Monday, December 23, 2013

HAD OURSELVES A PLEASURABLE CHRISTMAS EXPERIENCE TONIGHT

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A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE

Kelly thought she heard some scratching under our front porch Sunday evening.  When Pheebs & I went out Pheebs right away detected something & scurried around the porch sniffing & looking underneath.  I grabbed a flashlight & got down on the cement but could not see anything in the 9” space under the porch.  That called for the ‘Critter Cam’ & I attached it to one of the porch posts for the night.  Checking the Cam this morning I see the only Critters our camera caught were the resident Critters in their PJ’s & house coats:((

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Looks like I am not the only one who doubts his abilities when it comes to fixing things or tackling mechanical issues.  With a track record like mine it is not too encouraging when I sometimes attempt things that try my patience.  Fortunately we here at the Bayfield Bunch have Kelly.  For RV’ers traveling alone they do not have back-up & have no choice but to do things by themselves best they can.  Barney THE OLD FAT MAN just tackled the job of changing the anode rod in his water heater.  His thought process moving through this job sounded soooooo familiar…….

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Ever notice how projects YOU yourself think of always seem to be more acceptable, interesting, & enjoyable than those projects thought up by someone else for you to do.  Now why is that anyway??  D’ya suppose it might have something to do with not liking being told what to do Guys?

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WE HAVE KNOWN FOR AWHILE NOW WE ARE NOT THE ONLY ONE’S LIVING IN OUR HOUSE

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IT WAS A DAY OF GRACEFUL TAKE-OFFS & IFFY LANDINGS 

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ALWAYS A WATCHFUL EYE ON THE CURVE BILL THRASHERS

A few days ago Peter & Bea at AMERICAN TRAVELER left Campobello Island with van & travel trailer heading for Florida.  First day went fine but then came the second, third, & fourth days.  With post titles like, 13 HOURS ON THE ROAD BUT NYC WAS HELL - IF NYC IS HELL WHAT IS WASHINGTON DC? - FLAP FLAP FLAP FLAP....OH...WHAT A DAY one can only imagine the time they are having.  Did I mention they got stuck too……Oh Dear & they may not even be to Florida yet:((

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Bruce, the fellow who keeps an eye on our place in Bayfield while we are away sent us a few pics this morning in the aftermath of a snow & ice storm that swept through the area.  I saw right away that my bird station was broken & tilted downwards.  Probably a combination of ice, snow, & aging wood.  And most likely some faulty construction along the way too:((

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THAT’S MY BIRD FEEDING STATION HANGING DOWN

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THE WEIGHT OF SNOW & ICE ON PINE TREES IS ALWAYS A CONCERN AROUND OUR HOUSE

Stained a couple small wooden tables this morning, packed a few things in the rig & that was about it for me today.  Seemed to be a little low in the energy department.  Haven’t decided where we are headed or when we’re leaving yet but we pretty well have the Winnie Wagon loaded up & ready to rumble.  Kelly had a hair appointment in Wickenburg early this afternoon so Pheebs & I held the Fort here at home. 

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PHEEBS ALREADY HAS 2 OF HER FAVORITE TOYS LOADED UP…EARL THE SQUIRREL & SHUSTER THE ROOSTER

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KELLY SURE HAS A LOT MORE ROOM IN HER BEDROOM THAN I HAVE IN MINE

And a surprise tonight.  Well not exactly a surprise but it is the first time we have ever had a group of folks come to our house singing Christmas Carols.  Les, the fellow who has been a big help to us this year asked if he could bring a group of Caroler’s over from his Church.  They do this every year & it is their Mennonite way of spreading the Gospel.  The surprise came when Les included us on their Christmas tour of folks to drop by & sing for.  A very memorable & pleasant 15 minutes as they sang 5 Christmas Carols for us.

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THAT’S LES IN THE GRAY SWEATER AT THE LEFT

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GROANER’S CORNER:(( T'was the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care. They'd been worn all week and needed the air.

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- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.

18 comments:

  1. You sure had a special Christmas event.
    Merry Christmas.

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  2. I bet they were much better singers than our little group was. I like hearing that caroling is going on still. One of those things that should never go away.

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  3. How nice to have the singers. Every year a family group comes Christmas day to sing for us. So beautiful.
    What a treat.

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  4. Your picture of the single sparrow with its wings outstretched is awesome. It looks like an angel!

    You sound so content in your holiday spirit. Merry Christmas to you, Kelly and the Pheebs.

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  5. What a beautiful neighbourly thing to do singing carols for you. Wishing you, Kelley and Pheebes a very Merry Christmas!
    Peter and Bea

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  6. Merry Christmas to you Kelly and Pheebe!

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  7. A very nice Christmas surprize, Almost like the Mennonites back home.

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  8. I didn't know that the Congress-Wickenburg area had a Mennonite community.
    A Google Search tells me that the Wickenburg Berean Mennonite Church Membership was 28 in 2009 and it looks like a majority of them came to sing for you.
    Merry Christmas!

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  9. One has to be careful that they remember that cam camera is out there when stepping onto the porch in the middle of the night ;-)

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  10. Lover the carolers.

    Good thing you had removed all those trees earlier this year back home or you might have had some damage.

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  11. Merry Christmas Al and Kelly...

    The weather is sure cooperating... I don't miss a WHITE Christmas at all. I would much rather have this wonderful bright sunny weather than snow....
    :-)

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  12. Your Canada home helps you remember why you are in Arizona!

    Christmas blessings to you three.

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  13. One of my ancestors was the first Mennonite bishop here in America...Bishop Funk. My grandmother taught me all about shunning...Actually, that was on my grandfather's side, so I guess he talked about it. We just spent 2 nights up in Idyllwild, CA...they still have snow on the ground from last week's storm.
    A MERRY CHRISTMAS to you, Kelly, and the Pheebs!
    ~~Cheryl Ann~

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  14. How wonderful to have carolers outside your door...I LOVE to go caroling, but it's almost a lost tradition these days...Wishing you and the whole "bunch" a blessed Christmas.

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  15. How blessed you were to get carolers at your door - haven't seen that around here in many years. What a nice way to celebrate Christmas. Wishing you and Kelly and of course Pheebs a wonderful holiday.

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  16. Merry Christmas to you and Kelly and Pheebs. Enjoy the day together. Sure happy that you're there and not on the road, eh? Nice to be able to settle in and not worry about anything. It's cold here, so we're going to have us a nice North Pole Christmas.

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  17. Merry Christmas, Al and Kelly. Thanks for blogging. I always enjoy reading about what you are doing. Happy travels in the New Year

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  18. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. May the new year bring you both good health, fun travels and joyful memories. And to Pheebs a great big hug!

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