Thanksgiving in Phoenix I

Even though the rest of the world works on immediate updates via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more, apparently I am still an old-fashioned blogger (yes, I mean to be ironic) who runs at least a month behind due to the daily demands of family and work. So, hang on to your hats, family and friends, because we're heading back to mid-November 2012. 

I was fortunate enough to attend a meeting in New Orleans for my work, and not only did I find the meeting to be very useful, but I also enjoyed being there with my colleagues. The crazy part, though, was that I arrived home from my meeting at 9pm on Friday and turned around to head to Phoenix for Thanksgiving with my brother the next morning at 6am. It was total madness, but we made it through the stressfulness of travel successfully.

Jackson Square with Monica

The Indiana Team

Mardi Gras World (props for next year's floats)
We arrived in Phoenix in time for my dad's birthday. We celebrated at Rustler's Roost...the kids love the atmosphere, and the big slide they have in the restaurant. And Kate came through with lots of homemade cupcakes to celebrate.




The next morning we took off pretty early for Sedona. Dave and Dad planned it because...well...some of us had never been. As we neared the city of Sedona itself, the scenery became pretty spectacular. We stopped just outside of the city to see the Chapel of the Holy Cross, a beautiful structure built high atop the red rocks of Sedona. The chapel itself was simple, and the views were absolutely breathtaking. Although we didn't stay long, Moira still found enough time to skip all around the Chapel's grounds. 






After a quick lunch at a Mexican place, we headed out on a hummer "off-roading" tour of the red rocks of Sedona. It was quite the experience! Our entire family--all 14 of us--fit into the hummer, and the tour guide took us on an adventure. It was a pretty bumpy experience, to say the least, but we learned a lot about the rocks, flora, and fauna of Sedona. Hannah practically fell asleep because of all the rocking and rolling, Moira banged her head against one of the metal rails, and Emma kept shouting how scared she was that we were going to roll over!






After a long day of adventure, the girls all came out of the cafe ready to head home. It was a great day out--I'm so grateful to dad and Dave for arranging it!




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