Other Summer Stuff

While Colorado was a summer highlight, we've had plenty going on - from the normal to the exciting and everything in between. As it should be.

The girls spent an afternoon helping me set up my new office! Sara said she likes my old one better; Emma likes the new one. Either way, it's where I'm stationed and I'm excited about it!

I'll never be sick of having a pool. Even though it can be a headache (an expensive one at that), I just enjoy it so much. I love seeing the girls enjoy it, too. Not as many cannonballs and jumping contests these days, but still fun!

Jim only goes in when the heat absolutely necessitates and not of his own volition, but he always wants to be out there with us.

Emma found a pepperoni roll recipe that she wanted to try for us. She said the finished product didn't look the way she wanted it to, but they were delish!

We also recently spent an evening at the Rough Riders game. This was a make-up for the Mother's Day rainout (two years in a row!), but it worked out because we went on a Friday night and got fireworks.

Sara's team headed to UCA cheer camp - this year at Great Wolf Lodge.

We went on the final Saturday to see their performance. Sara doesn't like this picture because she said she isn't standing straight, but what you can't tell in a still photo is that she was moving, yelling, and doing her motions. She looked amazing!

Sara was really disappointed that she didn't get All American this year, after earning it the last two years at camp. I was sad for her, too, because I know she wanted it. She said that her coach told her, "You know you belonged up there, I know you belonged up there..." Her tryout was great, so it was a disappointment, but just not her year. Character building, right? As co-captain, she led her team at camp to win JV gameday and also the highly coveted "banana" spirit award. This was a huge win for the Plano West program!

Sara led her team in a "west side-best side" chant after winning the banana, and left camp with a huge smile and hardly any voice. So proud of her. We got in the car from camp and headed straight to Colorado!

While Sara was at cheer camp, the rest of us went to an FC Dallas game with Emma's soccer team. Always a fun time!

The girls sat on one side of the stadium, parents on the other. I caught up with a group midway through the game for this one dark photo. They had a great time!

Emma and I also went to see "Inside Out 2." It was really good - highly recommend. So many connections as it focused on the emotions of a teenage girl. It was good for both of us.

We also spent time packing for CO while Sara was at camp. This is how Jim handled it ... (He stayed with his neighbor besties while we were gone and had a vacation of his own, so he was just fine!)

Since CO, we've been busy getting the girls ready to go to CGS next week. They always love this week of summer, and are excited for "Island Paradise". I feel like I've made about a thousand trips to make sure we are camp ready ... here's hoping.

Sara spent most of this past week in New Braunfels with a friend and her family. We missed her on our first holiday without her, but she had a great time seeing a new place, floating the river, and exploring antique shops. Meanwhile, more kitchen time for Emma - cookies and pasta.

And her annual soccer signing day! We are super excited that she's staying with the same coach and largely the same team, but they're joining a different club. Besides uniforms and a few awesome new players, not much else will change, which is great. The team had their signing party at Whirly Ball, which was super underwhelming to the point of laughable, but we're looking forward to the soccer year!

We celebrated the 4th at our normal East Plano parking lot. We had an awesome fireworks show and really pleasant weather.

I asked Sara to send me a 4th picture, and this is what I got:

So Emma returned the favor:

Geeeeeeeez. 😆

Sara got home today from her get-away, and we have tomorrow to finish getting everyone packed for camp. Emma is mostly ready - and super organized, of course. We'll make the drive to Possum Kingdom Lake on Sunday and wish them well for a super fun week!

Rocky Mountain High

We are home from an amazing trip to Breckenridge, Colorado, to celebrate G&G's 70th birthdays! We had beautiful weather, an amazing Airbnb within walking distance to all the entertainment, and the best company.

We rented a car here in Plano and drove to Breck after picking up Sara from cheer camp. We made it to Amarillo by late afternoon for an early dinner at The Big Texan! Definitely a spot we'd been wanting to see and try for years. It was as kitschy as you'd imagine, but actually really cool and the food was delicious!

We had a seat upstairs overlooking the "challenge stage". Steve and I tried their house-brewed Mexican lager - two thumbs up.

I had to take a picture of Sara's "clean plate club" plate. This girl loves her steak!

We had planned to stop in Raton, New Mexico, but when we got there we felt like we had just a bit more left in us. We stopped for the night in Trinidad, CO. Good timing because it was dark and we hit rain. We had a quick sleep and got back on the road in the morning to be in Breck by noon! The extended fam was already there so we wasted no time unloading the car and heading up the mountain in gondolas.

There was so much to do! It was fun to see the ski hills turned into summertime fun. Emma rode the alpine slide and the coaster. She was annoyed to be behind a slow rider on the slide, and said the coaster was awesome.

She and Cal also played mini golf.

Meanwhile, G&G and Sara took a ski lift even further up for views, bags, and snacks.

Steve and I enjoyed tasting the Rockies, as one should in CO!

We stayed less than a block off the main drag, which was awesome. After our gondola fun and several times throughout the week, we spent time in shops and restaurants. The Blue River runs adjacent, and there were lots of great places to stop for a rest and refresh.

Such a cute area!

We got lightly rained on a couple of times for just a bit, and otherwise had gorgeous weather and views. It was pouring rain the day we left ... so it was a good time to hit the road.

One night, we had a professional chef come in and prepare a multi-course meal. It was SO good ... and SO much food. We had a dance party to try unload. Cal was definitely the life of that party!

No downtown would be complete without donuts and ice cream, and the kids had plenty of both during our trip. This was a cute little glow room in the ice cream shop that looked cooler in person than in my photo.

