~~IT WAS ONLY A MATTER OF TIME~~

You know, most days you are excited to go to the mailbox and peek inside. You might be waiting for a package, a letter from a friend, or even a check, but I don't think you really expect to see this!

Yep, it's a jury summons to appear.

For all the obvious reasons, I have marked out my address, but you can clearly see I am one lucky girl.

I was to call on the day before the date to appear, just to see if they still needed my group.
Sometimes cases get settled out of court and so there is no need to appear.

When I did make the call, I was told to call the following morning at 11:00. I just knew that had to be a sign that they didn't need me.........keeping fingers crossed, I called.
Please report today at 1:00.  WHAT!!??
I had to drive into Phoenix, right in the heart of downtown. Please understand, Queen Creek is south of Chandler, about 34 miles from Phoenix. Not bad, but then there's a little thing called traffic.

Report I did, just like a good little citizen and they kept me until 5:00, just in time for rush hour.......
I had to go back the following day and low and behold, I became a juror.
The trail was for domestic abuse and lasted one week. I can't tell you how much I hated that commute, bumper to bumper on the I 10 for over an hour, but I did my civic duty and I am proud of it.
Now they can't call me for two years!!! YIPPEE!!!

~Oh Baby Baby, Bring IT On~ A Desert Rain

Does this look like rain to you? I ask because it's common to see clouds dark like this and never see a drop of the wet stuff.
The average rain fall in the desert is around 4 inches a year, not much is it?
Well, here we go bloggers, this is what the clouds Gods brought us and it was wonderful....

Notice the white stuff on the ground? Yep, it's hail, big balls of hail.

Seems strange to be picking fresh fruit off my trees in the morning, and then see the hail on the ground that same day.

After the hail, we had glorious rain, a much needed rain and it made my day.

We were all doing the happy dance. Now that the ground is wet, the plants are happy, bring on the buds!!

~SUNDAY GRATITUDE~

I woke up this morning happy to have another day with my family, feeling very blessed to be alive.
No, I am not sick, (well, not that I know of anyway. :)) but my heart was heavy with the love and gratitude I felt for what I have been given in life.
Grateful for the clouds in the sky. We live in the desert, and so clouds are a gift. Rain? Even better still.
Just look at the lovely sky....Thank you God.

With my heart so full it wanted to burst, I gave thanks for all the fresh fruit I had, right in my own backyard.

Grateful for fruit that has yet to come. (if you look closely, you will see tiny little limes just beginning their lives.)

Grateful for a nectarine tree in bloom and all the bees that follow.

A desert hibiscus in full bloom....

Roses, with their sweet fragrance and beautiful blooms.

In full bloom, an aloe plant, great for burns.

Grateful for a full hummingbird feeder just waiting for life and the joy it brings.

Ah, but most of all, I am grateful for the opportunity to yet again, say THANK YOU LORD for another lazy Sunday.

~~~HAPPY PINK SATURDAY TO YOU~~~

I am so happy that this week I had some time to blog and join in the Pink Saturday fun. I have had a couple pairs of sweet baby shoes and decided that I had better get busy creating for my website. My pages are looking a little bare and it's catch up time.
I hope you don't mind seeing what I have been up too this week. There really isn't that much going on outside, although I do have some citrus that we have been eating.......so dang good.

There are many talented people that decorate with baby shoes, lending their individual talents to the creation of something memorable and lovely.

I used some beautiful rose decals on the front and sides. Lots of roses at the top and of course, a cute teddy.

I just love to take vintage silver plated trays and re purpose them into chalkboards. I also added roses to this tray and a stand to display her on.

I hope you have enjoyed your visit with me today. Please check the other pinkie participants over at Beverly's blog, How Sweet The Sound.
I love your comments and would also love to have you follow me. Have a great weekend.

~~MARY MARY, QUITE CONTRARY, HOW DOES YOUR GARDEN GROW~~

It's February, sunny and warm, so I decided yesterday to grab my camera and see what was going on in my garden.
I was shocked to see the Texas Laurel was in full bloom. If you have never seen this beautiful tree, the blooms smell just like grape soda....yummy to look at too.

so pretty, very slow growing, so I never expected to see this!!

Tangelos, (a cross between an orange and tangerine) the longer they remain on the tree, the sweeter they get.

beautiful, deep orange color and so delicious.

ruby red grapefruit

Valencia oranges. These make great oranges for juicing, but are hard to peel and eat. You can peel them, but they take some effort. The skins are thin and I think that is the problem, great flavor though.

Do you like Meyer lemons?

my Camila is starting to bloom

such a lovely flower, it's a shame there is no scent.

I also have some roses blooming:

I hope you have enjoyed your walk with me. Come again soon and we will see together what is blooming in my garden.

