Happy 4th Birthday Reef - You are awesome.
Showing posts with label Photo History. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Photo History. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 6, 2017
Happy Birthday Reef
Opa asked Reefy yesterday how old he was. Reef Indy answered, "Still Three!"
Happy 4th Birthday Reef - You are awesome.
Happy 4th Birthday Reef - You are awesome.
Friday, August 25, 2017
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
Sunday, August 13, 2017
Family Camping - Lake Hemet
Photos from our weekend:
Thursday, August 3, 2017
Monday, July 24, 2017
Thursday, June 8, 2017
Liberty Public Market (#LibertyPublicMarket)
By Stacey Kuhns
Well Worth a Visit
On Sunday, June 4, my boyfriend and I decided to check out Liberty Public Market. I had heard many good things about it and my kids gave it great reviews. My boyfriend was very curious about it as he went to Boot Camp at Liberty Station many years ago. He said it looks very different now. (I bet it does).
It is definitely a busy place so be prepared for a lot of traffic. Located at 2820 Historic Decatur Road, San Diego, 92106. The facility is open from 11am to 8pm. They also have a Farmer's Market on Thursdays.
We had a bit of difficulty locating the entrance as all we saw when we drove in were restaurants with lines in front of them. We began walking around and most of the galleries and stores were closed on Sunday, which was disappointing.
There are stores and a women's museum around the perimeter of the grounds (large grassy areas, fountain, sand area for kids to play in). The grounds are beautiful though and many families were walking around with their children and everyone seemed to be having a good time. I think we were too early and the reason we could not find the place itself was because it was not opened yet. We finally found it!
I found the hallways to get into the main area to be dark and dingy. There were kiosk vendors in the hallways and they were getting very little business from what I observed. The area with the food vendors is well lit and there is a "mess hall" where you can take your purchased items and sit and eat.
It gets very crowded so my boyfriend and I found a table in the dark hallway outside Parana (an empanada vendor). We purchased three empanadas (small). I thought it was cool that the flavor of the empanada is stamped into the dough with initials. The empanadas did not taste homemade and I would not purchase them again. It appeared they were pulling them out of a refrigerator or freezer and putting them into an oven already made.
My boyfriend bought a roast beef roll from the Roast Meat and Sandwich shop. He loved it. He bought me a lobster roll from Wicked Main Lobster, which was excellent. I got the traditional style and it was just loads of wonderful lobster meat and not much else, just the way I like it. They were so busy, they were giving people buzzers to come back and pick up their food when it was ready. (Difficult to get good pictures because it was so dark in the hallway).
We purchased some fresh ravioli, from Pasta Design, to take home and cook (chef's special, which was chipotle chicken and also a bacon/mozzarella one). I made a homemade marinara sauce and the bacon ravioli was my favorite. Delicious. They package the pasta in nice boxes. It lasts two days in the fridge or a month in the freezer. Cook in boiling salted water for approximately one minute in a large pot (so they do not stick together).
When you go to Liberty Market, be prepared. Everything is pricey. There are healthy options, such as a salad place to the not so healthy fare, such as sweet treats.
We purchased several items from Crafted Baked Goods. All wonderful. (And yes, there is a bite taken out of the "brookie"). LOL.
These three items set us back $16! There is also a fish market (very expensive). You can purchase live prawns and sea urchin.
All in all, I am not sure I would return to Liberty Public Market. The aisles are very small and with the crowds it is difficult to navigate through everything. I was underwhelmed with the selection of eateries and was expecting more of a variety of ethnic foods to try.
Some skylights in the hallways would be a welcome addition. Also, for us, the expense was a once in a blue moon splurge. I almost forgot to mention the proximity of the Liberty Public Market to the airport. If you are dining outside or just walking around outside, the constant air traffic is quite noisy. Overall, I would say "meh."
