It's Time!

Too much to explain...too much going on...too sorry for being away so long....

Hopefully we can get back on track!  New posts coming!  Thx to all those who have hung in there..xo

SO HERE'S THE STORY...

I haven't written in months...we've been having quite a time of it here in Santa Cruz this summer...which by the way, never felt like summer..(although today it does...geez global warming!)  ANYWAY...my poor husband and his heart....it's been a long journey and we're still not quite out of the weeds yet.  The hospital four times this year already, but that didn't stop us from heading out on our yearly vaca to Tahoe, but it definitely slowed us down a bit that's for sure.  I was constantly telling him to slow down and walk slower, especially up in altitude.  But he'd just huff and puff and tell me he was fine...which he wasn't and a trip to the hospital was in order the week we returned home.  As of today, things are finally looking good, we'll know for sure in the next two months....so here I am.

Just a quick update....something (we're assuming a fox), got into the chicken pen and sad to say...all but two girls are gone!  SUPER sad and rethinking a few things from this disaster in terms of critters, farming, etc.  So my two lonely little ladies, Winnie and Lydia, have grown to be best mates now...I will be adding some new girls in the spring, just maybe not as many....too heartbreaking!  And two duck left, Ruby and Vida...sad to say the new little gal, Penelope, with the top knot did not make it.

I really don't want to get into a big post right now, so I'll just throw in a couple photos from our trip, which turned out to be good.  Even though it rained the first night we got there and went down to 30 the next day!  No lounging on the beach and reading...we mostly stayed huddled in our very cold and drafty cabin and wore clothes to bed.  But in the end, the sun DID come out, and on our last day, of course, it was super hot and the band was playing on the beach...perfect, right?..so we decided to just stay an extra day, and it was perfection!

Instead of going to my brother's the weekend AFTER our time in Tahoe, we had to go the weekend before as he had a prior commitment he couldn't change.  So he suggested we come the weekend before and that's what we did.   We really enjoyed this idea better as it turned out.  First, we weren't too tired after a week of playing, and second, we didn't have to worry ourselves about having a commitment causing us to leave Tahoe too soon, so yay all around!  
We ended up out on his boat for the afternoon at a place near them called Bullards Bar...SUCH a terrific day!  Then we stayed up super late laughing and playing a dice game that brings out the hysterics in everyone....the following late afternoon we drove up to Quincy to stay with some friends, Diane and Barry...then onto to Truckee the following day, down into Tahoe and SEVEN days!!  Yahoo! Then a quick stop in Auburn to visit Maggie and Glen and then home.

What the heck are they all looking at?
Ha!...just the beauty of the clear water and
the birds..it's really amazing here.

The King of his Craft!

The little tiny town of Quincy..super tiny.

Lunch in Truckee...awesome place!

Cabin in Tahoe...yes, I wear that hat AH-LOT!

At the new Hard Rock Cafe Casino...
amazing art work from albums!

So that about wraps it up right now....only to say that our little scamp, Ziggy Stardust, is turning out to be a really perfect cat in our little world here in Santa Cruz...so happy we have him. ..and our big lab Louie would agree..they are BEST of friends. 

In closing...We're keeping the faith that Ray is on the road to having this condition permanently recovered.  I intend to spend the rest of my days with this man, so he better get into ship shape!   And here it is...Autumn is upon us...and with it come the holidays and all that that entails...REALLY looking forward to seeing the kids,  friends, music, food and cheer...so enjoy your own little worlds and  all the joys it brings.. as well as heartaches..and just remember, everything changes with the seasons...so keep smilin!  mucho love from the juners!

OKAY...SO TIME HAS SLIPPED BY AGAIN!

I know, I know...I promised.  But I have a good excuse this time...I'm working madly to finish up the third book in my     YA/Tween Fantasy/Adventure Series, Benjamin McTish.  As you know, last year got all discombobulated with my father in law moving in and needing so much care (it's been a year by the way since his passing..how freaking quick did that go by!? I actually got teary about it last night..such is life and death)...and then my dear husband with his health issues, so the promised tome did not materialize as planned, however, I'v been writing and it's nearly there! (ps. having issues with format here on the ever problematic blogger posting..this should all be left align..sorry."

Here's the cover

                            

So, time allowing and no sudden moves, it should be in my hot little hand by the end of the month..yay!

In the meantime, life moves on.  The storms have been dreadful...my poor little chix stand in their coop watching the flood go by their door..it's really quite cute actually.  And don't get me wrong, I love the rain and grey days...love it...but even this is getting to me a bit now too...so I decided not to add any new ladies this month...eleven is a good number at present.  And until I can find the truly special ones I've been hunting for, it will remain as such.  Although I did rescue a little Buff Crested Duck..Penelope I call her..so she's fitting in well at the present, getting her "big girl" voice and all...super cute.

Miss Monroe...of course!

Here we have, beginning on the right,..
Princess Buttercup, Ms. Monroe, Bette
(or Ms. M, or even Divine at times),
and I believe that might be Esther, then
of course Mr. Big..who started out as Gilda..!!

My favorite, but don't tell the others, Lydia...
she is ginormous..the fluffiest and softest chicken
you have ever held..unbelievable!!
this pic doesn't do her justice..the one 
I wanted wouldn't up load properly..next time.

Petunia..who is gigantic as well..Blue Cochin..love!

Sophie..or as we call her..Soff

Hermione...yes, Potter fan!!

The new baby..Penelope!

The old gals..Ruby and Vida..
Rubs came back after her first molt
with white feathers around her collar..??
Strange look, on her super black body
with shiny green feathers in her wings...
and now white!

