welcome 2013 - thanks a bunch 2012

It is now New years eve.  A whole year has passed and how can we account for the happenings?  We did a lot of work at the Archives and as we left Augusta we were five miles down the highway and turned to each other and said, "So what just happened?"  contributing to this was the fact that we packed up our car and left Prescott for Maine and at the end of our mission we packed up our car and left - the happenings in between both journeys seem like a dream and the only proof that we did anything is recorded in the blog.  I guess that is all that is left when we pass through life - a written record.

We attended a couple of sacred concerts in the area and David came up for the holiday.  We took him to the American Lutheran Church for their vespers service.  They have a very large choir and a bell choir as well.   David was not impressed but we enjoyed it.  We were really sad at Thanksgiving because he opted to not come home for the holiday.  He seems to be happier now that he is out of the group home and in a private home - albeit they are being paid handsomely to take care of him.
The most fun thing that happened was being in touch with Sara and family by way of Facetime - a part of the Apple offerings on Ipad, Ipodtouch and Iphone.  Oliver in particular was really enthralled with the Ipodtouch application that he could call Grandma and talk to her.  Of course he was waving the phone all over the place and we could easily have become seasick trying to keep track of the pictures he was transmitting.  Sara and Jacob are busy trying to get the house ready for sale.  With a new baby coming around July 13, 2013  they definitely need a new place to live with enough bedrooms in it.  Of course most homes these days only have 2, maybe 3 bedrooms but seem to readily have a large dining room, large family room, Great Room (usually a lounging area off the kitchen)  Worse yet, even though they are large, the rooms seem to be chopped up and not enough closet space.  I have no idea who designs these homes but they need a good lesson in prioritizing space allocations.

We did not make a lot of phone calls.  We did call France and talk to Bill's step mother - she is in her mid nineties now and repeats herself a lot.  She is going deaf as well.

We did have snow, well sort of had snow, on Christmas Eve but it melted right away.  As I type it is snowing - the really tiny flakes that have lots of air between them and they make little or no impact on our landscape.  It is COLD and CLOUDY but no snow to speak of. 
 Some idiot in Sedona, a fancy town on the other side of the Mingus Mountain Range, managed to entice 111 like minded souls to climb Bell Rock and wait with him there.  He is convinced that the universe is in trouble and that by waiting on top of Bell Rock, a conduit would open up and transport him to the center of the universe where he, singlehandedly, could straighten it out, and life could go on from there.  The only thing that really happened was that the search and rescue squads were on hand to assist any or all of the 111 souls back down the treacherous rock face after their vigil (in the dark - no moon to spoon with)  No one seemed to mind that the perpetrator of the vigil may still be up there waiting for the conduit to open up - just in case the Mayan's got the date wrong mind you.  We have to allow for cosmic shift, Vortex aberrations, clouds, possible snow, marauding bands of Indians, excited cavalry, armed guards, rain dancers, skin crawlers (what go across your body to make you shiver), an odd snake or two and perhaps some scorpions who may have lost track of what season it is and the list is endless.  You know the world did not end because I am writing you an email and my computer still works and we still have electricity and indoor plumbing...............aaaaaaahhhhhh!  civilization at its zenith.


For Christmas dinner this year I managed to find a pound cake by Entenmans.  I cut it in half, spread jam on it and put the two halves back together.  I sliced off the mounded top to make it a little flatter, then I coated the whole thing in chocolate frosting and then rolled it in dry coconut and turned it into a Lamington cake like we had back in Australia. My family would not eat it - not even my guests - I guess there are some people in this world who just do not know what is good for them.

My eye surgery has been put back till February, 12.  It really is difficult for me to read these days so I look forward to getting some use back into the eye.

Now that David has gone, I guess I can get back to working on Lyla's quilt and begin the Boys quilts.  With number 4 coming I guess I will have to make a quilt for that one as well.  Yes, I know he/she/twins? are not even born yet, but it does not hurt to think ahead.  Even if none of them marries, they will have a nice quilt from Grandma to keep them warm.

So 2013 is upon us and my calendar is empty of events.  At the end of the year the notations tell of what we did - and life goes on.

The rest of the story about our trip to LIncoln.

