fall arizona trip

Fall break this year was spent in Arizona.

It being October already, I was hoping for some cooler weather...but alas, no such luck.

It was sweltering.  But the kids had fun anyway, so that's all that matters, right?  Right.

Here goes our super short but super jam-packed 3 day vacation to the "Valley of the Sun."

 Waiting to board the plane...trying to tire out the little boy as much as possible...

Which isn't too difficult since he refuses to sit still.  Even for a picture.

 Finally made it on and ready to take off!

He looks like such a big boy sitting in his seat all by himself!

(Which lasted all of 1 minute.  He spent the rest of the time on Daddy's lap.  Of course)

 In-flight entertainment.

 How lucky Hawaiian flight attendants gave us 2 digi players to use on the plane!!

But our lifesaver was Mitch's iPad.  Which keep the littlest one occupied.

(Yes, that's Angry Birds he's playing)

Aaaaaannnnd, he's OUT!

 This is what traveling with 4 little kids looks like.

And look-we even pack super light!

 1st stop: Matt's Big Breakfast.

Had to come here since it was on Food Network! :)

 The girls with their pancakes and waffles.

Which were tasty, I hear...but I didn't even try it because I had my...

Five-Spot Sandwich (and side of hash browns)

Which was YUMMY!  
And yes, I ate it ALL!

After our large breakfast, we hit the Phoenix Children's Museum.
This wind tunnel with scarves thingy was everyone's favorite, I think.  They loved it!

And then it was the bikes...

Also a huge hit with all the kids.

 Who knew going around and around in circles on small tricycles would be so entertaining for kids?!

 I hung out with Kaden in the "little kiddie" play area for short little while...he loved it!
And it took me FOREVER to get him to sit still long enough to snap this ONE picture!

 After the kiddie area we hit up the store.
THIS was where we spent the most time.
Kaden liked scooping out these lentils.  A lot.

While the rest of the girls (and their cousins Kai and Reina and Boston) loved playing with the shopping carts and registers and such.

 Mitch took Kaden to the race car track and he LOVED it!
I'm pretty sure this track occupied Kaden for a good half-hour!

 Jojo and Reina. playing with the fake food in the "restaurant."

With this kid...it's anything that rolls...

 HUGEST. TREEHOUSE. EVER!!

 The girls LOVED this Children's Museum!
Yay!

 Grandma with the grandkids.

 After all that running around, Jojo couldn't stay up for lunch...

Which just so happened to be the BEST FRIED CHICKEN I've ever tasted!!

At Mrs. White's Golden Rule Cafe...a tiny little Soul Food restaurant.
And it was GOOD!

Day two started off at the splash park.

 Not as nice as our favorite one in Tempe...but the kids didn't mind.  They LOVED the water!

I don't know what they were doing....but I love how they all get along so well and play together.  :)

Shortly after this picture, Kela slipped and fell...and no longer enjoyed the splash park as much.
boo...

And after the splash park we ate some ice cream.  Of course.

Ahh, my happy place.
Trader Joe's.

 And this is Mitch's happy place.
In-n-Out.

 All the kids care about here is the stickers...

While Mitch and I thoroughly enjoyed our "protein-style" burger wrapped in lettuce.

 Before bed, we hit the pool for some late night energy-burning.
Jet lag is NOT so fun for us traveling forward on the time zones.

Here nearly all of us fit in the camera shot!  Because Jojo was...

Testing out her goggles on the other side of the Jacuzzi tub.
 

 Our Third and last day in Arizona...we started out by visiting one of our favorite spots:  Joe's Farm Grill.
Kaden is mesmerized by the misters!!

Which, can I say, are GENIUS!?
Because it was HOT outside!!  But amazingly, underneath the misters it actually felt cool!
Yay!

After our lunch, wouldn't you know it, right across the parking lot was The Coffee Shop where they sell cupcakes!!  They apparently won Cupcake Wars on Food Network...but I wasn't overly impressed with their cupcakes.  They were overly sweet and not much flavor in the actual cake.
Plus, the texture was a tad too dense and almost mushy...but they sure looked pretty!  :)

And then it was pool time.

 Which all the kids LOVED!

And despite the hot weather, we all managed to find ourselves in the hot tub again...

 Ahh...the Seavey cousins...the kids will miss them for sure!

 And here we are...bright and early and waiting to board our plane home.

It was a pretty close call...but thankfully we were able to make it out!!
Jojo and I sat near the middle of the plane while Mitch and the rest of the kids got the very back row.
A good arrangement, if I do say so myself!  :)

And we made it!!
And even better--the kids were all happy and flew great!!
Yay for a short but fun filled vacation!

Oh, and even though we get to fly for free...that doesn't mean our kids get out of pulling their fair share of work!  Here's Kaden helping out by pushing our luggage around the airport.  

Yes, he crashed and made all the carseats topple over.  

Yes, I got a few weird stares.

No, I don't care.  

Happy Vacationing!

Oh, and to take a look at all 300 or so pictures I took on our short 3 day trip, check them out HERE!!