Baking

I search Cooks.com whenever I'm looking for a recipe. So here I sit eating a Florentine Lace Cookie. It's scrumptious! We enjoyed some at a recent Lindstrom gathering and loved them so much I made myself a batch. I also made some no-bake butter, powdered sugar, peanutbutter, graham cracker bars smeared with milk chocolate. Pure sweetness; Madison loves them.

This afternoon MJ and Chels had a beach fire so they roasted marshmallows and made S'mores. Even more straight sugar. All washed down with Peach Mango Fuse's. More sugar.

Neighbor A. O. is replacing the wood trim on the outside of our windows, adding caulking and insulation as he goes. The girls' bonfire was the old window trim. Nice hot fire.

Once the trim is replaced and as the weather permits, we will begin painting the house and the trim. We have lots of black spots on the street side of the house where we got bombarded with eggs last winter. That's how bored the kids were around here -- egg-throwing in the middle of the night and just about every weekend, all for their entertainment. But costly for the paint jobs onthe vehicles.

First Tom will power wash the egg drippings, not to mention the bird droppings! We also hope to power wash the deck and re-oil it. Lots of projects!!

The corn is coming up. Tom is waiting for a rainy day so he can transplant some plants but we've been about 3 weeks with no rain! Can you believe it??!! We had some clouds and about 70 today so that is some relief from the 10 days or so of 80 to 90. The prediction is for the same, clouds and 70 or so for the next 5 days.

Tonight we all went to Rinconcito's for dinner: Tom and I, the M's and the C's. Very fun.

I printed a recipe for caramel cookies that I'll try to make next weekend. It calls for a full pound of caramels. I hear that unwrapping a pound of caramels can be tedious! But tasty!!

Lovely Priest Point

Yes, we're still here! The sunshine is glorious, the skies are blue and the mountaintops are white. Even Mt. Rainier!!

Saturday we drove down I-5 to Aberdeen and Mt. Rainier was out in all her glory. Awesomeness.

It's wonderfully sunny and warm. Angelo swims every day. Of course he does that whether it's warm outside or not!!

Tom and I are cranking thru a lot of little chores that have been nagging at us. His corn is planted and coming up, as is his dill. His garlic is 8 inches high!!

All the flower baskets and pots are flourishing and colorful. One day soon we will have to move them all to power-wash and stain the deck. We also hope to get started on painting the house. Just a little start on everything before the Fourth! I'm in the process of finding a kennel for Ang for the duration of the fireworks; he's totally gun-shy.

The Canonica's have been out for a couple afternoons of burgers, sunbathing and sand-digging. We hope to see more of everyone as the weather continues!

Ramping Up for the Annual Spaghetti Dinner

Tom and I are gearing up for the spaghetti feed sponsored by the Sons of Italy, Mille Cugini (A Thousand Cousins) Lodge #2659, Marysville, WA. Tom buys all the makings for the meatballs and he buys all the Italian sausages -- which is part of what we did today. He caused a little stir at the Costco when he checked out with all the sausages. It was very obviously an Italian thing and another form of advertising. Those at Costco today started dreaming of garlic and red sauce to go with the sausage so we may see them at St. Mary's on Saturday!

Tomorrow at 9 AM the meatball crew will be at the church for the pounding of the garlic and the crying over the onions. 400 meatballs by noon! Meanwhile, I usually get the task of parboiling the sausages, about 300 of them. It takes hours!

Saturday morning, the day of the dinner, the sauce makers appear and the pasta water boilers get it in high gear and Presto! Spaghetti dinner!!

Rolls, salad, sodas and wine, and cake for dessert are also included.

We also have a raffle and every year the main prize is an umbrella. It used to be an Italian Cinzano umbrella but they've gotten expensive so we just get a nice patio umbrella with a stand. The umbrella hovers over the raffle tables all day and is usually the last prize given away. This year's umbrella is neon green and pretty cool!!

Join us for a bite! Mangia!! MJ and Chelsea are serving. Denise and Chris are cooking and cleaning. Tom is the Emcee. See you there! 2 to 7, St. Mary's Church. $10

More doings-- on the sad side....
Purchasing the umbrella along with survival food and water for us and the dog took up the rest of the day. We hopefully have a ten day supply of everything should disaster strike. We hear rumors that a few Washington schools are closing and maybe by next week we won't want to be out and about. We'll keep a positive outlook and just know we'll fall under the radar on this one!

