Author Archives: Janice

About Janice

I love California, both in and out of my garden. My passions are gardening and photography. My goal is to make Plum Bird Corner a happy place to visit often.

Exploring Toy Haulers

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trailer hallToday we went to a local RV dealer to investigate toy haulers. We currently own a 5th wheel trailer, which we love, but have often said how nice it would be if we could take our scooter and can-am spyder motorcycle along with us. This is the reason we've talked about looking at toy haulers which would give us that capability. Today our curiosity got the better of us and we went looking. We looked at several,and the Winnebago Spyder was our favorite.I took this photo from the kitchen looking down the hall into the bedroom. Below you can see my husband checking out the kitchen. Though shorter than our current trailer, it was very nice and we gave it two thumbs up. We're not ready to make such a big change right now, but it was fun investigating. We let the salesman know up front we were only looking and did not want to waste his time, but he said he was happy to show us around. We appreciated that he was very helpful and informative, but not at all pushy. We did take his card, and who knows what the future holds. 

Martin 2 kitchenOn the saleman’s recommendation we ate lunch at a small cafe across the street.
lunchI had a delicious sandwich and we both thoroughly enjoyed our lunch at the Cafe Latte.
As we left for home, we learned that there were flood warnings in several Orange County cities, including Westminster where we were. At that moment, the day was sunny and warm, and it was difficult to believe the predictions. On the drive home we spotted the clouds ahead. Fortunately we made it home before the rain started. Our area never did see rain. Exploring the toy haulers, eating a delicious lunch, and just being together made it a great day.
cloudy skies

A Visit to the Los Rios Historic District

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yellow houseThis morning I rode my can-am spyder motorcycle to the library, and afterwards decided it was too lovely a day to go directly home, so continued south into San Juan Capistrano. Above you see one of the charming little coffee houses in the Los Rios Historic District, which is a special part of the unique city. Los Rios Street is an example of neighborhood life at the turn of the century. It’s not only the oldest neighborhood in San Juan Capistrano, but the oldest in the state of California. We’re so very fortunate to live close to this charming part of California. There are about 40 homes and they vary in age from 50 to 204 years. Most homes are private and can only be viewed from the street, but several are now gift shops, museums, or tea and coffee houses. The street is lined with lovely flowers, and below is a gorgeous example.
pink flowerHidden house coffeeAbove, another coffee house, and below, the beautiful Hummingbird Cafe.
hummingbird cafeI took many more photos, but the ones I’ve posted should give you an idea of why I love to visit Los Rios Street, and always make sure to have my camera. You can park in a free parking building on Verdugo Street in San Juan, next to the Am Track station, and walk to Los Rios Street. If you’ve never seen the Los Rios Historic District, and are in or near Orange County, please go and see it for yourself. You won’t be disappointed.

A Fabulous Day at Disneyland

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Underwater-1Yesterday was a fabulous day at Disneyland with our youngest daughter and grandson. I took the above photo with my cell phone while we were on the submarine ride. The weather was perfect, in the low 80s with a cool breeze. We arrived early and stayed until almost closing time. We went on quite a few rides, including Indiana Jones, and Splash Mountain. One of my favorites is Peter Pan. I know it’s not Space Mountain, but I really do love it. I find the twinkling lights that surround you while floating over the tiny villages so charming, that I’d happily ride it several times if it wasn’t for the long line of people who also love the ride. Below our grandson patiently waits for his turn to climb aboard one of the flying ships to Never Never Land.

chrley-waitingOne of the most exciting parts of the day, was when our boy was one of the children chosen to take part in the Star Wars Jedi training camp. Just hearing the Star Wars theme playing and seeing the Storm Troopers and Darth Vader gave us chills .Below you see our young Jedi battling with Darth Maul. It was all so very exciting and made it even more fun. It really was a very special day.

char-and-darth-mal

Bring Your Garden Inside

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red-roses-1This morning when I was outside watering my plants and enjoying the beautiful flowers, I asked myself why I don’t cut more flowers and bring them inside where we can enjoy them all day long. I’m always careful to deadhead my plants to encourage more blooms, but why not cut the flowers while they are still beautiful. This way we would have a garden both indoors and out. I took my own advice and above are some of the roses I brought inside today. These are now sitting in our living room on the glass coffee table looking beautiful. Below is a rose from a different bush. This one adorns our kitchen table. Both bouquets are a little past their peak, but the color is lovely and each gives off a wonderful fragrance. Both varieties add something special to the room where they are displayed.

rose-2This may be one of my better ideas. Tomorrow I’ll be outside in the garden looking for more flowers to bring inside. I’ve a feeling that I may be in need of more vases, even if they are empty mason, or spaghetti sauce jars, which make unique containers for displaying cut flowers.