A Week in Arizona

There are few places in the US that I love more than the Sonoran Desert. I love the random wildlife (burros, anyone? Yes, please, at Lake Pleasant Park), the beautiful Saguaro cacti that cover the Phoenix valley, the various colors of the sunsets, sunrises, and desert landscape. I love the sun, and yes, I love the heat, especially in January.

Kyle and I were in charge of Emily's little ones for 5 days. The great news is: WE ALL SURVIVED! The bad news is: We lost one glass to the antics of the puppy and got two skinned palms on an outing (poor Jackson!). The girls seemed no worse for the wear, thankfully. (I must admit, I wasn't fully prepared for the drama that accompanies sisters, ages 9 and 6.5. I had forgotten my own childhood years of pestering and playing.)

We are terrible picture takers. And thus, we failed to document our time with these precious kids. What we did snap were mostly of Jackson. I hope the girls will forgive me. :o)

Here we have a man hard at work, tinkering away on his car and a Corvette, no less. I love the concentration and I think he looks so grown up here.

He's super ornery, but look at this face! 

You can't help but LOVE it!

Such a sweet puppy, this Max is.

So sweet, he left us this ribbon in the shape of a heart one afternoon.

Thanks, buddy!

I cannot lie--being a primary caretaker was exhausting, but definitely had its rewarding moments. It also gave me a new appreciation for my sister's amazing skills of parenting, organizing, creativity and being awesome, in general. Very few can do as well as she has done. At the end of the day, I had only had enough energy to crawl into bed. No movies, no TV, no relaxing. Just bed. And sleep. Perhaps it's good that most people don't start parenting immediately with three kids. Just another thing to be thankful for!