if not now...when?

i can't be a farmer, but i can shop at the farmer's market!

  visit my flickr!

as summer starts to race upon us, there is no better way to celebrate the season than to visit your local farmer's market!! we will be at the beach this summer, and i am really looking forward to being able to visit this great little farm. they have the BEST strawberries EVER!!

the LA times has a columnist writing about farmer's markets, recipes, and farm market fare. i wish the register would add this kind of info to their food column online... more of a focus on orange county. here is a google map that gives locations and times for southern california farmer's markets.

***ETA: YAY oc register - they are starting a farmer's market section!! i wonder if she read the same times article that i did?? ;) ***

View Where to find your local farmers market in a larger map

slow foods usa also has links to local chapters that can guide you to local markets and other sources for good, natural food. 

i just really enjoy getting outside in the beautiful weather - getting some good, fresh food from some hardworking people who actually care about food. i try to buy mostly organic fruits and veggies all year round, but the spring and summer bounty make the farmer's market practically irresistable! :-)

also looking forward to finishing this book: lots of recipes and even more reasons to eat real food.

 

looking forward to a holiday weekend, complete with night at the museum II and another weekend at the beach!

travel album... and reflecting on reflections

a bit late, as always, but i wanted to make sure that i gave a quick shout out to the relections girls. a couple of weeks ago, we all met up at the hyatt newporter to do some amazing creating. loved spending the weekend with my fellow bahama mamas - annie, crazy suzy , jackie, and lia. what a great, if not nutty, group of girls. we laughed to so hard, i thought i was going to die! seriously funny and silly stuff going on there... thanks to you all for making the weekend as fun as it was! 

the classes were really great. maggie holmes is a super talented scrapper and photographer who did the most adorable class for us- a sweet, brightly colored mini album that i have ACTUALLY COMPLETED! it's a miracle! as soon as i get some pictures in it, i'll be sure to post it. maggie was a really nice girl - although i think we probably scared the living daylights out of her and her friend kelly when we all ventured out to dinner at fashion island... i'm sure they think we are insane...

jamie waters and her darling husband chris gave us a short lesson in photography that provided me with a lightbulb moment regarding exposing photos - almost worth the whole weekend right there. ;) seriously, these two are an adorable couple - with lots of talent between them. loved it. :)

what can i say about stephanie ackerman? besides making the best cookies ever, and actually giving us a project that we could FINISH... she is just a funny, sassy, and great lady! i feel really lucky to know her - she is just a source of endless talent and energy and fun. check out her blog - she always has a lot to say! :)

shannon tidwell put on a really great class, too. i wasn't sure if i was going to like it as much as a lot of the papers we used were not really my style, but she had so many great tips and creative ideas that i got a TON out of her class. she really had some neat ideas - and brought us some of her 2peas garden work to see in person. really cool stuff! 

melissa phillips had the cutest little shabby chic, vintage-y class for us. we made this adorable little house that is right up my alley (although i'm sure my husband thinks it is just more clutter :P ).

     

we also did a little wall hanging that i didn't get around to. i love all these pretty feminine products - lots of fun! :)

i had been looking forward to taking christine middlecamp's class for a while. she had done some projects last year at scrapbook oasis that i LOVED. she is really the queen of layering, and layering... and layering. the album that we started in her class was gorgeous - very detailed and intricate. maybe a little TOO detailed for a class - unfortunately, we didn't get too much done, but i am hoping to get around to it soon...

mara may's class was the last one of the weekend for me. i went to the class to pick up my kits because i had made plans to spend the day at the beach with my family. mara may was really nice and her projects were beautiful!! we got soooooo much product - very, very generous! 

  i am so impressed with what karen and susan  put together here. i'm not surprised, since oasis always has the BEST events, and susan, well, she's just the most creative, talented, and warm hostesses ever. along with rebecca (who did such an amazing job), they really rocked the house. the classes were super generous with product, they had TONS of giveaways - it was really top notch. i'm really happy for them that it went so well! looking forward to next year! :)

and really, the weekend put me in a creative mood. i came home and finished maggie's project, and then moved on to this cute little album that i bought on etsy. i meant for it to be for our italy trip,but decided to go a different way with it. i am adding all of our vacations and road trips to make it a family travel album that i can keep adding to over time. i have really enjoyed being crafty again. it's been too long...

