Stepping On The Snow At Calaveras National State Park

BACK HOME IN SACRAMENTO.....

And during the weekend, my son and family came to join us for a day outing to the mountains.... what... mountains again?  Yes, ascended up to Calaveras National State Park, known to be popular because of their BIG Sequoia trees.  Snow is everywhere during the winter months and once we reached the top, all of us had to trod on the snow very carefully..... (Now I wonder why we elderly people are taking this slippery risk to visit during the cold season!)

If I had taken this picture, I really couldn't remember

where we went on that day.... LOL...

A cabin up in the woods... 

Slowly walk on the snow with the use of a stick.... 

Like this.....

The Big Tree....

Good that they have wooden planks to walk on.... 

But still, slippery at certain areas...

Yes, this is the famous spot.....

And it was all about the Tree Trunk to me.... 

LOL...

That is it.....

But as usual, my "adventurous" buddy wanted to feel the Big Tree....

And up we went.... 

Quick, quick, let's just take a pic and go!

 

The Good, The Bad But Not Ugly

MISSING AND NOW BACK IN ACTION... 

I checked back my last post and it was 8 March last month and today is 19 April, less than two months only.  So what has been happening in my life?  Lots and lots... good news, bad news, sad news... all concerning health and I guess this is our life cycle as we live day by day.  

My health is also not that "fantastic" during the past few months, but mine is a small rock compared to giant boulder which my best buddy is undergoing... I guess some of you know what is happening to her from her blog posts.  I was totally devastated when this happened to her, my tears couldn't help falling and my heart goes out to her.  I am ashamed to say that instead of me giving the comfort that she needs, I am the one that have been receiving her strength in times like this.  She might be crushed physically but she is not broken in her spiritual mind and soul.  One word... "Unbreakable!"  She is a shining example..... "What can death do to me when Jesus is living in me?"  This is what I see in her now... Living for Christ.

And now back to where I left off, this post will be about another good friend of mine, actually my childhood friend cum classmate, she flew to San Francisco for a month holiday with me.  My son picked her from the SF airport and together with me, three of us went to my sister's place in Sacramento which is two hours drive away.  

My sister and family joined us for lunch at Lollibowl, a Hongkong restaurant which is one of our favorite spots whenever we go to Sacramento.  Since it was a day trip for my son, we allowed him to choose what he wanted to eat.  And needless to say, for desserts, his best choice is Leatherby's.... after the great lunch and dessert-licious ice cream, he drove back to San Jose, with some food of course, for the family's dinner!

We had these for lunch....

Big enormous portions!

This is my favorite... Char Koay Teow...

And the humans indulging into these food....

Desserts in Leatherby's before my son drove home....

And so... our  fun holiday began... 

with me and my friend!

How I Spend My Time In Sacramento

JUST REST AND RELAX... in my sister's house for one week before I went back to San Jose.  

Most mornings both of us ate a big bowl of oats and that was it until lunch time whereby we would go out for Asian food or a homecooked meal at home.  In the afternoons, both of us would laze around in the sun room to watch Netflix while dozing off half way through most of the time.  I guess retirees are living a life like this... napping in the afternoons!  Now I know why.... seniors like me cannot laze in bed too long and because of that, we need our afternoon naps... LOL... 

Anyway, resting and relaxing, time still passes by very fast and a day is over when we hit our pillows around 11pm.  That is my life in Sacramento.... just lazing away.... no wonder I love to go there! LOL.. 

My sister took me to Lollibowl

A Hongkong restaurant which serves what we love to eat...

Fried Koay Teow with lots of ingredients!

Price has increased a bit.. $13.00 now...

Anyway, both of us shared this enormous portion.... 

My sister cooked Sambal Anchovies... 

It is her signature dish... LOL.. 

And the rest below cooked by yours truly...\

Ahemm.....

Taro with spinach.... 

Zucchini with mushrooms... 

That was our meal for the whole day.... 

