Christmas #4

After 3 Thanksgivings and 3 other Christmas dinners...I was ready to be finished with holiday dinners. But, this Christmas Day was very special and deserved to be treated as such. This was our first Christmas in our home, we had a recent 8 inch snowfall, the sun was shining, and my childhood friend, Ann, was here for 2 weeks visiting from northern Michigan. More about her later.

The overnight low was 5 degrees, but by 7:29 am, it had risen to 11.3 degrees. Cold, but beautiful.

I decided to cook twice this day. An egg casserole and gluten-free coffee cake filled us up for breakfast.

Our tree was very special. We found it in Yuma last year on Dec. 22. We loved it, bought it and stored it for 11 months.

It was pre-lit so we didn't have to mess with lights. It was covered with pine cones and holly berries and lightly flocked with snow. I only added red balls and few stars and it was finished.

Since I had already had the full turkey dinner experience 6 times in the last month, simplicity seemed in order for our menu. Turkey, homemade cranberries, corn casserole, mashed potatoes and snow peas completed the menu. We were all delighted with the simplicity and quantity of food. Plus, it was very colorful!

Now, about Ann. I met Ann when we were in first grade, 60 years ago! We have remained friends through many separations-Ann taught overseas for several years, lived in AZ for 3 years, moved to Traverse City over 30 years ago, and still, we are friends. We went to summer camp together as children, played in the neighborhood, and went on all-day bike rides when children were safe to roam without parental worry. We would pack a lunch and take off with our mothers' blessings. We know the ins and outs of each others' families and friends, know the ins and outs of each others' personalities...and still are friends. When I got married, I chose Ann as my maid of honor, because I knew no matter what...she would always be in my life. I wasn't so sure of my husband, and I was right!!! So, here is Ann, and we are both blessed to have such a special relationship, and we know it!!!!!!!!!!

Enough sentiment! Here's Barney lounging in the sunshine!

And, my Christmas cactus bloomed and is gorgeous!

I hope you were blessed this Christmas season...and have much to be grateful for. Blessings are all around us!

Stay tuned.................

Christmas 2....and 3

Our second Christmas dinner was on Thursday, December 17. The usual gang went to the St. Johns Senior Center for their holiday meal. $2 each! My childhood friend, Ann, and Ted wait in line.

(If you look too close, seniors really are a motley crew!)
The kitchen staff does a great job...

...and the menu included ham, scalloped potatoes, green bean casserole and dinner rolls. The salad and desserts are out of the picture.

Some "hams" are humans!!!!!

Santa made his appearance as well!!!

Christmas 3 was a low key affair. The Navajo County Friends of CASA has a Christmas Party for all the foster kids in the county. Our kids were included because they receive some services in the county. So, the grandparents, kids and I went to the party. Over 200 people were there, and as is always an organizer's worst fear, the gifts for the kids got mixed up. Guess what??? Our kids were the ones who got the leftovers. My 11 year old boy gave his gift away at the party and the trip home was not in the "holiday" spirit. I wish these things didn't happen, but they do...and usually to someone I know. BUMMER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Stay tuned!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Christmas...1

...and, yes, Christmas 2...3...and 4 are yet to come.
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On December 12, all the senior citizens of St. Johns and Concho were invited to attend a free luncheon presented by the Salt River Project. They have a generating facility in St. Johns and employ many local people. They celebrate the season by focusing on the seniors in the area. About 200 people showed up, dressed in their holiday finery. They had loads of door prizes, and gifts to all as we left the party. The menu was turkey or ham, or both, with all the fixings. GOOD food!

As you can see, we were seated very close to the entertainment. This turned out to be a good thing, as it was an excellent program. Armour Gomez is highly talented, knew which songs seniors would enjoy and kept the place rocking!

While Armour was entertaining us, officials from the company "worked" the crowd, spreading good cheer.

Norm and Olga took a turn on the dance floor.

Armour really has multiple talents. He plays a mean sax, and combined with all the backup on his electrical equipment, sounded like a full band.

Even seniors still enjoy Santa Claus, and lots of us had our pictures taken with him. I think I was 9 years old the last time!

Making memories!!!!!!!!!!

Stay tuned................

CASA Update

My cousin asked for an update, so here goes. I can't give you any confidential information, but I can tell you that so far this month, I have worked 19.5 hours on the case. (Supposedly, 20 hours a MONTH is the average!) I have interviewed family members, the mother's therapist, Child Protective Services, and have been to court. I tutor once a week at the kids' school, so I talk to the teachers and principal weekly. When we have our monthly meetings, I drive the kids to Show Low from school for their parent visit, then attend the meeting with all parties involved in the case. I got fed up at the last meeting and demanded that counseling begin for the kids. They had been putting me off for months. I put my frustrations in my report for the judge and the first question she asked CPS during court, was whether counseling had begun yet!

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I have been to the county sheriff's office requesting incident reports for the parents' legal issues, and I get all the info I want wherever I go. I carry a court order from the Superior Court judge ordering EVERYONE to give me what I ask for! (The hard part is finding out WHAT to ask for.) I was in the clerk's office for Superior Court last week, came home with 50 pages of material and after reading it, found out I only had 1/2 the case file. So, I'll go back! The hours add up with all this travel.

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I go through the metal detectors at the court house without being checked, even if I beep the system. When I went to the sheriff's office, I was greeted with, "I see your badge, what can I do for you?" (This stuff can go to a girl's head!)

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Meanwhile, I am coordinating the CPS case manager, therapists, drug rehab counselors, grandparents, the judge, attorneys and anyone else who crosses my path. Because this case has people working on it from 2 counties, I get the material from Apache County and pass it out to the Navajo County people. I tease Ted and tell him my new job is private investigator. I ferret out old court reports, and put together the three times this family has the children made wards of the courts. I get all the reports on the parents' progress and the results of their urine analysis. It seems I know about the whole picture than anyone else involved in the case. In my spare time, I took the kids to see Santa arrive in Springerville in a horse drawn wagon, and will take them to a craft class during Christmas vacation!

