OWAV:) 02/28/11, 5am, 45°, Clear

Yesterday, Herb did laundry and housekeeping was in to clean our villa, so we are ready for another week in Arizona.  We finished up yesterday with a tour of "outer" Phoenix looking for yard sale signs and just checking out the territory.  New housing developments are everywhere.  Of course building has really slowed down here and many places are for sale or up for auction.  But it doesn't seem to slow the addition of new malls and houses in the suburbs.  Here at "Cibola Vista" where we stay, they haven't built anything for the past three years,  but plan to start on phase three of this complex in 2012.  They are running at close to capacity on most weekends and cater to events such as weddings, parties etc.   The long range plan is to build a total of seven phases to complete the resort,  many years down the road.

Yard sales were not to be found today, think the weather has been to iffy for people to brave the cold and put their stuff out to get rained on.   I'm on the lookout for a lemon tree,  in someone's back yard, just waiting to be picked and taken home so we can have our usual fresh lemon meringue pie, spring break when the "kids" are home.  

We made a quick stop at the grocery to pick up ice cream for our dessert tonight,  and a cake mix to make a lemon poke cake sometime tomorrow.  

Sun is out this Monday morning, the last day of February, with a promise of warmer weather,  cool breeze is still in the air.  Not much to write about so will close for today.   OWAV:)

OWAV:) 02/27/11, 5am, 45°, Rainy

Saturday dawned as another cool day in Arizona, with rain predicted.  Herb had breakfast ready when I got back to the room, after catching up on scrabble games and answering email.   I sliced a pear to go with our cold cereal and hard boiled egg.  This is more than enough breakfast as we will be eating at the theatre about 1pm today.  We spend the rest of the morning cleaning the kitchen and reading.

We leave for the theatre about 11:30am and people watch while we wait for the doors to open.  The meal choices today are the same as a week ago, Herb decides to try the fish and I the vegetarian option.  Dinners are okay but I think the meals are slipping in quality from two years ago.  We share a bottle of wine, leaving some to take back to the condo and forgoing dessert on this day.

Robert Shaw and his Lonely Street Band started the show, singing Johnny Cash songs from the 60's and beyond.  Among the more famous songs were Sunday Morning Coming Down,  Ring of Fire,  I've Been Everywhere Man, We Got Married in a Fever and Man in Black.  We both enjoyed the show and it was soon over.  Robert Shaw will be back to the Arizona Broadway Theatre in April with his "Elvis Presley Show",  How Great Thou Art.  He is a talented musician, singing, playing guitar and the harmonica. 

Back at the condo, our days have fallen into a routine of an event every few days, then filling in the gaps with reading, playing on the computer and waiting for the sun to come out so we can get our vitamin D replenished.

I'm going to fix meatloaf, baked potatoes and salad for dinner today.  Coming up on our agenda is a trip to the "Arizona Botanical Gardens", our first ballgame is on Thursday of this week and we will check out a couple of sports complexes and get tickets for another game or two.  More later,  OVAW:)

OWAV:) 02/26/11, 6am, 45°, Clear

We arrived in Care Free about 9:30, the market having just started.  A small market, with fresh vegetables, jams, sauces, Italian food  and meats.  Picked up a loaf of bread and apple mustard then we were off to find the thrift stores.  They have three very nice thrift stores, with good prices and high end clothing, if that is what you are interested in.  We mainly bought books and a few odds and ends.  No great buys, but it was fun to look and listen to other shoppers, who thought they had found a gold mine.  It was nearly 2pm when we got back to Peoria, found a small family owned, Chinese restaurant where we had a good meal and took half of it home for another day.  We stopped to browse at a few yard sales.

Back at our condo, I caught up on the scrabble games, email, etc.  Later I got out my knitting needles and knit a swatch out of yarn that felt like wool, bought from a yard sale, but no it is some kind of synthetic fiber as it didn't felt at all.  Pretty color so will put it in my stash and maybe make something later or donate it to Soroptomists, when we get back home.

Today is our day to go back to the Arizona Broadway Theatre, where we will see the "Man in Black" with dinner included. Weather is iffy with possible rain for the next two days and then warming up by Monday.   Maybe we will get some time in the swimming pool after all.   Later,  OVAW:)

OWAV:) 02/25/11, 6am, 45°, Clear

Lazy day yesterday.  Herb fixed cold cereal for breakfast, while I emptied a jar of our home-made sauerkraut into the only casserole dish in the condo, added German sausage, covered it and put it in a 200° oven.  Off we went to the shopping center.  Herb looked for a decent paring knife, for the kitchen and I a potted plant for the dinning room table.  Picked up milk and eggs at the grocery and arrived back at the condo, a couple of hours later, to the smell of sauerkraut filling our room.  Sure glad it tastes better than it smells.  I peeled potatoes, left them in cold water and we went to sit poolside.  It was still quite cool, but we read for awhile.  Then Herb came back to the condo, cooked the potatoes and was just mashing them, with a fork, as I came in.  I set the table and we enjoyed a lovely dinner without much effort.

