JUST ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE

THE END OF THE YEAR RUNDOWN

2009-01-29T16:43:00.000-08:00

Ok.............Here we go...........

The rest of the year was filled with various doctors appointments for my father to prepare him for his Coratid surgery.

December 31st New Years Eve. Angie and I teamed up for a night on the town. There was a party at the Sage Center. Cocktails, dinner, live band and all the horns and noise makers you could use. We sure had a lot of fun. Angie is really so much fun. I had a great time. First New Years I didn't spend in Mexico in 10 years. Didn't miss it too much, but still would have enjoyed seeing all my friends at the Qualton.

December 30th was Dennis Rowland with the Jazz Experience Band. What a great evening big band music came alive. Rowland was the front man for the Count Basie Orchestra for seven years.

December 27th Bob and Donella were here so I wanted to show them a new restaurant, Kopapelli's. Great food and company. They enjoyed the new find.

December 26th was the second screening of Twilight and no I still didn't see Stephanie. I guess I'll have to go for a third time. Oh darn. EDWARD I WILL NOT TELL!

December 20th was the Duttons Christmas Show. What a talented family. There must have been 10 members that sang danced and all played multiple instruments. The little Duttons in training were cuties as elves, penguins with lots of charm and antics.

December 19th was the Arizona Broadway Theatre presenting A Christmas Carol. Dinner and show. I've seen the Christmas Carol several times and always felt it was a bit dreary and a downer for Christmas. This presentation was a musical and extremely comical yet managed to get the message across regarding Scrooge. Special effects were outstanding. Dinner was excellent and the theatre was quite large and very upscale. Nice evening.

December 13th we celebrated Mel's birthday and she was so surprised to see her gift from me. We had cake and ice cream and did lots of singing.

December 10th was Kallie's Christmas program. The chorus teacher did an outstanding job. Nary an old Christmas song did we hear. All music was fresh and new and sang with lots of enthusiasm. The speaking parts were well practiced and it showed. Can't wait for next years.

December 5th was Josh's Christmas program. All the children were wearing cowboy outfits with their slippers. Again the chorus teacher had all the little ones in single file, they all knew where to stand and everyone behaved themselves.

OH WHAT A WEEK!!!!!!!

2008-11-12T20:05:00.000-08:00

Monday- Mel decided to do a little painting. The living room and study, so I volunteered. I did the corners, top of walls and above the baseboards. Mel, the rolling, well............when I finished I just couldn't stand it I had to get my hands on the other roller. Up and down the ladder, in and outside of the window sills and finally after running out of paint (we had all but one small wall left to paint) we cleaned and put things somewhat back in order and had just enough time to run over to Kallies volleyball game. Kallie is a natural player. She's not afraid of the ball and can really smack it over the net. Her teammates are new at the game so the frustration level is quite high. But Kallie does a great job and the girls on the team know she's the STAR.

THE PRODUCT

2008-11-12T19:49:00.000-08:00

Sprinkle N Sparkle

Working with Chalks and Chalk Blender

Iris Folding

EXTRAGANZA OF EMBELLISMENTS & THINGS

2008-11-12T19:28:00.000-08:00

Tuesday was an early start. I went to an all day workshop for Paper Crafts. This was an outstanding class. It started at 8:00 and ended at 5:00. There were seven stations with 3 people to a station. But my friend Sharon and I were a pair so we only had two to each of our tables, good thing I don't think I could have kept up with more at our table. The first station was working with Tombow Markers, Chalks and blenders. We worked with Pearlescent watercolors, Prisma Color Pencils with Gamsol blender that gave such a beautiful finish. The next station was Sparkle N Sprinkle which was working with LOTS of glitter. We were shown some great techniques, but it is definitely an out side project if you ask me. WHAT A MESS. But beautiful results. We next moved to the Spirelli Design table where we worked with silky metallic thread on different sized shapes. Which turned out something else. This really gives you a one of a kind design for Paper Crafts. We also learned new ways for Iris Folding. Now I can do my own designs instead of using a pattern. Next was embossing tips with brass stencils and basic stamping. I learned different ways to use stamps and stamping pads with multiple colors. Also how to make my own boxes with designs. The next station was using the Cuttlebug. If you've never used a Cuttlebug you must learn. It really makes an impression (hahaha) and puts a professional touch to your card making. The next station was on Tea Bag Folding. This was something else to learn, almost like origami. Or maybe it is Origami I don't know but it sure was fun. Very tedious when your folding the smaller pieces of paper. This gives the 3 D look to your paper crafts. What an interesting art. The final station was Embossing with gold embossing powder or other colored powder. The gold with black paper really gave a beautiful look. The day was full and I know the instructor's must have been exhausted. I had a great time and the day went by so very fast. I can't wait to start using all the new techniques I learned at the workshop.

