Weekend Coffee Share; Winter Rain In January ~ 2023

On By DianaIn Living life, weekend coffee share

Welcome to my coffee share, can I get you a cup of coffee or tea? Today it is a cup of nice hot coffee for me as I welcome in the new year. I am worried as I write this that we are not going to see any dry weather for most of this month and for us here in Southern CA that is very unusual. We are so wet, like drowned rats! My horses are surviving but its a muddy mess out there and it’s all I can do to keep a dry space in their stalls. We’ve had so much rain last month and as we get a break in the rain, another storm is on its way and so I feel like we are in this perpetual spiral of rain, a break then more rain. It is at this point never ending!! Rain, rain please go away and come back another day!

I know we need the rain and more importantly the snow pack. I know that many lakes were starting to dry up and I believe all the weather here on the west coast has brought up the levels of many lakes and I believe we are closer than ever to getting out of the drought we’ve been in and so it’s all a good thing all the rain. At this point I am looking forward to Spring. 😀

I had a nice visit in Arizona last month with my grandkids. My son and family found a bigger house right around the corner from where they were living for the same lease payment and so they decided this would be a good move for them. It is literally in the same neighborhood so it made moving there so easy for them. It is a nice big house, unlike the smaller townhome they were in and they have a small backyard so the kids can play outside. The townhome did not have any yard at all, so this was a really good move for them. I don’t have any photos of their new house, but I will share some photos of our visit.

Cute Teddy with Auntie!
Alice is so adorable!

We enjoyed Christmas a week early in Arizona and was able to attend Alice’s Christmas Winter Wonderland singing with her grade. She was so cute singing up with her friends. And Teddy is almost 3 years old and is talking so good now. They are growing up so fast, I wish we lived closer!

Me and my selfies with the kids. I am thinking my phone was not very clean as my selfies are not very clear, oh well, they are still fun to share! 😀 And Alice at the school singing event. She is waiting for them to start! LOVE my grandkids SO MUCH!! ❤

My sweet family!

We had a great meal together on our last night in Arizona. I took this cute photo of my son and his wife and the two grandkids. The best family ever and I miss them so much! I am glad we can easily drive there as I know they could live even further away. I am not sure what the future holds for where we will live someday and where they may live some day. They have talked about moving back to CA, that would be awesome. At this point we are here in California to stay as making these huge decisions is not easy and not to take lightly. I will plan on visiting my grandkids in AZ often this year. That is something I know I can do easily. ❤

How is your coffee or tea? Can I get you a refill? I wanted to share that I finished my cross-stitch that I was working on and now that it is completed I plan on framing it up and giving it away. I have started on another project I plan on framing up once completed and keeping so that’s why I am going to give away this project. Here is a photo of it finished but not framed yet.

I enjoyed making this and Love the quote!

I am enjoying cross-stitching and will share soon the new project I have started. I will continue with cross-stitch until I finish this new project and maybe I will go back to crochet, I haven’t decided yet. I really enjoy creating things, it fills that side of my brain and I love seeing things come to life while working on these fun crafty things. I find the time I spend creating very relaxing too!

I am hoping to work in my garden this year. I never got going last year and lost all motivation. I do not do new year resolutions and to be honest I do not ever set any goals either. I do not really give it much thought as I go from one day to the next ~ I just try and enjoy each day to it’s fullest. I realize though, some things need planning and so I think if I look forward to working in the garden and try and grow some veggies this year maybe I can get excited about that and be more thoughtful with my planning. We will see and I will have to keep you posted on my progress.

I thought I would end with my horses grazing. This was the other day and the sun was out and I was able to wash off Chloe so that is why she is all wet. I rinsed her off after I rode her out on the trail. Murphy likes to roll and has been rolling in the wet sand in the arena. When he dries off I can brush the sand off of him easily. They are doing good despite all the rain and the muddy stalls. They have a dry area under their shelters which I am thankful for at this time.

Thank you for visiting with me as it is always nice to share with you all. Thank you Natalie for hosting the #weekendcoffeeshare link up and I hope you all have a wonderful day and week ahead.

Rained Out Smiling Grandma,

~Diana ❤

36 thoughts on “Weekend Coffee Share; Winter Rain In January ~ 2023”

  1. The cross stitch is wonderful! A beautiful reminder. I imagine it would look amazing and inspiring on any wall.
    I can understand that the rain makes things harder with your horses, but it sure is nice to see them on green grass 🙂 Spring is almost here, and even more so for you. (Spring was definitely my favourite season in CA.)
    I’m so happy you had a great time with your family during the holidays. Like you said, AZ is not that far away 🙂 I am most happy that you have the ability to see them many times every year. I remember from my own childhood how important grandma’s visits was. It was often the highlight of the year for me. Have a wonderful rest of your weekend. Happy 2023!

