Misc. Arizona Pictures

    We were so lucky to get to spend a lot of time with my Grandma when we were down there.  It was so nice spending time and visiting with her.  She finally got to meet Gracie too.  She took us out to some wonderful restaurants.  Scottsdale just can't be beat in terms of wonderful restaurants to try.  We didn't even get to eat at all of our favorites.  There is just so much good food.  We really enjoyed all of our time with my Grandma and can't wait to see her again.
      My brother and I decided that we wanted to take advantage of the low elevation in Phoenix and run a race down there.  There were a few New Year's races to chose from, but we decided on one that was ran at Lifetime down there.  It was not a timed run so I don't know how I placed, but I did use my Garmin to track my time and I was very please with how I did.  My brother ran one of his best times ever.  I have decided that I really, really love running at lower elevations.  It is just so much easier to run fast.  I will definitely be planning another race down there for my next visit.
     Joey and I got Ashlyn a scooter for Christmas.  She has really been wanting one as a lot of her friends ride them to school.  We brought it to Arizona with us so she could try it out.  She was a pro immediately.  She is so stinking cute on that thing.  She is dying to ride it more, but has only been able to ride it once here since the weather has been so cold and snowy.
      My brother, Gracie, and I flew home on Friday night.  We all decided it would be best to only have her make that car trip once.  It also allowed Joey, my mom and the kids to drive straight through on the way back.  The encountered some snow close to home, but had a safe trip home.  Gracie did wonderful on the flight.  She slept the first 20 minutes or so then just sat up and played with her uncle and me.  It felt good to be home, but we all agreed the trip went by way too quickly.  
Here are some random picture from the rest of our trip.

Chair rides at Great Grandma's house

Weeeee

At the start line.  The weather was actually really cold for the race.  

The best part was that Joey was able to park right next to the start line so the kids could just watch from the warm car.  

There goes my brother

There I go.  

At the finish line

Coming in.  My brother ran and met me towards the end and he pushed me at the finish.  It helped me run way faster than I normally would have.  

Love the palm tree in the background.

Scooter adventures

Already a pro

Gracie 

I always take a picture of myself and the kids in front of this tree

The girls and I

Arizona fun

Taking a rest break at the mall

We celebrated New Year's by watching the New York countdown and playing a bunch of fun games with the kids.  Dawson didn't make it to midnight (or 10:00), but Ashlyn did.  We toasted with some sparkling apple cider that Ashlyn clearly loved. 

Phoenix Children's Museum

       The weather was so bad, that it even rained one day we were there.  As everyone knows, rain is rare in the desert!  We decided it would be the perfect day to head to the Children's Museum.  We just love this museum and go every year.  I was so excited to take Gracie with us.  We weren't the only ones who wanted to escape the rain at the museum.  It was absolutely packed with people.  Despite it being crowded we still had a great time.
    They have a huge area for kids 3 and under.  Its extremely baby friendly and I took Gracie there while the older kids went to different areas.  Even the areas for big kids had a small area set aside for babies.  I thought it was so well planned.  Gracie definitely enjoyed her first visit.  When we got in the car, she immediately fell asleep and took a really good nap. 
    The Phoenix children's museum is just awesome and I would highly recommend
it to any one. 

New things to explore

The kids always loves this contraption

Always silly

They have a huge grocery store which is always the favorite of all kids. 

Gracie playing with babies

She liked the clothes a lot

Crawling around

She was very fond of these balls

There are things to do around every corner

A rare rainy view of downtown Phoenix

Doing some shopping

Checking out

They had these awesome reading nooks that were new.  We took a break and read some books.  Even the books they had were all based on the desert.  So neat. 

Arizona Trip and Train Park

     A few days after Christmas, we made what has become our annual trip to Phoenix.  Joey, Dawson, Ashlyn, Gracie, my mom, and I all drove down there.  We were smart and decided to break up the drive into two parts.  We stopped halfway in Albuquerque.  It was a nice little break and the kids always love staying in hotels.  Some friends suggested some local restaurants to try in Albuquerque and we tried some authentic New Mexican food which was good and very spicy!
     We drove the rest of the way the next day.  Gracie did amazing in the car.  She only cried a few times and was quite the trooper.  When we arrived in Scottsdale, the first stop we made was to the train park.  The kids had been in the car for some time, so they were dying to run around.  They had such a great time.  The weather was warm and it felt so good to be in Scottsdale after 12 hours in the car. We finished the day with a lovely dinner with my Grandma.  Our vacation was off to a wonderful start! 

Playing in the old jail

Having a blast

Let me out!

The train models

Someone spotted dinosaurs. 

    My brother had to work so he flew down and joined us on Tuesday morning.  We picked him up from the airport and headed back to the train park.  The weather was supposed to really cool down so we wanted to get another visit before the weather got worse.  This time we all rode the train.  Graceyn seemed to really like it.  There is nothing like your first train ride.  The weather the rest of the week was pretty bad.  It was pretty cold.  I can't remember a time I've been there when its been that cold.  Unfortunately, because of the cold we didn't get to go to the train park again.  There is always next time!

Always smiling

Pretty girl

She loves the Ergo and is always happy to be in it. 

On the train ready to ride

The train ride

Ready to have fun with Uncle Steven

We always take a family picture at this spot.  It's fun to see how our little family has grown through the years.  Last year, Gracie was in my tummy. 

Christmas

   The kids were up bright and early on Christmas early so anxious to see what Santa had left them.  Ashlyn was the first one up like usual.  We managed to keep her upstairs until about 5:45.  She was so excited, that soon the rest of us made our way downstairs.  It has always been a tradition in our family that we start Christmas when it is still dark out.   The big guy was so good to all the kids this year.  They all must have been really good.  Dawson has been saying for months  and months that he wanted a Grimlock Transformer from Santa.  He was over the moon when he saw what Santa brought him.  He played with that thing all day long.  Gracie got a monkey that sings and dances along with a play set.  Ashlyn got the American Girl crib that she has been wanting to a very long time.  All the kids were very happy on Christmas morning!
     The kids opened their presents from Santa and we took a break for breakfast.  After we ate, it was back to opening gifts.  There is a total of 13 of us now, so it takes quite some time to get through all the gifts.  The kids wanted to play with their toys so badly that we even had them take a break.  We rested for a bit, and then started on our Christmas dinner.  We had turkey with all the trimmings.  My stomach was feeling much better so I was able to eat and I was glad!  After we ate, the kids finished opening their gifts.  They were so excited to play with their toys and wanted to get home to open everything and give it all a try!  When we got home it was like Christmas all over again unloading all the presents. 
    We had such a wonderful Christmas and could not have asked for a better holiday.  We all got some great gifts.  We are so very blessed and most of all we are so blessed to get to spend Christmas with so many people that we love.  That's what Christmas is truly about. 

Gracie checking out her monkey

Dawson's Grimlock toy

So happy

Ella checking out her Santa gift.

Look at all that loot!!!

Christmas morning cheer

Eating her special Christmas doughnut

Poor Gracie just got toast this year.

So many presents to unwrap. 

Daddy daughter time

So sweet!

Gracie decided to be so cliche and prefer the boxes to her toys. 

Checking out her crawling Minnie.

In her adorable Christmas outfit

Going for a ride

Our yummy Christmas dinner.  We were eating leftovers for days

Gracie loved her dinner

Uncle Bryan being silly as usual