Home Sweet Home

I can't seem to wrap my head around writing a post about the last legs of our trip home. Suffice it to say we made it and all is well. Angelo went directly into the bay then sat on the Cox's deck about 12 hours until Joe came home as well. And, Angelo has since been in the bay every hour on the hour and now smells like his usual, awful self again!

Tom and I are napping a couple times a day, recovering. You say you're on vacation and relaxing but you know that doesn't happen until your feet are once again on familiar terra ferma.

More sunshine tomorrow!

Indio to Bishop

We spent two wonderful days and nights with Fred and Lori in Indio. Friday night they took us to a great little Italian place, Saturday we had a fantastic Kosher breakfast at Sherman's and we cruised Highway 74 to the top of the world. Angelo spent two days swimming in their pool and playing with their miniature Schnauzer named Rainy. (He may have had more fun than anyone!)

Easter Sunday we got on the road by 9 intending to drive a few hours to Mojave, but it was only 1:30 when we got there so we kept going, and going, and going. Finally about 6:30 we found this nice RV spot in Bishop called Highlands RV. As you can tell, it also has WI-FI. But, Tom is exhausted and sleeping it off. Tomorrow promises to be a short drive to Reno. We see there is a KAO at the Hilton so maybe we'll be there.

Many thanks to Fred and Lori and many good wishes to all our friends and family hoping they had a wonderful Easter!

The Final Yuma Post

We're latching all the windows and rolling up the carpets, it's time to head down the road. The weatherlady promises us high winds and dust tomorrow so we hope to pass the Imperial Sand Dunes early and before a sand storm can build up. We're heading north on 86 to Indio to visit Uncle Fred and Lori in Indio. Plan to leave Indio Sunday and head north to Reno then E. Wash. on 395. We've never pulled the 5th wheel up that highway so it's an adventure. We have traversed it in the truck and in the Honda on earlier trips. This will be different, trying to find RV spots, but we've slept on a slant before and on a downtown street -- once we slept in the Honda in a gas station parking lot. It was of course Easter Sunday and there was no room at the inn. How ironic. We'll see what happens this Easter!

MJ and Frank are happily sailing out of New Orleans. Chloe, V, and friends are heading to the manga convention in Seattle. If you haven't seen Chloe looking very manga-nificent, go to http://www.zombieprincess.blogspot.com/.

PS...I'll probably be without wireless and unable to post again until 4/18 or so. Call me!! mc

Wind and Dust

Tom and I are trying to pack up in preparation for heading out on Friday. I cleaned house most of the day and I even bathed the dog! Got rid of lots of desert dust.

So, don't you know, after a 90 degree day today, it's 77 at nearly 10:30 PM and the wind is blowing 30 mph. The dust is kicking up so we're trying to close up some windows and vents. We'll have to clean and de-dust all over again!!

Friday we'll head to Uncle Fred's for a night, then meander north eventually winding up in Eastern Washington. The plan is to leave the 5th wheel there for Memorial weekend while we drive the truck and trailer contents home.

We plan to be home for the big Marysville Sons of Italy spaghetti dinner at St. Mary's on Saturday, May 2nd. $10 for a great dinner. We'll make meatballs the day before and cook the Italian sausages, then help out at the dinner. Join us. It's lots of fun! (And, let us know if you'd like some tickets!)

Ooooops!! The Unforgettable Friends

So, I failed to mention a lot of snowbirders and friends who visited us, not just those who lived at Bonita Mesa with us.

First of all, Coco and Bob showed up and stayed here for a week. We spent some time with them at the swap meet aka flea market aka Arizona Marketplace. They joined us unexpectedly one day for happy hour. What a surprise! And they stayed here in Bonita Mesa with us for about a week, along with their dogs Harley and Lucy. Harley is pretty sick and they spent quite a little time vetting and medicating and hoping for the best.

