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

Shake, Rattle & Roll ...!

This week, the weather here has been truly GORGEOUS (well, aside from the odd earthquake - more of that in a minute).  As I write, I am sitting outside in the warm sunshine, cooled by a delicious breeze, and the only sounds I can hear are birds singing and the odd plane passing overhead ... heaven!  If this is winter in Arizona then bring it on, I am loving it!

The week started however, on a slightly more unnerving note.  Around 11.30 pm Sunday night, after just dropping into a deep sleep, I was suddenly woken by a deep rumbling sound and a weird sensation that the room was shaking.  Good grief! What was in that Margarita?!  It only lasted for around 10 seconds or so, and so I decided that it was probably just next door moving their wheelie bin (noisy b*stards) and held the tequila responsible for the weird shaking sensation.  The next morning though, after turning on the TV, I discovered that there had actually been 3 small earthquakes the previous evening in Camp Verde, Arizona (some 60 km NW of here), the largest measuring 4.1 at 11.30!! Holy Crap! Scary stuff!

After half an hour of frantic googling I discovered that generally though, whilst Arizona does have fault lines running through it, they tend not to be very big and don't go off very often (we have experienced similar back in the UK). Phew.  Even so, let's hope that was the last one for a very long time!

That morning I also had my first Physio session for a rotator cuff injury to my shoulder.
"How are you with needles?", the therapist asked cheerfully.

"Sorry, what?!"

Turns out she was 'one of only a few' trained in the practice of "needle therapy". Oh good.  She went on to explain that it was similar to acupuncture, except instead of applying needles to specific areas of the body as in traditional eastern medicine, these were applied directly to the area of pain to cause 'trauma' to the wounded area and encourage the body to start its own natural healing process.  Great.  Sounds like a laugh a minute.  It was actually only mildly uncomfortable and has seemed to help a bit.  Only another 7 treatments to go ... !  **wonders whether you can advertise kidneys for sale on eBay?**

On Tuesday, as promised, Mr B held his 'British Tea Party' at work after encouraging his team to exceed their 'Give2gether' charity goal, and the tea, warm scones, butter, cream & jam were duly delivered and by all accounts well received.  Amazingly,  it was also the first time that some of the group had ever had hot tea! ... I know!  Not sure that it was quite as well received as the scones, but
apparently at least some are now converted and I received some lovely messages from the team afterwards (mainly asking whether they could have the same every Tuesday!)  Well done Mr B!

On Thursday I went along to a breakfast organised by the 'Newcomers' group I have joined in our area.  I had already met a few of the ladies at the scrapbooking group but it was so nice to make more new acquaintances and just hang out together (over delicious French toast with a pecan crust and warm maple syrup in case anybody's interested!).  They are such a lovely group of ladies, willing to share not only their friendship and local knowledge, but also their time and generosity.  One of them has even invited all of us to her home for Thanksgiving dinner as she didn't want us to be on our own for our first Thanksgiving holiday.  This week we also learned that a close friend of one of the group is currently battling stage 4 cancer and as well as having two young teenagers, also has 3 year old twins :(  Less than 24 hours later, emails with suggested menus had been distributed amongst the group and volunteers signed up to provide meals for the family each day for the rest of the month, including the co-ordination of collecting and delivering the same on a weekly basis.  What a marvellous group of women and one I feel privileged to be a part of.   It certainly puts things into perspective and reminds me to give myself a slap when I am sulking because my hair hasn't gone right or I can't find my favourite chocolate at the supermarket!

Have a good week and be nice to each other.

Bev x