This week...
...we went to Arizona! And we took ALL FIVE of our KIDS! And we made it back alive! They loved it. We loved it. The Hayters loved it. (Even if they didn't, I'm saying they did. A visit from all of us? Who wouldn't love that?) We got a heck of a deal on tickets - $100 round trip per person with Alegiant!
Do we look ready? We are ready. Going through the security at the Pasco airport on our way to their first flight ever (except Paul - he flew with Jason when he was 2 1/2).
Walking out to the plane - excitement running higher.
Lainey decided to study up on the emergency procedures brochure before take off-check out the local specials.
See how Lainey is gripping the arm rest? She pretty much wouldn't let go for the first ten minutes. She was beside herself with delight for the whole experience. She gripped those arm rests and exclaimed, "I'm so excited! We're flying!" And that was when we were still on the ground.
Can you see the light on the wing illuminating the clouds as we rose higher and higher into the night sky? Lainey saw that and got excited again. She said in amazement, "We're going super fast!" And she was right. That's what all the cartoons have when they go super fast. It was just like Rocket and the Little Einsteins.
We played tether ball in their backyard as we waited for them to get home. This made the time go by fast while we waited. Each of the kids took turns and then Jason and I played each other. That was hilarious! I could barely see because the sun was so bright, and that was with my sunglasses on. Then the ball came down right on the bridge of my nose and jammed my glasses down. It hurt. And it sent me into a fit of laughter. It was so funny!
It was so fun to see our kids play with Kellen and Erik.
They got along so great! They were good sports to share their house,
their beds, and their wii game time. :) As you can see from the picture,
they were getting along famously!
Raleigh and Lainey played a mean game of tether ball. Lainey smoked him.
Our trip to World Market had the kids enthralled
with the toy section. Once we contained Lainey, so she couldn't open up
any more umbrellas and knock breakables off the shelves, we had a great
time. We found some Hello Panda treats (Japan) and some Kinder
Chocolates (Germany) and we were set.
Of course we stopped at In-n-Out. It was
fabulous! Animal style everything! My kids really liked it too! We met
up with Seth and Katie Taylor - Jason and I served with Katie in our
mission. It was fun to see them and their two daughters, Andi and Evie.
Claire, as well as Jason and Seth, packed away TWO burgers!
Claire and Erik were good buddies for the time that we were there. Oh no, they lost their arms!
Here's more of the group as we waited for a spot big enough to open up for our group to sit down inside. Zombie Kellen!
Did we have a visit from alien monsters, or what?! Ben's legs are missing! It was a little chilly this night as we waited outside. But it was still just as cool as a spring night. The Arizonians were cold, we were still in shorts and capris.
Here's our group minus Raleigh. He was still on his way from work.
We saw lots of these...
and these...We thought this one was cool because it was leaning.
There were all different varieties too. Like this one that sheds little prickly balls that stick to your shoes.
And maybe they give you a little acrobatic ability as well. That seems to be what happened to Paul. :)
On some we had to lean in to get a closer look...
and hold up others to get an even closer look.
We learned that everything in the dessert is prickly and barbed for protection.
There were small ones...
and tall ones...
and some the size of Lainey.
We stopped off at the Maricopa County Sheriff's
Office. Sheriff Arpaio, Sheriff Joe, is famous for his level headed
operation of the county jail. The inmates wear pink jumpsuits and
underwear (because they were stealing them). They get two meals a day of
bologna sandwiches. The officers now use pink handcuffs in the jail as
well. Awesome!
Deputy Bill Steele was so nice to take time to talk with us and answer all of our Jason's questions. He even gave Jason some uniform badges to take back to a buddy on Jason's squad who collects them.
Emma got her ears pierced. Thanks to Jordan!
Jordan takes on a very permissive attitude with our kids whenever we're
together. She lets our kids have chocolate for lunch and ice cream for
breakfast. She gave her permission to Emma to get her ears pierced and
it was basically a done deal. (It was something that I'd already
considered letting her do and it added to the novelty of our Arizona
experience.)
Emma was brave so. She was nervous beforehand, but it didn't hurt as much as she thought it would.
Paul enjoyed Claire's a little too much...
We saw the Lowe's, who moved from Tri-Cities earlier in the year. They helped us out by picking us up at the airport when we got in. They also housed and fed us that first night. It was so fun to stay up late taking a tour of their house, eating toast, and talking/laughing.
Jason played a mean game of Ticket to Ride with our kids and Ezra. He was a good sport to play a shortened, easier version with them.
We went scorpion hunting in the backyard. I thought it was all a set up, right up until we actually found one and it moved as Raleigh torched it. Yikes! We started in one corner of the yard and went slowly over the perimeter with a black light. They glow fluorescent in black light. I totally thought Raleigh and Jordan were going to spook us with a fake one. Just before we got back to the patio, there was a scorpion on the cement wall of their house, just above the gravel. Once Raleigh torched it, we all inspected it more closely. I still couldn't believe that it was real.
We went ice blocking and played at the park. Here's Jordan hangin'
with our kids in the van on the way. What a better way to spend any kind of vacation money than with friends making memories. We had lots and lots of wipe outs down this hill, and we had sad faces and tears. But they stuck with it and had a good time. Us big kids even tried it out.
Off to the park...to play at the falls.
...then on to the toys.
This toy was seriously huge.
We saw the nation's tallest Christmas tree. We went at night when the place was deserted and the kids had a blast running around the tree.
If you don't believe me, just look at this proof. They had a sign.
We played at the mall. They have outdoor play areas because the weather is always so nice. One father kicked a soccer ball back and forth with his son. Before long, Paul stood just out of the way with an expectant, hopeful look on his face. That man was a good man because he let Paul join in...and then Ben...and then another little boy.
We went swimming. Yes, swimming. IN NOVEMBER! It was great! The kids were super excited to be outdoors in the pool during this time of year and to use the cool showers to wash off after.
Once Lainey decided she was done, she got changed and crawled up in Jordan's lap to eat chips.
We thought their policy on fecal matter was quite interesting...
We hiked out to a cactus to get an up close look and a feel for just how tall they really are.
We ate these.
Raleigh and Jordan introduced us to It's It sandwiches. They were excellent! Here's the description: A scoop of ice cream, sandwiched between two old-fashioned oatmeal cookies, and dipped in dark chocolate. If I can't find any local, I may have to have some shipped in.
On the way back to the airport to come home, we stopped at the Mesa Temple Visitor's Center and drove by the Gilbert Arizona Temple that will be opening sometime after the first of the year.
We were ready to be going home. Emma got tired of being squished in the back and all the noise from the other kids.
The kids really enjoyed the temple grounds and visitor's center.
They had the grounds all set up for Christmas with lights everywhere lining the paths and up in the trees. They also had different nativity scenes around the grounds that they ran around looking at.
The kids really enjoyed looking at the map of Jerusalem. They watched intently as the light came on in different sections to show where the events of the last week of Christ's life took place. We forgot to go back and finish before we had to leave and Paul was really bummed.
Real life?
or happy family?
Gilbert Temple - opening soon...
At the airport waiting to board for the flight home. Jordan and the boys
flew back with us because they were making a trip to Washington. That
helped our kids not go stir crazy as the flight before us was delayed
and the terminal was crowded.
Claire and Ben received a little travel kit with a booklet of paper, crayons, and a pencil from their teacher for them to bring on our trip. Claire was diligent to draw pictures of the things we did throughout our trip. Benjamin decided to color pictures once we were home and thinking back to all we did.
Thanks Raleigh and Jordan for an awesome adventure in Arizona!
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