Bloom Where You Are Planted, But I Love Arizona?
Jeff and I had the chance to fly out on a quick jaunt to sunny Arizona a couple weekends ago.
I loved the air, the sun, the food. Fit people hiking, biking, walking everywhere. The food was so good! Did I say that already? We hiked and hiked and hiked some more. The sunsets, the air, the mountains. People were nice and friendly, without being too nice and friendly. Just the way I like it.
Now I realize that when anyone goes on vacation they think they want to move. Of course…you aren’t living real life on vacation. But really, that wasn’t it. I don’t feel this way often. I just LOVED the sun.
Sun makes you look better and feel better. It makes you happy. It makes you want to be outside and be active. It makes you want to eat big salads and lots of fruit, instead of serotonin producing carbs. I NEED the sun…some people can get by without it…not my body chemistry! I want the sun the majority of the year, not for half of it!
Complicated and back breaking routines that result in mom sleeping with her baby are A-OK in this house.
Glad you had fun!
Don't know about my entire family, but I, personally have done it once already, moving from Sweden to England. But then I was also very young at the time (19).
Glad you had a good time!
Ok…you have got to come to San Diego! So much like Arizona only a lot more green and better temperatures (Arizona heat in the summer is NOT fun). Have you ever been to San Diego? I just know you'd love it. Sunshine really does make people happy. 🙂
Beautiful pictures! Glad you had a fun trip.
Yes, I have thought about it; whether I would be brave enough is a different story.
I have been to Arizona twice on vacation and I loved it so much! I even went 8 months pregnant at summer time, and boy was it hot! I still loved it though. I like to think I will live there some day 🙂
I loved this post! I'm an Arizona girl who has been transplanted to the northeast and would love, love, love to move back home. But that's probably not going to happen since our family kind of likes my husband having a job 🙂
And the whole traveling without kids thing ~ yikes! My husband tried to convince me to go to Rome a few years ago and New Zealand this year with him and as much as I love to travel, I can't fly away without my five kiddos ~ what if the plane crashed! I thought I was the only one who thought this way!
Thanks for the great AZ pics ~ that should hold me over for a while!
I would love to pick up and go…however I am so happy now that we are finally settled in and I am making some great friends. I would never say never however. I love adventures and trying new things with Jordan and the kids. Your home is where you and your family are (no matter where the location).
PS I love the West…I always wanted to live out there.
PPS- that is why so many have vacation homes…
Before you move, you might want to consider…I've heard it gets a little warm in Arizona in the summer.
I have moved from the US to Japan and back again; then from the US to Europe! Yes, it makes me a little nervous each time I get on a plane, especially now with a family, but it's just a part of my life!
We are in the middle of making a big change. First the house has to sell, hubby then finds a job and then off we go. We are actually going someplace that we have never been.
I sleep with my babies too. My youngest is almost 20 months.
Karen
It's how we ended up on our current adventure – moved to where we vacationed. And a lot of my friends here did the same thing! There is something about the sun…
I went to Arizona for my 40th and loved it too! We've up and moved our whole family twice in the last 5 years, so it really doesn't sound that appealing…but the sun? Now that sounds awesome…not to mention delicious vittles!
Ohhh, I know what you mean! I've been out that way and love it!
One can dream, right? But there's the fact of being so far away from family!
Mmmm…those pictures are making me homesick. I grew up in Northern Utah–not many red rocks there and lots of snow this time of year–but we went to the Canyonlands all the time. (Think red rocks, hiking, arches, etc.) My husband and I met while camped at adjoining campsites in Escalante and later went to Zion National Park for our honeymoon (and hiked all over). Everything we did recreationally revolved around the outdoors, the mountains, trails, camping, biking……so of course we just had to move ourselves east of the Mississippi for some flat-land adventure! And humidity! Last summer, we drove out west to visit family and had all kinds of fun in the mountains. While staying with my parents, I could walk out their front door and be hiking up the mountains in five minutes. I went hiking every day. It felt so good. I'm not kidding: I called up a realtor and went house hunting on my vacation. But it was not to be….yet. Someday I WILL have mountains in my backyard again.
Every time I read your posts I think "I just love her!!!". EVERYTHING you say/post resonates with me! Just last night (or was it early this morning?), I was looking at the 5 year old sleeping between hubby and myself and thinking hmmmm….need to break the sleep issue!!! And yes, I would move. But in the small town I am in, sometimes I envy the families that lived their wholes lives near each other. But, for me, I would have always felt like I missed something if I hadn't moved. Just this week we kicked around the idea of moving and we have been here for 7 happy years. Hiking, sun… sounds perfect! I love love love your posts and I think you are adorable and wise beyond your years! And I'm definitely not the flying/crashing type myself!!!
