I heart adventure: My own backyard

I love going on adventures. . . Especially when they include streets to wander, beautiful old buildings, delicious food (bonus points if there’s a coffee shop!) and some sort of culture.  It’s why I love spending the day wandering around the streets of San Francisco. . . Over and over again.  It’s why a visit to our favorite beach town just brings out the best of me. 

It is so easy to think of adventures as a vacation (my dream!), but sometimes I need to just get out and wander and the schedule AND the budget scream otherwise.  And as unexciting as it often sounds, at the end of the day my cup is full and my heart is happy.  Even if, it was a post excused from jury duty walk to the famous water tower that rests near the court house and a yummy lunch.  It filled a longing in my heart.  

I live in the very center of California, an easy drive to mountains or beach and surrounded by acres and acres of vast farmland.  It is one of the largest (populations) in our state and honestly, we have more people than some states have people (not a joke!).  It is a city that honestly feels like a small town in many ways yet, filled with so much culture and diversity and some seriously delicious tacos.  

But despite its huge population and small town feel, it has some pretty brag worthy sites.  The Forestiere Underground Gardens and the Chaffee Zoo are 100 percent worth your time!  And in the spring, the nearby blossoms of the stone fruit and nut trees are a sight to see! There are also some great museums, like the Fresno Art Museum, the Meux Home, Discovery Center (definitely a place to take your kiddos!), Armenian Heritage Museum, African American Museum and the Kearney Mansion.  I am sure I missed some, too! 

Last Fall, I was seriously craving an adventure, but we were knee deep into the school year and soccer season and Christmas was quickly approaching.  Jon and I needed to go downtown and get some tickets for Ethan’s Christmas present (we really wanted to avoid those hefty Ticketmaster fees!), and decided to try a new to us coffee shop downtown and spend some time wandering around.  This was a mini adventure/check a Christmas present off the list/while the kids were at school kind of day.  The weather was perfection and we were ready.

First Stop: Fulton Street Coffee

We found a parking spot close to the coffee shop and walked in and placed our order at the counter.  The baristas were so nice and welcoming.  The coffee shop itself is in an old (beautiful building) near Warnor’s Theater on Tuolumne.  Not only do they roast their own coffee, but they also make their own house syrups.  I had the Sweet Cinnamon Oat Latte and it was wonderful!  It was nice to sit and chat with Jon over coffee after the busy week and before the busy weekend.  

Next Stop: Walk Fulton Street

Fulton Street is one of the coolest streets with beautiful sculptures, murals and some delicious restaurants and breweries along the way. If you are in the need for a quincenera dress this is the place to go!  It is a street full of culture and diversity.  One of my favorite artists is Pierre-Augusta Renoir.  He is often most remembered for painting ballerinas during the impressionalist era.  Many people don’t realize that after he started showing symptoms of arthritis, it became very heard to hold a paint brush, so he switched to sculpting (a creator’s got to create!) and when you stumble upon one, they are beautiful.  And stumble upon one you will if you want Fulton Street with quiet intention of admiring the sculptures that line the street.  You can also find an Alexander Caulder a few blocks away outside the Saroyan Theater.  (Caulder is my absolute favorite sculpture and I tend to collect pictures of them from the cities I’ve visited. . . Like the the giant orange one in Sculpture Park, Seattle or the Swan in Chicago near ____ tower). 

Lunch: Cosmopolitan Tavern

This restaurant was the place to be!  I’m pretty sure we were lucky to find a seat at a table, because this place was packed (always a good sign)!  While to location we ate in was fairly new, the restaurant itself has been a staple to Fresno since 1904 and even still houses the original bar from the original location.  The food here was amazing and I can’t wait to eat there again! 

And that was the end our our downtown adventure date.  There were many other things we could have done, but wandering is my favorite.  Finding a random Renoir on a street corner a joy.  Enjoying the adventure with my husband. . . Priceless. 

 Do you take time to explore your own town?  What’s your favorite place to explore? And finally, where should we explore next?

A bit of encouragment

  Proverbs 31 has always occupied a spot in my heart as one of my favorite chapters in the Bible.  Something about the woman who occupies the space in those scriptures captivates me.  She is a woman who somehow does it all.  She wears hats of all sizes and shapes as she runs a household, business and still manages so many other things. 

There are so many theories on whether she was a real woman (possibly Solomon’s mom, Bathsheba) or if she is just a compilation of some pretty great characteristics of a Godly woman.  Whether of not take on her you take, those characteristics mentioned in that chapter are life changing and encouraging, because no matter who you are: single, married, mom, grandma, aunt… . . You are a woman of God and worthy of being praised.  Your worth is more than rubies.  You have value even though you are tired and weary (I sure am tired!)

On Mondays, I find myself at a nearby Starbucks sipping my favorite Brown Sugar Shaken Oat milk Espresso drink and taking time to work on my Bible Study and some writing  before heading out to do some grocery shopping.  It is a way to start my week slow and set it up focused on God.  It is away from the laundry and endless to-do list.  It has become a sweet time. My calendar for the next month or so is a bit overwhelming and quite honestly this season in my life has me on my toes.  We have some big things coming up soon and I am seriously wondering how God is going to pull them off. My list of ways God has blown my mind over the years is incredible.  But the thing I keep coming back to as I wait on God to do his thing is the following verse from that same passage:

“She is clothed with strength and dignity and she laughs without fear of the future.” Proverbs 31:25

Living without fear of the future is waking up each morning armed with a battle of the mind.  It is saying my trust in God is greater than my fears and anxieties (hard, I know!).  It is recognizing that our Savior is our source of Peace and saying no to all the "what ifs" that sneak in and send our hearts beating quicker.

This is my verse for the year.  It is my prayer.  I want to be a woman who laughs at the future, not because I am ill prepared, but because I am trusting in my Heavenly Father to open the doors and answer our prayers.  And in my experience, when I release my fears and anxieties to him, he answers in abundance.  I will be obedient and take the steps that might be the answer (but also might not be either), but I will wait on him.  I will trust him even when every door seems to slam in my face. . . I know God’s got it because he hasn’t failed us yet .

Maybe you’re tired and running on empty, I just want to encourage you today that the God of the Bible is a God that renews and refreshes your heart.  He is a God that loves and cares for his children.  He is ours source of strength and joy.  He wants the best for us and when we submit to Him and His plan, I promise you, he will blow your mind, too!