Mystery Tree in Emeryville

My sister and I drove into Oakland on Tuesday to the IKEA store. I think it's actually in Emeryville but I have never figured out where the borders are down in that area. As I have said before, this store is always worth the trip. I love looking at all the "mock ups" that they put together to show you what you can do with what they want to sell you. If they charged an admission I would pay it. You get a catalog and so many ideas that you come out of there wanting to redo your whole house. If you go into the store looking for something specific you have to stay focused or you're lost.
 So Sis and I opted for a walk through Ikea instead of a walk in her neighborhood. We had taken a long walk the day before and decided to treat ourselves to something different...., slower...., more commercial. This is the proverbial "Shop 'til you drop" store. We did our walking for the day.
When we got out of the car we saw this amazing tree... actually a whole row of them on the parking medium. We thought that we had seen this tree before, down in Pismo Beach. The bark looks like thick paper peeling off of the trunk. It's really astounding.

It's not like a Crape Myrtle. The pieces of loose bark are bigger and looser....

The branches almost look like someone twisted them. The tree looks like paper mache. ( that's Sis being at one with the trees.)

Take a close look at this. It's texture is just beautiful.... if you're into trees.

Here is a close up of a blossom and it's olive like leaves.

And it's beautiful seed pods. Maybe it's some kind of tropical tree. The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Area has a very mild climate.
If this tree looks familiar or you know what it is, please leave a comment. I would love to know it's name and where it comes from.
Have a great weekend.....

Halloween Magic

The transformation began.... It was a bright and sunny afternoon.

The pumpkins were slowly turning into Jack-o-lanterns....

Noni and Mommy helped, but Daddy did most of the hard work....
 
The Bean showed Noni some of his school work, which was, of course, brilliant..... and then he climbed  the Mock Orange to show me how amazing he is at scaling anything that he can get his hands and feet onto. The "silly's" hit and he couldn't control his face muscles.... so he stood on his hands and looked under his legs at me. "Hey Noni, look at me." and he giggled himself into super silliness. I knew we were getting close to the magic transformation.
Baby Bean was showing amazing restraint but he had taken a nap earlier. He checked his pumpkins many times and tried his costume on.

He had a bit of trouble with the hood on his costume but finally with a little help, he got it . It's important to see where you are going when you're packing all those muscles... in the dark.....
...and it WAS getting dark out there.
Then a small dog named Lizzy made a strange low growl and retreated to another room. She knew it was time. Mommy and Daddy were ready. As we turned toward the front door ..... it happen. 
My sweet grandsons had become big scary creatures.... 

The transformation was complete. They were ready for anything. The big night was here.


"Backward, turn backward,
Oh time, in your flight
Make me a child again
Just for tonight!"
~Elizabeth Akers Allen~ 




What a world.....
What a world.....
What a world....