Just Another Day in Paradise: April and May 2018, Easter-End of School-Disneyland

Easter Morning.

It is always special when Easter and General Conference are on the same day.

The kids were up early hunting.

After the hunting we got fixed up for Conference and Sarah painted.

Rachel and Adam played Conference Bingo.

This was our first time watching on a tv for 13 years. We've been using our laptop, we were still using it to stream, but now could hook it up to a bigger screen. Thanks to the tv Grandma and Grandpa bought for their mission and let us have after.

After Conference we had a fun time playing Twister and Acquire. Mom had a fever and couldn't participate much.

Sarah officially got a cell phone and now we all have smartphones.

Adam finally decided what to spend his birthday money on.

Swish!

He is so happy.

Adam has been in chess club this year. He won 5th place from the 3-5th graders division at the final all city tournament. This is his very nice coach, Mr. Findlay.

A random morning shot. Sarah takes off for seminary at 6 and drives to school after, but Adam and Rachel get dropped off by me at 7:25 eating breakfast in the car.

The money I earned from the ballroom class Tyler and I teach at the art gallery monthly paid for our piano to finally get tuned. I was so happy. He had to come tune it 3 times over a period of weeks to get it right because it had slipped so far. Sarah was fascinated.

Adam loved that his van resembled the mystery machine.

Tyler and I sitting at the temple waiting to meet up with our kids who were walking the grounds.

The girls had already finished their baptisms. We headed to target after this where I got violently ill. I wasn't feeling well during the session, but I thought it had passed until I was on the floor at Target for a few hours while the girls were hunting for clothes. It was quite a miserable day, but you would never know it from this happy shot. The next couple days I stayed very sick, then Sarah got it and it just lingered forever. Rachel had the following week off school for Spring Break and it put a damper on our plans, but we did get lots of snuggle time.

The hilarious dog I see everyday when picking up and dropping off Tyler. It is a huge poodle that sits in the passenger seat with that dyed pink hair do. It just cracks me up. The first time I saw it I thought it was a kid with funny hair. When I realized it was a dog I thought of Snoopy, how sometimes the other kids refer to him as, "the kid with the funny nose."

We got a wonderful surprise package from the Bednars. A blanket with an "Uncle Eric Special" montage of pictures from our October Disneyland/Beach trip. It is so special and so soft, the new favorite snuggle blanket.

Everyone got haircuts, even my friend Bronwynn, but this is my favorite client.

A cute shot of Tyler and the girls washing the cars. Adam was at a Nerf gun war birthday party for a friend in his class named Trevor.

Adam and I learning to sew. The teachers went on strike for four days, so I took the opportunity to teach some life skills. Adam sewed Sarah a park blanket out of an old sheet.

He loved that running the sewing machine was like driving. I was glad the teacher strike was over in time for Adam to enjoy his first field trip. They went to a dinosaur museum in Las Vegas and to Peter Piper Pizza which he had never been to before.

We ended the month with the annual young women's and young men's camp fundraiser dinner and auction. I was happy that our treats got high bids, and that they earned enough money for camp, but the dinner that was served made me sick all over again and Sarah too. It was rough.

You can see Adam thinks shopping is rough, but he was very happy to choose some drawers for his room, it has helped his clothes stay tidy and fixed his closet organization problem.

I was also working on the Visiting Teaching organization problem we were dealing with in Relief Society, which after conference turned into a Ministering Sisters organization problem. It was good timing. We were working new people into the system. So many have moved in, and many sisters in the ward that were not previously ministers are excited to participate now, our forces doubled. I had to make huge velcro boards just so I could see it all and get everyone assigned.

We were excited to visit my parents at their resort in Vegas over Mother's Day weekend. The night we planned to leave, Sarah got notice she would be receiving a special mystery award, so we attended the ceremony with all our bags packed in the car ready to dart afterwards and arrived very late. She was awarded for having the very highest English grade of all the Juniors in the school for the year.

