Tomorrow will be a big day! I am heading up the road to Ontario, California! What is in ONTARIO, you ask? The big Road to California Quilt Show, of course! No, I am not teaching! WHOOPEEEE! I get to be “one of the girls” and attend a workshop with Melinda Bula.  Her work is lovely, and I am only taking a 1 day workshop to learn her technique.

The Ontario Convention Center is a big beautiful place with a view of the nearby San Gabriel Mountain range (on a clear day). We are predicted to have rain so it might be stormy. See you there!

January 15th   FOLLOW  UP!   The workshop with Melinda was relaxing and creative play time! I enjoyed the day away, and the quilts at the show were PHENOMENAL. The dense quilting was particularly amazing – I feel like an amateur compared with these master quilters! Click on both slideshows for a peek at Road to California, and Melinda’s work on YouTube.

 

Don and I started a new year’s tradition – to see and explore more of our local surroundings. We went over to the coast near Torrey Pines and La Jolla (pronounced la hoya) to see the Children’s Pool Beach.  This small sheltered cove has created years of controversy…… philanthropist Ellen Browning Scripps funded the sea wall construction in 1931.

The grant stated…”That said lands shall be devoted exclusively to public park, bathing pool for children, parkway, highway, playground and recreational purposes…..”  The sheltered cove created within the sea wall proved to be a perfect place for California seals to sunbathe and rest with their pups, and also a place for the public to watch seals in their natural state.

Legal debates have ensued over the years, with various parties filing injunctions to erect baracades to protect the seals and humans particularly during pupping season, and whether to eradicate the seals, conduct an environmental cleanup and return the pool to its original intended purpose – human recreation. With all the news coverage, year after year, we wanted to see the Children’s Pool Beach!

Our son Ryan and his new bride, Tanya were married August 13 at Tom Ham’s Lighthouse in San Diego. It was a lovely ceremony, and terrific to see them so happy together. The small personal gathering of family and friends was fun for all.

Ryan & Tanya

wedding cake with shells

Jan, Tanya, Ryan & Don

Tanya & Eva

I had the pleasure of teaching the South Bay Quilter’s Guild workshop in Luella’s Quilt Basket classroom. What a great shop! Visit Luella and her staff when you’re in the South Bay area! The shop is easy to find at 1512 Aviation Blvd, Redondo Beach, CA – just watch for the huge quilt blocks painted on the building!

Visiting Carmel-by-the-Sea for breakfast, photographing a bit of the town for you to see.

The Valentine

The Valentine, detail

Location description: Sixth and Lincoln, Carmel-by-the-sea, California

Statue’s Subject: The Valentine

Artist: George W. Lundeen

Ocean Avenue, Carmel

Thomas Kincade Gallery sign

 

Pumkins in alley walkway, next to Kinkade Gallery

The alley beckons you to explore....