LA-jan

Post Holiday post Part 4

2012-01-17T12:16:00.000-08:00

Well, I've just gotten my Christmas decorations packed away
so I thought I'd better wrap up these Post Holiday posts, too, if
it's not too late!
Christmas evening dinner at our house!
The grand dames arrived in their finest and looking
beautiful and vivacious as ever!
Betty White has nothing on these near 90 year olds!

Always a lot of energy at "the kids table", think I'll have to listen in :))

once again, the "adult table" is acting their age with fun Christmas cracker treats!

Why, we even had a "hipster" table for these crazy kids!

But, these fine gentlemen kept it stately, ah, who am I kidding! We had a riot of a
good time, despite the fine china and silver place settings. We had
a few bottles of fine wine!

The twins charmed us all with their wit and good cheer! It was a Merry Christmas!

Post Holiday post Part 3

2012-01-08T18:57:00.000-08:00

What we are up to now is "Pizza Night", the eve of Christmas!
And all through the house, not a clean hand!
Yea. we were up to our elbows in flour and dough,
marinara sauce and pepperoni!
But, we still had the Goat cheese margarita, the
BLT, the shrimp and garlic, the BBQ chicken,
the caramelized brussel sprout pizza with sun-dried tomatoes and
smoked Gouda, the feta and olive pizza and about a half dozen
more!

the twins were looking good enjoying the party

and opening their gifts

but, in the other room, it was chaos!

Taylor keeps the rowdy bunch entertained!

Christmas morning, we found a few gifts under the tree.
This lovely gift was hand wrapped by Taylor, for me!
So gorgeous, I had to get it documented!
It was a ScanDisk MP3 player, so tiny, I can clip it onto
my sleeve or waistband as I go around the lake in the mornings. It even
has a FM radio so I can listen to my favorite morning radio!

Terry was so excited and surprised to find the entire 8 seasons of the
"Get Smart" episodes waiting for him!

It was especially nice that Sean and Katie were here to celebrate with us!

Post Holiday post Part 2

2012-01-04T20:08:00.000-08:00

So, as Sean's old room took shape as a real guest room,
we continued the decorations for the rest of the house.
We found a great tree lot, with great prices for both
the living room tree, here, and the smaller tree
for the guest room.

the trimmings continued on the "mantle" and doorways and windows
and really, every place I could fit a bough of greenery
with a splash of sparkle and snow.

most of these branches, pine cones and berries were "finds" on my
morning walks around the lake. A little spray of snow or gold and silver
created a little Christmas magic!

Wouldn't you guess, we had a pre-holiday practice dinner! Complete with
the dry brined beer-butt turkey!

oops, guess this pics out of order, but Terry inspects the temperature of the bird.

doesn't Taylor look thrilled to help out with the gravy :))!

The practice dinner was a success. Our chef was thrilled!

This is how is all started: Post Holiday posts: Part 1

2012-01-03T15:45:00.000-08:00

These past holidays seemed rather busy, and looking back at my pictures
I guess we had a lot going on.
I'll have to post in sequels before I get caught up!
With Sean moved out, we had a room that needed
a little somethin' somethin'.
It just took us a few months to get ourselves psyched to approach it.
But, we had a deadline. . . Sean was coming back for a visit!
So the clean out began.
The projects, the books, the boxes left behind all got sorted,
some got thrown, some donated, some stored.

Next, new things came in (this was really fun). . .

and unpacked and sorted and put together to somehow
look like a new room. (not as much fun)

and once the lighting went up, things fell together
and the room took on a magic of its own.

Taylor helped me with painting, Terry put the daybed together
and the new linens made it cozy.

just a little Christmas magic with a tree in the corner (more fun:))
and it worked.
We were ready!

Merry Christmas Sean and Katie!

Holiday Stress

2011-11-29T18:09:00.000-08:00

Hilarious!

Fun Color Test

2011-11-29T04:17:00.000-08:00

Try your color matching skill with this fun test. May tell your something about your abilities to pick out paint colors, or to match your outfit in the morning! LOL! Of course, your computer screen may affect your score. Mine was a 14 under flourescent lights at work.

http://www.xrite.com/custom_page.aspx?PageID=77

Good luck!

A Facebook Lift I Couldn't Resist!!

2011-11-07T18:09:00.001-08:00

OK, I ripped this off, but if you haven't seen this, take a look!

"A picture began circulating in November. It should be "The Picture of the Year," or perhaps, "Picture of the Decade." It won't be. In fact, unless you obtained a copy of the U.S. paper which published it, you probably would never have seen it.

The picture is that of a 21-week-old unborn baby named Samuel Alexander Armas, who is being operated on by surgeon named Joseph Bruner. The baby was diagnosed with spina bifida and would not survive if removed from his mother's womb. Little Samuel's mother, Julie Armas, is an obstetrics nurse in Atlanta. She knew of Dr. Bruner's remarkable surgical procedure. Practicing at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, he performs these special operations while the baby is still in the womb.

During the procedure, the doctor removes the uterus via C-section and makes a small incision to operate on the baby. As Dr. Bruner completed the surgery on Samuel, the little guy reached his tiny, but fully developed hand through the incision and firmly grasped the surgeon's finger. Dr. Bruner was reported as saying that when his finger was grasped, it was the most emotional moment of his life, and that for an instant during the procedure he was just frozen, totally immobile.

The photograph captures this amazing event with perfect clarity. The editors titled the picture, "Hand of Hope." The text explaining the picture begins, "The tiny hand of 21-week-old fetus Samuel Alexander Armas emerges from the mother's uterus to grasp the finger of Dr. Joseph Bruner as if thanking the doctor for the gift of life."

Little Samuel's mother said they "wept for days" when they saw the picture. She said, "The photo reminds us pregnancy isn't about disability or an illness, it's about a little person" Samuel was born in perfect health, the operation 100 percent successful. Now see the actual picture, and it is awesome...incredible....and hey, pass it on! The world needs to see this one!"

Happy Halloween! The Party!

2011-10-31T13:57:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Halloween Party!
As you enter, after passing a few headstones
on the lawn, you'll notice the "lanterns" on the steps.

The lanterns. . .

the Cinderella pumpkins in dusty orange and white. . .

the spooky door chime makes another appearance
beneath the black wreath. . .

And inside, Mom and Roselle greet you with big smiles!

not so much with the spooks. . .

grab a glass of wine and catch this animated conversation
in the kitchen with
Taylor, Eileen and Terry. . .

have a bite to eat with these lively folks. . .

you can always count on a good time with these guys having
a beer in the garage checking out the Stang!

don't think these smiles aren't really looking for a blood meal. . .

it looks like red wine in those glasses. . .

sweet, they share a birthday cake and a birthday wish
from all of us!

sorry, blogspot refused to right this injustice!

Newsflash! Bono gets bit!

this wicked soul was handing out the evil apple,
not one bite was taken!

too beautiful for the undead, don't you think!??

another injustice not righted for this family of the undead!

looks like something fun going on here!

what a jokester, Joe!

the Winners, , Funniest, Best Overall, Scariest, and Most Original!

Another year with the Best Wine. . .
I got to go shopping with them next year!

Getting late and time to say "Goodbye"!

Zoom, zoom, zoom, Happy Halloween!

Halloween Party Preview!

2011-10-29T09:38:00.000-07:00

The Theme this year is Vampires in black and white!
So, I pulled out only the decorations that
fit in with black and white.
And found a few new ones, like these
best costume prizes, wrapped, well, in black and white!

replaced a few framed pictures in the theme

found this perfect bottle of wine. . .

this plate will be full of black and white candies. . . which were
amazingly hard to find!

dusted off a few old hardcovers, not too well dusted of course. . .

even the powder room was not left alone. . .

gargoyles found their resting place. . .

and a few drunken skeletons for the boys bath. . .

these black and white creatures dangle above the wine tasting table. . .

and nearby, another bottle of that perfect wine. . .

immortalized on a pumpkin in black and white. . .

the wine tasting table. . .

this crow will greet guests at the front door. . .

as well as this unlucky skull. . .

Happy Halloween!

What did you do last night?

2011-10-28T13:03:00.000-07:00

Last night we went to China. Terry had his first week of culinary
arts education. He was so excited to start and is enjoying
his class immensely. He is taking sanitation and proper
storage and handling of foods.
This is a national safety requirement of all food
handlers. There is a national test at the end of class that he
must pass before he has the privilege of handling food.
He's not going to have a problem with this class!

Of course washing hands is important, but just the beginning. Cold
and hot food storage and proper handling, as well as maintaining a clean work
space is imperative. Terry demonstrates:

Can you guess what's for dinner?

These are some of the ingredients going into the main dish, Kung Pow
Chicken (did I spell that right?), but we'll concentrate on the appetizer.
I love appetizers!

That's more like it. These are looking great.

Yum, I like all of these!

There is a sweet one, a soy, and a spicy one!

Thanks, this is an excellent pairing!

Right before going on the steamer! Lovely crab and cream cheese wontons!

Sisters are Special!

2011-10-17T14:23:00.000-07:00

My sister is so special! Dorothy came out to see Mom and she spent
a day at our house! After bringing Mom out to Mass with us,
she came back to the house and Terry prepared a
delicious lunch for us.
I picked up Terry's mom, Pat, and mom and Pat had a terrific
visit with us.
Joe, thank you very much, picked up Taylor from a
friends house and joined us, too!
Here, they are enjoying a hand of Spades!

So nice to see both these grand ladies looking so lovely and full of fun!
They are the life of the party!

Thanks for coming all the way from Virginia and bringing that
warm "Dorothy" sunshine!

Just another Berkeley moment. . .

