Pizza Ovens, LIttle LIbraries and Flashlight Walks

This post is a mish-mosh of all the random things we've been up to lately--and honestly, that's what summer should be, right?

If you recall, we met up with Bret and his family during our time in Sardinia. Now that we're all back in San Diego, they invited us over for a pizza dinner. And not just any pizza dinner--Bret built a massive pizza oven in his backyard and takes his pizza-making very seriously.

He spent the entire day stoking the fire, prepping the dough, making sauce, and setting out toppings. First up in the oven: a dough test for garlic bread to check if the heat was just right. Once the flames were roaring, it was time for the real deal.

Pizza Oven in Action

Pizza oven

Red Hot

Bret's personal pizza inspiration comes from a place in Phoenix where he had what he still calls the best pizza of his life. (He must not have been trying that hard in Italy?) It was called the Maria pizza, and his version featured an olive oil base, red onion, pistachio and parmesan. It was delicious--he made two of those, one Meatzilla, and a third vegetarian. 

Maria Pizza

Kasey, his wife, made a fresh salad I was so thankful for (greens always balance things out), and I brought along a lemon icebox pie for dessert. We had a great time catching up--especially hearing about their two kids heading to Japan, I got to share some 7-Eleven videos I had saved from our trip there. Japanese 7-Elevens are legendary, and they were eager to see it for themselves.

And I can't not include a photo of their adorable and well-mannered dog, Montague (Monty for short). He's a German longhaired wirehaired pointer--though I guessed Wolfhound! Either way, total sweetheart.

Monty a.k.a. Montague

My Latest Obsession: Little Free Libraries

So...I totally blame Ira for putting the idea in my mind, but now whenever we're in a new neighbourhood, I'm on the hunt for Little Free Libraries. It's like a mini treasure hunt--and I love seeing how people personalize them. I'm only posting a few of the most fun ones here. 

This charming owl-themed one was near RC's house.

Owl Library in RC's neighbourhood

And this colorful beauty is around the corner from our hair salon in Hillcrest.

Hillcrest Little Free Library

Walks with Kobayashi & a Hot Property Find

We've settled into a rhythm of driving Kobayashi to the Mount Soledad Cross every couple of days. It's one of the few things that really puts a spring in his step--he LOVES car rides! 

On one of those days, the Cross was jammed with cars for an event, so we took a detour through a neighbourhood two streets away--and stumbled across this gorgeous house. The copper patina garage door was beautiful, and later I found the house was once featured as a Hot Property.

Copper patina garage door

Featured in "Hot Property"

More Libraries, More Steps

Back in Pacific Beach for a chiropractor appointment, I couldn't resist planning a mini Little Free Library tour. We hit five libraries in one morning! This one was definitely the cutest, though two others were bursting with great reads.

Pacific Beach Little Free  Library

Peekaboo Views

From this part of PB, we had peekaboo views of water in multiple directions. Ira quickly realized we were on the bay side, and it sparked the idea of returning another day for a proper walk by the water.

When we got back to La Jolla, we had lunch and headed out on our afternoon walk--to check in on three of our regular LFLs. That's when Ira had the idea: "Could we visit ten Little Free Libraries in one day?" 

Challenge accepted.

We only needed two more, but it slipped our mind until evening. You know what that meant--another flashlight walk to round things out.

Neighborhood Nights

We made the most of it and even captured a few nighttime photos around the neighbourhood.

Up-lit tree-lined street



It's hard not to think about the light pollution exhibit we saw earlier this year, but on the other hand, it's tough to deny how pretty everything looked. Just one of those "pick your battles" kind of moments.

Next post, Birthday celebrations!

A dopo!

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