MUSIC ART AND ESPANOL

2008-11-12T19:19:00.000-08:00

Wednesday Barbara and I went to dinner and to the West Valley Mueseam of Art. They had the Pat Morita Quintet. The musicians were all babies. The drummer was 15, the base player 20, trumpet and cornet was 17 and the clairnet player 18. Of course the keyboard was played by Pat Morita and she was the clainet players mom. Pat also sang as well. The evening was another great night of entertainment.

Thursday was Spanish Lessons. Love the class, we do alot of conversational speaking. Anyone that really knows me, knows how much I need the practice. I miss my familia in CA. However, I'm still hooked on the Novella's and Christian gives me my Pervian fix.

2008 SHOWCASE STARS VARIETY SHOW

2008-11-12T19:07:00.000-08:00

This was John Gamber on the left and DJ Jones. Both excellent singers.

These two groups were the Jazz Dancers and Rhythm Tappers. Could they ever tap.

These two were part of the Greased Lightning group.

Here is Frank, Barbara, Sharon and myself saying Cheesecake.

SHOWCASE OF STARS

2008-11-12T18:58:00.000-08:00

Another Op'nin, Another Show Showcase of the stars Variety Show. Friday night a few of my friends went to the Maricopa City Events Center to see the outstanding stars & talent of the West Valley. They were performing acts & songs from Broadway Musicals and Movies. There were dancing, singing, comedy and much more we enjoyed. This was the big fundraiser event for the year. All proceeds went to Banner Del E. Webb and Boswell Medical Centers. The show included the Grandettes & Guys, Jan's Jazz Dancers, Rhythm Tappers and other Dancing.

PHOENIX INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

2008-11-12T18:17:00.000-08:00

Here are my three Hendricks Motor Guys. Dale, Jimmy and my #1 Jeff

These were taken from the trailers of my guys

Yes, this band played into the night. Don't know who they were but they were pretty good.

Jr was going sooooooooo fast and my finger was sooooooooo slow.

My best buddies Donella and Bobby

The brauts were smokin

Welcome to RACE DAY

SATURDAY AND SUNDAY RACE DAYS...

2008-11-12T17:58:00.000-08:00

It's finally here NASCAR. I've been waiting since April for this weekend. I've got just about the greatest seats in PIR. Allison, 1M,34,3&4 . Right between turn 3&4. The shade hits the seats around 11:30-12:00. In AZ sun and heat are #1 concern, this is the best section in the house. Bob, Donella and I left early to catch happy hour and watch the BIG BOYS practice, as well as buy a few souvenirs. There were fewer vendors than last year and not a huge crowd for Saturdays race. We settled in our seats I patiently waiting for my blind date. I decided to donate my other ticket to Luke Air Force Base so one of our hero's could enjoy the races. So I had no idea who would be sitting next to me. I decided he was going to be my blind date. Jeff's car was already running bad during practice. It wasn't very encouraging. Jimmy Johnson's car was hooked up. Jr.'s also was connecting to the pavement. The Bush cars started their practice run and here walking down our aisle was my blind date. Very tall, dark hair, and very pretty. YES, wouldn't you know it. It was Major Sargent Benjamin Reynolds wife, Melissa. He had to go out of town unexpectedly so since she said she'd like to go he gave her the tickets.

MARIO,PIRATES,CREATURES OH MY...

2008-11-02T21:27:00.001-08:00

These are my CALIFORNIA goblens......NOT But I can pretend can't I.....If only they would run away from home and come live in AZ.

Sure can tell you take after my side of the family.....Grrrrrrrrr Nice job Jordan clan. Makes a vampire proud.

Great imaginations wouldn't ya say!

Is that you Jasper??????

WHOOOOOOPIE

Let's play ball....

Now this is my kind of guy..

Could this be our next President?

Yummy

HELLLLLLLOOOOOOOO

Now this is about the most beautiful mermaid I've ever seen.

What a couple beauty and the beast.

Hate to get in a fight with this dude.

OH MY!

What a crowd this year. Can't wait till next year.

CARLISLE........................

2008-11-02T20:02:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite holidays ever.......I just love all the dressing up and fun. A night anything can happen.....Even Edward can visit, or in my case Carlisle. I dressed up as Esme hoping Carlisle would happen by and bite me.....no luck. Daddy and I went to JordanianMania to trick or treat with the little goblins. The little mermaid was there with Darthvader. Shawn Johnson the olympic gymnist and a punk rocker from the 80's was also there. We entered the neighborhood watching for werewolves and vampires luckily none were to be found. We saw witches, princesses, presidential candidates, Mario, tigers and quite a few mermaids. Sadly, not alot of the homes were occupied for the kiddies to trick or treat. So many of the houses were vacant due to the econimey. However, the "Chain Saw" guy was out in full form. Only he had a CLOWN coustume on this year. Now I can not imagine anything worse than a clown.......except with a chain saw.... Ooooo I'm going to have nightmears tonight. We managed to pass out almost all the candy, which was good. That way we didn't have to eat it....hahahaha

ONLY THE BEST...BETTER THAN ALL THE REST

2008-10-29T17:28:00.000-07:00

This is Daddy's favorite female singer ever. So what could be better than going to see his favorite singer with his favorite females. Sorry Tiff, you could have gone with us but.................YOU DON'T LIVE HERE!

