fun in the sun

it's A little overwhelming to re-start blogging. a LOT has happened, and i really don't know where to begin. should i do an intro OF our family all over again? nah. i've decided i'll just begin by blogging about what's still fresh in my mind because it happened not that long ago: our AWESOME FUN trip to arizona!

i visit ARIZONA on a pretty regular basis, SIMPLY because we have family there. it's also a lot of fun to visit so many friends every time we go, and seeing so many great people IS THE BEST! but i usually say that visiting family doesn't constitute as a vacation (i'm dang right about that, i know). fortunately this time we were able to visit family and feel like we were on vacation. the little secret? we didn't stay with family. :)

the first thing on the agenda was to VISIT mt.graham county, and go through THE openhouse they were holding for their new TEMPLE. it was really neat to be there for it, especially since i have a little history IN gila valley. i really love that small town, and the people there. SAFFORD has a special place in my heart, so it was truly great to be there, see the new temple, and visit with friends.

then it was just back to mesa, to hang out with MY family some more. it was my BROTHER'S GRADUATION, so we had LOTS to celebrate! it was so awesome to be there and see him walk with his class... i was very proud OF him! we had our own family CELEBRATION, which included an all siblings night out - it was a riot!

the entire time we were there i couldn't believe how WARM the WEATHER was! it was such a great break from the nasty cold we'd been enduring in salt lake! it was PERFECT FOR SWIMMING, so needless to say, THE KIDS LOVED IT!!! the place we stayed had a pool; "lazy summers" was out motto, and that's exactly all we did: went swimming all day, and LAYING OUT in the sun. life couldn't be better.

we also had a lemon tree in the backyard, so the kids got busy PICKING LEMONS, while later i got busy turning that into lemon bars. i didn't worry much about cooking, especially when kids think you're the best for ORDERING PIZZA for dinner. :) i loved not having a strict schedule during those weeks, we just spent time ENJOYING BEING TOGETHER.