Thanksgiving

I have a confession to make. I have a hard time with Thanksgiving.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's a Fantastic Holiday.  I think it's great to devote a day thinking about all the things you are grateful for.  (Of course, I think it's even better to keep an attitude of thankfulness year round. If people were only grateful for the things we did for them one day out of the year, we'd think ourselves ill used.)  Anyway, a day spent with family (or friends) and food with the purpose of thinking about and appreciating all the many things we've been blessed with is a wonderful day indeed.

But sometimes it's hard.  Not the thankfulness part.  Or the theory behind it all.  But the actual implementation of it. 

We have no other family near us in our little town here in Arizona, and never is that more apparent than on holidays like Thanksgiving.  And that makes me sad.  I think of all the people important to me and how far away they are and that makes me sad.  And then I have to prepare a big meal, mostly by myself, (As others have been getting more handy in the kitchen, I've been utilizing them more) and serve it to my little family, and it feels like a glorified Sunday dinner, and I'm too busy cooking and cleaning to worry about fun activities for kids to get into the spirit of things, and a centerpiece or place cards, in fact anything even remotely similar is completely forgotten, and it's downright exhausting, and then over too quickly, and then everyone goes to their respective corners while the tryptophan sets in, and then there's a giant mess to clean up, and I do get help with this, but in all honesty, all I'm thinking is, "We should have gone out."

Most of the years I've managed to figure out other plans.  Doing something, anything, besides just eating a big ol' turkey to make the day special.  Sometimes people come visit us.  Sometimes we visit other people.  One year we got together with another family in our church who had no plans either, and we split the responsibility and ate dinner with them.  It was awesome. One year we had no particular plans, so I had the brilliant idea to drive to California and go to Disneyland.  John's aunt and uncle live out there, and we didn't want to impose on them, so I came up with the idea of a picnic on the beach.  We'd eat turkey sandwiches on the beach and be together, and it would be a Thanksgiving that the kids would never forget.  Of course John's sweet aunt flipped out and would have none of that, and we spent Thanksgiving in their home. I'm still keeping that little picnic on the beach idea tucked safely away for a later date.  Just because it's not traditional doesn't make it wrong.

Last year we flew out to Texas.  John's sister Corrine lives out there with her family, and their dad and his wife would be coming down from Ohio as well.  You can read all about it here, if you so desire.  

Anyway, life with a kid with Autism can be fun.  One of his particular quirks, or gifts if you will, is his crazy ability to remember details, and his strict adherence to certain things.  We went to Texas last year.  So That Is What We Do. We go to Texas for Thanksgiving.  The End.  I've already been told that next year "On November 27 (the day we left this year- he doesn't get the fact that Thanksgiving isn't a set date each year like Christmas) we get on a Southwest airplane, sit on the right side, not the left, fly to Texas, drive a GMC Suburban, go to 2205 (their house number) and see Corrine and Rick and Kaeli and Josh and Belle and Cody and Kylie and Callie (the dogs and cats are also listed) and go swimming and go on roller coasters."

Fortunately Corrine's family was totally happy (and available) for us to descend upon them, and we had just enough left over Southwest frequent flier miles to do so, so off to Texas we went.

Dinner was of course great.  (sorry, not the best pictures)

Corrine is a great cook, and truthfully I felt a little useless in her kitchen, "What can I do?" "How can I help?" while she ran circles around me, and did most of the work herself. (She's an energizer bunny)

And we all had a great time.   The kids all had fun, and it was so good to see them just enjoying being with their cousins.   Christopher was in seventh heaven.  He didn't get to swim, but he loves his cousins and spent time with them, and played with the dogs (he even brought his own tennis ball because he remembered they love to chase balls) and he tormented the cats and he especially loved being with his aunt Corrine.  He adores her. Every time he'd see her, he'd hug her and say "Go Cougars!" (She's a rabid BYU fan.)

And he did get to go on his rollercoasters. I think that kid will be a total adrenaline junkie when he gets bigger.  He wanted nothing to do with the little rides, it was all about the biggest and fastest for him. 