Then my brother Scott visited for a few days. He motorcyled in, speaking of Harley, and hit Bob's Territorial Harley Davidson Store for a T-shirt, strolled the swap meet, and ate at a choice local restaurant to which we will never return. But we did enjoy the sun and the warmth of the March days.

Last Friday MJ and Frank cruised in about 10 PM coming all the way from Red Bluff, CA in a day! They're hauling the dinghy and boatmotor from the ZP to friend Bob in NOLO. Loved the visit; we had pancakes and bacon, shopped at Kohl's for MJ, ate potato salad and chicken sands-- all before they left at 1PM Saturday. The flash of an eye! Did I say how excited Angelo was to see MJ??? I didn't think he would ever settle down.

MJ left here in her new little sundress and cool matching shades. Stylin'.

Yesterday, March 29th, neighbors Deedee and Jim from Tulalip dropped in. They will be staying in Green Valley for a month after they leave Yuma on Wednesday.

I don't know who I have forgotten this time but I'll think of them immediately after I post this!

Oh the people we meet!

I want to post a note to myself so I remember some great people and fellow snowbirders in Yuma:

• Marilyn, 83 or so, from Port Ludlow and her son Steve from Tacoma who came to drive her and her car home a couple days ago;
• former Yellowstone Ranger, 85 yr old storyteller, and former CHPman Dick Lewis from Santa Rosa, CA, whose daughter Gail came down to drive him home, trailer and all;
• Marilyn's nephew Nelson aka "Woodie" (retired Qwest in '86 at 55) and his wife Ruby from Eugene (they'll drive their motorhome home for the last time on Wednesday as Woodie has decided this is their last year in Yuma);
• John and Martha Danz from southern Idaho (they were also here 2 years ago but now stay at Shangri La;
• Tilka and Tom from Toronto, both native Slavakians (if I've got it right);
• Bonita Mesa manager Pat who is from Port Susan the rest of the year but I met only once;
• and, of course, Joe and Karen who have been our great traveling pals for a lot of years.

Also, remember the play we went to see "Don't Dress for Dinner" with John and Martha from Idaho, Marilyn and Dick (sweet), and Joe and Karen.

And, remember the farming brothers from northern Alberta, Howard and wife Ingrid and brother Wayne and his wife; his wife and dog flew home 3/10 to await their 1st grandchild who finally arrived 3/20! So many more: Ken and Maureen from Alberta, he was so outgoing and fun. And their friends who were next door to us but he flew out to consult on oil drilling and wife Muriel stayed here, then they drove home with Ken and Maureen.

And, remember all of Angelo's friends, especially "Dozer" (short for Bulldozer) the big black lab on the corner who we stopped to visit 10 times a day, counting the comings and goings to the desert! Mitzy who followed us home one night; Tillie who escaped from dogsitter and neighbor Erin and Coco rescued; and, of course Molly who is like the only friend Angelo has left here and he loves dearly.

Karen does paper tole and is taking classes here in Yuma for the 3-D art, classes on "feathering" and "furring". She buys her frames (shadow boxes) in Algadones. Martha does tatting and made booties for L and a vest for Karen. Tilka does "Swedish weaving" which I hope to see tomorrow. She wants to teach me how! I do reading and computering!

Awakefulness

I didn't realize I hadn't posted in a week. What a nice time to find out: 3:30 AM Tuesday. I went to bed waaaayy too early and woke up at 1 AM. Bad timing. Tom and Angelo are out like lights. The heater is running and I'm wrapped in a freshly-washed blanket. Today was laundry day, $1.25 to wash; $1.00 to dry. We did 8 loads plus Tom took all the throw rugs to the other laundry with the extractor for $3.00. It smells lots better in this confined space.

Scott showed up last week and then we dashed off to San Diego, therefore, we piled up the laundry. When we were down to our last pair of ----socks, we just had to "Get 'er done!"

Sunday we went to a play called "Don't Dress for Dinner". It was really funny; a lot of great lines and total confusion. Then went to dinner with John and Martha from Shangri La RV Park (don't believe it) and Joe and Karen.

