Farewell

It’s time to say goodbye.  Blogging has been such a rewarding hobby for me.  Thank you to all who have read, commented, encouraged and advised me these last few years.  It has been a pleasure and a privilege to share my life with you.

Chloe wants a word:

Dis blog made me famous.  I no know why Mama say no more blog.  If I had the thumbses I write blog instead.  Why dogs no have thumbses?  Dis tragedy.  You got treat for me?

Chloe has spoken.

I’ll leave you with some pictures of my girl and my sincere thanks for your friendship.

With love,

Juice

To Blog Or Not To Blog

Whenever you create a post on WordPress (my blog host) they kindly let you know how much space you have left before it’s time to pony up and pay for additional space.  I’ve been watching my numbers rise and I’m currently at 97% capacity.

Which begs the question: Pay up or see this as a natural time for a blog break?

I’ve been blogging for almost 5 years now (1 year on a now-deleted blog and almost 4 here).  I’ve participated in the foster care system, lost a beloved pet, rescued Chloe, moved across the country and begun to explore California, all with the camera close by in case I wanted to blog about it.

It might be time to put the camera down.

This isn’t the first time I’ve thought about stepping away.  Some of you remember when I took a blogging break in 2011.  Then Camp Unleashed announced a scholarship for bloggers and I was right back in the thick of blogging.

So I guess what that tells us is that I can be bought.  (Yep, I’m klassy with a k.  Hi Mom!)

I haven’t decided anything for certain, but that’s where I’m at these days.  Do let me know your thoughts, ok?

Debby Comes For A Visit

Way back when I first started blogging in 2008, Debby was one of my first blog friends.  So it was kind of weird when I ended up moving to within an hour of her home.  We’ve met up a couple of times since I moved west, but like the pro bloggers we are neither one of us remembered to document it.

This time we were finally on our blogging game.

Look! Proof that Debby was in my apartment.

Debby and I visited over handwork.  She was embellishing a quilt and I was working on my cross stitch.

This was the stretch of sofa between us

I was in my usual and customary needlework posture.

Dog in lap? Check.

We stretched our legs with a walk around the apartment complex.

Chloe obligingly pointed out all the squirrels

And then celebrated our hard work with Pinkberry.

A lovely afternoon catching up with a long time friend.  Thanks for visiting, Debby!

A Trip To Petaluma

Ever since I decided to move to California I’ve been excited to visit Petaluma.  After all, Centsational Girl is from there and her photos of town always look amazing.  An AVA walk was scheduled in Petaluma over Memorial Day weekend so Walker C and I made a day of it.

Petaluma is a quaint town, the kind you don’t see often these days.

People there are serious gardeners!  We passed some really interesting and lovely gardens.  And yes, those are plastic dinosaurs adorning that fence.

Our walk finished just in time for lunch.  We had unexpectedly wonderful sandwiches at Ray’s Delicatessen and Tavern, followed by delicious ice cream from the Petaluma Creamery.

Walker C enjoying her ice cream. I’m still dreaming of my Rocky Road.

After lunch we wandered the downtown area shopping and browsing.  One of the most unusual shops was the Petaluma Seed Bank.

Any kind of heirloom seed you can imagine!

It was a perfect way to spend a perfect day.

Mama, please we go back Petaluma soon?

The Moo Cards Are Here! The Moo Cards Are Here!

Back when I was still living in Baltimore, I won a giveaway from Marisa over at Food in Jars.  It was a gift certificate to Moo.com.  I was so excited!

And then I thought to myself, “Hey, you’re planning to move.  Making personal cards with a Baltimore address just wouldn’t make sense.”

So I sat on that gift certificate.

Until now.

You can imagine my dismay when I read the fine print and realized that it had expired.

*cue the sad “wah-wah” noise*

With nothing to lose I reached out to Moo.  Dan graciously extended my gift certificate!  Woot!

Look how cute!

I totally dig their shameless enthusiasm

Can you see the fine print on the box below?  It says “Excited?  We are!”

Isn’t that a great pic of Chloe?  My neighbor snapped that.  The orange side has my contact information.

This felt carrying case keeps several cards for easy access.

And functions as a key chain.

I’m thrilled with my mini-moo cards.  The site is easy to use and the options are limitless.  Choosing may have been the toughest part of the process.

Thanks Moo!  You guys are wonderful!

Duckling Update

Without further ado…

Six nests of ducklings have hatched in the complex.  Quite honestly it’s beginning to look like duckapalooza.

Yosemite Highlights

Well.

Now I understand the hype about Yosemite.

It is truly gorgeous anyway you look at it.

And we looked and looked and looked.

We looked from our car:

And we looked from a tram:

And we looked from on top of mules:

And we looked from designated scenic lookouts:

And we looked while hiking and walking:

We were regular looky-loos, is what you could say.

You know what else you could say?

Looks like we’ll be back to Yosemite again soon!

The Trip To Yosemite

One of the first things the  Nurse asked me when I moved to Sacramento was whether I had been to Yosemite (no) and whether I had any interest in going (YES!).  So we went.

On the way we had to stop and get some cherries.  Because $1 a basket?  That’s crazy talk!  (And slightly deceptive.  The basket I’m holding was actually five dollars.  But still worth it.)

We stopped in the little town of Mariposa on the way.  Cute shopping, a few restaurants and a good place to stretch our legs.