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    1. Aww, thank you Maria as that helps me realize that even though I don’t live next door I can visit often and the grandkids are always so excited when we visit. 😍
      I’m definitely looking forward to Spring!! And thank you, the cross stitch book I have is full of wonderful quotes and inspiring sayings on being kind to Earth! It’s so fun to make these projects! Thank you for visiting and sharing with me this weekend! ❤️🐴❤️

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  4. Hi Diana, your grandkids look adorable. We moved from CA to AZ two years ago and love it. We also got a lot of your rain – second-hand! Definitely a must for both states. We now live in Prescott which is a great area for people who love and own horses. Just saying… Have a great 2023. I enjoyed reading your post.

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    1. Hi Marsha!
      It’s always so nice to hear from you and thank you for visiting with me. Yes, I have horsey friends in Prescott and have thought that would be a great place to retire one day. It’s so nice to hear you love it there. My only problem is my daughter lives 4 hours north of me up in Arroyo Grande, CA and she really wants me to retire near her. Since my son was actively looking to move from Arizona last year (he has since put that on hold for now) I didn’t want to pack my bags for AZ and then watch my grandkids move away and then no family nearby. My daughter recently purchased a home in northern CA so she’s here to stay. Right now where I live I’m right in the middle of each of my kids. Haha, and I have my youngest son still at home with me. Anyways, such a tough choice if I’m leaning on being near family… My daughter doesn’t have any children, so I know she would understand if I wanted to live near my grandkids. Thanks so much for your kind words and a Happy 2023 to you too!!

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      1. Tell you what, I’d give it all up and move to Arroyo Grande if I could. Vince wanted desert, I wanted ocean. His brother is in Los Osos. I’d even go there, but my favorite place is AG. We almost bought several houses there over the years, but something didn’t work out. One of them was right on Short Street and I’m still kicking myself over that one. 🙂

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      2. Aww, it is so beautiful up there in Arroyo Grande! Okay, now you’ve got me thinking that’s a great place for us!! ❤️ My daughter bought a townhome on Hillside Dr. She loves it and she’s right in between her work at Vandenberg AFB and San Luis Obispo! As you know, she’s just a couple miles from the ocean. ❤️ We were thinking of retiring and buying in Santa Maria as it’s a bit more affordable and still near my daughter. She wants us to move there this year but I think next year may be better! 😀

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      4. Oh thank you so very much!! Thank you for her website link and it’s so wonderful to get hooked up in this way. I can’t wait to meet Margaret in the near future! I’m so grateful and thankful for you and this connection!!

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  5. howdy and happy New Year
    Decided awhile back that New year resolution were just unnecessary pressure so this now we just make a new start and take each day as it comes – no muss no fuss
    Its been raining for the past week too… while I am glad for the rain its been oh so…. shoes gets muddy, laundry doesnt dry up and everything looks just grey and gloomy… oh and the snails and slugs are coming out to play eeeek yeah I dont like those much.
    Nature is weird it decides not to rain for a long spell then when the rain finally comes its a deluge in a very short period of time.
    Great family thanks for sharing
    ~B

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    1. Howdy and Happy New Year!
      Yes, resolutions are definitely unnecessary pressure and I love what you said, no muss no fuss and enjoy each day!
      Oh yes, this darn rain!! All those things and more. The grey and gloomy I can only take for so long and am so thankful for the sun!! We have similar weather patterns since we can go for so long with no rain and then it does the deluge in a short period of time until this year where we get a couple days break and more rain, ugh! I’m so happy to hear from you and thank you always for your kind words!! I just Love to share! 🤠🐴😍

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  6. I am sure the rain is hard for the horses, but I also know you need it so much! Glad you enjoyed your trip to Arizona. I like the family photo – though Teddy seems a little distracted, they all have great smiles 🙂 I hope you are enjoying your weekend and have a wonderful week ahead! Also wishing you the best for 2023!

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    1. Hi Trent!
      Thank you for stopping by and yes, I’m struggling a bit with the horses and the rain and wet muddy stalls. I haven’t ridden Murphy in a few weeks and need to try and get on him soon even if it’s drizzling. But then this rain can’t continue forever, so I shouldn’t over burden myself as I’ll have plenty of good days to ride soon enough. I have to take whatever photos I can get, so funny, not sure what Teddy was looking at or doing in the photo! 😄 I’m having a good weekend and looking forward to next week. I hope yours is good too and best wishes to you for 2023!!

