Awesome Riding, Kara and Kegan!

Both Kara and Kegan Lindsay competed in the Wickenburg Saddle Club Buckle Series on November 13th.  It was Kegan's first competition and he performed like a true veteran--got 2nd place in his division.   Kara managed to snag 1st place in hers. 

credits:  Some elements from "Rag Tag Cowboy" scrapkit by Dani Mogstad



credits:  "Ragtag Cowboy" scrapkit by Dani Mogstad

credits:  "Ragtag Cowboy" scrapkit by Dani Mogstad

Happy Thanksgiving!

May the bounty of the season fill your heart and your home.

Go, Kara, Go!

Kara Lindsay put on another fine barrel racing performance on Annie at Dunn's Arena on October 30th.  I'm glad we were there to cheer her on.  Here's a two page layout of that evening:

Credits:  "Cerise Noir" scrapkit by Studio Flergs guesting at Scrap Matters




Credits:  "Cerise Noir" scrapkit by Studio Flergs guesting at Scrap Matters



Fall has finally arrived...

Well, it's high time I updated the blog with some kind of new entry...don't you think? :-)  Life just somehow seems to get in the way of my being able to sit at the computer long enough to chronicle some of our events.

The weather has been so beautiful here lately, we're spending a lot of time outdoors....playing GOLF!  Sunday Neil and I entered a couples scramble tournament and we were paired up with Doug and Jill, a really fun couple from Loveland, Colorado who have a winter home in our community.   Not only did we enjoy each other's company and playing together, but we ended up "in the money!"   Yep, when it all said and done and the scores were tallied up, we came in 3rd place---1/10th of a point behind 2nd place in a field of 55 players.

Recently I noticed some hummingbirds in the area.  I quickly filled a large feeder and hung it from the column in the gazebo where I could get a good view of the birds that might come to visit.   Within minutes, the first bird arrived to feed and has now made herself at home resting on the branches of my Lady Banks rose bushes and in the desert museum palo verde trees next to the feeder.  She has been so much fun to watch and has allowed me to get within inches of her so that I could take photos of her while she is perched on a branch.   The male hummers, on the other hand, will not sit still long enough for me to get a good photo. 

I believe the hummer in the following pic is a female Costa's hummingbird.  She has a greenish cast on her head and back with several purple spots below her chin. 

Jasmine & Pat Telley's Wedding

Jasmine and Pat Telley, the Bride and Groom
Dan and Chris Veskerna, father and mother of the bride
from Fremont, Nebraska and  winter residents of the Sundance Active Adult Community in Buckeye, AZ

What an absolutely beautiful bride and gorgeous couple!  The reception at the Fountains Ballroom in Iowa was incredible and unique with attention given to every detail.   It definitely had a "WOW" factor that was off the charts.  A magical, Hollywood type,  fun evening that will forever be remembered not only by the bride and groom and our dear friends, Chris and Dan (the parents of the bride), but EVERYONE who attended.

Be sure to view the photos I took (click the linked slideshow in the column on the right).  They are just a small representation of the wedding as compared to some of the amazing professional photos taken by the two photographers that were there to capture the moment.  They put together an awesome photo book that will be printed as well as tons of photos.   You can view both at the following links, however, I'm not sure how long they will be posted:

Wedding Photo Book

 Photos of Jasmine & Pat's Wedding - Fountains Ballroom Photographers

Here are a few layouts I put together:





credits:  "All You Need Is Love" kit & QP's by Natali Design

credits:  "All You Need Is Love" kit & QP's by Natali Design

On My Nature Walk in Nebraska...

It's been a while since I've posted, however, our days have been filled with one thing or another.   The trip to Nebraska was very memorable and we feel fortunate to have such terrific friends there. 

I was lucky enough to capture these wonderful photos while taking a walk near Rainbow Lake...

Our Anniversary Present...

