Goodbye 2015 ... It's been a blast!

Happy New Year!

Well, what a year 2015 has been for team Barlow!  I can't believe we have been here in Scottsdale for 9 months already ... 9 months!! Wow! Mr B is well and truly settled in his new job and absolute loves it (that's a relief!), Youngest has settled in well at his new school and just completed his mid term finals, scoring a GPA of 3.8 (4.0 is the most you can score apparently so we are super proud of him!) and most surprisingly of all (well, to me anyway), I seem to be busy with something or other every single week!  Between school PTA events, scrapbooking group, events organised by the tireless Bev at the Newcomers group (many of which seem to involve eating - result!) and of course the regular 'field trips' with my friend John (or Bubble & Fizz as Mr B calls us, can't think why) I barely have time to throw in a wash every so often and make sure there's food in the fridge ... ahem.    

Here at Barlow Towers we were all so excited to see Eldest arrive the day before Christmas Eve, as it was the first time we had seen him since we moved and we have all missed him so much.  We have managed to cram in lots of activities as well as some quality family time, including a trip to the Grand Canyon; watching the Phoenix Suns play basketball (badly, I have to say); fun at Top Golf and of course Shopping! All too soon though his visit will be coming to an end and after seeing in the New Year together he will be heading back to the UK once again. **sniffs**  We are already planning the next visit though, so hopefully it won't be long before he is back again.

Talking of shopping, the weekend before Christmas Mr B announced that he was taking himself off for the day to do his Christmas shopping.  Oh God.  The last time he was let loose on his own to purchase Christmas presents, I ended up with 5 sets of hand cream ... yes, FIVE! (Ever since 'Handcream-gate' I have generally just bought my own presents, wrapped them and left them under the tree with the label "To Me, from Me").  When he came back some 5 hours later, struggling under the weight of a mountain of carrier bags, he announced that he had had a lovely time, stopping for a coffee and then lunch ... it won't surprise you to know that apparently he even made some new friends ... :D   I have admit though that this year he didn't do too bad at all and I loved all of my presents! He even chose some new clobber for both the boys (always a risky business) which went down very well. The boy done good.

Of course no Barlow/Griffin reunion would be complete without Mr B taking his fair share of stick from the boys (well, he usually has only himself to blame for that) ...

As the self confessed 'selfie king', he had been going on for days before about remembering to take his selfie stick to the Canyon so that he could take the perfect shot.  This proved to be great entertainment for the rest of us when after all the fuss about not forgetting to take it and then carrying it round awkwardly in his pocket all along the trail, he finally found the perfect spot, only to discover that he had forgotten to charge it up!   Needless to say, whilst he was definitely not amused, the rest of us were all collapsed in a heap of hysterics!

Ben proving that you can get the perfect shot without a 'stick' ... who knew?!

He has also taken a great deal of ribbing over his 'phrase of the week' ... "I can 100% guarantee it." 

Let me expand ...

On Monday, as we arrived at the Grand Canyon, we were still quite a few miles away from the entrance when the heavy traffic slowed to a snail's pace in both lanes, all the way up to the gate.  **Groan**.  Ben pointed out that the other lane seemed to be moving much faster than ours and suggested we might want to move over.  

"No, no ... this lane will be faster in the end"

20 minutes later when we had hardly moved and the other lane had progressed by at least 50 vehicles, the rest of us were inclined to agree.

"I really think we would be faster in that lane ..."

"No, no ... I can 100% guarantee that this one will be the quickest"

After another 15 minutes and another 50 cars had passed, he finally admitted that maybe we might be right after all and moved over.  As we then speeded straight to the gate we noticed the reason why.  The two lanes became 5 - two from the left, and 3 from the right.  Top tip people: if you are ever queuing at the Canyon entrance, get in the right hand lane.  This of course then led to the next dilemma ... 

"Oh no.  Which lane shall I get into now?!"  Panic began to set in as cars jostled for pole position on the grid ...

Finally, we plumped for lane 3.  Clearly, once past the point of no return, it became evident that lane 2 was the one to be in. **tuts and raises eyes heavenward**

It was well worth the wait though and that amazing view looked even more beautiful with the recent dusting of snow (although it was soooooo cold!)

