Thursday, March 13, 2014

Whirlwind Trip and Home

1.  We do love road trips.  Last weekend, we drove to Arizona.  A trip to Phoenix from coastal California takes us from Santa Monica Mountains into metro Los Angeles, past the San Gabriel Mountains, through the Coachella Valley (Palm Springs) and then into the Arizona desert.  That's a whole lot of climate changes in one day.  We passed peaks with a little bit of snow still on them.


 We blew past the acres and acres of wind mill farms.  Then we whizzed into sand and cactus country.

One small bonus was the spring flowers blooming along the highway.  One doesn't usually connect flowers with desert, but even a tiny amount of rain will cause the desert flowers to bloom.



2.  The main reason we drove a total of fourteen hours on California and Arizona highways was to spend a couple of days with The New Boy.  His mama was busy being a bridesmaid in a wedding so we took charge of The New Boy's entertainment.  It turned out that we spent most of our time in parks, playing.  This was his request.  We also went for a swim.  At least, HE went for the swim.  We watched.  The water was NOT WARM.  Arizonans don't heat their pools in the winter or spring.  It was lovely to have that time making memories with him.  And his mama.

Here he is making his fierce face and posing with his favorite drink, Starbuck's ice water and the paper sword with which he defended his territory.


3.  Also, our oldest, Son #1 and his wife live in Phoenix so we shared many hours with them.  When you don't live near your family, you treasure every moment.

4.  The Professor and I are good road trip buddies.  He loves to drive.  And he's a good driver.  Usually, I sprawl sit in the passenger seat and read or knit.  Once in a while, we'll talk, but mostly, we're quiet.  I'm thankful we are congenial companions.

5.  I have begun meeting again with my artist friends group.  We are reading through the book A Million Little Ways by Emily P. Freeman.  I've barely begun reading, but I think it's going to be a favorite.

I'm keeping up with my Lent gratitude journal.  Three simple sentences each evening which sum up my thankful heart.  I'm thankful too for Susanne's faithfulness in leading us in Friday Fave Fives.

Deep breath.  It's Friday.  I'm ready for the weekend.  My plans are simple--just being home to do the usual weekend stuff.  I'm looking forward to it.  What are your plans?

11 comments:

Tracy said...

LOVELY views from your trip, Willow! And fun to see the New Boy--all grown up with his sword and everything. ;o) TJ & I are good road companions, like you & the Professor. TJ's good at the driving. I'm navigation control and yarn-tech while we're on the go... LOL! It's good for long trips when it's companionable. We celebrate our 14th wedding anniversary this weekend. :o) Happy Days ((HUGS))

Faith said...

Great list of faves...your grandson is so cute!! It must have been fun to hang out in the park with him! I can't wait to see spring flowers!!!! Hopefully in a couple more weeks our crocuses will start shooting through the mud. Dave and I are often quiet on road trips too unless we are singing along with our girls. Lol I planning a hike for Saturday and a farewell lunch with our oldest gal as Sunday she goes back to college. Enjoy your weekend!!

Anonymous said...

Your road trips sound exactly like ours! I am so thankful that J enjoys driving so I can enjoy my reading and knitting. Sounds like NB had lots of fun this weekend. Your pictures of the flowers make me long for spring. We still have lots of snow on the ground. (That is unusual, I am happy to say.) Mary P

Mia said...

So glad you got to spend the weekend with the New Boy! Hope you gave him extra snuggles for us!

That book sounds interesting, I'll read it when I get a chance. :o)

Mmmm... road trips with you are so much fun... :o)

ellen b. said...

Glad you could make the drive and spend time with New Boy and your kids. 4 birds with one trip...excellent. We are headed to Dan's for the weekend!

Laura@OutnumberedMom said...

"Congenial companions" -- I like that. I think that describes us, too. Nice. I love the idea of desert flowers -- in the midst of the desert, those little patches of color and beauty? Love that. Sound like you had a wonderful time. Hope the week ahead is a good one for you, too.

Jerralea said...

As you know, I enjoy a road trip very much. I'm blessed with a hubby who is a good traveling companion. He is always willing to stop for bathroom breaks and sweet tea runs through the drive-thru. What more could I ask?

Glad you got to spend quality time with your people!

Barbara H. said...

My husband and I are much the same way traveling. He prefers to drive, I prefer to read. :-) It's nice to be comfortably together even when we're both quiet.

That is a lot of different scenery in a short time! I know what you mean about family togetherness. When my oldest is here (the only one who lives away. so far), we treasure the time. One of these days I hope to go see him.

I have that book by Freeman - still on my shelf for now, but I hope to get to it this year after getting through some of the reading challenges I signed up for.

Susanne said...

Wow, 14 hours is one hefty road trip. But so worth it to spend time with that cute boy! I love how you and your hubby don't have to talk all the time and still enjoy each other's company.

Deb J. in Utah said...

Those scenes from the California desert look very familiar. We lived in So Cal for a number of years and made the drive here in Phoenix fairly often to visit friends. Glad you had a good time with family. Time with family is golden...usually ;-) Sounds like a fun road trip! I also love the idea of a Lentin gratitude journal. Have a lovely week!

nikkipolani said...

I took that deep breath, too, Willow. It's good to have a tiny break in the activities. Such a congenial visit all around -- companionable (and productive knitting, too!) drive out to be with your dear ones.