Wishing We Were at the Wizarding World

This was supposed to be the summer we went to Florida for the first time, to witness the story of Harry Potter coming to life in Universal Orlando, and experiencing the balmy and blue beaches that the Florida coast has to offer.  Unfortunately, the dismal state of Arizona budget again cursed our plans.  It's not a good idea to book an expensive summer vacation when riffed from a teaching position.  You really can't spend money when you're not sure there will be any coming in.  The good news is that I'm not riffed, (but really too late to continue those summer plans), but this fire me then rehire me business is getting ridiculous.  I'm hoping next year will be the first year that the district doesn't repeat their mistakes. 

Today is the grand opening of the Wizarding World.  Since we couldn't be there, I've been watching The Today Show's coverage of all things Harry Potter.  Here are some pictures of this new park.  Just imagine pictures of the family in them!
  
 (Just picture me or Sienna holding hands with Daniel Radcliffe!!)


You know how much we like to meet celebrities.  Here are some of the other awesome cast members.  Wish I was in this picture!




Hagrid's Hut and Dumbledore's Office, two places I definitely want to visit.



There is really no reason to fret.  Our summer is not lost.  We are headed to the east coast tomorrow to visit family, sightsee in NYC (including the Late Show with David Letterman), and get some beach time.  Then we will head to the west coast, to visit other family, again get some beach time, and go camping.  Aahhhhh, ain't summer sweet!!!  And Harry Potter will just have to wait to see us...........................maybe fall break?

More Sedona Sights

Well I heard that our favorite follower really enjoyed our Sedona pictures so I thought I'd get busy posting more pictures and adventures. After getting a lay of the land on Saturday, we returned to the same site, Bell Rock, for a family hike. Before hitting the trail, breakfast was in order and we found a great greasy spoon; the Blue Moon Cafe. As a side note, blue moon is my favorite beer, so stopping there was just meant to be. Want another sign that it was meant to be? The view from the front of the cafe looked like this,

And the view across the street had this,

Yes the vortexes were calling us!

With a backpack stocked with granola bars and water, we hit the trail.  Rob, being the great Dad he is, volunteered to wear the backpack, pink flowers and all.

We ventured back to the wedding site and trekked past, to trails and elevations unknown.  Along the way we stopped for photo ops and using the handy timer on the camera, were able to snap the whole family as long as there was something to set the camera on.  Here we are at our first family vista,

And here are the kids smiling at another scenic spot,

And another scenic spot....

It seems like wherever you looked, there were images to be kept.  Sometimes I was the photographer, and other times it was Rob.  Here are some pictures Rob took as we rested for a bit.

To Spenser, Sedona was just one big jungle gym!

Let's pause a minute and enjoy the view.......above and below!

After a great day of hiking, we went into downtown Sedona to shop and sightsee.  Spenser's smile turned into a frown on this leg of the trip.  He would much rather romp in nature's playground than shop.  So we kept that part of the excursion fairly short and this is the last picture taken before we hit the road for home.

Hope you enjoyed our journey through the red rocks.

Visited a Vortex Lately?

A wedding invitation and a mother's day weekend getaway finally drew us to visit Sedona Arizona.    Rob had been there before, but without me for some reason.  So I was excited to experience the red rocks once and for all.  Apparently, Sedona is a very spiritual and mystical place because all three types of hot spots, or vortexes, exist here.  Long story short, vortexes are believed to create positive, negative and neutral releases of the Earth's energy.  They also evoke balance, a heightened sense of awareness, an awakening of the spirit, and even divine intervention. (I got that from the brochure).  Vortex or no vortex, the beauty of the area is undeniable.    

The wedding was at Bell Rock, which is a designated vortex area.  I would call this a destination wedding, without seating, centerpieces, or decorations.  I guess the ultimate decoration is everything around you.  We kept that in mind as we hiked 1/4 mile up the trail in our wedding bests.  Luckily I did not fall in my high wedges, but others weren't so lucky.  

 

Bell Rock is located behind us, as well as some other wedding guest.

Here we are near the ceremony site.

Another view of Bell Rock.  Maybe we're right in the middle of the vortex!!!

Here is Sienna among the red rocks.  Isn't she adorable?

Wedding clothes aren't going to stop Spenser from wanting to climb!

We enjoyed the wedding and surroundings so much we planned on returning the next day in proper hiking attire.  But I think I'll save that for another blog. 

DC Comes to AZ

The big news for us this weekend was the long awaited and l - o - n - g overdue visit from my younger brother Daniel.  He was in town promoting Tennis Warehouse at the National Club Tennis Championships in Surprise, Arizona.  So he made the hour drive from Surprise to Chandler on Friday night to finally see our house and then go to dinner.  Of course I had to take some pictures to commemorate the big event and here they are!

So I guess now that he's visited his big sister he can cross that off his things I must do someday if I ever get around to it list.  (Actually, he has visited me in Arizona before, but that was when I graduated from ASU back in 1997).  The next day I drove to the Surprise Tennis Complex to visit him doing his thing.  His 'hit it to win it' court was a popular place.  The players lined up and took two shots, hoping to hit tennis warehouse merchandise strewn about the court.  Luckily I got merchandise without having to 'hit it.'  I guess it  is all about who you know.  And these days I'm glad I know/love Danny Castro!  Thanks bro!

