To Phoenix and back

When I last wrote, I was sitting in the Detroit airport and had just learned that my flight had been delayed.  The three and a half hour delay turned into a four hour delay, and, ultimately, we finally left the gate four and a half hours after our original departure time.  That was a lot more time than I ever want to spend there again.

Thankfully, it was a smooth and uneventful flight to Phoenix.  

When I finally landed, I was happy to see the sunshine and thankful to have a little time to get out to enjoy it.

I found my way outside into the fresh air and waited for an Uber to get to my hotel.  

Once at the hotel, I checked in, changed, and headed out to see what I could see.  As I exited the elevator, I ran into Bernard the Pudelpointer in the lobby.   I was happy to say hello and get some love from him.  He was such a sweet boy.

Then I headed out to take a walk along the "lake."  There is a nice trail along the lake in Tempe and it was right behind my hotel, so it was very convenient.   While locals call this a lake, it looks a lot more like a river to me.

I enjoyed the views and the mild weather, but I may have been happiest to see these pretty little flowers.

When I had walked a little over a mile along the lake trail, I discovered that I was literally across the road from the Arizona State University campus.  If you know me, you know I love a good walk on a college campus.  So off I went to see what I could see.

I was closest to the portion of campus which is home to the athletic complex and I saw many of the sports venues, including the Sun Devils' football stadium.

After i nice walk around, I left campus and headed into downtown Tempe.  

The Tempe City Hall has to be one of the more interesting governmental buildings I've ever seen.  I also thought the vibrant downtown area was really cool.  And as a bonus, I met a cat.

My timing was perfect because I was headed back toward my hotel as the sun set.  By the time arrived back at my room, I had walked over 4 miles and had seen a lot.  And I had just enough time to get ready for my dinner plans with Sidnee.

Sid and her cousin, Dane, picked me up at my hotel and we headed out for dinner at a local Italian restaurant.  The food and company were excellent and I was so happy that I was able to spend some time with her while I was in town.

After we finished dinner, Dane and Sid were nice enough to humor me, and we made the drive to downtown Phoenix to make a quick stop at the Capitol Building. 

I was so glad we stopped.  I always love revisiting Capitol Buildings, especially when I can visit in the evening.   They just look so  pretty when they are lit up after dark.  After a very long day of travel and a little fun, they dropped me off at my hotel, and I soon headed to bed for a good night's rest.
 

I was up early on Monday morning and had most of the day free before my conference started.  I was happy I had traveled in a day early to allow for some time to relax before the conference started, and  I was excited that I would have some time to spend more time with Sidnee and explore the area. 

 

Sidnee met me at Papago Park, which was only a couple of miles from my hotel, to start our day.  I did a little geocaching before she arrived, and then we headed out to explore and do a little hiking.

Our first stop was Hole in the Rock.  It was a short hike up and the view was pretty amazing.

Sidnee said that on the weekends this place is packed, but it was pretty peaceful on Monday morning.   

It was a really cool spot for a visit.

Then we headed over to check out the Desert Botanical Gardens. When we learned it was going to cost us $80 to go into the Gardens, we passed on visiting,  but we did walk around the trail outside of the gardens.

While the trail was short, we enjoyed seeing all of the unique plants. 

After our morning of exploring, we were ready for an early lunch.  So off we went.

The plan for lunch was to have my first In-N-Out experience.  We arrived shortly after they opened at 10:30am and it was already pretty busy.

I ordered a cheeseburger and fries, and it was delicious.   

After lunch, we headed to Evelyn Hallman Park for another hike.

This little park was perfect for a nice leisurely walk.  There was a nice flat trail, lovely views, benches and pavilions, and a pond for fishing.

There was also a bridge to get to the island in the center of the pond. We had a lovely walk, found a geocache, and had a wonderful time

Next we stopped for Acai bowls at a place Sidnee had been wanting to try.  It was a nice tasty, healthy dessert.  Then we walked around the Tempe Marketplace, stopped at Trader Joe's, and then started the drive out toward the conference hotel.  We had about 45 minutes before Sidnee had to drop me off and head to work, so we found a trail along the way to stop for another short hike.  We had such a nice time together 

I arrived at the hotel with about 90 minutes before my first session of the week.  I got checked in and headed to my room to unpack and settle in for the week.  I was really happy to have a cute patio to enjoy during my down time.  

After my first session, we had an evening welcome reception, and I enjoyed the sunset over the pool and mountains on my way.  It had been a really nice day, and this beautiful view ended it perfectly.  After the evening reception, I headed back to my room to relax and get a good night's sleep. 

Tuesday morning I was up early and ready for a long day.

When I tell you these days are long, I mean nearly a 15 hour day.  Starting with breakfast at 7am followed by the the meeting kick-off at 8am and then sessions all day until 5:15, and then we're back at 6pm for the evening reception which is followed immediately by an awards dinner that is rarely done before 9pm.  It is a grind and it is exhausting.  And I (and my team) had the privilege of sitting with our CEO for the awards dinner, which was an honor, but also a little scary.  I mean we're a Fortune 250 company so he's kind of a big deal in the CEO world.  He was very nice and dinner went well, but boy was I glad when the day was over.  I nearly ran back to my room, watched an episode of Jeopardy!, and I was in bed before 10:30pm.

The highlight of the day was this picture of Fiona covered in mud after her day at school which gave me a good laugh in the late afternoon when I really needed it.  She clearly had a good day!

