sunday pizza in the neighborhood.

there's no denying it: we eat pizza 3 out of 4 sunday nights a month. it's kinda a thing. (more about sunday traditions here) 

judge us all you want. 

last night, we decided to shake things up and walk to the local pizza shop to actually dine in verses take out on our couch. big deal for us. seriously, ooohhhhh big changes around here. it was the first time we'd eaten there. 

i'm a little obsessed with our neighborhood. 

these streets. 

landmark willo sign & the one of a kind easley's costume shop

arizona's NYPD pizza shop

the cheesy tv commercial pull of the slice with the cheese still stuck... perfection. 

hawaiian. a very polarizing pizza flavor. a personal fave of mine. 

i'd already finished the chelsea chopped salad. my fave. 

our dusky walk home on a warm summer night.

note: if you're looking for other good pizza in downtown phoenix, pino's pizza al centro is fantastic. 

however, they're closed on sundays. bummer for both of us. 

rain rain please DON'T go away.

we finally had a major rainstorm in the desert. monsoon season is beginning and it's fantastic. 

the thunder, lightning and inch of rain came on sunday morning and made me a very happy camper. 

the window were open, the rain was pouring down and it was the perfect excuse to spend another day on the couch. 

social media saves the day!

yesterday, a little lost dog named Yoda was quickly reunited with this humans thanks to the power of social media. 

adorable(!) Yoda was lost and wandering our neighborhood, and sadly when his finder called the number on the nametag, it was disconnected. the good citizen immediately took Yoda to our 'hoods animal clinic and started spreading the "found" message. the message went onto our neighborhood's website, then to a Facebook page. from there, a Willo friend of ours sent me a social media message, which i texted to danny and neighbors. then, just a few hours later while on his way home from work, d saw a "lost" sign on a light pole and sure enough it was Yoda! the sign indicated that Yoda's tag was outdated, so d called and let the owner know his little pooch was safe and sound. Yoda is home. 

pretty cool. love our neighborhood. love the positive power of technology. love happy endings. 

get a girlfriend already, mockingbird pete.

did you know that male mockingbirds sing at night to find a mate? yup, and they have like up to 400 different tunes.

true story. why do we know this? oh, because we have a mockingbird who lives in the tree directly outside our single-pane master bedroom window and at about 11:15pm each night, the loser gets lonely and starts up with his songs.

danny finds it soothing and will try to count the different ditties while falling asleep. he's only counted up to six. and yes, this is currently our nighttime routine.

i snapped this of mister danny totally enthralled with monitoring the bird activity in the tree. there was something about a hummingbird and a nest... he loves it.

hey, arizona summer. back so soon?

the heat's been hovering in the 90's, 

but this weekend we got a heat wave punch to the face when it hit 109. 

and just like that... bam! summer is here. 

here's how we survived the first summer weekend of '13.

1: late afternoon lunch of imitations at postino arcadia with alicia & scott

2: summertime means lots of strawberries. love this cutting board handmade by my little bro.

3: new favorite summertime wheat beer, Mr. Pineapple by Arizona's local SanTan Brewery

4: "friends & family" dinner event at the new Pomo Pizzeria in Downtown Phoenix 

5: saturday's lunch lead to drinks at kelly's and then ultimately old town's new Hi-Fi Bar

6: sunday morning required an early trip to coffee & rainbow donuts on mcdowell road 

7: maple bar, chocolate sprinkles & old fashioned + milk for me. glaze twist for him. 

8: this weekend hit 109F, so we stayed inside and finally watched Zero Dark Thirty

9: alejandro joined us in old town 

10: staying cool with frozen treats from the neighborhood fro-yo shop

 11: sunday night's season premier of keeping up with the kardashians + season's 3rd batch of peonies

12: we made gigantic baked chicken burritos for sunday dinner. delish.

our clowder of cats.

did you have any idea that a group of cats is called a "clowder"? yup. now you do. good trivia fact, huh?

it was funny to watch the comments in response to the "lion den" photo i posted on my instagram feed.

cats are polarizing creatures, aren't there?
i think cats get a bad rap. they're one of those things that people are socially allowed to dislike.
i'm kinda neutral about cats. i've never owned one as an official pet although we've "adopted" feral cats at each of our homes. i'm good with it. they keep the critters away & are kinda funny.

danny and i joke about how they look like lions all sprawled out across our lawn, walkway & patio.
and when it gets to be about 6pm, they definitely let you know.
the collective meows from a clowder of cats can be pretty intimidating.

