Seabrook Half Marathon 2011

Mark is awesome...need I say more. After having limited amounts of sleep because we were camping and staying up late, well, and who can really sleep while they are camping, he woke up at the crack of dawn with Derwin to drive 75 miles to make it to a 7:15 am race start. He placed 1st in his age-group and 4th overall. Way to go old man! We wish we could be like you!

A picture of "the guys" that ran the race L-R (Marklavious, Jeremy Kartchner, Cory Cryer, Brian Crandall, Daniel Erwin). Fast times!

Havasupai Falls Here We Come?

We are planning a backpacking trip to Havasupai Falls this summer...to get ready for it the girls had a mock campout with their sleeping bags and sleeping pads upstairs in the game room.
Their campout didn't last long...they all ended up sleeping in their own beds...the floor just was not comfy enough...perhaps we won't be able to say,"Havasupai Falls here we come" afterall!

Rodeo

The first day of Spring Break did not start with the sun shining or sleeping in...we were up and on the road by 8:20 am so Leilani could have a 90 minute violin lesson and we drove in the most dreary of weather. The sky was dark and the rain came falling down...not what I had in mind. We ran a few errands, had some lunch, went home to crash for 30 minutes and hoped that the rain would let up so that we could enjoy some family fun time in the afternoon at the carnival. By the time we picked Mark up at the office, the rain had stopped, the sun came out, and the weather was perfect for playing. The kids had a great time going on rides and playing games. Well, Mia didn't exactly have a good time on rides like this...she gets motion sick too easily!
Aidyn recruited Leilani to go on every vomitous ride with her and loved every minute of it!
This year there was a new exhibit at the carnival featuring butterflies. We went there while Mark checked out the exhibit featuring the Ford trucks!
"Take you for a ride on my big green tractor..." Mark dreaming about owning a big green tractor and the girls singing a little bit of Jason Aldean (yes, I had to google that).
This year we missed the rodeo and barely looked at the livestock but here is proof we atleast had a few sneezes.
The girls spent more time outside playing games and riding rides rather than checking out the livestock show...they are growing up, sad, sad, sad.
Mia surprised us and won a stuffed frog! Fun times for her!
Leilani played a few games and tried to win something, anything, but ended up with nothing (well, Mark gave her the basketball he won).
And look, I am a part of the family! A picture of me and my girls!
Mark holding all the girls "junk" and wondering if spending all this money was worth it.
Ai recruiting Leilani on yet another vomitous ride...oh so fun, especially because there was a boy sitting a few swings behind them that was bawling like a baby the whole time! Hahaha!

It was a fun time, glad we could "invest" our life savings into having an outing that the girls really loved!

I went for a run...

...and came home to see that my backyard was on FIRE. Not really the best thing to come home to...the perimeter of the dark area was lit up in flames about 8 inches high. Can you say random?!? So the first thing I think is, "shoot, I've got company coming on Friday and my yard is on fire", then I thought, I'd better get the fire by the fence under control before the fence goes up in flames too and our neighbor's house burns down. I run to turn the hose on, it is not there so I go on a hose hunt...find it, drag it from by the sportcourt to the spicket and run to the fence, hoping to beat the fire down before it beats my fence up. Fortunately, I was successful and got part of it saturated. In the meantime, I called the office as I was having issues with getting the sprinklers on, told Mark the backyard was on fire and that I needed to have him tell me how to turn them on manually. Imagine, he is in total confusion as I am speaking rubbish about the sprinklers and a fire...I hang up the phone. Eventually the sprinklers kick on (I was doing things backwards) and the fenceline is under control. I am now at ease...

We don't know how or why it started, but are grateful that there was no real damage. The grass will grow back and if it doesn't we'll replace it. Our house is still standing and no one got hurt. It's a little easier to replace grass than a house.

HASSA Musicale

From Janice Kapp Perry to the HASSA Musicale...Leilani performed the Rumanian Dance by Bartok. She played beautifully and I was proud of her for sharing her talent. Though at the end of the day she when I told her how I felt, she responded by saying, "sometimes I wish I didn't have a talent". It was Saturday. She had worked hard all week so she could play on the weekend and that was really all she wanted to do. She woke up early to play at the women's conference and then off the perform at a musical for her teacher. It was nearly 4:00 in the afternoon when we got home and she wanted to enjoy the the day but it was practically over. She was a good sport. When Sunday came around and it was time to play for the stake fireside, she packed up her violin and left with a smile. What a good little girl I have.

Janice Kapp Perry

Leilani was asked a while back to play her violin with a friend, Jarad Cook (on the viola), at the Cypress Stake Women's Conference and a Youth Fireside. The guest speaker would be Janice Kapp Perry. Yes, Janice Kapp Perry. What an amazing woman with an amazing husband. They have both given so much service to the church and to spreading the gospel with her music. I was refreshed by their down-to-earth spirits. I think Leilani will appreciate this moment more in the future than she does now when she fully appreciates who she played for. But for now, she just wants to be a kid and not spend the whole weekend playing the violin.

My DaDDy, by Aidyn

Need she say more? She loves the man! She wakes up extra early so she can eat breakfast with him before he leaves for work. He leaves at 6:00am. She cries on the mornings that she misses him by a few minutes and has to call him on the phone to tell him good morning. She mows the lawn with him. Eats snacks with him. Jumps on the tramp and shoots hoops with him. She's pretty much obesessed him. It's a good thing that she loves her daddy so so much. The End.

3rd Grade Nature Trails

For now, the Cy-Fair school district still has an opportunity to do some fun activities that cater to the kids. Today was one of those days, 3rd grade Nature Trails. Learning outside...does it get any better than that?!? The weather was lovely, the 4 stations were fun and the kids were happy to be outside! I'm glad that I can be a stay at home mom so I can volunteer to help at the "school" for learning activities like this! Mia filling out her worksheet



Lever Station

Some 3rd Grade Friends