Absence

Sorry I've been so long gone, but we have been so busy here in Palm Creek that I just haven't made the time!!
CD is here for the holidays and we have been making cards like crazy so I will post some pictures soon.
Also, since I last posted here, I've had a hard drive failure and was unable to recover data - so BACK UP THOSE COMPUTERS!!!
See you soon!

Matchbook Card

I totally lifted this card from Mary at Cardz TV.  She is so talented!!

As you can see, it opens like a matchbook and there is a treat inside.  I can envision all sorts of uses for this little gem!!

Colorado Road Food

So you all know how much we love good cheap food and this is one of those places.  We actually discovered this bar several nights before I took these pictures.  That night, however, there was a musical "event" and things were crazy so I didn't take pictures.  The food was so good that we had to go back again!!

The draft PBR's (Pabst Blue Ribbon) were really cold and served in frosted glasses - Yum!!

These tacos were delicious and well crafted - just look at those fresh tomatoes and lettuce!

Retiree's dream - dinner for two under $10!

Bear Creek Saloon & Grill in Pagosa Springs, Co.  Don't miss the happy hour tacos and PBR's. 

Mug shaped cards.

I'm really enjoying making these mug shaped cards.  I'm doing three at a time because I currently have three mats for my Cricut.  I've stamped the middle of the heart with "hello", "smile", and "thank you".  I really think I like the "hello" stamp best and it makes the card more versatile.

I've used a subtly patterned paper for the inside to write a message on and there is a little cup with steam coming from it to add a little interest.

Pikes Peak

JC and I are spending some time in Colorado Springs, CO before we head to Louisville, KY to meet up with both our daughters and watch C do her first "Ironman".

We were very excited to drive to the top of Pikes Peak because we had heard that the views are stunning  . . . and they are stunning; in fact, they are FREAKIN' SCARY!!!  And it's cold up there  - or maybe that was just because it's a FREAKIN' SCARY drive. 

 

Apparently, the vistas from Pikes Peak were the inspiration for Katharine Lee Bates' "America the Beautiful" and there is a wonderful stone monument commemorating the creation of that lovely song.

At 14,110 feet, the Peak is not for the faint of heart or anyone with serious health problems.  In fact, I saw EMTs who were on duty and they sold little canisters of oxygen in the gift shop.

Photographs just don't do these views justice. It's not that bad getting there, really - I'd do it again!  It's like being in an airplane . . . but without the fusilage!!!!!

Crazy Woman Canyon, WY

  We recently explored the area around Buffalo, WY and one of the most impressive drives we did was through Crazy Woman Canyon.  There are several legends explaining the name - from that of a white woman who witnessed the massacre of her entire family by indians to the poorly translated indian word for prostitute.

Crazy Woman Creek forms the canyon and it is a lovely, rushing stream.

This is a narrow canyon . . .

    

With sheer rock faces and overhangs that crowd the narrow, one lane road.

We've seen these wild roses before.  They have such a wonderful smell that permeates the air anywhere near them.

We came out of the canyon into a grassy plain and this little darling was as intrigued by us as we were by her.  She posed for quite a while - long enough for me to get a picture with my little camera and for JC to get his big ole D90 out and take some shots.  Not to worry, her parent was standing guard, but too far away for good pictures!!

Cupcake card

Here is a card I made because I needed a birthday card and because Mary at Cricut Cardz Challenge was having a cake/cupcake challenge. This is my first entry to a challenge (I'm a little nervous).

I made the card using the Doodle Charms cart and my recently purchased Gypsy. I made the cupcake a little small because I wanted the Cuttlebug birthday embossing to show. If I make this card again, I may make the cupcake bigger!
I'm trying to dress up the inside of my cards more. Sending this to my Mom for her birthday.

Kick Back Card

I made this card recently for the birthday of a dear friend.

