Yellow Beach Dog

Happy Valentine's Day & Dog Biscuits

2011-02-13T20:06:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Today my Mom and I are taking two 90-year-old ladies (Marie & Jeri) to an ice cream parlor for Valentine's Day! I can't wait to see their faces when their sundaes arrive ... the sundaes at this parlor are HUGE!!!

My friend/co-worker has an adorable little beagle named Roxy. Last Monday, Roxy got really sick ... she couldn't stand (her front legs were not working) and she kept falling over when they would try to stand her up. The vet didn't know what was wrong but gave Roxy a cortisone shot and told my friend to wait two days and then start giving Roxy baby aspirin. He thought it could be a stroke or blood clot. Anyways, things did not look good for Roxy. So that day I decided to make some homemade peanut butter dog biscuits for Roxy (of course, Finn got some too!!). I took them to work and my friend took them home to Roxy and lo and behold ... Roxy is completely better now!!! My friend told me I should market my dog biscuits as "healing biscuits"!! :-) Hooray for Roxy!! So glad she got better.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

2010-12-25T12:31:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas to all my blog friends! There has been a lot of stuff going on at Yellow Beach Dog that has prevented me from blogging. I will share with you in the next week or so. I took just a couple pictures of Christmas around my house ... (and please don't forget to click on the picture to get the complete photo):

First up ... this really cool old cardboard store sign from the 40s!

And a picture of one of my three brothers and me on Santa's lap ... circa 1961 ...

And here is Fletcher wishing everyone a Merry Christmas! Doesn't he look thrilled???!!!!

THE DOG DAYS OF SUMMER

2010-08-28T15:41:00.000-07:00

It's just the dog days of summer at my home ... lazying the days away!

A 90TH BIRTHDAY PARTY

2010-07-12T10:38:00.000-07:00

Well, how fun is this??? I was invited to a 90th birthday party! The birthday girl's name is Marie. She has been a family friend for many years. My mom and I drop by her house every once in a while to visit with her and bring her chocolate ... which she loves! I love going to her house, especially at Christmastime. She has lived in this cute, tiny house for over 45 years and she has all these fun, vintage knick-knacks that I love looking at. Anyways, for her birthday, I got Marie a pretty pink duster. Out of all the 40 guests, I was the only one that got her something like this. Most everyone got her a yard animal, which as you can see in one of the photos below, she loves!! But I think she also really liked the duster!! :-) Please remember to click on the photo for the full size. I still have not figured out why my pictures are always cut off on the right side!

The Birthday Girl

The Gift

Some chocolate (homemade Peanut Butter Balls - yum!)

The food made by her family - it was wonderful!

Some of the yard animals in Marie's yard

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!

2010-07-03T09:46:00.001-07:00

A SQUIRREL'S LIFE!

2010-06-27T15:22:00.000-07:00

I just had to share with you what I saw in one hour's time of sitting in my backyard. First of all, I love feeding birds and squirrels in my yard!! And I usually don't mind when a squirrel eats the bird food; however, as you will see by these photos ... enough is enough!! So without further ado ... this is one hour of a squirrel's life in my yard ...

First off, he is seen eating in his own feeder ... (good boy!) ...

But wait ... there he is eating out of the bird feeder ...

Oh no, here he is eating out of another bird feeder ...

Oh my ... and here he is again eating out of yet another bird feeder ...

Oh finally! This is one feeder he couldn't get to ... see the finches eating?

Last night I was sitting in the family room and my husband points out the window to the squirrel feeder ... guess what was eating out of it? A rat!!! Isn't that just about the most disgusting thing?? I will have to find a way to get rid of that rat because I am NOT going to start feeding rats in my yard!!! LOL

Remember this?

Well, I added two baskets (painted them green) and then just put a couple of rolled up bath towels in the divided part on the bottom - wouldn't this be cute in a bathroom? I could see it full of rolled up green and white polka dotted towels!!!!

Oh, before I go ... a picture of Finn ... he is now almost 4 months old and very active!!! We just bought him a bubble machine at Target today .. he's not sure what to do with the bubbles! :-)

A TRIP TO THE CITY

2010-06-15T07:38:00.000-07:00

Remember me???!!! Sorry I have been so invisible but it's called ... HAVING A PUPPY!!! Boy, they really do take up a lot of your time ... but I finally see light at the end of the tunnel ... Finn is now 3 1/2 months old and kind of potty trained. He weighed in at his vet visit yesterday and he is now 32 pounds!!! He's a big boy!

Guess what fun thing I did a couple weeks ago with my son, his friend and my nephew? Well, it involved being in bumper-to-bumper traffic trying to get onto the Bay Bridge ...

Then we finally got onto the bridge ...

See the SF skyline? If you look to your right (have to click on the photo) you can barely make out the Golden Gate Bridge ...

And we ended up here!

And what a great play WICKED is! Loved it! It was playing at the Orpheum Theater ... which was built in the 1920's. Very cool place!

I have also been getting ready for the next opening at the Room. I got this old record cabinet (it was an ugly brown ... forgot to take the before photo) at a local thrift store for just $4. And I have a pretty cool idea of what it can be used for ... wait and see!!!!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ME!!!

2010-05-09T16:15:00.001-07:00

Did anyone besides Jan at Little Pink Houses guess what my cute and cuddly Mother's Day gift to myself is? I guess not since Jan is the only one that commented ... and she wins! She was right ... I'm adopting ... a brand new 8-week-old Yellow Lab and here he is (with my son):

And now by himself ...

His name is Finn. Isn't he cute? He has so much skin that he needs to grow into ... almost looks like a Sharpei (did I spell that right?)!

Happy Mother's Day to all!

P.S. And here is what Jan has won - something fun from Yankee Candle! I won't be mailing her gift since I will be seeing her next week! :-)

WEEKEND GARAGE SALES

2010-04-26T09:45:00.000-07:00

The weather here in Nor Cal was PERFECT this weekend ... perfect for garage saling (is that a word??!!), which is exactly what I did early Saturday morning. I picked up my Mom and Aunt and off we went! And look at what I got for a mere total of $30 ... (don't forget to click on the pics to see the whole photo)

And here is a close up of the monkey jar ...

What do you think this is? Everyone says a cookie jar but it isn't that big. If you had a huge hard, it would get stuck inside while you were getting a cookie. It's a strange jar, to say the least!

After hitting the garage sales, I attended a Ladies Tea at my church. An old friend/co-worker and I went together to the Tea. It was nice. But I didn't take any pics. Sorry!

And I may have a surprise to post about soon!!! I may be getting something new soon ... if anyone can guess what it is, I will send you a fun surprise in the mail! All I will tell you is that is it REALLY, REALLY cute & adorable! And it's my Mother's Day gift to myself!!!!

OATMEAL FUDGE BARS

2010-04-11T10:00:00.000-07:00

You definitely need these!!!!

These few easy steps ....

Turns into this ...

YUMMY!!!!

Oatmeal Fudge Bars

1/2 cup shortening

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1/2 tsp. vanilla

3/4 cup flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

2 cups quick cook oats

6 oz. chocolate chips

2 Tbsp. butter

1/3 cup condensed milk or cream*

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla

Cream together shortening, brown sugar, egg, 1/2

tsp. vanilla; blend in flour, soda, 1/2 tsp. salt and

oats. Reserve one cup of mixture for topping.

Press remainder into greased 9x13 pan.

Combine chocolate chips, butter condensed milk,

1/4 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. vanilla in small saucepan.

