Sunflowers are Such Friendly Flowers.....Part 1. Sunflowers seem like they are looking up at the sun and smiling. When I am down or sad, sunflowers make me happy! While in Yucaipa, CA. on Saturday, I saw thousands of sunflowers growing in the fields. Here is my collection of sunflower photographs. “Sunflowers are the joy of my life”           *Next week, see Part 2 of my Sunflower Collection. Inland Empire Homeowners, please call me for a Comprehensive Market Analysis to assist you with marketing your home for sale and getting the best price possible. Buyers, if you are planning to purchase real estate, let me assist you in finding the right home.  Google me at Kristin Hamilton, Keller Williams Realty, Redlands, CA This post was authored and or picture was taken by Kristin Hamilton. ©20... 10/31/2011

The observance of Halloween, which dates back to Celtic rituals thousands of years ago, has long been associated with images of witches, ghosts, devils and goblins. Over the years, Halloween customs and rituals have changed dramatically. In the United States, the first official citywide Halloween celebration occurred in Anoka, Minnesota, in 1921. Today, many of the young and young-at-heart take a more light-spirited approach. Glowing skeletons and lighted Jack O' Lanterns decorate homes, while children dressed in all kinds of costumes begin flocking out onto neighborhood streets in search of treats. Make this year's holiday extra safe by following these safety tips on costumes, treats, decorations and more! I have made of a list of 32 Safety Tips to have a fun but safe Halloween.   ·  ... 10/29/2011

Make sure you stop by “The Pumpkin Patch” located at 32335 Live Oak Canyon Road, Calimesa, CA 92320.Lots of fun for the entire family and open thru October 31st at 9:00 p.m. This was a favorite spot to take pictures with your family or group. Also "Free" to enter and lots of gifts on sale including Halloween items. I bought some Fall gifts and garden stakes.  Going back on the 31st to get a rooster  for my kitchen. See you there! How do they get the mums to grow so large? Pumpkins and Indian Corn everywhere you look! The pumpkins are huge and they have a lovely area of Rooster gifts. Autumn gifts plus you can take a wheel barrel and pick your own pumpkin. There is a big, big pumpkin as you enter the gate. Pumkins with warts and a real "John Deere" tractor. (I love tractors) You can see... 10/29/2011

This insect is called a “Praying Mantis” and is typically green or brown with triangular heads, and have front legs that looking like they are praying.  Mantis' are well camouflaged on the plants where they live, lie in ambush or patiently stalk their victims. They wait until their victim is within striking distance and then wrap themselves around the victim and eat them alive.   They eat small insects, retiles, and even small birds.  Moths, crickets, grasshoppers, flies, and other insects are usually the unfortunate recipients of the mantis. It can eat larger predators up to 5 times its weight. However, the insects will also eat others of their own kind too! These insects are sometimes sold to homeowners help to rid their property of unwanted insects. The mantis’ is a tasty treat for ... 10/27/2011

Redlands California Homes Days on the Market Here's a good chart to examine if you're thinking of buying or selling real estate in Redlands California. The chart below maps the days on the market properties in Redlands last, from January 2009 to the present month of July 2011. As you can see homes lasted longer on the market in 2009, but then dipped in mid 2009 to about October 2010. Since then the Redlands home inventory tends to last longer on the market than previously. If you would like more information on the Redlands real estate marketplace feel free to email us at GarrigusRealEstate@yahoo.com, or just click here Redlands CA. 10/25/2011

  My beloved mother Sarah felt I spent way too much time at my job.  I worked for the County for 28 years and it was true that it was almost impossible to take off time.  So when I got the chance to retire early with a better retirement package, I took it. I had taken the DRE exam so I went to work as a Realtor. Now, I intended my job to be part time but we all know how that goes especially getting started.       Between my real estate, my daughter's many volleyball games, family and home, she felt I did not spend enough time with her    She was in her 80's and still drove, shopped at the Macy’s, had her hair and nails done weekly and went out to eat daily. So I would come to visit her, meet her for lunch 2 times+ weekly and have her over for dinner every Sunday. We would also go to our... 10/24/2011

Daddy Daddy Stop the Car… I want to see the Pumpkin.    I was in Redlands, CA yesterday and noticed this big orange pumpkin in front of the Chrysler/Jeep dealer so I got out of my car to take a picture. While standing on the street corner, I noticed everyone driving by was stopping, pointing, and kids were jumping up and down in the cars all excited. I think advertising is so important and this is a good example. Now every time I drive by, I will look for this big pumpkin. It reminds me that Fall and Halloween are here and almost Thanksgiving. I was so busy and deep in thought but this big guy made me stop and appreciate all the beauty around me. I always carry my camera for moments like this. **This pumpkin made me smile and feel happy! Hope you feel happy too. Happy Halloween! Inland ... 10/22/2011

