Wordless Wednesday; Tombstone, AZ

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY: Tombstone, AZ

Up-cycled Holiday Wreath

Yeah, I know if you are like me, you fully INTEND to take the re-usable canvas bags with you every trip to the grocery store, but 9 times out of 10, you forget and end up using the awful plastic bags.  Also, if you are like me, you hate throwing them away, so you save them.  I mean, they make great liners for the bathroom trash bins. And they come in handy when cleaning out the cat's litter box.  But honestly, you will use.... what... 3 or 4 in a week, but bring home 18 more from your next trip to the grocery store.  These things MULTIPLY and before you know it, the pantry is overflowing with plastic bags, you finally get frustrated and throw them all away, only to have 30 more sitting in a chair in the corner a week later.  That is, hypothetically, if you're like me.

So here is a super-easy, cute holiday craft idea to use those plastic bags.  This isn't recycling, this is UPcycling!  Because this is WAY better than using the bag to line the bathroom trash bin and putting it in the trash after saving it because you didn't want to throw it away....

You will need;
An old wire coat hanger
About 25 - 30 plastic shopping bags
Scissors
Tinsel
A nice pretty bow.

Here's how to make it;
Bend an old wire hanger into a circle. Or you can use any other type of wire that is sturdy yet can be shaped into a circle.   For mine, I simply twisted a wire hanger in half and bent it into a circle, leaving the hook on the top.

 

About 25 plastic grocery bags.  Any color will do, most are white or brown.  I had a bunch of the brown ones so that is what I used.

 

Scissors.  Cut each plastic bag into 4 strips.  Cut from the bottom of the bag to the top, and leave each strip folded in half the way it was when you cut it.  (so it's a double layered strip)

 

Tie each strip around the circle part of the clothes hanger or wire frame.  One knot is enough, and the ends will be sticking out.  It doesn't look pretty... yet.

Every 4 bags I tied a little piece of tinsel.  You could also add bells or other ornaments.

 

Once you have tied all the plastic strips all the way around the wire frame, trim the ends off.  I ended up cutting 2 or 3 inches off of the end of each strip.  Then you kinda "fluff" the edges out.  We added this pretty bow to the top.  Bend the hook of the clothes hanger down a bit, it's now the hook from which you hang your wreath!

 

If you wanted to get really fancy, before adding bows you could spray-paint the whole thing green or gold or whatever color you want.  But we were happy with ours just like this.  (my 13 year old daughter did most of the work on this one)  These would make great gifts for the kids to make for their teachers or grandparents!  More decorations could be added to make them more festive... use your imagination!  But hey, a great way to use those grocery bags!

Thirteen Vacation Memories

It's time for another Thursday 13; a list of 13 things (anything!) on a Thursday!  (Yeah it's not Thursday yet!  But I missed last Thursday because it was Thanksgiving and we were ON this vacation!) Since we just got home from our wonderful family vacation, I thought it would be cool to share with you 13 of my favorite pictures/memories from our trip!

 

Our Thanksgiving Family Vacation! 2012

Brother & sister reading books in the car!  this was the longest road trip they have ever taken!  6 hours in the car is a LONG time!

Along the way we stopped in Cabazon, CA to see the big dinosaurs on the side of the road!

We arrived in San Pedro, CA and settled in to our cottage where we spent the next 3 nights!  It was so lovely!  Plenty of room for all of us!  The kids played kick ball in the front yard for awhile, they needed it after the long drive!

"Girl Time Bonding" with my mom!  We traded socks, now she has one of mine and I have one of hers.  Our "mismatched" pair of socks will always remind us of this vacation!

Thanksgiving Day, we walked to a park where some very fat squirrels would come right up to us for some bread crumbs!

There was a beautiful pond with lots of ducks to watch and feed!  And some very noisy geese as well!

Taking a walk around the neighborhood with my uncle.  My youngest son really bonded with his great-uncle, it was so sweet!

 

Waiting for the Thanksgiving Feast!

