Arizona Quirks

Arizona is a weird and wonderful state. Before visiting, I think a lot of people perceive Arizona as this sandy desert where it's only ever hot, dry, and windy. Far from it! (This is not the Sahara, folks!) With that being said, though, Arizona does have a few quirks:

1) Yes, it gets hot, so hot you can make chocolate covered strawberries inside your car (Peterson, 2022), cook a steak and potatoes in a dutch oven on your dash (Webb, 2023), or make a grilled cheese on the lawn.

2) We have a few issues with wildlife. Like bears roaming around grocery stores (Sillman, 2023), bobcats living in attics (Sarabia, 2026) and sitting on roofs (Johnson, 2025), and appearances of new species of big cats (Ottman, 2025).

3) Cacti lean.

4) Less than a tenth of an inch of rain qualifies as a "chance of precipitation."

5) Phones overheat regularly.

But hey, Arizona is still a great place to live, quirks and all!

References:

Johnson, J. (2025, November 25). Bobcats spotted resting on Scottsdale home's roof. Fox 10. https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/bobcats-spotted-resting-scottsdale-homes-roof

Ottman, M.K. (2025, December 3). New Jaguar Confirmed in Southern Arizona. Mountain daily star. https://mountaindailystar.com/new-jaguar-confirmed-in-southern-arizona/

Peterson, Matt. (@MattPeterson). (2022, September 15). Making chocolate covered strawberries… inside of my car. [Video]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CiiItZtth5X/

Sarabia, S. (2026, June 3). Not rats, not raccoons: Bobcats found living in Scottsdale attic.

AZ family. https://www.azfamily.com/2026/06/04/not-rats-not-raccoons-bobcats-found-living-scottsdale-attic/.

Sillman, J. (2023, June 4). Bear found roaming near a Prescott Valley Safeway Sunday morning

AZ family. https://www.azfamily.com/2023/06/04/brown-bear-found-roaming-near-prescott-valley-safeway-sunday-morning/

Webb, B. (2023, July 14). Dinner's ready! Mesa man cooks meals on his dashboard on hot days. Fox 10. https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/dinners-ready-mesa-man-cooks-meals-on-his-dashboard-on-hot-days

Real Life Marriage: We Are Family!

I looked at the name scrawled in black sharpie against the cooler sitting in my parents' garage and thought, "Who is that?" And then I realized, "Oh yeah, that's their last name, my OLD last name." Somewhere between getting married and year six or seven, I actually started seeing myself titled by my married name, and somehow, that made my maiden name seem foreign.

I chose to take my husband's last name when we got married. It is not something all women do, and honestly, it was a bit of a pain. My name change required not only a Social Security alteration, but also a change to my professional licensure (which might have been just as much or more of a pain). Changing was name symbolized new life, however, and that is what I saw myself beginning when I got married, so I made the outward change.

It is not that the name change suddenly made me only a part of my husband's families. I think I am still getting to know them and learning my place in them. It is just that somehow, over the course of marriage, my husband has become my family. He is my home. Thought we are very different, we belong together, and I just cannot see it any other way.

Some people see family as a mom, dad, kids, and relatives. For my husband and I, it is just the two of us, but we are family, nonetheless. We are bonded, a unit, and by God's grace, may man not turn it asunder (King James Version 1987, Matthew 19:6).

Reference:

King James Bible. (1987). Bible gateway. https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/King-James-Version-KJV-Bible/

What We Cooked and Ate (Week 27)

This Week's Eats:

Brown butter sourdough brownies (Daddio's Kitchen) with homemade whipped cream (Sally's Baking Addiction) and mini chocolate chips

Creamy paprika chicken pasta (Made by my husband)

Homemade ranch dip (Dash for Dinner)

Lemon garlic roasted broccoli (Simple Fit Vegan)

Mediterranean chickpea and chicken soup (The Kitchn)

Potato wedges (RawManda)

Sourdough blueberry muffins (The Pantry Mama)

Sourdough fried chicken (The Pantry Mama)

Stuffed portabello mushrooms and roasted broccoli (Made by my husband) 

Noteworthy Repeats:

Big-batch Instant Pot white beans (Epicurious)

Cottage cheese egg bake (The Real Food Dietitians)

Shredded chicken (365 Days of Crockpot)

Freezer Pull-Outs:

Apple cider banana bread muffins (Buttermilk by Sam)

Overnight sourdough waffles (The Pantry Mama)

S'mores sourdough bagels (Sourdough Jesha)

Sourdough banana fritter muffins (The Pantry Mama)

Sourdough bread

Sourdough discard protein bagels (This Jess Cooks)

Sourdough gravy (The Pantry Mama)

Real Life Marriage: Home

I have had a lot of homes. Having moved many times as a child, I gave the title "home" to numerous structures and dwelling places spread out over multiple states. I called the duplex where my husband I lived when we first got married, "home." Our condo became the first home we purchased together, and after nearly a decade in Arizona, this state feels like home. But home has other definitions, too.

