Perseverance

Perseverance

When I think about life, I know it can be hard and completely unfair at times! I have experienced hardship firsthand, and I know that we all have unique struggles that color and create our story. That is the beauty of life! We all struggle, but we also all have the opportunity to persevere and shine! If blood runs through your veins, you will at some point in life feel defeated, be defeated or defy. One thing I believe the majority of people have in common though, is the understanding and necessity of perseverance. Somewhere along the way, you have had to dig deep and push on. You have survived! You have succeeded! But where did you learn those life skills? If you were blessed with great role models, you likely learned it from your parents, or sadly, if you were raised in an opposite environement, maybe perseverance was a means of survival. Something I cannot relate to, but deeply respect. Regardless of the how, most of us as adults will take pride in teaching our children the same values. Perseverance is all about working hard despite disappointment or failure. It teaches us to keep trying even if takes days, months or years to succeed.

Alabama - Take Three!

Alabama - Take Three!

Ever year the month of February brings the Phoenix Open to Scottsdale, crazy amounts of traffic and tourists, the Superbowl, and for our family — a trip to Birmingham Alabama! Be honest, did you break into song with the legendary Lynard Skynyrd when you heard the lyrics above - “sweet home Alabama … where the skies are so blue”? I have to admit everytime I hear the song I cannot help but belt it out, it’s such a feel good beat! However, if music is not your thing, perhaps you prefer romance and turn to mush over the handsome Josh Lucas and his enticingly sexy blue eyes, understanding without question why Reese Witherspoon falls for him all over again in the movie! I mean who doesn’t want a man that loves his dog, flies a plane and can create hand blown glass kitchen items and decor, while becoming successful on his own! If you have no idea what I am talking about, I may question our friendship - and if you don’t know who Josh Lucas is, we really need to plan some quality low key girl time - also known as movie night. I’ll provide the comfy couches, blankets and place to relax - you bring the popcorn, wine and an open mind to one of my favorite chick flicks of all time! My list of favorite movies is a blog post in itself for a later day — Wimbledon, Pretty Woman, The Lucky One, How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days, I could go on — but I am way off subject now — so enough about that and back to Alabama!

Chattanooga Adventures

Let me just start by saying WOW what a fantastic weekend!  I fell in love with Chattanooga Tennessee!  When I originally planned this weekend away, it was mostly out of selfish reasons.  I did not want to spend another weekend in Birmingham stuck in an apartment with my toddler in case of rain and in general as we have done most of the kid friendly things in the area already.  I had no idea I would Chattanooga so much that I wouldn't want to leave!  Lincoln and I had so much fun, minus yes a few normal toddler not so fun moments ~ but overall we were able to see and experience some amazing things!  I was sad to leave as there were still sites unseen that I heard were fabulous, however with a whirlwind schedule I had to choose the things I thought Lincoln would love the most.  I hope you enjoy some of the highlights!  I have already told my husband that Tennessee will definitely see me again.  Obviously Nashville is a bucket list of mine, but I would love to experience more in this state and those surrounding. (Savanna, Hilton Head etc) Who's with me?!?

Cute art throughout the area

Cute art throughout the area

1) Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum - This was the outing that I talked about all week prior to arriving in Chattanooga.  I was sure Lincoln would love going on a train ride!  He told me multiples times about the Chattanooga Choo Choo, but when we got to the railroad museum he was less than impressed as we found a seat on the train.  It was a rainy day and the ride was about 55 minutes, part of which he spent on my phone playing a flash card learning game.  Sometimes as moms we miss the mark completely with what we think our kids will love!  http://www.tvrail.com

The museum had old trains on display

The museum had old trains on display

This is the train we traveled on

This is the train we traveled on

Sweet boy when he wants to be

Sweet boy when he wants to be

2) Tennessee Aquarium - Saturday was a rainy day which made it the perfect time to see the aquarium!  With the thousands of other people with the same idea, ha ha!  This was a FANTASTIC aquarium though, I highly recommend seeing it.  There are multiple exhibits, and two buildings that separate a River Journey and an Ocean Journey which is fun.  The aquarium has new exhibits due this spring and is in a lovely location along the Tennessee river with rocks and bridges for kids to play on outside.  Besides the aquarium itself being very busy, Lincoln enjoyed himself thoroughly especially when it came to the penguins.  On a non-holiday weekend or weekday this has to be a wonderful place to take your kids!  I recommend buying your tickets in advance like we did, because if it is busy the lines were long!  We snuck right through the crowd because we planned ahead.  http://www.tnaqua.org

River Journey

River Journey

Blue Frogs

Blue Frogs

Penguin Fun

Penguin Fun

Scary

Scary

3) Ben & Jerry's - No words are needed here!  What kid doesn't love ice-cream?  Friday afternoon we didn't have any major plans so we walked around downtown getting our bearings for the weekend and stopped for Lincoln's favorite -- num nums!

