Feeling more like home everyday

The other day we went shopping for food necessities & DH walked by the meat counter and without hesitation he picked up two T-bone steaks for us. I didn't really want to say anything to DH but we sold our grill in MN before our move to my Mom & Mike. At checkout he didn't blink as the cashier scanned it across the scanner & placed them in a bag. When we got home I had to ask how he planned on cooking the steaks? DH said "we have a broiler with the oven and the broiler pan is in the bottom drawer of the stove". I started to laugh and told him what he saw was just the top portion of the broiler, the bottom portion can't be found. DH said "what"? He looked again in the bottom drawer of the stove & was dumbfounded that the bottom portion was indeed missing. Well to make a long story short, we went to our local Home Depot and found a nice grill on sale & purchased it fully assembled. All we had to do was fill the propane tank and we were on our way to feeling like we did in MN. The steaks cooked very well on the grill and tasted fabulous. We chuckled a little bit because thinking back we had not cooked on a grill since our 7th of July party earlier this year in MN. What a treat grilling in the warmth of the evening with no bugs. Seems we will be doing allot of this in the coming months.

Legal to drive in the sunshine state!

Well, for the first time in the grand state of Arizona, DH is legal to drive & has proof that this is where we reside. DH thought it would be a good idea to feel out the process as his license expires on Sept 8th. He traveled a short 7.5 miles to the DMV to start the "unknown" process of changing from a Minnesota license to an Arizona license. He arrived nervous, but sure he had the correct ID's required to make the transfer. He walked into the DMV that looked similar to a Grey Hound Bus Depot. Chairs everywhere and people sitting in the chairs. He had to approach a "Start Here" kiosk where a woman who asked him politely "Can I help you?" DH, being the creative thinker he is, thinks to himself, "Ummmmm NO, I'm looking for the lost tomb of King Tutankhamen, Here's your sign!" LOL! DH politely tells the kiosk woman that he is here to change his license. She hands him a form to fill out and a pen with a fabulous silk flower attached to it & directs DH to a small area to fill out the form. She requested that when completed, he return to let her know it's done. DH returned to hand over the fabulous pen & paperwork & is handed a number & asked to have a seat in the waiting area. 15 minutes goes by until his number is called. He approached the desk numbered 10 of 20 & had a seat in the chair. A friendly gentleman reviewed his form, checked his identification and filled in the appropriate information required to send him to another woman who smiled, accepted the paperwork & said have a seat. DH patiently waited and about 15 minutes later heard his name called. He approached the woman who politely asked him to stand in the square against the wall for a photo. DH graciously accepted, smiled and the photo was taken. The woman politely asked for DH to have a seat. She said she will call your name in a few minutes. Actually it was no more than 5 minutes at most & a shiny new Arizona Drivers License was handed over to DH.

DH chuckled in telling the story to DW. She has a good idea of what to expect & should have no problems changing hers. I guess I miss the days of going to the DMV in Owatonna & talking to our friend Karen who handled our requests in about 5 minutes total. Big City, Big Hassles! Oh well! We're adapting to the new challenges life is throwing our way!

Tommy Bahama's in Snottsdale OOPS I mean Scottsdale, AZ.

We had an exceptional lunch today at Kierland Commons in Scottsdale, AZ. http://www.kierlandcommons.com. Our friend Tony moved from Avondale to Scottsdale & we helped him out with hauling our racing trailer for him. Today we went to pick it up and haul it back to storage. We stopped at Tommy Bahama's http://www.tommybahama.com/index.jsp in an upscale shopping area of Kierland Commons. Here is a picture of DH & DW kicken' back enjoying a beverage. Yes this is the actual table we sat at and enjoyed our meal. The coffee table was full of sea shells and its located outside with misters spraying a fine mist to keep you chilled. AWESOME!! For the two of us to have a drink & burger, the total was $33.00. We didn't think that was too bad because the people watching is priceless.

We both ordered the Tommy Bahama burger & it was to die for. Special cheese, sauce & the presentation was AWESOME! They even gave us a basket of butter-covered bread with a cinnamon butter that was fabulous. Mmmmm!!

When we say this is an upscale place to shop we mean the fact that the cars alone are incredibly expensive, not to mention the people! We had seen one Rolls Royce with a license plate that read "BLEST", a Ferrari, too many Mercedes, Hummers, BMW's, Porches to count! We rolled down the main drive in our Chevy Dually & we laughed hysterically as we drove through because we were definitely like the Circus was coming to town. I'm still chuckling!