Time to relax at Grandma and Grandpa's resort in Las Vegas. This little scholar earned it. We all did.

Grandma and Grandpa swim every morning before the crowds arrive so their laps are uninterrupted. Tyler, Adam, and Rachel swam with them, though Sarah and I weren't all the way up for it yet. We got some good rest by the pool and watched.

Hot tub break.

We went for a mystery drive that took us to lunch at Chick Fil A. We haven't been to one for about 4 years and were very excited. All of us were thinking of our sweet niece/cousin Hannah and thinking how fun it would be if she could take our order.

Yum.

It was fun to spend Friday together, but Saturday we all checked out.

Grandma and Grandpa had to drive back to Utah, so we went to the temple and then headed back home. We got home in plenty of time for Sarah's bowling date with Jacob Hiller at which she proudly bowled a 41. Wahoo.

Mother's day...I got a nap, chocolate, a clock, and a mumu! Random and perfect.

The clock: I was so excited it was so big for so cheap. My shoe is in the picture to show size. I have been looking for a silent one that won't tick. It was $8.

Playing Catch Phrase. We also played Chinese Checkers and Rummikub, my favorites.

We played and sang all of the songs from Frozen, Tangled, and Enchanted.

Super fun. I think the boys played Chess. Tyler did sing with us for a little while though.

This May I had my first full-on experience with all the end of year plays and productions. Adam was in his first school play. They did 2 short plays. In Character Matters- a fairy tale mash-up that teaches manners- he played Hansel and the Fairy Tale counsel reprimanded the witch for trying to cook him.

The other play was Hansel and Gretel learn to Eat Right, in which he was not Hansel. He was comedy relief- a dancing elf around the Compost pile, who was a cute kid with a great singing voice and a hilarious costume. Adam had some great dance moves.

His whole class did a great job and it was very entertaining.

On the last day of school Adam won the drawing for the bike. You had to be on the Principle's list all year long to be entered, I couldn't believe he won.

Rachel had a Living Museum day at school. She was part of the Wild West.

They taught the younger grades about their time period as if they were someone from that era and described what their life was like.

She also was part of the 1920's group who needed a choreographer.

Rachel choreographed a Charleston number for 5 couples.

It turned out very cute, the kids did a good job, and the boys were good sports.

Rachel received the end of year award of Straight A's all year. They had the kids practice receiving their awards and turning to pose to prepare for 8th grade graduation that night.

That night Rachel was ready. 8th grade was officially over, watch out world Rachel is in high school.

Rachel was asked to sing "You Can Count on Me" with her friends Kaelene, Abbie, Kaitlyn, and Shaylee at the graduation.

There were so many people, and they did such a great job.

The next day, school was over so it was time to embark on vacation!

But Dad had one more day of trials about an hour outside of town, an hour toward our destination. So we went to work with Dad! We had to leave very early, wait a long time in the little room his office is allowed to use for days when they hear cases at that court. Sarah read a book about the ocean, Adam practiced his rubber band shooting skills at the wall outlet, and Rachel wrote "MASH"es for each of them.

Mom provided a little vending machine donut treat. That dolly made a good table. We also took turns giving each other rides on it-to prepare for Disneyland.

At lunchtime we got some food at Walmart and this little beauty was in the parking lot. R2D2!

We ate lunch at the lake.

We cooled our feet in the water and walked along the shore.

Mom attempted to teach how to skip rocks, so naturally all hers sunk and the kids' skipped.

We saw the Cinderella Carriage in the Resort.

It is such a cool hotel entrance with mirrors all around and the carriage sunken so you can really see it well.

The London Bridge...and it's not falling down.

After lunch Tyler had a few more cases to finish, and then it was off to Aunt Luise's and the next morning...

DISNEYLAND!

For our first time we waited at the rope at the end of Main Street. We tried to get in line for Peter Pan first before the line was long, but everyone had that same idea and within 5 seconds it was a 40 minute line...but Dumbo was empty.