2011-09-20T19:19:00.000-07:00

Coming home from work yesterday morning, I was looking forward to
putting my car in the garage after parking outside all weekend.
My garage is across the street and the owner was fumigating.
It had been tented for termites and was being unwrapped when I drove up.
However, the owner was in the street looking way too concerned.
Upon further inspection, this is why he was concerned!
The electrical wires above his house were billowing smoke!
He was on the phone with 911. This picture is actually when the smoke was
dying down!

By the time I had gone in the house to get my camera, like any good blogger would,
the fire dept. sirens could be heard.

In no time, they rolled down the street.

By the time they were arriving, the owner was hosing down the corner of
his house because the tent was starting to catch fire!
The firemen calmly surveyed what was going on, disconnected the house
from power. They called the power company to reconnect and were then
called away to another electrical incident!

The power company determined that the fumigation workers, in removing
the tent, had crossed two incoming power lines and caused a surge
of power, which overheated the lines!
Wow, and with a house full of flammable vapors!

The Sofa

2011-09-10T17:59:00.000-07:00

This sofa spent all of its life right here. Twenty five years of
comforting us and giving us a restful place.
It was here when I nursed the kids through many a night.
It gave me a place to rest my head when Taylor refused to fall
asleep. It was here when Terry broke his toe rescuing
a toddler sized Taylor from falling off of it. It was here when Sean
did a karate kick on the hardwood floors and misjudged how slippery
they could be and split open his chin.
It was here for all the birthday parties, the Christmas and Halloween
parties. It was here for Sean's graduation party from CSUN.
And Sean was here when he told us that Kroger hired him and he signed
the contract to move to Utah.
And now, this sofa is packing up.

And this sofa is being put on the moving van

with all the rest of Sean's stuff. . .

and this van will arrive in Utah today. And that sofa will continue to comfort
Sean and Katie in their new apartment and their new life.

And for me, I'm just glad it's gone and I got a new sofa!!!

What a terrific group!

2011-07-25T19:59:00.000-07:00

Terry and I spent an amazing few days on the east coast with this
wonderful group of people!
This is truly a great bunch of family and friends and we
feel so fortunate to experience the
east coast beach scene and their traditions
and laid back fun they create for their
annual Rehoboth beach week!

We Survived!

2011-07-17T16:53:00.000-07:00

We survived Carmeggedon! The bridge is down and the freeway reopened.
The new hospital is operating in full!
Tomorrow, we'll be on the plane heading for a beach near you!

"Warn the Universe of this Impending Doom"!

2011-07-11T19:47:00.000-07:00

Traffic

405 Freeway Closure Will Make July 16, 17 the 'Carmageddon' of Traffic Mayhem in Los Angeles

The 405 will be completely shut down in both directions between the 101 and 10 freeways -- an insanely busy 10-mile stretch -- beginning the night of Friday, July 15 and ending 5 a.m. the following Monday morning.

ARE WE READY???

Really, LA. . . don't take yourself so seriously, you drama queen.

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-04T01:41:00.000-07:00

Yum, this is what we celebrated with!

Just 2 weeks!!

2011-07-02T17:40:00.000-07:00

Can't wait to make new memories!

Click here to view these pictures larger

More Retirement!

2011-06-18T16:32:00.001-07:00

On Thursday morning, the school held an assembly on the yard for Terry.
All the classes formed a U with Terry under a tent with another retiree
and a teacher reassigned due to budget cuts. Taylor, Sean and I joined him.
It was a tribute and a spilling of emotions!
There were teachers accounts of their experience with Terry
as their 3rd grade teacher. Ms Ruiz told of how special "Mr. Pollard"
makes each kid in his class feel .
She related his Olmec and Toltec social studies lessons
that touched her heart and validated her culture.
She says his enthusiasm in the classroom inspired
her to teach and she aspires to keep
her students motivated in the way he motivated her!

His third grade class put on their sunglasses and
danced to the Beach Boys. Well, Terry just had to join the fun on his
start of an "endless summer"!

More hugs and tears. . .

and of course "recipes" for a happy retirement! Each class and many individual
students, some retained by Terry, made special presentations to express
their feelings and appreciation for him. It was so overwhelming, the
tears were flowing! You can see here how Terry is trying to keep it
together, but he wears it all over his face.

more dancing fun

Ms Yeu who was also leaving, sang "Over the Rainbow"

a commendation plaque from the school for 32 years of service

some very kind, appreciation from Mr. Andrews, the principal who
remembered how Terry's perfectionism and dogged determination over
29 years led to a state of the art auditorium. He related how much time
he gave to the school and to the kids on his own time to win awards in
video production, mentor student teachers, and support local
community action for the kids.

After the School Board's certificate of appreciation came another certificate
from the City of Los Angeles signed by our councilman, the President of the
City Counsel.

Happy Retirement!

It's Begun!

2011-06-11T13:03:00.000-07:00

The Retirement from LAUSD!

Last night was the Scholarship awards ceremony for the local
community action committee to advance and recognize
disadvantaged kids in the elementary through high school that
made significant achievements.
Each teacher in Terry's school recognizes that child that
made the most significant achievement and improvement
that year. They each received an award certificate and a gift
of $50.
Terry has supported this committee since it began 16 yrs ago. Each year he and
the boys attend and lend their support for the kids.
This year I was able to go and it was inspiring. High school continuation
graduates were recognized for their overcoming hardships to received
their high school diplomas! The first one to go to college came back to volunteer in
the community and was recognized for her contributions!
A member of the School Board, and a friend of Terry's, came and helped
serve dinner for the staff and families.

At the end of the evening, Terry was recognized by the School Board, after
a recommendation by Mr. Zimmer, and presented this award for "his
tireless dedication and outstanding service to the students of the LAUSD".

Definitely well deserved! Congratulations Terry!

And the Winner Is . . .

2011-06-05T19:54:00.000-07:00

My neighbor, Rob!

Actually, this is his Emmy from his win on Star Trek Next Generation,
but he is up for ANOTHER one! from his current show. The Daytime Emmy award show is this month. I am ashamed to say I don't remember the name, but it is a cartoon show about Pirates. I got to hold his last Emmy
and it is so heavy! That desk behind us is an animator's desk
from the Disney Studios. So very cool, it has files, all these great little compartments
for brushes and paints and tools. On top is a place for storyboarding the drawings.
He and his partner have a really cool house across the street from
Terry's mom. They are the greatest neighbors anyone could ask for!
(and, very talented ones, too!)

Getting ready for a move?

2011-05-18T17:11:00.000-07:00

Sean's been job hunting since even before graduating last December.
This is where he has been working for the last several years.
And this is his boss.
She may look cool here, but make no mistake, she is a task master.
At ?? years young, (wouldn't dare publicize this "ladies" age) she's runs her empire the old school way.
Long hand ledgers and scroll adding machines.
Won't have it any other way.
Now, Sean has had the patience of Job, being a computer engineer and not
being able to enter her empire into the computer era.
Face to face with the bank tellers, she and now, he, knows them all by name.
They know who to go to and who to avoid.
When is the last time you were greeted by name by your bank manager?
When, more realistically, did you even set foot inside the bank,
during normal business hours?
Every receipt, every tax related expense is carefully counted
and entered into the ledger.
The world, to her, is divided. Things that are tax deductible and those
that are not. End of story.
Monday, Sean has an interview. Really, he has four interviews.
With corporate. In Cincinnati.
Will this era come to a crossroads?

"When is Taylor coming over?" she asks. Nah, probably not.

Support Your Local Troop

2011-05-15T19:59:00.000-07:00

Boy Scout, that is!
That's Scott. Kevin son and Terry's cousin.
His troop was having a pancake breakfast this morning
and we were supporting them!

Terry is showing how yummy breakfast was by cleaning his plate!
Larry and Rita agree.

We had quite a crowd at our table.

The fun was all in catching up and in good conversations.

Terry found old friends of his own to catch up with.

We all enjoyed seeing each other and supporting Scott's Troop!

Spring Break!

2011-04-25T13:00:00.000-07:00

Spring break in San Clemente! Ahhh!
After a fun and relaxing lunch on the pier with Eileen and Marty
on the Sunday before Easter,
Terry surveys the fence and landscaping that needs
a little attention.

After all the work done last summer, we never were able to finish
the staining of the fence or the front landscaping. Oh, there was an quick attempt
by John and Colleen to put a few plants in the barren planters.
But, alas the year had not been nice to them, and the annuals
were spent.

So, Terry got right to the job and the staining began, while I planned the landscaping
and went on a shopping trip to Plant Depot in Capistrano.
Sean was Terry's helper, while Taylor lent a strong arm
to me for the planting.

The roses we planted last fall were blooming well. Just needed some food and mulch
to keep them happy. The tenants bbq was given a nice home with pavers
surrounded by mulch.

The Bay Laurel tree was planted at the edge of the patio. Yes, and close by
for picking a few leaves for the soups and stews that may be coming
out of the kitchen.
Add a Boston Ivy to crawl up the fence here, and further down beyond the tree
a climbing rose to crawl up the fence in the sunlight there.
A few drought tolerant perennials in our patio here fill out the planter.

Up in the front planter just off the driveway and entrance and just in front
of Teresa and Jose's front door, I added another white iceberg rose flanked
by a couple society garlic and low growing perennial in front.
Not drought tolerant, but right in front of the hose bib for easy watering.

Meanwhile, Terry has make progress on the staining and now the gate is even
finished! Gorgeous job, Terry!

I finished up in the planter by our front door. Here a few grasses and
colorful and hardy salvia should do well in the hot sun.
It was a great week, but we have to get back to our Easter celebration
with the twins!

