Daycation: Canyon Lake

I’m embarrassed to say that we overslept and missed church last Sunday.  Early church (9 am) is something I can do… really.  It is better for the kids’ schedules and for the day overall.  I just need a few tries to get it down pat.  And though we missed the boat on that endeavor, we decided to make it a great day anyway and see where the wind took us. 

It took us to the desert.  You may be thinking, ‘yes, but you live in the desert’.  Ah, and that is true to a degree.  However, to the real desert; the beautiful, prickly, wide and wild desert we rarely ever venture.  On Sunday, we did.

About once every six months or so, we skip the naps, skip the church, skip every item on our to-do lists, and we go somewhere crazy.  But only for the day.  And then afterwards, we somehow feel exhausted and rejuvenated at the same time.  Much the way one does after a vacation.  This is like that, but only way more manic and short… a Daycation.

  

Our goal was to have a picnic on a beach somewhere.  Canyon Lake may have felt more beachy if it weren’t for the abnormally cold (in the 50’s) weather we’ve been having lately.  Weather in the 70’s may have tempted us to get our feet wet, but this time, we were just in it for the beautiful scenery and, of course, the ducks.

  

The ducks have apparently been well-treated by humans in the past, because they had no fear.  They got close.  Real close.  If you don’t believe me, maybe the next few pictures will put things in perspective.

 

Jake scared the ducks only to have them swarming back two minutes later.  He did this several times.  Those were some persistent little buggers.

  

Just because she can’t walk yet doesn’t mean Ari doesn’t want a little freedom.  That’s what washing machines were made for, right?

On the way to the lake, we passed Goldfield Ghost Town.  Even from inside the car, the kids could tell that this was a place they wanted to be.  Maybe it was the loud whistle of the locomotive that called out to them as we passed.  Maybe it was the cluster of cowboys moseying along on their horses that we sped by on the road.  Whatever it was, we knew that the day couldn’t end without stopping back there.  We made them a promise to return, and we made good on that promise before heading home.  And I think it was well worth the trouble of a truncated car nap.

The highlights:  Cowboys and cowgirls.  A pirate (the hangman looked pirate-like to them).  A store that only sold cowboy hats. Tchotchke western stuff wherever we looked.  Ice cream cones and country fried steak sandwiches.  Oh, and that train I mentioned didn’t disappoint either.

The kids made a friend.  The precious things this little girl said to my kids made me fall in love with her.  I meet nice, pleasant, friendly people every day.  But once in a while, you meet a truly kind person.  She was one of those.

We got a scenic 20 minute ride through the desert and past the Superstition Mountains, while the train conductor told us his own blend of tall tales and real history.  I still can’t hardly say for certain which was which… which made it all the more fun.

   

The sun in Arizona is unlike anywhere else I’ve ever been.  It’s intense and rich and strong.  I crave it.

After a beautiful day, it’s back to the weekly grind!  My last week of winter vacation before I start spring semester, I might add.  I'd better go enjoy it!

I’m a Grandma!

Well, sort of… I’m sure you remember our doggie, Chewy.  The best dog in the whole wide world.  The dog that deserved the best owners in the whole wide world.  Well, he’s been living the dream up in a cabin in Alaska on 200 acres of land with his best friend, Kayo (a Husky) and his companion and mate/love, Bonnie Dai (a Wheaten Terrier like himself). 

Well, gosh darn it, that Chewy is all grown up.  He became a daddy last night!  Chewy has taken that task seriously from the get go, and it paid off… eight puppies in the litter!  It’s all so amazing to me.

“Total count.......8 puppies ! Last one was born at 2:15 this morning. Mother is very tired but attentive to all sqeaks and squills… All puppies seem to be doing well. Some are smaller and I need to make sure that they nurse more and get the fuller teats. Still don't have a final count on females/males but I know there's a lot of females and at least one male. I noticed one little squirmer has a white star on it's chest. And I thought I saw a spot on a tip of a nose. Will be fun to see how they fill out in a few days… And you should have seen Chewy this morning when we went outside for our walk... he was a wild man! Crazy, running around the house. He knew something had happened. I kept him in our arctic entry way last night because he's been wanting ...to "breed" with Bonnie Dai the last couple of days (odors probably) and since this was Bonnie Dai's first birthing, I didn't want to chance him upsetting her at all (some dogs eat their puppies when disturbed). So for now he's having a grand time outside with Kayo, playing and chasing squirrels. Good thing we have a heat wave going on right now too... he loves it, it's 31 degrees with lots of snow on the ground. Perfect weather for hunting mice, shrews and voles. He's definitely a proud papa today.” –Shannon (Chewy’s new owner)

Chewy is doing his man thing right now while mama Bonnie Dai and midwife Shannon take care of the pups.  Here they are:

Six Years, My Love

January 6, 2005, I married my true love.  Six years later, here we are and with so much more love to show for it.