Wooohooo!   Yep, it's a golf cart!  It's not exactly new...ummm...in fact, it's pretty darn old.  You might say it's older than the hills.  But, what the heck---it still works pretty darn good.  What more does one need, right?  Right now Neil seems to be using it most of the time.  But when cooler weather comes around, it looks like I'm going to have to cash in my chips and get MY time in the cart...lol

Just took the following pic this morning of Neil in the new (old) cart (pretty spiffy, eh?).  Neil played a round of golf  at Sundance at daybreak with son Keith, nephew Jon, and Jon's boys, Waco and Zach.  It quickly turned into another blazing hot day and the boys came back spent from the heat but ready to cool off  with some icy cold ones and chow down on some lunch on our breezy patio.



Waco showing off his golf swing form...and having a brotherly moment with Zach.



Zach sinking a putt and teeing off on hole #6.



Kara, Kegan Update!

Kara is really excited about getting a new quarter horse.  Isn't she a beauty?

Kegan is into the more "extreme" sports.  Just loves getting some air between him and the ground!

It's FOOTBALL Season again!

Yep...the Cardinals LOST but we sure had a terrific time at the University of Phoenix Cardinals Stadium.  Lots of excitement in the air and here's Neil, Judy and Keith having loads of fun eating, drinking, and just being silly:

New Scrap Layouts...

And a two page layout...

Another two pager...

Kegan's Magical Place

Hmmm...the days just seem to literally "fly by" these days.  Nothing too exciting going on...just trying to get caught up on some chores, get ready for our upcoming trip, and keep up with the day to day grind.  We did manage to get some golf in and are enjoying the new golf cart we got for our anniversary (well, new to us anyway...it's actually about 30 years old, believe it or not, but it's still in pretty good shape and gets the job done as far as getting around).   Keith and our nephew Jon, along with his son Zach, are coming by in the morning to play a round of golf at Sundance so I'll try and get some pics of them as well as the golf cart.

Did I mention that DH and I will be flying to Omaha, Nebraska real soon to attend Jasmine's wedding?  Jasmine is the daughter of some very dear friends who, incidentally, made this trip possible.  We're really looking forward to staying with our dear friends, Dan and Chris, and being able to share in their excitement, joy and being a part of all the festivities.  I hope I don't embarass myself too much at the wedding by crying my eyes out (yea, I'm such a sap...lol), but weddings are always such a happy celebration.

I  finished some scrap layouts and I'll try to get some of them posted as soon as I can get them resized.  Here's another fantasy one of Kegan.  Give him any kind of tree to climb and he's definitely up for the challenge.

credits:  Where Dreams Begin by Createwings Design at A5D.

Kegan, So What's The Story?

DH is playing in a golf tournament this morning so....yeaaah, this is my alone time to peruse the digiworld for wonderful stuff.  And wonderful it is--I just came across this wonderful kit entitled "Where Dreams Begin" from the very talented artist of Createwings Designs at A5D.  Of course, I had to scrap something with it immediately and Kegan seemed to be the perfect subject for this story.

Now it's time to get myself in gear (which means, get out of my pj's...lol...get showered and dressed) and meet my DH.  He should have finished the golf tourney by now and we're supposed to meet up with Keith and Judy and a couple others to see our dear Arizona Cardinals play football at the University of Phoenix Stadium.  It is the Cardinals pre-season opener and should be loads of fun....toodles.

Great Blue Heron On Our Rooftop!

Okay, I know it's a lousy photo but that's what you get when you're in a hurry and all you've got is a point-and-shoot camera with a crappy telephoto lens.  Still it was kind of fun to spot that awesome bird on our roof (thanks to the alert from our neighbor).   The photo was taken on July 26th but I've finally gotten around to getting it uploaded and posted. 

Beauty of a Rainbow

It's monsoon season right now and we've gotten quite a bit of rain recently.  Thank goodness too because we've certainly needed it;  the plants and trees seemed to have perked up and look much greener.  And I'm loving the fresh air (although, honestly, I could do without the high humidity).  This morning Neil and I enjoyed our coffee on the patio and it was absolutely fabulous.  There was a nice steady rain all around us, there were a number of people playing golf in the rain (although, they didn't seem to mind), and all in all it was nice to be able to relax and enjoy the relatively cool air. 