...

exploring your town on two wheels.

when we decided to move downtown, one of the things we were most excited for was the opportunity to bike ride to tons of places. i'm happy to report we've done just that. 

we've challenged ourselves to "two-wheel weekends" -- no driving allowed. it's been really fun and we've found bike riding to be the optimal way to get intimately familiar with your 'hood. you're not distracted, the fresh air is great, you notice things you wouldn't in a car, i have a much better sense of direction and we've been forced to try new restaurants, bars and boutiques because some of our go-to's aren't in biking distance. give it a try this weekend.  

danny's front porch cactus garden is growing.

barefoot breakfast on the porch with my pooch.

my little sun chaser.

as the afternoon sun pours into our living room, hunter moves from spot to spot to make sure he's in the light.

just like his mama, this kid loves him the warmth of the sunshine on his coat.

quality time with the familia (two of them).

we did a whole lot of what you're supposed to do with family -- kick back, relax, chat, cheers and laugh. danny and i decided that instead of coming up with an out of the ordinary itinerary for dad & steven's visit, we'd just simply do exactly what we'd do anyways and fold them into the mix. it worked out perfectly for everyone! it was fun to have them meet bunches of our friends and get a glimpse into our real life -- not the one that you create for visitors.

chillin' on the back patio enjoying the glorious friday weather

scrappy got to show off his mad soccer playing skills - video coming soon. 

and while scrappy showed off his tricks, hunter did what hunter does - laid around and watched.

"awe, come on dad... you're so funny." 

my flat-brim brother straight from so cal

playing with the ball...

...sleeping on the ball.

al fresco dinner at the Main Ingredient Ale House.

dad checkin' in with mom & filling her in on all the action.

my house full of men! six of them to be exact. 

doin' our willo thing.

a little spread to get filled up on before the willo home tour. 

we chatted. we sipped. we toured. 

it was a lovely little sunday in the neighborhood we're proud to call home.

side note: i picked up a box of Trader Joe's Cinnamon Crumb Coffee Cake and it was the hit of the morning! After 55 minutes of baking I was convinced I'd ruined it (forgot to mix the crumble topping with butter - just dumped it on), but Mr. Fix Anything saved the day. Yum.

ting and scott ridin' molly the trolly

a warm winter.

i'm totally digging this winter look on our front porch. 

that's part of our "quarter cord" of firewood that was delivered in december. 

did you know wood came in "cords"? i had no clue. 

we had a gas fireplace in our last home. turn on the gas & light a match. easy as that. 

now we have a legit wood burning fireplace. i love the smell that comes along with it, but they're a lot of work! 

good thing ting totally loves this kind of man stuff because i'm obsessed with having fires going. 

i admire ting's dedication to the art of fire making. he's well on his way to earning a black belt in pyro-things.

this sunday: the 25th annual willo home tour

residents of downtown phoenix's historic willo district will open their doors to the community this sunday, feb. 10th for the 25th annual willo home tour. it's your chance to enjoy some fresh air and walk around one of the "top 10 cottage communities" in the country. there are food truck vendors in the neighborhood park, a few booths featuring local artists & tons of kids selling treats in their front yards. we've always loved the home tour (here) and are proud to call the willo home this year. 

here's an interesting local news story & photo slideshow about one willo home 

that was nearly destroyed when a 30-ton pine tree fell on it during a terrible arizona monsoon storm.

advance tickets are $15 and day of are $18. buy them online at willohistoricdistrict.com.

the most boho pets of them all.

have you seen Free People's new pet line? beaded collars, dyed rope leashes, copper tags and a graphic print cat teepee? i'm trying to get d to get this teepee for kit kat and the rest of our felines... pretty damn cute. perfect little gifts for the furry friend of someone you love because the old, "he who loves me loves my dog" is such a true statement. 

on that note, we owe nick & angela a huge shout out for watching huntie for nine nights while we were on vacation. that's a long time to watch someone's pooch. we're so grateful to have friends who genuinely love our pig and are more than happy to have him around (and sad to watch him go). you two are the best - thank you. 

the first friday of february 2013.

d loves first fridays. and since we've lived biking distance to the main route, we haven't missed on yet. it's free. it's fresh air and something a little different than the usual. before cruising the walk, we had beers with alex at angel's trumpet and then the three of us hit up bliss / rebar for dinner on the patio where we analyzed the coachella lineup band-by-band. ting had his sights on an art item from last month, but sadly the vendor wasn't there. fingers crossed for march.

this kid was awesome. he was selling jokes on the side of the street.

community garden plots.

one of my favorite little vintage shops -- surrounded by the community garden.

love this - gardening against the city skyscape. 

local live music drawing a decent crowd.

dreadlocks to the ground. 

flute lamp, anyone?

another awesome kid - this little dude had all the sweetest dance moves.

oh, you know, just me and pat. 

until next month.