Beautiful!

.... but cold!

On the drive home, we witnessed one of the most amazing sunsets I think I have ever seen!  It looked like a giant fireball! The photo below does not do it justice at all, but considering it was taken from the passenger seat of the car as we were speeding along the freeway, I was quite pleased with it.

Aliens ...!

Later in the week we made a quick trip to Costco to get a new TV to replace the 'bargain' one that Mr B had ordered in the Black Friday sales and which predictably had arrived damaged.  

"You boys will have to squash up in the back a bit because I'll need to put one of the seats down to fit it in"

Ben looking puzzled remarked 

"You won't need to out the seat down.  That will easily go in there."

"Trust me Ben, it won't fit.  I tried it when I took the other one back and I had to put the back seat down to get it in"

"I'll be able to get it in no problem ..."

Mr B now getting extremely narky ... "Ben ... IT WILL NOT FIT! I can 100% guarantee it.  In fact, I can 200% guarantee it!!"

Arrive at car. Open boot.  Ben deftly lifts TV straight into boot, shuts door and looks at Mr B raising his eyebrows and shaking his head.  Cue hysterical laughter :D

Well, 2015 has been a blast!  Thanks for sharing in this year's Barlow Adventures - I really appreciate your company and I can't wait to see what 2016 brings! 

Wishing you all a Happy, Healthy & Prosperous New year!

TTFN

Bev X 

Nearly Christmas it is ...!

Have you been struck by Star Wars fever this week?  We all went down with it in our house, as did many other people.  Not sure what the hype has been like in the UK but over here is has been completely over the top in the lead up to the release of the new film, The Force Awakens! 

Not surprisingly, merchandise is everywhere, but also every other advert on TV has somehow managed to shoehorn in a Star Wars reference and even the Arizona Department of Transport has jumped on the bandwagon, with a whole campaign of Star Wars themed road signs ...

and my personal favorite ...!

So after months of anticipation, we finally got to see Episode VII last night and I was a little concerned that after all the hype it would be a bit of an anti-climax.  I needn't have worried.  It exceeded ALL my expectations. It was AWESOME! (one of the few times that this often overused word is actually warranted!).  I will not comment further as don't want to spoil it for those of you who haven't seen it yet, but if you are a Star Wars fan you will not be disappointed. 

Being the month of both Christmas and my birthday, December has always been an exciting time for  me ... although as a child I was always miffed by the whole combined birthday & Christmas present thing (I'm sure anyone else with a December birthday can empathise!).  

"Could I have a bike for my birthday?" 

"Only if you have it for birthday and Christmas..." (whilst my brother and sister, having birthdays nicely spread out in March & October, were both riding around on theirs on their birthdays)

Consequently, dear readers, as I always went for the two presents option, I never did get a bike and is the reason why to this day, riding one remains a skill I never mastered (think the Friends episode with Phoebe! )  Oh, and if Mr B is reading this ... don't even think about it!  That boat has well and truly sailed.

This year though, December's excitement has reached an all time high.  Not only was it my first birthday in Arizona (well, actually it was in California ... more about that in a minute) and it will be our first Christmas in the United States, but best of all, Eldest arrives next week! *jumps up and down with excitement*  It will be the first time we have all seen him since we left the UK at the end of March and next Wednesday cannot come soon enough!

Back to the birthday ... during the summer, I wrote about the hotel Mystery Shop programme that Mr B is lucky enough to be able to participate in (you can read about that here).  Last weekend we went off to 'test' another one of those at the Hotel Del Coronado, on Coronado Island, in San Diego.  The Del is a historic Victorian building, built in 1888 (historic by American standards - I have a grandfather clock older than that, lol), right next to the ocean and I have always wanted to stay there.  Being able to stay when it was all decorated for Christmas (complete with ice rink!) AND on my birthday was a particular treat! 

Hotel Del Coronado

A little chilly for us ...!

Apparently, it was here in 1904 that America experienced the first electrically-lit outdoor Christmas tree which still stands proudly in the grounds today.

 

... although the sign next to it did make me smile ...

