Tuesday, March 8 - Coming Home

Becca says goodbye to her froggy roommate

Hanging out by the pool

4 generations of Matthews

Lunch at the airport

We had a fairly relaxing last morning. We did some packing, and the girls played outside in the rocks some more. The girls and I went for a walk with Mom and Dad and we took lots of pictures of the 4 generations together.

We left for the airport around 11am. Mom and Dad came with us to help with the return of the rental car and it all went smoothly. We checked our bags, cleared security and then enjoyed a leisurely lunch.

Our flight home was as uneventful as the flight there. The girls both sat perfectly and enjoyed their snacks and watched TV. We arrived in Calgary around 5:20pm. Getting our bags was hassle free and it was so convenient that we had left the car at the airport parkade. It was much cooler in Calgary but we were happy to be home and girls went right to sleep in their own beds.

What a great trip! We hope to do it again, and next time see more sights!

Monday, March 7 - Last full day in Scottsdale

In the backyard

Grampy teaching Bella to float

On a walk around the neighbourhood

Dean loves all the cacti

Bella underwater

This morning we got up and Dean did his workout like always and I headed out by myself for a few minutes to pick us each up a Starbucks. Then I left Bella, Becca and Dean behind with Dad and Papa so that Nanny, Mom and I could hit the mall. I really wanted to get some new Crocs. We took the 'scenic' route to get there and saw lots of great sights. We arrived at the mall around 10:45, hit the Crocs store where Mom got 1 pair, Nanny got 2 and I got 3 pairs! I'm not a big shopper and I wanted to get back to the rest of the family so we left right after that. W have good malls in Calgary so I didn't want to waste time inside.

Dean, Bella and Becca and I went out for lunch where we decided to try 'Whataburger'. We had never heard of it but it is definitely a chain burger place. We were impressed with how different it was than a burger place in Canada. When we ordered they gave us a table card and we put it on our table and they brought our food out to us when it was ready. then they kept walking around and offering to get us drink refills or take our garbage. Plus the burgers were good too!

After lunch we just hung out at the house, played in the pool even though it was very windy and went for a walk. For dinner we had a nice pork tenderloin roast and just sat around chatting in the evening. I taught Dad how to sync his iPhone and put music on it from his computer, which was good for him, but maybe not so good for the rest of us! We did a bit of packing before bed and settled in early.

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Jackie and Bella enjoy an early morning swim

Becca poses by some local flora

Nanny and Papa in the back yard enjoying some sun

Dean and Bella enjoy the pool

Ready to go out to dinner

This morning we were treated to a breakfast of bacon and pancakes prepared by my Dad. Another treat was that Jackie took Bella swimming in the pool so that I could get ready for church. Dean and Becca stayed home, but Bella, Dad, Papa and Nanny and I all went out to a local Catholic Church called St. Bernard's. It was beautiful and full of marble and you could tell there was a lot of money there - but very nice. We were all proud of Bella going off by herself to the Children's Liturgy and after Mass I even got two comments from people who felt the need to let me know how impressed they were with Bella's behaviour - we were very proud. Meanwhile, Dean and Becca enjoyed a nice a walk around the neighbourhood.

For lunch we had a nice barbeque of hotdogs and hamburgers. We said goodbye to Jackie as she had to leave for her flight at 2:30, and Becca and I had a nap while Dean and Bella played in the pool. We fed the girls a few more hotdogs and then gave them a bath and put them to bed (after watching the movie 'Aladdin'). Dean and I were lucky enough to have the rest of the night to ourselves while Mom and Dad watched over the girls while they slept.

We had made reservations at a restaurant called Zinc Bistro and it was fabulous. We loved it! It was a French restaurant and lived up to our expectations. The food and service was great. We had Ahi Tuna tartare, oysters on the half shell, filet mignon, duck, creme brulee and chocolate souffle. Very Yummy! By the time we were finished we were full and exhausted, so it was straight home to bed!

Saturday, March 5, 2011

An early morning swim

Bella and Grammie

Dad enjoys a beer in the hot tub

Dad barbeques up some steak and potatoes

Bella's makeshift bed on our floor.

