Desert Rain

While in Nevada, hubby wanted a taste of the desert, so we went to see Red Rock Canyon. As luck would have it, we happened to choose a very wet day! We went anyway and shot photos between down pours.

It was wonderful to see such different plant life than what we are use to in our area. The land and the plants were all so striking.

We even found some plants in bloom.

There were several areas where the cactus appeared to have been in a fire and the land was trying to make a come back.

So much variety in color and texture!

We also took a day and went to see Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam.

I guess you could say that it was "Dam" impressive!!!

Tomorrow, I will add the rest of the vacation photos.

VIVA LAS VEGAS!!!

The last time I was in Vegas was 44 years ago when the population was about 100,000 and Circus Circus had just opened. The population now is 588,507 and numerous casinos have grown and changed hands. I was 12 and Vegas wasn't much fun watching through the windows while my parents played the slots. It's one of those things you do in adult lives, so it was good to return to simply see it again. I must admit that it wasn't my first thought to vacation to this year,nor did I ever think that I would see it a second time, but the price of airline tickets changed all of that. I had gotten a ridiculas deal of $144. round trip and I also had built up sky miles, so the flight was taken care of! I hunted up some good room rates and rented a car and off we went! We spent a week at the Cannery (North). The rooms were great and the decor was of 1940's photos and advertising cans.

Loved the design on the carpet outside of our room!

We went to do the Fremont Street Experience. It was neat to see during the day, but at night it really came alive!

There were all sorts of lights, lamps and souvenir shops.

There were show girls.

And then there were girls that really showed!

Even some really bad Elvis impersonators were hugged! lol

My favorite was the light show under the canopy!
A wonderful 60's tribute with music was just awesome!

They were awesomely colorful!

There were cats and more cats!

I am now glad that we went!

I shall upload some strip photos and photos of the desert in the days to come, but for now I shall take a breather and let you absorb some Vegas bling!

Make and Bake

I was in the mood to make something and I ran across a pattern to make these lovely Zip-Itself Tetrahedron Coin Purses! I used a decorative jacquard ribbon for one of them and used fabric that I made into bias with the other two. They can be addicting! You can find the pattern here. Hubby wants me to make 5 more for Christmas gifts for work! Hmmm... I will have to see what I have time for!


You can see how the blue one zips out. Just too cool! I have a purse made from one too but takes a lot longer zipper! The coin purse needs a 20 or 22 inch one.


I was also hungry for Biscotti lately. Yummy!



You can find the recipe here. Mine had almonds and dried cranberries added. I am now taking a break from the coin purses and having a good cup of Green Mountain Carmel Vanilla Cream coffee with a biscotti or two or three.... hee hee.

Herding Cats

I couldn't resist adding this. Herding cats certainly aren't un"herd" of!

Summer's End

The month of August went fast! It all seems like a distant memory now, so pictures are always evidence of by gone days. I would like to say that summer was relaxing as this photo, but it was all so rushed, so I took photos of serenity amongst the chaotic days I had ahead when I went back home to ND to visit family and go to my niece's wedding. Usually when I make the trip, I go through Indiana, Ill., Wisc. and Minn. to go to get home. This time I went off the beaten path through Mich. and the upper penninsula to get across. I am so glad I did. Lovely views across the Great Lakes. I took this photo on a beach viewing Mackinac Bridge. I couldn't resist the couple in the foreground. It made me want to enjoy it too! There is something about being near the water that is so calming and inviting.










I even caught a Canadian Goose trying to defect from Canada! LOL



And I caught a parasailer coming in for a landing.









In a small town in Minnesota, I ran across the BIG FISH! Certainly an eye catcher! Unfortunately it wasn't open. Appears to be an evening eating place and bar.



When I was growing up, we would visit Bemiji and view Paul Bunyan and Babe the blue ox. It's been many years, but somehow it appeared a LOT larger when I was younger! LOL



In August it is lovely to see all of the sunflowers in bloom in the fields of North Dakota.



It was good to see family too. This is my niece's little boy, Mason riding on grandpa Dale's tractor.


Here he is in the hot tub at the hotel with his uncle Jared.



Mason's mom is Jenifer (my niece on the left). Her Sister,(My Niece),Julie on the right, Got married Aug. 20th. The day after Jenifer's birthday.



Their brother, Joseph (my nephew) attended and his girlfriend, Jessica.



My sister Veda is on the left, is Julie's mom. I am in the center and our mom is on the right.



This is Ben and Julie. Ben is from Columbia,South America. He was adopted and he also has two sisters, each were adopted for other areas in South America. He is really a fun loving guy and I wish the two of them all of the happiness in the world!


Their wedding was so lovely!







This is Lesa, Julie's best friend and Maid of Honor.



Remember all of the flowers that I dyed? They looked lovely on the head table! The lighting was an awesome touch!



All of the flowers were silk, except that I made the bride's bouquet, the groom's bout., the cake flowers and the tossed bouquet all in real flowers. There were little crystals on the table that looked like diamonds.





I also made these yummy orange cookies rolled in pecans or coconut and dipped in chocolate for the wedding. They are awesome and easy to make. Here's the recipe if you would like to make them sometime.

Orange Balls

1 box (12 oz) vanilla waffers
1 lb. powdered sugar
1/2 cup softened butter
6 oz. can of frozen orange juice,thawed
1 1/2 cup crushed pecans or flaked coconut
1 pkg. chocolate chips

Crush waffers fine in a food processor. Add all ingredients except for the last two.
roll in pecans or coconut. Shape in 1 oz. balls and chill until firm. Use double boiler and melt chocolate. Dip half of the balls and chill again until firm.

The rest of the trip home was spent helping mom. I painted her porch, her deck, kitchen and entry way. Scrubbed floors and defrosted her freezer, helped babysit the kids she takes care of and cooked. Time goes by so fast when you're busy that the visit seemed so short, but as always, there's no place like home!