UBM Post 14 - From the backyard....

When we were looking for a house to buy, many people suggested we should buy a property according to all the Vastu Shastra rules....but I had my own simple rules to go by:

- The house needed to be well lit (from sunlight) and airy, with lots of windows

- The kitchen should have a window

- The kitchen, master bed, and dining/living areas should get the morning sun.

- The house should have a small garden. 

And a few others. When we saw this house, it met all the above criteria, and then some. 

We get the morning sun in the kitchen, dining and master bedroom and what a blessing it is! Here is a panoramic view of this area, at 7 am today morning!

That also means that we do not get the strong evening sun (remember, 5 pm is peak temperature of the day for us) in these areas....including the backyard. So every summer evening, all of us spend most of our time in the backyard.....it's always shaded, pleasant and so green.....

And more often than not, the sky lights up like it did a couple of days ago....and the daughter was constantly observing the clouds changing colors from yellow to orange to red.....

What a terrific mood changer this scene is, isn't it? 

The high's these days are close to 100F everyday, so the roses have all wilted.....

But the daffodils are still around....

And so are these beautiful purple/blue flowers....I don't know their name, do you? They can found all over in our area...need to ask around, some gardener should know....

Also pleasing to the eye is this colorful foliage....

Everyday, the daughter would go near the lemon tree and check the size of the lemons....

We finally harvested a few of them....can't wait to use them on grilled corn, along with butter and pepper :)

Next year, we plan to build a small vegetable/fruit bed for the daughter with all of her favorite fruits and vegetables planted, and will let her take the lead in doing most of the work. She will be old enough to be patient in understanding the process and will be able to somewhat help too! Looking forward to it :)!

Until then, we'll enjoy the awesome vegetable produce from the local Indian store....this is what my dad and hubby brought yesterday - looking at it makes me think of all the yummy possibilities in the kitchen :)!

Backyard pool fun

Everyone around us knows that R is a water baby, so she got a backyard pool as a birthday gift from her maamu H and maami P, who are one of her favorites :). I love these people, coz they did not gift us just a kiddie pool - it's big enough for 5 adults to sit and enjoy, along with the kids :)!

We kept waiting for the right day with the right temperature to inflate and fill it in - but that perfect day never came. So last Saturday, we decided to give it a go. I was napping with R and when I woke up, dad and hubby had set it all up! It was a chilly day. We added a grand total of 5 hot water buckets to the ~200 gallon chilled water that was already filled in, and jumped right in :)! Those buckets did nothing to the water temperature (as you may have guessed already ;)). It was COLD, but it was SO much fun!

R did not want to come out - hubby also joined us after some time....and we had a blast. We did Facetime with R's maasi-maasa in San Diego and they were jealous that they were not there in the pool, enjoying with us!

When we finally got out, we were all freezing! Mom gave R a hot bath, but she was still shivering, and asked for the fireplace to be turned on....and promptly sat by it for a few minutes to warm up. For those who know her well, this is a sight to behold, coz its so rare :)

Had it been any other new outdoor activity that we asked the kiddo to try, she would have refused considering how chilly it was. But she will never say NO to water or ice, even if its freezing cold! Yes, this is the kiddo, who, when we landed on a glacier in Alaska and sat her down for a minute, was the first one to start eating ice and smile while doing so - she was not even a year old at that time! I can't wait to take her skiing/snowboarding!

Pictures from my backyard....

As most of you already know, I just moved into a new home which has a sooper cute backyard.

We are still unpacking boxes and settling in, but I've already started enjoying my backyard.

Here's is a picture of the first flower - a daffodil - in our backyard :)



And last nite, lightning lit up the sky in Sacramento area like fireworks. I have never experienced this kind of lightning in my entire life. It went on for more than 2 hours, and I was able to capture the image below :)



It was scary as well - 2 people were killed with the lightning and several homes lost power. So I was cautious but could not resist snapping a few pics :)

I am looking forward to planting roses and starting a small vegetable garden. I also want to plant a fruit tree - I've heard peaches and citrus (oranges, lemons) grow well in California.

This summer is going to be FUN!!!!