Monthly Archives: October 2018

Fog in the Garden

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Lately, we’ve been hit with a little fog in the early mornings. It’s that sort of dull haze providing a tranquil, quite calm, just before the welcome of sunbeams. I just love this time of the day.

Shot a couple of mornings ago on the upper terrace.

While in the fog, I shot the things that called my name. Like this flower, as it prepares to shed her petals, making room for more to bloom in her wake.

The roses, oh how I love each one.

And the jade plant as it begins to show its buds for a nice winter blossom.

One of my favorite sounds in the garden, is the sound of the waterfall as it tumbles down a series of mini rocky falls, when it reaches the pond as if nothing had occurred.

And shot one of my favorite hobbies in action. I love populating succulents by snapping off leaves to create new plants. The little plants are bigger than the original leaf already!

I feel extra thankful for the little things in life that make a difference.

Blessings – Debbie

Friendships are Treasures

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When my childhood friend contacted me at the end of August, to see if I would be in town this week, I was sure to add her to the calendar at once.

The date was set for Thursday, Oct 25th and the spot was picked to visit at The Hotel Del.

There is nothing like friendship blended with toes in the sand, the beach, the beautiful Point Loma in the background, lunch on the sun deck overlooking the ocean, a nice visit and laughter on such a glorious day.

She is the sweetest most beautiful soul you will ever meet.

Toes in the sand = priceless! Hey, my toes match her pants! Love her French pedi.

Her friend was such a natural, I took some 38 photos of him with a different pose in each shot. I kept shooting, for fear I would miss something. I think I captured every single pose.

All of us together.

We enjoyed lunch at the Sun Deck Grill, a fabulous beachfront eatery at the Hotel Del.

I had the Baja Protein Bowl with red and‏ white quinoa, black beans, sweet corn, radishes, avocado, tomatoes, cucumbers, hard-boiled egg, lime dressing. So yummy!

My friend enjoyed this gorgeous shrimp dish.

The hubs and I made it home before sunset. Soon after, I received a text from my friend. She said “go outside and look at the moon”. I didn’t just go outside, I brought the camera with. I can’t think of a better way to end this day, than with this lovely moon rise.

What a blessing and treat it was to have the opportunity to see each other again. A treasure I will cherish for a lifetime.

Blessings – Debbie

Mothering Pups & Spooky Gifts

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Sago Pups, to be clear. Did you know sago palms produce pups? These little gems grow from the mother palm, either from the side or base of the palm.

In the last 4 or so years, I’ve had a wish to extract the pups from the palms and try to root them myself. My first year was a total failure. But I didn’t give up. While I don’t have 100% success, let me be clear, it is well worth the effort and care when one begins to show new signs of growth. This is the latest pup stretching its fronds for the first time. How exciting is that? I plan to give her a new pot this winter/spring.

This is the true mother of the pup. I don’t have any “pup” examples as this sago underwent a nice trim this week.

Since I’ve had success with 7 pups with well-developed roots and fronds, I believe I’m finished with mothering pups. Now I’m off to find exciting new places for the little palms.

This is one of my pups from a couple of years ago.

Speaking of mothering, let’s review the plumeria I mothered from a clipping. It continues to put on a display this season. What I find interesting, is how the fresh blooms are such a deep rich color. Then as the days progress, the flower lightens to soft pink with an inner yellow starburst.

Get Spooky

Wow! Ordering groceries from Wal-Mart has been life changing! No really.  I’ll refrain from getting too carried away. But check out our latest goodie bag! They are so good about exclusive goodie bags around each holiday.

New chip clips! They included two this time.

We used to use the regular binder clips for chip/cracker bags. We’re not picky, but the freebies are fun!

The contents of the little box (from the picture up above) held some fun treasures. The hubs enjoyed these little goodies. The sweet potato Good Thins and the chocolate fun size bar were a solid thumbs up. However, the cinnamon brown sugar snack was not so great, he said. He may have wrinkled his nose while eating said snack.

