Settling Into Arizona

By now I am sure that if you follow me on any of my social media platforms, you know that I am in the Phoenix area for the next three months. Mike and I both work at home as writers/bloggers/self-made-middle-classers and last year, oh, about this very time actually, we decided that we were going to spend part of the winter in the Phoenix area. My parents bought a house here and have started to spend the winters here themselves, so why not rent a house, get away from the cold Edmonton winters and get to see my parents more?

Why not indeed. We booked and paid for a three-month rental on an acreage house last January and have been waiting – impatiently- for winter to roll around. Which, I might add, is the first time that I can truly say I was wanting winter to arrive.

I have been barraging you all with sunrise and sunset photos on Facebook and Instagram, which are my favorite thing about this place now. Other than the fact that I’m wearing capri’s and sandals and writing this out on the deck at this very moment.

I’m sorry. I feel like a jerk for just typing that, knowing how miserable Edmonton winters are for all of you at home.

The sunrises here are however, truly spectacular. The house is set up on a hill and the views are amazing. This was yesterday morning, after coyotes woke me up at 7 am by howling and yipping right outside my bedroom. And I do mean right outside. I grew up in the country and have never heard a coyote party right outside my window like that ever.

The house is older, in good shape and it is huge. It’s a good thing we have tons of company to keep it full and busy, because it’s seriously the biggest house I have ever stayed in.

The other side of the house boasts sunsets, which are not always as consistently beautiful, funny enough. This sunset, seen on our second day here, was simply spectacular.

The mornings on the other side of the house ain’t that bad either, with the pink glow suffusing the entire sky it seems, once the sun starts to come up.

This is the view from the kitchen window in the morning.

Not. Half. Bad.

The kids love it, of course. It’s a completely different playground, however, thanks to all the creepy crawlies that love to live here. There’s no poking around bushes, stick piles or even turning over rocks with your hands in this here part of the woods. While everything is very dormant now, starting end of February-ish, it’s going to be warm enough that those creepy crawlies are going to start moving around. Yick.

However the other wildlife has been entertaining us daily. The desert quail are always on the driveway first thing in the morning and rabbits, chipmunks and even a roadrunner have all paid us a visit. No wonder the coyotes love it here; there’s food beyond measure for them!

We started back to homeschool this past Monday, right on schedule with everyone else and let me tell you, those kids of mine didn’t want anything to do with it.  However I must say I am really proud that they settled into it right away and finished their work for the week this morning and now have Friday off to play around the house and enjoy themselves.

I have to get into a work rhythm here, holy Dinah. I don’t want to. I want to sit and drink coffee on the deck and watch the sunrise and the birds. Then I want a glass of wine (maybe starting at oh, around noon?) and sit on the deck some more until the sunsets, Ereader in hand all day long.

Alas, I have a cookbook to work on and this blog to run. I have to admit, after a very lazy three weeks at Christmas it feels good to be back in blogging business again!

So the recipes are a’ coming, I’ll try and write about Phoenix some more for you and keep you all entertained!

Love you more than the Phoenix sun,

Karlynn