We were in much need of a break from our routine. Sad to say, morning sickness/all day sickness has dominated my days this past month. I’m 9 weeks along, so the end of the first trimester is still a few weeks away. However, this nausea can leave sooner and make me an extremely happy mama. Of course, Baby TicTac is worth the discomfort though! Stephen has a very busy two and a half weeks of work coming up, so we were glad for a few days together as a family.

Our studio room was gorgeous and a lot bigger than we had expected! There was a kitchenette complete with dishes and silverware, a balcony overlooking the amazing pool, and even a washer and dryer set in a closet in the bathroom.

Mostly we spent time in the pool, reading, watching a movie, and catching up on sleep while Silas napped. It was great! Tuesday morning, Silas rode a miniature horse. He wasn’t too sure about it, so one lap was enough.

After checking out of our room, we drove up to see Lake Pleasant. It’s a huge man-made lake that attracts a lot of boating.What a relaxing start to our week!

After returning their burnt orange Dodge Challenger (Stephen’s dream car) to the rental car return, we drove home and stayed up late into the night talking. David and Tammy had brought Silas a new friend, the Leapfrog learning dog Scout. Silas loves him! We eventually connected Scout to the computer so he could “learn” Silas’s name, favorite food, color, and animal. Silas was so surprised and happy when Scout said his name for the first time! (It melts my heart every time I hear Scout say, “Silas.”) Uncle David and Aunt Tammy also introduced Silas to bubbles for the first time. Bitty Boy didn’t quite know what to make of the sudsy stuff, but stared wide-eyed as the bubbles floated past him. And, while Silas wasn’t at all interested in a piggy back ride, he was giddy about Uncle David’s crab rides. Our short time together was spent touring the AZ Historical Society Museum, Goldfield Ghost town, walking in the park, eating out, playing Settlers of Catan & Telestrations (a hilarious new game David and Tammy introduced us to), and discussing church planting and Christianity. The brothers even sang a duet together in church. Thanks so much for coming to see us, David and Tammy!

Our Saturday morning began at a very early 6:30am (thanks to our effective alarm clock—Silas Clark). A breakfast of Strawberry Stuffed French Bread and Orange Julius was a fun way to start the day. We piled in the car for a drive around the White Tank mountains on the very secluded Sun Valley Parkway. Wickenburg was our destination as Amy hadn’t visited the quaint, authentic western town yet. By happy coincidence we were visiting Wickenburg during its famous Gold Rush Days celebration! A parade, panning for gold competition, rodeo, carnival rides, arts & crafts vendors, and BBQ lunch made the town swarm with people wearing all sorts of western garb. In case you’re wondering, the BBQ lunch was dee-licious! We topped of the afternoon with homemade ice cream from the Chaparral ice cream parlor.

Our three day weekend was filled with shopping at Arizona Mills, driving to Dobbins Lookout at the summit of South Mountain, exploring downtown Phoenix and the state capitol grounds, playing fast-paced Rummikub (great idea, Amy!), watching movies, making and eating sweets, and getting in some super fun aunt/nephew time!

Yesterday we headed out to enjoy the Best Fest downtown. The grounds of the state capital were crowded with museum exhibits, carnival rides, arts and crafts booths, musical and storytelling stages, military vehicles, classic cars, and lots of our fellow Arizonans sporting AZ flags and t-shirts. The main street had even been recently redone to include the centennial celebration right there in the crosswalks!I was struck yet again with the diversity of Arizona’s population. First, we hit the Navajo village complete with hogans and wigwams, rugs, jewelry, and dancers in traditional dress Native American dress. Next, came the Hispanic cultural village where lots of fun music filled the air.Arizona’s natural resources and its famous attractions {Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest, etc.} were proudly represented. We paused for a bit at the storytelling stage and then meandered through the military park. The road was lined with military vehicles, while soldiers, sailors, re-enactors, and memorials to fallen troops filled the park.The coolest parts of the celebration were the fly-overs done by five Stearman Trainers, a B-25 Mitchell and two P-51s. The bi-planes made several passes over the fest.The far end of the fest sported a Wild West town with an Old West Shoot-out performance for the crowd! Carnival rides and every kind of food truck you can imagine rounded out the experience. We thought we’d stick to foods unique to our state, so Indian Fry Bread and a Sonoran Dog were our picks. Anyone up for a hot dog wrapped in bacon?Happy birthday, Arizona!

One afternoon we took off for South Mountain Park and Preserve for a little hiking. Since we weren’t feeling very ambitious, and the Buick’s low fuel light had just come on, we picked a short hike near the park entrance. Although it didn’t seem like we had climbed much in elevation, after just a bit of hiking, we had a nice view of the valley and downtown Phoenix.

