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that something nippy in the air
a crispness that adds a snap to the morning
leaves flame {red} {orange} burnt sienna {spun gold}
crackle of leaves under my feet
bright warmth from my fireplace
*hot chocolate *gingerbread lattes *pumpkin everything
slow farewell to Summer, bright crimson and gold banners unfurled
herald of the cool stillness of Winter
life slowed, then halted
*Do you have some Fall favorite things?
I knew my post would be very photo-heavy, so I broke it up. Here is the second half of our day:
So...The So Cal Social was this special blogging event centered around socializing, shopping, blogging, swag and lunch. The venue was the Orange Circle, old town Orange- which is this delightful old-fashioned spot filled with antique stores and unique dining spots. It's one of my favorite places to walk around.
Here we have the farmhouse table everyone stopped to drool at in one of the stores. Next, the brewery we stopped at for a deli snack. Kind of a neat place.
Lunch was at the Filling Station Cafe, and was really lovely. We had our choice of lunch items, I had a turkey sandwich and these to-die-for Parmesan crusted french-fries.
Here I am on the right, sitting next to the lovely Bev, of Flamingo Toes. I met so many wonderful bloggers that day!
Shutter Nonsense set up a photo booth, with chalkboard and props. :)
Miss Priss Cupcakes shared their sweet, yummy goodness... and yes, they were as good as they looked!
this dazzling blog-fun day ended with special guest Mark Montano- he shared with the lunch crowd about his career in fashion design, his t.v. background and his adventures in book writing. He is very, very nice, funny and friendly. (I'm going to have to come back and add his photo, I've suddenly run into technical mouse-problems on my desktop...) He also shared with us autographed copies of his brand-new book. The very end of the day concluded just down the street at Heavenly Hostess for an after- party with prizes, snacks and more fun.
It was really a blast of a day. I am crossing my fingers and toes that it will happen again next year.
If so, I hope you will join us!
So, lovelies, going back to homeschool or perhaps thinking about diving into a new adventure? I'm a 12 year veteran of home-school (yikes, that dates me!) and I thought I'd share a few of my survival tips for diving into a new school year:
What are your go-to survival tips for back to school or back to homeschool?? Spill, ...even if it involves adult beverages ;)
San Diego, beautiful you! You flaunted your beautiful So Ca weather to all the bloggers visiting. Mahwa!!
Blogher11 -3,600 attended. It was amazing, being surrounded by so many woman, all different but passionate about blogging. I'm shy, but I had no problem approaching a table during a mealtime or for a session and introducing myself, meeting other bloggers and exchanging business cards. Where else, I have to ask- will people keep asking you **what is the name of your blog? **what do you blog about? **Why did you start blogging? **what are you passionate about?
It was, really, a blogger's heaven.
The hotel: The Marriott and the venue: the San Diego convention center. Both really lovely. Loved, loved, loved that there was a Starbucks both in my hotel (The Marriott) and at the convention center (very welcomed the morning I overslept and missed breakfast!) The staff at the Marriott were just over-the-top helpful. Any event in the hotel had plenty of signs pointing the way, and even staff every few feet to direct you. Just wow. On the last day, the Marriott had a checked luggage area for those of us who checked out and didn't want to lug our luggage all over the convention center that day. <3
The parties: the events sponsored by Blogher were fun, I enjoyed them. This was my first Blogher, I didn't really know what to expect. I was busy enough with the Blogher parties to not feel left-out of all the other off-site sponsored parties. However, later after hearing about how many other parties there were and how nice/fun..and about all the swag...I kind of wondered about the sponsors and pr people missing the mark with the purpose of branding/PR and networking. It seemed like the same bloggers were hitting all the parties, and most of them were young. I kind of wondered why so many of the older than 20 crowd were left out- we tend to be the group with more buying power...
I met The Bloggess! Squee! She hosted the people's party, and I made it a point to be there, I really wanted to meet her. I was a bit disappointed she didn't bring Beyoncé along for photo opps, but then again, dragging along a 5ft. chicken probably would have been a logistical nightmare. She was very gracious, warm and genuine. I really liked her. Her many posts about spending major parts of conferences hiding in the bathroom really helped me not worry so much about my shyness. I think her honesty helped many shy women feel like we were all in this together, we could do it and we weren't the only freaks.
I had a blast, and will for sure go to blogher again when it hits the West Coast. There were a few things I should have done to make it better, though.
I tried to have a good mix of session-going, socializing, expo-hall visiting and down-time, but I was a bit unsure how to do it all effectively. Next time, I need to have a plan. I left it up to chance, the whole meeting brands thing- and it didn't really happen.
The expo-hall/meeting with brands/swag thing was disappointment for me. The expo-hall seemed to me, to be one big confusing area where vendors handed out free samples/coupons/signed you up for chances to win a giveaway...but I didn't see anyway to meaningfully connect with the brands. In most cases I left my business card and hoped for the best. Free samples were not the reason I went to Blogher.
the high spots of my blogher experience were meeting and hanging out with The Farmer Files. She was my Blogher BFF for the conference and made the conference for me. I also loved meeting and hanging with Katie from Swell Easy Living, finally meeting the divine Kit from Blogging Dangerously {squee!}, meeting & chatting with the Bitter Divorcee and attending the Pathfinder series with PW on the panel. More on her later...
there was no diet coke to be had. Seriously. I finally found a 3$ and some change bottle in the hotel gift shop. I had several women pounce on me at lunch when I pulled it out of my bag. Pepsi, loved that you sponsored Blogher11- big kiss-kiss...it's just that some addictions are too ingrained to be overcome...
Goodness, I haven't done much blogging lately, but I've been busy doing a lot of living! ...and just hanging...reading...whatnot....
oh the places I've gone and the things I've been doing when not here on the ole' blawg...
