Update from Thanksgiving

Yes, I know it's nearly Christmas, but here are a few pictures from Thanksgiving in Colorado Springs .

.

Bucket List

For those of you that saw the movie, "The Bucket List" you know that it involves a list of things to do and see before you die.

Well, I have added two items to my bucket list that I didn't know was on it!

Last June, I spoke at a national convention for my nursing specialty. It was fun, but I was terrified. I don't know how I did, my friend say I did okay, but that's why they are my friends. But........... I didn't get asked back this year.

Then over Thanksgiving, I got an opportunity to feed the Air Force falcons at the Air Force Academy.

Let it snow!

I am spending the week in Colorado Springs with my daughter and her family. Today there is at least 6" of powder snow on the ground. Oh my, is it beautiful. The older girls are outside making snow angels and trying to shovel the sidewalk.

It has been a busy vacation for Emmalena and her dad. On Thanksgiving they went on a 5K run. Yesterday, they went skiing at Keystone, in the middle of a blizzard. They had to shut down the gondola it was so windy. Emmalena and dad had to ski down a very steep blue grade mountain. According to who is telling the story it was totally awesome or terrifying. Mom and Grandma have a few new gray hairs.

This morning the girls put on a play about the Menorah and Kwanzaa. Even Ali sang a song. Needless to say it was precious.

Grandchildren are the blessings of life.

Samaritan's Purse

Today, several of us packed shoe boxes for operation Christmas Child.
Here is a link to their web site and how to pack your own box:
http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/Pack_A_Shoe_Box/

This is a great thing to do with your kids. And what a great way to teach about giving to others. We packed coloring books, crayons, beanie babies, socks, washrags, soap, tooth paste and brushes, balls. It was amazing what we could get in the shoe boxes.

A taste of freedom

Well, Miss Belly Fringe has a new nickname - Miss Escape Artist. After I fixed the screen, she ripped it opened!

So I went to Lowe's and bought a screen door kick plate and threaded it through the security bars. Voila I thought. She won't be able to move this.

Wrong!!

When I woke up from my retirement nap, she had moved the kick plate and was gone!

So then, I secured it with twist ties. Now she can't get out and sits in front of the door and howls. Ah, that taste of freedom! But at least she has been able to find her way back. That is the good news.

Not pretty, but it is working. Look closely and you can see the twist ties.

Who said necessity is the mother of invention!

Election Day

Did you?

What a day!

The day started with me moving all the movable furniture and stuff so I could get the carpets cleaned. Boy, do they look great. They have been beaten up by several years of pee, poop and puke ( as my daughter says) thanks to the furry residents.



Thank you Stanley Steemer!











Well, needless to say, this upset the gang. Lucky just disappeared. Carlie we locked in a room but she managed to find her way out.


The weather is finally nice enough to leave the back door open. Thanks to a streak of laziness on my part, the screen had an open corner that Lucky uses (used) to come and go. Never did I dream that Carly would get out. But out she went. I caught her once, but before I could fix the screen she was gone again.


This time she went over the fence and I couldn't catch her. So.......I sat in the back yard and called her. Visions of signs on mailboxes, neighborhood searches, trips to the pound danced in my head. I don't think she has a microchip.
Well.......... she came back. By this time the screen was fixed. But she is working on going out again. Ah, that taste of freedom. The bottle water is loaded and ready for use.





Here are some pictures. Doesn't she look innocent.











Here is a picture of her belly fringe which I have nicknamed her -"Miss Belly fringe"

Cousin, Identical Cousins

Last summer, I had an opportunity to see some of my cousins that I haven't seen in a while. (Of course we are not identical, I just couldn't get the song out of my head.)

In August, my dad had his 90th birthday. Here is a picture of my dad on his big day, my sister Sally, my cousin Charlie and my cousin Marilyn and myself.

Then in Sept. I went to Portland for my granddaughter Lily's 6th birthday. While I was there, I got an opportunity to have dinner with my cousin Leslie and her husband John. Below is a picture of Leslie and John and my son Rob and my grandson Luke and myself. We had a great time.

It is really nice to be able to connect with family. We were all close as kids before every one started getting married and moving away.