After lunch on our way to Tony's we passed WestWorld, the place where the Barrett Jackson auto auction takes place. We swung in to have a peek.

The area where they have the auction is huge. We didn't realize that the outside of the tent where they actually have the auction has an enormous American flag on it. That was pretty cool to see. For those of you who think we are just slacken off here in the valley of the sun, I assure you we have been exploring every chance we get. When you come visit we should have a very good list of things for you all to check out. Hope all is well!! Tom & Andrea

Wandering the Desert looking for trouble!

Yesterday morning we awoke to YES clouds & rain. Unfortunately
for us we didn't receive any rain.

We decided to put our walking shoes on and again explore the neighborhood even further. We were able to access the Desert and take a few photos of a nasty cactus pictured above. We hope that if you come visit you stay FAR, FAR away from these nastys. If you look closely, you can see a barb that flew in the wind and ended up stuck into this aloe-vera plant. Freaky!

The jumping cholla (Opuntia fulgida), also known as the hanging chain cholla, is a cactus that is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.

FIRST AID:
When a piece of this cholla sticks to an unsuspecting person, a good method to remove the cactus is with a hair comb, which is standard equipment for many who hike in the cholla's biome. The pieces should not be handled, as the spines are barbed and can cause painful, very slow-healing wounds if the barbs become embedded in the skin. If the barbs pass through clothing before entering the skin, it may be possible to pull the clothing away from the skin, pulling most of the barbs out of the skin. This reduces the problem to the less-painful task of removing the piece from the clothing. After doing so, the article of clothing may be removed to expose any remaining barbs still embedded in the skin. Another technique for removing barbs from the skin is by applying hot water (by the use of a bathtub or shower) to the affected area. This will open up pores in the skin, making it easier for the needles to be removed or possibly even removing some needles entirely. If the cholla is encountered on a dedicated footpath, it may be good manners to place the removed piece off the footpath where it is less likely to be accidentally stuck to other people. Cholla barbs should be carefully removed from shoes, as the barbs will continue to work their way into the shoe material.



While we were walking down the sidewalk we ran across a Hummingbird resting on a branch of a small tree. We were surprised to see one actually, for whatever reason we didn't figure Humming birds were a prevalent bird of AZ.


This is an example of one of the 40 or so homes that are for sale in our neighborhood. It seems every day you wake up and drive through the neighborhood another home pops up for sale. It's crazy!

We finished putting up the gazebo in the backyard & think it really sets off the look of our house.

We laughed when DH went and grabbed the rake, seems he remembers from his college job in making things look a little more detailed with dragging the rake across the small gravel putting a finished look to it. The "Arizona" version of yard work! Sometimes I think he creates work for himself just to have something to do.

Federated Insurance, Glendale, AZ

Landscapes, buildings and even parking lots are so different in Arizona when compared to Minnesota! A great example is the parking lot at the Federated Office where DW now works in Glendale, AZ. When we were first here last October on our honeymoon, we drove to the Federated office just to see where it was located and what it looked like. We were there on a Saturday so we didn't go inside but one thing that really impressed DW was the fact that there were covered reserved parking spots! That was just such a funny sight! So today DW took a picture of what she now sees 5 days a week! Apparently you have to pay to park in the shade!









And here's a picture of one of the main entrances into the office. Federated occupies the entire second floor of the office so once you climb the marble stairs inside, you don't go any further without a security badge to unlock one of the doors.









Everyone at the office has been very welcoming to the "Minnesota person". DW gets stopped in the hallway, the breakroom and even the bathroom by fellow employees who want to know how she likes the heat! She just tells them that it's hot but it's so different from Minnesota heat. She's met so many people who used to live in Owatonna but moved to Arizona when Federated opened the Phoenix office 20 years ago. One lady even knew DH's father! There's just no hiding anywhere!
DW asked her fellow 7 trainees and trainers who knew what Tator Tot Hotdish was - not one of them knew what that was and one of the trainers even asked "why would you do that to tator tots?!" Life is just a little different here! We'll have everyone eating hotdishes before they know it!! Ya, you betcha!

Exploring the neighborhood

Tonight after DW got done with work we explored our neighborhood a little bit to see the different types of vegetation we could find.

Prickly-Pear Cactus


some type of Aloe-Vera cactus


Barrel Cactus


Small Saguaro Cactus


Mesquite Tree


Pink flowering bush. Frenchie variety

While walking around, off in the distance to the South around Chandler, AZ a HUGE monsoon had formed. Monsoons develop during the rainy season here in Phoenix typically July through September. They form in one spot and can be very dangerous. They are pretty much stationary and can last over an hour. The news tonight reported straight line winds, heavy rainfall and numerous cloud to ground lightning strikes. It was very impressive with the sun setting.

