Archive for August, 2009

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Blogging Buddies Meet!

Saturday, August 29th, 2009

One special event of this vacation in California was getting to meet one of my blogging friends: Susan of A Life of Grace. Susan and her husband William drove over two hours to join us at Dad and Mom Taron’s home here in Inverness for a time of visiting, and enjoying a barbeque meal together.

It was fun to discover that Dad Taron had been in the same line of work as William, so they had plenty of fuel for discussion. Dad Taron was so surprised. He looked over at me and asked, “How do you know this guy?” I guess he hadn’t been expecting that he would feel so at ease with his mystery guests!

William also assisted Rick as Rick prepared barbequed fresh oysters for those adventurous enough to partake of this delicacy. While the guys took care of the cooking, Susan and I visited. We talked of such things as our families, places we have lived, and places they hope to travel. We both enjoy the author Jane Austen, and movies made from her books. Susan, the book I wanted to recommend to you but couldn’t remember at the time is Jane Austen in Scarsdale: Or Love, Death, and the SATs by Paula Marantz Cohen, a funny remix of the book Persuasion.

Here are a couple photos taken by Rick:

Susan and William

Susan and William

susan and me

Susan and me!

Posted in Friendship, Fun Things | 7 Comments »

Inverness Photos

Saturday, August 29th, 2009

Our visit with Rick’s dad and mom in Inverness is drawing to a close. Thanks, Dad and Mom Taron, for your hospitality! I’ve enjoyed this special time, but am so looking forward to seeing our children at home!

As you know from prior posts, Rick has been doing some repair work here for his folks. Here are some photos of the work:

repairs underway

In this photo you see work underway to repair the deck stairs and railings.

stair repairs underway

new railing

New stair railing and no more wobbly treads

new gate

A new gate at the landing, self-closing, no less! (Do you see the bungee cord?)

shell beach

There has been time for fun, too. A couple days ago Rick, Debra and I went to Shell Beach, which is quite close to here.

on the trail at shell beach

Here are Debra and Rick on the trail from the parking area to the beach.

trees at shell beach

This is the lovely forested area through which we walked down to the beach.

driftwood at shell beach

Driftwood at Shell Beach

tomales bay from a distance

Shell Beach is one of the swimming areas along Tomales Bay. This is a view of the Bay from a distance.

bishop pines

These are some Bishop Pine trees which grow in this area.

deb's new hat

Debra’s souvenir from this trip is a new hat, which has come in handy with the outings.

Posted in Family, Favorite Photos | 2 Comments »

Honest Scrap Award

Thursday, August 27th, 2009

blog_award-honest_scrap

A couple weeks ago Linda at Remote Treechanger gave me the HONEST SCRAP award. Thank you so much, Linda!

To keep this award, I must complete the following:

1) Say thanks and give a link to the presenter of the award
2) Share 10 honest things about myself
3) Present this award to 7 others whose blogs I find brilliant in content and/or design or those that have encouraged me
4) Tell those 7 people they have been awarded HONEST SCRAP and inform them of these guidelines in receiving it.


Here are 10 honest things about me:

  • I greatly enjoyed being stay-at-home mom to our nine children.
  • Currently, I get enjoyment and satisfaction from being a para educator (“teacher’s helper”) at our local middle school, which means grades 6, 7 and 8.
  • My current favorite authors are Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer.
  • I’m fascinated by nutrition and health topics.
  • I have made peace with my limitations. When I get tired, I can rest or play, without a guilty conscience.
  • It is easy for me to stay online for a long time.
  • One of my favorite things is going out for a really good coffee with my daughters.
  • I would rather be kind and useful than brilliant.
  • I can be very ditzy at times. Once I worried that I hadn’t gotten daughter Kayla a birthday present, and couldn’t remember, even as she was opening it, what it was. I hope this doesn’t bode ill for the future!
  • I don’t easily “make friends” with machines. I especially shrink from driving someone else’s car.