'Elf & Safety' gone mad!  *snort*

We found a couple of great restaurants while we were there, both of which I can highly recommend if you are ever visiting.  The first was Miguel's, a Mexican restaurant just opposite the hotel which our friend John had recommended we try.  We sat outside in a lovely little courtyard (under heaters I hasten to add!), all lit with hundreds of twinkly coloured lights and sparkly holiday decorations.  Delightful!

The second was a very small but quaint little French bistro called 'Chez Loma', which we happened upon down a little side street.  It was a converted Victorian house, with a small bar area downstairs and restaurant upstairs (in what I am guessing used to be one of the bedrooms!).  There were no more than 6 or 7 tables, but the service was outstanding and the food and wine was amazing.  A perfect birthday choice and we will definitely go back next time we are visiting. 

Cheers!

We spent my actual birthday visiting the dolphins, whales and sea lions at Sea World, which to be honest seemed to have lost a lot of its previous appeal but whilst the aquatic attractions themselves were less than spectacular, (I think the reindeer in the Christmas village seemed to draw the most attention) we nonetheless had a fun day and even found another 'Christmas flamingo'!

Having lived so close to Brighton in the UK, one of the things I really miss is being able to walk by the sea and breathe in the ocean, so a highlight of the weekend for me was being able to step out of our room right onto the beach and go for an early morning stroll (obviously leaving The Tween to fester in bed!).  Perfect! 

As I write, Mr B is off doing his Christmas shopping ... always a risk to let him out unsupervised ... and then tonight we are off to another holiday party, and then another at our next door neighbor's on Tuesday.  Phew!  At least now that the Tween has broken up from school for a couple of weeks I can looking forward to a few leisurely lie-ins ... bliss! That just leaves enough time for a flurry of last minute shopping, wrapping and baking before the main event ... and then this time next week it will all be over for another year! 

I hope you all have a wonderful time and you make it onto Santa's 'Nice' list!  

Merry Christmas from all at Barlow Towers!

TTFN

Bev x 

Parties and Pedicures ... !

Happy weekend all!

How are the Christmas preparations going?  Got all that shopping done yet?  

Christmas festivities are in full swing here.  As I briefly mentioned at the end of last week's episode, we were on our way to our first US style 'Holiday Party' ... and what a party it was!  After checking the address, twice, we pulled up in front of a HUGE house, with every available wall, gutter, tree and shrub covered in sparkly white lights. Wow!  It reminded me very much of the house in the film Home Alone (minus the precocious kid).  The front door was ajar, and as we gingerly made our way inside it felt as though we had stepped into a (very tasteful) Santa's Grotto.  It was gorgeous!  After navigating our way to the kitchen, past the violinist playing Christmas carols ... nice touch ... and counters bursting with platters of caviar, pate and assorted cheeses, plus a plethora of tiered cake stands laden with gourmet chocolates ... OMG ... we finally found our hosts and their other guests outside.  More sparkling lights were floating on the top of a brilliant blue pool and a waitress was waiting to serve us at a full service bar set up on the patio.  Again ... WOW! As it was an adults only party, we had left Ethan at home happily ensconced on the sofa with a gadget on each arm, a movie on the TV and a large bar of Galaxy (thanks to his Nan on her recent visit), but even so I was still only comfortable with leaving him for a couple of hours during the evening and so we didn't stay too long.   As it turned out, that was plenty of time, as whilst we did meet a few genuinely lovely people, some were .... shall we just say ... 'very Scottsdale' (plus I was terrified that after a few more glasses of wine I would end up stepping backwards into the pool which was terrifyingly close!).  It was certainly another new experience for us and we really enjoyed it.

This week the day of the 'Mothers Tea' also finally dawned (at 11.30am *rolls eyes*).  Even though the number of attendees was less than half of the 80 originally anticipated, only 32 to be exact (bearing out my earlier theory that most sane people would not want to pay $50 for what was essentially tea & cake in a school library), it was actually very nice, (although triangular shaped scones in Chocolate and Blueberry varieties would never cut it at a British tea!).   Miss South Africa did a great job of pulling it all together, despite the objections from the 'old timers' but was forced to concede on the choice of speaker ...  a lady who came to talk about 'urban farming' ... ugh ... but she had offered to do it free of charge, so we were never going to win that one!  I even managed to convince the lady sitting next to me to try hot tea with milk (which amazingly she had never had before!), after which she declared she would be drinking it like that from now on.  Success!

