My Hair Is Not Purple

A few days ago I posted this photo and one of our readers made a comment, "oh that poor mule having to pull that wagon with all those people." That is a whole lot of people and wagon for one mule but look closely at the legs of the mule, there are two mules pulling that wagon but this photo makes it really hard to tell doesn't it?

OK, guy readers ignore this part. At home in Montana I pay a lot of money to have my gray hair colored. When I left for the winter I asked my hairdresser to provide me with the name and amounts of the exact product she uses. I ordered the product from eBay (salons won't sell it to you) and today Michael and I bit the bullet and tried it. Oh, my--it looks just as good as when I pay big bucks--I am so very pleased--no more trying to find someone to color my hair while on the road and no more ending up with the wrong color!

Michael spotted this guy while we were hiking this morning and I was able to quickly zoom in on him before he disappeared.

This little girl finally stood still enough for me to snap a photo of her snazzy new haircut.

While Michael took a siesta this afternoon (coloring your wife's hair is hard work) I loaded a quilt onto the frame.

About 5pm we left to head over to Parker to join a friend from Montana for dinner--Dottie has a home in Parker and spends about 7 months of each year there. We met Curt, her gentleman friend and had a very enjoyable dinner.

Our friends Jim and Ellie have decided to come here for a few days, we are so excited! We also heard from Ainslie and Beryl, friends we met while staying in Alamos, Sonora, Mexico a few years ago--they may also join us here in the Quartzsite area.

Another great day in the desert.

Haircut and Car Show

Yesterday I gave Emmi a much needed bath. When we got back from our walk a haircut for Emmi seemed in order before she got dirty again. This was her first real schnauzer haircut and she looks adorable--reminds me so much of Jazz.

When we were out walking this morning, we stopped by to say hello to Dave. While there he offered to babysit Emmi if we ever needed--well since we were going to the car show in Quartzsite we took him up on his offer! And off to the car show we went.

This is a DeLorean, a car Michael has said on many occasions he would like to have. This was the first one he had ever been close to.

A beautiful 1946 Ford truck.

A 1934 Dodge with suicide doors. This was the best looking car at the show, a gorgeous paint job.

While at the car show we ran into Donna and Stu and spent some time chatting with them--they are enjoying life to the fullest for sure!

The moon going down this morning.

The almost full moon coming up last night when everyone was gathering for our campfire.

Dave thoroughly enjoyed babysitting Emmi and she was as usual ecstatic to see us when we got back! It was a great day!

Painting and Parker

Remember when we all had jobs and Friday's were a day of joy--signifying two days off--now Friday is just as great as the next day isn't it?? Mike woke early, Emmi and I stayed in bed. When we all got up and motivated walking was next on the agenda.

Mike decided he wanted to try painting some of the gorgeous scenery around us and brought out his easel and paints. I thought it best to go to Parker and get some groceries--we were almost out of wine and eggs--a serious problem.

When I got back one of our distant neighbor couples had stopped by while out 4-wheeling. We invited them to come back later for a glass of wine--they said yes and they would also stop and ask Dave to join us too. We five spent a very enjoyable evening around the campfire comparing notes on RVing, life and other important issues--that is one of the things I do miss about not being in a RV park is the socialization--but we proved tonight it is possible while camping out in the desert in the middle of nowhere!

I took this photo yesterday, Emmi is making sure Dad is doing everything right while dumping and filling up with water.

Sure would like to know what these guys are all about, this was one of three wagons pulled by mules along the side of the road when we left Bouse yesterday.

We so enjoyed getting to know Andy and Susie tonight and getting to know Dave better. The moon rising was beautiful and sunset was spectacular. Life is good.

Dinosaur Rocks

As we were driving back and forth between here and Quartzsite about a mile up the road from us we noticed these rocks with strange holes and formations. Today we drove the car to the base of these rocks and hiked up into the hills. We got an earlier than usual start and it was a beautiful blue sky morning, perfect temperature, too.

This "eye" was in the distance but I like this shot I caught. See the tiny little hole in the middle range of rocks?

This was my favorite rock, it looks like a dinosaur head! We had a great time scrambling over the rocks and walking--according to my pedometer we walked 4 miles again.

