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barking up a storm

July 9, 2019

sea lion in Santa Cruz

Something we do not see in East Coast waters are sea lions.  So, spotting them while in Northern California was something of a novelty for me.

California sea lions

California sea lions are “eared seals” native to the West Coast of North America. They live in coastal waters and on beaches, docks, buoys, and jetties. On my trip, the place I saw the most sea lions was when I walked the Santa Cruz Wharf – they were everywhere!

Many sea lions

These guys weigh 240 to 700 lbs. and live to be 20 to 30 years old.  They are easily trained and intelligent which is why they are commonly seen in zoos and aquariums. They are also very vocal – they sound like barking dogs!  Click on the link below to see some in action!

Video of sea lions in Santa Cruz

They are definitely a blast to watch!

We wondered if these guys made a mess in the boat they jumped into!

young sea lions

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my West Coast pets! ;)

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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discovering hoover tower

July 5, 2019

view from Hoover Tower

One of my favorite visits to my recent trip to Northern California was Stanford University.  The visit makes me ask myself “Why did I not apply to any schools on the West Coast?!”

Stanford campus from the tower

The highlight of the campus is definitely the Hoover Tower.  Built as part of Stanford’s 50th anniversary, back in 1941, the first nine floors of the tower are library stacks and the next three floors are used for offices, but visitors are allowed to go up to the top of the tower.

view from Hoover

It is super cool to see the tower’s bells up close and to hear a volunteer talk about how the bells are played occasionally on a whim by a music professor or one of his students.  The configuration of the mechanism that plays the bells (similar to a piano) is replicated in the professor’s classroom so he can effectively teach others his skill during class!

how to play the bells at Hoover Tower

the bells at Hoover Tower

Going up in the 285-foot tower when school was not in session gave us a crowd-free visit with plenty of space to admire the surrounding views.

view from the tower at Stanford

campus view from tower

I hope you enjoyed a quick visit to Hoover Tower on Friday field trip.  Have a fabulous weekend!

window view at Hoover

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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roses for days

July 2, 2019

warm color rose

Typically, I’m not a big fan of roses, but it is hard not to be impressed with the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden.

rose with fountain

apricot color rose

Located near the downtown of San Jose, in the quaint Rose Garden District, the garden contains more than 3,500 plantings and over 189 varieties of roses.

unique pink rose

It is easy to tell I’m not on the East Coast as soon as I arrive to the garden – the beautiful weather and surrounding homes are good clues, but also I can tell by a cathedral of redwood trees that contribute to the garden’s West Coast vibe.

love a white flower

Rose enthusiasts will be interested to know that The All-American Rose Selections, a national independent rating organization, sends the new varieties to the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden for testing before released to the general public.

hot pink rose

favorite white rose

The Rose Garden is a City of San Jose Historic Landmark and is open to the public free of charge (free parking too!)  A super find!

striped roses

Thanks for stopping by!  Hope you have a fabulous and safe holiday!

orange rose

Remember to take pleasure in simple things…like smelling a beautiful rose, Jackie

open yellow rose

*Yellow roses have a special significance to some special friends of mine…I’m dedicating today’s post to the memory of someone we all share.  :)

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boba addiction

June 28, 2019

strawberry jasmine tea fresca

Starch balls made from a cassava/yucca shrub!  Yes, that is what boba is and tea drinks made from these balls are my current addiction!

You have seen me post about bubble tea before.  But, in California, it is available everywhere and I was able to consume it daily on my visit!

The term boba references the entire drink-plus-toppings, the most popular topping being tapioca pearls (which also happen to be called boba).  The drink as a whole is also known as bubble tea.

drinking Boba Guys

Boba — the drink in its entirety – originates from Taiwan.  Originally, boba pearls were used in shaved ice desserts and paired with syrups, beans, and rice balls.  Milk tea was also consumed regularly and thankfully, someone decided to merge the two, creating the wonderfully delicious drink I happen to adore!

