An American Castle

So about a week ago, we took a short trip. We met my husband in Morro Bay where he had business meetings. We stayed one night in a hotel room with a balcony overlooking the bay. We could see and hear the seals playing right across the street! I just love going to the coast. I think I would choose the beach over any other place.


The next day we drove up a short way to San Simeon to see the famed Hearst Castle. I've been wanting to tour it ever since we first moved to California. It is amazing. I tried to imagine what it would have been like back in the day after it was built. The guest house we passed by is bigger than any mansion I've ever seen and the pools looked so cool and inviting.

Ooops I did it again....

When I originally started this blog almost 3 years ago, I was chronically my recovery from a kitchen accident and subsequent surgery on my left hand. I don't know, it's something about knives.... I had another accident. I was home while the girls were in school. I just finished chopping the potatoes and went to wash my chef's knife. I was washing it and it slipped out of my hand and cut the first knuckle on my right hand. I took a deep breath, washed it and wrapped it. I tried to remain calm, all the while, praying I didn't do any serious damage. I called my husband at work and asked him if he was sitting down and calm. I calmly told him I had another knife accident and I might need him to take me to the ER.

Thankfully he just works down the street less than a mile from our home. He took me to the ER, they triaged me and sent me to urgent care. The whole time I am recalling my accident about 3 years ago when I severed a tendon and a nerve and partially cut another tendon in my left hand requiring major surgery and physical therapy. Thankfully, I got an awesome P.A. who tended to my fears and even had xrays done to make sure the bone was not nicked. He even poked in my wound and showed us the bone...uh, okay, that was a little much for me! Anyway, after it was cleaned, he put dermabond on it and it is now healed. I had to wear a splint so I wouldn't bend my finger so the cut would heal. I think my husband is getting me safety gloves for Christmas!

In my lifetime ...

I found this on someone's blog and thought this would be fun.

So here's what you do, copy and paste this into your own blog or send to friends. Put in bold type all the things you have done in your life so far. Here's mine!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band ....at school
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland /world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped...no way, no how!!!
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratchDoes knitting count?
15. Adopted a child -- working on it
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestorsI visited Sedan, France where my ancestor, Susannah de la Rochette (sp?), a Huegenot
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfiedat some times, probably not right now
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelos David
41. Sung karaoke in Japan no less
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlightI was by myself in Carmel
46. Been transported in an ambulance2 times with my kids for febrile seizures
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud I remember making mudpies when I was a kid
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle/mopedDrove a moped in Jersey of the Channel Islands, the only part of the UK occupied by the Germans in WWII.
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone's life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day I'm sure I have

Claire's 4th birthday party

Why oh why did I decide to plan her party for the day AFTER Halloween? The girls were up way too late after trick or treating and eating some of their loot. They woke up this morning before 6am because they were so excited.

We decided to have Claire's party at a theater where a puppet show was playing, Hansel and Gretel. It was so cute, Omnipresent Puppet Theater always does a great job (of course, we are biased as we know them from church!). Afterwards we walked a few doors down to a local pizza place, it was like we were in a time warp from the 70's. The kids enjoyed playing some of the arcade games and eating pizza. Then instead of cake, we had ice cream cake cones. They loved it! They really looked like ice cream cones, but they were really cupcakes in ice cream cones.

After the puppet show:


At the pizza place:

Happy Halloween!

Introducing Dorothy from Wizard of Oz
and Miley Cyrus: