A Few Day Trips

Aaron and I were very motivated to show our new housemates the wonders of Tucson and convince them that they never want to leave. It helped that they came in the winter when the weather was perfect for desert hikes (although Claudia was very disillusioned to find out that she still needed to wear a coat in the mornings and nights when walking Chocolo).

First Stop: Saguaro National Park

Stephen was all about the barrel cactus fruit. I think that stuff is gross, but he never missed an opportunity to snag one

The kids all wanted to try one too, but had a hard time getting over all the seeds inside.

Eating a picnic lunch in the stone house. It is amazing how much cooler it is in there

Our next stop was down to Tumaccacori. We have been there before, but this was the first time Elliot has been old enough to grasp any of the history. Mostly we had to scramble to constantly pull our kids off of the ruin walls, but a little bit of history was learned. The best part was definitely the tortilla lady who was making free fresh tortillas on an old fashioned wood fire grill. We each got to try one with homemade refried beans. It was SO GOOD and inspired Stephen to try to make his own at home.

Oh Ethan :)

Throwing sticks into the river- every child's favorite activity

The trees in the picnic area were thoroughly climbed

Elliot and Eowyn

Equally as fun but sadly less documented was our trip up to Mary's house. She managed to fit all of us! Well, Andrew and Benjamin got to have a sleepover while everyone else piled in. The enlarged cousin pack had a grand time in the hot tub and running around outside.

Eli, Ethan, and Annie