Spring Break 2021

When I planned out our school calendar, I lined our spring break up with the cousins, because if I've learned anything the past year, I don't really know what 5 months from now will look like.   We didn't head to Texas, but did enjoy taking a week to play and acclimate to the time change.

These were technically our science projects that we did on Wednesday, but I'm throwing them in just the same.  We floated a needed on water, and painted with shadows.

Emily and I finished a 500 piece puzzle that was one week in the making!

It may not look it, but those rocks are tricky!

Billy had a craving for chocolate, so we brought all the kids to the chocolate shop.  I told them they could pick out one thing.  I didn't realize that the would have their Easter selection up, so they all came home with giant, solid, bunnies.  There was a building nearby that the kids enjoyed to do some "parkour."

William exploring practical physics in his free time.

Billy and I had a Sunday afternoon date to Dimes (again courtesy of my awesome mother.)  We hadn't been since before the lockdown, and it was nice to get out.

Something pushed a brick into the basement! = 0  I still don't know what type of animal it is.  And the first two places that I called (on a Friday) were not able to help me out.  So, It's a battle that has been pushed out until Monday.  It did give me a chance to clean up though, so the shelves look better than they did, just with fewer bottles on the shelf.

St. Patrick's day came and went without much fanfare.  We did have fun hats and green milk though.

My mom treated us to Raya and the Last Dragon.   We went to the first showing, and there were very few people there.  It was very cute, and it felt nice to go out into society a bit.

One Wednesday, we had less fun, with an afternoon dentist appointment in Ann Arbor.  Since William had such early tooth loss, his teeth shifted, and he's been referred to an orthodontist (also at U of M.) Of all my children he dislikes the dentist the most, so I feel bad that he will now have to go more than the others.

Alice and I went in search of some Japanese treats (we kept the wrappers from Christmas) but didn't find much in the way of Japanese cuisine.  We did find lots of other goodies.  The biggest fail: rose flavored Turkish delight.  The biggest success: a coconut. lol.

Billy had to drill a hole into it, so that everyone could try the coconut water.  Emily genuinely liked it.  Everyone else enjoyed the novelty.

It wasn't the most spectacular of spring breaks, but it was nice to recharge (and recalibrate) to prepare us for the final 9 weeks of our school year!!

later days

14th Anniversary: Ann Arbor

For our 14th Anniversary, my mother generously offered us a night away from home to celebrate.  We settled on Ann Arbor.  Billy's grandfather went to college at U of M, but Billy had never been.  Since WGJ all see the dentist on campus, I'd been many times (including earlier this same week!)

We left home around noon, which was too early to check in to our hotel, so we decided to tour the area nearby.  The first place we found was a German restaurant, so we stopped in for lunch.  The bartender told us that they serve beer in boots in the basement, but they don't open the basement until 6.  So, we made plans to return.

It was still not quite time to check in, so we walked around and found some corporate art! (it was the only one we found during this trip.)

I took the "secret" pat between sidewalks.

It was finally time to check in, so we went back to the hotel and got settled, before heading to our axe throwing appointment!

The first building we saw with U of M identification. 

We were early, so we checked out a nearby "arcade" just like the ones we remembered from Leeds.  Then we spent some time in the HopCat.  They are doing a good job of social distancing and limited seating everywhere.

The axe throwing was a cool experience.  We actually had the owner as our "guide" and he taught us how to throw and gave us tips on how to improve. He even took over my stall when my arm got tired, so that Billy wouldn't have to throw alone. = )

Next, we went to a recommendation from our guide, one of his local favorites, Ashley's. I could see campus from my seat.  They had march madness on every screen.  Tech won, which helped make the day even more enjoyable. 

Our next stop was a bookshop.  I found several titles that we were missing in our Geronimo Stilton series, and even one of our school books for next year!  We went kind of late, and the shop owner had to come through and kick everyone out, so we closed down the book shop!

Our final stop of the evening was the keller of the Heidelberg.  We each got a boot and had a good time.  Then, it got really really busy.  Like pre-covid busy.  It cleared out pretty quickly, but it's definitely the most "dangerous" place we've been since this pandemic started.

On our way to the Heidelberg, we saw a Mexican restaurant with swings at the bar!  They had a line out the door, and we were heading somewhere else anyhow, but I knew exactly where I wanted to go for lunch on Saturday!

A spiced pineapple drink, with very pretty toppings!  We didn't have enough time to eat, since we started chatting with the owner, but the queso was so good.

We left Ann Arbor from there.  It was such fun trip!  We headed to Kroger to pick up our order, and then went to a restaurant that surprised me when I did a google map search!  I'd driven by the sign dozens of times, and had no idea there was a restaurant in the middle of the sports complex!  

