What do you miss?

When you are away from home, traveling through the distant corners of your country.................or another land................what do you miss most about your home?

I have been traveling often this year with only brief moments to spend doing the things I love around my little cottage.

Most of all I missed our front porch, the welcoming entry to our cozy home, the one place where I truly feel 'at home'.

Paint is peeling.............................

................blooms are fading..................

..........crystal needs washing..........

.......................and someone moved in while we were gone!

This is one of the feral kitties in the neighborhood - his/her(?) mom is a short haired black cat, dad perhaps the big chunky grey guy with folded ears who lurks in the garden. The animal control officer has tried in vain to catch these kitties, they are smart!

We had to chase this one off for several reasons when we returned last week, mainly because a lot of sweet birds visit our porch!

The new Spring titmouse kids have decided they love hanging about here - they seem to find scrumptious mealtime bugs on our hanging ferns, so no kitties allowed.

Back home, happy, daydreaming. Planning things for cooler Autumn days when it's pleasant to be busy about the house and garden............and I can give the porch a much needed makeover.

"Gathering" Treasures - Part II

Back at Delores and Holly's shop Gathering in Willows, CA we strolled through the shop out into the pretty patio/garden area in back. This space was full of outdoor treasures, planters overflowing with brilliant, trailing greenery, birdhouses and feeders, chairs, old ladders, watering cans and cute painted signs.

Driving to the town of Willows we had passed thousands of green acres. Rolling away from the hot, dusty highway were orchards, miles and miles of them. Fruits we all love, peaches, apricots, nectarines, and almond trees. More dusty green acres of olive trees reminded me of Tuscany and the South of France. The rows went on forever, neat, straight, formal. Then we saw the rice fields............bright green and damp, emitting coolness in the 100 degrees of midday. Knowing the Amaro family grew rice, I knew we were close to town.

Loved the cow mobile!


It was hard to leave this lovely shop. The heart-shaped piece of slate on the old metal chair had special meaning for me..........it proclaimed that this was a little place saturated with much love for the old, rescued and restored pieces of America's heartland. It was tended with loving hands, creative minds, and warm hearts. I hope I can return some day in the not too distant future.

Give a girl a camera...............

All images by Jasmin, age 12.
Words by grandma, age, not telling!!!!

I know I've mentioned before how handing a child a camera can be very exciting. On a long road trip such as our recent one in the West, traveling granddaughter, Jasmin, made good use of her point and shoot digital.

Like all kids today, technology comes easily to her. I spend endless minutes trying to figure out the intricacies of color change, color accent, what have you, and by then the image I longed to catch is ten miles back along the road!

On returning home and editing the hundreds of pics taken, I discovered that Jasmin photographed the long, straight roads, and often sameness of the passing landscape, not only with blurred images of fields and mountains, but also with these...............back seat self portraits!

She may be young and full of fun. Sometimes listening to music and singing. Sometimes she's serious. But give her a camera and she's off and running, capturing amazing images in the blink of an eye..............and you never know what color that eye may be!

Above shows the natural color of Jasmin's pretty eyes.

This reminds me of a layout you might see in Vogue magazine!

I would suggest you give your child, or grandchild, a camera when traveling a long distance by car. Not only will they escape possible boredom, they may surprise you with their creativity........and then agree to share their secrets, and the ins and outs of those hi-tech cameras!

Pink Saturday in Northern California

On my way North to stay with our oldest, dearest friends at their beautiful lakeside Summer home on Lake Almanor, I also visited with other friends. These lovely people are fairly new on my friendship list having met them through blogging!

As I mentioned in my last post, in the small farming town of Willows, on a near 100 degree afternoon, I was thrilled to meet Corey Amaro's lovely mother Delores. Many of you already follow Corey's exciting life in Provence through her well known blog Tongue in Cheek, and you may have have read her articles published in Romantic Homes and other national magazines. I met Corey in France last October. When she knew I would pass through Willows, her home town, she told me about her mom's shop and we planned a quick stop there.

