Tag Archives: travel

A Change in The Weather

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Teddy 2

Today I finished the polka dot curly scarf  I have been knitting. This little friend was the only one I could find to model my project. It has been so hot the past few weeks, that wearing a scarf is the last thing anyone wants to do.

Today was different though, and we woke to a cool, cloudy morning.  It was a wonderful change and I went out to the yard to transplant marigolds. It felt so good to be outside in the cool air.

After breakfast we went for a scooter ride to Newport Beach. I think the cloudy morning had discouraged beach goers and traffic was very light as we traveled along Pacific Coast Highway. We stopped for lunch at the Crystal Cove shopping center and it too was amazingly quiet. The sudden change of weather is very welcome, and long overdue. Once home, I got to work and finished the scarf. red scarf 2

Right now I am looking forward to fall, but I have a feeling, in just a few weeks I will be looking for summer weather again.

New Zealand, A Wonderful Place to Visit

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Boat viewNow that we are retired, people sometimes ask if we get to travel. The answer is yes, to visit our three kids.We then get that poor you look from those who don’t really know where our children live. Those who do, know our children live in beautiful places well worth visiting. This photo of Tiare Iti  (Little Flower in Polynesia) belongs to our younger daughter, who lives in New Zealand. It is spring there, and as we await winter, they look forward to their summer. Nicole sent these photos to us this morning and I could not resist sharing them.  She is readying her boat for the summer sailing season.

 

inside boatAs you can see , it is very colorful and cozy down below. Last spring I spent a month living aboard Tiare Iti and it was great fun.

 

 

 

Boat libraryTui life jacket Here you see part of Nicole’s book shelf, and her cat, Tui, wearing a life jacket. Tui is named for the black and white New Zealand Tui bird.

New Zealand is a  lovely country and we are very fortunate to have a great reason to visit often.

I am looking forward, to sharing with you, in future posts, the beautiful places where our two other children live.

 

 

 

 

 

Mom and Daughter Day

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surf shot

Good afternoon! I planned to post this last evening, but was so tired from all of the fresh air and walking, it had to wait until today.

Early last week, my mom and I decided to make Monday a mom and daughter day, so I headed out early yesterday morning for Seal Beach, where Mom lives. It is about a forty minute drive from our house, if the freeway co-operates, and it did. The weather was gorgeous and a perfect day for a trip to the ocean. Above is the amazing view from the Seal Beach pier. You can see we were not the only ones enjoying the view.

Two pigeons

fan shop

Main Street, Seal Beach is delightfully lined with colorful little shops and restaurants. There are just so many interesting places to browse and shop. We were enticed by the constant aroma drifting from a cinnamon roll bakery, but didn’t give in to temptation. Today, I am thinking perhaps we should have.

One of my favorite stores, that is a must see, is the California Sea Shell Co. at 125 Main Street. It has every kind of shell you can imagine and many other wonderful items.

shell shop

Our last stop was to a small nursery, also on Main Street. Walking around the many plants and flowers, I was reminded of a recent trip to Carmel,California. I loved exploring while Mom made her choice and purchased a few flowering plants to take home to her garden.

It really was amazing to see all that was available on that wonderful little street that is the heart of Seal Beach.

nursery 2

It was a perfect day, and we promised each other we would do it again, soon.  Who knows, maybe the next time we will dip our toes in the Pacific.

 

 

 

Revisiting Los Laureles Lodge in Carmel Valley, California

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los lauralesLos Laureles

My husband, Martin and I celebrated our wedding anniversary while away on vacation. It wasn’t planned that way, but it so happened we were in Carmel, California on August 1st. We thought it would be fun to drive to the Carmel Valley and look for Los Laureles Lodge where we’d spent part of our honeymoon 44 years ago. We didn’t know if it still existed. Well, it does and it’s thriving. It has several more buildings now, including a restaurant and wedding chapel. We met a couple who were newly married and holding their reception at the lodge. It was a wonderful day and although Los Laureles Lodge has changed, it brought back many happy memories of a wonderful honeymoon spent in Carmel Valley 44 years ago.