Tuesday Night Tacos!

Craig and I are both getting into Isla mode, so when we saw this sign in front of Rubio's the other day, we were there on Tuesday night! The place was pretty packed for a week night. I guess lots of people have the same idea.

Rubio's has a beachy West Coast Mexico motif with palapas for outdoor dining and the palapa surfer decor inside.

And the fish tacos are pretty dang good!

I think this is going to be our Tuesday night tradition, at least for a few weeks until our toes are in the sand at Mocambo!

Mexidona

There's one last place I wanted to tell you about in Sedona. Another favorite shop! It reminds me a little of Jackalope in Albuquerque. It's an import store that carries art, pottery, furniture, and lots of other miscellaneous stuff from Mexico. Hence the name Mexidona! Take a look at the link and there's a slideshow with more of what they sell. This trip, I was amazed at all the furniture they carry! Here are a few more things you can add to my wish list!

A blue pig would definitely be at the top of my list!

Pull hard little pony!

Love all the crosses and shrines! My walls are full of the stuff and Craig says no more!

Lots of gorgeous armoires.

Loved these fiber optic flowers.

Lots of Frida!

Froggy Trio

If only money grew on trees, I'd buy one of these!

Cool copper fountain.

I thought this was a large rat until I realized it was an armadillo!

I should have gotten Saby a dog bone bowl in honor of her stay at Dog Bone Ranch!

Life is Good!

good eats

good fun

good friends

good life

just happy

Good weekend! The weather was unusual and stellar for June in Phoenix. A cold front (don't laugh) brought us high temps in the 80's and 90's with overnight temps in the lo 60's. We slept with the windows open, swam in the pool, dined with friends, played with Saby . . . it's all good!

Disclaimer: Craig says my blog makes my life look like all fun and no work. I left out the photos of us cleaning the house and pool on Saturday morning, and me cleaning carpets on Sunday.

Isla Doors

Isla Doors - Slideshow

More of Larry's Acres!

Craig and I spent a few hours wandering Larry's acres of antiques in Old Cottonwood. As I've said repeatedly, if only I had a money tree and a U-Haul!

Love these old doors!

A penny for their thoughts! The bunnies look very pensive.

Hoping to find plenty of seaglass from these!

Just like my old doll house!

Oh honey . . . she's tired! I had a homemade dress almost just like this in kindergarten. I wonder if this is where my mother got the idea!

Cute vintage seed packets!

Loved this old shopping cart!

Inflation! (But I can remember when these machines took a nickel!)

What happens to old hula girls.

Craig's dream date. Wouldn't it be fun to have a gigantic old cooler for your beer!

I almost bought this little toy wheelbarrow for my outdoor garden collection.



Nice old Hoosier!

Our grandparents brought these home to my brother and me from their winters in Brownsville, Texas. Wish I still had them!

Liquor decor!

Join Tod and Buz on 89A!

I originally planned on coming back through Prescott from our Sedona trip over Memorial Day weekend. Prescott has a lot of antique stores around the downtown area, and it's a much prettier drive back to Phoenix than the interstate. Well . . . notice I said I planned. Craig's plans were to try and beat the traffic jam of cars headed back into Phoenix. And that is a valid concern considering we were caught in long traffic backups going and coming home from Sedona. I-17 in Arizona is basically a 4 lane interstate -- 2 lanes in each direction. That's not nearly enough to accommodate the traffic volume in and out of the Phoenix area on any given day, much less a holiday weekend.

I remembered seeing a few antique store signs on a former trip as we passed through Cottonwood, Arizona, which is just south of Sedona. We compromised and checked out Old Town Cottonwood before we headed back to Phoenix on the interstate. We were both pleasantly surprised. It's kind of a cool upcoming area with a few antique stores, galleries, and restaurants!

Love this sign. Adventure with Tod and Buz to Old Town Cottonwood!

This is the first antique store we saw in Old Cottonwood. Two acres of antiques. In addition to an inside antique mall, there were outbuildings, old cars, wagons, gas pumps, etc... Perfect place to amuse Craig!

More wagons. Remnants from the Wild West days?

What does one do with an old car door?


A farmer must have dreamt this one up! Glider made with spare parts!


Giddyup little pony! Call the SPCA!

Craig loved this car. His dad had one like it when he was little.

Only his dad's wasn't shiny red!

