The Big Question

On Monday, we have our big ultrasound appointment, to try to see if this little baby is a boy or a girl. Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We can't wait.

Our Food Right Now

I am listening to Bryan Adams' greatest hits today. That boy can sing, eh?! 18 'til I Die, baby.

Earlier this week, we had this Chicken saute dish. Really tasty. We really liked it. And, it was really simple. The only thing is, most people don't keep pear nectar on hand... But, the pear in the salsa was lovely & new.




Tonight we will try this eggplant dish. I've never heard of skordalia. But, I like Greek food, & we have all these ingredients in the fridge... Should be exciting.
And, it will go with the lovely artichokes Scott brought home from work last night.

Encounters with Nature

We started our trip at Point Lobos, for some hiking & a picnic. That place is gorgeous. It was a challenge to try it with a baby, though. Not a stroller friendly spot. I neglected to remember that about the trails... Being carried, Gillian just wanted to get down & play, in the pine needles, dirt, poison oak, etc.

The next day we went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. She loved that & so did we. We didn't get any good pictures there, though.




The next day we went to Earthbound Farms in Carmel Valley. That was a little bit of a bust. Apparently, you can't look around too much, except on Saturdays, during scheduled events. The farm stand was nice. We bought some fruit. And, a farmer gifted Gillian with the lovely little pumpkin.

On our way home, we went to Wild Things Park, outside of Salinas. They train & care for wild animal celebrities. The lion in George of the Jungle, the leopard in Mighty Joe Young, black bears with a long list of appearances in TV & film, retired circus elephants.

And, now we are happy to be home!

Culinary Adventures

We just got back from our little vacation to Carmel Valley. We had a great time.

Some highlights in food & drink -



Wild Goose Bakery & Coffeehouse
-Carmel Valley Village
This place was delightful. I ate a brioche bun & a raspberry scone. Scott had a spice roll - a cinnamon bun with more spices. EXCELLENT. Finding a great bakery is not an easy thing. We were very sad we didn't discover this place until our last morning... If you are ever anywhere near, you MUST stop in at this bakery.

Georis Winery - Carmel Valley Village
We sampled the "chilled flight" - Carmelo Rosato (a blush), two Sauvignon Blancs, a Chenin Blanc & a Chardonnay. We liked all of them & purchased a bottle of the blush. The tasting was in a charming courtyard. We sat next to the lovebird aviary. There were some beauties in there. Gillian enjoyed roaming around.

The Covey - at the base of the valley - Quail Lodge Resort
In order to get a good meal, at a cheaper price, we came here for their " $5 @ 5" deal. Most folks were having pre-dinner drinks. The dining room was not yet open. But, we had a dinner of small plates, by trying all the appetizers! They were fabulous. Our favorite were the Duck Croquettes. The wine was $5 a glass, also. We had a great Sauvignon Blanc from Bernardus of Carmel Valley.

Cafe Rustica - Carmel Valley Village
Sweet little place with great wood-fired pizza. We had the classic - Margherita.
addition - -- -Warning to families with young - many of the elite dine here, who don't want to be sitting near to children whilst they enjoy their food...

Bahama Billy's - Carmel - the Barnyard shopping center
This place is a family-friendly joint in Carmel. The patio is pretty & okay for the munchkins to roam a bit. And, the center it is in, is barnyard-style. So, some kids might get a kick out of that - the windmill & such...
Anyway, the food. Scott got a sandwich with abalone & scallops. He loved it, but found it a little to heavy to finish. I got the fish & chips & finished it off just fine.

Baby Loves Baby Kiwi

Have you ever had a "hardy kiwi"? Sometimes they are also called baby kiwi. There is no fuzz, you eat the skin & they are the size of grapes.
Delightful. Here is Gillian enjoying.

Pucker Up!

We have a wonderful meyer lemon tree in our yard. Gillian loves to snack on the lemons straight from the tree!!

Monkey Girl

Gillian loves bananas. She goes monkey over them, every time she sees one. Usually I cut it up into little pieces for her & put them on her tray. This morning she noticed that all she had was a pile of tiny pieces, while mommy had a huge piece sitting right there on the counter. This didn't seem good to her. She wanted the big one. And, she quickly stuffed her face with it.

My Morning

When I got Gillian up this morning, I could smell something really ripe in her pants. But, she hates to be changed right after getting up. So, I put her in her highchair for breakfast. After she had gotten bored with that, I took her back to her room to change her. Wow. She was leaking. I didn't realize that... Oops. After an inadequate attempt to clean her at the changing table, she went into the bath. She was pretty glad about that!
After bath time, we went to the front window to watch the trucks pick up the garbage & recycling. We found that a man across the street also watches the trucks. After the recycling truck had gone, he put away his can & two of the other neighbor cans. 30 minutes later when the garbage truck came, he did the same thing. Wow. How tidy & neighborly. No one likes to leave their cans out here. I guess it looks dirty. In our old neighborhood, sometimes we would leave our cans out all week. (I know, lazy & rude.) Here I think we would be fined, or kicked out of the neighborhood if we tried that stunt.
But, one of the other neighbor guys across the street, parked his van in front of our house this morning. Instead of in his own driveway. So, the street cleaner had to skip our section. Wow. That guy is not so neighborly.
This morning, when I pulled out the 1/2 & 1/2 for my morning coffee, it had a suspicious smell. I dumped some into the sink & it was totally curdled. AH!!! The sell by date wasn't even until tomorrow. I want my money back. That could've killed us. Sour milk products are my husband's biggest fear. I am glad he wasn't home for the scene. When he hears of it, he will probably want to get our own milk cow, so it is always fresh...

No Recipe

Yesterday I made Chicken Salad. This is one of the only things that I make, without a recipe in front of me. I mean, I can manage a basic pasta or salad, or something like that. But, not really too much. I am a recipe girl.
But, somehow, I can throw this together sans recipe card & it still comes out great.

Bake chicken breasts or boil whole chicken
cool
shred/cut into bite size pieces
In a bowl mix chicken with Mayo & Plain Yogurt - about 1 part mayo to 3 parts yogurt
Stir in curry, thyme, poultry seasoning & salt & pepper.
Add toasted almonds
chopped celery
halved grapes

And, that's about it. I eat it by itself, or over lettuce, or on bread with sprouts.

Mike & Betsy

Last week, I got to do the flowers for a lovely wedding at Saratoga Federated. The chapel & reception hall were both designed by Julia Morgan (of Hearst Castle fame). They were gorgeous.
Here are a few pics of the flowers.

Burfield Wedding

Last week, I got to do the flowers for a lovely wedding at Saratoga Federated. The chapel & reception hall were both designed by Julia Morgan (of Hearst Castle fame). They were gorgeous.
Here are a few pics of the flowers.