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A new hobby that I picked up after I became a mom is finding old furniture and turning them into newly painted gems. I've experimented with spray paint and hand paint but now, I'm sticking to just hand painting because you have better control and it's less wasteful and more environmentally-friendly.

I found this faded brown nightstand on the curb after someone posted it on craigslist.org for free. They didn't ask me to contact them so it was a first come, first serve situation and provided an address. Within 10 minutes of finding the post, I went ahead and drove to their curb and lo and behold, someone has not picked it up yet. To me, this is treasure, free treasure. There's been times where someone has gotten to it before me so it always makes me so happy when I actually get to take it home! 

My favorite colors to paint furniture with are charcoal gray or light gray. For this nightstand, I chose light gray and used a bottle of chalk paint that I already had at home from another project. I originally bought it from WalMart; brand is Waverly. The name of this particular color is 'mineral'. 

Here are the before pictures:


Here are the after pictures after two coats of chalk paint: 

I used a pretty sticky lining pattern to line the drawers. This particular white/gray floral pattern is very sentimental to me. This is the same lining I used for the cabinets and drawers for the house we used to live in South Carolina before we moved to SLO. 

To read more about my usual process when painting furniture and the cost of my painting supplies, go to this entry: http://www.sanluisobispomom.com/blog/before-and-after-with-chalk-paint.

Central Coast Zoo (Formerly Charles Paddock Zoo) in Atascadero, California is the only zoo in San Luis Obispo county.

When you walk through the entrance of the zoo, you'll immediately find the pretty pink flamingos to your left!

It's a small zoo but for a small admission, it's really worth it. My favorites are the red pandas!

The kids will be entertained (See Lemurs below from Charles Paddock Zoo). Zoo prices for children are by age group but children who are 2 years old and under are free. If you're planning on taking the kids to the zoo often, it might be in your best interest to pay for an annual membership. They also have a military, student and senior membership discounts for memberships.

For 2024, the Family Membership costs $100 for the entire year! If you don't plan on visiting more than once a year, it may not be worth it and you might just be better off buying the individual tickets once a year. If you're a military family, the family membership is only $90 a year. We're a veteran's family and had been able to take advantage of this discount family membership before. 

The cutest animals to watch were the cute red pandas! They arrived at the Charles Paddock Zoo in 2019 and every time we visited, they look so happy and healthy here.

Link to Video of Red Pandas at Central Coast Zoo (Charles Paddock Zoo)
I think it only took us about an hour to go through the whole park. After you're done, you'll find the playground right outside of Charles Paddock Zoo called the Atascadero Lake Park. You can rent paddle boats here and sometimes they have really big ssonal events for the public. See a reel of the Zoo Boo event that my kids and I went at Charles Paddock Zoo for trick or treating.

Pictures/video below is: Anteater, Meerkate, Malayan Tiger and Tamandua.

Link to Video of Tamandua at Charles Paddock Zoo in Atascadero

Besides for the Zoo Boo event, we also visited the Charles Paddock Zoo during Christmas time when they had Christmas decorations up.

They don't sell food inside so don't plan on buying food at the Charles Paddock Zoo. There are a couple of restaurants within a few blocks from the zoo so you can make a drive out nearby.

Charles Paddock Zoo Address: 9100 Morro Rd, Atascadero, CA 93422

(All photos taken by SanLuisObispoMom.com.) To see all family-friendly things to do in San Luis Obispo county including upcoming events at Charles Paddock Zoo, go to: http://www.sanluisobispomom.com/family-friendly-events.php

I've chaperoned for a field trip at this zoo before and it was a very nice size to navigate around with a group of kids that I was responsible for. I've chaperoned for a total of 8 different class field trips throughout the years. Read about my chaperone tips and see a list of field trips that I've chaperoned for.

See upcoming family-friendly activities for kids.

Other Popular Things To Do with Kids in San Luis Obispo County

• Hearst Castle -- Read my blog review
• The Ravine Waterpark -- Read my blog review (only open for Summer)
• Mustang Waterpark -- Read my blog review (only open for Summer)
• San Luis Obispo Children's Museum -- Read  my blog review
• Central Coast Aquarium -- Read my blog review
• San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum -- Learn more
• Paso Robles Children's Museum -- Read my blog review
• Exploration Discovery Center -- Read my blog review
• Museum of Natural History -- Learn more
• Avila Valley Barn -- Read my blog review

Grover Beach is part of Pismo State Beach (all part of San Luis Obispo county) but a much smaller beach, compared to Pismo Beach. There's only a couple of hotels in Grover Beach so our best suggestion is to stay at a hotel in Pismo Beach and just be a few minutes drive away from it. Walking Entry to Grover Beach is almost like a secret. Grover Beach has a dunes portion where you drive on the beach with your vehicle (for a fee), or you can walk on the non-vehicle side and park (no fee) behind the restaurant where Grand Avenue ends. See more beautiful pictures of Grover Beach.

Grover Beach Hotels

Holiday Inn Express Grover Beach - Pismo Beach

The Holiday Inn Express Grover Beach-Pismo Beach, California is placed perfectly in between Los Angeles and San Francisco on the sunlit central coast. Hotel guests are just two swift miles away from the attractions at Pismo Beach, where they can enjoy beach recreations such as surfing, sailing, fishing, and ATV riding.

See list of hotels in Pismo Beach

Things to do in Grover Beach

Dine at Top Restaurants
Many locals and tourist from all over San Luis Obispo County would come to Grover Beach and dine at some of the best restaurants like Spoon Trade, Sushi 805 and many authentic Mexican taco shops. See some of our beach restaurant picks.

Ride on the Sand Dunes on Pismo State Beach through the Grover Beach Entry

The best point to enter the sand dunes is off of Grand Avenue in Grover Beach. You will see a booth before you enter to pay your vehicle fee and then just park your car on the beach and have some beach fun! This is one of the few places where you can ride on the beach in all of California (if it's not the only one left). The great side to this is you can just climb back in your car when you're done beaching it without having to walk very far and unload many things. Plus, it's so beautiful to see the sand dunes. You'll feel like you're in a desert for just a bit, except you're at the beach. You can ride ATVs here. See beach pictures of Grover Beach.

Ramona Garden Park Sizzlin' Summer Concert Series
During the summer weather from early June to late August, Ramona Garden Park in Grover Beach hosts concert series every Sunday! It's free to hear the entertainment from 3PM - 6PM. Locals bring their low back chairs, sunglasses, sunblock and dancing shoes. Visitors are always welcome! Food, Beer and wine available for purchase. Address: 993 Ramona Ave., Grover Beach, CA 93433. See more summer concert series around San Luis Obispo County or upcoming events.

To see other pictures of restaurants that I've visited in San Luis Obispo County, go to the Restaurants Page.

Read about my staycation at the famous Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo.

Arroyo Grande is a city located in San Luis Obispo County on the Central Coast of California. Known for their roaming roosters, Arroyo Grande is only 10 minutes inland from Pismo Beach and Grover Beach. This more suburban city has a a bit of a historic charm with the Village of Arroyo Grande and their many acres of rural farms. Even as you're passing by Arroyo Grande High School, you can see a view of a farm across the street.

Arroyo Grande has many historic buildings. Like this Hiawatha Lodge that is nearly 100 years old and is used as a community center.

Things To Do in Arroyo Grande

Sometimes, Arroyo Grande (also known as "AG" to locals) is a sleepy town. The most exciting thing to do in Arroyo Grande is during the summer time when the Mustang Waterpark is open! Throughout the year, there are seasonal events that you can look out for like free concerts in the summer, Halloween trick or treating in the Village of Arroyo Grande or fall events at the Elm Street Park. However, there are a few notable restaurants that you can visit that are pretty well known to all San Luis Obispo County residents and this brings many people to Arroyo Grande.

Mustang Waterpark

In the summer time, the Mustang Waterpark in Arroyo Grande is open and it's a very fun thing for locals and tourists to do. The waterpark is open between the end of May through the first weekend of September, typically from Memorial Day weakend through Labor Day weekend. See pictures and read my review of the Mustang Waterpark, where I also rented a cabana at before. Mustang Waterpark is interestingly located at the Lopez Lake Recreation Area, which is a large camping ground where you can choose to camp at as well!

Village of Arroyo Grande

Usually throughout the year, we'd come to the Village (short for the Village of Arroyo Grande) for a couple of nice restaurants like Mason Bar & Kitchen for dinner and Sidewalk Cafe for breakfast. The quality of the food at those two restaurants are great! As a fun thing to do after eating a meal in the Village is walk on a swinging bridge right behind a parking lot. See the short video below to see how long this swinging bridge is.

Usually the parking lot next to this swinging bridge is easy to park at, unless there is a festival, in which then, they'd close it off. You can walk to many shops and restaurants around the entire Village of Arroyo Grande. It is only a few blocks big. Walking through their narrow alleys can be fun.

Arroyo Grande Restaurants

There are many different restaurants in Arroyo Grande. The most famous one is called Ember Restaurant, which I highly recommend making reservations for! Read my personal reviews or see my pictures for the following restaurants in Arroyo Grande:

• Klondike Pizza (Village of Arroyo Grande)
  
• Palo Mesa Wood Fired Pizza (Village of Arroyo Grande)
  
• Mason Bar & Kitchen (Village of Arroyo Grande)
  
• Sidewalk Cafe (Village of Arroyo Grande)
  
• Ember Restaurant
• Blue Seafood & Grill
• Tropical Hawaiian BBQ
• French Fries (has an arcade inside)

Coffee Shops of Arroyo Grande

Surprisingly, Arroyo Grande has the most coffee shops compared to other cities in the South County region of San Luis Obispo County! With a few chain coffee shops, AG also has unique ones that stand out with their beautiful latte art. Here's my rank from most favorite to least favorite among coffee shops in Arroyo Grande:

1. Tribe Coffeehouse
2. Cafe Andreini
3. Greenhouse Coffee Co
4. Banner Coffee
5. Starbucks (there's 2 of them in AG)
6. Dutch Bros
7. Red Dirt Coffee House

Arroyo Grande Hotels

Best Western Casa Grande Inn


The Best Western Casa Grande Inn is in Arroyo Grande but neighbors Pismo Beach, California. Hotel guests are just two miles from the attractions of Pismo Beach and Pismo Beach Pier where they enjoy ocean recreation such as sailing, fishing, scuba and ATV riding.