 

 

one of the pages - lots of miscellaneous going on here - i love that! :)

  

until next time, just counting the days until summer vacation, getting done with dance, girl scouts, all the things that keep us busy, busy, busy. looking forward to a lazy summer by the pool and at the beach...

oh, and GO DUCKS!! GO LAKERS!!  :-)

hope you have a great day! :)

italy... in pictures

hello!!! i've been away for a while - too long, actually!

spent some time in italy, enjoying la dolce vita, gelato, and lattes. life is good!

check my flickr to see our photographs. it is taking FOREVER to edit and post those pictures! really crazy.

AND i hope to be scrapping some of them this weekend at reflections in christine middlecamp's  class...

if you stay tuned, so will i. i promise!

picked up the new artful blogging today - talk about inspiration to get blogging again! wowza!

happy last day of april! <3   

merry christmas... to ME!

why is it when we are supposed to out shopping for all of our family and friends that we find sooooo many cute things for OURSELVES?? i can't be the only one who does this, am i?

  

had to go to anthropologie (that took a lot of arm twisting ;)) to get a gift and found this adorable little orla kiely journal. it is the coolest little book - most journals seem to have lined pages. not this baby - it has lined, blank, and graph paper pages, and cool little vellum dividers. so cute. AND it fits perfectly in the middle pocket of my new lori marie  bag!!! i have been wanting one of her bags ever since i saw cheryl's like a year ago. i just hadn't seen the right one until i saw this little lovebird tote. i love it - thanks to lori marie for being so creative and so sweet, and well, for being such a fast shipper. her stuff is definitely first rate! :)  (and, beth, i know you're jealous! :P)

we are freezing our little butts off here in so cal. now yes, i know that the high 30's sounds downright balmy to some of you, but oh baby, it feels chilly to us. the warm weather - i think it thins our blood... but, i have to say that i enjoy having my fireplace running and snuggling down with the family. it's kinda fun, but i'm still cold! ;)

hoping to get out to the mission inn out in riverside sometime in the next two weeks to see their festival of lights. it is supposed to be one of the best christmas light displays in the country. if that isn't calling my name, i just don't know what would.

  

yep, this one looks like it could become a new holiday tradition.

we are going to LA tomorrow to see Wicked! very excited to take sarah to see this. and in an effort to miss traffic, we are going up early. hopefully, we will be able to find some good light displays in hollywood or los feliz. i will try to get pictures - wish me luck! :) and finally, it should be a very disney christmas around here very soon... stay tuned, and stay warm! :)

almost midway thru december...

and i am really hating typepad right now. i just had a long post, complete with CHRISTMAS LIGHT info, and POOF, typepad made it disappear like jimmy hoffa. grrrr... i think it is this new editor. it's making typepad act really weird for me.

i'll give links to the maps for what i think are two of the best christmas light displays in south orange county.

bramford street candy cane lane 

this is a very special neighborhood where i think about 99.9% of the houses are lit up. so worth the trip! :)

el corzo, rancho santa margarita 

this winter wonderland is kind of out of the way for a lot of people, and the crowds can be off-putting, but once you get out of your car and walk down this street, you'll feel like you are in another world, complete with SNOW and a mini ice rink. GO - you will not be disappointed, i promise! ;) i posted a ton of pictures of it a couple of years ago here. 

and yay!! snowdays is back!! you can go here and make the coolest virtual snowflakes. my kids LOVE this site, and i bet yours will, too!   

