Sunny Arizona!

T and I just spent 4 fabulous sun-filled, kid-free days in Arizona!  Yes, FOUR!

In January he sent me a text saying, “Four day conference in Phoenix at the end of March.  Want to join me?”  He was surprised when I quickly sent him a reply, “YES!” 

I rarely leave the girls for more than a one night stay at Noni’s and I’ve NEVER left them for four nights in a row, but I had been wanting to go back to Phoenix, especially since this May will be TEN years since we graduated and I hadn’t been back once!

It was SO much fun reminiscing and hitting all our old “spots”.  First up was “our” QT.  We used to run here (a few blocks from campus) for caffeine and snacks during study breaks.  

After getting Pepsi’s and a snack we headed over to the campus to look around.  T told me I wouldn’t recognize it (he was here two years ago on his Spring Training birthday trip) and he was totally right!  I honestly could. not. believe. it! 

The first thing we saw was two huge electronic signs at the front gate.

Later we found this magazine in the Student Union.  The cover says it all…

We graduated in 2004.  Haha :) Over Christmas break that year we were told to get our transcripts because it looked like the school was going under and we might not be able to graduate! Thankfully things started to turn around and now it is a HUGE thriving school that is WAY cooler than we went there! Haha :)

We couldn’t believe all the stuff there was now!  When we were there they had just built a new Student Union and it had one ping pong table and one pool table. Food options were the cafeteria (yuck) or leave campus. Now they have a whole new building with a Chik-Fil-A, Subway, Chinese food place, sandwich place, Froyo(!), and a huge area with rows of pool tables, ping pong tables and….a BOWLING ALLEY!  We were shocked. They also have a huge new library (with more computers than books…no exaggeration), Starbucks (apparently the largest one in the nation according to some people) and big new cafeteria.

The article shows that things started improving RIGHT after we left.

If you look at this next picture you can see why we were so baffled at all the changes!  When we went there it was mostly a bunch of big open fields with a few buildings.  Now it is almost all buildings with a few empty fields!

There is a huge parking garage now and increased security, but we told them we were Alumni and just wanted to look around so they gave us a pass.  We parked in the parking garage (so weird!) and headed for the bookstore which, oddly enough, is in the exact same little spot.  My GCU sweatshirt is pretty tattered and worn after 10 years so T helped me pick out a new one. :)

We actually had to ask the bookstore girl for a map so we didn’t get lost!  So funny considering T spent 4 years there and I was there for 2.  It really is that different! 

There were so many people milling around, but oddly enough within three minutes of being on campus we ran into one of our old friends.  He is working there and getting his Masters at the same time.  It was fun to have an impromptu catch up session.

One thing that hadn’t changed was our old apartments although I sincerely hope they did some updating as they were old kind of yucky back then!  I made T take a selfie with me in front of his old apartment. :)

And right across from them was the same old laundry where we spent lots of quarters! :)

My old apartment looked the same from the outside.

But the view was another story!!!  My bedroom window (third floor above) used to look out over a dusty old field with a sandlot-esque softball field where we played intramurals.  Now it looks out over dorms upon dorms! 

And the big old parking lot where we used to park our cars now looks like this!

And they are STILL building!

When we went there, there were about 1,500 students living on campus.  Now the count is over 11,000 (on campus students).  Crazy! 

The most impressive new building was the arena.  We weren’t able to go inside, but it is HUGE!

It was so much fun to take a literal walk down memory lane!  We loved our time at GCU and have such happy memories from those years! 

Hopefully it won’t be another 10 years before our next visit. :)

Let It Go

How do you know when your kids listen to certain things too much?  Maybe when the 19 month old starts singing the song with fairly impressive inflection.

This video was taken covertly and it’s a little hard to hear since the other two were talking, but she is singing, “Let it go! Let it go! I am one with the wind and ski-ia-ia!” 

Funny Friday

This is so true for me.  I REALLY wish I enjoyed running.  I just don’t.  I really really don’t.  I have tried to become a “runner” so many times and even after months of running it is still something I loathe to do.  I know so many people who love it and running marathons is the “thing” to do right now, practically EVERYONE does it! But I just can’t. :P

Yeah I think about sleep a lot.  Can you tell? :)

Haha.