Tonight's happy hour was at Marilyn's next door. Her son Steve showed up a few days ago to drive her home to Port Ludlow. Steve lives in Tacoma and is a bull on the railroad. Lots of thievery between Needles and Barstow. Portable saws are used to cut into boxcars from the top
and when the train stops, the thieves call the escape truck to haul away all the electronics they can find. I didn't know train robbery was still in vogue!

Tom and I talked with Madison, Megan and Chelsea tonight, followed by a quick chat with Chloe and MJ. Chloe leaves for Georgia tomorrow. Her flight stops in Phoenix but we won't get to see her. Good friends and friend Steph get to enjoy her company! Have fun Chloe!!

Angelo is alive and well. He wasn't feeling too well when Scott visited but perked up when we hit cool San Diego and we started feeding him bottled water.

Tomorrow, Tuesday the 24th, we might run down to old town Yuma and check out some stores filled with treasures made by local artists. Also, there are a couple cool antique stores to wander thru. Ciao! And Bona Note!

Desert Happenings

Uncle Scott arrived in Yuma today after traveling 211 miles S/SW out of Apache Junction on his pearl while Harley Softail. Scott is all tanned and healthy looking. Tom and I are still pale since we stay out of the heat of the sun as much as possible, and we have huge ficus trees shading our trailer and patio.

With Scott in tow, we did a little touring of Yuma and the H-D Territorial shop, Del Oro grocery store and Frye's grocery store. This evening we went to a new restaurant/pub on Fortuna Rd. called Parrish's. It really wasn't anything "to write home about" (so to speak) although Tom did enjoy his clam linguine -- in the desert! I should have had the bread pudding!

Tomorrow we hope to go to old town Yuma for the Farmers' Market and a little lunch maybe. Wednesday it's supposed to be 90 and the guys hope to go see the horse tanks, natural water holes in the hills that keep the wildlife alive. The tanks that Joe takes us to are not too far out in the desert and a short hike up the foothills of what I think are the Chocolate Mountains. We have never seen the wild burros but they are supposed to be out there.

The bright pink sand verbena covering parts of the desert is still fragrant at night and beautiful in the day. Mixed in with the verbena are white desert lilies and small ground cover flowers of white. I have also seen several white flowers with petals the shape of clover leafs, always four petals to a blossom. The desert in bloom is a surprise!

No pictures, sorry!

I did bring my camera but I forgot the USB adapter to transfer the digital images. So, pretend you see Colin about to turn 3, Karen and Joe enjoying the horse races, Bob and Coco having dinner with us in the outskirts of Yuma, and Bob stirring his green chili stew on the BBQ.

Coco and Bob headed to parts unknown around Parker, AZ. They loaned Tom a camp chair so we have to remember to thank them and return it.

Today is Friday the 13th; Dick our neighbor and ex-CHP turned 85 today. We will celebrate with a happy hour at our neighbor Marilyn's about 4:00.

Brother Scott is due here next Monday when it's in the 90's. He gets to celebrate St. Pat's with us, maybe at Parrish's Pub with a Harps or a Guinness. Then maybe go to the horse tanks on Wednesday.

Angelo is due for a bath as soon as I get a kiddies' wading pool.

Today is a relax day; tomorrow is haircut day; Sunday is buffet brunch day, I think, and Monday is vacuum day. Just same old, same old. In the sun!!

To Mexico and Back

We crossed the border into Algadones today for the second time. No problems at the border.

Our friend got new lenses to replace the broken ones in her good glasses. She claims her dog bit them!

It took us 4 hours for lenses and 2 hours in line to get back across the border. $60.

Tom bought Cointreau for perfect margaritas.

Mid 70's. Nice.

San Diego and back

We had a great time in SD with L and C. C loved his new movie Madagascar! Therefore, we all loved it about ten times!! Oh yeah, Alex, Melman, Marty and Gloria. I see them in my sleep!

C talks now and says things like "Grandma, play tools with me." "Grandma.... " "Grandma... " Love him.

We had a really nice visit and quick trips over the mountains back and forth. We feared a dust storm as we neared the Imperial Dunes on the way home, but fortunately it wasn't windy enough to cause one. Just hazy. Two years ago, we were blinded by the sand as we neared Yuma and then spent the rest of the day hiding in the 5th wheel while the wind and sand whirled around us. When that dust storm was over, we had a lot of cleaning up to do.

