Garbage Day, Walmart, ATV, Boat Ride, Casino, Dinner and Drive-Through Nativity

What a night (er, morning) it was on Friday, Dec. 15^th. I slept well when I slept but woke when Bill crawled in at 12 midnight. I’d been sleeping for an hour. Then at 3:40 our little piddle bum decided he needed to go out. We both woke to the sound of his familiar body shake and jump off the bed. Bill took him out, wondering why some nights and not others?

Strap yourself in, we're going 4-wheelin'

I couldn’t drop back off to sleep after that. Bill had no problem as I heard the muffled sound of his heavy breathing. I finally must have dropped off a few times and I woke again at 7:30. I wonder if it was my tea that did that? I thought it was early enough that it wouldn’t.

I should have immediately got dressed to go for a walk but I didn’t even though I was surprised to see it was a calm, mild 53F. Instead, I made my tea and set Bill’s coffee ready to brew for when he rose a few minutes later. I remembered it was garbage day in the neighbourhood so added ours to the bag George had started and walked it and the recycle bins to the street.

This was the Magnificent house of the Day

same house

And looking back, all of that white concrete to the left of the picture is
still the same place
CRAZY!

Bill noticed that the neighbor across the road has pulled out with his 5^th wheel. Good! Now maybe I’ll get a nice shot of the lake when the sun is going down. While I read blog posts from yesterday, Bill went out and dumped our gray tank since we have that capability here. Like we’ve said, this is a great spot and we fully appreciate the hookups.

My boys coming up the laneway

Closer

Arrival!

Bill needed to run into Walmart for something so I decided to tag along and pick up some of my yogourt. We got what we needed and then I checked out their slip-on slippers. Mine from Avon are a few years old and beginning to rip and look ratty. I found some nice ones for $4.98 and they are perfect! See for yourself! My old ones went in the garbage immediately.

On the way home, we drove the back way, down London Bridge Road past our park to the post office there. We had a very important piece of mail to send off. While driving that route, we noticed a couple of guys in a pick up truck putting up signs that said “Drive-In Lighted Nativity” tonight 5:30 to 9:30. Hmmm, sounds interesting.

I had a banana and some cottage cheese when we got home and then we took Clemson for a ride on the 4-wheeler. I know Bill still has an itch to get out on some trails but today, he favoured me and we stuck to all back streets looking at the beautiful homes. One in particular caught our eye, which made us go ‘omg’. I took pictures of it and then on the way back Bill stopped so I could peruse a garage sale.

Tadah!

Nothing there for me, mostly Christmas stuff, which we certainly don’t need. I was so impressed with Clemson’s behaviour on the ATV. Bill had his seatbelt on him and he loved it! We wondered if it would be too loud or too breezy or too cool but he settled right down with his head o my lap a few times. I had to get a picture of the two of them coming up the driveway so hopped out. That was a fun 30-minute jaunt about.

When we got back, the boys were tired out so I caught up on here and went out to work on my puzzle. We are heading out again but not until after 3. It’s a gorgeous day at 63F, full sun and no wind at all. This is indeed why we are here. At 2:30 I had finished my puzzle and was quite warm. No wonder, the temperature had risen to 68F while I was out there.

Tocopah was decorated today

 I came inside to sweep floors in the Suite and sat down to read for a bit. We cleaned up and once more left Clemson in charge while we drove down to the ferry at 3:30. I remembered my free passes for the rides, our 10% off coupons and our players cards. Yay! The ride over was nice and we sat on the upper level in the sun. We headed directly into the casino and sat side by side at a penny/nickel slot machine.

The water and air was so calm today on the ferry

I seem to have difficulty getting a machine to accept my card but with Bill’s help, we were both ready to play. We allow $20 each and then call it quits whenever we play, no matter what. Bill did some up and down, some wins and losses. It was apparently my lucky day, for the first time, ever!

Playing 45 cents a shot and my winnings are in the middle
I started with $20

I hovered around between $18 - $21 for quite a while and then raised the stakes by playing 45 credits each time. Meaning 45 cents with each play. That’s when I started winning nicer amounts and once I got over the $50 mark I said I’d stop at $50. When I was hovering around $68 I said I’d play to $60 and quit. That’s what I did I was so excited just to win something and enough to pay for dinner.

First time is a charm - at least for me it was!

My Chicken Cordon Bleu was different than what it is at home but it was still very good. I started with Clam Chowder as my appetizer but still managed to eat it all. 

even the string beans were delicious!

We had coupons for 10% off our meals so our waitress, Alina, gave us each an individual bill which was a bonus. Our ferry arrived at 6:15 and when we got back, we drove down London Bridge Road to take part in the Drive-Through Nativity Scene.

Sitting for dinner, we saw the ferry come back

I love the colours in this picture

Coming back on the ferry at night

There was quite a line up, quite the big deal with Volunteer Police, Deputies and many volunteers guiding the long line of traffic. This was a really well-done display put on by the New Hope Calvary Church with live participants in each setting. 

Even the donkey, lambs and camel were real! 

I apologize for the poor quality of the picture
The performers deserved better

My camera was sitting at home so I had to use my camera phone and that just doesn’t do the performance justice. I'm not blaming the phone at all, it takes great pictures, I'm taking the blame for not slowing down enough to focus. Take my word for it, it was awesome!

These were beautiful human angels singing

And Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus

We arrived home around 8 and settled in for the night. It has been a wonderful day, something else we can say ‘been there, done that’. I hope you’ve enjoyed yours as well.

