The Mouses get together again

Mouses?  My dearest friend, Connie, says that she is "city mouse" and I am "country mouse".  Right after Thanksgiving....before I had any time to get sad about my kids leaving....Connie came to visit.  

We had an awesome time!  We enjoy just sitting around talking, we can talk for hours.  And, we played tourist as I took her to all my favorite places.  

From the minute I picked her up from the airport...it was go go go.  Or should I say shop shop shop?  

Since we both love Isagenix shakes...meals were easy...except when we ate out, which we did!

I took her to Bonnie's to get a pair of magic pants.  They are magic because they always fit, they always look good and they always make you look skinny.  She was sooooo happy! 

Of course it had to rain on us!  But, we didn't let that stop us. 

Here we are in the Santa chair.  

A friend took our picture on Main Street.  We went to every shop around.

And, then....boo hoo....she had to go home....back to being a "city mouse" again. 

Santa Barbara

We took a trip to Santa Barbara last week for a wedding.  While the wedding was for a friend, we were working as the wedding photographers.  The bride grew up with my daughter and her mother was my daughter's gymnastics coach.  

We had a nice trip in our new (well...new to us) mini van.  Plenty of room for everything!  It was really long though.  We met up with my daughter and her friend about halfway there.  At one point, I just had to stop for a break and we found ourselves at this really cool place, the Madonna Inn.  We had been there before many years ago.  Hubby snapped a few photos:

Doesn't this fireplace look like something out of the Flintstones?

This place is just over the top!   I would love to go back and spend the night.  One of the things it is most famous for is the men's bathroom.  The urinal is a waterfall.  Hubby checked to make sure that there was no one inside so I could come in and take a look.  I didn't see what the big deal was.  Then he told me that it was only activated by motion.  So, I didn't really get to see the whole effect.  lol.

The wedding was at a beautiful venue.  Everything about Santa Barbara is beautiful.  The wedding went great and when hubby finishes with the photos you will be able to see them at www.farrellphotography.net, check out the blog.

I videotaped the wedding and am excited to make a wedding video for the couple.  It was a fast moving day, as all weddings are, for the photographers.  So much to do and never enough time.  The groom is from Australia and there were a lot of people there from "Oz".  I loved the accents.  Something about the way they talk is just fun.  

After the wedding we were worn out!!  The next morning we met up with dear daughter and had some brunch.  The restaurant was right on the beach.  

They went home and we spent the rest of the day as tourists.

This was my chance to learn some basics about photography.  Hubby really needs a "second shooter" at the weddings.  So, I'm it.  

Here are my first attempts at being a "real" photographer.  My son, who is also helping me to learn, told me to just take lots of pictures.  He says that getting a good shot is part luck anyway.  And so I did.  These are my favorites.

This is the Moreton Bay Fig Tree.  I read about it on the internet.  It's so big that it provides the largest amount of shade of any tree in California.  I liked this picture because of the closeup of the fig.

Without a person in the picture it's hard to see just how big this tree is.  It looks like something out of Avatar.  I liked this shot because of the sun peeking through.  And, speaking of peeking.  Hubby said that he saw an old man pop out of the center of the tree and is convinced that there is someone living there.  On the other side there is a person sleeping in the grass.  He looked homeless but very young.  I'm not sure, it IS a college town.

Hubby took this one of me....so you can see how big the tree is!

I had fun taking these pictures, but at the same time, it was stressful.  I was intimidated to just hold the camera.  I'm fine with my little point and shoot camera.  It doesn't send any message, other than that I just want to take a picture.  Holding this serious camera seems to say "I know what I'm doing.  I'm a pro."  Just embarrassing.  Plus, hubby is really good at what he does.  When I compare my meager attempts, it just seems so pointless.  Rome wasn't built in a day.  And, hubby has been a photographer for probably 40 years.  So, I plan to give myself some slack.  At least that's what I keep saying to myself.

After the tree, we headed over the the Mission of Santa Barbara.  I love the old missions.  This one was wonderful. We followed the tour and quickly realized that we took a wrong turn and were following it BACKWARDS.  Par for the course with us!

Here are my favorite shots of the mission:

We had to make our mark, of course!  We placed a pin for where we live.

This was another big fig tree.  Not as big as the Moreton, but really pretty.  In this area were many graves of priests over the years dating back to the 1800's.

Hubby tried to tell me that this shot wouldn't work out.  Instead, it is one of my favorites.  I stuck the camera in between to posts and the flash was concentrated only on the figure in the middle.  I like that.  Art is in the eye of the beholder, right?

I took this picture because I thought it would be a fun craft.  I can just imagine the glittering light reflected from this glass dish.