And a grand spread for Easter! Fresh baked cinnamon rolls, quiche, Marty's
fresh fruit salad, John and Danielle's ham, and there was a wild green salad
with home grown tomatoes, fresh plump sweet strawberries that garnished
our mimosa's. There on the corner is Melanie's yummy carrot bread.
Can't even fit in the picture Melanie's creamy cheesy potatoes hot out
of the oven!

Always time for a relaxing game with the cousins! However, Carter, likes
to keep the action going with Joseph!

Deep concentration needed, it seems, for this game of Chinese Checkers!
After all, the competition gets heightened when Aunt Dorothy and Mom pull
up a seat to the game!

The twins host a great party, wish you were all here!
Happy Easter!

We've had a great deal of rain. . .

2011-04-04T20:01:00.000-07:00

I really haven't worked very hard with my garden this year, with all
the rain we've had. Pulled a few weeds, cut back the roses a couple
months ago and fed the flowers. . . and now spring is here!
Rain is magic ! Love my roses!

This little beauty was a gift from one of my patient's family
and it greets me at the front door. . .

Not a rose, but this society garlic beneath the birch tree
even looks beautiful in Spring!

Oh, the other thing about all that rain. . . beyond my roses,
the neighbors weeds are 6 feet high!

We're still here!

2011-03-11T19:50:00.000-08:00

Devastation in Japan. . .

but on the local news, you'd think it hit here!

beaches closed, helicopters hovering, police and fire out in force, hours and hours of coverage. . .
Somehow, we survived the predicted one foot tsunami. Intact infrastructure. No loss of lives.
We are alive!
Seriously???!!!

It's That Time of the Year. . .

2011-03-08T20:35:00.001-08:00

Around this time of the year I start feeling a little longing
for warm weather, long lazy days and good times.
I find myself lingering in front of a small wall cabinet
in the hallway outside the living room.
It's my "Cabo cabinet".
Here is a small peak:

Click here to view these pictures larger

This brief peak brings me back to those warm lazy days in Cabo.
Brings me back to special memories with special
people. Good times, great food, really great
tequila, and hoping that
sometime soon, I get a "do over"!

On a Quest for that perfect cup of Joe

2011-02-28T15:52:00.000-08:00

For many years, I settled for this. I am the only coffee drinker in the house.
This is simple, fast and easy to make for one. Then, I became coffee challenged.
Or snobbish. It just wasn't good enough. Thus, began my quest.
Taking cooking classes a few years ago at Williams Sonoma, I found this:

I had begun to relish the flavor of latte. This, was supposed to deliver it!
And, it kinda did. Kinda, you ask? It was time consuming, about 8-10 mins for a 6 oz. cup.
Sorry, that's a long time for me. And it needed maintenance. I had to fill the
the coffee and the milk chambers, then screw the contraption together. Then, plug and wait. Then, it all had to be cleaned
and dried. For one 6 oz. cup. And, it wasn't HOT. I like my coffee HOT and I like
a mug, about 10 oz of coffee.
My search continued.

Was this the Holy Grail? It was easy, fast and relatively easy to clean. I could use pods
or my own coffee! What more could I ask, you ask? More coffee. And HOT coffee.
I had to microwave the cup before I drank it. And I would need 2 cups to satisfy.
There has got to be a better way. It is just a cup of Joe, just for me.
And then,

Mr. Coffee was on sale at Target! A four cupper, fast, easy, HOT, and oh
so PERFECT! What took me so Long! Who'd thought!
And now? I'm not the only coffee drinker anymore! All four of us are
drinking coffee. Shoulda gotten the 10 cupper!

Twins 89th!

2011-02-20T15:24:00.000-08:00

We decided to take the twins to the Elephant Bar to celebrate their 89th birthday!
There were, I think, 23 or 24 of us! It was cold and raining outside, but
that didn't stop the party! We had 3 servers trying to keep everything straight.

Dan played musical chairs to say hello to everyone at the loooong table!
Hey, Eileen was doing it too!

John and Carter cozy up with Mom. Wow, she looks great!
Dan, you moved again!

Setting up the cakes for the big birthday song, "Cameras Ready?"

John and Danielle look on.

Candles Lit??

"Happy Birthday to you!"

Late Valentine's Day Post

2011-02-18T15:05:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Valentine's Day Sunday night because I was working on Monday, the 14th.
We started with a very nice Chardonnay, well not this one. We tried this one, but it was
too fruity, so we opened another. That one was very nice!

We're so happy with our kitchen that, and I know it sounds so ordinary, we decided
that we wanted to cook! We don't get to cook together often enough in our new
kitchen, so we thought it would be fun to do for Valentine's Day.
First, we defrosted the chicken. Those boned thighs will be sauteed.
That's the garlic press ready for action
next to it.

Next, the mushrooms were sliced. Oh, they look so good. I love sauteed mushrooms
slathered all over my chicken.
Terry likes to have a Guinness while he cooks.

The fresh asparagus was washed and trimmed. They will be steamed and
thrown together with fresh chopped tomatoes and Parmesan.

I threw together a dish of scalloped potatoes. I like them with caramelized onions
layered in a garlic and butter rubbed dish with Swiss cheese and Parmesan.

Terry caramelized the onions to perfection!

And I put a lot of love into baking a Red Velvet cake. Unfortunately, it didn't
share much love back with us. Let's just say, "it looked scrumptious"!

And, the cards and chocolate were perfect!

Hope your Valentine was good to you!

I went out to find a bathroom faucet. . .

2011-02-02T20:34:00.000-08:00

But this is what I came home with . . .

Click here to view these pictures larger

I wandered in to Pottery Barn looking for faucets, which they no
longer have (tells you how long it's been since I've shopped here)
and stumbled upon these chairs on clearance. Each $230 chair were
marked down to $57!! Wow, and I love them!

For the Love of Cooking

2011-01-12T22:24:00.000-08:00

This is a man who loves to cook!

OK, so after a day at work, a stop at the grocery store, after a few hours of working on the Stang, this is what he loves to do!

He was working on a new recipe of Beef Bourguignon. You know, that recipe that calls for almost a bottle of red wine. Think Julia Child. All the recipe books come out and he compares and contrasts and comes up with his own recipe. My favorite activity is sitting at the penninsula with my glass of wine and discussing food and kids and the days events while watching the creation develop! The smells, ooh so good!

Desparate to Drive!

2011-01-09T21:40:00.000-08:00

This is what the poor guy was driving. With the car in the garage the last four years,

he hasn't had a whole lot of driving.

But, today, the car came out of the garage and he drove it down the street!

Christmas Day post

2011-01-01T18:06:00.000-08:00

My first gift of the New Year was that we were overstaffed at work
and so they offered me the night off!
So, I have some time to finally post Christmas Day at our house.

Dinner was spread out over 4 tables, the dining room and then the coffee table in
the living room, and we set up 2 additional tables there, too.
More wine at table 3!

We had our annual gift exchange, complete with three allowed "rip offs"
for each gift! We swapped mostly gift cards from Target and Starbucks! Some
gifts were disguised. One had a banana to weigh it down, another
had rocks in the box!

It was a Merry Christmas!

Happy New Year!!

2010-12-31T23:38:00.000-08:00

Looking back . . .

2010-12-28T19:37:00.000-08:00

With all that was going on, I'm just getting around to Christmas posting!

So, I'm starting with the beginning. . . and I decorated from one end of the house

to the other end of the house.

And still the rain was pouring down, lightning, thunder, hail and more rain!

And so we baked! Some Yuletide Toffee here. . .

and a few cookies here!

Taylor was Santa's helper! The bowl of green apples on the table, soon to be a pie!

And before we knew it, Christmas Eve!
Pizza night!

Joseph adds a little surprise to the photo! Heads up!

And the pizzas just keep rolling out!

Our celebrity People's Choice Nominees!
Watch Jan. 5th!

Was it Christmas or St. Paddy's Day!??

The twins show off a few gifts . . . why there's Joseph again!

and the kids are getting wild!

Mom wins the Lotto! Linda's grand daughters help her count her winnings!
It comes to $375!

And Melanie seems a bit surprised by her Spa Day gift!

And the night winds down with a quiet moment. Happy Christmas to all!

There's Been A Whole Lot of Rain

2010-12-22T12:10:00.000-08:00

With storm after storm after storm, we've had a year's worth of rain in a week or two!
I've been under the weather of late so Terry and Taylor went out to get a Christmas tree. I flipped on the TV and in no time, this interrupted the show. . .

We had a break in the hard rain, so the guys go out to inspect the situation.

Finding overflowing and broken rain gutters, the repair work began before the next onslaught of rain began.

The ladder didn't reach all the high places, so Taylor improvises with cement blocks. Mind you, there is a break in the heavy rain, but, these guys are soaked, it is still raining.

Once repairs are done, they inspect the runoff. Success! At least for now, reassessment will commence after the next onslaught! Wish us luck!

The Worst Day Ever!

2010-12-10T19:40:00.000-08:00

So, this is how my day started. My bed leaking out everywhere! First, I noticed a leak at the corner drip, drip, dripping onto the carpet. S@#*! That is not good. So, I had to take the whole bed apart and found the bad guy that caused all this. Seam leaking on one of the water tubes. Leaked about 5 gallons of water:(((
This is what is looked like under everything after I scooped out about 3 or 4 gallons into a bucket. I had 2 hair dryers going on and off for a few hours trying to dry out the wood.

Nearby, this was where I had all the bedding pieces. Luckily, the top cover was not wet!

And pretty soon, everything was moved outside to dry. Glad this wasn't in your neck of the woods. I don't think freezing temps. would have helped me out at all. Here, a gentle breeze and 70 degrees was just perfect.

