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Showing posts from December, 2018

Donate your Used Bike to a Great Cause - The Bicycle Tree

This Holiday Season will bring new bikes to children across the Nation.  Many already have a bike but have out grown it.  Nobody wants to collect a garage full of unused bikes just sitting and collecting dust.  You might be able to sale your old outgrown bikes on a local used online ad site but many end up being donated to a local thrift store.  Why not donate your unwanted bicycle to an amazing non-profit cause. The Bicycle Tree not only donates bikes to the less fortunate who rely on it as their source of work & school transportation, but also educates the community on bicycle repair and maintenance.  The Bicycle Tree is a community of volunteer and bicycle enthusiasts who help those in need repair their only source of transportation and teach them how to complete repairs.  Through the organizations Wrench and Ride program, participants choose a bike and learn how to complete all of the necessary repair and maintenance on the bike.  Many who have bicycle repair issues ty

3 Hours of Christmas Music Classics and Holiday Scenery

Christmas songs that will keep you happy for three hours.

Holiday Favorite Dish - Chicken Pozole made with love

Making Chicken Pozole is super easy. If you have ever made soup for the winter, then you can make Pozole with no trouble. What is Pozole you ask? It is a hearty Mexican style soup or stew. To start, I cook the chicken with onions, garlic, fresh oregano and chicken broth separately from the hominy. While I am cooking the chicken, I steam the chiles for 15 minutes or until the stem can be removed easily from the body of the Chiles. The Chiles are then placed into the blender and well blended into a smooth sauce. This sauce can be changed by adding different types of dried Chiles, onion, garlic and spices to give a different flavor profile. Once your Chile sauce is well strained into a smooth sauce, add it to the hominy that is cooking separately. The chicken broth and Chile sauce will blend together and make a delicious meal. Don’t forget your garnishes. Choose fresh cabbage, dried oregano seasoning, and a fresh wedge of lime or lemon juice, finely chopped white onions and sli

Third Chance Pet

We adopted a "Third Chance Pet." Originally, we wanted a kitten but when we saw her sitting there looking so sad and lonely our hearts spoke to us. She was a medium size white cat with brown spots. She was 18 month old according to her biography. Kitty aka Cookie was at the bottom of all the cages. In order to see her, you needed to bend down and sit on the floor. She was hard to find. Our first visit was not good. She scratched and was a bit wild. Everything about her that day said that she had been through something traumatic. We were impulsive and said, "YES," we will take her to a forever home. What followed next was amazing. The first six months, we cared for her with compassion and kindness. Cookie was extremely clean, followed bedtime routines and food schedules but was still shy and would scratch us here and there. We would have family over for visits and she would come out to greet them by nudging up to them on their legs. Friends that had visited

Christmas Holiday Lights and more fun activities.

It is the Christmas holiday season and there are so many fun things to do with your family. One of our family traditions is to visit neighborhoods that have festive Christmas light displays. We usually stop by a local coffee shop and buy hot chocolate and cookies before we start the Christmas light tour. We are never disappointed by the Giant Santa or the thousands of twinkling little lights that decorate a single house. Some neighborhoods offer hot cocoa, churros and tamales as part of their celebration. On one of our previous visits, we were given candy canes. Yes, there are so many people out looking for Christmas light displays that sometimes it becomes a social gathering. We have met several kinds of homeowners that will come out and visit with us. It is a great experience for all of us. We highly recommend it as part of your holiday tradition. Here are a few light displays you can visit with your family. Aliso Viejo King Elder Lane Bough Avenue  Glenwood

Holiday Skating in Southern California

It is cold outside and it is time to practice ice skating. Southern California offers several public places to skate with your family and friends. Skating is a fun activity that will get your kids and yourself laughing and just having pure fun.  Prices vary from place to place. We suggest calling ahead to find out the best time to skate and what is included with the price of admission. The average we have found is $20.00 per hour. Continue reading to get more information on local skating rinks.  We are sharing a short list of Ice Rinks in Southern California. Our experience has been a positive one with The Rink in Irvine and the Spectrum. So, we recommend them if it is near you. We also enjoyed skating at the Pershing Square in Los Angeles last year during a very busy time and it was a fun social activity.  For the best experience possible call ahead to get times and prices. Dress warm and wear gloves to keep your body protected from the cold. Continue reading to get more infor

Southern California Children's Museum that offer holiday events.

Southern California is filled with great Children's Museums. These museums offer great holiday activities. Some offer Snow Days, Christmas activities, Hanukkah games and more. There are so many great opportunities to teach kids all ages about traditions, cultures and history.  The Children's Museum, La Habra - They are offering Posadas, Christmas crafts and other hands on learning.  LOCATION:  301 S Euclid St, La Habra, CA 90631 http://www. lhcm .org/ Kid's Space Museum in Pasadena - Snow Days are just around the corner. They offer a great play area that this extremely fun and filled with touch and feel items. LOCATION: 480 N Arroyo Blvd, Pasadena, CA 91103 https://www.kidspacemuseum.org/ Pretend City in Orange County - A great place to bring your toddler to play and explore. This week they are offering photos with Santa. Great place to bring a picnic lunch. Toddlers are encouraged to play until they fall asleep.  LOCATION:  29 Hubble, Irvine, CA 92618

National Parks - Free Entrance Days for 2019

Free Entrance Days in the National Parks for 2019. National Parks will be fee-free on (5) separate holidays. On five days in 2019, all National Park Service sites that charge an entrance fee will offer free admission to everyone.  Mark your calendar for these entrance fee–free dates in 2019: January 21:   Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. April 20:  First day of  National Park Week August 25 :  National Park Service Birthday September 28:   National Public Lands Day November 11:   Veterans Day From the National Parks website: "National parks are America’s best idea, and there are  more than 400 parks  available to everyone, every day. The fee-free days provide a great opportunity to visit a new place or an old favorite, especially one of the  national parks that normally charge an entrance fee . The others are free all the time. The entrance fee waiver for fee-free days does not cover amenity or user fees for activities such as camping, boat launches, transp

Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

Each December 12th, the Mexican Catholic community celebrates the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe. This celebration commemorates the appearance of Mary to the Mexican peasant Juan Diego in 1531. The feast day is an important day for Mexican-American Catholics to celebrate their religious and cultural identity.   Santiago de Compostela Catholic Church  is hosting this amazing celebration beginning on December 11th, 2018 at 11 PM. There is midnight mass, Rosary, serenade, Aztec Dancers and Food. Why you should attend this celebration. This is an important moment in history when our Mother spoke to the Indigenous people of Mexico to build a church in her honor. Watch this short video to find out more information on how the Catholic Church gained the trust of the Mexican people.  You can attend any part of the celebration as your schedule allows. However, I  highly recommend attending the mass. The Church is located at 21682 Lake Forest Dr, Lake Forest, CA 92630 near Irvine Bl