The First Ever Brawley Family Camping Trip

We got back from the first ever Brawley Family Camping trip yesterday (Sunday). It rained every day and it got pretty windy at times. Joshua said that he doesn't want to go back to Flagstaff as it is too rainy and windy. He got a little scared sleeping in the tent with the wind and rain shaking all around. The last night in the tent, I had both boys in bed with me (that doesn't allow for much rest). We were able to do a little hiking between rain storms. We also went to the Lowell Observatory (where Pluto was discovered in 1930). The boys also went to see the Arizona Cardinals (football team) practice, as their training camp is held at Northern Arizona University (my alma mater). We had a good time camping, but the rain put a damper on things. Joshua's favorite part of camping was the "camping cereal." We bought a package of the individual boxes of cereal, which of course comes with 8 boxes of cereal that he normally doesn't get to eat (Lucky Charms, Cocoa Puffs, Trix, etc). A few pictures of our trip are below:


Tiffany and Joshua on our hike through the beautiful Coconino Forest

Joshua found the perfect resting spot on our hike

The Brawley family

The best part of camping is the smores

Nathan likes the whole smores thing

The Brawley family tent

Inside the Brawley family tent

Escaping the Phoenix heat is what camping is all about

Camping...Here we Come!!

So for those of you that know me, I am not an "outdoor" person in the sense that I am not "one with the earth." We are getting ready to head out on our first ever Brawley camping trip. We are waiting for Nathan to wake up from his nap. The truck is loaded with the brand new Brawley tent that will be our place of dwelling for the next 3 nights and 4 days. We are headed up north to Flagstaff. Gary has been looking forward this day for quite some time. Joshua is already up at the campsite with Gary's parents. They went up yesterday with their 5th wheel/trailer to save us a spot. So I guess we're not completely "roughing it" as we will have Gary's parents trailer to shower in and everything. The 4 of us will, however, be sleeping in the tent. Joshua is very excited to sleep in our new tent. Nathan doesn't really comprehend what the near future has to offer. The weather forecast is for scattered showers all weekend, so that will only add to our adventure. I'll give you a full report upon our return.

The wisdom of a 4 year old

Here is a little bit of a conversation I had with Joshua today in the car:

Joshua: Mommy, I want to come back from Heaven
Me: What do you mean come back from Heaven?
J: I don't want to stay in Heaven because I want to stay with you and daddy
M: Well, mommy and daddy will probably get to Heaven before you do, so we'll wait for you at the door. If you get there first, we'll come and find you when we get there
J: Just look for me next to Jesus...you need to come to my Sunday School class so you can see a picture of him so you know what he looks like
M: Ok, we'll look for you next to Jesus
J: Will Mary and Joseph be there (in Heaven) too?
M: Yes, Mary and Joseph will be there
J: What about the mean man? I'm scared of the mean man
M: What mean man, there are no mean people in Heaven?
J: The really mean one, I think his name is Goliath
M: I don't think you'll see Goliath in Heaven, and if he is, he won't be mean anymore, because Heaven is full of only nice things
J: Why won't Goliath be in Heaven?
M: Only people with Jesus in their heart go to Heaven and I don't think Goliath had Jesus in his heart
J: Why does Jesus live in our heart?
M: You have to ask him to come and live in your heart
J: What is Jesus doing right now?
M: He's looking down on our car and keeping us safe as we drive. He can also hear us talking.

The conversation drifted to other topics from there, but I thought it was quite insightful for a 4 year old.

Acapulco Day 3 (Monday)

Today was a work day for Gary. I spent the morning getting a manicure and pedicure at the hotel spa, while Gary was at meetings. He was done by lunch time, so we had lunch together and then spent a few hours pool side. The beaches in Mexico are all public, so the beach outside of the hotel is pretty crowded. There are also a lot of people trying to sell you stuff (T-shirts, blankets, beaded necklaces, leomondade, etc). We did walk along the beach, but we prefered to lounge next to the pool. I also spent a few hours on the balcony of our room enjoying the sounds of the ocean and the beautiful views, while Gary was in the room getting some more work done.

Below are a few pictures of the golf course Gary and his partners are going to demolish. It is currently a 36 hole facility that they are going to redesign into a 27 hole facility and world class golf acadamey with the balance of the land being sold for condo units.

The gigantic and protected Perota Tree

A view of the existing property from the 18th floor of the hotel towards the north west

A view of the existing property from the 18th floor of the hotel towards the north east. The road is the main entry road into the Princess property.

Acapulco Day 2 (Sunday)

On Sunday, we took a guided tour of Acapulco. Acapulco is divided into old and new. Our hotel is in the new section, as there is a Wal Mart, a Costco and a McDonalds. The old part is where our tour was. We drove through the barrios (neighborhoods) and saw where people live. The houses are so close together that you can hardly tell where one house starts and ends. We also toured the city square and saw the old cathedral (we got to see a little bit of the noon mass, although we did not understand a word) and saw city hall.