And from that box, I munched on the oven baked Ritz Crisp & Thins Sea Salt. Yum, so thin, flakey, crunchy and yummy. I would have a hard time sticking to one serving if I purchased a bag of these. I’ll just savor in small doses when goodie time rolls around.

But check out that little Trident Vibes Spearmint Rush piece of gum. Since I’m fresh out of my gum, it was a perfect time to add this to the new Wal-Mart shopping cart. You guys, this gum is so soft and packs a real nice Rush, living up to the name.

Not only do we enjoy our quick grocery pickup, we enjoy the little treats and how they go out of their way to service their customers. Sometimes it’s the little things that go a long way. Yay! I found my new favorite chewing gum, that’s huge!

Blessings – Debbie

Drink Water

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I’ve been working on a water plan that works for me. It’s doable and something that reminds me to keep drinking thru the day. The bonus = the countless perks.

The vision board I created as a reminder to keep on drinking.

When on the run, grab a bottle, or two, or more.

I love crushing large amounts first thing in the morning. These three 16.9 bottles were emptied before 9:30 today. Boom!

Staying positive and having a solid plan as we develop new habits, is key to moving forward. From my viewpoint, this is the best reward we can give ourselves. Let’s have that can do spirit as we make things happen.

Blessings – Debbie

Dreams and Goals

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Good evening everyone! I hope your week is moving in a good direction. It’s going pretty good over here. I’m in to talk a little about dreams and goals and how I plan to tackle some old ones and new ones.

Making a mental note is one thing, but there is power when we take pen to paper and write them down. This sets those dreams in concrete, giving us the determination to keep going.

So today I made a little visual of the things I want to work on.

  • Reading – This past year was nearly a reading fail. I haven’t mentioned it on the blog, but I fell and broke my wrist in February. That was a long 10 week ordeal. That said, reading was simply something I could not focus on during that time. The Dr. gave it a year for me to fully feel back to normal with that hand. I’m finally at the point where I can begin focusing on that and getting  back to my beloved book club.
  • Water – Yikes, I hate to admit, but water has not been my jam lately. Aside from my morning cup of coffee, Diet Dr Pepper has been my beverage of choice. So water is on my new goal list.
  • Eat Healthy – While this is not a new goal, I still want it front and center in my life.
  • Walk 10,000 Steps a Day – This is an issue where some weeks are banner and others, not so much. It’s time focus on my steps.
  • Make Time for What Matters – This is a new area, While things around the home sweet home get done, I’m working on a Daily Routine spread sheet that has me doing what I need to do, when I need to do it. And working to schedule plans and deadlines that support my dreams.

While making a list of goals is a great thing, I feel creating a plan and setting aside daily habits that support the goal is just as important. I’m working on this too. If we don’t create a plan, how will we get there? Another page in the journal is devoted to setting deadlines. I’ll share more as I get these actions put into a reasonable timeline.

But for now, here is the little vision board I created today. It was fun adding images to go with the project.

Along with eating healthy, my vitamins are a daily to do. Vitamin D and Calcium are at the top of my vitamin list. But I take a total of 6 different vitamins for good measure.

I have two of these gadgets for vitamins. This way, I only have to dig out the vitamin bottles every two weeks. This is a winner as it eliminates the daily fussing. Just lift the little lid and pop the vitamins. Done and done.

My fun new polish of the week, it’s called satin shoes.

At the wedding a couple of weeks ago, we failed to take pictures. This is the only photo I have, the bitty ones taken at the photo booth. But I love it. A picture of a small picture is difficult. But it still makes me happy. Now we look forward to seeing what the photographer took.

As we move forward thru our week, let’s be mindful of the things we wish to accomplish. And plan to make steps that we will thank ourselves for tomorrow.

Blessings – Debbie

Finding Joy

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I choose to block out negative energy and fill my cup with joy. Those were my thoughts this morning as I saw some ugliness in the media. I choose to step aside and grab my joy cap.