But anyway, nice trip and great grandson! His 3rd birthday is coming close.

The Nineties

Last week was a shock to our system since it was 80 degrees our first week here. During the trip south, we hit wind and rain in northern California from Red Bluff on. Sacramento was a mud slide. We've never seen it so wet and flooded as this year. Our night in Needles was pleasant but not hot. Yuma is special!!! Lots of heat. But, actually as of Wednesday we are supposed to be back down in the mid-70's. That will be very nice.



This morning before the heat got bad, we crossed into Algadones from California, bought the meds we were low on, the Don Julio and Hennessy's we were out of, and the cigarettes a friend needed. We stopped for the freshest sweetest donuts before crossing back into the states, then drove to a bakery in E. Yuma on Fortuna Rd for fresh-baked bread and more delicious pastries. What happened the the celery and carrot sticks I had promised myself??!!

Tomorrow there are two quilt shows and sales that I hope to attend. Tom loves quilts, too. Then we're heading to Old Town Yuma for the weekly Farmers' Market, neat old shops, and lunch on the terrace at a restaurant there. It's supposed to be as cool as 86!!

Tonight we'll cruise to Applebee's for salads.

Yuma, February 2009

Wireless in the Bonita Mesa RV Park leaves some to be desired. It stops and starts, displays type then disappears. C'est la vie!

Tom and Joe O. are putting on the tire covers. It's about 80 every day. Angelo loves the air conditioning and pants a lot. But he is getting more acclimated daily. As are Tom and I.

So far, we've hit Da Boys for pizza and dinner, the WalMart for necessities and non-essentials. The swap meet today for batteries, RV light bulbs and "stuff".

The neighbors are calling for me to come over for Mudslides while Tom and Joe have red beer. Angelo is waiting for me. Rough life.

The February Doings

P & A stayed Friday night. A drove over from Coulee for a visit with her new grandchild-to-be.

Madison wanted to spend some money at the mall on Sat. so MJ went with us and we watched Mads spoil herself rotten. Then the 2 of them came to the beach for a run with Angelo. MJ went home and Mads stayed the night. She taught us 5-card poker, jokers and deuces wild. And she played games online, addressed all the valentines she bought, and wrote in her new, nifty red notepad. Lunch at the mall was from Panda Express and Orange Julius.

Marian served us a beautiful Italian lunch today of eggplant parmesan, meatballs, and green salad, along with Sicilian and Giordano Tuscan wine. Lovely. It was so good to visit with Marian again, it's been a while. Also a pleasant visit with Greta, Jeannie and Roy. Brownie got to come in and play awhile, too. We drove thru a snowstorm (non-roadsticking) on the way north to Bellingham (near Burlington) and another blast on the way south, this one south of Mt. Vernon and in north Sno Co.. The hills and fields were all white.

Meanwhile, we're home and have big plans every day. It's the only way we'll be ready for AZ on schedule. Tomorrow the truck goes in the shop for it's going over and I take Mom to the store, bank, etc. Wed. the trailer goes to Les Schwab for the tire check, pack wheel bearings and brake check. Thursday we go to the lawyer on Capital Hill to sign final drafts of the new updated versions. The glaring gaps in our paperwork became apparent when Tom had the life-threatening aneurysm surgery. We're trying to set up a trust so that if one of us is incapacitated, we'll spend down only half the value of the estate for medical care, and save half for the survivor or survivors. This lawyer is a very talented lady. Tom had signed some new POA's prior to his surgery. These papers will finally complete the deals.

Friday Mads and Everett School District grandchildren will all begin spring break. Friday the 13th of Feb. does not bring spring to mind since snow is in the forecast for tonight. Maddy, Papa and I are going to a movie. She wants to see something about dogs.

L & A celebrate their 1st anny next week. Celebrate!

Cliff and Linda meanwhile celebrate 40 years on March 1st.

We have a couple Sons of Italy meetings next week, both Sno-King and Mille Cugini.

The Rainier Ave family is heavy into music. New guitar for MJ, new bass guitar for Chloe, Mama sings base and beats the drums, Papa sings tenor and pounds the keyboard. Can't wait to hear them practice!!

