My Very First Cross Stitch

I have always wanted to do embroidery. In the clearance section at Micheals last year was this kit to make a Cross Stitch Christmas Card. I bought it and stuck it in my card box - and just found it again when I was looking at cards for Christmas last week. It took me 5 evenings, but I got it done. I added an ice pad for Santa to be standing on, and moonlight in back of him. I have a Klutz book and it showed me how to make the fur on his suit fuzzy and his tassel puffy. He is holding a big bag of toys with a Candy Cane sticking out. His eye on the pattern was brown but I made it blue. Fun to do but OH MY GOSH THOSE HOLES ARE SMALL! But I have already started another one. I am sending this one to Audrey. AzGrandma Valerie

The weather right now is absolutely glorious. We are finally having our perfect "Fall" days. Last friday, Avery and Audrey's school was closed and Rob had the kids so he asked me if I'd like to play Miniature golf with them. We went to "Golfland" and it was a perfect time to go. We were almost the only people there. Also, the staff was putting up the Christmas decorations while we were there so the kids got to see that too. Fortunately for me, they didn't keep score. The kids are better putters than Grandma is!

My Bernina Sewing Machine Tech Lenard

I picked up my Sewing machine and Serger which I had dropped off last week at my Bernina store for maintenance. I love my Bernina store. It's right on East Southern in Mesa and its jam packed with sewing goodies. All of the folks who work there are real sewers and every time I go, even just to browse, I always learn something new. The Machine Repairman technician is Lenard. I am telling you, this man is like the God of sewing machines. He knows everything there is to know about sewing machines. This time he taught me a fast and EZ way to adjust the tension on my serger for any fabric. He showed me inside a sewing machine case and how to use an old tooth brush to clean under the plate. He is the kind of guy who shares his knowledge with his customers - not someone who keeps his knowledge a dark secret from the customers. Did you know that a Bernina Machine Technician ALWAYS takes the whole case off a sewing machine to clean and check everything, not just the side cover. Not all machine technicians do that. I am so lucky he and the Bernina store are in Mesa ! Close to me !! Here is his picture. Oh, they fix any kind of sewing machine there, not just Berninas.

Fun seeing Sydnee at Work

Sunday after the movie we went to lunch at Coco's, the restaurant that our charming 17 year old Grand-daughter Sydnee is now working at. The food was great and I got several pictures of the shy, demure said Grand-daughter in her new habitat. I was trying to stand unobtrusively by the register but with a camera in my hand it was not EZ. A nice little old lady asked me what I was photographing and I pointed out our Grand-daughter. She then shared a tale about her Great-Grand-daughter's new job and another little old lady joined us to comment that Sydnee was doing a great job, and then a gentleman added that Sydnee was a beauty. Sydnee had been trying to avoid the camera but with all of us talking about her and Grandchildren in general it was impossible for her not to smile at the gaggle of Grand-Parents. I managed to snap her several shots of her enjoying her job and her approving audience.

Movie Morning Sunday Nov 11, 2010

Rob suggested to Dad that we all go to the movies to see "RED" (CIA lingo for "retired extremely dangerous). I had been wanting to see that movie too. Alas, they had already removed the poster from the movie poster displays because it has been out quite a while - so our picture is in front of a differewnt movie. We all enjoyed the movie - good suspense with great comedy. I had my camera in my purse and got a "reasonable" (notice I didn't say good) photo of Bruce willis.

AWGA Wine Festival Event Part 2 of 2

Picture 4....We got there about 20 minutes early, but there were many people already there who had started walking the rows of tables to taste wine. A wine goblet and a wine bottle carrying bag are included in the entry price (even the designated driver gets one). By an hour after the event started, there were lines everywhere to get up to the tasting tables.

Picture 3...I edged my way to the winery employees side of the table to get this shot of Dad and Rob.

Picture 2.... There were 2 seminars about the Ariz Wine Industry and Dad and Rob were about to get seats in the second one. Wine Vinyards are a growing cottage industry here - mainly done by small growers who love what they are doing.

Picture 1.... We can't go anywhere without seeing an old vechicle. Look at this restored truck that the "Jerome Winery" brought down for the show. It was a real "Cherry" restoration too.

