Our California Trip - From Sushi to Hangtown

Last week we were in California, visiting family and friends. First, we visited our daughter and granddaughter in Sunnyvale. The birthday party was on Saturday. I posted photos of the party yesterday. Later, we took the birthday girl to her favorite sushi restaurant.

The next day we headed toward Placerville to visit friends. On our way we stopped in Livermore, where there is a family owned winery and a golf course.

We spent a pleasant hour or so, tasting wine and talking to the hospitable and knowledgeable wine maker.

Sunset in Sacramento, where we stopped for the night:

We went to Placerville to visit friends of my husband's from their school days in Michigan. His friends dated in high school and college, and have been together all these years. They started out in Michigan, traveled from there to California on a motorcycle several times, and finally settled in California. They built a house on a ten acre plot in ElDorado County. They also built a house for his mom, who spends winters here. I took this photo as we followed them to their house, down a long, narrow, winding road. As you can see, it was rainy there. They were happy because they really needed rain.

We stayed at a charming little B&B in Placerville. It's tucked back on a hill at the end of a street; if you weren't looking for it you wouldn't know it was there. This is our room:

The sitting room, which we had all to ourselves:

The dining room, where we had breakfast by the fireplace. The food was delicious! We had Eggs Benedict, omelettes, fresh fruit and home-baked bread.

The innkeepers are a young couple who were most hospitable and friendly. They made us feel right at home. In case you are ever in Placerville, I recommend the Glen Morey House B & B.

Speaking of Placerville, it's a small, historic town that is fun to explore.

An old-fashioned hardware store: as they told us, "if we don't have it, you probably don't need it".

Our friends run a truly amazing place called "Animal Outreach". I have so much to say about it that I am going to save it for a post all its own.

A Birthday in Sunnyvale

Last week we flew into San Francisco, then drove south to Sunnyvale. We came for our granddaughter's birthday party. She just turned seven. Here she is with her new American Girl doll, which my husband brought in his suitcase. The doll's name is McKenna. Our granddaughter's middle name is Makena. It's pronounced the same, but the spelling is different because Makena is named for a beach on Maui.

The party was a teddy bear tea party. All the guests brought their teddy bears.

They made crowns for their teddy bears:

The tables were set for a tea party:

Mom made tea sandwiches and an amazing, technicolor cake.

The birthday party was a success; a party on a sunny day in Sunnyvale. This was the first day of our trip to California. Later in the week, we headed north to Placerville. I have lots of photos from there, too. Those will be in my next post.

Home At Last

We took the "red eye" from San Francisco last night. I didn't sleep a wink on the flight, despite xanax and scotch whiskey. Got home at 6:00 this morning and went to bed; slept for five hours. We had an interesting time and I took loads of photos. It will take some time to get it all together. More later...

Homesick

I've been in California all week, visiting family and friends... be back very soon!

We Grow Cats!

This is what it looks like every morning at our house, when the feral cats come to the back door for breakfast.

That big black one is "Big Blackie". He has developed a bond with my husband, and waits to be petted every morning.

These are the cats that live with us. Tinkerbell, on the left, came to us as a feral cat. Katie, on the right, is a Maine Coon cat who used to be an "only cat" before we adopted the other three (Tiger is not shown this time; he's Tinkerbell's brother.)

This is Munchkin. She came to us as a feral cat, too. Munchkin has a personality like a mix of cat and puppy; she's very friendly and interacts with us the most. She also sleeps on my feet every night.

Dream Lover

To my female readers... who was your crush when you were a young girl? Mine was Bobby Darin. I collected all of his records. My favorite was "Beyond the Sea"; no wonder I grew up wanting to be near the ocean.

Sadly, Bobby Darin died at a young age... from melanoma I heard. A couple of years ago I had to have a melanoma removed from my arm. That's taking the crush a bit too far, I think! I have another "dream lover" now, but I'm not telling.

Taking Shelter

Last Friday we had tornado warnings. Tornadoes did strike in counties all around us, in Kentucky to the north and south and in Indiana to the west. We were lucky this time; it missed us. But one warning was enough. Over the weekend we prepared a designated an area in our basement to be a tornado shelter.

I grew up thinking that the safest place in the house would be on the side from which the tornado approaches, which for us would be the southwest corner. However, after doing some online research I found out that the opposite side is the safest. We chose the northeast corner of our basement for our shelter. We moved a heavy work table into the corner and placed area rugs underneath it to make it a little warmer than sitting on the concrete floor. We placed two heavy desks on either side perpendicular to the work table, so we can place a mattress on top to act as a roof. I am using the desk drawers that face the opening to store supplies. We will have blankets, water, energy bars, flashlights, batteries, a portable radio and a weather radio. Any time we have a tornado watch I make sure I have car keys, money, my cell phone and small valuables in my purse. I make sure I am wearing sturdy shoes.

I know from experience that a tornado hits with very little warning. You have to be ready to run.

Update: To show how crazy these tornadoes were, people in Cincinnati, 50 miles away, are finding debris from Kentucky and Indiana in their yards.