Day after Thanksgiving; Cabrillo Marine Aquarium.  At the "touch tank", petting some starfish and sea anemones!

more fun at Cabrillo Marine Aquarium!

Daddy and Daughter in the ocean!

Exploring the tide pools at Cabrillo Beach!  We found some really cool shells, starfish, sea-slugs, and had a great time!

We had some car trouble on the way home!  But it's just another memory... an "adventure"!  All worked out okay!  Being stuck in the desert was no fun but it just made us all the more grateful for our wonderful, safe, happy family vacation!

Xander's Birth Story & the past 7 years

Today we are celebrating the birth of my 3rd child, my son!  I can still hardly believe that it has been 7 years since he was born!  7 years ago at this time, I was checked into the hospital and going through the process of induction.

I had been having Braxton-Hicks contractions on a regular basis for the past month, and at my last check up I was already 4 cm dilated.  My doctor suggested that I be induced because I was steadily and continually dilating which meant a couple things; 1) I could "pop" at any time and then we would have a mad rush to the hospital while in labor.  2) being dilated left my cervix open and increased the chance of infection... to both me and Xander.  So I (happily) agreed to go in and be induced 2 weeks before my due date.

When I checked in, I was already 5 cm dilated, which is considered "active labor" even though I wasn't having any contractions.  They hooked me up to a low IV drip of Petocin to get the contractions started, and then took me down the hall to get my epidural, which I had opted for.  My oldest child was born sans-meds and I am sorry, but once was enough for me!  Unfortunately, the anesthesiologist had trouble getting the epidural in, and it must have been crooked or off center, because the left side of my body went numb, but not my right.  I could move my right leg, but not my left.  I couldn't feel the contractions on the left side of my body, but I COULD feel them on the right.  Very strange sensation!  We gave it some time, but nothing changed and I could still feel contractions on my right... though the contractions were very mild.  By this time I was 7 cm dilated and they felt it was too late to try and fix the epidural so we all just agreed to move forward.

My doctor came in and told me she was going to break my water, and then she was going to go have lunch.  I told her I didn't think that was a good idea.  She said she would be right downstairs and not to worry.  Lady, this is my 3rd child!  First of all, with my previous two children, once my water was broken, things moved along very quickly!  Secondly, this is my THIRD child, so I am expecting things to go a bit faster than before!  But she insisted that I would be fine, AND that she would have time to eat lunch. HaHaHa!  As she left the room I told her, "You're not going to have time to eat lunch."

She broke my water, checked my cervix and everything again, (still 7 cm) and left the room.  Right after she left, I had three HUGE contractions.  I knew he was coming.  My husband went and got the nurse, who came and checked me... and guess what?  10 cm dilated and the baby's head was crowning.  They paged my doctor, who had just gotten off the elevator on the lower floor at the cafeteria.  When she came back into the room to find me surrounded by delivery nurses who were scrambling to get everything set up, she said, "Wow, you weren't kidding, were you?"

I only had to push 3 times, and Xander was born.  7 lbs, 0 oz, and 19 1/2 inches long.  He was just beautiful!  We looked at the clock and it was 1:00 pm... only 15 minutes had passed between when my doctor broke my water and when my husband cut the umbilical cord.  I realize I am blessed with quick, easy, uncomplicated labors!  And I continue to be blessed in many other ways in my life every day!  Here is a look back over the past 7 years of Xander's life....



Me, Hubby & brand new Xander

Little Baby Boy!

6 months old - chubby crawler!

Age 1 - swimming



Age 3

4th Birthday

Age 5 - doing some preschool homeschooling

Age 5 - starting Kindergarden

Age 6 - Graduating Kindergarden

Age 6 - this picture was taken just a couple weeks ago.

Friday Fill Ins 10/26

Some random fill-in-the-blank blog prompts can be found every Friday at Friday Fill Ins!  Here's mine for this week;

1. Oh, that twitching in my eye?  Don't worry it should stop... sometime after the holidays!

2. It's a sure sign of being a mommy when you get all teary-eyed and emotional when your kids have another birthday.  How time flies!  Where did it go?

