Farewell Flagstaff!!

You know what's fun about camping somewhere cold?  The adorable pictures you can get of your cold kiddos trying to stay warm by snuggling with each other!

Toby and Olive have always been close and shown affection for each other but the freezing cold temps here have brought out their love for each other.  So cute.

I mean, seriously...

Yes, that is Toby's leg draped over Olive.

~~~

When we aren't busy staying warm and snuggling the nights away we are just your average campers.  We spend a lot of time staring out the window watching for squirrels. 

 Having lived in the desert for about 19.5 years I came into this whole camping thing not too familiar with squirrel behavior.  I can tell you a lot about desert-y type things like spiders, lizards, coyotes...but man-o-man.  Squirrels are CRAZY!!!  They do these like kamikaze type maneuvers off the trees.  They stand two feet in front of my dogs and just dare the dogs to chase them up an 300ft tall pine tree.  These little jerks have tormented us the entire time we've been here!!  Adios you brazen little fuckers!!!

~~~

This is how Olive spends her time most days.  Perched in her favorite teal bin staring at the all of the black birds that hang around all day and are the size of small ponies...  Probably grateful to have a window between herself and the bitch-ass squirrels.  ;)

~~~

So I have this silly (aka thoughtful and kind) friend down in Phoenix, Sarah.  Sarah rides horses daily.  Yes, daily (she's really good at it).  Anyway, she had a nasty fall off of one of the her horses around the same time as my car accident.  She went in for Surgery on Veterans day to repair her broken shoulder and by Wednesday morning was sending me bunches of cupcakes.  (I know cupcakes don't actually come in bunches - but just flow with it here..) Sara should have been spending her time recuperating instead of sending me goodies!

 

  I did share the cupcakes with some camping friends here in Flagstaff as well as with my family.  But I also made quick work of a couple all on my own (because I'm a champion). The one in the pics was a "drumstick" cupcake.  Vanilla cake with butter cream icing that had been dipped in fudge and topped with nuts.  I mean - get out of here with that stuff!! 

 I sent Sarah a get well card.  Sarah sent me cupcakes.  She's clearly a better person than I am.

~~~

 The snow arrived this past Thursday.  I learned pretty quickly that when you have snow you need to give up your dignity and cool factor and go everywhere with your pants rolled up like a dork.  Otherwise your pants will continually wick water in a northerly direction until you have a denim water line up to your knees.  At that point you're just cold as it gets.  In addition, the weight of your wet pant legs pulls your pants down until you look like Justin Beiber - all saggy butt(ed).  That's when you have to give up and change into a fresh pair of jeans.

I made a snow-doggy.  :)

Despite the look on Murphy's face here he was really enjoying his day in the snow.  At the moment that I snapped this photo he was busy eating snow and I was interrupting him by shoving a camera in his face.  Shortly after this pic the poor guy had his fun come to a screeching halt.  He had a rather large snowball develop under his paw and it was hooked onto the fur between his toes.  He started limping around and holding his paw in the air for help from his mom.  Murphy was retired to the warm car where his snowball could melt.

 ~~~

I'm moving to Phoenix in the morning and starting my new job on December 2nd.  I've finally enjoyed my unemployment for the first time thanks to my time in this campground and being close to my family. 

I had the pleasure of helping to babysit Finn when he had Croup and couldn't attend his daycare.  I was not his first choice of sitter because I don't have the right title (Mom) but we made the best of it.  This pic is Finn in his preferred mode of transport these days.  He's too cool for a stroller so he rides around in a push car instead.

I'll miss the pawprints in the snow after my kiddos have run amok around the pup-park.

 I'll miss hanging with the boys when I'm back behind a desk for 50 hours a week.

And I'm going to miss watching the utter and complete joy on Toby's face as he rolls around in the snow.

Life is fleeting for these sweet little fur-kids.  I'm grateful to have been blessed enough to be able to give them this time with me and these experiences.  Going back to the desert will be much less exciting for sure.  But we will be together as a family.  At the end of the day that's all these guys really want in life.  To be with me and with each other.  So, I'm sure we will be happy in Phoenix.  Just a different type of happy!

On the move!

Hello again!  Much to catch up on.  I've been so busy I haven't had a chance to bring you up to speed on my life.  I'm sorry about that and the major delay!   

 On October 25th I had two 20' x 8' steel storage containers delivered to my home so I could have somewhere secure to store all of my junk.  Because I will be between houses for a bit and Sedona is very trim when it comes to storage units - this was the next best thing.

Moving day for me and the fur-kids came on October 28th.  The movers came by in the morning and packed everything neatly into the containers.  These guys were awesome.  I think their business cards should say Movers/Magicians.  When all was said and done it was one hell of a jigsaw puzzle of household crap!

The plan was for my mom to drive her R.V. out that afternoon and we'd move in that same night.  Unfortunately her work kept her in Las Vegas until 7:30pm and I was left to camp out in the empty house until around midnight when it was finally time for us to  get on our way to our rondezvous spot up in Flagstaff (a.k.a. the Flagstaff KOA).  As you can see here, Toby had no objections to camping in our old home just a bit longer..

 

