SUNBEAMS & RAINDROPS...

patio stone

SUNDAY

raindrops & sunshine

friends for dinner

house guests from Lakewood

GREAT DAY!!

GOOD. RANDOM. FUN. V50

Sunday, December 13, 2015 - rain beading up on roof of my car

As I mentioned in my blog post yesterday, the Central Coast of California got a bit of rain! Californians get EXCITED about rain due to our multi-year drought. So, anytime we get ANY rain (we had less than 1/2 of an inch yesterday)... that is the "talk about town". A GOOD reason to celebrate!

Monday, December 7, 2015 - Bunco party treats

Last Monday, I hosted our Bunco Holiday celebration. No, we still don't play BUNCO, in fact, we don't even know who has the box (with dice, scorecards & pencils)??? but, we DO love to EAT & TALK about what's happening with our families... All of us are at different stages of our lives. A few are retired, most have grandchildren, a few have grown children who are getting married or defining their career paths, and almost all of us have creative interests (gardening, sewing, painting, decorating, baking or entertaining). 

JPE made dinner for us - lasagna, fresh olive bread and I added a kale salad (prepackaged from Trader Joe's). As everyone arrived, we munched on dried apricots, nuts, crackers & cheese. 

If you haven't tried this cheese, run (yes, run, because it's a seasonal treat) right out to Trader Joe's for a chunk of STICKY TOFFEE Cheddar Cheese. It's not a very pretty cheese (color, bleech!) but it's filled with toffee bits, raisins & dates... a RANDOM tidbit to add to your holiday eating!

Arroyo Grande Village Holiday Party - store window

I'm first to admit I cannot draw... but I do like to try my hand at lettering signs. I created a chalkboard drawing for Allison's and Stephanie's wedding. It was an opportunity to add my personal, FUN touch to their very unique weddings. If you haven't tried chalk lettering, Pinterest is the place to search ideas, or better yet, visit Lily & Val to order a copy of this book... The Complete Book of Chalk Lettering, by Valerie McKeehan. 

Well, must get to my house cleaning! then run a few errands before meeting JPE in San Luis Obispo for dinner with friends. YEAH! 

posting with Tamar at Random-osity!!

give her blog a peek! & tell her I sent you!!

SUNDAY ON THE GO...

enjoying our company (the Skids)...

breakfast + movies + coffee + dinner + ice cream for dessert

:: two movies ::

"This is Where I Leave You"

{hilarious! about a dysfunctional family}

"The Drop" 

{intense!! organized crime & the use of neighborhood bars

as money-laundering drops}

BABES 4 DINNER...

hosted BUNCO BABES for dinner!

we DON'T play BUNCO

(a dice game)!

we DO eat! talk! laugh! 

found this adorable little heart at World Market! 

wrapped raffia around the neck
of an inexpensive glass vase
 (from the Dollar Store)
& attached the heart!

easy... peasy!

PHOTO-HEART CONNECTION {January 2014}

Packing up holiday decorations is bittersweet! We always enjoy having our home decorated with holiday treasures... it was especially exciting this year because Katie & my Mom came for a visit over my birthday weekend... they both oohed & aahed over the tree, ornaments, lights, and miniature houses!

Even though the majority of our decorations are my Santa collection & JPE's holiday-lit houses... we always display these two items as remembrances of my dad and JPE's mom.

Before my dad moved to an Alzheimer's care facility, he would spend an occasional day at care facility while my mom ran errands. This snowflake ornament is a treasured memory from one of his craft-days! 

The basket of ornaments were created by JPE's mom. Although I knew her for only five years before she passed, I quickly learned how much she loved decorating for the holidays. Her grown children & grandkids meant the world to her, and it pleases me to have her hand-crafted ornaments to put out at Christmas.

A few weeks ago, we had some friends over for dinner! they'd never been to our house, so we  gave them a "peek" at condo living. At the end of a fabulous dinner (created by JPE), Cindy said, "your house is filled with treasures that have stories or memories attached to them. It creates such a cozy feeling!"

What a nice reflection! we don't keep much that is NOT MEANINGFUL to us. Living small, we have to rotate our treasures... but, we never grow tired of seeing them from a new perspective each time they appear in our decor.

