Ripon Vet Hospital sponsors a low cost vaccine day Saturday, 4/16/11 1pm to 3pm accines offered are: Bordetella (kennel cough) $21 DHPP (distemper) $16 rabies $16.50 CASH ONLY PLEASE!!! 134 West Main St Ripon, CA  95366 209-599-6153 I'm taking my two dogs down there myself to get them up to date on their shots, plus we have a mini vacation coming up mid May & they need that kennel cough nose spray.  See you there :)   (176,-3) 04/11/2011

Pink or Purple Flowers that brighten our day in Ripon If you drive your kids to Ripon Christian each day & take the "new" back route (that would be behind Canal Street Grill), then you see these gorgeous flowers.  It mesmorizes me everyday, especially when they are so happily smiling soaking up that sunshine. here is what they look like before the sun truly comes out.... here it is in the sunshiney (is that a word?) afternoon :)   03/28/2011

What will my future Property Taxes be in Ripon CA San Joaquin County? Step by Step instructions to figure out what will those property taxes end up being: Go to San Joaquin County's and click on the "view or pay property taxes" (left hand side of the page) Always remember to "read and agree with the disclaimer" (down towards the middle of page) Remember to have the parcel number ready.  You will need that one (hint: it's not the street address) Enter your parcel # xxx-xxx-xx that you are thinking about purchasing & submit  Do the left click on the parcel # that is underlined & you will see the current property taxes below: (almost done) Here is where you pull out your calculator & plug in your proposed purchase price.  If your proposed purchase price is $300,000 than multiply that by 1%... 03/20/2011

Beauty & The Beast musical at Ripon Christian tonight at 7pm.  Come see our 4th/5th graders put on an amazing play.  The 4th graders are the choir (they are fabulous).  This musical is over 260 years old (1740) and was written as a fairy tale.  One of the wonderful symbolism which I never paid attention to before is "Mrs. Potts" (she represents comfort & warmth) plus the rose symbolizing hope & love.  The theme of this musical is that people who do not judge others based on appearances are often rewarded. What an awesome tradition here at Ripon Christian to have the 4th/5th graders put on a new musical every year.  When you see the sets, you will wonder how they create something new each year.  The production is huge & brand new each year.  My son Noah will be playing Gaston.  Him & all... 03/04/2011

The 49th Almond Blossom Festival in Ripon CA came and went this last weekend without any snow (blossom snow but not the cold stuff).  The weather people kept saying that the snow was coming, be prepared.  Well that storm started on Thursday night but it fizzled out by Friday lunchtime.  I missed the Lions Club Spaghetti Dinner which I don't plan on missing again.  I heard that it's a famous recipe that only a few people know.  It's the best spaghetti town is the word.  I can't wait to go next year.  I missed the Diaper Derby too, bummer.  Now I have 2 things to go to for sure next year. The Almond Blossom Festival parade was so cool as always.  I loved it.  I'm not sure what exactly makes it so awesome.  It could be that we know so many people in the parade or maybe that when you are wa... 03/01/2011

Yes it snows in Ripon CA once a year for a few weeks.  This is my favorite type of snow.  It is really just the blossoms flowing off onto the ground, but because those little cute blossoms are white, it looks like snow to me.  We don't have to put on our snow boots though. photo courtesy of Brooke Boersma This view lets me know that the 49th Annual Ripon CA Almond Blossom Festival is coming to town & I can't wait!!! 02/22/2011

When did you lose your house to Foreclosure or Short Sale?  If it has been 2 or 3 years or you are just not sure.  It's probably time to start looking at jumping right back into the Ripon CA real estate market.  Of course, only if you want to.    1)  Have your Ripon CA Realtor check to see the actual foreclosure or short sale official date.  I know that sounds weird but just because you moved out & lost the home doesn't mean they actually foreclosed right away.  Sometimes it's months later.  If you are going to get a VA loan then you only have to wait 2 years from the foreclosure date.  If you are going to get an FHA loan then it's just 3 short years, conventional loans are still 7 years for now. 2)  Have your favorite Ripon CA lender run your credit.  I really do recommend you do this ... 02/22/2011

Active Short Cont ~ ASC ~ Active Short Contingent all mean the same thing but what is that same thing really?  Here in Ripon CA, it means that the house you are looking at is an available short sale that is contingent upon the short sale lender/bank accepting less money than owed. Why is this important to understand & know?  An available short sale is just that, a short sale seller that doesn't have any offers on their house yet.  Most of the short sale lender/banks will not give an approval to accept less money than owed without an acceptable offer submitted to them.  It does make sense but probably frustrating to you (the buyer) if you just want to see what is truly available out their in our real estate market of Ripon CA. As of today in Ripon CA real estate 76 homes are Available fo... 02/21/2011

