Trip to Arizona

I had the opportunity to go home last week for a visit. I had so much fun and didn't realize how much I had missed the sun until I stepped off the plane. It was 65 degrees and not a cloud in the sky! Being there in the warm sun made me really home sick. My mom picked me up from the airport, but before we drove the 2 1/2 hour drive home, I needed to pick up some diapers and baby food for Araya. Being in a different walmart we had to look at all the clearance items available. I got a couple of dressed for Araya and a few sweatshirts for her next year. I also found light down jackets for 3 dollars. I bought a bright blue one for me and we found a dark brown one for my sister Tici (she live in flagstaff and they currently have 3 feet of snow). We made the drive home and Araya was entertaining herself the entire way,

but 15 mins away from my parents house she decided she had been in her car seat long enough and screamed for the last of the drive. After we arrived she was very excited to be out of her car seat. I hung out for a while with my family then went to bed, it had been a very long day. The next day, Friday, David's boys Riley, Tanner had the day off from school and Gavin was done with preschool at noon. I called up Emily to see if they could come over and hang out for a while so I could see them while I was down. I went and picked them up, then we came back to my parents house. It was so good to see them, we got a couple pictures of them with Araya.

Next we went over to see my Aunt Naoma and Grandma Anderson. I try to visit her every chance I get, you never know which visit will be the last.

As I was leaving for Benson the next day my Grandma Jean pulled up so we hung out with her for a little while.
On my way to Benson I had to stop and visit Shane and Patina!! They are so fun and we miss hanging out with them so much. I even go to see all her kids, and boy are they growing like weeds! I also stopped to see Trent and Sarah and little Houston. I hadn't seen him yet so was excited for Araya to meet her new cousin. He looks like he is going to be very tall!! Trent had to go to work so I stayed and chatted with Sarah for a little while. I knew Char and Mike would be very excited to see us so we headed on to Benson.

Araya love playing with Papa and was fascinated with his mustache. I think he had a lot of fun playing with her too! In between feeding us all and making sure that we had everything we needed, Nana snuck in some quality time with Araya. Roxanne and her family came down to see us too. Uncle James and a couple of his friends were there pig hunting, and I was very tempted to go out with them. Pig hunting is so much fun. Will also came over and hung out for a little while. We had a house full and had tons of fun seeing everyone.

Araya also had a couple of firsts while we were over at Nana's. She had her first rice crispy treat that she devoured with in a couple of minutes. She also learned how to pull her legs up under her and even took one step with her hand before falling down. I am sure she will be crawling soon.

After I left Benson I went back to my parents house and when we woke up the next day there was snow outside. Yep that is snow on the truck. I couldn't believe it!! I was down here to bask in the sun and we had snow. James got a call from Will in Benson and he said that they had 4 inches over there. I am glad I left when I did. This is a picture of Araya with Budro my Great Dane that my parents adopted from me. I moved to Utah and couldn't take him with me so they took care of him for me. Araya watched him and played with him, then when he would like her she would get all excited and try to grab his tongue.

this is picture with Brandon and and Derek. They played with Araya a lot and kept her entertained while I took a break.

It was Tuesday and I still hadn't seen David or Tiffany, or Kay and Bev. I was going to go back to Mesa on Wednesday morning, but had a feeling I needed to leave Tuesday night. So after Brandon got out of school we drove to Mesa. I felt so bad because I didn't get to say goodbye to my dad, and I am sure he was a little sad that we were gone when I got home. But as I got to Mesa David called and said that Tuesday would be the only night I would be able to see him, he had things to do Wednesday and I was going to be over at James and Kay's. I am really glad I came up when I did so that I got to see David. He stayed for a couple of hours at Tiffany's house then left about 10:00pm.

On Wednesday I went to James and Kay's to hag out with them and Newell and Bev. It was a lot of fun and so good to see all of them. Bev made the cutest wall hanging for me and gave Araya a furry bear that she played with a lot on the plane. Thanks Bev it was a life saver. On the flight home I sat next to a 20 year old boy who reminded me so much of my brother Derek. He was a trooper and played with Araya. Although I am sure he felt a little awkward as I tried to feed Araya on the plane. That was a challenge, I was so worried that Araya was going to get mad and pull her blanket off and expose me. Luckily she never succeeded and we landed with out any major mishaps. I was the last one off the plane, and what did I find to my surprise. MORE SNOW!!! yep it was snowing and it is supposed to snow for the next 6 days. Oh well at least I got a little sunshine before I got home!