~~~

 Our new home sweet home!

That first night, Monday night, it was raining and windy and cold as hell.  The second night we got wonderful sleep - the wind had died down and it was quiet.  Wednesday morning we woke up to a tiny dusting of snow.  We may be camping, but this type of camping is the only way to go...."glamping"...haha!

~~~

And here's where my tale takes a bit of a dark and sinister turn.

On my way to Sedona on Wednesday to put some finishing touches on my old house I got into a pretty bad accident on the I-17.  I was traveling at 75mph on cruise control and made it as far as one lousy mile away from my exit to Sedona when a crazy woman stopped in the middle of the interstate right in front of me.  I slammed into her (which is obvious from the picture above).

 

 Right behind me was a Jeep Wrangler Rubicon (a HUGE off-road vehicle).  The driver was following me a little closely and wasn't able to avoid hitting me.  So she swerved as best she could and side swiped me from stern to tip.  It was such a weird and surreal thing.  The moment I hit the car in front of me I felt the impact at the rear of the car.  THANK GOD it wasn't a full rear-end hit because I would have been pancaked between the two cars and my sweet boys were asleep in the back of my car.  I don't like to even think about what could have happened to them if I had been rear-ended.  I'm so grateful that they are okay.  I, on the other hand earned myself a trip to the E.R.   Thankfully no broken bones.  Whiplash of course.  A whole bunch of bruises.  Sore all over.  And an painful right foot from slamming on the breaks that has not yet seen much healing happen.  In the mean time I get to wear a super fancy shoe which is awesome and helps me to be even more fashion-forward than usual.

~~~

Thursday afternoon I returned to Sedona for the last time.  I did my walk through on the house and bid the ol' hood a fond farewell.  I'll miss a few things but mostly I'm happy to be outta there!  I feel like my car accident was the universe's way of stopping me from returning to Sedona.  I plan to heed her warnings from here on out...

~~~

Since then I've been trying to enjoy myself and ignore the pain caused by the wreck.  Danielle brought Finn over to the campground to play in the playground.  He got a big kick out of the whirly-go-round.  It not only spun round but it also popped up and down as it turned.  He was quite pleased with it - and I suspect he was quite pleased with his ability to maintain an upright position with all of the crazy bouncing around!

 On Halloween I went to Tommy & Danielle's house to bestow my cosmetology skills upon them and their costumes.  They had a Wizard of Oz theme.  Danielle went dressed as Dorothy, Finn as the Scarecrow and Tommy went dressed as the Wicked Witch of the East.  I was in charge of face paint for the Witch and Scarecrow, wig management for the Witch and braids for Dorothy.  It was fun watching them get ready and to be a part of it.  This may be our last Halloween together for years so I tried to soak it all in.  :)

~~~

So, for now I sit and enjoy the view of the forest out of the windows of the RV.  I'm backed up to the national forest which is awesome - except at night when the dogs go out to pee and all three of them just 'freeze' and stare into the darkness fixated on something none of us can actually see.  I'm left wondering just how many mountain lions are staring back at us contemplating "what's for dinner".  

I did my laundry in the camp laundromat today.  That was exciting and new.  How cool to have like 12 washing machines and dryers all for my use.  I got three loads of laundry done in a little over an hour!  

I am otherwise finally relaxing now that the packing is done and the first half of the move is over.  I plan to just enjoy myself and this beautiful setting until it's time to move again!

Whew!

