Gazing Balls, Butterflies, Tournaments & Craft Shows

A free bowling ball from a friend of Don’s started it all.  I purchased $40 worth of glass, cut it up in tiny chips and working from a photo of a sunset, spent 25 hours creating my masterpiece.  Then spent $20 on a stand and had it altered (another $20).  Now we’re enjoying our “free bowling ball”...looking good!!!

When you finish a project, that means you have to start a new one...so I purchased a new shower curtain for our guest bathroom at home, took photos of the butterflies, John, my friend Lori’s husband, used his skill saw and cut out 10 butterflies, 2 dragonflies and 3 bumblebees for me.   I started my mosaic work and completed the critters with beaded bodies and fuzzy pipe cleaner antennas. I’ll add photos of the butterflies flying on the bathroom wall when we get home...flying towards the new shower curtain.

The last couple of weeks in Feb were frantic...Hiking continued with beautiful Box Canyon 6 miler (about 45 miles from the park, the last 14 DIRT).  Needed a little help from the guys for the “bouldering” section.   

Our park hosted the Cal-Am Pickleball tournament (in which I played and did fairly well), which took lots of planning and practicing!!!  And the same week we held our first Quilters, Carvers and Creative Crafters Showcase a very successful show and sale.  In addition to selling my weaving, I designed all the brochures, publicity and advertising material.  

Wearing my hand-dyed, handwoven silk vest.  Photo by
friend Marge Raudstein.

Friend Linda's Mosaic work including a grey Timber Wolf

Hiking friend Hans' beautiful photos in hand-made frames

Gourdes were the hit of the show, she sold about 40...

Somehow our “annual ladies day out” with a group of friends did take place and we had a fabulous lunch and tour of the Rigley Mansion in Phoenix.  Welcome > Wrigley Mansion

Roe, Anne, Phyllis, Coleen (Marge couldn't make it)

After a wonderful lunch and tour we wandered the grounds

which were stunning and meticulously maintained

Looking up provided the most interesting views
for me during the inside tour... 

Weather in AZ cooler than normal this season and we had snow on the Superstitions for 2 days when it actually snowed here in the park for a few hours on Craft Show day which increased our “indoor” attendance.   See you in March

West end of the Superstition Mountains (where we often hike).

Gracie - Drew, Tricks & Dogs

Thanks to my nephew Jim, (Roy's son) and his wife Chris, we managed to have fun family times between apprehensive and sometimes stressful multiple-daily visits to the Good Samaritan Cardio Intensive Care Unit.  As a result, we have some fun stories to share with Roy when he gets home!!!



Gracie is a delightful young gal and a super athlete.  So I decided to teach her the "broom trick" which my grandfather showed me how to do when I was about Gracie's age...maybe younger.  He had arthritis very badly so only described the process while we (all the grandkids - then) tried to figure it out.  I,  at age 73, demonstrated it for the crowded room.  Gracie was the only one who could do it.   I'll look for that video and try to add it.   Jim had to stabilize me a little by gently touching my right shoulder now and then because much of this contortionist trick happens while balancing on one foot!!!  Gracie continued to practice while Drew (also a fantastic athlete) gave up and declared great Aunt Nancy "pretty cool",  not to mention limber.  That wine must have helped!!!And

Murray

Don and I especially enjoyed getting a "dog" fix with the household animals:  Daisy Mae - yellow lab & Ahi Wasabi ("weeny" mix)  whom  belong to Jim and Chris, and a 120 pound gentle "fir ball" named Murray (whom Don and I offered to buy from friends Tina and Marty),  Don later found a dog bed at Costco, but Murray graciously refused as he prefers to lie on the cool linoleum floor.

Dogs wait patiently while bowls are filled and don't move
till Gracie says O.K.

Who's carrying who?

Hey Murray how about this?

Drew saves it...

Living about 180 miles from Drew & Gracie we don't often get to see them participate in their respective sports and were delighted to watch Drew (about 6'4) play goalie for his high school soccer team.  Hard to get a ball past him.  Unfortunately late in the game, as he stopped a ball in a flying prone position, he was accidentally kicked in the face as he hit the ground.  Another trip to the hospital for stitches, but he recovered quickly.

After good family visits in and out of the hospital, we headed back to AZ and were greeted by yet another beautiful sunset as we once again settled into our normal AZ fun and frolic...

January & February Whizzed By...

We arrived back in AZ after a quick trip to Yosemite, for brother Roy's 50th Wedding anniversary, and were back in our normal groove quickly.  Nancy started hiking again and enjoyed a wonderful new hike, part of the Arizona Trail, located 15 miles south of Superior.  An easy journey with a fairly smooth trail.  The steepest grade was only about 7.8 percent as we climbed back up from the Gila River after enjoying an up close and personal look at an old train trestle. 

And a bonus, 2 crested Saguaros along the trail. 

©Nancy  Harvey 2013

©Nancy  Harvey 2013

©Don Harvey 2013

It must have been catching as Don discovered a couple more of these rare mutant saguaros while out geocaching a few days later.  Mutant Saguaro Score...Don 2, Nancy 2...  

©Don Harvey 2013

Not to be outdone, Nancy also photographed a sensational saguaro skeleton.  Underneath that live spiny exterior are a series of ribs.  I've never seen a dead one that "wilted" like this to form a "saguaro umbrella".  The photo I took on Jan 18 is shown at the left, Then on Feb 1 I showed my friend Joan Pierce the same saguaro, as we finished a different hike in the same area...along the Lost Goldmine Trail.  She took her picture from a different perspective but you can still recognize its unique shape and I'm sure you'll be amazed what just a little rain can create within 2 weeks!!!

The photo on the left shows a close up of a very small "Teddy Bear Cholla" (about 1' tall) tucked safely away under a "host" plant while newly grown green grass provides a soft contrasting carpet.

On Jan 17th, my brother Roy had a massive heart attack, so Don and I flew to San Jose CA a few days later and had an unexpected visit with the family again.  We stayed about 6 days and returned to AZ once Roy's health had stabilized a little.  (He finally returned home on his wife Anna's birthday after about 5 weeks in the hospital.)  He's going to need lots of care for a while and we're hoping for the best...

While there we were able to enjoy grandniece Gracie (14) and grandnephew Drew (17).  They will be featured in the next blog.