An Early Celebration, Another Special Birthday

Park Place RV Park

We woke up to a special day today and since the winds were non-existent and Bill had no more studying to do, he readied himself to go flying. It was an early departure, 7:30, and Gibbs and I were up and out the door soon after for his walk. Returning after he sniffed the neighbourhood, I headed out myself and after some indecision which way to go, I went around the large block and made it back for my tea.

A great day for a birthday

I had to decide whether to walk towards the south
(Main St)

or to the north (the flying field)
I went south

Around 9:30, I went over to work on the puzzle. Another small one so it wasn’t surprising that I had finished it by 11:30. Dora and Gerald were playing a couple of games of pool so that always entertains me. They are cute together, bantering with each other in between praising shots. Bill had returned by the time I got home and we had some lunch.

This is what I get when I say
"Do you want to go for a walk?"

We chatted with Charlotte and for once
Gibbs behaved very well
Usually hearing our caller's voice on speaker
makes him a little nutty for attention 💖

This afternoon is the park’s St. Patrick’s Day potluck and it wasn’t looking like a high attendance but still fun to participate. At 2:30, I began putting together 2 boxes of instant scalloped potatoes in Madame IP. Then we got changed. Of course, I found green things to wear, as usual and Bill even had a khaki coloured shirt. We were the only ones but that’s normal anywhere we go. I'm usually the odd man(woman) out.😊 

Another pretty picture
Complete

There were only 11 of us but the food was plentiful and quite variable. Salad, brown beans, spaghetti and sauce, scalloped potatoes, rice and stir fry, pulled beef and buns with cupcakes and cheesecake for dessert. 

The final stir before self serve

My plate full - yummy

I splurged on dessert

Our plates were full with just a taste of everything. 😊 Good stuff. We had interesting conversations with the two men at our table and were home with an empty pot shortly after 4.

Beautiful, still 77F at 5:30

The special day I mentioned in the title and beginning sentence is our little guy’s birthday. Gibbs is 2 years old today. No, I didn’t bake him a cake but if I’d not been busy this afternoon, I might have done that. I did look up a recipe for doggy cake. I read more of my book outside, that was the coolest place to be since the day had warmed up to79F/26C. Gibbs proudly wore his little tie today and he went for his afternoon walk with Momma at 5:30.

The birthday boy and I went for a walk
late in the afternoon

This was a great day in every way. Hearing from one of Bill’s daughters was a nice surprise too!

Happy 2nd Birthday Leroy Jethro Gibbs
He even got a new chew toy
Good night!

Thank you for the visit.

No Daylight Savings Here, St. Patrick’s Day Celebration

Park Place RV Resort

On Sunday, Mar. 13^th I woke up cold. Well, last night when we saw it was only going down to 53F/12C, I pulled our duvet down to the bottom of the bed. We were sure we would be plenty warm. I went to bed last night feeling quite comfy without it but when I woke at 3:30, I was chilled. There’s no going back once I feel that way but I wasn’t about to disturb the family to pull the blanket up. 😊 So, I remained still, curled up in a ball and eventually dropped off.

A lovely morning

The two big doggies came running to the fence
barking like maniacs
Gibbs was intimidated until they stopped
and we walked over as if to say
"What's all the barking about, I'm just little?"
(as if he should talk!)

When Gibbs woke and got his Daddy up at 6:30, I stretched out and pulled up the duvet and resumed my position. I don’t let Gibbs know I’m awake until after 7 or he’ll think it’s time for me to get up with him. He slept for a while but at 7 became too much of a pest for us to go back to sleep. We got up. It was earlier that we went for our walk but that was okay. There was a slight wind but, in the sun, which had already risen, we were warm.

Back home, he helped he was a big help

Before I go any further, two things on the brighter side. One, the diesel price has dropped at the corner by .04¢ and has remained that way few or a few days now. 😊 The second thing is that my shingles have made their exit, leaving behind just a ‘scar’ that will disappear soon enough. I wanted to thank everyone who was concerned and offered empathy and suggestions. All is well again! 

Things look good out there, Mom!
(look at those bow legs!)

On the note of daylight savings time. Arizona does not practice it. This state, except for a Navajo nation in the northeastern part, doesn't change time. That means, we are now 3 hours from home again.  

He loves his birthday bones
and we love how he is safely entertained

When we returned from our walk, Bill was about ready to leave for the field. The winds were questionable but he wanted to go and see his friends and hopefully get a flight or two in. My job was to make enough chili for 15 to 20 people so I set to work. We had one container in the freezer from before we left home so I defrosted that yesterday and added it to the mix. It was too thick for my liking so this was a good plan.

