Last winter, when we spent a month in Tucson, they came for three days, as well. We couldn't believe how much exploring we could do in such a short time.
Saguaro National Park and the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum were covered from one end to the other. The weather was gorgeous and we were outdoors the whole day long, from sun-up to sun-down.
Not so this past weekend.
It was rain, rain, and more rain from the time they arrived. Accompanied by gusty winds and cold temps.
Of course, as they left this morning, the sun was shining and it was warming up. Why is it that's always the way of things?
But, in our usual style, we managed to cover lots of territory, despite the chilly rain. We simply darted from place to place, unbrella in hand as we emerged from the warm car.
Our first stop was the wonderful Queen Creek Olive Mill, about 25 minutes away. When we were in Tucson last year, we discovered Queen Creek's fabulous Mexican Lime olive oil at a great outdoor Farmer's Market. We brought some back to Minnesota with us, but quickly ran out, so I ordered more online.
So living nearby the olive mill itself is a treat.
Chris and Heidi survey the selection of olive oils.On better weather days, they have outdoor entertainment and tours of their olive fields, but, needless to say, that wasn't the case this weekend. We enjoyed it all the same and came home stocked with a variety of different oils.
From there, we discovered a great peach orchard. The peaches won't be ready until May, but they had oranges, a variety of lettuce and herbs ready for picking. We passed on heading out to the field to do that, but not to worry: they had everything for sale indoors, including a gigantic cinnamon roll with peace slices baked into the dough. To die for.
In between, we hit all kinds of stores: AJ's Fine Foods, a gourmet delight. We left a few dollars behind at Trader Joe's, Best Buy and Fry's, and almost had to take out a loan in order to leave Costco.
Another nice thing about a rainy weekend was getting set up with wireless Internet access and the installation of a network media player on our TV...thanks to our techie-wizards, Chris and Heidi.
Heidi also revamped my original blogsite, an endeavor I had previously attempted and totally messed up.
The house is a bit lonely now that they pulled away, headed back to home and work, and the reality of the daily routine.
But we are left with more beautiful memories of another visit, and the anticipation of more to come.
We feel so blessed by their visit.
