The BESTest Birthday EVER!

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I promised to write more about my birthday with my three sisters.

My real sister and I got up early. I walked Mabel in the creek and got her fed and situated for the day. I also should mention that I talked the kiss-stingy Miss M into 43 kisses on my birthday! That alone is very special!

My sister and I headed to the coffee stop, our local drive through coffee place and picked up coffee for the road. It was really funny because my sister (who does not hear very well) had not realized I ordered coffee for her and was actually mad at me when she realized I did. Then she tasted it. She talked about how wonderful it was the whole trip!

We picked up my best bud, B and headed to Ontario to our favorite store, JC Penney's catalog outlet. We pulled up right at 9... and the store was still closed. (Stores keep very strange hours here in Cali...not what this Southern girl is used to even after living here for 20 years!) So we headed to IHOP and were back in the store at 10:20.

We had the best time in the store - everyone doing her own thing and occasionally running into each other in the dressing rooms. I had B pick me out some shorts and a t-shirt for my Godson (her son) and she actually asked me, "Why do you want to buy him anything?"

"Cause he's my boy and I love him!?!?! "What kind of question is that?" I noticed she had several boys shirts in her basket, too big for our boy. "I see you're buying shirts for your three nephews. Why on earth would you want to do that?"

She just giggled. We all had a great laugh over the shirts she had picked out for her nephews. The youngest got a skateboard shirt but the older two college boys got shirts that we didn't quite get until we read them out loud.

Colorado: How's your Aspen?

Wisconsin: Smell the Dairy Air.

Two hours and 50 minutes later (!!!) we were all done shopping and pottying and headed to B's sister's house near Temecula. After a quick visit... K had put in all new landscaping and a huge backporch since our last visit, we headed to the plateau.

The Santa Rosa Plateau is the flat mountain top covered with avocado and citrus groves, creeks and some of the most beautiful views I've ever seen. My sister was just squealing at all the beautiful things we saw... and sorry to say, my camera died!

After our drive, we ended up at a little decorating store called Home Goods and spent an hour or so there.

Then we went on to South Coast Winery for some much needed food. Since we were there at 3:30, too early for supper and too late for dinner, we ate appetizers in the bar. It was the MOST incredible meal!

We had coconut shrimp with mango chutney, a prosciutto pizza with goat cheese, the Vineyard Rose House Salad - Blend of Vineyard Flavors Assorted Vine Ripe Fruits, Black Pepper Crusted Goat Cheese Fire Roasted Bell peppers, Caramelized Pecans and Fresh Avocado, Tossed in Citrus Vinaigrette. But the MOST amazing dish was the Tuscan Antipasto: Parmesan, Mozzarella and Aged Goat Cheese, Merlot Wine Poached Pear, Salami and Prosciutto, Scented Vanilla Honey.

I am determined to make my own vanilla scented honey. (I raced to the gift shop to see if they bottled it...they don't.) It was the perfect compliment to the salty cheeses and meats and that pear! OHHH!!! So good! If you ever pass through Temecula, THIS is THE place to eat! Oh, we also had cake... the German Chocolate was to die for!

We spent the rest of the evening at K's visiting with her sons and husband and finally hit the road home. It was a fabulous day.