OH SO ROMANTIC

I was excited when I came home the other day and found a package waiting for me to open.

This is what was inside! A wonderful Valentine's Day giveaway that won from Jean over at A Romantic Country Home. If you have not been over to her blog, you should hop over there now. She has a beautiful blog that I'm sure you will enjoy.

Well now, if I could only get Cupid to find me a handsome, rich, kind, funny man to fall in love with me, I would be set.

JUST A WALK IN THE PARK

It has been so lovely here in CA. Today it was around 80 degrees out. So, when I dropped my dogs off at the groomers, I decided to go take a walk in the park.

One of my favorite local parks is Huntington Central Park. It is really nice because it changes with the seasons. Many of the trees die off in the winter (though you would never know it's winter here).

In the Spring it will be a lush green everywhere you look.

There are walking trails and if you follow the trail I took today, you will have walked a little over a mile each trip around.

I went around twice today.

I love seeing the birds and animals that show up here. You never know what you will spot on any given day.

You will pass by people walking either alone, with friends or their dogs. But, it never seems crowded here. There is plenty of room to spread out.

This park is large and there is a lot to do here.

Can you see the little squirrel? He stood there looking at me for a little while and then he quickly ran into the hole/tunnel he had that went under ground.

Soon there will be lots of baby squirrels running around. That's when it's really fun here.

It's also nice to feed the birds and ducks. Again, Spring time is the best with all the babies. I just adore watching mommy ducks teaching her babies to swim in the lake.

It was a nice, relaxing way to spend the day. Just taking a stroll in the park on a beautiful warm winter day.

DOWNTON ABBEY

I really hope that I am not the only one watching this wonderful mini series on PBS.

It's on Sunday nights and it's called Downton Abbey.

The show opens on the day the Titanic sunk. The year is 1912. The location is Downton Abbey the Estate/Home of Lord Robert Earl of Grantham and his family.

Lord Robert is married to Cora, his American wife. While they are the "care takers" of Downton Abbey, the English Law states that the Estate must be left to the next "male" heir.

Since Lord Robert only has three daughters, his eldest daughter must marry the next heir in order to continue to live in the Estate.

Sadly, Lord Robert's cousin and his 2nd cousin both died when the Titanic went down. Thus, leaving no known heir to marry into the family.


All three sisters are very different from each other. Lady Mary is the eldest daughter and has no desire to marry anyone her parents want her to.

Lady Edith is more of free spirit that enjoys the changing times. She believes in Women's Rights.

Lady Sybil is the one that lacks the looks. She is the one who believes in love and keeping up the family tradition.

After doing research, Lord Robert locates his 3rd Cousin Mathew. The only problem is he has no real desire to jump into his roll of taking over the Estate.

He is a lawyer and his father, when alive, was a Dr. His mother is a Nurse. However, back in the Edwardian times, a working man (no matter what the job was) was thought of to be a lowly working class man.

Mathew must learn the ways of Downton Abbey and convince Lady Mary to marry him. Neither proves to be an easy task for him.

Mean while we also get to peek into the life of the servants of the Estate. The difference in the way they live and the way the family does can't help but be noticed.

The story line, the clothes, the beautiful Estate and the tale of love is enough to keep anyone amused for hours.

I for one, will be sad to see this show end. I do believe I may even order the DVD so I can watch this again and again.

The Edwardian era is one of my favorite ones. While it was actually a very hard time to live in, it seems to be such a romantic time in history and a beautiful one at that.

If by any chance you have not started to watch this show, do yourself a favor and get caught up. You won't be sorry.

IT'S ALMOST TIME!!!

Soon, the yummy Girl Scout cookies will be back for sale.

Some places may already have them. Here in So. CA we don't get ours until Jan 30th. I can't wait. I love them!

I even buy enough to freeze some so I'll have them long after the Girl Scouts stop selling them. They freeze wonderfully.

I know Jan. is sometimes a bad time for many people because diet plans have just been put into place. Exercise promises are being kept. Cutting back on junk food and all sorts of New Year Resolutions have been made.

However, that does not keep you from being able to help out the Girl Scouts. You can either buy some and give them away to friends and family. Use them as hostess gifts, thank you gifts or get well gifts.

If you are just not able to even have them around for fear you may open them and eat the whole box, you have nothing to worry about. The Girl Scouts are also collecting boxes of cookies for our military men and women over seas.

That's right, you can purchase a box and leave it with the Troop and they will make sure your donation gets shipped over.

So, please, when you see the girls standing around outside of the stores. Or if one comes knocking on your door, please purchase a box or two.

Also, if you don't know of anyone selling cookies, I'm a leader so you can always contact me and I will make sure you either get your cookies or your donation is shipped off.

I LOVE ELLEN

One of the many great things about living in So. CA is that we can easily get tickets to shows like ELLEN.

