Holy Cactus Bloomer Batman!

I received the most beautiful and largest Christmas cactus that I have ever seen in my life from one of the vendors we do business with at work. How did they know that was the perfect gift to give me?!?! Those hot pink blooms are causing quite some animosity amongst my other plants though...

Snowshoeing in Flag

Peaceful and serene.

The clearest blue sky.

My little orange rabbit.

Tights and Booties

	Lovin' these tights with my gray booties! Just had to share.

Elephant Birth

Below is a video of an elephant being born-unbelievable and unforgettable footage. When I was in school, our main Vet for the animals we worked with, as well as teacher for all of our veterinary classes, was Dr. Peddie. He has worked with many different kinds of exotics and has traveled all over the world to do so. He was involved with a company in California called Have Trunk Will Travel and the birth of their elephants. Elephant births are not a normal every day occurrence for zoos and other facilities. The gestiation period for an elephant is 22 months, the longest of any land animal. TWENTY TWO MONTHS. And we complain about nine months! Can you imagine? A calf can weight up to 250 lbs. and stand over 2 1/2 feet tall when they are born. Elephants generally live for 50-70 years, but the oldest elephant recorded was 82 years.

In the wild, healthy adult elephants have no major predators. They are more threatened by human intrusion and poaching for their ivory. Even though they are a protected species, their numbers continue to decline.

I have watched another video of birth of an elephant and it was much more dramatic than the one below. Way more dramatic! It was a first time mom and she was hobbled, one leg tied down in case they had to get in there and help the baby. From what I was told when I was in school is that first time mom's want to kill the baby immediately after it is born. It's unfamiliar and new and until the hormones from lactating start to kick in, she will kill it. Supposedly, the aunts and other elephants in a group will stand around the baby and protect it until she calms down and can nurse it. After researching it a little, I found a story about a first time mother that tried to trample her baby after it was born at the Oregon Zoo. There is a short video on that link that is pretty interesting as well. So there must be some truth to it. Either way, when I was in school I saw the footage with my own eyes and they barely got that baby out of that pen quick enough. She was flinging the placenta at those that took her baby and had a look in her eyes that the keepers said meant business and they had never seen before. She did calm down and they reintroduced the baby to her within a short period of time and everything went well.

In this video, I don't know if they turned the sound down when she was having the birth but by the way the man was whispering when he narrated it, I think he was in the room with her. She is so calm. You have to watch the entire video to the end. It will bring tears to your eyes. It is something you will never forget, I guarantee you.

Comforters, hot cocoa and jammies-oh my!

I haven't put up any decorations for the holidays yet. It has just started to get cold. I'm afraid mother nature is tricking me like she's done all summer. But I think that it is finally time to put my comforter on the bed. I have a green down comforter that is just the best thing! Down comforters take you back to the womb. I don't remember being in the womb, but it has to be as good as being wrapped up in a down comforter.

The picture is of my mom. She doesn't know I took that picture of her - hi mom! - but it really lets you get a glimpe of her. Isn't she just the cutest in her flannel jammies? She religiously changes her house for the seasons. I stopped by after work and she was putting winter up. It really adds a touch of warmth to a home. Even with just a few things that she had out, I swore I could have been back home in Michigan because it was so cozy. Or maybe because it was twenty degrees below zero in her house. Either way, I need to start putting my winter goodies out and touch my house with a bit of warmth-just like hers.

Birthday Fondue

My post is a little overdue, but I had the best birthday evening! D and I received a gift certificate for The Melting Pot in Scottsdale and decided to use it. Neither of us had been there, nor had we ever been to a fondue joint. It was so much fun!!! Why was it so much fun, you ask?

Maybe it was the ambiance of the jazzy music in the background, the fire crackling and glowing on the other side of the room, the high booths that allowed seclusion, the mysterious hot pot in the middle of the table, or maybe it was just the bottle of wine!

We were there for three hours. It's a slow, relaxing meal experience. So don't go if you have a deadline, like a "movie", wink wink. But I think by far the most exciting was dessert.




You chose what kind of chocolate concoction you want and then bring you out pieces of rice krispie treats, pound cake, brownies, cheesecake, strawberries, bananas, and two kinds of marshmallows. We got chocolate, caramel, pecans and a touch of marshmallow creme. They mix it all at your table and then you dip away. Yum yum yum. I'm not much of a dessert person, but this one was by far the best!

I still have to upload a picture of my fountain that looks perfect by the front door, along with some pictures of my garden. Now that the heat has blown by, the plants have had a chance to breath a little.

