[kwarwick]

DH is most likely going to be starting a contract job at Luke AFB this fall. I'm excited for him, although - honestly - a bit upset and nervous about leaving my beloved PNW. We've been here for 10 years, love it!, love the weather, love the liberal crunchy vibe, love the house DD was born in......although we do have family in PHX / Scottsdale / PV area, so that will be good.

We're thinking of renting for 6 mo's or a year before buying another house, so we can get DD settled in a school (hoping for Desert Marigold, Waldorf charter, anyone have opinions w/ it?), figure out where we want to buy, make sure the Luke contract is a good thing, etc etc. SOOO, any suggestions on neighborhoods around Luke AFB to rent in? Areas to avoid? Areas you love? I'd like to be accessible to Desert Marigold (w/in 30 min) also in case DD gets in there....we already have DD enrolled at a private Waldorf school here for the fall, so I'm hoping we'll be able to make that work in Phx also. Ideally, we'd like a 3-4 BR house with a fenced yard....safe area, clean, great kitchen, room for a home office for me.

This is a much different move for me mentally than when DH and I moved alone to WA 10 years ago....if it didn't work out or we didn't like where we lived, we'd just do something different. I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around that concept now, as it seems like it's not as easy to do that with DD and two furry kids too. So, any suggestions on areas that are convenient to Luke are appreciated!

And, what else does a transplanted PNW-er need to know before moving to AZ?!? I've read some other threads about the bugs - shudder - and traffic, but I contract from home, so I'm not worried about the traffic, other than for DH work and DD's school. Bugs, on the other hand, terrify me......especially desert ones!

Thanks in advance!

 

[1growingsprout]

Desert Marigold .. is that the name of a school? a program?

Surprise is a growing area... goodyear litchfield peoria are all about 30 mins drive or so.. again depending on the traffic... rental homes are abundant.. almost all homes have a block fence backyard.... lots of critters around... you will want a contract with an exterminator for sure... i havent searched out waldorf type schools.... i can look a bit when i get a few seconds...

 

[1growingsprout]

i just looked up Desert Marigold ..its in the south end of town... about 30 miles from luke afb... in traffic times this can be over an hr drive...

now im at a loss for any possible solution... they are almost polar ends of the city... in both location/economics/family etc...

i would definately ask your family for recommendations...

 

[kwarwick]

Thank you for the suggestions. I was afraid of Luke and DM being far apart, with traffic times and such, despite looking like only 30 miles on MapQuest. It seems to be like our area......could take an hour to go 30 miles. My father's wife is a real estate broker, and has suggested Peoria, and also Verrado (sp? in Buckeye area?). That looks like it's really far out however. I haven't talked to her about DM yet however, so I'm not sure she'd still be recommending Verrado then. I'm hesitant to get too far involved / committed until we know the contract is a sure thing. Any neighborhoods to specifically stay away from?

So, as far as the exterminator goes, are there any non-toxic ones? Does that even work on the crazy, scary desert bugs?! To date, we have had a chemical free household, but I'm wondering if that will be possible with the bugs in AZ. And I wonder if my dogs will go after them or know innately to stay away...they like to chase the wolf spiders (big, hairy, scary mountain spiders) up here, but I don't think they bite, so...can you tell bugs are a big thing with me?!?

Does anyone know if there are any other Waldorf schools in the Phx area? The only one I found online is Desert Marigold. What about other school options?

Thanks again for any suggestions / comments.

PS. 1growingsprout......8 kids! My blessings and admiration go out to you. I can't imagine!

 

[1growingsprout]

VERRADO is a new master planned community... i have never been out there but i can assure you there is a HOME OWNERS ASSOCIATION (HOA) i dont know how you feel about that...

i did a quick google search and didnt find any other waldorf schools in the area but arizona has a number a charter schools
http://www.azcharters.org/
this is the az board of ed site http://www.ade.state.az.us/charterschools/info/

i do not recommend public schools in az.. they are far below the national average for spending and testing... charters are a cross between public schools and private.. they generally have no tuiton and can have any number of teching formats... we also have a few private schools... that may have some waldorf type classes about them...

i dont know about 'toxic free' extermination... im sure there is such a thing... we have several feed type stores that have unique items..

www.azcentral.com is another good resource
we also have a magazine called "raising arizona kids" and 'arizona parenting" the latter is free at libraries and around town... the first needs a subscription or is occasionally free at art/culture activites...

