Friday, March 29, 2013

Enjoying time with friends.

As time flies away we're trying to spend time with our friends and family  here in Tucson along with dining one more time at our favorite restaurants and hoping they don't get torn down while we're away for the summer.
A few years ago we discovered a nice restaurant with good food and a great "Happy Hour".  Just in case you're not from Illinois, "Happy Hours" are illegal in Illinois.  The restaurant was called "El Paso" and was located at the corner of Broadway and Craycroft.  We enjoyed going there with our friends, Gerry and Larry for appetizers that would be our meal.  Then one year we came back to find it torn down with a different restaurant being built.
Last night was a trip to Guadalajara for "Happy Hour".  With a couple dollars off the appetizer, it's a great meal.  Believe me there's plenty of food on the plate.  Ron and I each ordered one appetizer plate but our friends, Gerry and Larry, shared one.  There's looked big enough to fill both of them and as Ron and I split our plates we both had two different items to eat and were both full.  I had jalapeno smoked bacon wrapped around large shrimp.  Yum
I think we all had plenty to eat and I know we enjoyed the company.
No other plans for dining out but I'm sure there will be more before we leave.  We're getting used to these great Southern Arizona restaurants

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Easter outfit shopping???

For the first time in decades I decided I'd like a new outfit for Easter.  In my mind it was a pastel flowered dress and hat and maybe even new shoes.  I was so looking forward to it that I could see it in my mind's eye.  Guess I forgot to tell the retailers.
First stop was Macy's.  No dresses that I would wear, neck plunged to low.  Very few skirts and most of them were the "high/low" fashion.
I managed to find a couple skirts and blouses that I liked and headed to try them on.  Well, standing in line was next order of business.  Once I got in and tried on the things I brought with me I found my choices to be to small, to large, to long and to big and to big.  The choices I had were two.  Either  get dressed and go get different sizes and wait in line for another room or get dressed and put the ones I tried on on the not taking rack and leave.  I choice the latter.  I don't know what there was so many people in Macy's but I'm not the type to take on big crowds so we walked over to Dillards.  We walked the entire send floor looking for women's clothing.  NO skirts......
There went my perfect Easter outfit.  So we went to the send hand store across the street from the mall and bought used bed sheets to place over our furniture when we leave.  Less than thirty dollars for four king flats, 2 twin flats and 5 pillowcases.  Guess I made a good deal.
We made the choice of "Sweet Tomatoes" for lunch and so did everyone else in Tucson or so it seemed.  We found an empty booth but there weren't many choices and things were low.  No cornbread, soup bowl and soup spoon rack was as close to empty as I've ever seen it, no cheese for the French Onion soup and our favorite staff person who cleans off tables and brings you drinks wasn't there today.
Guess I'll try my luck at bingo tonight and see how that goes.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Winding Down

Time in Tucson has flown by.  We've enjoyed our new place, old friends and new adventures.  But, as with all winter visits, it's getting time to head back to Illinois.
I've been keeping that move out of my head but now it's time to start getting ready.  We've dug out the sheets and pillow cases we used last year to cover our furniture and lamps.  A run thru the washing machine and a recount to reveal we need to make a trip to the resale shop for more sheets.  We've added a couple more pieces of furniture that need to be covered;  a futon and a book case.
We're going to leave the electricity turned on but we're still trying to use up as much of the frozen food as possible.
Then there's going thru clothes to pack what's going back and staying there next fall.  To many clothes in the closet.  Maybe a couple pair of shoes to go too.
For now, we're going to enjoy our last couple weeks here and hope the weather in Illinois improves soon.
To our two friends who had surgery today.  Hope you're both up walking soon with one new knee and one new hip.

Friday, March 22, 2013

Chocolate Sheet Cake

We still haven't gotten important things duplicated so we're still in a position of what we want is in Illinois when we're in Arizona and visa versa.   At least that's my problem when it comes to recipes.
We invited Ron's brother and sister in law over for dinner last night.  We've eaten so many meals in their home it was past time to reciprocate.
I made the decision of baking a ham since it was one of the big items we need to get out of the deep freeze before we leave.  Mashed potatoes is almost everyone's favorite and green beans was one of the veggies Wayne said he liked.  I'd seen fresh green beans in the store so I figured I'd get out my new pressure cooker and make some old fashion green beans with bacon.  Since I'm one of the few who isn't a big potato eater I also added my "famous" pasta salad to the menu.
What was left was dessert.  Well, Ron suggested Texas Sheet Cake.  Since I knew I had all the ingredients I seconded that suggestion.
Problem.....I didn't have my recipe for Texas Sheet Cake in Arizona.  I tried the internet but all the recipes I could find had sour cream in them and I knew mine didn't.  I was about to give up when I decided to check out the two new cookbooks I recently acquired with Ree Drummond recipes   Sure enough she had one she called Chocolate Sheet Cake with appeared to be all the same ingredients I remember but as slight change in preparation so I decided to give it a try.
The results was a very pleasant surprise.  Her way was easier and faster.  I may become one of her fans if the rest of her cook books are equal to that recipe.
Dinner went well.  Somehow the ham was dry.  I covered it with aluminum foil and cooked it just like it said on the covering.  We all ate well and then retired to the living room for more talk.  The evening flew by.  Just as they were about to leave Ron remembered we had taped a TV show we thought they might enjoy.  "American Bible Challenge".  They stayed thru the commercial edited version and seemed to enjoy it too.  We had watched it last year and had hoped the return would be as good and it didn't disappoint us.
BTW, couldn't find a fresh green bean in Pima County so I settled for canned green beans but I still doctored them up.
Had a great evening and we will definitely do it again.

Monday, March 18, 2013

46 years ago.

