Weekend in Big Bear

We got to spend this past weekend in Big Bear with my husband's brother and his wife. The weather was perfect, in the high 70s, which was a nice treat as we left the scorching 90+ weather in Orange County. Our two favorite activities of the weekend: kayaking on Big Bear Lake and bike riding on the paved trail around the lake. My favorite meal: pasta from Paula's Pasta Mia, a quaint little Italian resturant in Blue Jay. What can I say...an Italian can never have too much good pasta!

Photo 1: Scenic view from the bike trail

Photo 2: Two of our bikes looking very picturesque

Photo 3: Honeybees hard at work, they asked me to post their picture on MelliB =)

Cast Your Vote!

I'm taking a poll of when my "faithful few" readers would like to see MelliB's 12 Days of Christmas postings. Each day for 12 days, I will share a unique gift idea under $25. In true election spirit, don't forget to cast your vote! See the poll in the right hand side bar.

Black and White at Pottery Barn

Fair warning to all, I LOVE dishes and might bore some of you with too many postings of them. My little kitchen, hall closet and even garage are too full to house any more dishes so I have to resign myself to looking. I saw these black and white dishes and decorative canisters on sale today at PotteryBarn.com and thought they were fun designs, especially for those of you who already have B&W in your kitchens.

Have You Ever?

Have you ever tried making homemade caramels? I tried a couple Christmases ago. It turned out to be a complete failure and a waste of a load of sugar and butter. Someday I hope to get the hang of it. Maybe I'll try this recipe from Design Sponge this year. If you know any secrets to foolproof caramel I'd love to hear it!