Karen
I live in AZ! I totally think you should move! Ok, well it's probably not worth uprooting everyone b/c I love your blog, but it is a great place to live. Glad you had a good time!
We have moved every two to three years our whole married life for school and then jobs. We love the adventure of it and meeting new people and choosing a house in each place and fixing it up. Now that we're going on 15 years of marriage we're both getting the urge to settle down – somewhere close to our families out west. You've helped me dream of having one house for my five kids to grow up in with lots of memories in every corner of it. I'm sure I'll get restless once we truly settle down, but I know I'll enjoy it. The one thing I've learned after living in 6 cities is that every place has beauty in the landscape, seasons, and people who live there. We've lived in Kansas, Utah, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, and now Illinois. They all have their perks and their downsides. I know you've already figured out the trick is to focus on the good. I decided to love snow when we lived in Minnesota and I still do. Missouri had a lot of humidity but the people there are SO friendly. I can truly say I have fallen in love with every place we've lived.
Ha! I packed up my 20-something self and moved from Austin to Scottsdale on a whim because I KNEW I needed to live there (and to be closer to a certain someone who is now my sweet husband!)
It is beautiful there, two of our daugthers were born there so it holds a special place in my heart, but we always ended back in the Lone Star state!
I need the sun too! And I am also terrified of flying (the plane crashing). I like my cold winters until a little after Christmas and then I'm ready for Spring. The continuous gray weather puts me in a gray type of mood.
I laughed at the sleeping situation. My husband and I have only been on a handful of dates in five years because I've done this with my three children. I've had people criticize this but it is what it is. I personally love it and there have been nights where my husband and I are sleeping with two toddlers between us in bed and a tiny baby sleeping in a bassinet pulled up right to the bed.
Jennifer
Oh Sarah..we are so much alike! I HATE HATE HATE to fly but love traveling. And just yesterday I posted a blog about moving..check it out! I say go for it! I also just wrote about how I love to sleep with my babies…Not sure where you live now but it sounds like where I am (New England)…long cold dark winters…I'm needing the sun!
i'm so glad you liked it. you came at a really good time of year. 🙂
Sarah,
Could this be true? We could be neighbors! There's a house for sale down the street, my casita is empty, so you could stay until you find a place?
But seriously, summer here is brutal. But I love it. I grew up in Idaho, and, although I miss the snow, it's always possible to drive to snow in about 2 hours. You will miss all your "Father of the Bride" houses. There are none of those here, in case you didn't notice. But . . .
I can dream, too, right?
I couldn't up and move…I have told my husband several times this week during an unusual spell of cold rain that I simply would not do well in the Northwest. We are quite spoiled in North Carolina…just enough snow to satisfy our desire for winter weather but warmth mostly from March through October…sometimes even into November. On another note, where did you get that adorable hoodie for Patrick? Too cute!
my sister and husband moved their three kids in the middle of the school year to the mountains of colorado one year, and they couldn't be happier. they ski or do some sort of snow activity everyday (yes, they live ON the mountain in a tiny condo). they live more simply. they're incredibly happy. i'd love to move to a sunnier/warmer place one day. one day, right?
Please! Take me with you!!! I'd move anywhere to get away from the cold and snow and dreary winters…
I should mention, though, that I have a friend who moved to Arizona from the midwest a few years ago and is planning on moving back in the next year. Apparently, she misses the "good schools" and the "seasons" and "family"… Pphht.
A little trip and a moving van later we ended up in AZ. Yeah, the summer is hot but I love that too. Wouldn't have it any other way.
So glad you had a great time. I, once upon a dream, spent the night in Albuquerque, New Mexico. There was something about it that sang my name. I slept well, I ate well …. I almost resided there. The radio station announced what the public school kids were having for lunch ~ WHAT'S NOT TO LOVE?
Well, it wasn't in His plans… and I praise Him just the same!
I totally agree about the food in AZ. There is something about the restaurants there. AZ is fab in the winter…however, before you pack your bags try visiting May-October. Man…it's HOT!
Everyone loves it here in the winter. Come summer, though, everyone is either hibernating indoors or fleeing for cooler country!
It's too funny you posted this! Yesterday morning I text my husband that it was official, I hated the cold weather and we needed to move to Arizona! He told me to start looking for jobs. As soon as one of us finds a job we are moving from Colorado to AZ! Just picking up our life, our daughter and dog and moving!
