Built in 2011, this is Sonoma County Living at it’s best. Not too big, not too small, but rather just the right size. Located on the edge of town in Sebastopol, close to schools, and downtown shopping, this jewel of a home is perfectly laid out for the way we live here in wine country. It’s attributes are:

• single level living
• 1650 square feet on .40 acre
• 3 bedroom, 2 bath
• open floor plan
• granite kitchen counter tops
• flush in-lay cabinetry 
• an Italian gas stove
• exquisite carerra marble baths
• crown molding throughout
• rich hardwood flooring with attractive walnut borders
• and classic hardware and light fixtures
• gas fireplace
• well insulated
• including a 2 car garage and storage shed
• with a yard that is ready for gardens, and with room for entertaining Sonoma Style!

This is a must see property and a real gem in our neck of the woods! Feel free to contact me for more information, and to schedule an appointment to check it out for yourself.

Santa Rosa de Laguna-image courtesy of Bob Cornelis:click on photo for images for sale

This past week end we had our first real rain of our winter season. Yes, we did have some rain in October, but since that, nada, zilch, nothing. I love it when it rains here in Sonoma…why you ask? Let me count the ways:

• It’s a time when I just want to stay in by the fire, read, watch sports, share a bottle of wine with my wife, in other words…a great reason to chill!
• I like the four seasons, and for us the rain means it’s winter.
• The rain creates a lake on the Laguna, and because of that the bird life soars, literally.
• The hills start to turn green and the fog rolls in from the coast. (more on that later!)
• Our country side begins to look much like I expect Wales and Ireland to look like. My roots.
  

  The hills as they turn green in Petaluma-image courtesy of Something about Sonoma blog

• We have a water shortage here in California, without the rain it gets worse.
• Rain here usually means snow in the Sierra’s…a chance to go skiing, at least once in the season.
• I love driving through all the water, a bit like jumping in puddles when I was a child.
• I am continuously awed by the power of water. In our driveway it makes small versions of the “Grand Canyon”.
• Our vineyards and fruit orchards are very happy. If the rains comes too late, it knocks the blossoms off and we get no or little fruit.
  

  image courtesy of Bob Cornelis:click on photo for more images for sale

• I don’t have to water my yard plants anymore!

Isn’t our Sonoma County beautiful in the winter?

Do you like the rain? Why? Click like below if you do!

sign in front of Spud Point Crab Co.

One of the pleasures of living in Sonoma County is being close to the gorgeous Sonoma Coastline. And, one of the advantages of that is to enjoy the different fish/seafood seasons fresh off the boat. Since early December it’s been Crab season and can I say, we’ve been enjoying it tremendously!

My wife and I love to tool on down to the coast for a hike and a stop off at Spud Point Crab Co. out in the Bodega Bay harbor. Not only known for some of the best clam chowder in the county, but they carry crab at the best prices and directly off the boat which lands in front of their shop.

a trip to Spud Point this past Christmas for our annual Christmas Day dinner

We enjoy picking them up cooked and cleaned, so all we have to do is crack them dip them in butter or cocktail sauce with a little bit of our delicious meyer’s lemon juice  over the top. Delicious!

Coming up this Saturday, January 21st is our Sebastopol’s annual Masonic Lodge crab feed. It’s an all you can eat crab, along with a simple salad and famous “Cianfichi” pasta. Tickets are $38.00 for adults, half price for children and under 6 years old are FREE.  You can call me at 707-823-2533 to pick up, or reserve tickets for your whole family now.

image courtesy of Mad Meat Genius

The lodge is located at 373 N. Main street in downtown Sebastopol and there will be two seatings; one at 5:30 pm. and the other at 7:30 pm. Come on down and share in one of our finest delicacies here in Sonoma County! There may be some tickets left at the door, the price there is will be $45.00 each.

This crab feed’s proceeds will benefit Sonoma County Public Schools. So, are you attending this year?

Merry Christmas-image via alifeofbeautyandgrace.tumbler.com

This year we at Sonoma County Properties wish you the spirit of the the season, now and throughout 2012:

• Peace
• Wonder
• Joy
• Good Will
• Light
• and most of all Love

Wishing You and Your’s a Very Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday Season!

Lisa tells us the story of Graton’s history with preserving park land for all who pass through. The portion of the article about the “Shoot the Chute” is from an oral history left by my maternal Grandfather, Jack Robertson.

