An Arizona Christmas

Adam and I were lucky enough to join the family on a trip to Phoenix, Arizona for a Baker family reunion over Christmas. I had never been to Arizona, and hadn't had the chance to really get to know the Baker side of the family, so I was especially excited for the trip.

After a long delay in Atlanta, we finally arrived in Phoenix at around 12:30am local time (2:30am Atlanta time). We obviously went straight to the hotel and passed out, since we had to be up and at the house at 8am the next morning for skydiving!

Friday, December 23
Today was skydiving day! Out of the 23 family members that were in town, 18 of us jumped (Thank you, Grandpa Baker!). Adam and I were part of the first of five groups to jump so it was a balmy 3 degrees when we jumped out of the plane. Seriously, so cold. I didn't think my hands were ever going to thaw out once I landed.

This was my third jump and Adam's first! Here we are defrosting after our jump.

All of the cousins jumped, and so did Grandpa Baker and his three kids (Liz, Susan and Dave). Here they are before Grandpa's jump.

And here's a picture of the original Baker sibs after they landed. They all got to go on the same trip, so that was fun!

It was a long day, especially after our super delayed flight, but it gave me time to get to know all of the other cousins which was awesome. Adam, who generally can't fall asleep anywhere but in a bed, fell asleep at the airport and the skydiving place (which was Skydive Phoenix, if you're interested).

Saturday, Christmas Eve
Merry Christmas Eve! We started the day with family pictures at The Baker's. I don't have a family shot to share, but here's one of me and Adam. Sorry your face is in the sun, Adam.

I also caught this picture of Adam and his cousin's daughter, Willow. She is too adorable, but is very wary of strangers so it took awhile for her to warm up to us. This picture really makes my heart melt! Adam is so adorable with little kids.

We spent the rest of the day at Dave's cousin's house - Mary Beth, and then went to a wonderful Christmas Eve Service at Grandma and Grandpa's church. Another great day of family fun!

Saturday, Christmas Day!
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." Isaiah 9:6

Merry Christmas! We had another wonderful day with the Baker family, but it wouldn't be us if we didn't kick start the day with a little incident, would it? On our way to the house we were stopping at CVS for some chips and salsa (guilty) and some Benadryl (my skin does not do well with climate changes). So really, you could put all the blame on me for this one. Anyway, we were driving through the CVS parking lot, and all of a sudden Meagan screams. About .02 seconds later, we nailed a random, diamond median in the middle of the parking lot - and I'm pretty sure we caught some serious air. The poor car limps over to a parking spot, and we all get out to assess the damage. Turns out we popped two tires in the process of our unplanned joy ride...whoopsie! Adam and Nathan changed the tire in like 10 minutes - seriously so fast - and then we hobbled over to the Baker's house. I could go into more detail on what a hassle that incident caused, but I won't bore you with the details. Oh, and the CVS was closed.

We spent the day playing Dirty Santa and hanging out by the pool (jealous?), and then ate a delish Christmas dinner courtesy of the Leonards! I was also able to swing by Jack in the Box for a couple amazing post-dinner tacos.

However, it was never lost in the day what today, Christmas, is all about. We are so very thankful for all of the amazing blessings He has given us in our short lives, and constantly make a point to not take Him or any of His blessings for granted.

Our first Christmas as Bakers!

Monday, December 26
On our last day in Phoenix, the boys and girls split up to do what they do best: golf and shop. So the ladies headed to Old Town Scottsdale for the day. We ate Mexican food for lunch (all of my Arizona goals have now been accomplished!), and then walked and shopped for the rest of the afternoon. And of course we had to stop for ice cream and milkshakes!

We had such an amazing time in Arizona, and Adam and I are both so happy we got to spend some quality time with the extended Baker family! Thank you again, Grandpa and Grandma, for bringing us all together for the holidays!

Happy New Year!