Lemons

They say - when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. So, that's exactly what we did!

A lemon tree, located in the yard of the house Ryan & Ashley are soon to move out of, has finally produced a boatload of lemons. The 4 yr old enjoyed juicing the lemons and making a big pitcher of lemonade. The cold lemonade tastes really good on these warm January days in Tucson. It was 80 degrees yesterday!

[The electric juicer is from way back in the days of our first house
(in Van Nuys, CA) which had several lemon and orange trees in the backyard. You can probably tell the juicer's vintage from the lovely "goldenrod" color. ]

We still have lots more lemons. Does anyone have any good recipes that use lemons, such as lemon pie, lemon bars, or lemon chicken? (Those of you who are familiar with my lack of skill in the area of following recipes, please stop laughing.) Seriously, if you have a recipe that involves lemons, please send it along. Thanks!

Aloha

As part of the never-ending quest for sunny and warm places to visit, we just returned from 8 days in Hawaii - the Big Island.
Here are my top ten Hawaii experiences:
10 - Sitting on a beautiful beach in Hawaii on MY BIRTHDAY!


9 - Walking down the beach (north of Kona) and discovering sea turtles on the shore.


8 - Hawaiian coconut/pineapple smoothies.
7 - Sailing on a catamaran and snorkeling off the rocky shore and coral reefs.
6 - Luau dinner with Hawaiian dancing (not done by me) and an amazing sunset over the Pacific.




5- Volcano watching and hiking in Volcano National Park.










4 - Boogie boarding at Hapuna Beach - one of best beaches in the world.












3- Akaka Waterfall and walking through the rain forest near Hilo.









2- Swimming with dolphins - 15 to 20 real, wild Spinner Dolphins - in the bay where Captain Cook first landed in Hawaii. Yes, they really do jump and spin in the wild - no training required.



1 - Whale watching and finding a pod of 5 or 6 humpback whales who surfaced, tail-slapped, and generally entertained for almost an hour. Even the captain of our Zodiac boat was amazed!













What can I say? It's Hawaii - what's not to like? Aloha!