He and I sat in the front car of one rollercoaster with "Two Loops".  He'd squeal with delight and even raise his arms and had a big smile on his face the whole time, and we talked about "two loops" for a long time. 

He was really mad they wouldn't let him go on "Superman".  He was too little for that.  It's one of those ones that goes straight up and then drops you. He totally pitched a fit.

That of course meant he wasn't going to be left out when the older kids went on the biggest and fastest rollercoaster in the park.  Corrine and Zach and I opted to go get hot cocoa (we were cold and Zach is not the fan of rollercoasters that his siblings are) and find a tamer ride while all the teenagers and the dads and Christopher went on the big rollercoaster.  Truthfully I worried that Christopher would hate it and it would be too much for him, but he totally loved it.

Total adrenaline junkie.  Side note- he's already asking for a PARACHUTE for his birthday.  Not the kind we all played with in PE when we were little (aka The Best Day of PE in the Whole Year).  But the kind of parachute you use to jump out of airplanes with.   In case you're wondering, in Despicable Me 2, one of the characters jumps out of an airplane.  A commercial flight. He totally plans on doing that some day.  I told him he has to be 18.  He didn't like that.  "Ummm. Maybe when I'm 10."

So yeah, this Thanksgiving was a good one.  But I think any time you get to spend it with people you love is a good one.

Science Camp with Zach

You know what's awesome?  Having the opportunity to go on field trips with your kids.

When Nick was younger, I hardly went on a single field trip with him.  I always had little kids to take care of so it was hard.  Fortunately as time has gone on though, certain things have gotten easier, and I've been able to take advantage of these opportunities.

So, Science Camp with Zach.  I was able to go with the older two, and was happy to be able to continue the streak and go with Zach. 

It was at the same place where Maddie attended science camp her sixth grade year.  I think I've decided those hills outside of Prescott must just be full of all these little private camps.  They seem to be owned by various churches whose members attend all summer long, then rent them out to school groups all throughout the rest of the year.

It was fun.  I seem to luck out with the groups my kids are in.  Except possibly the year Nick went to science camp.  I had to bunk with a bunch of bratty girls who would say things like, "If you let us stay up all night, we won't be mean to Nick..."

So, what do you do at science camp?

They do a lot of outdoor activities,

"Team Building" kind of stuff.

And since the emphasis is on science, there's the classroom stuff, like dissecting owl pellets. (The fur and bones and "leftovers" that the owls can't digest so they cough up.)

At night they do campfires, and perform skits and even have a "dance".  My kid and his friends sat out the entire dance. Dancing is not on his list of things he wants to do. Ever.

At school, Zach hangs out mostly with these three other boys.  I was talking to one of the dads of those boys and he confessed to me he calls them "The Nerd Herd." They're a bunch of smart little geeks who take band (I think they all play trumpet), read and draw their own comic books, enjoy sci-fi, and play video games.  And they all seem like great kids and good friends to Zach.

The big event was of course the giant rock wall and the zip line at the top of the rock wall.  Zach had been looking forward to this for such a long time.

One thing I've learned with Zach is that he needs time to process things.  You can't just say, "Hey! guess what we're going to do today?!?! Climb a giant rock wall then jump off the top!"  He'd just fall apart. 

So we talked about that rock wall and what was at the top for weeks.  And then we saw it in person on the first day.   And he saw his friends do it first.  And he saw that they were fine, and not only that, they were smiling and saying how awesome it was.  And then he was ready.

And it was hard.

I could tell that half way up he was struggling.  He'd never climbed anything so tall before. But I cheered him on from the bottom, and I don't know if that helped him or not, but he did it!

And then I have to admit that I was worried he wouldn't be able to ride the zip line.  It's hard and scary.  You know it's safe and it will be okay, and everyone else is like "That was so AWESOME!!!" But your brain is like, "Uh, you want me to do what? Jump off this platform? You're crazy. You're gonna have to figure out how to move your legs without me, cause I'm not going anywhere near that edge." 

During Nick's science camp there was this cute girl in my group.  (Not one of the obnoxious ones in the dorm) and she was so excited to do the zip line.  She was the first in line to climb to the top of the tower, but when she got to the top, she just lost it.  She just sat up there and cried in front of everyone for an hour until they finally lowered her down the side.