Melt together until chips are melted. Spread over

oatmeal layer and sprinkle with reserved oatmeal

mixture. Bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees.

*If using cream, only use 1/4 cup cream.

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY

2010-03-17T06:59:00.000-07:00

Here's is what we had for breakfast in the Yellow Beach Dog household ...

Green Eggs & Ham ... and Green Milk, of course!

Don't forget to wear green today!

MY FIRST AWARD

2010-03-16T21:40:00.001-07:00

Well, isn't this fun? I was awarded my very first blog award (Beautiful Blogger) by Musings of a Sea Witch ... http://musingsofaseawitch.blogspot.com. Thank you very much!

I'm still pretty new to all of this blog stuff so I am not sure I will print everyone's blog address correctly. Okay ... here goes ... I need to list seven facts about me and then also list 13 (way too many ... I'll do as much as I can though) blogs that I like.

1. I have never watched American Idol.

2. I don't like when women talk about their kids constantly or when they are so into their kids' lives, they have nothing to talk about with their own adult friends.

3. At the time I graduated from Business school, I was typing 100 wpm.

4. Even though I was a total tomboy and grew up with three older brothers and lots of male cousins, I have never broken any bones or ever had to get stitches.

5. I am ADDICTED to Chapstick and hand cream. I never the leave the house without those two items. They are more important than my AmerEx card!! LOL

6. I am a germophobic ... which is why I will never lean my head back onto a theater seat or try on a hat in the store and I wash my hands all the time.

7. I do not like any reality tv shows ... I figure life has enough drama already!

Okay ... now for a few of the blogs I enjoy:

http://www.chocolateandmarmaladetea.blogspot.com/

http://pupylov.blogspot.com/

http://thimbleanna.com/

And now I am off to let these three ladies know that I have awarded them the

Beautiful Blogger award.

SPRING IS ALMOST HERE!

2010-03-09T12:59:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been a while since I have blogged. I have been so busy with my new venture (renting a space at a local shop), work, planning my son's birthday party (he has invited 25 kids!), etc. Sorry to have neglected you.

It looks like spring is almost here! The weather around my neck of the woods has been really different ... yesterday it was hailing (we don't get much hail) ...

And today it's sunny and things are starting to bloom ...

I was able to go to an Estate Sale before it was opened to the public.

Here's what I picked up ...

Sooner or later I will probably sell one or more of these items in my space.

Have a great week!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

2010-02-14T06:48:00.001-08:00

SOME EXCITING NEWS!!

2010-02-08T10:36:00.000-08:00

I have some exciting news! I just this past week rented a small space at a local shop here in my area. This is the coolest store! If you live in the SF Bay Area, you may want to check it out. It's called Room With A Past and it's only open 4 days a month (check out their website roomwithapast.com)! It's in a warehouse and they rent out space to people like me! The owner, Susan, is such a sweet gal! And we sell all kinds of vintage, whimsical, fun things! I am starting out small ... just renting a baker's rack in one of the hallway areas and I have the little bit of wall space next to it. I just went yesteday and fixed it all up ... what do you think? (Don't forget to click on the photo so you can see it all):

I still need to add some sets of the baby hangers I make ... remember these?

What do you think a fair price would be for a set of four? I thought $20. Too much? Too little? I'm really not even sure $20 covers the cost of my supplies and time. I will have to check that out sometime. I would love your input!

I have always wanted to open an antique/bookstore when we retire, so this first step in that direction is a very fun thing for me. Who knows? Maybe I will just rent from someone else and have my little "shop" right within their walls. The next Room With A Past sale is February 18-21. I hope I do well!

And now ... let me propose a toast to my new business endeavor ... let's all raise our coffee cups ...

Won't You Join Me For Coffee?

2010-01-25T14:43:00.001-08:00

Please join me for coffee and fresh Cherry Chocolate Cake on this rainy afternoon here in California.

Cherry Chocolate Cake

1 box of Chocolate Cake Mix

Oil

Eggs

1 can Cherry Pie Filling

1 tsp. vanilla

Mix cake mix according to package instructions -

omitting the water and adding one extra

extra egg. Then add one can cherry pie filling

and 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Bake

according to back of box.

When cool, frost with Betty Crocker Milk

Chocolate Frosting or do like I did and

make your own from the back of the

Unsweetened Cocoa container (Yum!).

BAD, BAD WEATHER

2010-01-22T09:06:00.000-08:00

Oh my goodness ... look what the horrible rain and wind did to our backyard ...

This happened at 7:50 a.m. on Wednesday morning ... just as I was getting ready to go to work. I won't even go into the long story of what I did when this happened, but let's just say it ended with me having a huge bruise on my leg and hand and my coat was muddy and wet! LOL!! We had already talked to our neighbors the day before and knew the fence was falling, but I had hoped it would fall into their yard because when it fell over into mine, it crushed all of the bamboo plants I have been lovingly tending to for the last two years! But here it is that evening after hubby got some new posts and started to fix it ...

My bamboo made it through safely!! YEAH!!! We have been having horrible winds and rain here for the last week. I know the weather could be much worse but for us, this is as bad as it gets and it's bad ... mudslides, flooding, etc. Thankfully all we had was the fence. One bright spot ... maybe after all this rain, they will take us off water rationing!!! Stay tuned for a giveaway soon ... woohoo!!!!

YUMMY COMFORT FOOD!

2010-01-16T09:34:00.000-08:00

There's been some cooking going on around here. Our weather has called for some comfort food and here's what I made:

Chicken Enchiladas

Here's what you need: Flour tortillas, shredded cheese (I used cheddar and Monterey Jack), Refried Beans, Sour Cream, Cream of Chicken soup (I used Cream of Mushroom this time because I didn't have the other), Enchilada Sauce (I love Trader Joe's bottled sauce), and diced, cooked chicken. First of all, mix the can of soup with about a cup of sour cream. I don't have a recipe for this so here goes: Use a 9x13" pan, put a little sauce in the bottom. Take each tortilla, put a dab of sauce on, put a spoonful of refried beans on the tortilla, then put a big spoonful of the soup mixture on top (spread around), then add some diced chicken and top with some cheese.

Roll it up and put it in the pan, seam side down. I could fit about 6 1/2 tortillas in a 9x13 pan. Once you have all the tortillas in the pan, pour the rest of the sauce over them, covering all. Then top with more cheese and cook uncovered in a 350 oven for about 35-40 minute ... just until hot and bubbly. YUM!!!! You could also put black olives on top but my family doesn't like them. I serve this with tortilla chips and sour cream!

I also made a Poppy Seed Cake -

This looks a bit funny on the platter but I guarentee you will LOVE. THIS. CAKE!!!! It is so moist and has a great flavor. Here is what you need:

Everything goes into a huge bowl ...

Mix it all together for five minutes (now is when I really love my Kitchen Aid!) ...

Pour it into a bundt pan that has been greased and coated with cinnamon & sugar ...

Bake for about 35-45 minutes in a 350 oven. Here is what it looks like right out of the oven ...

