Spring Break

 Another spring break in the books! We started off with the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, such a fun, suuuuper long day with great food, carnival rides, animals, and the rodeo! Then Chase left for a few days to visit Grant in Idaho. I didn't get too many pictures sent to me, but they had a great time (and barely slept!) Chase also worked on filming his horror movie (at my house, eek!) and it's so fun to see a longtime dream of his become a reality. Claire and I visited a few new parks, made homemade pizza, and we did some service weeding our friends front garden bed. 

But the most exciting thing was her finally getting her bunnies! We’ve been talking for quite a while about getting bunnies for her and it was finally time! They are 2 months old and so so cute. They are specially made for Texas heat since we built them a hutch outside. It’s so amazing, designed by Jason with a run and everything! And they are just the cutest. She named them Ice Cream and Sundae and she just loved them so much. It was beautiful weather and so very hard to go back to school. So excited summer is so close!

Winter Break

Our winter break looked a little different this year. A few weeks before, my mom had a medical crisis that landed her in the hospital (as many of you know, she has advanced dementia). I jumped on a plane to fly to Georgia to help my dad. I was supposed to come back and we were planning a trip to see some snow for winter break, but she ended up in the ER after we thought she was getting better. So I stayed and Jason and the kids jumped in the van and drove to Georgia to help us manage all that was going on.

I was so grateful to be there to help my parents. It was a true circle of life moment - my mom was scared, and I comforted her. She needed help eating, so I fed her, and when she was cold, and I found her warm blankets. I helped her get dressed and tried to make her laugh when she wasn't feeling well. I was happy and grateful to do things for her that I know she did for me so much during my life. Taking care of aging parents is difficult and humbling and rewarding all at the same time.

Jason was amazing as he made the trip fun for Chase and Claire by taking them out on hikes during the day, and we got to go on walks and out to dinner with my dad when we weren't at the hospital. We also helped him around the house. It was a hard trip but so worth going and I am so glad we were there. When we got back, we took the kids horseback riding for Valentine’s Day and Claire finally got her wish of sleeping in the "hanging tent" in the tree with Jason (his portaledge). I'm so grateful for families and for all the doctors and nurses that helped get my mom back to feeling better. And for my family for giving up their vacation to help! I feel so blessed. 💕