We are getting better at this boondocking stuff, we went 10 days this time and probably could have gone another day before having to dump and take on fresh water. Drove over to Bouse for these tasks, picked up a package at the post office and then drove around trying to find a place to camp with a better phone and internet signal to no avail!

My sister and her husband arrived back in the US from Israel last night, I'm anxious to hear about the trip.

I tried baking bread on my grill this afternoon--take my advice and don't try it. The taste is fine but the bottom burned in spite of covering the grill with foil and putting the baking pan up on two pieces of steel Mike found for me. There is no way to tell what the temperature of the "oven" is either.

We are still trying to find a spot to be with Jim and Ellie when they get here next week--seems as if the whole world particularly the Canadian contingency decided to go to Yuma for February.

Two Visits to Quartzsite

Yesterday I realized I was out of clean socks and Mike was close--time to do the laundry. I was determined to beat the rush this morning and since I didn't sleep last night, I was up and out the door before 7:30am. Dropped the garbage off at the transfer station (are all people who work at dumps strange:) and walked into the laundromat just before 8am. Managed to snag two heavy load washers but what's with this so early in the morning??-- had to wait for 2 of the regular load washers. That laundromat opens at 5am and closes at 10pm I think--I bet if you were there at 5am there would still be a line waiting for washers! Back out to the rig before 10am and Mike and Emmi were just getting back from their hike.

Around lunchtime we decided to go into Quartzsite again--a different show, this time the craft show opened in the big tent today. Very disappointing--nothing there. The car show is Saturday and Sunday and some of the cool cars are all ready under one end of the big tent. Ice cream then home.

See how bad the wind was last week, even the cows are noted to be upside down if there were actually any cows around.
LoraLee--this one is for you, these little guys were so quiet and just sat in their little wagon looking around. (Oh, and they were really clean and fluffy!)

Four Miles

My dear husband must have thought I really needed some exercise today! His first suggestion was that we take the car as far up our road as we could and walk from there. OK, that sounded good but I didn't realize he was thinking he was a billy goat today. We hiked to the top of one of the peaks you can see from our rig--I didn't make it to the top but almost and when I asked Mike if the extra climb was worth it, he said "no". So, I am glad I didn't go the extra steps! Emmi went right along with us never faltering. It was a four mile round trip and we were pooped upon getting back to the rig.

I put together some lunch then headed into Bouse to mail quilts to my Aunt Margaret back in Arkansas. I think if I ever run into a pleasant USPS employee I am going to jump across the counter and hug them!

Mike spent the afternoon cleaning on the trailer and I spent the afternoon cleaning the longarm and practice quilting. I saw so many beautiful quilts at these recent shows and I want to try some of those techniques.


Lone saguaro, this isn't the peak we hiked to but close!
This is the peak, Mike on his way back down, he hiked to that saguaro to his right.

The sun was hitting this cactus just right making it glow.

We have new neighbors tonight, a rig rolled in and parked about 200 yards from us right in our view--now with this big old open desert was that necessary??

We got great news today, Jim and Ellie are coming to Arizona next week. The plan is to try and find a Yuma Foothills RV lot built for 2 rigs--we are working on finding one. We will probably leave here for Yuma Sunday or Monday.

A Guest For Lunch

We started the sunny day off with a walk--it is still a little cool but warmer than Montana! I've started on an exercise program, yoga type stretching stuff, sit-ups, etc. trying to lose a little weight.

Managed to get the zippers sewn onto the canvas leaders of the quilting machine with Michael's help. He worked on installing our new inverter most of the day and was successful. The old one was probably the original 1988 one and had died--it weighed 75 pounds!!!! The new one which is actually one we had at home in Montana--Lonn and LoraLee mailed it to us in our box of mail--weighs less than 2 pounds!! Technology has come a long way hasn't it??

As I was preparing lunch--burger for Mike, fish for me, grilled potatoes and veggies, salad and fresh asparagus, Dave our neighbor about a mile farther up the road from us stopped by. He had taken his motor home out to dump and get fresh water. He wanted to show me a quilt his Mom had made many years ago. It was such a beautiful quilt, hand pieced and hand quilted--something he will treasure forever. We convinced him to stay for lunch and I just threw another burger on the grill. We enjoyed lunch and our visit. That's the one thing about boondocking--it can be a lonesome existence. I enjoy visiting with new people and hearing about their travels and lives--when you are boondocking those visits are few and far between.