 

[kwarwick]

Thank you for all the links. I appreciate them, and will look them up.

I figured Verrado is a master planned community....we'll have to see what heppens with our eventual house purchase. As much as I don't want to move twice in a year, we want to rent for a year, and figure out the best place for us to live. I'm definitely open to suggestions and will be doing some major searching upon arriving.

I also figured, from what I had read on other AZ threads and also from what I know about AZ, that public schools weren't great. Not an intended option for our family anyway. Do you know how the homeschooling community is in AZ?

Thanks again!

 

[1growingsprout]

yes we HOMESCHOOL>.. the state has literally NO requirements you just send in an affidavit the 1st year you do it and thats it..no state reporting or anything.... there are many different homeschool groups around.. again a google search or yahoo groups search will yield plenty

 

[anotherKatrina]

Hi there,

Verrado is a beautiful community, just far from DM.

I have no personal experience with DM, but I've heard nothing bad, either. I really like them just based on their website.

As for neighborhoods, you could try Avondale or Laveen...not as far west as Verrado so a bit closer to DM

I have a non-toxic bug guy. PM me when you get in town.

Best wishes,
Katrina

 

[kwarwick]

1growingsprout........thanks for all the information!

anotherKatrina.......appreciate the Avondale and Laveen suggestions. You are my hero of the day for having a non-toxic bug guy! Yahoo! Will definitely PM you when we arrive. Thanks!

Thanks again,
Karen

 

[LittleLlama]

Hey there

I'm a transplanted Oregonian. Though I'm just aching to get out of here, I will say it has it's plus's. Cactus are crazy plants, don't hurt the sugauros or you'll get a big fine. If ever you're aching for some green, try going for a drive in way northeast Mesa, there's a river that actually has water

As for bugs, I really think it's luck of the draw. I have had some success with pungent herbs scattered in my yard to keep off the roaches, but have yet to see a scorpion in this house.

I haven't seen any of the scary spiders myself, but a friend said something about a "wall spider" that really freaked me out.

To really make sure you're ok, I'd plan a trip back to the PMW every 6 months for the first year or so to get used to the desert. If you're into hiking, rock climbing and rappelling, there are a LOT of places very nearby.

 

[kwarwick]

Hi LittleLlama......nice to know there are other transplanted PNW'ers in AZ! My saving grace is that DH has promised that if I hate it, we can go back to WA, so I'm hanging on to that one.........but I'm open to liking it there as well, mostly because it's really important to him.

Good to know about the green & river w/ water in Mesa.....that's my concern, going from living in the Cascade Foothills to the desert. Going to be a big change. We do love to hike though, which is why we live 30 miles east of Seattle in the foothills as we do, so I guess the hiking will just be a bit dustier, right?!

I did a web search, with my eyes half closed, for a "wall spider" but only came up with a gazillion links to Spiderman related things. I'm kind of glad; probably better for me to be in the dark right now about that one.

What kind of "pungent herbs" are you using? In what quantity? Planted in the yard or in pots? Are they located by the house or farther out in the yard? We planted various mint plants around our house to keep the ants at bay, and that really has worked here, so I'm interested to hear what herbs you use there.

Speaking of planting, can I grow anything there garden-wise? Will it have to be in pots, or could I make raised beds on the sandy soil with nice gardening soil?

Oh, I have a million other questions, but this suffices for now.......

Thanks!
Karen

 

[christiab]

As far as growing things here, you can grow just about anything. You just need to adjust your schedule. Things like planting tomatoes in February

(um, I'm not kidding) You can grow stuff almost year round. The Garden Guy (Dave Owens) is a local celeb w/ books on organic gardening in the desert. You can get his books on Amazon or from the library.

Good luck.