Ariz Wine Growers Assoc Event part 1

Wow, what a wonderful day. Yes, it went up to 88 degrees but we, me, Grandpa and Rob, spent the day at a place called "The Farm" in Phoenix. We were in the middle of an old grove of Pecan Trees, rolling grassy lawns, cool breezes, and free wine. I was the designated driver so Reg and Rob could taste wine to their hearts content. This year there was an even greater variety of things to see and do then there had been last year.

Picture 1....I went to the class on wine barrels put on by Russ Balda of Javelina Leap Winery. Which kind of Oak wood used to make the cask, , what wine was in the cask the previous year, how much sedament drops out and if you drain the barrel - clean it - and refill it to continue aging the wine - plus many other factors related to the cask - really make a difference in the wine itself. Big winery corperations make wine in huge aluminum tanks and throw in oak wood chips to mimic the oak barrel flavor.

Picture 2....The class about wine glasses was amazing. A drop of hot glass on the bottom of the glass itself formed a certain way will enable a bubblely wine to kep producing bubbles, a wide mouth glass verus a smaller mouth glass affects how your tongue interperts the flavor of the wine, etc. I may not drink wine, but I love all the science of wine making and drinking.

Picture 3.... Look who had a booth at the event. a new company in Tempe called Infusion Fine Teas. Now this was right up my alley. Their teas were wonderful and I am going to visit their store on University Drive close to the college.

Picture 4... We all had a great picnic lunch at a shady spot. See South Mountain in the background - what a clear day.

Halloween evening Sunday Oct 31

A good Halloween night. Perfect weather, in the low 70's. Dave and Debi, Janet and Van, and Jennifer came for dinner and to hand out goodies. Reggie and Kylee stopped by a couple of times to show us their great get-ups and later on after she got off work Sydnee came by in costume too. Tyler and Reggie came by later to chat with everyone. Reggie's Sarcophagus and mummy costume was the hit of the evening. All the neighbors were over to see the full outfit. Even a police car stopped to get a better look and wished us a Happy Halloween !! Now that has never happened before. The teens loved the puzzle tricks and the little kids loved the Disney card decks and everyone loved the tootsie rolls treats.

Busy Week End Saturday Oct 30 2010

Grandpa got up early and met Rob and the kids for breakfast. Then they tried out the new Farmer's market in Gilbert. It was a bust, it's so new that there were no produce venders at all, but Grandpa got a loaf of a really good fruit bread. Then Rob and the kids came to our house to see the last minute Halloween decorations. Avery loved the remote control that made the moaning skeleton crawl down the walk. Audrey showed us how she is a ballerina on her scooter. We all went to the neighborhood park, walking through the subdivison's desert nature preserve instead of taking the street. Grandpa and I saw one rabbit there, but he was so fast that avery and Audrey missed him. Reggie saw us passing his house on the way home and we stopped at his house for a while. He has had two carport sales and his garage is now organized and even has some empty shelves.

Rob's Birthday Dinner Thursday Oct 28

Picture 1. Grandpa, Avery and Grandma on one side of the booth. Picture 2. Avery laughing so hard he can't sit up. He and Grandpa telling jokes. Picture 3. Audrey loved Papa's Birthday cake.

*** We took Rob and the kids to Buca Di Beppo for Rob's birthday and had a wonderful meal. We had pre ordered the dinner, all small size plates (these serve 3 people family style) starting with Cheesey Bread Florentine, the Mixed Green Salad with Gorganzola and Prosciutto, then Veal Parmagian and Quattro Al Forno (a big platter of assorted baked pastas) and plates of spagetti and meatballs for the kids. They accidently brought us a plate of Veal Saltimbocca, which we hadn't ordered, so they gave us that for free. We had never tried that before and it was good too. We finished dinner with a fantastic Birthday cake. I had ordered 4 slices, but the waiter pointed out that would cost more than a whole cake, why not get the entire cake? OK, we did - and it was the the biggest cake I have ever seen! 3 layers, I think armaretto flavorings, each layer a different jewel color, red, green and yellow, covered with a white cream frosting that was covered in fresh coconut - WOW. We each had a giant slice. Rob took home a huge half and I offered the waiter the other huge amount because Reg and I could not eat all that cake! Reg and I also took home the leftovers which were a great dinner for us on Friday nite. Us and the kids loved the Italian ambience.