garden roses are my fave

My wonderful neighbor was out working in her garden and I snapped a photo with my iphone.  I love the colorful roses against the backdrop of the garage floor. 

A few moments later her husband knocked on my door to give me some.  I promise you Sharon...I was not hinting around. 

but thank you for making my day!

$3 tomato = lunch

Yesterday we were in Santa Monica and Wednesday is the day of their farmer's market.  We were handed a tomato wedge with sea salt.   We bought one...it was $3, but worth every penny!

Delicious just with a little S & P . . .

. . . but even better in a bacon, lettuce, tomato and avocado sandwich.

food truck lunch

 On the way to a wholesale nursery in Torrance, CA we were driving on the 405 and saw a sign at a business/retail park that food trucks would be  there today from 11 to noon.  We left the nursery feeling pretty good having selected the plants for the backyard.  The last little bit of this year long renovation project and the house is done...at least for now....  And we had impeccable timing. It's a beautiful day, 77º and not a cloud in the sky. 

 Everything looked amazing...Food trucks are so clean....I love that.

There was a large courtyard with tables, chairs and even a fire pit.

 The tacos were delicious and well priced.  Lunch for $5 included a soda.

Ladies Lunch

I had the privilege of hosting  a small lunch today for two amazing women who I am sponsoring and their co-sponsors for the National Charity League.  If you know about NCL then you know it is a philanthropic organization that fosters the mother-daughter relationship through community service, leadership and cultural experiences.  NCL was established in 1925 in Los Angeles, CA and now has more than 160 chapters in 17 states.  Girls and their mothers join in 7th grade and go through 12th grade.  My daughter and I first joined in New Canaan, CT and then transferred to a league when we moved to Southern California. The experience has been rewarding in countless ways.  We have been fortunate to meet and become close friends with many wonderful women and their daughters while working in the community.

I served Ina Garten's Goat Cheese Tart from her Back to Basics cook book.  You can find the recipe here. 

The salad was from Giada DeLaurentis.  It is arugula with a lemon vinaigrette and the recipe can be found here.
Lorna's cookies and coffee for dessert.  See my post
about her gorgeous pinwheel cookies here.


 

 

The Getty in the Rain...

Visiting the Getty in the rain actually turned out to be quite nice.  It was a chance to really take in the beauty of the Getty itself.  We arrived shortly after the museum opened and it was so nice to see all the open spaces without the distraction of lots of people moving about.  It may have been a disappointment to those visiting for the first time because there was limited visibility on Sunday and normally the views are spectacular.  The mood was still pleasant and the docents were all as helpful and wonderful as if it were 73 degrees and sunny.  And as you can see, there was no shortage of umbrellas.  At one point during lunch my 11 year old asked if we would be leaving soon.  His 16 year old sister replied, "oh, no we still have the lecture and the IMAX!"  It really was a well, lovely day the Getty!

Happy New Year

P e a c e  .  L o v e  .  H o p e