I always brag that our New Mexico sunsets are incredible.  Tonight, after the rain, it was even more colorful.  Sorry to bore you with another group of sunset pics :)

We made a trek to Albuquerque's Nob Hill district this morning to scope out a vintage shop that was going out of business.

It was our first time exploring Nob Hill, a funky and eclectic part of downtown ABQ.  We marveled at all the international restaurants, of course.

Our visit to the vintage shop was also a worthwhile adventure.  We found a beautiful hand carved Indian side table, as well as a very unique shadow box/wall hanging.  I'm not sure what it's original purpose was, but it looks great on the wall in the guest room with some of our miniatures on it.

I was invited to a high tea yesterday by Monika and friends and we had a great time!  St Anne's Tea Room is a beautiful casita that used to belong to Olga's mother until she died.  After, Olga and her family transformed it into a beautiful, feminine tea room.  

The menu is extensive, depending on your wishes.  It includes savory dishes, sweets, teas and delectable desserts.  Our salad was served in a bone china tea cup!  Everything was so well planned out and beautifully arranged.  We even had Italian music to serenade us.

Olga, the owner, loves to cook and bake and it shows.  Her scones were incredible, as were the chocolate covered strawberries and the various herbal teas she served.

I can't wait to go back soon and try other menu choices.  She switches them up every season, so we would never get tired of anything.

​High tea in New Mexico.  I love our life here!

This area has a multitude of Farmer's Markets to go to, just about any day of the week.  This morning, Lydia took us to the market in Bosque Farms, a short drive away.  While small at this time, it was rich in produce, honey, plants and goat milk products.

We came home with fresh squash and zucchini, as well as honey. I scored a great bottle of raspberry vanilla goats milk lotion and a miniature red rose bush. Dave also got a San Pedro cactus that's actually illegal in some countries.  Ask him about it.

I know, another set of sunset pictures - but it never gets boring!

We've gotten a few more projects done.  The front patio is starting to take shape.  There's still half of it that needs work, but I did get one half done.

Next up was the garage.  We ordered some shelves and a cabinet and have everything organized.  Dave even had an empty table.  I'm laying bets on how long it stays empty.    He's got his mancave.  His poker table, and a dartboard is on the way.  The dresser will be out of there as soon as I refinish it for the guest room - that's my next project.

The sunsets here in New Mexico never fail to enthrall me.  I find myself looking out the window every evening to see how beautiful this evening's sunset will be.

Yesterday was Dave's Birthday and we both had a great day!

It was Tuesday, our normal Pool party/kaffee klatsch.  This week, Monika served up a wonderful German lunch with homemade bread, german meats, just to name a couple of things.  We also had german pickles, thanks to Lydia and other delicacies.

Dave's celebration started with dinner at Marisco's with Lydia, Peter, Monika and Reuben.  He enjoyed a great seafood platter.

Dessert, in the form of liquid libations were held at Monika and Reuben's house.  They have a spectacular bar that must be the envy of anyone who sees it.  Reuben was a great bartender and we were pleased to see that he had a bottle of Smoky Mountain Moonshine from our own Gatlinburg!

All in all, Dave had a wonderful celebration and we commented how fortunate we are to have this ready-made family of German friends in our new home.  Our Simple Life is truly wonderful.

We've finished off a few projects this last week, both inside and out that I wanted to share.  We've never had as much fun as we're having now.

I found a picture at a local thrift shop that I feel in love with, except for the frame.  So, I bought milk paint and distressed the frame to match the painting.

We moved the big painting out of the living room and into the kitchen where we had a bigger wall to display it.  My new painting and frame hang in its place in the living room.

At the same thrift store, I found two beautiful sandstone paintings of a Navajo boy and girl.  I knew the would look perfect in the study on the other side of the window from my western boy and girl.

Our nichos are looking great.

We had to hang a kokopelli in the kitchen.

We needed to get a small table for the modem, next to the tv.

I finally finished up the flowers in the bathroom.

Outside:

We finished the bridge with its solar lights.

All our big planters are painted and planted.  Now, to pray that the plants survive me.

We love the look of our fire pit with the bright chairs.

Yes, that's Luna, looking out the window to see what I'm doing.

Dave has also been working on getting out the weeds and junk from the area on the street side of the wall.  I don't have pictures of it, but this fall, after we cover it with stones and a few plants, I'll post pics.

And last but definitely not least, I brag about our sunsets all the time, but last night's was truly spectacular, even for New Mexico standards.

One of my greatest joys every evening is sitting and watching the sun set right outside our window.  No two days are the same.  This spectacular one was on July 4th.

And this morning, we had a visitor in the backyard, who decided to have breakfast amongst our morning glories.  Life is truly wondrous!

Now, if I could just get a picture of our rooftop resident...Roofus the roadrunner!