Got on to Facebook to pass on some wait time, and promptly got a viral video that I mistakenly opened and it got sent some 3-4 times to every friend I had. I had to change my password and felt a little guilty, so went to each friend to remove the posts! If I missed one or two, sorry, don't open, just delete.

Once, done with that, I got into my car to run some errands. Noticing my tank was on empty, I stopped to get gas. There was a car wash there, so I drove over to get a wash. The attendant noticed a gas leak!!! I called Auto Club to get a tow to my repairman, only to find out I had renewed the boys membership and not mine! Called Sean to get his # and got the tow. Waiting for the tow to show, I called my repair shop to let him know I was coming, only to find that he was closed!
Towed the car home and here it sits in front of the house leaking my tank of gas at $3.47/gallon, thank you very much!
Thought we should warn passersbys when they come upon the stench, as if they could figure out where it was coming from, but at least keep them from all knocking on my door to let me know they smell gas coming from my car.

Happy Holidays! Pretty cool!

2010-12-10T12:46:00.000-08:00

Back to back weekend fun!

2010-12-05T20:40:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving weekend and this weekend I spent with the twins and they kept me busy! So much to do. First, Pat came along for the day of pampering at the salon. Here, Maggie, their hairdresser, cuts, colors, teases, curls, and styles all the ladies to perfection!

Mom shows off her new look. We've been trying to get her to cut her hair shorter for about a year now and "WoW" she looks incredible. Much younger and more "hip"!

Then, it was home to make dinner. Thank goodness there was so much left over from a scrumptious Thanksgiving feast for us to devour! We even made turkey soup from the carcass to store away in the freezer! (oops, out of sequence, that is the before pic of mom's hair)

This weekend, with Thanksgiving over, Christmas was the main event. We made 10 mini-pumpkin bread loaves and wrapped them up for little gifts for all the sweet "helpers" in their lives. Lucille and Peggy, that drive them to church every Sunday. Phyllis, who accompanies them to church and visits with them. Their two sweet housekeepers who come by every Monday to clean up the mess we make having fun on the weekends. Their neighbors, Linda, Gail and Gayle who watch over them, unlock doors, check in on them and take them out to breakfast or lunch. Well, they were still making a list (and checking it twice) for all those little helpers.

And then, we got right to decorating the tree, stringing the lights, setting out the Santas and poinsettia, ornaments and tinsel! I just love the hairband we found for Mom! Well, if we weren't feeling the season before this weekend, we certainly are in the spirit now! Happy Holiday Season from all of us to all of you!

Whaaaa. . . .

2010-12-04T11:58:00.000-08:00

I knew Taylor went in to do some extra credit for his speech class. Even he didn't know he was entering a Speech Competition. He almost didn't go because he was sick with a cold and was coughing with a sore throat and his voice was hoarse. When he arrived, there were 50 competitors. He gave his speech with the intent of getting disqualified so he wouldn't have to go on to the semi-finals and the finals. After all, his prof. said, give your speech and get extra credit. Just once? He said he messed up 3 times on purpose to make sure he wouldn't go on.
No luck. He advanced to the semi-finals. I think he must have stopped messing up, because he then found himself in the Finals with the last 4 contestants. He, being the only one not dressed in a suit. After all, he was giving an informative speech on "Longboarding" with a board prop. A suit? Couldn't be believable without the Element sweatshirt. Then, he crossed the line with the phrase "what the hell is a nanotube?" Fourth place.

First Kitchen Casualty :((

2010-11-23T20:27:00.000-08:00

The cook top knob! The clicking of the igniter kept clicking, the light wouldn't go off, and the knob just spun!
Not the knob! Yes the little insert cracked inside the knob.

Not to worry. I've read how wonderful Wolf service is. A phone call, an explanation, and next day a service man, no 2 service men come to the door. Yes, they said, making an expert diagnosis, " the knob is cracked!" And off they drove. I thought he was going out to the truck to get the knob! A phone call later, and no, he had to order the knob! But, not to worry, he'll have it in a week.
Meantime, worry sets in about the other knobs and another phone call. No worry, Wolf is sending 4 more knobs. Of course, don't install them, they are under warranty, so the service man will have to install them. In a few days, the knobs arrive at the door.
A week goes by, no call about my other knob. So, I call. Yes, the lady says, your knob is here. Me thinks "then why was there no call to me?. But, I schedule another appt. for installation of the knob.
On the morning of the appt., the phone rings. Serviceman says, "I'm sorry the wrong knob was ordered. But, I'll order the right one and put a rush on it, and I'll tell you what, I'm going to order you 2 knobs, just in case you ever have trouble with another knob". Sigh!
Now, another week has past. No calls. My cooktop remains one less knob. Four knobs in a box, two more on the way. For just one cracked knob! Does one wonder why Wolf charges $70 for one knob!
Glad for the warranty!
Tomorrow, another phone call. . .

A Bit of an Update

2010-11-11T13:18:00.000-08:00

We have these chairs. Nice chairs, but needed a bit of fixing up. Terry needs to fix the wood rails that support it. Glue?
The chair seat cushion was flat and so that needed a redo. Well, Terry's been spending all his free time in the garage of late. That lust he has for that redhead in the garage!

So, I got busy doing my part. Layers and layers of old fabric that I had previously covered these with came off.

And each layer had all those staples to be removed. I probably didn't have exactly the right tools, or it wouldn't have been so hard. I had not replaced the padding completely, ever. I found old orange foam that was disintegrating and horse hair that I think was used for padding back in the day. These chairs, according to Pat, were built by her father, Terry's grandfather. New foam padding and fabric went on.

What do you think about my little update?

Don't look at the unfixed bottom rail :0!

Have you caught Zenyatta Fever!

2010-11-06T09:23:00.000-07:00

Breeders Cup is today!

Halloween 2

2010-11-01T10:30:00.000-07:00

Taylor had another party to go to Sunday night. His makeup artist friend was going to make him up in a scary face. This was the costume they wanted for the makeup. They were putting together a haunted haunt to scare the kids in the area. The were even building the haunt, like putting up walls. I asked his to take some pictures. Hope to be able to show some of that! Have fun, Taylor!

Halloween

2010-11-01T09:50:00.000-07:00

The Annual Halloween party theme this year was Fables, be it Disney, Grimms, Aesops or Anderson, it was all about make believe! And people played it up big time!
Just see for yourself. . .

Of course, we also had a terrific wine tasting, too. The bottles were unveiled here after the winner was revealed. . . a great vintage from Spain! Thank you, Eileen and Marty for that special taste!

The Queen of Hearts shows off her stuff!

Here, the Mad Hatter converses with a combat here, and no that is not a beer in his hand, but a Monster Soda!

Little Red Riding Hood has something to eat with her friends and Sleeping Beauty, on the right, almost got cut out of the picture!

And who doesn't want to listen in on the conversation happening here between the Indian princess, a bottle of mustard, the wolf and Cinderella!

The Woodsman who saved Grandma from the Wolf congratulates his mom, the Nun who cooks, on her Birthday!

Oh, what a great shot of the Cinderella and the Indian Princess!

Being, Halloween, we had our Scary Scream spooks, too!

And they came in Triplicates!

And there they are! The Sorcerer and the Sorcerer's Apprentice, our Wine Tasting Winners! Of course, with their Sorcery skills, came up with the Best Tasting Brew!!

What a fine looking bunch showed up and made revelry!

Even the crowd in the backyard contributed to a great party atmosphere!

Somebody forgot their paws for this picture!!

Grrrr. . . night all!

How was your Halloween

2010-11-01T09:32:00.000-07:00

Here's a little preview of the props and decor used at our Halloween Party. Unfortunately, I took these pictures after the party and so some of the "dead" has already been disassembled by curious guests, but this is what remained intact. Also, have to apologize for some weird blurring with my camera. But, it does add to the effect!

Some of the things I've been doing

2010-10-27T18:51:00.000-07:00

It was my weekend with the twins and it's been almost 2 mos. (due to schedule changes) that I've been out to see them! Pat was anxious to get out to spend time with her good friends and have some catching up time. Dorothy and Pat had hair appointments, so that was the first order of the day. I took them over and left them, while Mom and I went shopping for the week. Guess what we had for dinner?

Pat jumped right in after I prepared all the ingredients, and assembled the layers of lasagna. Mom and Aunt Dorothy remembered they used to make this. I reminded them, it was their recipe I got from them that we are using to make this!

And it turned out pretty darn tasty!

They all enjoyed the fruits of their labor!

Eileen contacted a hanyman and we are also making plans for an enlarged porch design to give them a little more room to move around out here and enjoy this great So. Cal weather and grab a chat with a neighbor!

Back at home, Halloween plans are underway for the annual party and costume central is right here!
You'll have to wait for pictures of the party to see who and what this will be. A hint: The theme this year is Fables!

Boys Weekend in Yosemite!

2010-10-11T19:03:00.000-07:00

With Joseph's visit, the boys decided to spend the weekend in Yosemite. Joe was planning a trip with a couple guys from UCLA and Sean joined them at the last minute.
They met Friday and drove up early Sat. am.

Stretching their legs led to exploring. . .

and so they found this hot springs to relax in!

Hiking worked up an appetite!

and their dinner looks pretty darn good!

and before you know it, time to say goodbye!

A brief, but excellent weekend catching up.

Joseph came for a visit!

2010-10-06T11:42:00.000-07:00

Joseph stopped by for a visit and first, he brought chocolate from France!

Then, he found the violin that Sean's grandfather had made and proceeded to tune it attempting to fix the bridge that was broken. . .

