December Happenings

 December was busy, as I am sure it is for everyone. Lots going on!

Ashton had some robotics tournaments. I still don't understand how the scoring works but she seems to get it all. Her team is still competing into 2024 so we still have robotics. This is her team's robot that they built.

It has been a warm winter. The girls got out the pool and swimsuits one day.

Every year, the GT program in our district has a big "showcase" project for each grade. 4th grade's project is focused on the National Park Service. Ashton chose a park, researched it, created a presentation, and then presented to a bunch of people. She ended up getting a perfect grade, which was rare. And her presentation was used an example to new GT teachers in the district. She thought that was cool. She chose Jewel Cave National Monument in South Dakota. I wish it was closer so we could go soon. One year, we'll make it there.

Tanner had two more soccer tournaments too! He got 2nd place at one and 1st place at the other. He was pretty content. We are scaling back with his soccer club team. It is getting a little more intense than we'd like. We'll see what is next for this kid. For now, he's happy in his basketball league and then summer swim will start in May. We also found a low-key baseball league for him in spring.

School winter parties took place. PTA takes the lead on these so it was a little busier for me. Not too much though.

Lydia walks around the school like she owns the place. She fits right in with all of Ashton's friends. They love Lydia. She joined all three of the sibling parties.

Decorating sugar cookies. Not my favorite thing to do, but the kids beg for it.

We're cat sitting for a family for a few weeks. The cat is the most snuggliest cat I've ever seen. Comes right up to everyone, sits on your lap, purrs the whole time. Crazy cat. So we love going to the house each day and seeing the kitty.

Fun Run 2023

Every year, our elementary school PTA holds a fun run (with the exception of last year for some reason). The kids love it. The person leading it this year did an amazing job at it! We changed it up to have it in December and it was a jingle run. We host a 1K for each grade level and then a community-wide 5K. Ashton, Tanner, and Gemma raced in their grade level races and then Joseph, Ashton, and Tanner did the 5K as well. Ashton's bestie is homeschooled but her siblings attend the same school. So the only way to run together was to do the 5K together. And Tanner, of course, just loves any physical challenge.

Gemma ran her little body as fast as she could. Tanner got 2nd place for his grade and Ashton won 1st for her grade. Then in the 5K, Tanner was the second school-age boy to finish. He and his friend ran the race together, which was cool. And Ashton was the first school age girl to finish! All in all, a fun (and exhausting PTA) day. Can't wait for the next one!

 

Thanksgiving in Alabama

Tanner's soccer team was invited to play at a national tournament in Alabama at the end of Thanksgiving break. The team decided to go so we made the drive over. My parents and step-sister decided to join us for warmer weather. We spent the week in Alabama/Florida with them. The tournament was fun too! Tanner scored a bunch against really talented teams. The team as a whole didn't do too well but we were pleased with Tanner's playing.

We spent a day at the Naval Air Museum on the navy base in Pensacola. We went several years ago with just Ashton, I think. But the kids loved it. After that, we drove all the way around Penscola/and the island to Fort Pickins. It's a battle fort used in the Civil War. The kids had a blast climbing and exploring the fort.

Near the rental house was the Gulf State Park. Right along the gulf coast but also with lots of woods/forests. We went geocaching and hiking there a couple times. Lydia found the sand. Not too long after she got up, some deer crossed.

Another day, we went to Mobile and visited the USS Alabama, a battleship, as well as the USS Drum, a submarine. You could tour both of them. The battleship was massive and the littles only lasted for part of it. Tanner had a great time learning all about the history of the battleship as well as learning about Fort Pickins. He could have stayed all day.

In the town we stayed in, there was a tea restaurant that held Teddy Bear Tea parties. My step-sister and her family wanted to do one so we all went. Gemma and Lydia had a blast eating small treats and drinking lemonade with their stuffed animals.

My kids adore my parent's dog, Molly. Her birthday is sometime in December so Lydia requested to celebrate it in Alabama. Molly went along with it. The girls were so happy.

We headed to the beach along the gulf. My kids thought the water was too cold whereas the northern family loved it! We played in the sand a bunch and collected bags and bags of seashells.

All in all, it was a great trip. The kids did awesome on the drive to and from. It was about 9 hours away. Good practice for our road trip next summer.

Shoulder Saga

Back in March, we found out we earned a permit to hike Mt. Whitney. I started training specifically for it and in doing so, added upper body strength exercises. Within a few days, I noticed my left shoulder was hurting. I stopped doing the exercises and rested my shoulder. About a month later, I lifted Gemma up and tweaked my shoulder again. I went to see my doctor, who recommended PT. I did that and headed out to California.

The day before our Mt. Whitney attempt, we hiked the Pacific Crest Trail. On the way back, my shoelaces snagged on something and I fell hard. To protect my left shoulder, I braced myself with my right arm. It was a bad fall. Lots of pain in my right arm/shoulder but it subsided. I wasn't worried too much. It didn't stop me from hiking Whitney the next day.

