Schwinn Bike

After hearing Dr. Besserer on ABC News talk about the value of standing over sitting, I bought a Schwinn stationary bike.  I try to ride an hour a day, when otherwise I would be sitting on the sofa watching tv.  

I'm trying to stay fit!

IKEA

I love IKEA!  Papa and I were in Phoenix today and stopped at IKEA for a couple of hours shopping.  There is so much to look at, terrific prices, and good ideas.  We bought a sheepskin for $29.99.  I'm not sure what to do with it just yet, but it is really soft.  We looked through all the cow hides too.  At $199.99 per hide, we will need a purpose before buying one. 

Metal Arts Village

Yesterday afternoon, Papa and I stopped by the Metal Arts Village in Tucson, a neighborhood of metal arts studios, configured like a village, around a central sculpture garden.  Housing artists in all areas of metal design, construction, fabrication, finishing and installation, the Metal Arts Village is a cooperative working and teaching arrangement between artists with different talents to design and create unique pieces of metal art.  The owner/founder/designer of the Metal Arts Village concept happened to be there and we chatted with him for some time.  He is an attorney who had this idea and acted on it.  He retired last year and works in metals.  He is living a dream and having a great time!

Pink Flowers

I am in Tucson this week, working in the yard, shopping a bit, enjoying the city!  The weather is close to perfect, with daytime highs in the low 70's and no wind.  The winter has been so mild that lots of plants are blooming out of season.  A low growing cactus in the back yard is covered in pink flowers.  So pretty!

12 Tips to Live a Better Life

12 Ways to Live a Better Life

Karl A. Pillemer, a renowned Cornell gerontologist, used the wisdom of crowds -- more than 1,000 Americans over 65 years old -- to glean material for his book "30 Lessons in Living: Tried and True Advice from the Wisest Americans.''   Twelve tips from his research, posted in to today's Washington Post.

Antelope

As we were driving through Warbonnet Ranch on our way into town on Saturday, we saw a herd of antelope.  They are incredibly beautiful animals! 

Neighbor Wedding

Our nearest ranch neighbor got married yesterday in a western themed wedding at the First Baptist Church in Willcox.  Larry is 75 years old and was widowed 5 years ago.  The bride is in her 60's and also widowed.  The wedding was joyful with plenty of humor.  The bride refused to repeat the words, "to obey," in her vows.  We wish them many happy years ahead!  

Insalata Rustica

Serve as a side to a savory main course, or have it for lunch.  Bon Appetit! 
 
Insalata Rustica

From Bon Appétit  | November 2008 

yield: Makes 8 servings

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, divided

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 1/2 cups stemmed seedless red grapes

1/2 cup dried tart cherries (or cranberries)

10 cups (loosely packed) greens (such as romaine, arugula, and torn radicchio)

2 Bosc pears, cored; cut into matchstick-size pieces or thinly sliced

Aged balsamic vinegar (for drizzling)

1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted (or chopped walnuts)

4 ounces 1/8-inch-thick rectangular slices Pecorino Romano cheese or Parmesan

Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk 1/3 cup oil and lemon juice in small bowl. Season dressing with salt and pepper. Toss grapes with 1 tablespoon oil on rimmed baking sheet. Roast until grapes begin to shrivel, about 15 minutes. Cool grapes on baking sheet. Place cherries (or cranberries) in small bowl. Add enough hot water to cover cherries by 1 inch. Let cherries soak in bowl 15 minutes to soften. Drain.  

Dressing, grapes, and cherries can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.

Mix greens, matchstick-size pear pieces, dressing, grapes, and cherries in large bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Divide among plates. Garnish with pear slices, drizzle with vinegar, and sprinkle with pine nut (or walnuts) and cheese.

Pinterest.com

Just yesterday, Audrey introduced me to a website that is new to me, Pinterest.com.  Pinterest.com is a vision board styled social photo sharing website. The website allows users to create and manage theme-based image collections. The site's mission statement is to "connect everyone in the world through the 'things' they find interesting."  In January of this year, comScore reported the site had 11.7 million unique users, making it the fastest site in history to break through the 10 million unique visitor mark.  Check it out!

Snow all Around

Late yesterday afternoon, we had a short snow blizzard, with wind blowing snow horizontally for a couple of hours.  As soon as the snow stopped, I ran outside to take photos.  The sun came out and within half an hour much of the snow had melted.  It was beautiful while it lasted.

Valentine

May life be joyful, and love be true. May friends be many, and cares be few. May your day be full of all the good things you so deserve! 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Circle Hike from Javelina Canyon

On Saturday, Papa and I rode Bob over to Javelina Canyon.  We hiked about three hours, down the canyon to the intersection with Pole Cat Canyon, where we turned and circled back to our starting place.  Along the way, we came upon a cholla cactus with a large cactus wren nest.  We crossed over a concrete dam built in the 1950's.  We hiked through the ranch's original homestead site with the old water tank built in 1936.  A dozen cows were grazing upstream in Javelina Canyon.  We are always humbled by those that lived on Winchester Ranch before us and the beauty of this ranch we live on.

A Few Master Tweaks

I made new pillows for our master bedroom, swapped quilts from one of the guest rooms, and rearranged the photo collage above our dresser.  So far, we are enjoying the changes.  Note:  the pistol is always on the dresser, just in case a lion, tiger, or bear comes onto the porch.

Red Tail Hawks

We see red tail hawks on the ranch every day.  On our hike yesterday, there was a pair of hawks gliding above us for a time, squawking away. 

Early Blooms

Our weather has been so warm this winter, there are a few plants blooming well before their normal spring season.  Red aloe and brittlebush are lighting up our Tucson yard!

Views from Hike

We often hike from our house, into our Buck Knob pasture.  I hiked alone earlier this week.  It was a sunny day with wispy clouds in the sky.  The air was warm. 

Texas Mountain Laurel

I have spent the past couple of days at our home in Tucson.  We have a large Texas mountain laurel tree in front, near the front door.  It is in bloom and quite fragrant.  Beautiful!

Branded Pillows

I used some of Papa's leather scraps to make a pair of floor pillows as a gift for Audrey's birthday.  Papa branded the leather and I inset it in the fabric.   

Leather Baskets

Over the past few years, Papa has made several saddles and lots of "Dale bags."  In cutting all those cowhides for various projects, he had some very nice pieces of leather left over.  He wanted to make a few leather gifts, and I happened upon a photo in a magazine of leather baskets.  Papa got right on it! 

Soft Sky Colors

Late yesterday afternoon, the sky was pink and purple with the multiple mountains between our house and the horizon adding to the layers of color.  Was beautiful!

Herd of Deer

There was a herd of at least 26 deer in front of our house this afternoon.  Just as I stepped onto the porch to take a photo, they turned and ran toward the canyon east of the house.  About half an hour later, Papa and I walked down toward the Rock House and the deer were grazing on the hillside near us.  Again, they turned and ran.  They crossed the canyon and waited for the herd to gather, before running again, in single file.  Beautiful to watch!

Memories of Little Ones

I have scanned lots of photos from 1981-1987, when our girls were young.  Some of my favorites...