Speaking of rain, check out this wonderful photo of a double rainbow that Kara managed to capture sometime ago.  It sure didn't need much in the way of scrap elements and worthy of a whole page just "as is." 

It's Your Special Day, Shannon!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Shannon! What a wonderful serendipitous moment when you joined up with this family...and we're sooo glad you did.   Have an extra special day filled with the love of family and friends.  We don't know what it's like at your place but it's raining cats and dogs over here.  Hope you get to spend your day the way you want.   We love you and great big hugs to you....Uncle Neil, Ann, and Eric

Happy Birthday, Eric!

Well, my son's birthday is tomorrow and I couldn't let his birthday pass without embarrassing him just a little bit by posting a pic and doing a blog entry about him.  No matter how old they get and don't want a fuss made over them, I think moms still reserve the right to give them a hug and let them know they're loved.   So...HAPPY BIRTHDAY Eric...I love you!

Credits:  "Estranged" by Studio Flergs @ scrapbookgraphics.com

Whoa! It's Another Birthday...

SURPRISE!

You can run but you can't hide from yet another birthday, my dear SIL!

Wishing you, Phyllis, all the very best and hope you have a fun day.

Missing you....

Love 'ya, xxoo Ann

Magnolia Time

New layout posted for Jan and Kevin...

credits:  "Magnolia" qp by Irene Alexeeva

Imagine...

Jackie, the following beautiful, young lady was the inspiration behind this next digiscrap layout I just finished:

credits: "Legends of Lavender" qp by Irene V. Alexeeva

Birthday Celebration!

Last Saturday was a day of celebration. Not one, not two, not three....but count 'em....FOUR birthdays in the family and two sets of anniversaries. Yes, I got to celebrate my birthday again...woot, woot! The fam and some good friends got together at Keith's mother-in-law's home and we feasted on some terrific food such as Italian beef with pepperoncini, black bean rice salad, crab salad, strawberry-pretzel salad, and many other delectable delights and drinks. It just wouldn't be a family get together if we didn't play some kind of cards or games and play we did---AGGRAVATION!

Here's a layout I did representing some of the day's activities:

credits: Template: Storyboards no. 2 by K Studio @ A5D

Elements by: Cathy K Designs @ My Digiscrapping Corner, and Lauren Reid, and Trixie Scraps Designs by Tracy Anderson

Aggravation is marble/board game in which you want to be the first team to move all your marbles around the board from base to home. You don't have to "aggravate" the other players to win---but it sure helps. In fact, that's where the fun begins. Yep, we hoot and hollered and laughed well into the evening and had loads of FUN!

Of course, the celebration wouldn't be complete without cake, right? Jenny made sure we had plenty of one of my all time favs...carrot cake. Doesn't it look scrumptious? yummy....

credits: Doodle Photo Borders by Glam Fairy Designs

What's In a Bottle?

Was out at Boschma's Dairy this past weekend and spotted this collection of old bottles. They were displayed outdoors beneath a patio and I couldn't get over at how wonderfully they've aged through the years. No, not by glass "collectors" standards who would classify these bottles as 'sick' (a term used to indicate the chemical reaction of heat, water, age, acids and weather on glass bottles), but there was something very artistic in their form and color. Because of where they were located and how long they had been there, it made me wonder if those bottles could talk, what kind of stories would they tell?

Desert Blooms

I just came across these photos I had taken earlier this year and they instantly put a smile on my face. Nothing like some beautiful flowers to put a song in my heart and just generally put me in a cheerful mood. I happened to come upon these incredibly beautiful roses as I was driving through a neighborhood about ten miles from where I live. Fortunately, I had my camera with me.

Can you imagine such incredible yellow flowers on a cactus, no less? And this purple prickly pear cactus happens to be in my very own yard. This was the first time this cactus bloomed for us after having been planted about three years ago.

Who says the desert has no color? This tree and the two that are further in the background are living proof the desert can be loaded with color. What's even better is that they happen to be growing adjacent to our patio in the backyard. Morning coffee never tasted better than when it's being sipped at the patio table underneath this stunning canopy of magnificent blooms and overlooking the golf course.

Credits: Funky Frames by Kimla Designs at After5Designs