Sitting Out of Saturday

Originally, Saturday in Arizona was slated to be the day to visit Tuscon and Kartchner Caverns.  However,  by Friday night, I was starting to strategize all the "Plan B's" that could take place as I was feeling the telltale signs of a headache that would just need to run its course, as pain meds weren't kicking it.  Fortunately, as I laid on the couch with the ice packs we had wisely purchased upon arrival (not just for keeping beverages cool!) - I really was not miserable.  Again, having a safe place to "wait it out" makes all the difference.  Just that evening, John had talked about wanting to hit the Arizona Mills Shopping Center, so I was hopeful he and the kids could spend Saturday doing that and we could postpone the cavern visit.  That's exactly what ended up happening.  I really spent most of the day napping and sleeping and was just fine to miss out on the retail therapy.

However, when John sent me this pic of he and the kids - I got a wee bit jealous.  Great choice for them to have lunch, right there at the shopping center.  Way to take one for the team, Honey!! 

By the time they arrived home later Saturday afternoon, I was starting to feel better.  Thank God.  I joined Brayden at the pool for a little chill time.  I was pretty confident that it was only going to be one day I'd have to miss afterall...

Big Surf and In-N-Out

 On Friday morning, it seemed like a good idea to start consuming those groceries we'd bought at Target.  Orange Rolls and Orange Julius seemed like a good way to start the day.

Today was "Brayden's Choice" as far as destinations - and it was all about "Big Surf Water Park" in Tempe.  

The claim to fame at this water park was the waves they would generate in this massive pool.  It was by no means "Typhoon Lagoon" (Walt Disneyworld), but it was impressive.

Soon after entering the park, the kids went their own way, and we hardly saw them for a couple of hours.  Between John's stomach still healing, and me being weary of my neck, we kept our rides to a minimum.  

After about three hours, the kids reappeared and we opted to get out of the sun.  I think I'm the only one who didn't get a wee bit burnt (though it was pretty minimum).  When the temps are hovering around 108 degrees, even the shade doesn't offer a lot of relief.

So, getting to this place - in the air conditioning with root beer floats - oh yeah, that HIT THE SPOT.  

In-n-Out is definitely a fave!  

Eventually, we made it back to Bobby Q's to snag my purse.  John ended up seeing Ashlynn again when he went in for me, and then walked out with these - something they give to customers (and we took some home Thursday night too) with their bill.  It's like Elephant Ears in soft doughnut form....Oh my, the deliciousness from that restaurant continues on!

 

Breakfast Catch-Ups, Outlet Shopping, and the Best BBQ (and Server!) in Phoenix

On Thursday, we woke up early to join a dear friend in downtown Scottsdale to have breakfast at "The Breakfast Club".  I had been researching all sorts of breakfast locales to consider - not so sure I made the right choice, but it worked out fine.  

The friend we met up with was Mary Sleasman.  She had seen our pics on Instagram and had messaged us to see if there would be an opportunity to get together.  We told her we were making plans only a day in advance, but this was our plan for Thursday and we would love to have her join us. 

She is such a sweetheart - we know her from 8 years ago when she did some nannying for the Meyers family, and consequently our family as we'd spend so much time with theirs during those "little kid" years.  She would also watch the entire gang of kids if we had a special outing in mind (like a birthday or something).  We adored her then, and adore her now - and are so proud of her achievements in her teaching profession.  She's on track for her second masters degree in teaching administration, and left just yesterday for a national conference involving the implementation of technology in the classroom - at which she's giving a presentation.  Super impressive!  It was a sweet time catching up on the details in her life and rejoicing over the ways God is specifically showing Himself to her.  

On the way back through Scottsdale, John and Brayden did a little ogling over these cars.  

I think that's the "Why can't I have one, Daddy?" face. 

From there, we headed to the the Outlets at Anthem.  It was a decent enough stop, but didn't have much more to offer than our own outlets in Woodburn.  Mikayla and I picked up some "twinning" items at Gap, but that was about it.

Off to the JW Marriott Pool again.  This time the water slide was fully working and the kids were thrilled that the lifeguard was very lackadaisical with following rules - so Brayden and Mikayla were able to go down together and wrestle the whole way down.  They spent a long time there.  We were also very glad the water slide was working - sometimes it's good to get a little space!

We ended up getting cleaned up again to go to another highly recommended BBQ restaurant.  I'd been researching all day to find something we'd all be happy with and hoped it was a good fit for us.  This time around, both kids wanted to work with the cameras and take pics on the way.

 

Bobby Q's was the selection made.

It certainly had "atmosphere" - though, its location in Phoenix was a little off the beaten path.  (Or maybe the path looked "too beaten" if you know what I mean)

We were first seated off to the side.  John is all about atmosphere in a restaurant, so I suspected he'd want to be in a booth in the center.  We waited a bit (feeling guilty for asking) for them to sort the servers out and then moved us.  However, John took this ethereal pic of Brayden before we moved.

