We got a late start, after 1:00, for our trip to Sedona yesterday (Mom is no longer the morning person she used to be) but still managed to fit in everything we wanted to do.  It turns out that it had been quite a while since she had been there, so the scenery was definitely that much more of a delight. I pulled into several places to try and get a shot of her with the spectacular deep-red rocks in the background, but all the lots were full (mostly from hikers using the trailheads) so we had to "settle" for this less dramatic view at the top by the airport.  It was quite windy and chilly up there, so I snapped a couple of quick photos and then we were soon back in the warm car.

Next we popped into the Hummingbird store, a hidden gem off the beaten path which is my "go to" place to take visitors, and always a delight.  It's tiny, and crowded, and when we walked in the owner seemed a little nervous about Mom's walker snagging a display of something.  But of course Mom was quite careful so that didn't happen.  Between us we bought a lot of stuff (my pile included gifts for Marilyn's and Sandy's upcoming birthdays) so it worked out fine.

After doing our part for the Sedona economy we continued on for a pleasant meander through Oak Creek Canyon.  And yes there was snow in places, and even a few snowmen standing about.

We arrived back home right at 6:00, having put 230 miles on the car.  I was a tad tired, and ready to chill out - but Pokey's heat lamp decided that was the day to burn out. So it was back into the car for a quick run to PetSmart.  Despite the ever-lengthening checkout line there was only one register open. They eventually did open a second one... just not until I finally arrived at the head of the line.  Unfortunately everyone ahead of me had had "issues" of one sort or another (I was ready with cash in hand for a quick check out of my one item), so it took WAY longer than it should have to get checked out.

Except for the gym this morning there's nothing on the schedule, so maybe if we get tired of Rummikub we'll watch the pilot of the new show (Good Girls) that I recorded last night and see if it lives up to its hype.

The series follows three suburban women, two of whom are sisters, who are having a hard time trying to make ends meet. They are tired of having everything taken away from them so they decide to pull off an unlikely heist by robbing a supermarket, only to discover that they're in for more than they bargained. 

Yesterday we did some things around the house - made Mom's plane reservations to fly home next Sunday (I need to make mine for May!) and then put in a Peapod order to be delivered the next day so she won't starve - so we got a rather late start to Fountain Hills.  We hoped that arriving at the craft festival much later in the day than usual might make it easier to find parking if people had already finished their shopping and left .... HAH! 

I ended up dropping off Mom as close as possible, with instructions to turn right at the first craft aisle.  Then I drove "for miles" <g>  since the handicapped lot no longer existed. When I saw people heading toward a car I waited for them to get organized and pull out, then hiked back to find Mom.  She hadn't gotten too very far up that aisle, but it was very crowded so I did feel relieved when I spotted her.

Mom found several pairs of earrings and a necklace to go home with her, plus a little something for Pippa.  I bought an inexpensive pair of earrings.  (And yes, in those very same colors as the majority of my earrings - and clothing.)

I would have loved to buy this large platter for Marilyn, perfect for her kitchen - except for the price!   (Again, the artist gave me permission to snap a pic to send to Marilyn.)  Keep in mind that my flip phone takes crappy photos; the colors, of course, are much brighter, and it really is a gorgeous piece of pottery.

Marilyn's kitchen is blue and yellow, and she planted zillions of red-flowered bushes around their house.  Now she no longer needs to keep refilling the dozens of hummingbird feeders and going through poundage of sugar daily for the herds of hummers on the ranch.  The flowers on the platter look just like the riot of wildflowers that bloom profusely in the Hill Country where she lives.

I included the comment that she "isn't worth $400"; she texted right back that L'Oréal said she was... but that I should save my money. <g>

I also saw a beautiful mosaic wall-hanging of a sri yantra that would make a stunning quilt (though of course it has at least 600 "projects" in line ahead of it!)  The artist graciously allowed me to snap a pic with that in mind.  When I asked the price before leaving the booth ($3200) she smiled and asked if she should 'wrap it up' for me.

Mom and I shared a funnel cake (a "tradition" of hers and Jean's from craft shows long ago) but we still had no trouble chowing down on dinner last night.  Carlo had smoked a turkey, I had peeled and diced another mountain of huge potatoes for mashers, and Tom sautéed eggplant (Ruby had brought a bunch of veggies to pass along at Bunco Friday so I grabbed one for Bana.) 

She and I played more Rummikub yesterday, and the good news is

that I've finally begun a winning streak.

Mom may still be ahead, but now by a much more reasonable amount.  Of course we have another week yet to play, so anything could happen.

Last night I showed Mom how to save pix from FB to her iPhone (after I figured it out!)  The "silver lining" to having me help her (see me grabbing at straws here?) is that it takes me so long to figure something out that I can only teach her one thing a day, which should make it easier for her to learn/remember. 

If it was someone who actually knew who she was doing,

she might be trying to show Mom a whole bunch of stuff at once.

Time to stop playing and get ready for a drive to Sedona.  The weather is supposed to turn crummy the next few days (chance of rain) so we thought we'd better take advantage of today's sunny skies.