I have lived in sunny Southern California my entire life. And for 37 yrs I have dreamed about moving somewhere else; somewhere with snow and seasons. Ever time I visit someplace, the first day I want to stay. But by day 7, i'm ready for the heat. I think each location has it's own shining benefits and downfalls though, much like people. It's all what you make of it.
Heather…You're right, you're right, I KNOW you're right. Sigh.
Meredith….Adorable hoodie…$4.00 clearance sale at Gymboree the day after Christmas.
And I think a post about sleep habits and babies is in the works…my secret is out and I sense some comaraderie!
Don't tell me this. My parents live in AZ half the year and want us to come visit but I say no, I hate the desert! It is easier (and cheaper) if I just keep saying no. I am a Minnesotan and pride myself on "thriving" through our winters…ha ha ha.
Now, when I was in Siesta Key, FL last spring with some girlfriends, I could have stayed there forever…or at least until summer.
I'm right there with you. I've lived all over the U.S. due to my husband being in the Army when we first got married. It's true – when we finally moved to CA (and the same when we lived in Hawaii) I instantly dropped 10 lbs and just had more energy, better spirits and more fun! It's true that the sun really affects some people. I'm one of them! And I've wanted to live in California since I visited at age 14 from my home state of Alabama. Dreams do come true!!
I have picked up and moved but it wasn't TOO far. (Two hours is far enough from family for me). I do love to visit lots of places though, but in the end, I like calling NC home.
Flying. I can't stand it. But I won't turn down a trip because of it.
My brother and sister-in-law live in Mesa….they hated it at first too….but are true fans now….but I have to say, as much as I love to visit…I really love the turning of the seasons…I would soooo miss that 🙁 And I agree…Don't.Like.To.Fly 🙁 Just thinking about what would happen to my kids makes me SICK!!!!!!!!!!!
Your post is getting me excited to go to AZ! We did a road trip last summer from GA to CO and SD. This summer will be from GA to CA and will include many days in NM and AZ. It will be really interesting to hear which states are our fave after this. Just this a.m. my hubs and I talked about where we might move when we are retiring age. I told him it would have to be near the grandkids. He said now that they're seeing many states out West it that means they may possibly end up there.
That's great you had a little getaway to somewhere sunny! I'm in desperate need of it. We NE Ohioans are feeling pretty low right now. Yesterday Forbes magazine voted Cleveland as the worst weather city in the country! I think I read somewhere that this is the 8th cloudiest city in the world….and I don't doubt it!
EVery vacation we go on, we say that we want to move there. It's hard to leave a vacation.
Since I married my husband we have lived in 4 states … MO, CA, NJ, and AR. Now, my husband's crazy job may take us back to NJ. I'm not so sure i am excited. My kids are going to cry … then I will cry.
I need a vacation!
I wish I knew you were coming, would have suggested some places for you! I have lived in AZ for over 25 years & absolutely LOVE IT! 🙂 Four mos of hot weather is worth our beautiful fall/winter/spring.
I left CA to move to AZ and have loved every single day of the 16 years I have been here. I even love the summers. It would be the perfect place if we just had pretty houses like you. Then I would be in hog heaven!
I would pack up and go. You only get one shot at life, may as well live without regrets.
I love where I live, but I long for more sun. I wouldn't even mind snow if there were sun everyday.
-FringeGirl
I'm right there with you Sarah! My husband gets annoyed every night…. when I go in to check the baby, I always end up picking him up and cuddling him in the rocker for an hour or so, I just can't resist.
I begged and begged to move to Washington D.C. Weird spot, but when we visited, I fell in love with the city and it's little neighborhoods!
I've always wanted to move to North Carolina. If I could convince the husband that it was do-able (he has a lot of job security here, which is not something to take lightly) I'd be packing in a heartbeat. But alas, I think we're destined to live in Louisiana forever…
I LOVE the sun too! I live in Oregon where its gray, cold and rainy about 8-9 months out of the year. People think I'm a freak for how much I love sunshine, it just makes everything better, you said it perfectly 🙂
Love your blog and your new header!
here's the thing i love about having 4 kids…i too have created terribly "dependent" sleepers, but now i only have a little one year old who needs me to sleep, all of the older siblings were just as needy, if not moreso, when they were one, but i know they really won't need me forever. i will never regret for a moment time spent snuggling my babies as they slept and i finally stopped feeling like i need to justify the whys to anyone else. they really do grow up, i can look at my 9 year old and see it really did go by in a blink. it works for our family and my dh and i are still really close despite our crazy sleeping arrangements the last (almost)decade! love, love your blog! thanks for keeping the voice of motherhood alive and well!
