AZ Bike Week



by Heather

One of the events I most look forward to each year is Arizona Bike Week. 

It's a full week of motorcycle-related activities held at that time of year 

here in Scottsdale, Arizona, 

when the sun is shining and the temperatures are balmy -- 

cool mornings and nights 

but gloriously warm temperatures during the days. 

Perfect for riding our motorcycles!

We attend as many events as our work schedules will allow and sometimes we'll take vacation days during this time just to enjoy the partying. 

We're always ready for friends and family to join us 

so we're usually traveling with a small crowd gang.

Day One:

Kick-Start Party at

Buddy Stubbs Harley Davidson dealership

It's noon and the party is just getting started...

 Starts off slowly and picks up speed as the afternoon wears on...

The boys in my biker "gang:" Tom, Pete, Scott, and Jimmy

Voted him best hair at the party...

A little jewelry shopping...picked up a tiny skull ring for me and a 60th birthday present for my younger sister
(hard to believe she's going to be that old this month)...

I was going to post this as a fashion" don't,"

but if you look this good with your butt cheeks hanging out,
maybe it's okay :)

These bad boys turned into pussycats
when I asked them to pose for a picture.
Too sweet.

Most interesting head wear at the party...

Age appropriate? Sometimes it's a hard thing to do when you're a biker...

Motorcycles line the street for as far as you can see in both directions

Tom is happy to pose for me 

as we get ready to ride to our next destination.

Day Two: Harley of Scottsdale's party

"I have my Harley clothes on...let's party!"

Thinking about those people who aren't here to party with us this year...

Pretty girls throwing trinkets out to the crowd -- doesn't get any better than this for the old men!

The two prettiest girls at the party: Lauri and Peighton

Look at all those old people (or "my people" as I like to call them) out past 9 p.m. on a Sunday night!

Ken is having a great time!

Steppenwolf playing "Born to be Wild" -- the biker anthem

Day Five: CycleFest

Takes place at WestWorld in north Scottsdale

Official AZ Bike Week merchandise can be purchased here

Tom, Todd, and Lauri checking out a bike that's screaming Todd's name.
Hey, it's only $49,000!

One of the favorite biker jewelers

"Okay, I can look away for a few seconds from the motorcycle stunt riders to pose for Gigi."

"I'm ready for my modeling gig, Gigi!"

Handsome daddy with his precious girl

Showing me some attitude!

You may have heard of Paul Yaffe -- a great custom bike builder

Our closest Harley dealer has a tent at the festival.

David (Sheila's husband) with two of his Jack Daniels' models.

He has such a tough job but somebody has to do it!

Day Seven

The Doobie Brothers were fabulous!!
Even with the dusty haze, it was still a good time.

The party continued for two more days...but you get the picture: more bands, more bikers, and more riding along perfect roads with perfect weather and perfect biker buddies.
Come join us next year!

Love,

Heather

My Thrift Store Karma

by Sheila

I have pretty amazing luck when it comes to shopping at thrift stores for what I want.  I have had a new "bar" on my shopping want list for awhile.  I am fairly open to what that might be; a converted dresser or buffet would have worked if I had found the right thing, but I actually found the perfect piece last week at Goodwill.  It is a true bar, the perfect size and doesn't' need any work - no painting or anything (kinda disappointing, I know).
 

The front side.

 

I think the secret to this type of shopping is to make frequent stops at your favorite stores.  The beauty of thrifting is that the stock changes constantly and you never know when the perfect item is going to show up, so it pays to make a quick trip through now and then.  I can scope out my favorite stores in less than ten minutes.  I stop in when I am on the way to do something else in the area, so it doesn't necessarily take a lot of time.  Every once in awhile I make a day of it, but mostly I just stop
 in here and there. 

 

And the back side - I want to add wheels so it will roll out easily.

I'm sure I'll have more items on my list soon, as I will be adding furnishings to our Vacation Rental Property.  I'll keep you posted on my progress and my finds.  Happy hunting...

A New Investment Venture; A Vacation Rental

 

by Sheila

I love real estate as an investment.  We recently sold a condo we had in Las Vegas (for a nice profit, since that's what we're talking about here) that we had fully furnished.  The money we made on this deal, along with the furnishings that we had acquired got us thinking that maybe we could do a vacation rental.  That, and the fact that my parents have had great success with this over the past several years.  

The condo in Las Vegas... SOLD!  Fun while it lasted but on to new ventures.

