Water Slide Fun

The kids on Alabama Circle enjoyed a great afternoon playing on the giant water slide their parents rented for Curtis's birthday party yesterday. This slide was provided by AstroEvents of Sacramento. ~ Barbara

Portside Montessori School Opening

The new Portside Montessori School on Linden Avenue in West Sacramento is now enrolling children in their program.

Red Sun from smoke and particulates

Fires burning throughout Northern and Central California continue to blow smoke into the Sacramento region. The fire situation in California remains critical where 32 fires have burned 271,576 acres.

The weather-folks say the smoke will continue to hang over us through the weekend.... but, with luck a breeze may bring some relief to the unhealthy air we are breathing. ~Barbara

These warnings come from the Sac Metro Air Quality Management District:

• Everyone should avoid outdoor activities if you can see or smell smoke, even if you’re healthy
• Children, the elderly and people with respiratory or heart conditions should be particularly careful to avoid exposure
• Stay indoors with doors and windows closed as much as possible
• Asthmatics should follow their asthma management plan
• Contact your doctor if you have symptoms of cough, shortness of breath, or other symptoms you believe to be caused by smoke
• Those with heart disease should especially limit their smoke exposure since PM can cause heart attacks

WSCT-Shakespeare in the Park

The West Sacramento Community Theater presents Shakespeare in The Park. Photo above shows the troupe rehearsing for the upcoming performance of "Much Ado About Nothing". For more information see this website: WSCT. Photos by Debbie

Rehearsing for Lissett's Quinceanera

Lissett Lara (top photo) is turning 15 in August, and she's busy preparing for her Quinceanera! Getting ready for the Quinceanera Celebration, Lissett and her attendants practice the waltz (middle photo). Perlita and Eric (bottom photo) practice the waltz for Lissett's Quinceanera!

Lissett and her attendants will be rehearsing twice a week through July and into August to be ready for the big event. ~ Photos by Christy

¡Viva la Margarita!

Tom and I are celebrating our 14th Wedding Anniversary today.. it has been good.. and in this heat, what better way to toast our celebration than with icy Margaritas made at home~~ Barbara

Shining Cat Eyes: Gegenlicht

Catherina Broemel shared these very interesting photos Max and Karl. Gegenlicht means backlight in German.~ Barbara

The SprayGround at Bridgeway Lakes Park

The first days of summer and we are into the 100+ degree temperatures already...These kids enjoy the SprayGround at the Bridgeway Lakes Park in West Sacramento. The water-park is open daily May through October, 12 noon to 7 pm - free to the public. Photo by Debbie

BloodSource Celebrates 60 Years

BloodSource celebrates 60 years of service with a fantastic display of skywriting/skytyping over Sacramento Friday morning. ~ Barbara

Trivia: What is Skytyping??? Five aircraft flying at 10,000 FT. emitting biodegradable vapor "PUFFS" in a dot matrix pattern. These puffs are regulated by an onboard computer that controls the sequencing of the vapor to form the letters in the sky.

"Sundog" over West Sacramento

Thursday afternoon at the park...the sun had a large rainbow ring around it. ~Photo by Debbie


Trivia: The halos (or, sometimes known as "sundogs" around the sun) are usually seen when there are high clouds overhead. Those clouds are made of tiny ice crystals, which will refract the sunlight much like a prism will.

Greening Raley's Parking Lot

Raley's Supermarket has "greened" up the parking area. They have installed planting strips throughout the lot with bark, plants and trees. What a pleasant addition to the previously stark blacktop expanse! Congratulation Raleys! ~Barbara

Harmony on the River-Lightning Hand

Harmony on the River is a free summer concert series that takes place Tuesday evening's during the summer from 7:30- 9:00 pm at River Walk Park starting June 17th thru August 5th. The first night featured a Bootcamp Class Demo (top) and Lightning Hand Classic Rock. ~ Debbie

I-80 Merging into I-80

The 5:00 PM traffic though West Sacramento was really fierce today due to the closure of I-5 for the Fix I-5 Project. It was bumper to bumper all the way from Truxel Road to the Harbor Boulevard off ramp.
~Barbara

Redwing Blackbird in Fields of Gold

This photo was Anneke's entry in West Sacramento's Annual 15 days in May photo contest. Although she did not win, I'm positive it was one of the most beautiful photos entered this year...The photo was shot in a field of golden mustard blooming across from the Lowe's on Lake Washington Boulevard. Thanks for sharing it on our website Anneke. ~ Barbara

Oldest Dad Award to Gene Evenson

Father and Son: Gene and Vernon Evenson. Long time West Sacramento resident Eugene Evenson received the prize for being the oldest dad at the Annual Father's Day Brunch at the West Sacramento Moose Lodge. Gene was a master carpenter by trade, and over the years he worked on many restoration projects at the State Capitol. ~Barbara

Vanda Gordon Dillon's

Christy captured this photo of the beautiful Gordon Dillon Vanda Orchid while she was on a recent work-vacation hiatus at the fabulous all-inclusive Paradisus Palma Real Resort located on legendary Bávaro Beach in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. Oh to have a job that requires you to visit this Caribbean paradise...~ Barbara

Say Cheese!

These fashionable young women were fixing each others makup and hair in the niche behind the Starbucks counter at the Target. I said smile...and she did! ~Barbara

Garden Street Project and the Ironworks Lofts

"The road work on the intersection of Tower Bridge Gateway and Garden Street is now complete. The former overpass to Riske Lane from West Capitol Avenue has been removed. This construction is important to the redevelopment of the Triangle area, and provides access to the new Ironworks Lofts." (See below)

Big Fun Coming to The California Exposition & State Fair

I drove by the California State Fair and Exposition yesterday and they are already advertising their Combo Pass Ticket Package...See Bigfun.org for more information.

