little things...

that have made my days better lately.

{having this little girl around. i really don't know how i got by so long without her.}

{when someone at starbucks takes the time to spell your name right, and then proceeds to add a happy heart.}

{my grandma lifting my spirits in unimaginable ways today.}

{ridiculously cute socks with foxes that cameron bought/put on immediately. that boy is the silliest.}

{looking up and realizing how much bigger things are up there than they are down here.}

*taken on my flight from arizona to texas.

desert days, part II.

 {kaci soaking up some sun by the pool.}

i decided i should devote an entire post to the beauty and coolness that is the saguaro . holy guacamole, this place was so neat! everything was so bright and alive. walls were covered in neon paint and every room door was a different color. the lobby had huge, warhol-esque paintings. we only stayed there for one night, but i would like to think we milked that place for everything it offered. we ate at the hotel's restaurant, distrito, and knew the rest of the hotel would be great based on the breakfast burritos alone. i liked staying there because old town was within walking distance, which was a nice change from taking a hotel shuttle everywhere. it was simply paradise. ok, one thing that wasn't so great was my attempt to get back on a bike. the saguaro had bikes that you could ride around town on {see? awesome hotel.} so kaci and i tried that out. i'm positive i almost had a heart attack. but hey, i got the hang of it again! sort of. making turns really isn't my thing. but hey, now i want a bike, so that's something.

 {smiling on the outside, stressing out immensely on the inside.}

my favorite, favorite thing about the saguaro {you can ask my sister, i wouldn't shut up about it} was the pool because at night...music played underwater! what?! maybe i'm small town and easily impressed, or maybe it was just the coolest thing ever. we discovered it when we decided to take a night swim {bacon sizzling heat, remember?} and when i dipped my head under it was an underwater concert. ah-maz-ing.

 {simultaneously swimming and jamming out.}

 we loved the saguaro. i hope we go back someday, even if only to finish our giant connect four game, ha!

{one of our only non-selfies. thank you, kind employee of the saguaro. and thank you for not laughing at us.}

desert days, part I.

 {thanks, partner. we'll be back.}

 {this pool view did not get old.}

last week my sister was generous enough to invite me to a work conference in scottsdale, arizona. {basically, she goes to panels while i sit and reap the beauties of a new environment. i know, it's unfair.} last year around this time i tagged along with her to portland, which was an amazing experience. scottsdale was nothing like the rainy city of portland but it was beautiful and had its own unique feel. i mean, the first hotel we stayed at had a cactus garden. a cactus garden. the cacti were tall and stunning. we didn't get a chance to check out any suburban areas, but it would have been nice to see a few houses since the architecture was very southwestern and interesting. my only complaint about this unique place:  it was dead hot. like, bacon sizzling on a skillet hot. i thought it would feel different than texas, but there was still a bit of humidity in the air and needless to say, i sweated my bum off. we must have missed the "dry heat" that everyone talks about. hmph.

 {this was our favorite store; the cheapest mexican blankets resided here.}

 

{our delicious pizza at oregano's}

we explored the old town area quite a bit. we particularly liked the mexican imports store because everything was reasonably priced! not to mention everything was so cool. lots of dia de los muertos figurines and mexican dresses for cheap. we checked out fashion square, but we both decided it was a little overwhelming and that it was better to stick around the local shops. we had lots of amazing food when we were there. one of the restaurants, the mission , was actually a church turned restaurant; it was beautiful. my favorite dish we had was the jalapeño pecan pancakes from the orange table ...they were awesome.weird, but awesome. i want to make some of those babies one of these mornings. the food was definitely a highlight of our trip;)

 {hanging out was also a highlight. we had plenty of selfies on account of two is the loneliest number when it comes to picture taking! we were selfie queens by the end of the trip.}