her special day.

Happy 50th Birthday to my best friend, my mother.
She is the light that shines brightest in my world.
Her loving & kind nature encourages me to live with a compassionate heart.
I am blessed to have such an amazing presence in my life.
Thank you.


I love you. <3

P.s. Happy 11th birthday to Teddi (:

Idyllwild

My best friend Maria invited me up to her grandparent's home in Idyllwild for a 24 hour hiatus. We drove up Saturday evening trying to race the setting sun, those windy roads are difficult to maneuver in the dark. We stopped in town for a late night dinner then headed over to her grandparent's cabin to sleep. We woke up the next morning for breakfast and jazz. There is an annual jazz festival held in Idyllwild as a fundraiser for the local arts high school. We spent the day laying in the grass under a beautiful canopy listening to soulful jazz with an ice cold bottle of white wine. It was so rejuvenating to be in nature with my friend without a care in the world.

SF

I took a short two day trip to San Francisco because 80 Proof made a stop in the city during their tour. Spent the two days with Aubrey just wandering the streets, talking to strangers, and eating, lots of eating. We navigated through the city aimlessly as if we already live there. The weather was chill but crisp and refreshing. Definitely a nice change from the smoggy air in LA. I love being able to roam around without an agenda while visiting places. It helps not to get hung up on specific places and times because then we miss all the beautiful inbetweens. It also helps having an adventurous and free spirited partner. ♥

I can't wait to call this place home someday.

Motherhood.

"Motherhood, in its ultimate sense, has nothing to do with bearing a child, but with love, compassion and selflessness. It lies in totally giving to others."

- Amma // Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi

sunday afternoons.

I treasure Sunday afternoons with my lovely family.
Especially with this little nugget, Kingston.
Unfortunately, Jesse & Lisa will be moving back to Ithica, NY in about a week to finish up Lisa's last year at Cornell. And Kingston will be moving to New York, NY to live with his mom. My heart aches thinking about all of them being so far away but I'm just going to try to soak up as much of them as I can before they leave!!!

garden.

Gardening is truly therapeutic. Although, I don't have much of a green thumb I have put my best effort into maintaining a small garden on my balcony. It definitely brightens up my day and the every other morning that I water my garden brings purpose and routine. Everyone needs a sense of purpose and this is one form of my purpose. Like clock work I must get up in the morning and care for these little darlings. And how wonderful it is to watch nature grow and blossom.

Today or this week: grow something, even something small. Try a succulent. (That's where I started)

sunday brunch

Sushi at Casa Arigatou in Redondo Beach with my mom and Lisa.

a cancer celebration.

07.02.11

For Aubrey's 24th birthday we spent the day at Redondo Beach!
We picnicked, basked in the warm sun, & splashed in the refreshing water.









Happy Birthday, handsome.
Keep on shinning.

On a lighter note ...

Image via 9GAG

In lieu of March Moustache. Absolutely, painstakingly, adorable.

3/11 Earthquake & Tsunami in Japan

Image via Prayfor.jp

I can't even begin to formulate my thoughts about this horrific tragedy. Luckily all of my family in the Tokyo area is alright. But, my heart and prayers go out to all the others affected by the earthquake and tsunami. This series of events has deeply sadden my soul and has put many things in perspective. I greatly admire and respect all of the quick responses and aid in the relief effort from all across the globe. May all those affected find the strength to overcome such dire circumstances & let us not take for granted the simple gifts we are given daily.



Here are some ways to help:
- NPR's list
- CNN
- Save the Children
- Red Cross
- The New York Times

Bless you. ♥

Walk Now For Autism Speaks

Image via AutismSpot
Please join me in my efforts to support Walk Now For Autism Speaks here. To make a donation: Simply click the link 'here' and search my name [Candice Duron] under 'support a walker' and make a donation of any amount! My goal is to help contribute $150 to team 'Better Together'!

Walk Info:

Saturday, April 23, 2011

8:00am-4:00pm

The Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
1001 Rose Bowl Drive

Many thanks. ♥

24 hours in San Diego.

Aubrey and I decide to take a little trip down to San Diego during the President's day weekend. We stayed downtown at the beautiful boutique Hotel Solamar on Sunday night. On our way down we stopped by and filled our belly's with some good ol' brew & bbq at the famous Phil's BBQ. We wondered around the gaslamp district and danced our feet off that evening . The next day, I wanted to explore SouthPark, a quaint area in San Diego with a homemade ice cream shop and other small boutiques. Silly me, didn't take into account the holiday and we arrived to a quiet & empty SouthPark. Most of the shops and restaurants were closed due to the holiday but luckily The Daily Scoop was awaiting our arrival with open doors. They are an all natural ice cream shop, so I happily enjoyed the Pistachio (without the yucky artificial green color) which pleasantly had pieces of pineapple. Because the restaurant we wanted to eat at was closed we relied on trusty yelp to guide us to a delicious lunch. We discovered El Salvadoreno Restaurant not too far from SouthPark and devoured pupusas, tamales, plantains and washed it down with pineapple juice mixed with fresh fruit.

The drive was gorgeous. So fresh after a nights rain.

Viewpoint {There were tons of seagulls and Aubrey got pooped on}

Playing in the flowers.

This required a nap afterwards.

Closed. :(

The best part!

@ The Daily Scoop

Fresh fruit in every slurp.

We shared the combo platter so we could try a little bit of everything.