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My Sedona Backyard

A Bit About Me...

I started my life journey when I was born in Philadelphia, PA, but didn't stick around long enough to get to know the city or think of it as home. But, as T.S. Eliot once said, "The journey, not the arrival, matters."

Lovely Tampa, Florida is where I spent most of my childhood, except for a couple of years in crazy Hollywood, California - two very different planets for a kid to experience. Both gave me a deep love for the beach and water, and it surprises me still that I ended up in Arizona!

Out of high school in Tampa, I spent over 3 years in Atlanta, GA going to nursing school and then married a young Army Officer, and off I went again! We lived in 3 different cities in Germany: Butzbach, Heilbronn, and Frankfurt, a total of 6 years. Also, we spent 3 years in Mons, Belgium at a NATO assignment. Our European life allowed us to get to visit and explore much of Europe. We also lived in 10 states, so have experienced much of the U.S. as well.

After living a "gypsy life" for so many years, I wondered if I could ever find a place to call home that would keep me happy for many years. I really loved everywhere I lived, but was always excited to find where we'd go next. And, then we found Sedona, AZ...

After over 30 years as a Registered Nurse, I decided to change careers once we arrived in Sedona. I volunteered at the Chamber of Commerce Visitor's Center for a while, so I got to know about what tourists were interested in and learned helpful tips and advice for them. I also worked part time for Sedona Central Reservations helping people find hotel or B&B's that were good matches for their tastes & wallets. It was fun and I got to learn opinions on all the local lodging establishments and see most of the rooms first hand. But, it wasn't until I discovered Real Estate that I found my purpose here. I absolutely love it, and has allowed me to learn all the nooks and crannies of Sedona, as well as get to know the wonderful local people. It is my joy to help others find a new nest in Sedona.

It is such a uniquely beautiful place that I have never taken it for granted. I hope to share with you what I love about it in pages to come, as well as travels I have continued to take to keep life fun, and to continue to enjoy different cultures.

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Cathedral Rock in Sedona

The Call of Sedona

There is a wonderful advantage to living in the beautiful Red Rocks of Sedona. Even when your children are grown and live in three corners of the U.S., they absolutely love to come back home. Having three adventurous sons, they are usually not in through the front door long before they are headed out the back door to take a hike. Their hikes are not the leisurely type that I like, so I let them go, pray the whole time they are gone for them, and then enjoy their photos & listen to their stories later. I usually am happy I didn't join them when I see where they've been, but so joyful they made it home safely.

My sons were recently home and brought some friends, who were all attending a wedding of a college classmate getting married in Sedona. It was a wonderful week of dirty shoes through the house, too many towels to wash, lots of cooking and cleaning, too much Oak Creek Brewery beer guzzled, too many late nights by the fire pit, but many great memories made.

The photo here was from a hike they took starting from Oak Creek in the Village of Oak Creek to Cathedral Rock trail and on to pinnacles that I can't even imagine how they climbed up, or made it down, without injuries. This is NOT recommended for the casual hiker OR my sons, but they never did listen to their mother very closely.

The friend in this photo decided he wanted to make the hike/climb without using his hands in any way. He did just that! Hard to believe when you look at this picture, but he has witnesses that swear to it.