Apricity West 2

December 17, 2021, Friday

I thought this young cowboy was going to join the band at the Elk’s tonight, but he must be a roadie for them - his gramps is on Bass. 

December 18, 2021, Saturday

Meet Kathy Bross who hosted a neighborhood Craft Fair today! She was gracious enough to have pots of hot coffee/water with the fixings, as well as a heated pot of delicious hot cider for the crafters. It was quite chilly with some wind until the sun came over the top of her adobe to warm us. Her yard is like a museum with a plethora of teapot totems, accented by wall multimedia murals with adornments along side of them. 

I got to chat with her and found out she has accomplished this creation in just 5 years. Her husband passed away 6 years ago and after a while she decided she needed color in her life.

 

It all began with the frog totem - she had seen similar art while on vacation somewhere and thought, why can’t I do that? And that she did. Each totem is built on rebar with assorted tea cups, saucers, and more which she picks up at yard sales, etc., drills a hole in the center, stacks them on the rebar which is staked in the ground. She has a street corner lot which is perfect to display all of the items she has created.

She built a yellow brick road (which is not yellow) of uniformly sized rocks into various segments taking you into the side and back yards.

Can you find the dragon’s eye? Tail? Claw?

Rich took a picture of the yard so that he could give her a painting of it the day of the fair. 

He was surprised to see that she had already added a new green vine with various colors of flowers and leaves on it by the time he delivered. (Look to the left of the picture below.) With the perfect weather year round here, she is always busy with some new addition and has shaded little nooks and crannies here and there for guests to sit and chat or just enjoy the view. 

 

A FEW VENDORS:

Tom Kern - wood carver

Peggy Derrick - gem and wire wrapped jewelry 

Kathy Benton - intricate jewelry 

Jodi Shannon - infused glass

Ray Derrick - wood carver

I am told that the secret to the vast amount of talent in this group is that they are retired and have the time to focus on their art/craft!

 

December 19, 2021, Sunday

Getting laundry done to pack up for the trip home. Rich made a delicious hamburger soup today for lunch. It is 63 degrees and full sunshine today. Lu and I went for a 1.9 mile stroll around the park. 

 

December 20, 2021, Monday

My last Line Dance class for a while - I sure will miss it. 

 

December 21, 2021, Tuesday

I really wanted to take my ukulele home with me but having a suitcase, CPAP machine (which they don’t count as a bag) and a small pocketbook was the max on how many bags I could carry on. At the last minute I realized I had brought my money belt with me and when I sorted what I REALLY needed to bring, it would all fit in there which allowed me one more bag - my ukulele! Lucky Mom...

 

Rich and I said our goodbyes in Surprise - this is the longest we’ve been apart since we met. (That’s one perk for having a motor home to park in my driveway.) I used the same limo service that John and Eileen use to take me to the Phoenix airport from their house. Driver Wayne and I pretty much shared our life stories and thankfully he noticed a sign that said there was a crash ahead on I-10, so we pulled off and took the truck route and made it in plenty of time. I had a stop without plane change in Midway so easy peasy, right? I decided to get off the plane to use the big restroom and walk around a bit. I did not realized that they cannot let you back on until they pre-board the wheelchairs (7 to be exact) and one blind man. This flight attendant was a true saint with enormous patience and compassion. She escorted them one by one down the ramp to the new crew. On top of that there was a delay due to another flight being late and our new crew was on that plane. So we were delayed about 40 minutes. The pilot was waiting to board as well and we started chatting so I asked him if he could make up some time for us… He did. 

 

December 22, 2021, Wednesday

I tried to get a Covid Home Test Kit in AZ with no success. Sister Cindy found a double test kit in MA for me. When it came time to take it, I was torn. Rich and I were vaccinated last year in Arizona, got our boosters when we got here in October, and wear masks when shopping, so we feel like we are being responsible to protect ourselves and others. Of course, I wanted my family (especially 91 year old Mom and young kids) to be and feel safe. 

But what if I tested positive due to exposure to a sea of people at the airport? I would be spending the entire visit locked away in a room! For a split second I considered not taking it at all, but knew I would never live with it if I got someone sick. So Cindy and I said our prayers and I started the easy process. If the test strip shows pink and blue, it is positive. If it shows just blue, it is negative. I was so relieved to see it blue - I screamed, Praise God - It’s a boy! 

 

That afternoon I was able to watch my granddaughter’s basketball game (8 points) with sister Lily in the stands with my son, daughter-in-law, and her sister. Everyone is masked in Massachusetts - don’t know how the players can breathe, but they still play hard. I put a video of one of Leanna’s foul shots in the email portion. We went to the Locker Room for some eats afterward.   

Back in AZ, Rich went to the North Ranch Light Parade:

December 23, 2021, Thursday

Grandson Zachary was surprised to see me at his front door at noon. We went to Let’s Do Lunch and then went Christmas shopping for Mommy. Then we went to Gramma Dee’s, wrapped gifts and hung out until supper - delicious Mac ’n Cheese and some hearty beef stew with banana bread for dessert. Zach went to his game to support the team even though he can’t play for 2 weeks due to a mild concussion from the last game he played. Jake had been skiing all day and when he and Shannon walked in to the gym, he saw a "random old lady with a mask reach out to him” until he realized it was me. He explained that the building is housing for old people and they come to watch sometimes. He was surprised!

 

December 24 2021, Friday (Christmas Eve)

This year my son, Randy and his family hosted Christmas Eve PJ Party. Kristie decorates the house beautifully and is a great cook and baker too.

December 25, 2021, Saturday (Christmas Day)

Last night Kristie had gift bags ready for us to take home filled with sugar cookies, almond balls, fudge, chocolate cookies, Rolo in sugar cookies, nuts and candies. Needless to say, they were great with coffee on Christmas morn. 

 

Rich’s son, Perry and family

Granddaughter Nora taking a break from Mine Craft

Last summer before we started our trip in October, Rich was kept very busy doing commissioned projects for Christmas presents. Now that everyone has received and been so awed by his work, I can share them with you:

 

Pretty impressive!