The Insight Bowl 2011

Iowa Hawkeyes vs Oklahoma....Tempe, AZ 12-30-11

Seriously, only Angela can get away with drinking a glass of wine in front of the security and paddy wagon.

Tailgaiting with the Iowa fans.

What is it with Kirk and "floozies" :-) Happy early Birthday!

Go Hawkeyes!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQE70orFPYQ&sns=em

Angela's 7 seconds of fame!!

The Iowa Hawkeyes were going to play Oklahoma at the Insight Bowl 12/30/11 in Tempe, AZ. So, being this close to Tempe, and as Kirk is from Iowa, well we just had to go to the game. Angela, Kirk, and I went downtown a few hours before the game so we could tailgate and do whatever it is that football fans do before a game. We took the Lightrail over to Tempe which put us within a short walking distance of the game. We had a blast talking to all the "Iowans", meeting new people, and trying to keep Angela out of trouble. Before the game started, Angela and I were allowed down by the sidelines. We took pictures of the players, the cheerleaders, and the Hawkeye band. One of the student band directors came down from the stands and started dancing with Angela while the band played. It was all caught on video....all 7 seconds of it and can be viewed on Youtube. Of course, you can view it on this blog also. The game was great even though we lost. We made it home safely, thanks to Kirk. We had a quiet, but nice New Years and headed home New Years Day!

Christmas in Payson 2011

Lake Mead in Nevada...on our way back to Kingman from Utah, Christmas Day 2011

Someone scored a goat for Christmas...saw this on our way back from Utah.

Papa Kirk reading to Taylor Christmas morning

Clockwise, Brayden, Jasmine, Dakota, Papa Kirk (on floor), Kyler, and Kael, and Taylor. They loved having their Papa Kirk around for Christmas!

About 2 days before Christmas, Kirk and I decided to drive up to Carrie's (Kirk's daughter) and her family in Payson, UT for Christmas. This is about a 7 hour drive one way. We were able to find a nice hotel that also allowed pets (we were not going to spend Christmas w/o Chuy and Lily) and we took off early Saturday morning (like 4 a.m. early) and arrived around 11 a.m. We spent time with Carrie, John and the 6 kids: Jasmine, Kyler, Kael, Taylor, Brayden, and Dakota. We all had a great time swimming at the hotel, picked up pizza on the way home and spent Christmas Eve with them all. Kirk and I arrived at their place as they woke up on Christmas morning and had a blast watching them all open their gifts. Although, we were only there about 24 hours, we had a great time, and are so glad we went. What a great Christmas!

Kingman, AZ November 2011 - present

Our "almost" trip to a park on Big Wash Road in Chloride, AZ

The Mural's just outside Chloride, AZ

At Hoover Dam. The O'Callaghan, Tillman Memorial Bridge in the background.

The view on our drive from Kingman to Oatman, AZ on Route 66.

Kirk in front of the Hualapai Mountain Lodge after the 18 inch snow storm.

I started my new assignment the week of Thanksgiving. It's a great job....if only this job were closer to the Phoenix area. On Thanksgiving Day, Kirk and I drove over to Laughlin, NV (about 1/2 hour) and ate the buffett at the Riverside. Kirk said this is where his dad always liked to go when he and Mavis (Kirk's mom) would winter in Yuma, AZ. It was a decent meal with seats overlooking the Colorado River. We also gambled our $20 and even brought home a little change. Kingman is an interesting place. It is surrounded by mountains (Hualapai, Black, Cerbat, and more). Historical Route 66 runs through Kingman. We have driven up to the Hualapai Mountains just about 10 miles from Kingman, where there is a State Park, hiking trails, and a lodge/restaurant. The mountains had 18 inches of snow one weekend, while Kingman itself stayed snow free. It was beautiful. Kirk and I like to explore the area on my days off. We drove to Oatman one weekend. The drive to Oatman is worth the whole trip, but only during the day...I would never drive it at night. Oatman is a small mining town of about 250 people. There are burro's that roam the streets. They have the right of way! We were fortunate to be there for their Christmas parade. We ate at the Oatman Hotel, famous for the honeymoon place of Clark Gable and Carole Lombard (they married in Kingman). I had my first buffalo burger, which was great by the way. On another weekend, we drove over to Chloride which is also an old mining town. There was not much going on, but we did enjoy talking to the guy at the tourist slash general store slash souvenir shop. He told us about places to go in the area .......only if you have 4-wheel drive. We drove on dirt, rocky, uneven roads to the Murals which were painted by some guy (can't recall his name right now) who camped there while he painted the rocks. They are pretty awesome! Then we took Big Wash road (also a dirt road) to a park in the mountains. We never did make it to the park and here is why......the road runs along side of the mountains, it's big enough for one vehicle.....we were doing pretty good until we were at about 7000 feet and we came to a turn. Well, at the turn and up the mountain road as far as we could see was nothing but snow. The road was not even visible, although we could see the drop off to nowhere. I decided, with no arguement from Kirk that we were going to turn around. Fortunately, we were at a curve which widened the road a bit. I got out of the truck, got Kirk and the truck turned around, and we headed back down the mountain. That was our excitement for the day. Kirk and I have also driven to Vegas, Hoover Damn, and Lake Havasu. Although, we want to be closer to the Phoenix area, there is a reason we are in Kingman, and we will enjoy it while we can.

On our way to Kingman, AZ 11-2011

Kirk with some "Floozy" at the Goldenmill near Apache Junction, AZ

Reina, Stacy, and Angela (sister time) at San Tan Flatts.

The Lavender Pit in Bisbee, AZ

Kirk at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, AZ

Eating lunch and listening to some good music at Big Nose Kate's in Tombstone.

Hello again! After leaving TX, Kirk and I headed to AZ. We had a week to get to my new assignment, so we made several stops along the way. We stayed in Ft Stockton, TX for the night at an RV park where we had stayed one other time when coming back from Carrie's (Kirk's daughter) wedding back in 2009. We left there and spent 2 nights in Benson, AZ. While in Benson, we took a day trip in the truck to Tombstone and Bisbee. Tombstone was pretty slow, but we did manage to take in a street gunfight....(the good guy won), Big Nose Kate's Saloon (sorry Rudy and Bev, but Courtney wasn't working that day), and the Bird Cage Theatre. I'm sure there is a lot more going on during the prime tourist season. We drove on down to Bisbee from there. It was also slow, but very interesting. We walked around town....it is either all downhill or uphill...no flat walking. Lots of interesting shops. The Lavender Pit, which is an old copper mine was also very cool to see. Between Benson and Mesa we had to make a pit stop in Tuscon as my new work place was requiring a drug test........now on to Mesa. Kirk and I stayed at a huge RV resort....so huge that I couldn't find my way back to our RV after going to a flea market in the main building. Fortunately, Kirk came to my rescue ( I forgot to take my cell phone ). We had a great time with Angela, Stacy, and Aaron. But, I need more than just a couple of days with my sisters. My job is 3.5 hours from Mesa (Kingman), and I've been working on a daily basis with my recruiter to get me closer to my family in Mesa. Kirk also has an opportunity to work (volunteer) the Phoenix Open, and also the LPGA with Angela. Keep us in your prayers that we find an assignment in the Phoenix area. We'd love to stay in AZ till middle of April anyway!