Posting with Kat Sloma at KatEye Studio...

visit her blog to learn about Photo-Heart Connections.

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 2.24.13

Lola's "DREAMY" eyes

This week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY words appeared to be meant for bloggers with children, but the more I thought about it, the more I was able to put "my 60+ year perspective" on these phrases...

 

TIME TO EAT, GETTING READY, PLAYTIME,

SWEET DREAMS, SCRUB-A-DUB

I'll be spending some time checking in with the participants found at ASHLEY'S before the Academy Awards starts...

what a relaxing way to spend a Sunday!

Our "bluebird" is back!

He {I'm sure it's a HE} was pecking at the edge of the fence, sharpening his beak & then flying near the sliding glass window to get our attention. Of course, my nature "guy" had to connect with our "visitor from nature" & offer him a snack. Then, off he {the bluebird, not JPE} flew --- taking his walnut with him. Definitely TIME TO EAT for him.

My patience paid off --- after GETTING READY to capture a water drop, I was lucky enough to catch the action.

One of my favorite statues at the Huntington Library in Pasadena {had to pull this picture from my photo archive}. I think it represents PLAYTIME .

Another archived photo {sorry about that}... We babysat Lola this past summer... took her to the cabin... all that fresh mountain air! She certainly looks ready for some SWEET DREAMS.

There's something "very meditative" about washing dishes by hand... think it's the bubbles? warm water? the light reflecting off bubbles? rubbing the sponge over the dishes? ah! for me, it's about the water dancing over my fingertips. SCRUB-A-DUB!

Off to watch the Academy Awards... My vote for BEST PICTURE? BEST ACTRESS? oh, you'll have to wait until tomorrow... to see my prediction.

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 10.28.12

Bull's Tavern - SLO - 10.27.12

The one constant in my week (well, besides going to WORK) is participating in SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY (hosted by Ashley).

In looking at last week's post, it seems like those pictures were taken at least a month ago... instead of just 7-8 days. And... we're getting ready to start a new  month... Time flies!

Without further unnecessary chatting, here are the words for this week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY: PATTERN(S), MACHINE, SIGNS or LOGOS, ROCKS or STONES & SPARKLE.

PATTERN(S)

Don't you love the PATTERN a lawn mower makes in a yard? Of course, this lawn is perfection - it's the lawn at SYCAMORE MINERAL SPRINGS, Avila Beach. Gardners probably hand manicure it!?? The sidewalk is located outside HANDS GALLERY in SLO. It's a artsy gallery of "handmade" treasures (both local & from outside our area). The color of the tiles are certain to grab your attention... enticing you to enter & look around.

MACHINE

On our walk with Marcus, we saw this adorable little one person MACHINE at Sycamore Mineral Springs. Loved the deep navy blue color & the red leather satchel buckled behind the driver's seat. 

SIGNS or LOGOS

San Luis Obispo County has quite a diverse population of residents. You're probably wondering what that has to DO with this SIGN? Throughout the county are agricultural lands... strawberries, bok choy, broccoli, peas, grapes (wineries), and many of the ranches have men & women who still ride horses to monitor the farmlands. If you ask locals, they'll say BULL'S TAVERN is a cowboy bar... it also has the distinction of being the "oldest" bar in San Luis Obispo. I've lived in SLO for 40 years, I've never been inside BULL'S... but I do appreciate their interesting neon SIGN.

ROCKS or STONES

Several weeks ago, JPE & I rented a hot tub at Sycamore Mineral Springs... this past week, our house guest rented a tub... as you enter the path to the massage area & hot tubs, this concrete bird bath holds a series of stacked STONES. Have you ever taken some time to make a pile of stacked stones? There's something peaceful about finding the smoothest, roundest, flattest STONES for stacking. Ahhh... relaxing.

SPARKLE

Bet you can't guess what this is??? It's actually a lamp with a shade made from an old juice cans... it has plenty of old-world charm & bling. Unfortunately, I took this picture through a store window & the lamp was turned off... use your imagination & I'm certain you'll be able to see the SPARKLE. 

Next week's words are: WILD, WELCOME, ADVENTURE, VIBRANT & CLASSIC. Dare you to participate!!