Daily dose of Vitamin D....under my layer of spf 50!

Somehow I convinced my *very sore* friend to go hiking with me today. I had my camera with me just in case we ran into any snakes, but of course because I was with someone else we didn't. If I would have went by myself I probably would have come upon 2 or 3 rattlesnakes in the parking lot! We hiked the National-Mormon Loop in South Mountain Preserve - total 6 miles with total elevation gain of I think around 700 feet. One of these days I will be cool and own a garmin! It was super sunny out and getting pretty warm by the time I got around to going at 11 this morning. This evening I foam rolled my legs and did my 3rd day in a row of the yoga for runners. I am liking this 20 minutes yoga session........it feels good except for one pose where you lay on your shoulder? I am just going to start skipping that one. Last night my boyfriend went to the store for dog food and came back with these!








If you look closely you can see the orchid he got me for Valentine's Day!

I LOVE having fresh flowers on the table, but cut flowers don't last so it is very cool that I get actual planted flowers! Last year I got my mom a mini rose bush for Mother's Day. She kept it inside for the winter (she lives where that white stuff falls and the thermometer actually goes below the freezing point).....she has had roses blooming all winter!

FREE CABLE!

Picacho Peak - 2.1 miles to the peak





This is probably one of my favorite day hikes (from Phx area)! Today we got up early and headed out to this once site of a Civil War Battle.....what's that you say? Yes, an actual Civil War Battle was fought right here in the wild, wild west! Besides that this is also one of the best places to view wildflowers in AZ (it was pretty green today so check back next month and it should be covered)! hmmm, also of note there is an ostrich farm just down the rode which I decided that despite the fact I eat eggs the thought of ostrich or for that matter dinosaur eggs being cracked over a skillet would just be disgusting. Just prior to entering the park is the AZ Nut House (no they actually sell nuts and dried fruit and stuff).........Ok, now for the hike! This hike involves a few "technical climbs" towards the top. The hardest part of the climb is trusting the "cables and guardrails" set in place to guide you up.




Today was really clear so the 360 view from the top was great and you could even see some snow covered mountain tops off in the distance (to the east). Also of note as we were leaving the valley today the Superstitions were dusted with snow which makes the already mysterious face of the Superstitions that much AWESOMER!