Leaving the coast....

We left the Pacific coast, and headed to San Jose to stay with our young friends, Shauna and Dean. We have know them since we lived in Nelson, where Shauna was Jim's asssistant at RBC Dominon Securties. We had two wonderful nights there with them, parked our 5th wheel outside their home in their trendy neighbourhood, and no one asked us to leave. This morning we headed north thru tough traffic, wall to wall, stop and go nearly all the way from San Jose to Oakland. We crossed over the Richmond toll bridge, and came out by San Quentin. We continued north on 101 and were are staying here in Santa Rosa for a couple of days. Tomorrow we will head west over to the coast again, to Bodega Bay, for lunch on the ocean. Our plans are staying fairly flexible, depending on the weather. We are heading home, but not sure what day we will arrive there yet. Probably around the 16-18 of March.

Morro Bay....

Imagine this giant rock on the tip of a spit of land, surrounding a bay of water. This is Morro Bay. It is a fishing village, a Coast Guard base, and now a really trendy village with alot of waterfront resturants, shops and homes. Great bakery, dog friendly and lots of parks and places to walk. It is kind of tucked away, and you really don't see that there is a little waterfront village , except, you do see the ROCK.

Leaving this morning for San Jose...do you know the way....couldn't resist.

The Beach....

We are leaving here tomorrow, heading up towards San Jose. The"girlies" have just loved the beach, and they are so tired after all the long walks that they just crash at night. More sunshine and beach walks are in the forecast for today.

Happy 93rd Birthday to Jim's Mom

Happy 93rd Birthday Mom, even though you won't see this, our love and thoughts are with you today. This is a picture of Jim and the dogs here at Pismo Beach, California, taken just for you. Maybe the nurses will print this off and read it to you. We will be home by March 23, then Jim will fly to Calgary to see you.

Pismo Beach, Ca....

There is something so soothing being by the water, whether it is the ocean, a lake or a river. Pismo Beach is a great little town on Hwy 101, an old surfers paridise. The sunsets are so beautiful, lots of broken shells to make hearts, and the sand is really hard so you can even write on it and it stays.
The dogs love to be able to run off leash, and run into the ocean. It takes them a few minutes to realize that the water does not taste good. They come back so tired after all their exercise, they sleep all day and then all night.

It is a sunny day here, lots of families here camping with their kids, such a great change from all the "old RVer's." It is great to wake up and hear the kids laughing.

I hope whereever you are today, you are having a good day.

Carpenteria State Park

Carpenteria State Park, just 12 miles south of Santa Barbara is where we stayed last night. It was warm enough to sit outside, walk along the water, find some rocks, and make some hearts. This morning we took our chairs, had our coffee and breakfast with the sun at our backs, warming us up for the day. I thought about how strong and powerful the waves were as the come in and pound the rocks below, and how gentle and calm they are as the water slowly goes back out, just as another wave rolls in. They were pretty big waves, big enough to have some surfers out there. It was a beautiful sunset and sunrise. A lovely spot to sit, write in my journal or read the morning paper.

Lovely Ribbons and Buttons....

Some of my newest finds was this trim at an old fabric store in Apache Junction. It was a crafters delight...rolls of vintage trim and just check out these buttons. Some of the original prices are still on them, but I paid 20 cents each. What is a girl to do with all these you say? Who cares, they are lovely and Christa will appreciate some of these on her new journals that I am making.

We leave here tomorrow for Santa Barbara and Hwy 1 up the coast of California. It is always a tough day because of all the traffic, and you really need to keep focused on everything. The rain has finally stopped and better weather is ahead as we start making our way home to Westbank mid March.

Christa, drive safely on those roads back to Alberta and have a great week with your grandkids. So happy for all of you who have grandkids to hug. My turn will come.

Cookie....

This is our older Dalmatian, Cookie. She will be 13 on May 11, 2007. Ever since we got her at 10 weeks she has been such a good dog. I remember when she was almost 2, she was such a going concern. When my Mom was alive she used to come over to Nelson where we lived at that time, and help me plant the spring bulbs. We were so pleased with ourslves, we worked hard to plant over 100 tulips, daffodils, and narcissus. We were sitting on the deck, having a cup of tea, when what did we see, but this sweet dog, digging up all the bulbs we planted....She knew she was in trouble, but she just couldn't help herslef. My Mom just laughed, and then we went back and replanted them. Cookie finally grew out of that habit of digging, and now she can be found napping at any given time. This is the wonderful shawl that Laurie and Shane sent me while they were in Pakistan. Love this old girl.

I really miss my Mom. She and my Dad gave the 7 of us kids such a great life in Bull River where we grew up. This is to all the loving Mom's in our lives, in memory of the ones who have passed away, and for my friends that still have their Mom's, cherish them and be grateful they are still with you.

Vintage Posters....

I really love the look of Vintage posters and signs, and I have these two in a book of Canadian Pacific Posters back home. It does seems strange being here in Southern California and thinking about skiing, but there is snow here on the tops of the mountains, and you realize that is what our friends are doing back in Canada. I will look for these posters for our travel themed house in Westbank.

Friendships...