Thursday Bill, David and I spent the day shopping for the Christmas wishes of the children.  We had a great time and the credit card company keeps track.
Friday morning we wrapped the gifts and put them under the tree.  the children were ecstatic.  Of course the Elf on the Shelf did his mischief and moved the box that held Oliver's attention and Oliver and his siblings searched for that mischievous elf.  He had moved the gift to the top of the Refrigerator and was lounging on top of it.
Sara and I visited St. Louise to see what we could find.  found three lovely pillows for her living room and a couple of sweaters that she liked. I just love this thrift store because it is really eclectic in its offering.   I usually buy my stainless steel bowls for the kitchen there but this time they had none.
Jacob's mother and Ray and Chasity came about noon and they brought Tristan with them  He was hoping to play with Ethan and Oliver and Lyla but they were all at school. Mike (Chasity's husband) came after he parked the truck - he had brought a load of grain for the elevator down the road.  We all left for the college and the graduation ceremony.
It was a very nice ceremony and the talks were short and to the point.
Bill had presented me with a new camera 5 minutes before we left the house and so I did not have time to explore how it works and I had trouble getting pictures of the event. But it worked out, after the ceremony, we got pictures of Jacob and his Professor.
Mike and Chasity and Tristan all left at that point but Jacob's mother and Ray stayed the night.
Saturday morning we all went to a little hole in the wall restaurant nearby for breakfast.
In the afternoon Sara, Jacob, the Children, Bill, David and I went to see the Hobbit movie.  We did not like it too much because it was very violent and intense.  Lyla fell asleep as soon as it started and Ethan and Oliver stayed glued to the screen.  It was three hours long.  I think that this movie was nothing like the book I read so many years ago.  Perhaps I should re-read it.
We went across the street to a restaurant that resembles Chipotle and we ate dinner there.
On the way home we drove around Lincoln and saw the Christmas Lights that people have put on their front lawns and trees etc.
Sunday we made it to church on time - and that was a real miracle.
Sunday evening we had a short family home evening built around Luke chapter 2 and then we opened the presents under the tree.
When Oliver opened the box the Elf on the Shelf had stolen, he found that it was another rocket and he was "over the top" happy.  I think that if he had a tail it would have wagged itself right off his body - that is how much happiness that little boy has.  We gave Ethan a solar powered robot kit and it had lots and lots of pieces.  It took him 90 minutes to assemble it - if that was me, I would still be working on it.  We gave Lyla Minnie Mouse Tennis shoes and red glitter shoes and she was in heaven.  We gave Jacob shirts and ties and sox and Sara got a new sweater.
On Monday morning Bill would not get up to get ready and so we sweated it out going to the airport in Omaha.  We literally ran to the checkin counter and they said that the doors were about to close and that the boarding was almost complete.  We hurried up to the check point and then they held us up while 4 TSA workers inspected David's gameboy - they thought it was some sort of explosive device.  Have they not seen a gameboy before?  Did it really need 4 TSA workers to make the decision that it was really safe to allow it onboard?  These people are not the brightest bulbs in the box.  We raced to the plane and they closed the door behind us.  Was that to keep us in or to not let anyone else in?  The authorities de-iced the plane and then we were off into the wild blue yonder for Texas where we gobbled lunch between flights.  We arrived in Phoenix on time and David disappeared through portal 5 to be taken home to Gilbert.  We caught the shuttle to the parking lot and drove home.  There was a pile of mail waiting for us.
One notable thing was that Pam sent us a letter to Sara's address.  She thinks we have moved to Lincoln.  We may just have to do that now that a new baby is coming.  We went with Jacob on Sunday afternoon looking at homes that were holding open houses.  We were blown away by the cost of the homes and the taxes were sky high.  But, it is necessary for the family to find larger lodgings now that a new baby is coming.  Sara wanted it to be kept quiet for a while but Oliver is so excited with the prospect of a new member of the family that he told everyone at church.  Now the cat is out of the bag and Jacob and Sara have to look for a new dwelling within the ward boundaries.

An announcement

We left Prescott at 7.15am for  Phoenix airport and David texted us at least 6 times to make sure we were actually on our way to the airport.
We had a safe journey to Nebraska and our rented car is a Nissan - of course because we are a Nissan family.
When we arrived at Sara's house the kids exploded out of the house screaming and yelling and really really happy to see us.  It goes without saying that the first order of business is for me to open my little red carry on bag - it always contains goodies for the children and they look forward to it.  One standard item is the glow sticks - they got put together quickly and when I checked on the children in bed there were the glow sticks, keeping watch over them. Jacob told me that we see the grandchildren more than his mother does.....and she only lives 2 hours away.
One of the traditions we have started is to take a walk, with one child at a time, to the gas station up at the corner.  The ritual is that the child can choose three items from the shelf and grandma pays for them.  They love it and cannot wait for the ritual to be taking place.  It gives me a chance to have one on one time with each child.  As we were entering the parking lot, there was a tree filled with quarreling sparrows.  I told Ethan to shake the tree to get the birds to fly and he did.  The disturbed birds flew in all directions but soon returned.  They did not know why Ethan had shaken their tree - I just wanted them to know that they were not the only beings on the earth and that the quarrel was non productive.  Each one seemed to claim supremacy.  I had Oliver do the same activity and he was delighted to see the birds scatter and return.
When I was walking with Oliver and asking him questions etc. he had one for me that bowled me over.  He said, "Grandma, is it nearly Christmas on your Planet?"  So when I told Sara and Jacob, they asked me "well, which planet do you come from?"
Just before breakfast, Jacob and Sara made an announcement that we were totally unprepared for.  They are going to have a baby in July.  We hope all goes well and we are tickled pink that we are to be grandparents again.  Each child is a blessing.

