Marine Corps Air Station Miramar

My 14-year-old has been vacillating between wanting a commission in the Marine Corps and a commission in the Coast Guard.  Fortunately, San Diego has bases for both.  So, a few weeks before we left for San Diego, I contacted the Public Affairs Office at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar about the possibility of having a tour of the base while we were there.  I was able to get it arranged without difficulty.

We were met at the gate by one of the Public Affairs officers.  We got loaded into one of the government's SUVs, and spent the next hour being shown around the base.  Since Miramar (yes, this is the base of Top Gun glory, but it has been taken over by the Marines) is an air station, most of the action takes place in the air, so the Marines don't take up much land space.  To compare, our tour guide said that 10 Miramars could easily fit within the confines of Camp Pendleton.

Our guide was able to access the flight line.  We got to see the hangars.  My son was even more excited about seeing the Osprey up close and personal.  He peppered our guide with questions, and loved the tour.  My 4-year-old, on the other hand, was bored out of her mind. 

Since it was just the three of us, we were only able to do the driving tour.  For larger groups, the Public Affairs Office will arrange cool extras, like a demo from the K-9 unit there on base and a walking tour inside one of the hangars.  We were able to do something like that with a homeschool group up in Washington a number of years ago at Fort Lewis, and it was spectacular.  Definitely worth doing.

Shrek at the Herberger Theater

 My kids and I recently joined a group of other homeschoolers to go see a production of "Shrek" at the Herberger Theater.

The theater is in downtown Phoenix.  I was able to get street parking, but since there is a two hour time limit, I had to leave right at the end of the play.

We were ushered into the theater.  The seats are a little small.  Not much leg room.  My knees were touching the back of the seat in front of me.

The lights dimmed, and the play started.

What I liked about this production was that it was totally low-tech and whimsical.  The costumes were quirky and cute. For example, when we met the dragon, it turned out to be a giant puppet controlled by actors donned in all black.  

We will go back in the future for other productions.

Celebration of Freedom

The annual Celebration of Freedom was on June 29, 2013 in Mesa, Arizona.  I went to drop off my oldest two children, who were participating in the honor guard for the Fallen Heroes Memorial alongside other members of the Veteran's Pride Battalion of the United States Naval Sea Cadet Corps.  After I left them with the officer in charge, I decided to scope out the event.

Because I am so tremendously proud of my own children and all of the other children affiliated with the Sea Cadet Corps, I'm including the "changing of the guard"...

The event concluded with a fireworks display...

Memorial for the Fallen Hotshot Firefighters

This is the first time I am profiling an event I went to with one of my children that my readers will not be able to go partake in themselves.  I'm writing about it anyway, because it was an amazing display of community amidst tragedy.  For those who don't know, 19 of a 20 member team of "Hotshot" firefighters died on June 30th, 2013 when the Yarnell Fire overtook them.  

Originally, my 14-year-old son and I were heading up to Prescott to observe a Congressional field hearing and meet Congressman Paul Gosar.  My son has a blog of his own, called XY Politics.  Jarrod had done a phone interview with Congressman Gosar, and when we heard that he'd be in Prescott for this hearing, we decided to make the trip to Prescott to meet him.

When we got to Embry Riddle Aeronautical College, where the hearing was supposed to be taking place, we discovered that Congressman Gosar had begun working with the mayor of Prescott and others that morning to set aside politics for the evening and turn the event into a memorial for 19 young men.  We decided to stay.

It was a packed house.  Standing room only.  People crowded around the entrance to the gymnasium because there wasn't any more room.  Armed security guards refusing entry because of fire codes.  Over 1000 people showed up.

Congressman Gosar played emcee.  Congressmen Trent Franks and David Schweikert, and Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick were in attendance and spoke.  So did Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne.  

As I'm writing this, the Yarnell Fire is still burning and has not been contained.

If you are interested, I was able to capture most of the memorial from my iPod....

Phoenix Light Rail and Museum of Natural History

My youngest daughter has this thing about buses.  She loves them.  She always wants to "take the bus".  So, when we decided to head to the Museum of Natural History with a group of friends, we opted to take the light rail from the park and ride near Bethany Home all the way to the museum in Mesa.  One toddler didn't share my Jillian's love of buses, but all of the other kids loved the light rail.  I loved not having to drive the 50 minutes out to Mesa and back.

 This gigantic dinosaur greeted us when we entered the museum.

There's a place to build puzzles....

You can watch a giant storm sweep through a created landscape at regular intervals.  The kids loved that.

There are tunnels and an indoor jail to explore.  My kids could have spent hours playing here.

The outdoor area where kids can pan for gold was also quite popular.  It was another place that my kids could have happily spent well over an hour playing.

Back inside, the kids found this "green screen".  They could act as silly as they wanted to against a green backdrop and it would show up on a black and white screen for their friends' amusement.  I'd have to say that this was the hit of the museum for my crew.

All in all, the kids (spanning in age from 14 all the way down to 1) had a terrific time at this museum.  I would highly recommend it for a fun outing.

Hassayampa River Preserve

We have been to the Hassayampa River Preserve in Wickenburg twice in the last two years with friends.  We typically go in the spring, while it's warm but not yet hot.  All of the trees there provide nice shade.

You enter the visitor's center to pay your admission.  The visitor's center has lots of stuff to look at, including some very nice displays about the history of and the wildlife in the preserve.  The staff does provide a fun scavenger hunt for the kids to do while they're on the trails, if you want to partake in that.  After that, you hit the trails.  As you can see, there's a big map of the trail system, complete with photos.

Most of them are flat, easy to navigate with little kids - although it's nice to have big brothers who are willing to carry little sisters when they get tired!

The kids never got tired of looking at bugs, sticks, rocks...all the usual fun things nature has to offer.

There was one steep trail, that leads to a breathtaking view of the preserve and surrounding Wickenburg.

Both of the 4-year-olds with us that day made it up and down, with varying levels of assistance.  It is a little more treacherous of a trail than the others.  I have slipped on gravel both times I've hiked it.  Meanwhile, the kids beat me to the bottom.

The last place we go to is the pond.  It's a favorite.

It was a favorite the year before, too....

We highly recommend the Hassaympa River Preserve as a field trip for families or groups of friends.

Granite Dells

On Sunday, we packed up a picnic lunch and lots of water, loaded the kids into the van, and headed up to Granite Dells for lunch and a hike on the Peavine Trail.  We parked at the Preserve.  It was a reasonable $2 fee.  There were covered picnic tables and decent bathrooms right off the parking lot.  After lunch, we set out on the Peavine Trail, which winds along one side of Watson Lake.

A wrap is an invaluable piece of baby equipment when you're a mommy and you're doing lots of walking.

 Soon, we came upon our first glimpse of Watson Lake.  Unfortunately, there is no swimming allowed in the lake.

 Rounding the corner, we were able to see the distinctive Granite Dells.

 It was hot.  We walked about 2 1/2 miles up the trail before we turned back around and headed back to the van.  The trail was flat, easy walking.  Our youngest probably managed about 2 miles on her own before she needed to be carried.

Before we left the Prescott area, we checked out Watson Lake Park.  There was a nice playground there, and more of the Granite Dells that looked like a fabulous place for imaginative play and climbing that would entertain the troops for several hours.

Clint and I are planning to visit again without our kids - in the early fall hopefully.  We'd like it to be just a little cooler.  We'd like to hike the entire Peavine Trail, and perhaps rent a kayak right at the lake and explore the lake that way too.