The food was quite good, and we were both hungry after missing out on the Tejanas Fajitas.  

Once we finished our meal, it was finally time to go home and see our dear ones!  It was such a great trip, and we couldn't help but think that a couple of our children might be students there in just a few short years!

It's wild to think that we've been married 14 years, because the time truly has flown.  We don't have any thing in particular planned for next year just yet, but as long as we spend it together, I know it will be awesome!

later days

You can see our anniversary celebrations here:

13th Anniversary- The trip that wasn't

12th Anniversary - Toledo
11th Anniversary - St. Louis
10th Anniversary - Fish Grille, Waxahachie
9th Anniversary - Ft. Worth
8th Anniversary - Arby's
7th Anniversary - Hookah bar
6th Anniversary - Thai Chili
5th Anniversary - Carino's - Waxahachie
4th Anniversary - Flemming's Steakhouse @ City Centre
3rd Anniversary - Dinner Movie Theater
2nd Anniversary - Le Mistral
1st Anniversary - Paris
Recap of 1st-5th

Welcome March!

We've for sure been doing more things, after almost a year of doing nothing.  Most of what we do is still at home though, so that's the background for most of my pictures. = )

Emily, the almost birthday girl pretended to be an orc.

We've started our third trimester of homeschool already, and let me tell you it.has.flown.  I simply cannot believe that we have a mere 10 weeks left in our school year!

During nature study, we rolled candles.  It was an easy enough activity, and well received, but I had to be rescued by the internet when we didn't have an instruction sheet!

Brobdingnagian is a new fun word that I learned in a book, and the snow is melting away outside, and we are happy to still have Billy working from home.  

I felt like I had several more things to post, but I guess I've made enough posts lately, that this one doesn't span a month!

later days

Snow Snake

On one of Billy's work trips "up north" his coworkers were telling him about a tubing/skiing place called Snow Snake.  So, today we loaded up our crew and made the two hour drive to go tubing.  As we pulled in the parking lot, I realized that this is the same place that I had gone with my mom and sisters to zip line!  It looked quite different covered in snow.

We arrived thirty minutes before they opened, since that's when tickets go on sale*.  We were so excited when they actually let us hit the hill early! 

Juliet was a bit excited, can you tell?

They hook you on a line that lets you "ride" up to the top of the hill. 

One of the hills was called the "screamer."  None of my crew screamed, but Juliet did let out a "squeak."

We all went down individually at first, but then Grace, Juliet and I went down together, and Billy went with the big kids, twice!

It was so cold that my phone kept turning off, so these are all the pictures that I managed!

We only had tickets for an hour, and that was more than enough for my cold hands. I think the kids would have been happy with another twenty minutes or so, but no-one whined when it was time to get in the car, so maybe the hour was just right.

On the way home we stopped at KFC and saw a horse and buggy in an adjoining parking lot!  Then we went to McDonald's for those who didn't want KFC.  It was a quiet drive home when all but Emily took a nap.  Hoping the sunshine and tubes took enough out of them for a smooth bedtime!

later days

 *I had called in advance and she told me that they were experiencing 1-2hour waits, so I wanted to get there early.

Emily Answers Her Birthday Survey: 10 years old

Emily answered her questions today, the day after her birthday.  = )

I am 10 years old.

My favorite color is: purple
The coolest person on earth is: My family (and Abby)
The thing I do best is: coloring
If I could change my name, it would be: Emma
My favorite toy is: all of them!
When I grow up, I want to be: an artist
I like to watch: frozen and frozen 2
My favorite song is: let it go
My favorite book is: Mandi and the secret tunnel
3 words to describe me are: artist helpful kind
When I was little, I used to: sing happy birthday to myself with the others
My favorite season is: spring summer and winter
The food I like most is: potatoes
One food I really don't like is: white spotted cheese
My best friend is: Abby
For my birthday I want to: go somewhere
My best memory is: with my friends and family.

I seemed to have dropped the ball in 2020 and don't have birthday surveys for Alice (11) or William (8!)

Emily did answer her survey last year though! You can check it out here.

Emily's 10th Birthday!

 We celebrated having 10 years of Emily smiles yesterday!

Her final picture as nine year old:

The birthday girl!

Avia came over and we had cake for breakfast.  She also brought donuts and ice cream, so we were sugared up for the day.

After school ended, she was excited to open her gifts.  And as a bonus excitement, her BFF Abby stopped by with a gift bag full of goodies! 

I think she had a pretty awesome day, and we were happy to celebrate with our favorite, freshly minted, ten year old.

later days