October at the Ranch 2014 — Part 4
Saturday morning we woke almost as bright and almost as early, if not quite early enough for the sunrise. Nonetheless, stepping out the door into crisp cold country air in the morning…
October at the Ranch 2014 — Part 3
Back at the ranch we had just a little time with the Grands before they headed into town to spend the night in a great deal more comfort at the…
October at the Ranch 2014 — Part 2
We needed to do a little shopping for our weekend food and other necessities in town, so we headed on in around 8. While we were finding some deals (but…
October at the Ranch 2014 — Part 1
Our annual Halloween weekend at the Ranch began with a largely uneventful drive north on Thursday evening, after Laurent and Megan finished work at the school. We had everything packed…
There’s Nothing Like a Good Backup Plan
With so many options at our disposal for things to do, places to go, and sights to see during Doug's all-too-short visit, Paul and I wanted to make sure that…
Of Pools and Parties
Yesterday was a day of much celebration. In the morning, I gathered the 9 children from our house (our 7 plus two cousins) and went over to the hotel where…
At Last!
I have lived in Arizona since August of 1997. That is seventeen years, by my reckoning. And in that time, I have had a total of ZERO visits from my…
Upended
That sounds like a good working title for my autobiography... at any rate, today it was literally the case. One of the consequences of seeking a foster care license is…
Boys on a Swing
Sometimes I bemoan the fact that we have not been able to afford to purchase any play equipment for the children. Although for years we've had a trampoline, they do…
Surprised by Beauty
Let me start by saying thank-you to whomever it was that grabbed my camera (or perhaps merely snagged my memory card) and took some recent photos in the back yard.…