So, there you have my HONEST SCRAP. Now, to nominate seven other bloggers I admire:

Just to decorate this post, here is a picture from the Farmers Market at Point Reyes, CA taken last Saturday:

farmers market

Posted in Awards, Blogthings, Friendship, From a friend's blog, Fun Things, Things for Which I am Thankful | 7 Comments »

Wednesday Vacation Pics

Wednesday, August 26th, 2009

Today we stayed close to home during this vacation in Inverness, California. Therefore, the pictures for today are taken right in the Inverness/Point Reyes neighborhood.

Rick was busy most of the day doing carpentry work on his parents’ deck. I don’t have a close up of the work he’s doing but here is a view of the backyard, highlighting a carving done by Grampa Taron:

grampas back yard

This is another backyard shot, looking up to the deck and the back of the house:

back yard

This is the rooftop of one of the neighborhood homes that Debra and I passed on our morning walk. Notice the solar panels and the wildflowers!

wildflower rooftop

I went with Rick into Point Reyes to purchase a little more lumber. We stopped to take some shots of this old wrecked fishing boat or tug boat:

pt reyes wreck

the ship and the captain

Posted in Family, Favorite Photos | 4 Comments »

Ruby Tuesday

Tuesday, August 25th, 2009

ruby-slippers-door-stop copy

Good afternoon, friends!

This is my second time participating in Ruby Tuesday. I thought you might be interested in seeing this old pump house in Vallejo, California. It is located on what used to be an estate, but now is park land, being used for therapy for children. My sister-in-law keeps horses and goats there, and has a garden, for the children’s use.

old pump house

Posted in Ruby Tuesday | 3 Comments »

Give Me Five Monday

Monday, August 24th, 2009

Give Me 5 Monday logo

It’s time for Give Me Five Monday. Hostess Becca gives us this prompt today:

Give Me Five back to school memories.

Here are my five memories:

  • I enjoyed getting new clothes for the school year.
  • Even better was getting pens, pencils, paper and other such supplies.
  • I enjoyed seeing friends who I hadn’t seen over the summer.
  • I loved the smell of fresh text books.
  • Though I enjoyed the time for my own projects during the summer, I enjoyed the structure and time-squeeze of the school year more.

Hostess Becca says this about the meme:

The ‘Give Me Five’ Monday meme is designed to share fun information with each other in a simple short list! Here’s how it works. Each week, I will put out a random topic from my list of topics and you share 5 answers of your choice on the given topic and link back here! You can add photos, links or stories or just a simple list of your own of 5 things that relate to the topic as it pertains to you and your life experiences. It doesn’t have to be in any order of importance unless otherwise specified.
Sign up for weekly reminder emails @ beccagirl@charter.net

Posted in Give Me Five Monday | 3 Comments »

Simple Woman’s Daybook

Monday, August 24th, 2009

simple-woman-daybook-small1

Hosted by Peggy

For Today…August 24, 2009

Outside my Window…the fog has rolled in over Tomales Bay here in Inverness, CA where we are enjoying a visit with Rick’s dad and mom.


I am thinking…of our dear children at home. Only Deb came with us this time. Next time, let’s bring everyone, travel by van, and take the coastal route!

From the learning rooms…I brought some educational reading on vacation, but so far have been too busy having fun to start it.

I am thankful for…continued good health for my parents-in-law, and safety for the children at home.

From the kitchen…My mom-in-law served ham, scalloped potatoes, and green beans for dinner tonight. My contribution was doing the dishes. Thank you, Mom!


I am wearing…my blue jeans skirt and a purple and grey polo shirt.

I am reading…False Colours by Georgette Heyer. PUBLISHERS WEEKLY says, ‘Reading Georgette Heyer is the next best thing to reading Jane Austen.’

I am hoping…Rick has good success replacing some rotten supports in Dad and Mom Taron’s deck this week. We purchased the supplies today when we went to Vallejo to visit Rick’s sister, Dee.

I am creating…this blog post, nothing more.