Then, Sean found a program to help "tune" a violin on the computer. . .

it works!

and he actually got a few tunes played before the bridge collapsed again!

Way to go Joe!! Next, their weekend in Yosemite!

We Had a Birthday Boy!

2010-10-04T00:55:00.000-07:00

First, we had presents and cards!

Then, we had a wonderful Italian dinner with the family!

and here he is! The Birthday Boy! Happy Birthday, Terry!

We're so laid back on the left coast . . .

2010-09-27T13:12:00.000-07:00

. . . that summer is now arriving in the fall!

Jury Duty

2010-09-20T15:52:00.000-07:00

Well, it is 3:50 and I haven't got called up yet, so I figure I'm safe. Only one jury panel was called up today. One panel was called for next week and they warned it could last 20-30 days. Computer kicked me out because I'm only paid for one week, or 3 days.
I did have time to finally get my photo book done for the Shasta reunion. Sure did pass the time quick! Not bad!

How are you spending next week??

2010-09-17T19:24:00.000-07:00

This is what I'll be doing. My civic duty. So as not to be fined, incarcerated, or both. Now, ordinarily I don't think of myself as a strongly opinionated person, but wish me luck calling up my mojo on Monday if I find myself in the jury box. That strong opinionated comment will guarantee me a "thank you, you're excused" comment we all wish for!

When I miss her most. . .

2010-09-15T11:39:00.000-07:00

This last spring, out of the blue, I received a very thoughtful gift certificate from Dorothy. She suggested a few things I might enjoy with it. I took her suggestion and got these pots for my front door. They are doing quite well, even though they took a beating in the heat while I was away at the Shasta reunion. However, now they are recovered and I wanted to show how beautiful they are greeting me every time I come and go. Even though we are thousands of miles apart, I take a happy thought of Dorothy with me each time I leave and bring a happy thought in with me every time I come home. Thank you Dorothy, for helping me keep you close when I miss you most.

Here's something you won't see everyday!

2010-09-09T19:25:00.000-07:00

We took the ladies for a ride to San Clemente. Pat suggested a stop at In and Out. Aunt Dorothy said "I don't like Burgers!!" Mom agreed. Pat convinced them they would like it. After a couple bites, Aunt Dorothy said "This is the best burger in the world!!"

Who Says Guys Can't Shop!!

2010-09-07T10:13:00.000-07:00

I told Taylor he might want to take advantage of all the back to school and Labor Day sales going on in the stores and pick up some shoes before the rains come (his soles are less than watertight). Little did I know, that this guy can shop!

This isn't how we planned it!

2010-09-05T20:28:00.000-07:00

This is what we saw!
Big oops!
This is the neighbor's car that he parks in his driveway over which our avocado tree hangs.We felt horrible, he really just took it in stride saying "I'm glad I didn't get that fixed last week when the other crack happened"!!!
Can you believe it! Well, this is what we did. . .

Happy Anniversary!

2010-08-24T09:53:00.000-07:00

Back to San Clemente for our 27th anniversary this time, we didn't miss a beat!

Mile high mud pie with Taylor and Sean on the pier! Yum!

Finding the best place to enjoy that beautiful view of the water. . .

getting out early to enjoy a few activities at the beach. . .

welcoming friends and neighbors to join in the celebratory spirit. . .

and they joined in the festivities right away. . .

they came from near and far to make the party a loud celebration . . .

but the non-stop party would not be complete without a few quite meaningful conversations. . . .

and we didn't miss the small details that makes everything that much more special. . .

and enjoyed that unique flavor that only San Clemente locals could give. . .

(sorry for the quality, but that is a local who walked his dog and cat up and down the street in front of the house every evening, yes, I said CAT!)

even got out of town for some local sight seeing adventures. . .

yes, quite an eventful anniversary celebration that only San Clemente could offer!!

Back to San Clemente

2010-08-06T13:47:00.000-07:00

Ahhh. . So Cal at the beach! For those of you braving those hot summer days of 100 degrees, there is nothing like the marine layer of So Cal beaches to cool you off! After coming back from No Cal Shasta lake and the 107 degree heat, this was a welcome relief! Here you can see that thick marine layer which brings with it a warm 69-72 degrees and hardly a glimpse of sun all day.
Now, not your perfect beach weather, but that is not what we had in mind. . .

With some termites eating away at the garage and a house that was begging for a coat of paint, we were more than happy to see that marine layer and those cool temps!

Checking out many paint colors required a good eye and no blinding sun to skew us in our choices. . .

I think we settled on a good one for the house color. I painted the entire house in 2 days, (with a little help) ;))

I rolled and Terry helped with the cutting in here!

Taylor lended his expertise with spray painting on some accessories such as the screen door, mailboxes, and patio table. Excellent!

If you are interested:
Picture link for Shasta Lake:

Click HERE for Shasta PICS

Happy 4th of July!!

2010-07-03T22:00:00.000-07:00

Have a little fun with this!!

http://www.maylin.net/Fireworks.html

Things are really moving fast in San Clemente

2010-06-12T18:15:00.000-07:00

We drove down this morning and found the front cleaned out and graded, trench for drainage pipe dug and piping set up for the walkway and patio for us to see.

After some discussion and exploration of alternatives, we settled on Steve's original set up for the path and patio perimeter. The plan was to widen and curve the walkway and he achieved that beautifully.

It is somewhat hard to see from the photos, but we widened the opening from the driveway and curved the walk to the front house door. The huge square planter was reduced in size to accommodate the walkway and added a curve to mimic the curve in the walk. Perfect!

The front house now has a larger landing in front and access to both houses improved.

The patio in the back has also been curved around the planter by the wall. We added a curved planter under the main window to take the place of the leaky box planter that was there before.

Follow me now through the side walkway, also new concrete to the new back patio!

Now an expanse of gorgeous stamped concrete.

We spent a great deal of time getting the colors chosen for this warm grey and brown mottling to get the look of "been there all the time" stone.

I do believe we got it right!

If you look closely, it looks like stone with all the ridges and variations, which after a wash and sealer applied, will show even better!

And we are not done yet. . .

These things I love about what I do

2010-06-11T09:37:00.000-07:00

We've been caring for a child who is very, very sick. Her heart stopped working after surgery at an outside hospital. They transferred her to us within hours after surgery, still on ECMO. Essentially, she was still on a bypass machine. Her heart was still. She was bleeding, alot. She was so, so, so sick.
Last night was the Glee season finale. We turned it on. The premise of the finale: "Don't give up, even if the odds are stacked against you, enjoy the journey" with the Journey soundtrack featuring "Don't stop believing". We didn't know if she could appreciate that it was on. She knew. Her sick, sick, little heart started beating and her blood pressure shot up.
She knew it was on.

Our nice little daytrip to San Clemente

2010-06-09T12:31:00.000-07:00

If you haven't heard, the San Clemente beach house has been a little soggy of late. Countless filling of cracks, leveling of doors and sweeping out rain and stashing of sandbags had been a telltale sign that something was amiss!

Pat got on the ball and one competent structural engineer found. . . one giant mess in the making! As Aunt Rose, rest her soul, always said, "it's going to get a helluva lot worse before it get's a helluva lot better!" No truer words!!

Pat, Taylor and I went down yesterday to inspect the mess. . . and mess we found! The fence, which was falling, officially fell. The ground was being excavated, broken sewer lines being repaired, foundation lifted and now decisions to be made. Since the area needs regrading, much that is here, soon will not be here and that means a blank slate of sorts. I love a blank slate!

Another remodeling project!

In back of the house, the "lake" is gone. The asphalt forever gone! It actually looks more spacious! The back step is gone and the entire area regraded so no step is needed, hence, no more deep pool to collect rain runoff! We'll actually have an inviting little patio!

You'll notice all that new pipe. The bath and kitchen sewers in both front and back houses are being re plumbed.

The old clay and cast iron pipes met their match of soil and corrosion and leaked into the side walkway beneath the corner foundation. Along with the gutters dumping excessive rain runoff into a gulley, the corner foundation had sunk about 2 1/2 inches. Now raised, interior doors aren't closing on their own anymore!
New sewer lines are going in. So, we had a couple of long meetings with the engineer discussing the new cement walkways, patios and driveway to come. The place will have a new face lift and color scheme.

Hopefully,kitchens and baths will be working again in a day or two! Terry, me and the boys are going down this weekend to see how the concrete pour goes in the back of the house. Once approved, everything can move forward!!

Don't you just love Gardening!

2010-06-07T17:30:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite hobbies is Gardening.

For me, it crosses my love of shopping, my love of remodeling, and my impatience of getting things done. It's the best of all of that!

I love shopping in the gardening section, the nursery full of possibilities. Beautiful flowers, the promise of fresh herbs, the coolness of shade providing greenery as well as the shade lovers that grow underneath. The sunny color splash of sun loving annuals and the long lasting durability of perennials.

Roses. I love white roses. so pure and clean. So fresh amidst of sea of green. Carpet roses, long stem or bush, I love roses.

These long stemmed beauties were planted over 50 years ago by Terry's Grandfather!

They are so lovely to see outside the kitchen window as I stand at the sink. A profusion of color to wake me up and put me in a good mood for the day!

Little periwinkle blue flowers trailing over the edge of the pot on the front porch are blooming well ahead of the tall white gardenias to come.

Underneath the birch in the front, society garlic blooms with its lush green leaves sprawling wide under the boughs of the trees. Bend closer for the pungent fragrance of fresh flowery garlic.

