OVER THE HOLIDAYS

Tis the season to be jolly

The boy arrived home for the Christmas holiday

on December the 18th

All eyes were on Beau!

The family was so happy to have him home

We'd all been counting the days!

Here comes the ball

Beau played in an alumni lacrosse game with his teammates at Chandler High School

ALSO

Beau climbed Superstition Mountain with his grandfather

Papa took a camera however the battery went dead

Too bad

Papa was in charge of preparing

 Christmas Eve dinner

Madeline Moby and Gwendolyn

The French the American and the British bulls

Christmas morning

 Dogs waiting for their Christmas treats

Oh boy chomp chomp

First the stocking

Gifts from Aunt Carrie and Thomas

Wow....a paint gun

One of the gifts from Grandma and Papa Tom

Zoe giving it a try

Ready or not here I come

Lots of action going on on the floor

A tug of war between two dogs

 LA KINGS

 hockey jersey from Granny and Papa

# 8 defenseman

OK

look up

Sit

Gwennie says.....

I'm trying to but there is no room

Oh boy

Now they are offering treats!!!!!!!!!!

GOOD JOB

Game time

Movie time

Reading time

Whoa....it's not that warm in Arizona!

Dinner time

CHRISTMAS

How wonderful it would be to have all four children and their families gather around the table

maybe someday

maybe.......

Boxing Day dinner with friends Ken and Devonna

Devonna's daughter Amy and two children Payton and Devin

We had a grand time

Bonfire in the desert after dinner

Even saw a falling star

Just had to throw in this photo

Ken the cat lover..........

Wouldn't you know Bing and Susie would sit on his lap

HOLY COW

Ha...if the cats only knew!!!!!!!!!!!

We all gathered for breakfast the next morning

to celebrate a birthday

MINE

FIVE GUYS

My choice for the birthday dinner

Nice and easy

Nice and simple

Did it taste good?

It did!!

I have to tell you about a Christmas present that cannot be delivered until April

The carpenter has been busy

He brought down a wine barrow from Ruby Blues

and made Christmas gifts from the wood

Here is a magnificent wooden centre piece for Graham and Lyndsay's dining room table

We thought it might fit in Beau's hockey bag

but after great consideration thought we should bring it with us when we visit next

The birthday cake

We had our choice of different cheese cakes

What did I have??

Plain ol' cheesecake

It was sooooooooo good

You know me

the plain Jane eater

Moby getting in the action

Happy Birthday Granny

Many thanks to family and friends for all your birthday wishes

IT WAS A WONDEROUS DAY

COME ALONG WITH ME............

This evening we're going to visit many  places in Arizona

Here we have a heron sitting in its nest

made of sticks

We visited our friends Charlene and John at an RV park near Sedona

There were many many herons high in the trees

Quite a site to see

Large globe cactus at the Boyce Thompson Arboretum which is east of Phoenix located just outside the town of Superior

This was the nation's first botantical gardens established in a desert environment

It is set in a small canyon framed by cliffs with desert plantings from all over the world

With the late afternoon sun it makes one want to sit on a bench and take in the beauty of the earth

Vibrant colours of red grace this bush

The birds have enjoyed the seeds of a pomegranate

We are now at St. Anthony's Monastery

In 1995 six monks arrived in the Southern Arizona desert to establish St. Anthony's

When visiting women must wear long skirts

long sleeved shirts

socks if they have open shoes

and

a scarf over their head

Our daugher Jennifer refused to go to the Monastery!

Heard Museum

Hoop Dancers

We attend the event each year

This year we hope to be there early so we can get a front row seat

Artist Dale Chihuly displayed his glass works at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix

His sculptures were planted amongst the cactus and desert flowers

Now we are at the Tuzigoot National Monument near Jerome

The monument offers beautiful views of the Verde River Valley

The pueblo was built by the Sinagua people between the 12th and 15th century

Poppies on the mountain side

Bushwaking to the Arches near Tortilla Flats

We're close to home now with Superstition Mountain in the background

We are on top of the
Flat Iron

It's a long long way down to the trail

We're home now in our back yard

Sun going down on this beautiful land of

the US of A

Our home for five months of the year

LIFE IS GOOD

DOWN HERE IN ARIZONA