la casita

(kah-see-tah, Spanish): the small house

Our small house

For many years now, our dear, close friends, the Murphy's, have called Phoenix their home. Since moving there from St. Louis, they have also started a family of 3 kids. Despite the distance, our families have remained close. It helps that Jenny and Amanda have been friends for nearly 25 years. With help from us, our kids and theirs have built up a pretty decent long-distance friendship. We see them, almost annually, when they come back to St. Louis to visit. The girls are pen pals with them. We even vacationed together last year. The one thing missing, however, was a visit out to Arizona to see them. When they bought a place a couple years ago that had a detached guest house, the pressure grew. We had to come visit. There were no excuses. This journey would be the answer. The Murphy family was about to get a full dose of the Woodman’s.

Our time in “The Valley of the Sun” has felt like a long extended vacation. The weather here in November is spectacular. Seventy degrees and sunny during the day, and cool jacket-weather at night. Glorious for this time of year. Their casita has also been pretty darn perfect as well. We have our own space, complete with a kitchen, bathroom, bedroom and living room, that's right in their back yard. It sits just steps from their back door, next to the pool and the barn. Their large backyard, complete with a playground and a chicken house, affords the kids ample space to run and play. And, play, they have. The Murphy kids (8,6 & 4 yrs.) have been the perfect companions for the girls.

The warm, lazy Arizona days played out much the same way. We rolled out of bed, usually late in the morning, then did a little schoolwork, typically outside. If we felt especially motivated, we headed out in the afternoon to do some exploring. The library. A park. A mountain hike. Then, once the Murphy kids got home from school, they played until bedtime. Weekends were even less motivated, as the kids just wanted to play the whole time away. So, we let them. Sleepovers. Pillow forts. Movie nights. Lots of laughs. A few tears.

Once the kids went to bed, the grown ups had their time. Clark and John played many fierce backgammon matches. Jenny and Amanda would hang out, and catch up. It was great for everyone. Our kids got to hang out with other little ones, not just each other (which can get old), and the adults got a lot of “grown up time.”






And just like that, three weeks passed by, as if it were only a day. Laying around, soaking up the sun, and enjoying the company of good friends will do that, I guess. It's going to be tough to leave the casita at the Murphys. Our own place. Perfect weather. Great friends. A good, lengthy vacation.