San Fran Summer Trip - Part 1

 Last Saturday we loaded up and headed out to San Francisco for our summer trip! When deciding where to go we like to pick somewhere with cooler temps (because Dallas summer lasts FOREVER!) and we all enjoy a balance of "going" and "relaxing" ;) San Francisco seemed to check all our boxes and it didn't disappoint! 

First impressions of San Francisco were ELITE! I have NEVER been in a nicer airport bathroom - and possibly a nicer bathroom in general ;) Seriously - the airport was SO NICE! Dallas airport can't hold a candle to SFO! hahahaha

CUTIE!!! The flight was super easy - I pre-booked an Uber before we left that morning and so we made our way to baggage claim and then met up with our driver.

SO MUCH COOL ART in the airport! Literally everywhere!

Have I mentioned how EASY it is traveling with older kids? The absolute best.

The Uber from the airport to our hotel in Fisheran's Wharf took about 40 minutes and was a little rough just because of the traffic. G still gets carsick with things are stop and go and so she was hanging on for dear life back there. 

We got to the hotel around 3:00, checked in and dropped our things in the room and then headed out to walk around and check things out. 

In researching different areas to stay in San Francisco I settled on Fisherman's Wharf since a lot of the things we wanted to do/see seemed to be walkable from that area. It ended up being PERFECT and was a great spot.

Traveling with 5 can be a challenge if you don't want to get two rooms which we really didn't considering how expensive SF hotel rooms were and that we weren't going to be hanging out in the hotel a lot. I ended up booking a family suite at the Holiday Inn in Fisherman's Wharf and it was PERFECT for what we needed. The room was twice the size as the other hotel rooms I was looking at and there was so much space for our entire crew. This was the view when you walked in (I took these photos when we were checking out so it doesn't look perfect)...

... that couch folded out into a double bed...

... there was a cute little lounger in the window...

... and then this was the opposite side of the room.

There was a microwave and mini fridge and the TV pulled out from the wall on a swivel...

The two bay windows opened which we loved too.

The bathroom wasn't anything super fancy but there was a lot of counter space and the whole thing was spacious which we appreciated.

The hotel also offered a complimentary breakfast which is a HUGE PLUS when you're traveling with teen boys ;) It's so nice to not have to hunt down breakfast every morning and while a hotel buffet breakfast wouldn't be my first choice it's easy and one less "thing" to figure out (and one less expense!) so I'll always look for one if possible!

Ghiradelli square was a couple of blocks away so we headed that way to check things out...

... there's a cute little park and beach area and you KNOW this girl is going to get her toes in the water even if it's FREEZING!

Can you tell how excited my kids are to be in hoodies?!?!?! A cool breeze is our FAVORITE!

There were several cute shops and restaurants and we popped into a few and G immediately picked out her souvenir from the trip. Seriously we'd been there about 6 minutes. hahaha This "fisherman" Bartholamew bear seemed fitting for a few days in Fisherman's Wharf and so he was an easy yes ;)

G and I shopped around for a few minutes while the boys went looking for sustenance ;) We'd grabbed some fast food in the airport before leaving Dallas and had packed snacks but by this point everyone was getting pretty hangry.

We met up with them at Square Pie Guys...

... and it absolutely hit the spot!

We ate, played cards, and hung out for a bit and watched the water. 

So earlier that morning Mason had woken up SUPER congested. He took some decongestant, rallied, and was fine most of the day but he kind of crashed at dinner. He went back to the hotel with Dave and Luke (who opted to go chill rather than walk around with me and G) and immediately fell asleep. He's usually 110% on trips wanting to do and see everything so we knew he wasn't feeling himself which was such a bummer!

G and I popped into a few more shops, then walked along the water to check things out.

We saw this boat filleting fish with the biggest sea lion we had ever seen hanging around for the scraps. We hung out and watched for probably 20 minutes he was so cute!

We saw several of these little yellow cars that you could rent and tour the city and, honestly, new fear unlocked for me. hahaha I'm typically a "yes mom" on trips but this was a HARD NO for me! hahaha

That's my kid ;)

There were lots of little trinkety shops and street vendors and OF COURSE we had to check out their squishy/dumpling selections ;) Happy to say she resisted them all although she was definitely tempted!

We went back to the hotel and met up with the boys - we relaxed for a little bit, Mason woke up feeling better, and said he was down for a walk to some ice cream so we made our way to The Baked Bear (maybe a block and a half away from the hotel) where the kids got to make custom ice cream sandwiches with their homemade cookies and ice cream. YES MA'AM.

If you end up going - START WITH ONE! Each of my kids got an ice cream sandwich (Mason had something with a brownie) and it was WAY TOO MUCH ice cream even for the five of us. hahaha

So, complete transparency, I was a bit nervous about San Francisco based on everything I'd heard/read about it being dirty and kind of unsafe. From the moment we stepped out of our hotel until the moment we left the city I can honestly say that I never once felt unsafe. It was significantly cleaner than I anticipated (and cleaner than every other major city we've visited) and we didn't encounter a single person that made us even the slightest bit at ease. NOW - that could have been reflective of the areas that we were in (definitely the more touristy parts of the city) but I was still super impressed and delighted by "the vibe". 

If you have any questions - don't hesitate to email them to me (momfessionals@gmail.com) or drop them in the comments and I'll make sure to answer them in upcoming posts!

HAPPY Monday, friends!