getting ready to leave for Lincoln

It is now down to the wire - we leave in the morning to go to Lincoln to see Jacob get his Hood at the PhD graduation.  It is a big deal and we have been waiting for a long time for this to come to pass.  I hope that my grandchildrenn never forget this momentous day in their father's life.
Today I attended my Applique group's Christmas party.  Actually it was a pot luck lunch with surprise gift exchange.  Some years ago we had this gift exchange and there was one gift that Rose received and she got attached to it immediately and would not play the game with the rest of us. We are still talking about it and agreed that we will not be attached to our gifts and that we will keep the game going.....no one is allowed to 'channel Rose".  I took some spools of thread in its own carrier along with a box of divine chocolates from Cost Co.  These chocolates are the most devastatingly wonderful things and you just cannot eat one - or two for that matter.  It is great temptation to just sit there and eat the lot - but they are really really rich.  The lady who ended up with them (she stole it from another member, as part of the game) has just lost 3 pounds on her diet and told us she has another 13 pounds to go.  Well, if she eats these chocolates, the three pounds will come back plus the 13 she has to lose more............that is why I took them along to the group - I do not need to put on weight but I do love these chocolates..........what a sacrifice to give them up to the ladies for the game of swapping gifts.
We ate lunch together and had good conversation. 
Because we are going to be gone for 6 days, I emptied my refrigerator of the fresh veggies and took them to my neighbor.  By the time we get back they would be old anyway and she might as well use them up rather than let them grow old in my fridge while I am gone.

Catching up

The past 9 days have been filled to the brim with activities and at night I am really exhausted and all I want to do is go to bed and sleep it off..............and sleep I do. 

On Sunday 2nd December we attended tithing settlement.  The Lord has asked us to tithe our income and that leaves us with the challenge to see what we can do with 90% of our income.  At tithing settlement we sit with our Bishop and report whether we paid a full tithe or not.  For some people the answer is no but for us it is yes.  It takes a lot of faith to pay 10% of your income but I have found over the years that I have been greatly blessed for obedience to this requirement. 

On Monday 3rd of December my friend Kitty came to do some scrapbooking activities.  She likes to make the paper boxes that I taught the beading group some time ago.  She also likes to make cards to give for Birthdays etc. So we made paper stuff in the afternoon.  Kitty's husband has contracted memory loss that has turned into Alzheimer's and it is a real strain on her to be the caretaker so her time at my house playing with paper stuff is a band aid of sorts for her.  On Tuesday for two hours my friend Bobbie comes and we play paper stuff again.

While we were in Maine, I put on 20 pounds weight and the doctor yelled at me for doing that.  He should talk; he is overweight himself.  So I have been attending Zumba classes 4 times per week and water aerobics 3 times per week and I have now lost 10 pounds - second 10 in the process of being lost.  I went to see him this week but he only barely noticed that I was minus 10 pounds.  He is a great believer in preventive medicine - e.g. he likes to prescribe medicines that will prevent cholesterol , blood pressure and the like but he ignores the fact that my numbers are within normal range.  (I do not take him up on his offer to take these meds) I have a friend who weighs about 400 pounds who lives on blood pressure meds, cholesterol meds and a raft of other meds that preclude her having to watch her diet.  It is nothing for her to always order a dish that has Alfredo sauce on it with an extra helping of Alfredo sauce on the side.  She has had a heart attack, her kidneys are failing, she is on oxygen and any kind of movement is extra effort.  It is sad to see what shape she is in - perhaps I should take her to see my doctor...............

At beading on Wednesday we celebrated the birthday of one of the ladies there.  She brought a Cheesecake............Yum Yum.  I ate a very small sliver of cake and really enjoyed it.  For the rest of the week I have been watching my food intake very closely so a small sliver will not ruin anything.  On Thursday I was taken to lunch to celebrate my birthday - almost a week late but it was the only time we all could be together - my friends live busy lives.  We went to Applebees and they have selections on the menu that are Weight Watcher Friendly meals and so I ate the Fiesta Lime Shrimp meal on the menu.

