We had a get together that night and he was fine.

Why this kid hates to nap, I'll never know.

It was a great day,
we loved all the animals (in case you didn't notice)
and had a fantastic time.

Doughbot Donuts, Sacramento

B's friend Mike knows how much we love food and suggested this place to us.

I was sort of sold when he told me their tagline is "Resistance is Futile".

We checked out their website, finding they are a couple (she is pictured below) who started off 

making donuts out of their kitchen for friends 

while they scoured the internet for deals on the equipment they needed to open a store.

The first thing I noticed when I walked in were their bicycles up against the wall.

Good food and bikes?  I'm sure B was sold right then.

We came in after the morning rush and it was quiet and calm with the smell of 

doughnuts and coffee hanging in the air.

The decor is fantastic and makes me wonder where they found all these 

vintage, retro and modern goods.

So much personality in such simple decor.

The menu changes daily and it makes me want to go back again and again

just to see what they are coming up with and try them all.

What you see above is the PB & J.  

Simple and delicious, why didn't I think of that?

I ordered coffee and she prepared it in a french press while I drooled from the smell of it.

I already have a list of donuts that weren't available that day

that I must try.

Meyer Lemon Creme-filled with meyer lemon glaze and candied meyer lemon on top.

S'mores- cinnamon sugar donut filled with chocolate, locally sourced handmade marshmallow,

glazed with cinnamon and graham cracker.

I know, genius.

They also have quite a few donuts available in a vegan version.

On the left you see a bite of the PB & J with that fantastic strawberry filling.

On the right you see the chai.

I really loved the chai and wanted a cup of glaze to dip my donut in.

This is the apple bacon fritter which I really liked although 

I would have considered it more of a donut.

I'm not really sure what defines a fritter so maybe I'm off on my definition.

Really though, unless you have your heart set on a traditional fritter, 

I'm not sure it matters.

It tastes good.

I want to eat it.

I had The Dude first.

Do you know what I'm referencing when I say The Dude.

The Dude abides.

My college boyfriend and his friends spent months watching The Big Lebowski

over and over again, spouting off quotes and whatnot

until just the mention of the movie makes my right eye start to twitch.

The man calls himself "The Dude", need I say more?

I loathe the movie.

I do not however, loathe White Russians, The Dude's drink of choice.

The translation into doughnut is a White Russian Bavarian creme-filled 

doughnut with perhaps a coffee glaze? on top.

The creme was light and airy and incredible and I woke up this morning thinking about this doughnut.

Perhaps now I've been cured of my eye twitch

because whenever The Dude is mentioned I'll think of this doughnut.

Perhaps I'm not cured at all as my eye twitch will be replaced with drooling.

I think the eye twitch may be more socially acceptable.

Anyway, this made me think of you mom,
oh lover of both white russians and filled donuts.

I also have to mention the vanilla bean donut.
It's simple and classic but good Lord, how often do you find donuts with actually vanilla bean?
I mean, look at those gorgeous flecks in the glaze.

On the right is the Strawberry Lemonade,
I didn't get to try you but I'm coming back for you my friend.

Doughbot is a great find so head over there and eat some doughnuts!

Andrea & Chachi's Wedding

I'll be showing you weddings in reverse order because I'm feeling sort of backwards these days anyway.

On Friday night Andrea and Chachi were married at the Sterling Hotel in Sacramento.



I love the old charm of this gorgeous building, nestled amongst the trees not far from the California capitol.



The wedding and reception took place in the ballroom that was equally as charming.





I love these pictures of them!



We arrived a little bit early and I was able to sneak around and take pictures of the table arrangements. Simple and beautiful.



The hanging key accents made such a gorgeous statement.



They had me at cupcake display. This picture doesn't do it justice.



There were actually 3 colors and flavors. Darker pink, light pink and white. Each color had a slightly different accent from pearls to flowers. You can't tell here but some of them were glittery!



More centerpieces, I love the mix of short and tall so they don't crowd the room.



