And this is how it looks these days. Me, I still like it as much as the day I bought it.


And sometimes this baby has to be washed so it looks good. I am sure the owner of the other pony up front thought the very same thing.


Not too long ago I had to take my princess to the bus stop, she was so happy I did it. I asked her to pose for a picture while we waited, she had absolutely no problem with that as you can see.


I took this picture with my phone the day the sky got mad and spitted big balls of hail damaging an incredibly big amount of cars.



Inside our Mc Donals we do not have a kids play land but we do have a piano. Kids don't seem to miss the playground because all they want is the toy in their happy meals. Me, I like the piano too.


This image captured by Kika last Saturday during our taco run.

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Curtsie Boutique and Rufflez Girly Accesories

Last Sunday my daughter Michelle and her friend Tiffany set up store outside my house to sell some dresses, flip flops, jewelry, and of course Michelle's bows. All the stuff they sell was hand made by them and trust me there's no shortage of creativity between the both of them.

Michelle has already been selling those bow through we website but mostly through her facebook page, I have already become a good customer because believe it or not those darn things make terrific birthday presents if the receiver is a girl. Viewed from a man's perspective, it's amazing how women really go ga-ga over stuff like this.

The beauty is that they can customize lots of the stuff to suit any individual. Team spirit bows are becoming a hot item, you like the Cardinals, the Cowboys, the Dodgers, ASU, the sky is the limit. Seasonal stuff like autumn colors or Christmas, or winter, etc. etc. are hot items too.

Here I will post some of the images we captured during that event. When I say we I mean me and my grandson Ducky, once he discovered how to use the camera there was no stopping him.

So without further ado, here are some of those images. Enjoy!

The girls set up shop at around noon.
Some of the little girl dresses Tiffany made.
Cardinals / ASU bow.
Tutus, bows, flip flops, jewerly, and more.
Activity in the booth. Love to see good paying customers.
The ultimate bow display.
And this is Ducky's contribution to the photo shoot on that day.
Actually there were more like this. what an artistic eye.

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Tolmachoff Farms

I can't see the maze but yes it is in that corn field.
So my Saturday started by getting some bad news that affected a really good friend of mine. Although I won't go into it here I will ask you to pray for her and her family, they really need prayers to come from all over.

The plan was to wash my cars and the bike but as always plans change at the very last minute and in this case I was happy that they did. I got an invitation to go to a corn maze and since I had never been to one I promply accepted. The Tolmachoff Farms hosts a yearly pumpkin patch and corn maze, parking was in a very dusty parking lot and I was driving the convertible, as you can imagine it ended up being very dusty thus my being happy for not washing it. I would have been extremely mad if I had.

Inside the corn maze.
There are many activities that kids and grown ups can participate in, lots of photo ops, and even live music. Kids get to pick the pumpking of their choice and they can decorate it as they like. Running around inside the maze while looking for the clues and mail boxes in there can be tiring, but it's also lots of fun and not to mention great exercise. By the time you reach the exit you probably walked a mile or two. Of course it doesn't help that the weight you may have lost in there will be regain at your local Sonics afterwards.

Help! I can't find the exit and I'm too tired to continue.


“We have a wide variety of pumpkins and a full spectrum of people.”

Dave Groemm

Pumkin painting, scarecrows, fun.
The Tomachoff Farms is a really fun place to take the kids and very affordable to go in there. Kids will definitely love the petting zoo, petting the mini horses, and freaking out at the big ostrich in there, if you are a local here in Phoenix and specially if you have kids this is a good place to visit and it's so close to us.

Tolmachoff Farms
5726 N 75th Ave
Glendale, AZ 85303-4702
(623) 386-1301

Pony
Windmill.
Savannah, the pumkin painter.
Ostrich.
This is a fun train, all the cars do the same as the one in front.

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It's top down days. Yes I have been going topless all week long. Oh but before you all start having impure thoughts please know that I am talking about my Mustang convertible. The weather is finally shifting and even though we are still experiencing some heath for the most part it's beautiful. You would not believe we just had such a nasty storm just last week by the looks of today's climate.

My 93 Convertible.
And just by a blink of an eye another weekend is here. What to to? What to do? Well, I this time I have no clear idea of what but I know I'll be doing something. For starters cleaning and reorganizing the house, and hopefully I'll also wash the cars because they both really need it. Maybe going out tonight or maybe just cook at home and stay in. Oh so many possibilities. Now that the kids are giving it another go at leaving on their own I'll continue with the work I was doing at home. Should be fun!

My Living Room.
I continue to be an active choir member at church and I enjoy it very much. This coming Sunday we will be covering two masses instead of one and for some reason I look forward to that. A lot of people have asked us if we have recorded a CD yet. They claim that we actually sound good enough to record an to please let them know if we ever do so they can get a copy. Ummm, something to think about. As they holidays rapidly approach we are going to be very busy, can't wait.