I let it cool a bit, then I turn it out onto a platter. My platter has a cover. Once covered, this stays moist for about 5 days just sitting on the counter. I did not have poppy seeds this time around, so I omitted them and it still tastes great! Actually I don't like the seeds as much because they get stuck in your teeth. Plus you better not eat too much of this cake with poppy seeds if you are having a drug test soon!! LOL

Poppy Seed Cake

1 box of yellow cake mix

4 eggs

1 small package of instant vanilla pudding

3/4 C. oil

1 C. cream sherry

2 Tblsp. of poppy seeds

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Mix all of the above together on medium speed for five minutes. Grease a bundt pan and mix 1 cup sugar with 1 tablespoon of cinnamon and use like flour on inside of greased bundt pan. Pour out excess. Pour cake batter into pan and bake in 350 oven for 35-45 minutes, until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean.

BABY, IT'S COLD OUTSIDE!

2010-01-09T10:18:00.000-08:00

I bet it's cold in your neck of the woods ... know why I know that? Because I think it's cold EVERYWHERE in the US right now. It's 45 degrees here right now, which is summer compared to what some of you are going through and really isn't too bad for us but in the mornings, it gets into the 30s and that's cold for us!

Well, looking back on my last post and my "goals" ... I haven't yet lost those 20 pounds (just two), I haven't started walking yet (too cold), I don't know how in the world my new Ipod works ... BUT I have listed some stuff on ETSY!! Hooray!!!! One for six is not too, too bad!!!!! LOL! If you get a chance, please check out my ETSY site ... my name on there is beachdog7 ... they won't let me change it to Yellow Beach Dog. Boohoo!!! Here is a link that you will need to copy and paste (by the way ... can anyone tell me how to make a link?): http://www.etsy.com/shop/beachdog7

Last Saturday, my Mom, son (Ty) and I took the train up to Old Sacramento. We met my brother, his wife and her son & his family up there. It takes just about an hour to get up there by train. It was a bit chilly but we had fun walking around. Here's a picture of our train station (Ty took this one) ... make sure you click on it because it's really a neat picture.

I haven't been doing a whole lot lately. My work is going to be getting busier from now until March so I will most likely be working a few more hours each week. I did get to my local quilt shop and bought a couple patterns. I found out they have a drop-in embroidery class on the third Monday of the month so I think I will go to that next Monday. I have been wanting to brush up on my embroidery skills so that I can make dishtowels for the ladies in my family for Christmas. I also just found out that my church is hosting a quilting & knitting class on Monday afternoons. I know how to quilt and knit, but I need to brush up on my knitting skills. So these classes will be perfect for me!

I've been wanting to re-arrange the books and things in my bookcases for a while. So I've kind of started working on that.

See those cute red, striped baskets? I got those at Target a couple days ago. Along with these cute glasses. And the red ceramic utensil holder.

The glasses come four to a pack and were on sale for just $8.99. I also got four very cool goldish wood frames for just $3 to $4 each ... they were on clearance.

Here is a close up picture of the top of the bookcases.

I have red berry garland, with some ivy garland intertwined, and then I have a garland of white plastic dove lights. I got these dove lights on clearance at a Christmas store in our mall about 10 years ago. I still have one box left that I have never put out. I just love them! And I've never seen anything like them before.

See ya soon!

A NEW YEAR ON THE HORIZON

2009-12-31T09:40:00.000-08:00

Another new year is on the horizon and at this point, my new calendar is blank. A. big. blank. slate!

I am amazed at how fast each year goes. I was talking to my boss the other day and I asked him if he made New Year's Resolutions. He does not ... and neither do I. It's funny how the majority of us see the new year as the time to make changes, when we can make those same changes when the sun comes up on each new day (I'm sort of one of those people) Each new day brings new possibilities ... get organized, start losing that last 20 pounds (me!!!), etc.

Although I do not make resolutions, I do make lists/goals. I am such a list person ... I write lists at home, at work, everywhere! I love having a long list and at the end of each day, most everything is crossed off. Satisfaction! On my list so far for the year is:

To blog at least every other day and to figure out how to make my blog look better with a cute header and background.
To organize that recipe cabinet (remember those pictures from an earlier post?).
To regularly sell on ETSY
I also want to become better at technical stuff .... like figuring out how to use the IPOD Shuffle my hubby got me for Christmas.
I want to be walking five miles a day by April.
And to just become a better person all around (this is definitely a daily process)!

Now see how I just made a list?? And just so we're all clear ... these are not resolutions ... they are goals!! LOL

I have been checking most of your blogs regularly and I sounds like everyone had a really nice Christmas. Mine was nice, too!! Big Christmas Eve dinner with whole family at my Mom's and then quieter/relaxing Christmas Day at home with hubby and son. I got a lot of gift cards and money ... love that!!!! I also got a nice bonus at work! Yippee!!!!

I have to show you what I got with some birthday money that I still had from October. Isn't this too cute? And unusual ... I've never seen another one ...

It is a wood cookbook holder with two birds on either side. The birds look like big, fat quail (or partridges) to me. It's a fun item for my kitchen counter. Everyone have a safe New Year's tonight!!! See you in 2010! :-)

IT'S CHRISTMAS EVE AT YELLOW BEACH DOG

2009-12-24T13:00:00.000-08:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! Hope all of your shopping is done ... mine is ... finally! Whew! Just finished up yesterday. My Christmas Brunch was very fun but alot of work. On the menu was: Holiday Chicken Salad on Croissants, Egg Salad on white bread, Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake, Yummy Breakfast Pastry, Chile Cheese Pinwheels (got this recipe off of My Romantic Home last week. Cindy made them for a party ... they are a winner!), and a very new recipe ... Artichoke Quiche. Everything was yummy! And I made chocolate dipped pretzel sticks tied with a ribbon and cookie cutter for all the ladies to take home as their memento of the day. I have also been doing so much baking ... sugar cookies, thumbprint cookies, peanut butter balls, Chocolate Christmas Bark, etc. Now all I have to do is make the lasagna for dinner tonight at my Mom's and for dessert ... The Pioneer Woman's Bread Pudding with Whiskey sauce. This is the BEST bread pudding I have ever had. I will leave you with some pictures of my Christmas Brunch (click on picture for full view).

THE WEEK BEFORE CHRISTMAS!!!

2009-12-16T07:01:00.000-08:00

Boy ... I have been so busy ... between work and getting ready for my brunch

on Saturday ... but I did take time to take some pics of my house all spruced

up for the holidays! And I wanted to stop in and say hi to all of you!! Thank you

to all of you that faithfully read my very insignificant blog! I feel as though we

are all friends! Here are the pics (don't forget ... if any is cut off, click on them

for a full view):

I love old Shiny Brite ornaments!! I have a ton of boxes of them!

I save vintage bottle brush trees ... here are a

few:

Here is one of my brothers and myself (I was

about 15 months old) on Santa's lap in 1961:

Here are all three of my brothers

(before I was born) on Santa's lap in the 50's:

This one you will definitely need to click

on for a full view -- I didn't want to take

too much of the right side of it because

that where our paper shredder is.

I mentioned in my last post that I had a

funny story about one of the brunch gifts

I gave to the girls. About 10 years ago,

I did a garden brunch and for the favor

for them to take home, I purchased herbs

and little terra cotta plants. I was going

to replant them into the little pots. Well,

my Dad was a master gardener and he

sweetly volunteered to replant them all

for me. Once he got them done,

he brought them by my house. I set

them on the entry table the morning

of the tea. Well, once the tea was over

and I start to let everyone take

their herb, we notice there are ants

everywhere ... in the plants, on the table,

everywhere! I found out my Dad had

used soil that he had outside that

had ants in it and he never even noticed.

My Dad has now been gone for 7 years

so this is just another one of those fond

memories that I have of him! :-)

Next post I will be sharing my brunch

photos and menu!!!