Saturday, May 27, 2017
Ryan Blaney Wins the Hisense 4K TV 300
NASCAR Race Mom Celebrates In Victory Lane
After a couple of weeks off, the Xfinity series took the track for the Hisense 4K TV 300 (#Hisense4kTV300) today. The teams only had two practice sessions on May 25th and qualified at 10:00 a.m. today. Justin Allgaier captured pole, while our guy, Denny Hamlin in his #20 Hisense Toyota would take the green flag from eighth. Denny delivered a fifth place finish.
Thanks to my hosts, Hisence, NASCAR Race Mom had unlimited access to this two hundred lap race. Unfortunately, NRM is too tired to properly blog this event tonight (more to come later). Therefore, the Instagram posts below will summarize the day for now.
Related Posts:
- About the Fallen Heroes on the JGR Cars at Charlotte
- Army Spc. James "Jimmy" Beckstrand : Remembering Their Names
- Will Your Favorite #NASCAR Driver be Part of the 2017 Chase?
- Its a Wrap on the 23rd Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America #KPCharityRide
- The Big Meet & Greet With Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Thursday, May 25, 2017
Reef Enjoying his Swim Lessons
Reef Indy has come a long way in learning this essential life skill
Monday, May 22, 2017
San Diego Botanical Gardens
A Place for All Ages
Last month, my boyfriend and I visited the San Diego Botanical Gardens. I have been there a number of times over the years, but this was his first time there.
The botanical gardens are located at 230 Quail Gardens Drive, in Encinitas, right off the Encinitas Blvd. exit from I-5. They are open daily from 9a.m. to 5p.m. and the cost is $14 for adults, $10 for seniors, students, and active military, and $8 for children 3-12. Members and children under 2 are free. Parking is $2.
On the first Tuesday of the month, San Diego County residents get in free but still must pay the $2 parking fee. The parking fee is waived if you have 4 or more people in your car.
I would advise bringing a hat or wearing sunscreen, especially on those hot days. Also, bring snacks and water as there is only one kiosk near the visitor's center and gift shop (yes, they do sell plants). There are a limited number of picnic tables available and you are welcome to bring a picnic. There are no restaurants on site but plenty in the surrounding Encinitas area. The botanical gardens cover 37 acres and most of it is easy walking. Of course, different times of the year, you will see different plants in bloom.
You may even catch sight of a smiling dragonfly.
There are a number of gardens containing plants from around the world. There is even a bamboo garden where bamboo is harvested by San Diego Zoo staff for their pandas. The cacti all over the area were in full bloom and flowers were abundant so this is a great time of year to visit. There is also a children's garden that has an edible plant garden and lots of interactive activities for the kids, including some climbing structures.
There is also a garden area that has sculptures made out of plants.
There are certain places within the gardens where you can see the ocean. There is also an area that has a fairly tall waterfall. There were lots of different kinds of butterflies and birds flying around. There are great places to just sit and relax and enjoy the scenery. Many of the plants don't look so exciting on the outside, but if you lean over and look inside, they are magical.
There are plenty of docents and volunteers around to answer questions or show you special plants. We had a volunteer show us a cucumber thistle. They were trying to get rid of a lot of them as it is an invasive plant, but she let us hold one and look inside and touch one of the seeds. It was very cool.
All in all, a very interesting place to visit any time of the year.
Sunday, May 7, 2017
Fun Grandson Day
Sunday, March 19, 2017
Mission San Juan Capistrano On A Sunny California Work Day
Mission San Juan Capistrano was founded on November 1, 1776. It celebrated 240 years on November 1, 2016!
When somebody hit the power pole down the street from my friend Veronika’s place of business, she took the opportunity to take a mental health day since they had no power in the office. She took her bike to the Mission in San Juan Capistrano… teasing me with the photos below.
Mission San Juan Capistrano was named after an Italian saint. St. Giovanni da Capistrano (John of Capistrano in English) was born in 1386. Through most of his early adult years, he lived a secular life outside the church. He attended law school, and became a magistrate, and then a governor over Perugia in 1416. Only a few years after becoming governor war broke out in his land. He was assigned as an ambassador of peace to Malatesta, but when he arrived, they threw him in prison. While he spent time in prison, he began to think more about spiritual matters.