Today was another great day. When we first got up we saw a bunny hopping around the yard and that thrilled the girls. Bella and I spent the early part of the morning in the pool and even Becca came in for a bit. We got out and got dressed and then Bella headed out to the Home and Garden Show with Mom, Dad, Nanny and Papa.

Becca, Jackie, Dean and I headed out to get some groceries and find some sushi for lunch. Groceries were easy. We shopped at a store called Fry's which Dad had suggested and we even picked up some interesting flavours of Girl Scout Cookies at a stand out front. (Different from what we get in Canada). Sushi was more challenging to find as the first two places we stopped at were only open in the evening. Finally, thanks to driving around and Jackie's iPhone app 'yelp' we were able to find a great one where we could get take out. We got a huge feast and enjoyed it back at the house.

We spent the afternoon playing by the pool and Dean was able to get in a nap. We even watched 'The Goonies'. We fed the little girls early so the adults could have a nice relaxing evening. For dinner Dean and I treated and we had some nice beef tenderloin along with some salads and fixin's. We all enjoyed each other's company before heading to bed at a reasonable hour.

Friday, March 4 - Exploring Scottsdale

Dean chatting to work on the Phone while we wait in the car...
Palm trees and Starbucks - Dean is in Heaven!

The pool in the backyard

This morning Bella didn't sleep in as we had hoped and she was up by 7am! Fortunately she found her Grammie and Grampy already up so she went to see them. The pool in the back yard was nicely heated to a nice 31 degrees Celcius so the three of them went for a nice long swim. Dean and I got up and got Becca and we all had breakfast. Bella picked some oranges off of the orange tree and helped make some freshly squeezed orange juice.

We all got dressed and the 4 of us went out for a drive to explore. We found a drug store (Walgreens) to pick up some stuff we needed. Then we found a Starbucks for Dean. The rest of the morning we drove around seeing the area. We went to find the restaurant we want to go to Sunday night and it was in a great area called Kierland Commons. It was a lovely area with lots of high end shops. Dean and I went into Guess where he got a shirt and I got a sweater. We made our reservation at Zinc Bistro and walked around the area for a bit before driving back to the house. We brought home Subway for everyone and ate lunch outside on the lanai.

We put Becca down for a nap and then enjoyed time in the pool and sun. We had to wake Becca up at 4:15 so that she would sleep at night. Nanny and Papa made us a lovely dinner of roast chicken with mashed potatoes and all the extras. Yum! the girls went easily to bed at 7pm after their busy day. Mom and Dad went to the airport to pick up Jackie while Dean, myself, Nanny and Papa enjoyed some wine poolside. When Jackie arrived the girls were sound alseep so the 'older' girls (Mom, myself and Jackie) had an evening dip in the pool and reminisced about our recent cruise in January. Tonight we were in bed by 10pm and ready for another hot and sunny day!

Arriving in Phoenix

Becca Enjoying TV, pringles and chips

Bella having snacks while Dean works

Getting on the plane was hassle free. We arrived at the airport, checked in, cleared customs, cleared security, and then it was time to board. The girls were perfect on the plane! I couldn't believe it. They both sat perfectly on the plane and watched TV and ate their snacks. Two different sets of people commented on how well behaved our girls were. However that might have been because in the row next to us there were twin babies who cried the whole time.

We arrived in Phoenix, got our luggage and then had an adventure to take a shuttle bus about 10 km to the rental car counter. We got upgraded (I love when that happens!) to a Hyundai Sonata. Only a couple of wrong turns due to my lack of paying attention and then we arrived in Scottsdale at the house my parents are renting from Jackie's inlaws. It was after 10pm (same time zone) so we put the girls to bed - said hi to my parents and grandparents and went to bed.

Off to Scottsdale, Arizona!

So happy to leave this cold behind (currently a balmy -14 degrees Celcius). We arrive in Scottsdale tonight to spend a few days with my Mom, Dad, Dad's Parents and my sister Jackie.

Can't wait!