The Scoop I first noticed the shoulder pad tee shirts last summer. They may have started showing up sooner but I really remember them last year. I thought they looked so cute on the people wearing them but didn’t think I would like them on myself. So, I kind of admired from afar. I was getting to a point where I thought my arms looked old and stuck out when I left them bare. But recently I have been seeing women my age, say the heck with it. It is hot and I am going to go sleeveless. That got me to thinking, why do I feel uncomfortable in my own skin? It comes from a life time of hearing women ..read more

The Scoop The weather is getting a little warmer but the rain and snow is causing some dreadful flooding. By far the worst is in California but surprisingly we are having floods here in Arizona too. For the last two days the news has been full of videos and stories of flooding. It is brought on by so much rain and snow melt. Even here at our house we are under a flood watch. Last summer we had quite a scare as it rained so hard the water was running down off the mountain behind us and filled the wash in our back yard. If it would have kept raining it would have reached our house. Mother nature ..read more

The Scoop As I write this post it is raining outside. The desert is in major bloom with everything so green and flowers all around. We are having much cooler than average temperatures and I am seriously ready for it to warm up just a little. We have made our plans to head back to Idaho by the beginning of May. There is so much to do to get ready to go and then when I get there. I am so excited. It really is the most beautiful place to be in the summer. We will spend some of our time in the mountains too. My husband is wanting to find a little cabin to buy but I am not sure that will be very ea ..read more

The Scoop I am loving pink more than I think I ever have in my life. I know when I was much younger, I gravitated toward it but I’m not sure I loved it like I do now. For a longest time now, my eyes or mind have craved color. It’s odd but I can feel something in my head sort of click when my eyes land on a rich color like the pink in this shirt. I am also loving lavender, blues and greens. They all make me think of happy times and warmer weather. My Look I am wearing a Foxcroft shirt that I got at Nordstrom Rack recently. Being from the Rack means it was a great price. There are so many pretty ..read more

The Scoop This is a favorite sald for me sold at Smokey Mountain Pizzeria in Boise. I order it every single time I go there! I decided to recreate this dish for at home. Ingredients for two: Pasta of choice (they use bowtie) - one cup of cooked Bacon -two slices Chicken breasts - two full sized or more if chicken tenders like I used Red pepper - one Onion (red is best) - one Cherry tomatoes - one cup halved Artichoke hearts -one half cup Fresh Spinach - two cups Parmesea Cheese (or cheese of choice) Sea salt Fresh cracked black pepper Dressing - I use olive oil and ba ..read more

The Scoop The shirt dress is having minute right now. It is so on trend for spring and summer. This is a timeless style that everyone should have in the closet. I have one (the one pictured) but am on the hunt for a white one. You would think that wouldn’t be so difficult but I haven’t found one that I like yet. I had ordered one from Amazon and sent it back, it was very good quality but way too big. I have one coming from Old Navy that I have high hopes for. I am so mad because I had one in white that was exactly like the one in this picture and gave it away a couple of years ago when trying ..read more

The Scoop I am throwing in an extra post this week. I had these photos which are not very good but they are me IRL. Ha Ha. This is the way I look when I am not caring too much about the way I look. But the colorful active wear takes the focus off my lazy day style. Don’t get me wrong, I am just fine with how I look. I look the way I should look for my age and fitness level. I was just thinking today how I much I like the all-natural look on myself and all women. I love to see us when we are fresh faced and smiling. We don’t look old; we look beautiful! We all just need to work on our perspecti ..read more

The Scoop I love this time of year as I am sure do most people. This year I am really drawn to pinks for some reason. Maybe because there are so many pink options or maybe I am just gravitating to it again. I loved pink when I was younger then went through a phase (while working on my career) that I felt it made me look weak or too feminine to compete in a male dominated industry. Now I think pink looks strong. I love to see men wearing pink. I think it makes one look stronger when they are not afraid to wear a color with so much stigma attached. My Look I got this jumpsuit (Pistola from Revol ..read more

The Scoop It is close to 80 degrees here and staying consistently warm. So, I am digging in the closet for warm weather things. It is a little hard because it is very cool in the mornings and then warms up throughout the day and then cools off quickly in the evenings. It requires a lot of mixing cool and warm weather things. My Look I am wearing my favorite denim shorts (Agolde). I have three pairs and they are my most worn shorts for everyday life. I don’t go too many places and work around home mostly so they get a lot of use. Since the shorts expose a lot of leg, I like to wear long sleeves ..read more

Food Talk with Cheryl at southwesterndesertliving.com The Scoop Lately I have been looking for granola that I felt was healthy but tasty. I really wasn’t seeing anything in the stores that met my needs. Usually, they have way too much added sugar and salt. While searching online I got a few ideas from several recipes and decided to make my own. I used what I had in the house. My husband is a health nut and we have every imaginable nut, seed, grain, etc. that you could think of. So, I used what we had. You could use what you have or what you love. This is a very forgiving recipe. The recipe is ..read more