Gracie's 1st trip to Arizona

Watching the animals at the zoo.

Getting off the airplane in AZ

Our brand new Camaro with the carseat in the back
(borrowed of course)


Great Grandpa Peters, Sarah, and Gracie

Gracie exhausted
Nick and Gracie swimming

And going down the water slide

Sun Devils Stadium

Sarah, Nick and Gracie

Asleep on the plane ride home
Wow, did we have a great time in Arizona!! We did so much in the five days that we were there. We left Iowa on Sunday 12/27 and arrived in about 58 degrees of heaven!! We didn't do much the first day except get settled in. Nick did some grocery shopping and stayed in the hospitality room for awhile. Gracie was exhausted, but did not sleep well that first night.
The next day Nick had a meeting in the morning and I took Gracie on a walk to explore the resort and see where what we could do. The resort was huge and had four swimming pools and a water slide. There was a running trail about 2.5 miles long and a little stream that ran beside it. Perfect for me! After Nick's meeting, my run, and getting everything ready, we hopped into our new Camaro for the day. It was the only vehicle available for the day, but I wasn't complaining. It was kind of funny to watch Nick put the carseat into the back of it, though. We went out for lunch at a really good Mexican restaurant and then went to visit my friend Megan, her husband, and two kids, Drew and Kayley. That was a lot of fun and the kids got to play outside for quite awhile. After that we went to have dinner at my aunt's house and we saw my Grandpa, cousin Ben, and his wife Anne, among many others who were also there for dinner. I was so happy that we could see everyone and that they got to see Gracie. She was fantastic with everyone and not shy at all. Needless to say, she was wiped out by the end of the day.
The following day was spent at the zoo. Gracie loved seeing all the animals. I think the monkeys were the best. We actually got to go into where they were staying and you could see them jumping over your head. This was pretty entertaining for Gracie. Gracie was pretty tired shortly after lunch, though. Megan took her kids, also, so we got to spend some of the day with them, as well. Later that evening, Nick and I left Gracie with a babysitter and attended a dinner for the ISU administration. That was fun and good to get out. They had an awesome room set up for all the kids at the hotel. I'm sure Gracie had a great time there before going to bed.
Wednesday, we went back up to Phoenix to go hiking with Megan at Camelback Mtn. Gracie stayed with Megan's parents, who were kind enough to look after all of the kids. We had done this hike before, but it was just as challenging the second time. I'm glad we got the opportunity to do it again. Later that afternoon, Nick and I went to a cocktail reception and Gracie again stayed with babysitters. I heard that she had two whole slices of pizza while we were gone. It's amazing the amount of food she can put down. After the reception, Nick went to the pep rally and I stayed with Gracie.
The game was on Thursday, but Nick really didn't have any duties for the game. This is quite the change for him! I don't think he knew what to do with himself. We spent some time in the morning packing and after Gracie's nap, we took her to the pool. It was still a little chilly for swimming. I don't think the temps ever got above 65, but the pool was warm as long as you could stay out of the breeze. She loved the water, of course, and had fun when Nick took her down the slide. After the pool, we got ready to head to the game. It was a lot of fun and we're very happy that ISU won!!! Gracie wasn't too interested in the game, though. So we spent some time entertaining her and keeping her content. By the time the game was over, I think she was ready to go. We weren't even out of the parking ramp before she fell asleep. After that, Nick had to load luggage onto the trucks and the next morning we were set to leave.
Now here we are, back in Iowa, with frigid temps. It was a very nice break to be in Arizona! I'm so glad that we had this opportunity to take Gracie and get to go to a bowl game!









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