I haven't posted in a regular way to The Universe Smiles in the past year. Many reasons for that but, fortunately, Ron and I have been healthy and able to pursue our passion to travel near and far in the past year. We have had the pleasure of family and friends visiting us and we visiting them. I will try to recapture the past 13 months of travel adventures in three parts. This part starts in August, 2017 and ends December, 2017. Part 2 will cover January 2018 through April, 2018. Part 3 will cover May, 2018 through September, 2018.
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| Anne, Milla, Will and Tim hiking up Soldier's Pass, Sedona, AZ. |
Beginning the last week of August, 2017, we traveled to Sedona, Arizona to spend a warm week in Northern Arizona with Anne, Will, Milla, and Anne's boyfriend, Tim.
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| View of Sedona from the Sedona Airport.towering above the red rocks and the city.. |
We enjoyed a picnic at Red Rock Crossing and the kids, Anne and Tim cooled off in Oak Creek with the Cathedral Rocks as a picture-perfect backdrop.
Having never seen the Grand Canyon, Anne, Tim and the kids followed us to the Grand Canyon for a day.
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| The Grand Canyon in August, 2017 |
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| Milla found wildlife in the store.... |
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| ...and on the canyon walls (California Condor)... |
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| ...and in the shade of pinon pine along the tral to El Tovar Lodge (Elk mother and baby) |
In October, we had a family reunion in Grand Junction, Colorado when my daughter, Mary, and husband, Matt, adopted their daughters, Rosemerry and Melody. Bill and Carol (Matt's parents), Mark (Mary's dad), Malcom and Amanda (Uncle and Aunt to Rose and melody), plus Ron and I were all there for the great occasion and grand celebration. We traveled the scenic US Hwy 550 through the colorful mesas of northwestern New Mexico.
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| On the road via US 550 over the San Juan Mountains to Grand Junction |
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| After crossing Red Mountain Pass, we came to the old mining town of Silverton, Colorado |
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| Rosemerry and Melody at the hotel pool |
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| Melody and Rosemerry |
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| Adoption Day - The Hicks Family and the Judge |
The trip back through Aspen gold was breathtaking. Autumn was here.
In early November, my friend Cathy and I did a day trip up the Rio Grande Gorge for the
Dixon Studio Tour. Dixon is a little northern New Mexico village that specializes in apples, wine, and art.
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| Stopping along the Rio Grande on Hwy 68 |
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| My Toyota 4Runner stopped for photos along the way |
I
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| I did this pastel painting of this scenic area many years ago. |
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| The Rio Grande |
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| The Garlic Farm |
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| Delightful pears |
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| Beautiful apple trees |
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| One apple remains on this tree |
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| Art everywhere |
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| Fall color here... |
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| ---and there. |
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| Cathy and me |
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| Cathy and a four-legged friend |
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| Another beautiful studio in an adobe home with acequia (irrigation ditch) |
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| The acequia |
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| Falling leaves everywhere |
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| Beautiful NM landscape and skies |
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| And the sunset! |
We traveled once again across the Red Mountain Pass between Durango and Ouray, Colorado to join Amanda and Malcolm for Thanksgiving with my daughter, Mary, her husband, Matt, and the grand kids, Melody and Rosemerry, in Grand Junction, Colorado. Now there was snow.
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| US 550 over the San Juan Mountains of Southern Colorado |
Thanksgiving at Mary's house was bitter-sweet. Everyone cooked and enjoyed a day of joy but we were sad that my daughters' father was absent.
Mark had passed away suddenly and unexpectedly in Albuquerque just a couple of weeks before. Our family gathering shared many memories of Mark.
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| Mary's apple pie |
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| My spiced cranberry sauce |
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| Perfectly roasted stuffed turket |
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| Making the gravy |
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| Rosemerry" "Let's eat!" |
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| Mark (RIP August 13, 1951-November 14, 2017) was there in spirit. |
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| Rosemerry and Melody |
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| Matt |
For Christmas, 2017, Ron took me to San Antonio, Texas.
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| Guadalupe Mountains National Park |
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| Buttes on the way to Marfa, TX |
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| Inside the bar of the Hotel Saint George |
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| The Lobby of the Hotel Saint George |
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| Entrance to the restaurant at the Hotel Saint George |
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| Ron enjoying a beverage |
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| The Courthouse |
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The Hotel Paisano -
where the movie stars stayed while filming "Giant" |
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| Our beautiful Hotel Room at Hotel Saint George |
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| Not a bad place to spend the night. |
Dinner at the Hotel Saint George Restaurant was very good. The ambiance and food was a delight.
We spent the next day and night in
Big Bend National Park. This park is hard to reach but well worth a visit. Delightful! Unfortunately, my camera broke and I only got one picture when a nice couple took a picture of me where we spent the night at the
Chisos Basin Lodge.
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| Me at dusk with the Chisos Basin Window in the background. |
We spent Dec. 23-26, 2017 in magical San Antonio, Texas. We stayeed in the Drury Inn and Suites on the Riverwalk. The beautiful Christmas lights were twinkling in the trees that lined the river.
We visited the Alamo, the historic Menger Bar, and
Then we headed for the
Historic Market Square with its many Mexican markets and restaurants.
For Christmas Eve dinner, we ate at
Bigas on the Bank. This was a fine dining, Zagat rated restaurant and we had a delicious meal.
More pictures from our tour of San Antionio on the Hop On Hop Off Bus.
We drove back to New Mexico on December 26th and were safety home before the New Year.
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| Travel is nice but home is always a welcome place to return to. |
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