Winter Break in Arizona

Arizona Oasis

We just returned from a tiny winter break in San Tan Valley, Arizona. It was our first visit to our brother and sister-in-law’s lovely and commodious new home. In addition to a great house, the property features an enclosed garden with waterfalls, a large fish pond...

More

Where Have You Gone Alvira

Our great-great grandfather, George, was born in Alvira, Pennsylvania. The family farm was large, beautiful and very productive. George’s father, Isaac, also operated a grist mill. The mill was sturdily built of brick and operated into the 20th century...

More

Quagmire

We are guessing that DAPL is somewhere on your radar although the mainstream media has done an excellent job of misreporting or burying the real story. Dakota Access Pipe Line is a not yet completed...

More

Pumpkin Pie and Other Things

inside the Hain Mill
inside the Hain Mill

Tonight I am part of a vast number of people who are rolling pie crusts, thawing turkeys and setting pretty tables. We are the lucky ones – the very, very lucky ones. There were some hungry times when I was tired...

More

Ruh-Roo and Zoinks!

river-4

The rivers of our childhood were the Shellrock, Winnebago, Cedar and on rare occasions, the Mighty Mississippi. A few lakes got thrown into the mix from time to time. The Winnebago River flowed on the...

More

Blog Hiatus

Like a River...

Dear Blog Friends, Several years ago, the Cúpla Sisters started a blog with goals to celebrate the positives and to provide an oasis of peace and civility amidst a desert of increasingly ugly rhetoric. This morning it feels to us that ugliness,...

More

Always Charming – Galena

view from Grant Park in Galena, IL

Although this Autumn hasn’t been as colorful as some years, our leaf peeping day in Galena, Illinois, was certainly a lovely little vacation. The crisp air on our Galena River Trail stroll gave us good appetites for our picnic...

More

Tea in a Tree

If wishes were fishes, the Cúpla Sisters  would live no further apart than next door. As it is, time and commitments make even sharing a cup of tea an all too rare occasion. Thank goodness for unlimited phone minutes....

More

Perry Art Scene

Soumas Courtyard plaques
Soumas Courtyard plaques

One of the things that impressed us about Perry, Iowa,  was its obvious dedication to the arts and literature. This was obvious as soon as we arrived at Hotel Pattee. Most of the larger paintings...

More

You Wear It Well – Hotel Pattee

We looked about for interesting accommodations for our visit to Madrid and discovered Hotel Pattee in nearby Perry, Iowa. The hotel wears its 103 years well without showing any obvious wrinkles. A major face-lift was...

More

High Trestle Bridge Trek

The main purpose of our trip to Madrid and Perry, Iowa, was to visit Beth Ann’s former colleague/friend who had moved back to her hometown. However, when we travel together we usually have little side...

More

Visiting the Bookworm Gardens

Visiting the Bookworm Garden in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, was the perfect way to give our sunburned faces a break from swimming pool, beach and boat fun. I enjoyed Bookworm Gardens as much as the children whose ages range...

More