2nd Annual Trip with Lisl

My dearest friend, Lisl came to AZ for several days and we were able to meet up and spend some time together. We've decided to make this a yearly tradition and this was our 2nd year in a row. I was thrilled to have her come and meet all the family and see the farm and all. She was here for a couple days and then she and I headed out on a little get-a-way around Arizona.

 

 

We rented a car (one that was about the size of a tandem bike) and drover to Slide Rock in Sedona. It was really beautiful. I hadn't been to Slide Rock since I was a kid and Lisl really loved the red rocks and the sun. Coming from WA where it was still a tad chilly and not quite so much sun, she really soaked it up....getting a gnarly sunburn!

 

 

We spent most the day down by/in the water. Stacking rocks, wading through the water, and just visiting and talking about everything under the sun.

 

 

 

 

The water was pretty chilly, and we weren't brave enough to actually do the Slide part. But we enjoyed waching some other brave souls slide down Slide Rock and that was good enough for us. :)

 

 

We stayed at a hotel that night in Sedona, then drove down to Phoenix and made a quick stop at the Phoenix Temple.

 

 

Then we hit up the best sandwich place on earth, "Captain Bills," and I got a sandwich while Lisl watched me eat. :) For some odd reason, she didn't want one. :)

 

 Then we drove over to the Gilbert temple and did a session there. It was so beautiful! Really, probably the most beautiful temple I have been in. It was truly exquisite! We sat in the celestial room for well over an hour just soaking it all in and talking. The Spirit was really abundant. We moved around the room and got some really nice different views. It was such a pleasant experience.

 

 

 

Here's our tiny little rental car

After the temple we went to dinner at Chilis. Then drove about 90 minutes down to Tucson to Lisl's mom's house where we stayed for a few nights. Lisl's daughter, Makay was also down in Tucson visiting her grandma, so we got to spend time with her too. She's such a fun girl.

 

 

We spent one day at Kartchner Caverns, which was really amazing! So neat to see what two guys found just by happenstance. And amazing HUGE living cave. We were there a few hours and had a nice time. Lisl's mom, Ann, and sister-in-law, Lavander (who is from Africa) came along with us. It was great to have a nice little girls outing. :) 

 

I stayed a couple more days in Tucson and really enjoyed getting to know Lisl's family and meeting a few of them. A part of me is kind of surprised that Lisl and I didn't run out of things to talk about. I guess that's what happens when you're with you BFF. :) When Lisl's brother came over and I met him, Lisl introduced me and said, "This is my best friend, Julie." He gave us this weird look and said, "you're best friends?" We laughed and Lisl's great response was, "Don't pay attention to the age difference. We don't." I thought that was great. :)

I'm thankful to Kody for taking care of things while I was gone so I could go and do this. 5 days, 692 miles of road tripping, meeting lots of family members, so many laughs shared, a few tears shed, an abundance of the Spirit felt, and a truly beautiful time together. I sure loved the time I had with my best friend Lisl.