Right ... must make that appointment at the Nail Salon ready for upcoming weekend in San Diego next weekend (I always dread calling as it is run by a scarily bossy Vietnamese woman who has not quite grasped the concept of customer service...)

"I'd like to make an appointment for a pedicure please... with Vivien if she's in this week"

"OK.  When you wanna come?"

"Thursday morning if possible?"

"Wednesday?"

"No, Thursday ..."

"We do Wednesday"

"No sorry, I can't make Wednesday.  Do you have anything Thursday?"

*much sighing and tutting*. "Ok, 9am"

"I could be there by 9.15 but not before unfortunately"

"Better for Vivien 9am"

*well it's not bloody well better for me!*

"Sorry.  I can't get there before 9.15 ... "

*more tutting and sighing* ...

"OK ... what name?"

"Beverley"

"Ha! You already have appointment Friday!"

"Sorry, what? ... no, I don't think I do"

"Yes you have appointment "

"Erm ... no I definitely don't"

"Yes, yes ... Friday 10.30 ... manicure & pedicure ..."

"No, sorry, that's not me"

"Yes, it is ... your name Beverley?"

"Well, yes, but maybe another Beverley?"

"Oh. Same name. Hahaha". 

Extra, Extra! Read all about it!  More than one Beverley found to be living in Phoenix, Arizona ...!

"Ok, manicure ... Thursday 9.15 ..."

"Er... no ... it was just a pedicure ...?"

"No manicure?"

Oh good grief. I give up.

"Fine. I'll have both ..."  *sighs whilst imagining scary Vietnamese woman smiling to herself with smug satisfaction*

Both manicure and pedicure turned out lovely, in case you were wondering - Vivien does a great job - despite Mr B stepping on my toes not once but twice at our dance lesson the very same day (clumsy oaf)! 

As you read this, we are enjoying said weekend away in San Diego to celebrate my birthday - more about that next week - so if you'll excuse me, there's just time for a nightcap in the bar before we turn in (well it would be rude not to wouldnt it?)

Have a great week and thanks for stopping by, I appreciate your company as always.

TTFN

Bev X

 

Lights, Camera, Action ...!

 Hi there ... and welcome back!  How's your week been? Got that Christmas tree up yet?

As I believe I have mentioned once or twice, 'the Holiday season' starts early here and decorations begin to appear as early as the day after Halloween (and according to one of my American friends, technically it's only early if they appear BEFORE Halloween... yikes!).  Brightly colored lights are starting to go up on the front of houses, trees, bushes, mail boxes ... in fact, if it doesn't move, you can pretty much guarantee it will be covered in lights ... together with huge inflatable Santas, Snowmen and an assortment of other Christmas characters.  The house at the end of our road even has a Charlie Brown themed display, complete with Snoopy sitting on top of his doghouse (so cute).   Apparently,  you can even employ professionals who will come round and put up christmas lights for you.  They even provide all of the lights.  A snip at around $1,000 I was informed by someone in the know ....!

It certainly makes our solitary reindeer look a bit pathetic, although I 'm really pleased with him, and have to give credit to Mr B for managing to get him assembled with all the bits in the right place.  Ethan and I were scared to look as judging from previous DIY projects, we were quite expecting to see it's head on back to front, it's legs on upside down, or as Ethan so eloquently put it "it's antlers sticking out of it's arse..."!

There is a house near to us with a fabulous display of fairy light palm trees, and another with a gigantic christmas tree on it's roof!  Will try and get photos of those for you over the next couple of weeks.  It is certainly beginning to look a lot like Christmas ... everywhere you go.  Someone should write a song about that ...

