Well, it's May 27th and we see no one has voted for Seattle and Lake Tahoe as places we could possibly go on vacation.
Some of you may not know that we honeymooned in Seattle (and Portland), and also that Jeff's stepfather co-owns a condo at Lake Tahoe good for the whole family's use.
So as a hint to where we are going on vacation, we just purchased new swimsuits and are thereby eliminating Seattle as a possible location. Seattle in June just doesn't seem like the place that demands new swim clothes. (Although we would love to visit the Pacific Northwest again. The Lion and the Rose B&B in Portland, Oregon was fabulous and our first experience at a bed and breakfast. Highly recommended.)
Now don't count out the other "non-swimsuit" places as we have very nice accommodations that have great amenities nearby that we will take full advantage of. "Pampered" is the word I'm thinking of (and that does not mean diapers!).
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Fun in the Garden
One of the many fun things about owning a home is discovering the joys and frustrations of gardening. From rescuing a brown lawn from winter's slumber to watching new growth in the spring, it's a lot more fun (and work) than either of us initially thought.
Not long after moving in, we decided to plant herbs and marigolds in the flower boxes on the back patio. Most of them have moved on to the great garden in the sky, but we still have 2 or 3 marigolds hanging on. One spearmint plant, which we thought had died twice already, is still around, as are some chamomile and rosemary that have proven to be pretty hardy. RIP to the parsley, cilantro, dill, oregano, and catnip. Better luck next time.
Our next venture into landscaping was a row of rose shrubs, a gardenia bush, and two hydrangeas. In our excitement to plant, we forgot to take into account that the roots need to be soaked thoroughly, and the new plants need a LOT of water. Lucky for us, none of them died, but it is going to be an uphill battle. I love gardenias, especially the fragrance, so I really want that one to survive. (If you've never smelled one, it's kind of like coconut. It reminds me a little of that tropical tanning oil that was so popular before all the SPF stuff came out.) The roses are just starting to bloom on a couple of plants, so we have a few little lavender-pink blossoms out front. Yay! I just hope the water bill doesn't shock us too much.
The hydrangeas were another adventure. One started to get some very small blooms, but the other one never seemed to do anything. We called the company we ordered from and they sent a replacement, so we are hopeful that we can get a few blooms out of them before it gets too hot. We also found out that the color of hydrangea blooms can change depending on the acidity of your soil. The picture in the catalog was white, but ours have some blue in them from the acid. They look fine, but if we decide we want white, I guess we'll have to mix in some alkaline. The fun of chemistry. Who knew that flowers could be a litmus test?
My latest project involved a sago palm that had been planted by the previous owners. It didn't look too healthy at first, but we kept at it. It finally started to perk up, but it just wasn't thriving like we thought it should. Then one day we noticed a strange black ring around the trunk. We dug a little and discovered that it had been planted with the original plastic pot. No wonder the roots weren't taking hold! So this morning I dug around the palm, cut off the pot, loosened and soaked the roots, and re-planted. Maybe now it will start to grow like a palm tree and not a little shrub.
We don't have green thumbs yet. Far from it -- just ask the herbs. But it is fun to try. We are mostly focusing on the front yard this season, and then we'll dive in to the backyard, where the real fun will begin. That will probably require some professional help, but we have some nice ideas in store.
Not long after moving in, we decided to plant herbs and marigolds in the flower boxes on the back patio. Most of them have moved on to the great garden in the sky, but we still have 2 or 3 marigolds hanging on. One spearmint plant, which we thought had died twice already, is still around, as are some chamomile and rosemary that have proven to be pretty hardy. RIP to the parsley, cilantro, dill, oregano, and catnip. Better luck next time.
Our next venture into landscaping was a row of rose shrubs, a gardenia bush, and two hydrangeas. In our excitement to plant, we forgot to take into account that the roots need to be soaked thoroughly, and the new plants need a LOT of water. Lucky for us, none of them died, but it is going to be an uphill battle. I love gardenias, especially the fragrance, so I really want that one to survive. (If you've never smelled one, it's kind of like coconut. It reminds me a little of that tropical tanning oil that was so popular before all the SPF stuff came out.) The roses are just starting to bloom on a couple of plants, so we have a few little lavender-pink blossoms out front. Yay! I just hope the water bill doesn't shock us too much.
