Vacaville, California - A Bit of Family Time on the Road!

Hi all, Dianne here.  Have you ever been "mooned" by a peacock??  I have!  

We saw this peacock-with-attitude yesterday afternoon while being shown around the Vacaville area by my cousin Charles's daughter Leigh and her husband, Wes.

We took a quick tour of their newly-remodeled home and I took a picture of a very special tree in their backyard...

Momma Lemon Tree

Look at the size of those Meyer lemons!  

 Let me explain:  About seven years ago I was the lucky recipient of a few of these lemons when Leigh visited her parents' farm in Indiana.  I saved a few seeds from the biggest lemon and planted my little lemon tree, thinking I'd just grow it in a pot and put it outside for Indiana summers.  Then in 2008 we decided to sell our home and start fulltiming...

Baby Lemon Tree

 I couldn't bear to part with my little tree (after all, I knew it when it was just a seed!) so lemon tree rode in our motor home shower everywhere we went for our first two years (much to Roger's chagrin!).  Baby Lemon Tree is now snugly in the ground with automatic drip irrigation at our lot in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, and growing happily away as we travel the northernlands for the summer.  

Here's what lemon tree looked like this spring, just before we left our Mission, Texas winter place:

Baby Lemon Tree is on the right, nestled between the prickly pear cactus and aloe.

Leigh told me that "momma lemon tree" is probably 20 years old, so mine's still just a baby.  I will be so excited when I finally see blooms and fruit, especially if I get lemons like the ones Leigh sent home with me!

Leigh and Wes took us on a drive on a twisty-curvy road to the top of Mount Vaca.  There were vineyards, golden hills, and lovely scenery.  The  photo below is the view looking west from the top.  We could see Mount Tamalpais in the background  (part of the California coastal range) with San Pablo bay (just north of San Francisco Bay) showing in front of the mountains.

As you can see, in this part of    

 California there are grape vineyards everywhere!  I was astonished to learn that Wes and his cycling pals actually ride up Mount Vaca.  Leigh's Prius had no problem making it up the hill, but I can tell you that our little Matrix would not have made it.  The grade was almost 25 percent near the top!  It was wonderful to see Leigh and Wes, and it was very thoughtful of them to give us this grand tour; we saw things we never would have been able to see on our own!   

Before we met up with Leigh and Wes for lunch and family time, Roger and I set out for the Vacaville Saturday Farmer's Market that Leigh had suggested to me.      

Vacaville is a large city with a small-town feel to it.  We particularly enjoyed strolling downtown and getting a glimpse of the local park where, according to Wes, they occasionally have festivals and music events.

Add in some very cool bronze statuary, and this town gives off a very nice "vibe."

As opposed to Twentynine Palms and even Palm Springs, I can see why people would want to live here in Vacaville.  We stopped for a cappucino and then loaded up on some local delicacies:

Home-baked sourdough bread with flax, organic goat cheese, strawberries, and sweet cherries

The cherries are for a special project that my friend and neighbor Linda will know about; stay tuned for that process when the cherries get good and a little over-ripe.

The pet picture of the day has to be Charlie the Cat, since Charlie was born on my cousin's Indiana farm where Leigh grew up and spent his childhood chasing mice in their barn.

Now, as you can see, he's a bit more civilized, expecting to see his own plate set at the table.  Sorry, Charlie, it's just not gonna happen!