Mr B and I are keeping up with our dance lessons - we're nearly as good as Anton and Erin now ... alright that might be a slight exaggeration, picture Frank Spencer and Dawn French and you're probably a lot closer - but we're still having fun so it doesn't really matter.  Periodically the dance studio have what they call a 'Guest Party' where you can bring along a friend (or two) for an hour of fun and dancing and then if they want to they can sign up for a couple of trial lessons for a nominal fee.  One of those was scheduled on Tuesday evening this week, and as one of our neighbours had previously expressed an interest in starting dance lessons with her husband, we said we would take them along, arranging to meet for drinks and dinner beforehand.  I was really looking forward to it ... until we arrived for our regular weekly lesson the day before and our instructor Sarah told us that she wanted us to do a demonstration dance at the party!  WHAT?!  A demonstration dance? ... us? ... After guffawing with laughter for several minutes, I realised that she was actually quite serious.  Oh God.  We agreed on a Cha Cha Cha and spent the lesson practicing a short routine which we would perform the following evening ... gulp.

I spent the next morning Cha-Cha-ing round the kitchen, whilst Mr B practiced in his office at work (whilst on a long conference call apparently ... the image of which still makes me laugh out loud!) and then before we knew it we were flinging ourselves the dance floor like a couple of demented rag dolls (fuelled in no small part by the two large glasses of wine I had thrown down my neck with dinner!).  Thankfully, not only did we survive the experience, but I actually think we did a pretty good job (although that may have been the wine again) and it turned out to be a really fun evening.  I wouldn't count on seeing us on Dancing with the Stars any time soon though! 

On Wednesday, my friend John and I (or as Mr B calls us ... Bubble & Fizz ... rude) met up for another field trip to a store called 'World Market' where I had heard they stocked British sweets .... in particular, chocolate!  It turned out to be a real Aladdin's cave with temptation round every corner and I came away with bags stuffed full of loot in shiny gold and silver wrappers.  The grand prize though ... a Terry's chocolate orange (which counts as one of my 5 a day right?).  It's not Terry's though ... it's mine ... and no, I'm not sharing!  Next week's field trip is to IKEA ... can't wait to see what we manage to haul back from there!

I feel like I need to add the word 'permanently' to that t-shirt ...

Finally, last night we all met up with John again who had treated us all to tickets for Las Nochas de las Luminarias at the Desert Botanical Gardens - where the paths are lined with thousands of Luminarias, plus lawn displays and Christmas lights.  It was another lovely evening and the lights were really pretty. 

Thousands of lights set into the hillside

Light sculpture exhibits by Bruce Monroe (a Brit!)

Another of Bruce's creations - all made from plastic bottles!

... and another

John and I also tried the signature drink of the evening (obviously) called The Lumi - which was hot chocolate, raspberry vodka & raspberry schnapps, topped with whipped cream .... delicious!! (Sadly Mr B was driving so he couldn't have one and Youngest wasn't old enough ... shame!).  

Raspberry Hot Chocolate ... sooo good!

As we strolled around the gardens, we came across a storytelling session in the Native American village exhibit area, where an Apache tribesman was telling a 'traditional' story to a group of folks all sat in the dark amongst the candlelit Luminaries ... very atmospheric ... hanging on his every word.  I'm not sure what story he was telling them, but as we walked past the only snippets we heard were something about dogs sniffing each other's arses .... tails falling off ... "and that's how dogs still greet other to this day ..."!!!  All four of us were doubled up in hysterics and had to exit the area immediately.

and of course no Southwest event would be complete without the obligatory Mariachi band ...

Tonight we are off to a Gourmet Holiday party - caviar, cheese and chocolate - at the home of another one of my scrapbooking friends, so looking forward to some more festive fun! Can't wait!

I hope you are all starting to get in the festive spirit and I would love to see some of your holiday pictures as your decorations start to go up!

Thanks for dropping by - see you next time!

TTFN

Bev X

Turkeys, Trimmings & Trees ... !

This week, Ethan has been on 'fall break', which I guess is the equivalent of half term in the UK.  I must confess to finding the timing rather odd though, as term started on Aug 17th and they break up for Christmas in another 3 weeks?!  (If I were being cynical I would say it maybe had more to do with the Rancho staff wanting a few extra days off for Thanksgiving as most other schools seemed to have a week off mid October!).  Whatever the rationale though, it was a very welcome break, especially as Mr B also took a few days off and we managed to cram so much in.  It felt more like a two week holiday! 

