Vegas Weekend

This past weekend we went to Vegas for our annual trip to see Jimmy Buffet.    We went to the Neon Sign Boneyard and took a tour of all of the amazing signs.   It was so interesting to see the signs up close and hear about their histories.   The sky that day was a beautiful blue with wispy clouds that made for some wonderful pictures.  We left there and went to Hoffbrau House for lunch and met up with Bob and Shelly.   We had a delcious lunch and enjoyed the entertainment.   After we left there we went to Freemont Street.   We had never been and it was interesting to see some of the old neon signs still in use there.   Kristen and Andy went ziplining, which they enjoyed quite a bit.   Jimmy Buffet never disappoints.   The concert was full of great music, dancing around, on our part, and an overall great time.   After the concert we headed over to New York New York to our favorite place, Nine Fine Irishmen.   The house band, Sin E Rira, always keeps the place jumping with their lively music.   It's really fun to people watch and sing along with the band.    It was a long weekend with little sleep.   It was great hanging out with Bob, Shelly, Matt, Johanna, and Holden.     We will be ready to go again next year as soon as Jimmy announces his concerts in Vegas.

New York in Autumn

We recently went to New York for a few days.  One of the things we love to do is going on a walking tour by Foods of New York.   This year we went to the area known as Nolita (North of Little Italy).   Our guide, Amy, was very knowledgeable and made the tour very fun and interesting.    Our first stop was at The Little Cupcake Bakery.   We tasted a mini blackout cupcake that was so rich and decadent.  Our next stop was Emporio.   One of the chef's made a Roman style pizza as we watched.   It was so delicious and so few ingredients.   He used two types of mozzarella and parmigiana cheeses on the pizza crust.   After baking in the oven til the cheese melted, he added arugula, chopped cherry tomatoes, prociutto, and drizzled with olive oil.   Wow..so amazing.    The neighborhood was known as the site of the original St. Patrick's Cathedral, which is still there.   As a boy growing up on Elizabeth Street, Martin Scorcese would play in the cemetary of the church and is where he got his inspiration for The Gangs of New York movie.    Another favorite stop was Oxley Meats, where we had an assortment of cooked meats, ham, turkey, pork, brisket, corned beef, all cooked to perfection.   We went on a bike tour in Central Park that was really fun and informative.  The park was full of people enjoying the beautiful day.   One of our favorite spots was the Bethesda Fountain.     It was a wonderful trip and New York always leaves you wanting for more!

Sonoma Weekend

We had a great weekend in Sonoma.   Friday we checked into the MacArthur Inn and enjoyed the cheese and wine provided by Buena Vista Winery.   Saturday we had lunch at Fremont Diner, which was very rustic.    We stopped by Scribe Winery for a tasting.  The scenery from the winery was very picturesque.   Next we went to the Vintage Festival on the square.   We got there just in time for the last bit of the parade.    We sampled lots of good wine, kettle corn, and listed to the music.   It's always fun to shop around the square.  Saturday night we went to dinner at Estate, which is owned by the same people as The Girl and The Fig.   We celebrated Kristen's birthday with delicious dinner choices.   Sunday we went back to the square for more tastings and lunch at Maya.    Sadly we had to head to Sacrament to the airport.    It was a busy weekend enjoyed by all!

Trip to Atlanta and North Georgia

In August I visited my mom in Atlanta.   We drove to Helen, Georgia to visit my cousins and have lunch.   The weather was perfect .    We stopped by Jaemore's Fruit stand on the way home and bought some vegetables and peaches, and of course one of the beautiful watermelons.

 

Maui Fun

My husband and I just returned from our annual trip to Maui.   Our friends Bob and Shelly came along, and for the first time in years there were no kids with us.   We had a great time and enjoyed many wonderful meals.   The highlight as always was lunch the first day and dinner another night at Mama's Fish House.    This is definitely our favorite place.   We shared the most delicious crab cakes with fire and ice relish and Shelly and I split the  mahi mahi that was stuffed with crab and lobster.   For desert I had the banana macadamia nut crumble.   I ended up taking over half of it back to the condo.   We drove the road to Hana for the first time.    The waterfalls and the variety of plants was amazing.   We also took a cruise on the America's Cup boat.    This scared the daylights out of me, but everyone else seemed to enjoy it.   Something about the boat tipping sideways just really got to me.    It was sad to have to come home, but there's always next year!    Flying home on 9/11 was nerve racking.   I have never seen so many police and security at Kahului and at Los Angeles.  

Welcome Y'all

I fnally decided to jump into the blog world.    I love reading other design blogs and drooling over new ideas.    There are so many wonderful, talented women with very creative ideas.   Many times I want to rent a U-Haul and clear the decks.     I love my home and love the area where I live.   Most of the homes in my neighborhood were built in the early 1900s.   My house isn't that old, it was built in the 70s.    It's a beautiful area to walk and visit with people you run into.   The house where they filmed Father of the Bride is around the corner from me.   Different companies film a lot in this area because the homes look like the could be anywhere. 

Follow along with me and I will share my adventures in my little corner of the world, and wherever else I may travel.