I have another exciting weekend coming up. We are going to Las Vegas for a couple of days and I've never been before! I'm excited to catch up with an old friend from Marine World that lives and works there and see all the amazing things. Can't wait for D and I to just get away from it all!

Early Birthday Present!

I have envied water fountains at people's homes while driving around lately. I have really wanted a water fountain by my front door. Now, I can't do an elaborate 5 tier fountain next my humble abodes front door, but I had my eye on one at Walmart and have been watching it go down in price. But not low enough to buy. I've been searching Craigslist every day too. Looking for that perfect fountain.

I have to search no more. D found me the perfect water fountain off of Craigslist. We hopped in the car with dog in the back and drove in traffic to the other side of the world, aka Mesa. He bought me the most loveliest fountain and I can't wait to set it up tonight after work! Here is a picture from the ad. Stay tuned for a picture in my lovely garden!

Paddling at Pleasant

Took the kayaks out late Saturday morning to Lake Pleasant. Went left of the four lane boat ramp since there is a no wake zone area. The water levels were lower than the last time we were out there so the scenery was much different.
It was by far much greener. There were many more birds this time. We saw, what I think was, either a golden eagle or a juvenile bald eagle, blue herons, an osprey, cormorant, ducks and a few other small birds.
At the waters edge, we ran into some cattle and donkeys. Yes, donkeys. D can vouge for me.
Since the water level was lower, there were several areas of groves of trees sticking up out of the water. One little cove had tons of them. D paddled through them like a maze and sat there waiting for me. I was a bit more hesitant. All I could think of was my tip getting stuck in a tree pile mess and I tip over in efforts to free myself. But I paddled in. It was pretty neat back in there.
There was a group of five kayakers toodling around in the same areas we were. They stopped off on the shore to have some lunch. It was a perfect spot to get out and walk around.
The way back we headed upwind. It was a definite workout, but I found a good grove and just kept paddling. Didn't see many fish jumping up out of the water like last time we paddled there but there were tons of people fishing off the shore and in boats.
Good day to get out.

Canyon Lake

D and I went to Canyon Lake this weekend for some camping and a little R and R. It is a very popular campground/lake. It had the closest camping spots that I have ever encountered. Canyon Lake is in between Saguaro and Apache Lake, surprisingly only about an hour from where we live in Glendale.

We took the boat and loaded the kayaks up inside. That worked out well! Set up camp on Friday during the day and in the late afternoon just before dark we took the kayaks out. Found a really neat canyon that just kept going back and back and back. Wildlife was everywhere and we were the only ones in there. The water was perfectly still until we moved over it. It was just breathtaking. We were running out of daylight and had to turn around and go back before it was too dark. We weren't equipped with night lights. Our camping spot was right at the edge of the water so we just walked the kayaks down and launched from there.

Saturday we took the boat out and covered the whole lake. The water was rather cold, but refreshing because the temperatures were still a tad bit warm for tent camping. There were a few other crazy people in tents, but mostly pop up trailers and RV's.

No sooner had we gotten the boat off the lake, a storm blew in. And I mean blew in! Very strong gusts of wind. Everyone pulled together to help everyone with their boats and belongings which were flying all over the place. Thank goodness D staked the tent well because ti would have just blown away!

Due to the storm, we never got to take the kayaks out that evening. The lake has many boaters and we were waiting for a break in the evening with most of them had dispersed.

The wind blew hard all night long and continued into the morning. It cooled the temperatures off, but we didn't get to take the kayaks out one more time. We weren't in the mood to paddle in the wind and have to deal with the motor boats on top of it.

We found a shady spot near the waters edge away from the crowd on Sunday and just relaxed until it was time to pack up and head home.

All in all, it was a great trip!

Hmmm...

Nothing much of importance in this blog today, but nevertheless, it is on my mind.
My hair.
I was ready for a change. I dyed my hair from its recent shades of brown and blonde to a deep,rich auburn brown for Fall. I'm not sure if I like it. My hair stylist says it will fade. One problem: I don't wash my hair every day. You're not supposed to. She should know that! She says that once it wears my highlights will shine through. I'm watching and waiting and so far, I don't see the highlights.
I'm a bit rash when it comes to my hair, so I'm glad my hair stylist understands this quality about me and stalls when I say I want to come in and change it.
I'll keep washing and waiting.