The best voice of the morning, was when the hubs called, stating he left a couple of things at home. I jumped at the opportunity to run them over to him. I also jumped at the chance to put the camera in the car.

After I dropped the things off to the hubs, I went to the Lake, my playground. And found more joy than I can begin to express.

I made my way down the winding road and under the lush canopy I went. And somewhere on this little journey, I truly felt my heart sing.

What a glorious morning…

It was just the ticket to get my Monday off to a good start.

Once home, I felt a special nudge to get out there and take the long way home more often. Take that extra little step, adventure is out there. I was reminded of Yogi Berra: ‘When you come to the fork in the road, take it!’ Truly the best route home was the fork.

I soon busied myself with my Monday list of things to do. But the special little step over to the lake stayed with me all day.

Speaking of lists, I started journaling this past week. And I took quite a liking to it! I also brainstormed, compiling a list of dreams and decided on 2 that were at the top of the list. Goal exercises were assigned that relates to chosen dreams. Next, habits were developed to serve those goals. I like the way the big dreams have been dissected, creating a clear path to success. Each day is a new day to take the next step, do not stop.

My phrase for this week “CLEAR your mind of can’t”. “Dream Big” people, then make a realistic approach to accomplish those dreams.

Blessings – Debbie

Feeling “Off” But Good to be Home

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I’m feeling a bit off this week. Perhaps it has to do with getting home from Chicago Monday. The hubs worked from home Tuesday and he’s feeling the same “off” feelings with me.

Yesterday felt like Monday and today feels like, well I really don’t know. But I do know tomorrow is Friday, and that makes me happy.

Another thing that makes me happy is a new nail color for the week. I know, I said I had a new favorite color last week. But I believe my new favorite color changes each week.

I didn’t realize my nails matched my favorite coffee cup, until sipping. And I didn’t realize the coffee cup brought out the color of my top, until I looked at the image.  I love how the cup ties everything together. It’s the little things…

One of my favorite things about being home, is to submerge myself in the garden for several hours. After digging around in the dirt, planting several new things and watering the pots, I shot a few things that make me happy.

The winding stone path, bird house and trees on the upper terrace.

The wildflowers and lavender that continue to flourish, year after year.

This old birdhouse sitting along the side of the path. While there is no resurrecting this little structure, I will continue to love it, just the way it is.

The mushrooms continue to pop up. And I let them blossom where they choose.

Happy Thursday People! Friday is coming!

Blessings – Debbie

A Full 5 Day Weekend

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Our long weekend started early Thursday morning with a direct flight from San Diego to Chicago.

Once in flight, I opted for the breakfast with fruit, yogurt and croissant. I refrained from that little bowl of granola, although it looked good.

The hubs had the biscuits and gravy with eggs, cheese and chorizo. It looks so yummy! Especially his cinnamon roll.

What an exciting weekend trip!

The hubs rested his eyes, while I messed around.

I have such a love for checking out the beautiful scenery below. I also feel quite lucky that the hubs insists I get the window seat.

I particularly enjoyed the mini cup holders on this flight.

We zipped thru the prettiest puffy clouds.

And made our way to Chicago in no time. We used Uber for the first time too! We were Uber pros by the end of our stay. What a positive experience.

We arrived at our hotel (The Ambassador) in pretty good time, considering there were some traffic issues.

Since we had an early breakfast, by 4:30 (Chicago time) we were ready for a little something to eat.

So we decided on this restaurant, just inside the lobby of our hotel.

I had a green salad with grilled chicken, this hit the spot. The hubs was happy with a burger and fries.

Friday morning, we found 3rd Coast Cafe on Yelp with great reviews. Turns out, we dined there 3 times over the weekend. The coffee is the BEST!

Not only do they take pride in their food, they too have a passion for art. The art on the walls is ever changing as the fine works of art are for sale. With each sale, a spot is opened for new art.

Friday night, we had a wedding rehearsal, the big reason for our Chicago trip.

My stepdaughter and her beloved fiancé.

