Arizona Adventure

Warning...we are about to bombard you with about one thousand pictures, but we had such a great time in Arizona this past week that we wanted to share it all with you. We were so excited for this vacation since it meant we were able to visit where we were born. We don't remember much about our first 19 months there, but Mom and Dad tell us stories and we look at pictures all of the time. A few of our Arizona friends have made it to Wisconsin to visit us as well so we were ready to catch up with everyone! We started our adventure early Saturday morning, and by Saturday afternoon we were already soaking up the sun and swimming in HOT Arizona! Our first impressions of Arizona were that everything is tan, and that all of the houses are small (you only see the garage door, front door, and one or two windows). Visiting people quickly proved the small house thing wrong, and finding out that almost everyone had a pool completely negated the overall lack of color so we quickly forgot about it. Our adventure continued Saturday evening as we enjoyed dinner and more swimming at Uncle Larry's and Aunt Pam's and caught up with Payton, Jackson, Braden, and Lorenzo. Lily also spent some quality time with Ruby, the dog.  The next morning we had breakfast with Mr. Patrick and Ms. Liz, and then we were off to the Grand Canyon and Sedona. These stops weren't on our original itinerary, but we figured since we'd come all this way we might as well see them! There isn't much to say about the Grand Canyon except that it is pretty grand. We're glad we were able to see it, and have added it to our list of return trips so that we can hike to the bottom someday. We saw a lot of elk, mule deer, and antelope which is always fun, and we managed to pick up some cool souvenirs as well, a rattle snake for myself, and a cool journal for Lily. After exploring the Grand Canyon for a bit it was back in the car and back down to Sedona where we spent the night. We woke up the next morning to the most spectacular view as we stayed at the top of one of the mountains. After a yummy breakfast we swam a bit at the hotel pool and discovered two lizards, and then we headed into town to explore Sedona and to take a Pink Jeep Tour. Mom and Dad signed us up for the Broken Arrow tour which involved death defying feats (i.e., controlled slides down the mountain). Lily claimed she was scared of this, although the giant smile on her face indicated otherwise. There was no doubt on my end that the whole tour was AWESOME!!! After the tour we enjoyed some prickly pear ice cream and then we headed back to Phoenix where we grabbed a bite to eat and a quick dip in the pool before bed. Tuesday morning we woke up early and hiked South Mountain. At least one of us made it all the way to the top, but I can't reveal who that was (Lily). We swam yet again, and then took a tour of the area seeing our first house in Gilbert and the house that Mom and Dad built in Queen Creek (now known as San Tan Valley). Dad then dropped us off at Ms. Kenna's house where we met lots of Mom's old co-workers and some of their kids. We did what else there, but swim, and Lily cuddled with Elmo and Zoe (I swear everyone owns small dogs in Arizona which is heaven to Lily). We also played the game of Life with Ms. Kenna's daughter, Madison, and Lily managed to crush us all! Our drive back to the townhouse took us through downtown Gilbert and then by the hospital where we were born. Tuesday night we enjoyed dinner out at Oregano's with Uncle Larry, Aunt Pam, Mr. Justin, and Ms. Tonia (Braden, Lorenzo, Payton, and Jackson). We saved room to sample a Pizookie which will go down in the books as the best chocolate chip ice cream dessert ever!!! We then headed back to the townhouse for the night and snuck in one more swim before bed since that is what we do best! Wednesday brought with it nothing but relaxation. We had no plans since our flight back to Wisconsin was in the evening. After packing up and cleaning we walked over to the pool. We took a quick break for lunch, and then bolted back to squeeze in as much pool time as we possibly could before leaving. I think we were all a bit sad when the time came for us to head to the airport. Arizona was an amazing adventure that we will never forget!!!