3. Are we having a minor panic attack again??!. Don't worry, it will pass soon!

4. My heart believes in kindness.  I think people are really genuinely kind, or at least want to be.  I still have faith in you, humanity!

5. Do you believe in Angels? I DO!

6. I'm a glass half full type of person!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to doing my yoga and going to bed, tomorrow my plans include my son's birthday party and Sunday, I want to sleep in late!

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How about a Halloween Version for fun?

1. Oh, that huge wart on my nose?  It's part of my witch costume.  I really get into the spirit of things.
2. It's a sure sign of Halloween when we spend more time making the house look haunted, dirty, creepy, and abandoned then we do cleaning it.  Haunted houses are NOT clean, silly.
3. Are we having wing of bat again??!.
4. My heart stopped beating years ago.  Join me, let loose the mortal coil and come frolic in the realm of spirit!.
5. Do you believe in vampires? I do!  I've had to kill three of those bloodsuckers already this week!
6. I'm a vampire slayer ghost
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to haunt you in your bedroom, tomorrow my plans include slaying a few more vamps and Sunday, I want to join my living family for a dumb-supper!
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So today is my husband's birthday.  Happy Birthday to my wonderful, hard working, patient, honest, loyal husband!  You were born to make the world a better place and you have made that difference in my life and for our kids!  Thankyou and I LOVE YOU!

Our Anniversary Adventure!

Today was my Anniversary!  8 years married to my Perfect Match!  He took the day off work, which was GREAT because we never get a day off together.  My wonderful neighbor agreed to watch our son for us (the girls were in school), so we planned out a bit of an adventure for the day!  With a sunny spring day here in AZ, we decided to go out GeoCaching.... a favorite hobby of ours but something we haven't done together in a long time.

If you don't know what GeoCaching is, it's like treasure hunting.  People go out and hide things and log the longitude/latitude coordinates at the GeoCaching website.  You plug the coordinates into your GPS and go out hunting for the hidden cache!  Sometimes it's just a small tube with paper in it and you sign it to log that you found it.  Sometimes it's a container with small trinkets and the general idea is, take a trinket, leave a trinket.  It's not about what you get, it's about the adventure of finding these cleverly hidden containers.  So anyways, Hubby got online and found the coordinates for 3 hidden Caches out near Estrella Mountain, which is not far from us but we've never been out there.  We dropped the kid off next door, bought some water bottles, and hit the road!

Our first Cache was found in the parking lot at the ballpark where the Dodgers are having their Spring Training.... about a 20 minute drive from our house.  No one was out there but I'm sure the security guard was wondering what we were doing out there overturning rocks at the edge of the parking lot.  Eventually hubby overturned the right rock, which was hollowed out on the bottom with a plastic tube stuck inside.  He took out the paper and signed it and then we put it back and got back on the road.  Let the adventure continue!

 Headed towards the mountains in search of the next cache, about 3 miles down the road.....

 Cross a bridge, caught a nice picture of the birds flying over the river.

 It's nice to be out of the city for awhile, just driving and enjoying each other's company!

 We're getting close to where the next Cache is hidden.... what is that tower up ahead?  Looks interesting!  Our GPS is pointing us in that direction, the next cache must be hidden somewhere in the little park around the tower!

 We found a place to park and walked up the trail.  The GPS says the cache is hidden only about 35 feet from here... where could it be?  We are marvelling that this little park is so nice, and we didn't know that it was even here, not far from our home!  I love how GeoCaching can take you places you never even knew existed!  Anyways, we finally figure out that the cache is somewhere down in the gully on the other side of that little bridge.  So we venture off the sidewalk and down into the gully.....

 GPS in hand, we are looking around this tree.  The GPS coordinates tell us it's within 5 feet of us!

 I found it!!  I also found out hubby wasn't aiming the camera very well... LOL!

 I love to be the one who finds the cache!  It's exciting!