# 8 Saves the day

Octavio, my friend and gardner saves the day. I hadn't noticed the leak, but he had and so had my next door neighbor. Here are the pictures. Thank you Octavio. I don't know what I would do without you!

The leak

Wonderful Octavio

All fixed. See the patch

Thank God for friends!

I have Bling

Guess what. I have bling. Now..........., I am not exactly sure what bling is, but I have it. The subject came up at bible study ( now, I realize that doesn't seem appropriate for bible study, but if I can learn about eyebrow threading at our corporate doom and gloom meeting, why not bling at bible study). I was told told by one of the ladies that I have bling. So I asked at work and was told, yes in fact I do have bling. I was also that you are never too old for bling. I haven't checked with the family authorities yet, but I am sure they don't think I have bling.


But I Do!!

Threading

While at a meeting last week to learn how bad our organization is doing, I learned that some people get their eyebrows threaded. Now this fasinated me. On Monday, I checked out the eyebrow of two people who had their eyebrows threaded and they looked good. Plus they said it didn't hurt. Well.......... I decided to check it out with my family authorities (Alison and Heidi) and they both had heard of it and had friends who had it done! However, opinion was divided on the pain issue.
Here is a definition of threading: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Threading_(epilation).

Even though I am fasinated by this I have decided to stick with my Andy Rooney eyebrows.

Cats - you gotta love them

Who knew my feet were such wild animals. But........ you don't have to worry any longer. They are officially dead. Last night (or rather early this morning), Lucky decided that they were dangerous and he officially killed them. Now I had been up for a few minutes and after I returned to bed and stretched out, he got into his best attack mode and boom, the next thing I knew, my feet were under attack. After a few minutes of intense warfare, my feet gave up the ghost and died.
Ah.......... what would we do without our cats.

I have a Jacaranda tree

My front door is on the west side of the house. If you come to visit me in the afternoon in the summer, you could melt waiting for me to unlock all the doors.

So......... I have planted several trees there to provide shade. First I tried a ficus which was doing well until we had the big freeze. (Hard to imagine a big freeze in AZ but we had one and it killed a lot of trees and plants.)

Then I (well, actually Octavio, my wonderful friend and gardener) tried a flowering plum. But it bit the dust. So now I have a jacaranda tree. Now this is a beautiful tree.

Here is a picture of one:

And here is a picture of the one Octavio planted. I'll keep you posted on how it does. Hopefully it will look like the above picture in a few years and you won't melt at my front door.

How do they know?

How did they know that today was the day I picked to visit PetSmart and get their nails cut? Long ago I decided that cutting the cats nails by myself was impossible. So.......... every 4 to 6 weeks we troop off to PetSmart and let the groomers cut their nails.

It is quite a production. First I have to put them in their carriers. But............. before I can do that I have to find them. Now I have this down to a fine science. I don't verbalize out loud what is happening - because of course the cats can understand me. I don't touch the carriers. But......even though I have a visual, when I go to pick one up, they are both long gone.

How did they know?

After I drag Lucky from under the bed and put him in the carrier, it is Carlie's turn. And off we go. Howling all the way to PetSmart. And voila.............. they are as good as gold as PetSmart. No one gets scratched, no one howls. What's up with that?!

Here is a picture of the perpetrators. Don't they look innocent?

Happy Birthday Isabella

Happy Birthday to my beautiful brown eyed Isabella. I can't believe you are 7 years old already. I hope you are having a wonderful time in South Dakota. I love you.

Grandma.

I guess I can cook after all

It has long been a belief in my family (that I have willingly fostered) that I don't cook. Well, here is proof that I actually can cook if I want to.

Now I have to clean up the mess. I forgot about that part!

Hold on to your hats

Well, Grandma Phoenix is going to try blogging. Now this is funny if you know me as I hate to write. I have a wonderful sister-in-law who is a beautiful writer, a daughter-in-law who is a great writer, a son and daughter who write and even a grandfather who had a book published. But somehow this talent passed me by. Nowadays, everyone blogs. My daughter-in-law and daughter blog. So I am going to try. But first I have to figure out how. I can't find my first attempt.
So keep posted for thoughts on life, grandkids (the most awesome in the world), cats, kids, retirement, work and whatever.