Walking

I have walked daily since the summer I turned 16.  There have been a handful of days that have passed without a good walk in the past 36 years, but they all have good reasons, like birthing twins.  Besides all the health benefits, our views at the ranch are spectacular and worthy of daily time outside.  I took this photo late yesterday afternoon on my walk with Papa. 

Ranch House

 

Our house at the ranch was designed by Guy Peterson, FAIA of Sarasota, Florida.  It has a mix of elements that Papa and I wanted, such as a two lofts connected by a bridge, a "boat" ladder,  6' x 8' steel front door on a pivot, polished concrete floors downstairs, white kitchen cabinetry with grey marble backsplash and counters, stainless steel bathroom vanities, a three story rock tower with observation deck on the third story, garage with steel interior, a big workshop for Papa, and lots of stone work.  The ranch house project was completed within a year of it's start.  I served as general contractor and used local labor.  It is a great place to entertain and to live on a daily basis.  We have incredible views of 9 mountain ranges over 100 miles, and we can't see another house. 

Buck Knob

Papa and I returned to the ranch yesterday afternoon after several days at our Tucson house.  We are blessed to live and have responsibility for this incredibly beautiful place.  We see Buck Knob from the front porch of our house.  These photos were taken in different seasons. 

Tucson "Home"

We bought a home in Tucson in April 2008, to use when we have doctor and dental appointments, early or late flights, and for shopping and enjoying cultural activities.  The new house is about 2.5 hours from the ranch.  We are the second owners of this home, built in 1979.  It was still in it's original state when the purchase was completed.  Since then, we've had the entire house and guesthouse painted inside and outside.  We had ceilings replaced in several rooms, new Mexican tile floors layed, all new kitchen cabinetry and countertops, all new interior light fixtures, and mostly new furnishings.  We have spent many hours working in the yard.  Papa has built several pieces of furniture.  I continue to enjoy the process of decorating.  Favorite sources of ideas include Veranda magazine, Metropolitan Home, Architectural Digest, and old issues of Western Interiors and Cottage Living.  The clippings I've accumulated over the past 28 years have been thumbed through more times than I can count.  Interesting how "home" is ever evolving.

Chocolate Chess Pie

Chocolate Chess Pie
From Aunt Rhea...

1 1/2 cups sugar
3 Tbls. cocoa
3/4 stick butter, melted
3 eggs
1 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla
dash salt
unbaked 9 inch pie shell

Blend all ingredients and pour into pie shell.  Bake at 350 for 30 to 40 minutes. 
This pie is good served warm or chilled.  Try it both ways!  A family favorite.

Handmade Gifts

Over the past few months, I have been sewing more than I've ever sewn in my life.  I have an ongoing need to be creative.  Today, I shopped for tassels and trims to go with fabric remnants I've had for years.  I'm going to make silk pillows for several people on my Christmas list.  Also on my list, bean bag chairs for Toby and other little ones, laptop sleeves, shoe bags, Christmas stockings, and Blurb books.  Lots to do!  

There are great ideas for projects in many places.  I save clippings from newspapers and magazines.  I "save to favorites" lots of blog sites and other websites, such as http://www.etsy.com/.   I travel as much as possible.  I take photos of things I like and jot notes constantly.  Giving and receiving a handmade gift is very special.

Garden

San Xavier Del Bac

Visiting San Xavier Del Bac on the Tohono O'odham Reservation south of Tucson yesterday, was a reminder of the rich history of the Tucson area.  Celebrated Jesuit missionary and explorer, Father Kino, first visited Bac in 1692. Eight years later in 1700, Father Kino laid the foundations of the first church, two miles north of the present site of the Mission.  Father Kino was born in Segno, Italy, in 1645 and came to Mexico in 1681.  He became famous in what is now northwestern Mexico and the southwestern United States (primarily northern Sonora and southern Arizona) for his exploration of the region and for his work to Christianize the indigenous Native American population. He established twenty-four missions.

