Phoenix: Meeting the Newest Gill

Jon's brother and his family live in Phoenix, AZ and we have never been to visit. In case we needed an additional reason, they also had a second little girl that we have yet to meet. So, in the spirit of seeing America and reconnecting with family - Phoenix: we're coming for you! 

Ya'll, Houston is hot. Phoenix is HOT. Yeah, yeah, dry heat and all, but when it is 112 degrees (as it was when our plane landed at 6:00pm) that goes beyond wet or dry and is just plain HEAT. In places that experience extreme weather like this, it becomes a game changer in your day to day life. Similar to traffic - you know how to avoid it, when to stay away and whether or not you adapt to it, there is an element of weather in your daily plans. 

Which is why we go outside to play between wakeup and 10am. It's still a very warm day, but not oppressive (yet), there are nice long shadows to help, and you can take precious pictures of cousins without them looking sweat-drenched and exhausted like they will later in the day. 

This great basket swing is in their front yard, and it was a big hit for the kids. Daddy and Uncle Dan took turns pushing, swinging and laying underneath the swing. Unfortunately for Daddy, he didn't realize that the trees surrounding him were plum trees. In full bloom. Leaving plums all over the yard as landmines for his clothes. He lay right on top of a ripe, juicy one. 

Look at this pure joy!!

Our beautiful baby girl

Cousins taking a break from the sun

And once the magic heat-time begins, we head toward water. The walkways at this lovely outdoor mall were covered in shade screens and misters to help keep us cool. And what kid doesn't like a fountain you can play in?!

And now to meet our newest niece/cousin, Halle. With her thick, black enviable head of hair and her wide princess eyes, this baby is docile and sweet and very patient with the long line of new relatives that wanted to hold her.

Just so Alex didn't feel left out

We enjoyed spending our collective birthdaversaries together, especially since they involved a mini-mom's getaway to an incredible luxury spa right around the corner. We learned about things like cold brew coffee and delivery to your car restaurant food. We picked fresh lemons from their backyard to make homemade lemonade and got to experience air-drying a shirt from the laundry in under 5 minutes outside. We were shown the best of Phoenix and we had some of our favorite people as tour guides.