I agree with you. Sunshine is my fuel. I can't live anywhere near my folks becuase it's too stinking cold and dreary. I rather be warm and sunned on a few thousand miles away.
So glad you enjoyed my hometown! Many people just don't seem to "get" the beauty in AZ, but glad to hear you did. Next time you'll have to come up to the northern part of the state (where I live now) to see the Grand Canyon.
I may be up and moving myself and husband in the next few months!
I'm telling you – there's something magical about the Valley Of The Sun.
I was born and raised in Ca and after 27 years moved to Mesa and LOVED IT. Too bad a job moved us to Utah (YUCK!) and then we chose to move here to Texas. And while we are firmly planted here (and love a thing called "seasons"), we always say maybe *someday* when we're old and gray we'll have a winter home in Arizona…."winter" meaning around the end of November…I still remember the kids refusing to put on costumes to go trick or treating because it was 95 degrees outside…
(of course, my sister still lives there and hates it. so go figure.)
Yep – I sure would. I have a bit of wander-lust in me. I'm glad you had such a great trip!
Phoenix is awesome- I lived there for a year. The food is amazing. But you went at the absolute best time of the year for the weather…that 125 degree heat in the summer is unbearable. I don't know how people do it there with kids.
We have complicated sleep routines here too! i love waking up with my babe!
We lived in the same place forever. Our roots were generations deep there. Then, when I was in the 8th grade, my dad said, "We're moving to Hawaii!" I thought he was crazy. Everyone thought he was crazy. But we did it. It was a roller coaster ride. Hawaii is a wonderful place, especially the people…and the weather…and the ocean…and the food…. But, here I am, living back to where I was born. I'm meant to live here.
I am so happy you ended up having a wonderful time on your little getaway.
I grew up in a desert with red rock mesas and lizards in our backyard, right on the Colorado/Utah border. It was sublime and I love it and I miss it dearly.
We did move our family to a place where we wanted to live! That is actually exactly what we did. Fortunately my husband has a job where it doesn't matter where he lives and so we packed up our family, which had been living in LA (totally yucky and not at all what we had in mind when we pictured raising our family) and moved our two kiddos to Colorado for a much cleaner, peaceful, les frantic and busy way of life. I have absolutely no regrets and thank God every day that we get to live in such a beautiful place.
We moved to Carefree, Az from IL almost 14 years ago and I have never once looked back…love it, love it. After snow and cold the summer heat is wonderful too and I only have a half dozen steps to go down and I'm in my pool. So glad you had a good time!
Your post really took me back in time. 12 years ago I flew to Tucson from DC, for a vacation. I also hate flying but I wanted to get to know a certain guy a little better. Once I was here I felt this increadible pull to move here. I ended up putting everything I owned in storage and what fit in my car along with my dog came. I didn't end up dating that guy, but I did meet my husband shortly after I arrived here.
Summers are brutal (not as bad in Tucson as in Metro Phoenix), so a place to escape to is practically mandatory. For what it's worth, I dream of other places now, although I don't know if I could really shed Arizona as easily as I think I could. It's fun to dream!
If money were no object, my husband and I would pack up the kid and "nomad" our way through Europe! Stateside, we'd go to Colorado. I guess that's just a thing that native Texans posess in their blood: "must…go…to…Colorado!"
And I got a kick out of your comment about the complicated bedtime routines. If I could get the kiddo to STAY asleep while sleeping with us, the hubby and I wouldn't care if she was there! Truthfully though, I can't live without my early morning snuggle, whether it wakes me up or not!
I didn't read all the comments, so this might be already said. We visited Arizona for a job interview in January and loved it. I can't even explain how hot it gets in the summer time, though. The pools get to hot to even be enjoyed. The kids are cooped up all summer because it is too hot. The winter is beautiful, but then it gets dark by the time hubby gets home from work. Oh, and summer (meaning over 95 degrees) started in May and ended in October! People, lots of people I love dearly, love it and will never leave. it wasn't for me and my little ones, though.
i've been an arizona girl since i was 12 🙂 i love it here and i'm so glad to hear you had a great visit! but yes, everyone is right about the summer being brutal. you don't believe it can feel that hot until it gets that hot!
i do romanticize my childhood in the midwest though and wish for a little white christmas or autumn leaves. i guess the grass always feels greener!
and the comment about san diego is so right! it is my favorite place to visit and is only a 5 hour drive, hooray! hands down the most relaxed, beautiful beach city with tons of things to do. love it there!