Emmi was wild today, she is wandering too far--she may be staying in the rig more or getting attached to a lead outside if she keeps this up! The coyotes woke us up at midnight last night howling madly, sounding as if they were right outside the window. Emmi never let out a peep in answer!

A Road Trip

Michael decided we needed to take a road trip today and I was game. He took Emmi for a walk while I showered and got some snacks ready. About 10:30 off we went, destination Lake Havasu.

We first traveled to Quartzsite over the Quinn Pass and finally stopped to read the historical marker. Mr. Quinn was born in 1869 in New Jersey--he had a mine near Quinn Pass, built a house and lived there until old age forced him to move to Bouse. His water cistern still survives.

We tried to go up Highway 95 on the California side of the Colorado River but a few miles outside of Blythe, CA we met up with "Road Closed" signs, the rainstorm of this past week had closed the road. We turned around, went back across the river and drove Arizona Highway 95 up through the Colorado Indian Reservation to Parker, had a quick terrible lunch at McDonalds and then headed on north to Lake Havasu. The Colorado River was blue, blue today and the surrounding hills reminded us of the red rocks of Sedona. Michael hadn't been to Lake Havasu since the early sixties when he was looking for a job and the town wasn't there and neither was the London Bridge. I had never been to Lake Havasu. Can't say we will ever go back--the economy seems to have hit this town hard, too.

London Bridge--what a strange phenomenon in the middle of the desert! In 1968 Robert P. McCulloch of chain saw fame bought the historic London Bridge for the sum of $2.5 million. This bridge was originally built in 1831 but with today's traffic had become outdated and was sinking! McCulloch purchased the bridge, had it taken apart piece by piece, transported to the US and reconstructed after first digging a canal so the bridge would have a purpose and the London Bridge was rededicated in 1971. The town of Lake Havasu was built around the London Bridge in the Arizona desert.
This little guy and two of his buddies were along the side of the road, so cute!

The canal which feeds into Lake Havasu

Colorado River

We ended our day by buying groceries in Parker on the way back. It was a great, sunny day!

Hiking and Quilting

We walked for about 2 hours this morning to the top of one hill, down into the next valley and then back out. Walking in this desert can be hazardous to your health--the rocks are so big in some areas, you can trip before you know what happened. It was a beautiful clear morning but a little cool.

This is the wash that is located just below our motor home--there was water still standing in puddles along the wash after our mega rainstorm this week.

See the straight line above Emmi--that is where the water level was in this wash, probably about 2 feet. It is amazing how much water can be in these washes and within two hours after it has stopped raining most of the water is gone.

Michael puttered today and I finished Aunt Margaret's window boxes quilt--I think it turned out nicely, hope she thinks so too! This is a photo of me quilting in the trailer--the sales director for APQS (manufacturer of my longarm) wanted this photo for her blog.

It was just a nice kind of Arizona day.

A Trip To Yuma

We woke to sunshine and a cold wind but at least no more rain. Michael took Emmi for a walk while I got us ready to head to Yuma. He walked to the wash where we frequently walk and said the water level reached over two feet in places, yikes! We left about 10am and of course got caught up in the usual Quartzsite traffic, I think this is the last day of the RV show so everyone was out doing their last minute junk shopping.

There was a quilt show in Yuma (about 80 miles) and one of the vendors, The Quilting Connection, was bringing me zippers for the longarm. Of course I wanted to see all the quilts and do a little shopping, too.

We enjoyed a nice lunch before going to the civic center for the show. Michael took his laptop and enjoyed a high speed internet connection while I did the quilt show. Emmi napped.

The quilts were beautiful as usual and there were lots of vendors with goodies. I resisted buying anything except the zippers and a gift for a dear friend. I did purchase three out of date magazines that I had not read from the sponsoring guild for the whopping sum of 50 cents each!
The drive to Yuma is beautiful with views almost all the way of the mountains within the KOFA Wilderness Area. We may explore going out there to camp soon.

Yuma calls itself the lettuce capital of the world. This is one of the green fields of lettuce along the highway, we also cabbages ready to harvest.
The background fabric behind this quilt made it appear as it there were a light behind the tree. I loved this quilt.

This quilt was hand appliqued and hand quilted--stunning!