 Looking inside.... signing the log to show we found it and when.  This cache has recipes in it.  We find a recipe that we want, and then tuck our own recipe card into the box for the next person :)  Return the cache to it's hiding place, and make our way back to the trail.  We decide to go on up to the tower and see what it's all about....

Another hiker took a picture for us.  I think we needed at least one "happy couple" picture for our anniversary!

 This is written on a sign by the Tower;

"Welcome to the Star Tower, your place in the Cosmos.  For Thousands of years man has looked to the heavens with mystery and awe.  The Tower To The Sky is a living memorial to the many Native American cultures that have studied the sky from this very location; The Desert Southwest.

The Tower To The Sky depicts the story of the Milky Way Galaxy and your place in it.  The tower is set in a spiral configuration very similar to that of the shape of the Milky Way and it’s many spiral arms.  The form and function of this tower is also reminiscent of the natural spiral found in the Nautilus Seashell.  In the world of Mathematics this is known as The Fibonacci Number Sequence.  Consequently, we see this spiral from the smallest of creatures, up to the largest of galactic systems!

The Star Tower depicts the evolution of our galaxy and helps you understand your place within it.  At the observation plaza you can reflect on your place in the universe and observe nature from this sacred ground of our ancestors, where we reach up and out to the skies."

Steven Kates, “Dr. Sky”

How exiting!  I love Astronomy, Nature, and Native American culture!  What a wonderful adventure this is turning out to be!

On the side of the tower, another inscription;

“Nature offers no greater splendor than the starry sky on a clear, dark night.  Silent and jeweled with the constellations of ancient myth and legend, the night sky has inspired wonder throughout the ages.

A wonder that leads our imaginations far from the confines of Earth and the pace of the present day and out into the distant reaches of space and cosmic time itself.

Astronomy, born in response to that wonder, is built on two of the most basic traits of human nature: The need to explore and the need to understand. 

Through the interplay of curiosity, discovery, and analysis – the keys to exploration and understanding – people have sought answers to questions about the universe since the earliest times. 

Astronomy is the oldest of all the sciences, yet never has it been more exciting than it is today."

~ Chaisson, Astronomy Today

Okay, I LOVE this place!  We've got to come back with the kids sometime!

 Heading up the tower, looking over the edge and taking in the beautiful landscape!

 At the top of the tower, a sunburst design.  Me, contemplating my place in the Universe.  I think I'm EXACTLY where I'm supposed to be!

Eventually we move on.  Our next cache is about 4 miles up the road.  After searching for a place to park we end up about .75 miles from the cache... time for a hike!  Following the compass directions on the GPS we head off into the desert....

 It must be somewhere on the other side of that hill!  The GPS says we have about 7 tenths of a mile to go.

 We walk along, taking in the desert.  I had fun identifying some desert life.... Mesquite Trees, Palo Verde Trees, Saguaro Cactus, Cholla Catctus, lizards, birds, snake holes (but thankfully no snakes in site)... and some droppings of desert creatures like Javelina, Mule Deer and Jackrabbits.  The ground is covered with a variety of rocks, including Quartz, Mica, feldspar, and Pyrite.  My pockets are quickly filling up with pretty little treasures.

 Hubby found this one!  Well hidden in a very prickly location!

 Looking through the cache.  It's full of trinkets and odds and ends.  We grab 3 little plastic McDonalds toys (still in wrappers) to take home to the kids, sign the log, and return the cache to it's hiding place!

 The car is back somewhere on the other side of that hill.... off we go!

 on the way back we took a different route and found this beautiful Palo Verde tree in full bloom!

And of course, once we drive back home, it's time for lunch!  We stop at Claim Jumpers and I am having this delicious Bloody Mary!  A wonderful meal, followed by a trip to the bookstore... we eventually make it back home around 2 pm. 

I have really enjoyed my day, had a new recipe to try out for dinner, found some new places and got to spend some time in nature!  But most importantly, hubby and I had some wonderful quality time together to celebrate our first 8 years together!