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If you are still interested in more about the program, watch Dr. Phil on Friday, December 18. (Check local times.) He is the national spokesperson for CASA and he is featuring CASA on his program. I'll be watching, will you?????

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Stay tuned...You never know what I'll come up with next!

Lighted Christmas Parade - Show Low Style

Last night we started our Christmas festivities. (We needed a break from our 3 Thanksgivings!) Show Low sponsored its annual lighted Christmas Parade. We had no idea what to expect, but since we had enjoyed Yuma's lighted parade for years, we had to see this one. It lasted over 30 minutes and the police shut down one mile of major highway through town. (Cars were routed around it.) We arrived at 5 pm, planning to have dinner first, then sitting in our car to watch the parade. We picked out a parking lot near the restaurant, where our car would not affect the local business. Well...so did a lot of other people! We arrived 1 1/2 hours early for the parade, and cars had already taken the best spots!!! This told me it would be a GOOD parade! So, we had dinner, then waited with a lot of other folks, for the parade to begin. We're expecting a storm, so the winds were blowing and it was COLD! Many folks braved the winds and stood outside their cars to see the parade.

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This is Frank, and we first saw him and his brother across the street. They were waddling bundles of Christmas lights! When Frank got to our side of the street, I asked to take his picture, thinking I would get the mass of lights...but I got the costume instead. This lighted jacket was amazing. I don't know if the owner made it, or bought it, but the crowds loved watching the bouncing lights, trying to figure out what kind of dog was wearing the lights. My guess was Pomeranian, but Ted made the right guess, dachshunds.

I took lots of pictures, and discovered that next year I needed to pay attention to the background! Circle K showed up in almost every picture.

The Hon-Dah Casino sponsored this float.

This decorated fire truck was the last entry in the parade. It loud! and bright and lots of fun!

Stay tuned.....who knows what I'll show you next!

Winter in the Mountains

Before we moved to the Show Low area, the only experience I had with living "off the grid" was my experience RVing for 9 years. In that lifestyle, I grew accustomed to solar power, generators and propane appliances. We grocery shopped when we were in a large enough town, rationed the fresh water in our tank and watched the waste water "output" so we always had a happy balance. (At least that was the plan!)

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Since moving "to the mountain" I've learned that many people choose to live off the grid and are proud of how they do it. In the winter there are many challenges that must be dealt with. Heat is one, and we see firewood for sale everywhere we go. Many people heat with wood stoves, and Norm and Olga are just one family we know who do that. In the more remote areas up here, people who can afford it, use wind generators and solar power. They supplement with propane heaters and most cooking appliances are propane powered or some people still cook on wood stoves. Without electrical hookups for refrigerators, small propane refrigerators are available. But whatever the plan, stocking up on staples for the winter requires ingenuity. The White Mountain Apache Tribe lives just south of Show Low on 44,000 acres of forest land. Most of the residents live in isolated areas of the reservation. They can go long periods of time without seeing anyone else. Each family has to be self sufficient.

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Our local Wal Mart had this aisle stocked in October. You can see the empty spaces where some products have already sold out. These cans are huge, and I took pictures to show the variety of what is available.

Butter Powder????????? Margarine Powder???? in 3 pound containers????? Remember this is powder! The butter powder was $22.14 and the margarine powder was $14.47. I should have read the instructions for reconstituting either one. Would have been interesting to know how to do it, a cup at a time, or less????? If you can't refrigerate the leftovers inside, do you use a snowbank?

Freeze dried anything and dehydrated somethings weigh practically nothing, so a 1 lb 6 oz can contains a lot!!!

These 5 lb cans of soup and taco mix would last me a LIFETIME!


5 pounds of bouillon??????????

The prices aren't cheap and the most expensive ones, dried raspberries and dried blueberries, were already sold out.

3 pounds of powdered sour cream???? Who uses that much? What for? I can picture a simmering pot of soup or stew on the back burner, and fresh bread coming out of the oven, but that much sour cream baffles me!!!! Remember, all these cans are the same size!!!!

So, now you've had a little insight into my scrambled brain! STAY TUNED.......

Thanksgiving 1...2...3

OK, look out, because this entry is ALL about FOOD! (and friends!) This is our first Thanksgiving "on the mountain," and I've learned there is no reason anyone should be hungry at Thanksgiving. First, we went to the St. Johns Senior Center a week before the actual holiday. The cooks there worked for three days preparing this feast. For $2 seniors, or $4 under age 60, we had a fabulous meal.

Then, the Sunday before Thanksgiving, we joined Norm and Olga at their church for another feast. The church only has about 30 winter members and 60 summer members, but they opened up their doors to the community and invited everyone to come to church and stay for dinner. They had seats for at least 70 people and had more diners than seats. It all worked out though, as it always does at church. The sanctuary is new and well equipped.

During the service many worshippers stood and shared their enthusiasm for the word.

Ted and I watched and learned.

Then, again, we shared a fabulous meal!

Luckily, the desserts don't tempt me. I must be gluten free...and don't like pumpkin pie, so this is "eye candy" for everyone else.

Finally, on Thanksgiving, we joined Norm and Olga, at their home, for our last fabulous dinner...for now.

Olga and I shared the cooking responsibilities, and I must say, it was easy....and a whole lot of fun!

My gluten free dinner sure was good. I had to pass on the rolls and gravy, but I hardly miss them anymore.

And...after three hearty, calorie ridden meals, this is all we were good for!!!

Stay tuned............