Classic and glamorous.



Have I told you how much I love hydrangeas?



I got a sneak peak of some of the groomsmen and made him sit for me so I could get a picture.



The gentlemen all waiting very patiently. On the far left we have the minister and the 2nd gentleman is the groom.

We found out later that the mother of the groom gave all the groomsmen smelling salts in case they needed to revive him.



This blurry picture is the only one I have of the bride and grooms adorable son. He turns 1 next month!



I loved her hair and I felt the urge to go out and buy hair accessories... preferrably with feathers.



All the ladies waiting for the grand entrance of the bride...



and the saxophonist starts playing a melody.



Andrea looked so beautiful, she had the bridal glow.



You may kiss the bride!



I love Chachi's expression here.



Such a happy couple! The reception was full of laughter and a bit of chaos. I mean that in the best way possible. It was an adult only reception and included lots of dancing and drinking, a photo booth and many, many memories.



See, you can tell I'm pregnant! The black just disguises the belly in photos.

Oh and I did have flats with me just in case my feet or hips or back got tired. I ended up using them about the last 30 minutes or so.



Light-up hula hoops! I love little surprises like this :) A fun wedding for a really fun couple... I wouldn't expect anything less!

Ink Eats & Drinks, Sacramento

Ink Eats & Drinks

I have 3 words for you: Bloody. Mary. Bar. !!!



But first, let's take a look around the place. As you can imagine from a place called Ink it has a tatoo motif. On the ceiling are panels with pin-up style inked up gals.



This is the view from booth looking towards the bar.



The walls are custom painted to lend itself to the theme.



But really, the highlight of this post is the never-before-seen-by-me bloody mary bar. When our super sexy and totally adorable server offered the bloody mary bar we all looked at each other with interest. Bloody Mary's were only $7 with the option for an additional shot for $2.

She brought the vodka over ice and the additional shot separately so you can basically make 2 bloody mary's for $9. I've never heard of such a deal! And for the record when it was time for that second round she brough fresh glasses of ice.

Oh I almost forgot to mention that they also have endless mimosa's and $2 screwdrivers on Sat & Sun as well.



Blue cheese stuffed olives. Heaven.



Basically a counter is set up with everything you could ever want/need in your ultimate Bloody Mary. You start with a choice of plain tomato juice or bloody mary mix.



Then you work your way around and add all your favorites. B makes fantastic bloody mary's, I must say.



Everyone gets to make a bloody mary exactly to their liking.

This post could be a drinking game in which you have to take a big gulp of your bloody mary whenever I say bloody mary.



Different seasoning and salts with your choice of hot sauce.

Disclaimer: I don't usually focus this much on drinking. I don't think. I'm actually not much of a drinker. But you know how it is when you can't have something.



A variety of olives, celery, asparagus, lemons, limes, horseradish, hot mustard....

never in my life have I wanted a bloody mary as bad as I did that day. Darn this peanut!

Anyway, totally great idea, no? Talk about sprucing up your next brunch! Wouldn't this be a great spread to wake-up to as a hangover cure while on vacation? I'm just sayin'.



They have a pretty extensive drink list as well. Apparently they are open until 4 am on the weekends. I must also add that by taking a look around at the cleanliness of the place, you would never know the crazy hours they are open thru the week. Good job Ink.



I say mom's salad was the winner. Tri tip salad with red onion. corn, tomato, queso fresco, cilantro and chipotle ranch dressing. Totally delicious and there was a lot of meat tossed in there.



Dad had the Huevos Rancheros served with black beans. It was tasty and I love the presentation.



B opted for just a simple sausage and egg breakfast but I really loved the potatoes. Crisp on the outside and cooked perfectly.

Food photography tip: Always remove dirty napkins from the camera view. Thank you.



I had the grilled chicken club with tomato and bacon and it was very yummy. Everyone at the table declared the fries to be amazing. Thin, crispy, delicious.

So there you have it. Great prices, great atmosphere, great service.

So head to Midtown and check out Ink.