Vacation...coming to an end...

Today was the last day of vacation with the family in Scottsdale. We had a really great day! We played putt-putt golf, and Mom and I won by a tie! We had a nice lunch together and then went to the Musical Instrument Museum up north. I thought I had been there before but I was getting it confused with the EMP Museum in Seattle. This museum is huge! It showcases musical instruments from pretty much every country. It was so cool.

After the museum we all retreated for the "hotel hour" of some R&R. We had a delicious dinner at The Italian Grotto in downtown Scottsdale. We also went to an arts festival along the waterfront. Needless to say I am beat! I have to pack and get to bed soon.

Tomorrow I drive to Kayenta. I am going to stop in Sedona-I was going to on my way here but decided to wait until going back to Kayenta. Sunday I will drive to Montrose and pick the boys up Monday morning. I will head to work by 10am.

Speaking of work, I am the type of person who doesn't like surprises when I get to work after a vacation...so I checked email. I am so glad I did, as there are a number of "emergencies" I will need to address on Monday. At first I felt very stressed thinking about it, and then, because I am on vacation, I thought..."It is what it is and I can only get done what I can get done." That thought brings so much comfort! I also plan to add "vacation" into the everyday...showering with a nice soap, drinking a good cup of coffee on my porch watching the sunrise, taking a good walk everyday, and going out and about each weekend to explore places I want to know more about. I think this will help with any work stress that comes up.

Even more vacation!

Last night was very enjoyable. After spending some time reading at the pool (and in the pool because it was warm out) I went with the family to downtown Scottsdale. We wandered the shops and enjoyed all the color from the flowers.

We attempted to have dinner at a local Mexican restaurant that was suggested to me by a co-worker, but it didn't quite look like something we wanted so we went to Frank and Lupe's. It is a cute little Mexican restaurant nestled in an off street neighborhood. It is a popular place and while the food took forever to come to us, when it did it was very good! After dinner Robert and I went to the Papago BrewPub and enjoyed an orange beer and some much needed brother/sister time.

This morning I met the family for a donut and coffee at Dunkin Donuts and then Mom and I went off to shop while Dad and Robert went off to enjoy a day of baseball. Mom and I went to Fashion Square which as a mall beats any other I have been to! We then enjoyed a special lunch at Elements Restaurant, located at the Sanctuary Resort in North Scottsdale. I think I am going to make it a goal to spend an entire weekend at The Sanctuary. It looks like bliss! My camera batteries were dead so I couldn't take any pictures, but I may return at some point to snap a few photos. Elements is a restaurant run by executive chef Beau Macmillan, who is often on Food Network shows as a judge or contestant of some sort. I had this amazing pasta dish and mom had the three cheese and ham sandwich with a blackberry dipping sauce. We started with edamame which was divine! It was fun to make this a destination on a beautiful day...

We both retreated to our hotels and I sat by the pool again. We are opting for light Whole Foods dinner together and some more mom/daught time before we meet up with the boys again.

More vacation...

Today we spent the morning at the Desert Botanical Gardens. There is an exhibit there now called Chihuly in the Garden. Chihuly is a renowned glass artist and his sculptures were placed amongst the cacti and other landscapes...

The butterfly garden is super fantastic! There are a lot of species that live there, and sometimes you can have one call you a friend for a few minutes, as my brother did...

Vacation continued...

I drove from Kayenta yesterday to Scottsdale. It was about a 6 hour drive, all said and done. The drive was really beautiful so I didn't mind. I got into town and checked into my hotel. I had dinner with Mike's aunt and uncle, Sue and Chris, and their kids, Morgan and Eric. Morgan is a Freshman at ASU in the downtown campus so she gave me a tour of her dorm. Eric will be getting his driver's license soon and so he was our chauffeur. It was a nice evening!

My brother flew in this morning. I have a word to the wise...whenever you check into a hotel, make sure you check the alarm clock! For some reason my clock was set to go off at midnight, which it did! I had to wake up early to pick Robert up at the airport so had a 5am wake up call (Robert likes to travel early) but woke up at 4am instead. I picked him up around 7am and he took me to breakfast at The Daily Dose, Scottsdale's version of Denver's Snooze. It was so good. We drove North and stopped at Trader Joes, Target, Walgreens (all for things that we both need this week), and this really cool resale shop called My Sister's Closet. I then came back to the hotel and took a nap. Robert took the car and went out and about. When I woke up and got back into the groove of a vacation he and I went back into Scottsdale. I went to the Museum of Contemporary Art where they had a really cool exhibit called "The 5 Senses." Mom and Dad got in around 3pm and after they got settled we ate a delightful pizza dinner at Grimaldi's followed by dessert and a little Skee Ball at The Sugar Shack.

Tomorrow we will be going to the Desert Botanic Gardens. I am hoping for some time by the pool, too...

I am in awe at all the green, flowers and desert blooms that abound...when in Montrose the ground is still brown...

It was fun to be with the fam and in the hustle and bustle of Scottsdale! And trying to take a "family selfie" is a little challenging when Dad is taller than the group!

Vacation!

I have headed to Arizona for a much needed vacation! I left this morning and drove South-West through Utah to Kayenta. Before I hit the road, I managed to get a picture of one of the new baby cows in my neighborhood. Since the beginning of the week we started at one and now we are up to at least five!

The drive through Utah into Arizona is really beautiful. I couldn't even attempt to capture the beauty in my pictures. I didn't really stop much because I wanted to get to Kayenta by 4pm. But on my way back to Montrose I may have to spend some time in Moab.

I haven't had a week's vacation for a long time. I don't think I have taken a whole week to go someplace since my Oregon trip. It felt really good to leave today knowing that it isn't for just a weekend or a few days...but for a whole week! In Scottsdale I think my family and I have just enough activity planned for having a really good time, and just enough R&R planned to come away with relaxation. I will plan to post pictures of our trip throughout the week!

Babies!

In the past two weeks, I have had the privilege to see something I hadn't seen like this before...all the new babies are here! No, not the pink cheeked, 5 fingered and toed kind, but the four legged kind. This early spring season is the time for calving, and when I drive to work all I see are baby cows everywhere! I first noticed it maybe two weeks ago, where I caught sight of one or two little ones sitting in the grass. Then as the week went by, more and more babies were in the grass, chasing each other, or eating alongside their mamas. I think the other day I actually saw a calf who was just born! It was wet and steam was coming off it while the mama stood over it protectively. I finally got a few pictures today...

Seeing the babies has been a true, heartfelt joy...the kind of joy that doesn't get recreated too easily but when you feel it, you know! Especially having grown up in the city, I had never really been exposed to the pure natural cycle of animals giving birth. Everyone keeps telling me "Just wait until you see the little lambs!" I fear I may cry out of pure joy! Murdoch's and a few other stores are selling baby chicks now as well...

I learned a new term..."Bum Lamb"...I was running the grief group and telling them about the joy of seeing the babies and one woman said, "We used to feed bum lambs." I asked her what those were and she said they are lambs who have been disowned by their mamas. If there is a bum lamb on a farm, then the human family feeds them bottles and bottles of milk. Interesting stuff!

Another joy I continue to have is my sunrises and sunsets, as well as the night sky. One night the sky had a crescent moon and the north star shone brightly next to it. I can't wait until warmer nights where I can plop a chair on the property and just watch the stars. The sunrise just the other morning was spectacular, too...

Today the day is so beautiful and I was thinking about going to Ridgeway. I have a few things to do around the house, so I visited my favorite cemetery on Sunset Mesa in town. The views of Montrose and the surrounding area are superb, and there is a really nice cremation garden that I know in the summer will be really pretty!