Life on the High Plains

We spent last weekend in the Phoenix area and got to go on an amazing hike.    This was an especially nice treat since we'd just left snowy Colorado the day before.  In case I haven't mentioned it lately--I love the desert! If you're ever in the Phoenix area I suggest you look up this trail.  The majority of the loop we went on was easy going, but there was a very challenging section of the trail.  More on that in a future post. Happy Skywatch Friday!

We celebrated a very important first birthday with our little angel of a granddaughter last weekend.   Have you ever seen a cuter little girl?   Her mom did an excellent job with the purple tutu theme.  Really pretty and elegant!   A couple uninvited guests dropped by for a dip in the pool.     GiGi had fun feeding Grammy some goldfish.   She didn't give a hoot about her cupcakes.  She took one taste of the frosting and pushed it away.  Her mom and dad feed her all healthy stuff so she wasn't interested in sweets--hopefully it will stay that way. We shared a few cuddles even though she was very busy most of the day toddling around with her little friends who came to celebrate with her.   What an amazing girl!  I love her so much!   Happy birthday Miss G!

Last year when we were in the Phoenix area I used my new fisheye lens to snap a few shots while out on a walk.   Phoenix is such a beautiful city.  There are water canals all over the place.   Palm trees and flowers everywhere. When you live in the high desert of Colorado where winter goes on and on and on, you really appreciate flowers that bloom in the winter. One of the ladies in my painting class told me that she has a Bougainvillea plant in her house.  She just has to keep it in a window near a heater vent.  I think I want to try that, now I just need to figure out how to get one back to Colorado.  I'm headed to Arizona for a visit in a few days.  Do you think I can sneak one home with me on the airplane? Happy Skywatch Friday!

A disaster happened this past weekend. Well, I'm probably the only person who considers this a disaster, but that's what it is. A couple weeks ago I started a new painting.  It's a portrait of Jillian's horse, the first painting I've actually started with the intention of giving to someone and it's the first painting I've done of an animal I actually know.  It's nowhere near finished, but I've already invested lots of hours into it. Then this happened!  While transporting it to painting class my roller bag with all my painting supplies fell over on top of it. I can't show you the whole painting because it's still in the kindergarten phase.  All I can say is that I wanted to throw myself on the ground and scream and cry while flailing my arms and legs.  Yes, just like a kindergartener would have done.   On a positive note, at least it happened in the blue sky which is easier to repaint than the face.   So what do you do whe...

I had a great experience on Saturday at the El Paso County Democratic Convention and Assembly.  I've never gotten involved in politics before other than voting in every election. This year, however, the political climate scares me.  The hatred that is being fostered by a certain candidate.  The chaos in the Republican party.  The racism being shared on Facebook every day.  The hatred of Muslims and immigrants being expressed publicly.  It's all very scary.  I believe most of it is due to lack of education, but that doesn't make these behaviors acceptable. For the first time ever I attended our county caucus on March 1st and at that time I volunteered to be a delegate at the County Convention and Assembly.  I arrived bright and early on Saturday morning expecting to be done by 11:00 so that I could meet the family downtown for the St. Patrick's Day parade and lunch. Boy, was I ever wrong.  The minute I walked in the door I could tell it ...

This warm weather is really starting to make me want to get out on the trails.  Last week I posted a picture from a recent hike in the Garden of the Gods. Here's another view of Pikes Peak from a trail on the Air Force Academy.  It was taken last fall, but I think it's about time for another visit.  The trail was almost deserted that day and I was afraid a bear was going to pop up out of that grass at any moment.  Yes, that has happened to me once. Isn't that one of the most beautiful sights you've ever seen?  I think this may be a future painting that I want to do. Happy Skywatch Friday!

I love to cook.  Unfortunately I don't get to cook as many good things as I like because I'm usually tired by the time I get home from work.  Just ask Irv.  If he's not at home in the evening I will normally eat a bowl of raisin bran for dinner. Yes, it's one of my favorite dinners. This morning, however, I woke up with the need to try a new Pioneer Woman recipe. I bought her latest cookbook a couple weeks ago and I've been slowly going through it marking the recipes I want to try. I decided to try the baked ziti recipe first.   Everything Ree makes is absolutely delicious!  Everything Ree does is amazing!      It's only 9:30 in the morning and I've already cooked dinner and a baked carrot cake!  You see Irv is working nights this week and when possible, I try to make sure he's well fed.  However, he told me that he's on a diet for the next two months so I guess I'll go hide the carrot cake so he's not tempted. ...

I know everyone probably gets tired of my Garden of the Gods pictures for Skywatch Friday, but hey, I haven't been out there since the bear incident in October so it's time to post a picture again. Our weather has been unseasonably warm the last couple weeks so we hit my favorite trail at Garden of the Gods last weekend. I love this place with a snow-topped Pikes Peak in the background!  Happy Skywatch Friday!

While driving home from Mr. Beans' birthday party on Saturday night we passed this little dog laying on the shoulder of the busy highway.  We turned around and picked her up then rushed her to the nearest ER for pets. She was awake when we found her, but as soon as we wrapped her in a blanket and I held her in my lap she closed her eyes and put her head down. The vet accepted her and said they'd turn her over to the Humane Society the next day.  They also said they would not be able to tell us anything further about her to protect the rights of the owners who may come forward. So, she's been at the Humane Society since Sunday.  The initial report we got on Monday indicated that she has a broken pelvis and possible brain damage.  They said to call back in two days.  We felt this was a good sign.  They're treating her, there must be hope. Two days went by and Irv called to check on her.  As it turns out we were mistaken to think the Humane Soci...