Christmas Trip Part 3

The last stop on our Christmas trip was a visit to the Shorters, friends of ours who moved from Virginia to Arizona in the summer. Gary the elephant was happy to meet up with his old friends and we were happy to spend time with this fun family. There was mini-golf, wrestling, movies, a tumbleweed Christmas tree, ice cream, many pictures, and lots of laughs. 

Husband was pulling money out of K's ear all night long.  

 These girls make the best Hobby Lobby shopping partners.

Christmas tree made of tumbleweeds

In what was an amazing coincidence, another family from our Virginia days, the Ayres family, happened to be in the area the same time we were. They were able to make some time to spend the evening with us eating pizza, playing Kubb, sampling Buddy the Elf's breakfast recipe, and reminiscing about our Virginia days. Fun fact: Dacy was the first person I met in Virginia (besides our landlords). The friends we made during our 5 years in Virginia are like family to us. It was wonderful to be able to see these two families again.

 Husband had a hard time saying goodbye. 

Me, Jessica, and Dacy, with M in the background trying to photo bomb

Christmas 2018 Trip Part 2

Let's pick up right where we left off, shall we? After the Grand Canyon, we made our way to Las Vegas via the Painted Desert and southern Utah. I have never really been in a desert before and as we drove, I was surprised to see all the colours. I always thought deserts were just beige.We also drove up into the mountains and past Jacob Lake. It was interesting to watch the scenery change as we went from the desert to snowy mountains. 

We had a great room in Vegas, overlooking the Strip. We could see the Mirage volcano show from our room! We absolutely loved being in Vegas. What a fun city. We enjoyed seeing all the theme hotels. The Venetian was my favourite. They have a canal with gondola rides inside the hotel! I have never been to Venice, but this hotel is exactly how I imagine it would look like. We also watched the Cirque du Soleil show Mystere. Wow! What a show. The agility, the strength, and the flexibility of the performers was unbelievable. We spent the majority of our time just wandering the strip and taking in all the sights. Since our next move will put us just a few hours from here, we are looking forward to going back and experiencing more of what Vegas has to offer.

After Gary the Elephant lost all our money playing the slots, we had to head back to Phoenix. We stopped at the Hoover Dam because it was on the way. It was pretty cool to seen such an iconic American landmark. Unfortunately, they weren't doing tours of the dam because of renovations, so we didn't get to see inside.

In two states at once! 

I could almost fit the rest of the pictures in this post but that seems like it would just be a bit too much so those will have to wait for another time. Stay tuned for part 3, coming soon. 

Christmas 2018 Trip Part 1

This year our winter escape brought us to Arizona and Nevada for a week. We spent time with my brother, his wife, and their 10 month old baby, Jimmy. Gary the Elephant loved meeting Jimmy. Jimmy loved meeting Husband, sealing the friendship with some baby kisses.

We made a stop in Sedona. While there we visited the Chapel of the Holy Cross, a chapel built into the rocks. We also stopped at an overlook near the airport. I wish we had more time to spend in Sedona. It was a beautiful place.

Next we headed to the Grand Canyon. As we drove, we had the most beautiful desert sunset. The colours were so vibrant that we had to pull over on the side of the road to take a few pictures.
We got to Grand Canyon Park after dark so we had to wait until morning to see it. We enjoyed a great meal in one of the hotels and we got to watch a ring-tailed cat play on the beams in the lobby. When the staff told us that many people mistake the ring-tailed cat for a lemur, Husband quickly dubbed the animal "Linda, the lemur."

Early the next morning, we headed out to see the canyon. Oh my goodness! What an amazing sight! I know the word "amazing" gets thrown out a lot, but I can't think of a better word to describe the Grand Canyon. The colours! The layers of rock! Everything was amazing. The canyon seemed to go on forever. Every view was unbelievable. A few Arizona friends warned us that it would be cold. It wasn't so much the cold as it was the wind that made it cold. It was rather warm compared to Alaska, only 25*F/-4*C, but that wind: it goes right through you. I am so glad we brought winter coats.

Okay, I think that is enough pictures for now. Stay tuned for part 2, which will include the Painted Desert, Vegas, and the Hoover Dam.