Playground fun

Luc and his Dad had a great time at the playground yesterday.

A 3 generation truck wash

Phil and Guy embarked on washing Guys truck, and again Luc was the helper. Initially a little overawed by the hose, Luc soon adapted and gave his best.

Juicing with a little helper

We are enjoying our stay in Santa Clara, especially catching up with the developmental skills of our two grandchildren. Luc had a great time helping his mom juice a bunch of fruits and vegetables, and enjoying the end results. This child eats and drinks EVERYTHING!

Charmed again in Naples

I've missed a few days of posting and now we are homeward bound, so time to catch up. We spent the middle days of last week in the community of Naples, tucked inside of Long Beach, visiting our friends Ken and Jean Frost. I always enjoy our time there because of the charming setting of houses alongside curved canals. Here is a picture of the canals and also of Ken and Jean.

In Maricopa with Ed and Helen Dolan

We enjoyed a lovely two days with Ed and Helen Dolan, who lived in an oasis in the desert, named Province, in the city of Maricopa. We had our own little "casita" to sleep in, a separate bedroom/bath unit not part of the house. The grounds were lovely to explore on my morning walks. I've included a picture of the man built lake by the clubhouse (they use reclaimed water to fill it), the casita, and Ed and Helen.

Maricopa, Phoenix and the Heard Museum

Sunday afternoon we arrived in Maricopa, AZ, a bit southwest of Phoenix, to visit with Ed and Helen Dolan. Ed was my boss at Bellevue community College for several years, and has remained a friend. He and Helen spend their winters in Arizona and return home for summers in their original home of Chicago, where we also have visited them. Today Phil and I spent a wonderful day at the Heard Museum in Phoenix, with its superb collection of southwest Indian arts. Phil said it was the first time he'd spent an entire day in a museum that didn't have any weapons. And he enjoyed it!

Picture include the courtyard of the original Heard Museum (now greatly expanded), an enchanting sculpture of a woman "floating" titled "Woman in Love" and a pair of sculptures from the museums current entry courtyard.

Bisbee--Canyon Mining Town

Way south, at the border between Mexico and Arizona, is the small town (population 6000) of Bisbee. A mining town, it now hosts a combination of artists, people still involved in mining, and tourists. It is a town of steep hills and LOTS of stairs. We stayed in a charming small hotel called the Bisbee Grand. Nice room, far enough back in the hotel that the band playing in the bar below did not keep us awake. We also did a tour of the underground Queen City mine that is no long in production. My stepbrother Gregg and his partner Laurie were there for a month, so we joined them for a couple days and had a great time. One visit is enough, however.

The pictures include me outfitted for the underground mining tour, Gregg, Laurie and Phil at breakfast on our parting day, and a shot of the open pit mine just outside of town.