OH MY ... IT'S ALMOST DECEMBER!!!

2009-11-30T10:29:00.000-08:00

Can you all believe that it's December 1st tomorrow??? I hope everyone had a blessed Thanksgiving. Mine was nice ... most of my family (some could not make it) had dinner at my Mom's. She lives here in town close to me. I have officially started all of my Christmas decorating! I usually start the day after Thanksgiving. I am just about done with everything ... except we need to get the tree, which we will do sometime this week. Here are a few pictures. I will post lots more once I am all done!

Do you see the picture above? That's a cardboard Nativity set from the 40s. My Mom found it while she was working at the library doing book sorting. Isn't it cool? My hubby found Fletcher chewing on the star yesterday ... bad kitty!!!!

I think I told all of you that I was going to be hosting a Christmas Brunch in a few weeks? I love to give a brunch for my friends & cousins at least twice a year. I do not let them bring anything and they always go home very full and happy! And they always take away a little memory of the day ... in the past, they have left with: a metal bird, a vintage Christmas brooch, an potted herb (I have a funny story about this gift!), a vintage Christmas hanky, a teacup, and the list goes on. This is always my special gift to my special friends!! I like to pamper them for a day. This year, I am invited four friends and three of my cousins ... they have not all met but I really think they will get along fabulously!!! So ... anyhoo ... I am planning out the brunch menu and I go to my recipe cabinet and this is what I found:

Isn't that pathetic? I am actually a very organized person but apparently, each time I've used a recipe, I haven't put it back where it goes. It will be a miracle if I can find the recipes I am needing for the brunch. Wish me luck!!!! :-) Organizing this cabinet is first on my "To Do" list for the New Year!!!!

AND THE WINNER IS ...

2009-11-16T12:08:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday to everyone!! I had a good shopping weekend! I stopped by the store close to my home that is open just once a month and look at what I got ... (click on picture to see fully)

Everything was a steal ... I collect vintage bottle brush trees and one of these has fruit on it ... I don't have one like that. Aren't those napkin rings so cute??!! I got the silver platter, two metal flying reindeer, four (yes, four!) boxes of vintage Shiny Brite ornaments (all original boxes), a vintage Christmas corsage and some 1950s Gurley candles. I'm not sure yet what I will be keeping for myself or selling on eBay.

And now ... drum roll please ... the winner of the book and birds is ...

Michelle from Chocolate & Marmalade Tea!! Michelle's kitty's are pretty sick right now so if you could send up some kitty prayers, I know she would appreciate it!! Thank you to all of you that entered my giveaway and for all your nice comments. I hope you continue to visit me at Yellow Beach Dog!

IT'S A GIVEAWAY!!!

2009-11-09T11:23:00.000-08:00

Time for another giveaway! Cindy over at My Romantic Home is hosting it. Make sure you check out her blog to see who else is a part of the giveaway.

I'm giving away to one lucky winner a Mary Englebreit Gardening Journal, plus two cute wooden, hand-painted birds. To enter, just leave a comment. If you would like your name entered twice, please put a link on your blog telling about my giveaway. Let me know if you do this so I can put your name in the "hat" twice. :-) I will be picking the winner on Sunday evening, November 15. No entries after 6 p.m. PST Sunday.

HALLOWEEN AND SUGAR COOKIES!

2009-11-02T12:27:00.000-08:00

How was your Halloween? Did you stay home and pass out candy? Or go to a party? My hubby and I were wishing we had a party to go to but no one we knew was having one. Guess we should have had one! Well I got the pumpkin carved in the afternoon and all the goodie bags made up to hand out and waited for that first knock on the door!

I also made Sugar Cookies earlier in the day...pumpkins and cats. I iced one cat cookie in orange in honor of Fletcher! :-) Normally I ice these cookies with Betty Crocker Creamy Classic Vanilla Frosting but since I didn't have any, I made a frosting, which actually was better in that it hardened faster so I was able to stack the cookies easier. These are the BEST sugar cookies I have ever had. I got this recipe from one of my oldest and dearest friends. We have been friends since we were teens!

Here are a few more pictures of my porch and Fall decorating! See the cool yellow chair (you will have to click on the photo to see it)? I have three of those. I got them at a garage sale for $2 each ... can you believe that? Wasn't that a steal????!!!! I thought so!

SUGAR COOKIES

1 cup butter, softened

1 8 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 cups sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. almond extract

1 tsp. baking power

3 1/2 cups flour

Cream together butter and cream cheese. Add sugar and egg - blend. Add vanilla and almond extract - blend well. Mix in baking powder and flour. Refrigerate dough for at least 30 minutes. Mix a little flour and powered sugar together and spread on counter. Roll out dough on floured surface and cut into shapes. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Sugar Cookie Frosting

4 cups powered sugar

1/2 cup shortening

5 tablespoons milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

food coloring

Cream shortening in a large bowl. Add powered sugar and blend until smooth. Gradually add the milk and vanilla, mixing well until smooth and stiff ... about 5 minutes. Color with food coloring as desired. (I cut this recipe in half and had enough for all my cookies).

CLEANING HOUSE

2009-10-26T13:19:00.001-07:00

Guess who is helping me make my son's bed this morning?

You guessed it!

Happy Monday to you!

Yummy!! Caramel and Apples!!

2009-10-19T14:31:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday!! Right now it's pouring rain in my neck of the woods! Such strange weather ... all last week it was in the high 70s. Today it's raining; however, not really cold out though. We do need the rain in California! It just makes for a VERY LONG commute for hubby. He is working on a job about 1 1/2 from here ... in the rain, it will take him probably about 2 1/2 hours to get home this evening. Bay Area traffic is horrendous!!!! Bet you can't guess what I'm making with these ingredients:

Bet you thought it would be Caramel Apples, right? Nope ... Caramel Apple Crisp!! You should smell this cooking ... yum!!!

And for dinner tonight ... Barefoot Contessa's Chicken Stew with Biscuits ... perfect for rainy weather!

I just got done listing what seems like a hundred items on eBay ... actually it was about 16 items or so. Please take a look when you get a chance. My ebay name is YellowBeachDog7. Here is a link ... hope it will work!!

http://myworld.ebay.com/yellowbeachdog7/

I think you will have to copy and paste the above link. Once you get to that page, go to the left hand side and click on Items For Sale.

Here are a few pics of what I listed:

A cool old green recipe box

A pretty crystal relish dish/tray

Some fun old saucers

Have a great week everyone!!! Thank you to those of you that follow my Blog.

I really appreciate you all so much. And love to have you leave me a comment.

TIME FOR CROCK POT CHILI

2009-10-05T13:57:00.000-07:00

Well, it is finally a bit cooler here in the mornings and evenings ... but during the day still warm. At any rate, I made Chili today and served it up in my new Longaberger chili bowls and my Pumpkin Tureen. YUM!!! Just add a little cornbread and cheese & onions for toppings and you are good to go!

Brown the meat with the onions and garlic ...

Dump everything in the crockpot ...

It looks like this while it's cooking ...

Here are my Longaberger chili bowls (by the way, these things are wonderful!) ...

And my Pumpkin Soup Tureen filled with yummy chili ....

Dig in ...

