Last February, almost my whole family traveled to Phoenix, AZ to attend a wedding. We stayed on the outskirts of Phoenix, in a little town called Peoria. We rented a house with 5 bedrooms (just enough for my entire family!), a beautiful backyard and pool, and mountain views on every side. I had been to Arizona once before when I was pretty young, and we did the typical Grand Canyon tour and other touristy things, but I don't really remember it very well. Let's just say, I completely forgot how utterly beautiful Arizona is!
As soon as we began the drive in our rental car (more like BUS — love & miss you, Bertha), we could all already tell that Arizona is such an underrated state. I mean, there are mountains everywhere you look, the weather is amazing pretty much all year round, and there's just something about little rocks instead of grass that makes the desert vibes pull you in. Don't even get me started on the sunsets. Plus, they have In-N-Out, so points for that (it was our first stop).
While we were there we pretty much stayed at the house during the day to enjoy the pool and soak up some sun before heading back to sub-20 degree weather. However we did go on a few outings:
Chicago Blackhawks vs. Arizona Coyotes hockey game at Gila River Arena
This was super fun! It was an exciting game-- the Hawks won 5-4 in the last few minutes. The arena is set up in the coolest location, called the Westgate Entertainment District. It's right across from a bunch of restaurants and stores, and the street is closed off so people just walk around between the two sides. There are palm trees with lights strung up in them and really cute fountains everywhere. A+ for good vibes.
The Wedding at Warehouse 215 @ Bentley Projects
The wedding was very small and charming, and the venue was so awesome! It's an old warehouse converted to an event venue, so it has a rustic-chic vibe. The food was good, the people were lovely, and the dancing was fun.
Shopping at Tanger Outlet Mall
Being us, it's impossible to go on a family vacation and not pencil in some time to shop. We had heard that the outlet shopping in Phoenix was pretty great, so on our last day we went back to Glendale to explore Tanger outlets. They had some good stores and everyone ended up getting something they loved! My mom got my sister and I super cute Coach wristlets. Thanks, mom!
After shopping we got some Mexican food for lunch and then it was time to head to the airport to go home :(. Overall the trip was amazing-- I adore Arizona, and would go back in a heartbeat. I'm a sucker for the warm weather. I also just love trips with my whole family, and I can't wait for the next.
What we wore:
Mine & Anna's Sunglasses: Raybans // Green Jacket: Forever 21 // Black Baseball Cap: Target // Black Cutout Triangle Bikini: VS PINK // Cover-up: Mexico // Off-The-Shoulder B&W top: Forever 21 // Boyfriend Jeans: American Eagle // Black Sandals: Target // Anna's Off-The-Shoulder Floral Top: Forever 21 // Anna's Jeans: H&M // Flowy Black Bikini Top: Volcom // High-Waisted Jean Shorts: Levi's // Floral Dress (wedding): Forever 21 // Blue heels (wedding): Charlotte Russe // Anna's Wedding Outfit: Forever 21 // Black Wide-Brim Hat: Forever 21