Waking up at Grandma's was awesome; we played around in her front yard in the early morning, and after breakfast our friend Aidan came down to play at the beach with Macie and I.
Macie had a great time playing in the sand,
while Aidan and I traipsed in and out of the water.
We made drip castles in the sand,
and on our arms...
Our trip to San Diego lasted only 2 days and although it was quick, we all enjoyed seeing the family and playing at the beach! Back at home we went about our normal activities while preparing for Uncle Shawn's arrival in Arizona!
It had been a while (about a year) since we had spend time with Uncle Shawn, and our family was SO excited that he would be staying with us for almost a whole week! On his first day in Arizona we took him miniature golfing. We weren't the worlds best golfers, but we definitely had a fun time.
When the weekend came we loaded the family in the car and drove north to the Grand Canyon. It was a long 3 hour drive, but we managed to make it fun by rockin' out; I'm sure glad I have such a cool family!
Even Macie got her groove on a little bit...
We arrived at the Grand Canyon shortly before nightfall and couldn't believe how massive it really was.
We also couldn't believe how cold it was (in the LOW 30's), thank goodness Dad made Mom pack our winter clothes because there was snow everywhere.
Despite the cold, we were able to walk around and enjoy the view.
When the sun began to set the temperatures really dropped and it was way too cold to stay outside. We toured some of the stores, played a little dress up,
and did some more rockin' out- check out my sweet air guitar...
Macie couldn't stop pulling things off of the shelves, and wouldn't listen to Mom, so she had to be carried for the remainder of our shopping trip. Dad couldn't help but laugh at the face she made as she was getting in trouble...
I was sure glad that my Uncle Shawn came to visit with us, because he was a lot of fun!
That night we went to dinner and discussed our plans for the following day. Unanimously the family all agreed that the best way to see all of the Grand Canyon most efficiently would be to tour it by air, so Dad booked us a helicopter tour for the morning. We were all excited when we got back to the hotel, and both Macie and I had a tough time sleeping.
The girls (Macie, Mom, and I) all woke bright and early in our room (at 5am), while Dad and Uncle Shawn slept in. Mom tried to keep us busy, but we were eager to start the day. After breakfast we drove to the airport where they prepped us for our flight. Killing time inside was tough since we had to wait a half an hour before boarding, so Macie and I did our best to stay occupied...
We crawled like dogs;
Climbed like Monkeys;
and shrieked like eels- when that became too irritating for everyone, Mom used a sticker to keep Macie quiet...
Finally it was time to board the helicopter!
I was the first one to board the helicopter, and couldn't believe how cool it was inside.
Dad and Macie boarded next, and Macie had a BIG smile on her face.
Once we all loaded inside the helicopter the pilot turned it on and boy did it get loud. Dad helped me put on my headphones so that the outside noise was minimized and I could here everyone inside as they spoke into the microphones.
Macie looked a little uneasy as we took off, but Dad was super excited and helped keep her calm.
Before long the fear and uncertainty ceased and she began to look around in awe with the rest of us!
Seeing everything from the air was amazing, and the whole family agreed that it was worth the expense to share this experience with each other!
We toured the Canyon for almost an hour and couldn't believe that Macie had the audacity to fall asleep on her first helicopter ride...In retrospect we all agreed that it was probably the best thing to happen considering she stayed quiet the whole flight.
I had a great time flying through the sky and seeing the amazing scenery, but had the most fun talking into the microphone and hearing my own voice in the headphones. I think I told everyone in the helicopter that I loved them about 10 times each...
After our helicopter tour we packed up the car and drove back to Scottsdale- our trip was a success!
Back at home we tried to entertain Shawn around the house by showing him all the cool things we can do. Macie worked on riding her tricycle (something I couldn't do till much later since my feet didn't reach the petals till I was 2),
and even showed off her skills on the trampoline:
After exploring the town by bike Uncle Shawn pulled us around the yard in our wagon and we couldn't get enough!
The following day I went to Lifetime for swim lessons, and Mom, Macie, and Uncle Shawn lounged by the pool while they waited.
Mom laughed at Macie's bizarre style of swimming- seems she prefers going backwards...
On Uncle Shawn's "Last Day Ever" we went on another bike ride and found some really neat trails and parks around town. In the afternoon Dad came home early from work and took Mom and Uncle Shawn on a hike at Sunrise. It was a 30minute uphill hike and they said that Scottsdale looked really beautiful from the top.
Uncle Shawn left the following morning, and Mom informed me that I had to go back to school (I got to play hookey all week)-I was NOT happy. I had really enjoyed spending time with Uncle Dangley, and pouted right up until I left for school...
We have a big month ahead of us as Hayley's birthday and Easter are rapidly approaching. Hopefully the entertainment will keep me occupied...