On Wednesday, whilst I was having a long overdue haircut, the boys decided they would do their Christmas/Birthday shopping (every year they complain how inconsiderate it is of me to have my birthday 2 weeks before Christmas!).  When I met up with them again for lunch some two and a half hours later, they were loaded down with shopping bags.  Just as I was thinking 'Ooooooh, lucky me!', I noticed that the bags were all Holister ... American Eagle ... Abercrombie & Fitch ... Express etc., (all places they like to shop for their wardrobes).  Hang on a minute ... "Erm ... did you actually buy anything for me?" I joked, thinking they had probably cleverly secreted my presents inside the other bags.

"Weeeell ... **both looking shifty and smiling nervously at each other**... we did look but then decided that you are too fussy and we would probably get the wrong thing so we thought you could go and choose your own....?"  Seriously?!  Hopeless.

Later that evening, we visited 'Zoo Lights', an annual light display featured at the Phoenix Zoo.  I am not sure what I was expecting exactly - maybe a small display with a few pretty lights wound round trees?  What we saw though, completely exceeded my expectations!  WOW!!!  It was a magical display of thousands of coloured lights formed into all kinds of animals and birds (including a moving hummingbird), set to music, covering the majority of the zoo! Really pretty, and made even more enjoyable as we were able to stroll around in comfortable temperatures, free from the cumbersome heavy winter coats that we have been used to wearing at the end of November, which was so nice.  By the time we left, we were all in the 'holiday' mood (which we have come to learn kicks off the day after Halloween and lasts until January!)

Tiger, Tiger burning bright ...

The next day was Thanksgiving - a first for us - and we were all looking forward to experiencing a traditional Thanksgiving dinner later that day, thanks to the generosity of one of my friends who had invited us all to join them at their home.

We began the day though watching the famous Macy's Holiday parade on TV.  Whilst I imagine you can only get a small sense of the celebration on TV, it was nonetheless a spectacle to watch (if a little cheesy)  Huge floating balloons, marching bands and colourful floats, interspersed with musical and dance performances, closing with the main man himself ... Santa on his sleigh!  Whilst it must be spectacular to experience first hand, I'm not sure I would want to be watching it live in New York ...   all those people packed in liked sardines along every inch of the route ... ugh! Much better to watch it from the comfort of my cosy bed with a mug of coffee and a bacon sarnie.  

As it was a beautiful cool morning and we weren't expected for dinner until 5pm, Mr B and I decided to take a hike (literally) up one of the mountains close to our house.  It was a lovely way to start the day and quite invigorating, although the scenery became somewhat monotonous being mainly cactus ... after cactus ... after cactus ...  I should just add here that The Tween was nowhere to be seen for either of the above events, preferring to fester in his pit binge watching The Walking Dead on Netflix!

desert hike ... (now a dessert hike would have been much more fun ...!)

And so to the main event of the day, the Thanksgiving Dinner.  It appears that here in the US, whenever you are invited to someone's house for any kind of event, you are expected to bring a dish towards the dinner, as co-ordinated with the host.  I had agreed to bring two side dishes and chose sides that were traditional in our family growing up, and which I have continued to serve every Christmas dinner.  As someone else was already bringing the sprouts (!), I chose mashed carrot and swede (think that may be a Northern thing?) and pigs in blankets, both of which appeared to be unknown to the 14 other dinner guests, and were met with murmurs of 'interesting ...' and 'how unusual... ' as they gingerly spooned it onto their plates.  I must confess to being somewhat intrigued by what to expect as I had seen a few features on breakfast TV over the past week focusing on Thanksgiving dishes, which included sweet potato with marshmallows (one 'innovative' chef  also adding crushed up Butterfinger bars, which is peanut butter covered in chocolate ... pass the bucket!) and my hairdresser telling me how their Thanksgiving dinner is not complete without some equally sickly sounding dish called 'Candy Yams' ... boiled with brown sugar and butter ... Oh good lord!

