How we spent our July

I am not very good at this blog thing anymore- partly because I don't feel like there has been anything too exciting going on in our lives lately. We did have a busy, fun July so I thought I would share about it.
It started out with us going with a bunch of our friends to a firework show they had at a nearby park. We took pizza and treats and hung out at the park and watched the firework show. It was a lot of fun!

Lisa, Me, and Shan- Grateful for the friends we've made here!

A few days later we headed out to Utah for the Fourth of July! We were so excited to go home for a few days. We hadn't been home since January and I was very much looking forward to going home and seeing my family and friends.

We spent the 4th of July at my parents house with my family, and Chase's brothers came up for lunch and a day of swimming. The boys spend a majority of the time attempting this little talent- glad I got the good one on video!

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That night we had a BBQ with my family and went to the Sandy fireworks

My nieces had changed so much in the last 7 months we were amazed. Abbey seemed so grown up! We spend a lot of time playing with them and this involved blowing bubbles, trying out the hula hoop, and swimming.





It was so nice to just spend time with family. We did a lot while we were there but also had a lot of time to just relax and hang out- spent a good chunk of each day at the pool as well.  

Love her.

I gave Abbey some swim lessons

Brave enough to go under the water

Had a water fight on a daily basis...

Chase and Avery

I was so happy to finally meet my friends baby as well!

We were so grateful to be able to see so many people while we were there. Thanks to everyone who went out of there way to come see us.



6 month catch up!

Wow, I have really gotten behind on keeping this up to date! Life here in Phoenix has been busy!

WARNING! This will be a long post- with long overdue pictures.

Lets go back to August- after we got here Chase started school and I got a job at Bright Horizons. We managed to endure a few months of the hot, hot summers here, and then began to realize just how much we would come to love the weather here. Once it dropped from the 120's to the 90's I was in love!

Now, here is a quick recap of what has been going on with us...

Thanksgiving came and we were so excited to go back to Utah for it- Chase's family went to Utah as well and it was great to be able to see both sides of the family in the same place (makes it easy for us!)

After Thanksgiving we flew back to Phoenix for about 4 weeks and then headed to California for Christmas. What a change it was to not be with my family this year, but it was great to spend it with Chases family and see all of their Christmas traditions. I also can't complain about the fact that we were able to go to beach in December... it was a tad chilly, but hey it's the beach!

After a few days in California we flew to Utah to do a second Christmas with my family. While I was there Melissa and I threw a baby shower for my friend Desi! Chase and I enjoyed seeing both families for the holidays this year.

Sadly, we flew back and the following evening my Grandpa passed away.

We booked more plane tickets and 2 days later we were back in Utah to be with my family and be a part of the funeral. Then it was back to AZ. Five flights in 2 weeks... I don't recommend!

Once we were back in Phoenix Chase had a ridiculously long winter break(almost 8 weeks) and I was back to work. At the end of January Chase started his second semester of law school and I thought things were just going to get easier... everyone always told us the first year is the hardest! When he started I was all worried it was going to be horrible- turned out it really wasn't that bad. Of course he was busy but I still saw him! Then the second semester started... and oh man! I understand now! May can't come soon enough!! He is so busy this semester- by far way harder! For about 3 weeks I saw him for maybe an hour a day. This last week he was on Spring break- of course he still had unreal amount of work to do but I have been able to spend a lot more time with him., that all changes tomorrow when he goes back to school- but, just a few more months and he will be done for the summer!

Also, last week my family (minus my brother-in-law) came to visit us! It was wonderful! We had a full house, but we loved having them here! The weather was great, and we were able to take them to do all kinds of fun stuff! We went to this great park called Fountain Hills. It is s frisbee golf course/lake/park and its beautiful! We took lunch up there and spent most of the afternoon there.

                                        Abbey followed Chase around the whole time he played

                                             My mom even took a try at the frisbee golf

Cute Avery- 6 months old

Giant golf ball at the PGA store we stopped at

We went to a spring training game, Rangers vs Indians. Also, wonderful.

 After the game we went to my aunt and uncles house and they let Abbey pick fruit off their trees

                                            And had to peel and taste all the fruit right away

Now, we are back to our regular life... Work and school- but we can't complain. Things have been going great here and we are loving living here in Phoenix.

 

Settling into life in Phoenix

Chase and I have officially moved to Phoenix and are settling in. Life here has been a lot different for us then it was in Logan, it is nothing like the small little town we were used to. Chase is in his second week of law school and is liking it all so far. He is busy all the time and reads pretty much non stop. I am so proud of all of his hard work so far! I know he is going to do great in school!
I thought I would give you a glimpse of what life is like here- for any of you who have moved away from everything you've known your whole life you might understand the shock I was in when I started finding these little things out about Phoenix...
First... It's hotter than hot here!! It's not unusual around here that even when the suns gone down it's still 110 degrees out.
Want to take a shower, brush your teeth, or rinse your face in cold water? Can't. Cold water really doesn't exist here.
You are crazy if you go anywhere without water here. I drink more water here then i ever have! Also, don't bother with ice, it melts before you can even walk to your car.
It is pitch black by 7:30 every night.
There are NO mountians- I never know what direction I am going. Thank goodness for the compass on my phone.
Everyone here owns a GPS. You need it. Even if you have lived here for years.
Everything is spread out- you always have to take a freeway.
Don't bother to ask anyone how long it takes to get somewhere... they will always say 20 minutes?
I have never sweated so much in my life. I typically have 2 outfits everyday.
We have gotten used to showering with the lights off, it is amazing how much hotter our house is with lights on.
Unless you want a $400 utility bill (no joke) you will get used to keeping your house around 78 degrees... when your home. When you're not- might as well turn it up to 85.
I have a new found love for ceiling fans.
The utility company will tell you not to use your washer/dryer/dishwasher M-F between 12-7 pm. They will charge you a fortune if you do.
Don't trust anyone. It's a big city- lots of crime.
There is a Petsmart (of all places) on every corner it seems.
The ground is so hot, people who have pets have them wear little booty things on their paws so they don't burn.
It rains more in Utah then it does here in the "monsoon" season.
Craziest drives around they live here! There is no such thing as a fast and slow lane. Every lane is fast, and apparently its polite to ride people as well.
I love snowcones and back in Utah I swear you wouldn't drive more than 2 miles without seeing a snowcone stand. Here... There is no such thing! Instead they have water shacks. You pull up and buy some bottled water.
The day I find a park that has grass I will shocked. Parks here are ugly, they are all dirt.
There is no good Mexican food. Big bummer.
However....
There are things I can easily get to used to here...
We got Arizona drivers licenses and I don't have to renew mine till 2053. I will be 65.
There are the most beautiful sunsets here!! They are different every night and I have loved finding new places to go take pictures.
Palm trees EVERYWHERE!
It is ALWAYS sunny!
Lots of nice shopping centers!
Plenty of things to do. Several stadiums, museums, waterparks, movie theaters, resturants, etc..
Places are open past 8 pm- everything in Logan cloesed early.

I hadn't even pulled out my camera until this weekend when we experienced our first dust storm. I guess they happen here all the time, but because of Chase's asthma It makes me very nervous. I have never seen anything like this dust storm before- Those are the only pictures I have for this post. Hopefully, I will have more next time.

                                         It looks like this everday from our porch-
                                       so when we saw this we were a bit shocked.