And soon we were back to San Jose on a Saturday afternoon... 

A Homecooked Feast By Our Filipino Friends

ALWAYS LOOKING FORWARD to trying new taste of food.... 

Thanks to our Filipino friend, DD, she always take the trouble to cook and invite us over whenever I come visiting.  LOL.... She knows I love to eat, be it meat or meatless and many thanks to her daughter as well, she has a passion for cooking and she always make nice desserts too!  I always tell her that I would love to have someone in the family who simply loves to stay in the kitchen most of the time!  LOL.... 

Lots of food for just the four of us....

Braised pork rubs.... 

Never tasted something spectacular like this before.... 

It is a Filipino dish... 

Homegrown greens... 

To go with the paper rice... 

Fried Beancurd so nicely done...

Prawns is one of the condiments in the paper rice... 

Lumpia Filipino spring rolls...

Vietnamese Salad... 

Vietnamese spring rolls...|
Yes we had two kinds of rolls that night...

It was indeed a feast... 

Thank you to both Mother and Daughter!

Grilled Steaks At Texas Roadhouse, Sacramento

MY FAVOURITE STEAK HOUSE... the only place I love to order steak and the only place my nephew likes to follow us as well, Texas Roadhouse!  No shopping, no other places but this... 

We made a reservation to be there at 4pm, to be the early birds for dinner.  As usual, once we were seated, a basket of warm buns were served immediately.  While waiting for our food, we would be stuffing at least two pieces of the irresistible buns with cinnamon butter at the side.  Then when my main meal comes, I would be half full already by then... 

Texas Roadhouse....

Upon entering..

Some are even earlier than us... 

Auntie and nephew....

Yup, bun in my mouth!

I ordered house salad to go with my steak...

This is my entre... comes with two sides.... Salad and Buttered Corn...

New York Steak for my nephew.... 

Fried Catfish for my sister...

And another steak for my brother-in-law....

Steak is not too expensive here....

Each entre is around $15-18...

That is why we like coming here....

Strong Temptation In Leatherby's

CANNOT MISS HAVING THIS...  My sister knows me well....

It was a Sunday and we went to our favourite joint, Leatherby's!  I fell in love with this family creamery ten years ago, my sister took me there for the first time and I was smitten straightaway.  Since then, I must pay a visit or two or more times whenever possible!  Yeah, too bad there isn't any branch elsewhere except for Sacramento.... 

As usual we ordered our usual, if I did not count wrongly, there are nine scoops of ice cream, made up  of various flavours.  I do not have any special favourites, all are my favourites... LOL.... There is a difference this time, not of the taste but of the pricing.  I guess everywhere is the same, after the pandemic and lockdown, the prices have gone up.  I hope that does not deter me to go again and again even after this.... 

My sweet temptations!

To be shared....

My sister and I shared Club Sandwich...

Yes, the half is more than enough for me!

The Happy Trio!!

Spending A Week In Sacramento

SECOND WEEK... oh, it was not even the second week.  I arrived to San Jose on Tuesday and I was whisked off to Sacramento on Saturday.  LOL....

My sister came to fetch me during the weekend and I stayed with her for one whole week.  It was a time of sibling bonding and a time to catch up with food plus pampering too!  That was the best part!

The pandemic has taken a toll on the livelihood everywhere and that includes this saloon.  Even my sister had not come to this place for some time but to her surprise, she was still remembered by her name once she walked in.  I doubt they remember me though... LOL... .

Me Time....

Getting my legs pampered... massaged and all... 

$25 excluding tips... 

Thanks to her, I was relaxed for an whole hour!

But I also did my share of cooking too while I was there....

At least I have one faithful patron who likes my dishes... LOL....

And in return, he prepared French toast with hot maple syrup for me!

We ate out too especially during lunch time....

Korean noodles... 

I could finished this one big bowl by myself.... 

And on one particular day, I had lunch at my Filipino friend's house...

Filipino dish with homemade mango salsa!