Wildflowers, a Scary Ride & Carrizo Plain

   I have been mesmerized this week by the wildflowers in Klipstein Canyon and on the 166 between Maricopa & Cerro Noroeste. The stunning display is a must-see, as my little camera does not do it justice, plus, I cannot snap pics of the pretty spots on the 166 (hard to drive & snap!).

This is just a sample, & again, there are colors you just can't see with my photos...

Yesterday morning, Kahlua and I took a lovely ride through Cuddy Valley (our favorite circle route).

It was a gorgeous morning...

 We love to visit Bonfield Farm...

My favorite subject: dilapidated buildings...

   A little while after I shot this photo was when Kahlua scared the daylights out of me. She suddenly went DOWN, & seemed to be struggling, so I hopped off (but held reins) & she got up. I walked her the rest of the way home. I don't think she tripped, she just went down. I'm calling our farrier, who is a wonderful wealth of info, but I think it was MY fault: I took her out on an empty stomach (she hadn't had her breakfast). I am hoping I am right. I'm going to take her on a short ride later today, but I'm pretty sure that was it. She didn't limp at all, no injuries. I think she may have briefly fainted. Will update...

Later, I took the hub & monkey through Klipstein Canyon. Again, the photos don't do it justice! There are lupines, and a ton of gorgeous flowers. Especially on the 166...

   Then, we took an adventurous drive through the Carrizo Plain Nat'l Monument (a 250,000 acre preserve). Sadly, no wildflowers this year, and Soda Lake never really had any measurable water, but a neat visit nonetheless. We saw some amazing rough legged hawks (no pics)...

   This is Soda Lake, looking toward the mountains we live in...

The hub finally snapped a photo that didn't make me look like a complete 'be-she-moth.' Look how tall the monkey is getting!

   The only water we found was outside the park and lake, and sadly full of litter...

A Super Saturday & Sweet Rolls!

  Check out these raspberry lime sweet rolls, pre-glaze, I made yesterday! I was inspired by an episode of the Pioneer Woman, so I used her basic sweet roll recipe (found on thepioneerwoman.com), but used 2% milk instead of whole , and the oil I used was this great canola/olive/grapeseed blend I've been getting at Costco. I spread Linn's (famous Cambria store, made my ollalieberry wedding cake) raspberry preserves on the dough, & also sprinkled lime sugar (lime zest mixed into sugar).  The only part I had trouble with was the lime glaze, the proportions are off, so it was way too runny. I need to experiment more. These were amazing!

   Anyone who knows me, know I LOVE lime! Here is the lime sugar I made...

We took our relatives, G & M, to Sagebrush Annie's for wine tasting and lunch. For some crazy reason, I didn't snap any photos of our friends (the owners) Larry & Karina. It ended up being a 5+ hour lunch!!

Here is another photo, with monkey & hub!

Check out the amazing crab cakes! No more photos after that, too busy tasting fabulous wine, eating a fab lunch, & enjoying ourselves. Monkey & I finally checked out the old rodeo arena out back, & met Larry's horse. What a wonderful day!!

Speaking of the monkey, this is what he insisted on having for breakfast this am!

I have to jet; making Chinese Chicken Salad for a church potluck, work on report cards & lesson plan for my fab kinders. Here is a shot of this morning's view...can you believe how quickly the snow has melted?? Mud chunk mayhem will ensue courtesy of my spoiled dogs!!

March in the Mountains!

This morning, there was still enough snow for the monkey to go sledding. I'm happy to finally see him wearing one of his coonskin caps...maybe he'll start a retro fashion trend amongst his peers. I'm a sucker for that 50's era childhood fashion & western decor...

Yesterday, our friend L (we share the horsey!) came over for some sledding! This is our best run, but it is going to lose a lot of snow today, sadly. Look at L go!

After sledding, we took advantage of the great consistency to make: a snow dog...

L made a snow elephant (snelephant)...

...and the monkey made a 'snowbra' (snow cobra). VERY fun! Today we are going to lunch at SAGEBRUSH for a birthday celebration & some wine tasting...WHEE!!!

      Here is Davey Crockett sledding this am!

   Despite the snow, bulbs are sprouting everywhere (these are daffodils, with buds already formed), and the horse & goat are shedding up a storm...Once we deal with the mud (yuck) we should be able to start some fun gardening prep & enjoy lots of fun trail rides!! Yippee!!

Before & After...

Wow! It's hard to believe that the hub & the monkey were hitting a badmitton birdie just the other day. Look at the same are this morning!

Not to mention that I was JUST riding Kahlua in shirtsleeves on Saturday, and a light jacket on Sunday! She is such an awesome horsey...Looks like we won't be out lunging or riding until the snow melts, and the resulting mud is not too slippery...sigh...

If you look carefully, you can see one of the rainbows I saw on my drive to work (this back road is my favorite route!).

This rainbow is easy to spot!

It was actually a double rainbow!

When the weather is good, I love to take Klipstein Canyon. It is soooo green & lush right now! This is how it looked yesterday...the cows were excited when I slowed my car down (I think they thought I was going to feed them).

It is so green, it reminds me of Ireland. Anyone who has been here in September, would not believe it possible to transform into this green wonderland. There are beautiful wildflowers splashing the roadside & hills as well...

This is the 'traffic' that I now deal with...lol!!