As for my frog from my previous post, we had a bit of a mishap. That night was kind of a blur but I'll explain the best I can. I was watering a few nights ago and he was chillin' on the lawn. We were having a great conversation until I tried to flip the hose to the other side of him so I could finish watering the other side of the yard. Instead of merely popping over to the other side, I rolled him. I WIPED OUT MY FROG!!! I ran over to him to see if he was okay. (Not too sure what I was thinking I could do for him if he wasn't, but it's the thought that counts.) He was fine until I ran up on him and got all in his face and scared him so he took off hopping. Next thing I knew, I heard a thud. He hit my plastic garden hose holder. It was dark over there so I ran inside to get my headlamp. When I came out I couldn't find him. I thought maybe he hopped to the side of the house to get away from me. I began to roll up the hose when all of a sudden I thought "What if he's IN THE BOX!" Sure enough, there he was. I tried to wipe him out with the hose for the second time! I moved the box and he just sat there. I poked him and he moved a little. I decided the best thing to do was remove myself from the situation before I caused him anymore trauma. I can see him now, sitting on his little therapist bed going over the incident in his mind over and over again.
Needless to say, it's been two nights and my lawn is bare. No frog in sight. I'm afraid that frogs are not very forgiving creatures.
Come back!!!

Look

Look who came to hang out with me on the lawn while i watered!!!! He's becomming a regular. I've seen him several times now. At first i thought i was imagining it, because i have no idea where this frog came from. We have never seen one in our neighborhood before. But i guess he couldn't resist my little backyard ecosystem. Last week i had a hooded oriole visiting my backyard and hanging out with the other birds. It was amazing!

My compost bin

I read various gardening blogs and on one of them they talked about making a compost bin out of a rubbermaid container for your backyard. I had went to a party in flag and the guy had his own compost bins which he was using worms as well. D is afraid that there will be a lot of flys and that it will smell but that wasn't the case at all. I was convinced and I wanted to try my own. So here it is. A simple contraption with a recipe inside to make gold for my caliche ridden Arizona soil. I'll let u know how it goes!

One of my favorite sites is yougrowgirl.com. She wrote a book and it has some really great ideas in it. I picked it up on amazon for real cheap. If you will excuse me, I am going to continue reading until the weather is a bit cooler to garden this evening. :)

Solar power to the rescue!

A still shot of the solar globes i got for the backyard. The weather today gave me hope. Hope that days with good weather are almost within reach. I bought these solar globes and they fade into different colors of red blue and green. During the day they are blown glass with tie dyed and swirled colors of orange and yellow and some other colors. I love them!!! And the best part...they were marked down to $5.40 for two in a box! I love a bargin!!! Three cheers for cooler weather!

Testing. Testing. 1. 2. 3.

My 99 cent hat. YEHAW! I sent this from my phone. I can even do a blog from my phone. How crazy is that?!?! Back to the hat...only 99 cents!

Crossing off the list satisfaction

Lots of things going on as of late. I finally finished the dreaded chore of cleaning up my room. I went through my closet and created a reality pile....the reality that I will not be fitting into those clothes anytime soon....and gave them to the Goodwill.

Went through all my drawers, my nightstand and cleaned up beside my bed. I am an avid reader. I love to read, particulary in bed. Which translates to I read and read and read till my eyes can't stay open any longer and then I drop the book or magazine off the side onto the floor. Hence the explanation as to why I needed to clean up beside my bed.

I will make an attempt at trying to keep things picked up and not let it get so bad, but I make no promises. However, the elation from conquering the mess was very satisfying. Which reminded me of a list that my friend Cinday had put on one of her blogs. (And if she is reading this, I have always spelt your name that way, even though the A truly does not exist.) She created a 101 List. She sat down and wrote a list of 101 things she would like to do within a period of 1001 days (about 2.75 years). The theory behind the 1001 days is to beat procrastination by setting a deadline that is realistic. If you click here, you can read about her list. She has accomplished so many of the items on her list. It is very inspiring!

Ever since I stumbled across her list, I have always wanted to make my own. Why I waited so long is beyond me. So, here I am. I am going to work on my own list. Perhaps this is something that you might benefit from as well?

Or maybe you would enjoy making a list of 101 things that make you happy?

Either way, whatever you choose to do will require setting a goal and working toward it. I read this great article about 5 ways to set your goals in stone. Click here if you'd like to read it too.

You know you're getting older when...

...you have one of those pill holders like your Grandma used to use or still does. I have been trying to be good about taking my vitamins each day. I started with a baggie for each and labeled them with a Sharpie. I kept it in my desk drawer at work, but found that if I wasn't at work, I wouldn't take them. A fish oil, Calcium and Magnesium, Vit B Complex and Multi Vitamin.
So I broke down and bought one of those pill holders and set myself up for the week. It fits nicely in my purse and hasn't opened up yet. Now when I open my drawer for someone to borrow a pen, they don't see all my pills and think I have a prescription drug problem.
Two thumbs up!

