Napa Valley

 Yesterday we enjoyed a beautiful drive through Napa Valley.  It was warm with the famous California blue skies...I just loved it.  We don't drink wine but had fun taking in the beauty of all the wineries.

 All you have to do is drive around...it's amazing!!!

 All this is only an hour and a half from my house.  I think we will be going back.

University Of California - Berkeley

This weekend we enjoyed being together and hanging out in summer weather over in Berkeley.  Berkeley is absolutely beautiful!!!  Look at the buildings.

 The campus has lots of trail winding through redwood trees.  I just loved it.

 We enjoyed some college baseball...Cal/Utah.

 There is my sweet Madi sitting on the grass.  It was so hot.  We all got quite a bit of sun.

 My little Georgia Bulldogs were dressed as California Bears for the day.

 Saturday was California's Spring Football game.  We don't know a lot of there players but Steve and the kids like #8.

 It was a good game...21-20.

Now this guy is who we have been wanting to see.  It's Avery.  Remember when we were renting out house in Georgia out and Avery's parents came to look at it.  Avery was born in Ohio but spent many years in Georgia.  He was recruited by LSU, Michigan, Tennessee, Stanford, Cal and a few others and he picked Cal.  Steve use to watch Avery play in High School when we lived in Georgia. Avery went to Union Grove and ELCA in Henry Co. So we have really been looking forward to meeting up with this Bear.  He is such a nice kid.  We were all giggling that they may look like Bears on the outside but they bleed red and black.

Frankfurt, San Francisco, Seoul

When I put away our Easter decorations I enjoyed setting out some things in a new way on the furniture under the tv.  

Before moving here I knew I wanted to hang clocks with different times ticking from places we have lived.  Both kids were born in St. Louis.  We were stationed at Scott AFB for 2.5 years just long enough for me two pop out our two kiddos.  But when Madi was 6 weeks old we left for Germany.  Last summer we moved here to CA from Seoul, Korea.  I wanted to label the clocks with cities that the kids have lived near or in.  I am so thrilled over the way they turned out.   

Ben and Steve lucked out finding $10 tickets to the Sacramento Kings/OKC Thunder so they are out enjoying some NBA tonight.  Madi and I enjoyed staying home cleaning up the house and watching movies.

Follow Your Nose To The Stinking Rose

WE WENT TO THE STINKING ROSE!!! I have been wanting to go there so bad. It's a garlic restaurant located in the North Beach (Little Italy) area of San Francisco.

90% of garlic is grown right here in California. Christopher Ranch is the largest producer of garlic too. I buy everything Christopher Ranch...all kinds of garlic and pesto. Christopher Ranch is located in the valley just a few hours south of me in Gilroy. I want to go to Gilroy in July for the Garlic Festival. So it's Christopher Ranch who supplies the 3,000 pounds of garlic used each month to The Stinking Rose. See the connection?

We wanted to make sure we found The Stinking Rose and Parking before our reservations...we found it easy and got easy parking too. So we walked around parts of China Town and Little Italy.




Mr. Garlic?

This was the most fun place to eat.

If you are in San Francisco I highly recommend The Stinking Rose. All you have to do is follow your nose to The Stinking Rose!

The Golden Gate Bridge

Steve and I had a great time. You know the is a such thing as family romance. We had a wonderful weekend being together as a family. While we were walking around the Golden Gate Bridge and talking Steve and I both agreed that the Golden Gate Bridge just might be our favorite American Landmark. This family photo was taken on Ft. Baker just north below the Golden Gate.

We drove to the Golden Gate coming down from the north on 101 so we had to park on the west side of the bridge. I have been to the Golden Gate more than a dozen times and I have never parked on the west side before. So to get to the walking lane going across the bridge we had to follow a little trail under the bridge. It's weird under there, loud and you can see straight down.






Steve and I enjoyed walking across the bridge with Ben and Madi rode their scooters. It was so fun.

After we walked across the bridge we drove up Marin Highlands to enjoy a different view of the Bridge and San Francisco. We saw The Karate Kid up there.

OMGosh....Steve totally embarrassed the kids...he brought his Georgia flag. It was SOOOOO funny. The kids wouldn't even get out of the van. Like they are any better. They were in the van yelling BBQ sandwiches at us. Steve reminds of a dog...he is marking his spot with his Georgia flag...I guess people do this all around the world. I remember in Iraq they did it.