Bring them on board - one at a time! Another ActiveRain Lunch Susan Goulding, Christina O'Neal and Ishared our "second" ActiveRain lunch ... and had as much fun as the one last month.  I did notice one thing ... we barely sat down and we started talking about the ActiveRain blogosphere!  No time for gossip ... we were on an ActiveRain mission .... giving and getting as much as we could in the 90 minutes we planned on sharing! Christina engineered the location this timein the beautiful and historic town on Ripon, California. We lunched at the Ripon Roadhouse  ... but I'll let Christina share with you the joys of that location.  From my perspective .... The Cobb Salad was so great ... that I passed on the shared double-fudge sin brownie ... and opted to finish the salad! We did decide th... 02/15/2011

Have you ever seen a Diaper Derby?  I haven't either.  I have 3 kids (none in diapers anymore) and I never entered them in one.  Now I think I have to go just to see what it's all about. Your child has to be under 1 years old & crawling.  The cost is $5.00.  Saturday, February 26, 2011 @10am at Ripon High School 301 N Acacia St, Ripon, CA  95366 When I wrote about the 49th Annual Almond Blossom Festival in Ripon CA,  I had 3 of my friends want to see what it's all about.  Curiousity is having me wonder too.  I hope I know some little ones that will be in the diaper derby so I can root them on.  If you are from Ripon, please email me your child's name so I can cheer for them to crawl superfast :)   02/12/2011

Everyone loves Pizza Plus in Ripon CA!!!  I know it's true.  Today my son had a baby tooth pulled & he was such a trooper that his treat for the evening was going to get pizza at his favorite place.  Yummy (we both win on this one). They have an awesome Family special here at Pizza Plus in Ripon CA that is $25.00.  You get 1 Giant Pizza (any cheese, one or two toppings), an order of breadsticks (parmesean or mozzarella) and 4 sodas if it's for "here" or a 2 liter of soda if it's "to go". A little secret about the breadsticks (guess it's not anymore since I'm telling you), is that it is really a small size cheese pizza without the pizza sauce.  Funny thing is, is that they will give you a container of cold pizza sauce or ranch for dipping purposes.  The breadsticks are also have the pric... 02/12/2011

I had the honor & pleasure of walking to Almond Blossom Church in Ripon with the 5th graders at Ripon Christian on this Friday, 2/4/11.  The 5th graders carried all the donations that they were collecting for the past few weeks.  It was "organized chaos" as Mrs. Nancy VanderVeen described & she was right.  There were 2 very looooooonnnng tables with boxes labeled (soap, soup, pillowcases, hand sanitizer, toothbrushes, toothpaste, baby wipes, pencils, pens, stationery, batteries, cereal bars, deoderant, candy, gum, popcorn, toys, magazines, shaving cream, razors, beef jerky, feminine products, nuts, shampoo, socks, canned food, protein bars).  We had 2 hours of both 5th grade classes sorting all the donated items.  After we sorted, the kids had a buddy & packed one box at a time with lov... 02/05/2011

49th Annual Almond Blossom Festival ~ Thursday, February 24 thru Sunday, February 27 * Thursday, February 10, 2011 - Almond Blossom Fashion Show, 7pm @Ripon High School in Multi-Purpose Room. Tickets $10.00 per person * February 24, 2011 - Almond Blossom Queen Coronation @ 7:00pm at the Ripon Community Center. * February 24, 2011 - Lions Club Spagetti Dinner @ 4:30pm, Ripon Community Center Tickets Advance: Adults $10.00, Children $5.00. Tickets at the door: Adults $12.00, Children $6.00 Festival Hours ~ Mistlin Sports Park (1201 River Rd, Ripon, CA 95366) Friday noon to 9pm * Saturday 10am to 9pm * Sunday 10am to 5pm parking will be $5 per vehicle Carnival opens ~ Mistlin Sports Park Thurs & Fri 4pm to 10pm * Sat & Sun noon to 11pm $1.00 P.O.P - Thursday for Ripon Residents starts at 5... 02/01/2011