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    1. Hi Shari!
      Thank you for visiting with me this weekend. Funny thing is we had to move our visit to AZ to include her Christmas concert which we were grateful my DIL told us the dates. Alice was so happy we were all there to watch and her other grandma was there too. I hope you have a great week ahead! Happy New Year!!

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  8. Happy New Year, Diana! I’m glad you had a merry Christmas with your family in AZ. Your cross-stitch is beautiful and the quote is inspiring. Your gift recipient is fortunate to have it. Good to hear your horses are doing well in spite of the rain. Thank you for your weekend coffee share and photos. I created a new badge for the WCS linkup. Feel free to download it from my blog sidebar. Have a great weekend!

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    1. Hi Natalie!
      Happy New Year and thank you so much for visiting. Thank you for letting me know you created a new badge for WCS linkup. Thank you for your kind words and it is so much fun to share. I hope you have a wonderful week ahead!!

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  9. Beaut photos of the fam, I love your selfies full of such joy. Hopefully by the time you read this the weather has settled a bit. I had a smile, as yesterday in particular Mum & I in the garden playing hide & seek with the rain & the sun, lol. The cross stitch is awesome I was reminded of the days when the back of my wagon was full of saddle gear & surf gear it wasn’t a great day if you didn’t knock your head on the surf board & the leg rope wasn’t tangled in a stirrup or reins, lol, good times. Ya are such fun pony sister friend.

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    1. Thank you so much pony sister friend!! I’m so excited because I rode Murphy today, first day in almost 3 weeks and it’s drying out a bit which is great! However, another storm is on the horizon so more rain on its way, dang it! But we will survive! Haha!
      I love how my cross stitch brought back such fun memories for you, having your surf gear right there next to your saddle gear ~ what FUN!! Your description makes me SMILE and laugh!! I so enjoy sharing with you all! 🐴🤠❤️

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  11. Hi Diana,
    Sigh – I get it. My wife is a sun-only kinda gal. I do like the rain most of the time and we really do need it and a lot more still. The part of my backyard that I need to be working in is flooded so all that work has to wait – and I’m okay with it mostly.
    You know we don’t have grad kids yet, but our oldest and DIL are talking about timing now so maybe soon (we hope). But if that does happen, our plans to leave Calif. will be escalated to be much sooner. Our kids are still in motion so we don’t even have a target state yet, but we just want to be near one of them and whoever gets the first grand child will be the default winner.
    Blessings.

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    1. Hi Gary!
      It makes me feel a little better that you get it, not that others don’t it’s just is tiring and can be a little depressing the grey and gloomy rainy weather. We can’t even say look how pretty the white snow is as that is so beautiful when it snows. I love being outside when it’s snowing, so peaceful and quiet. 😀 Anyways, we do need rain so am happy we are getting what the earth really needs!
      It’s seems all of us empty nesters will be in the same boat trying to figure out where we will land as our kids settle down with their families! It’s a fun and exciting time but also a bit stressful sometimes!! Here’s to us, finding our way and let’s have fun too!! 🥂😁❤️

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  12. Oh my gosh, so much rain. We have so much snow & ice. Happy New Year! It’s nice meeting you through the Weekend Coffee Share. Those are such fun pictures of your grandkids & family. I’ve been thinking about getting back into cross stitching, it’s been many years ago. A trail ride sounds relaxing on those nice-looking horses. Karen

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    1. Hi Karen!
      Welcome to weekend coffee shares, it’s very nice to meet you! Thank you for your wonderful comments. I’ll have to go through the coffee shares to visit others and find yours so I can follow. It’s so fun to cross stitch, I hope you pick it up again!! Thanks again for visiting and I hope you have a wonderful week! 🤩🥰

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  13. The rain has been so brutal in California. So far I’vee enjoyed the short break since it will be raining even more tomorrow! That’s great that you visited your family in AZ. Since they got a bigger place, you’ll be visiting them more often!

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    1. Hi Julie!
      Yes, the rain really has been brutal and I’m trying hard not to complain about it too much with my horses! 😅 I’m totally enjoying this short break, more rain like you said this weekend and I hope this will be it for a long, long while. 🤞 Fingers crossed!!
      And you are correct!! They now have room for us to stay at their bigger house in AZ. Lots of visits in my future and I can’t wait!!

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