The hydrangeas were another adventure. One started to get some very small blooms, but the other one never seemed to do anything. We called the company we ordered from and they sent a replacement, so we are hopeful that we can get a few blooms out of them before it gets too hot. We also found out that the color of hydrangea blooms can change depending on the acidity of your soil. The picture in the catalog was white, but ours have some blue in them from the acid. They look fine, but if we decide we want white, I guess we'll have to mix in some alkaline. The fun of chemistry. Who knew that flowers could be a litmus test?
My latest project involved a sago palm that had been planted by the previous owners. It didn't look too healthy at first, but we kept at it. It finally started to perk up, but it just wasn't thriving like we thought it should. Then one day we noticed a strange black ring around the trunk. We dug a little and discovered that it had been planted with the original plastic pot. No wonder the roots weren't taking hold! So this morning I dug around the palm, cut off the pot, loosened and soaked the roots, and re-planted. Maybe now it will start to grow like a palm tree and not a little shrub.
We don't have green thumbs yet. Far from it -- just ask the herbs. But it is fun to try. We are mostly focusing on the front yard this season, and then we'll dive in to the backyard, where the real fun will begin. That will probably require some professional help, but we have some nice ideas in store.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
The States We've Seen
OK, so I'm feeling just detail-oriented enough to actually list the states we've visited. This will also tell you a bit about our history.
1992: Met in California; started dating in 1994
1995: Road trip to Arizona, New Mexico (where Jennifer is from), Colorado, Utah, and Nevada
1996: Married in October and honeymooned in Oregon and Washington; drove through Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama two months later while moving to Florida
1997: Road trip to Georgia and South Carolina
1998: Road trip to North Carolina
1999: Moved back to California
2004: Drove through Oklahoma to see family in Missouri; also saw parts of Kansas and Arkansas
2006: Ten-year anniversary trip. Flew to Massachusetts, then drove and saw Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island
2007: Flew to St. Louis and drove into Illinois to see friends
That brings everyone up to date on the 28 states we have seen. We have taken other trips, of course, and both of us saw other states before we met, but I've only counted the travels that added new states as we saw them together. Jennifer has seen a total of 31 states, and I've seen 38 so far. Most of what's left is the Upper Midwest, Great Lakes area, northern Rockies, Appalachia, and Mid-Atlantic, plus Alaska and Hawaii. So we still have a ways to go, but we always have fun taking pictures of the "Welcome to..." signs on the state lines and buying souvenir magnets. Our refrigerator looks like an atlas!
1992: Met in California; started dating in 1994
1995: Road trip to Arizona, New Mexico (where Jennifer is from), Colorado, Utah, and Nevada
1996: Married in October and honeymooned in Oregon and Washington; drove through Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama two months later while moving to Florida
1997: Road trip to Georgia and South Carolina
1998: Road trip to North Carolina
1999: Moved back to California
2004: Drove through Oklahoma to see family in Missouri; also saw parts of Kansas and Arkansas
2006: Ten-year anniversary trip. Flew to Massachusetts, then drove and saw Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island
2007: Flew to St. Louis and drove into Illinois to see friends
That brings everyone up to date on the 28 states we have seen. We have taken other trips, of course, and both of us saw other states before we met, but I've only counted the travels that added new states as we saw them together. Jennifer has seen a total of 31 states, and I've seen 38 so far. Most of what's left is the Upper Midwest, Great Lakes area, northern Rockies, Appalachia, and Mid-Atlantic, plus Alaska and Hawaii. So we still have a ways to go, but we always have fun taking pictures of the "Welcome to..." signs on the state lines and buying souvenir magnets. Our refrigerator looks like an atlas!
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Merry Month of May
Being the owners of our first house, we find there are lots of new things in our lives. We LOVE having our own washer & dryer (doing laundry right now, in fact) and a nice big backyard. I just finished cutting the grass, and I was reminded of the line in "The Shawshank Redemption" that said May was one fine month for working outdoors. It's true, although the weather in California is probably warmer than it is in Maine (where the movie is set).