A slower progress but I love these challenges

I made the chili in a pot on the stove, since we were disconnected from power (it would still have been fine) and about an hour before going to dinner, I’ll transfer it hot to Madame IP to keep it warm while being served. Yes, today, is the park’s St. Patrick’s Day potluck. I packed a separate cooler bag with our dishes, utensils and the tortilla chips, salt, pepper, chili powder (for those who like it hot) and butter.

Myla loves the whole 'game/prize' thing so set up a
prize table. She had 16 things so most everyone got something anyway

There will be a variety things on the menu so lots to eat for even the pickiest eaters. Some don’t like cabbage, some don’t like corned beef etc. I’ll try not to pig out since I like most everything on the list! 😊 I worked on the puzzle from 10:30 to 11:30. When I saw Black Beauty had just arrived home, I walked back to the Suite. Bill had a good flight (or two?) and was happy he went.

I dawned my Family Dollar tie
and Salvation Army green top for the event

We relaxed for the afternoon inside until it was time to walk over and plug the IP in. Gibbs got out for a nice walk around the park before then and with blinds pulled and windows open, he should sleep while we’re gone. He has been restless all day. So, at 2:30 Bill carried the IP over and we plugged it in. Dinner wasn’t until 3 so Bill walked back to our site until it was time. I stayed and worked on the puzzle.

Are you green with envy? haha

There were 18 hungry participants and that was a nice turnout. We had meatballs in sauce, shepherd’s pie, chili, homemade soda bread and rolls, corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, sausage mac, salad, devilled eggs, cottage cheese salad, oh my! Then German chocolate cake and carrot cake for dessert. Lots of food. I received compliments on the chili but with the option of bread, I bet only a handful of chips were eaten. Darn, I shouldn’t have bought 2 bags since they aren’t a favourite of ours.

We hung around until about 4, getting to know our neighbours behind us, the 2^nd co-hosts. It was a good experience and we’d do it again, I think. 😊 We sat outside with Gibbs for a while since it was stifling indoors and the breeze was wonderful. We laughed as Gibbs dug up his outside rawhide bone that he’d buried when we had company yesterday. He is comical to watch and he hid it again before we came in.

Lots of good stuff here
The corned beef was wonderful!

I guess the corned beef and cabbage was more salty than I’m used to as I couldn’t stop drinking water at night. Then, I had a diet Mountain Dew, just pouring liquid into me! We couldn’t find anything on tv and we didn’t need supper so to fill in the long evening, we watched one of Bill’s recorded movies. It was cute.

Yummy desserts

I’d bought the Toby Keith movie dvd Beer for my Horses so we popped that in. It was so much fun. Action packed, some serious parts and some hilarious parts so we laughed a lot. It didn’t hurt to see Willie Nelson ♥ in it either. At 10, Gibbs and I went up to bed, him with his indoor rawhide bone, which was now down to about a 2” ball. 😊

When one of us is still inside, he waits at the door
'are you coming out soon?' 💓

Then he set to work burying his bone by Daddy's tire

This was a great day and it wasn’t until I got up to go to bed that Bill said “did you finish your blog?” Duh!! I forgot all about it! So, here it is. (she says sheepishly). Our temperature today reached 84F/29C and is here to stick around for the rest of March while we’re here. ♥

Good night!

Thank you for your visit.

Canadian Potluck, Bloggerfest, Happy Hour - Social Fun Never Ends!

The new day dawned for me at 6:30. I got up, got dressed and came downstairs to wait for the actual daylight. I caught up on the blog postings that I didn’t get to last night. I slipped out the door at 7:25 for my walk. Today was 4-mile morning because I went to the front entrance to return the Stephen King book. The cover was in pretty rough shape so I taped it up and left it in better condition than how I found it. It is just shy of 2 miles if you stop at the office building.

Colour me Pretty has to be the name of this photo

And to the west, not to be outdone

As I headed back, I chatted with my little brother's double, asking me about the signs being still up. I’ll bet if I asked him, he is from Alberta. Ha ha.  Not only did he look like him, (handsome as all get out) his mannerisms and voice were Michael. 

Good morning sunshine!

Me and my shadow made it to the front entrance

I enjoyed a great walk back yet darn I forgot my sunglasses again! It was 47F/9C and very little wind and I had layered down a bit so I wasn’t so hot upon my return. It worked out well with just one long sleeve top, my neck scarf, a windbreaker and my vest. Oh, of course my fingerless gloves helped too.

I love this cactus "Peace brother!"

