Cherries

Monday, June 24, 2013

Happy Birthday Dave!

Happy Monday!
 
Happy Birthday Dave! Guess what you get for your birthday this year? Rain! It's raining. It's June! What the heck? Frankly, it's okay, it's nice to have the smell of rain in the air and things looking less dry and dusty and more fresh and clean. Take it in because we will be back to triple digits sooner than we all think!




 
 
In other news, Mason did his cooking demo in Petaluma and guess what, that same evening we made it back to Sacramento where Dave was standing in line for Mason to meet Guy Fieri! Mason was over the moon, but Dave and I were less than enthused. People have told me that Guy has a big ego and is not always very polite and I chalked it up to the idea that people don't always understand the workings of celebrity events. Nope! They were right, he was less than cordial, didn't converse with Mason even with Mason excitedly sharing that he had just come from doing a live cooking demo in Petaluma. When I say I feel like Guy didn't even see us, I'm certain he didn't see any of us. Though he did sign an apron for Mason, when we asked if we could take a photo with just he and Mason, he all but said, "What the F@#$? I said ONE picture!" Really? And yes, it was the "F" word he was forming with his mouth though he didn't say it out loud. Mason was excited to get the autograph and I was happy Mason was excited. Enough about celebrity egos, let's talk about more cheerful subjects.
 
 
Over the weekend I was honored to be asked to donate a RiverLights Original to a wonderful charity. Through the exchange process and a lovely conversation, I ended up getting a phone call that I had been enrolled in a local painting class I was really wanting to attend. I have always been creative and artistic, but never felt as though I could paint a worthy canvas. Guess what? I did it! I painted "Starry Sky Over Sacramento." I can't wait to paint more, and I want to paint bigger. I want to paint a huge canvas to hang in the living room above the couch. Just wait, I will write all about it when I do.
 
So now we are back to work and school. Mason is loving culinary school and we are gearing up for his cooking demo at the Napa County Fair on July 4th. We have reservations to spend a few nights in the Napa Valley as a family while Mason has this gig scheduled. Oh, and did I tell you he is getting paid? Yes, an all day ride wristband! Don't laugh, that could be the equivalent of $30-40 dollars. Mason's demo is not until 7 PM so we will spend the day at the fair letting Mason ride and we will take in all that Napa has to offer. If you are interested, you can see Mason in action in Petaluma last Wednesday on his channel on You Tube. 
 
I'm selling real estate having taken a listing for a lot and yesterday I was out showing properties to buyers. I think I will be writing an offer in the next day or so, I'm pretty excited about that! Okay, enough, it's time to get to whatever it is we need to be getting to. Have a great week and think about this, "Continue to perpetuate the truth you want to realize." This has been at the forefront of my thoughts this week as I make a more concentrated effort to focus on that which I would like to see growing in my life. Have a great week and focus on the good!
 

Monday, June 17, 2013

Manic Monday!

Happy Monday!

It's been a bit manic and I've had some technology challenges. Nothing I can't handle, it just means I am behind my timelines - yeah, and? And nothing. It just means some things happen a little later.

Dave finally made it home (he was away on orders for 2+ weeks), but not without a big, final hurrah! The Durango blew up on his way home from the office. We had to leave it on the road until Saturday when we could have it towed to a salvage yard. It's not such a big loss, it just made for "one more thing to do" on our already long list. We had a lovely weekend, Dave enjoyed his Father's Day, sleeping in, watching the race, and savoring the flavors of several amazing meals. Mason and I took in a few hours at the river and its safe to say, a good time was had by all.

This is another busy week with culinary school on Monday and Tuesday and then Mason has a cooking demo at the Sonoma-Marin County Fair in Petaluma. He is demonstrating all natural dog cookies, a July 4th beverage using Pop Rocks, and he is throwing pizza dough and making homemade pizza. This is going to be a good one! Add real estate work in the mix and you can see we are moving at top speed, though we are not necessarily arriving on time! Laughing!
 
Here is a picture of Mason in his school uniform, I think it is so funny that everything is too big. The school has ordered him clothes that fit, but in the meantime, here he is, looking good!
 
Have a great week and remember, it's better to show up even if a bit late than to not show up at all.

Monday, June 10, 2013

One of Those Days!

Today has been one of "those" days! I didn't sleep much last night as through a strange turn of events, I dislocated something in my foot and I suffered in horrible pain all night long. After calling my MD and making an appointment, I put my weight on my foot and whatever was out of place, went back in. That moment hurt like the devil and then all seemed to be well.
 
With my day starting off like this, everything else was out of sync. I'm not going to let this color my week, as Mason starts culinary school tomorrow and I have a few leads of my own from the real estate office. I'm excited about what I'm doing and hopeful this is going to be a prosperous summer. Another fun thing that happened today is that Mason has been invited to do a cooking demo on July 4th at the Napa County Fair in Calistoga. I see lots of recipe testing in my future! Just last night, Mason made pizza on the grill and boy, was it good! If you want to see how to do it, you can watch here, it's only 5 minutes and when you're done watching, you'll know exactly how to do it, too! I don't think we will ever make pizza in the oven again, it was that good!
 
So now I am off to bed early to make up for lost time last night. I hope you are well and looking forward to plenty of fun this summer, I know we have lots on tap including cooking demos, movies under the stars, river trips, and more! Happy Summer!
Kathy

Monday, June 3, 2013

Holy Pizzeria Batman!

Happy Monday and welcome to summer 2013! We are looking at all kinds of triple digits this week topping out at an estimated 106 on Saturday! Yowza! I like it hot, it somehow makes me feel a bit like I am on vacation even when I am doing my normal work and family life activities. I may need to reach out to my landlord and see when the last time the AC was serviced though because yesterday the house didn't seem to cool down in a very timely fashion at all.








My first official week of no school and working at the real estate office was great. Even though I don't like being the novice in the office, the knowledge is coming quickly and I'm sure in no time I will be up to speed. Over the weekend, Mason and I took a pizza making class at the school where Mason will be spending plenty of time this summer. What fun we had! We learned so many little tips and tricks to making Pizzeria style pizza at home, and yes, we both learned to throw dough! Mason had so much fun, he is planning to make Dave a pizza dinner for Father's Day and he will be making pizza at his demo coming up in Petaluma on June 19. Hey, when you are a 9 year old boy who can throw pizza dough, you want to show that off every chance you get! Speaking of Father's Day, Mason made a few videos this weekend with some easy and tasty ideas kids can make for dad in the kitchen, check them out here, but don't tell Dave, he can't see them until after Father's Day.
 
Mason has just four more days of School and summer will officially begin, although the sleeping outside started this weekend. Sleeping under the stars at home is bliss! All the comforts of running water, flush toilets, and the cool night air all in one happy place. Mason's summer plans include raising money for his school kitchen, a handful of cooking demos, and yes, he will be attending culinary school! It is blowing my mind that he is so enthused about this program, I shake my head at the idea of having a full formal education that can take you into the working world before the age of 13, and even more so at a 9 year old boy who wants to take this on! This is going to be a very interesting summer indeed!
 
I hope you are well and doing something you love, if not, find something that makes you smile and get it on your calendar this week - you'll be glad you did!