Spring in California

 Gene and I just got back last week from our road trip to Cambria, California.  We spent our first day out at Huntington Gardens....a wonderful spot in the San Marino area of Los Angeles.  The buildings house a research library and several museums and the gardens are bursting with blooms right now.  

They have a wonderful Chinese and Japanese Garden, but I tend to LOVE the more cottage style with tons of flowers on top of each other....

The bearded Iris were amazing.....Gene is big on taking pictures of me at all the places we visit....and I am always trying to stay away from the camera!

 ......after a fun evening with my sister Sherry and her husband Mike and their son's family we were off  to Pismo Beach.....It is on the coast above Santa Barbara.  The day was beautiful and we had a wonderful time checking out the shore....

.....we saw lots of honeymooners....a very romantic spot for a stay....We caught up with old neighbors who now live in Pismo that evening....(What a fabulous place to live!)

....The next morning we went to see the homestead of the Price family who founded Pismo.....just a short jaunt from the beach and it is a different world....

.........Gene couldn't resist this shot...

......Then off to Cambria to meet our friends from college days....as we waited for their arrival we explored....This was a garden behind one of the many CUTE shops.  (As you can see we are still on the quest for the perfect things to plant in our garden.)

......I think this may be a grown up version of the vine we already planted.....

.....One of Gene's favorites....Calla Lilies!

















.....a shot of some of the shops in Cambria.  We had beautiful weather throughout the trip....

.......Eucalyptus trees.....you see them all over this part of the state....

We hiked out of a town called Harmony (pop. 18) in a state preserve.....it ends at the coast and we spotted lots of seals playing!

.....California poppies along the way...

....the garden behind our motel...

.......it was a very peaceful spot with benches scattered around to stop and enjoy!

.....It was hard to come back.....but we had parties galore this weekend and got to celebrate birthdays and Timothy's first communion. 



Have a great week.....Jo Ann