Valley of the Sun

Yesterday we touched down in Arizona and can I just say how nice it is to be back home. The mountains, the blue skies... endless sunshine!!! Yes, I'll take it all. I haven't been back to visit for nearly 3 years and it's been great to see my family and relax before the move to Seattle next week.

Scottsdale is a big suburb (actually all of Phoenix feels like one big suburb), and it's a nice change of pace from Chicago. I'm definitely a city girl, but I have a suburban girl heart. Imagine the house and white picket  fence... but in a picture frame hanging up in my downtown condo lol. That's me in a nutshell.

We received a warm welcome to the valley with temps reaching 110+ degrees. There was even one point when my dash read 118 degrees! After cool, rainy temps in Chicago the past week I'm more than happy to soak up all the warmth I can.

Shade and a Vacay

Riu Palace Mexico Hotel -  Playa del Carmen, Mexico

I just returned from 8 amazing days in Playa del Carmen, Mexico!! This was my longest vacation and one that was very much needed. Despite getting sick (strep throat) and nearly eaten alive by mosquitoes (currently nursing the wounds of 20+ bites), I came back to the states feeling refreshed, recharged, and ready to make some changes! The first thing? Keeping my island/beach bum zen.

Touring the Mayan ruins I realized how quickly life passes by. Days, months, years, centuries! Entire civilizations have come and gone and all that's left is some rubble. If we're lucky - architectural accomplishments... otherwise? Time passes on and takes with it everyone. Life is precious and I've decided too precious to waste any time living in the past or a current situation that brings you down. Quite simply life is simple and we make it more difficult than it should be. It's cliche, but we should all be living our best lives now. Wake up and make the changes you need in order to have the life you want. Don't get so caught up in the bigger picture that you fail to acknowledge the small steps. Even looking at my personal life it doesn't feel like much change has happened, but when I reflect on the past 6 months I'm a completely different person. The past few years? I barely recognize my former self.

Let's get to living!!

What happens in Vegas....

In less than 24 hours I will be soaking up the desert sun in Vegas for another fun-filled weekend with #TeamDoubleTrouble. I don't have plans of getting too ratchet (by my standards lol), but I will definitely partake in a few shenanigans.

On another note, my ipod that had been broken for nearly a year magically decided to start working again!!! I considered this a blessing from the technology gods and backed it up. So freaking thrilled to have access to all of my old tunes. Definitely a happy camper.

What are your weekend plans?

Summertime Chi

My husband and I wanted to send a huge thanks to all of our amazing friends and family that made this vacation a memorable time. It's hard to realize how much you're missing out on by not living in a place where you have easy access to the ones you love most, but I made sure to see as many people as possible. I hadn't been home in about a year (longer for my husband), so it was a slight challenge making time for everyone - - and there were a bunch of people I didn't get to see. I try to not feel too bad, but when you're stuffing a year of missed times into a week of activities it's hard.

One of the best things about being back home with my photogenic friends was being able to put my camera to use!!! I've always been the unofficial photographer of my group so capturing our various nights out is high on my list. I put together a small collage of some of my favorite moments of this trip.

On another note being back in Chicago and having an actual social life provided me with tons of blog fodder. On the roster in the coming weeks: 

1. J Bar and the ultimate club come up

2. Bijan's and their foreign exchange program with Russia

3.  Planking - - even the strippers are doing it :/

4. Witness Protection: My mission to save the waitress @ Perez

5. When good crowds go bad - - Educated blacks acting an ass at Sawtooth

6. You know your night is good when you top it off by sleeping in a car

7. Toll Roads - getting ripped off 80 cents at a time (aka the 294 sucks)

8. My quest for a signature drink

Vacation update

My vacation is almost over but I'm still enjoying the 70 degree weather, sunshine, and palm trees of Arizona. I almost forgot what it was like to have to drive yourself EVERYWHERE. I mean, if you don't have a car going down the street 4 blocks will be a huge task and you can easily feel stranded. Since I've been enjoying my time with my family, friends, and dog I haven't been on a regular posting schedule.. but hope to get back to my usual postings by next week.

In addition to relaxing I've been back and forth at the dentist's office. 1 root canal, 1 crown, and 3 fillings later and I'm best friends with vicodin and soft food. Man, I didn't think fillings could be so unpleasant. Everyone, please visit your dentist regularly! I think that dental visits are all about preventative care. I feel lucky to have found 2 wonderful dentists in Arizona. If you're looking for a great general dentist:

Dr. Robert Clark

Four Peak Family Dentistry

3666 N. Miller Rd., Suite 109

Scottsdale, AZ 85251

http://www.fourpeaksdental.com/

and if you're in need of a root canal, I have a wonderful endodontist referral for you:

Dr. I. Robert Matloff

Associated Endodontists

1747 E. Morton Avenue, Suite 201

Phoenix, AZ 85020

And I must thank my friends that have been making this vacation tons of fun....

(L-R) Me, Sami Jo, LaRicia, Kristin, Jessica, Kym and Reva

And of course my BFFs Jessica (above) and LaRicia (below)

Vacation

After hours of working, packing, nervously checking my flight status every 30 minutes, and rushing to the airport, I finally made it to Arizona. I'm in my home and relaxing with my family for the next week! This was the perfect time to escape the bone chilling weather in Chicago and relax in the AZ sun. As the plane was landing it hit me that I hadn't see the actual sky in so long. I've been staring at nothing but clouds, snows and crappy weather for the last 2 months. Tonight as I walked my dog I looked up and saw the stars! Gosh, it was an amazing sight. I'm kind of a nerd when it comes to space. I could stare into the night sky for hours...it's a very overwhelming, inspiring feeling to glance up and realize how small you are in the world. I'm going to still try and blog while I'm out here - - writing is relaxing for me (not to mention I told myself I'd blog everday this year). So I hope everyone enjoys the rest of their week...I'll for sure be enjoying mine!