A few new additions

It's been awhile since I had time to post, but we're doing fine. Just busy! With the cooler temperatures of fall, we planted a few zinnias where Mom Vae can enjoy them.

And hung a hummingbird feeder right outside her dining room window!

It's already very popular with both the hummingbirds and Mom.

Sam spotted this green lynx spider in our garden and his research says it's a beneficial arachnid that will eat many other pests. It's a good thing, because it looks like this female laid an egg sack that could produce hundreds of babies.

I spotted this guy among the corn stalks, but he has since disappeared.

Sam spent one hot afternoon grading our driveway. I raked the large rocks out of the dirt.

On another day, Mom and I tried our hand at bingo in the local community center. I netted a big 19 cents. Mom did pretty well following the columns and numbers, so we may try it again. She (understandably) gets bored with just our company, so we're trying several groups in Benson.

But the most fun was a visit last weekend from our friends Dennis and Lucy.

They brought Lucy's dad John and everyone was interested in our garden.

Plus our old friend Chaco, who loved exploring all over.

By noon, it started to sprinkle, so we moved indoors for lunch. But it was a most enjoyable day!

I'll leave you with a sunrise and a sunset from last week. "Sunrise, sunset..." Sing along with me, "Sunrise, sunset, swiftly fly the years..." Can anyone name that tune?

As we sat on Mom's deck waiting for Sam to get home from work that evening, she spied a "big bird" landing on the yucca. I do believe it's our resident great horned owl. Can you see him?

Long weekend

Last weekend, after dropping Mom off at Becky's (she's a lifesaver!), Sam and I took off for Silver City, New Mexico. It's only 2 1/2 hours away and Sam likes driving at night, so he got us as far as Lordsburg by midnight. We slept in the back of the car on our custom fitted mattress. (Actually, I slept while he drove!)

The next morning, Sam heard about a Labor Day Weekend car show, so we checked it out on our way out of town.

This classic Impala was a beauty, and the owner's young son brought his own entry.

This was Sam's favorite; a beautifully restored Chevy truck.

And these bikes should have been in the show, but instead caught Sam's eye at the truck stop. They are amazing in so many ways.

We made it to Silver City in time to tootle around downtown for hours in thrift shops and other artsy-crafty stores.

We enjoyed the architecture and old buildings.

And even hiked along the "Big Ditch," a beautiful little stream that runs right through downtown.

After all that, we definitely needed some refreshment.

Our last stop was a wonderful bed and breakfast home, with a most talented and hospitable hostess, Cookie. If you ever plan a visit to Silver City, we highly recommend her place!
https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/36971136?s=51

The next morning we turned the wheels west to head home, but couldn't resist another stop in Lordsburg to inspect the historic buildings we had seen the day before.

So much pretty architecture and brickwork.

And some cool old signs. The one on the brick wall, of course.

It was a great little getaway. Hope you're having a good week, everyone.

(Almost all photos are courtesy of Sam. I was on vacation!)