Friday night was Acker night.  A Mr. Acker left a large amount of money to the city of Prescott for use in maintaining a park and putting on a night to celebrate music.  Businesses downtown  open their doors to performing groups and for 2 1/2 hours the town is brimming with people walking up and down visiting the different stores and listening to the performances.  There are over 100 venues and in the short amount of time one cannot visit all of the performers.  They also had people performing Karate, Judo, Tai Chi, Clogging, Jazz Dance, Tap Dance, and free lance groups getting together singing carols or strolling the street caroling.  It was very festive all round.  We went early so that we could get a parking spot.  Bill was aghast that we should be down town 90 minutes early.  He has not attended one of these events at all since we lived here but I have been to them a few times.  We found a parking spot, then we went to Pasquale's for dinner.  It is a corner bistro that serves Italian and Greek foods -wonderful.  We took Andrea with us.  Her husband was performing in a small venue with his Jazz group.  We saw the group that plays the Caribbean style drums and when we were there they were playing a tribute to Dave Brubek - Take Five - one of my favorite pieces.  Brubek just passed away.  I saw him perform at the U. of Utah when I lived there.  We visited a store that had a flute group playing Dona Novis Parchem (I think that is how it is spelled) and the next place we went to they had a banjo and jug band performing.  There were rock bands and solo performers and singers and it was wonderful.  The Song of the Pines group was singing in the Hassayampa Inn vestibule.  These are a group of ladies who sing a capella and  it was really inspiring to hear them sing.  I was surprised to see one of the ladies from my Quilt Group in the ranks singing for us.  Our last stop  was to see Andrea's husband and his group.  On the way home Bill was grateful that he made the effort to go early, eat dinner and then walk around town to see the performances.  He had initially thought that it was going to be a waste of time, but we have some serious talent here in Prescott and the various performers provided a wonderful night for all of us.  Add to that the lights were all on at the courthouse and that really set the festive mood.  A friend of ours said that for years they had lights on the trees at the court house and then someone suggested that the lights be upgraded and tested to see if they come up to code and that was the downfall.  for a couple of years there were very few lights on the trees until the code was satisfied and this year they have loads more lights on the trees and the court house and it was wonderful to see.  Of course I am waiting for the ACLU to come along and sue the city for having two angels in lights on the building.  With the way things are going these days it should not take long for them to start waging war over this.

The Stake of the church that is situated in Prescott Valley had an item in the paper announcing that they had a display of Creche coupled with a concert of Christmas music.  Bill said we should go to it.  So on Saturday night we got ready and off we went to the church to attend.  They were having a Christmas Dinner at the time and then he read the banner on the front table and found that the concert was Sunday night.  We were a day early.................So we went back last night and it was very worthwhile.  The choir sang a variety of Christmas Songs and it was very comforting to hear.  They closed with the Hallelujah Chorus from the Messiah.

so we now face a week of travel - going to Nebraska to attend the PhD ceremony for Jacob and to celebrate the Christmas season with the grandchildren.

Holiday Frenzy

The merchants are worried that the economy is so low that there will be no purchasing of gifts etc. by the populace.  Well, the 'conditioning' of the populace has been in place for a long time.  this 'conditioning' takes the form of sales gimmicks that range from  TV commercials and loads of advertising and flyers in the paper that make the newspaper even triple the size of the Sunday paper.  Door buster low prices to get people into the stores to purchase things that they really do not need or want but feel compelled to buy because it is Christmas.
The chamber of commerce here had a gift card giveaway slated to begin at 9am when the chamber opened its doors on the Saturday just after Thanksgiving.  It was a card worth $25 and to be used for the Small Business Saturday.  a day in which the populace was encouraged to attend the small businesses and purchase from them.  Well, many people had blown their wad on the big stores on Thanksgiving day or even the day after which has been dubbed Black Friday - the day in which the businesses are expected to make huge sales that will put their profits into the black for the year when they think they are running at a loss (in the red) for the rest of the year.  I wondered how popular this Small Business Saturday would be and how this $25 gift card from the Chamber would work.  An item in the newspaper on the giveaway stated that people had begun lining up at 4am in order to take advantage and by the opening of the doors at 9am hundreds of people had gathered.  There were only 200 of these $25 cards available from the American Express company and this was the first year the Chamber of Commerce had participated in this program.  Each member business was given a special doormat for the front of their business so that people would know that this is where they could spend the $25.  So it seems that there were strings attached to the gift card but I do not know for sure.  The Chamber did not forsee that hundreds of people would line up even at 4am.  Their office is only small and imagine the pushing and shoving of hundreds trying to get into such a small space - how do you get in much less, how do you go against the tide so that you can get out?
There are a number of notices of church basement craft shows and bake sales, but I am not going to attend them.  I am tired of the Glue Gun Queens offerings.
the Yavapai Indian Nation hosts a gingerbread house display at the Resort/Casino.  We go to it every year and this year it was much smaller.  we will tak-e David to see it when he comes for Christmas.  We attended the light parade and that was very good.  so far the cream of the crop of pre-Christmas activities has been the Walk Through Bethlehem activity that is held by the American Lutheran Church here in Prescott.  We went last night and it was very moving.  Upon entering the church multipurpose room, we were given a "ticket" to walk through Bethlehem.  when our number was called, we gathered with other 'travelers' and greeted by a guide who walked us through the alleys of Bethlehem to follow the Star.  We were accosted by beggars who asked for our coins that we received from the census taker (we gave our first names to the census taker).  The Roman soldiers were rough with the beggars telling them to get moving and stop bothering people.  We passed the jail where some beggars had been incarcerated and then into the next room where we saw that the Three Kings and their camel were waiting to greet us as we traveled.  we progressed along our path (through specially decorated rooms to give the appearance of old town Bethlehem) and we saw shepherds (this year they did not have a real sheep with them but rather a hand puppet which had to suffice), a fishmonger, basket makers, potters, women at the well, weavers and spinners and an almost convincing Rabbi and his disciple and our guide asked each group the meaning of the Star that was shining in the sky and if they had heard of a baby being born who was proposed to be the Messiah.  The Rabbi said that it would probably be just another baby because "God only knows when the Messiah will be sent to gather Israel".  We were turned away at the Inn but the innkeeper and his wife gladly took our 'money' that we got at the census taker - it was a bribe to see if we could get a room at the inn - but he took the money (under false pretenses if you ask me) and our guide took us down a long hall to a room filled with angels.  In years past these angels have sung "O come all ye Faithful", or "Silent Night". and one night they had a harpist playing "In Dulce Jubilo", but this year they recited a verse from the new testament.  It was very moving to pass from the dark passage after the dishonest Inn Keeper, into this room filled with light and angels in white replete with wings and tinsel halo's, and then when they had finished reciting their verse, we were ushered into  a stable with real donkeys and a mother and father and a real baby who was quite animated.  I felt compelled to reach out and touch the 'baby Jesus', because this little baby represents all that is pure and wonderful in this world in which we live.  Other years the baby representing Jesus was asleep in the manger but this little one was happy to see us.  My hope is that Jesus is happy to see us trying to live as he has asked us.  And so, our Christmas celebration has begun in earnest - we know that the Christ has come and that he will come again and we look forward to that, and look forward to celebrating the traditional holiday marking his birth, all over again. in 25 days time.