Jed Clampett. Paging Jed Clampett! Your car is ready.

Well! None of your business!

Cottonwood detour to be continued tomorrow!

The Excitement's Building!

I leave for Isla Mujeres three weeks from today! I decided to do a little remake on my slideshow from the October 2009 trip. All the airfares and rooms are finally booked, so I'm psyched! Looking forward to hours floating in that beautiful turquoise water, eating all that fantastic seafood at my favorite restaurants, seeing old and new friends, and spending hours discovering new seaglass beaches! Woo hoooo!

Slideshow: Isla Mujeres 2009 - Slideshow

(Click on the mute symbol at the bottom of the slideshow to get the sound.)

Red Rocks

After our long day traveling, shopping, and eating last Saturday in Sedona, we headed back to the hotel. The room was still not ready, so we opted to change into swimsuits and go swimming. The resort had three pools. One was huge and beautiful with waterfalls, views, fountains, etc.... All the bells and whistles, but unfortunately, every screaming kid at the hotel was there that afternoon. I'd heard a father at the front desk asking which one was the rowdy pool, but I thought he was kidding? So after viewing that scene, we opted for the quiet smaller adult pool which was also crowded and definitely not heated. I dipped into the water and discovered it felt like the Pacific Ocean in December, so I headed to the jacuzzi. Ahhhhhhhh. After about a half hour, my cellphone rang and it was the front desk telling us our room was finally ready, so we headed upstairs for a nap!

Long story short, I noticed about an hour later that I felt like I was coming down with a case of the flu. Fever, chills, etc... Oh no! I took some ibuprofen, and both of us decided it'd be best to just get carryout for dinner. While trying to decide what to eat, I started getting really painful muscle spasms in my legs and feet. The light bulb finally came on. I googled dehydration, and sure enough, the fever, chills, and muscle cramps were all symptoms. I'm a little embarrassed after living in Arizona and traveling to the tropics that I was dumb enough to get dehydrated. I take blood pressure medication with diuretics, so maybe I'll blame it on that!

Anyway, that episode changed our Sunday. We were a little disappointed because we were both looking forward to a good hike in the morning, but we decided that would be foolish since my body was obviously about a gallon low on water. So we decided to do a car tour of the Red Rocks instead. These rocks actually have names like Bell Rock, Cathedral Rock, etc..., but after looking at a lot of them, they looked like Red Rocks to me!

And no, we never felt the vortex. Some people think it's real, some people think it's hocus pocus. Here's a supposedly scientific explanation for the vortex:

A vortex is the funnel shape created by a whirling fluid or by the
motion of spiraling energy. Familiar examples of vortex shapes are
whirlwinds, tornadoes, and water going down a drain. A vortex can
be made up of anything that flows, such as wind, water, or
electricity. Sedona has long been known as a spiritual power center because of
the vortexes of subtle energy located in the area. These vortexes
are swirling centers of subtle energy coming out from the surface
of the earth. This energy is not exactly electricity or magnetism,
although it does leave a slight measurable residual magnetism in
the places where it is strongest. There are four main energy vortexes in Sedona.

The subtle energy that exists at these locations interacts with who a person is inside.
It resonates with and strengthens the Inner Being of each person
that comes within about a quarter to a half mile of it. This
resonance occurs because the vortex energy is very similar to the
subtle energy operating in the energy centers inside each person. If
someone is at all a sensitive person, it is easy to feel the energy at
these vortexes, and it can be an uplifting experience. The energy
absorbed in this way can have a positive effect for days afterwards.
People come from all over the world to experience this.

After a long day of driving on bumpy backroads in pursuit of the elusive vortex (Okay, we really didn't try that hard!), we returned to the hotel for a swim and nap. We found the third pool that was just right for us -- the lap pool at the spa. There were a lot of quite serious seniors in Speedos, swim caps, and snorkels swimming laps at that one, but I did manage to find a lane where they'd let me dip in.

That night, we were undecided about where to eat. Driving towards downtown Sedona, I noticed a Wildflower Cafe, a bakery/deli type restaurant known for its soups, sandwiches, salads, breads, and sweets. We found a table out on the deck overlooking a gorgeous view of the Red Rocks. I think contemplating that view while eating my wonderful chicken salad sandwich, fruit, and cookie was my vortex moment!

Gorgeous bouquet of blown glass wildflowers.

View from our the dinner table.