Show and Tell

While in Lethbridge last week, Mickey and I spent considerable time scrapbooking  We set up our stuff on my large table in the sunny dining room and just left it there the whole time we were there.  When we needed to eat we cleared two individual spots for our plates to sit, and quickly cleared the dishes away when we were finished.  At the end of the week, Mickey had completed well over 30 layouts while I plodded along at my usual slow pace and completed 11. 

Here are a few of mine from the week.

Kenny's first school picture - Kindergarten

Elly and Grammie - I chose the orange theme to match her hair

The Woolf Family - daughter Amy, her husband and kids

I really got the shot of this layout crooked. Amy reminds me of my mother in this picture.

I found the perfect paper for my hummingbird pictures

Finally got Quinn's 1st birthday scrapped.  She'll be 2 in July.

Love this picture of Quinn when she's full of cake.

Lloyd and I in Goldfield, AZ in February.  Sister and BIL in the bottom picture.

Wendy and I with our new beaux in Scottsdale, AZ in Feb.

Rainbow Promise??

I looked out my bedroom window this morning shortly after 5. The early morning light was ethereal and the rainbow just accented the beauty of the morning.

What promised to be a great day didn't pan out - in fact it turned quite crappy.  I'm hoping I can salvage something good from it before it's over.

Have a rainbow weekend.

Violent Weather Season

Last night was the start of violent weather season in Alberta, and it got started with a bang.

Mickey and I had the radio on while we were scrapbooking, listening as the announcer kept telling us that there was a violent thunderstorm watch and a tornado watch in our area.  That didn't bother us too much, weather forecasters aren't known for their accuracy.   Right?  That's what we thought too.  Then the radio started emitting a high pitched squeal preceding the ALERT!  We were told that there was a strong possibility of a tornado hitting down in Lethbridge within 30 minutes!!!  and everyone should get off the roads and take shelter in basements, blah, blah, blah.  I've never experienced one of those alerts before - it about scared the bejeebers out of us.

I knew we'd probably be safe in in the storage area under the staircase in the basement so we grabbed candles, matches, a couple bottles of water (we couldn't find anything stronger!!), and our iPads.  As she was heading downstairs, Mickey called back to me, "Bring the chocolates!".  She had already grabbed the jar of mixed nuts. 

We had to haul boxes out of the storage area in order to make room for both of us to sit hunched over working our iPads, listening to the radio through it.  We called our husbands far, far away and let them know what was happening.  Or at least we tried to.  The phone and cell lines were tied up and it was very difficult to get through.

Mickey with a decorative candle and her iPad. See the stairs over her head.

Checking with the weather network while listening to the radio

Trying to stay in touch

After awhile we heard that the tornado struck down just outside the town of Taber, a few miles northwest of Lethbridge.  So we crawled out of our hidey-hole but were prepared to go back down.  The radio announced told us that the storm is swirling aorund and the worse of it should be over us between midnight and 2 am.  We were too tired to be bothered by then so went to bed at midnight.  I was awake at 2:30 and everything was still.  By morning everything had calmed down and it was still raining.

On the news tonight we saw footage of the storm damage in Taber - huge trees uprooted, etc. but no injuries.  These tornados usually touch down in farming fields which are much more abundant down here than large towns.  We were lucky this time.  At least now we know the drill - grab your chocolates and nuts and run for shelter!!!

A Few Days in Lethbridge

The day after arriving in Edmonton from Arizona, I had to drive down to Lethbridge to be here when the workers convert a largish coat closet to a pantry in our house down here.  Since Lloyd had to head north to work, and since I didn't want to drive 5 hours to Lethbridge by myself, Mickey came down with me and we planned to spend a few days scrapbooking and relaxing.

Mickey hard at 'work'.

So far, so good.  Mickey got eight layouts done the first day - I got one done.  *sigh*  Sometimes I am just so slow.  Then, we went to check out the only scrapbook store in town just to find out that it was in it's final stages of closing out - and there is no sign of another scrapbook store to take it's place.  Makes me think I'm making a mistake moving down here next month.  *sigh*, again.  The good thing is that we were able to take advantage of the clearance prices on all the stock.

The carpenter came yesterday to 'tear down' the closet before doing the installation of the pantry shelves.  There was some drywalling involved to repair flaws and holes from the rod and shelf that had been part of the closet.  As he was leaving he suggested that I might want to paint the walls of the closet before he comes back tomorrow to install the pantry.  OK I said.  Then I went on a search in the garage and basement for some leftover paint, a paintbrush and a roller, all of which I was able to find.  It took Mickey and I less than an hour to get the walls painted but in the process I ruined a blouse and a pair of jeans because I kept backing into the wet paint in the small space.

