Happy 60th Aunt Margie

 My aunt turned 60 so what better way to celebrate it than a trip to Arizona to visit me and my family. Makalya came out with her too so it was a great weekend of laughter and lots of chatter. 

I picked them up at the airport and we went to downtown Chandler for lunch and drinks. We did a little shopping but they loved the atmosphere and the establishments I took them to. 

The next day we went to for a hike on the hyrogliphic trail. This is generally one of the easier hikes so I thought it would be a good one for them and they will get to see the beauty of Arizona.

More than halfway Margie realized it was too much for her so she decided to stay on a rock while Makalya and I finished the hike. We felt bad leaving her but she insisted we go on without her. She wasn't lonely as she chatted with everyone that walked by her. I was surprised she didn't invite random people to dinner with us that night.

Later that day we went to the clubhouse while Max was taking his golf lesson and had drinks outside by the fire.

That night we had dinner and then drinks around the fire pit in our backyard.

On Saturday morning I took the ladies to Goat Yoga that was at a farm in south Gilbert. Max decided he wanted to come with because of the animals. This was not serious yoga, but something unique and fun. We had a riot doing it. The baby goats were adorable and there were also two alpaca and a donkey roaming the yoga area.

The goats were much heavier than anticipated and Max didn't really like them on his back due to their weight. 

It was such a cool experience and I would definitely do it again when guests come to town.

Following goat yoga we went to the Chandler Farmer's Market and then it was time to go home and get ready for Margie's birthday celebration. We had fondue, a fire pit and some friends over to hangout. Unfortunately I did not take one picture the night of fondue. I was just having fun entertaining and chatting with everyone. 

It was such a great trip for Margie and Makalya and I was so happy to see them here. I can't wait for them to come back again.

Random Things

 Max received three awards at the end of first quarter. One was a Pride Award for recognizing his positive attitude and all the things Basha represents as a standup kid. He also made honor roll first quarter. He worked really hard on his grades and received all A's and one B. He was pretty excited about this one since it took a lot of work. He also received the Portrait of a Learner recognition for being an upstanding student first quarter. Max said this award is really hard to get and it was the first time he received it. The awards were handed out at the end of first quarter ceremony. Max was not there to receive his since he was on a plane to St. Kitt's. We finally received all the awards and here he is presenting them proudly.

Max started up golf lessons again. He's still doing them at Ocotillo and with coach Avery. He really enjoys his golf lessons. This is also when Andy and I go to the clubhouse and share a drink together to catch up on our week.

We hit up Basha Family Fun Night earlier in the month. We got there and Max was with us just long enough for me to take this photo. He ditched us pretty quickly as soon as he found his friends. We set up our chairs with some other parents and chatted until 8pm when it was time to collect our kid and go home to warm up.

Time certainly is flying by fast, but making memories with my family is what matters most!

Happy Halloween!

 Halloween is still my favorite holiday even though my Halloween's have looked much different for quite some time now. I just love the month of October and Fall. It starts to cool down here in Arizona and everything about pumpkins and the cooler weather is exciting. Plus, I love to see all the kids Halloween costumes. I like the creativity of it all.

One disappointing thing about October is getting our pumpkins from a pumpkin parking lot here in Phoenix versus going to an actual farm like in Wisconsin. Every year I complain about the pumpkin parking lot. I wanted to go to one of the "farms" this year but Andy was not interested at all. Plus, it was still pretty warm outside and Max and I both have severe allergies. So, it's not really ideal.

We got two pumpkins from the pumpkin parking lot. One was to carve and the other was to paint.

Max did a good job carving his pumpkin this year. He did almost the whole pumpkin himself and he decided on the crying emoji face with fangs.

The painted pumpkin ended up being a minion.

Sammy enjoyed eating the pumpkin pieces. Zoe had no interest in eating the pumpkin. It definitely is not her thing. 

Max dressed up as Deadpool this year.

We went trick or treating with a group of his friends in the neighborhood. We had a good time walking with the other parents. This year Max did the local haunted house with just his friends. He's growing up! He said it was still scary though!