Tucson, Arizona Trip - Mission San Xavier Del Bac

Mommy, daddy and Elise made a quick stop to visit the "White Dove of the Desert" - Mission San Xavier Del Bac. It is one of the oldest standing Spanish Catholic missions in the area. As you can see from the photos, it is an absolutely beautiful sight, and the lovely architecture and scenery made for a very memorable experience.  

Tucson, Arizona Trip - Saguaro National Park

Well I finally had a chance to post some of the photos up from our trip to Tucson, Arizona. As I mentioned before, it was Elise's first time traveling out-of-state! Flying aside, Elise did really well on the trip and she enjoyed visiting great-grandma, spending time with mommy, daddy, gramps and grams and sight-seeing a bit along the way. While in the area, we drove through Saguaro National Park and visited Mission San Xavier Del Bac and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, which Elise loved. As usual, I took tons of photos, so I may do a few separate photo posts. 

This photo set is from our quick drive through Saguaro National Park in Tucson. Elise fell asleep in the car, and daddy wasn't all too keen on taking photos, so I snuck out on a short trail to capture a bit of the lovely Sonoran Desert landscape. I enjoy the unique beauty of the desert and of course the incredible Saguaro cacti that dominate the landscape. The Saguaro cacti are unique in that they only grow in a small portion of the Sonoran Desert, mainly in southern Arizona and a small section of northern Mexico.

 

Enjoying the little things

One of the best things about toddlers is how much they enjoy the little things in life. A new toy can bring so much happiness and excitement, that it has us parents beaming and feeling the very same joy in knowing that our children are so happy. While on our trip in Tucson, grandma got Elise a little stuffed hamster, now affectionately known as "Hammy", and she was overwhelmed with excitement! Luckily mommy was there to capture her darling expressions! 

Four Generations



Four generations: great-grandma, grandma, mommy and Elise



Elise is the fifth generation first-born girl on her mom's side of the family. This is the first and only photo of all of us first born girls together. I love the photo and will cherish this memory for years to come. Great-grandma absolutely loved getting the opportunity to meet her first great-granddaughter! She was all smiles and laughs in the company of little Elise. She commented on how she is, "a precious little doll" and "adorable, just like her mommy". Great-grandma passed on just a few weeks after this photo was taken. She will be missed tremendously, but her memories will always live on. I sing Elise the same nighttime lullaby she used to sing to me as a little girl. Every time I sing it, I think of her and smile.

Great-grandma and grandpa on their wedding day

The happy pair vacationing in Hawaii

Proud grandparents with their first granddaughter; chubby momma!



Elise will grow up hearing plenty of stories about her amazing great-grandparents. They were undoubtedly two of the most special people in my life and I shared so many incredible childhood memories with them. Elise will hear all about mommy's summer visits to the farm in South Dakota, her myriad of animals, ice cream nights at Lake Norden, feeding the baby calves, nightly sunset watching, swimming at Starlight, pocket gopher and woodchuck detail, mommy driving the tractor mower, hunting for arrowheads at Lake Albert, mommy forcing uncle Colin to catch mice for her to keep as pets, the playground in Watertown, grandpa's motorcycle rides, library days at SDSU in Brookings, putting on outdoor plays for the grandparents, hide-and-seek in the old barn, riding on the tractor and combine with grandpa during the harvest season, grandma's mosquito net, horseback riding, grandpa - "the sea monster", deer watching at sunrise, grandpa's nightly story-telling  and grandma's comforting lullabies, the tide pools at Laguna beach, duck-feeding at the creek, trips to Knott's Berry Farm, Pismo beach outings, and the list goes on and on. We have so many great memories together and I miss them dearly, but I find happiness in knowing that Elise will someday share similar ones with her own grandparents.

Great-grandma with mommy as a toddler

Great-grandpa took mommy for her first horse back lesson!

  

Young mommy and uncle Colin at the farm

Driving the John Deere

  

Riding grandpa's motorcycle



Great-grandparents with mommy and daddy in 2003