When I got back, I resumed PT for my left shoulder but mentioned that my right was now bothering me more. We kept doing PT for both shoulders with no improvement on the right side. (The left has improved enough so that's nice.) This all led to a MRI in September. Results showed my right shoulder was partially dislocated and the ligaments around it were too relaxed/loose that they wouldn't hold my shoulder in anyways. The only fix for this is surgery.

Early November, I had the surgery. Thankfully, it is an easy surgery- 1 hour and you're home within an hour or two after surgery. Recovery will be 4-6 months but I already have significantly less pain than I had before surgery. Before, I couldn't even carry a bag of groceries with my right arm without pain. Lifting my arm above my head was a no-go. Throwing balls with the kids was not possible.

I have 6 weeks in a immobilizer sling with minimal movement aside from PT. Then 12 weeks of no weight bearing. And then strength exercises until 4-6 months out. It makes day to day life a little slower and tricky but we are managing.

Door County Race

Back in the spring, my sister asked if I would run a relay race with her and some friends. It was the Door 50, a 50 mile relay race in October in Door County, Wisconsin. Any chance to see fall colors in Wisconsin will be a quick yes from me. We had a team of 5 runners so we each did 10 miles. Unfortunately, I messed up my shoulder and didn't train super well for the race. Plus I tweaked my ankle on the run. So my time wasn't great. But the other runners were quick so that helped. I spent Friday-Sunday morning in Door County with the race, then went to church and headed to Wausau to see my parents and family for a night. It was a quick weekend away but to be back in true "fall" was great. I remembered why I love October and orange so much. But then I reminded myself that Wausau would have snow a week later so I am happy to be back in Texas.
 

Air Show and Eclipse

 We got a special treat in Houston this fall- the Wings over Houston Airshow and the eclipse was close. It was during a soccer game so we brought the glasses so we could check on the sun throughout the game. The kids thought it was cool. Then we visited a local park to see the airshow. It's expensive, crowded, and very loud if you go to the actual airshow. The location is only about 15 minutes from our house so we are able to see a lot of it from our neighborhood. The kids enjoyed seeing the Thunderbirds and aerial plane tricks.

Halloween

 

We had a great Halloween this year. Trunk or Treat went well and the kids loved celebrating with the wards. Gemma had at least 3 different costumes that she rotated through. Lydia rocked out in the Squirrel costume again. I think we have 3 years of that costume and this year was probably the last. I don't think it will fit anyone next year.

Tanner was a werewolf for his second year in a row. And Ashton chose a skeleton costume, which was easy.

Our school also does a Book Character parade on Halloween. They have to dress up as a character from a book and then the kids parade around the school. It is for grades K-2. Thankfully, Tanner picked a soccer book so just wore his soccer uniform. Gemma chose Princess in Black, which we made at home. Except, she got lost during the parade and didn't get to participate much. She got embarrassed when she got lost and it was a rough day.

The kids made it through part of the neighborhood on Halloween and hit up the teachers that live by us. We had dinner with a bunch of neighbors and then went as a big group. Poor Gemma, already having a rough day from school, fell at least 4 times during trick or treating, which led to a bunch of blood and bandaids. It was just not her day.

School Starts

School started back in August. Gemma started kindergarten, Tanner in 2nd, and Ashton in 4th. Gemma was excited about starting school. With dual language, there are only two teachers per grade (out of about 6-7 classrooms). I was hopeful Gemma would get Tanner's teacher but we got the other teacher instead. It has been a good fit for Gemma but I still miss Tanner's teacher. 

We've already had one parent-teacher conference with Gemma's teacher where she told me Gemma is behind academically. Her reasoning- Gemma isn't reading in Spanish yet. Suffice it to say, I am not that worried that Gemma is not reading in a second language that she just started learning 10 weeks ago. Hopefully the teacher calms down a little bit after I communicated that I wasn't worried at all. I get it- the school has to assess the child in the Spanish language, regardless of their native language. So technically, she is behind the standards. But the teacher did assess her in English (it's required if the student "fails" in Spanish) and she passed just fine.

Tanner has Ashton's teachers from 2nd grade and we love them! And Ashton has all new teachers for 4th grade. Thankfully, one of them is a mom of a student who has been in Ashton's class since kinder so we know the family.

For clubs- Tanner is in running club again. Gemma will do a STEM club next spring. Then, Ashton got into the school choir and made the robotics team. Only 8 kids in 4th and 5th grade get offered a spot on the team so we were surprised she was picked. It's been a little intense with building the robot in time for competitions, but she is enjoying it.

Lydia started preschool at the local high school that Gemma did last year. The school allows 3 and 4 year olds as long as they are potty trained. So Lydia got to go this year too! It didn't start until early October so we had a little bit of time of just the two of us in August and September. She loves preschool and has done well there.

