Our Busy Week

Last week was a crazy, busy week with too many days away from home!  After the first day, I was ready to cancel all the other activities, but chose not to because of promises made to the kids. 

Monday and Tuesday were fairly regular days--school, doctor's appointments, projects. 

Wednesday was when the business started.  A couple in our ward went through the temple for the first time and then were sealed for time and all eternity.  I love sealings!  What an awesome experience it was for this couple and I'm so glad that we were invited to share in that moment.  In the evening we went to Christy and Jeremiah's house.  Jonathan's aunt and cousins were in-town visiting so we got together for dinner.  We ended up staying late visiting and laughing.

Thursday was a trip out to Queen Creek to attend the Estrella Wars.  Last year we went with some homeschool friends and Corbin saw a sword that he wanted.  Unfortunately he didn't have enough money, so all year long he has been saving for that sword in hopes that we would go back again.  I wasn't pleased about making the drive again, but I couldn't disappoint Corbin--he worked hard to save that money.  He found a sword, but our experience this year wasn't as good as last year.  For one, it was much hotter.  For another there wasn't as much to see.  We saw 1-2 sword fights, but not the big battle.  We saw some armor, but not the blacksmith where the armor was made.  There weren't as many learning opportunities/booths either.  I was disappointed and hopefully we can avoid the adventure next year. 

Friday we went to Arizona Game and Fish's Youth Day at Ben Avery.  Last year we had a ton of fun at a similar event--Tres Rios--but this year we were unable to attend, so I promised the kids that we would try the Youth Day.  Another disappointment.  The kids got to fish in this giant pool and they enjoyed that, but the line was super long and we spent more time waiting than fishing.  There was one interesting walk-about where we learned about Arizona animals and plants.  Then we went to the educational booths (usually my favorite part).  This had the potential of being great, but all the booths were under one tent and it was overcrowded.  We hardly had a chance to see anything before getting pushed out by another group. 

Saturday was the ballet--or at least I thought it was the ballet.  We were supposed to go to the ballet on Thursday, but I double booked the Estrella Wars that day so I rescheduled the ballet for the 31st.  Turns out the person in charge of the school matinees for the ballets didn't understand what I wanted (because I didn't tell him clearly).  He said we could come on the 31st, but he meant May 31st not March 31st.  It wasn't until I paid for parking and was in Symphony Hall that I realized my mistake.  UGH!!!  So we spent the day running errands and hanging out at my in-laws.  I got a lot done, but it could have been more relaxing if I hadn't made such a dumb mistake.  Oh well. 

Sunday was a day at home watching General Conference.  I especially loved President Uchtdorf's talk about contention.  It was exactly what our family needed to hear. 

The lesson I learned this week: Field trips are fun, but not all in the same week.