You can see it all better in the flyer they gave us
At the exit we dropped a donation in their basket

Thank you for stopping in. I apologize for the morning posting, just couldn’t get it together tonight.

BLUE Sky, More Puzzle, Grandson’s “Sweet” 16, Four Wheelin'!

When I opened my eyes for the first time on Tuesday, Dec. 12^th it was still dark and I refused to look at the clock. For some reason, when I do that, I have difficulty dropping back off to sleep. So, I rolled over and the next time it was 7:34 and the light was peeping around the edges of the blinds. I began moving and saw Clemson rouse himself as well. He wasn’t getting up though, he’d decided to nudge his way under the blankets snuggling up with his Daddy.

good morning out our window

Today, it hit Bill and I like a ton of bricks that our 3rd oldest grandson turns 16 today! That is great news but the bad part was that the days preceding his birthday slipped totally by without us getting a card in the mail on time for him to receive it. Apparently, everything moves slower down here in Arizona. So, in lieu of an on-time card, Happy Birthday, Braeden! (your card is on its way!)

I was thinking of a walk but I am so spoiled with the warm mornings that when I noticed it was only 48F/9C I balked out. Yes, that is a word, Gerry H, not a made up one. Instead, I turned the Keurig on and set my cup with tea bag under to make my morning brew. Bill soon moved and so I made his coffee as well. I always feel lazy when I don’t walk so will take myself out later on today and take the little bum with me. Clemson, not Bill, unless he wants to join us.

Clemson is happiest in his bed, in the rays of the sun

We caught up on the news of our blogger friends and left a few comments. I had a bill to pay online for Mom so clicked into our hotspot to do that. Bill was also doing some personal banking. The free wifi isn’t fast in the early morning hours as we imagine working folk are on but it moves a little better during the daytime. For some reason this morning, my Fitbit wouldn’t sync, maybe it is ashamed at my laziness too.

So Clemson and I got out for a walk later in the afternoon

Bill hopped in the shower and I made up a pan of omelettes. Enough for me to have some leftover for another day. I had mine in a tortilla wrap. That should tie us over for most of the day if not until supper time. 

On our walk, I saw these beaver tail cactus with a bloom

And one bright red flower on this ocotillo

At 11 am it was still only registering 59F but that is certainly warm enough on a day with full sun and no wind. I changed into shorts and went out to my puzzle. Not sure what the day will bring at this point so will start with that.

Now that is dedication!

Around 1:30 Bill came out and started up the Polaris ATV and went down the laneway and onto Kibbey. You can take these things on the streets but this one of George’s does not go fast enough to go onto the main highway. 

Heading down Kibbey on the ATV

That’s okay by us. Bill drove around to get used to it on his own and came back and offered me a ride. I grabbed our ball caps, to look the part you know, sunglasses and my camera. Let’s go!

this house had us in awe, mostly because of the well placed stone landscaping

It was fun zipping down the paved streets and when we reached the top of Kibbey Dr. we saw Gary in his garage and pulled in. Gary is the guy I met over 2 weeks ago when I was walking. Remember? The one who invited me inside through his home onto the back patio to see the gorgeous view. I introduced Bill to him and he although he couldn’t remember my name he did recall we were from Canada.

I love decorations but this one was a little bit overkill

Can't imagine it at night, the roof is covered with lights

We chatted briefly about quite a few things actually in a short amount of time and then we drove over the hill and around a few more streets. I was enjoying this. When we found a dead-end street, Bill turned onto it and it took us to the rough terrain popular to people riding in these 4 wheelers. It looked ‘iffy’ to me but we forged ahead.

Let’s just say that the next 10 minutes found me holding on for dear life and probably holding my breath. No, Bill wasn’t going fast but the trail was rocky and really not fun at all. For me. Bill must have seen the look in my face and like a gentleman, made an about face and got us back on solid pavement. Oh, thank God! At least I can now say ‘been there, done that’ don’t care to do it again.

Learning that off roading isn't for me

Bill enjoyed it and would probably try it again at another time with one of his guy friends. I’m sure we’ll go out again but stick to the good roads next time. We got back and wanted to get a selfie of us on the ATV so I set the camera up. Unfortunately, it was facing the sun and isn’t as clear as I’d hoped. At least it shows us ‘in the driver seat’. We had fun. I went back to working on my puzzle and made great progress before coming inside at 4.

I don’t know why we get tired from doing a lot of nothing but sitting in the sun outside, with my head back I’m sure I dropped off. We watched a bit of tv, NCIS reruns and played along with Family Feud while preparing supper. Bill couldn’t barbecue our Italian meatballs, realizing that we were out of propane. Hmm, that was puzzling and he wondered if the dial was turned on and it leaked out.

and my puzzle is coming to life

I needed a Fuzzy Peach Navel for refreshment while working on the puzzle

I cooked them in the convection oven, made up a salad and cooked up some Stove Top Stuffing. It was a nice meal and we wasted no time cleaning up the dishes. 

At 6 pm we were set to start watching our Tuesday night shows. The Voice is being recorded and the Gwen Stefani Christmas special at 7 while we watched NCIS’ and Bull’s fall finales. It is a good viewing night for us.

I finished up with my post and downloaded the pictures from today during commercials. We’ve had a nice relaxing fun day today with some walkabouts, reading, puzzle making and a new experience on an atv. I hope it has been a great day for you as well.

and Good night

Thank you for reading today. Feel free to leave a comment.