I'm out of almonds.  Yes I know, I live in Ripon CA.  There should be an unlimited supply at every house  here since we live in the Almond Capital of the Country.  I've decided today that I am not buying pre-packaged almonds from Costco anymore.  I just ordered my first order of almonds online.  So cool. 4th Generation gives you almond information & tips too. I know it sounds like fun which is why I am sharing with you.  The really super cool thing is that if you are not from Ripon, CA, you can order these almonds & have them shipped to you.  You can even pay by paypal.  That's super fun. I personally selected the local willcall option since the Boersma's just live a few houses away from me.  You can read about this sweet family and their personal values.  4th Generation Farms is awesom... 01/31/2011

I was scheduled to help out in my son's 5th grade classroom at Ripon Christian today.  I really enjoyed all aspects of it. After you (the parent) are in the back of the classroom for awhile, they (your kid) forget that you are there & you can see the "true" kid in action hard at work.  I saw that sometimes he doesn't pay attention & he is definitely a "doodler". Your kids teacher will know your care & appreciate the help. Seeing how your kids teacher teaches is so important, especially the math.  Noah & I tend to argue a little about how problems are done.  I don't teach exactly how the teacher does.  I definitely picked up some good tips today.  It was really good just to see her routine, so I can better relate with Noah when talking about homework or his daily work at school. You will... 01/24/2011

We have an active prayer group in Ripon CA.  They are calling on all ripon residents to pray for the Ripon government and it's officials for one hour at the Ripon Police Department. The prayer groups desire is a non-denominational, citywide prayer initiative, meant to call all citizens together. When:  Tuesday, 1/25/2011  7pm to 8pm Where:  Ripon Police Department "We have been meeting about a year and a half starting out meeting in the city council chambers.  We are now meeting in different locations that correspond with our proayer concerns for that evening.  We meet once a month, usually on the fourth Tuesday from 7 to 8pm.  We have focused on city government, police department, fire department, schools, service clubs, pastors, and businesses.  We usually try to get a representative ... 01/22/2011

    I'm driving down Main St in Ripon CA, starting at the Ripon Post Office, right by the old McDonalds (no pun intended), thru the corner of Wilma & under the Historic Ripon sign. You will get a good view of some of the churches, Ripon Elementary, the brick paver street, old fashion light posts, right by Pizza Plus & Cups Cafe, Ripon Roadhouse, Taqueria Ripon, La Casuela, Barnwood Arms Gun Shop. The tour ends at the Ripon Fire training tower & the back of the Main Ripon Fire station. "This post is written as a submission to the ActiveRain Kodak Video Challenge contest. I have the chance to win the KODAK PLAYTOUCH Pocket Video Camera, great for realtors looking to create wide angle home tours and real estate marketing videos!"   01/21/2011

"The Challenge" Come to Ripon Roadhouse in Ripon, CA & eat the Four Horsemen Burger and fries in 10 minutes or less without drinking anything.  Then you have to wait 5 minutes after you eat all the food to have something to drink.  Whew... I have a feeling it's rough & no I haven't tried it yet.  But if you are willing to come to town, I will come & take pictures even if you don't make it. (smile) What's the fun "Prize"? Your picture goes up on the Four Horsemen Wall A $20 gift certificate the burger is on them What's in The "Four Horsemen Burger"? Artisan bun, crispy onion strings, Certified Angus Beef Patty, pepper jack chees, Ortega chili, four horsemen sauce, 1 Jalepeno chili (3,000 SHU), 1 Serrano chili (10,000 SHU), 1 Habanero (350,000 SHU), 1 Indian "Ghost" chili (1,500,000 SHU) ... 01/18/2011

Vermeulen Estates is a cozy little community in Ripon, CA.  It's north of 99 & south of 120.  It's park is of course named Vermeulen Park.  (Surprise!!)  The playground just had new bark put in this last summer.  When you drove by the park for that week or so last year, it smelled like someone was sharpening their pencil (brought me back to elementary school days).  There are 3 swings (a baby one too).  It has this spiderman metal cone/rocket ship thing to climb up.  A Spiral slide isMay part of this jungle gym play structure.  Our kids love to see how many can fit on that slide without sliding down. Walking your dog around this park is super popular.  It does tend to drive any puppy crazy with smells of other dogs.  I love it when dog owners carry their own little doggy poop baggy (ver... 01/17/2011

My husband & I walked the dogs this morning.  All we see are Holland Windmills.  It is so awesome how much Dutch spirit we have in town.  Even our local Save Mart in Ripon CA participates in this one.   There are many of these all over the place in Ripon CA.  I would say at least each street has a home with a Holland windmill in front of it.   This Holland windmill is in the Stained Glass in their front bay window. Do you think they bought this trailer by accident?  Do you think they knew it was "Dutchmen" brand name?   01/12/2011