Saw this on the news last night. In Alaska, a bear cub was found sitting up on the vegetables in the Produce Section and upsetting the customers. The little guy had to be physically removed. They said this happens quite often in Alaska. Can you imagine having to make sure there are no bears in the store when you are shopping? Frankly, I am sure this is really a rare event or it would not have been all over the national news. All I have to say is, I have been to Alaska 3 times and traveled all over the state each time and it is hard to find the bears. I guess I should have tried the local grocery stores. Unfortunately, it costs the store thousands of dollars to sanitize the produce department. **The cub was safely removed and returned to the wild. The sad thing here is the little guy wa... 10/19/2011

A Face Only A Mother Could Love? I was at a listing appointment yesterday and on the way home I came across this cute black sheep. All the others were lighter colors and all huddled together but this little guy was all by himself. It made me sad. I just wanted to get out of my car and go give this guy a hug but I was afraid I would scare the animals and maybe someone would think I was crazy. I thought of this little guy all afternoon and wondered where his mother was and why his friends were not playing with him. Don’t judge a book by its cover. Love one another and treat everyone equally and with kindness. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Inland Empire Homeowners, please call me for a Comprehensive Market Analysis to assist you with marketing your home fo... 10/12/2011

Ships, Mimes and Birds to Enjoy at San Diego Harbor. Star of India is the world's oldest active sailing ship and part of the Maritime Museum ships docked at San Diego. ·         Star of India is the world's oldest active sailing ship. ·         Built of wood in 1863 at Ramsey Shipyard in the Isle of Man; first named “Euterpe”. ·         Launched five days before Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address ·         On her first trip enroute to India, she suffered a collision and a mutiny. ·         On her 2nd trip, caught in a cyclone in the Bay of Bengal; barely made port. ·         Shortly afterward, her first captain died on board and was buried at sea. ·         Sailed twenty-one times around the world ·         Took European immigrants to New Zealand, Chile, and California for 25 years · ... 10/11/2011

Hey Where's My Cracker? This picture was taken today near Anthony’s Seafood on 1360 N. Harbor Drive, San Diego, CA. Inland Empire Homeowners, please call me for a Comprehensive Market Analysis to assist you with marketing your home for sale and getting the best price possible. Buyers, if you are planning to purchase real estate, let me assist you in finding the right home.  Google me at Kristin Hamilton, Keller Williams Realty, Redlands, CA This post was authored and or picture was taken by Kristin Hamilton. ©2011, All Rights Reserved, This content may not be reproduced or reprinted (Except for ActiveRain Re-blogging) without express written permission of Kristin Hamilton, Keller Williams Realty, Redlands, CA.         10/09/2011

Inland Empire Landmarks, Sites and Nature Facebook Page.   As an ActiveRain Rainmaker, I am asking everyone a favor? I have a new Facebook page which has nothing to do with real estate. It is more of a farming page. It is entitled “Inland Empire Landmarks, Sites and Nature”. Since I take a lot of photographs, I wanted to have a site to display them on FB. Chris Alston, AR and FB trainer, discussed this on his webinar last week.   The link is: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Inland-Empire-Landmarks-Sites-and-Nature/285941878101061 PLEASE “Like” my new FB page with your personal Facebook page and not as your own (Business) fan page. If not, they do not show up in the fan count and the number of fans remains the same. I need 24 likes to get my website link. Please help….. 10/08/2011

Redlands Real Estate Market Jan-Sept 2011....Real Estate Transactions on the Move Upward!         Most of you know me but for any who do not, I am a local, experienced, respected Realtor who lives and works in this area. I sit on committee for East Valley Association of Realtors, Women's Council of Realtors, and for Keller Williams Realty. I stay active in the community as well as busy marketing homes for sale and helping buyers find their dream home           As you can see, Short Sales and REOs have declined in the past 9 months but conventional sales are way up. This is so exciting and it looks as the market is recovering in your community of Redlands, CA. Standard- This is a conventional closed sale. REO- This is a bank owned sale. Short Sale- This is where the seller could not sell... 10/07/2011