Some elements are from the "Just Because Cards" Cricut cartridge, but I can't leave well enough alone and altered the saying from "just kickin back" to "just kick back" because that makes more sense to me!!
Then your message can read "and have a good birthday/retirement/trip/life/day/etc." : )

Buffalo

We are really enjoying our time here in Montana. We spent several days in the Missoula area and we will return someday to explore more. We went way up north across rolling plains and into mountains to explore the area where A. B. Guthrie lived and used as the setting for his fur trading books. Very remote, rugged, and beautiful. Then we explored Garnet, an old mining ghost town that has been preserved by several government agencies and private donations. Again, remote, rugged, and beautiful.

We are now in Butte, MT, but several days ago JC insisted we buy a couple of vacuum packed buffalo rib eyes. I was reluctant because buffalo is lower in fat than regular beef and I just didn't see how that could translate to a good steak.

Well, I was wrong!!
These were really tender and tasty!
Paired with a really great Washington Merlot that we had been saving - Yum yum - good eats!!

The Methow Valley

Just before we left Washington we decided to drive through the Methow Valley, formed by the Methow river. What a beautiful area; remote and sparsely settled, it seems frozen in time.

We decided to take an old logging road called the Thompson Ridge Road. The Sun Mountain Trail System spins off of this and welcomes hikers, bicyclists, and horse back riders. The vistas are stunning.

And the flora is amazing with wild flowers in abundance. But it's the Ponderosa pine that intrigue me. I don't know if it is the way they stand tall and proud above the rest or the coppery, carved ruggedness of the trunks, but I'm mesmerized.

We kept a sharp eye out for critters and we did see wild turkeys although we didn't get a good picture. This little curious fellow wanted to know what we were about . . .
and his friend wasn't to be left out of the action!!

Then we spotted this lovely lady relaxing off the side of the road. She seemed very alert although JC did mention that he thought she looked a little thin.

This fellow was also relaxing just off the road, but he was a little more skittish, decided we were a nuisance, and departed!!

Here is the Twisp River, just one of several that flows into the Methow and that played a part in forming this little piece of heaven.

Road Food - Western Style

JC and I took a drive through the Methow Valley in Washington a couple of days ago (more to come on the valley). We wound up in the very "western" town of Winthrop. I remembered it from a trip we had taken up to Canada years ago and it was just as charming now as then.

If it weren't for the cars, you could almost imagine another time.

This fellow certainly seems to be enjoying his ice cream!!

We were hungry for more substantial fare and chose a place just outside of the touristy main street area. JC's pastrami with a mustardy aioli was really good!

My turkey/bacon/ranch on a spinach tortilla was nice, but you see that stuff in the big black cup??

This is the reason to eat here. Creamy chicken and wild rice soup. Yum yum yum!!!

It tastes like Chicken and Dumplings, but with lots of other good stuff in it.

The Valley Hub in Wintrop, WA. Eat here - you won't regret it!!

"Full-timin'"

It's been a busy month for JC and me. We've decided to go "full-time" in our RV for the foreseeable future. We will winter in Casa Grande, AZ where we are "improving" an RV site at Palm Creek resort. We've had such a good time for the past 1 1/2 years that we decided this is a good way to spend the first few years of our retirement.

Here we are getting ready to start this leg of the adventure. We are spending some time in the Wenatchee, WA area and then heading to Montana.

This blog will continue to be a confusing mix of cooking, crafting, and exploring our great land!

See you soon!

More Cards

Some cards I made recently.

And another.

And the last one.

Osso Buco

Years and years ago, JC came home from a trip to Montreal talking about a fabulous dish he'd had called Osso Buco. Well, you know I'm going to make it, right? I've been making this dish ever since and I use a recipe (click to go there) by Emeril Lagasse that calls for two 8 oz pieces of veal shank. You could easily add two more pieces of veal and not change any of the other ingredients.

Serve with white or brown rice, crusty bread, and a rich hearty red wine. Yum!!