Life on the High Plains

I'm not going to lie to you...Christmas this year was a little blah.  It's been an odd year to say the least.  It's hard to have that Christmas cheer when people you love and care about have experienced losses of one type or another and other loved ones are experiencing severe medical issues. I made the 10 hour solo drive to Tulsa to visit my brothers, sister-in-law and nephew.  Everyone was feeling a little down this year.  One thing that brightened our spirits though was a trip to Sapulpa, Oklahoma to see the "Christmas Chute". What an imaginative display of Christmas decor. Some of the store fronts were done up for the holidays. There was a big Route 66 Christmas tree at the end of the street. Each display had a theme...from Route 66 to Elf to Grinch.  The display was unlike anything I've seen before. Of course we had to get a family selfie. Gingerbread Lane Loved the VW! The next day we ordered catering and had a Christmas lunch with Mexican food at my old...

In September my hubby and I took a trip to the Northeastern United States to visit New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont.  We spent a couple days in Bar Harbor, MN and one evening we decided to go for a sunset cruise on a schooner called the Margaret Todd.  Long walk down the gang plank to board. Once everyone was aboard and seated it was time to prepare to raise the sails. The captain asked for volunteers and my hubby was one of the first to man his position.  I think it was a little more work than he anticipated, but you've got to try it once, right? Now we're ready to cruise! There was a big cruise ship anchored in the Harbor.  Bar Harbor is a very crowded little tourist town.  I have to admit I didn't love it. Onboard they had drinks and snacks and this guy was playing some tunes.  Lots of Jimmy Buffet type tunes.  He was enjoyable. Then the sun started to go behind the horizon. Of course I had to try to get a little artsy with the ship's rigging. The d...

A couple months ago when we got new flooring we also made the decision to transform one of our guestrooms into an art studio for me.  It took a lot of convincing from my hubby.  I'm the typical mother who says "what if the kids come home all at once".  In the end I was convinced it made the most sense to transform a room that is seldom used into a usable space for me.   I have loved my She Shed which is a great studio in warm weather, but it's unusable when the temps start to drop even with my space heaters. The first step was to dispose of the bedroom furniture that had been in there.  Then came the job of painting the walls.  Previously it was terra cotta pink which I loved, but not useful in an art studio because it doesn't reflect light.  I went with a light gray.  I love how light and airy the room is now. Just today I got all my shelves and storage units organized.  My drawers full of painting supplies were brought inside, cleaned ...

 What a crazy couple weeks it has been. Let's start with the day after the November 5th election. It was a devastating loss for those of us who are "woke" and care about humanity and our country.  This is our daughter working from home on November 6th wearing her onesie.  We sympathized with her, dropped off the dog and headed to the airport for a flight to southern California. As it turns out we arrived a day earlier than the rest of the crew which meant we had a day to explore. We headed down to Dana Point because it's supposed to be a good place to see some seals. We stopped by the Ocean Institute.  Unfortunately during the week it's only open to schools and other group tours.  The public can only come in on the weekends.  While we were walking around we met a very friendly couple who told us where to go for the best chance of spotting seals. Off we went to the Sea and Surf restaurant in the Dana Point Harbor and almost immediately we spotted these cutie...