Ice Cream Social plus more

Just when I think the cactus blossoms are done for the season, they continue to surprise us.  Look at this beauty!  (found at 1631 - Tevy & Alice Black)

 

 

 

We have several duck families around now.  They gather by the creek and ponds.  Always fun and entertaining to watch.

 

 

Those of you who keep asking about mama duck that lives on Oasis....she is still sitting there.  I don't know when she laid those eggs but I checked on the internet today and they say the incubation period runs from about 28-35 days.  Anyone know when she laid the last of those eggs?  There are only 3 eggs left.

 

I posted a picture of these yucca plants about a week ago.  They're in full bloom now and as they fill out, they obviously get weighed down.  Very strange fascinating plants.

 

 

We came across a killdeer nest in the gravel along the golf course.

 

 

Mama killdeer, of course, did her wounded bird act to try to lure us away so we didn't stay long.

 

 

Thank you to the Activities Dept. and the volunteers who served us delicious banana split sundaes on Friday!  From left to right:  Jeri Lahart, John Engel, Mary Ann Brown (Activities Director), Mark (Golf pro), Donna Cox, Ed Brown.

 

 

 

Yummy good!

 

 

Fun social time for us desert/dessert rats.  :)

 

 

 

Meanwhile, our landscape crews are diligently working to beautify the park.  Hand spraying weeds.

 

 

Constantly trimming the ever fast growing oleanders.

 

 

....and palms.

 

 

Afternoon temps have been 104 to 107 the last few days but thankfully still cooling to the low 70s by night making our evening visits to the swimming pool a true delight.  We can still enjoy that morning coffee on the patio too.  Life is good!

 

This is probably just blah news for now but that's all I have for you.  I stalk Mr. Dawson on a regular basis but he just replies that he's waiting for approvals before he can begin summer projects. 

 

____________

(Thank you Nina Fields for forwarding the "dog days" of summer.

 

 

 

 

Farewell Social Hour for Wendell Johnson

CONGRATULATIONS and a very special THANK YOU were bestowed upon Wendell Johnson, our retiring General Manager at Palm Creek.  We attended a Farewell Social Hour held in the ballroom today in his honor.  Wendell's wife, Barbara, was there to help celebrate the occasion.

Wendell expressed his gratitude to everyone for the help and support he received in his 7 1/2 years as General Manager.  

Say Hello to Lisa Harold who is stepping into her new role as GM.  Coming in at this time of year should be a big help as she can gradually "get broken in" before the next full season starts up.  Welcome aboard, Lisa!

Cake and coffee was served as we mingled among the residents that are still here.

Happy Mother's Day

I was looking forward to our Mother's Day luncheon today so I cheerfully got up, showered, did my hair, put on a nice outfit with matching jewelry and made sure Don was dressed appropriately.  :)  About quarter to 11, I grabbed our tickets and we headed to the door looking forward to the event.  Then......I glanced at the tickets and realized that the event was over already as I had written the wrong time on the calendar.  DANG!!  I hate it when that stuff happens!  Oh well.......sorry I don't have any photos.  I'll bet it was very nice.    I'll call Mary Ann and get some "belated" photos for you.

Every morning as we sit on the patio with that first delicious cup of coffee, we wave at Kent and Lesley Evans as they drive by on their way to the recycle station.  Friday we followed them with camera in hand.  These two kind-hearted folks single handedly take care of all the recycle products during the hot summer months.  During season, there is a crew of "Urban Miners" who handle the load but the Evans' are here alone in summer.

Today we watched the cardboard project.

A reminder to all residents:  PLEASE take out all the styrofoam and plastic junk before you toss boxes into the container or truck.  The vendor who buys the cardboard can't have plastic or junk included in the load.  Kent and Lesley wind up sorting it instead.  

This crusher scrunches the boxes into bales.

 Money from the recycling program is donated to different charities in the community.

Oh yes....big news!  The famous donut maker....Krispy Kreme has opened a new store in Casa Grande!  They're located by the Subway and Verizon store out at the Promenade Mall.  Be prepared for some sweet treats when you return.  Lesley and I laughed when she found some Krispy Kreme boxes in the trash.  Someone obviously couldn't resist.

Pickleball still continues on a daily basis.  Folks from Mission Royale and Robson now rotate to the different locations so there are enough players for the round robbins.

It's getting quiet here now.

Mornings are pretty quiet around here now.  I had to laugh this morning when I saw a lonely piece of tumbleweed crossing the road.

Although....sometimes quiet is good because we finally see a little bunny on occasion.  They seem to have all but disappeared this year.

 We spotted some strange looking equipment coming in the front gate so had to check out what they were doing.

They've installed some HIGH fencing to secure the softball field and try to prevent foul balls from interrupting pickleball play.

Spotted these bright red flowers as we drove down Desert Willow Drive.  Looks like roses from a distance.  Roses growing in a tree???

Yup.  That sure is what it looks like.  Very pretty.  (Site 505)

Cactus flowers still surprise us on a daily basis.  Check out these beauties on such a short little stub of cactus.

And this one is just determined to grow!  The plant is all bent over and is suspended by a rope but is topped with a massive cluster of pretty yellow flowers.

These yucca plants are definitely weird too.  They look like short stubby trees but this time of year they send up these tall huge stalks that open into pretty flowers up above.  

Here's another weird beauty.  Never a dull moment when out on our rounds.  Always something new to see.

Although our numbers are dwindling, we still gathered with some friendly folks for a nice happy hour.  Weather was absolutely beautiful today.