Ashton's Birthday Interview

How old are you? 10

What is your favorite color? Baby green

What is your favorite animal? Dolphin

What is your favorite book? Anything animal

What is your favorite show? Dr. Oakley- vet show

What do you like to eat? Chicken salad and fruit salad

What is your favorite game? Set

What is your favorite thing to do? Go on hike

Who is your best friend? Lyra/London/Kate

What do you like to do with Dad? Go on rides (Joseph is the one to ride the rollercoasters with the kids)

What do you like to with Mom? Crafts

Where do you want to go on a vacation? Jewel Cave National Monument (she's doing a research project on it so wants to go now. Unfortunately, it's in South Dakota. It will be a while before we're in that part of the country.)

What do you want to be when you grow up? Teacher/vet

What is your favorite song? A Million Dreams; she just sang it in a talent show

What is the best time of day? Morning, after breakfast

What makes you happy? My friends and family

I Love to See the Temple

The temple in McAllen, Texas was finally ready for the open house! We have waited a few years for this. The timing of the open house wasn't great- right after school started and in the Texas heat. So I had the big kids miss a day of school to go. We drove 6 hours south and stayed the night in McAllen the day before the open house began. We were there at 10am for one of the first tours on Friday. After the temple, we drove to South Padre Island. We rented a beach house for the weekend. It was a great trip.

The kids enjoyed the temple. Gemma shared a sacred experience with me afterwards that I hope she will remember as she gets older. Ashton liked seeing the baptismal font as she is only 15 months away from being able to attend the temple as a youth.

After the temple and drive to the island, we visited a turtle rescue/rehabilitation facility. The kids loved it all. Then we spent Friday night and all day Saturday at the beach. Having the beach house right there was nice so we could walk back and forth for lunch and breaks when we needed it. The beaches and water were so much nicer than Galveston. We even found a sand dollar, along with bags and bags of seashells.

We drove back Sunday after going to a small branch in the area. The people there were so excited to have a temple nearby. The kids did great on the trip as well. We found out at the branch that this temple is a huge blessing to the area it was built in. There is obviously a customs border check at the actual Mexico/US border (maybe 30 minutes away) but there is also one an hour north (that we hit on the way home, complete with drug dogs and lots of border security officers). This means much of the area's population due to their illegal immigrant status are unable to leave the area due to the risk of crossing a checkpoint. This limits their ability to attend any temple- US or Mexico.

Tanner's Soccer Team

Last winter, Joseph was approached by another coach in Tanner's rec soccer league. He had seen Tanner play over the last two years and wanted Tanner to play on his club soccer team. I immediately said no when Joseph told me. I don't like competitive sports at such a young age and I don't want to pay that kind of money. Even the rec league is a little pricey for me. But then Joseph explained it to me. The coach finds business sponsors to offset fees. So there was no expense to play on the team. We decided to try it out.

The coach enters the team in little 3v3 or 5v5 tournaments. Some are local and easy to commit to. Others are farther away and require hotels/travel. We also made it clear we wouldn't play on Sundays, which wasn't an issue for the coach. Tanner enjoyed playing with the boys and liked that he was finally on a team of players who understood soccer. The coach is definitely stricter and more focused on skill development. 

The team qualified for a regional competition in Austin. Since it was on our way back from Arkansas and a Saturday-only tournament, we went. Tanner's team took 3rd place in the tournament, which made them eligible for nationals. It was crazy! Tanner was playing against teams that pay over $1000 a month for the coach/equipment and Tanner's team was beating them! His team has committed to going to Nationals in Alabama so that is our Thanksgiving plan.

After that, the team will go back to local tournaments. It's been a good balance for our family- nothing too expensive or high commitments but higher level soccer for Tanner. He loves it too.

Arkansas

 I took the big kids to Arkansas this summer. We wanted to do more hiking without as much complaining when we take the littles with. So I planned a fun trip to Arkansas. My sister flew into Houston and joined us for the first half of the trip. That was nice to help with the driving as well as the river float.

The first day, we found some fun hikes. I wanted waterfalls and we got more water-trickles. I want to go back some spring break and see the big waterfalls. We had fun just exploring caves and natural areas.

Then, we spent a day on the Buffalo River. We rented two canoes and did a 4-5 hour float down the river. The kids did well with the float. The water was a little low so we got out a few times to help the canoes through the water. We stopped at the sandy beaches and a little creek. Tanner loved the creek as we did leave races for a long time.

The final day with my sister, we drove to Little Rock and visited Little Rock Central High School. We read a ton about the high school and desegregation before the trip so the kids were pretty good about learning more at the visitor's center and seeing the school. We said goodbye to my sister who was flying out the next morning.

The kids and I kept going to Hot Springs, Arkansas. We visited the national park there and did some hiking in a nearby state park. We also went horseback riding.

Saturday was a tournament for Tanner back in Texas so we finished our trip off with the tournament.

Our view from our cabin.