December 7, 2012

Desert Sky

I spent the entire morning in bed resting after a horrible nights’ sleep.  By lunchtime I was feeling a little better so we went around to a few different stores gathering items for a Christmas package to my son Ryan who is stationed in Afghanistan.  We had picked up a large flat rate box from the Post Office and some custom declaration forms the previous day.  When we got back home I started filling in the info on the forms and noticed that each and every item had to be entered and the form only had 4 spaces so I was going to need more forms than I had.  We took another ride to the Post Office to pick up more forms.  Then back home I had fun trying to squeeze everything I purchased into the box.  I managed to fit it all except one paperback book so that was eliminated. 

I want to include some handmade cards the twins are going to make so I won’t be able to ship out the package until Monday.  I hope he will get it in time for Christmas.

We took a ride to my daughter Renee’s house and had homemade pizza that her partner Deb made.  I was a little reluctant to eat because of how ill I was the night before but the aroma got to me and I took a chance.  THEY WERE DELICIOUS!  She made a plain cheese pie and a white pie with feta and spinach. 

The twins were at a sleepover so we were able to watch an r-rated movie and settled on Bridesmaids.  It was very funny.  I am really enjoying this time with family and am cherishing every moment. 

December 6, 2012

Desert Sky

LAZY DAY.  Didn’t get out of bed until 10am.  Spent a little time on financials and then just relaxed.  It was awesome!  BUT it didn’t end so well as I was very sick either from something I ate or a bug I picked up.  Being so miserable makes me appreciate that mostly I am in good health.

December 5, 2012

Desert Sky

We set the alarm for 7am because we planned on going to Lost Dutchman’s State Park for a guided tour that was scheduled for 9am.  We paid our $7.00 per car daily use fee and drove to the Cholla Parking lot where the hike was going to originate.  We were surprised to see there was a large group of at least 25 people already assembled and it was obvious from the animated conversations that they all knew each other.  By the time we put our boots on and got our hydration packs and trekking poles out of the trunk, Lynn, our hike guide, had arrived.

 

She had us gather in a circle and one by one introduce and tell a little bit about ourselves.  I had been correct about the group knowing each other.  I found out they belong to a club that meets to hike on Wednesdays. 

The Lost Dutchman State Park has several trails that lead from the park into the Superstition Wilderness and the surrounding Tonto National Forest.  The topic of the hike was Medicinal Plants of the Sonoran Desert.  We learned that the desert ironwood is the tallest tree in the desert reaching heights of 15 to 25 feet and plays a pivotal part in the survival of other plants and animals by altering the environment around itself and creating a micro-habitat.  The Teddybear Cholla, so named because of its appearance, has a central trunk from which sprout many spiny branches.  It is often called jumping Cholla because segments break off easily when brushed up against and stick to you. 

 

 

 

The creosote bush is named so because it smells a lot like creosote tar. The bush’s leaves were made into antiseptics by desert Native American tribes.  The hedgehog cactus is a barrel shaped cactus that grows in clumps.  Some Native Americans collect the flower stems, burn off the spines and mash them together.  Sugar is added and then it is baked to make sweet cakes. 

 

The most interesting thing we learned was about the saguaro cactus.  It has an amazing root system.  The saguaro only has one tap root that is about three feet long.  It has two sets of radial roots.  Downward pointing spines make it easier to direct rainwater into the depressions of the cactus.  Many desert animals eat the cactus and butterflies drink the nectar of the cactus flower.  Gila woodpeckers can hollow out the cactus for their nests.

When we got back to the parking lot we stopped to eat lunch at one of the picnic bench shelters.  Back on Apache Trail, we drove a little further and came upon a sign with a hiking icon.  We turned onto the dirt road to see if it would lead us some place interesting.  We weren’t disappointed as it brought us past a couple of parking areas for trailheads into the Tonto National Park.  Maybe we will check out the trails next week.

Although we had been to the Goldfield Ghost Town during prior visits to Arizona, we decided to stop and take a few pictures.  It is a cute little touristy thing to do especially with children giving them a glimpse into what life was like in the Old West. 

In the late afternoon we took a ride over to my daughter Renee’s house and played Clue with the twins.  They are only seven years old but are very good at the game. (Better than their Mema)  Shortly after Renee got home from work we had leftovers from Sunday night for dinner (The pasta and meatballs had been great on Sunday but they were even better tonight). 

We were home by 8.  Because it gets dark so early it seemed like it was much later.  We watched a little TV and went to sleep by 11, tired from our full day. 

