So we were off for our first trip to the dog park to learn some doggie etiquette. 
board with K-9 activity fliers, park announcements, and listings for pet-sitting services. Each dog section entrance has two gates to prevent dogs from escaping without their leash. 
As a dog lover myself, I enjoyed petting the other friendly dogs who came up for attention as well as meeting several other dog owners. So we reluctantly put back on Heidi’s leash and headed for home. We will return often to play to this pet and pet lovers paradise!
The outdoor Scottsdale Civic Center Mall is situated in downtown Scottsdale adjacent to 'Old Town’. The mall is the home of the Scottsdale Historical Museum, the Scottsdale Center for the Performing arts, The Museum of Contemporary Art, the Civic Center Library, City Hall, a myriad of restaurants with both indoor and outdoor seating and an outdoor amphitheater.
Scottsdale Civic Center Slide Show The free downtown trolley operates from 11 am to 9 pm daily stops right at the Brown Ave mall entrance. As you enter from Brown Avenue you are welcomed by a beautiful bronze of galloping horses. Continuing into the mall you are surrounded by lush landscaping, beautiful flowers and amazing fountains! It is a perfect place for a relaxing stroll or peaceful picnic lunch.
The photos in my slide show were taken in February 2000 - a perfect winter weather day with bright sunshine and temps in the low 80’s!
There are many activities many of which are free are scheduled throughout the year in the park. The Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art celebrating it’s 10 year anniversary has FREE admission every Thursday! (10am—8pm). A-Fair is a FREE event offering a variety of music from noon to 4 p.m. on selected Sundays beginning January 12, 2009 running through April 12, 2009 on the beautiful Scottsdale Mall. The Native Trails Cultural Program - is a free festival celebrates Native American traditions while focusing on the individual cultures of tribes who reside throughout the Southwest. Performances take place from 12 to 1:30 p.m. most Thursdays and Saturdays January 15 through April 11, 2009, at the Scottsdale Civic Center Mall. Performers present their tribal history, pottery, textiles and more to introduce attendees to the diverse lifestyles of the native people. One of the activities requiring paid admission include the Great Arizona Picnic where you can sample food from 50 restaurants, and enjoy cooking demonstrations from local and national chefs. There is live entertainment on two stages. This two-day is scheduled for Saturday & Sunday, April 14-19 and the cost is $10 per person. The Civic Center Mall is just one of the many attractions of ‘downtown Scottsdale’. The shops and artwork of Old Town, the upscale Fashion Square and the new Scottsdale Waterfront all offer locals and tourists world class shopping, dining and entertainment.
Thinking of purchasing a home, townhome, loft or condo in Scottsdale?
Search the Scottsdale MLS for properties
Yesterday, January 23, 2009 was Celebrity Day. 
Since we were offered free tickets we opted to ‘played hokey’ and took the day off to enjoy the outdoors and watch the golfers. Although it was bright and sunny, it was a brisk 57 degrees when we arrived but it eventually warmed up to a 64 degrees. You could definitely tell who was from the Valley of the Sun and who was from colder climates. The locals were bundled up in sweat shirts of warm coats while others were in shorts and sandals! The forecast for the rest of the week is the mid 70’s with lots of bright sunshine! We won’t complain as much of the rest of the nation is not as fortunate!
Once you park, catch the shuttle and wait in line to get in, the vender tent is your first experience. It is always fun to check out the wares. A variety of 
dealers offered a assortment of products fro
m Suns tickets, golf apparel, into on energy savings from SRP, to free tastes of coffee. Gary entered the putting contest offered by Home Depot and actually got one putt to go in the hole! Must have been the inspiration of the pro golfers! His name is now added to the list of those eligible to win 4 new tires from Discount Tire.
Once you exit the vendor tent, the golf watching begins. Celebrity Day offers a fun day for all. There were 26 groups of players, with each group anchored by a pro-golfer who was joined by 4 armatures. After picking up the daily pairing sheet to find out when the players tee off and the order of the groups, we were off to follow comedian George Lopez and retired AZ Diamondback first baseman, Mark Grace.
They provided great entertainment throughout the day. The famous 16th hole, which is now totally surrounded by bleachers, was especially comical as Gracie first used a baseball bat to hit his golf ball. He eventually did use a golf club and actually got his shot to land on the green. We did view some ‘interesting’ shots at this hole. A couple actually hit the bleachers or ended up in the stands! And, some others didn’t make it out of the desert sandy adjacent to the tee. The 16th hole can be quite intimidating even for the pro-golfers.
January has a lot to offer here in the Sonoran Desert. The Barrett-Jackson car show, the Russo-Steel sports muscle car auction and the P.F. Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Marathon were all completed just in time for the kickoff of this major golf tournament. If you aren’t in to cars or golf, the Arizona Sun Circuit Quarter Horse Show, Native American Arts Festival or Maricopa County Home and Garden Show are some other options. Of course, with the mild temps and sunny days, who needs a better reason to be in Scottsdale in January?
