Surprise Adventure Day

I have to take a minute to tell you how awesome my husband is. Matt planned an entire day for us and kept it a surprise for me the whole time. It was awesome! He told me to wear my hiking clothes, and he also packed some clothes for me to change in to later. We drove for a couple hours to our first destination, Sedona. We stopped at the West Fork in Oak Creek. It was beautiful! We began our nearly seven mile hike with this view.

There was an old resort that was in this meadow where many famous people used to stay. It burned down many years ago, and very little was left. A cave, a chicken coop, and a fireplace that was in the main building was all that remained. 

There were several river crossings throughout the hike. Some were easier to cross than others!

Around every corner there was something beautiful to see!

Since we were near Sedona there was tons of gorgeous red rock to see!

The sun was reflecting off the water onto the rocks, and it was beautiful!

Here is where the path stopped, and the water took over.

After our hike, Matt told me to change and we drove to the next stop. We landed here, Page Springs Cellars.

We enjoyed a little snack and took a walk throughout the vineyard.

That was the end of our planned day, however Matt came up with another quick stop for us. We headed up the mountain to Jerome. Many of our friends had told us we needed to go up there, but they never told us much about it. It was an old mining town turned near ghost town set up on a hill about a mile above sea level. It was fun to explore.

We took a walk around the town including the sliding jail. They said this jail detached from the building and slid down the mountain to where it is today.

We learned about several legends and stories from a local shop owner.

We found some ice cream and enjoyed sitting at a park on main street taking it all in.

We made a quick stop to look at some of the old mining materials. They still have the Audrey Headframe opened that goes down about 1900 feet. It was hard to see, but it was still scary nonetheless. 

I also had to share my walking activity with my family. I had quite the spike in activity. My feet were pretty sore the next day!!

Thanks again to my awesome husband for planning such a neat day for us. It was fun to get away and enjoy some perfect weather!

Guacamole

It is finally time to add another recipe to the blog. I found a guacamole recipe I tweaked a little bit. I have really been enjoying it this summer. Without further ado,  here ya go! 

3 avocados-peeled, pitted, and mashed

1 lime, juiced

1 t. salt

1/2 c. diced onion

3 T. chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

2 roma tomatoes, diced

1 t. minced garlic

1 t. ground cayenne pepper (more or less depending on taste)

1 t. ground turmeric (optional)

In a bowl, mash together avocados, lime juice, and salt. Min in onion, cilantro (if desired), tomatoes, and garlic. Stir in cayenne pepper and turmeric (if desired). Refrigerate one hour for best flavor, but you can also serve immediately if needed. Find your favorite tortilla chips and enjoy!

Tucson Conference

At the end of July, I headed to the world Autism & Asperger's Association conference in Tucson with one of my co-workers. We stayed at Ventana Canyon, and it was so beautiful! Again I just have to show you one picture of hotel room. Is this not the widest shower you have ever seen???

The conference was also so amazing. I learned so many practical things to bring back with me! I bought a couple books of things to start working on as well as learn more about. I am very excited to implement some of the new strategies I learned. Also the food we ate while we were there was fantastic! The staff was very friendly and helpful as well. We had such a great time. I have several nature pictures to share with you-take it or leave it.

There was a really cute pathway throughout the resort that had all kinds of gorgeous scenery.

The path led to an 80 foot natural waterfall. There was a really cool story about how the resort moved its location as they were building it to preserve this waterfall. 

This was the view from the lobby of the resort. :)

The last morning there we saw a cardinal on our balcony.

Before we took off we drove up Mt. Lemmon. It was so gorgeous!

There was a storm rolling in which was kind of cool to watch from above!

There were so many different terrains along the drive.

We had such a great time! Talk to you all again soon. :)