When my parents moved to Texas, part of my heart's home moved with them. Home to me means comfort and security and safety. I know that I need to ultimately find those in the Lord, but there is something about the familiar of home that brings that early sense of knowing and being known: our couch, our shower, our sheets and towels, our comfortable, well worn bed. Every home has its quirks, but when it is your home, you know them, and sometimes the quirks become almost endearing.

There is something about marriage, about a spouse, that becomes a home, too. That has happened for me over the past seven years as my husband has become not only my friend, partner, and lover; but also my confidant, adventure partner, and general holder-upper.

My husband is my person. He has quirks, sure, but I probably have more. I am far from truly knowing him, but there is a comfort, a familiarity, a trustworthiness, a security that I have with him and not with anyone else. I think it's supposed to be this way. We're in life together. Through marriage, God made us need each other. He made us better together. He enabled us to build a home together.

I'm not alone in coming to see home as with my husband. Shauna Niequist (2020) writes of her husband Aaron, “Wherever we are in the world, when I’m with you, I’m home.” I couldn't say it better. For now, Arizona is our home, but someday, it might not be, and that's okay. Sure, parts of my heart are in other places, as long as my people are in other places, but the biggest piece of my heart is always with my husband. He is home.

Reference:

Niequist, S. (2020, August 25). 19 years. In our vows, 19 years ago, I said to Aaron, “Wherever we are in the world, when I’m. [Image attached] [Status update]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/sniequist/posts/3830985810251906/

Ten.

Two years ago, I felt pretty sure we would be in another place by now. I was morning and pre-grieving, trying to soak up everything as potentially "the last." God had other plans, though, and here we still are.

I have truly come to love and enjoy this place we call home. Sure, it has its downsides. Commuting through city traffic is far from my favorite. Our best Christian friends live about an hour across the valley, meaning we see them infrequently. My husband hates the heat of the Arizona valley summers. There is the dirt, and smog and trash, and a few unsafe areas. But there is also the good: walkable (and runnable, when I can run) and lit sidewalks and canal paths, more parks than we can visit in a year (just in our city alone), ample hiking trails, cacti galore, and gorgeous sunrises and sunsets.

My husband and I bought our first home here. We both progressed in our careers. We dined at a lot of great restaurants. We enjoyed a lot of fun events. We made traditions. We made friends.

Will this always be our home? Well, no. Our home is in heaven, and whether Arizona remains our earthly home for the remainder of our days or not remains to be seen. For a temporary, home, though, a decade in one state is a lot, and I feel grateful and give thanks for it.

What We Cooked and Ate (Week 26)

This Week's Eats:

Sourdough berry banana bread (The Pantry Mama)

Sourdough berry cobbler (The Pantry Mama)

Sourdough discard banana bread (The Pantry Mama)

Sourdough discard cinnamon biscuits (Chasing Simple)

Sourdough pound cake (The Pantry Mama) with berry sauce (Of Batter and Dough)

Chicken lentil soup (Skinny Taste)

Noteworthy Repeats:

Big-batch Instant Pot white beans (Epicurious)

Cottage cheese egg bake (The Real Food Dietitians)

Shredded chicken (365 Days of Crockpot)

Sourdough gravy (The Pantry Mama)

Freezer Pull-Outs:

Apple cider banana bread muffins (Buttermilk by Sam)

Overnight sourdough waffles (The Pantry Mama)

Sourdough banana fritter muffins (The Pantry Mama)

Sourdough bread

Afghan 93

This was another afghan that I started and stopped. I started it to use up yarn, and having made several "boy" afghans, thought I should throw in pink yarn. That pink yarn held me up, as I got the wrong color of pink, which led me to start afghan 93. In the process of starting and stopping the project, I forgot how I was doing the edging, and it got a bit wonky. By the time I finished the blanket, I needed more boy afghans again. Sigh. Oh well. At least there's always crocheting to do, and thanks to my wonderful neurologist finding a treatment for my dystonia, I can still do it!

Hook: Ergonomic crochet hook size J

Yarn: Red Heart spring green, Red Heart soft navy  Mainstays white, Red Heart baby pink

Pattern: The cobblestone blanket (Stitchberry)

Finished size: 32 x 43