Happy Friday!

So Sad

I unintentionally made the saddest video EVER! 

Peanut has started doing this adorable “No, no no!” while she shakes her pointer finger at whatever she is no-ing.  It is the cutest thing ever!

She loves the bottom drawer in the hall by the bathroom that holds all the travel toiletries and often comes to me with a random Q-tip, cotton ball or toothbrush.  I guess I’ve told her no-no often enough that now whenever she walks by that drawer she shakes her little pointer finger at it and says, “No-no!”  It really is hilarious. 

So before bed the other night I tried to get a video of her adorable no-no and instead I accidentally made a terribly sad video.  I felt so bad!  Especially because if you watch it twice you see just how happy she is at the beginning and how hurt she is at the end.  Poor thing.  I had to carry her around until bed (about twenty minutes) because she started crying every time I would set her down.  

I’ll have to try to get the no-no again sometime without making her so sad!

Wordless Wednesday

Talent Show

After church on Sunday our church did something new…a talent show!  It was so much fun!  We had a potluck and then about 20 acts.  Kids sang, adults sang, there was a magic show, a demonstration on how to care for rabbits, a karate demonstration, poetry, and even a demonstration on something called ecrima which is a kind of middle eastern stick fighting that one of our military men learned on a deployment. 

Boo’s talent was scripture through song.  She was supposed to do three scriptures, and she got up there and did awesome, but then when everyone clapped for her after the first song she got shy and wouldn’t do the other ones.  No one knew it was supposed to be three though so no one noticed. She did great with her Acts 4:12 Salvation is found in no one else for there is no other name under heaven given to men, by which we must be saved.

Buggy stood up and said I Corinthians 13:4-8 Love is patient, Love is kind, and is not jealous.  Love does not brag, and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.

She did an amazing job (although I can’t upload the video). She’d been working on it for several weeks and said it slowly and clearly.  This is one of my favorite verses and the one that my grandpa read at that wedding almost ten years ago. :) So it was really fun to hear her say it.

Bug also got to do a song with some of the Sparky’s that were at church.  It was pretty cute!

 

And then later in the show she did the books of the bible songs with her Sunday School class.  I didn’t realize they were going to do that one so I just got part of the video.  This was near the end of the show and apparently Peanut thought that it was high time she got up on the stage so she joined them.  Silly girl.

Noni and I also sang a song with one of our friends.  It was a fun one with rounds so after we sang it we had everyone join us.

What a fun afternoon!  I’m already looking forward to next year!

Friday Night Partyin’

On Friday night we had a wild and crazy party with our Sunday School group. 

First up was a gourmet dinner of corn shells, sautéed meat, fresh local vegetables, and finely shredded cheese (taco bar).

And then after a delightful cocktail hour (or perhaps soda pop hour) it was time for the entertainment. 

We were treated to a fabulous show that would be the envy of any Broadway stage.

Including live animal actors with speaking parts!

We even got to do a meet and greet with some of the actors.

It was a wonderful evening!  I hope we can manage to procure tickets again sometime soon!

WWF

So many people make comments about how much calmer and less rowdy girls are.  Now obviously we don’t have much to compare, but just because we have all girls definitely does not mean that we don’t have some major wrestle fests that go on around here!  And with as crazy, and loud, and rambunctious as they are I can’t imagine boys being any worse!

This is a typical before-bed activity…

And that was a pretty mild version.  Often T will just lay facedown on the ground and the girls run and jump on his back as hard as they can.  He’s going to have some serious kidney damage one of these days with all the knees and elbows delivering body blows!  I have firmly established that “Mommy does NOT wrestle!”  I guess it’s good that he has them pretty toughened up, and I don’t mind as long as I’m not the one getting beat up! :)

Funny Friday

This one cracked me up…

This is totally me…I’m more of a glance at the recipe and dump stuff in randomly.

This cracked me up because people are constantly posting stuff like this on FB! I actually tried a “healthy” version of No Bake Cookies that had bananas in it.  They looked exactly like No Bakes and tasted like…banana flavored chunky cardboard that made me gag! 

Heehee.  Happy Friday!