San Xavier was built from 1783 - 1797 and is acclaimed by many to be the finest example of mission architecture in the United States.  It is a graceful blend of several architectural styles.  The interior is a dazzling gilt of colors.  Time and the harsh desert weather have taken a toll on the the beauty within the church and the entire mission complex.  The Mission is undergoing restoration to clean, repair and preserve as much as possible. www.sanxaviermission.org/   

Studio Hopping

Over the past two days, I've been studio hopping in Tucson with my sister-in-law, Mary.  I've seen some things that stretched my imagination and provided good ideas for when grandchildren come to visit.  We went to the Philbaum Gallery and went into the glassblowing studio to watch the artists at work.  They were in the process of making 120 vases votive candle holders for a restaurant.  They had an "assembly line" of hot glass.  Fascinating and beautiful!  See their work at http://www.philabaumglass.com/. 

We also went to the Santa Theresa Tile Works.  They had boxes and boxes of little tiny pieces of tile, all cut by hand and meant to be used in mosaics.  I will definitely go back for pieces to use with little ones in a trivet or picture.  Check out www.santatheresatileworks.com/. 

Thank You Notes

Just back from Dallas where we enjoyed time with our son and his family, and my dear friend Linda.  I wrote thank you notes to both this morning.  I have always been a note writer.  This morning, I looked online and found an article on how to write a thank you note at http://themorningnews.org/archives/how_to/how_to_write_a_thankyou_note.php. 

From that article, "People like being appreciated.  Every gift deserves a thank-you. Get yourself some stationery, plain note cards or a selection of attractive postcards (yes, postcards are perfectly acceptable!), and proper postage. Store these items somewhere easily accessible and preferably in plain sight so you won’t hesitate too long or forget too easily. The litmus test for sending a thank you note is simple: Do I live under the same roof as the giver? If the answer is ‘yes,’ you need not write a thank-you note (although a thank-you Post-It might be a nice touch).  There is a six-point formula to the proper thank-you: Learn it, know it, memorize it—and it will never fail you.
1.  Greet The Giver
2.  Express Gratitude
3.  Discuss Use
4.  Mention The Past, Allude To The Future
5.  Grace
6.  Regards
Now get it in the mail. Even if your friends and relatives aren’t of the note-writing variety, be the one who sets the precedent. Thank-you-note writing is one of the loveliest traditions to have been utterly compromised by the information age. Let’s start a movement to revive a little gracious living."

The notecards I sometimes use are the DeGrazia roadrunner.  You can find more DeGrazia at http://degrazia.org/Splash.aspx.  Happy note writing!

Dallas visit

Papa and I flew to Dallas last Thursday and spent four days with our son, Brian and his family.  We enjoyed time with grandaughters Sarah and Emily.  We walked them to school on Friday morning as sprinkles turned to real rain.  It continued to rain throughout the weekend (over 7") and drowned out most of the activities we had planned.  On Saturday, we played games inside and went to the Bass Pro store with thoughts of hunting, fishing, and camping.  In the afternoon, we baked cupcakes and decorated them.  Emily was going to spend the night with a friend, so she decorated several cupcakes to take to the slumber party.  They were yummy!

Golden Rule

There is near unanimity of opinion among almost all religions, ethical systems and philosophies that each person should treat others in a decent manner.  Almost all groups have passages in their holy texts, or writings of their leaders, which promote the Ethic of Reciprocity.  The most commonly known version in North America is the Golden Rule, often expressed as "Do onto others as you would wish them do onto you."   Sometimes I need a reminder of how best to live every moment of every day in deed and thought.

Christianity:  "And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise."

Luke 6:31, King James Version. 

Buddhism:  "Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful." Udana-Varga 5:18

Judaism:   "...thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." Leviticus 19:18

Islam:  "None of you [truly] believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself." Number 13 of Imam "Al-Nawawi's Forty Hadiths."

 

Photo taken of mosaic ceiling in St. Mark's Basilica, Venice, Italy.