Delightful Delores Amaro outside her fabulous shop,

Gathering Better Junque - Willows, California.

Pink French toile pillows with those lovely wide floppy edges.

The shop was fabulous. Be sure to stop by if you are ever in the vicinity. Delores and her business partner Holly had done a marvelous job decorating and displaying their many treasures. Now I know where Corey's fabulous decorating gene came from, her mom of course!

Lots of pink signs in the pretty outside patio area.

I absolutely fell for this really old, really palest pink, vintage bread box.

I purchased a few treasures to take to my friend for her lake house. The gift I received for myself was Delores' very kind invitation to stop by her adorable farm house and meet her special grandchildren - more later on that!

Hope everyone has a fabulous Pink Saturday. Be sure to visit Beverly, our hostess, at How Sweet The Sound to see more pink from around the world.

"Gathering" Treasures - Part I

Sometimes friendships start in odd ways. Meeting a special woman in France last Fall, led to a brief, but most enjoyable meeting with her wonderful mother in a small Northern California farming town.

Heading toward Lake Almanor to spend a few days with friends, we were able to stop here. DH, Jasmin and I waited at Delores Amaro's fabulous shop on the main street of Willows, CA. Being a Monday the shop is usually closed, however Corey of Tongue In Cheek arranged for her mom to open it for us.

Delores and her partner Holly have treasures and then some! Really great stuff, antiques, vintage, rustic, and some new items mixed in, all attractively displayed making one want to hire a truck right there and then and haul much of it home!

I loved the painting of the Granny Smith apples.

These silver ladles looked like something Corey herself would use in her beautiful home in Provence.

Next time we'll step outside into Gathering's pretty garden area, and I'll share our unexpected visit to the charming Amaro farm.

Pacific Ring of Fire - Lassen Peak, and a day in the great outdoors...

Lassen Peak is one of many active, dormant, or extinct volcanoes found around the Pacific Ocean in a Ring of Fire. It formed 27,000 years ago as a volcanic vent on Brokeoff Volcano's northern flank. It is one of the world's largest plug dome volcanoes, rising to an elevation of 10,457 feet. Lassen's last eruption was May 22, 1915 when the peak blew a huge, mushroom-shaped cloud of ash over 30,000 feet into the air and profoundly altered the surrounding area. Congress made this area a national park in 1916.

Mt. Lassen seen from Lake Almanor, Northern California.

As a child I had a pen pal in Vancouver BC, Canada. The main thing that has stuck in my memory all these years, was a statement she made about Vancouver's great outdoor life. She was boating in the warm sunshine in the morning, then mountain climbing and throwing snowballs in the afternoon!

Living on the English Channel I had the water but was far from any mountains. Her description of playing in water and snow made an indelible impression on me and I thought, "I'm going to do that one day".


Jasmin and new friend
Anabel boating early morning on Lake Almanor.

We loved the water and spent a lot of time admiring the beautiful mountains surrounding the lake.


Looking down on Lake Helen from the road's highest point, 8,512 feet.

Come lunchtime, sandwiches were packed and we were off driving up Mt. Lassen (about a 45 in. drive), passing steaming sulphur springs, wildflowers and lakes.

Stopping at the tree line, we set up a picnic and sat looking out toward Lake Almanor in the distance. It was hot, very few tourists, and a spectacular view.

Jasmin found volcanic rocks hard to roll, this one was certainly no pushover.......

Mama deer and her babies eyed us cautiously..........

.............and yes, there was snow at the tree line so we were able to make snowballs..........

......................and cool our hot feet!

On the way down we stopped at Emerald Lake, the prettiest lake and definitely green.

That same evening, as the sun went down, Jasmin took advantage of the water again, kayaking, riding the wave runner with our hostess.......my wonderful longtime friend Paula.........

.......and trampoline bouncing with Anabel. I have my doubts that Camp Kanata was ever this much fun!

A long, busy day.........a very long post........but a day to remember for sure.