The ceremony was so beautiful. Yes, I cried, at the ceremony and reception. What precious memories.

The bridal party took the trolley around Chicago for some cool shots. These shots were taken from one of their friends. We have about a 3-4 week wait on photos from the photographer.

At the reception, we were served…

First Course – Gem Salad

avocado mousse, seasonal vegetables, fine herbs vinaigrette.

Second Course – Slow Roasted Pork Belly

red wine-braised red cabbage, bacon, spicy dill, pickled apple

Main Course – guests selection

Grilled Alaskan Salmon – white bean emulsion, Spanish chorizo

Braised Short Rib – mashed potatoes, tai-colored carrots, red wine jus

Butternut Squash Cavatelli – roasted vegetables, sage brown butter sauce

I chose the Grilled Alaskan Salmon, it was amazing!

And of course, Wedding Cake for dessert. A choice of chocolate or vanilla with chocolate ganache.

Sunday, the hubs and I met with the parents of the groom and visited with the newlyweds in their new home in Chicago, just 1 block away from the Wrigley Field. So I had to shoot this as we passed by on foot.

We had a late lunch and said our goodbyes, as the newlyweds had their honeymoon flight to Barcelona, Sunday night.

Sunday night, the hubs met his sister and brother-in-law in the lobby to work a bit on their ancestry. What a beautiful place to visit. The area over on the right, is a nice large area with lovely spaces to visit by a grand fireplace. I was a little sad when the security asked me to stop taking pictures in the hotel.

Monday, what a glorious day after the cool snap we experienced. It was also the day to come home. I snapped this from the Uber, just across the street from our hotel as we pulled away.

Another shot from the Uber, autumn is here.

Farewell Chicago, we had a delightful stay.

Once at the airport, I fell for the Starbucks pumpkin spice latte. This will more than likely be my last Starbucks treat between now and Christmas. I still need my other annual holiday flavor during the season. I splurged on the large (I don’t mess around) and I enjoyed to the last pumpkin sip.

We had a direct flight back to San Diego. I must say, there is something to be said about direct flights.

I was in my world with the real camera.

I had a nice little salad while in the friendly skies.

A clear sign we are close to home.

One of my favorite shots as we were getting close.

The San Diego Coronado Bridge, a true sign we are home.

Downtown San Diego

As we stood at the curb, waiting on our ride to the parking garage, I just had to take this picture. The perfect welcome, is palm trees and low 70 temps.

It’s so good to be home sweet home and resting after the major flurry of fun events.

I took the camera thinking I would take more images with family and friends. Turns out, I decided to leave it behind, in the hotel room for most of the trip. I tend to get a little too carried away with a camera and miss so much of the moment. I’m happy to wait on the images from the photographer. I plan to share more when the photographer finishes the work.

Blessings – Debbie

The Weekend is Coming

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We have an exciting weekend coming up! Actually, the excitement starts tomorrow. A few days packed with what is sure to be so much fun.  But it requires a little preparation up front.

The hubs and I had a special dinner date last evening, followed with a little jaunt to the mall to pick up a couple of things for the hubs.

This day was planned weeks ago. Get up and apply nail polish on the toes and the fingernails, first thing in the morning. I did debate having nails put on for the weekend, but the negative thoughts of the 3 or so months it takes to get the nice healthy nails back, altered that thought.

Back to the polish, I have this thing about doing nails in the early morning. A thing in my head tells me morning is always the right time to do nails. Why? Because I’m afraid if I don’t give ample time to dry, the sheets are surely going to mess them up in the night. That’s happened to me before.

So here we go, with the fun brand new polish that I picked up this week.

I’m in love with the fresh look of this color. It’s not pure white as it has just a tiny hint of pink. And the thing I love about it is, it is not translucent. The color is called “Barely There”. This may be the color I reach for on into next spring and summer. I like it that much.

The toenails were coated with a translucent skin tone color. with a clear top coat.

Now that the fingernails are dry, it’s time to finish up the afternoon activities around the home sweet home.

