Summer Haps

As summer is drawing to a close, and thoughts of school and schedules start to creep in, it gives me reason to reflect. At the beginning of the summer I usually have all these great big plans and goals of things I want to do and places I want to see. I usually end up doing a few things on that list, but what summer comes down to are all those little adventures that were unplanned, unexpected. So here's to all those little moments that made the summer of 2013 all that it could be.

In no particular order...

There were evening bike rides. Some nights were actually bearable. By bearable I mean 90 degrees, but with a little cloud coverage it made for decent bike riding weather. 

How about those random rainy evenings. Summer means monsoons. Monsoons means rain. Rain means playing. Well for Roxy it means escaping through the fence, slippery little mink. But every rainy opportunity was seized and danced and played in.  

Let's not forget our creative paint sessions. Somedays we would whip out the box of paint, put the iPod on shuffle and have to draw whatever artist came on. It made for quite the hilarious masterpieces. Can you guess who's who? We even were brave enough to take a stab at mural art. Not to shabby, if I do say so.

Then there was the time I needed to give a speech but, I needed a podium, so I used Alberto.

And then that time where he became the sixth member of One Direction.

Or how about the time I sent my baby boyfriend Jason off on a mission.

And summer just wouldn't be summer without some good ol' frappuccino runs. Double chocolate chip is where it's at!!

Sometimes we would have a little too much time on our hands so we'd turn Alyssa into Mulan using craft paints. She brings honor to us all.

Thankfully, we discovered the magic of Kneader's! If you haven't been there, go. It's amazing. I mean, they have a whole glass case full of fancy desserts, including coconut cream pie. I can never say no to coconut cream pie. We stopped by there for breakfast one morning and come to find, we were apparently feeling very patriotic.

Then there was the time I went to Butterfly Wonderland. How could you NOT love a place called Butterfly Wonderland. It's this museum out in Scottsdale where you can see live butterflies emerging from cocoons AND walk through a garden full of them! Magical! One decided that it wanted to be my wings. So I sang it the song from Thumbelina. 

One night we were feeling especially hungry and the only thing that could satisfy was beignets, like the one's from Princess and the Frog. We fired up the deep fryer, turned on some Benny Goodman Pandora, and got beignet-in'. One of the best decisions we have ever made.

Summertime also means family time. It's always a treat when our cousins come down. I guess you know we're a little too close when we all accidentally coordinate for church. Hey, it happens. 

Let's talk about how I got to go to the Wildlife World Zoo, where all my dreams came true. Not only did I get to see hundreds of animals up close and personal, but I also got to pet a penguin! And an otter!! I repeat, I got to pet an otter! Just look at that face. You would have been crying too.

Of course, we made a trip or two down to Thatcher to enjoy some nicer weather and to be with family. The day we were there, the clouds were particularly amazing. Just another reason why Thatcher is the greatest. Those clouds, that sun, and those mountains. Doesn't get much better than that. 

This summer also brought the beginning of my new life as a nanny.  And I'll say, I'm really loving it. I've also learned that moms are amazing super woman and I've gained a whole new respect for them. Kids are messy. And mischievous. And hyper. And sticky. But they are also genuine. And loving. And adorable. And imaginative. And hilarious. I lucked out and get to be nanny to some of the cutest kids around. 

Then there was the weekend we drove up to Flagstaff for some much needed downtime. Tori's parents let us take the last few days of their timeshare, which we agreed to quickly. The weather was incredible, after being in the heat for so long. It rained every night and in the day it was the perfect temperature. We took a lot of naps, watched a lot of movies and spent the rest of the time down in the hot tub. Which speaking of hot tubs, the bathtub in our little condo was the size of one. I kid you not. Natalie and I may have put on our suits and hot tubbed in it one night. Maybe.

Since my grandparents recently moved out to Queen Creek, we decided one day that we were going to pay them a visit. It was the perfect day for a drive, nice and overcast. And it was a lovely afternoon eating ice cream and chatting with Grammie and Gramps. Karla even drew all of us on the car ride over to commemorate the splendid day.

And last, but certainly not least, there were all those Monday nights at Alyssa Dale's, where I became more and more obsessed with the Bachelorette. Yes, it's true. I am now a fan. Never having really watched before, and making fun of people who did, I can now say shamelessly that I enjoy that mushy, cheesy, set-up show. I particularly enjoyed Alyssa's commentary that she would write every night. On the night of the finale, we drank red and white wine (grape juice) and screamed when Juan Pablo became the next Bachelor. Which then sparked an idea in Jack which then made him come out in a full suit, kicking a soccer ball, screaming, "Look I'm Juan Pablo!!!" Also, Tori may or may not have nominated me to be on next season, which I am secretly okay with. 

And there you have it, the blissful, ever so random adventures of summer. More are sure to come.