How we do it in Texas....

I knew it was a big thing. They call it Wellness Day here but it is the same at Field Day or Play Day back home. I didn't realize just how big this was!  A week before school got out, I pulled up to drop the kids off in the morning and we saw all the inflatable toys in the parking lot, McKay's words were, "I'm jealous.  I never got this."

They started off the day bringing all the classes out and doing a dance.  Then by grades they got to perform there own cheer / dance to compete for the "year long banner rights."  From there it was a little fun run around the block for all the kids.  What a rat race!

I volunteered to go around will Katanya's class and help out where needed.  All of the classes rotated every 20 minutes.  There were games....

 Building / Creative thinking games, trampoline jumping inflatables....(On this mountain, I had to lift a kid up to put the last bucket on.  They were having problems sharing so we put them together for one big mountain.  As we were taking pictures a gust of wind came along and blew it over on them.)

Water stations, (why didn't Jacob think of this in Idaho)  

Water Inflatable Slides....

 and more water slides.

Judo demonstrations,

and bungee trampoline flip throwing things for the older grades.

By the time we had an hour left, the kids were exhausted.

This is one of Katanya's friends.  By chance we are moving right next door to them next month.  Its a small move (ha ha, is anything a small move with Jacob's things?), so hopefully going a couple streets down the road won't be too stressful.

I loved being able to come in and work with Katanya's class and teacher this year!  Her teacher is one of the best!  I have been grateful to have had FABULOUS kindergarten teachers for all of my children.

And last but not least there was a picture taking station.  We have to have pictures right?

I guess they really do go BIGGER in Texas!

The other golden rule

The "LEFTOVER" rule

McKay chose Chuy's for her birthday dinner a month ago.  It's been a family favorite here for awhile.  Anyone that has come to visit has loved it too!  So you can see I got a little carried away on the leftover boxes.  I love their salsa and creamy jalapeno dip and Cruz had wanted an adult meal so we split.  (As I can never even eat half of it after I have a generous helping of chips and dip.)  Jacob has a spoken policy on leftovers though.  You aren't allowed to touch another's for at least 24 hours (as I learned once not to even take a small piece of his chuychunga.)  Somehow my leftovers (salsa and dip) were the first ones touched and not by me!  I felt cheated.

Seen through the eyes of my Kids!

Mother's Day was nice this year. As always, I asked for the kids to "Love one another, and no teasing!"  Their response was, "Mom, that's what you always say."  I guess I still haven't gotten my wish.

I love to read what my kids write about me and how they perceive being a mom.  Katanya was asked, "What does your mom do while you are at school?"  Her response was, "She goes running and sometimes she cleans."  I'm happy with that.  She also wrote that I was as pretty as a flower, my favorite thing to do is watch TV (I wish I had time for that), and that I always say "I Love You Too!"  So sweet!

In Cruz's story titled, "My Mother: A True Story", he said that I'm happy when he cleans his room (right); that his mom always forgets to sign his binder (mostly right).  When asked what he really likes about my is "she is always happy." (heart melting)  My looks include: I'm as tall as a fence, I way 148 (wrong) and I look best in dresses.  This makes it all worth it.

On another note, Jacob made this chair.  First he hunted down an old dumptruck chair last August.  I guess he still wanted a little of the construction life.  Then he found an industrial sewing machine in September with his "leftover tool money."  Finally a couple months ago, he started putting it together, piece by piece.  He sewed every stitch.  I'm quite impressed.  So now it's his new air chair on wheels.  What a nerd.....oops I mean genius.  Gotta love him.

A Rainbow of Colors

 Taste the Rainbow....See the Rainbow....FEEL the Rainbow.

My order for the "I'm a Mormon" shirts came into day.  I went through and organized them according to size and color and counted them to make sure they were all there. 

We even had the r and the m spaced just a little more so it wasn't so close together due to the font.  I love the yellow and sangria and turquoise!  I ordered extra (don't ask how many) if anyone wants one! (Youth sizes xs-large and adult sizes s-xl).

"The Life Cycle of a Road Trip"

We left for Kansas the Thursday before our race.
Since it was McKay's birthday weekend, I told her she could come and see Aspen or stay home.  She came but I also let her bring a friend so the 20 hours in the car wasn't boring for her (or annoying for us.) 

You can see that we were peppy and full of life.  The car ride included laughing, singing, talking, and playing a game called psychiatrist.  We learned a lot about each other and soon came up with our "KS road trip nick names."  Mandy was very good at getting us to our destination at the ETA the GPS gave us when we left.  That was including our gas and bathroom stops.

And we pulled some "touristy" photos along the way.  We have to have proper documentation.

McKay's friend, Amanda, turned out being from a family that Betsy new.  Back when they were in the Taylor ward, part of our ward was within their boundaries.  It really is such a small world.

Lawrence tries to claim that they are a twin sister to Austin.  Betsy told this when we got there and we actually ran into people that claimed this too.  It's not.  But I did like the fact that they were different and changed their signs.  I'm used to seeing "speed bump." Friday was our "take it easy after a drive day."  We went and drove the course and picked up our packets.

This new tool is one of my best friends.  After receiving a massage, I was sold.  I have a foam roller but this works my calves so much better and easier.  I know, I'm a sucker.  My first thought was, "this could help me with my Christmas gift that I gave Jacob".  My second thought was "now Jacob can give me a massage and it won't tear my muscles up or feel worse the next day."  And my last thought was, "This feels good."  Now Cruz will rub my legs and back down for a low cost. 10 minutes = $1.  

We ran our race and then that evening we went to the Kansas City Temple Open House.  It is a really gorgeous temple. 

You can see from our (or my) eyes that we are tired.  I was exhausted.  I wasn't able to take a nap after the race. 

 When I was a little kid, I remember being amazed by fountains.  I still am. 

 It still amazes me how peaceful and calm the feeling is when you walk through the doors.  It's so instant.  The rooms were amazing.  The chandeliers in the celestial room were hand sewn by community members.  The tour didn't last long enough.

Of course, we have to sport the stylish shoes! 

Nate spoiled us the next morning.  He got up and started making some of his famous waffles. He really is an amazing cook and we were all very grateful.

There were "real" chocolate waffles with vanilla ice cream, lemon poppy seed waffles with blueberry syrup, and ginger waffles with buttermilk syrup topped with pears.  I think I ate the most waffles in that sitting than I had ever eaten.

This was our final shot in Kansas before we started for home.  I was still exhausted. 

There was no game playing on the way home.  Mentally, I couldn't do it.  So the girls did this instead.  And, no this isn't a balloon....

  ....it was McKay's bubble from a whole package of Bubble Tape.

The car ride was a lot quieter.  Stacy summed it up best, "It's the Life Cycle of a Road Trip.  Although the last two hours went by quickly because we plugged my phone in and we played YouTube Videos of the classic older Young Women Songs.  There was Ordinary Hands, I Heard Him Come, Learn of Me, etc.  But our favorite was "I Walk by Faith," and we sang it with pride.  The girls didn't find it as fun as we did and finally said, "Can't you play any ones we know?"