I’m not so sure if I will be blogging between now and the flurry of fun events, but I’ll be back Monday or Tuesday to fill in the details.

Blessings – Debbie

Nature and Fun Discoveries

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What a glorious day, filled with fun little treasures. I trust your week is moving along in a good direction.

I had to cut back to 1.5 hours in the garden this morning. I made time to water the potted plants and sprinkled a little love to the fishes too. And I had just enough time to shoot a few things that make me happy.

The orange rose-tree is a one of my favorites. But then again, all the roses in the garden are my favorite.

This is the gateway to the little table and chairs for two.

Just past the arch, at the foot of the second terrace, is this lovely spot for two.

The society garlic, is dotted on the hillside leading to the upper terrace. I’ve worked to populate many of these beautiful grass like bunches with deep purple blooms throughout the yard.

Time outdoors was cut a little short, due to an appointment at the salon. No haircut, just a color touch-up.

I took the liberty to add a fun dimension to this image, shot with my cell phone. This is a great way to pass the time.

While sipping this Coke.

Once home, I tried the new MAC lipstick I purchased. Where in the world have I been? This is the best brand of lipstick I’ve ever tried. Not that I wear makeup much, I really don’t. But still, This has my vote.

I was also in a pinch for some new foundation. Clinique has been my go to since my 20’s. Unfortunately, or shall I say fortunately, they no longer have a color match for me.

The Clinique department at Macy’s, introduced me to my new best (makeup) friend Estee Lauder. Hello Sweet Estee, I’m smitten with the coverage and overall feel on my skin. Farewell Clinique.

What a delight to stumble on a few little things that compliment the oh so little things in this wonderful life.

So my little thought of the day is “If we never try new things, we may never know what we’ve missed”.

Blessings – Debbie

I’m Coming Back

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I knew it would be a matter of time for me to return to the blog, I just didn’t expect it to take this long, well over a year. But I’m back and eager to post about our life and times.

For starters, I would like to share my goals on the health front. For the last couple of years, I’ve tried to find ways to inch good health into my lifestyle. As of late, I have a goal to reach a 25 pound weight loss. And thought it would be fun to put it out there, as I can use all the accountability that I can get. Perhaps there is someone out there looking for accountability too. I’m here for you, holler. I’ll be sharing more on this in the coming weeks.

There are other points that I would like to share as well. I have some gardening, home improvement projects as well as things on my wish list that I would like to make room for.

I plan to take the blog slow. And not fret that there is so much between my last post and now. I just need to get the ball rolling where I am.

With that being said, the day started like every other day, with coffee and cream.

And my go to breakfast lately, is a little bowl of Fiber One with a glass of Vanilla Soymilk and maybe a mid morning banana.

I had a few morning errands and finished up with my shopping by early afternoon. By the time I got home, I was starving! So I put aside my original lunch plan and picked something a bit easier to assemble. Bananas, crunchy peanut butter and bread, made all things right with the world.

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I spent some quality time in the garden this afternoon. I can’t seem to get enough of the pretty flowers in bloom. It would seem a waste of time to not stop and smell the roses.

One of my favorite flowers, the plumeria, bloomed for the first time. We were gifted a small cutting from our neighbor, a couple of years ago. What a joy to witness our plant blossom and reach full maturity, from the tiny clipping.

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A picture of the plumeria flowers up close. This shot was taken yesterday.

42810750_1874899779268702_8633559051566841856_oOur evening was a bit chill. We had a little nap, crazy how the weekend caught up with us. And I tried to make up for my lack of veggies thru the day by making up for it at dinner with a lot of vegetables and a little turkey for my protein. The fruit and veggies did not stack up to the best today, but I’m striving to work them in.

While this is such an exciting season of cinnamon, spice and all things nice. It’s a season that I do not wish to avoid health. So here I am, going all in and putting it out there. And by the end of the season, may we look back with no regrets. Who is with me?

Blessings – Debbie