Christmas Week on the Ranch

We've had a busy week of family time on the ranch, hiking, riding in the ranger, eating together, playing games, doing crafts, making s'mores, rock hunting, roping goats, riding horses, and more. 

Merry Christmas

Papa and I enjoyed a visit yesterday afternoon with friends from Boys and Girls Clubs of Tucson.  They came bearing gifts, including a small tree with ornaments made by BGCT kids.  We are grateful for our relationship with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Tucson over the past years.  They make a difference in thousands of children's lives.  Those children are our future leaders.

Our family begins arriving this afternoon for our week of Christmas celebration.  Merry Christmas!

Dollhouse Repairs

Papa's Dad, known also as Papa to our girls, built a dollhouse for Claire and Whitney.  It has seen a lot of play time and our grandchildren continue to play with it.  Papa brought it downstairs yesterday to make a few repairs in anticipation of the arrival of our little ones.  The construction of the dollhouse was a labor of love, as are the repairs.

 

Finding our Tree

After delivering several gifts this morning, Papa and I came home and set off on a mission to find our Christmas tree.  I hiked up the hill while Papa drove the Ranger.  It was a beautiful sunny and warm afternoon.  We looked around a bit and found just the right tree.  Papa cut it down.  We like our tree!

Preparing for Christmas

Papa and I are in a full press to prepare for our family's visit next week, to celebrate Christmas.  

Papa got out our boxes of Christmas things yesterday afternoon.  Most of our ornaments 

and Christmas things are 25+ years old.  We are flooded with memories as we get 

each item out of the box.  This pillow was on top.  Merry Christmas!

Winter Storms

Papa and I woke to light rain yesterday morning and again this morning.  The clouds were incredibly beautiful with sun peaking through blue patches of sky, and lighting up parts of the surrounding mountains.  We are blessed to have had these views over 13 years!

Elf Work

Over the past ten days, I have been busy doing elf work.  Our girls and their families are coming to the ranch for Christmas.  I've been wrapping gifts and getting craft projects together, cooking, cleaning, and planning games and activities.  I am listening to Christmas carols while 

all this elf work is going on.  I'm having fun!

Moon Over the Mountain

Papa and I spent several of the past few days in Tucson.  We returned to the ranch late yesterday afternoon.  We were greeted by a full moon rising over the mountain.  Spectacular!

Happy Holidays 2016

Happy Holidays 2016,

We hope this holiday letter finds you healthy, happy and preparing for the season. 2016 began with our winter ranch roundup. Colter planned well, so the roundup, preg checking, and separating cows from calves was done in a day and a half. In late January, we met Whitney in San Diego for a few days. While there we caught up with Bob and Paige over dinner and enjoyed some beach time.

We went on an Arizona driving trip in February, with a stop in Prescott for lunch with Mary. We hiked in Sedona and the Grand Canyon, and visited Wupatki and Walnut Canyon. The Arizona landscape is beautiful! We volunteered on Tuesdays for our third year, at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Tucson. We had a big group of high school seniors this year, so BGC hosted a graduation ceremony for “our kids” in late April.  We attended several of their graduations in May. We continue to stay in touch with many of “our kids” over meals and email.  We are so proud that most are now first generation college students!

We spent a few days with Audrey’s family in Chicago in March and had fun with Lauren and Taylor. In late April, we flew to New Orleans and had dinner with Louise’s childhood friend, Pam, and her husband Kenith. They drove three hours each way to meet us. Thank you Pam and Kenith! We drove up the Natchez Trace Parkway and on to Kentucky to visit family and attend cousin Elizabeth’s wedding. A few days later, we flew from KY to NJ to visit Whitney’s family. We watched Toby play hockey and helped get their house ready to put on the market as they move to Dallas in the summer.

Dale turned 70 in May. We celebrated with Mary over lunch at the Ritz Carlton and later in July with our children and their families, on a week-long beach visit to Eleuthera, Bahamas. So many memories made! We went to Mexico in late June, for a few days in San Miguel de Allende and then to Doctor Mora for a friend’s quinceanera. It was an unbelievable cultural experience that we loved! Louise flew to Florida in June to spend a few days with friend Joy, while she was receiving medical treatment. Time in Joy’s garden was a treat! 

Our ranch branding was in July, a busy and unforgettable time each summer. Claire came to the ranch in early August with Emerson and Colby.  Emerson took riding lessons, and she and Colby roped goats. We enjoyed sharing the ranch with our friend Joy in late August. We flew to Dallas in September for a few days with Whitney and Brian’s families, plus time with long-time friend, Linda.  Throughout the year, we enjoyed dinners with Linda and Bob in Tucson, the Mayhall and Salinas families coming to the ranch, hosting a donor party for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Tucson in October, breakfast with Brenda and Newton, and so many more moments with friends.

We left in late October for five days in Spain, visiting Cordoba, Granada, and Sevilla. We went on to Portugal for a month-long visit. Whitney joined us for Thanksgiving week. For most of the trip we stayed in castles, palaces, and other national monuments. We love Portugal!

Our big news this year is that we sold the ranch to Colter and Carly in October. We are going to stay on the ranch until we figure out what comes next. The past thirteen years on the ranch have been like icing on the cake of our lives together. We’ve made incredible memories, hosted friends and family, hiked and discovered the beauty of Winchester Ranch, while running a cattle operation. We are looking forward to having our girls and their families, Louise’s Mom, and Mary spend time with us at the ranch over the holidays.

We wish you and your family a very happy holiday season and a happy 2017.  We love hearing from you! Be in touch when you are coming our way.

Love,
Lulu and Papa

Progress of Tonight's Sunset

The sunsets of Arizona are incredibly beautiful.  Tonight's sunset just kept getting better!  I was making dinner and every time I looked up, the clouds had moved about and colors were deeper.

