Sunday, November 1, 2015

October 2015

Goodbye October, hello November.
Do you feel time flying by? Now the big push to the holidays. All the flyers in the papers seem full of holiday items. I need to find a way to slow down and enjoy some of it. I am not sure that I will able to do that in November. My work schedule has a crazy 2 weeks scheduled.
  So, how was your October? Did you get to spend some time outside? Did you play in the leaves?
   Rich and I had canceled our big October vacation due to his surgery but having been through 5 days of solid rain and a soaking hurricane approaching  I booked a quick trip to Arizona for us. Have you ever used Google Flights? It made it easy to book the trip. I could see what destinations were affordable on a map.
We had a convertible for the trip, fun for vacation but I wouldn't want to drive one every day.
We flew in to Phoenix in a Thursday so I was able to stitch with the girls at the Attic while Rich had dinner with an old friend.
   Friday morning we met up with my cousin and her son for breakfast then headed down to Tucson.
So nice to visit the desert again.
I love the amazing Saguaros.
Rich and I went into town to D & D Pinball in Tucson.
It was a lot of fun.
The next day we headed to Bisbee, AZ. This area has copper and turquoise mines.
Rich and I enjoyed walking around town and going up and down the steps.
More...
More...
The wall murals for the steps were very cool and it was fun hunting for them throughout the town.
Our legs were sore the next day.
This is a place I would like to visit again some day.
  The next day we went and hiked Bear Canyon in Tucson.
This is part of Sabino Canyon Park.
The end of the trail was this series of waterfalls. Can you see the people in the pic?
Lots of people were at the falls. It was a great day for hiking and picnicking.
Time to hike back out.
After hiking back out we rode the tram up and back into Sabino Canyon.
I really love this park. 
So then we headed to Serial Grillers Pizza. The salad was amazing, it also had chicken, cranberries and pecans.
 Another Tucson institution is eegees.
They have great slushies. Rich loves slushies.
  Monday the 5th was our 24th anniversary.
And here is where my day started...
Rich was very happy. 
So many M-37s! Amazing.
This guy kept us company.
I think that he is smiling. What a sweetie.
Then some amazing tacos.
Then we visited Mission San Xavier del Bac. It was built in 1783 and completed in 1797.
 So pretty.
What an amazing historical church.
Rich and I both felt that this was a highlight of our trip.
Then we drove up Mt. Lemon.
Amazing views.
Getting close to sunset.
There it is. I think the day was perfect. But we still wanted to go out for dinner and picked an old school steakhouse for our anniversary meal.
Great sign.
Yum.
Rich and I both like horseradish and the raw horseradish at this place was atomic.
It made us both laugh it was so strong.
It was a wonderful end to our day.
The next day we visited the Titan Missile Museum for some Cold War history.
This was very interesting. It is the only site left, all the others were destroyed after they were decommissioned.
Wow!
  So,with that it was back to North Carolina. We still had a couple days left of vacation so we took a day trip up to Prestwould Plantation in Clarksville, VA.
This is one of the most intact 18th century homes in the US.
Tours are only available from April to October so we just squeezed one in. No photography was allowed inside. The house has some amazing mural wallpaper in it. I would like to visit here again too.
   Rich went back to work on the 12th. There are still some challenges but we are tying to get back to normal.
   There hasn't been much stitching this month. I was hoping to finish the LIzzie Kate Halloween Mystery sampler but that didn't happen.
I did finish this Bent Creek zipper kit, Land of Liberty. So I need to find something else for my flight time stitching.
  Myra (Gr8dame's Place blog) did some amazing finishing for me.
Fall pieces.
4th of July.
Thank you Myra! I love them and am enjoying displaying them.

Well I have more to say but this has been a long post. I am going to try to post again soon.
Thanks for traveling with me!

Chris












21 comments:

Vickie said...

Oh Chris, I was just thinking of you one hour ago. WHAT a post! I love that picture of Rich at sunset. Myra did very well for you! Take care.♥

Beth said...