It was a great Arizona day, a little cool but a great day!

Rain, Rain and Lots of Wind

It seemed to have rained most of the night and was raining hard when Michael got up. Needless to say, Miss Emmi wasn't exactly thrilled about having to go out!

The rain let up enough for us to take a quick walk, the ground is spongy and there was even some running water in one of the smaller washes.

Doesn't this look like a grumpy Montana cowboy? He said he was cold!
I got a little quilting done this morning then came inside to make a pot of soup and put another loaf of bread on to rise. Put the bread in the noisy generator run convection oven and we headed into Bouse to see if our mail was there and it was--a big old box of it--thanks LoraLee! The low spots in the highway were starting to fill with water and I bet after the huge downpour we had late this afternoon the washes were flooded. Had a delicious lunch of homemade soup and bread while we read all the old newspapers and mail from home, even some late Christmas cards.

It rained all day long and the wind was gale force! I went out to the trailer and quilted for about an hour when the wind really started to blow. The trailer was rocking with the wind, then one really huge gust hit and at that point I decided I did not want to be in that trailer any more. I shut all the machines down and tried to open the door against the wind and Mike was on the other side of the door telling me he thought I should come in the motor home--I totally agreed!

We spent the rest of the day reading and playing with Emmi. Occasionally the wind and rain would let up enough for me to take her outside to do business but she wasn't too interested in getting blown away either. The forecast is calling for more rain and wind tomorrow, ugh!

Wind, Wind

Once again we woke to sunny blue skies but by mid morning grey skies had moved in and so had the wind. At first it was only a slight wind but as the day wore on, so did the wind--we now have a gale blowing but no rain yet. The weather forecast is dire and makes us wonder about our sanity staying camped out here in the desert. We are about three quarters of a mile off the pavement. The road into this 14 day BLM area is fairly good as BLM roads go but if it rains a lot we could be in trouble--guess we will see!

And, it can rain in Arizona. In 2003 when we were involved in a shooting sport we were camped at the Ben Avery Shooting Complex in north Phoenix. The campground there has electric and water hookups, the sites are very large and spread out but that winter it was very soggy. Several motor homes sank and wreckers had to be called. We slogged around the shooting grounds with wet clothes, wet boots and wet guns. So, we know it can rain.

Took a long walk this morning then I started quilting. I also made up a batch of bread dough. Michael read on some forum the other night about how to use an allen wrench in a cordless drill to make a dough hook with enough power to mix bread--it worked and we sampled the bread a few minutes ago-YUM!

I am almost finished with my Aunt's quilt and it has turned out very nicely. Michael finished his big old thick book today, changed the oil in the generator and puttered. That was about it for our day.

Our internet connection is on the blink again so I am not loading any photos tonight, I will be lucky if this posts!

Haircut and Laundry

We woke to totally clear, sunny skies and thought, "what happened to the rain?" Well, tonight we know what happened to the rain--it is definitely here. The wind blew hard all day then about 4pm it started raining. The motor home is rocking with the wind!

After our long walk this morning I called a place in Quartzsite and got an appointment to get my hair cut at 3pm today. I chose the stylist because her name was Janna, spelled just as mine is. And since I was going to Quartzsite, I decided to take the laundry. The laundromat was a zoo as usual but once again I had no trouble finding a few washers and dryers. And again, I had to wonder why women bring their husbands to the laundromat. They all just stand there, getting in the way, yakking and doing absolutely nothing to help the wife. I almost had to stuff two guys in the dryer with my clothes, they just were in my way every step I took. Go figure!

When I walked into the beauty shop (calling this joint a salon was a severe stretch of the imagination) I had my doubts but I think Janna did an OK job on my hair. Now if I could just get the coloring products I ordered over the internet I would be a happy camper!

Four Peaks in the distance
Mike and Emmi on our morning walk.

We had a spectacular dinner. Several days ago CJ had a recipe on her blog for Chicken Paillard with Lemon/Brandy Sauce--it was wonderful, a little complicated to cook in the RV and when I touched the lighter to the brandy in the skillet I set the smoke alarm off. Oh, well, it was all worth it, delicious! I served wild rice with mushrooms and onions and a salad, YUM!

As I type this the wind is blowing and it is raining--may not be an easy sleeping night.