The soaring beauties returned again this morning.

We awoke this morning to see not two, but five balloons soaring above. It just amazes us at the things we have missed living in Minnesota. As all of you know little things like the balloons soaring overhead touch DW & DH in ways we hope everyone could understand. The beauty of controlled & uncontrolled flight has always been something DH has been interested in. Our friend Craig in MN has a brother that flies ultra lites & Craig & DH have discussed flight numerous times. If you look at one of the balloon photos, the design on the balloon is actually a saguaro cactus & a real one is in the foreground of the photo. Life is magical & strange sometimes. It's like god has put us in this place for a reason.

DH took the thermometer outside again today and put the temp needle in the sun to see what it would register for a heat reading if you were actually standing or working in the sun. AMAZING!!!! The shade is definitely where you want to stand in down here. But again we struggle to find a way to tell all of you that it's HOT, but not the way you think......

Here is a photo of the back of our house. DW is sitting outside with Muncie on our patio. We look forward to everyone visiting once the weather UP-Nordth has turned for the worse. We miss you all!!!!!!!!

Soaring the beautiful landscape of Phoenix, AZ

What a treat to wake up to this morning. We awoke early to the beautiful presence of a couple of hot air balloons soaring high above the desert floor right in our backyard. It was a sight to see.
As everyone who knows us & has been to our previous house in Southern MN, the back yard was in pretty good shape, however a neighbor who believes that weed control is pouring multiple bags of wood chips over the infested over growth of weeds left a sore taste in our mouth for many years.
For DW & DH to awake to such a magnificent sight as you see here, it helps ease our transition into the Northwest valley of AZ. We know why we are here and this is an example of why we feel the way we do. Here are a few more photos. We hope in the future we see more balloons in the sky soaring in the hands of mother nature. What an absolute change from what we were used to.

DH has been doing some contract work for his previous employer & he took a break this afternoon to check the thermometer outside and snapped a quick photo.

Yep it says 111.7 Degrees. DH & DW have tried to explain to many people the difference of how the heat feels here in AZ. Don't get us wrong, it's HOT! But we and the dogs have adjusted already & the only thing we notice that could constitute difficult would be entering a vehicle after it's sat for about 40 minutes or longer. A few minutes of air conditioning and all is well. Oh how we will think of you all in the winter time!!
(Note: Click on ANY of the photos on our blog for a larger image.)

Local news reports Natives invading houses of relocated Minnesotans

Well it's 9:45 p.m. local time here & we were just out in the backyard soaking up the warmth of the day when we heard a ruckus with the dogs. We stopped them immediately to see what was going on and we were amazed at what had strolled onto our patio to check out our pad. Phoebe, being the Mean, Vicious, Guard dog she is, didn't let us down. She managed to de-tail a Gecko that was meandering across our patio and enjoying our spacious back yard. We felt so sorry for
"Frenchie", the border crossing Gecko. He looked so sad.

I guess if I was strolling along, minding my own business, and someone chewed my tail off I wouldn't look so happy either!
We managed to get "Frenchie" to higher ground via a medic transport chopper "sheet of paper" and he looked VERY relieved! DH & DW were stunned to look immediately after the incident to see the tail that had separated from "Frenchie", squirming unattached by itself on the patio and it kind of reminded us of a chicken with it's head cut off.

We've never seen that personally, but have heard about it since we were youngsters. We wish "Frenchie" a full recovery & we will check on him in the A.M to make sure that he was able to check out of the Jarvi Memorial Hospital. :-)

Finally we're connected with the real world again!

