lizard weather

It's been several months since we've see any lizards...they slept away the chilly months....but now that the sun is warming the desert they have re-emerged and can be seen fairly regularly. Lily loves to chase the little guys and has been know to spend hours at a single bush where she knows a lizard is hiding. Luckily, they are pretty good escape artists. This little guy was spotted (get it?) during our hike on Tuesday at Lost Dutchman State Park. I put my camera on a preset for flowers and crept as close as I could without spooking him. I was surprised when I looked at the picture and saw he had orange spots-he was small enough that from a distance he just looked desert brown.

dancing in a smiling box

Another free picture slideshow by Smilebox

white dog dancing in the yellow

This was intended to be a scenic view but just as I snapped the button Lily popped up in the flowers...

dancing with a ladybug

a good dog day.....

A good day for Lily starts with an empty peanut butter jar. She loves to lick out the leftovers. The other day a friend who is staying with us asked me how she got to the bottom of the jar...which set me at the task of photographing her tongue reaching the bottom of the bottle. The process produced some great action shots...



Momentary pause to check on a bird that was calling for her attention...


And the photograph I was trying for...the tongue at the bottom of the jar.

dancing with the quail

The quail are such an interesting birds, the way they scurry on the ground as if they are late for tea, their little cap feather that curl over their heads as if they were in a marching band, the way they gather in groups and chatter and whistle like a roomful of excited women. Even their eggs are interesting, we found this nest, tucked under and overhang and covered with sticks in the wash at the bottom of our property. They remind me of malted milk balls candy that you find in the store at easter time.

dancing in the chicken coop

When we returned from Mexico I was delighted to find that our chicken had started laying eggs. Yesterday for the first time I got 5 eggs in one day. They are still getting the hang of what to do. When they first started laying Lily found an egg one of the hens had layed in the yard. She brought it to us in her mouth. Yesterday when I went to clean the bottom of the coop I found someone had tried laying an egg while sitting on the roost a foot and a half off the ground. The egg broke when it hit the floor. And then there is the hen that insists on laying her sweet little blue offering on the floor under the nesting boxes each day. One day I even moved her into a nesting box while she was setting and after I was gone she got out of the box and left her egg on the floor once again. We took our first eggs, offered them in a wave offering to the Lord then made asparagus quiche with Mexican cheese and took it to our elderly neighbors.

dancing through mexico: leftovers

Here are some favorite photos that didn't fit in any of the previous posts...

Ron at the dentist showing his toothy grin.


The Mexican contingent.

Jay with Ruby, our laptop, outside the motel room trying to get internet connection.

A pack of dog wandering Rocky Point on a hot day.

Finally decided on an old trailer for their shady siesta.


Daniel's reflection in the dentist's Hummer.

We were headed out of the country when I realized we didn't have any photos of Jay and I together....so we took this cheesy shot.

I love this photo of Rubin and Jay deep in conversation.

One last time the prayer huddle..."As One"...

and we're off...

dancing through mexico: the plaza in the evening

Tuesday evening we had been invited to be a part of the presentations at the plaza. We planned for a thirty minute presentation but knew we need to be flexible. Before the program started a local TV station interviewed Ron and Rece.


The program was late getting started so when we walked on the stage we were told we had twenty minutes. We started with the blowing of the shofar then had a drum song and those not drumming danced. We then took the large fire huppah and invited the children to come up from the audience and circle under the huppah while we blessed them and the drummer sang another song.


The plaza was full of vendors and we were given an area to set up a booth. We had T-shirts and jewelry on display but our ultimate goal was to be able to interact with the people. We had a number of people who came and asked if we could pray for them and several who gave their lives to the Lord. Praise Yahweh!

dancing through mexico: my friend dorcas may

My friend, Dorcas May, aka, Rece is such a fun person to be with. She lives in Washington State but has been visiting Arizona. She loves to take pictures, just like me. She loves hiking, just like me. Rece loves dogs, just like me. Rece loves babies, just like me. She loves learning about Yahweh, just like me.


When we were in Mexico she was interview by the TV news. She told them why we had come to Mexico. When the man doing the interview asked her if she would like to speak in her language she lit up and said "Sure" and preceded to speak in tongues (she never learned to speak her native tongue as she was raised by a white foster family). After she finished the man asked her what she said. "I don't know" Rece replied, "I just spoke what was in my heart". Quick thinking Rece!

Rece nabs a baby after the parade.


In between the parade in the morning and the program in the evening, things got a bit slow. Rece and I took a big bag of candy and passed it out to all the vendors sitting in their booths. It was fun to bless people that way.


Waiting for the parade to start....Rece reviews the photos she has taken.


Rece asked to get her photo with the Mariachi band.


Rece loves Mexican food, Pepsi, and hot sauce.


Rece, Daniel, and I went for a walk to take photos of flowers and fences. Rece and I enjoyed joking around with Daniel even though he doesn't speak much English and we speak even less Spanish. Here is a photo of Rece and I reflected in Daniel's sunglasses.


My fun friend Rece, aka Dorcas May.

dancing through mexico: iron works

As a photographer I'm constantly looking at lines and patterns that are interesting and pleasing to the eye. As we drove through Mexico, I was drawn to the ironwork fences, gates, and windows that are in abundant supply throughout the neighborhoods. It was the perfect opportunity for a photo series of fences.