We fondly remember our trip to New England in October 2006, and Maine had some of the best weather of all the states we visited. One day when we feel adventurous we will see that part of the country in winter. We know it's cold, colder than anything central California sees, but the idea of the snow-covered bridges and villages just seems so romantic to us. (That's fine, you say. Take your sub-zero temperatures and give me a warm sunny beach somewhere. One of the points of pride with us is that we go places most people don't guess. That's what is fun about that poll of ours. We will keep you guessing til the end.)
We are both looking forward to our vacations, trips, and so forth. It seems we try to visit at least one new state a year. We're up to 28 now, which works out to two states for each of the 14 years we've been together. (For our 10-year anniversary trip, we saw seven new states in 10 days!) But even though we're just over halfway there, it gets harder to find new ones and takes longer to get there; but we plan to see all fifty, as well as Europe. (Gotta get those passports!) This year I will add Pennsylvania when I visit Gettysburg in July. Our 'mystery' trip may add another state to our list, but we won't tell...at least not until we get back and show pictures.
We fondly remember our trip to New England in October 2006, and Maine had some of the best weather of all the states we visited. One day when we feel adventurous we will see that part of the country in winter. We know it's cold, colder than anything central California sees, but the idea of the snow-covered bridges and villages just seems so romantic to us. (That's fine, you say. Take your sub-zero temperatures and give me a warm sunny beach somewhere. One of the points of pride with us is that we go places most people don't guess. That's what is fun about that poll of ours. We will keep you guessing til the end.)
We are both looking forward to our vacations, trips, and so forth. It seems we try to visit at least one new state a year. We're up to 28 now, which works out to two states for each of the 14 years we've been together. (For our 10-year anniversary trip, we saw seven new states in 10 days!) But even though we're just over halfway there, it gets harder to find new ones and takes longer to get there; but we plan to see all fifty, as well as Europe. (Gotta get those passports!) This year I will add Pennsylvania when I visit Gettysburg in July. Our 'mystery' trip may add another state to our list, but we won't tell...at least not until we get back and show pictures.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Vacation anyone?
Jeff is counting down the days til school gets out (May 30th);
I'm biting my nails as I count down the days til the SDI Summer Ball (June 14th).
Jeff needs a vacation (although being a school teacher, the summer is a nice, long vacation time to look forward to). I will need a break after feverishly completing my 1876 Evening Gown before I plunge head-first into my Costume College classes to teach and costumes to make.
(Check out my Historical Sewing blog to see my progress.)
Therefore, the small part of me that is impromptu has decided we are going on a trip right after the ball.
Question is: where are we going? We've already decided - but can you guess??
Have fun in answering our poll!
P.S. With my C&C partner, Sara and her husband Jeremiah, and my good friend Becky (Sara's sister) travelling to England, and our other good friends Maegen and Charlie visiting Hawaii, the travelling bug has bitten, enticing us to discover someplace new (or old).
I'm biting my nails as I count down the days til the SDI Summer Ball (June 14th).
Jeff needs a vacation (although being a school teacher, the summer is a nice, long vacation time to look forward to). I will need a break after feverishly completing my 1876 Evening Gown before I plunge head-first into my Costume College classes to teach and costumes to make.
(Check out my Historical Sewing blog to see my progress.)
Therefore, the small part of me that is impromptu has decided we are going on a trip right after the ball.
Question is: where are we going? We've already decided - but can you guess??
Have fun in answering our poll!
P.S. With my C&C partner, Sara and her husband Jeremiah, and my good friend Becky (Sara's sister) travelling to England, and our other good friends Maegen and Charlie visiting Hawaii, the travelling bug has bitten, enticing us to discover someplace new (or old).
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
Email testing
Testing a blog post.
Jen
If you're ready to jump-start your sewing projects, learn helpful hints and tips, and have more fun in your historical sewing and reenacting, then get your FREE sewing tips now at www.CloakAndCorset.com!
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