Casablanca Inn in Santa Cruz

We went to visit our kids in Santa Cruz for Thanksgiving and stayed at the Casablanca Inn.

The bathroom had an old pedestal sink and vintage furniture.

We could see the Santa Cruz boardwalk from our room and it had a balcony overlooking the water. It was beautiful at night and during the day you could see people playing volleyball on the beach.

Loved the curtains in the room.

I haven't seen one of these in a long time.

The light fixtures were antiques.

The mirror in the hallway reflected all the old doors.

Loved the glass door knobs!

The sitting area where they served coffee had another view of the ocean.

It was a wonderful holiday trip.

After the Rain

After the storm this weekend everything in the garden seemed brighter and bigger.

We picked all of our pomegranates. They were delicious.

Butternut Squash

 I saved the last of our butternut squash seeds. I rinsed them in a colander.

I spread them out on a newspaper to dry in the sun.

 I placed them in a paper bag and stamped what they were. Keep them dry and in a cool spot.

Veterans Day

Today is 11-11-11

 This won't happen again for 100 years. Not only is it an important date to experience, but we also are honoring our military the same day. How awesome is that!

 Thank you to all the servicemen that have served our country and gave up so much so we can have our freedom.

 We are so very lucky. Today, I want to honor my dad for his service in the military. He passed away in August and we miss him.

My mother passed away 3 years ago and I know they are both together now. They loved each other very much.

Happy Veterans Day

 Dad

The Baby Bird Visitor

We had the french door open because it was such a beautiful day outside after the rain storm in San Diego. A baby bird flew in and got confused on how to get out.

Stan helped it outside and the bird was very comfortable with him holding it.

It seemed to be a baby and it's feathers were so pretty.

 Stan held it for the longest time and it wasn't afraid of us at all. 

 Then all of a sudden it flew to a nearby tree and seemed to say goodbye to us. A neat moment...

Heirloom Yellow Watermelon

We took out our only watermelon plant today. It ended up to be our first one. 

It was very sweet and tasted like a crenshaw melon. We'll have to grow more next year, I'll save the seeds.

Saw the prettiest monarch butterfly under our patio cover and had to take a photo. It was the biggest one I've seen.

It's shadow looked like a bat.

Our Costumes This Year For Halloween

Our friends, Mary and Jim had a Halloween party 

this year, so we needed to find costumes.

My husband, Stan,  came up with the idea of a Gnome. He used paper bags to make the hat and mushrooms, then sprayed them with red and white paint. He then used a box to have the illusion of a toad stool. The bearded mask added the look for the Garden Gnome.

I used some old shoes. Then glued them with fall leaves and butterflies. 

I found the gown at the thrift store. Bought the wings and made the crown. Then added more butterflies all over. Thanks to my neighbor, Jackie, with her idea  to attach them with sticky dots. The Gnome and the Woodland Fairy had a great time at the party.