Eventually, he decided to give up all material things, and surrender his life to serving God by joining the Franciscan Order. Upon taking the vows of service, John spent time learning theology and the art of preaching. After receiving his priesthood, he traveled all over Italy, Germany, Bohemia, Austria, Hungary, Poland, and Russia preaching forgiveness and penance. On his journeys, he preached to great crowds.
It was said that when John entered a town to preach all business stopped. The people of the community dropped all that they were doing to hear him speak. Catholic administers also highly valued John’s passion and energy in reforming the church. He was sent all over Europe by the Pope and other important leaders to continue positive changes.
While in Frankfurt, Germany in 1454, he was asked to give advice about the crusade against the Turks. Not only did he provided insight into the upcoming battle, he joined it! John accompanied the famous Hunyady throughout the campaign: he was present at the battle of Belgrade, and led the left wing of the Christian army against the Turks. Soon after battling the Turks, John caught the deadly bubonic plague and died on October 23, 1456. John was beatified in 1694, and canonized as a saint in 1724.
Mission San Juan Capistrano is known worldwide for the Cliff Swallows return each year. Father John O’Sullivan started the legend and celebration of the Cliff Swallows in the early 20th century. Cliff Swallows migrate from South America to North America in the spring and summer for breeding. Although San Juan’s legend claims these migrating birds return promptly on March 19th it is silly to assume this true. Cliff Swallows are wild animals and migrate according to weather patterns; therefore, do not always return the exact day each year.
Saturday, March 18, 2017
Anza Borrego Desert Bloom
By Stacey Kuhns
Ed Miner and I decided we were going to drive to the desert to see the amazing blooms everyone was talking about. We left Henson (Service Dog) at his favorite place (day care) at 7 a.m. and took off for Anza Borrego.
Would we ever do it again? Hell no! The drive is pretty, especially since everything is so green now. We got to Borrego and stopped on the side of the road to check out some flowers. They were pretty but definitely not the massive bloom everyone was talking about.
Would we ever do it again? Hell no! The drive is pretty, especially since everything is so green now. We got to Borrego and stopped on the side of the road to check out some flowers. They were pretty but definitely not the massive bloom everyone was talking about.
When we got to the intersection to turn into the Visitor's Center, we knew this was probably a mistake. They had all their rangers out on the roads trying to control the crowds and answer questions. We were allowed to drive up to the Visitor's Center, since I am disabled, so Ed could drop me off but the rangers were pretty mean and would not let him turn into the parking lot. They said it was full. So, he dropped me off and went to go park (over a quarter of a mile away). I was pissed because when I walked into the parking lot, there was plenty of parking and Handicapped parking spots available.
I called Ed and told him to turn around but he said there was no way he could as it was a nightmare with all the cars. I sat in the shade at the center and listened to a volunteer talk about where the best blooms were (3 times through the talk before Ed was able to get back to find me). It was very very hot (I do not do sun and heat well at all).
We decided to go right to one of the areas they recommended seeing so we had to hoof it back to the car. It was a very long way for me and I was having a difficult time. When we got back to the car, the line of traffic on the road leading to the Visitor's Center was insane. Luckily, we were heading in a different direction. We made it to the place they recommended (Henderson Canyon Road). We were pretty underwhelmed. (You have to either stay in the desert or know the exact time to get there to see the best bloom. Otherwise, within a few days, the heat and caterpillars have decimated the flowers).
It was pretty, don't get me wrong, but no variety of color (other than yellow and white) and it was sparse. If you take a picture looking out over the desert, it looks beautiful, but if you look down, it is pretty sparse. Anyway, we stayed for a bit. Glad I packed water, sandwiches and apples because the few restaurants and food cart places were jammed.
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