Fall Foliage

Daily View

Every day we are grateful for our view of the Santa Catalina Mountains.  We see them from our bedroom when we wake up, from our living, dining, kitchen, and breakfast rooms, from our patio, our casita...  They are magnificent!  As I walk every day, they are right there, in my view, every step of the way, covered in saguaros,with big rock outcroppings and canyons.

Life List

I've had a Life List for many years and I update it from time to time. Its a reminder of how I want to live my life, places I want to go, and the people that are most important to me.

 

My Life List, after 60:

• Enjoy every day, wherever I am!
• Be a good friend. Cherish and cultivate relationships with friends.
• Spend time with our children and their families, all together at least once a year
• Spend time with each of my children at least once a year, at their choosing
• Spend time with each of my parents at least once a year
• Travel to places I haven’t been, at least one trip per year    

Iceland  

Southern Italy

Silk Road Tour

Peru Ruins

Australia & New Zealand

Tinos + other Greece Isles

Mineral do Pozos and Silver Cities of Mexico 

• Travel to previously visited favorite places, enjoy them all over again!

    Eleuthera

    Portugal, Duoro River cruise

Greece - Dodecanese Islands

Virgin Gorda, Nevis/St. Kitts

France - Avignon area, Paris, Languedoc

Ecuador + Argentina/Uruguay

Morocco - Marrakesh & Atlas Mountains

Cape Town + Safari 

Banff/Lake Louise

Panama Canal

Tahiti

Antelope Canyon, northern Arizona

Southern Utah, Monument Valley, Canyon de Chelly

Tetons near Jackson Hole, Yellowstone

Upper Captiva

Big Sur

San Antonio Missions 

• Volunteer to make a difference in someone's life
• Go to art gallery or cultural event at least once/month
• Walk or other exercise at least 5 days/week, 45 minutes/day
• Write, take photographs or make pottery... Be Creative!
• Always be thankful!

Mount Lemmon

As the crow flies, Mount Lemmon is just 12 miles from our house, but via paved road, it is 46 miles and takes about 1 hour and 30 minutes.  Mt. Lemmon's summit elevation is 9,159'.  The elevation at our home is 2735'. 

We went to Mt. Lemmon this morning, on a beautiful crisp fall morning, the first time in over 35 years!  From our house to the top of Mt. Lemmon, we passed through several biomes, from desert scrub and saguaros, to desert grassland, oak grassland, pine forest, and mixed conifer forest.  The views were amazing!  The patches of aspen in their fall splendor were beautiful.  The thousands of acres burned in the Aspen Fire of 2003 are slowly regenerating and many of the 300 homes lost to the fire, have been rebuilt.  It was a perfect morning! 

Rainbow

While sitting at our kitchen table having dinner this evening, the light on the mountains became particularly beautiful and caught my attention.  There was a rainbow! 

Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta

We were up before 5 this morning, and on our way to the Balloon Fiesta by 5:45.  We parked and rode a school bus from one of the designated parking lots, arriving at the Balloon Fiesta Park by 6:30.  We watched from the Fiesta Field over the next two hours as hundreds of hot air balloons lifted off.  The sky was cloudy but gave way to more sun.  It was a spectacular sight!  Going to the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta is about the most bang for $12 you can get anywhere!  We enjoyed every moment.

Acoma Pueblo

We stayed overnight in Grants, NM.  We began our morning at the El Malpais National Monument Visitor Center.  We drove about 20 miles south, for a lookout view over the ancient canyons full of lava flow.

Our next stop was at Acoma Pueblo, or Acoma Sky City.  “Since 1150 AD, Acoma Pueblo has been the oldest continuously inhabited settlement in North America.  Acoma Pueblo is built atop a sheer walled 367’ sandstone bluff in a valley studded with sacred, towering monoliths.  There are about 5000 tribal members and 250 dwellings in the Pueblo, with no electricity, sewer, or water.  Most tribal members live in other nearby villages and spend special holidays in the Pueblo.  San Esteban del Rey Mission Church was built in 1629, and is still used today.  The Acoma people are known for their art and rich culture.”  We took a tour and had a fascinating day!