 

We have rented vacation rentals frequently when we travel (VRBO and HomeAway are good resources), and like this option for accommodations.  It is generally reasonable priced and provides amenities like a washer and dryer and a kitchen.  Our most recent trip where we stayed in a VRBO was two weeks on Maui with our good friends Tim & Lisa.  We relaxed on the Lanai and took turns cooking dinner most evenings, enjoying the view with a glass of wine.  Great fun!
 

Me & the Hubby; our VRBO condo in the background

 

Lisa & Tim on the Hula Girl Sailboat...Great friends & great fun!

 

My criteria for this property was to find something very close to where we live (if I am doing frequent turnover, I don't want to have to go across town), with a good floor plan for sharing with another couple or several families.  Also, I wanted something that could be made into a "resort" type of feel.  It needed to be priced right; I'd rather buy something that we could improve rather than pay for someone else's choices that I may not like.  With Pat's help (Ann's hubby is a realtor), we found a place on a 9-hole golf course 3 blocks away that I think will be good.  It definitely needs work, so I have a new project going on.  I'll chronicle the progress here as I make improvements and get it ready to rent.  



The new place - needs TLC - perfect!  Notice the Saguaro cactus; only in the Sonoran desert.

View from the upstairs balcony.  Great for golfers!

Okay, back to work.  I am patching the balcony and adding a waterproofing coating to it today...I do love power tools and paint!

Extreme Macaroni and Cheese

by Ann

Mac 'n cheese before baking.  I used rigatoni noodles because I could now find large elbows.

Macaroni and Cheese is trendy in great restaurants, and for good reason -- who doesn't like a good mac 'n cheese? When Sheila, Heather and I were in Vegas last January for the BlogWorld Expo, we ordered an appetizer of it, and then decided it was so good we ordered more for dinner at the Todd English P.U.B. (did everyone but me know that Pub stood for Public Urban Bar, or is that just the Todd English spin on the word?).  

One of the good news/bad news results of blogging is that I have started reading and enjoying many food blogs.  The good news is that there are so many amazing food bloggers out there from which I have gotten inspiration and ideas; the bad news is that I feel like a rookie who has a l-o-n-g way to go to try to compete.  One of my favorites is Kayotic Kitchen, written by a talented woman in the Netherlands, and is the inspiration behind this recipe.  Oops...I'm digressing from the mac 'n cheese topic, so back to it.

I made this recipe as a side for our Mother's Day celebration, and it was a big hit.  I think the key to it's "wonderfulness" is roasted garlic and Gruyere cheese.  The cheese is pricey, coming from Gruyere, Switzerland. If you've never tried it, you should; it is much better that run of the mill Swiss, but I imagine the end product would be good if you didn't want to pop for the Gruyere (the version I purchased was $16.99 per pound -- ouch!).  As for the roasted garlic -- I've decided to do next Tuesday's post all about roasting garlic and making compound butter.  If you have to make this recipe before next Tuesday, and don't know how to roast garlic, Google it -- there are many links to step-by-step instructions.

Can we all agree than anything is better with bacon in it?  Cook up plenty for snacking -- cooking is hard work!

Grate up the cheeses - Rough grate is okay for the cheddar and Gruyere, but finely grate the Parmesan

Roughly chop the shallots

Remove the roasted garlic cloves from their papery casings and mash with a fork.
(And yes, you do use the entire head of garlic!)

And now the sauce - add butter to the shallots cooking in reserved bacon fat.  No calories here!

Add flour and mustard powder to make a roux.  Cook for a couple of minutes until smooth and golden brown.

Gradually add milk - I used whole milk.  This would not be the time to start worrying  about fat grams.
At this point stir in the roasted garlic, freshly grated nutmeg and pepper.  May want to hold off on adding the salt until you've tasted it with the cheese.

Turn the heat off and stir in the cheese until it melts. Taste for seasoning and add salt if needed. 

Mix the topping ingredients.

Sprinkle topping on the mac and cheese.  Drizzle with melted butter.

Good thing I thought to take a picture before it was all gone!

Extreme Macaroni and Cheese

Ingredients:

1 pound macaroni, a large variety
½ c roughly chopped shallot
1 T reserved bacon fat
6 T butter
1 bulb roasted garlic
½ c flour
½ t dry mustard
½ t freshly grated nutmeg
1 t salt
6 oz Gruyere (Swiss) cheese, grated
8 oz sharp cheddar cheese, grated
2 2/3 c milk

Topping:

1 c panko bread crumbs
1/3 c diced bacon, cooked crispy (about 6 oz)
1 c Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
2 t dried parsley flakes
2 T melted butter
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Directions:

(Eventually the oven will need to be preheated to 400° to bake the mac and cheese, but if your garlic is not already roasted, you need to have it on that temp anyway.)

