We went to the Beachnut building for p-day with the missionaries. Zac and Bode played basketball while Jessie colored, she and I played school and visited with missionaries until 5:30. Zac and Bode were impressed with the level of basketball skills of the missionaries in this zone. The kids enjoy being with the missionaries. They really look up to them and respect them. This is a great blessing to us as parents. :)
I started preparations for dinner (green chili enchiladas, tapioca jello, fruit, green salad and hornets cake) for our four departing temple square sisters. We have loved having them in our mission. Each one brings a sweet spirit and we wish we could have them with us longer like the Nauvoo sisters. Six months instead of three. During the day Jessie had Natalie over for a few hours to play. She could play with her from sun up to sun down. Zac went to the High school to play basketball. Later He and Bode went to Academy to buy a mini basketball hoop to put in one of their rooms. They compete with each other and drive me nuts because they play it way past bedtime and keep me up with the slam-dunking contests. Boys?!?!?!?
Yeah we get to pick up Allie!! We were running about 15 minutes late but we totally made up for it by going to the closest Torchy’s. This was a new location for us. Fun fact: we have now visited four different Torchy’s locations. We are such Torchy fans, sad but true. Bode was invited to go swimming with some of his friends to The Club at Riverstone. It is a pretty sweet HOA community pool with two twisting tube slides, splash pad, spray elements and a zero entry lagoon. So basically like Northshore. While he went there the rest of us went to Fire It Up to be artsy. We ended up doing a glasswork project. Zac did a tiger, Allie an art deco face and Jessie a mosaic flower. We had fun being creative in a new way. As we were finishing up Bode was ready to be picked up. The boys had scouts tonight which they both were dragging their feet about going. It was a scouting night in preparation for their upcoming camps. Both got their scout physicals offered by a member of the other ward, which they thought was totally weird. It ended up being short and sweet, not a big deal and saved me from making an appointment. So a win in my books. Zac’s also had a pack check to make sure he had all the required equipment and gear. We don’t, which causes me camping anxiety. Why? Because I don’t know what I am doing…..out of my comfort zone. By the way, we got the stuff, he is good to go and it really wasn’t a big deal just self-induced anxiety.
Today we had our new missionary meeting. Aaron begins the meeting with the discussion of “What they have learned thus far?” I share the whys and benefits of How to Adjust to Missionary Life. It is a fun discussion. The last discussion is all about the Atonement. It gets helps the missionaries to think about the atonement in a way they haven’t before and then to be able to share it with others simply. We then end with a lunch from Potbelly’s, a hot sandwich place. I was able to take leftovers home to the kids. Once home they were just getting ready to swim. Along with swimming, we had another day of tie-dying. A lot of fun designed shirts were created. We also added a slip n’ slide. At first they were slip n’ sliding right into the pool but then found it safer and more fun to just do it on the grass. Robby and Laci Nielsen came over because we are watching them for a day and half while their parents are in New York. Jessie and Laci decorated bags with puffy paint with Allie’s help. They turned out really cute. They of course joined in on the fun. Later that evening Aaron and I went out with the Morton’s for a great dinner at Churrascos. YUM!
Jessie and I started Friday morning with a swim in the pool while the Nielsen’s were at swim team. Later that day we went to see Finding Dory, a great family movie. I highly recommend it. Once home Jessie and Laci were deep into fort building with blankets and clothespins. Jessie plans to sleep in it. Robbie and Bode had a mean game of mini basketball going on. Aaron went on our, Texas Houston South mission’s first convert temple trip. This trip is for those that are recent converts and with the help of the missionaries have found a family name to bring to the temple to do their work. It was a great experience for the converts. Most of them shared very touching stories of either their conversion or bringing a family name to the temple. The convert temple trip will be held monthly. I hope to attend the next one. While Aaron was there, Allie and I went Father’s Day shopping for an amazing dad! It was fun shopping with Allie girl. I can always count on her to find something for herself and a sibling when shopping. I can count on it being quick too. She doesn’t like to shop for very long maybe an hour and a half. She does not a shop until she drops kid of girl. ;) The kids took a quick swim while we were gone. This was Jessie’s second time in the pool for the day. She loves the pool just as much as I do, maybe even more.
My Saturday workouts tend to be like a sprint Tri. A bike ride, a short run and finished off with a swim. Jessie joined me swimming again. She seriously loves the pool. J After lunch we loaded up to head to Galveston Island for a fun day at the beach. It was a HOT day! We had a great time attempting to catch waves. We saw lots of fish and had lots of crabs nipping at our feet. A little freaky but we didn’t let them deter us from having fun. On our way home we stopped at Joe’s BBQ for our first real Texas BBQ. It was a huge debate if we would even go in because we were a bit disheveled and homeless looking coming straight from the beach. Aaron checked it out and determined that we would fit right in with our fellow Texans. The food was great…HUGE portions (think Jeremiah’s breakfasts) we would consider sharing next time. We had a wonderful family day!! Lots of memories made.