Boba culture made its way to America through Taiwanese neighborhoods and blossomed near college campuses and high schools, where students would gather for study groups.  Probably the strong Asian influence is the reason the drink is so much more popular in California than here on the East Coast.

waiting in line at Boba Guys

Boba is the quintessential topping at any tea parlor. Once these balls of cassava root are rolled into bite size bunches, they’re boiled and flavored, often with brown sugar or honey.  The result is a subtly sweet, chewy addition to a tea drink.  If you’re trying milk tea for the first time, I’d definitely recommend going classic and adding boba – the best part of the drink!

seasonal menu at Boba Guys

To make it even more confusing – my favorite milk tea drink during the time I was in California contained no milk at all!  My favorite drink was strawberry jasmine tea fresca…so yummy!  And, I got this at my favorite place to get boba – Boba Guys!   The line at Boba Guys was typically down the street – for good reason!  Be sure to visit if you happen to be on the West Coast!

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a fabulous weekend!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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visiting the redwoods

June 25, 2019

Big Basin Park

If I had to pick a theme for 2019, it could easily be Exploring California!  You may recall I visited Southern California earlier this year and I was excited to share some of my adventures with you.  More recently, I visited Northern California for the first time and I am even more excited to share some of my more current California adventures!

trail

looking through the redwoods

The Northern part of the glorious state of California sure has some super cool places to visit!  One of these is the Big Basin Redwoods State Park and I had the opportunity to visit it with my two favorite people!  Established in 1902, Big Basin is California’s oldest state park and is home to the largest span of old-growth Redwoods south of San Francisco.

Fallen Redwood tree

Redwood trees are such an amazing part of nature.  The trail we walked in the park passed by some of the biggest redwood trees in the Santa Cruz Mountains.  The tallest tree in Big Basin was 329 feet – until the top broke off in a storm reducing its height to 293 feet – still tall by any standard!

in the redwoods

Not only are the trees unreal in height, but how crazy is it to think a tree is 2,000 years old!  Awesome!

tree skin

redwood forest

In addition to witnessing these redwood beauties, we were determined to witness a banana slug in its natural environment.  This bright yellow slug is native to the forest floors along North America’s Pacific coastal coniferous rainforest belt (including redwood forests) which stretches from southeastern Alaska to Santa Cruz, California.

the tree is taller

As luck would have it – success!  We spotted one on our way out of the park!

banana slug in Big Basin

Thanks for stopping by!  Have an awesome week!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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break time

June 13, 2019

Hi friends!  I am in need of a little recharge…I am going to take a little internet break.

Have a fabulous week or so and I look forward to reconnecting after my hiatus!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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key holder reused

June 7, 2019

necklace

I can get excited about the smallest of details.  This week it was about a key rail from Target!

These little pieces of hardware are incredible jewelry holders!  Multiple holders can be used – mounted side by side and/or one over the other.  And, they are so easy to install – screws are included – only a screwdriver is required!

keyrail

I am organizing my jewelry utilizing as many of these babies as I can fit into any scrap of available wall space in my closet!  Because, of course, the only way to store necklaces is in a way that they are visible!

organizing jewlery

Thanks (again) Target!

I hope you are inspired to organize something in your home this weekend!  Have a great one!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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summer tablescaping

June 4, 2019

summer tablescape

It is crazy how few photos I’ve taken recently.  I must have set a personal record for the fewest number of photos taken in the last few months.  So uncharacteristic of me!

I really noticed it when I got home from the Country Living Fair in Rhinebeck this past weekend.  I had a wonderful day with fabulous friends.  Normally I come home with tons of photos to put up for you to see.  Not this year!  In fact, I took only a few photos the entire day!  I guess hanging out with the fabulous friends got in the way!

lobster tablesetting

When I looked through the few photos I had, they were all related to table settings.  I always say everything runs in themes with me and it certainly is true.  My takeaway from the fair this year is to ‘summerize’ my tablescapes!