We went to T Cooks at the Royal Palms Resort and had an indulgent lunch… on the house I might add, since they felt so bad for forgetting the flowers Jake ordered for me (I knew nothing of the flowers, so it was a double surprise for me!).  We spent the afternoon reminiscing about our wedding day, laughing about the cute little things our kids do, and dreaming of the future.  We were luxury thieves and lay out on the pool chaise lounges and even hopped in the Jacuzzi (I brought our suits, just in case).

“Real love is a belief that someone knows you as no one else can” – my favorite quote from the card Jake gave me.

 

“I can no longer imagine a tomorrow without you at my side.” – my favorite quote from the card I gave Jake

You know how on your wedding day, you take a million pictures, and in the years to come, you don’t regret taking a single one; you look back on every photo and each time feel a rush of the sweet feelings that filled you on that day… and then you hardly ever take photos as a couple from that day forward.  This anniversary, I’m papering this post with more than the usual dose of photos of the two of us.  Even now, only days after these were taken, looking upon them as I write this, I feel the happiness that I felt spending that lazy afternoon with my one true love.  And that good feeling will only grow with time.  Like everything else.

  

No celebration of our marriage would be complete without our little ones, so we took them to dinner at “Pizza Planet” (a.k.a. Peter Piper Pizza) after we got home.  We went wild and crazy on the games and stayed out until every last token was spent.  All we had to show for the evening were goofy grins, sleepy eyes, one lollypop each, and *we hope* some sweet memories that will stand the test of time.

    

Ari’s rollercoaster ride with Daddy, complete with matching facial expressions. :)

New Year Juice

I keep hearing a familiar rhetoric about the start of a new year bringing with it feelings of renewal and yearnings to purge and cleanse and rejuvenate one’s home and life.  I gotta say, while I’m in good spirits, I don’t feel any yearnings to wipe slates clean and start making my bed every morning.  This year, January 1 feels like um… maybe October – like where in the world has the year gone?  Did I sleep through it?  I have never felt time passing so swiftly before!  I would like some more days in my weeks, hours in my days, and moments – yes, moments in this life.

We’ve been kind of homebody like, which I’m loving.  Getting out of the house these days usually means going for a stroll or running an errand with four out of the five of us staying in the parked car.  On New Years Day, we took the kids for a walk to the corner store to get some “juice”.  It was meant to be a special treat, because we rarely walk that far, and when we do, they usually have to bring their drinks from home.  Store juice is much more delicious and refreshing than home juice, you know.  And as we’re walking, I’m taking my first few snaps with my brand new zoom lens.  I’m a little unsteady on these new legs, because I’m used to my prime lenses and the sharpness that come with those.  But I’m learning as I go, which is why the shots get better the farther we walk.

When we finally get to Circle K, all of my three kids were desperate for their juice, which ended up being Vitamin Water.  So desperate was Bella that she refused to share or drink from the bottle while someone else was holding it for her.  She wanted to hold it, gosh darn it, and she let everyone in the store know it too!  This may have been the most monumental fit that Bella has ever thrown; complete with hair raising screeches and throwing herself on the floor.  What made it special was that it started about holding the bottle of juice and morphed into a variety of topics including wanting to go swimming, wanting to go to the mall, not wanting to go to the mall, wanting to ride the train, wanting to see Santa, wanting to go down the slide, wanting to go swimming again, and finally… wanting a big stick.  Which she got.  Poor little chickadee had a nice nap after that. ;)

Despite all the juice drama we had on New Years Day, the real New Years Juice was still to come.  Ever since we built this house over four years ago, we have had a January ritual of harvesting the grapefruits off our little tree in the backyard and making juice from them.  Those grapefruits take the whole year to grow, and I just find it so symbolic to reap the literal fruits of our labors.  What makes it even more special is that every year we’ve been in the house, the grapefruits get more and more plentiful and the juice gets sweeter and sweeter.  Just reminds me of life.  Our first harvest was only a dozen or so.  We thought they were white grapefruit because they were so tart and colorless even when fully ripened.  We used to make grapefruitade, because we added almost as much sugar and water as we did juice.  This year, they are ruby red and sweeter than any I’ve ever bought in the stores.  Like liquid candy that runs down your face and forearms.  The first two years, we juiced by squeezing.  The third year we bought a hand juicer.  And this year (the fourth), we needed an electric juicer in addition to our hand juicer to get the job done.  About 180 grapefruits and five hours later, we had over five gallons of fresh squeezed organic grapefruit juice.  Oh, and lots of sleepy-eyed, laughter-filled moments to hoard in my memory bank.  And those will last long after we’ve finished the juice to its last drop.