I've been thinking alot about "Friendships." The ones that we make in our lifetime, the ones that survive sometimes with minimal contact, the ones that are true. It is the love of those friends that help you thru the tough times each one of us has in our lives. The ones that share our joy as well . Whose shoulders are broad enough to help carry your cares as well as share their own. Who's arms and hearts are open at any given hour. Most of us are lucky to have such a friend, somehow I am blessed to have more than one. So this early morning, I thank each one of you for the wonderful friends that you are in my life. You know who you are, my love and thoughts of gratitude are sent to each of you.......

My morning Smile...

When I spotted this old neon sign, I just had to smile. It was on this run down old bar just on the outskirts of Blythe, CA. In front of the bar there were various motor bikes, and some old beater cars, not a place a gal would want to hang out, other than to get a photo of the sign. It did seem to have a certain following though.
I can just see this on some engraved party invitation......"Let's meet for drinks at The Horny Toad." I wonder what Miss Manners would say about that?

Fairy Meadows

February 22, 1985, this is where I was 22 years ago today. 12 of us met up in Cranbrook, drove to Golden, spent the night then had a helicopter pick us up and fly us into Fairy Meadows in the Selkirk Mountain Range. For 9 days we put on our alpine gear, climbing skins, climbed to the top of the mountains just to have one spectacular run back down to the hut. We broke off chunks of ice from the glacier, brought it down in a pack, just so we could have glacier ice in our drinks that night. The weather was perfect, the powder snow deep, and the scenery breathtaking. The best part was that we all flew out together and safely. The friendships we formed are still special today. I know Shirley is going back to Fairy Meadows in a couple of weeks, and I understand great improvements have been made, especially to the bathrooms... Happy and safe skiing..

Martha Stewart....

We drove to a new development just about 15 miles nw from where we are in Hemet, to a town called Perris. There is a new area called Olive Grove where these show homes that Martha Stewart has designed with KB Homes. I knew that my Martha had been hard at work, (as Jim said,"with her designer tool belt and handy young construction workers,") and these 4 showhomes were the best finished and decorated that we have seen. All where furnished out of the MS collection. You felt that you could move right in. They also were huge, and so was the price tag, but if you dream, you might as well do it in color. Took lots of photos. I wanted some new ideas for our home back in Westbank.

The weather is starting to get warmer again, and where we are staying, it is mostly folks from BC, AB, and Manitoba....and the ones left behind, are glad that spring is on the way......

Moving On....

We are leaving here today, heading west to Hemet, California. We still have 4 weeks before we are back home in Westbank.
I found some vintage postcards at Quartizse, this one was mailed in 1930, to a friend in Albany New York, and still has the 1 cent stamp on it. The message was heartwarming.

Enjoy your day.

Hearts & Little Books....

Fun day yesterday, making "little books." A creative way to spend a few hours. The heart shaped rocks were found in Quartzsite. Az last week on a trip there with Evelyne and Richard. They have a huge rock and gem show mid Jan to Feb., where there are literally 1000's of RV's camped, or boondocked in and around Quartzsite. It is quite amazing. Anyways, found these rocks, will make gifts as great paperweights and the books, well who knows in whose hands they will end up in.

Memorable Moments...

I made this little book for Christa. Of course, I already had to send her the photo of it for her approval. I have added some quotes, and this is one I want to share: "There is only one happiness in this life, to love and be loved." George Sand.

"Come Away With Me".....

As Norah Jones sings. "Come Away With Me," and we continue to travel,

here are a couple of new signs. The top one is from Parker, Az , middle on Blythe, Ca,

and the last one in Mesa, AZ.
Wonderful works of art, capturing places that time has passed by.

As we leave here on Monday, I am always hopeful that we will find more of these timeless treasures.

The Secret....

This is the book that everyone is talking about. Check out www.thesecret.tv When Oprah had these authors on her show, it was an amazing hour. I hardly ever watch TV, but I am sure glad that Christa told me about this. Thank you.

One of the quotes in this book: Once you begin to understand and truly master your thoughts and feelings, that's when you see how you create your own reality. That's where your freedom is, that's where all your power is. "Marci Shimoff"

Happy Valentine's Day

For happy hearts everywhere. Happy Valentine's Day.......

River Rescue....

Here we are in Ehrenberg, Az. on the Colorado River for a week. We see this dog across the river, tied to a big rope and tangled around the the rocks. Jim drives over, gets him loose, feeds him, and the dog, a very friendly and grateful Australian Shepard, shakes himself all over Jim and hops into the pickup truck in the back seat. Jim takes him to the SPCA on the California side, and they take him in. Riverside county does not euthanize any animals brought to them. Jim told the SPCA manager that he promised me that if they enuthanize this dog, we would find this boy a new home.

So here is to Jim, hero to me and dogs everywhere, thank you....

recycled love........

We had gone out to dinner at "On The Border" a Mexican resturant in Chandler, and I thought these coasters could be useful if recycled. As it is close to Valentine's Day, this is what they have become. "Recycled Patchwork Love Hearts."

A big congratulations to my son Jeremy for being accepted to continue his Masters studies at the University of Oregon for the summer, so proud of you!!!!!!

To Christa, all good thoughts and blessings for you today as you get your eye surgery... I will be checking in on you to see how you are when you get back...