Books, Seals and Birds

 It's early August, so that means it's time for SClarita's high schoolers to register for school. Vi attended registration at both of her schools, and I helped in the library on Tuesday.

On Monday, Ellie came over to hang for a few hours, and I got my tooth fixed after the filling fell out. Stace played pickleball after work, Cora went sliding, and Violet's friend Sofia came over and they watched a movie.

Stace had a car part for me to pick up at the Audi dealership in Calabasas, so Vi and I carried on northwest, and went to Carpinteria. We took a walk out to see the harbor seals, in their beach sanctuary. 

We then stopped at a sourdough bakery that sells honey products, to get a snack and a coffee. Violet made friends with a hungry, brave sparrow. 

Meanwhile, Cora went to a stunt training gym in Los Angeles and did two classes, and later played D&D online.

On Wednesday, Stace came home early and we went to a celebration of life for our neighbor, John, who passed a couple of months ago. In the evening, I went out to dinner with West Ranch theater mom friends, while Cora and Violet had a cooking adventure. We had fresh corn and potatoes, and they decided to make corn chowder from scratch.

It was delicious!

On Friday, Vi and I went to the home of a woman who operates a sanctuary for toucans on the outskirts of town. Yes, a toucan sanctuary! She'd posted online about her need for newspapers, for the cages, and I'd been faithfully collecting ours for months to have enough to make it worth the trip. 

The woman was so friendly, and we learned a lot about these interesting and beautiful birds. Violet even got to hold one!

One last bird snippet - this adorable little sparrow was taking a bath in the sprinklers, as it came through the red gate from the front yard. The cats were very intrigued!

Kitchen Creations and Kitty Cuteness

 A fun part of taking up sourdough is all the recipes available to use with the discard, part of the breadmaking process.

We've made pancakes and muffins, and this week we tried crackers. 

They came out well! It was nice to eat crackers with completely healthful ingredients - fresh whole wheat flour, butter instead of seed oils, nothing you can't pronounce.

I also made English muffins. They were great! I need to make these again.

I got the cats this plush warming mat at Aldi for Christmas. They all love it, and it's the most popular spot to lie on the couch. 

My babies!

Pretty Things

 On Sunday, Stace and I walked our nearby canyon and enjoyed the green hills and beautiful clouds. Later, Violet and I went to a local antique/resale shop that was closing down. Violet found a lamp and basket for her room. 

In the evening, we went to Wildwood Canyon for a walk. 

More beauty!

These two melt me!

I couldn't pick just one photo - they kept getting cuter.

Also this week, Stace went in briefly to work on Monday morning, and then went to help our friend Christina at her nonprofit. I also went over to help organize donated clothing.

And I made sourdough again!

I'm using my home-milled flour, so that's why it looks darker than most sourdough you'd buy in the store.

On Monday night, Cora and I went to Magic to see the slider show at Holiday in the Park. Cora knows most of these folks, and would love to join their ranks next year. 

She's been practicing her sliding here and there.

Thanksgiving Break

With the family meal over, our Thanksgiving Day was very restful. Stace, Violet and I went for a nice hike at Golden Valley Ranch Open Space in the afternoon. 

It was a beautiful day, as you can see.

We stopped at the video store - yes, we still have a video store in Newhall! - and picked up Planes, Trains and Automobiles. We watched it that night as a family. 
 

On Friday, we did a bit of shopping in the afternoon, and managed to get both girls to come with us. At Best Buy, we (finally) bought a new printer, and got Violet a new gaming headset since hers was broken. We dropped Cora off at home and then did a little more shopping with Violet.

On Saturday, we worked in the yard and Cora and Violet went to Teacision and archery. In the evening, Stace and I went out for a drink at Chili's.

A week ago, Stace and I did a favor for Uncle Bill, and went to check out a car he was bidding on, on an online auction site. The car was in La Crescenta, about a half hour from us. Stace gave it a good lookover, and we even got to have a drive in it, with the owner behind the wheel. 

We then got coffee at a nearby shop where Stace wrote up his notes and talked to Uncle Bill.

Unfortunately, the price went far above what Bill was willing to spend, but it was a fun experience for us.

My mom sent me a healthy recipe reel on peanut butter blueberry muffins, with no flour. They came out OK, weird consistency, but a good way to use up bananas and blueberries. 

Weekend Fun

Nick brought Ellie over for a couple of hours Friday, and she helped me make a new recipe for healthier peanut butter cups. 

 

Pretty tasty! And nice knowing the ingredients are all decent.

In the evening, Stace went to Pocock Brewery for a coworker's goodbye gathering, while I went to Hart High School to watch the musical Little Shop of Horrors, as I knew several of the kids in it.

Also this week, I had my final meeting of the West Ranch Parent Advisory Council, as the group held elections and replaced me on the board. 

I processed our pumpkins and used some of the puree to make my own pumpkin spice protein latte, with vanilla protein powder. Yummy, and so good for me.

Stace and I went to a theatre performance at the church I grew up going to on Saturday night, and it was great! Very high quality production of an entertaining story, set in the late 1940s in New York City. One of the leads (in the top hat) is a radio talk show host I like listening to, so it was fun to see him in a different element.

It rained all day, and Violet and Stace drove around admiring our rivers. Meanwhile, Cora had a daylong tech rehearsal for her college play.

On Sunday, Stace and I celebrated our anniversary a bit late, with a steak dinner at a local favorite. We'd waited because of Stace's dental work. 

A real date!

Oh, it was delicious. Twice-baked potato, 14 ounce ribeye steak, and coconut shrimp to start.

We shared everything, and still brought a bit home.

We made sure to save enough room for dessert - a shared slice of mudpie.

This was a special meal; thanks to Sue and Gord for the money!

We finished the day with a family rewatching of The Princess Bride; it was kind of a perfect day for me.

Sunday Things

 

I went with my friends to Pasadena on Sunday, to the Asian Pacific Art Museum. It was a small place, but we enjoyed the exhibits, and it was free!

I thought Violet would enjoy the exhibit on music, since she has been interested in old/ancient stringed instruments.

There were even camels to ride!

After the museum, we went out to Jen's favorite Thai restaurant. 

Meanwhile, Stace and Violet went to a music shop to look around and get new picks for the mandolin. 

They also watched our favorite history programs and were inspired to make a medieval apple and pear pie.

When I got home, we went out to the archery range, and then to the store for the ingredients.

Then, they started chopping!

Simple, as it would have been 500 years ago.

But beautiful...

...and delicious!

We watched Fantastic Mr. Fox while enjoying our pie.