Friday Funday in San Jose!

Visiting the Googz! 

This weekend, my sister and I are visiting our newly relocated parents in San Jose. Other than eating a TON of food, watching wild deer and turkeys in the yard, checking out frogs on window screens, and messing with the irrigation system, we've been spending loads of time with Dad for Father's Day, helping Mom do some planting/squirrel proofing the yard, and playing cards with cousins, Uncles, and our Aunt. Its been a fun weekend. 

Getting my garden geek on at Sunset's HQ!

In addition to hanging out at the new house, we've done some exploring around town including a drive through Stanford (a first for both my sister and I), Father's Day lunch with Dad @ Tetsuwan Atom (his favorite restaurant at Google), and a mini pilgrimage for me to the Sunset Western Garden main publishing office and gardens.

Cute paint desk sculpture!

In addition to all of that fun Dad and I visited an Orchard Supply Hardware, as we don't have them down South and I like going to hardware stores (i.e. - spying!). I took at least 30 photos and am armed with some good merchandising ideas when I get back home to my store (I know, I know, I need a life!) - but I did really enjoy the OSH and was practically drooling over their redwood shredded mulch. Yeah - further proof I really need a life...

The community my parents live in has bocce ball courts (which it turns out I'm just as good sober as not!) which made for a super fun afternoon. The best part about visiting the parents (other than seeing them - which has been wonderful!) is being reunited with our Moluccan cockatoo and our other kitteh!



With that I say good night. Tomorrow we pack up and go home, but in the mean time I'm enjoying as much family time and kitty snuggling as I can!

Its been a long time ...

No joke, it has been over two years since I tackled wrote anything on this blog! About a week after my last post our lovely cat Dinah suffered from kidney failure. But fear not - after weeks of careful ministrations, sub-cu fluids, forced kitty pedia-sure feedings, and very little sleep our kitchen reverted back from a vet hospital to a kitchen and our girl made a full recovery (see photo below)! Less than a week after Dinah started eating again I lost my Grandmother. Life kind of stood still for a while after that. When I started catching up on my life the blog sort of slipped away, but now I'm ready to give it another go!

In the past two years a lot has changed. I went from unemployed to employed (twice!), single to in love and then back to single, my friends started making babies(!), and I went from living with roommates to living with my lil' sis. Several things have stayed constant: my awesome friends, my wonderful family, delicious beer tasting outings, hiking and traveling adventures, and my love of plants and critters. 

The Past 2 Years

The largest change in my life recently: my parents recently moved up to the San Jose area, and my sister and I have moved back into our childhood home together - so fair warning: expect a lot of photos of planting adventures and yard work...