Hampton Inn & Suites Arroyo Grande/Pismo Beach area


This 103 room interior corridor property offers rooms with a 32 wide screen television and complimentary high-speed internet access fitness center heated pool whirlpool and various sizes of exclusive meeting rooms. They have a complimentary On the House hot breakfast and a fine selection of restaurants nearby.

The Agrarian Hotel, Best Western Signature Collection


The Agrarian Hotel, Best Western Signature Collection is established in the heart of the historic village of Arroyo Grande surrounded by the beauty of the central coast along with the vineyards of the countryside. This hotel is an iconic landmark within itself in the village of Arroyo Grande, California. Situated around exclusive antique shops, acclaimed elegant eateries, and blissful wineries. This hotel is a Cal-Green certified building and we have utilized environmental-friendly materials ensuring our LEED certification. We are committed towards being eco-friendly and having a low carbon footprint. Our energy is complimented by solar panels and we recycle the waste water back into the environment. They also partnered with Low Energy Program and have electric vehicle charging station on premises. This is the newest hotel in Arroyo Grande. See rates for Agrarian Hotel, BW Signature Collection.

Reading Suggestions:

See free events throughout San Luis Obispo County.

See my top 10 favorite wineries to visit in Edna Valley and Paso Robles (San Luis Obispo County).

Read about my staycation at the famous Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo.

See a list of hotels in the Pismo Beach area.

Avila Beach is located in San Luis Obispo County on the Central Coast of California. It's a small beach town with a 3 different piers (click here to see pictures of the piers), which is a lot for a small beach town. With less than a handful hotels in the area, this makes it a quieter traveling spot but still very beautiful. The locals like to keep it a secret but nowadays, a lot of tourists have discovered it and it can get very hard to find parking during the summer weekends!

Things To Do in Avila Beach

There are many cool things to do in the Avila Beach area that makes it unique. Besides for going to the beach, shopping and dining at many of the restaurants at their beachfront and hanging out in the sun, here are a few things you can also do.

Avila Valley Barn

Avila Valley Barn is a barn in Avila Beach that is free to visit and see the animals! You can get market and bakery goods like pies while you're here and you can feed the goats by buying a bag of lettuce. We've taken sat on their hay ride (extra fee), had our toddler partake on a pony ride (also extra fee) and ate some delicious food when they have food available for sale right outside. Parking is free on their dirt parking area. Read more about Avila Valley Barn.

Avila Beach Piers

The main Avila Beach Pier among the three is now open for summer 2025. It has been fixed and walking on it is wonderful. See my Instagram post of pictures that I took while standing on the Avila Beach Pier. The other two piers are also unique: one is exclusive to Cal Poly (our local university) personnel and the farthest one is a pier that you can fish and walk on called Port San Luis Obispo Pier, also known as Harford Pier. There is also a seafood restaurant on this pier. See my Instagram video reel of Port San Luis Pier; it is like heaven on Earth. There is a marina right by it and sometimes you can find sea lions as you walk on this pier.

Avila Farmers Market on Fridays

During the summer months, Avila Farmers Market takes place near the pier. It's free to come and hear the entertainment. Many locals would bring their low back chairs and hang out. There are fresh produce, drinks and food for purchase. You can take the free Avila Beach Trolley on the weekends during the summer months from different points of Pismo Beach and Shell Beach to get here. 

Central Coast Aquarium

Within walking distance from the beach at Avila Beach is a small aquarium called Central Coast Aquarium. You can probably see the whole thing within 30 minutes. It is free entry for kids 2 and under and they provide a discount if you have an EBT card. See a video of the jelly fishes that I recorded while at Central Coast Aquarium. My kindergartener also came here for a class field trip, which I volunteered for, so it's a local aquarium and a treasure for us here. Read more about our Central Coast Aquarium visits and see more pictures of Central Coast Aquarium in Avila Beach.

See more pictures of the main Avila Beach Piers.

Avila Beach Hotels

Avila Lighthouse Suites

Avila Lighthouse Suites is right on the beach, close to the pier and in the center of all the summer Avila Beach Farmers Market action on Fridays! Experience ocean front luxury just steps from the sand in Avila Beach at the Avila Lighthouse Suites. An all suite beach front resort featuring non-smoking spacious two room suites with microwave oven, refrigerator, coffee maker and private balcony.

San Luis Bay Inn

High on a bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean, San Luis Bay Inn has one of the most breath taking views on the Central Coast of California. The San Luis Bay Inn is located high above the Pacific shore, wrapped in the Santa Lucia Mountains with the lapping ocean at your doorsteps. You awake to misty mornings, bright sunny afternoons, and the invigorating aroma of the ocean.

See all hotels in San Luis Obispo County.

Avila Beach is only one of many beaches in San Luis Obispo (SLO) County. See all of the pictures that I took of all the beaches in San Luis Obispo County.