Refueling The Tanks

At about 4:30am we awoke to the sound of raindrops on the roof and then the wind started. The rain drops were intermittent but the wind stayed. Michael gave up about 5am and got up taking Emmi outside--the wind almost blew her away!

With this forecasted storm approaching we decided today would be the day to empty holding tanks, take on fresh water and get propane just in case the weather forecasters were actually correct and we did get lots of rain. Off to the Bouse community park and then on into Bouse for propane. I filled up the gas container for the smaller generator and then I went on over to Parker to replenish the pantry. As this was a holiday I think the entire south western population of Arizona was in Wal Mart and Safeway! Since the sun wasn't shining everyone decided to go shopping!

When I got home and the groceries were stowed I put together a homemade pizza for late lunch, it was very good. Safeway had fresh strawberries on sale and they are also very good, yum!

This is a shot over toward Quartzsite from our site, gloomy, heavy clouds all day.
This afternoon I tried to quilt but could only stand to be in the trailer for about an hour. The roof of the trailer vibrates with the wind making a horrific noise--hard on the nerves! Michael spent the day reading his new book, Too Big To Fail, the inside story of how Wall Street and Washington fought to save the financial system and themselves! I am reading Double Take, a memoir by Kevin Michael Connolly, a young man who was born in Helena, MT with no legs. It is an amazing story and includes photographs he has taken of people all over the world and how they react to his handicap.

My sister Ann and her husband Danny left Arkansas today headed to Israel for 10 days. My friend Jeane leaves tomorrow morning for a mission in the Philippines. Our good friends Denny and Ellen are very involved in supporting this mission in the Philippines even to the extent they have a home there. Jeane and other members of the Big Timber community are joining Denny and Ellen for almost 3 weeks. May all these world travelers have safe travels.

New Heater

The weather forecasters keep saying cooler temperatures, wind and rain for this area. Well, let it rain--we are ready. Mike got the new blue flame heater installed today and we are trying it out as I type this. For years mine and Michael's thermostat operated at the same temperature then I reached that time in life where I am roasting most of the time. So, I dress cooler and he dresses warmer, compromise!

We stored anything that didn't need to get wet in the trailer and covered the quilt and quilting machine with a plastic tarp in case we have a leak we don't know about! We are ready for this rain--watch it rain two drops and then no more!

We went for a long walk again today, almost too long--we were all pooped when we got back to the rig. This is a photo to show you how high the walls in that wash are--sure hope it doesn't rain enough to fill that wash, we might be stranded high and dry on our hill if it does!

I spent the day working on a quilt and Mike spent the day working on the heater with a trip for parts from Quartzsite thrown in. Emmi spent the day exploring and generally being a puppy pain!

As this was our first real trip out in the motor home, we packed from scratch. When we arrived in Arizona and went about the daily routine we discovered that both of us had left lots of things we needed at home. I looked everywhere for my bread cookbook and for my personal notebook of collected recipes. I was sure I had put it in the motor home but I could not find it anywhere and was getting ready to ask Lonn to ship at least my bread cookbook to me. I have a file carton beneath the dining table and this morning I happened to notice a book in that carton--when I bent to retrieve the book, I noticed my cookbooks wedged behind the files, YEA! Now we can have bread!

Quartzsite RV Show

What were we thinking??? Attending the opening day of the Quartzsite RV show??? It was a zoo, a mob scene, totally out of control! Traffic was ridiculous and we were lucky to find a parking place. The big tent was total chaos--and we may be shot for saying this--filled with a whole lot of junk! Exactly how many food choppers, sun catching crystals, dog grooming tools, lawn chairs or t-shirts does one need?? We were very disappointed! We thought we would find all kinds of new and great things for RVing, NOT!

As we are boondocking we are always looking for ways to reduce power consumption and LED lights seem to be the wave of the future. There were several vendors selling LED lights but none of them have a clue what kind of set up RV's have. There was one vendor we found about a week ago that does have a clue and he wants $40 PER bulb for LED replacement bulbs for fluorescent fixtures. We bought ONE bulb to put over the sink and it is fabulous. But at $40 per bulb it would cost over $500 to replace all the bulbs in this motor home--not happening!