Well folks, it's been one heck of an adventure. We are here to tell you that we made it with a few hick-ups but we survived! We would like to thank everyone back in Minnie-soda for all of your gracious help in packing, loading the trailer and clearing out the house. Without your help, we would not be here, we'd still be in MN wondering how the heck do we pull this off! Oh and a SPECIAL thank you to Dale who decided he would check the brakes on the trailer and pulled a hub off only to find the brake pads fell to the ground. DH went and bought all new brake pads for all 4 tires & Dale did a complete brake job for us on Sunday morning. Thank you ALL of you who helped us. Let me start by saying that the first day of our travels went pretty well. DH had a heck of a time traversing the trailer down the road. Every big Semi that passed created a vacuum that had him startled every time one would pass. Let's just say that this is an understatement about the roads from Minnesota to Arizona. They are HORRIBLE!!!!!! The last time we stopped on our first day of travels was to get fuel in Olathe, KS. DH noticed as he was making a turn that a tire looked like it was pretty low in his drivers side mirror. Upon further inspection we noticed a nail sticking out of the sidewall. We were pulled into a gas pump stall when Sheri got the attention of a tow-truck driver in the next bay who was fueling & she worked her magic to get him to at least inflate the tire so we could pull over on a flat spot to change the tire. Sherri got her way and the tire was inflated allowing us to move the trailer to a spot where we could actually change the tire. Sheri said she came along as the pit crew & she wasn't lying. She yanked out the jack & had the trailer off the ground in no time. We managed to change the tire and made the decision to spend the night in KS. The next morning DH & DW brought the tire to a repair shop to have a plug installed for $14.00. It was repaired and we returned to the hotel to find Sheri had removed the spare tire off the trailer and was waiting patiently for the repaired tire. Traveling earlier on Monday the GMC Envoy had a service engine light come on but all the gauges were reading normal and the transmission was working as it should. We all decided we should run it to the local GMC dealer and at least have them check out the error code.

The engine fan was stuck on low. The shop technician said if you're heading to the Kansas City Turnpike, you SHOULD replace it or you will definitely overheat. They told us it would take a few hours & cost us $880.00 (OUCH!) We had wandered out into the parking lot while the Envoy was in the repair stall & a sales person had greeted us and asked if we were looking? We explained our situation and had a nice chat with him for about 20 minutes.We found that this was a SMART decision. We shook his hand and headed back to the bay where the Envoy sat. We watched the salesperson we had just finished chatting with enter the bay and had a brief conversation with the technician & within minutes 2 technicians were working on the Envoy. In about 35 minutes the truck was fixed and put back together and we were on the road. They went far and above anything we had expected. We went back and picked up Sheri and we were on the road again and not looking back. The next two days of traveling went smoothly as far as vehicles go. DH however had rough roads for what seemed to be eternity. Just when he thought things were smoothing out, things got progressively worse. A few times you could hear him saying some expletives over the hand held walkie talkies we had purchased for communicating between the two vehicles. These proved to be life savers as we went through the big cities. DH would turn on the blinker for which lane he wanted and DW would pull out in the Envoy and block traffic for him. We got it down to a pretty good science. Here is a photo of one of the stops we made after some pretty tough roads.

We left on Monday morning and had hoped we would be in Phoenix by Wednesday afternoon. Due to the hick-up in the early evening on Monday we eventually made it to Holbrook, AZ Wednesday late evening and decided to spend the night there and finish our travels on Thursday morning. Here is us leaving Holbrook, AZ.

We made the final trek into Flagstaff and headed south to Phoenix. We thought again how wonderful it was that Dale had checked the trailer brakes because it is pretty much a 6% downgrade on the roads from Flagstaff to Phoenix. If Dale hadn't repaired the trailer brakes, who knows what would have happened. I know with the brakes working it didn't take long for the 11,350lbs in our trailer to get me motoring down the mountain. But all said and done we would never attempt this kind of trip again. We will hire someone to come pack, haul and unload for us. But we have lots of memories to look back upon with this endeavor. Thanks again Sheri for riding along and putting up with the dogs. I'm not elaborating on them because they traveled like troopers. At least that's what I heard. So we would like to show you how our new home looked after the trailer was unpacked. Our pit crew gal Sheri worked her Butt off for us & our local friend Tony arrived to help DH move the big stuff and in about 8 hours we had the whole trailer unloaded. "WOW" Did we tell you it's HOT here? Guess everyone wanted stuff out & in as fast as we could get it done. Lots of water was drank to complete the task, but for the most part it went without problems. Nothing was broken.

In the last few days while DW has been at work, DH has been trying to get things to a more normal state in the house. He has made some strides in making the house livable for all of us. It is monsoon season here in AZ right now & last night when the sun was going down there were some impressive storms that had formed earlier in the day & they looked so beautiful from our back yard last night.

DW loves her new job & DH has a meeting tomorrow to discuss doing some drawings for a rental company here in Phoenix who has connections to Barrett Jackson Automobile Auction Company. He will try to sell his talents tomorrow & he hopes to make a great impression with his talents & hopes to be working full time very soon. We have stored the trailer at a self storage company as we can't have it parked in front of our house. We are thinking that we'll probably want to sell it, but we aren't sure as of yet. Here is a photo showing it in storage. DH was relieved when he pulled away as to not have the wart "trailer" attached to his ass. Too funny!