one last thing. if you love christmas treats, you must go to trader joe's. they have so many yummies - peppermint joe joes (oreos), salted caramels, triple gingersnaps, the list goes on and on. so good - make sure you put some of these delicacies on your christmas list. ;)

and if you scrapbookers out there need something really, really cool to ask for for christmas, THIS might be the perfect thing to ask for under the tree. it is being put on by scrapbook oasis and my awesome friend, susan lyons. i know that susan is a planner extraordinaire, and that karen and scrapbook oasis always hit it out of the park with their events, so this should be amazing.    

sorry no pics on this post, but typepad is *NOT* my friend right now.

hope everyone had a great weekend! :) 

pearl harbor day

one of the most striking places i have ever visited was the USS Arizona memorial in pearl harbor, hawaii. it seemed hard for me to process what had happened when it is now such a peaceful place.

it is believed that there are only 6,000 pearl harbor survivors still alive. and each year, it seems as though there is less remember of that day, and their sacrifices.

so, a remembrance of a day and a sacrifice that we should never forget...

'tis the season...

for appetizers!

these little frittatas are soooo good. i made them in a mini cupcake pan. it worked perfectly. they weren't hard to make, but they did take a lot of work, if i remember correctly...

from cooking light (can you tell i like that magazine?):

Individual Potato-Bacon Frittatas

Yield

6 servings (serving size: 2 frittatas)

Ingredients

• 3/4  pound  small red potatoes (about 6)
• Cooking spray
• 1/2  cup  chopped onion
• 1/2  cup  chopped red bell pepper
• 2  garlic cloves, minced
• 3/4  cup  (3 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Swiss cheese
• 4  bacon slices, cooked and crumbled (drained)
• 1 3/4  cups  egg substitute
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

Place potatoes in a large saucepan, and cover with water. Bring to a boil, and cook 25 minutes or until tender. Drain; cool slightly. Cut potatoes into 1/2-inch cubes.

Preheat oven to 375°.

Heat a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat. Stir in potato, cheese, and bacon.

Combine egg substitute, salt, and black pepper. Spoon vegetable mixture evenly into 12 muffin cups or 6-ounce ramekins coated with cooking spray. Pour egg mixture evenly over vegetable mixture. Bake at 375° for 18 minutes or until set. Remove from muffin cups, and cool slightly.

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here is a fun holiday/wintery event i found for this weekend. these snow events are always fun. i would be going if sarah wasn't sick... :(

20th Annual Winter Wonderland

Saturday, December 6th

10:30am-1pm

Bonita Creek Park (3010 La Vida, Newport Beach

Celebrate the warm sounds of holiday mustic and enjoy 100 tons of snow with the Recreation and Senior Services Department during the 20th Annual Winter Wonderland Event. Bonita Creek Park is transformed into a winter escapade, with sledding, snowman building, holiday crafts and more. Although Santa and his elves are busy, they will make a special visit. Throughout the festivities, food and photos will be for sale. Additional parking and shuttle service is available in the lot located at 1701 Camelback Street.

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here is a link for a map to a christmas light display in aliso viejo. greenbriar is the main street with the lights, but they are really kind all over the whole area. i haven't been this year, but there were lots of good displays here.

apparently, i don't have street addresses saved for a lot of the really good lights that we go to every year. i will be on a MISSION this weekend, out finding them and bringing them to you. i hope that there are a lot of you who love christmas lights like we do! :)

i actually scrapbooked last night for the first time in about 6 months. when i get all my stuff organized, i'll post some pictures of the merry day album i'm working on! it was so fun to get out and see some friends! ;)

3 weeks and counting people!!! :D

button lovers, check this out!

from martha stewart, look at this totally darling button wreath!

how fun and easy this would be to make with your kids. i know that i am not the only scrapbooker who got caught up in buying 2,968,563 buttons. time to dig into the stash. ;) martha has a bunch of other button ornaments that you can make, but i love the simplicity of this.

i was wondering in anyone has ever made homemade marshmallows? i saw a recipe for them here, and i wondered if they are worth the trouble? one of the commenters over there said they taste just like store-bought. i thought the little stars were soooo cute... it makes me want to make hot chocolate! :)

the countdown is on!

we got this starbucks advent calendar a few years ago. my kids totally love it - they have been waiting to start it ever since we started getting the christmas decorations down.

