Wintering in Yuma

Note:  These photos do not necessarily depict the most memorable of the season’s events, but those for which I had my camera with me.  In February I purchased a tiny Canon Elph that can be carried in my pocket, so the number of photos increased dramatically after that.

October

The night after we arrived, a huge harvest moon rose over the foothills and the park just behind us. What a sight! We witness this once yearly, if we’re lucky. Traveling is fun, and we enjoy it so much, but it’s always good to know we’re back and settled for a while.

Late in October, rare clouds made for a beautiful sunrise one morning.  From the east…

across the southern sky…..

to the west, simply spectacular.

Halloween is always lots of fun in Cactus Gardens.  Our manager, Lois, always insists on her office staff dressing appropriately for the occasion.  I decided to go as Minnie Pearl, one of my favorite comediennes.

Lois and Sherry came as Mobsters…

and Kathy was Cleopatra…. 

but the greatest costume of the day had to be Blimpwoman, our newest member of the staff, Linda Lue.

That evening brought the annual party for everyone.  The following came in costume,

  Bernice came as my “Mexican counterpart”, and these three were the crowd’s favorites:

 

November

As November got underway, my “garden” was off to a good start.  Instead of putting my tables Ron made last season under the tree as I had then, I placed my yard figures there.

My tables were placed in front of the RV.

I also potted 2 cherry tomatoes this year and an herb pot.

  

 

The herbs were wonderful to use in cooking…I’ll definitely try to do this each year!

We spent Thanksgiving eating at a restaurant with friends.

December

We celebrated Ron’s birthday quietly this year with Hoyt and Bernice at a local fish restaurant.

Good friends, Bob and Sharon visited for a week in December. 

We enjoyed their company immensely and showing them around Yuma, visiting the Quartermaster Depot, with its Christmas Village and farmers market….

….the Territorial Prison…..

 

and driving over to Ligurta Butterfield Stage Station for lunch one day.

It was rather cool the night the Foothills Light Parade came through the park.  Sharon and I bundled up and sat in front of their motorhome to watch, while the guys watched through the windshield. This is an annual event made up of dune buggies and vehicles from nearby Foothill residents.

The Lights on 55th street are spectacular every year.  We went as a group, and it was fun seeing how much Sharon and Rosie, especially, enjoyed the lighting display.

  

  And of course, our tradition demands a stop at Dairy queen afterwards!

  

Cactus Gardens and Desert Paradise always have several nice lighting displays as well for Christmas.

   

I put out a few lights, enough to make us feel like it’s the Christmas Season.

And then, there’s always our own Cactus Gardens golf cart parade.  This year, Lois, Sherry and I decorated our cart with a tumbleweed “snowman”.

    

Our Employee’s Christmas Party was one of our most fun yet.

January & February

January and February passed pretty quietly.  Our annual Square Dance Festival was a bit of a disappointment.  After Ron’s foot problems of the past 2 years, we had been slowly getting back into dancing, but a few weeks before the Festival, he reinjured the foot, so we were not able to dance at all during the three day Festival.  We made ourselves useful at the 50/50 table, Registration and doing other various jobs, but really missed the dancing!

February also brought birthdays to Hoyt and Bernice.

  

The annual Ladies Trash Bag Lunch was fun, as always.   It consists of a huge taco salad, served from a trash bag. It was also a chance for us to get to know Frayne (on left in second photo) a little better. Frayne is Rudy’s fiancée who arrived in Yuma from Ohio in January. (They were married in April).

 

March

Our annual Cactus Gardens Quilt Show was a colorful event.

 

I displayed my Crazy Quilt Project blocks and tote bag.

During the quilt show, I demonstrated tatting while Bonita demonstrated beading.

 

My garden performed much better this year in front of the RV versus under the tree in previous years. 

  

For the first year, we had as many cherry tomatoes as we wanted from our own plants.

With March each year, the season at Cactus Gardens begins to wind down, and that means lots of “last of the season” events.  First came the Shuffleboard Dinner, held at Logan’s Steakhouse this year.

The Billiards Dinner was held at EAT Chinese buffet,

and, unfortunately for our weight, occurred on the same date as the Volunteer Appreciation Dinner at the park.

 

There was a Quilter’s luncheon at the park.

 

The park managers, Lois and Sherry, threw a Luau as an Employee Appreciation event.

We also celebrated two birthdays during March, Pat’s at Tiki Hut,

and Rudy’s, with a Happy Hour at our place.

Then, to finish off the month on a high note (literally), we enjoyed the Sunrise Service at the Little Chapel north of Yuma.  The chapel itself was built years ago by a rancher so that his wife would have a place to worship.  It holds 6 people.  The picturesque little Chapel has become a landmark on Highway 95, and for years, worshipers have gathered on the hillside behind it for Easter’s Sunrise.  This was the first year it had been warm enough for us to attend.

  

April

A new Chinese restaurant with a Mongolian grill, Mr. Linn’s, had opened in February, but the full parking lot kept us away until April.  It was well worth the wait.  We had a delicious meal.

Another day had us trying the Vegetarian fare at “From the Farm”.  It was another delicious experience.

And then, another season was gone, and it was time to pack up, say goodbye and leave.

Leaving took us a little longer than expected, as we had to repair a slide seal at the last moment, and replace the trailer battery.

But before long, we were on the road, this time headed north toward Death Valley, and our summer beyond.