Today is Friday, thank god!  Since I'm not currently adhering to a standard Monday - Friday work schedule I'd never have bet money on on how thankful I'd be to have reached a Friday.  Especially this particular Friday.  Too much travel and stress the past eight days.  Hopefully the next travel I'll be doing will be relocating.

~~~ 

After returning home from my whirlwind trip to San Antonio I spent Saturday just hanging out and unwinding.  I went to the Camp Verde County Fair.  I ate some cotton candy, rode two rides and then fought the urge to puke for a few hours.  I guess the rides I enjoyed when I was younger are a bit tougher on my equilibrium now that I'm a wee bit older.  Just what I needed - another exciting perk of getting older.  

Sunday I drove up to Flagstaff to pick my future home (a.k.a RV spot) and went for a hike with the family.  It was a last ditch effort to enjoy the Aspen's as their leaves are turning the wonderful shades gold and amber.  By next week most of the Aspen trees will be bare until the spring.  

~

Here's where my week started to get a bit bumpy..

Monday morning I was innocently making my bed (which should be an effort that get's rewarded - not punished) and when I finished tucking sheets under the mattress I attempted to erect myself into an upright and standing position, my back said "OH HELL NO" !  It's been a couple of years since I've been in that much pain.  So, I spent the rest of my day utterly unproductive and alternating hot and cold therapies and dosing myself with Motrin.  Tuesday morning I was still walking hunched over like a gorilla so I called the doc and got a pack of steroids (above).  They suck because they make my blood pressure go up and keep me awake at night.  Woohoo!  Tuesday and Wednesday were a wash as well because I was on light duty until the pain subsided.  

(Side note: I did force myself to drive down to Scottsdale for a second interview which was pure agony but I made it work and kept a smile on my face for the interview which went really well!)

~

Thursday morning I left the house at 6am for the airport, San Jose bound.

I was blessed with easy flights and figured it was a good sign for the interviews I was heading into.  My back was feeling 80% better and I was in good spirits.  I had a layover in LAX and found some really fun treats!

 

There was this really cool chain restaurant called "Lemonade" and they [appropriately] had strawberry 'lemonade' cake!  I didn't get any but it looked awesome!

 

 

They also had these amazing french macarons in lemon, raspberry, caramel sea salt and pistachio.  They were HUGE!  Seriously - the size of the palm of my hand!

And of course I got one.  Caramel sea salt.  I'm not stupid!  I know a 'find' when I find one!

I also got the most amazing beverage I've ever had.  It was a guava lemonade.  Truly the best limeade or lemonade type beverage I have ever, ever, EVER had the pleasure of enjoying.  If you find yourself in LAX you really need to find this joint and grab a bev at the absolute least.  

But I recommend you get a bev and a macaron.  

I'm just sayin...you'll thank me.

 ~

Thursday night I met with the first of my nine interviewers and had a great time chatting with her.  After we wrapped up I headed out into downtown to find some dinner. 

Cool thing they had here was a "bike share".  For a small fee you can just grab a bike at your point of origin and drop it off at a different bike rack near your destination.  Kinda cool!

Totally not cool for this germophobe was the location of the hand towels and wash cloths in my hotel room.  Is there not enough room to the left of the throne and maybe up 12"?  I mean - seriously!  I had to ask the GSA for some fresh towels and set them on the bathroom vanity - far away from the toilet.  Genius move Mr. Hotel designer man...

Today, Friday - I did my remaining eight interviews.  They went really well and the team was very welcoming and kind.  I wrapped up early enough to enjoy the public transportation and hit the local mall to grab a few toiletries from Sephora before heading to the airport.  Back at the hotel I retrieved my luggage, hopped in a taxi and arrived at the airport.  I checked in, went through security and sat down to wait for my flight.  Not 30 seconds later I heard the chirp of my phone indicating I had received an email.  Delta was sending me a "Dear John" email.  My flight had been cancelled.  Shit.

~

So, presently I am sitting at the airport awaiting a flight I managed to book last minute on Southwest Airlines.  I had to purchase the dang flight for $330.00 and am hoping the company I interviewed with will reimburse at least the cost they are getting refunded for my Delta flight.  I had to retrieve my checked luggage, shuttle to a different terminal, check in with SWA and go through security again.  The only upside here is that I will arrive in Phoenix 90 minutes earlier than I would have arrived on my original flight.  Considering I have a two hour drive home from the airport, I'm grateful to be getting into Phoenix earlier than originally planned.

Well, okay.  That's not the only upside.  

I was afforded time to write about my trip on my lil blog.  :)

~

And so, I will leave you with this lovely image from my adventures here over the past two days.  While San Jose may not have exactly given me a big ol warm hug-o-welcome, they do hug their trees.

And that's just lovely!

Don't squat with yer spurs on.

Welcome back to my insanity!  I'll admit that I'm surprised by your return and willingness to read more of my drivel.  I appreciate your interest and your loyalty!  (Is it too early to call it loyalty?  Like using the "L" word in a two week old relationship?!  Perhaps I'll re-visit the subject of "loyalty" in few weeks...)

So, I imagine that you are curious about the "Don't mess with Texas" photo.  Well buckaroos, it is in honor of my trip this past week to San Antonio.  I was flown out for an interview marathon by a wonderful bunch of people at an amazing property in the hill country.  No decisions have been made by either party thus far - and it's a good thing.  

I'm still in hot pursuit of a few higher ranking positions elsewhere that will pay a bit more in the same ballpark that I've become used to playing in.  If ya catch my drift...

This is a gratuitous view of the San Antonio skyline at night.  I could get used to that view....and the southern hospitality!

Yeehaw!

I'm a bad blogger.

Father, please forgive me.  It has been a year and a half since my last confession...

er, uh - blog...and I suck for letting so much time pass, I know!

The picture above?  Oh, that's nothing.  Just the view from the driver's seat of my car when  driving home each day.  Rough life here in Sedona.  

Why the sudden urge to begin writing again?  Well, I was laid off from my job here in Sedona.  Coincidentally the lease is up on my house.  Since I don't want to sign a new lease and continue living here for another year, 

I'm moving on again.

I don't want to leave the past year as one big mystery though.  So I am going to share some pictures and provide a re-cap of the time I spent here in the lovely Sonoran Desert.

