Spring Break & Stuff...

Quinn finished up the city rec basketball season.  Loved watching his lay-ups.

Yes, that bird is real and so is the blood on the wall.

Hilary and Jenna came to town March 22-24 for a ballroom competition.  Nobody managed to take any pictures though we did have lots of fun together.  Anna missed some of school to watch Jenna dance then Jenna attended Anna's first track meet of the season to watch her win the 1600m & 800m. I was able to get Hilary on the schedule for a massage at our local college before we ate dinner and headed to the movies.  "The Greatest Showman" finally came to the 'cheap' theatre in town.  They left early Saturday morning and I spent the rest of the weekend in bed - sick.  An entire week disappeared before I felt back to myself again.  Aaron has struggled for nearly 3 weeks with the respiratory/flu bug we caught.  

Anyway, Jenna had the scare of her life while showering at our place.  It's not everyday a bird flies into your house and makes a mess of things.  But in our case, it happened two days in a row before Aaron was able to temporarily fix a vent issue we have going on.  The day before Hilary and Jenna arrived, Aaron was working from home and heard noise upstairs.  He couldn't figure out what was going on so he went up to investigate.  Completely startled, he saw a bird darting in and out of rooms trying to find an escape route but not before leaving a bloody trail behind.  The bird got cut up coming through the venting and left it's mark on various walls, windows, clothes (sorry Quinn) before Aaron was finally able to get a window open for the delirious intruder.  I was peacefully enjoying my time in the temple and was grateful Aaron was home to clean things up:).  Somehow when Jenna had a bird join her in the bathroom, it was able to find an escape route without as much drama as Aaron had encountered.  Nonetheless, I don't think Jenna will ever forget the experience!

The kids help out with dinner (sometimes).  Elsie took the time to make Quinn his very own "Happy Meal".  There IS a green salad in the background.  Dinner is always an adventure.

It's going to be one of each (gender) for Breanna and Derek.  With graduation this next weekend, they'll be moving to Layton, UT where Derek will be employed by Faktory (Bryant's advertising agency).

Elsie's 5th grade class - Mrs. Sorenson (in red)

Elsie - graduates from the D.A.R.E. program

 D.A.R.E. Graduation fills the MHS gymnasium every time.  This year the guest speaker was Garrett Lee, a locally grown and very talented bull-rider.  At age 22, he's already famous in the rodeo & cowboy circuits around the world.  His brief message about staying away from drugs was humble and refreshing.  This same evening, Aaron took Jantzen and Anna to SLC to redeem their Christmas gift of basketball game tickets to watch the Utah Jazz vs. Boston Celtics.

Anna & Aaron in Skyclub at airport

The next morning these three headed to Cancun, Mexico for Anna's special 14-year old trip.  She's a kind sister and allowed her brother to tag along (though he had to pay part of his way).  It was good sibling bonding time so a win-win all around:).

Anna's trip was rescheduled a few times due to natural disasters (hurricanes in St. Thomas last September destroyed the resort).  Then, the US government issued a travel warning for US citizens during the time frame that Aaron had already booked flights to Cancun.  At least he was able to cancel the WorldMark resort that required using the ferries (where terrorist bombings recently occurred) and book something else near a beach and out of harm's way.  He wanted something with a kitchen so they could prepare most of their meals and not have to eat out.  Too bad the dishwasher, oven & toaster didn't work and there wasn't a frying pan to be found!

Cold cereal - always a favorite for kids!

Iguanas reign in Mexico

Anna laughing poolside

Check out the hair!

Snorkeling and beach time

Easter Bunny found them.

General Conference/Easter weekend

Anna & Aaron at the beach

Jantzen with Aaron

Jantzen & Anna at resort

A real highlight of the trip was spending a day at Xplor Park where they swam in underground caves, drove jeeps through rough terrain and sailed along 14 ziplines which ended in water.

Lots of pool time.

Lots of beach time.

Meanwhile, Elsie made a list of the things the rest of us needed to do to insure that it felt like Easter weekend during spring break.  The kids colored eggs, enjoyed an egg hunt (thanks Brinley!) and found a few treasures on Sunday morning.  

Sunday morning

I don't understand the fascination with PEEPS - their favorite.

Swimsuit & coat

Lunch bag & swimsuit

Egg hunts are always fun.

Somehow Brinley disappeared when I snapped the pics but she was around during our brief spring break.  I was certainly grateful she stayed close to home because we cleaned the HCP office together 3x's while Anna and Jantzen were gone.  Yes, I'm still scrubbing toilets:(.  We really enjoyed the spirit of General Conference and the messages shared.  President Nelson announced several changes including 'ministering' to replace what has been referred to as Home & Visiting Teaching.  Also, the High Priests and Elders are now to meet together in one Elder's Quorum rather than being separated.  Seven additional temples were announced and two men were added to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Elder Gong & Elder Soares.  It was a powerful conference and a highlight for this Easter season.

Another brief highlight from this past week was attending the Foot Zone & Holistic Health Conference in UT where I was able to meet up with my sister-in-law, Jen.  She happened to be in the U.S. (from China) visiting her sister during their spring break and asked if I'd be attending the conference.  Though it was a bit tricky to coordinate, we were able to attend a few classes together on Friday and Saturday.

Friday afternoon

Jen, Preston, Heather

Jen brought Preston with her on Saturday and arrived in time for us to have lunch together at a nearby Mexican restuarant.  We attended different classes (several going at the same time) and swapped notes while Jen juggled taking care of Preston.  He is absolutely adorable and I enjoyed meeting my newest nephew (born November 29, 2017).  Our time together was short because I had a long drive ahead and Preston was done with the conference.

Sofa selfie with baby Preston

Cute photo of him a few weeks ago.