Halloween Porch Ideas

I'm not one that likes super scary

Halloween decorations.

I'm what some would call...a chicken.

So while searching for cute porch

decorating ideas, I looked for ideas

that wouldn't scare young children or me.

I think some of the following examples

are adorable, and some are even

easy enough for me to pull off.

Via

Via

Via

Via

Via

Via

Via

Cute right?

You find anything you might use?

Miranda Lambert - Vice

I'm not a huge Miranda Lambert fan,

but I have to be honest,

I love this song.

What do you think?

Fort Bragg

Todd and I spent a few days in Fort Bragg 

a couple weekends ago.

I can honestly say, we have never seen

such beautiful weather there, and

we have been several times.

We didn't have any plans in place,

we just figured we would see where the

days took us, and we weren't disappointed.

Our first day was spent driving there,

eating, getting settled in the hotel room,

and watching the sunset.

The following day, we headed to Mendocino.

We had to stop at Papa Bears Chocolate Haus,

Their chocolate is to die for!

I always get their salted caramel sand dollars

and milk chocolate peanut clusters.

Todd enjoys their haystacks and white

chocolate raspberry bars.

As always, they didn't disappoint.

After we pigged out on candy,

we strolled up and down the streets 

and made a quick stop in 

our favorite gallery to see

what new and beautiful artwork they had.

One of the beautiful buildings in Mendocino.

A beautiful hand carved bird from the gallery.  

Us in Mendocino.

A panoramic of  Mendocino area.

After we had done what we wanted,

we decided to go wine tasting.

It was really easy to figure out where

to go because there was only one

winery in the local area.

We stopped at Pacific Star Winery.

It ended up being an awesome little 

winery located on the ocean,

and I mean right on the ocean.

I don't think I could have planned a 

better place to visit on a gorgeous day.

After our tasting, we bought a 

bottle of wine, cheese and crackers,

and we took them to a seating area.

We ate, drank and thoroughly 

enjoyed our time there.

Does it get any better?

Look at that view!

We probably spent half of the day at 

Pacific Star.  We really didn't want to leave,

but they had a wedding planned for 5 PM.

Because it was still light out,

and we weren't super hungry,

we decided to stop at the beach.

I took a panoramic so you 

can see just how awesome the day was. 

And to make the day even better,

look at all these sand dollars

I found on the beach!

The rest of our time there consisted of 

eating, relaxing, eating and sleeping.

It was a perfect way to rejuvenate!

I didn't get many pictures because

mostly we just relaxed and enjoyed

each others company.

It was a perfect way to celebrate

27 years together!

Summer To Do List ...Review

So it's time to see how I did on my Summer To Do List.

I wasn't quite as successful as I was with my Fall list,

but I did get the majority of items checked off my list.

Let's take a look.

1.   Try a new restaurant
Done ...The family went to Casablanca's Moroccan Restaurant.
Not only was the food delicious, the atmosphere was great
and we all had a good time.

2.   Paint hallway and bedroom
Fail...it was too hot this Summer.
Maybe I'll get it done this Fall...maybe?

3.   Visit another state
Done...we visited my parents in Oregon this Summer.

4.   Read a book
Done...Read The Martian.

5.   Buy some cute sandals
Done...bought a cute little pair from Target.
No picture provided, but you can use your imagination.
They're sandals.

6.   Go to the beach
Done...I didn't go to the ocean,
but I did go to Tahoe.

7.   Have a picnic
Done...sort of.
We had a mini picnic on our ride home from Reno.
A real picnic...not really.

8.   Go to the movies
Done...watched The Secret Life of Pets.
Cute, but not what I expected.

9.   Go to a farmers market or flea market
Done...we've been to the farmer's market several times.

10.  Have a family game night
Fail...how hard can it be?
We didn't do it, maybe this Fall.

11.  Complete either an art project or building project
Done...Todd and I made a frame for 
my dad for his birthday.

12.  Make homemade ice cream
Well...I kind of didn't make it,
but I talked my mom into making it,
and that's even better.
So, I'm calling that a win!

13.  Go to a concert (if it's not too hot)
Done...went to see Alabama with the hubby 
for our anniversary.

14.  Put the computer and cell phone away for a full day
Done...I didn't use any electronic devices for
a full day when I was on vacation in Oregon.

