an anniversary at the redwoods (and beach)

Being a newlywed is a constant adventure. Some days it feels like you've been married forever while others strike you as merely the beginning of a very long, wonderful story. Brandon and I have been married for two years and I'm beginning to appreciate the way traditions sneak up on you.

For our first marriage anniversary, we chose to visit Muir Woods and Muir Beach, places neither one of us had visited before. This year, we had planned to gallivant around San Francisco, but those plans were thwarted by the realization that driving into and through San Francisco on Labor Day (BART into the city wasn't an option that weekend) would probably stress us out more than watching Romeo and Juliet in the park would re-energize us.

I've been meaning to share this since September, but we chose to spend our day in (and around) Bodega Bay. Neither Brandon nor I had ever been to Bodega Bay before. I knew Bodega Bay was a little beach town where one of my high school friends got engaged, but that's about it.

I was super paranoid about traffic (since I'd never been before and it was a holiday weekend) that I insisted we leave in the early morning. Armed with a loose plan and lots of Pinterest research, we headed out first to Armstrong Redwoods Preserve, a hidden gem of Northern California, if you ask me.

Brandon and I found this trail sign particularly hilarious.

We took our sweet time walking and wandering through the old trees. The reserve will provide you with a map upon entry, but we didn't find it all that necessary since we weren't going on a full blown hike.

Two and a half hours of no cell service later, we decided to drive out to the coast to take advantage of the gorgeous weather.

We settled on one of the beaches closer to Bodega Bay proper because it was less crowded than the other beaches we drove past. Once there, we chose to do just a little more walking before heading down to the sandy goodness.

I had completely forgotten to bring a swimsuit and Brandon is anything but a water baby, so we stayed land bound. But we did manage to take a really great nap in the sun, which is one of my top five favorite things to do ever.

We ventured inland to the town/city of Bodega where Hitchcock's The Birds was filmed for milkshakes and thrift store browsing but decided to head back to the coast after not finding much to do.

We ended the day by going to Fishetarian Fish Market in Bodega Bay, which I won't bother to link to because of the downright terrible way we were treated. As in our server asked us if we needed anything else and before I could inhale to respond he had already turned around and left. I know we live in an age of hyperbole, but I'm not exaggerating that story. The food was good, nothing spectacular, but not bad either. Thankfully, everything leading up to dinner was magical enough for Brandon and I took look at each other, laugh about it, and decide to jam to Nirvana on our way back home.

How could you not consider this magical?