You just really don't expect it to be so scary. So I really worried how Zach would react when he got to the top.  And you know what?  He did awesome.  I was so happy that for once he could get over any anxieties that might be holding him back, and see that he can in fact do hard and scary things. 

And he loved it.  And I was so happy that I could be there to see it.

 

Girl's Trip- the City Life

The second half of our trip we spent enjoying big cities. 

The plan was to spend half a day in Boston, but by the time we got there and figured out where to turn in the car, our day was gone.   We were both wishing we had an extra day in Boston, but we arrived too late in the day, and had to catch a flight too early in the morning.

But our hotel room was super nice.  Seriously, Marriott LOVES John.  And I get to benefit from that love even when he's not there.   Our room was huge and gorgeous

With a private balcony that overlooked the bay.

The only issue we had was that our key cards wouldn't work, and they had to reprogram the locks on the doors for whatever reason, but we got tickets for free Starbuck's for our trouble.

The next morning we headed off to New York City.

We only had about a day and a half at our disposal, so we made the most of it.

A little shopping, a little sight seeing, and a lot of fun.

After dinner at one of our favorite spots, Ellen's Stardust Diner, where Broadway hopefuls serenade you while you eat, we headed off to catch a Broadway show.

Not just any Broadway show.  But Once. 

Before our trip I got online to see which celebrities were performing on Broadway.  And there were a couple.  Personally I would not have minded seeing Romeo and Juliet starring Orlando Bloom, but Maddie could have cared less.  Orlando Bloom!!! Kids these days. 

Anyways, my kids are totally in love with the show 'Doctor Who'.  And one of their favorite characters that was recently killed off was Rory.  Played by Arthur Darvill.  Who just happened to be in New York performing on Broadway.

So yeah, we totally went and saw it.  And it was really good.  And then we totally fangirled out by the stage door and met the actors and got autographs. 

And Maddie even got Arthur to sign a birthday card for Nick. 

Which in this household is now leading the polls for "Best Birthday Present Ever." (Nick has stated before that he wants to name a kid Rory. For Reals.  Of course being the Gilmore Girls fan that I am, I still sorta think of Rory as a girl's name.)

The next day was just a hodgepodge of stuff.  Sightseeing, eating, window shopping. 

We went to Ground Zero and saw the World Trade Center memorial.

And ran into this cute girl, Camille Zuniga, from our home town.

I also really liked this tree.  It's called the Survivor Tree, because it has survived both the destruction of the WTC, but then it was moved to a different location, where Hurricane Sandy tried did her best to finish it off, and it survived that as well. 

I introduced Maddie to Serendipity 3 and the Frozen Hot Chocolate.

And apparently this is the Actual Table from the movie Serendipity.  (I so don't remember the table in the movie at all, but the waiter offered to take our picture, which I should have thought harder about since I look like crap tired.)

We took a lovely stroll through Central Park to check out the Bethesda Fountain. 

And that was about it. It was fun, and over too quickly. 

And yes, by the end of the trip, Maddie agreed with me, I am the right kind of people Ü.

Girl's trip- the Country Life

When our kids are about 14 John and I like to take them on a special trip back east.  John took Nick the summer after he turned 14, and I took Maddie during fall break right before she turned 14.  The trip is meant to be part church history, and part just for fun.  We started off in upstate New York, drove over to Vermont, and then down to Boston where we caught a flight to New York City.  I know John's dad was disappointed we weren't able to make a stop in Ohio like John and Nick were able to, but Maddie and I were working with less time than they were, so something had to give unfortunately.

When we woke up our first day in New York, we were disappointed to find out that it was raining.

 Most of our plans for that leg of the trip included a lot of being out doors, so our first stop was to buy a couple of umbrellas.  Our second stop was to Tim Hortons to buy donuts and hot chocolate. And breakfast sandwiches too.

Then we headed off to our real destination which was the Hill Cumorah. 

Fortunately, the rain pretty much insured we had all the sights we wanted to see to ourselves.  We did see only one other family at both of our stops that day who were also from Gilbert, Arizona. Queen Creek, really, but that's close enough.

