Friday, December 18, 2015

December 14 - 20, 2015, AZ

Friday, December 18.  Again, it's Friday and I haven't written, so I will just write about the highlights of the week.  

Monday - I received some photos and videos of Charlotte's first ballet recital that had me laughing and crying at the same time.  She did really well in her first session of classes and I totally enjoyed seeing them and am so thankful that we have the technology available to be able to share the experience.

Tuesday - I went by bus with about 50 people from my community to the Monte Vista RV resort to see a Rockabilly Christmas show that was full of energy, great musical performances, a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus, and a night of fun with friends.

Today marks 2 years since my sweet Mother-in-Law passed away.  I will never forget her and the positive influence she was on me through the years.  A good, generous, old fashioned woman, who became "Mom" to me in all ways.  I love and miss you, dear Mom.

Tonight - TGIF at our clubhouse with old fashioned Goulash made by Lois and complimented with lots of interesting side dishes and desserts.  The best part was the good company of friends and lots of laughter and good conversation.

The weather has finally warmed up after having a few nights that got down close to 30 degrees and days that didn't warm up much.  I spent a lot of time inside and am pretty close to being ready for Christmas.  My cards and gifts have all been sent, e-cards went out today, the annual Ursino and Bridge calendars were sent today too.  I also got gift wrapping done today.

Saturday, December 19.  I finally got back in the swing of hiking, with a nice walk through the Gilbert Riparian Park with Pat, Roger, Connie and the dogs this morning.  Yesterday was so nice and warm, I expected the same today but it was cloudy and cool, but very enjoyable.


Baking, baking, baking is how I spent the afternoon.  Earlier in the week, I made a Cranberry Bread to take to TGIF and it disappeared from the plate quickly, so decided I needed to make some mini loaves to give as gifts.  The recipe came from "Fan Fare II, Winning Recipes From Badger Fans" published in 1981.  It certainly is a winner.

I went over to Connie's house after dinner and had a glass of wine, a piece of lemon pie and lots of good conversation.

Sunday, December 20.  What to do today?  I pulled up the movie listings on the iPad and decided that "Brooklyn" sounded good to me.  So Connie and I went to see it this afternoon and it was a very enjoyable romance story about a young Irish immigrant who falls in love with an Italian hunk.  It could have been about my grandparents although grandmother was born in the US to Irish immigrants and my grandfather was the immigrant from Italy.  It also made me think of all of the others who are trying to get away from something in their home country and get a new start here in America.

I think we should let them come, although we must be VERY careful about WHO gets to come (thorough screening and background checks) and there needs to be opportunities for them to make it on their own, without handouts from our government.  They should not have better opportunities than our own struggling population.

This evening, Pat, Connie and I took a drive to see Christmas lights.  There was a listing in the newspaper but the addresses were scattered all over Mesa so we just watched for lights and drove through some neighborhoods that were really lit up.  We even saw a Jeep covered with lights that pulled a wagon full of people singing Christmas Carols.  It seems that the most newfangled decorations are laser lights and moving blow-up characters.  We even saw an inflatable Happy Camper with Santa coming in and out the door.

It was a good day.