Our room wasn’t quite ready for us at the Cedar Lodge, so we backtracked a short distance to hike at Hite Cove.  The Hite Cove trail is known for beautiful wildflower displays, but you have to catch it at exactly the right time.

We missed it probably by a week or so, but we still had fun looking for the stragglers.

After our hike we decided to cool off by the Merced River.  The Nurse had to coach me on my pronunciation.  It’s mer-SED.  We ran into some river rafting guides and got some local tips from them.  These guys are in their 20s and spending the summer doing what they love, basically living out of their cars.  You know what kept running through my brain?  Chris Farley talking about living in a van down by the river.

Here’s the link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaoM0FyLmGY

You’re welcome for that.

Up Next:  Yosemite!

Pizza In Sacramento

I love most everything about Sacramento.  But one thing worried me when I first moved here:

Would I be able to find good pizza?

You see, I’m very very picky about my pizza.  I can’t help it.  I grew up on New Jersey pizza.  Every time we visited family in New Jersey we ended up getting pizza for one meal.  Plus we had pretty decent pizza when I was a kid in Maryland.

Then we moved to southwest Virginia and I stopped eating pizza.  Because really, when your option is Domino’s that just doesn’t count.  There was one place a couple of towns over with decent pizza,  but we didn’t get there often.

My Mom actually thought that I didn’t like pizza, that’s how little I ate it.

When I moved back to Jersey after college we had an amazing pizza place near work.  Some days the highlight of my day was leaving the office and meeting my Dad (who worked nearby) for a slice.

After living in Baltimore for 17 years I had identified my pizza sources.  And now I’m starting over again.

Fortunately, I have a partner in crime.

Remember Walker C?  She grew up in New York, and she has equally high standards when it comes to pizza.  Bonus, Walker C gets and reads the Sacramento Bee every day.  She found this article.   We have made it our mission to taste all the contenders on the SacBee list and select our favorite.

So far we’ve been to the following:

1. Masullo – This is very good pizza.  It leans towards the artisanal side.  Meaning it’s more destination pizza rather than “grab a slice” kind of pizza.  The pizzas are smaller with very high quality ingredients.  It’s delicious and I’d go back in a heartbeat.  The interior or Masullo is interesting.  They have a few small tables, but most of the restaurant is devoted to large family style tables, so you may end up in a very interesting conversation!

2. Matteo’s – Just average.  I may go back to Matteo’s in the future for dinner.  It’s got nice ambiance and it’s close to home.  Plus they have a dog-friendly patio.  I just won’t order the pizza there.

3. One Speed – Similar to Masullo, they focus on artisan pizza.  Again, delicious, but not what I have in mind when I want a slice of pizza.  One Speed would be a terrific date place – they have a few charming outdoor tables.

4. Giovanni’s –  I’ll go out on a limb and say that so far Giovanni’s is the pizza that best matches my search criteria.  The crust is thin, the sauce is well seasoned.  Yum, I’m getting hungry just thinking about it.  This is pizza like I remember it.  However (and it has to be said), Giovanni’s is not a destination.  The ambiance leaves much to be desired and the place is often full of kids being kids.  So go off hours if you need your pizza hot and fresh, or pick up Giovanni’s and enjoy it at home. Giovanni’s serves 4 sizes of pizza: small, medium, large and NY style Jumbo.  You can guess which size we order.   (So far Walker C and I have been to Giovanni’s twice.  They have two locations, so we felt – in the interest of research – that we needed to test both sites.  They are equally good.)

5. Wenelli’s – How this place made the SacBee list is beyond me.  For starters, here is a picture of our pizza.  What is that yellow stuff?  Did they actually put cheddar cheese on a pizza???  And what the heck happened to the crust?  Why is this pizza puffy and dome shaped instead of flat with a crust handle for each slice?

Look how thick this crust is.  Yuck!

To be fair I have to say that Wenelli’s was packed the night we went.  So apparently there are more than a few misguided souls who prefer this type of “pizza”.  I guess to each his own.

So there’s where I am with my pizza research.  Walker C is out of town right now, but I’ll be sure to bring you further updates as they occur.

If I can help one frustrated Sacramentan pizza eater, then I’ve done my job.

May In Reno, Part Two

I barely had time to admire the ducklings before I was headed back to Reno for more time with my people.  It was Cricket’s birthday, so the first order of business was opening gifts.

I’d say the princess sunglasses were a big hit.

Providing minutes of hilarity.

For the whole family.

Mr. K is styling!

Once presents were opened we headed to Mr. K’s welcome back party!

See this guy holding Cricket?  The one who looks suspiciously like Mr. K’s?  That’s her favorite cousin.  Something tells me Cricket has a type…

The next morning Cricket couldn’t wait to give KK her Mother’s Day gift – she wouldn’t even let KK dry her hair!  (Chloe wanted in on the action as well.)

Ever the patient big brother, Tank waited in the wings to give his present.

The morning passed in a flurry of breakfast and visits from out of towners in for Mr. K’s return party.  I finally grabbed KK and made sure she got a little pampering of her own.

Because pretty toes make everyone happy.

And then I realized that I was one of the out of towners interfering with the KK Mother’s Day celebration.  It was time for Chloe and me to skedaddle!

But not before one last picture.

Because princess sunglasses make everyone happy.