Life + Culture

Dining With Your Dog

Best Pet Friendly Patios in Queen Creek Article by Gretchen Pahia | Photography by Jayleen York For many Valley pet owners, dining out with their four-legged friends brings them joy. Fortunately, Queen Creek is home to several restaurants and destinations welcoming dogs to their outdoor patios while serving everything from brunch favorites to craft beer and Italian-inspired food. Whatever experience you are looking for, these pet-friendly patio spots are well worth a visit. Uncle Bear’s...

Arts + Culture

Unplugging Through Family Creative Time

For 30 years, the community has gathered here making memories. Photography by Timeless Vision Media Long before Jared Neff became the chief operating officer for As You Wish, he was a young boy painting a picture frame for his father at one of the company's studios. Across the top and bottom, in bold red letters, he wrote: "I Love You Daddy." More than 25 years later, the frame still sits on his father's desk. Michaela "MJ" Jaskowiak, As You Wish's social media and PR director, has a...

Home + Design

Safe Spaces, Fewer Pests

Family-friendly pest control helps protect homes, children and pets throughout the summer season. Article by Michelle Talsma Everson For many Queen Creek families, pest control comes down to a simple question: Can it protect the home without disrupting everyday life? Parents want children to play freely in the backyard. Pet owners want dogs and cats to roam their favorite spaces. And few people want to spend the day wondering what was sprayed around the people and animals they love most. ...

Life + Culture

Raising Children, Not Report Cards

Mother of seven and registered nurse Julie Matheson shares wisdom for parents this school year Article by Camilla Richardson As another academic year looms, parents are feeling the pressure to set their children up for success and pick the perfect school. We spoke with Julie Matheson, co-owner of Matheson Dentistry & Implant Center, mother of seven and a registered nurse, about choosing what’s best for your child’s education. Matheson, who can relate to the strain, says to lift the weight...

Education

The Healing Herd

A Queen Creek sanctuary invites visitors to connect with rescued farm animals. Article by Kris Ann Valdez | Photography by Kaylee Chelsea Photography Stepping onto Aimee’s Farm Animal Sanctuary, you might be greeted by a three-legged baby goat. Nearby, you’ll meet founder Aimee Takaha, beaming like a proud mother at the kid’s impressive dexterity and speed. “Would you like to feed her?” she might offer, extending a bottle. “Her name is Clover.” Clover will hungrily (and happily) agree to the...

Arts + Culture

Creating Lifelong Readers

Author Meg Medina on nurturing readers in a distracted world Article by Kris Ann Valdez Newbery Award-winning author and former National Ambassador for Young People's Literature Meg Medina remembers how her mother bought a set of encyclopedias from a traveling salesperson in the 1960s, one installment at a time. In Cuba, before the revolution, Medina's mother had been a college-educated teacher. But as an immigrant living in Queens, New York, she worked a minimum-wage job in a transistor...

Real Estate

Why Pricing It Right the First Time Beats Chasing the Market Down

Why Pricing It Right the First Time Beats Chasing the Market DownI have watched this play out more times than I can count in thirty-six years: a seller starts high "to leave room to negotiate," and six weeks later they are chasing a market that has already moved past them.Here is what I know. The first two weeks a home is on the market are the most valuable two weeks it will ever have.The Window Buyers Actually SeeWhen a home hits the market, it goes out to every buyer, every agent, and every...

Real Estate

Encanterra In August

There's no sugarcoating it — Summer in Queen Creek means triple digits, and most days are best spent moving from one air-conditioned spot to the next. But that's exactly when Encanterra shows off a different kind of magic. Early morning walks before the sun gets serious, lazy afternoons at the pool, and La Casa Club's indoor amenities keeping the good times going no matter what the thermometer says. Summer here isn't something you survive. It's something you settle into.And honestly, that's the...

Entertainment

Stars, Stripes, and Summer Traditions

Simple ways families can celebrate America's 250th anniversary together. Article by Michelle Talsma Everson Some of the best family traditions begin almost by accident. A movie night that becomes annual. A game everyone asks to play again. A summer memory that lingers long after the decorations are packed away. As America approaches its 250th anniversary, families have an opportunity to celebrate in ways that feel less formal and more lasting. The goal does not have to be elaborate. It just...

Fitness

Putting Faith in Sports

Paladin Sports Outreach is changing the culture of youth sports. Article by Tiffany Mraz | Photography by Rylan Dressendorfer We all know that youth sports can feel like a high-stakes race to a scholarship, with the loudest voices from the sidelines coming from hyper-invested parents.  But here in Queen Creek and other East Valley communities, Paladin Sports Outreach is shifting the goal into shaping players with purpose. “It really just started as a grassroots community sports,” founder...