Happy Easter

Happy Easter to our many followers (ha ha) and hope you're eating a great meal today. We started our Easter with Mass and will have turkey and ham and the fixings later for our Easter meal. As the pictures probably portray, Sienna and Spenser are older now, so there is no need for easter egg hunts, easter egg baskets, or a gluttony of candy.

Here we are at 11:00 Mass at St. Andrew's, held outside on the grass under a tent. Father Joe presided over Mass today, so it was a treat to see and hear him again. He is always entertaining.

And here is a picture of Rob with the kids,

 

HAPPY EASTER!

The BNP Paribas Open

As Sienna posted previously, the family took our annual trek to the California desert to attend the BNP Paribas Open, or to tennis aficionados, the '5th Grand Slam'.  My brother Danny works for Tennis Warehouse, a sponsor of the tournament, and hooked us up with awesome courtside seats.  Sienna was very interested in watching tennis as she loved our Tucson tennis extravaganza and now is an official tennis enthusiast.  Spenser?  Well he couldn't be bothered to watch tennis, even if the players are the best in the world.  So he stayed with Papa and Papa Rose and did what young boys like to do, play basketball, swim, and just be active.  Here is a recap of the highlights!

Here is Sienna at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden entrance.  We waited there for Uncle Danny to bring us our tickets and credentials.  Aren't we special?  The picture is not an illusion, she is that tall!

My brother Danny is the reason we like to visit this tournament every year.  Of course I've always loved the game of tennis but the appeal of free tickets to see the pros play is a deal that can't be passed up.  The tournament itself is amazing, and the venue beautiful, as some of the pictures portray.  And I being a sun worshiper, absolutely love the weather.  Tennis Warehouse does a fantastic job with not only retail, but also player signings, and product exhibitions.  So a huge shout-out to Tennis Warehouse.  If you or anyone else is in need of anything tennis, visit them at http://www.tenniswarehouse.com/.  You won't be disappointed!  You can also click on shoe reviews, or the video vault, and find many videos of my brother advertising and demoing products.  You can see him play too, and witness the talent in the bloodline.

 
Here we are in front of the Tennis Warehouse retail tent and the same place where the pros do their signings.

We watched several matches over the course of two days, and got to see the eventual champions in both mens and womens play.  Here is Jelena Jankovic, the women's champ, and Ivan Lubijic, the men's champion.

                                                                                                  

We were only able to get one signing this trip, but it was a biggie.  Andy Roddick, an American tennis player with the fastest serve recorded, was the autograph we scored.  We watched him play as well, and he even got to the final, but lost to Lubijic pictured above.  Here is Andy and Sienna with our autographed items.

Another tennis player of note we watched was Rafael Nadal, otherwise known as Rafa.  We saw him play singles, and to our surprise he was also playing doubles.  That is a rare treat.  Here we are at the doubles match.  By the way, they won this match, and eventually won the tournament.

I got pretty close to Rafa as he left the doubles match! Unfortunately, he wasn't signing anything of mine!

Here is a picture of Rob to prove he was there with us!  Thankfully he was happy to be there, partake in the sights and sounds, and be our photographer.  Here we are outside the stadium and on the peaceful grounds.

Another neat thing is while on the grounds, you never know who you'll run into.  Here I am with a famous former tennis player behind me.  She's the blonde.  Do you know who it is?

Well if you don't know, that's o.k.  It's Tracy Austin.  Here is Sienna getting in on the action as well.

We ended our two day session with a stop at the Tennis Warehouse tent to say goodbye to brother Dan.  While there Sienna enjoyed one of the cool props.  It was a fun trip for all and we hope to expand the family attendance next year to include Grandma Rose and Tots. 

California Fun

Hey everyone! Sienna here, coming to you from, oh ya, California! Spenser and I are staying at Papa's house. All of us met in Palm Springs and stayed at Thousand Trails trailer park, so we could go watch tennis. Big shout out to Uncle Dan. He got us great quart side tickets, to watch Nadal, Roddick, and other tennis stars! Spenser and I arrived in Arroyo Grande on Saturday, and went to Round Table Pizza for dinner that night. On Sunday, we got up and went to breakfast at Denny's. Then we rushed to the movie theater to go see Avatar. PapaRose had told me that we were going to the Fremont. We arrive and park at the Downtown Cinemas, and then I say,'Weren't we supposed to go to the Fremont?' so we go to the Fremont. The ticket booth guy said that Avatar, was not playing at that theater. So, we had to drive all the way back, and had to wait five minutes for someone to actually sell us the tickets. Overall, the movie was good. Sometimes confusing, but overall good. After the movie, we visted our lovely great Grandma Rose. We visited for an hour or two, and watched Roddick take on Ljubicic. I was sad because Roddick had lost to Ljubicic. Well, it happens, right? Last night, we watched New Moon, after we bought the movie. Go Team Edward!

Anyway, here are some pitures from the BNP Paribas!

Here is me at the BNP Paribas. We got our hat and tennis ball signed by, guess who? Andy Roddick! Oh ya! Stood in line for 45 minutes! It was all worth it! Go Roddick!

Here is Rafael Nadal signing autographs at the end of the night match!

Having a good time in Cali on spring break! Peace Out! :) :) :) :)