On the shady side yard, hydrangeas are just starting to flower. I love the expanse of the plant, so lush and full. The flowers surprise me every year ranging from pale pink to deep blue depending on the care I've taken to acidify the soil, the watering, the feeding schedule

As you can tell, these blue blooms got more in their breakfast than. . .

these dark pink blooms living in a more alkaline soil condition. Am I surprised? I know someone would go hungry when I ran out of soil conditioner and I was not industrious enough to get more before this bloomed! But, still, I love these demanding lovelies! Now, after seeing such a plethora of them in Rehoboth that year, they remind me of a great summer vacation memory!

Walking to the back yard, it is 10 degrees cooler under the shade of the avocado trees. The cool sprawling jungle of Boston Ivy clings mightily to the arbor. (Terry jokes that it alone has held up the fence and hopes it does for many more years, as you can see looking closely the separation happening at the top of the fence!) In a few short months, this green glory becomes a showy red and gold and just transforms the yard!

Beneath, the new sod Terry painstakingly tended is growing lush and green and feels heavenly underfoot.

Moving towards the back deck, my new shopping finds are waiting patiently in their humble little pots for their new home so they can show off.

And you may have thought I was done with the new slate walking path and bench niche, but no! I had to plant baby green dichondra seeds between the stones! And it, too, is sprouting up green, cool, and lush!

Follow this path and you will find. . .

Terry's herb garden. Neglected for years of dog abuse, this corner is now back springing to life with flavor!

Chives!

Basil. . . espisote (sp?) a Spanish herb

French tarragon. . . rosemary

and what garden of Terry's could not have Peppers! The spice of life!

Cool!

Sean Graduation Again! I made a photobook!

2010-06-02T14:33:00.001-07:00

Click here to view this photo book larger

And the Party!

2010-05-30T16:35:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Sean's Graduation Party!

Maureen, Melanie Eileen, Colleen and John say "Come on in let's get this party started!"

The guys are all here. Sean wears his graduation lei for the party!

We had six tables of six in the backyard. The weather was a perfect California 80 degrees under the canopy of shade trees!

And Zeke's barbecue didn't disappoint!

Seconds, anyone?

Even Tim and Liza came to congratulate the new graduate!

Relaxing and sharing stories, Pat and Terry catch up.

The "girls" and their cameras! Here, we had to get a shot together on the new stepping stone patio area the boys had just completed this week in the backyard.

Perri and Lucas horse around taking pictures of the "girls"!

One last helping please, so good!

and then Sean cut the cake.

Cake?? We're going for a ride!!

One last look at my new favorite spot in the backyard, thank to Terry, Sean and Taylor!!

What a terrific day, and a terrific party!

The story behind the graduation not on facebook. . .

2010-05-23T20:59:00.000-07:00

After 3 hours of sleep, Sean and Taylor and I raced out to CSUN for Sean's graduation. Terry was going to meet us there. I had asked Sean the night before on my way to work to please empty the camera card, so I'd have plenty of room. I asked him on my way out the door "the card, you emptied it?" Response, "yeah, mom".

Take out the camera for the first picture as he registers. . . NO CARD!! He emptied it and forgot it!

Fast forward and I'm racing to Target for a new card. Fortunately, Taylor grabbed our seats and we had 1 hour before the ceremony. Almost got tagged by the speed gun, but the gods were lookin' out for me and I saw the motorcycle cop before he zapped my heavy footed get away for Target!!

Back at the ceremony, the sun was baking in that way only the San Fernando Valley can! We had a place under the tent, but poor Sean, at the end of the aisle was in the full sun.. . in black. . forgot to eat lunch. . .

I called him mid-ceremony to see how he was doing. . . phone's off. Message left. Saw him stagger out in the out procession, hat in hand, hair all over face, looking disheveled. . . calling. . . no answer. . . looking. . . no Sean. . . anywhere. . .

Fast forward 20 mins after we all split up looking, we find, slumped over in a seat, under the tent next to the sound system, Sean. Man comes up as we are trying to revive the overheated, dehydrated, hypoglycemic graduate, "Can't be next to all this equipment!!" Excuuuuse me!

Taylor remembers seeing a First Aid tent. We find it and it consists of a tent, a lone chair, a Sparkletts water container and an ice chest full of ice and not one person. Guess I'm on Duty,. . . Sent Taylor for sugar and fluids. Sent Terry for strawberries at the grand reception. Got ice and water for Sean. Taylor returns with Mountain Dew and Snickers and a an adventure with the security guard and a "little" white lie about Sean's diabetic problem to the guard, who shares that his father is also a diabetic, who now almost in tears, is trying to get Taylor into the building and to the vending machines. What a brother! Terry returns with strawberries. . . Sean is now revived! Now for pictures, I'm relentless!

Click here to view these pictures larger

I'm totally addicted!

2010-05-17T03:24:00.000-07:00

I found this forum when we were remodeling the kitchen and found it utterly fascinating and helpful.
Then, I realized the other forums and now I can't get enough: laundry hints, cleaning tips, gardening help of all sorts. . . the list goes on and on.
Does anyone else have forums they can't get enought of??

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/

Mother's Weekend!

2010-05-10T20:02:00.000-07:00

We started the weekend on Saturday. Here at The Farmer's Market Pat and Rita get ready for cornbeef and cabbage!

The boys order cajun blackened fish.

and they love it!

Then on Sunday morning we head out to West Covina for a beautful spread and great company!
Afterwards, it is back to LA for more fun with the Pollards and Keeshens!
Here, Terry presents his mom with a beautiful poem written by Izabel and wrapped for each son or daughter to present to their mom. Taylor presented me with one!

"I am opening my heart to myself.
Who am I? Why am I here?
I am taking a profound look at myself.
For each breath that I take, these questions still there.
I am not in a hurry.
I close my eyes. Then, I search and search.
Suddenly, far away, I hear my son calling me.
As his voice reaches me, I am transported to my familiar surroundings.
I open my arms to embrace him, feeling his genuine and pure love.
I forget completely my questions."

The Moms!

In Southern California???

2010-05-03T20:16:00.000-07:00

OK, so I'm enjoying a beautiful morning walk, which in southern Cal is not an unusual event almost anytime of the year, and I look up and see this??!

That is indeed a treadmill on the balcony! And right across the street is the path around the beautiful Lake! Getting your exercise, but too lazy to leave the apartment!

I was auditied!

2010-05-02T05:01:00.000-07:00

It was time for my audit on my charting. I was crossing my Ts and dotting my Is for weeks anticipating the dreaded surprise audit coming anytime!

Well, here I was sitting and studiously charting my assessment and plan of care.

Low and behold if I didn't receive a 97.5%!

It's Backyard Bounty!

2010-04-29T13:12:00.000-07:00

Avocados! We trimmed the trees a few years ago and it's been year after year of no avocados to speak of.

This year is shaping up to look like a bountiful harvest. Taylor is already talking about setting up a stand. Terry wants to take them to the local farmer's market.
It's a little hard to see from this picture, but. . .

now this shows one little cluster, and there are hundreds!

$$$ Guacamole!

If you haven't seen this. . .

2010-04-25T19:54:00.000-07:00

this is Pirate Radio! And it is not only hilarious (I mean laugh out loud), but has some kick a@* music, too!
I haven't had time yet to dive into Goodreads and all those great recommendations, but for some quick entertainment, this can't be beat!

I know I'm late to this phenom. . .

2010-04-17T10:14:00.000-07:00

. . . but I had to see what it was about. So, between netflix and the library, we got the two movies and watched them back to back!

What started out as a laugh out loud parody of an overacted teen soap, morphed into a movie series we got hooked on. I'm shocked!

So when is the next in the series coming out?

Our Easter

2010-04-06T14:40:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Easter this year at Pat and Melanie's new house in Simi Valley. Cozy and cute, they've done a tremendous amount of work on the two houses here- a one bedroom they have up for rent, and a two bedroom that Pat uses for it's proximity to work.

Mom is enjoying "Single ladies" video courtesy of Losiah and family!

Sean and Joseph got right to bonding with each other after not seeing each other for so long due to hectic schedules!

And the games continued inside with Jackie and Lucas battling it out!

John enjoying the cool weather on the deck with Tom and Aunt Dorothy and Pat and Melanie's new puppy.

That was nice of Pat and Nolan to start a fire to keep us warm out here! Behind the fire pit is the dry stream bed fed by a steep waterfall when the rains come. Right out of view is a very cute little bridge that crosses the stream to the driveway. We thought we were in trouble when the Sheriff drove by, no, kept going. Even Pat's neighbor was fire friendly, showed us where the best wood was and even donated some old patio chairs to burn!

First time I made Cinnamon rolls and they were a hit!

A very nice Easter indeed!

Spring Cleaning!

2010-04-02T15:25:00.001-07:00

It all started with my desire to get organized for starting my taxes.
So into my office and I unload my file of years old files. Out came the shredder, the recycle can and before I knew it I had unloaded about 3-4 trash bags full. Where did I have the room for all that??
Well, that felt great, so I figured "why not paint?" And so I did, the whole room got a fresh coat. Then, some of the wood bookcases looked a bit tired next to the fresh paint. I refinished the bookcases with the fresh coat of stain. Well, now the pictures, the diplomas,
the certificates needed a home. Along with a new calendar and message/cork board, I had the wall project I had been trying to finish for so long (just in time before new diplomas come home) And, of course, a new clock found its way into my new office.
So, now I should be ready to attack those taxes!

But no. . .

my bedroom closet beckoned to me. . . and I could not resist. Years of accumulated clothes, shoes, purses came out of hiding, got weeded through and packed up.

I filled up 5 bags and hauled them off to the Good Will.

Even Terry got Spring Cleaning Fever. He had this week off for spring break and invited me out to help refinish the deck.
He swept and washed. Then I applied stain while he rewired the lighting that needed redoing.
Got to admit, it looks a lot better.