~~~HAPPY PINK SATURDAY TO ALL~~~

HAPPY PINK SATURDAY

I am so excited to be able to participate in Pink Saturday this week. I have been so very busy and have missed my bloggie pink friends.

I am a soap a holic, yes, I confess, soap has been my obsession for many years now. I took a class years ago on making soap, but was a complete and utter failure.

I combined lemon grass and lavender into the soap thinking these scents would go so well together.

They did not. After letting the mixture set up for weeks, the final product smelled so bad, that I had to throw it all out.

Making soap has been in my blood ever since and I am planning on giving it another try.

Until then, I came up with an idea of soap pockets, and the above photo is an example of my first one.

This is just the sweetest idea for gift giving. This pretty pocket holds a beautiful bar of soap. What could be a nicer gift?  Gesh, I love this idea.

A little bit of vintage linen and some vintage buttons are icing on the cake to me. I plan on creating many more of these, soap included.

This pocket houses a bar of Italian soap, yes, made in Italy and has a scent of lemon.....Oh, I love that.

Fully lined too. I think I know what I will be giving my mom for Mother's Day this year. Why not pamper the ones you love?

Thank you Beverly for yet again all your hard work each week. If you would like to visit all the pinkies and see what they have been up to, please go to Beverly's blog, How Sweet The Sound for the links.

Have a great weekend, and be safe.

~~~Ahh, Winter In Arizona~~~

Oh yes, life is rough in AZ in January. These are roses from my garden. I cut them and placed them on my kitchen sil.

My roses bloom best this time of year, because some summer, they get fried. I hope you enjoy.

~~~THE ROMANCE OF CABO~~~

We have been very lucky the past four years. My hubbie's company has given us the gift of a villa in Cabo for a week. This year we had some surprises that I thought I would share with you.

One day after the housekeepers left, we discovered this on our bed. The heart was made using white towels that had been rolled and shaped into the heart.

The large flowers at the base and on the top are hibiscus flowers. The other flowers look like some type of vinca to me but I am not sure.

I think maybe I should do this for any company that comes to stay. What do you think?

These swans were in our bath. Again, rolled up white towels and flowers. Just too lovely for words......

Love that they are kissing.

If you don't care for hearts, swans and flowers, how about a large bow on your bed with swans? Not bad huh?

I think this is a beautiful way to welcome guests into your home. Of course, I will have to practice a lot to get this done.

Maybe I can start by mastering the bow.....looks easy enough. The center is a large white towel.

If that doesn't suit you, how about a butterfly made using the sheers on the window. I was not only grateful that someone took the time to create this, but humbled that someone would do this for us.

Not too sure how this was done, but I like it.

I may need help, I think I am a Caboholic!!

Ah, life on the beach with family. Nothing is better than this, well, almost nothing. HA!

Don't like the beach? We had our own heated, private pool......

Hot tub anyone?

Beach sunsets anyone.....

If you have ever wanted to visit Cabo San Lucas, go, go and have fun, relax and enjoy yourself. It's so worth it.

I am linking up to Pink Saturday with Beverly of How Sweet The Sound. Please go on over and see what all the pinkies have been up too. HAPPY PINK SATURDAY