faster and faster

the Santa's turned out really cute.  I had some White Fairy Frost for the beard ( think it is called fairy frost - had it so long do not know now for sure).  I came home exhausted so I took a nap before going to the Weight Watchers meeting.  Sometimes I wonder about this leader we have.  She works hard at her job but sometimes she is not clear about the how and why of the program.  Apparently they are having a new program starting next week and that is why they were selling off the Food List books and the points calculators.  I guess starting a new program is a good way to boost income for WW because so many people do not think they will have success unless they have all the toys.
Tuesday 20th Nov. I went to Zumba class with Tiger.  This girl must eat red hot chili peppers for breakfast - her feet go a million miles per hour and I have a hard time keeping track of where my feet are or should be.  After class I made lunch for Bill and I and then settled down to work on the presentation of the rudiments of Roots Magic to present at 6.30pm.  Only two people showed up but Bill was the third and this is amazing since this is Thanksgiving week.
David was supposed to come up for Thanksgiving but he opted to spend his bus fare on something else.  It was a very sad and lonely Thanksgiving for us this year.
I made three Weight Watchers recipes for the feast.  Stuffing, Pumpkin Flan and Green Beans.  They were ok but I think we missed the traditional recipes. 
We decided to go driving after we rested and we went to see the Ginger Bread Village up at the Resort.  There does not seem to be as many entries this year as usual and they do not seem to be of comparable caliber.  There is one resort in Phoenix that turns out a spectacular entry each year but they were not entered this year.  the Sterling Ranch entry was remarkable.  This ranch caters to adults who are physically and mentally challenged but their entry was superb.
Friday 23 November is dubbed Black Friday.  There were no classes at the YMCA  but it was open for people to use the Gym, so  I went walking around the neighborhood while Bill worked out.  what luck, I ran into a garage sale of a quilter who was selling off her fabrics.  For a quilter to sell her fabrics is akin to giving away your own baby.  Each fabric is considered and caressed and thought about and then purchased.  At lease, I do not just rush in to the store, grab fabrics willy nilly and get them measured off and run home.  I stand there and consider which fabric would go best with the project in hand and take my time.  It looks like she took her time as well.  I picked up two bags of 5inch squares - what luck!  I am amassing 5inch squares to try out a new quilt form.
Saturday 24, I went to Zumba in the morning and in the afternoon I worked on preparing my Sunday School lesson for my 5 yr olds.  We went downtown to see the Parade of Lights - this is the first time we have gone to do this and it was pretty good all round.  We lucked out and found a parking spot at the Albertsons parking lot and the lot was jammed full.  We were not the only ones who thought to park there and walk up to the parade venue.  We got a call from Elena and the kids and they were expecting to be here around 8pm.  They eventually arrived at 9pm and Tania sat down to my computer to stress out over her homework that she neglected the whole time she was in California.  I have no idea what time she went to bed but I went to bed at 10pm.
I got them all up at 6pm and after they had showered and packed up, fed them breakfast.  Bill and I had to be to church early because we were speaking about our mission experiences and had to be there on time.  The bishop presented us with our missionary plaque that has been in the glass display case while we were gone.  Elena wanted to attend to hear our talks, but she and the kids left soon after we left the house and I hope that they got home to Durango ok.
The talks in Church went ok and then it was off to the Primary room to be with my 5yr olds.   I had the plaque on my lap and the little boy sitting next to me studied it for a while and then said " Was it a while ago that you had this photo taken?"  Thanks kid!  I did not think I had aged that much.
The Sunday school lesson went ok until we had to sing a song "Tell me the stories of Jesus".  One part of the verse that says "things I would ask him if he were here."  I asked the kids what kind of things would they want to ask Jesus if he were in the room.  I was not prepared for one answer which went like this, "Well, I would want him to tell me how he puts babies in mommy's tummy and she does not know about it."  I assured him that this was indeed a valid question and moved on.  I guess I will get lots of fresh insights while teaching this class.
Monday 26th November dawned earlier than I expected.  Bill went off to the YMCA and I went walking for a short walk prior to breakfast.  I then left for the YMCA for the Water Aerobics class just as Bill was coming home.  Just after he left for work, Kitty came over to "play paper stuff" with me and then at about 3pm we went over to her house to see what she had amassed and see if we could put our heads together to make some interesting cards by combining both stashes of paper and cutters etc.  I came home at 4pm and got ready for WW.  I gave it a good old college try this week, but it is unfair to expect too much at Thanksgiving.  Perhaps I should have stood on the scale with one foot instead of two?  Might have given me more weight loss.
The blender is still whirring away and keeping me on my toes.

