Sonoran Getaway...

I'm back from our retreat and still catching up on sleep, housework and clean-up from the event. My house is pretty much a disaster from several weeks of neglect, but Terry and I are going out of town again this weekend anyway. This time it will be all relaxation and fun! The house and mess can wait a few more days for attention.

This weekend we're hoping to see some evidence of fall. We're going to Payson, which isn't the best place for fall color, but several different sources list places to go near Payson to see the changing leaves. We wanted to go somewhere different and hopefully less crowded than the old standbys like Sedona. I'm sure we'll have fun with the Haugens and Thrushes even if we don't see much color. We always manage to make great memories.

We had an amazing time at the Leadership Catalyst retreat, but since I was working, I wasn't able to fully relax and enjoy the beautiful surroundings. I did have a little bit of free time on Friday and Saturday evenings and was able to get out and take a few photos. Here are a few of my favorites. Most of them were taken without a flash to try to catch the lights in the background.

My favorite place at the resort is the huge patio with 4 or 5 open firepits and 2 chimineas for relaxing, chatting and lounging on the overstuffed chairs. It creates such a magical spot with a view of the city lights in the distance at night. On Saturday night, after the evening session we were hoping for a good seat by the fire. Unfortunately, the patio was full of U of A students with their parents, who were there for parent's weekend. The hotel was totally booked!

Oh well, next time we'll get a place by the fire. This time we managed to sit at a dark lower patio area with no fire nearby. We had a great view of the city lights though and wonderfully awesome company! Guess what the main topic of conversation was? Blogging! We educated a few of our friends on the art and value of blogging. We laughed a lot about Linda's Pyrex postings and the culture of the blogging world!

This picture is of some of the gang that helped to make the retreat such a success. Of course, God was the key to all of it. The authors/speakers were simply amazing in delivering a life-changing message of grace and we had a great team back at the office that played a huge role in the detailed preparation over the last several months. These ladies were primarily at the retreat as a support to their husbands, but they were so sweet to help me too. (Left to right) Don was there for tech support & Carol helped me with whatever I needed at the moment. The surf board was there for decoration. Michele was a big help in clean up and moral support for the band. Her husband, Rand was a hit in the music department on Saturday night and Sunday. Linda drove down late Saturday night (you go girl!) and was also a big help on Sunday afternoon with clean up. Randy was the leader of the music and did an amazing job in putting together a fun and worshipful collection of songs. I was there for the details and Terry was there as a guitarist, mandolin player, background vocalist, my moral support as well as roommate & companion. What a fun group to hang out with and a treasure to have them as friends!!!