Hummers At Play

I have a hummingbird feeder at home and it is guarded closely by a somewhat rare breed called a Lucifer Hummingbird. I used to call her Violet, due to her bright purple head but come to find out, she is a he. So now, I just call him Peanut.
I digress.
I wanted to add another feeder at my house so maybe the other birds could get something to eat since the one I have is guarded by Peanut. I bought this little suction cup hanger that adheres to the window and you hang your feeder off of it. I was unable to use at home because all of our windows have sun screens on them and there was nothing for the suctions to stick to. I have a window in my office nook but it faces the back of the shop where all of the trucks are parked and come and go.
I brought it to the office and thought "what the heck!". I wasn't really expecting to get any visitors. Although our company is nestled within a neighborhood with plenty of plants and flowers, it's very noisy and thought they might be too shy if they even found it.
I secured it to the bars on the outside of my window and watched and waited all day. The next morning I had one!!!! I think we were both screaming with excitement when our eyes met.
Ever since that day, I have about three or so hummingbirds that fight for food. They each get a chance to eat. They visit me all morning and then come back in the late afternoon.
I can't tell you how much I enjoy seeing them buzz around while I work.
The other day it was a bit balmy out, and one just hung out on top of the feeder chillin'. It was so cute! That's what the picture is above. It's not a very flattering angle of her. She looks like a sparrow, but it really is a hummingbird. :)
I brought my little video camera to work to see if I could catch them on tape. It's a bit unsteady, but you still get a glimpse at what I see all day.
Enjoy!

Sisters...

Just a few short month's ago, my mom broke down and decided to get a dog. I think it was a very healthy decision. She needed a companion around the house now that Fred has passed. After many months of searching on petfinders.com website she found one she wanted to meet. (Well, she found another one, but waited too long to contact and by the time she did, the dog was adopted out already. But we aren't going to tell Bella, that would be rude.) We brought Paige, my dog, with us to meet the new dog. They got along great, which was a good start. Because Paige and I spend a lot of time at my mom's and if they didn't get along, it wouldn't work. Paige is ten and a half or so and Bella is just a youngster of a year, maybe a year and a half. She's had a hard life. She had She had already had at least one litter of puppies and maybe even one before that. She was picked up by pound and had her babies there. She greeted us as if to say "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? I have been waiting for you!" We went home and slept on our decision.

The next morning it was unanimous, we had a new member to the family. We arranged to pick her up the next weekend and went on a shopping frenzy preparing for her like it was a newborn coming home from the hospital! It truly was exciting. Fred would have liked her. But as we soon came to find out, she wouldn’t have like him very much…

She had a name that just didn’t flow off our tongues, so we renamed her to Bella. The original name started with a B too, but I can’t remember what it was. My mom and I picked her up and brought her back to the house. I was anxious for D to meet her so I asked him to stop by and say hi. From the minute that gentle giant came in the door she ran the farthest away from him she could. It was then apparent that she had been abused. D persisted on proving that he came in peace but by the shaking and trembling of her body she wasn’t buying it. Fred and D are about the same build, so that is why I say she wouldn’t have liked Fred very much either.

Time has passed and she has gotten used to him, as well as other men that come around.

Fast forward to the present evening as I watch her while my mom is in Tucson visiting family with family. Bella has settled into her own and tolerates Paige, but refuses to play with her. She gives her the evil stink eye every chance she gets. There have been a few teeth snarls and couple mishaps, but no blood shed. They have been vying for a spot on this leather dog bed all day, even though there are two beds side by side. Paige has been dominating it and Bella finally got her chance on it. Paige walked right up to her and laid her butt down on that dog bed with her. They were spooning, but only one of them was feelin’ it. She jumped up when I went to get my camera phone.

Ahhhhh, sisters.......

Jenny Lewis Concert

Went to see Jenny Lewis play at the Marque this Saturday in Tempe with Valerie. The Marque took me back to my high school days of watching bands in obscure locations. It was a temperature breaking weekend and I was a bit worried. But they had fans going and the air seemed to move quite well. Music was loud. That has to be the first time in my life that I thought to myself, "I wish I had some earplugs..." I must be getting old.
At the wise age of 35 with a birthday coming up in the next few months, I was still older than most of the college grads there. I was happy to see a few people from older generations as well. And by older, I mean, older than mine.
I can't take credit for the picture. It was just too hot to even wear a bra and underwear, more or less carry a camera!
For the record, I did wear underwear. ;)
It was a nice break of the monotony and had me yearning for another concert to attend. I read on a paper flyer someone handed me on my way in that the Cowboy Junkies are coming this week...hmmmmmm...