Sausalito, California

Yesterday was my birthday. Steve is so nice. He came up with this plan to go spend my birthday weekend in the San Francisco Bay. I LOVE San Francisco!!! Our hotel was on the N. side of the Golden Gate Bridge in the town a few miles north on 101...Sausalito. This is where George Lucas (Star Wars) lives. MMM can't you tell why...look at this place. I think this may be the most beautiful town I have been to. We walked down the city streets and enjoyed eating along the way.

Sausalito over looks the San Francisco Bay and to the south it San Francisco. Here we are in Sausalito and you can see the city of San Francisco out there and the Bay Bridge, Alcatraz and Treasure Island.

Check out the view looking down the main street. See our van parked on the right side. The blue van under the green light. I think that's funny.

I thought Boston Harbor had a lot of sailboats...Sausalito might have more. I have a feeling Sausalito hasn't seen the last of this family.

My New Set Of Wheels

Why YES, that beautiful set of aqua wheels are mine. And yes, that is our California house...the one with the Georgia flag waving out front.

Yellow!

Yesterday I was suppose to go over to the coast to see my friend Susy. She flew from Ohio with two other friends to run 30K and 50K runs in the Redwoods over there. Well Northern California has gotten slammed with three storms over the past week. So things around my house are flooded. Did you know Sacramento is the most likely city to flood behind New Orleans. So with all the flooding and more to come I didn't get a chance to catch up with my dear friend...so I went shopping locally. The adorable yellow purse I picked up at the BX a few months ago but yesterday I scored big with yellow sandals.

Look at these flood waters I had to drive through yesterday. I have never done anything like it before. There was not a river nearby so I went for and almost got stuck. I am not ever doing that again!!!

Kings/Jazz

My kids are spoiled...they have been to more NBA games than most adults. The other night Ben, Madi, their whole basketball team and all the other kids who play basketball in Northern California at the YMCA went all dressed in their Jr. Kings shirts. So we are making our way around to see some of the NBA's best. Once in Orlando Steve and Ben saw D-Wade, in Atlanta during a playoff game we saw Le Bron James and now here in California we saw Kobe Bryant. Now my family is on a Jeramy Lin hunt. Steve did go over and enjoyed a game in Oakland...Golden State/Portland too.
Oh and look at me. For not being very fashionable I did good getting fixed up for the game. I scrounged around in my scarf drawer and pulled out my Burberry scarf and then grabbed my pretty Burberry purse...IT WAS FUN!

Court Of Dreams 2012

Ben and Madi are smack in the middle of their basketball season. They are on the same 4th-6th grade team. Earlier this month the YMCA and the NBA had an evening called Court Of Dreams. The kids got to go have a basketball practice with their team on an NBA court...the Sacramento Kings Arena. This is the same place a month before we saw the Lakers play. My kids thought they were IT!!! During practice Ben made 3 3 point shots...all in a minute on that huge NBA court...he WOWED everyone watching and people are still talking about him. Madi does so well hanging with all these middle school boys. She is a really good ball player! The older boys cheer her on and pass her the ball. Check out our girl in this photo...OFF THE GROUND. We are very grateful for such a wonderful experience...Court Of Dreams. It's so fun to see how awesome people make things for kids.

The Lakers AND Harlem Globetrotters

We loved living in Korea but are happy to be back to the USA...the land of sports. And boy are we glad the NBA finally stopped their strike and started playing!!! We live so very close to the Kings Arena that we want to take advantage of it. We made our way into that Kings/Lakers sellout. Steve took this picture. Look at Jimmer off the ground and being guarded by Kobe. Boy was it LOUD and full of electricity in there!

Kings did beat the Lakers.

Me and the kids...the only picture of us in the arena.

A few years ago I took the kids to see the Harlem Globetrotters when we were stationed in Atlanta but Steve was in Iraq and missed it. So when they came to Sacramento the kids begged to go. Well if you have ever seen them you know how fun it is, so we went again.

We had great seats...row F. Six rows up from the court. When the did they did the water throwing act we got wet.

This is me on the day we went to see the Harlem Globetrotters. I like to wear black...most days. I am not very good at fashion but that day I had on jeans with a black sweater and a necklace that was the same color blue as my jeans and I loved it. I like this picture...I look skinny don't I? I am so not skinny. I wish. It's so hard for me. But I have started working really hard on it. My goal this year is to work very hard on myself. In 2009 I ran in that half marathon. Now I don't know if I want to do that again...that was REALLY REALLY hard. But I want to get healthier which I hope will help me loose weight and I want to become more fashionable.