Hi everyone, Jay and Shell here!
We had an amazing day, which is hilarious since we went to the terrifying dentist! Our dentist isn’t actually scary since we switched to a holistic dentist. The only catch is that it’s a two hour drive to their location in San Diego, but we turned this into a bonus by exploring the city and beach afterwards!
We explored a new raw vegan restaurant and traversed the cliffs of a gorgeous beach, but our very first stop was the dentist. After all, that’s why we drove out there! Shell got her metal fillings out and replaced. We’ve been dying to do this since we learned that metal fillings have mercury in them, which is toxic!
We’re so glad to have found a dentist that safely replaces these toxic metal fillings. So, Monday really was a fun day of celebrating no-more-toxins!
Not only did they replace Shell’s toxic fillings, but we both got our teeth cleaned as well. Let’s just say it was the best dental experience EVER! They were so kind and sweet. Maybe we’ve just gone to the wrong dentists our whole lives, but they were the first to make sure we had none of that nasty dribble run down our faces. They cared as much about our comfort as they did about doing their jobs well, and we absolutely appreciated it.
If you live in California and you’re interested, the dentist is called Smile Haven Dental Center. They have a website, as well as an Instagram account.
It took about an hour for them to remove Shell’s metal fillings. By then, it was about 2:30pm and Shell wanted to go to the beach. Afterall, her mouth was still numb and eating wasn’t a good idea yet. Finding a beach was a bit of an adventure considering we don’t know the area well. Our first stop was Mission Beach, and it was a beautiful drive! We drove over the San Diego river and admired the beauty of the bay as well.
While it was a stunning drive in the afternoon sun, the beach itself was crowded. There was a boardwalk with a roller coaster and games. There were people hurriedly bustling about, and while some may enjoy that experience, we never left the car! Crowds were never our jam, even before social distancing became a thing.
We quickly knew we were going to need to find another beach. We were hungry and Shell was starting to feel her mouth again, so we figured we’d grab a bite to eat and then research a different beach once we had some yummy food in our bellies.
We may have had a difficult time finding a beach, but we knew exactly what restaurant we wanted to go to! Peace Pies is one of our favorite restaurants! It’s small and easy to miss, but it is such a gem! They have a huge menu of classics like pizza, burgers and wraps, and they have a gorgeous selection of mouth-watering desserts.
We love it not only because the food is amazing, but because it meets our dietary needs. We enjoy following a mostly raw vegan lifestyle because raw foods help us feel our best, and this restaurant is COMPLETELY, FULLY raw vegan! Raw vegan pizza, woot woot!
So far, their pizza is our absolute favorite. Their dining area is closed right now, but it was open the first time we went. They have an outdoor dining patio overflowing with different plant varieties. There’s tiny plants on the tables, trees right next to the tables, a sturdy tree providing shade over the whole patio, and hanging plants wrapping around the entire patio. The restaurant may be on a busy street, but all you see is green beauty. They did such a wonderful job of creating a little section of peace; the patio really shuts out the busyness of the outdoor world. It’s such a calming experience, like dining in a secluded forest.
We highly recommend going there when the patio is open again. It’s such a unique and wonderful experience! There’s nothing quite like munching on cheesecake (yes, that’s right, raw vegan CHEESECAKE) in the middle of all these plants; it rejuvenates the soul. It’s like the trees are giving your spirit a hug! Here’s the link to their website, and here is the link to their Instagram.
Since the patio was closed this time, we had to take our food to go. We sat in the car and researched beaches in the area, and we couldn’t decide between Windansea or Torrey Pines State Beach. Ultimately, we went to Torrey Pines because we read that they had plenty of parking and a beautiful view from the parking lot.
We didn’t actually find the parking lot, but there was plenty of street parking. We didn’t manage to take a good picture of our view, but we could see the entire beach! Torrey Pines is set up on a cliff with the beach down below, and it is absolutely gorgeous. We parked there and ate our food, and then we walked around for a bit.
There are little dirt trails up and down the cliff, and it was so fun to explore! All the rocks are exposed, and we had fun with that as two geology nerds. The sun started to go down, so we made our way back to the top and watched the sunset.
It was a perfect end to a perfect day. We still can’t believe a dentist visit went so well! We’re glad we explored a bit and found this lovely beach.
If grief has taught us anything, it is to cherish these moments that we were given on special days such as this. It’s taught us how even going to the dentist together is a blessing. Grief is our daily reminder that although it may not be fair we were left behind, there is some beauty in the reasons why we were left behind. We miss Art daily. Yet, we know he is with us on these days, standing next to us smiling because we are choosing life and honoring him every day. The end.
With aloha and gratitude,
Jay and Shell
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