~~~~
Here we go!

The day I started work, July 9th 2012 my adorable and quirky nephew Finn was born.  He totally stole my thunder!  That day was supposed to be about me and my new gig.  Everyone was supposed to be waiting around to hear how my day went and how I liked my new job.  Instead, Finn came along and everyone was calling my brother and sister-in-law to see how Finn's first day was and how they liked being parents.  Thanks Finn..

From there it didn't take long for 'the boys', Olive and me to settle in.  Toby loves spending time outside on my red rock patio soaking up the sun.  

A favorite past-time on sunny days is watching out the windows for a lizard, then demanding that mom (me) let them out to chase it.  Toby (on the left) actually caught one once.  I think he surprised not only the lizard, but himself as well!  I made him spit it out, and the lizard ran away traumatized, but unharmed.
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 I went on a tour with the Pink Jeep company.  They have a fleet of open-air serious off-roading jeeps that are pink (yep).  The jeeps take you up and down steep hills and canyons and over the red rocks to see some sights that would take you hours to hike to on foot.  There may have been a small snafu on one of the stops on the tour..

But I obviously survived (thanks to my pal Doreen)!  

Otherwise I wouldn't be typing this blog!
 ~~~~

One of the perks of my job here was free hotel stays.  One of my "free-cations" this year took me and my mom to Portland, Oregon & Seattle, Washington for a week.  When you're on a budget, free hotels make great vacations possible.  This was no exception!  We practically ate our way through downtown Portland.  Shout out to Blue Star Donuts, The Original Dinerant and to Cool Moon Ice Cream!  Some of the best eats downtown!  

Thank goodness we were walking the whole time or we would have gained too much weight to fit into our own clothes!

~

  In Seattle we met up with our friend Melinda (she lives there) and she gave us the insider's tour.  We took a ferry to Bainbridge Island, hit up Pike Market and  contributed to the historic "Gum Wall"!  All in all it was a spectacular trip.

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Sedona  can be kind of quiet in the evenings.  So, I spent some time this past year honing my skills in the baking world.  My friends and family all know me as a great cook but an 'iffy' baker.  So, I set forth to tackle the impossible and learn to bake.  I made home-made bread; all kinds of cookies; perfected my banana nut bread; and other assorted treats.

After a while I decided that, while taste is important in baking, presentation is really the proof that you're getting good at it.  Sooo, behold my Fruit Pizza!

 Oh yeah baby.  I have arrived.  I'm a true triple threat now.  I'm a bread-winner, a phenomenal veggie chef and skilled baker.  

Thank you Sedona, for your endless boring nights.