Inside the church.  Just to show you how good hubby is...this is my picture:

Here is his:

He says it's all about lighting.  


This is the main courtyard.  So peaceful and pretty.

After that we headed out to the beach to catch the sunset.  By the time we were heading down there it started to feel like a race.  We made it in plenty of time and enjoyed a relaxing evening watching the sun set over the pacific ocean.  

 Watching this doggie, really made me miss ours!

I'm always in hubby's pictures.  Now it's his turn to be the model!  He took this one of me:

While I was just watching the water, I saw a dolphin.  Twice!  But, I could not capture him on film.

I took this one of the setting sun:

I liked this pic because of the people just walking with the setting sun behind them.  And, below is my video camera.  I set it up to record the entire sunset.  I don't know what I will do with it, but it's really cool.  Complete with the sound of crashing waves.

I love the colors of this picture and the seagull on the right.

And suddenly I was STARVING!  We headed downtown for a bite to eat.  It was filled with college students.  We chose an Italian street cafe.  The food was incredible and I loved the atmosphere.  It reminded me of the movies.  Hubby took this picture:

In the morning we took our time.  We stopped at the original Pea Soup Andersens.  It was good, but my favorite is still the Santa Nella one.  Since we were so close, we decided to take a look at Solvang.  A Scandenvian village nearby.  We didn't even get out of the car....because the streets were lined up with people waiting for a parade!

We decided to stop at Pismo Beach on the way home.  I just wasn't ready to say goodbye to the beach.  And, I wanted some more practice with the camera.  This time I tried out the telephoto lense.  

I took a few of this lady.  She kept getting closer and closer to this pelican.  I thought it would be an interesting picture if he decided to take exception to her close proximity!

A fun day at the beach.   My very first telephoto pic.

I really had fun trying to capture the surfers.  I had to anticipate the wave they would try for and then THEY would have to stay up.  

Aha!  Got one!

Small waves.  All that waiting for a 5 second ride.

The star of this show was the pelicans.  

I loved this solohette.  

Then he started to stretch out.

Like something out of Jirassic Park!

I told my son that my best shots were copies.  Like this one.  I just went and stood where hubby was and took the same picture.  My son told me that this is the best way to learn.  Whew.

We had a fun trip, but I was sure glad to be home!  I missed my "boys"!

Always a parent

I was so young when I became a Mother.  I loved my little baby so much!  And, each one thereafter....I loved all three of them more than my own life.  I've loved every age and every stage.  And, now they are all grown.  But, for me they are still my "babies".  Once you become a parent, you are always a parent.  

Time marches on and our kids grow up.   When they were little, did you think about how they would interpret their lives after they grew up?  I never really did think about it, if I had, I wouldn't have ever yelled at them (or would I?).  I just did the best I could do.  I used to say to my oldest "I'm not going to therapy with you when you grow up!".  What I meant by that is that it always seemed to me that the therapists in the movies would begin with, "tell me about your Mother."  Why always the Mother?  Well, he turned out wonderful and didn't need therapy after all.  Sigh of relief.  

My kids are all grown ups.  They all have lives of their own.  They have made lots of choices that I completely agree with and there were choices that I did not agree with.  Sometimes I was right and sometimes they were right.  And, through it all I continued to love them with all my heart.  Even in anger, I love them.  (whether the anger was mine or theirs)  

Don't even get me started on WORRY.  I don't think I will ever stop worrying about them.  Whenever anything seems wrong, I worry.  When my daughter was 17, she told me that she wasn't going to live a long life.  Shocked, I asked her why she would say such a thing.  She told me she had a dream that she died in a car crash at 27.  Well, guess what.  Ten years later, I remembered those words that she had long forgotten.  I worried for an entire year when she was 27.  (she's 31 now and still kicking).  In fact, I acted like a crazy lady insisting that they didn't drive to San Francisco for New Year's Eve.  It was rainy and it was so close to the end of that miserable year.  Well the "year" wasn't miserable, but I kept that "weight" of worry all the time.  It seems really silly to me now.

I talk to my friends and it seems the same for them.  We are still parents.  Forever.  Maybe we can't tell them what to do anymore, but we still care about every little thing.  My granddaughters are convinced that their Dad still has to do what I say...but, believe me, it's not true.  

When our kids have hard times, it takes a real toll on us.  A dear friend of mine has had a really tough time of late.  She has had to stand by helplessly as her own child, now also a parent, has struggled with some tough decisions.  I'm not sure that her daughter even realizes how hard it's been on her.  Our hearts can still be broken.  

