428 miles on one tank of gas: The trip to Scottsdale, AZ and back

She's my best friend no matter where I live!

When Tennelle called and said she would be headed to Arizona for the week of her Mom's spring break (Peggy is a teacher), I jumped at the idea of seeing one of my best friends. We worked it out that I would take the I-10 to Phoenix Sky Harbor airport, and then we would head up to her hometown of Cottonwood, Arizona. I was so excited to get to visit HER hometown, as we met and she now lives in mine. It seemed only fair. :)

While all this planning was going on, I realized that I would never in a million and a half years be able to travel the seven hours to Phoenix and then 1.5 more hours to Cottonwood in one day. I have a cousin who lives in Scottsdale that I had recently made contact with. Fred and I had even made plans to see each other in Vegas when we head that way for Andy's military ball! Fred will be in Vegas that very same weekend celebrating like it is his 21st Birthday, when in reality he will be turning 30.(But we aren't talking about it)

 I decided to overstep my comfort and ask my cousin, whom I hadn't seen since I was 12, if Clara and I could spend the night with him and his wife the night before we picked up Tennelle. With a warm invitation and excitement from both ends of the phone, I pushed the uncertainty to the back of my mind. It wasn't until I was driving on the I-10, with Clara crying in the back, and her Disney character cd that incorporates her name into every song (Jake's girlfriend nailed it in the Christmas department)...that I realized perhaps I was taking too big of a risk. It wasn't that I didn't trust my cousin or his wife, I was very excited to see them! But I was driving to another state, another time zone at that, with my darling daughter who has the nickname "Hurricane Clara" for a reason...and I hoped that Fred and Stefanie would not care if I walked in the door with a sticky fingered toddler who could destroy their entire home in less than 5 minutes.

I thought about changing my clothes..changing Clara's clothes...freshening up in a gas station..washing my car...but we had already lost quite a bit of time stopping for Clara breaks, and I knew they were waiting on us to get dinner. So when we found their home in SOUTH Scottsdale(As I hear them reference often), I was glad to see my cousin running outside to greet us.

It turns out he was just as excited for us to visit as we were to be there, and we were welcomed into a home with three sweet loving dogs that only wanted to lick all the sticky fingers of my toddler. It was a feeling I cannot describe, but in a sense, these strangers had welcomed us into their home with the pretense that we were 'family', and our incredible bond formed before the night was over.

I have only ever experienced such comfort and relief in a relationship one other time, and that was when I met my cousin Cassie in Florida for the first time. A very similar scenario, another cousin who I am related to on my mom's side. Her and I had so many similarities down to which side of the booth we tried to sit on in a restaurant, to the way we tilt our heads for a photo, to the life or death need for McDonalds french fries after and not so sober night.It still amazes me how quickly I was able to categorize both said relationship as family, when I had in fact only spent little time with these individuals. In both cases, with Cassie and Fred, it was such a relief to know I have family living near me, as I grew up with all the Hartley cousins only a few hours away.

Clara and Allieska taking her jeep for a spin

But my new found sense of family did not stop in Scottsdale, because we picked up Tennelley and headed straight to Cottonwood the next day. We had the chance to visit her Grandma, Marsha Clara, who thanked me for naming my daughter after her. I think just about everyone I met insisted that her middle name was "claire"...but Marsha was pretty sure I named Clara after her, so I just went with it! Her house was a jackpot for Clara, as she often watches her great Grandchildren. It was so kid friendly that the tension in my shoulders from driving immediately disappeared, as I was able to let the hurricane do her worst.  It was the same when we stayed with Tennelle's Dad, their house was set up for Granddaughters, and the same when we visited Peggy's house. The time we spent in Cottonwood was enjoyable for me as Tennelle's friend, especially because I was getting a chance to meet all her family! (She is at so many of our family functions my Grandma Jo asked her at Christmas "Now, which Hartley are you?"!) But I was also able to enjoy my time as Mom, as Clara was always entertained by other children, or their toys!

We spent the last few days of our trip in North Phoenix laying by the pool. I had to make 3 different trips to WalMart to find the perfect flotation device for Clara's age. She did NOT want the round doughnut that she sits in the middle of, but she also was not ready for the chest floatation. SHE WAS, however, ready for the chest/water wing combo that keeps her floating on her stomach. We put that thing on her and she did not want to get out of the water for hours! It will be an awesome addition to the pool here this summer!!

We had an amazing few days hanging out. Tennelle, Tiffany and Allieska, and Peggy. We were able to celebrate her birthday in style! (Take out Pita Jungle!!)...and we even got to order the Great wall of Chocolate for PF Changs...which I almost single-handedly devoured. (Good thing I went on a 6.5 mile walk today with my work out divas..that great wall of chocolate decided to stick around for a while) Speaking of walking, we walked everywhere while we were there. We were a little less than a mile away from the shopping districts, so when I say I went to WalMart 3 times, we walked there. Or when I say we went to Paradise Bakery for lunch...we walked there too. Even when we got our days supply from BevMo...we clanked the whole way back to the hotel. It was great for us, and we joked about people who lived around there would think "Oh look, there goes the hobos who do not have a car... Oh look, today they have a floaty from WalMart..."

 It was nice and snug in our hotel room..with Tennelle, Clara and I sharing a bed, and the Grandma, daughter, and grand daughter in the other. But for 6 girls of all ages in one Marriott room? We did pretty good! Clara is definitely a bed hog, but you know someone is your best friend, when they will lay awake next to your obnoxious sleeping child at 3 am, but still give her kisses the next day.

Clara picking Lemons from Fred and Stefanie's tree!!

So now that I have a reason to escape to Arizona whenever Andy has to spend 2 weeks straight in the field, I am much more willing to spend that time on the road, knowing that when we arrive in the MUCH more beautiful desert of Arizona, we will be expected to stay for more than one night...and we are allowed to bring Ju-Ly.








But I think the ultimate deal breaker is the fact that our '99 camry made it from Scottsdale to Fort Irwin with 5 stops on one tank of gas.

 It will be amazing to see what our 
2012 Toyota Prius V hybrid will get.

Wait, our what??!

 Just wait until you see the next post. I am waiting until Andy gets home to take a picture. He LOVES this car..and loves searching for conservative bumper stickers to put on it. If anyone comes across a "Drill Baby Drill" bumper sticker, please send it to us in Southern California!
 The Leans have gone GREEN! (With money anyways...we have already gone 140 miles on less than 1/4 tank of gas! Whaaat up!! )