Birds!

Last weekend, DH decided to see what would happen if we replaced our hummingbird feeder with a regular bird feeder.
DW loved the hummingbird feeder but had become frustrated when it seemed to be leaking/broken. Well, it turns out it was a bird that actually damaged the humming bird feeder!
DW was enjoying some quiet time on the patio late one afternoon when she spied a sparrow type bird hanging upside down on the hummingbird feeder sticking it's beak into a seam on the bottom. It was trying to suck the red sugar water but actually ended up somehow spilling a lot of it on the ground below. That attracted ants.
So enough's enough!
Here's our new bird feeder and a young mourning dove that's begun hanging around the backyard.

As you can see below, it didn't take long for the word to spread among the bird population! There are brown speckled ones, red breasted ones, doves and many others not shown here. It's really neat to see all of them!


Our dogs love harassing the birds that land either on the feeder or on the ground looking for seeds.
I wasn't able to catch Muncie being himself but here's Phoebe.
She's the mini-lioness, laying in the shadows, waiting for the a victim. Stalking, lurking, licking her chops. Little does she know, if she were actually able to catch one of these birds, they'd probably kick her $#%@!

JUST FIX IT!

(For those of you who watch SNL, you'll get the title of this blog.)

Tonight, DH had the perfect opportunity to be a handyman.

DW discovered a water leak under the sink after running the rather old garbage disposal. Upon closer inspection, we found that a ball bearing from inside around the edge of the spinning wheel had actually busted through the container! (You can see the hole near the center of the picture.)
That would have been tough to explain in the ER! Like they'd believe one of us had been standing in front of the garbage disposal and ended up with a BB in our leg!

Anyway, DH quickly removed the old disposal and off we went to our local Ace Hardware for some help. The guys there are so helpful and soon hooked us up with a replacement garbage disposal.

Back home we came and, after some swearing, pounding of wrenches and general frustration, DH successfully installed the new disposal.

And boy does it work like a charm! It's Awesome!! Thank you!!

Now IT"S FIXED!!!

A spaghetti dinner with friends

Saturday evening was full of food, wine, laughter and friends.

DH made his home made Spaghetti dinner (with meatballs!) for his co-workers/friends.



Our friends showed up with bottles of wine, appetizers, salad, and french garlic cheese bread.

It was really good to have a house full of people!

Everyone ate till they couldn't get one more bit of food in their bellies!

Well, that is till the Coconut Cream Pie was brought out! Man were we stuffed!

The evening went off without a hitch and we and everyone else enjoyed it immensely!

We can't wait to do it again!

Flower Power

With all of the things going on in the world and in our lives, we decided to take a moment and smell the flowers.

These are all found in our backyard or front yard. (We aren't sure of the names of all of them, we just like how colorful they are.)

Tom has decided to quit his job and become a Professional Flower Photographer. He has a snazzy straw hat and we're working to find him a piece of straw to gnaw on. :-)

Weekend Update

To celebrate a friends' birthday, Saturday night we traveled to a restaurant that was a combination of Old West style and Claim Jumpers portions!

This was the place!



This was the type of old restaurant that started as one small room, then as time went on, individual rooms were added on so the floors between the rooms were unlevel. It could be a bit difficult to navigate if someone was to have one too many! But the 6 of us all behaved and thoroughly enjoyed our dinner. DH and DW decided to order 2 different entrees to share. The Atlantic Cod and Crispy Chicken arrived!

We found out that when we were told it was a "whole" chicken, it Really was a Whole Chicken! What flavor! And the cod was flakier than any other fish we'd had!
After a Wonderful meal and Great conversation, this was our parting view of the Horny Toad -


It was a great, relaxing evening with good friends!

Today, we had 3 friends over for a bbq. We were able to relax on the patio in wonderful 85 degree weather. After burgers and hot dogs from the grill, we discovered a visitor trying to break into the house! Here he is checking to make sure the coast is clear!


Here's a Great example of an Arizona sunset taken from our house.

FBR - 2009 - Scottsdale, AZ.

DH & DW attended the final round of the FBR tournament here in Scottsdale today.
Neither of us had ever been to a pro golfing event ever. It was one of the coolest things we have ever attended. The FBR is known for the rowdy crowds that gather and heckle tournament players.
Today was no exception.
The 16th hole known as the "PARTY HOLE" didn't let us down. We were told to avoid this hole as it's very rowdy. Actually, we had the time of our lives at the 16th hole and DW had to buy a shirt to prove she was here. Here's a photo showing our view. It was great!

Below is a few more photos showing our adventure. It was amazing!!!

DW looking down at the 18th Green. Behind her and under the jumbo-tron is the 17th Green.

DH sitting on the hill just left of the 18th Green.
It was an amazing day! Thanks Mike James - CER

We hope all is well with each and everyone of you!! We miss you all.............

Insight Bowl - Tempe, AZ

We have some visitors from Minnesota staying with us here at the house and we all celebrated New Year's Eve by attending the Insight bowl in Tempe, AZ, compliments of our friend Kurt. The Minnesota Golden Gophers played Kansas University.
The day was beautiful with no wind, blue skies, and warm temps. On the way to the game, the outside temp gauge on the car in read 80 degrees. We couldn't have asked for a better day to watch a college bowl game in an open stadium. The excitement was everywhere.

Of course it wouldn't be right if we didn't feature DH with a photo of him being himself.
"NICE HAT" LOL!

We sat one section away from the Minnesota Marching Band. That alone was cool.
Those guys ROCK!

There were 5 paratroopers from the local military base who jumped from a plane above the stadium, spun around in the air and landed on the field, one after the other! The synchronization was incredible! The last jumper brought the American flag into the stadium. They shot off fireworks and concussion grenades above the stadium. Some were so powerful, you could feel the shock wave in your chest!
The Gophers didn't win the game but DH & DW and friends felt like they were back in Minnesota for a brief moment and it felt wonderful. The sun didn't feel bad either. :-)

The Minnesota Gophers Marching Band performed Michael Jackson's "THRILLER" during the half time show.
They stole the show!! Way to go!!