Yellow Beach Dog's Chili

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef

1 clove garlic or Garlic Powder

1 large onion, chopped

1 1/2 tsp. salt

3 Tbsp. chili powder

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. dried basil

Dash of cloves

2 cans kidney beans, undrained

1 large can diced/crushed tomatoes

4 cups tomato juice (or less ... I find that it is just a little too runny with 4 cups - I think I would cut it down to 2 cups)

Brown ground beef with garlic and onions. Add remaining ingredients and put in crockpot on low for 6-8+ hours. Serve with cornbread and toppings of cheese & onions.

SHOW AND TELL FRIDAY

2009-10-02T06:32:00.000-07:00

It's Show & Tell Friday - compliments of Cindy over at My Romantic Home. And I thought I would join in!

Here is a picture of my very cool green cabinet!! Here is how I acquired this darling piece! There was a little store just a couple miles from my house called The Cottage. I had been going to this little store for over 15 years. I would get all my co-worker's gifts in this little store and stuff for my own house. I got to know the two owners pretty well. Then the one owner bought out the other owner and I got to know her even better. She would always talk to my son and ask him questions about his school, etc. It was such a pleasant experience to go to The Cottage. I just loved it!! And even my son would love to go see Sue at The Cottage. About three years ago, the shopping center where The Cottage was located did a major renovation and tripled everyone's rent so The Cottage had to close up. This cabinet had been part of their displays for as long as I could remember and when they were closing up, I asked about purchasing it. It wasn't cheap but I am SO glad I bought it! I would love to someday have a kitchen big enough to use it there but for now, it is in the living room, just inside the entryway. I have it filled with dishes and whatnot ... including my grandmother's red scalloped bowls, my other grandmother's jadeite kitchen range set and an old piano jewelry box that I got from my three brothers on my 8th birthday. The top has a couple of metal picnic baskets and some old quilts (and a new one that I just finished), and the bottom has dog toys in one cubby and cat toys in the other cubby. The middle cubby is empty. There is chicken wire in the doors. The right side holds all my sewing and craft books. Don't forget to click on my pictures for a full view. Thank you for visiting Yellow Beach Dog!

IT'S FALL & TIME FOR POPPY SEED CAKE!

2009-09-28T12:29:00.000-07:00

Happy Fall! It's been a little hard getting into Fall since it has been in the 100s here in Northern California. Since today is a bit cooler, I have started my decorating. But before we take a peek at those pictures, I have sliced a piece of Poppy Seed Cake just for you (recipe at end of post)! We typically eat this cake for breakfast but of course, you can have it anytime. It is very good! (click on pictures for full view)

Hubby and I drove over to Point Richmond, a quaint little area right on the SF Bay. Here are some pics from the day:

Houses right on the water!

The marina surrounded by pretty condos.

A sailboat leaving the Harbor (SF is in the background).

A really cool area where you can take sailing lessons and then take a sailboat out on your own. Fun!!

We noticed this building while walking along the shoreline. These are old buildings from when they would use the pier for loading and unloading container ships. Now they are being renovated into restaurants and such. This building has not been renovated yet. Don't you just LOVE the old green rolling door? And check out those green lights? I would love to have a few of those old lights!

Wait until you see these next pictures! We stumbled upon this very interesting playground in Berkeley. It's called Adventure Playground and is consists of all donated wood, old boats, and stuff like that. The kids play on all this stuff and build things out of the wood, etc. As you can see, you have to pretty much sign your life away due to the liability. However, even with parents signing waivers, I'm still pretty surprised they have this type of thing. The kids all looked like they were having a blast! And the kicker?? It's been there for over 30 years!

Poppy Seed Cake

1 box yellow cake mix

4 eggs

1 small package instant vanilla pudding

3/4 C. oil

1 C. cream sherry

2 Tbsp. poppy seeds

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

Mix all the above together with electric mixer on medium speed for 5 minutes. Grease a bundt pan and mix 1 Cup sugar with 1 Tbsp. cinnamon and use like flour on inside of greased bundt pan - pour excess out. Pour cake batter into pan and bake at 350 for 35-45 minutes. I have also made this without the poppy seeds. Once it cools in the pan for a few minutes, I invert it onto a cake plate. Very moist and yummy!

THE WINNER AND A LOT OF SHOPPING!

2009-09-20T13:37:00.000-07:00

What a fun weekend I have had! On Friday, a friend from work and I went over the bridge to a little town close by and had tea in a tea room. This tea room is in an old, old building. Here are a few pics (I have to tell you ... the first picture was from someone else's table. I forgot to take a picture of our food before we had eaten it all so I asked some ladies at the next table that got the same thing as us if I could take a picture! :-) click on picture for full view):

It was yummylicious! You should see this place at Christmastime! It is so pretty - they have a huge tree with decorations that you can purchase. While I was there, I bought this:

I just couldn't pass it up!! I love, love polka dots!

After tea, we roamed the streets looking for more stuff to buy! HA!! And look what I found to go with my new teapot! And they were 50% off!!!!!

Here are some more pictures from the stores:

Note the next picture that there is a water bowl? California is VERY dog friendly ... almost everywhere you go, store owners put out water bowls for the dogs.

On Saturday, another friend and I went to brunch for her birthday. But before we ate, we just had to stop at a local parking lot sale that a neat little store by us was having! Isn't this fun??

And look at what I bought (a little yellow child's chair, a yellow American Family kitchen scale, an plant urn and a cool old metal thermos)! I stuffed everything into the trunk of my little Mini Cooper ... the open space was for my friend's box of goodies that she bought.

And now ... the winner of the cute yellow purse is .... Anna from Thimbleanna!!! Boy ... Anna has been lucky this month ... she has won so many giveaways!! She better go buy a lottery ticket!!

Have a great week everyone!! I'll see you back here next week!

ANOTHER GIVEAWAY!!!

2009-09-14T12:44:00.000-07:00

WOW!!! I can't believe it is already the middle of September and time for another Giveaway! I haven't posted in the last couple weeks because I have been so busy getting ready for my antique fair, which was yesterday. I did pretty good and had a lot of fun visiting with my friend, whose booth was right next to mine. I had another friend that was five booths down from mine. Here are a couple of pics (click on picture for full view).

Thank you to Lisa, Anna, Dolly & Michelle for your thoughts and prayers for my brother! He got all new medication and is doing well!

And now for the giveaway, hosted by Cindy at My Romantic Home:

Isn't this purse the cutest? It is a Lulu purse from Mervyn's! I originally bought it for myself but decided I needed something a little smaller. I only used it once so it is in just about brand new condition!

Leave a comment on this post and I will pick a winner on Saturday evening after 5 p.m. (pacific time).

Have a nice week everyone!

LOOK WHAT I BOUGHT!!!!!

2009-08-31T10:05:00.000-07:00

You have got to run (not walk) to Marshall's ... look what I got this weekend? They have so many cute things right now ... don't you just love these birthday/cupcake bowls? They also had matching plates and a cute little tray with cupcakes on it. Don't forget ... click on pic if it's cut off. Sure wish I could figure out how to fix that problem!

And these Fall/Halloween plates are sooooooo cute!! I only bought two ... they had two or three other designs as well. And you will love the price!!!! I guarantee it!!!!

Oh, and I got this ribbon (just $1 each) at Michael's. These spools are great for wrapping up things in cellophane, etc.

My week and weekend was eventful! On Thursday, my hubby and I went to a Chris Isaak concert at a local vineyard. It was an absolutely BEAUTIFUL 75 degree evening ... we had dinner table seating and were only 50 feet from the stage. We were with 8 other people. He got these tickets for free at work. It was wonderful! Chris put on a great concert!