This arena is something to see. What a great place to take out of town guests. So much to see and do. There are lots of restruants, live music and dancing waters.

This is where Tina was appearing. The arena is huge. The landing where the seats were had only enough room for a size 8 shoe, and once your knees were set forget moving them. What an experience going down the steps to our seats. The angle of the steps going down was enough to give you vertigo. It reminded me of the San Jose Arena when I went to the hockey game. But, anything for TINA.

NUTBUSH CITY LIMITS

2008-10-29T17:15:00.001-07:00

Mel just loves Tina's hair. She can't wait to have her stylist transform her. What she doesn't know is when you transform into that hair style you automatically start dancing and prancing around, your feet gravitate to the closest pair of 5" heels around and you have an uncontrollable urge to sing and grab anything around that looks like a mic. Good luck Jordan Family.

WE DON'T NEED ANOTHER HERO.....

2008-10-29T16:48:00.000-07:00

I've been waiting 5 months for this night. Last time I saw Tina was at the Concord Pavilion with 4 friends in California. The voice, body, energy and LEGS were the same. The show was fabulous. No intro act for her, she came on hard and fast, keeping it going the whole night. Dancing in her 5" heels, prancing up and down around the stage made my feet hurt. I decided I need to wear my heels while I clean house and or while I'm on the treadmill to get my feet back in shape. Tina stepped on to a ramp that rose up 20 feet off the ground circling over the screaming crowd below. When she did her signature leg thumping dance down the narrow ramp to lead back to the stage the crowd went wild. There were no inhibitions as far as costume's were concerned, they were short, tight and lots of cleavage she looked beautiful.

THE REST OF THE WEEK

2008-10-18T17:58:00.000-07:00

Tuesday- Our neighbors next door had a Wine & Cheese Party for one of our Snowbirds who was leaving until next year. We had a great time and I was able to meet quite a few of our new neighbors.

Wednesday- This evening is set aside for Paper Crafts. We made four beautiful Christmas cards. We had some very talented ladies helping us out. I've learned quite a few techniques and can't wait until our all day session next month.

Thursday - Oh this is the greatest find in Surprise. This is my new love. I started hanging out at the West Valley Art Museum. A series of musical events have been arrange all summer and now they have extended though the year. There is a lovely Cafe which serves delicious meals and there is always a new exhibit to see.

Friday - Some of the singles got together to plan some activities for 2009 and elect new officers. Again I was able to meet some new friends. We had a pow wow in the garden around the fire pit. Oh was it nice.

BEEEZY WEEK

2008-10-18T16:53:00.000-07:00

Now this is how life is suppose to be....All the family together enjoying the day. Look how spiffy Uncle Lawrence looks. Those were the days.
This darling sweetheart is my cousin Kathleen. Isn't she precious. She now lives in New Orleans and I miss seeing her. I spent Mardi Graw with her one year with another cousin. We had a wonderful time, I'll never forget.

These are THE COUSINS we all look like little angels.

Phillip, Me and Kathleen on a Sunday afternoon at Grandma's home.

We always got together with all the cousins. I believe these were taken at Grandma Ellery's house. Could be wrong it could be at Mrs. Armour's

I believe this is Grandma's house I recognize Grandma's BIG chair. She use to rock us all. Not as the same time.....

This also was at Grandma Ellery's.We all must have just had our visit from Santa. He always came to see us at Grandma's.

Grandma always tried to have Kathleen and I over at the same time. We always had such great time. Sometimes Grandma would have her Garden Club Luncheon and Kathy and I would spy on the ladies from the upstairs bathroom window.

This started my week with a great big smile. Kathy received these pictures in California in June from our Aunt Carolyn. She was thoughtful enough to send these on to me. I just love them and her too.

OUT OF AFRICA

2008-10-15T16:41:00.000-07:00

These are some of the beautiful animals I saw at "Out of Africa" wild life preserve. This is really a great all day trip to take with family or friends. Be sure to arrive when the park opens (9:30) to catch the safari truck taking you up to the top of the hills where you'll not only see but be able to feed the Camels and Giraffes.

The lion and tiger areas are spacious with lots of roaming space and separate areas for Bengals and Lions due to unbecoming behavior from the Lions.

The black bears have cave areas with a large area to roam. During feeding they are given large buckets of vegetables and fish. The trainers go right into the living areas and dump the buckets on the mounds designated as their "table".

The Bengal tigers were unbelievable to watch. The trainers could go into the water arena and play with them as well as you can see swim with them. There were several white tigers that were beautiful to see.

This lone wolf was not alone. He had lots of company. This time of the day all were taking their afternoon naps, posing for pictures.

You can not miss the last showing of the day, which is the feeding of the animals. Catch the tram and you can follow the feeding trucks along and get some great shots as well as a lesson in manners of the wild.