Homes for Heroes is pleased to welcome our new Affiliate, Dee Ann Parra! “I have been a Realtor for over 10 years and I have never been as excited about a program as I am for Homes for Heroes.  The moment I heard about this program I knew I wanted to be a part of it.  I do not have any Heroes in my immediate family however I have two wonderful nephews serving in the Navy.  This program gives me great pride to be able to give back to those that serve our country and communities.  I am a Realtor with Tarbell Realtors that has over 80 years of experience in every market and they share that experience with me.  I love using my own personal experience to educate my clients.  For me, success is not measured in awards or engraved on a plaque, but through the satisfaction of my clients.  Nothi... 10/06/2011

Redlands California Listing Agents – Sell My House in Redlands CA So you’ve decided to sell your house in Redlands California. There are many factors to consider when entering into such a transaction. First, in tumultuous times like these, you must first determine what type of sale you will need. Are you selling a Redlands property with equity? In another words, do you owe less than what the property is worth? If so you will be conducting a standard Redlands real estate sale. This type of sale obviously is the best scenario because you should come out of the deal with a margin between the sales price and any money owed on the Redlands CA home, minus the cost of sale. Do you owe more on your Redlands House than it’s worth? Like many Americans, the real estate market has put severe strai... 10/06/2011

I decided it was time to spruce up my yard with a quick fix. When we bought the house 7 years ago there was just grass on the side so I planted a plum tree and made a stone planter around the tree with geraniums.   Here are the pictures of before, during and after. Let me know what you think?                   Here are the Before Pictures.                         Here are the During Pictures.                                         Here are the After Pictures.                                           Here is the breakdown for the supplies. 12 Stones must angle inward @ 1.41 = $18.40 8 Plants to spruce up planter @ 1.99 = $17.31 Total for plants and stones                 $35.71   So what do you think? I think it looks neater, more colorful and I did the entire project in about 8 hours... 10/04/2011

What’s My Redlands CA Home Worth? – Find the Value of Your Redlands CA House In this current real estate market, understanding the current value of your Redlands home can be a confusing task. Even so-called experts, banks and real estate agents have a tough time determining the market value of Redlands California houses. There are websites like Zillow and Yahoo Real Estate that enable you to input your address and get a formula-derived price of your Redlands home, but these tools are unreliable because the data feeds that enable this can sometimes be inaccurate. These tools also do not take into account the varying differences in homes, like condition, upgrades and other amenities. So what is the best way to determine the price of your Redlands CA home? By ordering our FREE Comparative... 10/04/2011

Inspirational Homes of the 20's Still Standing! I just love driving around and taking pictures of older homes . I found two great sites and would like to share with you. I believe these older homes are very inspirational and bring us back to a simplier time. The first one just sold in Redlands, CA and will be rehabbed shortly. The second property is located in South Loma Linda, CA. It is just the barn as the house was torn down in the past 20 years. Still they are great relics of the 30's. This house is located on Alabama Avenue in Redlands, CA. This barn is located on Mt. View Ave in Loma Linda, CA.   I found this huge sunflower plant on Nevada Street in Redlands.   Inland Empire Homeowners, please call me for a Comprehensive Market Analysis to assist you with marketing your home for s... 10/03/2011

The Birds and the Bees I forgot to fill the bird feeder this morning. When I went outside, this bird was just sitting there looking at me like “Hello the feeder is Empty!” I was on the other side of the backyard with no tripod but still this bird has the cutest expression and just the stance is adorable. Here is a close up of the little bird. And here is the bees. I confess, I was at Lowe's in Redlands and they had all kinds of flowers with bees buzzing around so I took a few shots. I love this red apple ground cover and so do the bees. The bee is hiding under the flower but the flowers are so pretty anyway. Here is one of my favorites, sunflowers,  but the bees all flew away!  Inland Empire Homeowners, please call me for a Comprehensive Market Analysis to assist you with marketing your... 10/02/2011

  Friday Fotos- An Inspirational Look at Redlands CA.   I live and work in the Redlands area. I love the city as it is so beautiful, well maintained, and very historical. The city is very unique as nowadays many cities downtown areas have turned to industrial or all the buildings are empty and boarded up but not Redlands. The downtown section is lovely, full of restaurants, a variety of shopping, and many historical buildings such as the downtown post office and Smiley Library. I have included a few of my photos for you to enjoy. The beautiful Smiley Library in downtown Redlands. The Gottschalks store that has been closed. Signs in the downtown area.   Beautiful trees at a local antique store on Redlands Blvd. in Redlands.     Inland Empire Homeowners, please call me for a Comprehensive... 09/30/2011