   

i'm going to post a picture of it as my profile picture everyday as our official countdown to christmas! 24 days to go. will you be ready?

i will also be doing an album along with girls over at freckle friends for merry days 2008. even though i am no londer on the design team, i know that they have the best group of girls over there, merry days is album with a daily scrapping prompt for the month of december. lots of good christmas goodies, i'm sure. sharing traditions and ideas and inspiration - sounds like heaven! i might be a couple of days late in starting it, but once i do, i'll try to post my layouts. :)

one little last glimpse into our holiday preparations - our new lighted deer. love them!

i have lots more to post - some really special local light displays in time for some christmas light touring by the weekend - so stay tuned! 

*happy thanksgiving to you*

we had our cute little politically incorrect thanksgiving feast at the kids school today. they all made macaroni necklaces and pilgrim and indian hats. they ate a turkey feast, and chased each other around the playground. we dodged the rain - whew! here are a couple of pics of the kids in their finery. :)

next year, they both get to be pilgrims - they are very excited! :)

i took my pumpkin crunch cake to the feast that we prepared for the teachers and staff. they got "real" food. i don't know how "thankful" we would appear if we made them eat that school food. **shudder** everyone loved the cake and wanted the recipe, so i thought i'd share it here. it's not my recipe - i'm not even sure where i got it, but dang, it *is* good!

Pumpkin Crunch Cake

1 can pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix) -- (29 oz.)

1 can evaporated milk -- (12 oz.)

1 C. sugar

3 eggs

1/4 tsp. cinnamon  (i use a little cinnamon and a little allspice)

1 box yellow cake mix

1 C. chopped nuts (i use pecans)

1 cup butter -- melted and cooled

Frosting:

1 pkg. cream cheese -- (8 oz.)

3/4 C. Cool Whip

1/2 C. powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9" x 13" pan with waxed paper. Mix pumpkin, evaporated milk, sugar, eggs, and cinnamon together and pour into pan. Sprinkle yellow cake mix (dry) over pumpkin mixture and pat nuts on cake mix. Spoon melted butter over nuts evenly. Bake for 50-60 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes, then carefully invert and peel off waxed paper. Let cool for about 30 minutes. Mix frosting ingredients together, frost cake and refrigerate.

BEWARE!!!! this dessert is terrible for you, but you won't be able to stop eating it, and anytime you take it to a gathering, people will want you to bring it forever and ever and they'll also want the recipe! ;) it's sooooo good!

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to my so cal readers, here is something you might want to look into for some serious christmas fun. the fillmore and western railway up in fillmore, CA (west of valencia and magic mountain) offers a christmas tree train. you and your family take an old-fashioned train ride to a local christmas tree farm to pick a fresh christmas tree. your tree is cut down and loaded on to a train flatbed for your trip back to their vintage train depot. they also offer a north pole express train and dinner with santa. fillmore isn't exactly close to orange county... but we don't have too many options for fun things like this locally. they have pictures on their website. i don't know if i am going to make it up there this year, but i would love to hear about it if anyone does. we have gone up there for the thomas and friends days, and it is a great daytrip for something really unique. :) and with gas prices way down, this might be a fun way to spend a day!

i hope that everyone has a wonderful thanksgiving full of family, food, love, and lots to be thankful for. we will be spending the day with family tomorrow, and i just feel with all of the uncertainty in the world right now, it is important to remember how much we DO have to be thankful for. it's easy to forget when we hear so much doom and gloom in the news. i know that for me - we have our children and everyone is happy and healthy. seriously, what more could i ask for? yep. lots to be thankful for in my neck of the woods. (((((hugs))))) to all my friends out there. i am also so thankful for YOU! :) happy thanksgiving!