I Have Learned To Appreciate It's Beauty

Growing up the in the desert, I didn't really develop an appreciation

of the beauty that is there. In fact, I always had this

idea that "green" was better. So when I traveled to places that were

"green" I thought that they were somehow better than

where I came from.


I felt this way until I served a mission in Virginia, which by the way, I love with

all of my heart. When I returned to Arizona after my mission I found beauty

in the desert that I had never seen or appreciated before.


Now, I find myself stopping along the highway taking pictures of the incredible

beauty that is found in the Arizona desert.

With The Darlings yelling from the car...."you have got to be kidding me!"

"Why do you need sooooo many pictures of that cactus???"

But, The Farmer agreed, and since he was driving...I got to stop as much as I wanted,

to photograph the fantastic desert of Arizona.

And it was fantastic!

Dear Friends....and....Amazing Chocolate!

During Easter Break, The Farmer and I found ourselves in the San Francisco area.

Business required that we be there over night, and so we filled the trip with some great fun as

well as the necessary. The weather was wonderful, a bit cold, but still amazing.

After looking at equipment and meeting with customers, we drove to the

most delightful town, Carmel By The Sea. AMAZING!!!

Our dear dear friends, The Davidsons live in Carmel, and so this was the

perfect time to catch up and see the sights.

The Davidsons are the kind of friends that, even though you have not seen

each other for many years, you pick right up where you left off. We love them!

It was wonderful to see them and their beautiful family.

After a yummy dinner together, The Farmer and I drove to Monterey

to spend the night.



The next morning brought great sight seeing.....



Some catching up with a soul sister....

And a little planning of the next combined family vacation...

so the kids can catch up too.

Next, it was off to...


LuLa's Chocolates! This the the Davidson's business in Carmel.

Gourmet chocolate????!!! Can it get any better than that?

We really had to watch The Farmer....he was sticking his fingers in everything!;)

Can you blame him???

A wall of ribbon??? How could you not love going to work at LuLa's?

I have decided that I NEED this wall of ribbon in my house.


Every box is beautifully wrapped....if you are interested in trying a little

Lula's Chocolate....go to .....www.lulas.com...you will not be disappointed.

Then it was time to return to San Francisco to catch the plane to Phoenix.

We passed through the artichoke capitol of the world...and if you know us.....

you know that we had to stop at the local farmers market. There were the most

amazing strawberries....huge and beautiful.

Artichokes as far as the eye could see....

And fried artichoke hearts at a roadside stand....

A perfect taste of heaven for us.

WE LOVE ARTICHOKES!

It was a wonderful trip...the best part.....catching up with some great friends...

and the chocolate was worth the trip too!

This Isn't Very Easy For Me...

my kids are growing up! Time is passing toooo fast! I knew it was coming,

I just didn't know it would come so quick!

The Boy turned 16 on April 12, which was also Easter Sunday. How great is that?!

Since he was going to be ordained as a Priest, we decided to make a trip to Mesa

so that his uncles (who live there) could participate. It was so special.

Everyone met at Grandpa and Grandma's, where The Boy was ordained by his Dad,

(aka, The Farmer)

Lots of uncles....lots of hugs!

A hug from Grandpa Charles


(below) Grandpa Charles is showing off his boots. When The Boy was born, Gandpa and Grandma came to El Paso to see the little man. He was the first grandson for those grandparents. To celebrate The Boy's birth, Grandpa Charles purchased himself a

new pair of boots, which he has worn and cared for, for the past 16 years. He wore them during the ordination of The Boy. A very fun and tender memory. He also wore them

to represent Grandpa Max, who The Boy is very much alike, and who passed

away several years ago. A very special day for us all!

It All Started With.....

An innocent trip to the farm.....

and before I get into the story, can I just say....

VIVA MEXICO!!!!

So, we had planned to be away for a bit of time to celebrate Semana Santa (Holy Week),

but before we could go, The Boy had to take a little innocent drive to the farm (about 10 minutes) away from our home. He and The Rooster had a few fish that needed to be

placed in the pond there. So he tood off, driving The Farmer's truck.

He drove all the way there, and was nearly home, WHEN, he came face to face with

a group of soliders and policemen. And I do mean a group.

(around 30 soldiers and 5 police cars)

I am not sure if they had any of these...but they did have many machine guns and The Boy,

found himself , physically removed from the truck, this was after they discovered his seat belt was fastened...they gave a few good tugs. He then was forced onto the ground, where the guns

remained directed at him, and he was frisked. He used other words to describe the moment..."frisked" wasn't a word he knew too well until that experience. Anyway,

the group of "law enforcement" proceeded to go through The Farmer's truck, to see

if there was anything they needed....luckily only a flashlight was taken...

(he carries mosty church stuff with him).

Next, they asked him who his father was. EXCUSE ME!!!.....

should that really matter?? He hadn't done anything wrong!

The Boy told them, and since The Farmer doesn't hang out with the

"law enforement" group, how could they know him. But The Boy quickly let them

know that he has an uncle who is politically positioned here in Mexico and whose name they would recognize, to which

the comandante (the leader of the soldiers) replied...

"I guess you just got lucky tonight, boy."

They issued him a ticket for $50 pesos, which is about $3.00 U.S. dollars, for not
having his drivers license, and sent him on his way home.
Now, in defense of the "law enforcement" group, The Boy broke every cardinal
rule that we have in our home right now.
1. Do not be out on the street after dark
2. Never be without our cel. phone
3. Never go anywhere alone, especially at night
The moral of the story.......
DON'T BREAK THE RULES!!!
(and VIVA MEXICO!)