More November Thankfulness

Greetings from the East Coast!  I'm here in the mid Atlantic states having arrived Wednesday (which is why I didn't get around to visit people for Fave Fives last weekend--craziness at Willow's Cottage as I prepared for travel.  Not even any photos...).  So I will endeavor to post today and then visit others posting at Friday Fave Fives before I head out again on a jet plane tomorrow evening.

OK, first things first.

1.  I'm thankful for a safe flight across the US.  Not being an intrepid flyer, I am so very grateful when the plane touches down and I can state those famous words of our MAF jungle pilot in Papua, "Cheated death again!"

2.  I am thankful for The Professor who encourages me to take these adventures, sometimes without him.  I miss him when we're apart, but I know we're never very far apart in thought and spirit.

3.  Those hugs and kisses when the car pulls up at airport arrivals and everyone yells, "Meema!"

New news:

4.  I am thankful that my daughter (The New Boy's mom) wants to travel with me.  It's a privilege and joy to have special times with my adult children.

5.  Finally, I am thankful and excited that I have the chance to visit ENGLAND with my girl!  Leaving tomorrow!  So maybe I'll be able to visit a few blogs.  I'll try!

11/11 + 5

Willow's Week on Veteran's Day in Five Faves.  (How's that for succinct?)  Follow this link to Friday Fave Fives.

1. Today is Veteran's Day in the US.  I am thankful for my family members who have/do serve in the US military.

my father

my paternal uncle

my maternal uncle

my husband The Professor

my brother-in-law

my son Chaplain Dan

my son-in-law The Marine (retired!)

2.  Today is also Chaplain Dan and his wife's tenth wedding anniversary.  Happy Anniversary to them!

3.  I love those spontaneous texts from The Professor when he notices a poster and knows I'd enjoy listening to the lecture.  He sent this photo and one word:  "Interested?"  Duh!

4.  I've been watching this monarch chrysalis every day (even in our hot hot hot 90s blistering dry heat).  Yes, I finally found a way to photograph it.  No butterfly yet...

5.  I love the photos of my granddaughter that are sent  to me!  Her auntie took this picture at Halloween.  Somebody loves Minnie Mouse!

Bonus:  This quote from a gardening article by Karen Maezen Miller, author of Hand Wash Cold: Care Instructions for an Ordinary Life. (I haven't read the book, but I enjoyed the article.) 

"...but there are ways to get by on less.  First, want little.  Second, be satisfied.  Third, don't replace anything that still has a useful life.  This last point has served out marriage well."

A Saturday Hike

On Saturday afternoon, The Professor and I decided that a hike was a great choice of activity.  Where to hike?   Obviously since we live on the edge of the Santa Monica Mountains, it was a easy choice to hike one of our favorite areas.

The main trail in Point Mugu State Park runs from the beach at Pacific Coast Highway just north of Malibu up into the Santa Monica Mountains to Thousand Oaks.  This trail is paved and is very popular with mountain bikers as well as hikers.

It's seven miles to the beach from here.

See that canyon?  In a normal rainy year, there is water in the creek.  These days, it's just dry brush.

The Professor and I walked down to where a secondary trail splits off and follows the creek up to the falls. Then we turned around and hiked back up the trail.

This entire area was burned in the Camarillo Springs Fire three and a half years ago.  You can still see the dead trees and brush although there is new growth sprouting from the ashes and dead branches.

The madrone bushes are growing back.  You can always tell the madrones by their red trunks and branches.

Our Saturday hike was just what we needed.  A few miles of walking in quietness, in nature.

November Delights

It's already November?? Wow.  Eleventh month of the year 2016.  Traditionally, in the US, November is the month of Thanksgiving.  I think it's important to be thankful every day, not just for a month or a few days in November.  That's why I delight in Friday Fave Fives.

1.  Here is the proof that it rains in Southern California.  On Sunday, it rained!

2.  The monarch butterfly caterpillars are back again, chomping on the milkweed.  I had read that monarchs return several times during a single season to lay eggs.  Fortunately, the milkweed plants, which is their only food, have been growing well this year.  I found one chrysalis but because of its position hanging from a dead branch I haven't been able to photograph it easily. (I'll keep trying.)

3.  Here is a yummy fave!  This is an update on the sweet potatoes I planted in the spring.  So far, I've pulled up less than one fourth of the plants and I have a lot of tubers.  Admittedly some of them are weirdly shaped probably because they were confined to a pot.  But they'll still taste fine, right?  I'm super excited!  My first sweet potatoes!

4.  Although I'm trying to knit down my yarn stash, sometimes I need to purchase a skein to finish a project.  I'm thankful for sales and coupons to keep the cost down.  This week I scored yarn for a baby vest to give a sweet little one who is outgrowing the one I gave her a few months ago.

5.  This quote:  A Garden is a Delight to the Eye and a Solace for the Soul.

(Saadi)

And this one:  The Earth Laughs in Flowers.

(Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Flowers from my garden this week.  I laugh in delight and find solace in my garden.

California daisy

Hummingbird sage

Where have you found delight or solace this week?