Ah, after our travels all summer, it was nice to be in one spot for a while. We got parked and set up in our normal spot at Sunshine Acres Children's Home and close to the greenhouse. This was our third winter volunteering for this charity.
I like to get a photo of the greenhouse towers when we arrive to see how it compares to when we leave in April.
I noticed this year there are a lot more flowers growing. The Greenhouse Manager, Eve, got a new assistant, Kelly, and she's great at flower arranging. There were also more herbs and flowers growing to dry to make tea. Interesting.....
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| Lavender |
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Cucumbers have been doing really well in the greenhouse!
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Some of Kelly's arrangements using lettuce, herbs, and flowers from the greenhouse.
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All of the giant tomato plants died over the summer so they are starting fresh.
The Greenhouse at Sunshine Acres is Aeroponic. Here are definitions:
Hydroponics is a type of horticulture and a subset of hydroculture which involves growing plants, usually crops or medicinal plants, without soil, by using water-based mineral nutrient solutions.
Aquaponics is a form of agriculture that combines raising fish in tanks (recirculating aquaculture) with soilless plant culture (hydroponics). In aquaponics, the nutrient-rich water from raising fish provides a natural fertilizer for the plants and the plants help to purify the water for the fish.
Aeroponics is the practice of growing plants in an air or mist environment without the use of any substrate. That is, the plant roots are suspended in the air and are misted or sprayed periodically with a nutrient solution or aerosol of nutrient solution.
I like walking around the Acres to check up on my favorite animals and God's Garden.
God's Garden was getting decorated for Christmas.
One day we took our truck to the dealer to fix the issue with the fuel additive in the DEF tank. While we were there, we saw a very expensive car on display. It was a 2021 Ford GT Hypercar with a MSRP of only $640,350.00!
Last time we were in a dealership was for an oil change and we ended up buying our 2019 Ford F250. Unless we hit the lottery, we'll stick with our current truck this time.
While it was still quite in the RV park at Sunshine Acres, Al cooked some of his famous ribs for Dave and Jan (other volunteers) and us. We ate under the patio in the RV park.
For Thanksgiving, we were invited to the balloon pilot's house that we met in Albuquerque, Bill and Susan. Their family was busy so it was just the four of us for a nice dinner.
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Pilot Bill did all of the cooking!
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Al and I took the Valley Metro train from Main Street in Mesa to downtown Phoenix. It happened to be during the Auto Show at the Convention Center. We didn't go to the car show but there were things going on outside the convention center that we checked out.
Polestar was there so we signed up to do a test drive of their electric car.
Check out these funny looking cars that were also available to test drive. They are from Electra Meccanica and the model is Solo. (We did not wait in line to test drive one of these.)
Sunshine Acres and specifically the Greenhouse was decorated for the Lights of Love event. Cars full of people can drive through the property and see all the Christmas lights and decorations on specific nights.
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We got to participate in the birthday party for Mary,
the volunteer coordinator at Sunshine Acres.
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We booked our flights to visit my family in Pennsylvania for Christmas and New Years and then one day we were talking with our friends in Boston and they were telling us they needed to go back to India for a family emergency. We were able to make some changes to our itinerary and include Boston in our flights so that we could watch their dog, Coco, for a few weeks to help them out. You know Al jumped at the chance to play with Coco!
Our friends had a dog sitter come to their house before we arrived so we relieved her.
Our friend put Coco's feeding schedule on the fridge.
After the initial greetings and playing with Coco settled down, we went to the store to grab some groceries and all of us got in the Tesla and drove to the New Hampshire House.
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Nice greeting at the New Hampshire house!
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I LOVE this view out the back door!
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Most of our days were spent at the house taking walks in the neighborhood.
One day we took a drive to Moulton Farms recommended by our friends in Tucson. They visited this area and loved their blueberry pies so we went to check it out.
While at Moulton Farms (which was about 30 minutes from the house, Al clicked on a notice in the car for it to do some updates. When it was time for us to leave the farm, the car doors would no open. We panicked a bit because we were far from "home" and there is no Uber in this area. How would we get back? Eventually the update finished and then it would open the doors. Phew! Technology!
Before we arrived, and I think in anticipation to Coco being watched by several sitters, he got a hair cut. He sure didn't look the same with short hair but was much easier to care for when he got dirty.
Coco watching TV and falling asleep.
One day we went out without Coco so we could have a pizza at a place we love called Pizza Barn.
Al and Coco got to play a lot.
One day we were out for a walk and took a dirt road that looked like it might be private but there were not any signs. The paved road ended and it went on to dirt and gravel.
Me being the curious one, said, "let's check it out." We hiked up the road and came across this Snowmobile Club warming hut.
The door was open so we went inside.
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We had a beautiful view from the warming hut.
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That was a fun hike and we did it a couple of times.
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Another beautiful day at the lake.
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We wiped out Coco!
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Well, that didn't last long. After his nap, Coco was ready to play!
One day we all went on a road trip to Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
We parked the car and found these Christmas Trees decorated by local organizations on the Strawberry Banke Museum grounds.
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Coco sniffed each tree to choose his favorite.
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We walked some more and came upon the Memorial Bridge. This bridge goes from Portsmouth, New Hampshire to Kittery, Maine.
The rest of our time there was spent walking around the charming New England town decorated for Christmas.
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Portsmouth Naval Shipyard
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We watched some tug boats guide the Arcola under the Memorial Bridge. There is a web site that gives information about the boats, I mean ships, that are in the area.