I have decided to sell at the antique fair again in a couple weeks. They have it every June and September. I hope I have enough stuff to fill my booth. I will be doing it by myself this time. I will also sell some of my Mom's things. So I have hardly any time to get ready for that!! My friend is going to rent the booth next to me so that should be fun. I haven't seen her in a few years so we should have fun chatting! Oh my ... as I write this post, I'm sitting by my living room window and there is a birdbath right outside the window. There are five finches playing in the water and Fletcher is just sitting there in a trance staring at them!! Bet he would like to get his paws on them!!! But it's not going to happen!!! :-)

My brother was admitted to the hospital on Thursday with a heart attack. He is going through some extensive testing right now. I'm praying everything comes out okay. He had a heart attack when he was 29. He is now 54. He somehow contracted a heart disease from a virus somewhere along the way. However, they don't know if this heart attack was caused by that. So I spent a little time at the hospital. I.HATE.hospitals!!! I only go see people there if I really have to! But more often than not, I come up with some excuse not to go! I will send cards, go visit people in their home, etc. But I try to stay away from the dreaded H word!

Guess that's it for my weekend! Today I'm cleaning the house and seeing what I can do to get ready for that show!! Have a great week everyone!

I FINALLY FINISHED IT!!!!

2009-08-24T12:02:00.000-07:00

Guess what?? My Lizzie Bag is finally done!! Here are the pics ...

Click on photos for a full picture!

I only had to seam rip three times!! I put the straps on wrong ... HA!!!

How was your weekend?

My friend and I went shopping all day on Saturday and I mean ALL DAY!!! I left my house at 9:30 and didn't get back until 5:30 p.m. Can you believe it? We went to our local mall. We started at Starbuck's so we could get fortified for the day ahead of us. We only went to five stores in those 8 hours (plus we had dinner at Red Robin). We got our brows shaped and waxed!!! Fun!!! Got new make up at Macy's and I got two new outfits!!! I haven't shopped for myself like that in a long time! Have a great week!! Don't forget to check out Jennifer's new Cottage8 pictures over at The Old Painted Cottage!! They did a fab job on their new home!

A VERY FUN WEEKEND AND THE WINNER

2009-08-17T09:55:00.000-07:00

Oh my, did I have a fun weekend!!! On Saturday, we had our Annual Seafood BBQ Family Reunion with my Dad's side of the family!! It is always sooooooo fun seeing my cousins (I have 24 of them!) and my aunts and uncles!!! And to top it off, we get to eat as much seafood as we want to ... crab legs, oysters, mussels, salmon, abalone, you name it, they had it!!! YUM!!!!

On Sunday, hubby and I left the Marina at 8:45 a.m. to head up the Delta to meet up with other boats for the Million Boat Float!! We were heading to the Capital in Sacramento. We are protesting the Peripheral Canal ... this canal will be detrimental to the farmers and fish in the California Delta. Here are some photos. Don't forget to click on the photo because the right side cuts off.

Here we are leaving the marina.

Here is a restaurant on the water.

Here are some of the boats going under one of the many draw bridges in the Delta.

Some Delta scenery ... isn't it pretty?

A million dollar home on the Delta!

A very cool hotel on the Delta ... you can dock your boat and go up the steps to the hotel. It used to be a speakeasy in the 20's. It has a WONDERFUL Sunday brunch!

Some Delta farmers pulling their tractor down the Delta! Save the Delta Farmers!

Some of the towns people cheering us on as we make our way to the Capital in Sacramento!!

Some of the boats on the way to the Capital!

An old abandoned barn on the banks of the Delta. See the golden hills and windmills? We have a lot of these windmills in CA. They are funny looking when you first see them, then you get used to them.

Another home along the Delta. Almost all of these homes have their own boat docks.

That's the end of the Delta tour! And now for the winner of the Longaberger book ... the winner is ... DOLLY!!! Thank you all for your kind comments and for entering the contest!!! Don't forget to visit me every Monday evening. I try to post during the day on Mondays.

IT'S MONDAY GIVEAWAY TIME

2009-08-10T09:33:00.000-07:00

Hello!! Sorry I haven't posted too much but I have been busy this summer!!! But today is Cindy @ My Romantic Home's Second Monday of the Month giveaway and I'm joining in!!!

My giveaway today is a VERY cool book entitled "Entertaining with Longaberger". Most of us are familiar with Longaberger baskets, right? Well this book is chock-full (and I mean FULL) of great recipes, pictures, ideas and more!!! I want to go through and copy down all of the recipes before it's sent off to it's new owner!!! :-) It's a big book, too!!!! (don't forget, click on the photo if the right side is cut off).

Leave me a comment by midnight (Pacific time) Friday, August 14. I will pick and announce the winner on Monday morning, August 17th!! Hopefully by then my antiquing bag will be complete (I'm getting close!!!).

ANOTHER WEEK STARTS

2009-08-03T09:22:00.000-07:00

Hope you are all having a great summer!!! I can't believe it's August already. I didn't post last weekend because not much was going on. Just relaxing and hanging out. This weekend my son went up to Oregon with my mother to visit my brother and his family. So it was just hubby and me. We ate out every chance we got!!! I spent the day Friday working on my antique/thrifting bag. I am going to work on that again today. Can't wait to get it done and show it to you. Yesterday hubby and I played golf with our friends, then went out to eat. Fun times!!!! If you have time, check out my eBay auctions. I sell under the name lavendercreekcottage. I need to change my eBay name to the same as my blog name someday. My auctions will be up in three days. Have a great week!

FUN NEW PURCHASE

2009-07-20T16:53:00.000-07:00

Hope everyone had a nice weekend! It is sooooo very hot here in Calif! It's been about 100. When it gets this hot, I really miss our pool! I wanted to share a fun new item that I bought over the weekend. We have a shop in our area that opens just once a month for four days and boy, is it worth the wait! I have bought so many cool things from them in the past and this weekend was no different. Isn't this the coolest? I think I am going to use it as a vase. I have a skinny long vase that will fit right down inside, but will not be seen when the flowers are "peeking" out. Don't forget to click on the pics if the right side is cut off.

Wanted to share another item that I got - this one I got a while back. Isn't this fun? I have this on top of my hoosier cabinet. I love unusual things!

Have all of you seen the movie "The Holiday" with Cameron Diaz and Kate Winslet? Oh my word, I just watched it today ... I LOVE. LOVE. LOVE. Iris' home in England!!!! What a fun movie!!!

Have a great week!

THE GIVEAWAY WINNER!!!!

2009-07-17T07:14:00.001-07:00

And the winner is ......

MARILYN from Heart Song Blog!!

Congratulations, Marilyn! Thank you to all who left comments and visited Yellow Beach Dog!

SEWING AND A GIVEAWAY!!!!!

2009-07-13T10:04:00.000-07:00

What do the following pictures have in common? (don't forget to click on the picture if the right side is cut off!)

Once it's all put together, it will look like this ...

So now let's just see how long it takes me to make my new antiquing/thrift shopping bag!!! Have you ever made a pattern from Bunny Hill Designs? They are so user-friendly! I've made a couple quilts. Plus Anne (from Bunny Hill) lives in my area and shops & teaches classes at my local quilt shop!!! How fun is that???!!!!!

Thank you to Thimbleanna, Lisa and Michelle for your nice comments on my hangers. Appreciate you guys!!!!