• Roast garlic bulb in 400° oven for 1 hour.  Remove cloves from casing and mash with a fork.  Set aside for later use. 
• Grate all cheeses; set aside.
• Cook the bacon until crisp, reserving 1 T fat.
• While bacon is cooking, roughly chop enough shallots to fill ½ cup measure.
• Cook macaroni according to package directions.  Do not overcook.  Pasta will continue to cook in the baking process.
• While macaroni is cooking, sauté shallots in reserved bacon fat for a minute or two.  Add the butter to the pan to melt and continue to cook the shallots.  Add the flour and dry mustard to make a roux.  Stir until the rawness of the flour is gone and the mixture becomes golden brown in color (2-4 minutes).
• Gradually add milk until all is incorporated, whisking throughout the process to be sure to avoid lumps.  Once the sauce is velvety-smooth add the garlic paste, grated nutmeg, salt and pepper.
• Turn off the heat. Add Gruyere and cheddar cheeses; stir until smooth.
• Drain pasta well.  Put macaroni back into to pasta-cooking pot and then add the cheese sauce.  Stir until pasta is evenly coated with amazingly smooth and delicious sauce. Pour into 9 x 13” baking dish.
• Combine grated all topping ingredients except melted butter in small bowl.  Sprinkle over macaroni and cheese.  Drizzle melted butter over the top.  Cover with foil.  Bake covered for 15 minutes. 
• Remove the aluminum foil and put back into the oven until edges are bubbling and topping browns (another 15 minutes or so).

Enjoy!

Since this is a rather lengthy recipe I will attach it as a downloadable document even though I heard back from one reader that everyone can't open these like I was counting on having happen. (Back to my note about being an rookie at the blogging process...)

If you want a printable copy of the recipe, click here.  

My fingers are crossed that it works on your computer!

Anchors Aweigh

by Heather

I love nautical-themed attire.
This isn't my first time with "nauti" style and probably won't be my last.
The disconnect is that we don't live near a lake or the ocean.
So, is it still okay to sport this look?

 Navy and white jacket - Macy's
Sequined navy and white anchor top - J Crew Factory

NYDJ denim crops - Nordstrom's
Michael Kors navy and white purse
Sperry navy and white polka dot wedges

I come by my love for water and all things nautical naturally.
My mother, who was born and raised in Whitley Bay, England, regaled us with stories of life along the coastline of the North Sea. When we visited family there, it became our favorite playground, too.
My dad spent his early years along the Massachusetts shore and joined the Coast Guard which is how he met my mother during WWII (the American Coast Guard was in England guarding their shores).

 Juicy Couture anchor necklace

When Tom and I started dating in high school,
we'd spend every waking moment of the summer on Lake Minnetonka
(in Minnesota -- Land of 10,000 Lakes)
water skiing and playing as only teens can do with his parents' speedboat.
With twin outboards -- two of the largest you could buy at that time -- and a cuddy cabin, we had a lot of freedom and speed. What were our parents thinking??

As newlyweds, Tom and I spent four years in the Navy. 

Well, he was in the Navy; I was a Navy wife on a very small base in northern California, and then at Alameda, the naval air station in the San Francisco bay. 

Again, our lives revolved around the water. 

My heart still beats a little faster when I hear "Anchors Aweigh" or see a sailor in his Navy uniform.

Juicy Couture ring, white and gold bracelet, gold bracelet with bling anchor; 
Coach navy and gold anchor bangle; Michael Kors gold watch

When we moved back to Minnesota, we kept a sailboat at the Shorewood Yacht Club on Lake Minnetonka. Our weekends were spent living aboard the boat throughout the summer and autumn months. It was only 20 minutes from our home but it felt as if we were hours away from high pressure jobs and the related stress. Remember, this was before cell phones kept people connected 24-7.  Although we had a ship-to-shore radio, it was only used for emergencies.
Even today, if I'm having trouble sleeping, I just imagine myself in the v-berth feeling the gentle rocking from the waves and it puts me right to sleep.

Bayfield 25

Also, during this time, I got into windsurfing. Great fun to do, and when my arms got weary, we'd attach the board to the sailboat with a length of rope and "surf" the very small wake of the sailboat's diesel engine. I think the fastest we could go was five knots!

 Macy's jacket complete with epaulets

Ann Taylor white and gold earrings

Our move to Arizona in the mid 80s brought a halt
to all water--related activities.
Our new hobby was flying (he flew; I navigated)
and then we switched to motorcycles.
But the love for water is still there and maybe when we both retire,
we'll get back into boating.
Meantime, I'll assuage the longing with nautical-inspired clothing.
And I think that's okay.

