Signs of Spring

Here are a few signs of Spring I wanted to share from Danielle's campus.
Photography is one of her creative passions and she was able to capture some great views just walking around her school.

First Signs of Spring





This looks like a great tree to lay under with a book.



Enjoy your Spring Day......

Old to New Project

I manage a bookkeeping firm in our town, and when it's not tax season there's time to do projects around the office. So, this year, it was time for some fresh designs. I painted the back office, kitchen, and main office in a rich golden-yellow. We use to have alot of 'country-themed' decor, which I do not prefer, but most were client-gifts, so we respectfully displayed them.

But, it's just time for new!

There is wallpaper that is still in good condition, and it matches well. Also, the building is 100 years old, so we need keep in mind the colors of that era. I do not have a strong connection to antiques, so this was a bit of a challenge for me.

In my moving of furniture I found an old "Financial Planner" that was given to clients. It shows local business advertisement. There is no date on the docs, but the phone number indicates it's prior to the prefix digits. In other words, the first three numbers are letters, which we think, goes back to the 1950's. It was yellowed, stained and brittle from age. But, we needed to display it some how.

I went to the local antique store and found 2 old window frames, carefully cleaned and sanded them. I did a rough paint job and ordered some black matting. They are now hanging proudly in our client's waiting room. I just hope they get appreciated.

Here are the project photos:

sanded and washed....

Fast forward, to matted and hanging but it still needs something .... more color on the wall.

The chairs and table are also old, found at another antique shop in town.

Some of these business are still in operation; E & P tire, Lemoore Ready Mix....

I have it hanging over an orginal computer, dated 1970, and an old typwriter with carry case.

It's important to be comfortable in your workspace; this feels much better.

Bakker Family Christmas, 2010

The Bakker family is growing and growing, but we still are able to get together each Christmas. We are blessed to have such a large family with the majority of us in the same county. We are missing 15-20 of our family members from this gathering, as they couldn't arrange the time to come.

Our hosts' Joseph and Alicia, just moved into a large farm house, so we had plenty of room. We were grateful for their generosity. Alicia's father is Sinterklaas (Dutch Santa)..... sshhh. With his thick Dutch accent he made the visit a huge hit with the kids, big and little.

Thanks Mr. Schuringa.

Sinterklaas gave the kids large pins for a treat, if they sat on his lap.

He had such a huge belly ;)

Ethan and Justin love to talk 'shop' with Kyle. These are knowledgeable dairy/farm boys, raised by great parents. Kyle was offered a job by the younger one :) We think he was just trying to find a way to spend more time with Kyle. Cute kids.

Holding up the kitchen counter, telling stories and sharing laughs.

A quiet moment with Beppe.

Merry Christmas to all, and Happy New Year.

Christmas Card Photo time

Danielle's friend, Bridgett, took our Christmas card photo this year. She's been dabbling in the foto-craze and has been taking some great shots. You can see her blog on our site. We usually set up our camera ourselves but end up with a little attitude towards eachother at the end, since we all have ideas of our own. So, letting someone else 'stage' us was well worth the stress-free photo shoot.

Here's some of the photos from our shoot.

Aaaahhh, the kids. Danielle is 18 and Kyle is 21.
Nevermind how old we are.

She even got us up on our roof..... scary. Should've brought a broom, though :)

Love our cork tree in this shot.

But, here's the one we ultimately put on our card, since we can see Kyle's face with out his cowboy hat.

Sandpipers Holiday Home Tour, Manhatten Beach, CA

This past weekend, my friend Colette and I took in a home tour put on by the Sandpipers in Hermosa Beach. Lynn, a friend, and Sandpiper member drove us around to see the homes.They do offer shuttle, since their serving Champagne, but we had our own agenda.

"Stunning Hermosa Hacienda"

The fusion of these simple design elements with exotic Moroccan, Spanish, and Asian influences become this wonderful global and chic home.

" Elegant Manhattan Hill Section Tuscan Villa"

Even though the homes were vast and stunningly decorated, we got ideas that we can take with us. Ideas for decorating our own homes, different uses for outdoor spaces, since the weather in Manhatten Beach is so mild.

That evening we got together again, and caught up over Italian meal. I do love this area, but it's a little too crowded after living in a less populated town.

What are the kids doing while we're gone.....

While we went to Paso Robles and had our winery adventure the kids had their share of good times. Danielle went to Santa Barbara with her friend to visit their mutual friend who is attending film school in SB.

The atmosphere is so much more exciting down south then in Hanford, or Fresno.... so these valley girls lived it up!!! I don't know where they learn to party.... hmmm.... to be young again. I don't how much studying my girl would get down if she lived down there, so far now, I'm glad she's bored at her small university.

Weekend Getaway

Our favorite weekend getaway is a trip to our beautiful California coast together.

Ventuex Winery

We chose the E46 and hit a few wineries that we haven't been to before and with the stereo off we talk and laugh all the way there. Sometimes we have the music blasting and crank it all the way up, like a couple kids.
We keep track of wineries we haven't been to before, with over 175 just within the Paso Robles area, there's plenty of stops to make. We started this little "thumbs up or down" approval method for the wineries..... anything for a little fun.

This trip we stopped at Niner Winery and Ventuex Vineyard on the first day. We loved Ventuex so much we joined the club. Niner has a wonderful new building and great place for a large gathering. Just a bit pricey for the taste. We did purchase a bottle of their Sirah, which is Danny's favorite. Ventuex has a gorgeous B & B that we vowed to stay in someday. Small winery with a knowledgeable staff and servers. Took a trip to the backroom where Todd was stomping down some Zin grapes.

We stayed in Morro Bay at the Masterpiece Motel, the name derives from the paintings hanging in the rooms and hallways of famous artists. They give you a list of the numbered painting so you can walk around and view them. Which we did with our glass of wine, as if we were apart of some grand gallery.... we get silly like this at times.

This image is of their spa. Didn't expect it to be so nice, so we left swimsuits at home.

The next day we took a drive north, to the Moonstone drive and walked around to see the lazy Sea Lions and all the wonderful living creatures in the tide pools.

Then went into West Cambria for the first time and stopped at a random namesake tasting room, which turned out to be awesome. Just love these surprises! Moonstone Cellars, where the winemaker was on hand to pour and share a ton of information regarding the process of wine making.
Thumbs UP to this winery.....

After leaving East Cambria we stopped in very small town of Harmony. This wine was recommended, but we were equally disappointed by the similarity of each varietal. Note the thumbs down in my photo.

Before heading home we ate at one of our favorite cafes in Cambria... Redwood Pine Cafe, where they pour a MEAN cup of coffee.

A trip to our California coast never disappoints us. And this was a great time of year to get away from home. Didn't have to deal with the occasional trick or treater, not in the mood for the Halloween parties and it was certainly nice to get away from the political campaigners.