El Camino Country Club, Oceanside

One of my neighbors, Doris invited Chano and I out for the evening to her country club.  We had some drinks and appetizers and there were Christmas Carolers singing Christmas Carols. We had a nice time out with her.

Thanksgiving in Arizona

For Thanksgiving, we went to Chano's sister, Julia's house in Maricopa, Arizona.  I only took one picture there with my girls with their cousins in the hot tub.  We had a really nice time and it was good to see my sister-in-law, Julia and her husband, Ray.  It was also nice to see my nieces and nephews.  On the way home, we stopped and saw my cousins, Sean and Diane in Sun City West, Arizona. It my good to see my cousins and see their lovely home.

San Luis Rey Mission field trip, Oceanside

I went to the San Luis Rey Mission with Molly and Marina on a school field trip.  It was really neat to go with the class because we had a speaker at the field trip which really gave us a lot of information on the mission and the history of California. The Spanish actually build the Mission.  Then the Mexicans drove the Spanish out of California.  The Mission was empty for 60 years.  Then the United States drove the Mexicans out of California.  Shortly before being assassinated, President Lincoln gave the mission back to the church.  I also learned that there were soldier barracks on the grounds where the Spanish soldiers and their families lived at the mission. U.S. troops wer also stationed there during the Mexican-American War.  There was also a Lavenderia or a laundry where Mission reisdents bathed and washed their clothes.  There was also an outdoor kiln where tiles and bricks were fired to build the Mission.  Because we were part of a group, we got to go into the gardens.  We saw the first Pepper Tree in California.  We also got to see a model of the Mission.  The teacher, Mr. Cohen showed a secret place which is part of the school on the property where there is a fish pond with fish and turtles and a statue of St. Francis of Assisi

San Dieguito Heritage Musuem, Encinitas, CA

We visited the San Dieguito Heritage Museum in Encintas, CA.  The museum preserves the local history of the San Dieguito River area including Leucadia, Encintas, Olivehain, Cardiff, Solana Beach, Del Mar and Rancho Santa Fe.  It was a very interesting museum.  We learned about Native American Indians that lived in the area and saw a replica of what their homes were like then.  We learned how they prepared and stored their food.  We learned how the San Dieguito River area was also home to lima bean farms and a lot of flower fields which are now gone. They had a lima bean thresher on the grounds.  We also learned about how President Lincoln signed the Homestead Act in 1862 which grant people undeveloped land west of the Mississippi River.  This is how it works.  You would pick out some land.  You had to build at least a 12 x 14 foot structure on the property and live on it for 5 years.  After that you would get the title to 160 acres.  We saw a structure there of what a home would have looked like back then.  There were a lot of other historical things including a general store, an old cash register, surfing history, 1950 fire truck, a general store, a facade of what an old gas station looked like and the Teton house, the house of a turkey farmer from the area.  The girls got to make turkeys out of pine cones.  It was fun to learn some of the local history.

Sunday at the Oceanside Pier

 

 

After church today we went down by the Oceanside Pier.  Underneath the pier is a fish restaurant  named Tin Fish that has fish and chips, fish tacos and other kinds of fish.  We had some lunch there and then the kids played at the park.  It was a beautiful fall day in Oceanside about 65 degrees and sunny.

1st Halloween in California

This was our first Halloween in California.  It is a lot different than in Chicago.  In Chicago, the kids went trick or treating right after school around 3:00 p.m. and trick or treated until around 8:00 p.m.  In California, the kids don't usually start until around 5:00 p.m. and trick or treat until 8:00 or 9:00 p.m.  Because it is warmer in California, a lot of people sit on their driveways and pass out candy.  There were a lot of really cool decorations and costumes.  We had a lot of fun.

Audience, please leave comments

I started this blog because I moved my family from Illinois to California.  I did this as a way for family and friends back home to see what we we doing in our new home.  I know that my blog is a public blog, but it is interesting to see that I have people in the countries of Chile, Japan, Brazil, Canada, Switzerland and Russia reading by blog.  I would love to hear any comments from anyone as to what you think of my blog.  I hope you enjoy reading it and I hope it is resourceful to all of you when you visit the United States.  Thanks, Jane Arellano

Laguna Beach, CA

Laguna Beach is one of my favorite towns in Orange County.  It has cute shops and restaurants.  We stayed there on one of our vacations to CA.  We walked around the town and watched the sun set at the beach.