We'll see Joe and Karen at the Bonita Mesa in March. Chris and Scott might visit, too. Maybe L and C (I hope), and Bob and Coco. We should have fun!!

Tom's Party

The 29th of January was Tom's birthday so we planned a combined birthday/Super Bowl party for February 1st. The company and the food were outstanding. We had a blast!

Madison couldn't figure out why everyone had to be quiet for the commercials.

Tom made nummy clam chowder first thing in the morning. Pat had stayed overnight so they both got up waaay early. Then I baked a yellow birthday cake with chocolate frosting (Tom's favorite and what his mom used to make for him), followed by the baking of lemon bars, both of which were later served with chocolate and vanilla ice cream.

Meanwhile, Tom wrapped all those Lil Smokies with bacon slices and dipped them in brown sugar, very time-consuming. But well worth it!! And followed that up by mixing up a batch of hot chicken wings. Also very nummy. And, we made the layered taco dip with hamburger, sour cream, lots of shredded cheese, tomatoes and olives. This was scooped up in Frito Scoops.

Pat sliced up a mile-high pile of salami, sausage, pepperoni and cheeses. GG brought a huge container of fresh Snickerdoodles and deviled eggs. V & F made the cream cheese platter with baby shrimp and cocktail sauce with Ritz crackers (which lasted only 30 seconds). C & D brought a huge fruit platter and E fixed nummy marinated mushrooms (which lasted only 20 seconds). She also brought Girl Scout cookies. (She is still taking orders.) Al supplied a giant tray of croissant sandwiches with roast beef, turkey and ham. Delicious. But Poor Pat.

Until yesterday, Pat had done really, really well on his diet. And he refused to eat a lot of dishes but, in some cases, the tantalizing treats overcame his willpower but not much. He really tried to be good. So far he has lost close to 100 pounds. Congratulations, Pat!!

Meanwhile the Cardinals almost made an recovery, only to lose the game in the last minute by an outstanding reception by Santonio Holmes. And, I think we decided the Dorito commercials were the best, the one where he crunches the chip and the woman loses her clothes except for the sexy red underwear including garters. Dorito had another good one, too, but I'm now drawing a blank. I also liked the Budweiser horses.

Tom got some good loot for his birthday. The sedoku (sp?) knives he's been wanting, the next Cornwell book, and much more. Thank you one and all. The pleasure of your company was the greatest gift. We do truly enjoy being surrounded by our family and love!

I gave Tom a new Berretta shirt from Orvis and a new WEB Griffin series of books to keep him busy while sitting in the sun in a few weeks. We made the reservation today for Bonita Mesa RV Park in Yuma, February 24th thru April 1st. The Olszewski's are there already, waiting for us, and emailed today to say it was 80 degrees. Awesome!!

Oh, and I should mention that on Friday night we ran into my brother and his wife, R & P, at the Big T C in north M'ville. The 30th was P's birthday. They were there with P's sister Tammy and her husband Glen. Tammy won big!! I did not. We spoke of our brother S in Apache Junction hoping he has better weather and luck than us!

More soon as we try to finalize paperwork and close up shop for a couple months. Lots to do.

It's Baaaa-aaack!

It's afternoon now and it's mostly melting but we do have
a few flakes still drifting down!

On V's twitter she says they are waiting for their 1st plane
home and they had a healing family reunion. I can't wait til
they're safe at home once again! Their arrival here is scheduled
for midnight-ish.

The doings 2

The Rainier Avenue family is in NO to honor father Marty. Our thoughts are with them.

The Fried Avenue family is on their way to Maui and I'm terribly jealous.

The Everett Avenue family is home from Elmer City without their banjos! Mads is doing better today, went to the doc, blood tests, and back to school. I think she missed her mom and dad.

The Wilbur Highway family is skinny but has upset tummies. Alli has gall bladder surgery scheduled for Friday and our thoughts are with her.

The Priest Point family is making plans to head to Yuma and points south and east come mid-February. Bonita Mesa RV Park is the destination, followed by points further east, maybe San Antonio?? We hope to meet up with the Oshevskees and maybe my brother and sister; maybe the Nebraska connection, too!