Last Cruise

Although our co-workers and friends thought we were crazy for going, we decided to keep our reservations on a cruise out of Charleston for spring break.  There was a pandemic looming on the other side of the world, and cruising was a hotbed for spreading the disease.  With our oldest quarantined at medical school, the four of us opted for a balcony room in case our 4-day vacation was extended to several weeks.

I have to say... being isolated from news, spending time with family, and having an endless buffet of amazing food was worth it!  There were also fewer people on the cruise than usual, so we never had to wait for machines at the gym...

and the ropes course allowed unlimited turns.

The pool tables were fun, if you could hit the cue ball before it rolled with the ship's sway.

The weather was just gorgeous!  We stayed on the top deck for a while to burn off our calories from breakfast and 1st lunch.  Then there's 2nd lunch, snack, and finally dinner.  

In mid-afternoon, the guys decided to attend a craft event.  These were mini-canvases that we painted with water colors and stamps.  When the guys were not taking their art skills seriously, the girls had to get in on the action.

Our beautiful artwork on the outside of our cabin door.  Guys pieces are above the room number, girls pieces are below.  The top one is abstract, apparently.

In the early evening, Luke tried his luck at the blackjack table.  I've never seen $20 go so fast.  (Ha ha)  But he had fun.

Our formal night had photographers everywhere.  Since their photos are quite pricey, we took this selfie.

After our 4-course dinner, we relaxed in the ship's library.  I found a good book while Eric and the little one entertained themselves with board games.

The long day at sea was pretty fun.  It was time to rest up for a busy day in the Bahamas.

USC/Orangeburg

For my 49th birthday, I wanted our whole family to be together.  We all met up in Columbia to see Luke.  

This semester has been really busy for him with pledging the business fraternity and joining Army ROTC.  

He gave us a tour of his unit...

Then he let us try on his ruck sack.  This is a backpack weighing 45 lbs they have to carry for 4, 6, and sometimes 12 miles on their morning walks.

We stayed at Embassy Suites and played Connect 4 on their extra-large game set

And competed against each other...the youngest won.

Evening drinks and appetizers meant lots of Shirly Temples!

While in Columbia, we decided to all run up a huge hill, Barnhill.  It's deceiving in the picture, as the moped can't even make it up.

During the weekend, Ashlyn found out she got her rotation assignment at the hospital in Orangeburg, just 40 miles south of Columbia.  We took a family drive there to scope out the area for housing options, find the Catholic church, and see the hospital.

She's excited about going (minus the pictures I keep taking)!

Mathcounts

One of the middle school programs offered is Mathcounts, a competitive math class that goes regional, state, and national.

Our 7th grader was the only one to represent her grade and the only girl to represent her school.  They took the top 6 individuals.  Each student going received this t-shirt.  We thought it was hillarious since we honestly don't see anything wrong in our family with buying that much fruit!

There were 15 schools represented, and hers came in 10th.  Although she didn't place, she did receive a certificate of accomplishment and got a picture with the event coordinator, my board chair for 2020!  Both of us were surprised to see the other there.

As we headed home, snow had fallen which made our little one smile!

Last of the Kolaches

Our 2nd year to have free kolaches every day has come to an end.  We sure enjoyed them, developed friendships with the staff, and introduced quite a few people to this great bakery over the years.

Our little one was ready for breakfasts at home.  Her first meal request was homemade waffles, McConnell style, with blueberries, chocolate chips, pecans, and butterscotch chips.

 This face says it all.

Kombucha

"Kombucha"

Tea fermented using a symbiosis of bacteria and yeast

Since our oldest is into vegan and organic foods, this drink appealed to her.  Although it's a fermenting processes, it's "much" different than beer or wine, and according to her, better for you.  I'll leave that up to viewers to decide.

The process involves taking brewed tea and adding a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY) from another kombucha.  Then they let it sit covered in a dark place until the SCOBY forms a thick layer on top.  You then filter out the SCOBY and drink it.  None for me, thanks.  I'll stick to beer.

Most Improved

During the fall sports awards banquet, our 7th grader received the prestigious Varsity letter for Cross Country.  In addition, she got the award for Most Improved!!  

She improved her time by over 13 minutes from running her first 5k school competition at 39:25 to a time of 25:50 and earning a spot on varsity!  Way to go!  Her brother was there to support her.

Here's a close up of her awards.  I can't believe she lettered as a 7th grader!

Bowling

With all the kids home for holiday break, we decided to go bowling.  It may not be anything special, but I love any family time when we're all together.

Sometimes we compete for points, other times we're just there for the hot wings and pretzels. 

 These three.... LOVE them! 💙💙💙