job offer in AZ.... (Phoenix, Tucson: salons, house, movie theater)

[famlife]

me and my family are basically going through the options we have in places to live based on job opportunities/offers... after much consideration, and some help from the forum it's come down to CO and AZ. (too bad nowhere in NM has called lol, heard the pay is no good there anyway)

here's my questions, i appreciate your help!


where would be a good place to live if we needed to commute to Tempe area and Tucson? Casa Grande is the most ideal spot we've found so far. Google maps says it's 52 min from Tempe and 1hr 7min from Tucson. would you say that's accurate with traffic, etc? can you think of a spot that's more convenient? we'd be going to Tucson roughly once per week, so even a little closer to Tempe would be okay.


do they have good Children's Theatres? (we are very impressed with the ones we've found in Denver, and theater is very important to our kids) i've looked for them on the internet, but i can't seem to find any good info on them even on their sites lol so i was hoping for personal experience or word of mouth.


do kids with fair skin/blonde hair get along okay in AZ? i've heard the the skin cancer rates are pretty impressive there, and that they will be higher in the future... do normal precautions work for even the fair-skinned? i, even in the midwest, sometimes try to avoid the sun during peak hours. would you say that, coupled with sunscreen, does the trick?

is the Tempe/Phoenix, area fairly active? we just don't wanna end up in the middle of the desert with nothing to do. we're a young family (late 20's) with kids 2-10. need stuff to do! i've looked on Phoenixkids . com, i think it's called, and i saw some stuff.. but was wondering what the local boredom rating is, and maybe examples of the common pastimes out there... any cool festivals, flea markets, cultural events, etc? stuff for kids?

any comparisons between AZ and CO would be cool too, as that's what it's apparently coming down to.


sorry in advance if some of these questions have been asked before (???), and thanks so much for any info!

[famlife]

never mind, i googled arizona vs denver city data and found it lol... couldn't find it on the site somehow...

[homesweetazhome]

Casa Grande has smoking deals on housing right now but there is NOTHING to do there. It really is in the middle of Indian Reservation. If you want to have an active life, Tempe or Chandler would be better bets for you. There are tons of activities for kids in both communities. Very active parks and rec activities, kids sports, art, theater etc... You won't be bored unless you choose to be. Everyone here carries water with them and wears sunscreen.

[famlife]

good info! thanks!

[dc1225]

Famlife, I'd base the decision mostly on the following, in this order!

1) heat or snow?
2) Job position, pay and growth opportunity within the position.
3) Cost of living and housing.
4) which city has more hott females with loose morals.

The rest will take care of itself. good luck.

[sheena]

Originally Posted by famlife

me and my family are basically going through the options we have in places to live based on job opportunities/offers... after much consideration, and some help from the forum it's come down to CO and AZ. (too bad nowhere in NM has called lol, heard the pay is no good there anyway)

here's my questions, i appreciate your help!


where would be a good place to live if we needed to commute to Tempe area and Tucson? Casa Grande is the most ideal spot we've found so far. Google maps says it's 52 min from Tempe and 1hr 7min from Tucson. would you say that's accurate with traffic, etc? can you think of a spot that's more convenient? we'd be going to Tucson roughly once per week, so even a little closer to Tempe would be okay.


do they have good Children's Theatres? (we are very impressed with the ones we've found in Denver, and theater is very important to our kids) i've looked for them on the internet, but i can't seem to find any good info on them even on their sites lol so i was hoping for personal experience or word of mouth.


do kids with fair skin/blonde hair get along okay in AZ? i've heard the the skin cancer rates are pretty impressive there, and that they will be higher in the future... do normal precautions work for even the fair-skinned? i, even in the midwest, sometimes try to avoid the sun during peak hours. would you say that, coupled with sunscreen, does the trick?

is the Tempe/Phoenix, area fairly active? we just don't wanna end up in the middle of the desert with nothing to do. we're a young family (late 20's) with kids 2-10. need stuff to do! i've looked on Phoenixkids . com, i think it's called, and i saw some stuff.. but was wondering what the local boredom rating is, and maybe examples of the common pastimes out there... any cool festivals, flea markets, cultural events, etc? stuff for kids?

any comparisons between AZ and CO would be cool too, as that's what it's apparently coming down to.


sorry in advance if some of these questions have been asked before (???), and thanks so much for any info!

Ahwatukee, S Tempe, Chandler or Gilbert

[luv_it_here]

Casa Grande into Tempe can probably easily take 1 1/2 hours during rush hour. The 52 minutes is if you get to do the posted speed limit the whole way, and that will almost never happen. If you're only going to Tucson once a week, I'd head a LOT closer into the Tempe side.

There's a lot more cool stuff for kids to do closer to the PHX area, than out in Casa Grande also. Depends on what age group of kids you've got. There is the Arizona Puppet Theatre in downtown, which is pretty cool sometimes. There is Valley Youth Performing Arts (I may not have that exactly right, but I think I'm pretty close) The Orpheum does a neat presentation of the Nutcracker every year with the Arizona Ballet, and the Phoenix Symphony. My oldest son got selected out of a drawing to be a stand-in soldier - got to go behind scenes, get dressed up in costume, and participate in the show - that was very cool!!

Sometimes it takes a while to figure out the best places to find stuff to do, but as long as you keep your ears open, and look around for possibilities in some of the outlying towns, I'd say there is almost ALWAYS something going on.

[famlife]

thanks ppl!

[Cagirl767]

My DD is very fair and that's one of the reasons we're moving. If you get a house facing E/W you may have some backyard morning shade which works well for us. I should say until one of my kids decides they want to participate in an outdoor sport. UGH, I just hate sweating in the sun.

Kids activities around Phoenix: try www.grandparents.com and do a search of the 101 things to do in Phoenix. We like the puppet theater, Cookie Company, kids dinner/movie theater, drama classes at ASU Herberger, many large productions come here such as Walking With Dinosaurs, The Lion King are coming. We saw Frog and Toad a couple years ago. There are a lot of unique activities to do here with kids: numerous train parks, 3 zoos, girlie glam salons, the city of Phoenix has all kinds of classes at numerous locations, many indoor amusement areas, Gymboree music, the Little Gym, the list goes on and on...

Good luck!