And this is Mr. Big...we found a new home
for him..wait till you see this...
ps. he's only five months old here!
By the time he was six months
he came up above my knees..he was aptly
named..and yes, Sex in the City fan!

So we found a new home for our Mr. Big...he's on a local farm..little home farm..with forty hens!!  Talk about Cock of the Walk...anyway, this place is AH-Maze-ing!!  I felt like I was in England...big sprawling fields, geese wondering around and sheep...oh man, I've been wanting sheep for a while now...we'll see..this is just a random little guest cottage on the property..they had several...cute cute cute!

I want one of these...just this long path for
the sheep to come up from their pasture and is
capped off with an amazing gate...so magical!
the photo of the gate won't load..argh!!

Loads of other things going on for the Schneider clan...this is a house we went to visit with our friends, Kim and Tom.  Their friend Ron has been building this by hand for six years...I took loads of photos, and don't want to inundate you today..so will save for future post..because it's worth it..but here are a few...it's made entirely of iron and steel...he likes rusted old scrapes and it was breathtaking..up in the hillsides, close to the coast...just spectacular! 

that's rusted iron framing the other metal..!

work room

A couple weeks ago we went off to the Roller Derby with our good friends, Bill and Paula...the girls come out in the beginning all bent over low and stamp their skates in time to David Bowie..Under Pressure (I think that's what is was.geez..it was Bowie either way and super dramatic), They wear scarves like bandits and it was super cool..unfortunately for them, our home team the Steamer Janes won! What a blast!

And last, but certainly not least...my precious and perfect cat Frankie left us.  It's been since our big Xmas/Birthday bash that we've seen him around...and unfortunately living in the foothills of the forest is not the safest of homes for an outdoor cat.  I'd like to believe he simply got twisted around in the huge storm and found a new home...or that he went after something, or maybe something chased him, and again, got lost in all the inclimate weather and found some other lovely people to take care of him...He was most loved.  I've never had a relationship with an animal as I did with this fat tuxedo cat.  He would lie on my chest and literally put his arms around my neck and stare at me....it brings tears to my eyes right now, just thinking of him. His perfect purring motor and his curling up on my lap...I simply loved him with all my heart. We shared a terrific eight years together and he could never be replaced.  The last fun memory we have of him is at the holidays when the kids were staying in the den and Frankie was literally walking around on my son Cal's chest and face...we were cracking up.  Cal kept attempting to speak with out getting cat in his mouth.."what is he doing?"  We just laughed and laughed..he was loved deeply by our family.  I wish I had some of his younger pics..or even better ones, however, most were from the old real camera days, and the others are..who knows?  Why they aren't in my Frankie folder I don't know..but I did have these to share...

So back to the grind...and the incessant rain!  I know, I know..we need it...but it's time to do some major gardening and right now it's a pile of mud!!  (my new obsession, bearded iris's..we'll talk) There are a couple other things to share, but I'll wait until next week...need to move on with my day and give you guys a break from reading about my life...stay happy, dry and safe...much love to my besties..and much joy to everyone else! xo juner

THE ORCHIDS ARE IN BLOOM

Had to share a couple pics of my amazing Orchids…just this one lovely little bunch that seems to be perfectly happy.  I had transplanted the larger pot just last year, so was concerned it would take…looks like it did.  ps. this plant comes up to my shoulders..it's humongous!

Have a super spring day….xoxo juners

DAHLIAS, A 70th, A 95th, A PAINTED HOUSE AND BEGONIAS

So once again we're here to play catch up.  If your summer has been anything like mine than you will excuse my tardiness at getting things out to you.  So here's where we will begin.  A garden….

My Dahlias went off again.  The Roses, the Succulents…all of it, beautiful…oh, and the Begonias!!  But let's just start with the Dahlias...

This is ten inches across!!

Next we have a 70th Birthday for my dear friend Harold…yes, he had dancing girls…the band was rockin, the pool was green but the volley ball game marched on….we had a perfect day!

And biggest of all…Julius Schneider turned 95!!  Family from Colorado, San Diego, Elks Grove and Santa Clara…all here at the house…horseshoes, old friends, food, beer, cake...fun, fun, fun!

Three Brothers Together!

The Birthday Boy!

preview of house paint…look how all the colors
stand out around it…yay!

Now comes House…in case you didn't notice in one of the above photos..I'm painting the house…all by hand…yes, by hand.  I'm doing a washed out terra cotta and changing the green windows to black, keeping the dark grey/green casings, only because the wood beneath is pine or I would have striped them all and left them raw wood…bummer on that because the raw wood is what really made the French feeling even more authentic (there's some in the railings and the bottom sash of the windows)..although it saves me time in work.  The black with the dark gr/grey really lend to the old French look, keeping it out of the Mediterranean feel…it looks brighter in these photos, it's really not so saturated in color, very subtle and soothing, definitely not so orange.  It will take me a year to finish, but who cares, I'll just work my way around the house till it's done.  You can see the faded grey stucco on the upper level for reference…BIG change…we're so excited!  It makes all the green plants and colors of the flowers just pop!  And I took down the big long drapes in the living room, I needed a change…more importantly I needed the light to come in.  I  decided to hang some vintage lace table clothes that I dyed, again, keeping with the old French feel…it's lovely.

Can't wait to paint this ceiling some day…so bright!

And last but not least…the Begonias…Damn, they're simply magnificent!!

Actually, this background of the house color looks
more accurate color wise.  Everything just shows
up against it…it's awesome!

So hope your summer isn't breezing by too quickly and you're enjoying your time with your family and friends...we are.  Mucho love to all my besties!!  xo juner