We made a trek to see the troll we'd heard so much about. We were hot and sweaty, but it was worth the walk!

"Yay, mountains!"

A major highlight of the trip was our white water rafting adventure! G&G, Melissa, Adam, and Cal took a calmer ride out of a different location, while the four of us hit Class 3 rapids. It was quite the ride (and workout), and amazingly, we all managed to stay in the raft!

Steve and Adam took a day to try fly fishing. They had a good time and caught several rainbow trout (all returned to the water).

We also got some sibling time out with M&A. Always thankful for the time I get with my sister.

On our last day in Breck, we opted for another ride on the gondola. We'd bought all the souvenirs, tried as many restaurants as our bellies could handle, and we all just wanted a little more mountain time! 

We spent time catching up and reminiscing mountain-side at Robbie's, and then continued down the mountain at Ollie's on the river. This was such a special trip for us to all be able to take together, and I'm thankful for the many memories made. These photos are a fraction of them, but provide a decent summary!

After leaving Breck, G&G were driving back to MN while the rest of us were flying. On the way to the airport, we stopped in Golden for a short visit. 

It was so fun to be back in the spot where Steve and I celebrated twenty years of marriage last summer!

We hit the shops and other important local establishments!

We dropped off our rental in Denver and flew back to MN - primarily for the purpose of attending Angie's wedding! I was so thrilled to be back home to celebrate with my friends of thirty+ years. It was fun catching up with several people from high school, but especially with these ladies who always make me laugh.

While in MN, Sara was lucky enough to get a red car lesson from Grandpa! She did a great job driving it, and looked pretty cute in it, too. 

I have many fond memories of cruising in the red car, and Sara was proud to show off her driving skills in it.

Our MN time was short, as we had to get back for soccer signing, Sara's 4th plans, and getting the girls ready for camp ... life! We ended with a night on the deck at Melissa and Adam's - always a spot filled with good times.

We got to meet their new pup, Whaler. Cal kicked around the big ball we couldn't resist buying, Emma entertained us, and we all enjoyed just being together.

We ended the night with sparklers. To me, nothing says MN summer like this!

There was summer before CO, and there's been some since, that I'll post about at another time. For now, I'm just so happy to have had this trip be part of our summer. Definitely still feeling that Rocky Mountain High!

Year-End Wrap!

As expected, the last month of school was a busy one! Near the end of April, G&G came for a weekend visit on their way back to MN from FL. They were excited for Sara to scoop them some ice cream!

Steve went with college friends on their annual draft weekend trip, and Emma guest-played in a softball tournament. I think she played six or seven back-to-back games at catcher ... whew!

After some rain and lightening delays, the team brought home a win!

Her soccer team also played in a year-end tournament. This team has come such a long way, and it was awesome to see them celebrate an undefeated weekend! We have loved this past year as Plano United, taking a step back from a big club. Proof that the formula works when the right people are in place! Although they won't be Plano United moving forward (and there will be some changes among players), Emma is excited about next year. Already as practices with the new team are underway, we can see that it's going to be a fun year of growth and success for the girls.

Emma isn't the only athlete who was celebrating during the last weeks of school ... we were thrilled to learn that Sara is a Captain for JV Cheer! She had to complete a lengthy application that she literally poured hours into, and she also had to sit for an interview with coaches and admin. She was very nervous, and had to wait several days after her interview to learn that she'd been selected. She called me at school to let me know. I'm so proud of her and her work and dedication to cheer! Summer practices are underway, and her team is already looking amazing!

We celebrated Emma's 5th grade graduation with a nice ceremony at Robinson MS. All of the 5th graders walked across the stage and shared a favorite memory (Emma's was the 5th grade mixer). They also had a photo booth, cupcakes, and all of the kids got a middle school shirt. We were remembering that Sara's group didn't have a ceremony because she was in 5th grade the year we shut down for Covid.

The Daffron Dads did one more morning at carpool - the theme was "remote dads vs. office dads". Steve hasn't been an office dad in several years now, but went with that look just for fun. Emma walked by and strategically snuck into school while he was busy opening a car door so he wouldn't embarrass her (her words) 🙂

Steve captured Emma's last walk to Daffron (wearing her new Robinson shirt). We've had a kid there for ten years ... it will feel weird to just drive by from now on. Regardless, Emma is ready for middle school ...

I did my part to add to the celebrations by making sure the girls had what they needed for last day celebrations with friends!

No rest for this one ... the day after school ended, she was back in tournament mode. No bling this time, but several hard-fought games and lots to be proud of! Honestly, we weren't sad to be done early on Sunday so we could come home and relax in the pool!

As of the last day of school, I was moved out of Plano, and started the following week at my new school in Prosper. I'm technically still on contract with Plano, and floating between the two places, but pouring my energy and learning into Prosper. Right off the bat, I attended their annual two-day leadership retreat at the Holdsworth Center near Austin. It confirmed that I'm making the right move - I have to go to grow, and I'm excited about the new challenge.

Finally, the last metal-free smile from this one for a while. Last Friday, she got bottom braces. We're waiting on a couple top baby teeth to come out, and then the top ones will go on later in July. Luckily, she should only need the one set and be done by 8th grade!

I'm on summer schedule, working M-Th, which is great! The girls are enjoying sleeping in, seeing friends, and of course keeping up their practice routines. We have several busy weeks ahead - but it's "summer busy", so lots of things we're looking forward to ... just trying to soak it all up! 

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