SUNDAYS WITH CELIA VOL 26
Hi there! Thanks for stopping in to Sundays With Celia Vol 26. I’ve been negligent that past few Sundays about what is supposed to be a weekly Sunday post. The holidays, house guests and my latest renovation project have left me searching for time to dedicate to After Orange County. But I’ve got some fun stuff I wanted to share with you today so here goes…
Snowy Sundays
As you saw in this post, we’ve been getting a lot of snow here on our mountain top.
I LOVE IT, especially because as most of the country knows, California has been suffering from a severe drought for the past five years. The water level in our beautiful Lake Arrowhead has been down dramatically which affects not only the beauty of the lake but our ability to draw water from it for household use, for landscaping, and for the pure enjoyment of water sports and lake life in general.
But thanks to all this wet weather a large percentage of California is now officially no longer considered to be in drought conditions. YIPPIE!! We still have ground to make up here in the southern part of our state, but we’re making really good progress.
An Update On My Latest Renovation Project
As I said, I’ve been knee-deep in planning for and designing my latest renovation project. As I do for every project, I’ve produced my working binder for what we are calling “The House on Cottage Grove”. It’s the only way I can organize my thoughts, keep inspiration photos handy, and have resources at my fingertips.
This weekend I’m sorting through the contents of the home. It’s mostly a lot of junk and chotskies that were left behind by the previous owners, but every now and then I’ll uncover a treasure. That’s fun! I’ve ended up with a mountain of trash and filled dozens of boxes with things I plan to donate to our local thrift shop.
Monday morning we start on the demolition so I have to have everything out of house. The things I’m keeping will be stored in the garage.
It was exciting to see that the pretty little creek in front of the house is active again, with water rushing under the bridge. To us Californians water is such an anomaly.
Cold Weather Calls For Soup
On top of everything else I do, I am the cook in our family and prepare dinner most every evening when we are home and not traveling. I’ve spoiled my husband, who much prefers eating at home over going out. So that means I’m always thinking about what I’ll be cooking for dinner. This time of year it’s so nice to dine on something warm and comforting so last night I prepared a delicious Roasted Cauliflower Soup with Coconut & Turmeric for dinner. I got the recipe over on a favorite blog called A Beautiful Plate.
Laura from A Beautiful Plate is a trained chef, food photographer, and full-time blogger living in Chicago, which like Lake Arrowhead at this very moment is VERY COLD and deserving of some very warm and comforting food. Laura shares simple recipes that are approachable. Approachable. Don’t you love that? Her motto is “Simple Food Made Beautiful”. Well, I thought a nice warm bowl of soup was just what we needed so I cooked up her Cauliflower Soup recipe and loved it. What attracted me to the recipe was both the coconut milk (love) and the turmeric, which is so super, super good for us! Plus my husband loves cauliflower and I adore roasted vegetables.
Since I’ve been so busy lately I needed something quick and easy to accompany our warm and comforting soup. My first thought was to bake up a batch of my Simply Irresistible Cream Biscuits, which by the way was my most popular recipe in December 2016. But my husband had recently picked up a box of Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuit Mix on a solo shopping expedition. I shuddered when I saw the box, as I typically cook from scratch. But since I was looking to prepare a simple dinner I decided to break into the box and give it a try. Well boy was I surprised!! These biscuits are out-of-this-world-delicious! Here’s a link to where you can get a box for yourself. Try them. Then let me know how you like them. I’ll be very surprised if you don’t become a fan like me.
We’re Not The Only Ones Enjoying The Snow On Sunday!
When I had kids at home they loved it when it snowed on a school day because that usually meant school would be called off. Well it seems that all the young animals at the Oregon Zoo like snow days too! Check out just how much they love the snow in this adorable video…
New Year’s Resolutions on Sunday
If you love whipped cream but are trying to abstain from high calorie dairy in the New Year, then this kitchen hack will be a game-changer. The good folks over at Williams-Sonoma have found a dessert topping that’s as rich and ethereal as whipped cream—only it happens to also be vegan and dairy free. Meet our new best friend, coconut whipped cream, and watch below to learn how to make it.
And Speaking of New Year’s Resolutions…
It seems that many folks are tying their astrological sign to their resolutions. Personally I’m not really into tracking my astrological sign and I’m notoriously bad at keeping resolutions but it’s still fun to have a look. The folks over at Well + Good have published “The Best New Year’s Resolutions According To Your Astrological Sign”. Well, so I’m a Taurus and it seems that according to them my easiest resolution will have to do with creating healthy habits. OK, I’m up for that!
And the folks over at tbsp. have published a list of The Perfect Birthday Treats According to Your Astrological Sign. I’m a sucker for sweets so I decided to take a look at what they think I should be indulging in on my birthday. As it turns out tbsp. recommends a Dulce de Leche Crepe Cake. OK, stop it!! I simply LOVE crepes (here’s my recipe) and Dulce de Leche is like my most favorite thing in the world! This is getting erie! What sweet do they think you should be eating on your birthday?
What Will You Be Watching On Sunday?
So, I just finished the final episode of The Crown and I loved the series. Truthfully I’m a sucker for anything British so I’m very pleased that tonight PBS will be premiering Victoria on Masterpiece Theater. I’ll be watching, will you?
Inauguration Day Is Next Friday
Inauguration Day is next Friday, January 20th. My DC dwelling kids are getting the heck out of Dodge, leaving our nation’s capitol and all the expected craziness and hoppla to others. Instead they’ll be taking my Grandchildren to the happiest place on earth, the Magic Kingdom of Disney World in Orlando, Florida. As they depart Capitol Hill, so too will the Obama daughters, Sasha & Malia. As they leave the place the’ve called home for the past 8 years they got a parting farewell message from the Bush sisters who wrote them a touching letter.
So there you have it: SUNDAYS WITH CELIA VOL 26
Thanks so much for dropping in!
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All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Unless otherwise credited, all photos are the original property of Celia Becker @ www.AfterOrangeCounty.com and may not be reproduced without specific permission. This post contains affiliate links which help make this blog possible.