Contact Gary or Claudia Scott for more information
toll free: 866-464-2140
garyandclaudia@cox.net
http://www.az-real-estate-sales.com
According to the 2008 National Association of Realtors Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, 87 percent of home buyers used the Internet to search for homes in the past year. That's up steadily from 84 percent in 2007, 80 percent in 2006.
There are some many pitfalls and oversights in the Internet searching that can make purchasing real estate a nightmare! The Internet is a great resource for shopping, but when it comes time to view homes and negotiate contracts, it is important to have a professional Realtor familiar with the local market working with you.
The Internet provides a wealth of resources and information. So much so, that one tends to go in to overload! When beginning your exploration for a new property, do not search for broad terms such as ‘real estate’ as the volume of results will be staggering. If you know the city you plan to relocate to start by learning about the area - the schools, crime stats, the shopping, medical facilities etc.
When searching for homes utilize preferred web sites such as Realtor.com or a local Realtor web site that has a link to the MLS. Other popular web sites such as zillo or trulia only offer a subset of the total listings available. For a property to be included on one of these sites, Realtors have to individually upload them. Therefore the statistics on these sites are skewed because they do not have all the information available to create reliable statistics.
With the great resources available today you can become an ‘educated’ buyer. At any time during your 'shopping' process, a professional Realtor can assit you with a local MLS feed and also be an excellent resource to provide direction for your web search. The maps, photos, virtual tours, videos of a home give you a general idea of the home, but seeing the neighborhood and actually entering in to the home gives you the true ‘feeling’ of the home and surrounding community. Find a professional Realtor to assist you in your decision process. Realtors are familiar with the area, the homes and the recent sales statistics. He/she will be able to provide detailed comparables, tax records and sales history for the property(s) you are specifically interested in. Once you decide which property would be best, your Realtor will present your offer and negotiate to ensure you receive the best price. He/she will then open the escrow process, schedule for a home inspection, negotiate your home repair requests based upon the inspection report and follow your escrow process through all stages until the final closing.
Congratulations' you have a new home!
We specialize in Scottsdale real estate and the greater Phoenix metro area real estate. We have assisted both buyers and sellers with their real estate needs. Feel free to contact us with any of your real estate questions. Our toll free number is 866-464-2140 and our email is garyandclaudia@cox.net
I have blogged previously regarding solar tax rebates. Today I received a letter from our local electric company Arizona Public Service (APS) regarding the savings that can come from using solar 
power.
Up to 15% of your energy bill comes from heating water! APS is e now offering 'generous' rebates if a client installs a solar water heater. They also stated that the client could take advantage of both state and federal tax credits. The total savings could be up to 80% off the cost of a solar water heater! They suggested contacting a licensed contractor prior to installing a new solar hot water system.
Their stats show that if only 10% of the homes in AZ used a solar water heater, it would reduce the greenhouse gas emissions equal to taking 57,000 cars off the road! Thus helping your community, the environment and future generations.
The suns energy is free! 
View www.aps.com/greenchoice for more energy saving tips!
Gary and Claudia Scott, Realtors
Scottsdale, Arizona
garyandclaudia@cox.net
www.AZ-real-estate-sales.com
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Gary and Claudia: Your Scottsdale, AZ "full time - full service Realtors®" - working together to serve You. Please feel free to contact us for all of your real estate questions and/or needs!
Gary and Claudia have been married since 1977 and have 2 married adult children. We have lived in Scottsdale since 1981 and have been a "real estate team" since 1993. We know the local area housing market.
Together we are committed to provide the highest quality of service to our valued customers by operating by the highest standards of integrity, professionalism and competency.
Our years of working with buyers, sellers and other Real Estate associates in a professional and honest manner has gained us an impeccable reputation.
We are Full Time-Full Service Realtors®
who listen and care about your Real Estate needs!
Meet the Scotts ***** About John Hall & Associates
You can find us at: AZ-real-estate-sales.com
email us at: garyandclaudia@cox.net
We specialize in residential real estate in Scottsdale
and the NE Valley of the Phoenix metro area.
From first time home buyers to savvy investors, our goal is to represent you with the highest level of experience, attention to detail and dependability.
Our Commitment . . .
is to exceed our clients expectations!
Being a Realtor means more than selling homes.
It is about building a relationship based on trust, knowledge and expertise.
We would be proud to assist you in buying or selling your home.
We are proud to be Realtors® and Thank our past clients for their valued and continued support.
Check out what other clients have to say about us at AZ-real-estate-sales.com
some of our satisifed clients:
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