April Showers Bring Grandpa & Flowers

The boys and I have gotten some serious Grandpa time in over the past month, and as a result we have been on many adventures that we would not have otherwise been on. Since Late March he has come twice two weeks apart, but for about a week each time! He had to work more this last trip, but the first one out we were able to go on several little fun trips (San Tan Mtns - blogged earlier), and then to the botanical gardens and a fun restaurant out in the boonies called San Tan Flats. Here are some of my favorite pictures...

I love Brody's face in this pictures, he always seems to have something smeared on his face and most of the time he is flashing this sweet smile. He's a pretty happy kiddo especially when he has chocolate.

Okay, so this restaurant is so cool. It reminds me of Texas, and it has pretty darn good food, but the atmosphere is what is so fun. You can eat inside if you want, but most of the seating is outside (first come first serve) and there are these pits everywhere. When you are ready they light up a fire for you and you can roast your own marshmallows and make smores.

Colby's first pyro experience, he was thrilled when his marshmallow caught on fire!!

As for most things outdoors this is the perfect time to go to the botanical gardens. The weather was fantastic and everything seemed to be in almost full bloom. This tree was so cool, When it fills in its leaves it will be even better. It was like a cave underneath it and we played under it for a good little while.

The flowers on this cactus were unbelievable. I am positive I have seen pictures of them before, on calendars and stuff, but to actually see this amazingly beautiful flower bloom out of something so thorny and wretched was really neat. This one was at the botanical gardens, but when Dad and I went back last Sunday morning to hike the San Tan mountains for the second time (this time without kids and at the before the crack of dawn...you know dad) we saw these in full bloom in their natural environment. It was awesome.

Needless to say, we had a great time, and you know me and my love for plants and flowers, this whole place was eye candy for me. There were so many neat spots to just park it in the shade and take in the scenery. Well, maybe next time I can enjoy one of those spots instead of chasing kiddos, but they really enjoyed it too, at least the first 15 minutes or so anyway :)