good-times-rollin

Sunday, August 11, 2024

Small Joys...

Corona de Tucson

August 11, 2024

Waiting for the sun to come up...

Necessary appointments come and go. Some weeks we have none and others we have too many. This week was the latter with visits to the dermatologist, eye doctor and vet. One biopsy, an eye that is still a work in progress, and a shot to relieve joint stiffness and pain were all marked off the list.

Sweet little Sally waiting for Dr Huang...

I forgot last week to include a photo of Sally's new paw pads. Dr. Huang shared with us in July that she had ordered these pads for her puppy after she watched Sally having trouble with her legs slipping on the floor in her office. They are wonderful as Sally can easily stand up from a laying or sitting position without her feet sliding out from under her when she is not on the rugs/carpet. They are not expensive and ordered from Amazon.

In between appointments, the rest of our week was spent in comfort and quiet at the oasis doing very little of this and that. We enjoyed more rain this week.

At the end of July recorded rain at Tucson Airport was well above normal at 4.48"...much more than was expected and predicted for the entire monsoon 2024 monsoon season

Morning walks have taken on a new look!

Joe and I have enjoyed watching the Olympics. The men's basketball semi-final game and win for the gold had us cheering as well as the women's soccer and indoor volleyball games. Gymnastics, synchronized swimming and diving were spectacular. Track and field events were jaw-dropping...especially the hurdles. Swimming "world" records were broken and a gold medal was given to the first U.S.woman in weight lifting in 24 years...a total of 578 pounds in both her lifts. But the thing that impressed us most this year was/is the heartfelt humility and kindness shown by all the athletes from our country and countries all over the world.

We slept in Saturday morning and to celebrate the Paris Olympics, we decided on French Baked Eggs for brunch.

Eggs are baked in a muffin tin with heavy cream, grated parmesan cheese and salt & pepper to taste. Cooking time depends on how soft/hard you like your eggs.

We also cooked a new to us recipe this week...shredded (cooked) chicken, black beans, corn, sautéed sweet peppers and sweet onion, and cheese quesadillas served with avocados, salsa, olives, sour cream and chips. We will be doing these again!

And the best part...we had leftovers for lunch!

On the family front, our grandson Henry turned 21 years old. This smart, handsome, thoughtful, creative young man will be entering his senior year at North Carolina State this fall...and we are so proud of him !

Our daughter Jill and grandson Henry celebrating #21 !

S-I-L Bill and Henry work on coding on the computer. I don't know what that is, but I hear it makes for late nights and celebrations when problems are solved !

Not many bird photos this week. The photo below is a sweet little bird I can not ID and would appreciate help in doing so...

We still see lots of "teenagers" and molting birds.

The Gamble's still gather.

I love how the moms and dads keep a watchful eye...

We counted at least 12 juveniles...

I'll close with a few things that caught my eye this week...

Friday's sunset

A potted Gaura, Siskiyou Pink, by the patio...one of my favorites...

Sally watching our resident lizard...

Friday's sunrise reflection in the bird bath...

Green, beautiful green...a potted agave on the patio...

The sun catcher in the blanket flowers pot by the patio...

A red ant on the potted Penta plant by the patio...

Blanket flower

And the road home...

Until next time,

HAPPY TRAILS!

Monday, August 5, 2024

Lots of Green with Spots of Color...

August 4, 2024

Cotona de Tucson

Madera Canyon Road

Our only adventure last week was a hike at Madera Canyon. We started our hike at the Amphitheater Parking lot and did the 3 mile hike thru the forest to Mt Wrightson Picnic Area and walked the road back to the jeep. It's not completely shady, but it's a nice summer hike at 5500 feet elevation.

We crossed a mountain spring and sat for a few minutes to enjoy the sound, colors, and smells.

Green was the predominant color...lots of calming shades of glorious green...

with spots of color here and there...reds, oranges, purples.

The manzanita bushes were gorgeous and thick...the berries and bark were quite showy.

We admired the locals...

and savored every morsel of a scrumptious Almond Danish we bought at the Gift Shop while we chuckled at the turkeys, hummingbirds and woodpeckers.

Madera Canyon Road is a favorite. This time of year, it is lined with a mimosa bush that is the prettiest shades of pink. And the Arizona Poppies are blooming too.

And if all that wasn't enough...a black bear cub ran across the street on lower Madera Canyon Road right in front of our jeep as we headed home. I was shocked and even though he paused in the road to look at us, I wasn't even close to having the camera aimed and focused for a photo. He turned around one last time...and a quick phone photo was all I captured.

On the family front, Felix turned 8. How can that be? Not only that, he enters third grade this year.

A celebration on his birth day with his family...

After a big outing to a Monster Truck event with friends and family, Felix had a party at home. He designed and decorated his very own monster truck cake to share.

And Edith is the cutest little cowgirl EVER !

Back at the oasis, our morning walks have also been green with a few spots of color here and there.

We have monsoon season to thank for all the green and colors we see everywhere. I don't think we have gone a week without a storm since monsoon season started. This week was no exception and I found myself running from window to window to watch...the storms (so far) never grow old. One of the several storms we had this week produced the loudest thunder I think I have ever heard.