Everything was quite delicious though, if somewhat different to what we are used to, and thankfully, not a marshmallow covered sweet potato in sight!   There was so much food ... turkey, beef tenderloin, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, mac and cheese, acorn squash, sprouts, corn with bacon, broccoli & grape salad (?), stuffing, cranberry sauce and gravy ... and then dessert of pumpkin pie, chocolate cake & butter tarts (very similar to tiny mince pies).  Phew!  We could barely move afterwards!  In order to accommodate the large number of guests, tables were split between the dining room and the lounge and as the latter had the TV ... and of course the traditional Thanksgiving football game ... the man gravitated towards that one whilst us ladies opted for the former, which seemed to be the perfect solution!

The following day was Black Friday, allegedly a shopaholic's dream and the day that most Americans start their Christmas shopping.  Personally, whilst I LOVE to shop, I couldn't think of anything worse than fighting with crowds of frenzied shoppers, high on sweet potato & marshmallows and so aside from popping down to the Guitar Center with Ethan to choose a new acoustic for his Christmas present, I did all of mine from the comfort of the sofa ... all of the bargains - none of the crowds, perfect.

Another busy week lies ahead with I think only two free evenings between now and next Sunday!  The 'holiday season' is well and truly underway here - decorations are up and twinkling lights are everywhere you look.  Also, the 'holiday party' invitations seem to be arriving thick and fast - we can't keep up with them all!  (I think perhaps inviting the novelty British family is a thing this year!) Still, we're not complaining.  We wouldn't have it any other way!

oooh ... shiny!

What are you all up to?  Are you getting into the holiday spirit yet? (and yes, I am aware that it is still November ... but when in Rome ... or the USA ... !

Have a great week and thanks for stopping by.
TTFN
Bev x

Be Our Guest ...!

Hi All ... How was your week?  I seem to have spent most of this week being tortured in some shape or form.  If it wasn't 'doing needles' with my sadistic Physiotherapist (miraculously though, it does seem to be helping and the shoulder is feeling a lot better), it was at school!

In addition to the usual daily drop offs and pick ups, this week I have attended:

• 1 x Committee Meeting for the 'Mother's Tea' event - in case you were wondering, Miss SA is currently 3-1 up due to an opponent 'no show' for the last two meetings :/ 
• 1 x PTSA meeting - a total of 6 parents this time and one of those was seemingly only there to whinge about the upcoming Mother 's Tea ... "the speaker is talking about Gardening?!" ... alright lady, don't get your Manolos in a twist ...  not my cup of tea (excuse the pun) either but  I was outvoted.  Apparently the Celebrity Chef wanted $5,000 and Gardener Lady is free OK?
• 1 x High School Information Night - somewhat informative, but most of the information I had already discovered for myself or gleaned on previous occasions so an evening I could have well lived without (Mr B by the way, was conveniently 'at a meeting' in Las Vegas ...)
• 1 x Fine Arts Showcase - I know they are all someone's little darling and they all try their best but  two hours listening to squeaky violins, farting trumpets and an over enthusiastic drummer, is a lot for anyone to bear (... Mr B was 'on his way back' from Las Vegas and sadly not able to make it, although miraculously he was already at home, unpacked and sitting with a beer watching TV when I got home ... funny that).  I do have to say though that I was very impressed by one young man from the High School who performed an excellent contemporary dance number ... or maybe I was just grateful for a break in the death by orchestra programme ...

the lovely Lucille! (centre front)

On Friday evening we were invited to a neighbour's 'Housewarming' party.  (A bit odd I thought as she has lived there for 3 years apparently, but has now bought the property instead of renting, so I suppose it still counts).  We weren't really sure what to expect as this was our first US style party, but it actually turned out to be a really fun night, well for Mr B and I.  There were at least 25 other neighbors there, but sadly for Ethan, all were either our age or older (well, OK, most were a lot older!) and so after doing really well for the first hour, repeating his name, age and what school he went to at least 20 times over,  he decided he would rather throw himself at the mercy of the coyotes and havalinas than endure another two hours with 'a bunch of old people' ... charming ... and so walked back home leaving Mr B and I to get further acquainted.  I have to say they were all a very friendly bunch and I got on famously with one lady in particular.  Her name was Lucille, she was an Italian pastry chef and danced a mean Charleston.  Nothing unusual about that you may be thinking.  Except she was 94 years old (95 next week), lived on her own, still cooked every day (she brought pastries and homemade chocolates to the party) and had a wicked sense of humour!  She was absolutely amazing.  I hope I am as spritely as she is when I get to that age!  She has invited me round for a coffee and I will definitely take her up on it - I bet she has some stories to tell!