I am hearing…a baseball game on TV, the Colorado Rockies and the San Francisco Giants. Currently, the game is tied in the 7th inning, and my mom-in-law says, “The Giants MUST win!”


Around the house…Inverness is a beautiful place, and Dad and Mom Taron love their garden. Because they mainly have native plants, their place still looks lovely, even in the midst of an on-going drought. I think the fog must water the plants.

One of my favorite things…is getting to visit with loved ones I haven’t seen in a while.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week…Rick will be doing a lot of carpentry. I’ll be helping in the house and in the kitchen a bit, but mainly I’ll be visiting.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you…

the ranch

Rick snapped this photo at the old ranch where his sister Dee lives and works.

animals and the old barn

Here are some of the animals, and the old barn in the background.

dede's cottage

DeDe lives in this simple, one-room cottage. She’s currently working on getting a reliable hot water supply.

tack shop at the ranch

I think this old stone and log tack building is beautiful.

Hostess Peggy says this about The Simple Woman’s Daybook:

Are you content to linger on the simple things of life…then join me in taking a little look into the day plans and thoughts of those of us who are focusing on simplicity…the beauty of the everyday moments around us. That is my vision for this idea!

Posted in Family, The Simple Woman's Daybook | 2 Comments »

43 Things Quiz

Saturday, August 22nd, 2009

I found out about the 43 Things quiz
from my blogging friend Linda of Remote Treechanger. Here are my results:

I took the 43 Things Personality Quiz and found out I’m an

Extroverted Spiritual Self-Knower

Posted in Blogthings, From a friend's blog, Fun Things | 1 Comment »

McClures Beach Outing

Saturday, August 22nd, 2009

As I sit at the computer this afternoon, the fog is rolling in here in Inverness. I love the fog! It is so cozy. Soon it will be time to lend a hand with dinner preparations, but I’m taking a quick minute to post some photos from our trip to McClures Beach. This was only my second trip to McClures. The first trip was during our honeymoon, 27 years ago.

on the dune

deb and me

deb and rick

bird rock

This is called Bird Rock, because of the many birds, mainly cormorants, that nest here. We saw two pelicans.

deb hiking

McClure Beach

McClures beach, with Bird Rock off in the distance

me at mcclures beach

Me, strolling along the beach

Posted in Favorite Photos, Fun Things | 7 Comments »

Pt.Reyes pics

Friday, August 21st, 2009

Hello, dear friends and family! Rick, Debra and I arrived in Inverness, CA late Wednesday night. Our flight took us to San Francisco International Airport. From there, we took the bus to Larkspur, where Gramma Taron picked us up. After one hour of driving on winding roads, late at night, we arrived safely here. Thanks so much to Rick’s mom for doing that for us!

We spent a low-key day Thursday, conversing, going for walks and reading. The fog, which I find to be cozy, remained all day.

Today is another story altogether: The sun is shining in a brilliant blue sky, and a lively breeze is blowing. I snapped a few photos on my cell phone when I rode along with Gramma Taron to run some errands in Pt. Reyes:

I love PtReyes

This sticker expresses my sentiments!

old ptreyes garage

I snapped this photo of the signs decorating the wall of an old garage in Pt. Reyes. Notice the Highway 1 sign? Have any of you ever driven along this old, winding route? It hugs the Pacific coastline.

ptreyes post office

The post office in Pt.Reyes reflects a common architectural style you see here. It’s lovely, I think.

Inverness Post Office

A little closer to “home” is the Inverness post office.

dad fixed the chair lift

How many older folks do you know who install their own chair lift? That’s what Dad and Mom Taron did. Rick fine-tuned it today, and replaced the light switch behind it.

model ship for Laura

Dad Taron built this model ship for our daughter Laura. It is currently sitting on the fireplace mantel, awaiting such time as Darren and Laura are able to come here to fetch it home.

That’s all for now, folks!

Posted in Family, Favorite Photos, Fun Things | 4 Comments »

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