These are a few of my favorite things . . .

I love living in Riverside.
LOVE it.
Somedays I love it so much that as I'm driving I tick off a list in my head of all the reasons that it's so wonderful. Yesterday I thought "why don't I write these things down?". So here's my list stemming from the summer months in Southern California 2012.

Living in the Citrus Belt.

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California grows lemons, limes, grapefruit, tangerines, and oranges perfectly, at the tune of a 2 billion dollar industry. Riverside is located in the heart of the growing farms, literally surrounded on every side by miles and miles of orchards that perfume the air with an intoxicating fragrence. There are fresh fruit stands EVERYWHERE, and the produce is delicious and cheap. Brooklynn and I go every few weeks to buy fresh strawberries (3 bundles for $5), and 25 lbs bags of oranges for $3. We make fresh squeezed orange juice almost every morning.

I love fruit . . . and I don't take this situation for granted ;)

Temperature: It's perfect.
We stay at a cool 59 - 71 degrees October through March. Summers are 71 - high 90's, but typically we level off at about 87 - 89 degrees. It's warm, sunny, and beautiful. ALL year long.

These are everywhere:

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And then there's Norco.

You read it right, partner. Horse town USA. That means that this sleepy little town, located 20 minutes south of us, has horse trails instead of sidewalks . . . a hitching post in front of most every grocery store and McDonalds, and about ZERO policy against anything with four legs. This is where we keep our two good lookin' mounts, and summer is packed with activities like Rodeo's, trail rides, ropin', racin', and pretty much just enjoin' the good old fashioned cowboy. Driving through Norco is pretty awesome. But riding through it is even better.

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We live next door to this:

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Still when I look out our window the views of the Mission take my breath away.

And our cute little apartment is just perfect. I love the balcony, I love the luxury of "getting away" each weekend staying with generous family (who are so good to have us) an hour away, I love having cousins just Brooklynn's size that she adores and includes in her prayers every day, I love being close to the beach, beach houses, Sea World and the San Diego Zoo, LA and all the culture there, I love having Brent downstairs working so we can sneak a hug whenever we want, I love that Brooklynn has a built in performance every week in front of a crowd of loving seniors, I love that there's always an opportunity to serve here, I love that we're saving money instead of spending it, I love that there are 4 seasons, but they come at funny times in the year (fall doesn't start until December. By March we're into Summer). I love that Loida (the chef) sends me up breakfast sometimes as often as twice a week - and I love that the food is always delicious. I love that when Brooklynn was sick, all I needed to do was call downstairs and order some jello while I cuddled with her on the couch (saving me from a terrible trip to the grocery store with a sick 3-year old). I love that everyone loves my little girl and our dog. We can't get into an elevator without people wanting to talk to and pet them both. I love that I have a full-time maintenance man who fixes anything I need. I love that we live in a brand new building that doesn't ever need fixing! I love that we get to see so much family as they come visit warm weather, I love the residents in the building and the hilarious stories that stem from them that decorate Brent and I's conversations each night.
I could go on and on and on.
sigh. Life is GOOD.