Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving.

I hope everyone is stuffed to the max. I know I am.

With one Sunday wedding dinner, two thanksgiving dinners, and one dinner and lunch to celebrate my husband passing the bar exam I'm ready to hibernate and not see another plate of food until Spring.

I have so much to be thankful this year. It is easy for me to get caught up in my own world that I forget to be thankful for the blessing that I do have. My husband is a newly minted attorney, my family is growing, and we have a safe and happy home.

Psalm 100

Enter his gates with thankgiving

and his courts with praise;

giving thanks to him and praise his name. 

For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;

his faithfulness continues through all generations. 

family wedding @ Villa de Amore

We kicked off the holiday season with a family wedding @ the Villa de Amore in Temecula California. It was a beautiful wedding. The bride did a fantastic job of using the venue's natural beauty in planning her colors and decorations. During the cocktail hour guests were given the opportunity to play lawn games...which worked out well for Lucas. He had a blast tossing the bean bags around the lawn disrupting everyone who actually wanted to play the game. 

Speaking of Lucas....he did well for not napping. The wedding started at two. Lucas usually naps starting around noonish and will sleep until 3ish. I knew going into this day that things might get interesting as the day went on...he did well until the dinner hour. Luckily I came prepared and had lots of goldfishes and crackers. 

Unfortunately I didn't plan for the cold....not just crisp air (I did plan for crisp air) but freezing bone chilling wind. The wedding ceremony and reception dinner took place outside. Indian sari's aren't made for the cold weather and the little shawl that I brought did not cut it. Several times during the evening I was seriously tempted to go back to the car slip on my pj's and ugg boots. 

Besides the weather it was a wonderful wedding and I wish all the happiness to the bride and groom. 

my husband is a lawyer

I'm going to keep things short and sweet tonight. Tonight marks a new chapter for our family. My husband just found out that he passed the California State Bar Exam. I am so proud of him and thankful that  he passed. What a great way to kick off the Thanksgiving week!

These Happy Golden Year by Laura Ingalls Wilder

The Ingalls family will always have a special place in my heart. As a little girl, I grew up reading (and watching) the Little House on the Prairie series. And now as an adult I'm thrilled to be able to reread and enjoy the adventures of Pa, Ma, Mary, Laura, Carrie and little Grace.

"These Happy Golden Years," which won the Newberry Honor award in 1944, continues the autobiographical account of the Ingalls family. The book starts when Laura is fifteen and ends when she turns eighteen. Laura is now a young lady, and her life is getting interesting. To help make ends meet, Laura takes on a teaching job twelve miles away from home. This is the first time Laura is living away from home and she struggles with homesickness and learning how to be a good teacher. Every Friday afternoon, the handsome and much older Alamanzo Wilder braves the cold weather to take her home. As the story progresses, Alamanzo becomes an even bigger part of Laura's life. Between the buggy rides, the singing school and sledding; soon a friendship turns to love for Laura and Alamanzo ending in their marriage and the start of a new life together.

Laura's romance with Alamanzo is an excellent example of a wholesome courtship without the pressures of modern dating. Should I have daughters I would definitely suggest this book during their tween/teen years. Laura is a fine example for young girls - someone who studies hard, goes out and does what she needs to do, has adventures and along the way finds true love.

The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan

Life's been busy, I'm going to keep things short today.

This book has been on my "to read" list for years. As a child, I read the kid's version and fell in love with the story of Christian and his fellow companions. Following the example of the March sisters, I would tie a burden on my back and march around the house playing pilgrim - trudging through the Slough of Despond, climbing the Hill of Difficulty, slaying Apollyon and resting at Palace Beautiful.

I was happy to find an unabridge audiobook with modern language of the Pilgrim's Progress. The only downside with my copy is that it does not include Christiana's journey to the celestial city. However, I did want a copy with modern language vs. Old English and so I'm not going to complain to much about the missing second part.

it's fall ya'll

Happy Sabbath and Happy Fall! 

While my husband was away playing bass guitar for a friend's Hawaiian band; Lucas, Dadi and Dada, and I took a trip to the Irvine Park Zoo and pumpkin patch. Between September 20th  and October 31st, the area behind the train station is transformed into a festive pumpkin patch with many family friendly activities.  Lucas had a blast running through the hay bale mazes, searching for the biggest and brightest pumpkin to sit on, munching on delicious banana bread and sticking his head through the wooden cutouts. 

I was so proud of Lucas for getting on the pony. Several months ago I tried to introduce Lucas to horseback riding and he cried the whole time. However, this time he happily rode Ginger and didn't want to get off when his turn was over. 

And of course the day wasn't complete until we walked around the zoo, groomed some goats and checked out an owl with upside down and backwards binoculars. 

The L.A County Fair

Good Lord, it's hot here. I'm actually kinda jealous of those who live in parts of the country where its transitioning into fall weather - here in SoCal we are experiencing highs in the triple digits.

Yuck.

When its this hot most SoCal residences stay inside, go swimming or head to the cooler weather of the coast. Not us. Our family, along with a couple of friends all piled into the car and drove down to the L.A County fair for a day of farm animals, fair foods and trains.

On top of serving fried, cheesecake, oreos, twinkies, red velvet cake and pecan pie...fried bacon donuts,  pineapples and chocolate hot dogs were listed on the menu. 

I limited myself to one fried oreo and one shared funnel cake. That was enough fried food to last me for a lifetime...

I'm glad that L.A County Fair brought back the farm exhibits. Lucas loved being able to pet the cows, sheep and goats up-close. I did feel bad for the animals. It was at least 90 + degrees in the shaded areas and some of the poor critters looked uncomfortable.  In the old outdoor show arena, the fair turned the entire area into one large farm. Kids could watch demonstrations on how our fruits and vegetables are grown, what it takes to be a farmers and how to grow your own garden. 

As the day went on, it did cool down and we enjoyed the forestry services exhibit and the train museum before heading home exhausted.