Now after this post, I'll get to those taxes. . .

Twin's 88th!!

2010-03-01T12:57:00.000-08:00

It was a busy, busy weekend for the twins. There was so much to do getting ready for their big birthday celebration with family and friends!

After shopping Friday with Melanie for their outfits, Saturday was beauty day: Hair and Nails!

Here Aunt Dorothy is getting her manicure while watching the Olympics on the big screen and the pouring rail and hail outside! Dorothy had arrived and met us in the salon and everyone joked that she brought that nasty East Coast weather with her! She promised she wouldn't stay long and it would soon be back to So. Cal. sunshine! She didn't let us down! The weather changed back to perfect for the party!

It was on to hair and here the ladies sit under the dryer waiting for their style while enjoying the latest in fashion and style magazines!

Amazing! Beautiful!

Back to the house after a lunch at PandaExpress and it was time for centerpieces.

Melanie shopped for craft materials to decorate and all got straight to work in full decorating mode!

The next day everyone arrived ready to party and greet the Belles of the Ball!

The received a standing ovation when Dorothy escorted them into the room!

Twins always and aren't they lookin' good!

Everyone was in good spirits enjoying the Swingtime Big Band music Taylor arranged and set up. Sorry, I don't have pictures of the dancing because I was dancing!!

Here, longtime friends and family catch up on gossip and congratulate Mom on her birthday!

Tim entertains us with some "Skeletons from the family closet"!

A Ragtime musician accompanied the room as we all sang "Happy Birthday" and presented the cake.

Make a wish!

Catching up and having fun together!

Nothing like family!

What a terrific effort by all to put on such a great celebration for the Mom and Aunt Dorothy! Priceless!

Gotta Luv him!!

2010-02-19T18:33:00.000-08:00

So, as you know, Taylor's hair has been growing and growing!

It's been growing since his last haircut for Katie and Chris' wedding about a year and a half ago.

The time finally came when he had enough!

Enough hair for a sizeable donation to Locks of Love!!

So here we are starting the donation process at the salon.

Because he had so much thick hair, they divided it up into 4 ponytails to maximize his donation.

You don't get to see ponytails on Taylor, so we clicked a picture. My hair had just been washed, because I'm also getting a cut just a couple chairs away.

a closeup!

I just had to!

Each ponytail when curls are stetched out. . . 12 inches!

He was getting quite a bit of attention in the salon!

The instructor came over and did the honors!

And what a great haircut!

What a difference a cut makes!

Way to go Taylor! Someone will really appreciate this!

We don't follow puxatony phil

2010-02-04T11:59:00.000-08:00

Our Herons have started nesting at the Reservoir I've noticed on my walks. See, I can walk because So. Cal. doesn't follow Puxatony Phil. Six more weeks of winter?? Yeah, that works for most of the country, but as you can see, even Mother Nature pays no mind to Phil in So. Cal.

"It Never Rains In Southern California. . . ."

2010-01-23T13:01:00.000-08:00

. . . but girl don't they warn you
it pours, man it pours."

That's the rest of the lyrics!
Our own backyard rain bucket measures 7 inches in the past few days.
Unscientific, but 2 buckets in two different areas measure exactly the same!

I got mine!

2010-01-15T16:56:00.000-08:00

I found my free jeans on the doorstep today! Thanks for the tip, Katie!

Things are moving along in the garage!

2010-01-07T19:41:00.000-08:00

All of a sudden Taylor comes out of his bedroom, that has been storing the Mustang's car parts for the past couple years, with A SEAT!

Now, for most of you, you think, so what.

This is HUGE!

Out in the car, things are starting to look like an actual car interior!

Side panels are in!

Terry is cleaning the window crank to install!

The window actually goes up and down!

This Father and son are happy tonight!

But, mom, she's pretty happy, too!

Progress is great!

Christmas Day Traditions!

2009-12-29T14:47:00.000-08:00

We've adopted a new Christmas tradition for us, however, one that is not new at all!

Christmas Tamales!

A couple days before Christmas Terry makes dozens of tamales, we sample a few and freeze the rest for when the leftover turkey and stuffing get tired! Yum!

I love new traditions!

Christmas in the new kitchen was a blast! We had 26, yes, 26 people for a sit down dinner! Well, we all sat down, but we set up a buffet for service. The line went down through the dining room and into the living room! I wish I got a picture of that!

We all filled our plates and found a table!

The "adult table" loosely called now that practically everyone is one!

The Grand Dames themselves!

Our living room "Bistro". Can I get a bottle of wine for table 4 please!

The party table! More rolls for table 3!

Just wouldn't be Christmas without the "kids" table! Jello pronto for table 2!

Another new tradition for the Pollards? Kareoki!
They are lovin' it!

Taylor belts out his favorite this year "I Want A Hippopottamus for Christmas". It still is stuck in my head!

Merry Christmas to all!

Rockin' Christmas Pizza Eve!

2009-12-28T15:13:00.000-08:00

Sorry this post is so late, but thought I'd start with the night before Christmas Eve. . . all through the house, the cookies were bakin' and Taylor shows up!

We baked and baked and baked in my new oven and look how big my counter is!!

Our WHITE CHRISTMAS EVE!

Yeah! Snow! We headed out for mom's Christmas Eve and low and behold if a truck didn't dump his bed of snow right in front of us as he crossed the intersection! "Terry, do we have our snow tires on!?" :-)

After trudging through the snow, we made it to grandma's and who did we see, but the little baby I used to babysit across the street! Sissy and her family came by to say "Merry Christmas!" Doesn't her daughter make a spitting image of her mom when she was little!

Everyone started showing up in good spirits!

and families unite!

from far and near they came!

and were so delighted to see each other again!

But, it was time to get busy chopping the pizza fixin's in the kitchen! So we got busy!

Everyone had their pizza request put in!

and out came the pizzas. . . yum!

Then it was time for gifts!

And before you knew it. . . we were putting on our nightshirts and kerchiefs. Time for that long winter's nap. Tomorrow is Christmas Day!

A Very Special Surprise Coming to you!

2009-12-22T17:40:00.000-08:00

Taylor is helping me out with a very special surprise for Christmas.

I can't say very much except that it is priceless and I came across it quite by chance thanks to two members of the family (and one other).

It became very complicated and required much finesse and gentle care, not to mention a bit of research.

Thanks to Terry, too,who also was very helpful to me in getting this implemented.

This is going to be special!

Merry Christmas in sunny LA!

2009-12-19T23:37:00.000-08:00

In the sunny LA 78 degrees, I send out greetings of sunshine and fair weather to the East Coast digging out of snow laden walkways, driveways etc.

I decorated the front door, porch and am showing off my wreath sent to us by our contractor who completed our dream kitchen this summer! Thank you Mr. Bailey!

And even got to decorating that poor tree that sat for a few days undecorated and lonely in the corner of the living room neglected. Unfortunately, since my tree is decorated somewhat monochromatic in white, silver and gold, much of it you can't see. I turned on the lights, and they don't even show up. Really, it looks really nice in person! You'll just have to imagine how great it looks! ;-)

Merry Christmas from LA!

Oh Christmas Tree!

2009-12-15T01:23:00.000-08:00

It was pouring rain much of last weekend when we decided we had just enough time for getting our Christmas tree.

The guy at the lot triple bagged it for us since it was flocked and so it would survive the ride home. Yeah!

The guys brought it up the back deck to the living room and unbagged it.

Perfectly dry and intact, the tree came in with a little help from the guys.

And now rests waiting for lights and trimming. . . if only there was time.

Merry Christmas still to come.

Filming again in the 'hood

2009-12-14T02:39:00.000-08:00

I came home last night to my house lit up eerily bright!

No one else in the neighborhood had their house bright lighted. It was so wierd and spooky.

I came in the house and looked out the front door to see what was going on and. . .

couldn't see a thing for the blinding light coming from across the street!

I found Taylor in his room deep in thought, hunched over his computer getting ready for a final. Looking up "oh, some guy knocked on the door and said there'd be a light shining on the house for a couple hours, is it there?"

An indy film "Beginings" was being filmed and a car sequence was filmed right in front of our house.

Hope

2009-11-22T23:27:00.000-08:00

Tonight I care for a teenager with a sign above her bed that reads "Hope".

Her parents visit and plead for 1 and 1/2 hrs. for her to wake up.

She does not.

She is tired, they say. She is trying, they can tell, when her eyes flicker.

God will heal her and she will wake up, they tell me.

They believe, they hope.

Her beautiful graduation pictures are on the wall.

Pictures of the girl she once was.

Hope rests above.

Do miracles happen?

Here is one:

http://www.facebook.com/#/photo.php?pid=9644346&id=504480463

Olivia came from Tawaiin with a heart defect and terrible arrythimias. She was an ECMO graduate post-op. She was terribly critical and tried to die several times during her course. She spent months in our ICU. She is a miracle.

LA Theatre

2009-11-21T15:58:00.000-08:00

Taylor is taking PanAfrican Studies this semester. I benefit!

Not only do I get to go to the theatre with him, he has another assignment to see "Precious", the new movie I heard is really great.

So, last night we went downtown to the new LA Theatre to see "The River Niger". The theatre is really a complex of several small theatres, so there were only 4 rows and about 40 people for this showing. We sat in the front row; the setting was the living room of a Harlem home. Taylor's knees were practically touching the back of the old console TV! We really felt a part of the production being literally observers on set. It was a great experience with drama, tragedy and comedy!

Thanks for the theatre experience again, Taylor, I look forward to the next!

Organized!