And now ... for another giveaway!!! Cindy at Romantic Home is hosting a very cool giveaway ... I love Cath Kidston - who doesn't??!!

Anyhoo, leave a comment on this post and I will draw a name this Thursday, July 16 in the evening. Winner will be announced on Friday sometime! My giveaway this time is a neat little entertaining book ... "The Pleasure of Your Company". It's filled with all kinds of cool entertaining ideas and recipes, which I know we all love!!!!

Have a great week everyone!

2009-07-06T10:55:00.000-07:00

Well, another week has come and gone. How was your 4th of July? Mine was low-key ... hubby and I went to breakfast, then shopping (fun!), and then the whole family went to Cheesecake Factory for dinner. Later in the evening, my son and I walked over to the park that is about two blocks from us and saw a spectaular fireworks show!!

I got another white vase in the mail recently. Did I tell you I love white vases? They line my mantle. Here are a couple pics ... Don't forget to click on the picture to see the whole thing!

Do you see that green watering can at the bottom of the second picture? For years I had a picture that I cut out of a magazine that showed that exact watering can on someone's dresser in their bedroom. I. loved. it. and just had to have it! It took about 10 years to find one just like it but when I did, money was no object!! Isn't it the coolest thing? It says "Han-D Sprinkl Can". Once in a while, I use it as a vase in my entry way.

I need your opinion ... I make these little hangers for baby gifts for my friends. I get baby hangers, paint them, put a decal on them and then frou-frou them up a bit. I give them in sets of six. In your opinion, do you think I could sell these on ETSY? If so, what would be a good price for a set of six?

Have a great week everyone!!!!!!

Bike Riding & Golfing

2009-06-29T21:14:00.000-07:00

Boy, what a busy weekend I had! Friday evening, hubby and I went down to the Square to get some frozen yogurt. We ate it in the little courtyard ... pictures below! Our town is pretty big (over 100,000) yet it still has that small town feel sometimes. Every time I go out to the store or a restaurant, we always see someone we know, which I think is so strange since there are so many people living here ... definitely a small world, isn't it??!! The second picture of this courtyard is one of our founding father's home from the 1800's. They fashioned the courtyard around it ... so cool! And in the third picture, to the left is a coffee house and to the right is an Italian restaurant with courtyard dining. I cannot believe how much my pictures are getting cut off ... I am missing a lot of these courtyard pictures. I will try working on that to figure out what is going on! Neabear just commented and she said if you click on the picture, you can see the whole thing. However, I will still keep working on the problem. Thanks, Neabear!

On Saturday, hubby and I took a 16 mile bike ride along the bike/walking trails. We had to get that done early in the morning because the temperature rose to 104 on Saturday. Uhgggg!!! These bike/walking trails in our area are really great! They go for miles and miles and miles through all of the neighboring towns. They are maintained by the parks district.

On Sunday, we playing 9 holes of golf at a local golf course with another couple and it. was. so. hot!!! It was at least 100 degrees and we were out there on the course. Crazy, huh??!!! Our friends brought frozen Gatorade ... boy, was that good!! See the picture of the squirrel? He got within 12 inches of me and then hopped into our golf cart. It was pretty funny! He is definitely used to all the golfers. That's my hubby swinging! We also saw jack rabbits and geese along the course. On the second picture, if you click on it, you will see my friend.

I just don't seem to have the time to post more than once a week! I will try to post more but once a week maybe what I end up doing.

Have a very happy and safe 4th of July!!!!

FATHER'S DAY WEEKEND

2009-06-22T08:48:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, hubby and I went over to Jack London Square in Oakland to Salmon Aid 2009. It's like Farm Aid but MUCH smaller and instead of saving the farms, they are trying to save the Salmon. Here are a few pics of Salmon Aid. The band Albino playing with people dancing on the dance floor ...

My Fish Rueben sandwich ... the presentation isn't all that great but it. was. yummy!

Between our home and Oakland, you pass through the small town of Lafayette. On the hillside, someone got the permission of the owner of this piece of land and started putting crosses up ... each one represents those that have been killed in the Iraqi war. I remember when it was just a handful ... now sadly it's at 4990. They basically take up the whole block. It is very somber to stand before all of these crosses. You can also see them from the freeway. There was a time when the people that live around there were protesting them being put up because they were either "too scary looking" or caused too much traffic in their neighborhood. As you can see, they lost that protest! Some of the crosses are decorated.

We took the scenic route while driving to Oakland ... through the Oakland Hills and the upscale town of Piedmont (our son's neurosurgeon lives in Piedmont!). I knew you would love to see a picture of this house! Isn't it SOOOOOOO cute???? It was built in 1934 and it's just like an English Cottage AND it's for sale!! But definitely NOT in my price range!

On the way home, we went the other way and here we are getting closer to where we live. Aren't the hills pretty around our area? We are in the valley, surrounded by these hills. Of course, in the winter they are a bit greener!

On Father's Day, we just lazed around and then our son treated us to dinner! :-) Hope you all had a nice Father's Day Weekend. My Dad has been gone for 8 years now but I still miss him and think of him EVERYDAY!

If you get a chance, please check out my eBay auctions. They won't be listed until probably later today (Monday afternoon) but take a look ... I will have some cute things listed. Here is a link ... don't know if it will work but give it a try. My eBay name is LavenderCreekCottage. If you can't click on the link, just copy and paste.

http://shop.ebay.com/merchant/lavendercreekcottage

GO TO YANKEE CANDLE!

2009-06-19T15:33:00.000-07:00

You have got to go to Yankee Candle this weekend!! Look what I got ... the little Daisy defusers are just $5 each! And the (hard to see) ceramic dragonfly (which comes with a bunch of tea lights) is just $10! These are great for co-worker birthday gifts, etc. I have a little dresser that I keep things like this in so when I need a quick gift, I just go to my gift dresser! It's great!

I also got this book at Borders today with a 40% off coupon!! It is SO cute!!! And it comes with patterns!

Have a great weekend! What are you doing for Father's Day? Don't know what we will do. There's lots going on around the Bay Area this weekend ... Salmon Festival at Jack London Square in Oakland, a Pirate Festival on the Vallejo waterfront, plus so many other things to choose from this weekend!! Have fun!

The Antique Faire

2009-06-15T10:42:00.000-07:00

Whew! It's over! What a lot of work! My friend and I rented a space together to sell at our local antique faire. This faire is held on the grounds of a house built in the 1800's, which is now a museum. My friend ended up hurting her back so her husband and I were "selling partners" for a day! Here is the before we got our space set up ...

Here is the after ...

A few pictures of stuff we were selling ... my very talented hubby designed and made the mosaic mailbox! Some of the pics aren't that great because of the dappled sunlight.

Shoppers in our booth ... we had SO many people ask us if we had an antique store (which is a dream of mine!). Everyone commented over and over how much they thought we were selling such great stuff! :-)

The other sellers and their booths ...

The old house on the grounds ...

The gazebo in the backyard (lots of weddings are held here) ...

The old water tower ... love that!

All in all, it was a good day! Perfect weather ... we had shade in our booth and we both sold a lot of stuff!!! I wish you all could have been there!

2009-06-12T22:05:00.000-07:00

Time to announce the winner of the "If Teacups Could Talk". I first cut apart all of the comments ...

Fletcher heard this and decided to investigate ...

I decided to let Fletcher pick the name so I wadded up each comment and threw them in the air and he sniffed around a bit ...

And then picked one to play with ...

And the winner is ...