ARCOLA
Type: bulk carrier
Arrival: Dec. 9
Flag: Liberia
Cargo: salt
Terminal: NH State Pier
Deadweight: 63,500 tons
Length x breadth: 199 x 32 meters
Year built: 2022
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The bridge is lifted so the ship can pass through.
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Bridge is back down after the Arcola passed through.
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Some New England homes we passed along our route.
We drove over to a park for some more walking before our drive back to the house.
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| Whaleback Light is a historic lighthouse marking the mouth of the
Piscataqua River in Kittery, Maine. It is located on a rocky outcrop
offshore southwest of Fort Foster and south of Wood Island in Kittery, Maine.
The present tower was built in 1872. It was listed on the National
Register of Historic Places in 1988. |
We arrived home in time to catch the end of a beautiful sunset.
The three of us had a down day and watched
Morocco vs Portugal at FIFA World Cup 2022 quarterfinal soccer match. We're not in to soccer but the World Cup sucked us in.
Out for another walk with Coco.
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The New Hampshire House in December.
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One of our wishes came true. We got some snow!
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The snow just makes the view even that much prettier!
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Of course we had to go out and take a walk in the snow.
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A view of the lake from a different area.
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And the lake across the street.
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Another day just the two of us went for a trip to the state capital in Concord, New Hampshire.
New Hampshire is the second primary after the Iowa Caucus every four years and so they get a lot of media coverage.
Spurred by the events of the 1968 election, reforms that began with the 1972 election elevated the two states' importance to the overall election, and began to receive as much media attention as all of the other state contests combined. An upset victory by an underdog candidate, or a weak showing by a front-runner can change the course of the primaries, as happened in 1952, 1968, and 2008 for the Democrats, and in 1980 for the Republicans.
Since 1952, the primary has been a major testing ground for candidates for both the Republican and Democratic nominations. Candidates who do poorly frequently drop out, while lesser-known, underfunded candidates who excel in New Hampshire can become serious contenders, garnering large amounts of media attention and campaign funding.
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Buttons and bumper stickers from previous elections.
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Chris Sununu is the current governor.
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Joe Biden and Kamala Harris cardboard cutouts.
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The first session of the General Court began in 1819. The State House is
the oldest state capitol in which both houses of the legislature meet
in their original chambers.  |
Senate Chamber with 24 members
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House Chamber with 400 members
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Interesting facts about New Hampshire legislators:
I read somewhere that New Hampshire representatives and senators only get $100 a year in salary. Is that true?
Most
of us complain about our salaries and lack of raises, but New Hampshire
legislators might have a legitimate gripe. They have been paid $200 for
a two-year term since 1889.
The presiding
officers of both houses of the legislature - called the General Court -
receive a salary of $250, while all other members get $200 plus mileage
for 45 legislative days, according to the state Constitution.
Members
really clean up for a special session, during which all legislators
receive an additional compensation of $3 per day "for a period not
exceeding 15 days and the usual mileage."
A few decorations on the Christmas tree
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603 is the area code in New Hampshire
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Photos from a few of the primaries
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2016 Presidential Primary
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2012 Presidential Primary
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More play time for the boys
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Walking to the dog park.
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Clean up after visiting the dog park.
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Al's sous chef
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Al and I went to downtown Boston for a little walk around and dinner at Rocco's Cucina & Bar.
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Christmas at Faneuil Hall
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It was very quiet inside Faneuil Hall
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Quincy Market
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Our time with Coco was up so we dropped him off with a local dog sitter and we flew to Philadelphia. We had a great time with Coco but missed spending time with Coco's parents, Sushant and Rashmi.
Once we arrived in Philadelphia and drove to Schwenksville, we had a little snow there.
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Florida room at my Dad's house
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Dad making his traditional squid salad.
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Al cooking up something yummy!
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with roasted vegetables.
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| Chloe |
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Al's cooking for Christmas Eve dinner - carnitas tacos with cilantro rice and beans.
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Christmas Eve, Dad, Jay, Zach, Karen, Greg, Jackie, Barb, and Al
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Nancy and Jay
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Jay and Al
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Jackie's beautiful cookies
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Barb, Jackie, Jay, Zach, and Dad
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Christmas Day with Barb's family
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Nancy, Barb, Nick, Dad, Patti, Matt, and Michael
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Barb, Nick, Patti, Michael, and Matt
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Christmas dinner
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Barb, Nancy, Dad, Patti, Lenny, Michael, Matt, and Nick
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After the big day, we got together with friends.
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Karin, Brian, Nancy, and Al at Angelo's
Friends from Nancy's time working at Prudential.
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Pretty decorations near Dad's house
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Ah, the life of a cat!
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Al, Nancy, Karen, and Pat
Nancy's friend from first grade and her husband.
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Cheers for cocktail hour
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Al cooking pork with green sauce
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Dad enjoying Al's pork with green sauce.
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Al, Nancy, Kathy, and Bob (Grandfather's nephew and his wife)
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Bill, Vicki, Nancy, and Al
Another one of Nancy's friends from Prudential and her husband.
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We had a great time on the east coast visiting with Coco in New Hampshire and Boston then spending time with family and friends over the Christmas holidays. It's time to head back to Arizona and Sunshine Acres. We are volunteering for the Superbowl Host Committee for the LVII Superbowl in Phoenix, Arizona. More on that in the next blog entry.
