More Flowers for the Yard

Lately, we've been spending quite a bit of time in the backyard. Actually, I guess this isn't all that new, but with all the cleaning up, composting, and other stuff, we figured it was time to add some new flowers and other plants to the backyard. Off to Lowe's we went.

I have been wanting an avocado tree. We were able to find a dwarf tree which is perfect for a whiskey barrel we have. Angie found some beautiful dahlia's, some other flowers, and we also added a couple strawberry plants. One of my favorite memories as a kid was picking strawberries out of our backyard, so I really wanted strawberries.

Angie and I spent a couple hours in the yard, getting our new additions into place, and doing some more cleanup. Howie and kitty came out in to the yard to help out, at least until kitty made a break for it and ended up in the neighbor's yard. I guess he won't be allowed out anymore.

Beach Day

With the long 4 day weekend over the 4th of July holiday, Angie and I decided we needed a beach day. Angie scoped out a beach that would be somewhat quiet and it had to be dog friendly. She found Pleasure Point which totally fit the bill.

We headed out in the morning after loading up blankets, chairs, and of course Howie. Once we arrived in Santa Cruz, we walked to the stairs leading to Pleasure Point beach and watched the surfers in the water. Apparently Pleasure Point is also popular with the surfers. At first, we were nearly the only people on this particular area of the beach so we were able to allow Howie to go off leash and enjoy the water. Howie had never been to the ocean, but he was so excited about the waves, running and jumping into the water. He was soaked and covered in sand, but had so much fun.

We left the beach for a late lunch, stopping at a taqueria in Capitola, and then headed home. Howie smelled like the ocean and was still covered in sand, so he got a tubby in the backyard. 

Can't wait for another beach day!

Settling in and catching up

We've been in California for just over a month now and are settling in quite nicely. We've spent our time learning our new surroundings and have already found a couple favorite things to do.

Frequently on Sunday's our routine has us off to breakfast in downtown Willow Glen. Willow Glen is a small area of San Jose where we live. It has a sweet small town feel in its little downtown area with cute little shops and restaurants. After breakfast we head over to Campbell, another nearby Bay Area town, for an amazing Farmer's Market where we've picked up some awesome local fruits, veggies, and even plants for our backyard.

Speaking of our backyard, we spend a lot of time in it. Angie enjoys taking care of all our rose bushes, cleaning out the flower beds, and arranging potted plants around. She has even started composting, which has significantly cut down on our weekly garbage. We've already had one nice batch to feed some of the flowers with.

Sidney has been back in Colorado for the past couple weeks spending time with her dad and friends. Before she left, she was a great helper in the yard and set up the deck outside her bedroom with a cute little bistro set.

Howie absolutely loves the dog door to the backyard since it lets him go outside whenever he wants. At least it did until Kitty figured out how to use it too. Now we need to figure out how to stop Kitty from using it so we can open it back up for Howie, although he still gets out as much as he wants to.

I've settled into my daily routine of riding my bike 3.5 miles to the shuttle stop and riding it in to work. Google has some amazing busses fully equipped with wireless internet which allows me to work during my commute and avoid driving in the California traffic. I am pretty sure I've ridden my bike more miles than I've driven my car since we've moved here.

Here are some pictures we've taken of the yard and stuff. I'll be sure to have another update soon.