Trivia: About 1962...I remember when the State Fair Grounds was on Stockton Boulevard where the UCD Medical Center is now located. Admission was free and our favorite displays were the Counties Building and the Hall of Flowers. One year they built a two lane bowling alley and some of the West Sacramento locals bowlers were invited to do exhibition bowling during the fair's run. My favorite food booth was the Pronto Pup. The midway was a scene in itself and the carnival barkers and roadies scared the dickens out of us...but we braved it just to ride the "Tilt-a-whirl" and the "Round Up"! We spent the rest of our allowance throwing dimes and would take home various pieces of Carnival Glass for our Mom. When I walk through the antique and collectible shops now I'm shocked to see I see how much they want for those pieces.

Note: Florene Kunder sends this "I tried to find a link to some original fair grounds photos, but not much online. Probably the best source is to visit the California Museum for History, Women and the Arts. .......After graduating CSU-Chico in 1957, I moved to Sacramento in 1959, and attended the State Fair several times before it relocated to CalExpo. Even though the new site was fresh and bright, I preferred the old one. My two favorite exhibits were the Hall of Flowers and the Counties Exhibits. We tried to go on one of the first days before the flowers had wilted too much. Oh, and the High School Industrial Arts displays were remarkable.

....here's the web link to the best source I found in my search today. Map is 1965, and bottom photo is 1956.

http://www.learncalifornia.org/doc.asp?id=2438

Florene

Brides Dream

West Sacramento now has a bridal shop...Brides Dream is located at 2925 W Capitol Ave, West Sacramento, CA. This photo was taken one evening from outside the store... --~ Barbara

Stop and Smell the Flowers

Charline stopped to bury her nose in the beautiful hydrangea "pom-pom"on her last day of Kindergarden--....~Christy

'Stop and smell the flowers', is a saying that is really not related to flowers at all. It is a reminder, a message, for each of us, to stop rushing, stop working late, time passes quickly. Stop and enjoy the day, the moment and the minute. Each minute that you miss, is time lost and will not return to you again.

The William Stone Locks Building at the Port of Sacramento

These photos were taken while driving across the Bascule Bridge over the Barge Canal on Jefferson Blvd. in West Sacramento. The bridge was built 1961 and was rehabilitated in 2005. The top photos are the old Locks and bottom photo shows the Palamidessi bridge to the west.

The Stone Lock will soon emerge as a waterfront hot spot. According to reports in the Sacramento Bee, "Scrubby and obscure for years, the 200-acre site lies at a fortuitous point where the Port of Sacramento barge canal meets the Sacramento River.......the city of West Sacramento finalized an exclusive agreement with The Cordish Company to begin planning and designing Stone Lock as its master developer". ~Barbara

Trivia: When we were kids, my dad docked his boat at Miller Park and he would take us through the locks to get to Lake Washington.

Alstroemeria: Inca Lily

This Alstroemeria ( Inca Lily )is blooming in my flowerbed. ~ Barbara

"ANGEL" by Rene Martucci

This statue by local artist Rene Martucci is on display at the UC Davis Center for Companion Animal Health.

Sharon Anglin, manager of the CCAH, said that a friend contributed a significant amount of funds to their Center for finishing the courtyard west of the CCAH (between the CCAH and VMII/Physical Rehab areas); she did so in memory of her beloved dog “Angel”: Angel was a beloved family member, whose name conveys a special message: Animals Need God’s Everlasting Love. ~ Barbara

That's Amore: Spaghetti Feed, Fundraiser for Robynn Goodell

On Saturday, June 7th, 2008, the West Sacramento Moose Lodge is hosting "That's Amore" Spaghetti Feed Fundraiser to benefit the family of Robynn Goodell. For tickets and information please contact Christy (christyjourdan@gmail.com) or Debbie (debinorton@aol.com).

See these links for those on Robynn's Team:
http://robynnsbattle.blogspot.com/
Hayjac Designs
http://raisingforrobynn.blogspot.com/
Robynn Goodell Cancer Benefit
Mrs. Grider's Class
Our Lady of Grace-Robynn Goodell Blood Drive

Wish Upon A Hero

Sacramento River Cats

Videos from her fans and family on YouTube:

Robynn Goodell STAND STRONG

Callahan Blum's Song for Robynn

Dancing with the Star

Callahan Blum 4/21/2008 Song 1

Callahan Blum 4/21/2008 Song 2

Flower Dolls: Remembering Days Past

When my sister and I were little kids our grandparents had a remarkable flower garden and they would let us pick the flowers and buds to make flower dolls. We would assemble the flower dolls using a tooth pick to hold them together. Hollyhocks buds were our favorite to use for the doll head, and the dresses ranged from petunias, roses, marigolds, pansies, hollyhocks and whatever else might in bloom. We had such great imaginations and could play for hours creating our many characters for "Flower Doll Adventures". ~ Barbara

West Sacramento Police Department

The City of West Sacramento Police Department is located at 550 Jefferson Boulevard. ~ Barbara

Leah's Flip Flops

I went to a Flip-Flop Tupperware Party last week..everyone was invited to wear their most interesting flip flops and Leah won first prize for her Star-Spangled design with matching striped pedicure! ~Barbara

To Each His Own

An eclectic row of mailboxes on our street. The newer housing developments have uniform stacked metal boxes with locks on them. I find these much more artistic. ~Barbara

Note: This photo was featured on Uglymailbox.com this month.

June 2008 Theme Day: My corner local shop

The outdoor produce aisle at the Nugget Market is my favorite place to shop!~ Barbara

CDPB PhotoBloggers have selected the June 2008 Theme Day to be: My corner local shop. What is your favourite corner store or local shop in your city? Share it with the rest of the community!
Click here to view thumbnails for all participants