Wednesday we were back in meetings for the day at 8am.  Luckily on Wednesday we get a two hour break in the afternoon before our evening event, and I was looking forward to the free time. 

We were done at 3:30 and Sid didn't have to work until 5pm, so she came out to the resort to join me for a walk.  Her work is only 15 minutes from the resort, and I ran to my room quickly to change after we finished our final session, which gave us a little over an hour to explore.

There was a 1.2 mile trail right on the resort property,  so we decided to walk that trail and then walked around some other areas of the property.  By the time she left, we had walk 2 1/2 miles.   I was so glad she had made the time to come see me.

I walked a little more after she left, then headed inside.  I ran into a friend who I don't see often and sat with him a bit to catch up, then I headed back outside to relax and enjoy the view.  It was 76 degrees and I was in shorts, and I wanted to take full advantage of it.

Finally, I had to head inside to change and then head over to our evening social event.  I was tired so I didn't stay long before heading back to my room to relax for the evening.   I sat on the patio for a bit, then headed inside for the night.  It was nice to be able to relax for a bit, and I was in bed early.

I slept well and woke up Thursday refreshed.  I was happy it was our final day because I was ready to head home.  The final day is short and we were done by 11:15, and then off to the airport for the flight home.

 

I was happy that I was able to get to the airport early and was able to change my flight to an earlier direct flight versus the flight I was supposed to be on that connected through Salt Lake City and wouldn't have gotten me back to Detroit until midnight. 

I saw three GSPs working with TSA on my way through security which made me miss the girls, but also made me excited to know I was on my way home to see them.  Our flight home went well, and I made my way to my hotel near the airport for the night.  

I had a great night's sleep and spent the morning at the hotel getting caught up on email and some other work while the girls took advantage of more time at doggy daycare.

I left around 11:30 so I could pick up lunch and join a work call while I drove to get the girls.  My call wrapped up around 12:45 while I sat in the parking lot at Canine College.  Then I headed inside to get the girls.  I was so happy to see them again!

Before heading home, we made the three mile drive down Grand River Ave into downtown Farmington to meet up with Nicol and Fiona at Fiona's favorite bookstore,  Road Less Traveled.  It is dog-friendly and she has been asking for Peaches and Mina to come there with her for awhile.  I was glad we could finally get there. 

She read books to the girls, showed them all the things she likes at the store, and introduced them to the store owner, Mary.  She was so excited we were there.

This was my favorite moment of the whole day, as Mina sat next to Fiona while she read.  Peaches was even patient enough to sit for the picture.  They were such good girls!

Eventually it was time for us to get into the car and start our drive home.  It started out a little snowy,  but luckily it cleared up quickly and we had a nice, easy drive home. 

We got home to a snow-covered driveway, so before doing anything else, I shoveled.  Then I unpacked, started a load of laundry, did a little more work, fed the girls dinner, did a second load of laundry,  made dinner, and was in my pajamas and ready for a quiet evening at home before 7pm.  Boy was it good to be home. 

And as a special bonus to end our Friday, our buddy Skateboard was finally adopted!  That may have been the best thing to happen all week long.

After a week of playing all day with friends, the girls were ready for some rest, and I felt the same way after being at a conference all week.  On Saturday morning, we slept in and had a peaceful, quiet start to our day.  

Mid-afternoon I needed to head out for an errand.l and brought the girls along for the ride.  Once we were out of the house, I thought maybe we should head out for a little fun, despite temperatures in the teens.  I started to drive toward Eaton Rapids thinking we'd make our way to Albion for a short walk on the North Country Trail, but then I remembered seeing that there was an Ice Sculpture festival being held in Tecumseh, so I changed our plans and headed that way.

With the frigid temperatures and even colder wind chill, walking through downtown Tecumseh made a lot of sense.  The buildings blocked some of the wind making it a more comfortable walk.

I enjoyed looking at all of the ice sculptures, and the girls were distracted by all of the people and new smells.  Plus they kept finding popcorn on the sidewalk which made Peaches extra happy.

While we weren't there a long time, it was a fun little trip and a great winter adventure. 

And Peaches was thrilled to get to roll in the snow!

On the way home, I thought we my make a short detour to actually get a short walk on the NCT,  but it just didn't work out.  But I did make a stop at Aldi to restock some groceries and then got the girls out of the car for a quick walk before we headed home for dinner.

From the snoring I heard, I'm pretty sure it was everyone had enjoyed our day.

Sunday was even colder than Saturday, so we had no plans for the day.  We all enjoyed a relaxing morning and the girls napped until lunch and then napped more afterward.  But at 1pm, Mina climbed up on me and I knew we needed to get out of the house.  So into the car we went for a drive to Speedway to fill up the gas tank.

When we got home, I planned to take the girls for a quick walk around the block, but the wind was mostly calm and when it wasn't, we were well blocked from most of it.  I started with a short walk, and they were still doing fine, so I went a little farther.  When we were all still doing well, I decided to go a little farther.  Ultimately,  we walked 2 miles in about 35 minutes.  It was a perfect way to burn some energy.  It felt great to be outside and get some fresh air.  

The girls each got a peanut butter filled Kong when we got home and then they settled back in for a nap.  It has been a perfect way to spend our Sunday.  Now we'll enjoy another quiet evening at home.  The perfect end to a busy week.