Heading to Phoenix (Wednesday, June 28th and Thursday, June 29th, 2017)

We really wanted to see the girls over the 4th of July holiday, so our first thought was to head to Colorado for a long weekend.  But as we thought more about it, we thought that it might be fun for the girls to come see us instead.

Since there isn't a commercial airport in Lake Havasu City, it gets a little interesting when people want to come for a short stay.  They can fly into Las Vegas, rent a car and make the 2 1/2 hour drive, or if we need to pick them up, we have to make the 2 1/2 hour drive each was to pick them up and again to drop them back off.  That can get to be a lot of driving for a weekend.

So we decided it would make things a whole lot easier if we drove to Phoenix and stayed at my parents house for a few days.  Then the girls could fly into Sky Harbor which is only about 1/2 an hour from my parents house.

This time of year, when the weather really heats up, dust devils form everywhere.  They are like mini tornadoes, but they really aren't destructive.  They might bend up an awning or easy-up, but other than that, you don't hear of any damage from them.  But I think they are still interesting to watch.  Sometimes they only last for a minute or two, and other times they can really get going.  We saw a lot of them on our trip to Phoenix.

Once we arrived in Phoenix, we took our time getting the house set up.  We typically take all of our own sheets, bath towels, wash clothes, dish rags and dish towels.  That way we don't have to worry about washing my parents before we leave.  We just pack ours up with us and wash it all when we get back home.  It's so much easier.  We switch out my parents sheets for ours, and then just switch them back before we leave.

Once we were settled in, we took some time to enjoy big city life. There isn't a lot of shopping in Lake Havasu City, since it is a fairly small town, so we have to take advantage of outlet stores and Costco when we have the chance.  We each got a new pair of tennis shoes for our work outs (we were way past due), and a few pieces of new clothing at the Tanger outlet mall in Glendale.  

Then off to a produce market that one of the gentlemen in Leisure World told us about.  It called the Superstition Ranch Market.  They have everything, and some of it is very well priced.  Other stuff wasn't a deal at all.  The one thing he told us was not to buy more than we could eat in a few days, because it usually doesn't last very well.

The selection was amazing!  We didn't buy anything, but it was fun to check it out and see what they had.

Our final outing of the day was to look at some model homes that are in the Phoenix area.  We love to look at the outdoor spaces, and just see what is available.  One of the things that drives us crazy about most of the newer communities is that the developers take out bonds to pay for the infrastructure of neighborhood.  It is then paid back by an extra tax imposed on the home owners in that neighborhood.  It makes the taxes in these neighborhoods much higher than it should be.

But we did find a few really nice outdoor spaces.  We better start saving.  These would be really fun to have.

Behind the door is a bathroom for the pool.  What a great outdoor area!

Now back to the homestead to get ready for our girls to come.  We are so excited!

Ninety Years of Cabin Time (Sunday, July 17th, 2016)

Steve's family has been fortunate, in that they have a cabin in the mountains that has been part of their family for four generations.  A journal has been kept throughout the years by whoever is at the cabin at any given time.  For years, Steve's grandparents kept the journal, and now Steve's dad has taken it on, recording the events for any time that they are up there.

This year marks the 90 year anniversary of his family's time in Red Feather, which makes for a special occasion.  Steve's dad grew up going to the cabin, as did Steve and his brother, and our girls have grown up going to the cabin in the summer, and enjoy any time that they can get up there.  This summer has been no exception. Everyone has found a little bit of time to enjoy.

While we were moving our oldest daughter and her husband into their new house, our youngest daughter and her boyfriend took advantage of a beautiful weekend to run up to the cabin and spend some time with Steve's parents.  They got to enjoy the annual 4th of July parade, and our daughter supervised the youngest family members who got to ride on the family float.  

After the parade was over, our daughter's boyfriend got to try his hand at fly fishing in one of the nearby lakes.  It's a miracle they found waders to fit him, because he's not a short guy.

This was his first time fly fishing, and the fish weren't really biting, so he came out empty handed, but from what we heard, he learned a lot and had a great time.

Steve's dad showing him the basics

Giving it a try on his own

A few weekends later, our oldest daughter and her husband had a chance to make it to the cabin as well.  Our son (in-law) has done some fly fishing before, so he had the technique down a bit.

Steve's dad watching our son (in-law) from the shore

He caught several nice trout

This past weekend, Steve and I had a chance to visit his parents at the cabin as well.  We didn't so any fishing, but we really enjoyed the small wildlife that was running around the front yard.

This little guy found a pack of sunflower seeds that were sitting on the window sill, and decided to help himself.

We found this thing hanging on a tree in the forest behind the cabin. We looked through all of the fungus and insect books to try and figure out what it is, but we still don't know for sure.  We think it is some variety of a puffball.

We just love the peacefulness that we always find at the cabin.  It's the perfect place to just get away from everything.

The columbine are almost done for the season, but I managed to still find a few pretty ones

Our youngest daughter's tree that she planted from a test tube a few years ago

A doe and fawn even walked through the woods behind the cabin, but they were hard to get a picture of

On Tuesday morning before we left, we decided to visit the Fox Acres Golf Resort for lunch.  It was built 30 years ago, and used to be a members only resort, but in the last few years they have opened the golf course and the restaurants to the public.  

The resort entrance

The clubhouse where the grill and restaurant are located

We ate lunch on the patio overlooking the statue of the golfer

Fox acres got it's name from the fox house that was used to raise fox's for their pelts many years ago.  It is still standing today, but of course, it's no longer in use.

The fox house as it stands today

After lunch we took a quick drive through the resort before heading back to the cabin to pack up our stuff.

This part of Fox Acres overlooks Lake Latisha, which is part of Red Feather Lakes

It was fun for all of us to have a chance to enjoy Red Feather on it's 90th year of being part of Steve's family.  We hope that it remains in the family for at least another 90 years!