15.  Go on a nature walk
Done...we took a walk along the American River.

I plan on adding the painting, and family game night
to an upcoming list.  I'll get these things done...
eventually!

Brett Young - Sleep Without You

Lawdy!

He's something.

Thor Hammer McComb

We lost a long time member of the family.

Our little buddy Thor passed away a couple weeks ago,

I wanted to write about him earlier, but I just couldn't

bring myself to say goodbye.

Thor became part of the family in 2004.

Lexx saved up all her money from Christmas & birthdays.

She wanted a dog in the worst way,

so Todd and I made a deal with her

that if she could pay for it, she could get one.

Thor was the one!

From the moment she saw him,

it was love at first site.

He was truly her best friend,

there by her side constantly.
He slept in her bed, was there with her
through all her graduations,
vacations, walks, movies...
you name it, Thor was there.

It's been a tough couple of weeks.
 We come home and expect for him to
greet us, or give us kisses
and a big goofy smile.

We find comfort in the fact that
Thor will live on in the memories.
of love and devotion he gave us.

"The heart remembers most what it has loved best."

27 Years!

Todd and I celebrated our 27th anniversary 

this past weekend, and it was fabulous!

I wanted to do something a little different

for him this year, so I planned in advance.

I knew that I wanted to take him to a concert,

but I was not having any success finding a band

that both of us would like.

I looked for weeks, and then all of a sudden,

everything fell into place.

Our special weekend started off with me 

working from 6:30 AM - 1:00 PM.

The concert I found was in Reno, NV,

so that meant that I had to rent a hotel,

pack Todd's bags, pack my bags, and

sneak them into my car without Todd noticing

all before I went to work on Saturday morning.

It wasn't an easy task, but I got it done.

I did my presentations at work, and then

rushed home to pick up Todd so we could

boogie to Reno before the concert started. 

We ended up leaving our house around 2 PM.

I hadn't really eaten all day,

so I took Todd to our favorite pizza place in Truckee.

Not romantic I know, 

but we LOVE this pizza!

 

It was delicious, as always,

So we left stuffed and happy.

We arrived in Reno around 5:00 PM, 

and promptly checked into our hotel so

that we could get ready for the concert 

that started at 8:00 PM.

We were extremely happy with the Atlantis Resort.

It was perfect for what we needed.

Todd and I managed to get ready, 

and with some time to spare.

We were going to just walk right next door

to the Reno Convention Center to watch the concert...

which is why I reserved the Atlantis in the first place,

but boy were we surprised when we walked

part way there and realized there wasn't any

concert being held at the convention center....

OOOPSIE!

We pulled out our handy little cell phones

and figured out that the concert was at the Reno Event Center.

It was only 3 miles away, so it was no big deal,

but it was a little hitch in our plans.

I guess I should read all the concert info before

I book hotels in the future...DUMB!

We made it to the concert with no other problems,

and enjoyed the evening singing to Alabama.

The songs they sang brought back a ton of

memories, and that is the reason I chose them.

When Todd and I were dating, and first married,

Alabama was our favorite country band.

We went to two of their concerts in our 20's,

It was fate for us to go to the concert,

because as I was saying earlier, I had been looking

for weeks and couldn't find anything.

Then out of the blue, the Alabama concert

popped up, and on our actual anniversary day.

Fate I tell ya!

We absolutely loved the concert,

and felt that they sounded as good as they

did back in the early 90's.

It was so fun and very entertaining.

The next day we took our time heading home,

and decided to picnic on the S. Yuba River.

We found this great little spot with a baby

waterfall, and a little flat spot to throw our

blanket and basket down.

Todd went swimming and said it was refreshing,

which in Todd speak means extremely cold.

I decided to take pictures and watch.

I don't know if you can see Todd's face,

but that is his "Oh man it's cold" face.

After he had had enough swimming we just

sat around and relaxed for about 2 hours before

we decided it was time to go home.

It was a perfect weekend.

All the little pieces just fell into place,

and we had such a wonderful time.

I guess that's why we've been married so long,

because we actually love each other and

enjoy one another's company.