Next up was the Palmyra temple,  the Joseph Smith farm, and the Sacred Grove.

It was all so gorgeous.  We went at the perfect time. 

The temple was pretty.  The farm was pretty cool.  It was fascinating to see how they really lived.

And the sacred grove was something else.  Maddie and I had the place to ourselves as we walked along the path (the other family hadn't shown up yet) and I kept thinking to myself, "I wonder where the exact spot was", and then after a time, we rounded a corner, and it was like, "Oh. Here." (It was also the spot where the three different paths converged, but there was definitely a different feeling there.)  And so I closed my eyes and said a teeny tiny prayer. I've never had doubts on the matter, but I thought I'd ask while I was there.  Did it happen? That's all really.  Did it happen like Joseph Smith said it did?  As a fourteen year old boy, did he see both The Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, in this spot?  The answer to my question was immediate and totally overwhelming. That yes. It's all true.

After that, we headed to our next destination which was a scenic little B&B near a lake owned by a couple of old hippies. 

Being the off season we totally had the place to ourselves.

Marriotts are great and all that, (and free) but sometimes you gotta mix it up a little bit.

I think there was only one other business in the whole little town which was a combo gas station, pizzeria, deli, corner market, and video rental place. 

Doing cartwheels in the middle of the street.

We had pizza and wings for dinner and then ate treats while watching a movie we rented that night.

I think we both would have liked to stay longer.

They had a dock with boats to use, but the sun was nearly setting and it was a bit chilly out, so we just enjoyed the scenery from shore.

The next day we headed over to Vermont.

Home of the birthplace of Joseph Smith.

Plus it was a lovely scenic drive to get there.

My kids are big fans...

So, when we were planning this little trip, Maddie was like, "So, we're only gonna be in NYC for like 2 days, and the rest of the trip is like just driving around and stuff?"  I explained to her that it wasn't just "driving around and stuff"  it was a ROAD TRIP.  And road trips with the right people can be FUN.  And guess what?  I am the right kind of people.  I am fun. 

I absolutely would love to be buried in some little run-down, forgotten graveyard by the side of the road, yet somehow brimming with character, in the cheapest box available, than some over priced and cheesy looking place.  -FYI

I suppose if you have to tell someone that, you lose a little credibility. Plus I don't know if that's the right picture to put after the statement where you are declaring just how fun of a person you are. But I didn't know where else to put it.

Oh well. 

I don't think she believed me then.  But she does now. Ü

Choir Camp

Okay, so technically it's called "Choir Retreat". But whatever.

I got a frantic email one morning asking all the moms of choir students attending the retreat if one of us would be able to take the place of another mom who had fallen sick and couldn't chaperon.  The next day.

It happened to work into our schedule, so I volunteered.

I figured as long as I have a teenager who likes me to do these sorts of things, I might as well take full advantage. 

Besides, I've only got this particular kid for less than a couple of years (that's the plan anyways) so that's another reason.

Plus, as it turns out, it was a lot of fun.  (I didn't think it wouldn't be, but it was funner than expected.)

And it was easy.  They are good kids.  All I did was follow them around and take pictures.

So. Camp. They did a lot of team building activities which were fairly entertaining to watch.

There were some high ropes course stuff,

and even a zip line.

And singing.  Lots of singing.  (It is CHOIR camp after all)

You know, Nick has always been musical.  He taught himself to whistle when he was in first grade, and his teacher called him her "little songbird".  (Even when asking him to stop as they were in class.)

Anyways, over the years I've seen things.  I've watched as Nick will start humming a tune and other kids would give him dirty looks or tell him to shut up or groan or other various responses.  But this was the very first time I had seen other kids join in.  We'd be hiking along and Nick would bust into song, and I would start to cringe thinking of the other kids reactions, and then be actually shocked when they all joined in.  Happily. Not a single time did I even see so much as an eye roll from other kids.  (And I LOOKED).  I can't tell you what joy that brought to this mother's heart.

And there was the added bonus that I got to better know some of Nick's friends, and his choir teacher as well.  (And I was really impressed with what I saw on all counts, by the way.)