Latest DALE Bags

About a month ago, Papa and I bought two new cow hides, with a veg tan finish.  Since we got the leather, Papa has been at work making two new DALE bags.  He made one for cousin Renee and one for me.  The straps are very different on each one.  Nice work, Papa!

Horses

My hike this afternoon was punctuated on either end by the horses.  Oscar, Pablo, and Doc were near the gate to the Buck Knob pasture.  A herd of deer passed between us as I first approached them.  As I was passing by them, they behaved like little boys, nipping at each other.  On my way back through the gate, they stood in my way, begging to be patted.  They are good horses...  spoiled but good.

Papa

I took this photo of Papa at our Winter Roundup.  Nice smile, Papa!

Jim's Famous Oatmeal Cookies

We moved from Tucson to Dallas in August 1982.  Within two months, we found our new home, on Bradbury Lane.  The day the moving van arrived, our next door neighbor, Jim came over to mow our yard, to welcome us to the neighborhood.  His wife, Carolyn came over to tell me their cleaning lady had a day available, which I quickly acted on.  Jim happened to be the Assistant Coach for the Dallas Cowboys.  During those years we lived on Bradbury Lane, we became friends with Jim and Carolyn.  Our kids played with their grandchildren.  We enjoyed the "extras" during the holidays when Jim made fudge and cookies for various players on the Cowboys team.  When Jim retired, Claire and Whitney made it their mission to make sure "Jim was having a good day." 

We stayed in touch with Jim and Carolyn over the years, always exchanging holiday greetings.  Jim wrote when Carolyn passed.  About eighteen months ago, while in Dallas, we stopped to visit Jim.  His memory was gone, but we were glad we saw him.  Jim passed last summer.  His caretaker called to tell us.  She saved a program from his funeral for us, which had a recipe on the back for Jim's Famous Oatmeal Cookies.  They are yummy!

Jim's Famous Oatmeal Cookies

Mix:

2 cups brown sugar

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon cinnamon

Add:

2 cups old fashioned oats

1 1/2 cups pecans

1 cup melted Crisco

2 beaten eggs

1 tablespoon vinegar

Mix well with spoon or by hand.

Dust batter with flour and refrigerate 10-15 minutes.  Roll cookies.

Bake 10-12 minutes at 400 degrees. 

Saturday Hike in Bear Creek

Papa and I drove the Ranger  part way across the ranch, to hike in Bear Creek.  We hiked down a very rocky cliff to get to the creek, then enjoyed hearing and seeing running water.  The rocks in Bear Creek are big and colorful, reminiscent of The Flintstones.  It was a strenuous hike.

 

February Sunset

We watch the sunset every evening.  This one was quite colorful. 

Signs of Spring

We've had an unusually warm winter with good amounts of rain in southern Arizona.  

I took these photos yesterday at our Tucson house.  Spring is in the air!

 

Weekend Guests

We had guests from Tucson, Mark and Janine, spent the weekend at the ranch.  Janine and I hiked, Papa and Mark rode horses, we ate and talked, we saw lots of deer, and we hiked some more. 

    

Happy Valentine's Day!

In early January, I put together Valentine's boxes for our grandchildren.  Papa and I have enjoyed seeing photos and hearing from them, what they've made and done with the things in their boxes.  The boxes contained a heart shaped punch, paint swatches, ribbons, washi tape, cards and envelopes, paper in various colors, an M and M tic tac toe game, stamps and ink pad, paint and paint brushes.

 

Happy Valentine's Day!

Deer Friends

A herd of deer stays close to our house.  There are 17-18 deer in the herd, with one big buck.  We see them almost every day, sometimes within inches of our windows.  They are friendly and don't run away when they see us.  We saw them this morning and again this afternoon, on the south side of our house and down by the Rock House.