Our condo is north of Phoenix, in Peoria, a suburb of Phoenix.  When we first came here six years ago, the nearest store was just a small grocery about 5 miles away.  In the past four years, huge shopping centers have appeared like mirages in the desert.  Less than two miles away we have, Target, Kohls, Home Depot, Lowes, and innumerable small shops, restaurants etc.  We are surrounded by housing developments on all sides.  Amazingly it is still fairly quiet and easy to get around.

I spent the rest of the afternoon catching up on scrabble, at different times I chatted with Rusty, Bobi and Cienna.  Made a phone call home, talked to Adam Stein about our roof.  They are still waiting for supplies that have been ordered.  We have been here a week as of today.

Must go post this so we can leave early for Cave Creek and the Farmers Market, plus yard sales and will look for a place to eat out today.   Later,  OWAV:)

OWAV:) 02/24/11, 6am, 48°, Cloudy/Sunny

Yesterday we did laundry, (washer and dryer in our condo) skipped breakfast and had an early lunch at "Paradise Bakery and Deli" on our way to Cabelas, where we wandered around the store for two hours.  Herb at his leisure and me at mine, going in opposite directions, meeting later at the checkout stands.  Herb had checked the map and is very good at directions so he is getting pretty good at navigation on the outskirts of Phoenix, going back to places we have visited in previous years.

We will go North to Carefree on Friday, visit the farmers market, thrift stores and maybe yard sales.  The weather is supposed to turn colder with possible rain on Saturday.  On Saturday we will be inside watching a performance at the Arizona Broadway Theatre, "Man in Black".    We tried sitting by the pool yesterday but the cold breeze and cloudy conditions chased us back into the condo.  Late afternoon Herb BBQ'd pork chops and I freshened up the leftover potato salad and added lettuce to the green salad.  Toward evening we finished off the applesauce cake.  Today I will have to plan more menu's for the rest of the week.

❝Back to the 1964 camping trip.  We arrived at Lake Mead, just south of LasVegas and checked into a campground, near the boat launching area.  It was a shaded area and the temperature was in the low seventies.  Balmy compared to the weather we had experienced getting there.  After the trailer was set up we found a grocery store and stocked up on groceries as we would be camping in this spot for ten days.  Herb's Mom was a very good cook even with the limited facilities of the camp trailer.  I don't remember much day to day but I know we spent as much time out of doors as possible soaking up the sun.  We took long walks investigating our surroundings.  In the evenings we sat around a campfire or played innumerable games of cards, canasta or pinochle, one of our favorite pastimes.  One day, Bobbi Jo stayed with "Nana and Poppy" and Herb and I visited the casino's in Vegas.  He not much of a gambler and I having never seen a one-armed bandit before didn't know how they worked.  So we mostly watched people and looked at the sights.

Soon our time was over and we resumed our trip with plans to see the Grand Canyon.  It really wasn't a good time of year to see the Grand Canyon so decided we would go to the south rim and at least get a glimpse of it.  We camped at the south rim and woke up, next morning, to six inches of snow covering the ground.  We pushed on, heading north into Utah.  I remember Herb coming down with a cold and flu which slowed us down for a couple of days.  We got into a bad snow storm near Heber City Utah, seems like we were pushing snow with the front bumper of the Jeep Wagoneer.  We made it to  Porterville, Utah where we spent the night at Loraine and Steve's (my sister and brother-in-law).  We set up the trailer in their back yard,  had a short visit as we were late arriving there.  That night we shared their one bathroom with their family of ten.  On the last day of our trip, driving through Payette Canyon, north of Boise, we again encountered blizzard conditions.  Herb and Dad had to chain up the four wheeled drive jeep so we could continue on.  We were about sixty miles from McCall, Idaho, which was home for Mom and Dad.  We arrived home safely and had very fond memories of this trip.  In later years, after Herbs parents retired they bought their own travel trailer and spent several winters in the Lake Mead area of Nevada.  I don't recall that they repeated the adventures of the 1964 trip.❞ Stay tuned, OWAV:)  

OWAV:) 02/23/11, 7am, 45°, Sunny

Poolside with Mona & Jerry

Slept later than usual,  although we were in bed at an early hour.  We had a busy day yesterday,  getting ready for a visit with Mona and Jerry.  They arrived about 11am, bringing us tree ripened grapefruits and lemons.  We take them on a tour of the grounds here at the condo and relax pool side, soaking up the sun and catch up on our visiting.  It is hot in the direct sun but cools right off if you move into the shade.