We were also looking for a blue flame heater, didn't find one at the RV show but found one along the side of the road at the RV Pit Stop. So we are ready for all this cooler, rainy weather the weatherman is predicting for this area. That is we are ready after Michael gets the heater installed.

Sorry Fillmore but these poodles were adorable! The guy had these two girls on leashes and when I asked if I could take a photo, he dropped the leash and said, "Grace, photo op." She immediately sat down and posed--it was adorable.
Traffic getting into the RV show today--that should have been our clue!

There is a place along the highway in Quartzsite called The Pit Stop. RV's can come out of the desert, dump their holding tanks and fill up with fresh water. This business will also fill your propane tanks. I sat in the car with Emmi and our new blue flame heater while Michael got hoses and fittings to install the heater. It was fun to watch all the rigs coming in--there was a man directing traffic and taking money and he was the boss! This business must make a killing during this time of year. There are also mobile units that will come to you in the desert and pump out your holding tanks then there are mobile water trucks that will bring you fresh water. Quartzsite is quite the enterprising town!

It was good to get back to the motor home and put our feet up!

The Quilt Show

A busy, going kind of day. I wanted to post some photos of the quilts from the Wickenberg, Arizona quilt show. One of the groups helping with this show is the quilting group at the Escapees North Ranch park in Congress, AZ. My friend Caryl has a park model at North Ranch and is very active in the quilting gang.

Hoffman Fabric Company issues a Hoffman Challenge yearly--a fabric is chosen by Hoffman and the quilter then has to use that fabric in the design of her/his quilt. Hoffman awards prizes for various categories then these winner quilts go into a traveling road show for the year. The guild in this area of Arizona was fortunate to have the Hoffman Challenge road show.

This quilt was made using the challenge fabric noted in the next photo--can you see where this very talented artist used the paisley green fabric? The quilts were breathtaking but my photos weren't--I would have loved to post them all on the blog.

Hoffman Challenge fabric for 2009

This is a historic quilt pattern called a Nosegay or Bridal Bouquet

This quilt was stunning

Next weekend we are going to a quilt show in Yuma.

Wickenburg Quilt Show

After our walk today Michael started trying to figure out why our inverter wouldn't work and the answer is, "cause it's dead." OK, guess we will try and find a new one at this RV show that starts tomorrow in Quartzsite.

Just after lunch we drove over to Wickenburg, AZ for a quilt show and to see friends Caryl and Jerry. We got to know these friends while involved in Cowboy Action Shooting several years ago. They owned a home in Lewistown, MT and a park model in the Escapees park North Ranch at Congress, AZ. Caryl and Jerry have since sold their place in Lewistown, MT and also have their park model for sale as they have bought a 2 acre place in the town of Congress, AZ.

Caryl is an expert quilter and I recently quilted a quilt for her that was entered into this Wickenburg Quilt Show. This is a first for me and I wanted to see the quilt hanging at the show so off we went. The quilts were spectacular and I will post more photos tomorrow--too tired tonight, it was a long drive home on unfamiliar roads. We had a great dinner with Caryl and Jerry and certainly enjoyed our visit.

Jerry and Caryl's new place is beautiful, backs up to BLM mountainous land out in the country.
More tomorrow! Oh, our readers say the bird is a phainopepla. Sorry Ellie, he wasn't a pyrrhuloxia. Who invents these bird names for heaven's sake--can't even begin to pronounce these names!!

Quilting and A Quilting

Isn't this the sweetest looking puppy?? I love the way she lays with her back legs out behind her, a schnauzer trait.

Our neighbor in the desert, Dave, told Michael about a wash (a dry stream bed) near his motor home that was huge with deep walls--that was our walk destination this morning. It was beautiful, quiet and out of the wind which has been brutal yesterday and today.

These saguaro look as if they were standing guard.

A huge ironwood tree we think--that's one of the reasons we like this area, there are huge trees here unlike some other areas of Arizona.

Those mountains in the background are called Four Peaks

An old dead ironwood tree.

Not sure what kind of bird this is but he sure had a pretty song.

I got a good start on Aunt Marg's Window Boxes quilt today--only had to rip out one block--it is going to be gorgeous when finished. Michael spent the day doing sudoku, fixing my cooktop and our drapes--why in the world would RV manufacturers put electric drapes in a motor home?? Well, ours are electric no more and pull closed by hand!

Windy today, very windy!