Lisa!! Congratulations!!

Thank you to all who left comments. I hope you keep visiting Yellow Beach Dog! I will post again on either Sunday or Monday and let you know how the antique fair turned out! Have a great weekend!

GETTING READY

2009-06-10T22:14:00.000-07:00

I have been busy, busy getting ready for the local antiques fair that I am selling at this Sunday. I made some cute little tags and got some string and am in the middle of organizing and pricing! I have sold at this fair twice and have done pretty well both times.

Don't you just love the vintage plastic refrigerator magnets??? So cute!

One of my co-worker/friend at work is having a birthday tomorrow ... in fact, we've had FOUR birthdays this month ... I am almost getting tired of cake ... notice I said "almost"!!! :-) I got her this cute teapot planter.

Tomorrow morning I will put a plant in it and then stop by Starbuck's on the way to work and get her a gift card to go with it. And then ... we'll have MORE cake!!!

Don't forget ... if you haven't left your comment for the giveaway, please do so before Friday evening. Thank you to all of you who have commented!

By the way, I am trying to figure out what is going on with my pictures. It keeps cutting off the right sides. Hopefully I will get this corrected SOON!

Alameda & the Oakland Hills

2009-06-08T10:53:00.000-07:00

you haven't already left a comment to enter my giveaway, don't forget to! Thank you to those of you who have. And I agree ... Emilie Barnes is a wonderful writer!!

On Sunday, hubby and I were planning to go to the Alameda Point Antiques Fair; however, when we got there, it was SO crowded so we decided to drive around the Oakland hills instead. The Alameda Point Antiques Fair is held the first Sunday of every month at the former Alameda Naval Air Station (NAS Alameda) on the small island of Alameda. The air station opened in 1936 and closed in 2006. At that time, the City of Alameda acquired the whole base and all of it's buildings. The intention was to renovate the buildings into housing, etc.; however, somewhere along the way the ball was dropped and most buildings are now falling down. The TV Show MYTHBUSTERS films a lot of their experiments on the base. My hubby remembers docking at this port when he was in the Navy in the early 80's. Here are some pics (in order of their appearance: the entrance to the air station, some old barracks, a cool old military house that is now rented out, and an old church).

From there, we drove up into the Oakland Hills. Here are a few pics:

This picture is looking at the hills obviously from the street since there is a stop light in the middle of the picture. These hills were the site of the huge Oakland Hills fire back in October of 1989, which was horrible! As you can see, most people have rebuilt their lovely homes.

I didn't get any close up home pictures but I love this picture of the entrance to a house. You can imagine what the house looked like. It's so hard to take pictures around here because there is always someone driving behind you. If there is a spot to pull over, great. But if not, I have to do drive by shooting (with my camera, that is!).

Then we climbed further up the hills and got these next shots. This shot is for all you football fans! It is a shot of the Cal Bears stadium at UC Berkeley.

This shot is looking across the Bay to the San Francisco skyline (that the Bay Bridge). SF is to the top right of the picture.

This next one is looking out towards the Golden Gate Bridge, with Alcatraz in the foreground. I just noticed that all of my pictures are getting cut off a little on the right side. Do any of you have this problem?

And this last one is for Neabear ... it's the sign for Children's Fairyland!!

Weekend Fun

2009-06-07T17:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday hubby and I volunteered to work the Children's Hospital Oakland booth at our local Wine & Arts Festival. Here's a picture of our booth:

These next two pictures I thought were so funny and sooooo California! Valet Bike Parking! And there were tons of bicycles lined up! Funny thing is, we almost rode our bikes but took our car at the last minute!

I really wanted to get some shots of the surrounding park where the festival was being held but hubby was wanting to go eat. This park has a huge duck pond with a huge fountain in the middle.

And now ... drum roll ... the Giveaway!! Leave me a comment between now and next Friday, and if your name is drawn, I will send you a copy of Emilie Barnes "If Teacups Could Talk". I have this same book and love it. I have made several of the recipes and they. are. yummy!

Also, Cindy at My Romantic Home is hosting a giveaway, too. Run over there and say Hi and leave a comment!

Backyard In Progress

2009-06-04T21:03:00.000-07:00

First of all, let me thank each of you for the kind comments on my first two posts! I think I am going to like blogging and meeting new friends! However, I do wonder what in the world I have to say that someone would be interested in. But then I remember all of the blogs I read and how very different they all are and I love them all!

I'd like to share some pictures of our backyard. It is still a work in progress. We had a swimming pool but last year my husband FINALLY talked me into getting rid of it. So we hired a company to dig it out and fill it in with dirt.

This is our beloved Charlie wondering what happened to the pool!! Charlie passed away last September.

We then moved the little yellow pool house back about 12 feet towards the back of our yard and my son laid a brick patio for me right in front of the pool house.

We also put in a spa with a gazebo and just got a lot of plants.

Here's Peter the Rabbit amid my lavender. I love when I brush up against the lavender on a cool evening. It. smells. wonderful.

The bad thing is that parts of California (our part!) are on water rationing so our lawn looks terrible in the backyard! I hate having to ration water! Those of you that have an abundance of it, be very thankful!

I still have a lot of stuff to do in the yard but as you know, it takes time AND money!!

Thank you for visiting Yellow Beach Dog today! On Sunday evening, I will be announcing my first giveaway! I'm excited!!

Grandmother's Letters

2009-06-01T12:10:00.000-07:00

I thought I would share about my beloved grandmother today. I was blessed to live by both of my grandmothers while growing up - Grandma Williams and Grandma Gibbs. Grandma Williams lived about 2 miles from us, while Grandma Gibbs lived about 7 miles away. Grandma Williams was an extra-special grandma. Here is a picture of us when I was about four (and also a very messy tomboy!).

She would travel on the train back East for 6-13 weeks at a time each year to visit her family, while we all stayed back in California. While there, she would always write to me. Each letter had the day that she wrote it at the top right hand corner and usually after she closed, she would mention everything they had for dinner. One time she wrote me a "pretend" letter - acting like we were all rich and were going to the governor's house for a ball, etc. I loved getting these letters in the mail! She would always close with "XOXO plus a million". Here is a close up of one (I know it's not a very good picture but you get the idea).

Last year, I framed them in floating frames and hung them over a cabinet in my dining room (top picture - Fletcher, our cat, is dashing away from the camera!).

I remember one Christmas we were getting all of the Christmas decorations out and we couldn't find our stockings anywhere! I called my Grandma and told her they were lost. The next time I saw her (which was probably a couple days later), she had sewn and embroidered four new stockings for us kids. I still use that stocking to this day! She has been gone for 34 years now but I have very sweet memories of her!

First Post Ever

2009-05-31T19:21:00.000-07:00

Since I have been reading so many of your blogs the last few years, I decided to stop being a lurker and join the fun and start one of my own. I'm not really sure what I will blog about, but I'm sure something will come to mind. A little about me: My name is MJ and I live in Northern California. I have been married for almost 23 years and have a college-age son. I love decorating, trying new recipes, feeding the birds and squirrels in my yard and reading all of your blogs. I do some selling on eBay and I also sell at our local antiques fair once a year. Now all I have to do is figure out how to post my favorite blogs, etc. Please be patient with me! The picture above is a family of birds in my yard. They return every season to this gourd birdhouse that my friend gave me. They just love it!

I would love to have a giveaway! Within two weeks time, I will let you know what you can win when you leave me a comment (and, of course, if I pick your name!). :-)