Labor Day Weekend and a Remedy for Homesickness…

Well ya’ll, it’s almost that time of year again… Fall. My little Missouri heart starts aching for the dramatic changes in the weather, the vivid colors of the leaves changing, the crisp cool air that smells like bon fires, the pumpkin patches that are ripe for the pickin’! People will soon be headed to the corn mazes, and drinking hot apple cider. Here in Southern California, the weather will stay warm… the palm trees will stay green… and I’ll be missin’ Missouri even more than usual. Just as I was feeling a little down, wishing I were spending time with family over the long weekend, I stumbled across a post on a lovely blog I follow, Sugar Pie Farmhouse. Ironically, Aunt Ruthie’s a California girl who now lives in the Ozarks of Missouri (my FAVORITE place come fall)! Her blog is packed full of country recipes, farmhouse décor, and comforting posts about gorgeous southern Missouri. Anywho… THIS post made gave me a little hope for getting over my Fall homesickness, and since I have the most wonderful Hubby, we decided to take a little road trip this past weekend.

My original plan was to head to Julian… a little mountain town east of us, that has apple orchards, homemade pie shops and stores full of country décor. Unfourtunately, most of the shops were close for Labor day, so instead, we headed to Temecula… a valley about 45 minutes north of us… the home of Rooster Creek, TONS of antique shops, restaurants, and an adorable spot to spend the day. We’ve been looking for a rustic looking buffet or cabinet for our living room that we can paint red and we were hoping to find it among all the great shops!

The drive north.

Little ol’ me. (Bri wouldn’t let me take a picture of him... typical.)

What a cute welcome!

Rooster Creek was just as cute as Aunt Ruthie said it would be! It was chocked full of charming décor, furniture and such a welcoming atmosphere. Sadly, we didn’t find the piece we were looking for, but I know where I’m headed with my birthday money this year!

The Quilter’s Coop was AMAZING! Brian was getting a kick out of watching me start drooling the minute we walked in the door! They carry almost every moda fabric that has ever been made! It was a HUGE store full of beautiful patterns, country quilts, and all the fabric a girl could want! I’ve been searching high and low since we moved to San Diego and I’d almost given up on finding a store that sold a wide variety of pre-cuts… well the exact layer cake I’ve been looking for was one of the first things I saw! This lady will most definitely be back… and I’ll need supervision when I do!

There were sooo many great antique stores! What a great hubby I have to spend his day off antiquing! He bought some jeally beans at an old fashioned candy shop... so I think he was okay. We almost packed up a few country buffets with hutches… but in the end we decided that it wouldn’t be fair to paint some of the beautiful pieces we found, and they would be perfect in a house… but life in a condo leaves little room for large furniture. Sigh… someday.

We finished off the day with dinner at a favorite place here in California… Claim Jumpers! They serve hearty portions of some of my favorite dishes… Chicken Pot Pie, Ribs, Meat Loaf, Chicken Fried Steak, a Red Velvet cake to die for… and “The Motherlode” (the biggest slice of chocolate cake I’ve EVER seen!) It’s makin’ me hungry just thinking about it… Mmmm Mm!

So on with the search for the perfect cabinet/buffet. Bri and I spent the rest of the day painting the dining room table! I’ve got some big reveals coming soon! We’ve been working real hard on the Kitchen & Dining room and I’ll post pictures soon!

Have a great week ya’ll!