The Week of Spring Break!

The boys did, in fact, have school this last week. So, it wasn't really Spring Break for them. We started the Spring Break weekend with a visit from Grandpa and Grandmom. They are not able to come for Zachary's birthday party on March 26th because they will be in Germany. Heather very graciously allowed them to sleep in her room and even cleaned her room and her bathroom so they would be comfortable (with a minimum of complaining, much less than I would have at her age). I am so thankful to have such a great helper! Grandpa and Grandmom brought Zachary a frisbee for his birthday and took him to play Frisbee Golf. The boys LOVE to go outside and had a wonderful time playing.

Heather was out for Spring Break, but was at her mom's this year. The Saturday that officially started Spring Break week, her silly boyfriend broke up with her for the THIRD time. So far, they are still broken up. Just as before, there was a lot of drama and FaceBook postings like "when you truly love someone the feelings never go away", "why do I feel like I am the one who screwed up" , "went in my mama's room crying for what seemed like forever and cried my eyes out", "There aren't any positives in life", and lots of stuff like that. Girls are so emotional!!! I really hope she doesn't take him back again. She is too smart, too beautiful and too special to let some crazy weirdo make her feel that way. On Thursday, she went with her siblings, one of her cousins and her grandmother to the Space Center. Sunday, she and her mom went to see Jason Aldean at the rodeo with tickets that we got for them because Heather wanted to see him SO BADLY! She has been so excited about going and I can't wait to hear how it went. This is a picture she posted of herself this week. It's not my favorite picture at all, apparently she thinks she looks like a "gangsta" as that is what she titled it. Teenagers! Of course I told her I think she looks quite silly but I also told her that I used to wear Z Cavaricci's that my dad called "parachute pants" and that Jansen used to wear these crazy, colorful shorts he called "clown pants". Looking silly while you think you look totally awesome is just part of growing up!

On Monday, Kamie, Emma, James, the boys and I went to the Blue Bell Creamery in Brenham. It was pretty crowded and the weather unexpectedly turned cold but we still had a wonderful time. The kids were all super well behaved throughout the tour. We had planned to have a picnic lunch outside, but it rained early in the morning so the ground was wet and none of us were prepared for the cold -- so we had a car picnic! I think the kids enjoyed it even more because it was something new. The boys both wore their hats on the tour, though Zachary doesn't seem to have his hat on in any of the pictures I took. At the end, Caleb got his usual vanilla ice cream and Zachary got Cake & Ice Cream -- both boys really enjoyed eating dessert before lunch (as Caleb kept saying).

St. Patrick's Day fell on a Thursday this year and the boys celebrated at school with a treasure hunt for gold. Caleb's class made cute little Leprechaun hats (there is a picture below). In Caleb's class, Caleb was apparently the first one to find the gold so his teacher, Ms. Mercedes, asked him what he wished for. She was expecting him to say candy or a cookie or something like that. Not my Caleb, you can't ask him open-ended questions! Caleb wished he didn't have to take a nap and everyone in his class thought that was a great idea! His entire class refused to nap on Thursday and poor Ms. Mercedes was a little frazzled looking when I went to pick up Caleb. She has said on more than one occasion that Caleb shows great leadership skills, though they don't always present themselves in the most positive way! :)

My crazy boys LOVE bath time and being naked. As soon as the clothes come off, the giggling begins. After they have finished soaking the bathroom floor and wall (Paul says the bathtub is going to fall onto the first floor if the boys don't learn to keep the water in the bath) they run, screaming and laughing all through the upstairs. They often try to hide from us so they don't have to get dressed. Zachary thought he was hiding behind the Bat Cave here, but we can see him pretty easily! He is so happy!

Paul had to go out of town for a few days this week to Brownsville, TX for work and by the time he came back Friday afternoon, I was ready for a break! Grandma Becky was kind enough to keep the boys overnight and I went to my friend Tracy's house where Amy taught us to do henna! Amy is the one who is going to come to Heather's slumber party and do henna on the girls. I had a wonderful time and really enjoyed the break. This is my first henna tattoo to give someone, Amy bravely volunteered her hand. Amy took this photo the next morning, after she removed the henna paste. The second photo is the henna tattoo Amy gave me on my foot. I also have a henna "bracelet" tattoo on my wrist. I love henna, it lets us be creative and have fun but it's not permanent.

On Saturday afternoon, Paul and I were going crazy from being inside with the boys. We took them to the park for a while to play and burn some energy and decided we needed to spend most of the day outside to save our sanity. The boys are happiest and better behaved outside. So, on Sunday morning, we packed a picnic lunch, plenty of water and headed to Huntsville State Park. We walked 6.8 miles on the Chinquapin Trail. Zachary rode in the backpack but Caleb walked!! We were so proud of him, only during the last mile did he show signs of wearing down. He really didn't complain much at all and he loved being outside. It was also good practice for Paul and my trip to Yellowstone in June as we both walked carrying loads on our backs (though my load was much lighter). We decided we need to do more hikes to help us prepare as both of our shoulders were very sore by the end of the hike. Plus, the boys loved it! Even after we got home, the boys were very good yesterday. They really need to go outside and do things.