Deb D. one of those 'just because I liked it' pictures
It is cool to see the grass growing around it

The green trunk of a Palo Verde tree

Back home, Bill was up and before I made my tea to join him, I hopped in the shower. I’ve been negligent or lazy and my hair was in quite a state! Then I had a tea. Clemson needed to go out so we walked around a bit until he was satisfied. Bill felt hungry so had a piece of toast while I prepared the cooler bag for today’s adventures. It starts off with the Canadian Potluck in Quartzsite at 11 and we are to bring one dish for 8, our drinks and place servings. Done, done and done.

QIA building

At 10:15 we hopped in Rob’s truck and he drove to the QIA. Bill and I had never been there before although we did know where it was located. We were greeted at the door by guess who? A Canadian! The whole room filled up with Canadians by 12 noon, 196 to be exact. 

Fun to play even though they weren't winners

We signed in, paid a $3 donation and bought 50/50 tickets before finding a seat with our 6 other friends. I couldn’t believe the food that piled up on the tables. If you consider that each couple brought a dish, you end up with at least 90 dishes. Before they started calling tables to be served, Sonja started us all on a rendition of O' Canada. 

Our placemats  with the words to O' Canada if you needed them

When our table #5 was drawn we lined up and were served hot potato, roast beef and gravy and then helped ourselves down the row of homemade dishes. My plate was full but not overflowing and I was comfortable with the amount of food I took. Then I kind of went overboard on the desserts. There were just too many to pass up and I always go for the homemade creations. My Apple/Blueberry Crisp went over well with only crumbs left to bring home in the dish. Good! That was encouraging!

Two tables of cold food dishes and one against the wall with hot dishes

Our Travel buddies

Pat and Rose
Long time friends

We left there after door prizes and 50/50 draws were finished. Kim was the only lucky one from our group who won a prize. Yay Kim! The money they took in for the 50/50 draw was $600 so a nice haul for the 2 winners. It was interesting that Albertans claimed the most participants attending, with B.C. second. We claimed third with 42 guests from Ontario present today. That is almost double last year’s attendance. By a show of hands, you could see where people from your province were sitting.

From the left: Kim, Ken, Bill (my chair)
Across from me, Rob, Pat, Rose, George, George, Suzie

Usually after a buffet meal, I look at the picture and I groan because I'm full
This picture makes me hungry all over again - it was excellent and just the right amount

The only thing I might suggest is that they group the people from the same province together, unless of course, you were with a group of friends from mixed provinces. Hmm, that wouldn’t work. We all had a great meal and a wonderful time. 

Bloggerfest with probably half the participants of the previous 2 years we've attended

 From there we drove back to La Posa South to attend the Bloggerfest at the Ramada. Hoping for the Social Hour to continue, we grouped our chairs in the warmth of the sun. In my humble opinion, and I think a few others, this event has run its course.

Aside from our group of 14 there were only 6 other people in attendance. Hmm, we could almost have had the same discussions at Happy Hour. It was nice to meet Ed and John and I’ll see if I can locate Ed’s blog on Rick’s sidebar. I do think maybe the time has come to put Bloggerfest to rest but I certainly can’t speak for anyone else. The whole circle introduction has grown old for us, no offense intended, just my opinion. If you've never been, you would enjoy it, I'm sure. 

The first hour of Happy Hour, the winds were very strong

So, we just stayed until it died down

We left there within the hour and drove back to our sites. It was 3:15 so time for our real H.H. With the winds whipping around at 20 mph, Bill and I took our chairs to sit on the patio at Rob and Pat’s unit. I noticed Ken and Kim’s chairs were out in the circle so brought them over as well. I’m sure that was a ‘nod’ that I got from Kim through their coach’s window. George, Suzie, Tom, Deb, George and Rose joined as well. Because most of us had no need for supper tonight, (and thanks to Deb's little nibblers) we overstayed our welcome until 6 when we took ourselves off home.

The night sky started out like this after sunset

The sky to the west tonight was gorgeous. Oh wait, turn around! The east, north and even the south sky was in full blown competition. I just went in circles snapping a picture of the changes. Such are the sunsets in the Arizona desert.

And then it did this

To the southwest

Back to the east

This has been a very social day and a really great one. We have such a fun group here. I hope you have enjoyed your day wherever you are and whatever you did. Bill and I topped Saturday off with a dish of Tillamook White Chocolate Raspberry Swirl ice cream adorned with nuts and sugar free caramel sauce.

And while busy looking the other way, the north sky produced my finale
Good night everyone!

I want to thank you for stopping by and if you’d like to leave a comment, I would enjoy reading it.