My "Gaddy" Jack Robertson, and my mother as a little girl in front of Handy's Service Station-Graton

Lesa says:

“When Graton was founded in 1905, the first park was a beautiful 40 acre grove (located at Graton Road and what is now Hwy 116) called Piney Woods. It featured a small zoo, an outdoor waxed wood dance floor with gas lights, and a “Shoot the Chute,” a homemade roller coaster with a wooden car that was cranked up to the top of a curved ramp and then let go for a thrilling ride.

People rode the new electric passenger trains into town and walked up the hill with their picnic baskets to spend the day. In 1932, passenger trains ended and the park became Handy’s Grove, still with a small zoo, but now featuring a service station, store, and campground. Handy’s Grove operated until the 1950s.

The site now houses the Dutton-Goldfield and Red Car Winery tasting rooms. The old grove of trees is long gone, but if you look carefully, you can still see an occasional ancient fir or redwood that survived.

In 1973 a group of parents met at Oak Grove School and decided to create a place for Graton children to play. They formed a corporation and began fundraising.

They held bake sales, rummage sales, a walkathon, and a huge 4th of July celebration. Graton Road was blocked off downtown and entertainment was provided by, among others, Kate Wolf and Don Coffin. The funds raised were used to buy a parcel of land alongside an acre donated by Charlie and Vi Chapin, located on Donald Street across from Pacific Christian Academy.

More 4th of July celebrations were held, t-shirts, postcards and bumper stickers were sold, and in 1976, Chapin Park was dedicated. Many baseball games were held at that park and at least one wedding, but by 1987 times had changed and the playground was dilapidated. The original founders were tired of providing maintenance so they donated the park to Oak Grove school. The school sold it to a developer and used the money to build a soccer field on campus.

Now a dedicated group of Graton volunteers are working for a third park in Graton, located on a historic site downtown.

The Graton Green Group-image via Press Democrate-Sebastopol

The Graton Green Group formed a non profit organization and has been raising funds and getting pledges to acquire the Ross Road site where the passenger depot for the Petaluma and Santa Rosa railway was located from 1904 until it burned down in 1932. A mechanic’s garage was built on the site, then from 1951 until this year it was the home of the Graton Fire Department.

Now the fire department Board of Directors must decide the best use of the land for the community. Are we better served by preserving public space downtown or by selling to the highest bidder and using the money at the new fire station?

The property is owned by the taxpayers of Graton and we have the right to weigh in on what should be done with it. By law, the land has to first be offered for use as low income housing or a park, then after 60 days, it can be put out to bid. The GFD Board of Directors can sell or lease to the Graton Green Group for less than market value if they choose.

If the community wants the land to remain in public use and not go into private hands, they have to let the Graton Fire Department Board of Directors know by sending them a letter at PO Box A, Graton, CA 95444. If the property is sold to the highest bidder the money will be a quickly spent one time contribution to the GFD budget and the people of Graton will have no say in what happens to the land.

If the property stays in public hands, our community will decide its design and use, and its contributions to our neighborhood will be ongoing.

For more information, or to pledge your support, contact HolLynn D’Lil at 829-9440.

From this charming 1910 Victorian bungalow in downtown Sebastopol!

Great Old Fashioned Front Porch

This is a beautiful property with a detached office, great front porch and lovely back yard. Close to all the amenities such as hospital, groceries, library, and town square. It’s not often that one of these comes up.

lovely back yard

With the master bedroom suite on the second floor, this 3 bedroom, 2 bath home is in great condition. And best of all you get a lovely backyard with room for children to play, your own organic garden, and space to entertain Sonoma Style!

Zoned Residential/Business, this home offers options and opportunities for the empty nester, entrepreneur or starter family with work at home parents. The details are endless for this charming vintage Sebastopol Bungalow.

For more information on this property or any others in Sonoma County,

give me a call…

We represent 7 generations of buying and selling

             Sonoma County Properties;                 

we are the experts to help you!

thanks to google images for this photo

One of my favorite local cheeses is Bodega Artisan Cheese. First off I have an affinity for Bodega (NOT Bodega Bay, but Bodega) because that’s where I met my wife Irene Turner. Because she lived there I had the opportunity to meet Patty Carlin (owner and operator of Bodega Artisan Goat Cheese) and visit her Goat Farm, located there.

Bodega Artisan Cheese is a handcrafted goat cheese, sustainably made and 100% organic. Sold locally only, to keep their carbon foot print down, we are fortunate to be able to buy it at our produce stands and in specialty stores as well as directly at the source, the farm.