I had told Brayden this place had Sasparilla - and I was wrong (it was one of the others I'd read reviews about) - so he gave me this look of disappointment. =(

I'm so glad we changed places, because it put us in the designation of "Ashlynn's" tables to serve.  And, she was AMAZING.  She gave us an overview of the restaurant, how they prepare their meat, what's best - etc...  We fell in love with her from the start.

We also fell in love with the food.  Corn bread, roasted corn, pulled pork, steak, shoestring fries, onion strings, bacon burger, rotisserie chicken.... OH MY GOODNESS!!  It was so, so good!   I'm pretty sure it was the best pulled pork I've ever had. 

Then, to top it all off, Ashlynn tells us she has another surprise for us and comes to our table with this-

A brownie, ice cream cake...  We had no room anywhere to stuff it (SOOO full!), but honored her with a few bites as she brought it by (with a lit candle) to celebrate our Arizona Family Vacation Adventure.  

We told Ashlynn that she was our "Steve" for this vacation (tracing back to the server named Steve we met in Rexburg, Idaho that we hit it off with so well last year).  We even got her Instagram name so we could tag her in our picture.  

Us Oregonians don't really understand this mist coming from pipes vs. the perpetual mist from cloud cover!

That's the sheepish grin of a girl who left her purse at the restaurant.  OOOPS!  At least I had my phone in hand - as I was busily putting up that Instagram collage and tagging Ashlynn - which is why I left my purse.  And, I call Brayden ADHD!  

Lazy Rivers, Candy Overload, Restaurant Slides, and Balloon Animals

Waking up and sitting outside to this experience is nothing short of delightful.  And, as I may have have mentioned before, we picked a wonderful time to come as Oregon often waits until the Fourth of July to truly reveal its summer glory and this year is no exception with rain forecast through much of the week.  

Nature shots taken by Mikayla - she's getting very talented with the camera.

This is where we stay - with our condo style units.  

While Canyon Villas has a great pool area, the adjacent property (and free use to us) of JW Marriott's Desert Ridge Resort and Spa has a Lazy River and Water Slide - so we hopped on the shuttle to take us the quarter mile to their entrance.

Just a little bit of a step up - we had to keep encouraging the kids to "keep it classy" in this high class hotel.

 Ah Lazy River - how I love you!!!

After getting as much sun as we needed for a while, we headed to the Candy Outlets in Chandler.  As I wrote on Instagram, leave it to the Rileys to bypass the Grand Canyon when vacationing in Arizona and go to the Candy Outlets instead!  

We have an inside joke going with the Whites regarding Whitley having knowledge of how to open a Smarties candy.  I can neither confirm nor deny that I had any part of her learning how to do that...  So, I posed for a pic to send them on what I'll bring home for their daughter.  (just kidding...)

Not everything in this candy superstore was something I couldn't wait to taste....Oh my goodness, gross!!!!

What I decided would instead be a better choice for Whitley.  "Perfect for Smart Kids!!!"

The uber long receipt we walked away with...

This was taken in our "downtime" before going to dinner.  I had actually opted to stay home after the outlets with a bit of a headache that, as hoped for, disappeared with a nap.  When I woke up, John was napping so we hung out on the patio.  Soon after, Brayden joined us, keeping himself entertained by making drawings out of awkward pics he took of me....

Dinner on the first night was at The Rustler's Rooste.  It was a perfect choice with lots of fun "bells and whistles" to add to atmosphere and fun for the whole family. 

Among those "extras" was being greeted by this steer, "Horny"...

The entrance into the restaurant. 

To get to the seating area of the restaurant, you could opt to go down the stairs, or have fun down the slide.  Of course, I'd choose the slice, but in hindsight, should have chosen differently.  My skirt rode up in the back and by the time I reached the carpet base, I ended up with quite the road rash.  Ouch!  I expected maybe a sunburn, but not this!

Impressive interior!

The legend has it that this location was originally part of a cave where rustler's would hide the cattle they stole.

The kids both got virgin strawberry dacquiris.  They were delicious!

This picture says so much of the reality of life with Brayden.  Constantly pestering, poking, needing attention - and yet so lovable.  John's expression says it all.

We were seated to look out on the patio - where John and Mikayla (and eventually all of us) went out to take pics.

After a tasty dinner, this guy stopped by our table to make custom balloon creations.  

Mikayla's was a monkey on a motorcycle - but I think it looks more like Snoopy.

Brayden's was a lazer gun.

The finale for the meal was cotton candy brought with the bill.  Even though it was banana flavored, it was VERY good.  

A live band played in the restaurant - and this couple dancing was so sweet.

It was an excellent first choice for vacation dining.  Unfortunately, John's stomach has been very wounded over the last week or so, so any deviation from the "BRAT diet" (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast) turns into a lot of pain for him within a half hour after eating.  He divulged on some cornbread with butter and paid for it.  =(  It's getting better even as I'm typing this, but he's having to take it easy, which is never what you want to have to do on vacation!