My dear friend Tara, whom I met some four years ago while reading her blog sent me a message to look for something she put in the mail for me. Well, yesterday I received a little card that there's a parcel I need to pick up at the post office. You may all remember the portrait Tara did of my dad last year, well now my curiosity is on red alert and the anticipation is getting the best of me cause I want to know what she sent. I hope I can make it to the post office in time to pick it up.

Tara Z. Blogger, writer, poet, painter, friend.
For those of you that didn't see it before, well here it is again. Tara's painting of my dad.




So many good teachings, what an awesome legacy. He will never be forgotten. It was six years ago this month that he left us and we all remember him with lots of love and respect. He would have been so proud to hear me and my niece sing with the choir, It was him and my sister that took over the existing choir at St. Vincent de Paul parish and started developing it to where it was a well liked choir. We continue his legacy with love and grace. I love you dad!

Amanecer

My sister tells me I'll be singing this song during meditation on Sunday's mass. So I am listening to it over and over again so I can learn it and the name is so fitting to dedicate it to the 33 Chilean miners that were trapped and by the grace of God were rescued on 10/13/10. They lived so many days in the dark room of the mine that I am sure the first day that they get to see a new "amanecer" (sun rise)they will totally see it with a new perspective on live.

We celebrate their courage, and applaud their faith. I'll definitely be happy to sing it on Sunday.

Amanecer

Al amanecer, canto al Creador
de un nuevo dia.
Nueva luz me llena de alegria,
doy las gracias al amanecer.

Al amanecer pido al Padre
su misericordia.
Muestrame tu amor tu indulgencia,
es mi canto al amanecer.

Hoy te alabo oh Dios,
por tu grandeza.
Hoy te alabo, oh Dios,
por tu bondad.

Al amanecer, te dedico oh Dios,
toda mi vida.
Mis obras y trabajo de este dia.

Todo lo que soy, todo mi ser.
Todo lo que soy, todo mi ser.

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Mom, Mustangs, and Michigan

ABC Wednesday
La letra "M"

How appropriate, today is the letter "M" which stands for Miercoles, Miercoles is Spanish for Wednesday.

"M" is also for miracle, and unless you live under a rock then you know about the miracle taking place in Chile today as the 33 miners are being rescued, and considering they were trapped inside the mine for some 70 something days they seem to be in good health and in good spirits.

"M" is for mom and this is a picture of my mom when she was very young. Although she is pretty now you must admit she was very beautiful when she was young. My dad was smart and lucky to catch her.

Mom.

Now that... my kids are grown, I understand how much work and love it takes to raise and to keep a family together. The example of your strength, devotion, and patience is now rippling through the generations. Thank you! ~Forest Houtenschil

"M" is also for My Mustangs. I am so enjoying driving these two beauties. Phoenix weather is finally cooling down so driving the convertible with the top down is the way to go these days.


My Mustangs!
This is Tara, a fellow blogger and dear friend of mine and Kellie her best friend and now my dear friend as well. I would say "M" is for MUY or MUCHO bonitas but the truth is a picked this image because they are from Michigan.

Michiganians, Michiganders or Michiganites
Muy bonitas
(Kellie and Tara)
"M" is for Michelle. I wanted to also post a picture of my daughter Michelle but I didn't have one ready and available in my work computer so this one will have to do.

Michelle.

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Hsi Lai Buddhist Temple

This is still from my Labor Day weekend in California. On Sunday my sister, my niece, and I went to the Buddhist Temple in The City of Hacienda Heights. I remember when they first started building it because I was still living in Hacienda Heights.

This place is pretty awesome, sort of a magical trip to a far away land right in your backyard, OK maybe not mine but you know what I mean. I don't need to go to China to visit one when it's right there in Hacienda Heights.

3456 S. Glenmark Dr.
Hacienda Heights,CA 91745
Website: www.hsilai.org
Hours open to the public
9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

From Highwy 60, exit at Hacienda Blvd. and go south on Hacienda Blvd. Go two blocks past Colima Road and then turn left on Glenmark Drive. Enter temple grounds through the gated driveway.

There is just so much detail, so many different things to be photographed, so many colors, the fish, the dragons, the statues, etc. etc. etc. We must have captured a little over a hundred images and we could probably kept going. Keeping in mind that it is a temple and certain areas need to be respected, pretty much the allow to take photographs pretty much everywhere.

We spent a couple of hours there and it was just enough time to see the whole thing. I know it is going to be hard to pick which images to post as we took so many but I do hope you enjoy the few I post.



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The mottoes for Fo Guang Buddhists are:

Give confidence to others
Give hope to others
Give joy to others
Make things convinient for others.
~Hsing Yum

Hsi Lai Temple was built to serve as a spiritual and cultural center for those interested in learning Buddhism and Chinese culture.





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