Today is one of those days for me. Yes, I'm off to see a taping of the ELLEN show!

I've been many times before but, each time is so exciting. You never know who you will see or if you get a gift.

So far I've been lucky enough to get a TV, a satellite radio, DVDs and CDs. Once I even got to go for one of her 12 days of Christmas! I got over $2,000 in gifts.

You don't always get something though. That's ok too. Because, you are always in for a fun day.

I wonder what today will bring. Watch tomorrow to see today's taping!

DARLING CUPCAKE INVITATION

Look what I got in the mail yesterday! It's the cutest invitation I've ever gotten. A darling cupcake.

Look at the top and how it sparkles. Isn't that little "cherry" sweet.

Pull the cupcake out of the liner and you find all the party info.

My friend Sandra made these. She is the invitation Queen! I don't know how she comes up with such cute ideas all the time but she does.

Every year she holds a Valentine's Day party for her girlfriends (no guys allowed). We get together and have lunch, do a gift exchange and then we make cards and/or scrapbook.

It's always a fun time. Full of laughter and catching up with each other.

I'm so lucky to have such a great and creative friend. I always look forward to going to her parties.

FOR GOODNESS CAKES

There's a new place in town! A new cupcake shop that is! For Goodness Cakes opened up in Huntington Beach this week.

If you have been reading this blog for any length of time you know I'm a BIG cupcake lover and I love finding new shops to try out.

Being a baker myself, I'm pretty picky about my cupcakes. I've found more places that sell cupcakes that I don't like then I have found that I do like. Only a hand full of places that I would go back to again.

For Goodness Cakes falls in the last category. I will be going back here again... and again!

For Goodness Cakes is owned by three young men. All very nice!

The whole staff is great! Very welcoming and friendly.

I really like the lay out of For Goodness Cakes. The colors are red and a creamy gold color with touches of dark brown.

The feel of the place is homey and warm. A place you wouldn't mind hanging out at. The decor also isn't overly girly, so your guy won't mind being there either.

They have several different flavors of cupcakes. They have a Reese's Peanut Butter cupcake, Red Velvet, coconut, chocolate with both chocolate and white icing, white with both white and chocolate icing and a fun celebration cupcake that is a white cupcake with colored sprinkles and white icing with sprinkles. I'm sure the celebration is a BIG hit with the kids.

There is a counter area you can sit out to enjoy your cupcakes and coffee or soft drinks.

In case you wonder what time it is while you are For Goodness Cakes, just look at the wall with all the clocks and you will find It's Cupcake Time.

I think my favorite is the Red Velvet cupcake with Cream cheese icing and a cute red heart.

It's hard to pick which one you want. They all look good.

Not only do they look good, they taste GREAT!

I was thrilled to find a cupcake shop that is near to me with great cupcakes.



So, grab your cupcake and pull up a seat at the darling cupcake tables.

Or, you could sit back in these comfy chairs and relax while you enjoy every bite of your favorite cupcake.

No matter where you eat it, you will surely love it!

Another great thing about For Goodness Cakes is, it's right by Bella Terra Theatre. The Theatre is known for not letting you bring in outside food. However, For Goodness Cakes has reached an agreement with them to allow their cupcakes to be brought in.

Now doesn't that sound wonderful! A cupcake while you enjoy a great movie. Sounds like heaven to me!

So yes! I will be back to For Goodness Cakes for sure!

CALIFORNIA WINTER DAYS

It's been chilly here, mostly at night. We have had a lot of rain this winter. But, all in all, I have to say we have it pretty darn good here in CA.

I went to down to the Harbour in Oceanside and it was lovely. Like I said, a bit chilly but not bad.

I love going down by the beach in the winter. It's so peaceful and quiet.

Not many people are brave enough to go into the water during the winter so the life guard stations all get closed down for the season.

Going to the beach in the summer is so different. It's full of people, noise of everyone laughing and kids yelling with joy and it's full of life.

The winter brings on tranquil, almost melancholy feelings. It seems like the world is so large and you are so small.

Moss grows on the rocks in the winter. Not enough sun to really burn it off I guess.

The boat slips are full of the boats waiting to go out in the summer.

I love this picture of the man, alone with his dog.

A few surfers still can't give up the urge to ride the waves.

Foot prints that are left in the sand are those of flippers rather then bare feet.

A father and son are not fazed by the dip in temperature. They are just having fun exploring and searching for shells.

The beach in the winter can be a lonely place.

Even the boardwalk is empty.

But, it's still a great place to go grab a bite to eat. No waiting in lines.

What could be better then a plate of Nachos, sitting outside, watching the world go by in the middle of winter.

Yes, we have it pretty good here in CA.

While the snow is beautiful and can provide lots of fun times, I think I'll stick with the CA winters.