Memorable MondayCoronavirus Lockdown

Today Governor Ducey gave an executive order to Stay Home, Stay Healthy, Stay Connected.  He is asking Arizonans to limit their time away from home except to conduct essential activities such as work and obtain food.  He will start this executive order on the 31st at 5pm.

Since we live in AZ, we are encouraged to get outside and enjoy the weather while being socially distant.  We are encouraged to use technology to have virtual social gatherings.

I have in awe of what has taken place this past month to find ourselves at a point where we have been asked to stay home by our governor. 

*On March 11th, Governor Ducey issued a Declaration of Public Health Emergency to prepare, prevent, respond, and to mitigate the Coronavirus.

*On March 12th, the Church has temporarily suspended all public gatherings

*On March 15th - Ducey closed the schools at first for 2 weeks and then for the rest of the school year.

*On March 17th - Ducey cancelled gaterrings of 10 or more people, closed retirement homes to the public.

*On March 19th - Ducey closed gyms, theaters, and bars and only allowed dine-in options only.

* On March 25th, the Church closed all the temples.

It's a weird feeling that we have been asked to stay home from church,, school, work, and other activities.  We are essentially in a lockdown with our family.  I'm very grateful that all of my family is living under one roof so we can do this all together..

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Picacho Peak

Our Adventures at Picacho Peak

We wanted to get out of town, so we went to Picacho Peak.  I was hoping to see some wildflowers, but we were a couple of weeks short.  We went on a short hike, which seemed a lot longer with Manny.  Danni carried him the whole time and I was so impressed with her.  It was nice to get away especially since we are all stuck at home due to the state lockdown.  The weather was nice enough for us all to wear jackets.  There were not a lot of people on the trail we used, so we were able to keep our social distancing.  We are having to change the way we live our lives, so running away for the day seemed perfect.  We didn't stay at the park for very long, just long enough for the hike plus a little bit more. We stopped near Picacho at In-N-Out on our way home for lunch.  It was a perfect way to spend a Saturday in March during a lock down.

Social DistancingPace Style

Social distancing, also called “physical distancing,” means keeping a safe space between yourself and other people who are not from your household. To practice social or physical distancing, stay at least 6 feet (about 2 arms' length) from other people who are not from your household in both indoor and outdoor spaces.

Social Distancing per CDC

Our family needed to get out of the house, we were getting stir crazy.  We decided to go to Lost Ductchman and go for a hike.  I think everyone else had the same idea, because we couldn't get in the park.  The park was practicing social distancing, so they closed the entrance when the park was 50 percent full.  We could either wait 20-30 min,. or come back another time.  We decided to come back and went to a nearby park.  We had lunch, and then hit the playground.  They had some super fun swings and watching Danni and Em figure them out was a lot of fun.  We even watched some people ride their horses across the park.  Sights we don't see everyday.  

Of course, I wanted a picture, so we found a great location for a pic. It was a nice getaway for us.  March is the one of the best months to be outside and to be cooped up all day is hard.  

18 Months Old

Manny turned 18 months old and we took him to the Riparian to get his pics taken. We took him for a walk and hid some rocks that we painted.  Manny loved getting out the house and going for a walk.  After the walk, we stopped and took his 18 month old pictures.

The last 6 months flew by and the next thing we knew, he was 18 months old.  He is currently living with us and we love having him around.  He has so much spunk and it adds to the spirit of our home.  

Memorable MondayOut of Africa

We took Josh, Dani, and Angela to "Out of Africa".  Josh went on a kindergarten field trip and ever since then I wanted to take my family there.  I love tigers and they had white tiger there and also had a tiger show.  I was super excited to share this with my family.  We had a great visit and enjoyed the animals and shows, but their favorite part was the talking bird.   He repeated everything Jim said and the kids thought that was the best.

talking bird

My kids at the park

Jim and Angela

Waiting for the show to begin

Jim and the kids

Jim, Ang, and I