While my friend and I were pet sitting, our boyfriends came out to see us. My friend and I planned a few things to do during the day while we are all out this way. We started with the Orange County Zoo and ended by playing pool and hanging out on a rooftop.

We piled into my boyfriend’s truck and he so kindly drove us all to the Irvine Regional Park. It is a huge, beautiful park. It has so many attractions! We all regretted not bringing a picnic so we could stay there longer. It was a perfect day and the perfect park for it.

The zoo admission was only $2 a person! It was a small zoo, but they actually had quite a few really cool animals. The animals seemed to have plenty of space as well. My favorite animal there is their black jaguar. I had never seen the spots so clearly on a black jaguar. The sun was hitting the coat so perfectly you could see every detail. Unfortunately, my camera did not pick up on the spots like it was in real life, but there’s many more videos. See the videos of the zoo on my Instagram page: @SunshineGrowsHere.

Then, we headed to the Irvine Spectrum Center to eat, window shop and get some steps in. We ate at Yard House. I actually tried something new. I got the Nashville hot chicken sandwich. It was really good. Their mac and cheese was delicious too! We were all stuffed because it was so good! We walked around various stores pointing out cute clothes, ridiculous clothes and things we want to look at another time. By the time we were done window shopping, we were all tired. The food was hitting and we were heading for food comas. We found a Starbucks and got some drinks for the drive.

Finally, we hung out on the rooftop and played pool. My friend had only played once before, but she made quite a few shots! She said she loves it and would like to do that more often. I love playing pool so I am so excited to have a billiards buddy! We played teams and had a blast playing. It was so fun having a double date out of town. I am so grateful for my amazing circle of friends.

-Cassidy