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Saturday was a pretty laid-back day, with lots of Rummikub.  I finally won a few games, narrowing Mom's substantial lead.   In the afternoon we popped over to The Other Quilt Shop so I could thank Sheri for her gift card generosity to Busy Bees, show her the spool quilt I'm entering in the AQG show (she always works and never makes it there), and order the Doodle Quilting book.  Mom admired the many quilts on display, though her favorites were not necessarily the same as mine.  As Dad used to say, "That's why they have horse races."

Alex flew to Texas early this morning for a month of working Spring Break.  Tough gig, right?  So last night Bana treated us to a farewell dinner, at Carrabba's.  I was thrilled to see how much she was able to pack away at dinner since she usually can't eat much at any one meal - especially since neither Tom nor Alex were quite able to clean their plates!  When the waitress came by, on Bana's deaf ear, to see if we wanted dessert, the three of us declined.  Bana was shocked <g> to see the bill arrive without having ordered dessert,

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However we flagged down the waitress and made amends.  Naturally there was truly only one thing to order: sogno di cioccolata (chocolate dream) - and 4 forks!

While waiting for it to arrive, Mom checked out the new phone Alex had gotten yesterday.  (While at the Apple store he also picked up a stylus for her, which is making it easier to type e-mails - and play Word Wipe - on her phone.) I'm impressed with how well she's doing with her iPhone (especially since she's looking to me to help her figure things out!)

Of course Alex's has all the latest bells and whistles (he is even having to go through a learning curve) and naturally takes much better pix than this one I snapped with my low-tech flip phone.

Today is supposed to be in the mid-60s, and sunny with no wind. Our plan is to head over to Fountain Hills and wander through however much of the juried craft show we can before Mom runs out of steam. 

We've always enjoyed this particular show during previous winter visits, though as she points out she doesn't need anything, and has actually been getting rid of stuff in her apartment.  Still, it's fun to admire all the artists' creativity. And there's always room for another pair of earrings, right?

It was an afternoon of Rummikub, with Bana winning game after game (after game!) and racking up points against me. 

She continued her winning streak at neighborhood Bunco tonight, first collecting $40 for having the most buncos (3) - and then winning the coveted Left/Right/Center pot of $57. Not too shabby for an evening of fun!

I tied for most losses (12/18) which earned me $9, so I basically broke even for the night.  Marcie split the pot, with three others, for most wins, so she virtually broke even also.  

  

I got a great night's sleep - really slept in!  (If I had a mouse wire to pull, I would be inclined to play Hallelujah at a happy volume...)

Tonight is neighborhood BUNCO at Edie's, so it's nice that I shouldn't be dragging this evening.  Mom has attended with me during one of her previous visits, but this will be Marcie's introduction to the neighborhood group.  

The only thing on today's schedule is the gym this morning.  With a solid night's sleep I should have a good workout - except that it's an upper body day, and my upper right arm is still bothering me.  In fact I have had to tweak how I get dressed.  Whatever muscle became unhappy a week ago is still kvetching.

Today is going to be colder than yesterday (which was quite nippy due to the wind) with 20 mph winds.  MY forecast is for an inside afternoon of Rummikub! 

This weekend is the Fountain Hills Craft Show.  We'll have to decide if we want to brave the 60-degree weather or not.  At least it's going to be sunny all weekend, with only light winds of 4-7 mph.

Today's outing, with Mom and Marcie,

was to see the Mavericks' Quilters Calories Don't Count exhibition.

While there didn't seem to be quite as many entries as in previous years, they certainly were creative. But one was especially impressive.

It even came with sound effects!  Opening the doors

pulled on the wire that suspended this church mouse 

which started a recording of the song Hallelujah - what a hoot!

Here is Wanda's delicious Kaffe Kake.

Some of the quilts were for sale,

but not this Pace Yourself, which Mom really liked.

High Tea would be a nice decoration for almost any kitchen.

Effective quilting on Desert Feast - But Is It Organic?

Couldn't tell if A Study in Pears was hand-painted or hand-dyed.

Art Feeds Your Dreams!

Battle of the Bulge (that's a bathroom scale) made us smile.

Can't argue with this... Calories Don't Count After the First 100 Years.

The Soft Side of Me was cute.

There were other quilts, but those were the ones I liked the most.  After we were done there we headed up to Carefree for lunch, and I definitely pigged out.  I enjoyed my bowl of delicious French onion soup (today was windy and chilly, and somehow I'd forgotten to grab my sweater) and some of Mom's huge salad, and took Marcie up on her off to share her French fries - yet somehow still saved room for dessert: chocolate decadence!\

Alex is home; he and the guys had a great time in Vegas (it probably didn't hurt that most of them, including him, came out ahead.)  Today he was dog-sitting for Tyga (who may not be moving to Colorado after all?) so Mom got in some dog time.

Marcie brought Latina over to play with Tyga.

We took the pooches outside to run around, and invited Carlo's dog Buddy to join the fun.

Latina still hasn't quite gotten the idea of how dogs play with each other,

but the guys had fun running around.

Of course there was a lot of sniffing -

but if they're looking for Pokey

she's sunning herself by the lemon tree.

Glad to report that Carlo is finally starting to feel a little better.