Hot air balloon, Idella & Mona

We find a nice sunny spot for our dinner, where Herb can BBQ the steaks and we bring the other food from the condo to the outdoor table.  Dinner always tastes better when shared with others and we have few leftovers when we finish.  Later as we have applesauce cake for dessert on our patio, we are entertained with a hot air balloon launch nearby.  With camera's in hand we walk closer to get a better view.  The balloons, all six of them, finally full of people, are launched and sail away toward the nearby hills.  A nice ending to an enjoyable day.  With hugs all around Mona and Jerry head back across town for one last night with Jerry's stepmother before starting their journey back to Salt Lake City.

I take the laptop and head for the lobby where I catch up on email, scrabble games, and check the weather back home.  Joseph is again under a weather watch with more snow on the way.  Wonder about our roof???
  
Haven't decided for sure what we are doing today, either going north to Carefree and check out the thrift shops, or south to wander around the Cabella's store.  What to do for dinner???  OWAV:) 

OWAV:) 02/21/11

Herb fixed bacon, eggs and toast for breakfast, I caught up with the scrabble games, then we finished up our grocery shopping at Costco and Albertson's.  

Arizona Sunset

In the early afternoon, we took our books and sat pool side to read for awhile.  Not warm enough for swimsuits but the sun feels good shinning on ones back.  Later in the afternoon, Herb took the car to have the oil changed and I fixed dinner.  We had a simple dinner of deer steak, brought from home, with texas toast and raw veggies and fruit.  So good to have home cooked food even if I do have to fix it.  Doesn't take long to get tired of restaurant fare!   I always find it fun and a challenge to cook in a strange kitchen without all of the usual utensils.

Mona and Jerry will come for dinner tomorrow, then maybe on Wednesday we will drive to Carefree and check out the thrift stores for reading material.   Stay tuned, OWAV:)

02/22/11  4am

Early to rise---------❝Many times on our trip to Arizona, thoughts of another trip kept running through my mind.  In March of 1964, we, (Herb, Me and two year old, Bobbi Jo), took a trip with Herb's parents.  They had a Jeep Wagoneer station wagon and we rented a small travel trailer from a friend.  The plan was the five of us would take a trip to Arizona to see the country and check out places to stay so that Mom and Dad could spend time in Arizona or Nevada in the winters.  It was to be  a way for them to leave all of the snow and cold weather of McCall Idaho, which would be better for Mom's asthma.  We left McCall, early March for the three week trip.  The trailer and car were packed with all the essentials of a three week trip including the potty chair for Bobbie Jo.  It was situated behind the back seat of the station wagon.  I guess we hoped this would save time so we didn't have to stop every hour for a "two year olds potty breaks".  All went well the first day and we arrived in Twin Falls, Idaho late afternoon, found a trailer park and set up for the night.  That nights dinner was ham, scalloped potatoes and asparagus.  That is the only meal I remember.  We visited with my Aunt Carrie and Uncle Harold who lived in Twin Falls.  I was nervous about that because both Herb and Dad smoked and I was afraid they would light up a cigarette in Aunt Carries immaculate house that had never had the smell of a cigarette any where near it.  My worries were for naught and the visit went well.  We left early the next morning for points south.

I'm not sure of the time frame or how many days it took us to get to Lake Mead, Nevada, but we stayed at least one more night on the road.  That day we had driven through a winter storm on very slick roads and a strong wind, not a good thing when you are pulling a travel trailer.  No trailer parks were to be found that night and after asking around we were directed to someones house, that had a lone space for rent and we would have to use the bathroom inside of their back door.  The wind was blowing a gale, it was dark and it was bitter cold.  Again we fixed something to eat and were soon in bed, snuggled under all the covers we had, to keep warm.

Travel trailers in those days were a far cry from what they are now, with all of the convenience's of home.  The trailer we had was about 15' long with a double bed in the back end, a fold down bed made up each night where the dinette was and a hammock overtop of the dinette.  A small gas stove, with oven, for cooking and to take the chill off of the cold nights, before we went to bed.  It had a small refrigerator but there was no furnace.  To say the least it was a very cozy arrangement.❞   To be continued.  OWAV:)

Have a potato salad fixed for dinner, email answered, blog copied into blogspot.  Will  get the scrabble caught up.