Blender at top speed

I went to the Lonesome Valley bazaar and it was bizarre to say the least.  This is a quilt guild and one would expect the handwork to be above average - better than say at a church basement bazaar where the ladies circle put cutesy things together to sell to raise money for their mission funds etc. I was quite disappointed in the quality or lack there of put out by the quilters.  This particular group began as an offshoot of Thumb Butte Quilters.  I went to their organizational meeting many years ago now and they decided that the Lonesome Valley guild would be a feeder group for Thumb Butte Quilters.  We comprised all the ladies who were on the waiting list for TBQ.  The only drawback was that the meeting was to be held at night and I do not drive at night.  Add to that, the meeting was to be held in Prescott Valley and was 13+ miles away from my home.  As it turned out, I was admitted soon thereafter to Thumb Butte Quilters and stayed with them for about 4 years.  I quit their group when I became the president elect for Mountain Top Quilters.  I just could not support two quilt guilds.
On the 10th November I went to the Mountain Spinners and Weavers Guild show and sale at the Hassayampa Inn Marina room.  It was well attended and the quality of the workmanship was top notch.  So many hand woven items that ranged from  shawls, to scarves, to tea towels, to table runners, to purses and an endless variety of items made from hand woven fabric.  There were some felted items there too that were spectacular.  I looked at the beading items but they were not up to the same standard as the items that are produced by our beading group.
In the evening I attended the evening session of the Stake Conference. (a Stake is approximately the size and composition of a Diocese in other religions).  This was a very inspiring meeting for all who attended.  On Sunday was the general session and it was a broadcast by speakers from Salt Lake City, Church General Headquarters and it was broadcast to each Stake Center in Arizona .  It was like having our own personal general conference.
After the conference we came home and had lunch and then we went over to the Las Fuentes Care center to see Catherine Randosh.  Catherine suffers from dementia and has had a fall recently.  They tell us that she sleeps a lot now and does not participate in the activities at the center.  I was her visiting teacher before the mission and we used to always find her in her wheelchair out in the foyer watching the world go by. We visited a couple of other ladies who are members of the church and who are now in the care center.
Monday 12th at 8am I followed Linda Cook to the car repair place.  Some one had smashed into her mother's car and dented the door.  The lady who did this was really irate when Linda's mother insisted on turning it into the insurance.  Apparently the lady had been involved with a serious accident (caused by her) and the insurance company was not happy with her at present. 
Tuesday Nov 13 I was supposed to attend Hidden Stitches - the Applique group.  I had them down for the following week, but they decided that they did not want to meet on Thanksgiving week, so I was not able to go be with them.  Bobbie was coming over in the morning for us to do cards and other paper work. 
On Wednesday 14 I went to Zumba class in the morning and then to beading in the afternoon.  At night I went visiting teaching to Rosie Shipp's house.  Her son lives with them now and the little granddaughter came up to me to be held - so I held her and rubbed her back for her.  She sad there still as a statue, soaking it all in.  She is 13 months old.
On Thursday 15 I went to Zumba class again - I really like doing Zumba.  My friend Kitty came over and she brought the massage table for me to sleep on when I have my eye surgery.  I have to lie on my stomach with my head down for one week.  In between activities today, Bill asked me to go home teaching to his assigned families.  It really became quite difficult for me to do this because I was tired.
Friday 16 was an even busier day than them all.  At 8am I went to Shepherd of the Hills Bazaar.  I have been to this particular Bazaar before and it was quite good but today it was not good at all.  The quality of the workmanship was terrible.  They had lots of baked goods for sale and I guess that is where they make their money.  I do not buy baked goods at these events because I do not know what they have put into the item.  My mother used to always buy baked goods at the St. Albans Church Fete when I was growing up.
At 8.45am I went to Zumba again.  Kelly is the class leader and she is one red hot chilli pepper of a leader.  I swear her feet barely touch the ground and I cannot keep up with her. At 10am I had a massage - I needed it.  After the massage I went to the Eagles Lodge Bazaar.  This was another great disappointment to me.  An older gentleman had sawn off the top half of cowboy boots and had put a base on them so that they would hold beer cans or soda cans.  He must have sunk a lot of money into purchasing the boots because even in the thrift stores they are expensive.  He did not seem to be selling any of his drink holders either.
I went shopping for food in preparation for the visit of Bill's niece Elena.  I had thought to go to Costco to get a giant pizza because she has two teenagers that we would be feeding.  I went down to the store and saw that the parking lot was jammed with shoppers so I ditched the idea of the big pizza and went and filled the gas tank of the car instead.  At least it was not a wasted trip altogether.
On Saturday we left town around 7.30am to go to the Temple in Mesa.  We took my friend Betty Anne with us.  She has had a heart attack and has become rather disabled.  We finally got back home at 5.30pm.  Elena arrived in Prescott before us and spent some time with the family friend that she has known since she lived in Prescott 15 years ago.  She came to our house with Ruben and Tania and we cooked other pizza's and helped the children get filled up.  Elena and children stayed with us through Sunday and left early Monday 19th.
I went to Quilt guild on Monday and stayed for a Paper Piecing class in which we pieced some Santa's.
Well, that about catches everyone up on how fast the Blender is whirring here in Prescott.

