{We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us.}

We recently traveled to Arizona as a family of 6. Between a camera, iPhone, + selfie stick I had grand ideas of capturing every moment. Which I definitely did not. However, I did manage to keep a pretty good visual journal of the experience! As a family outnumbered by humans 6 and under - we learned a lot ... and probably laughed in stressful situations more than you'd expect. :] To add an extra challenge, we decided to travel without any checked bags. Because ... idk, I might be crazy. I looked at it like getting paid to pack in an organized, thoughtful way. And with the guidance and inspiration of my dear friend's blog, Thyme is Honey, I did! Saved us some checked bag dollars, so we won. We used these Space Saver Bags they were great at compacting 3 outfits each for all 6 of us (Okay, I had like 8 outfits.) They also kept us so organized once we were there - everyone had a bag. We had one duffle, and then everyone carried a backpack. Definitely one of those times that having 4 kids came in handy!

We booked a late night flight in attempt to travel while everyone slept - we have some pretty awesome sleepers, after all. However, the younger two decided that they were going party hard on that plane so we were obligated to chaperone their fun as they touched everything within a 3 foot radius of our seats. At least Mr. Zi had me smiling when he turned to me at take off and whispered, "MOM! Now we are going to OUTTER SPACE!" It was dark outside. So, I didn't mind playing along. Never mind if I totally messed up his geography skills later in life. Arizona was on another planet that night. 

We arrived at 1AM Arizona time (3AM Wisco time), picked up our rental car, and drove over to our AirBnb accommodations. It was a fantastic, private, 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom place in the middle of a somewhat busy neighborhood.  The location was a little rough, but it was convenient to everything so we couldn't complain! It was nice to have the washer and dryer, pool, and grill in the back. By the time we rolled in, got the kids in their beds, and unpacked a bit, it was 3AM Arizona time, and Kenn + I enjoyed some peace with the beers, sparkling water, and chocolate that our AirBnb host left for us in the fridge. We both were zombies getting into bed that night - very happy zombies.

Approximately 3 hours later we woke up to three excited boys quietly exploring the house. We got up - figured out that we are completely incompetent in "old fashioned, non-keurig" coffee makers, and decided we were going to go on our first adventure ... to find coffee and join the land of the living. We found a Starbucks, and made our way through a grocery store at 7AM with 4 kids. (It was a BIG cup of coffee.) 

After that we all got a wave of energy and decided to go on a real adventure - so off to the Space Challenger Center we went! It was a great tour - the boys held their own with questions, and exploring the exhibits. I actually learned a lot, myself - between chasing down a newly walking toddler. After the tour, we accidentally found the best Mexican Restaurant we experienced the entire trip. So good.

We followed up with some family time. Kenn's mom was in town visiting her siblings. Unfortunately, Kenn's Uncle, and our Jude Gregory's name sake had passed not even 5 days before. It was an especially emotional time as stories were shared in celebration of his life. We ended the night with the memorial and we were able to see family from all around the country who came to pay respect to a truly special man. Jude ended the night saying that he was very proud to share a name with such an important person. It was definitely a beautiful way to end our first day. It set the tone of appreciation, celebration, and love for the rest of the trip. 

Claire

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