Whew!

Wow - I was busy nonstop yesterday.

In fact, I've been running nonstop since my guests arrived last Saturday.  Did I mention they arrived as the fire behind our house was being put out?  Talk about a chaotic beginning to their visit!

Also ... 

How much of Orange County can a person show off in one week?

In all the craziness of the fire, and the busyness of entertaining house guests, I forgot to charge my camera battery this week.  (And yes, I DO have a backup battery - but did I have it with me the last couple days?  No, I did not.)

I do have a few iPhone photos to show you, though:

My latest pedicure!

The nail art was painted on by hand - it was not stenciled on.

Isn't that amazing?

I think next time I'll go for a little brighter background color though.

(One of my guests wanted to go for a pedicure in a "Real Housewives" salon!  Things like that make me laugh .... but hey, it was an excuse for a PEDICURE!)

The view from our table at lunch yesterday:

Sorry, these photos are obviously straight out of the phone.  In fact, the above photo was taken through the plexiglass next to our table.

My guests were amazed to be sitting at a restaurant with the waves crashing underneath us as we enjoyed lunch.

I have to admit, it's fun to watch the excitement of people seeing/experiencing this area for the first time.

"Look how big those palm trees are!"

They were also amazed to see workers on cranes, trimming the dead palm fronds off the palm trees.  This is something I never think twice about ... but it was the source of a lot of questions on the part of my guests.

We also hit up a few local malls, including Fashion Island in Newport Beach.  Guests always seem to like Fashion Island because it's an outdoor mall, and there are a fair amount of designer stores there.  

Also, you have a view of the ocean as you walk around the mall.

I thought these ceramic nesting measuring cups were adorable: 

They were at Anthropologie.

I didn't buy them.

I don't need them.

They don't match my kitchen.

Those were the things I told myself over and over again as I resisted their cuteness.

© Twenty Four At Heart 

Comments

[WebSavvyMom]

-->I love palm trees because they make me feel like I'm on vacation. We have them around this area but they're very few and far between.

[Di]

Ya... sometimes when you buy something just for the cuteness factor it just ends up in next summer's garage sale pile. Oh, how many times I've done that! Love the measuring cups though.

Di

[Jan]

I laughed as I read what you said about the nesting ceramic bowls. I have a weakness for cute dishes, too...as you may notice on my blog these days. Hey, when you run across a woman who makes fancy, custom dishes and cutlery at a wine and jazz festival and your husband's got 3 glasses of wine in him and is feeling no pain, you take *advantage* of it. :-)

[The Wife of a Dairyman]

Oooh, love those measuring cups! Isn't it fun playing 'tourist' in your own town?!