Under the Pier

The beach in winter is a favorite of mine. These were some photos from our time at Huntington Beach during our family vacation in January that I haven’t shared yet.

I find the underside of a pier interesting and love watching the waves roll through.

Our niece Debbee and Lenny were married in 2013 in Huntington Beach and they took their engagement photos here so it was fun to try to recreate that moment.

This day was also Lenny’s birthday.

Today we are nowhere near the coast and we still have that white stuff on the ground and it’s not beach foam.

Our Colville kids are coming over for dinner tonight. Speaking of dinner, tonight will be the third dinner in a row that I’ve made. It’s a Notable February for that reason and others, too. Wednesday we had an Asian Stir Fry with actual vegetables. Here’s the dinner we had Thursday night. Leg of Lamb with vegetables in my Jamie Oliver Retro Roaster. We like lamb and I know many people don’t.

Tonight we’re having Oven Baked Tilapia with rice and vegetables or salad.

Speaking of food, 18 eggs were $4.24 at our local Wal-Mart on Wednesday. They were not the brown eggs, or free range eggs, or Beverly Hills Eggs, just the white caged bird eggs.

What have you been eating these days? Happy First Friday in February.

Sand and Water

After we walked the pier on Monday the 16th we headed down the steps to the sand and on to the shoreline.

Brothers born while we lived in Huntington Beach over 40 years ago in January.

And yes, JJ ended up falling in the water and getting soaked so we stripped him of his wet clothes and wrapped him in some dry coats before hypothermia set in.

Monday afternoon Josh, our trusty 15 passenger Van driver made a trip to the airport to pick up Jamie’s mom and her granny who would spend the next few nights with all of us. We enjoyed soup for dinner. We made a special trip to Rockwell’s Bakery to pick out a cake for Dan’s birthday.

Addy chose the cake. Her daddy bakes the best macarons and Addy spotted this cake and decided it was the one.

Good choice Addy! Happy Birthday Dan. The birthday celebrations keep coming.

Monday Birthday Beach Day

During our ‘DisneyCaliFam’ vacation we spent a few hours at Huntington Beach on Monday January 16th. Some of our Cali family met up with the 10 of us at Fred’s Cantina on Main street for a bite to eat before we braved the high winds on the pier and at the seashore. Two of my sisters and seven nieces and nephews joined our ten for a lively few hours. The Swordfish tacos were delicious!

This guy saves me a seat next to him 90% of the time.

Happy Birthday churros for these two who share their birthday.

Off to the pier with Main Street behind us and Fred’s Cantina on the corner upper floor on the right.

Leaving the pier and heading to the sand and shoreline. That is another photo intensive post that will be coming soon.

Pelicans on the Pier

I was happy that these Pelicans were resting instead of flying so I could get my photos.

Back here in N.E. Washington State we have entered a dry warm cycle which means I’ll need to start watering the planters.

Dear has started painting the exterior of our home. When it’s complete I’ll share some before and after photos. Enjoy the last weekend in June!

Walk on the Pier

On Sunday my sister Vera and I were happy to see that June Gloom was nonexistent. We dropped our brother off at the Orange County airport for his trip back to Dallas and decided another trip to the beach was warranted. We had a good meal at Dukes at the Huntington Beach Pier with this view from our table…

After our meal we headed to the pier to walk it and enjoy the views.

I’ll have a full post with this pelican as the star later.

The crashing waves looked like snow from above.

This post is being published on Tuesday June 14th, Flag day. I will be in the air for a few hours and then on the road home.

Happy Flag Day from Huntington Beach and Newport Beach.

The Sands of Time Hodgepodge

This photo of sand and surf and a pier is from Huntington Beach, California.

Thank you Jo From This Side of the Pond for Wednesday Hodgepodge.

1. July 5th is National Hawaii Day…have you ever been to Hawaii?

Yes, once in 1997.

Any desire to visit or make a return trip?

Not particularly.

Pineapple, mango, or guava…what’s your pleasure? 

Pineapple but not on a pizza. 🙂

2. Last time you were ‘thrown in at the deep end’? Explain. 

I’ll leave out some information to spare the mostly innocent but ‘the deep end’ was showing up at an event that no one was really in charge of and having to jump in and make it run smoother than it was going to.

3. Sun, sea, sand, salt…your favorite when it comes to summer? 

I like the sea in the summer because it is usually cooler at the seashore than inland.

4. Bury your head in the sand, the sands of time, draw a line in the sand, pound sand, shifting sands…pick one and tell us how the phrase currently relates to your life in some way.

I’ll go with the sands of time as in ‘the steady unstoppable passage of time’. It currently relates to my life as I turned 70 this year. How did that happen? As the saying goes I am not a Spring chicken but that is quite okay as I’ve lived and learned a lot with a lot more to learn!

5. On a scale of 1-10 (1 = make your own rules and 10=like a warden), how strict were your parents? If you’re a parent where on the scale do you land? 

Our Pop worked long hours but he had his priorities and that was making sure we were all at church on time a few days a week. My mother tried to be a warden but mostly fell in at about a 5. I was the baby of the family for 7 years before my younger 4 siblings arrived and I wore my parents down and got to do things my older siblings didn’t do. We didn’t really have chores and we never had an allowance.

Dear and I fall in closer to the warden side than the “free range kids” side.  Maybe at a 7, it’s hard to put a number on it. We had rules, specific bedtimes and other expectations but we didn’t lock them in their rooms. They had the freedom to break the rules when we weren’t watching.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

At my follow-up appointment yesterday my eye tests confirmed I have 20/20 vision in my right eye after my cataract surgery. Looking forward to my left eye cataract surgery July 16th.

The Pier at Huntington Beach

On Christ the Solid Rock I stand, All Other Ground is Sinking Sand…

I missed the bigger waves crashing on the pylons under the pier.

We are having a snowfall event as I create this post. Quite a contrast to these beach shots. Soft puffy flakes that are melting as they hit the ground.

Have a great new week. We have a little travel planned for the end of the week.

Huntington Beach

Walking on the pier and looking South.

Looking North on the pier to Long Beach and Rancho Palos Verdes and beyond.

Another great view of Catalina Island to the West.

The last couple of days have been clean up days outside here at our country bungalow. I’ll share some photos of the work we’ve accomplished once I upload the photos. I went to Wal-Mart today and happened down the toilet paper aisle and saw that the TP buying frenzy is alive and well here in Colville. Empty shelves everywhere. Seems there was a run on dried beans, too. I got the last bag of pinto beans for the crock pot recipe I’m making tomorrow.

Hope you didn’t let your TP totally run out before this mass hysteria set in.

Be Anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. and the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6,7

Surfing

A beautiful day for a walk at the Beach…

On Monday March 2nd my sister Vera and I were able to enjoy a walk to the end of the pier in Huntington Beach. It was a decent day for surfing and several surfers were taking advantage. Winter days at the beach are my favorite and this winter day afforded us great views of Catalina Island, too.

 

I’ve never tried to surf. Have you ever tried? When our son was at Westmont College in Santa Barbara he enjoyed some surfing. He also enjoyed some surfing in Hawaii on a vacation there. Body surfing was something both sons have enjoyed. Water skiing was the closest I ever came to surfing and that was years ago before I had children. A little snow skiing is also in my past and it will remain there.

I’ll be sharing more from Huntington Beach soon.