~~~~

Another "free-cation" this year took me and my mom to Colorado!  What part?  

All over the place!  Our hotel was in Colorado Springs.

  But we white water rafted in Big Horn Sheep Canyon on the Arkansas River...

 

  Hit the historic arcade in Manitou Springs...

 (this is where I found out mom was a sharp-shooter!)

 

 

 Drove to the top of Pike's Peak (where I almost Pike's puked from the elevation change)

 

 

 

  and visited the amazing & inspiring Wild Animal Sanctuary NE of Denver. 

Funny things I learned while researching and/or visiting Colorado: 

#1) Marmot is not only a clothing company that makes wonderful outdoor gear, but is a cute a furry creature that lives in the mountains of Colorado (and perhaps elsewhere - I didn't google Marmots extensively...)

#2) Pikes Peak Tea - made in Colorado and named after Pikes Peak of all things...who knew?!  (honestly I didn't even know there was a peak in existence with the name Pikes Peak until I was planning my trip - ha!)

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Back on the home front I've been enjoying so many things here at 5,000ft above sea level..

The view from my backyard each day as I play with my dogs

The stunning beauty of the Sonoran desert - not just the red rocks, but the wildflowers

 and cactus blooms

Harvesting my own tomatoes and squash from local farms

Spending time with my dad during his many visits and watching him enjoy my little "Willegan" (William Finnegan), his grandson

Checking out the local landmarks like the meteor crater near Winslow, Arizona

 

Watching my brother and S.I.L build their graphic design business from the ground, up - and attending their very first "First Friday" open house in Flagstaff.

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All in all I've stayed pretty busy here.  Between a hectic work schedule, new friends, family, and exploring my new 'hood' you can see why I never took the time to blog!

Where am I headed in the future?

Who knows?!  Right now the path for my future looks a bit like the street sign in the picture from my trip to Portland posted above.  I'm kind of heading in all directions and no where at the same time.  I have interviews in several different cities and states over the next few weeks.  

I hope to have a concrete answer soon.  The suspense is killing me!

 ~~~~

What will I miss most about my home from the past 18 months?  So many things...

My friends...they took me in as if I was a part of their family.  Each and every person here in Sedona has really "been there" for me in ways that you only get in small towns like this one.

 I will miss the way my favorite foods taste after having gone months and months without them.  Sedona has very few food choices.  Some things I never knew I'd miss as much as I did.  Jimmy Johns is one of those things..

My nephew Finn.  Watching him grow and learn, and become hilarious and quirky has been so wonderful.  It has healed my soul in ways I never knew I needed healing.  He's an amazing  lil man and I'm so excited to see what the future has in store for him.

 

My niece Haley.  She has joined my little family each time her parents have gone on vacation.  I will miss watching her enjoy escaping the cold of Flagstaff and basking in the warmth of Sedona.  I will miss watching her be a "big dog" with 'the boys'.

 The many different sunsets from the rocking chair in my backyard.

The sunsets on the drive home from Flagstaff.

I will miss the way the mountains light up at night when the moon is full.  Sedona is a "dark city" which means we have little to no street lights.  The neighborhoods and streets are really dark at night here.  I remember the first time I woke up in the middle of the night and there was a full moon.  I thought a 'ghetto bird' was shining a light into my yard!  I carefully peered out the windows around the house trying to figure out where in the heck all this light was coming from.  Then I saw the full moon.  I mean, wow.  

 Sedona in the winter.  Breathtaking.

 

Finn.  I know I already said Finn, but I'm really going to miss him. 

~

And I suppose I will miss these guys too:

My brother Tommy and S.I.L. Danielle.  They have been instrumental in my life here in Arizona.  I will miss the family days.  Dinking around my house in Sedona for the afternoon; family shopping trips to Sams; cooking with my bro; checking out Flagstaff and Sedona together...so many things...so many days.  It will be hard not to see them so often.  I'll miss their hugs and the laughter we've shared.  I'll miss not having family nearby. *sniffle*

~~~~

Sadly, boxes are being packed.  The house is being closed down.  

This amazing chapter of my life is ending.

Life doesn't stop and wait.  So I am moving on.

This time I promise to keep you posted!