Back to the Ranch

We returned to the ranch yesterday from our trip to Spain and Portugal, with piles of mail to go through and holiday preparations ready to begin.  We woke up to a beautiful sky, but windy and cold.  A good day to catch up on the mail and holiday cards!

Dallas Overnight

After a long day of flying, that began at 3:30 in the morning, a 10 hour nonstop from Madrid to DFW,  and a train ride from DFW into Dallas, we were happy to spend the evening with Whitney's family! After dinner, we decorated their Christmas tree.  Greta lost her first tooth a couple of days ago,
so we loved seeing her missing a front tooth!

Last Day in Lisboa

We took the tram to Belem this morning, to go to Mosteiros Jerónimos.  It was not our first visit to the site, but it was our first visit inside the cloisters.  Construction began in 1501 and was completed 100 years later.  The stone sculpture throughout the structure is incredible.  It is done in Manueline style, with no two doorways or posts sculpted the same.  The attached Church of Santa Maria is stunning, and is the final resting place of Vasco da Gama.

We walked across the park to the Monument to the Discoveries (shrouded in scaffolding as it is being cleaned) and to the Tower of Belem, then down the waterfront to the new MAAT, Museum of Art Architecture and Technology.  We had a typical Portuguese lunch of fish and vegetables in Belem and stopped at Pasteis de Belem for pastries before taking the tram back into Lisbon.  As we walked to our hotel, there were tv cameras and police all over the Praca do Municipio, where our hotel was located.  The King of Spain arrived at 4:30, for a visit with the Prime Minister of Portugal.  We watched as the King arrived and walked past the military.  We did a bit of shopping at 

Principio Real, before calling it a day.  It was another terrific day in Lisbon!

Lisboa

We are in Lisbon for the last days of our visit to Portugal.  We've spent time in Lisbon before and enjoy it.  On this visit, we are struck by the amount of major renovation going on.
Standing in one spot, Papa counted 12 cranes working.  As Lisbon is quite hilly,
he was looking at a rather small area.  Lisbon gets better and better!

We had lunch at Time Out Market, a new dining concept with 30+ restaurants preparing and serving food in the same huge space.  We ordered our lunches at two different restaurants and both were delicious.  We went back late in the day for a snack.  Time Out Market is a terrific concept!

We are staying at Alma Lusa Hotel on the Praca do Municipio, just a block away from the Praca do Comercio.  After checking into the hotel, we shopped, then visited two incredible churches.  First up was Ingresa Sao Roque, with its simple facade and ornate interior of gold, mosaics, fresco ceiling, inlaid wood, azulejos, and marble.  It is the most ornate church we've ever been in.  We shopped along the way to Ingreja de Sao Domingos, with an incredible history of suffering through two earthquakes and a major fire.  It was rather haunting, majestic, and beautiful.

Just before sunset, we climbed up the steps of the Rua Augusta Arch, overlooking Praca do Comercio and the old city of Lisbon.  The colors of Lisbon are stunning, with Castelo de Sao Jorge overlooking the Tejo River, laundry hanging from balconies, and the amazing mosaic sidewalks.  Lisbon has mazes of streets on either side of a major corridor through the city.  Its easy to get around on foot.  We walked across Praca do Comercio to the Tejo River to see the sun set, along with hundreds of other people, all cheering the last moment of sun, while a musical group played and people danced.  We love Lisbon!

Cabo Espichel

After our Pousada breakfast in Palmela, we drove 25 km to the end of the road at Cabo Espichel.  The landscape was stunning, with tall cliffs pounded by the Atlantic Ocean.  We walked around Santuario de Nossa Senhora, a church built for pilgrims in the early 1700's, and the Capela de Hermida de Memoria, built in the 1400's.  We walked above the cliffs to the lighthouse, built in 1790.  It was a beautiful day and the coastline was breathtaking!

We began the drive back toward Palmela with a stop at the castle in Sesimbra, where we visited the village chapel with its interior walls covered in azulejos.  We drove down the hill to the city of Sesimbra for a walkabout and lunch on the waterfront.  The day was perfect!  We drove along the coast back to Setubal and on to Palmela, stopping at beaches along the way. 
Portugal's coastline is stunning!

When we returned to the Pousada, we were greeted by Fernanda, at the reception desk.  She has lived her life in Palmela.  She gave us advice about our day's adventure, so she wanted to hear about it.  She invited us for a glass of wine in a local cafe.  We ordered local wines, cheeses, and sweets, and spent a couple of hours talking with Fernanda.  What a wonderful experience for us! 

When we came out, the stars were out and the castle was lighted.  Another great day!

On to Palmela

We left Sao Martinho do Porto early this morning, to take Whitney to the airport.  We had a wonderful time with her, and enjoyed seeing more of Portugal.  The primary reason we travel is to learn and this trip has exceeded our expectations.  It was even more special to share it with Whitney!

This trip has spurred us to read more about the history of Portugal and its people.  They were the world's main economic power during the Renaissance.  We are currently reading The Portuguese, by Barry Hutton, and The First Global Village, How Portugal Changed the World, by Martin Page.  Both books are giving us new perspective on the people, the land, and their history.

We watched seaweed harvesting in the Sao Martinho bay, so we've been reading about that process and its uses (harvested by hand in Sao Martinho for primary use as food, secondary for vitamin supplement and skin care).  We've seen thousands of cork trees with bands of bark removed, with 50% of worldwide cork production coming from Portugal.  We've seen more ancient windmills than we saw in The Netherlands!  We've enjoyed seeing churches and exploring and staying in castles.  

We are staying in Pousada Castelo Palmela for a couple of nights before  going to Lisbon.