Painting is such fun!

Nick will be back tomorrow to finish the job and I'll finally have a place to put my seldom used but still needed kitchen implements, packages of food, etc. what don't fit in my kitchen cupboards.

Lloyd and I missed our grandson Kenny's 6th birthday the other day so our son Mike and DIL Avril brought the kids over for a small birthday barbeque party for Kenny.  That was a lot of fun.  We haven't been able to be a big part of these grandkids' lives because we only see them a couple times a year, but once we move down here next month we'll see much more of them. 

The boys helped peel the corn

We filled our plates with corn, hamburgers, hotdogs, potato salad and cheesies. (Mike did the barbequeing).

Kenny blew out his six candles

And loved his Star Wars lego set, while Hannah dug for the birthday card

Hannah tucked into her cake like there was no tomorrow

Avril and Hannah played with the pinwheel from the top of the cake



Then the whole family settled in to put the kit together - Alex seems to have inherited his Dad's ability to follow instructions and put things together.

So, all in all, it was a pretty good day.  I love seeing my kids interact with their own families in such a sweet manner.  Mike is one of my 'little' kids, being #5 of 7.  It's hard to imagine them sometimes being all grown up with babies of their own.  Makes me proud.

Hubbell Trading Post

I realize I've probably bored you all to death with my Arizona Road Trip (notice I let those three words out of my title today - that's so I'd lure you in thinking it was something different!), but even though I'm home now I have to share a special place with you.

As we were driving through Granado we spotted a sign directing us to the most beautiful historic preserve I've seen.  The Hubbell Trading Post was the center of commerce in the high desert, next door to the petrified forest, and in the middle of the expanded Navajo Nation.  It's founder, John L. Hubbell, was one of the most respected traders of his day, even going so far as opening his home to the victims of the smallpox epidemic in the late 1800s.  He became the first Senator of Arizona when it became a state in 1912.  Here is his trading post.

Inside the main room

Woven baskets on the ceiling of the second room

The front of the trading post with a petrified wood chair

The naturally formed petrified wood chair

Inside the livery and stables

The wagon wheel

The guest house (hogan) that J. Hubbell built to accommodate guests to the trading post

The overgrown gazebo

A look inside the gazebo - you can see the hogan through the window.

I'm not sure what this is - I thought bird houses but on closer look, it's wired for power.  Probably held lanterns so the outside could be enjoyed after dark back in the day.

I loved this spot and would like to go back some day.  I can't promise that this is my last post about our Arizona road trip - which only took two days by the way - but I'll try to move on now that I'm home.

A Winged Visitior

For the past few years I've been trying to get a decent picture of the hummingbirds that come to our yard, but the little critters are so fast and skittish I figured it would be impossible.  Then, as Lloyd and I were enjoying our final swim in the pool before heading home to Canada, I spotted one darting from our orange flowers and landing near the top of the ocatilla (stick tree) cactus.  I worked my way to the edge of the pool nearest him - about four feet away - and just watched.  When he didn't show any signs of leaving his perch, I slowly and quietly backed away, got out of the pool and ran for my camera.

These are the pictures I got.

It's almost as if he was posing for me.  He knew I was there but didn't seem to be afraid and stayed there for at least 15 minutes while I admired him and took pictures...a lovely treat on my final day in Arizona.

Arizona Road Trip - Part 4 - Holbrook

Holbrook is one of the towns along the old Route 66.  All of the towns along that route seem to have something to offer, mostly in the way of historic route 66 memoralbia.  Here's what we found at Holbrook.

A Wigwam Motel, with cars from a by-gone era...just as it was in the hay-day of the 1920s, 1930s and 40s...when Route 66 was The vacation experience.

"Have You slept in a Wigwam Lately?" reads the sign.  This motel has been placed on the National Register of Historic Properties.  It is rumored that Oprah and Gayle stayed here on their much publicized cross country road trip.  Each wigwam is an individual room but there is a 'regular' motel just behind the wigwams for those who wish to stay there.



Some of the cars there pre-date our very existence! *gasp*  I have no idea what this one is but Lloyd thought it was important for me to pose between the word 'special' and the three little crome ovals on this one.

Lloyd liked this old car.  Was it a Packard?  I'll ask him.  Look how the trees are trimmed to resemble the wigwams.

Isn't this one a beauty.  Lloyd thought it was too 'new' to be in the picture, but I mostly wanted a picture of the line of wigwams.

That was a fun stop along the way.  We're finding out that Arizona is full of these little surprises.  You'll have to come and find out for yourselves!