Taking Pictures...

 My wonderful neighbor who I will miss sooo much has gone with me to take tons of pictures of all our kids the last 3 days.  It's been so much fun playing like that.  My movers are here today so I have been sitting here playing with some of the pictures.  Now I want to go back out tonight to take more.

California Girls

Check out these sweet California Girls....Madi & Imani.   We are thankful the Air Force sent our families to California at the same time...even it's it just for a short time.

My neighbor Tina and I took our kids out last night to the orchards behind our house to capture shots of all the kids together before we move.  We got chased away by a bobcat/lynx.  Glad we got great photos because we are not going back to that orchard...scared us almost to death!  California is FULL of wildlife.

Italian Pasta!!!

 This is my Italian friend and neighbor.  She is such a good cook!  Barbara has taught quite a few good recipes.  This past week when the kids were in school she invited over to her house for a day of pasta making.  Look at her posing with her killer pasta rolling pin.  My hands, shoulders and arms hurt sooo bad after all that rolling!

 Ravioli is really fun to make.

My dinner was so good.  Sweet Barbara bought me the cutters I need to make this after I move this summer while she was in Italy.  So nice!  Well I can't wait to make this again after I move.  Oh, she also showed me how to make tortellini and spaghetti noodles.

Dedicated To The One I Love!

I have always teased Steve...and I always will.

Back To School

 Even though we are moving soon I let my kids start school here in California...they BEGGED AND BEGGED.  You can't tell your kids no they can't go to school.  They love school.  They don't like weekends either.  They want to go to school as many days as they can here.  Steve and I crack up at their love of school.  Everyone keeps asking my kids how they feel about moving.  They usually answer with a shrug.  This moving every year is all they remember right now.  They will have been to four different schools all over the globe in the last four years...Georgia, Korea, California and Massachusetts.

Yesterday I had these pictures of the Ben and Madi taken.  I love the back to school time of year.  It's almost football season, baking season, decorating season....I need to get moved so all the fun can begin.

Hand Warmers

I have never lived anywhere that is as hot as California.  We have been at 110 degrees a few days and well over 100 for days.  It's a dry heat but boy does that sun sting.  I am more tan this summer than I ever have been.  Even though it's 110 degrees I am getting ready for winter in Massachusetts...I made hand warmers.  So fun, easy and everyone enjoyed picking out their own fabric.  All it was was 5 inch squares of fabric lined with  2 squares of felt sewn together and stuffed with rice.  Heat for 30 seconds in the microwave and there is a cute way to fight off frostbite.

For My Kitchen & In My Kitchen

 I am so excited for Autumn!!!  This year should be really wonderful once we move up to New England.  I have always wanted to go visit there during the Autumn and now I will be moving there.  These spooky wash clothes were fun and relaxing to make.  I am saving them for the next few months to use in my new kitchen.

This is a peek into my new kitchen...well I am not there yet.  I just love it.  I love the white, the black granite, the framed window that opens like french doors, the back splash and get this it's topped off with a walk-in pantry.  My heart beats so fast every time I think about it.

Jr. Giants

 We have been busy with baseball all summer.  The last game is this weekend.  The San Francisco Giants have this Jr. Giants program for the kids...it's all free.  You get shirts, hats, gloves...and even tickets to their games.  When we went to a Giants games they talked about the Jr. Giants program throughout the 9 innings.  Steve has been pitcher and coach for the kids which has made it extra fun.

Our Colonial House In Massachusetts

Steve found our house!  Today our offer was accepted..  I LOVE it.  It's so colonial!  It has a huge yard, over an acre but yet in a neighborhood with sidewalks.  The kitchen is white with black granite counter tops.  I can not wait to get there and decorate!  Steve kept telling me we need to buy a house when we get to Massachusetts because the interest rates are so low now.  3.25% interest is what is making this dream come true.  Steve is awesome!  This is the 3rd time he has gone ahead of the kids and I to buy a house and every time he keeps getting better at it.  

Neopolitan

 I am in denial over moving...I have been crocheting all the time.  The other day I crocheted some new neapolitan wash clothes for my kitchen.  Sweet huh?

This little guy is sweet too.  He plays basketball ALL day!

SOLD!!!

 WOW!  Things are happening all so fast.  We have been so lucky to own a beautiful California home in a neighborhood with them most wonderful neighbors.  I am going to really miss it here!!!!  Yesterday my house  went on the market and today it sold...CRAZY!  And here is the real kicker.  They bought it for ten thousand more dollars than we were asking...they were afraid of multiple offers.  Like I said this whole thing of me being a California Girl has come and is going by fast. I do feel very blessed.  Below are some pictures of my California home:

 This is the formal living and dinning.  I have put pictures of the family room and eat-in kitchen on here before.

 This is when you are standing in the kids playroom/loft.

 I love the upstairs in this home.  It's so open and pretty.

 This is the kids playroom upstairs.

So I wonder what kind of house we will get in Massachusetts?  We are moving near Boston...I need to work on my accent.    Here we go: "I need to park the car".  Did you hear it?  Ha

Garlic Capital Of The World...

 We went to Gilroy, California...the garlic capital of the world.  They grow 90% of the world's garlic in this valley in California.

 They sold all sorts of Christopher Ranch products...Christopher Ranch is my FAVORITE.  I want to go back at the end of this month to Christopher Ranch for the Garlic Festival.

MMM..the goodies I brought home.  I am going back to stock up so I can take lots of these things with me when I move.  We are moving AGAIN!!!!!  I know I have only had my things in my beautiful California home for 9 months...What the...  It's all good though, it's just I need a break.  This will make 5 different homes in 23 or 24 months.

Dresden...

I enjoyed quilting another dresden plate.  They are really fun.  I think they are beautiful.  With this, I made a huge Euro sized pillow case for Madi's room.  I need to go shopping to get the pillow to fit inside.

4th of July In The San Francisco Bay

 We had a GRAND time celebrating the 4th of July!  We went over to San Francisco.  We stayed at a hotel right at Fisherman's Wharf so we could park and just walk everywhere.  Good thing we got there early on the 4th, they close all the streets next to the Bay....it was the 4th of July but seemed like a huge New Years Eve celebration...people everywhere!  Our hotel had a heated pool the kids spent hours in having fun.  Our hotel was PACKED TO THE GILLS with families.  So lots of kids in that pool.  In the above picture we are next to Pier 39 and you can see Alcatraz in the background too.

 We walked down to Ghirardelli Square for some chocolate treats.

 Our hotel was 1 block away from the Boudin Sourdough Bakery...I ate it everyday we were there.  While walking by one of the workers tossed Ben a loaf and he caught it.  We scarfed that sucker down.  Ben got another one later that evening too.

 We ate dinner on Pier 39...looks like everyone else had the same idea.  It was shoulder to shoulder people.

 This was the view from our table at dinner.

 We were walking around Fisherman's Wharf just before the fireworks began.  That large building you can see is the Boudin Sourdough Bakery.  Ben thought this overflowing trash can was funny and wanted his picture taken with it.  Looks like most people ate bread bowls filled with chowder.

This is the view of the San Francisco Bay while at Ghirardelli Square.  It was a beautiful day!  We had a wonderful time in San Francisco celebrating America's Birthday. The fireworks were HUGE.  They had a couple of barges in the water shooting them off so you could see them in every direction you looked.