Silas and Jon took advantage of a lot of nephew/uncle time together. Jon gave him piano and drum lessons. We even had a cookout (in January!) Jon’s last night here.

On Friday, the guys toured the Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson. Nothing like a bunch of planes, jets, and rockets to entertain them. Dad—via Jon’s suggestion—found a Vietnamese restaurant to try for supper. The previous night Jon had introduced all of us to Boba tea (creamy tea with tapioca pearls mixed in), so Dad was up for a supper of Vietnamese food. My favorite part was the spring roll appetizer with peanut sauce. Fish sauce was a new sensation for our American palettes. I think we all agreed that Vietnamese food was a success.

Afterwards we explored the adjacent Lee Lee Oriental Suparmarket which was filled with strange and wonderful (and some unappetizing) cuisine choices. In the meat section we found chicken legs, pig snouts, blood, hearts, pig ears, eels, squid, and octopus! As we shopped Dad commented, “One thing about it, you get to know your animals.” To which Stephen replied, “It’s like a dead zoo, Dad.” Thankfully we came home with relatively normal purchases like a pineapple orange, pomelo, sesame snacks, mango, etc. and left the balut, anchovies, and tongue in Tucson.

Our week was filled with enjoying Christmas presents. Tammy gave Stephen the popular game Settlers of Catan, and Tim, Ben, Stephen & I became immediately addicted. We even rang in the New Year playing Settlers. My family gave me Rummikub and Buzzword which made for a game-filled week. I instantly used my beautiful platter from Jon for our Christmas brunch. Best of all, Mom and Dad bought us some porch furniture which means we can enjoy being outside finally. Can’t wait to use it!

The days were warm and clear and perfect for visits to the park. At Arizona Mills mall Silas rode the carousel with Grammy and Daddy and visited the pet shop.We had plenty of help around the house. The dishes “magically” disappeared after each meal. Stephen even had help installing his radiator hose.

Holidays are still holidays without family, but oh, how glad we are they came!

A lot of the cities ship in snow for their Christmas festivals, and I was hoping Silas would have a chance to experience it. I imagined a large pile of snow where kids and babies could play at their own pace. Instead, we found a fenced in area under a lighted tent that contained, what looked like, very icy snow. The adult supervisor would let in a few rowdy kids at a time who would immediately begin pelting each other with snow. Too bad there wasn’t a baby/toddler section. I guess Bitty Boy will just have to wait for an authentic snow encounter.

We did manage to squeeze onto the last horse drawn hayride of the night. It was a tight fit, but a very Christmas-y activity.The next weekend we watched Buckeye’s Electric Parade. What a great choice for Silas’s first parade. He was wide-eyed the entire time! Everything in the parade—people, four wheelers, semis, tractors, garbage trucks, fire engines, carriages pulled by miniature horses—everything was decorated with Christmas lights. Stephen and I tried to get Silas to wave at the floats. He did wave, but I’m not sure if he was saying “hello” or directing music. Somebody gave Silas a glow stick and we realized it was the perfect toy for him—a combination of a stick and a light—two of Baby’s favorites.

What fun to see the lights, hear the carols, and wish everyone a Merry Christmas!

I’ve been surprised at how many animals I’ve seen from my window. Hawks soar high in the sky, and doves walk the roof of my neighbor’s house. Lizards scamper along the walls in the spring. Cats, domestic and feral, walk the concrete walls. I love to see the moon make his nightly ascent.

Recently I’ve concluded something. Airplanes make me happy. With the Goodyear Airport just five minutes from us, and the Sky Harbor Airport downtown, I can almost always see a commercial airliner or private cessna out my kitchen window. And it makes me happy. I guess I just like to know that there are people up there, and I’m happy that there’s something to see. Seeing an airplane so far above me gives me kind of a wistful feeling. Weird, huh? I think too much sometimes.

Fall tiptoed into the Valley Monday night and made a dramatic appearance this week. Temperatures on Tuesday were still in the high 90s, but we had a furious thunderstorm and downpour. The neighborhood kids were running back and forth across the street through the rushing water near the curbs.

Yesterday and today, the sun is hot, but the air is cool with temps in the 60s and 70s. Autumn is here! AND we have cold water flowing from our faucets! Silas and I took a walk yesterday morning and met our neighbors across the street who come down from Winnipeg, Manitoba for a few weeks/months out of the year.

Hopefully we’ll get to know more of our neighbors now that the weather is so beautiful. It’s weather like this that draws so many people to retire here.