I love all the cool arrangements created by Cutlery Couture.  They put flatware in little burlap pouches with pretty coordinated designs and ribbons…aren’t they super!  The green herbs are my favorite motif!

tablesettings at Country Living

burlap holders for cutlery

I am also inspired to think about adding some embellishments to existing napkins.  Look at these black and white napkins with an embroidered bee…it inspires me to do something similar.  I would like to do some with ladybugs!

bee tablesetting

I hope the few photos I am sharing from the Country Living Fair this year are inspiring you to come up with some cute summer tablescapes like it did for me!

summer napkin

Thanks for stopping by!  Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

P.S.  I won’t forget to share ‘after’ photos of the dresser in an upcoming post!

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new beginnings

May 28, 2019

Before dresser

Hi friends!  I know my furniture redos usually show a ‘before’ and ‘after’ in the same post.  But, today I am only showing the ‘before’ of a current piece I have been working on.

Like me, the piece is starting a new beginning!  I have given new life to a vintage mahogany dresser and I am taking it with me on a new journey!

stripping top

As you read this, I am on my way to a new beginning…leaving a place I’ve lived for a long, long time.  I am looking forward to sharing some future projects with you as I prepare to downsize everything in my life!

dresser top in process

I am going to give you one little peek as to how I refinished the dresser my daughter used growing up – a family heirloom.  It is renewed and ready to join me!  Because of my moving out, I don’t think I will be posting on Friday, but I will be back next week!  And, I will share, in more detail, my new dresser!

after

Here is a little peek of the ‘after.’ As you can see, I decided to keep the original hardware. What do you think the rest of the piece looks like?

Thanks for stopping by.  Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

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a tuscany themed shower

May 24, 2019

xcork holder gift

Why was a Tuscany theme extra special for the bridal shower I helped organize?  Tuscany was the location of the proposal!

The bridesmaids, mother of the bride, mother of the groom, and myself got together for planning (and some good eating!) meetings months ahead of the shower date.  The mother of the bride had the place and theme decided, so we ran with it!

tuscan bingo game

Of course, a couple things just pop into your mind when you think of Tuscany!  We decided to use lemons, and all things wine as reoccurring décor items.

The maid of honor, an artist, created a beautiful painting of the proposal as a gift to the bride.  The painting was front and center on the day of the shower – we used it on the mantel above the spot where the future bride opened her gifts.  The maid of honor also created a beautiful handlettered sign “Showered with Amore” that greeted guests as they arrived.

recreation of proposal

I created table signs, naming each table after an Italian wine.  The guests picked up a table card strategically placed on a cork in a crate of grapes.  The same type of graphic was used to tag the favors – a homemade Tuscan spice mix created by the soon-to-be bride’s mom.  I used the same theme/colors in creating a ‘bridal bingo’ game.  Another favor, created by the matron of honor, was a cluster of grapes styled from chocolate candies…so cute!

grapes

favor for tuscan theme shower

The mother of the future groom had saved corks from the entire time of her marriage – she had A LOT – and we used these in our decorating…and, in our games.  One of the games was “Guess How Many Corks in the Jar.”

tuscan themed invite

Can you believe I found a dress in a lemon print fabric? It was an Anne Klein Dress at an original price of $119. that I bought off-season at T.J. Maxx for $29.99!

The best part of the shower, of course, was getting together with old friends and meeting new friends who will be a part of the upcoming wedding day.  The bride-to-be looked absolutely fabulous!  If the shower day was any indication of how she will look on the wedding day – bellissima!!

tuscany themed sign

I hope you enjoyed seeing a few photos from the Tuscan themed shower created by ‘our team.’  We all had a blast – the reason I didn’t take as many photos as usual!  I hope you are inspired to use some of our ideas in your own party planning!

Thanks for stopping by!  Remember to take pleasure in simple things.  Ciao,  Jackie

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