We also saw the world famous cliff divers. These divers jump off a cliff 135 feet, but they have to jump 10 feet out to avoid rocks below. It is quite a sight to see.


That evening, we went to dinner at an open air seafood restaurant overlooking the Bay of Acapulco. During our outdoor meal, a monsoon storm came through and we had a downpour of rain for about 10 minutes and then it was clear. Sort of like the monsoon in Phoenix.


Gary and I at City Square



Gary and I in front of the famous cliff that the cliff divers jump off of


I forgot to mention that they have to climb the cliff first

You can click on the picture to enlarge it to see how far they jump.

Wow, I think I'll stick to the diving board

The water below is first cleared of all debris as even a piece of paper can slice an ear off.

Gary and I at dinner; notice the plastic behind us to protect us from the rain

Acapulco Day 1 (Saturday)

Gary and I arrived in Acapulco on Saturday afternoon. Thanks to Gary's frequent flier status, we both got upgraded to first class on our flight over. It was my first time flying in first class.

Our drive to the hotel (the hotel shuttle picked us up) was an experience. Acapulco has over 1 million people living here. All of the hotels and time shares are very heavily guarded. To get to our hotel, there was a guard gate armed with machine guns at the property entrance and there was another guard gate when you drove up to enter the actual hotel itself. It was a strange feeling, although I felt safe the entire time.

The Fairmont Acapulco Princess Hotel is one of the landmarks in this part of the country. The golf course Gary is working on is associated with the hotel and thus our accomodations are gratis. The hotel is right on the beach and we have a beautiful view from our room.


Here are a few pictures we took from the balcony of our hotel room

Random pictures on a Tuesday

Nathan got a haircut on Tuesday. He and Joshua now have matching haircuts.


I hope Nathan always thinks Joshua is this funny.


Bath time!!


Fun in the tub


Nathan is such a good helper

Nathan Pre Potty Training

This is our first attempt at video and what a good one it is. Every night before bed Nathan has to sit on his potty. It is a step in the right direction. Hope you enjoy.

Happy Birthday America

Our 4th of July weekend was pretty quiet. Gary's parents came over for a BBQ on the 4th. We didn't watch any fireworks, as it was too late for the boys. We also spent a lot of time at the community pool over the long weekend. Joshua finally got up the nerve to go down the water slide. I meant to take my camera to the pool to get pictures, but I forgot. I hope to get pictures of him going down the slide very soon. His swimming instructor walked him up the slide and he went down all by himself. It only took the one time and he was hooked. Now all he wants to do is go down the slide. On Saturday, I went to the Diamondbacks game with Gary's parents. Gary's dad was working that night. For those that don't know, Gary's dad is an employee of the Arizona Diamondbacks as a "Golden Glover." A Golden Glover is a person in their "golden" ages that sits on either the 1st base line or 3rd base line and retrieves any foul balls that are hit. He really enjoys his "job." Anyway, he gets 2 tickets to each game he works, so Gary's mom and I watched Gary's dad work. I have attached a picture from earlier in the season, when Joshua went to watch Oompa (Joshua's name for Gary's dad) work. Sunday was church, swimming and cleaning the house. I hope all of you had a relaxing 4th.

Joshua and Oompa at Chase Field

It's Hot!!

We are in the middle of the normal Phoenix summer - HOT! We've been spending most of our free time in the swimming pool. We don't have a pool, so we either go to our community pool or over to a friend's house that has a pool. A big thank you to Melinda and Simon (Joshua's friend) who had the boys and I over for a swim and play day this past Friday. Joshua and Nathan love the pool. Joshua is doing great in his swimming lessons. Our community pool has 2 water slides that Joshua is now tall enough to go down, but he is too scared. He keeps saying he will wait until he's 8 (Joshua is currently 4 1/2). Oh well. We went to our community pool on Saturday and Sunday. Monday was waterless as Gary left for Dallas that morning and I didn't feel like taking the boys swimming by myself. Joshua has swim lessons tonight. Nathan and I usually sit with our feet in the pool during Joshua's lesson.

Joshua went to the Diamondbacks game last night with Gary's parents. He spent the night at their house after the game. With Gary out of town, it was just Nathan and I at home. It was weird...and quiet. I put Nathan to bed at 7:30 and had the rest of the evening to myself. Did I get anything productive done during me free time? Nope. Maybe next time.

I have some exciting news...I am going to Acapulco with Gary next time he goes. We are leaving on Saturday, July 12, so we have the weekend together before his meetings that Monday. We will fly back home on Tuesday. I normally don't travel with Gary for business. I went to Dallas with him this past February, but that's it (in our entire 8 years of marriage). The boys will stay with Gary's parents.

That's about it for us this update.