Bare trees and leaf carpets

Election is history! So is the Melbourne Cup.  What was most interesting about the Cup was the fashions that were sported there.  I logged onto the net for pictures of the Who's Who of Melbourne Cupdom fashion forward ladies and I was amazed and rather disappointed.  Amazed at the gamut of dresses and fabrics, and hemlines that were high-water or low tide...........hard to decide.  What was disappointing was the construction of the clothes.  Some seemed to be definitely amateur and home made with wrinkles and catches where they should not have been while others were not obedient to the curves of the female body and they emphasized places that should have been camouflaged.  Most of the color schemes seemed to me to be rather cacophonous and the lines created by seams, peplums, collars, over skirts, gaping arm holes and plunging necklines did little to glamorize the wearer.  But then on the other hand, one only has to go to the Mall  here on the weekend to see equally bizarre combinations.  I guess originality is the aim but obedience to line, design, and color etc. would definitely improve the situation.
Fall has arrived here in full splendor with fiery colors on some of the maples and blazing golds on the Aspens.  A house down on the lower end of Rosser street had a magnificent yellow tree in the front yard this morning and this afternoon, after a wind sprung up, they have a bare tree and a magnificent yellow carpet of leaves on their front lawn.  the temperature has dropped considerably since this morning and it has even rained.  They are threatening us with snow from a weather system that has traveled from Alaska to here.
Yesterday my beading group went out to Prescott Valley to eat lunch at a Thai Restaurant that is not much bigger than a hole in the wall.  The food was really good.  We went from there to Jeannine's house to do beading for the afternoon.  I am quite proud of myself because I finally figured out how to do the St. Petersberg Chain.  In this group one dare not bring up anything political because it erupts in fireballs across the table so it is best left alone.  However, when I was at the grocery store, I overheard one worker lament to the other that he was really sad that Mitt Romney did not win. 
I do not know how one defines winning in a political race.  The one who garners the most votes inherits the problems of government and the one who garners the least votes, gets to go home and relax. So who won?
In any case, I still have to finish Lyla's quilt, make quilts for the boys, rake leaves, feed the birds, cook the meals, clean up the house, and resume life as best I can.  Things don't change much on the local level.
The best part of this season of the year is the eye candy at the various craft shows that are now upon us.  Tomorrow is the quilt show and boutique of the Lonesome Valley Quilters, Saturday is the Spinners and Weavers show and they have combined with the wood turners, next week is the Victorian Craft Show and the Shepherd of the Hills bazaar.  I missed these events in Maine but did get to go to the Maine State Quilt show and two shows out at the Longfellows Green House on Puddleduck Lane in Manchester.

Bronco versus Mitt - who will win?

