it's all in the details.

 a little peek into the botanical gardens.

beautiful ain't it??

turtles on the beach.

four-wheeling.

all week we've been planning to go four-wheeling, and today was the day!

after traveling about an hour to the little town of hawi,

we mounted our atvs and took off for a 3 hour ride.

we drove through forests, meadows, and orchards,

and took a break down by the ocean,

where we captured spinner dolphins, well, spinning,

and another at a waterfall for a little dip. 

although the water was freezing(!) it was hard to care too much. 

the fall was just magnificent—so lush and green.

and although we're still sneezing out dust...

{literally. it's disgusting}

the ride was just incredible and a definite must!

tide pools

i love visiting tide pools.

whether it's in california or cancun or hawaii, 

they're all spectacular. 

the ocean and all its little creatures are just so intriguing to me.

we're planning on a night dive this week,

and i can't wait!

although, i'm not going to lie. the ocean critters that come out

at night are a bit more daunting—just asked todd.

i once cried because a lobster was blocking my path.

let's just say that was a low point in my life...

sunsets and shadows.

being a lucero, jumping pics are required on any beach.

and we just so happened to have this one

all to ourselves!

welcome paradise.

Aloha, all!

it's 7am here, but due to the time change, 

i'm having a hard time falling back to sleep, so i've instead

decided to blog my 1st day adventures on the big island.

after a grueling 13 hour flight, ryan and i landed

on the beautiful {and surprisingly humid} big island.

after meeting up with the family,

we quickly headed to the beach, wasting no time!

kekaha kai is the perfect beach—

not too big and not too many people. 

the sand is fine as powder and the water crystal blue.

and im certain this whole island smells

of pineapples and plumeria.

I LOVE THIS PLACE!

aloha my love.

it's only one day until i leave for hawaii, 

so the hubs and i are enjoying our time together the best

way we know how. 

thailand cafe in a fort, of course.

how am i going to last 10 days without t-money??

milk bar.

it's kind of embarrassing how often we've been eating ice cream lately.

'tis the season for shakes though, right?

well this little milk bar is pretty good. 

i mean, it's no popbar gelato, but it was still 'aight. 

above all, i think their decor was the best!

cute little vintagy milk crates and chalkboards. 

im a sucker for chalkboards.

oh and my favorite part—it was right across from anthropologie!

i pop into milk bar and then pop right over to anthro. 

perf!

west village walkin'.

must mention the caramelized banana french toast. oh so good.

jonathan, our wonderful tour guide

At 9½ ft. wide, 75½ Bedford St is the narrowest house in the city.

 the holloways and matheny's were back at it again this weekend with another

nyc's 24 greatest walks. {check out our last walk here.}

this time, 

we hit up the west village.

this is one of my favorite neighborhoods in the whole city!

with it's quaint cobblestone roads, little brick homes, and beautiful tree-lined streets,
it's instant love.

popbar.

right by my subway is this adorable gelato-on-a-stick shop.

hubsters isn't the biggest fan of gelato,

{to him it's overrated, among many other things...},

so he's always scurrying me by every time we pass.
 

so the other night, i conveniently
planned dinner with friends right around the corner.
i just so happened to suggest popbar for dessert,
and the numbers were in my favor.

it was fantastic. i'm especially fond of the hazelnut gelato

dipped in white chocolate.

even hubs had to have more than one bite.

next on the list is their popsorbetto.
it looks perfectly refreshing and delicious.

rockaway tacos.

after such a hot week in the city, it was great to retreat to the 

beach and cool off. it was especially great having the egans accompany us.

they're two cool dudes and we always have a good time w/ them.

on the way home, robby and kelsey put their 

'restaurant credibility' at risk by telling us about "the best tacos ever!" 

after being told something as life changing as that

we had no option but to take a detour and head to rockaway tacos.
 i mean kelsey is a chef. that's gotta count for some credibility...

the verdict?
phenomenal fish tacos, a totally hip crowd,
and the egans walked away with heightened credibility.