My Dream Vacation

As I mentioned I just returned from an awesome vacation. I went to a place I have long dreamed of visiting.
We left home on Aug 17th and after a 4 hour delay at the airport finally arrived at our first destination. I felt like I'd traveled around the world after the first 2 days. You can see why from the photos . You can click on them to enlarge.

Did I go to Paris ?

Egypt ?

New York ?

Rome ?

Venice ?

Nope. All of these places were found on one long street ! Only in Las Vegas of course :)


Vegas sure is an interesting "Planet" not to mention 43C or 108F degrees hot, yikes. Being in the desert that heat is to be expected :) . There was so much to see, but if you aren't a gambling or party person it leaves a lot to be desired. I can say I've seen it but doubt I'd ever visit again. It was too busy and loud for me.

Fremont Street in Old Vegas was interesting. It has the largest projection screen in the world over the street. Pretty cool watching and listening to the music
!
However, our second destination was a 5 hour drive to Arizona, and that is the place I was waiting to see !!!! On our way we visited the Lowell observatory and looked at the moon and stars through a giant telescope, stopped at an old volcano and lava flow, visited Indian ruins in the painted desert, and finally arrived at The Grand Canyon .I never dreamed I'd ever get to see this wonder of the world . There are no words to describe the beauty of this place. It is the most gorgeous place I have ever seen ! It seems surreal standing on the edge looking at the vastness. It certainly made me feel weak in the knees looking down that one mile drop behind me.


Can you see the 2 people at the base of the orange cliff ? They look so tiny.


It even rained long enough for 2 beautiful rainbows to appear right in front of us. This literally made me teary because I love rainbows. Here I was standing at my dream spot with rainbows. All was right with the world at that moment :)
We then traveled to a town called Sedona which had amazing Red Rock formations. A storm rolled in later that night off in the distance and made for beautiful coloration on the rocks.




I was so excited to be here because I had arranged to meet some other bear artists for lunch. What a great time I had getting to know these ladies: From left to right - Joanne Livingston ( Desert Mountain Bears), Me (standing) , Janice Woodard ( Booh Bears), Alison McKee(eTeddys).


Now I am back to reality and feel beyond blessed to have had this wonderful vacation with my husband and kids. It was our best vacation ever.

A GRAND vacation !

I have just returned home from an unbelievable vacation at 2am this morning after 3 flights and 10 hours of travel ! I went somewhere GRAND , saw some amazing sights, scenery, and met some wonderful people. Now I need to get some photos sorted out and I'll share some with you. Until then I'll keep you guessing where I went lol .

A visit to Peggy's Cove

It was a busy but wonderful week. My hubby was on vacations so we did a couple of short trips around the area. It was a also my daughter's birthday. I am still recovering from the sleepover party where the girls stayed up until 6:30 am I was told !!! I could hear them giggling at 4:30 .

Saturday we visited one of the well know tourist areas in Nova Scotia. Peggy's Cove is a functioning fishing village of 46 people. The lighthouse and granite rocks draw tons of tourists every year. It was a perfect day to be there, warm but with a breeze off the water.

Before you get to the lighthouse there is this granite monument. It is in memory of those who perished off the shores of Peggy's Cove on SwissAir flight 111 in 1998.

Entering the village of Peggy's Cove.

The famous lighthouse that once housed the only functioning post office in a lighthouse in Canada.


The granite rock landscape is quite interesting.

Unfortuntately the water is like a magnet to tourists ( and locals) . Every year people ignore the warning signs and get caught off guard and swept into the ocean. Most are rescued but some are not so lucky.

This guys was lucky. I was sure he would get swept in.

A little village on the way home.

It is such a picturesque area that I always enjoy visiting.

Petunia - A flowery bear

Fresh from the den this afternoon is Petunia. She is only 8" tall and is made from the softest 1" sparse matted mohair. It is a cream color with purple tips making it very pretty. She reminded me of the purple color of my petunias this year so her name was easy to choose. She is in need of a new home and all the details for adoption are available on my website .

Yin-Yang my latest bear

Please meet 7.5" Yin-Yang made from recycled black & champagne mink fur. He is available on my website via lottery until Wednesday. Please click HERE to learn more and see more photos.

A Challenging Week

It hasn't been a great week I have to admit. I was sick for 5 or 6 days with something. I don't know what it was really, I was just very nauseous and had no appetite. I feel better, but still a little sick sometimes. Maybe it is stress ?

Yesterday I met with the surgeon for my 2nd biopsy results. The news wasn't what I was hoping for. There are some abnormal cells on my lump. This may or may not be cancer, but the lab was unable to determine that for sure. There is a good chance it isn't cancer. However, the only way to tell now is to have the surgery. The choice is mine, but is it really a choice. I cried all the way home, called my husband at work and cried some more. I'm more peaceful about it today trying to take the "glass is half full approach".

So, now I am on the waiting list for 6 or 7 months to have the surgery done. Since the lump is growing on the center of my thyroid the whole thing must be removed so I'll need to take medication daily, forever. The tumor will then be analyzed and radioactive iodine treatment may be necessary if it does turn out to be cancer :( I really don't know why I am sharing all this. I am a private person usually. But, thanks for listening :)

On a happier subject- bears. I started a mink panda last week and it is about 80% done. I need to attach the head and ears, and sew the seams. Maybe it will be ready by Monday.
I'll post it as soon as it's ready.

Hugs , Tammy

Happy Canada Day !

I love living in Canada , and today is a day to celebrate this wonderful place on the 143rd birthday.