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| Who's the biggest loser now, Jenn?? |
The Home crew went to the Orange County Fair. It's tradition!!
Sky entered a wood-working project for the very 1st time. It was a console cabinet for the
flat screen t.v. We were so excited to see if he won a ribbon. And, he did!!
Josie entered her wood burning project. It's not the sun in the photo, but it is laying down next to her, looks like a log. She won a blue ribbon!
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| Winner! |
Here's a closer photo of her entry, back when she was working on it....
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| Dragons. She is an artist, even with wood! |
The fair is a family tradition for us. Sadly, we go mostly for the food. And to look around at neat stuff...and to people-watch.
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| I'm embarrassed for you all, Orange County... |
This shocked me. People were sitting in chairs having their teeth whitened. Sitting there in the middle of this big exhibit room, with something propping their mouths open, for all the world to see. Has our society lost all sense of dignity?? I think the answer is yes.
Lucky for us, I had my iphone handy to catch all the scandal.
We ate: Greek Gyros. Chicken strips. Fries. Corn dogs. Beef steak sandwiches. Funnel cake. Chocolate drizzled popcorn (which I'm pigging out on in the top photo...) I have to admit, no vegetables were consumed. Usually we have the roasted corn, but we peetered out. I did have a chocolate frozen banana- I'm all about healthy eating...
So lovelies, what have you been up to this Summer??
I've mentioned before how much I identified with the character Bridget Jones (the book was even better than the movie...) [and ok, beside the drinking/smoking/cussing/sleeping around- I am just like her!]
I alternate between wondering what the heck is wrong with me- to trying to fix it- to just going with it.
So.... here's what is going on with me:
So today should be my big push day for housecleaning, I do seem to work best under extreme pressure. Um... I overslept, woke up at 8 and had to scramble to get Amie to VBS on time. Went to grocery store on way back, went running walking, did a half-hour math with the kids and then hit shower. Made lunch for kids, picked up Amie. It is now 2 o'oclock and instead of cleaning I am at Barnes & Nobles with kids. Sky grounded Demi from movies & video games [thank you soooo very much, by the way] and so I had bored kids on my hands. Barnes & Nobles it is!
The rest of my day? I have to be at Irish dance with Amie & Meg by 4, so I will have to make dinner before I leave. When I get back, Sky is taking me to an Angles game. This? I can't resist, I haven't been to a game in a few years, usually he takes the kids.
I am praying my good luck will hold out, and my Dutch friends will not arrive till very, very late on Wednesday night. We will be moving from company cleaning to Guerrilla housecleaning. To wit, clean first the bedroom they will sleep in, then the guest bathroom, then the other parts of the house as I have time.
I live a deliberately ironic life or perhaps a karmic one.
other than all that, I only have to comment on Dr. Who...
River Song!!! Just wow, the last episode was amazing. Who knew?
So, internets, I hope you are having a far more productive Summer so far than I am... :)
*I've been neglecting my blog, because I've been spending my time reading other lovely blogs I've stumbled onto lately.
Here's a shout-out:
and okay, not new finds, but I've been stalking them, uh reading them for a while:
*I'm half-way through the latest Miss Julia book. Miss Julia Renews her vows. I love Miss Julia and I wish I had a Miss Julia in my life... if you want a book series that will first tug you heart, then expand it, and make you laugh and smile,check out the Miss Julia series by Ann B. Ross
*Cadbury caramel eggs: better than the original, which is just too sugary for me. I've got one more hidden in the cup cabinet. :)
*It's homeschool catalog season. I am in the midst of serious curriculum lust/ennui. I think it might help if I make a list of the subjects I wish to cover and the materials I would like to use for each. -it might help the overwhelmed feeling I have...
*Gas prices in So. Ca are going to kill us. It's $4.18 a gallon here, at the cheapest places. It has affected our driving habits, and it has eaten up all the savings we gained last month by dropping some of the kid's activities.
*I cut our first head of lettuce this evening for dinner. There is something very satisfying in that.
Hope you are having a great week, bloggy friends :)
Welcome to my little spot on the internet :)
This is the week for the Ultimate Blog Party 2011 hosted by 5 minutes for Mom.
My name is Jenn. We are a So. California homeschooling family. You will notice that we have 4 children, but I am homeschooling 5. Our friend Teddy, age 11- homeschools with us.
Our children are Meg- age 15, Josie- age 14, Demi-Sky -age 11 and Amie - age 9. (no, these are not their real names) Sky is my husband and best friend. He is a building inspector, a woodworker, and an artist with construction-type things. He happens to rock the whole jeans and steel-toed boots look ;)
Emma is our 2 year old Labradoodle, and practically perfect in every way... I am so glad she is part of our family!
I am a wife, mother, homeschooler, blogger...I love to read, I would rather walk than run- and procrastination is the thorn in my side. I love Jane Austen, diet coke, ** all things carb, dark chocolate and Jars of Clay. Right now, homeschooling is my biggest hobby/interest/vocation...it's not just a job, it's a way of life..er, something like that...
I blog about our family life, our homeschooling, books I read, my struggle to finally get organized... Our homeschooling is pretty eclectic in nature, I use a variety of materials and curriculum and I write about them/review them here.
Sit down and visit a while, there are tabs at the top you can click, and a subject cloud in the sidebar. You can read about ** why we homeschool, ** our faith, **my hair-brained miss-adventures,
** our trips.
We love living in Orange County, California- and yet, we long for a bit of land. This longing expresses itself in our mini-forays into urban home~steading. We currently have 4 hens. You can read about their love of treats here* and about a hen's view of a rock- on- day- here*