I sympathize with the little girl who is featured in a viral post on Youtube - I also am tired of hearing about Bronco Obama and Mitt Romney.  Enough already!  I watched this little girl in tears explain her angst over the election.  to her, his name is Bronco Obama and the news clips do show him prancing onto the stage.
The prognosticators have consulted crystal balls, hog entrails, woolly worms, crystal skulls, Ouija boards, endless polls, witchdoctors and any and all superstition laced actions to try to determine who will be the winner. Tomorrow we will find out and one person will be the President (not until all the recounts and the Supreme Court decision I suppose) and the other will whine over the loss.  Just like the Super Bowl or the World Series, the teams duke it out over a period of time and then one team gets the glory and the other team returns to the locker room to ruminate over what might have been.  to borrow a line from "Man of La Mancha",  'too much thinking shrivels the brain.'
This was a wonderful weekend for me.  On Saturday I made the first block for Lyla's quilt and it goes together well. I only have 55 more blocks (7 X 8 blocks make this queen sized quilt for my little darling).  I divided up my day by walking in the morning, sending Bill off to work, sewing on the quilt, going shopping at the new natural market to order a free range turkey for Thanksgiving and to pick up the free 8oz pack of cheese as per their coupon - I chose Feta - work on my Sunday School lesson - have been asked to teach the 4 and 5 yr old class for the rest of this year and in January I get a new batch of 4yr olds to be taught by, (and I do mean be taught by these little kids),then just as I was going outside to rake the leaves up in the front yard, Anne from the Archives Search Room called.  What a wonderful surprise that was.  We talked for about an hour and I am now caught up on all the happenings in the Archives.  It was like taking a trip back to Maine.  She said it is cool there - read that 40degrees is the high for the day while we begin the day in Prescott at 40degrees and climb to73 degrees today.  Phoenix will be 91 today - of course this info comes from my phone.  Went out and raked the leaves.  They are completely dry (we live in a desert environment) and so when I put them in the leaf bag they rustle and take up lots of room until I kneel on them and squash them down with my hands to make room for more. I don't weigh 200pounds, but these brittle leaves are no match for me kneeling on the bag and squashing them down.  One really big bag and half another bag is the take for this session.  I am waiting for the other tree to doff its leaves and then I will fill up the second bag.  I also talked to my friend Sue for the best part of an hour as well so I am caught up on all the news of the church in Augusta.
Tomorrow is election day here but more importantly it is the running of the Melbourne Cup at Flemington Race Track, in Australia.  There is everything from office betting pools to big time players who bet on the outcome of the Melbourne Cup.  For the few minutes it takes the horses to run the race, the whole of Australia comes to a grinding halt to listen for the winner.  Many fortunes are at stake on this race, some are made and many are lost.  On the other hand, the fashion show is a sight to behold.  I doubt if it comes in second to the Kentucky Derby fashions or those of Ascot so it is a safe bet that the Ladies in their finery are just as interesting as the horse that wears the crown of winner.
So, on the eve of the presidential election, some people are overcome with angst over what should have been or what could have been but tales of graft and coercion at the polling places will surface I am sure.  the people who suffered at the hands of Sandy the Hurricane may be too distracted to even go to the polls so the outcome in those affected states swing the pendulum and in January they will gear up for the next four years of whoever will be the president of the USA.  And so it goes.

White Shirts - at last

I had spent much of Tuesday  wandering around Arizona MIlls Mall.  I was looking for white short sleeved dress shirts for Bill now that he is going back to work a day or so a week.  all the white shirts he had during his years of working had become rather grungy and starting to fall apart from use and washing.  No, I do not go down to the creek and smash the shirts onto a rock with a smaller rock as is portrayed in some pictures.  I do have a washing machine, but over time the white fabric just yellows and looks bad - especially when you wear a new white smock over the top of the shirt and tie you are wearing for work.  After all, you do have to look professional at all times.

I went into many stores that I thought might carry white short sleeved shirts.  We live in Arizona where it is hot almost all year and short sleeved shirts should be in abundance.  Or at least one would assume this to be the case.  But, in keeping with the rest of the country, they only have long sleeved shirts this time of year, so it can be said that the white short sleeved models are as scarce as hens teeth.  I wandered into the VanHeusen store and asked the stock question and lo and behold, they had a range of sizes and two of them were Bill's size.  What is even better is that they were 30% off due to the fact that they were out of season..............who cares about the season?  We have two white short sleeved shirts and my heart is happy.  Incidentally, 3 weeks ago I put all his white shirts in the trash because they were grubby and looked awful........and it was not right to give them to Goodwill or some other charity group.

As I drove into the parking lot, I noticed that the lawn was filled with doves pecking at whatever they could find to eat.  There must have been hundreds of them eating dinner on the lawn at the Safeway Headquarters.  I picked Bill up at 5pm after his training session, and we eased out into the 5pm rush hour and crept at a snail's pace towards I-10 and on our way to Tucson.  I have a quilt on display there and I wanted to see it.  We also had made contact with our friends Joe and Maryanne who had been in Pennsylvania the same time we were there.  It was wonderful to reconnect with them.  Their son Joseph has just returned from a mission in the Phillippines just two weeks ago.  The last time I saw him, he was a baby.  They now live in Oro Valley, just outside of Tucson.  We ate dinner together at their home and had a wonderful walk down memory lane, talking about the people we knew.  While they were in Johnstown, there was a quilting contest in the community and Maryanne had made a quilt representing family and that quilt still hangs in the Relief Society room of the Johnstown Ward.

We found our motel and gratefully fell into bed.  We really lucked out.  We had a two room suite that even had a small cooking area but we were not geared to cooking.  This particular motel had a wonderful desert landscape in front and in the courtyard. 

Wednesday morning we went to the Arizona historical museum to see my Slot Canyon Quilt on display there.  It is the first quilt that one sees when entering the area where they have hung the quilts.  That made me feel pretty good.  It had been entered into a quilt show some years ago and the category was "Original quilt".  I found out that it had been given the nod but that politics entered into the fray and one of the founding mothers of the organization received the ribbon for her 9patch quilt.  I asked how this 9 patch, a very traditional design, got the ribbon and they said, well, what makes it original is that she put a trailing vine around the outside.  I notice that her nine patch was not in THIS show.