Love,

Heather

Life isn't always stylish...

by Ann

Me relaxing (??) with Jake, our cat who spent the same day in the animal hospital as I was getting my surgery done.

Life … There’s a lot more to it than our blog post topics – things that aren’t as “stylish” as those things  we write about.  We try to cover matters that we think are worth sharing with you, our readers, in hopes that you can take pieces of what we have to say and use it in your lives. 

With that said, today’s post is about “real life,” which I’ve had a strong dose of lately.  And with that said, I need to acknowledge how lucky I have been to have gotten a good education, live in a great place, and to enjoy good health, a stable job, and a wonderful husband and family.  Still, doesn't it seem that “there is always something” that isn't working or needs fixing in other ways? The past two weeks it has been health related, both of mine and one of our cats.

Years ago I can remember kidding with my friend Teri that my feet were my most perfect physical feature.  I still attest to the fact that my toes are pretty darned perfect, lining up in a lovely slant sporting flawlessly shaped toenails.  (Really??  Yes, I’m afraid I am terribly proud of my toes…)  The problem??  Bunions!  At one of our book club gatherings I was lamenting the ugly, somewhat painful bunions that were starting to form on my feet.  Coincidentally, out of the six or seven of us at the meeting, two (including Sheila) had the same podiatrist, who they highly recommended, which spurred me to make an appointment last November to explore options.  In a very no-pressure way he told me that I would need to have them dealt with now or later – the choice was mine.

Since I was about to retire (at least sort of), I didn’t want to deal with it until I had more flexibility in my schedule, which fast-forwards to now.  Although the procedure was explained well to me, I was very willing to accept the “best case scenario” version which didn’t sound so bad.  Unlike my mom and sisters, I refuse to look up medical issues and procedures on the Internet (my ostrich in the sand approach to these things…), so although I was told that bones needed to be broken and shaved with pins installed, it didn't sound so bad.  (Again, Really??)  Oh yeah, and since postoperatively the patient can put no weight on the afflicted foot, the doctor unwilling to do both at once.  (I get that now!)

I am fortunate to have a husband who is willing ready to adhere the electronic leg wraps on my calves to avoid the possibility of blood clots, swap out the hard plastic boot for the ice-pack boot when my foot became hot or swollen, chauffeur me around, and to do everything around the house.  Jake (the cat) is also lucky to have us as “parents” willing to fork out the bucks and to take care of him postoperatively. 

The gear that is involved once the surgery is over.
"Das Boot" (center) is a loaner from Edie - we've decided it can be the official book club boot.

If I weren't so lucky to have a great hubby, I would be counting on my friends to help get me through this.  Joyce, one of my dear friends stopped by a couple of days after the surgery with flowers, well-wishes and treats.  Little did she know that she’d end up helping me wash my hair.  That’s what friends do.  She was even the photographer for the pic at the top of this post.

Here’s to taking care of things that need to be done.

Here’s to getting back to normal.

Here’s to family and friends helping both of these things happen!

Flowers and Birds: Spring Table for Two

by Heather

The middle of the week sounds like a good time 

to make an easy meal of pasta and salad. 

One of my students several years ago introduced me to a 

combination of sauteed fresh tomatoes,
olive oil, garlic and balsamic vinegar 

(no recipe -- just keep adding ingredients to taste) over linguine 

and it has become a favorite in our household. 

While husband Tom is doing the grocery shopping on his way home, 

I have time to set the table.

This was going to be done outside, 

but the temps weren't cooperating by dipping quickly enough
so inside it is.  

I did move a few things inside that live outside: 

the large white birdhouse
(that I dragged back from a girls' trip to La Jolla years ago) 

and the window-paned mirror
(which I got from Sheila's mom at the last swap party). 

I thought the birdhouse was the perfect centerpiece
for these bird-and-floral plates and bowls from Home Goods.

 I've paired the fairly new green, white and black floral pieces
with old Banana Republic black chargers
and large white and small black square plates. 

I like mixing and matching china; it's a fun way to create more looks. 

I've used the green floral dinnerware
with a solid green runner and plain white napkins,
but I'm kind of liking the mix of the green striped runner and napkins
with the floral pattern of the dishes.

The black candle holders are also from our last swap party,
courtesy of Sheila.

Pewter flatware

 Pottery Barn birdcage napkin rings were found during a trip to Connecticut several years ago. 

 A spot of tea, anyone?

 Bowls are ready for our dessert of fresh berries
(and probably ice cream if he remembers to pick it up).

Hope your week is going beautifully!
Mine is "flying" by :)

Love,

Heather