Spring Break 2019

Anna was very disappointed that we were not going to go anywhere for Spring Break this year, which was slightly surprising, because with the exception of one year when we went to Florida, I don't think we generally travel over Spring Break. But, we do try and make it fun. On Saturday, I went to a wreath-making class taught by Sarah and Debby. It was super fun and I am very happy with how my wreath turned out. It is a small exception to not being allowed to bring anything new into the house prior to the move. Luke's t-ball game was cancelled (rain) so the family came along and hung out at the library and Farmer's Market. Then, we all went out to lunch. Spring break was off to a good start!

I still need to add decorations, but here is my Spring wreath!

Summer came for her last big week with them. On Monday, they went to the park and had pizza, Tuesday they went to Anne Marie Gardens, and Thursday was lunch at Salsas and the wharf.  Thomas and I took Wednesday afternoon off. We left at noon, came home, had a quick lunch then went to Six Flags. This had been the plan for quite a while. During a flash sale I had bought tickets to the Bowie Baysox for the Wednesday game. They were playing the Mudhens, which is the AA team for the Tigers. Thomas is happy to go and see the prospects play and the kids (especially Kara) like to talk to the players and try and get autographs.

So, we went to Six Flags for a few hours and then headed to the Baysox stadium, which is only about 10 minutes away. We went to the gate with our preprinted tickets, only to learn that they were for Tuesday's game!!! I had it in my head for a month that we were going to the Wednesday night game, when it was really the Tuesday! Despite the very tiny crowd, they were not willing to just let us in (they were nice, but not really sympathetic). So, we bought tickets again. It was frustrating, but it definitely wasn't going to ruin our plans. We got roughly the same seats and went in. Kara and Luke had brought balls for autographs and managed to get a bunch. One player, Josh Lester, who was particularly nice to them, got promoted to the AAA team the day. And, Thomas said the pitcher we saw, Matt Manning, is a shoe-in for the majors, But, unfortunately, we did not get his autograph.

One side of the ball

Unfortunately, I forgot my sweatshirt. As the sun went down it got very chilly. I had reminded the kids, but forgot my own. I was not doing well on the details (wrong tickets, no sweatshirt). Around the 3rd inning, someone came up and asked Thomas if he wanted to do a promotion at the end of the 6th inning. He got to play Let's Make a Deal. The first choice was a cute Maryland style Baysox hat. I actually really liked the hat (and how small and easily transportable it was), but it wouldn't be any fun to accept the first item given. So, he decided to go for the item in the next box, which turned out to be a bobble-head. Thomas can't say no to a bobble-head, so that was it.

Much to Kara's disappointment, she wanted to stay for post-game autographs, we decided to call it a night after Thomas' big win. I was really cold and still had to get up at 5 the next morning for work. But, it was a super-fun day!

I was off from work on Friday. We went to Nicolet Park and the library. We were having the home inspection at 9, so we had to get out of the house and go early. We played at the park for a bit and then the kids wanted to check out the skate park. Since we were the only ones there, we stayed and played in that area for a while. The kids pretended they were practicing for America's Ninja Warrior and had a great time running up the walls and trying to pull themselves up. They were actually pretty good and strong!

I can't remember what we did Saturday, which likely means we didn't do anything. But, Sunday we took a day trip to Six Flags Great Adventure (New Jersey). It is around a 4-hour drive. We left at 6:15am and got home at 1130pm. It was a long day! But, we had a fantastic time. We got there just in time for gate opening and went straight to our favorite roller coaster--Nitro. Anna, Jack and I were the first ones on for the day. We rode twice in a row and then Thomas rode with Jack twice in a row. It was glorious! Meanwhile, Kara took Luke on several rides in the little kid area. She and Anna went on the indoor coaster and then we all joined up again to ride Metropolis. We walked right on and again rode twice in a row (still no lines!). It is a shooting game and Thomas scored in the top 2% of all time. The rest of us were respectable. We rode a couple more rides and then had lunch. By now, the opportunity to just walk-on rides had passed. But, we had such a perfect morning, it really didn't matter. Plus, they were well-prepared for crowds. There were multiple ride operators and most rides had maximum trains (or whatever) running. In the late afternoon, we did the safari. The line was 2-hours long, but our membership gives us a single fast pass to use for the day and we used it for the safari, shortening our wait to about 15 minutes.

