Saguaro Cactus - Symbol of the Sonoran Desert

While walking in the desert last weekend, Brent and I came across a Saguaro forest. The Saguaro flower which will be in bloom in a couple months, is our state flower. Saguaros only grow in the Sonoran Desert. It is a protected plant. They cannot be moved anywhere without applying for a tag to move or remove it. With the exception of the extreme southeast corner of California, Arizona is the only state Saguaros will grow. So the next time you see the symbol of the great Saguaro cactus used in such things as advertising, or in movies and television representing Texas or New Mexico, don't believe it. This is a pet peeve of mine. Texas especially, has tried to steal the Saguaro from us, for promotion. There ain't no Saguaros in Texas - get a rope.

Happy 60th Birthday, Brent!

Happy Birthday!

Brent has led an interesting and blessed life.

Backyard Nature

This owl visits our backyard every once in awhile. It is on the fence - I have enlarged it to the right. This is a desert horned owl. Carrie named him Oxford.

Carrie Running 1/2 Marathon

Carrie crossing the finish line in PF Chang's 1/2 Marathon. She started in Phoenix and finished at ASU stadium in Tempe.

Leisha Carpenter 1964 -2008

My heart goes out to Phyllis and family.

"We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord." Corinthians 5:8

Our Anniversary ~ Has it been 14 years?

February 5, 1994

New Professional Offices (Or where I've been this past year)

This past year we have expanded our business – which is the main reason I neglected my blogs. We moved from our home office to an office condo about a mile away from our house which we designed and built the interior. We added two new employees my son, James, who after leaving the Air Force was looking for a new career, and Jeff who came to us from Colorado as a building inspector. With Brent, Derrick and I, there are now five of us. The added employees have taken a huge load off Brent. However, adding employees as great as they are, has added to my workload. I do enjoy my work, but it leaves me with little time for other things. We moved in last July. I love our new beautiful offices, and everyone truly seems to enjoy coming to work. It’s better for our clients for to have a professional work environment, even though most of our clients are in other states. The new office comes with a heavy responsibility to our employees, clients and to ourselves, but hopefully the reward will out weight the risk.