December 4, 2012

Desert Sky

We didn’t get up until 9:30 and were too tired to go on a hike today.   We lounged around, had a very late breakfast and then took a ride to the Apache Junction Chamber of Commerce to get some maps and brochures for local attractions including good hiking trails.  It turns out we couldn’t have selected a better place to stay as we are surrounded by places to hike.

After leaving the Chamber we stopped at the Post Office to mail out a letter and then drove on Apache Trail past Goldfield Ghost Town.  We didn’t stop there because we have already toured there in the past.  We continued on until reaching Lost Dutchman State Park.  I had read on-line that there was a guided hike scheduled for Wednesday morning and we wanted to see where the park was and how long it would take us to get there. 

There is a $7 per car day use fee that was waived when we explained at the entrance booth that we just wanted to take a quick drive through.  We found the parking lot where the group is going to meet and figured out that we would only have to allow a half hour in the morning.

On the way back from the park we saw a sign advertising The Dutchman’s Hide Out.  It looked interesting so we decided to check it out.  We went up and down hills, passing beautiful adobe homes until finally coming upon the restaurant.  We continued on the road until it dead-ended and we made a u-turn and retraced our route. 

After a quick stop at Walgreens to return the DVD we had rented (and picking up another one entitled Hope Springs) we returned home where I spend an hour or so looking over all the brochures we had picked up at the chamber. 

I was feeling a little lazy so I made BLT’s for dinner.  We watched the movie we rented that was billed as a romantic comedy, but aside from some funny lines and moments I found the story behind Hope Springs to be sad.  It is the story of a middle aged couple who attend a week of counseling sessions (with Steve Carell playing a serious part) in an attempt to reconnect because, after 30 years of marriage, they have drifted apart.  Meryl Streep as the wife was awesome and Tommy Lee Jones was good as well as the grumpy husband. 

December 3, 2012

Desert Sky

I decided to cook a pot roast today in the slow cooker.  We hadn’t made plans to do anything so all day long we smelled the roast cooking and it was making my mouth water.  We did take a ride to Wal-Mart in the afternoon to get an oil change for my car as it was already a couple of thousand miles overdue. 

We also stopped at Pet Smart to pick up cat food and a new harness for Pumpkin.  We already have a harness for him but he managed to get out of it so I wanted to try one that I saw advertised on TV.  They didn’t have one for cats but did have one for small dogs so we bought that one.  But when we got home and tried it on the cat we found that he would be able to just pull it off over his head. 

I sat outside reading for a while until the sun went down and it got too chilly.  When the pot roast was ready, I made some mashed potatoes and backed dinner rolls in the convection oven.  We were not disappointed with the pot roast-it was delicious!  Of course we overate so we took a long walk after dinner.   

Monte has wanted to see The Avengers for some time but we hadn’t been close enough to a Redbox for a while.  So earlier when we were in Wal-Mart and saw that the movie was available, we got it.   It was silly and would not have been my first choice of a rental but Monte enjoyed it-next time I get to choose the movie. 

We were still wide awake when the movie ended at 11:30 and ended up watching a Christmas movie on TV that didn’t end until 1:30am.  We talked about going on a hike tomorrow but I think we are going to be too tired….

December 2, 2012

Desert Sky

After a very lazy morning we headed over to my daughter Renee’s house.  I brought my laundry along (a bonus perk of being nearby to family).  We had a delicious pasta dinner with Deb’s homemade meatballs and sauce.  It was a delight spending time with our twin granddaughters.  Grandpa Monte played a game with Kennedy on his Samsung tablet while I attended a concert in Daphne’s room.  She played the keyboard, drums and recorder while singing her original songs that she makes up as she goes along.  It was a wonderful day.

December 1, 2012

Desert Sky

We had a big breakfast, did some housecleaning and then just relaxed waiting for my daughter Renee and her partner Deb to pick us up.  We took advantage of the twins’ weekend with their dad to go to a movie that wouldn’t be appropriate for them to see, the final film of the Twilight saga.  I was sorry that I had worn shorts and a tank top because it was very cold in the theater. I had brought along a long sleeve pull over top that I alternated between wearing and draping over my legs.

On the way home we stopped at Geno’s Pizza.  Renee and Deb bought a big slice 24” pie!  I never saw a pizza that big before.  We each ate 2 slices that were really equivalent to 4 slices and then complained about being stuffed the rest of the night.  We finished off the visit by watching a DVD, The Rum Diary, a wacky hilarious movie starring Johnny Depp. 

It had been a wonderful visit and I look forward to spending some real quality time with my family.  Renee reminded me that we haven’t spent Christmas together in fifteen years.