Red Rocks of Sedona

 

Off to Sedona for a quick trip to burn some airline credit.  We flew into Phoenix and picked up our rent car for a drive to Sedona and our B&B the Cozy Cactus.  We checked in early and unloaded our stuff before heading out for lunch at Hudson’s.

Our B&B was fantastic and we had a great view of the Red Rocks, with trails out the back door! The back porch had two fire pits and we took advantage of them at sunset.  The scenery was breathtaking and we enjoyed some easy hikes.







Breakfast was wonderful and we enjoyed meeting guest from all over the US.  The Chapel of the Holy Cross was a striking architectural structure surrounded by Red Rocks.  Of course no trip would be complete without a stop at the airport which sits on top of a mesa!  The nights were pretty chilly, but the days were pleasant, with not a cloud in the sky...perfect weather!

The highlight of our trip was our Pink Jeep Tour, our tour was the last one of the day called Broken Arrow!  It was a riot!  Our guide, Mike was fantastic....skilled at driving and full of information!  He also was a great photographer...getting us some great shots!

Our last day we hiked The Bell Rock trail, went to the Crescent Moon Ranch, stopped at the Red Rock State Park, and enjoyed a late lunch at Mariposa. Back at our B&B we enjoyed sunset sitting around the fire ring.

           

 Our trip came to a end with a easy drive back into Phoenix and our flight home!

Costa Rican Christmas

Christmas in Costa Rica again....Pura Vida!  This year we booked the Small Beach House at Coconut Grove in Dominical.  We arrived a few days before Christmas and settled in..great to see Richard and Diane, the owners.  We were sad to hear our favorite dog, Flaco had passed away since our last stay!
Christmas Eve we went to the annual Christmas Party and enjoyed seeing some of the locals.

We spent our days at the beach....Playa Hermosa or Playa Linda......both beautiful!  We ate at some local places and went to the market. Joined Richard and Diane one evening for dinner at Tortilla Flats..they have the best Basil Margarita.  New Year’s Eve we went over to have drinks with the owners and later watched the fireworks.

As usual Dale was the Boogie Board champ, riding the board all the way in.  We both found out that Boogie Boarding was a real workout!

We walked the beach of Dominicalito and managed to enjoy almost every breathtaking sunset!

The rest of the time we enjoyed the pool and the Rancho...meeting and talking with other guest!

Dale forget my Christmas card and my birthday card at
home, so he made me  perfect cards in the sand on the beach!  Very creative!
Loved both of them!
I may never get a store bought card again!

















                     

We had a great two weeks....very relaxing!  Our drive back to San Jose was easy and we flew out the next morning early!

 

Christmas 2019

 

Christmas was at Brian and Hollie’s home at
Mission Valley.

 Grandma and the Great Grandkids








Grandma and Grandkids....
Lanell, Brian, Chuck

         A group shot of all the ladies!

        Chelsea and Hayden

                                      Lexi and Ethan












Randi, Chuck, and Lennon

                                     

               Brian’s family!

Going South on the Silhouette

Cruising the Southern Caribbean on the Celebrity Silhouette for Thanksgiving was the plan, stopping at our favorite ABC Islands! We had cabin 1088 which was one of the largest inside cabins we have ever had on a cruise.

First up was Aruba where we spent the day at a beach club and enjoyed dinner onshore at Pinchos since we stayed in port until midnight!

                    Pinchos for dinner!

Next port was Curacao......relaxing at the
Renaissance Resort and the beautiful infinity pool near the port, having lunch and drinks!
We stayed late and had a very relaxing day.

In Bonaire we got off the ship and just walked around, enjoyed a drink at a bar over the Walter.
Then it was back to ship to enjoy the pool!

In Grand Cayman we stayed onboard since we have been there many times and we had a short stay in port.

                On the way home we killed time at Margaritaville in the Fort Lauderdale airport!

                                                        Thanksgiving Formal night!

Giant Omelet!

The Omelet Festival and visiting kinfolk in Abbeville, La was on our agenda.  We checked into our B&B, which was a couple blocks off the square and walked to a seafood dinner at Dupuy’s! The next day was filled with Cajun food, Cajun music, Cold beer, and Cajun kinfolks!  I even participated in a egg cracking contest on a big tractor.....winning the Texas division! That evening we went to his cousin’s home for baby back ribs, sweet potatoes, and baked apples with the Omelet folks!

Gayla, Harlo, Mike, Bonnie and Dale

The day of the festival Dale and I walked around town, checking out a old cemetery!  We had lunch and listened to some good music before the omelet cooking began.
The omelet folks marched from the church and down Main Street, where the egg cracking began!  5,035 eggs are used along with lots of other ingredients including crawfish! French bread was sliced to serve with the omelet.
We sat with a big crowd watching the Omelet cooking tradition which dates back to Napoleon!
Dale’s cousin brought a tray with a serving of omelet and bread for each of us....yummy!
That evening we joined Mike and Bonnie for a lovely dinner! Bonnie prepared a delicious fish chowder with all the trimmings.
The next morning we headed out taking the beach road to Port Arthur, Texas.  We stopped in Cameron, Louisiana for a seafood lunch..our last Cajun food fix!
We made it home after a weekend filled with fun and family!

Boerne Car Show

Off to a weekend car show in Boerne, we stayed at a lovely hotel off the square called The William.  Lots and lots of beautiful restored autos to admire!   The weather was cool as we had just gotten the first cold front.