Anna, Jack and Thomas rode this crazy ride. Not me. Ever! But, Anna liked it so much, she rode it three times! Kara is going to try it if we ever make it back.

It was a great day. Everyone was well-behaved and cooperative. Despite around 8 hours in the car, there was no fighting. Luke went stroller free and walked all day without complaint (over 7 miles--he's ready for Disney!). People were patient while others rode rides they weren't interested in. It could not have gone any better and I was glad we made the trip. It was our last hurrah before Florida, which makes me sad. Moving to Florida was much more exciting in January. I love Spring, Summer and Fall in Maryland.

Duck family heading to our pond. Spring is beautiful!

Thomas and I took Monday off from work and we had a nice, relaxing day. I felt like it was a very fun, successful Spring Break. Unfortunately, Thomas had some hip/leg pain before we went to New Jersey. It wasn't too awful and he did fine for the trip, but either sitting in the car or all the walking, or a combination, really aggravated it. He has been in serious pain all week. Hopefully, it gets better soon.

In other news, the move to Florida is theoretically progressing. We still haven't gotten our official offer letters, which means we can't buy the house there yet. Thomas is supposed to start in 2 weeks and I follow 2 weeks later, so we kind of need this resolved. Little in the government ever goes smoothly and nothing ever goes quickly, so I shouldn't be surprised. But, I thought since we are staying within the same organization it would be easier. But moving is a topic for another day.

Last random picture--Luke's new favorite thing is to "fish" with the Wills. They told me he has a natural cast :)

T-Ball and This and That

Luke started t-ball a couple of weeks ago. He absolutely loves it! We had a 2 year reprieve from organized sports and it is hard to get back in the swing of having our evenings dictated, but we will do it for as long as he is interested and putting forth the effort. If that lasts for 10 years--great. If it is lasts for 1 or 2--also great :) I wish for all our kids that they find something they feel passionate about. Whether that is sports, music, drama or something else, I don't care, but I want them all to have an outlet.

So, we have had 2 weeks of practices and he had his first game yesterday. Unfortunately, I didn't go to the game. I didn't realize that Luke was disappointed, but Thomas said he told all his coaches that "only two people" from his family were there (Thomas and Kara). But, according to them, he did really well. I will go to the next one.

Not happy that his team is the Yankees!

I felt bad missing the game, but there is so much to do at home now. Having our house on the market is stressful! I always feel like I should be cleaning or organizing something. In our first week, we had 4 showings. We were supposed to have 6, but I accidentally refused one and they didn't reschedule and another had to cancel due to sick kids. The feedback has been good. Everyone has rated the house well, but no offers. Every morning, Thomas makes sure the house is show ready before going to work. We haven't had any last-minute requests, so I am not sure it is worth it for him to put forth the effort, but it is probably good to stay on top of it. We don't want to be in the position of running around at the last minute. Therefore, every night, I am vacuuming, mopping, doing yard work or whatever else to try and make the house look presentable. I wonder if this is what people with clean houses do all the time?  :) It is nice to have a clean house, but boy is it a lot of work!

Thomas and I had a fun date night yesterday. We went to a dueling pianos fundraiser at St John's. I have wanted to do dueling pianos for a long time. It wasn't quite what I thought, but it was so fun and I hope we can do it again. We went with the Wills and Schneiders. They had a silent auction, but all of the stuff we would typically bid on, we couldn't because of the impending move. We won't be here to go to baseball games or other events this summer. It made us both sad. We are going to miss Maryland!

In other news, the kids had their dentist appointment last week. No cavities! It always such a relief to get that news. None of the kids have ever had one and I really hope we can keep up the streak. To celebrate we went to Sweet Frogs (no sticky toppings and they brushed their teeth when we got home). That's really all that's been happening. Just t-ball and housekeeping. I really hope the house goes under contract soon, that will take away so much stress.

Where's Luke?