2009-11-12T16:44:00.000-08:00

Sometimes it is the little things that make us feel great. For me, it is this tiny little closet in the hallway that makes myself feel terrific.

It is our broom closet. Just a broom closet. . . but everytime I needed the broom, the mop, the dustpan, a screwdriver out of the tool box we keep in here, it would be a major waterfall with everything falling out on top of me. Then, I would shove everything back in and close the door. . . fast.

Then, it was the same thing when I had to put the item away. Arrgh!

Off to Target I went and returned with a few hooks and clips and I grabbed Terry for a little help.

He got out his tools and I emptied the closet and got rid of all the stuff that accumulated in the closet we no longer used. Already looking better.

Up went the hooks and the aprons had a home.

Up went some clips and the broom, dustpan and mops had a permanent home they couldn't escape from.

On the other wall, the feather duster, hand broom and the swifter mop found their place.

Even the back wall got hooks for the plastic
bags, vacuum bags, and even the step stool!

Now, the floor had usable space for carpet cleaner and paper bags and tool boxes!

Cleaning up is a breeze and I don't mind doing it like I used to!

Life is great when the littlest things make the biggest difference!

I had a 4 Day Weekend!

2009-11-08T17:44:00.000-08:00

It all started with an inspection of the work being done on the property in LA that mom and Aunt Dorothy are supervising. We met Andrew, their property manager and he showed us all the progress on the house being renovated.

The foundation was terribly uneven, so his contractor jacked up the house and placed new posts and beams under the foundation to fix that.

The entire inside of the house got a new coat of paint. What a difference!

The floor felt even!

The tile in the kitchen is getting an acid wash to clean up the grout and is looking much better. We originally were going to replace the tile, but after cleaning, decided we wouldn't have to. We wil be getting a new faucet in here, too.

The bathroom clawfoot tub unfortunately, did not make it this time. I saw it and it was totally rusted and the multiple layers of refinishing that had been done were peeling off. The edges cracked when the foundation was lifted and so a new small tub was put in with this new tile. The same tile will go on the floor. The shower plumbing had to be replumbed and will be enclosed in a addition closet outside the bathroom wall. I always wondered why all the plumbing and electical conduit was run outside the walls. Well, I found out. . . the walls are not thick enough to put them inside! The consist of 1x4's!

The front porch got a new railing and the floors inside will be new bamboo!

There is still some window flashing to repair (the existing windows were installed with the flashing on the interior) and new thresholds front and back.

Contractor says it should be ready to show next week. Andrew says we can raise the rent $300/mo!

Next on my weekend plans, celebrating Taylor's 21st birthday!

Celebrate we did! He opened his new skateboard!
We went out to his favorite restaurant and. . .

had his favorite mudpie!

Too much for Terry!

Next day, we celebrated again with Terry's family. James and Terry's mom, Pat, were also celebrating Birthdays!

The gang was all smiles!

Later, an impromptu dinner and cooking class took place and we had a blast learning the fine art of rolling wontons and spring rolls from Terry!

Meanwhile Taylor and James brushed up the their "Time Warp"!

And we made wontons, lumpia rolls, spring rolls for ohr'derves and Japanese Curry for dinner!

Yum! It was fun and delicious!

Last, but not least, we went out the next day for lunch at the Americana's Cheesecake Factory! A first!

Ever wonder how they decorate those huge Christmas trees? We got to find out.

What a great weekend!

Annual Halloween Haunting!

2009-11-01T18:11:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Bonnie and Clyde's home for the Annual Halloween Haunt! This years theme "No one but the dead enter and are reborn in this house for tonight!"

All party goers came as the former living and spirited the night with revelry!

Madame Currie literally set the place "aglow" with her personality and Jesse shone as the Vampire with flair!

Janis Joplin and Ana Nicole were in fine form and true to character!

Casting their infectious smiles here with Madame Currie, a She Devil, the woman who died of H1N1 flu virus covered here in covered in snot and sporting bule lips and a red nose and another ghost from the past.

Obi-Wan shares a grin with Flavo-Flav!

The She Devil mixes it up with Aunt Nora and Miss Scarlet O'Hara!

Dick Tracy punks it up with Raggedy Ann!

Martin Doyle, contractor for hire, (alias Pat Doyle Pollard) celebrates a Big Birthday!

Tonight's Costume Winners for:

Most Original: Melanie's Madame Currie
Most Fascinating: Aunt Dorothy's Scarlet O'Hara
Most Hilarious: Dan's Punked out Dick Tracy
Most Infamous: Pat's Chi Rivera
Most In Character: Taylor's Jesus

Wine Tasting Reveal: Most bottles we ever had 14 Varieties!

The Winner! An Italian Wine from a neighbor next door that dropped it off but couldn't stay!

Wonderful night!

Project Completed!

2009-10-28T20:59:00.000-07:00

OK, so about a year ago I blogged about some of the projects I had lined up to keep me busy and happy. I like my projects!

Well, since the kitchen remodel forced me into the backyard more with the house being a mess and unusable for much of the summer, I kept bumping into this project. You may or may not remember I had rescued this from the sidewalk dumpster and brought it home. There it was day after day. I couldn't wait to get started on it, but the remodel kept taking priority.

I finally got to it. Here it is refinished and reupholstered. It looks better than I dreamed it would!

And, found the perfect spot for it at the base of the stairway!

Project completed, I'm feelin' good!

Recipes From Cooking With the Twins!

2009-10-25T19:18:00.000-07:00

My camera was SB (sans batteries) so this weekend in "Cooking Class" with the twins, I have no photo presentation. But, imagine the ladies working around the peninsula! They are stuffing pasta shells. Not hard to do, now that you've seen it quite a few times. Imagine this week they have color matched their outfits magically again in peach! Now, we were putting together the dinner and somehow the conversation switched to whatever happened to all mom's old recipes. The "recipe box"? Well, mom reached into the cabinet (where it always was kept) and out came the recipe box! So, here this week I present Mom's Spaghetti Sauce. It is like nothing you will find anywhere else! She tells about the Italian family she got it from, old family recipe.

Spaghetti Sauce

1 lb. ground beef
1 Tbs. butter
1 large onion, minced
1 large handful parsley, chopped
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
Brown ground beef in skillet, drain. Saute onion in butter and combine ground meat and onion in large, deep pan.
Add to mixture: 3 small cans tomato sauce and 1 small can tomato paste. Fill paste can with water 3 times and add to mixture. Bring to boil and boil 15 min. Stir frequently. Then, simmer 2-3 hrs.
Next, stuffing recipe for the pasta!

What's Been Going On!

2009-10-20T22:14:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since I've blogged. . . busy I guess. We've changed the kitchen lighting from Title 24 crap to what we wanted (shh!) now that we've passed final.

This is the new lighting here.

and here. . . the new pendants are up! Oh, they were a family project. First, I ordered them, wrong size and so reordered and returned them. Then, we put them up and since they were mounted on a beam, the pan was shallow and some custom work had to be done by Terry. Also, being mounted on a beam, the canopy had to be special ordered, twice, by me. Very complicated since it involved a different light fixture, a guy named Phineas, and a feud this guy has with Lowe's and vice versa. . . ultimately ending up with us getting two canopies free! Not to mention that the glass was frsoted after purchase by Taylor, who custom frosted to our specs! Sean helped with the custom wiring that was needed for the shallow pan! Two weeks later. . . Voila!

And the stools! This could take forever. . . quick story, after 4,000 stools, literally, I found the perfect one! Then, had to deal with managers not wanting to part with their clearance merchandise, pick up and delivery disorganization, and ultimately assembling them ourselves once in our hands and WOW! They are perfect! And I got them on sale! And avoided the pick-up charge! Yes, there was a pick-up charge!

Then, the painting. . . another blog!

September Birthdays!

2009-10-01T18:06:00.000-07:00

Sean turned 24 on the 25th! We had the twins and Grandma Pat over for the inaugural dinner in the NEW kitchen!

Terry made bbq ribs and shrimp scampi per Sean's dinner request. Accompanied by broccoli and potaotes, the dinner was a complete success!

The highlight for Sean was the dessert! He requested a banana split after seeing it prepared on the Food Channel, he knew that was what he wanted for his birthday!

He delicately prepared it and instructed us on the procedure as he went along so we all could follow for the perfect dessert.

Here, he finished with 3 cherries on top!

Happy Birthday!

Excellent!

Then, on the 30th we celebrated Terry's birthday!

One of his favorite restaurants dating back to his college years is El Cholo!

We enjoyed margauritas and table-made guacamole!

Terry had a taste of history and we enjoyed every bit of it!

Happy Birthday Terry!

The Spa Day

2009-09-25T19:55:00.000-07:00

The birthday girl is getting pampered!

Relax and enjoy your day at the Ritz!

Oh yeah, this is how every birthday should be!

Eileen enjoys her foot massage!

This is GREAT!

Now that is how it is done!

Let's get dressed and have lunch by the pool. . .

entire weekend album on facebook, check it out.

Crazy Busy!

2009-09-08T01:55:00.000-07:00

Sorry, no pics. . . laptop truly died ;(

I am so counting the days to San Clemente! This past week has been so busy. We passed final inspection, Yeah! But can't use the kitchen because the floors need to be done. Tomorrow starts that process, but Labor Day weekend was all Labor around our house. . .

unload and pack all the dishes in the dining room hutch. . . ditto for the living room entertainment center. Move everything out into empty nooks and cranny's all over the house ;( and whatever is left is out on the deck! Then, paint the walls in both rooms in time to go back to work on Monday, for a bit of rest! (Thanks for helping with the rolling, Taylor!) . . and get home in time to supervise the floor refinishing!

I am so ready for this San Clemente weekend!