So many very different experiences in your AZ vacation. Wonderful stitching and finishes too - I'll be you are really pleased.

Annette-California said...

How cool that you got to stitch at the Attic. Lovely post and many beautiful photos. WOW how you do it - I don't know!
LOVE all your pretty stitched projects & Myra did a incredible job of finishing them. Great to see you post (Crazy that Nov is here).
love Annette

butterfly said...

Wow Chris thanks for sharing your holiday with us.
Lovely photos, food looked great.
Your stitching is beautiful.
And what lovely gifts from Myra.

Marilyn said...

That looks like a fantastic trip.
Thanks for sharing the pics.
Happy belated Anniversary!!
Great stitched pieces and great finishing by Myra.
Love the Liberty piece.
Marilyn

Maggie said...

A blelated Happy Anniversary to you both, and what lovely photos of your trip.

Lovely stitching too :-)

Vonna Pfeiffer said...

You travel to the most wonderful places :) I got to see my backyard and the walk to school in October! Ha! I love, love all the photos and the commentary. Makes me feel like I was right there with you...sans a sip of the slushies and a bite of the steak ;)
Myra is one great dame! And a beautiful finisher to boot! I know you enjoy her work! Have a great week!

marly said...

If it wasn't for your posts, I would never know a thing about US cities. Glad Rich was strong enough to handle the hikes...and those stairs!! Your anniversary was a great day with a "strong" finish. I just discovered horseradish/cheddar blend cheese and love it. I'm still mourning the loss of August so November is a real shocker.

The Inspired Stitcher said...

I always enjoy reading your adventure posts. You two go to the neatest places. Someday I think DH and I need to go out west too. Have a good week!

Robin in Virginia said...

Hi Chris! It was so much fun reading about your October adventures and seeing the photos. Felt like I was tagging along! Hmmm, steak and slushies! Both looked great. Glad Rich was up to all those stairs and hikes. Fabulous finished finishes! Enjoy your week!

Robin in Virginia

KimM said...

What a great vacation - and wonderful commentary. Felt like I was there.
Take care - happy anniversary.....
xxx

Teresa S. said...

J.A. Jance writes a series of mystery novels set in Bisbee, AZ about Sheriff Joanna Brady. If you like mysteries you will enjoy her descriptions of the local areas. She also writes a series in the Seattle area about Det J.P. Beaumont.

Cath said...

Looks like a fantastic trip . So glad you were able to get a break together.
Hope Rich is continuing to get better. Thinking of you .xxx

Margaret said...

Happy belated anniversary! Glad you got away together for a nice anniversary trip. Looks like it was a good time! Hope Rich continues to recover well and that you don't go crazy with work!

Jackie's Stitches said...

Happy Anniversary to you both!

You made the most of every minute in Arizona it looks like! I too love the pic of Rick at sunset. Glad to hear he is well enough to return to work and hope that he heals fully soon!

valerie said...

Sounds and looks like it was a wonderful vacation! Happy Anniversary to you both!

Anna van Schurman said...

Happy anniversary! Love following your travelogues. One of my friends "invented" a holiday to slow time between Halloween and Christmas. It's called Candletime and you can read about it here.

Julie said...

A lovely trip to celebrate your anniversary, fabulous pics you captured. My, those steps... no wonder your legs hurt. You crammed a lot into your few days away.
Its always lovely to see the wonderful places you visit.
xx

Brigitte said...

According to the pictures you were taking the perfect decision to spend some vacation time in Arizona. Great pictured from Bisbee and the hikes in the canyons. What a great way to load your batteries again.
Whenever I come to your blog I am in awe of the picture in your header. I wonder where you took it. I'm sure that you had mentioned it before but can't find the respective blog post. Could you, please, enlighten me? Thanks.

Brigitte said...

... and you were doing some great stitching, too.

Sally said...

Looks like you had a great time Chris.

Beautiful stitching and lovely finishing by Myra.