Num Nums

Num Nums

4) Tupelo Honey Cafe - This was an adorable place for breakfast!  I did drive because it was further than I wanted to walk with Lincoln, however the food and service were wonderful.  I was a little bummed that a lot of closer coffee shops/breakfast places were closed on Sunday though.  Mixed feelings of course as the tourist I wanted to try a new place, but as an employee myself I am glad they have a day off.  Something to keep in mind if you are in the area.  Had I realized this, I would have tried somewhere Saturday as well.  Lincoln had sweet potato pancakes - YUM - and I had avocado toast and an omelet.  Can I just say the south takes avocado toast to a whole new level?  It was delicious!  https://tupelohoneycafe.com/location/chattanooga/

Entrance

Entrance

Waiting on breakfast

Waiting on breakfast

Amazing Avocado Toast

Amazing Avocado Toast

5) River Gorge Explorer - This specific boat tour goes hand in hand with the aquarium.  There of course are others, but Lincoln and I had tons of fun on this excursion!  The adventure was 2 hours and my toddler did not get bored which was great!  The boat travels at about 50 mph and makes multiple fast stops which is fun because the front end of the boat dives into the water and makes a large splash which Lincoln loved!  For part of the tour you are able to walk around the deck, and binoculars are provided to spot wildlife.  The weather was a gorgeous 70 degrees and the scenery was beautiful.  This may have been one of my favorite things!  http://www.tnaqua.org/plan-your-visit/river-gorge-explorer

At the docs

At the docs

On the boat

On the boat

Neat boat on the river you can dine in

Neat boat on the river you can dine in

Park by the river prior to our boat ride

Park by the river prior to our boat ride

The weather was GORGEOUS 70's

The weather was GORGEOUS 70's

6) Clumpies Ice Cream Co. - I just want to say -- I deserve mother of the year for the journey to this ice cream shop!  Ha ha, OK just kidding but in the moment as I drove blocks to find parking, stood in line for over 30 minutes holding a 35 pound toddler the ENTIRE time because he was so tired and then didn't even get to eat my flavor because Lincoln decided he wanted mine instead and his was not appealing to me - I felt like we'd been through the gauntlet.  This was our last stop before heading home.  However, with that said, I highly recommend visiting this ice cream shop if you are in the area!  We sat on the deck in the sunshine talking so some locals who confirmed standing in line is even worth the wait for them on warm sunny days!  Secretly, I love the experience of these places, but I am also glad the fro yo place by our home in AZ is not so crazy!  http://www.clumpies.com

In an adorable shopping area!

In an adorable shopping area!

Lincoln's choice of ice cream before he ate mine!

Lincoln's choice of ice cream before he ate mine!

7) Hotels - You can look up multiple hotel recommendations for downtown Chattanooga and find a lot of options ranging from affordable to more expensive.  I truly think this is a personal choice of what you want to pay and the brand your family goes with.  The hotel itself did not matter to me as Lincoln and I did not spend much time in it at all.  We were about 5 blocks from everything and were able to walk everywhere which was fantastic!  All of the hotels in this area are walking distance to the aquarium, shopping, IMAX, a climbing wall, tons of restaurants, the Discovery Center, coffee shops, a small store, Tennessee River and a park by the water, among other things I probably am forgetting.  *** I will say after sleeping in a cushy hotel bed for a couple nights I realized how uncomfortable the bed at the apartment is, ha ha, thankfully it is our last week in Alabama!  

Some of the things we chose not to see or did not have time to experience are: Tennessee Discovery Center, Rock City on Lookout Mountain or the Incline Railway, Moon Pie, Duck Tour, North Shore /Coolidge Park (better in the summer) with a Carousel, among other things!   

Thank you again to everyone who has made the effort to part of this journey.  It is truly touching and gets me through the days knowing people care!  

Ce Ce

When my dear friend Cindy decided to visit Arizona this month, her intentions of the trip were to be supportive of my own personal goals as well as enjoy friendship and sun.  While I had to change my plans, I encouraged her to still visit and that we would have tons of fun!  I can't express how happy I am that she came!  I have known Cindy for approximately 7 years, but this is probably the first 6 days straight we have spent together -- and its been wonderful!  Let's face it 6 days with anyone can go either way -- and I am grateful we had a splendid, action packed time!  On the way to the airport to pick her up, I was telling Lincoln 'Cindy' was coming!  His response was a smile and he said back to me "Ce Ce"?  I said no baby, Cindy ... but Ce Ce she became and I must admit its sounded absolutely adorable all weekend.  It is fun to hear him place names to my friends these days, even if they are his own made up ones.  

shadow.jpg

We had a whirlwind of a weekend.  I have been absent from my blog, but definitely not bored.  As summer comes to a close I hope to be more engaged but until then I am enjoying every minute! While words are lovely to read, sometimes a picture says it all!   I added multiple photos for you to view the highlights and fun things we were blessed to do together! 

We headed straight from the airport to Flagstaff Arizona where we had a blast on the ATV, swimming at the pool, going for walks and catching up with beautiful scenery!  

Next we visited Sedona, where we went to Slide Rock (which is very slippery - but a natural water slide made from rocks), shopped in the local boutiques, held snakes and tarantulas and enjoyed lunch! 

The last days were spent back in Scottsdale/Phoenix going to the Diamondbacks game, OdySea Aquarium http://www.odyseaaquarium.com and the Butterfly Wonderland http://butterflywonderland.com.  If you visit Phoenix, or even live here I highly recommend checking these out.  

After an amazing weekend, I am once again reminded how much I love my friends.  Beyond the surface appearance of these photos and the fun we had, there are emotions and deep conversations, light hearted chatter and laughter.  Friendships only grow if you feed them, and sometimes I feel like my friendship garden is blessed with the most beautiful souls!  A huge thanks to my dear friend for visiting!  Come back soon!