Last week we took a spring break mini-vacation to Mesa, Arizona and Las Vegas.  I had surprised Randy for Christmas with a super car driving experience in Vegas, so we thought we’d stay at Dad’s new condo in Mesa and take a quick drive to Las Vegas for the driving.

We flew into Mesa on a Tuesday night, leaving the sub-freezing temps of the Quad Cities for the warm southwest.  This was Randy’s and my first trip to Arizona, and we were pleasantly surprised at how beautiful and temperate is was this time of year (mid-March).

On our first day in Mesa, we decided to explore the gorgeous Usery State Park and take a three-mile hike up to Wind Cave.  I over-did it a bit with the camera, but it was my first time seeing the cacti and mountains of the southwest, and I was pretty excited.

Looooook! It’s my first cactus!

ha ha…

Just look at that view of the valley!

My “view” on most trips… Randy’s backside

view of Wind Cave (way at the top)

I’m Heather, and I’m pretty excited to be here.

View from the top

Who’s that cute couple?

Heather and Randy 3/13/13

I love this one…

It was a little toast out there (but it’s a drrryyyy heat!)

When we got back to Dad’s condo, we picked THESE oranges and put them in THIS beer.

Phoenix is THAT way.

Look who joined us for the week!

This past December, I had the opportunity to speak at the American Reading Forum’s annual conference in Sanibel Island, Florida.

Ya Mon!

I recently took a trip with my parents to a Beaches all-inclusive resort in Jamaica. I have to say- it was absolutely FAB-U-LOUS! I mean, how can you go wrong with an ocean view room, all the food, drinks and entertainment you want, and three days with absolutely nothing on the agenda (except for the aforementioned food, drinks, and entertainment!)? I will MOST DEFINITELY be doing this again, hopefully sooner than later!

Bonjour!

Good Morning!
Today is Saturday and day three of our stay here in Montreal. Randy and his dad are off to the races; today is practice and qualifying events for tomorrow’s big race. As for Gabby and me- we are going to wander around the city a bit in hopes of finding a couple of birthday gifts for her grandmas. Tim is due to arrive around dinnertime tonight, so Gab and I are also going to find a market so we can make dinner for all the guys when they arrive tonight. The weather is beautiful here today, so we will probably follow dinner with drinks on the patio afterward. It’s been a pretty laid-back trip so far for Gabby and me, but that’s all right- sometimes vacation is all about a lot of relaxation!

One note: getting around Montreal has proven to be quite difficult with Gabby. Driving is very congested, and the subway (stairs, stairs, STAIRS!) stations have no elevators, so they’re pretty much out of the question. We’ve been hoofing it around town- yesterday I walked five miles with her all they way to the river & the Atwater Market. I was pretty happy about getting some exercise, though, because the chocolate crepes I ate probably cancelled out the exercise calories

Bienvenue a Montreal!

We drove the final 8 hour leg of our road trip yesterday and made it to our Montreal rental condo. ‘Holy modern-fancy-interior-decorating! This lady did not spare an expense when she remodeled this townhouse. We all have our own gorgeous bedroom and state-of-the-art bathroom, and Papa Penny has his own living quarters downstairs, including another living room. We definitely are living in comfort here.
Right now I’m sitting at the breakfast bar having a coffee while Pen makes breakfast (nice!) I think after we’re all cleaned up, our plan is to wander around Old Montreal and figure out the metro system. It is a gorgeous, sunny day, we all slept like rocks… let the day begin!

New Adventures on the Horizon…

Looking forward to exploring some exciting places this summer… Montreal, Jamaica, Nebraska and Missouri!

Rome Day 5: The End of the Journey!

Today was our last day in Rome- we slept in, ate a de-lish breakfast of coffee & pastries, and then visited the ancient city wall of Rome and one of the doors to the city (it looks like a castle).  Then, Randy and I split up for the day.  I went shopping (got some good deals on shoes!) and Randy went  to visit a castle & torture chamber.  I’ll let him describe that in a sec… We finished off the day at a really good restaurant here in town with a dinner of gnocchi, filet in wine sauce & chianti.  Now I’m starting “packstravaganza”- I had to buy another suitcase to hold all my junk.  I do love to shop when I travel… anyway, here’s Randy!

Randy—So H and I split up for the day….Checked out a pretty cool castle/prison/church/mausoleum…In the middle of the bldg. they had a pretty cool torture chamber, and some great views looking out…Its pretty neat to see all the bldgs, with mtns behind them off in the distance…Nicest car today was a Rolls drophead coupe, def. very nice…Overall, some nice vehicles, mostly Smart cars and the Fiat 500′s, oh, and alot of Sliningers Mini’s…Did get to see alot of old Ferrari’s in Rome, oh and just one Lambo Gallardo…Rome has some great views, but, wow, you always need more time to see everything…I also paid 5euro for a coke today…Everything food wise is very expensive, I will be glad to get home…