I arrived a little early, as did Mike & Betty and also Janelle (she hasn't been with us for quite some time).
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| Mike |
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| Betty |
As you can see, Betty decided to get a move on pretty quickly. By the time I caught up with her she was already in her spot.
I was trying to get a pic of Janelle, but once again, I wasn't quick enough and this is what I got 😟
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| Janel |
She's behind that car door. Perhaps we'll be able to identify her by her feet later on.
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| Janelle's feet |
Then I saw Pat, and I knew immediately it was her because she was wearing her familiar Pink Hat -- you remember, she's Pink Hat Pat!
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| Pat with her Pink Hat |
LeAnne joined us - and she smiled!!
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| Smiling LeAnne |
So, this guy pulled in to drive over to the recycle dumpster (didn't know there was one there until he went to it). But, the reason why I noticed him was because of the bright shiny copper color of his car and it's unusual look. I hadn't see one before.
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| Look at the color reflection on the ground!! |
So, turns out it was a 2018 BMW I8, it's unusual looking. He said that they didn't make a whole lot of them.
The other thing I noticed this time were the life size female statues that were all around. They were all John Waddell's. Many of you will remember the couple of times we went to Ruth Waddell's home to paint the statues that were placed all around on the grounds. John had already passed and Ruth was happy to have us come and enjoy the sculptures. She since has passed as well but those sculptures are now for sale through one of the art galleries in Tlaquepaque. Here is a link to an article that was in Phoenix Home & Garden on September 25, 2025. It shows the various sculptures that can be found displayed throughout Tlaquepaque and tells John's story as told by his daughter Amy.
Here's a photo from The Waddell property with one of the sculptures and a couple of our well known artists from when we had visited there.
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| Sculpture, Nita, Mike |
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| Pat |
Pat was just setting up at this point. But, others came to join her.
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| Carolyn |
Boy, Carolyn packs a lot of stuff in her very little carrier. Notice, not one but TWO stools and 3 things of water (one for drinking).
And, while Nita & Mike picked spots right by those sculptures, they're not what they painted.
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| Mike, Nita Behind them 2 of 3 sculptures that were dancing |
Tecla also joined the group.
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| Tecla |
As did Anna - oh dear I can't believe this is the only photo I got of her -- you have to look in the shadows as she's walking towards us.
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| Anna |
I just realized I never took a picture of Nori, and she was standing right near me 😳, sorry Nori. I was in a little courtyard just over from her while she was in an outer walkway. I kept hearing all these people stopping to talk to her and her continually saying "Thank you, yes, it's such a lovely place to paint". Clearly she was continually being complimented on her painting.
Janelle found a bench in one of the alleyways. She had an Elf or some equivalent come to visit her.
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| Janel and the Elf |
Wonder if that means Janelle can expect to see something special from Santa.
Eileen was also there today and I believe her spot was pretty close to where she was last week. But, here she is walking with her painting to the "gallery" area.
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| Eileen |
Well, time passed rapidly, especially since it's such a difficult place to find your spot -- too many choices and crazy angles to deal with. But, we did all manage to gather at the appointed time with a few paintings still being in process, but that's ok as they were shared anyway.
After having a chance to admire everyone's work, we did get together to fit into a picture where we could all smile on 2.
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| Back Row 3 - Eileen, Mike Middle Row - Carolyn, Pat, Anna, Tecla, Janel, Nita Front Row - Nori, LeAnne, Betty, Me |
It'll be 2 weeks before we see you all again. Have a Very 🎄 Merry Christmas 🎄and see you in 2.
Cecilia