Four Versions of Spring Break

The four girlies in our family went four separate directions this year for Spring Break. 

Reagan spent the week with her friend, Emma, at the Coast.  They had a FABULOUS time, and Reagan hasn’t stopped talking about it yet!  I’m hoping that Emma’s mom, Laura, took lots of pictures and sends me some.  I think one of the things Reagan liked about her trip the most was that she finally got to do something that none of her big sisters got to do! 

Harley stayed in Irrigon with her dad.  She spent time at softball practice, the skate park, and hanging out at home with her dad’s family.  They rented a hotel room one night so all the kids could go swimming.  She had a great time, too! 

After spending the first weekend with Katelyn and I in Cove at my parents’ house, Emma spent the rest of the week in Heppner with her other family.  They, too, spent one night at a hotel so the kids could swim.

When the three of us first got to Cove, Nana and Papa were getting ready to clean out their pond for the Spring and Summer, and they put the girls right to work!  Emma helped Papa assemble the drainage pipe, and Katelyn was in charge of turning the pump on and off to drain the pond.  They both spent lots of time finding snails, and they even found a couple of salamanders!

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Emma & Katelyn played Monopoly later that afternoon in front of the fireplace in my parent’s living room.  One of their cats, Boots, always lays in front of the fireplace, and he decided he was going to lay there anyway, whether Katelyn was sitting in his spot or not!  He just curled up right on her legs and made himself at home!

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After a grueling night of Monopoly, computer games, and cleaning out the pond, they slept VERY soundly.  So soundly that I don’t think either one of them knows I took this picture Sunday morning.  🙂

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Monday and Tuesday, my sister, Erika came over with her kids.  Erika spent time working on a scrapbook of her boys’ trip to Disneyland last Spring with my parents, my mom worked on the scrapbook of their trip to Italy, and I worked on the scrapbook of my trip to Poland (12 years ago). 

Thankfully for me, I took an independent study history class for my trip, and part of the requirement was that I keep a journal of my travels, so I was able to recall memories that went with the pictures I was scrapbooking.  It was really amazing reliving that trip.  It was a very poignant time in my life.  I was a single-mother, a college-student, and I was very self-righteous.  It took that one single trip to change the way I looked at life permanently.  Actually, it really only took two days of that trip to change my outlook on life – one day spent at the Wieliczka Salt Mine near Krakow, and one day spent at Auschwitz and Birkenau in Ocviencim.  I believe that for anyone near my age to really understand the horrific acts of the holocaust, you almost have to visit one of these concentration camps to see the evidence in person.  I am forever grateful to be living in a country where it doesn’t matter what color my hair is, what my religion is, or what my last name is.  A sharp contrast to the horrors of Auschwitz was the beauty deep below the surface of the earth in the salt mines.  Huge cathedrals with chandeliers made from crystals carved from salt, statues, caverns, and beautiful museum displays showcasing a craftmanship that is amazing and created without the convenience of modern tools!

Anyway, I digress.  The best part of visiting with my sister, was being able to visit with her kids.  I didn’t get any pictures of the Tymek, Benjamin, or Konrad because the three older boys were always occupied and busy doing something fun like kick ball or playing computer games.  The three little ones, however, aren’t allowed to leave the living room, so I got to spend lots of time with them.  Erika calls them the Terrorist Cell, and after spending two days with them, I totally get it!  🙂  Lillian will be four in May, and Kendric and Kayleigh are two and a half.  Papa managed to wrangle the whole Terrorist Cell onto his lap for a picture!

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Kayleigh & Kendric

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Kayleigh doesn’t like animals; well, that’s not really true, she only likes them on her terms.  She was on my dad’s lap, and every time Luna (their Golden Retriever) came by her, both her legs went straight up into the air!  It was hilarious, like she was a marionette and both leg strings got pulled at once!  It gave my dad and I giggles for quite a while!

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We have more Spring Break happenings, and I’ll post those soon.