Weekend Update: Sedona & Flagstaff

Our friends Jeff and Lynn visited from Texas this past weekend. We hadn't seen the two of them since our wedding (however we have seen Jeff a couple times when he's had layovers here in town). They arrived in town Thursday, so we hit Oregano's for dinner:

Friday, they hiked Camelback with Jay while I squeezed some work in, then picked me up and we headed north. Check out the view from our hotel room patio:

In this photo you can see Coffee Pot Rock on the far right of the rock formation:
Saturday morning, we got up early, had breakfast, and then hiked the West Fork Trail through Oak Creek Canyon:

I just LOVED these beautiful ferns that almost glowed in the sunlight peeking through the trees:
There are a lot of creek-crossing points along the trail:
Jay had the camera for the way back and snapped this pic:
This is a Ponderosa Pine. We learned from a lady on the trail that these trees have a strong vanilla scent. If you smell the bark, you can easily identify it!

We took a rest on this rock after a few hours of hiking into the canyon:
What's a better way to end a hike then with delicious beer?! We enjoyed these brews, sandwiches, and some...um...interesting people watching at Oak Creek Brewery in Tlaquepaque:
Lynn and Jeff enjoying a rest at one of the galleries:
Quick snapshot of the view from our room before we checked out:
Sunday morning we got up early again and this time hiked Vista and Boynton Canyon Trails.
Jeff was the king of the spires at Boynton Canyon:
The views were amazing, and it was a great hike:
Later that afternoon, we headed to Flagstaff and got some lunch before checking into our hotel. We stayed at the Arizona Mountain Inn - a bed & breakfast that Jay and I stayed at for Valentine's Day back in 2004. We all were eager to shower and unwind before heading downtown for dinner:
Monday morning, yes, you guessed it, we got up early and went hiking! Jay picked Sandy's Canyon and Walnut Canyon trails which offered different terrain than we had the previous two days. Some of the leaves were starting to change, and the shade of the trees was welcomed!
There were open fields...
...and deep, dark caves. This cave was HUGE! It was definitely big enough for lions, tigers and bears (OH MY!), but all we saw were some bats. Here we are exiting said cave before something else came out of the shadows:

We headed back to Phoenix around 1:30 and got home early enough to relax, watch tv, and eat some pizza.

It was such a great weekend enjoying time with our friends, soaking up the fresh air, and making memories. Dare I say it, we might actually be in town this weekend!

We're Alive!!

I have received several worried emails/messages from y'all (can you tell we've spent the last 3 days with our friends from Texas?) over the past few days and just thought I'd prove that we're alive and well! I'm hoping to get a post together this week, but our computer is FULL of photos and I'm afraid it won't let me upload anymore until we clear off our hard drive and put them on the external one we have (but unfortunately can't find). It drives me crazy when I don't get posts up right away, so hopefully I'll find that hard drive tonight!

Weekend Update: Labor Day Weekend Part Five

Monday morning, we got up early and headed down to Dad's. He and Patti have been building their home for a while now and they recently moved in. We were last there winter of 2007 when it was just being framed!

I love areas like this - very vacation-ey :) We just had to follow the sign:
And here it is!
We immediately went in and checked out the view from the porch:
Then headed down the path to the lake:
It was so nice to hang out down there, catch up with Dad, and cast a few lines:

After lunch (we had Michigans again! This time homemade - YUM) we headed back to the lake and went kayaking. From the below picture you can see me in the water and Jay in the kayak on the dock....
...before he sllloooowwwwllllly rolled into the lake! Poor guy - wasn't really planning on taking a swim, but it was a great laugh!
I was SO HAPPY to be kayaking! For spring break in college, I took a week long kayaking trip off the Yucatan in Mexico and fell in love with it. It's so peaceful and great exercise too. The day Jay and I move somewhere that can support frequent kayaking excursions, we're getting them! I can't wait!
We paddled around the lake, checked out the other houses, and looked for good fishing spots.
Later on, Dad took a turn and caught 2 fish! We spent a lot of time fishing over the course of the day, but no luck for us city slickers.
After enjoying the beautiful day, Patti and her daughter Tara arrived and we had dinner. Dad made a delicious pork roast, salad, and baked potatoes....with the fresh fish too of course!

It was so nice seeing Dad, Patti, Tara, and the house all finished. They did such a great job!!
Dad and Natasha posed for this picture before we went to bed. Natasha is 13 years old and hasn't been feeling well lately. She loves her daddy though - follows him everywhere!
We woke up early Tuesday morning, sent Dad and Patti off to work and headed to Manchester to fly home. It was a LONG LONG day of traveling for me as we got to the airport extra early so Jay could catch a jumpseat home. I used all that extra time to catch up on my reading, take a few oddly-located naps, and dream about arriving home.

So, there you go. We had a great trip, saw a lot of people, and made new memories!

Weekend Update: Labor Day Weekend Part Four (of Five, ok? only 5 to summarize this fabulous trip!)

So is this not the best trip ever or what? Doing these posts reminds me just how much fun we had and how busy we were!!

On Sunday morning, we got up and headed to my favorite apple picking place - Chapin Orchards. We've gone picking there for years, and going there is one of the yearly highlights of fall in Vermont.
One thing we always have to get there are their delicious homemade donuts. They usually have hot cider too but we were there one weekend too early for cider. Next time!
Apples ready for cider pressing:
The mums were looking beautiful on this fine day:
As were the Davis' :)
Sisters...
After browsing the small gift shop area and taking some pictures, we headed to the orchard:
McIntosh are my favorite and the trees were full of them!

I honestly was considering bringing an empty suitcase to smuggle a bunch back with us (they just don't taste the same from the grocery store), but Jay didn't let it fly (literally). So, we only got 1/2 peck on this trip.
For lunch, we got delicious sandwiches at Burlington Bay Market and then headed to Perkins Pier to eat:

Before dinner, Stacy taught me how to go bikejoring with Trapper. Stacy races sled dogs in the winters and has been getting Trapper in shape for her second season racing. Stacy hooked her up, and away we went! It was so much fun and she was so FAST! It made me nervous going around corners, etc., but made it out alive!

Now, remember all those purty apples we picked? Well, Stacy wanted to make Apple Crisp while Jay wanted to make his Famous Apple Pie. Instead of having to pick one or the other, they each made their favorite and we had a little of each! Sooo tasty!
It was sad to leave on Monday morning, but we had more on the agenda! The 5th (and final, don't worry, there was an end) installment of our longest weekend update ever will be up soon!

Trapper & Ginger say Goodbye