Bungalows

I spent much of today in Willcox, the town nearest our ranch.  Much of the downtown is on the National Historic Register.  In 2006, I developed a block in the historic district, locally known as The Bungalows.  The Bungalows were designed in an historic style appropriate to the location, all Energy Star Rated, and with the “American Dream” features of front porches and white picket fences.  I sold all five of the live/work houses within a year.  I stopped by the Rustic Rooster, a cool gift shop in the Red Bungalow, to pick up a baby gift for a friend.  Later, I had lunch with another friend, in the Dining Car restaurant, an old train car across the street from The Bungalows.  I am proud of this project in the Willcox community.

Horseshoes

Since we bought the ranch in September 2003, we make an effort to see as much of the ranch as possible.  We hike and explore on different ridges, canyons, and on top of the mountain.  We find old horseshoes almost every time we are out.  Our ranch has had cattle for over 100 years.  It is rocky and rugged, and the various horses that have been used to check the cattle and work roundups have had a tough time.  The shoes they left behind are reminders.  We bring the horseshoes home and hang them on the Rock House fence.

More Fire and BEAR!

The fire on Bald Ridge burned all night and spread to about 500 acres.  Papa and I rode Bob, our ATV, to get closer to the fire.  It's at least 3 miles from our house and has burned about a mile long swath across the top of Bald Ridge.  We left Bob on the road and hiked about an hour.  With big thunderclouds nearby, we are hoping for an end to the fire soon.

As we were going across the ranch, we were looking for the binoculars that Papa dropped last night on his way home from watching the fire.  I saw them in Javelina Creek near the road, as we drove west.  They were dirty, but salvageable.  On our way back home, just as we were crossing Javelina Creek again, Papa noticed new tracks in the mud in the creek.  They were BEAR! 

Fire

A fire is burning on the ranch, on top of Bald Ridge.   It started a few hours ago, probably from a lightning strike.  We have over 150 cattle in the same pasture, downwind of the fire.   Papa went to check on it, but there's not much we can do, except hope that one of the rain showers nearby will dump some moisture on the fire.  If the fire continues to spread, we will regroup.

Full Moon

At times during the year, a full moon rises over the Winchester Mountains and
treats us to an incredible sight. Last night was one of those. Stunning!

Photos on Canvas

In August 2008, Papa's sister, Mary, came to visit us in Tucson. We went to visit The Desert Museum and happened to go in their Art Gallery. We were all struck by the exhibit as we entered and spent quite some time viewing each canvas. The exhibit was the photographic work of Dr. John Schaefer, a former President of the University of Arizona. All of the photos in the exhibit had been copied to canvas and all were of cacti blooms. Each was more stunning than the last. They were breathtaking!

When we got home, I went online to research Dr. Schaefer and discovered that he founded the Center for Creative Photography, along with Ansel Adams. We have since visited it several times, as The Center for Creative Photography is a research center located on the University of Arizona campus holding archives of over fifty great 20th century photographers.

As Christmas approached and I seek out "consumable" gifts for most of the adults on our gift list, I was searching for an appropriate gift for Mary. I happened to Google Dr. John Schaefer and found that he was teaching a photography class in April 2009 at The Desert Museum. I quickly purchased two places, one for Mary and one for myself, as a gift for her. We attended the class together in April and both of us will say that it has changed how we think of photography and how we think of cacti blossoms.

I emailed Dr. Schaefer after the class for a recommendation for printing photos to canvas. He quickly replied that he has exclusively used http://www.justamomentimages.com/ for years. I had several photos done by Justamomentimages and Papa and I couldn't be happier with the results. We hung them in Tucson this week and love them!

Saguaros

We are spending a few days at the Tucson house. We love the view from the back of our house,
of the Santa Catalina Mountains covered with saguaros. Saguaros have a relatively long life span. They take up to 75 years to develop a side arm. The growth rate of saguaros is strongly dependent on precipitation. Some specimens may live for more than 150 years. The night blooming flowers appear April through May and the sweet, ruby-colored fruit matures by late June. Gila woodpeckers, purple martins, house finches, and gilded flickers live inside holes in saguaros. One of the treats of being at our Tucson house, is waking up to the sounds of birds.