Attack of the Labbits!

Meet Mini Q's new friends - the Labbits!

Kung Hey Fat Choy!

 

The Quatchis are celebrating Chinese New Year with the family. My mum gave them lai see.

 

They also snacked on leen go.

To see what's in store for you in the Year of the Dragon, click here.

Happy Chinese New Year!

Sun Nien Fai Lock!

Kung Hey Fat Choy!

New Year, New Recipes

I've made banana bread before, but a new year calls for new recipes! I thought this one would be interesting because it includes sour cream (which I haven't used in a quick bread before). Mini was napping but Q was game on helping me bake. He was quite helpful in taste testing too!

Best Ever Banana Bread
1 cup mashed very ripe bananas

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup sour cream

2 eggs well beaten

1 1/12 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl, mix together the bananas, sugar, oil, sour cream, and eggs. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry mix to the banana mix, stirring until just combined. Bake in a greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pan at 325 F for 60 to 75 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from the pan.

Source: Winnipeg Free Press

To the Hills

We saw a whole lot over the next few days. Above tiny San Simeon, we visited the Hearst Castle.

Mini Q wanted to dive into the Neptune Pool! The Italian (indoor) Pool was quite nice too.

In Solvang, a.k.a. the Danish capital of the United States, we pigged out on pastries. The Olsen family founded the town way back in the day.

It's as if Mini Q was in Denmark! Lol.

One afternoon, we visited the Gainey Vineyard. Our tour guide was hilarious. I had a great time learning about wine making, trying different wines, and walking around the property.

Santa Barbara was uber chill. Didn't see a whole lot, but I'm happy we stopped by.

I was told prior to my trip that the people at Venice Beach are interesting to say the least. I think they were sleeping in the morning we went!

Parking on Rodeo Drive was remarkably easy to find, and cheap, especially on a Friday afternoon. The shopping though - not so much...

After driving through the Hills, we visited the touristy places in Hollywood, including the Mann Chinese Theatre.

On our last full day in LA, we had lupper (a lunch/dinner hybrid if you will) in Santa Monica. The beach, Palisades Park, and the Third Street Promenade were quite lovely.

And that's it! Seven days of pure Californian bliss!

On the Road

After San Fran, we made a quick pit stop in Berkeley and stayed overnight in Palo Alto. We drove to Half Moon Bay the next morning. We were hoping to see some surfers out and about, but it was a wee bit chilly. Mini Q really enjoyed the fresh air.

We stopped in Santa Cruz for lunch. It was kinda eerie how quiet it was by the amusement park. The Mins and I had the whole beach to ourselves!

We visited the aquarium in Monterey. Mini Q liked watching the sea otters.

On day four of our California cruise, we did the 17-Mile Drive through Pacific Grove and Pebble Beach. There were heaps of pelicans and sea lions lazing on the rock in the distance. We made several stops along the route, including one at the Lone Cypress.

In Carmel-by-the-Sea, we indugled in a "Dirty Harry" burger for lunch at Clint Eastwood's resto - Hog's Breath Inn.

Ya don't see beaches like this in Toronto!

The Mins in front of the gates to the historic Mission San Carlos.

We spent the afternoon driving along the Pacific Coast Highway in the Big Sur. This was by far my favourite part of the trip! The views were unreal, and kept on getting better and better when we drove south. This photo was taken at Pfeiffer Beach.

It was here I started to wonder, what ever happened to Michelle Pfeiffer?!? Dangerous Minds was a great movie. If you have any insight, please do let me know.