And, then there is joy.  My daughter came over today.  For no reason whatsoever.  She has moved away (she used to live next door to me until just a few weeks ago).  It was the first really sunny day in a long time and we just sat out on the deck and let the sun beat down on us.  I made her lunch and we talked about little things.  I showed her the crafts I am working on and she says that she wants to make them too (the best compliment ever).  And, now, my precious girl is going to be a Mommy.  I bought her a little outfit that says "I love my Mommy" for the baby.  It was hanging on the back of the front door in their house.  And, now it hangs in the hallway of their new house.  

Yes. Time marches on.  And now, she will be a parent....forever.

My Online Neighborhood

It's raining.  again.  We really need it, we've hardly even had a winter at all. When it's raining, I just want to stay inside where it's warm and dry.  And, I can do that.  I have the luxury of working from home.  I've got my morning cuppa (not coffee...it's a shake), and my internet.  What more do I need?

I am so happy that I do not have to get up and go to an office.  But, I am a people person, and there is no one here but hubby (who also works from home).  My "watercooler" is the internet.  When you work in an office, you can talk to your co-workers.  When you work from home, you can go on Facebook and see what everyone is up to. 

Can you really make friends on line?  I say YES!  In fact, one of my dearest friends found me through my blog, and now we are in business together.  How fun is that?   

I think of the internet as my neighborhood.  Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, blogging, I enjoy interacting with people in all of these areas!  I like reading about their lives and what they like and don't like.  The internet is a wonderful place indeed.  My daughter even met her wonderful husband on the internet (Match).  

If you are new to Lulus Cottage, please feel free to look around.  And, I would love it if you would leave a comment, I would like to come visit you too!

Best Friends and Business Partners

What a day!  I had a presentation scheduled for my business partner (and dear friend), Cheryl, but it was cancelled.  Or so we thought.  She called me to find out if I still had the day open because we had 13 people signed up for our presentation!  I said of course!   


I am the kind of person who likes to be prepared for things.  But, I can wing it when I need to.  As I was driving to the bay area, I was feeling pretty unsure about what I was going to do for this presentation. It was a long drive, so I called my dear friend Emily (also my business partner) and as we were talking about our business, I let her know about the presentation.  I said how much I wished I had ordered the latest company flip chart so I would have something to follow.  She said she had one and as her house was on the way (about half way), I stopped and picked it up.  Wasn't that nice of her?  

I was already running late, and even though stopping at Emily's only took a few minutes, I had no time to spare.

I have lived in the country long enough to consider myself a country girl, but I have always felt that the "city girl" is still in here too.  Except when it comes to TRAFFIC.  Ugh.  What a pain.  Up here in the mountains, "traffic" is getting behind someone driving too slow.  So, I found myself feeling stressed with all the city traffic and I decided to double check my directions with my hubby.  So I called him.  Now, I know that I could have entered the location in my Iphone and it would have directed me.  But, I didn't.  I surely didn't want to fiddle with my phone while driving!  So, I called him.  

As I got closer to my freeway change, I thought I should be in the right lane.  But, hubby assured me that I should go straight.  I started getting upset and saying that I thought I was now going the wrong way.  I said the name of the freeway and direction, he said YES.  So, I trusted him.


Wrong.  Shouldn't have done that.  The next thing I know, I am heading on to the Bay Bridge.  I couldn't see any way to turn around or get off.  I was so frustrated!  So, I got in the far right lane and quickly realized that I was in a bus only lane with NO way out!  I felt like such a country bumpkin at this point.  I even passed a police car and wondered if he was going to pull me over.  I would have just had a melt down if he had done this. 

Of course, hubby was getting a piece of my mind at this point.  It WAS all his fault after all.  So, I told him NO MORE directions.  I was able to exit on a island before getting all the way across the bay and after touring said island, I was able to get back on the bridge and on my way.  


Eventually I got to Cheryl's and we did our presentation.  It was a huge success, we had almost double the original amount of guests and they loved what we had to say and stayed after for over an hour to ask questions.  


Cheryl was so nice to me for coming out to do the speaking for her, she even gave me a present!  She knows that I love to sew and bought me this cute pin cushion.  How cute is this??!! 

And, she also gave me a box of my FAVORITE chocolates, IsaDelights in milk chocolate from our company Isagenix.  

We topped it all off with a nice meal.

I stopped back by Emily's on the way home to give her back her flip chart, which was a godsend!  And, we had a nice visit.   She even showed me some of her favorite blogs that she follows.  Which reminded me that I first met Emily from my own blog here at Lulu's Cottage.


It was a fun day and I was reminded how much fun it is to be in business for myself, but not BY myself.  I am so blessed to be in business with dear friends and we have a LOT of fun.  


The moral of this story is....don't ask my hubby for directions, unless you want to get lost!