My laptop crashed!

...pulling out hair...my laptop, which has ALL my recent photos on it, crashed yesterday.  I mean, I couldn't get an Internet connection all morning and I tried for over 45 minutes.  So, this morning, I'm on hubby's new one, but it ONLY has our photos from our weekend in San Juan Capistrano on it and some misc. photos I took before our trip.  He will have to move all my photos onto our external hard drive this afternoon.  So, in the meantime, I'll just have to bore you with photos from what I have on hubby's laptop.  It's so nice to have hot air balloons back in the valley!  There was a huge lawsuit here by an "olive farm" which was surrounded by barbed wire and security cameras that didn't like the balloons over the "farm", so they filed a lawsuit which prevented ALL hot air balloons from flying here in the valley for a couple of years.  Several of them went out of business, so I'm glad to see them back dotting our skies.  It was so WINDY here yesterday and last night!  Trees blew over and roads were closed all up and down the valley.  I'm taking my camera with me today because the clouds will be incredible, and will post again tomorrow.

Entry gate, Palm Desert~Whimsical Windows, Delightful Doors~030512

I was driving around town this morning trying to get some framed photos for another challenge and I came upon this entry gate.  I love to see how various people have designed their front yards.  We currently have an old wooden board fence in the front, which will probably blow over in the next wind storm, so I'm out looking at other landscapes.  I like this one.  It's very clean and I love the two bougenvillas on either side of it.  WWDD for March 5, 2012. To visit WWDD, please follow this link:   http://iwishiwereaphotographer.blogspot.com/

mustangs framed~Sunday Stills Challenge~030412

Yesterday was an absolutely incredible spring day down here in the desert, but when I started up the mountain highway to drive to the horse ranch, I saw and felt wind.  And cold.  Brrrrrr!!!!  By the time I arrived at the horse ranch, I stopped to put on my denim coat which is fleece lined.  And, I turned up the collar.  We had Santa Ana winds, which means they come swooping down from Utah and Nevada and boy, those winds were COLD!  I basically said hello to everybody and gave them an extra feeding and jumped back in my car.  I stayed long enough to run into the open room where I store all their feed in aluminum cans (there are rabbits, mice, rats, and ground squirrels at the ranch, remember) ... and NO CATS, so the critters run all over the place...oh, and snakes, too! I stood in the feed room and tried to frame this as best I could...oh, well...Sunday Stills Challenge for March 4, 2012.  On the way up and down the mountain, I only spotted 4 desert lupines blooming.  We just didn't have enough rain this winter for a good wildflower season. I also noticed that out of the wildflower mix which I scattered in my garden, only 1 desert lupine actually made it to bloom...sigh...definitely NOT a good wildflower year!

Smooching with Cali

We stopped by the ranch last Sunday, on our way home from San Juan Capistrano.  It was cold and windy...sigh...Plus, hubby was along and he doesn't have the patience to sit around while I work with the horses.  He gets on his phone and then starts pacing and he makes me AND the horses very nervous.  For these reasons, I don't go up with him anymore if I want to get ANYTHING done!  See the Cali kisses?  She is SUCH a sweetheart!  I'm looking forward to some horse time ALONE this weekend!

Excuse me~There IS a fence here! Friday Fences for March 2, 2012

The horse and rider in the previous post got a little too friendly last weekend in San Juan Capistrano!  I think the lady eating lunch actually did enjoy the intrusion, but who knows?  I know I would have!  I might have offered the horse a carrot!  Don't you love the red fence next to the train car dining?  Friday Fences for March 2, 2012.  To visit Friday Fences, please follow this link:   http://lifeaccordingtojanandjer.blogspot.com/

A tribute to fallen riders~San Juan Capistrano

I was surprised to see this tribute to fallen riders at mission San Juan Capistrano last weekend.  It's right next to the entrance of the mission.  There are quite a few names on it, including a former mayor of Palm Springs.  I think it is a nice gesture, don't you?

How about joining us for lunch???

Hubby and I headed over to San Juan Capistrano for the weekend...it's hubby's birthday tomorrow and little Ben's, too.  We drove over the Ortega Highway Friday evening (I do NOT recommend this EVER!)  I was tired from dragging myself to school that day and the normal two hour drive turned into a 3 1/2 hour ordeal as we hit traffic in Temecula.  I was exhausted by the time we arrived at the hotel.  So, this morning, when the fog lifted, we went for a drive along the Pacific Coast Highway up to Laguna Nigel.  We turned back, stopped at Whole Foods in Laguna Beach, and then stopped at the AMTRAK station in San Juan Capistrano.  We found a restaurant where we had pasta for lunch and I heard the clip-clop of hooves on pavement.  I looked up to see this rider and horse visiting people along the way.  They were both very friendly.  That's hubby talking to the rider.  I didn't realize that the AMTRAK trains came in so quickly and stopped so briefly.  Man, they slow down, stop, and take off again!  There is a nice kids park across from the train station with alpacas, turkeys, hamsters, zonkeys (donkey/zebra) and a little kids' train.  Some weekend we'll bring the grandson and his parents down here with us for a weekend of fun.