I spent a week in Tucson one spring when my daughter's college softball team played there. After spending the previous years in Florida for spring ball I was so disappointed, I wanted to go back to Kissimmee! But to my surprise, I loved Arizona. I didn't like the look of it, not green enough for me, but oh, the sun. And the air. I slept good (and I NEVER do that in a hotel), I could BREATH, my eyes didn't water like they normally do, my nose was never stuffy…I never felt better! And every single day, the sun just shines away, hardly a cloud to interrupt that incessant sunshine. The mountains are beautiful without being intimidating, and best of all…no rainouts!
I'm actually from Arizona and I would just love to up and leave and never look back. I was born and raised in Arizona and I am over the long hot summers (100-125 degrees every day for 4+ months is torture). I want to just leave and go somewhere that's green and has autumn leaves and Christmas snow. That just sounds fabulous to me. I've always dreamed of living anywhere but Arizona. For some, it's great. But for me, I get depressed every summer and kick myself for not moving out of the state.
No, I personally could never live where it was hot and sunny all the time. I need the seasons. My husband's family lives in S. CA and it's a great place to visit…but pumpkin picking in shorts and flip flops is not my scene…lol.
Allison
that looks so beautiful………..i long to live in a warmer climate!!! i live in michigan, don't get me wrong i love the pretty snowfall – but it just lasts too long!!!
My SIL has been begging us to do just that for years. She lives in AZ so we visit every other year and while it's nice to visit, it's not a home for us. It is HOT and miserable in the summer. You can barely stand to be outside even while soaking in the pool. If the kids don't go out to play in the morning they have to wait until late evening b/c of the heat. I'd miss the seasons. BUT … I wish we could afford to visit more often. It's a fun vacation destination.
You made my year by making me feel better. I too am the back breaking nightime routine kinda Momma. I get so much flack for it but like you said it's my way and I feel the need to be very close, sleep with, "baby" them while they are babies (which to me is age 5 and under!) It always makes me crazy when people are baby wising their little newborns forcing them to cry it out etc..when they have been on our planet for mere months. Not for me. You really make me feel better. 🙂
BTW, we just got back from a Phoenix trip too. We are up in the cold and snowy mountain town 2 hours north of Phoenix. We are lucky to have the best of both worlds.
my oh my – I miss the sun. we live in ireland – and seriously, sometimes the sun comes in the summer and sometimes not! That AND we live on an island off an island so even getting to sun is a trek involving boats or planes. I think I was totally born in the wrong country! But I do love it and we are close to family : ) love your blog! j
I know where you took those pics! I am a Phoenix, AZ native who lived in Grand Rapids Michigan for five years, and I complained the ENTIRE TIME. You are totally right about the sun. I am a sun addict. If it gets overcast for more than two days here I get bummed! But today it is just warm and sunny and as pretty as can be.
All the people saying it's too hot…it's not THAT BAD. 🙂
Ah… You should have told us abt the trip!! We could have had a welcome wagon ready for you. It's so funny, I love Arizona – but sometimes I wish I lived back east more (or maybe mid-west). Glad you had a good time!!
Great pics!
I totally HATE staying put (military brat), but my poor hubby despises change, so we are where we are, probably forever. I fought it for years, but I'm good with it now… We have so many wonderful friends where we are, and I don't want to start over lol!
I got some seriously snide comments from someone with our state's early intervention service when she found out that Jonah (at 10 months, I mean really?) sleeps with us every night, and in my arms for nearly all of his naps. Which aren't on a schedule. Sheesh – if the kid is tired, he takes a nap. If he's not tired, then *I* don't get a nap. Pretty simple concept to me, but apparently being on a schedule is crucial. Maybe they can explain that to all of my kids and then they will all comply =D
I can't leave my little ones, either. You know as well as I do that they grow up so fast, and missing even a moment of it is a tragedy!
Love this post…and YES!!! I do…I want to move to Colorado…because they still have the season, but it can snow one day and be gone within 48 hours…I love the fact the mountains are close and it just is so pretty…I have wanted to do this for years…maybe someday!
Sarah, I'm with you on the airplane thing…I think about it every time I fly. I LOVE to travel, but for some reason the flights always make me SO nervous. So glad you enjoyed AZ. Yes, it's an oven in the summer but it is oh-so-nice right now!
my sister-in-law sent me your blog as she lives in chicago and we live in phoenix and she often dreams this same dream. whenever we visit california i think i will up and move my family there. to smell the ocean everyday would be dreamy. oh, well. i think i already live in the best place possible. and, i have to say, i even love phoenix in the summer. hot, but dry. swimming, eating popsicles, dining al fresco… i can't complain. so, yes, you should up and move your family here:)