Doing a lot of thinking today about 46 years ago, the day my son was born.  I lived in Bruning Subdivision outside of Lockport, IL.  St Patrick's Day was on a Friday so we had our friends, Caryl and Larry, over to play cards.  They had left and my husband decided to stay up and watch something on television while I decided to go to bed.  Glad I did cause I got a couple hours sleep.  I awoke around midnight with labor pains.  I knew what they were because I already had had another child, a daughter.  We made two calls....one to the doctor who said to start heading to the hospital and the other to my parents to let them know we would be dropping off their granddaughter.
Time flew and my son was born before daybreak.  A perfect specimen at 9 lbs 2 oz.and 21 inches long. When I called my friend, Caryl, around noon she couldn't believe I'd had the baby since they left our home.
He was a good child, loved to sit on a rug and play with little cars and trucks. I can't believe that was 46 years ago.

Happy Birthday Bob.  You have a wife and children now but you'll always be my son.

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Warm Wednesday

Tuesday was just perfect weather.  Used the ceiling fans in this room and the living room but sitting on our patio was comfortable with a slight breeze.
We had surprise company yesterday.  Our friends Gerry & Larry stopped by to check on Ron and our Swamp Cooler.  Larry had read about the  episode in my blog so he decided to stop by and check us out.  We had a great visit with them both.  Now that we live in opposite ends of the park we don't see each other as much as we used to.  We seem to have an endless supply of things to talk about even though our ages are slightly apart we have the same type of upbringings.   It was good to see that the older of the two, Larry, was doing really well from his knee replacement surgery.  So well, in fact, that's he's talking about having the other knee done next year.

Today is going to be a sightseeing day.  We're going to try to get up on top of "A" mountain.  It's really Sentinel Mountain but since someone, many years ago, place a giant letter A for the University of Arizona on top and over they years they've kept it painted red and white for the university colors it's become "A" Mountain.

Just got a page that white smoke came from the Vatican.  Even thought I have to interest in that religion I'm still curious to see whom they pick.

Well, they picked a new pope from South America.  Quite a change.

We're back from "A" Mountain but they painted it green.  I presume for St Patrick's day.  The A sure is big.  We had a great view of the entire valley of Tucson.  Glad we finally made the trek up.

Monday, March 11, 2013

Mundane Monday

I sometimes think of Karen Carpenter on Mondays but mostly The Mamas and the Papas.  Now that I've revealed my age.
Today was a busy day, not busier than the normal month of March but busier than the other Mondays.  
First was breakfast, check bank accounts and generally do my computer things.  Then it's get washed up and dressed.  Just as I walked back to the front of the mobile our friends Marcia and Lonnie pulled in.  Lonnie had told Ron he'd help him hook up the "swamp cooler".  Don't ask me the proper term for the cooler that sits on top of our mobile and makes us comfortable cool till Monsoon Season hits.  Then nothing but a good old or new central air conditioner will do.  I know it's hooked up to our water source and the furnace.  What I didn't know was that lime and calcium deposits build up in the duct work.  Marcia and I were setting on the couch chatting when things started flying at us from the vent over our heads.  I got up and ran down the hall screaming at Ron or Lonnie, which ever one would answer, and neither one did.  I opened the back door and continued screaming till Ron told me to shut it off.  Like I know what "it" was and were to find "it".  Since "it" was on the wall by the back door I found it without further screams and hit a switch that was in the on position.  
I forgot one little tidbit.  Ron had gotten up early this morning, dusted, swept, mopped and vacuumed for the anticipated arrival of Marcia and Lonnie.  
So Marcia, Lonnie and I went and sat outside while Ron re vacuumed the house.  But we forgot that since I turned off the blower there was probably still stuff in the duct work.  Marcia and Lonnie left, we ate lunch and I went off to ladies tea and cookies.  
When I got home Ron had old sheets on the floor opening up the vents in the ceiling and using a shop vac still vacuuming.  Every flat surface in the mobile was covered with whatever was in the duct work.  I'm wondering how much of it effects my allergies I've recently acquired.  
Tomorrow is coffee and donuts and quilting.  Sure hope it's a quiet day.      

Friday, March 8, 2013

Catching up again.

I've started this blog a few times today but every time I put my fingers on the keys, someone interrupts me.  He's doing dishes now so maybe I can get this typed before he walks by.

We've been hanging around the house lately but we did make it to Patagonia last Saturday.  It's definitely not what I expected.  When I got the notion that the town and the lake were all one and that they had boat rides around the lake, I don't know.  The biggest shock was it wasn't free nor was it big. The right to see the lake definitely wasn't worth the $15. we paid to drive in, eat our lunch, look for souvenirs, and leave.  The drive itself from Tucson and back was very beautiful.  There was even snow on some of the mountains.

Last night we had a very nice visit with our friend Marcia and Lonnie.  We spent some time in the beautiful home and got to see Lonnie's latest triumph, a huge grandfather's clock made of walnut.  Someone had bought the kit but never attempted to put it together so when they died, a son sold it to Lonnie.  Some of the pieces were missing and some were water damaged.  We saw it in the box last year and this year it was proudly displayed in their living room.  He's a genius at restoring old wooden clocks.

 .We've had a non Tucson type day.  Warm most of the time with the sun going behind clouds and then popping out.  Rain on the back half of our mobile but not the front.  Pouring down rain on all of it..  Blew the skirting from around one side of the lady across the streets park model.

Ron got a call from the Food Bank wanting help today so he went for awhile this afternoon till they got rained out.  It seems they can't have fresh fruits and vegetables anymore so they had to do some rearranging of the other items.  If you ask me, and I know you will, they have a Micky Mouse operation going on.  They spend more time moving things from one storage unit into the next.  Now the health inspector says no more fresh fruit and veggies till they get refrigeration.  DUH.