I love goat cheese in general because:

• they can range in taste from delicate and mild to strong and pungent
• they come in many shapes-cone, disc, wheel, log and crottin.
• their texture ranges from creamy to crumbly to semi firm
• they can be fresh, aged or marinated
• they are often coated in herbs that add interest
• they can be paired for the gourmands who enjoy such things
• compared to cow’s milk cheese, goat cheese is lower in fat, calories and cholesterol
• it also provides more calcium then cream cheese

Enjoy Bodega Goat cheese!

thanks to Downtown Farmers Market for this image

We have over 16 farmers markets located throughout Sonoma County. From Duncans Mill, Guernville, Occidental and downtown Sonoma; north to Gualala &  Cloverdale to our southern tip, Petaluma, …and just about every town in between, including Santa Rosa. With the help of our Russian River Slow Food Organization, our Farmers Markets are a truly viable source of fresh food.

Here are 5 reasons why I do love our Farmers Markets:

• Flavor…There is absolutely nothing like the flavor of fresh picked peaches, heirloom tomatoes, sweet corn.
• Good Health… Fresh, locally grown food is the most reliable source of vitamins and minerals that my body needs to stay healthy.

• Stewards of the Land… The small family farmer helps sustain healthy ecosystems, abundant wildlife, and viable soil.
• Link with Farmers… You can actually talk to people who grow your food. Your local family farmer is the best source of pure, high quality food.
• Local Economy… It helps keep our local agriculture community alive, and helps to build the consciousness of Slow Food eating
  

Meanwhile, enjoy a visit to our local Sebastopol Farmers Market with this video my wife created! Enjoy…

View at the Ranch

There is so much to do…from fine dining at restaurants like The Farmhouse to more casual eating at Peter Lowell’s and Willow Wood.  And should you think that all we do here is eat, hiking along the Ocean cliffs and the hills in wine country is a great way to work off all the fresh and organic local meals.  It’s also a great place to take an antique car tour.  When driving in an old car, time naturally seems to slow down, if it’s an open car, a fabulous way to see the countryside.

What do I love about fall here in Sonoma County?  Let’s see:   

1. Fall harvest of fruits and vegetables at all the local produce stands
2. Crush! and looking forward to another vintage year
3. Crab season
4. Clam Chowder on a foggy day
5. Grape tarts!
6. The changing colors
7. The scent of fall, there’s nothing like it
8. Sitting around the outdoor fires with friends
9. The magnificent sunsets
10. The greening of our golden summer hills as it begins to rain
11. A glass of a full bodied red wine
12. A lit fireplace
13. The sound of the leaves under my feet, and the musty smell they let off
14. The fog burning off as the sun rises higher in the sky
15. Art Walks & Studio tours

And on, and on and on!  For those of you who want to come up to wine country and experience our laid back country fall, a neighbor has a great vacation rental just down the street from us.  You and your whole family and friends can stay at his home, just down the road from us, called Spirit Hill Farm, and enjoy our fall yourself.

Check out the video below for a peek at fall here in Sonoma County…and come on up to enjoy!

It’s that time again, ARTrails Open Studios…This fall the open studio falls on October 15-16 and 22-23, 2011. Studios will be open from 10:00 – 5:00 on both weekends. ARTrails is an annual fall tradition in the North Bay. It’s one of the better art exhibitions locally as it is juried. It is not just Sonoma County’s largest and most visible arts event, but also one of the oldest and most respected of its kind in the nation.

ARTrails provides a rare opportunity for the public to meet local artists in their workspaces.

Nothing like visiting the artist in their open studio!

While there are many artists, some of my personal favorites are:

• Tony Speirs and Lisa Beernsten #18, 2860 Bowen Street in Graton (their studio is in the house my mother grew up in!)
• Bob Cornelis and Susan Cornelis #38 & #39, 2550 Lewis Dr. Sebastopol
• Warren Bellows #9, 10461 Moonshine Road, Sebastopol
• Peter Crompton #674367 Raymonde Way, Santa Rosa

It’s a great way to spend a couple of days…driving through some of the prettiest countryside, filled with fall colors, viewing beauty in both art and nature!  For a preview, check out the following exhibitions running through October 28th; the Wells Fargo Center For The Arts in Santa Rosa, the Pelican Art Gallery in Petaluma, and…right here next door to my real estate office, the Graton Art Gallery.

While you are at it, you can visit some of our local wineries to finish off the day. If you come through Graton, be sure to stop by and say hi. Happy Trails!