At the Farmers Market

Today, we spent a lovely morning wandering around the Farmers Market in Old Town Scottsdale and  exploring a local Art Festival.  I still have to pinch myself at times, especially as we stroll along under bright blue skies bathed in warm sunshine ... at the end of November! It's days like today that remind us why we moved here.

... on a Mission!

Native American Sculpture

The 'holiday season' seems to have kicked off in earnest now and the shops are full of everything Christmas and lights seem to be going up left, right and center.  

Seriously?

We have also been invited to lots of dinners and parties over the next few weeks (lucky us!), starting with Thanksgiving dinner next week which will be a first for us.  We are all looking forward to experiencing the holidays 'American style'  - trying more new things and making more new friends.  Bring it on! 

Hope you all have a good week and thanks for stopping by!

TTFN

Bev x

Rest, Relaxation and ..... Robots?!

This week, Mr B's Mum, Mary, came to visit from across the pond and it was lovely to see her after almost 8 months!  (it was equally lovely though to see the two jars of Bisto Best gravy granules, Sainsbury's Mincemeat and large bar of Galaxy ...)

In addition to various shopping excursions, a card making class, and time lazing by the pool, we also spent a very pleasant morning at the Desert Botanical Gardens this week.  As well as the impressive display of cacti, succulents and other native Sonoran plants, we were also lucky enough to see lots of tiny hummingbirds sipping nectar from fiery trumpet shaped blooms and the odd butterfly or two.  One of my favorite birds and so beautiful to watch (but much harder to capture on film!)

Happy Hour for the hummingbirds!

On Friday, it was off the the Arts & Crafts Festival at nearby Fountain Hills.  This was a HUGE festival with all kinds of art and er ... crafts... for sale.

Fountain Hills Arts & Crafts Festival

My favorite though, was a local artist called Alexi Devilliers who makes robots from empty food cans that have been used to feed the elderly and homeless.  The proceeds from the sale of his Tin Can Artworks go to purchase more food for the homeless from which he makes more tin can art, so he can purchase more food for the homeless ....  you get the gist.    I kind of like that idea :)  Here's a link to his website Alexidevilliers.com if you want to check out his story.

Some were even turned into functioning lamps and I was really tempted to buy one for Ethan to have on his desk in his bedroom.  Mr B however, added a note of caution, warning that he might find them too 'freaky' (he has a thing about clowns) and so I decided to wait and show him a picture when we got home first.  I could always then nip back and buy one over the weekend.
*Later that afternoon ...*
"Look at these robots ... aren't they cool?!"
"Er ... yeah, I guess ..."
"Would you like one as a lamp for your bedroom?"
"Eurghhhh No! ... It would be watching me all the time ... Freaky!"
**Tuts and raises eyes heavenward**  Oh well, I tried ... I thought they were really fun and particularly fell in love with 'Kevin'.  I may go back and buy one anyway!

Kevin

OK, I suppose this one is kind of freaky ... Lol!

A few days earlier, whilst out shopping with Mary, we had seen a lady pushing three small dogs around a shop in a pushchair (or stroller depending on which side of the pond you live! ... hope that meets with your approval Richie?!)  At the time I wondered whether perhaps they were old and arthritic ... or incontinent?... and she was maybe worried about leaving them at home on their own (yes alright ... even that was a stretch ... if I'm being completely honest, I just thought she was an eccentric old bat).  At the Festival though, I noticed another pampered pooch being wheeled around by it's doting owner, and then another ... and another ... and another! Seriously?  The second hand pushchair business must be booming!  And then we came across a stall selling these ...

'Pet Strollers' ...!

Good grief.  What is wrong with these people?!  Do they not know that if you take your dog out for a walk, they are supposed to ... how shall I put this? .... bloody well WALK!!  I wouldn't be surprised if they aren't dressed up in bonnets and matinee jackets and tucked in with a nice fluffy blanket when the temperatures drops another few degrees.  

Oh America!

TTFN
Bev x