Friday Train Park

Last Friday I had the day off so I met my sister and brother-in-law at the train park in Scottsdale after we took Everly to school. The weather was great because obviously this time of year in AZ is the best. We started with the playground so the kids could burn some energy. The slide was a big hit for Aspen and Ted was in his own world making all sorts of new friends. Mae loved the sand and Nora loved the swing. After the playground we took a ride on the train followed by a visit to the model train building. Aspen had been watching Minions on the ipad in the car and then saw Minions on one of the model trains and was immediately excited. She also loved the trains on the tracks above us. We hit up the carousel before we left and once again, Ted met a new friend. That kid! Aspen was acting like she hated it at first but then I got her to calm down and she loved waving to Kim ever time we circled. It was a really fun morning and Aspen definitely took a great nap after all of that running around! Here are a couple of pictures and a little video:

she was very adventurous

 

The cape was a great help finding today throughout the morning!

 

the many faces of Mae

Hot Chocolate Run 2016

This past Sunday my sister and I ran in our 3rd Hot Chocolate Run in Scottsdale. We ran our first one 5 years ago and have been doing it every other year since. The entrance fee is kind of pricey but you do get a nice jacket and some yummy chocolate after the race. Also, it is one of the only 15k races out there. They also have a 5k but I would never spend that much for such a short race. The 15k is good because it is not as demanding as a half but more challenging then a 5 or 10k. Also, it is a great, easy and flat course. The weather was perfect on Sunday which helped as well. Our first Hot Chocolate run is HERE and our run from 2 years ago is HERE. The first time we did this run it was our first distance race. I had never run more than 4 miles before deciding to train for it with my sisters 5 years ago. Then two years ago I was 3 months post-partum and still nursing and my sister was also pregnant. It was nice this time to really push myself and I ran it at an 8:30 pace which was my best yet by more than a minute/mile. I finished 25th out of the 305 women in my age group so I am very happy with that and couldn't have asked for a better day!



Pretty big crowd. Over 3k runners in the 15k

Staying warm before the race

Sharing my chocolate bowl with Mae

Done!

Happy 21st Birthday Katy!

Almost 2 weeks ago my littlest sister, Katy, turned 21! She turned 21 only three days after I turned 30 so originally I thought it would be fun to celebrate together, possibly in Vegas, but then our family reunion was scheduled at the same time and since she is busy with her last year of college soccer about to start, we decided to do a staycation and go out in Scottsdale. Her actual 21st birthday was on a Wednesday so my siblings and I met my mom out for a quick weeknight drink which was actually really fun. We just went to Chili's and had a beer but someone did by her a shot which was funny. A few days later we checked in to the DoubleTree in Scottsdale for our night out. We hung out at the pool for a little bit before getting our makeup done at Sephora, which is basically my favorite place on Earth. I didn't have a super concrete plan but more a few spots I wanted to stop in at and it ended up being a really fun night. My sister-in-law joined us and my mom and older sister met us for dinner at Bottled Blonde. The pizza was actually really good there. A couple of my sister's friends also made it out along with her boyfriend. After Bottled Blonde we went to Whiskey Row for a little bit before checking out Maya. I thought Maya was supposed to be cool but it was super dead. We weren't there for very long and then ended the night at Dakota. It was packed but I think it was the most fun of all the places. It was pretty hot though and we were all sweaty by the end of the night. I forget that my sister has never gone out like this before so at the first place she went to the bathroom, she came out and was surprised that someone was "working" in the bathroom (the bathroom attendant). Haha. She had no idea these existed and what they do. So innocent! Even my sister's boyfriend didn't know that some girls have a job just to dance at clubs. Kids! Scottsdale is definitely no Vegas, but I had a lot of fun and now I really want to go to Vegas!

The Yancone's

shots!

Mostly good experience at the DoubleTree

Our room was right by the salt water pool and they allow you to bring your own drinks!

Even Nora stopped by

Kim and Katy and Alex and Katy

Carly likes to party

not a bad crew

Christmas at the Princess

Sunday night my sister invited us to tag along with her and visit Christmas at the Princess. We had never been before and I am so glad we went. First, it normally costs $30 to park to get in but we went on a value night which has half off parking, santa photos, and ice skate rentals. So we paid $15 to get in which is not bad at all. They have lots of lights around the resort and some fun characters as well including a princess that Everly wanted nothing to do with. The resort is decorated beautifully for Christmas. The train ride, carousel, and petting zoo are also free and they have a cute little "Enchanted Plaza." You can pay for a smores kit to use at one of the fire pits as well as ice skate rentals. They also have drinks available for purchase and a cute gift shop. I love this time of year and I love taking the kids to fun stuff like this. We will definitely be coming back again next year. If you get a chance to go they have two more value nights, tonight and next Monday.

  

I wanted to buy that smores pillow!

 

chunky chunk Mae

both boys rode on one camel!

Stale smores kit

Ev's face kills me.