Sunday, August 14, 2022

Texas Day Two

 The second day in Texas was awesome. We went to an extreme trampoline park called, Urban Air. It was full of tramps, ninja courses, zip lines, rock climbing, dodge ball, basketball courts, and ropes courses. The kids played, and even the adults got in on the fun. We all had a blast and played for hours. 

That evening, we did the most incredible service project I have ever been a part of. We worked at the "Feed My Starving Children" workhouse. The evening began with a video showcasing hungry children across the world and explaining the work of the foundation. We then broke into groups and worked to put together Manna Packs for the kids. It was an assembly line where we packed bags of rice, soy, vegetables, and vitamins. We then weighted, sealed, and packed the packs. They blasted music and we worked together, all while doing friendly competitions with the other teams and chatting with each other. At the end of the night, we were given the chance to pray over the packs of food we had prepared. The volunteer gave parameters of the prayer and asked if anyone wanted to pray. It was silent for a moment, then my sweet teenage boy, Tayden, raised his hand and prayed in a warehouse full of people. He prayed for the hungry kids that their bellies could be full. He prayed for the volunteers in our company that helped. And he prayed for the transportation of the food, that it would be safe getting to its destination. I was so proud of him. 

We ended the sweet experience with a sweet treat and grabbed some ice cream and a local shop. Day two was a major success. 



































Texas Day One

 We had the best trip to Texas. It was packed full of fun and the only way to record it all is day by day. Day one was our travel day. The boys were so excited to ride an airplane for the first time, that they could remember at least. They did terrific at the airport and the flight was a breeze. They looked out the window and watched movies on their tablets. It was an eye-opener, and I thought more than once, "Holy Cow! We are doing this!" It really felt like such a rite of passage. It is so neat to watch our family grow and experience new things that we never would have been able to do years ago. Or at least without that amount of ease. 

We landed safely in Dallas and were met by the Mennears. The kids were giving me a hard time and kept telling me not to cry. I didn't cry, but I did scream for joy. We headed home, grabbed some late-night pizza, and got the kids all settled. It didn't take long before all the kids were lounging around playing games together. My heart was so completely content. 
















Swimming Lessons

 Kyle is our only one that took swimming lessons this year, and he loved it. He did so great and loved diving underwater to retrieve diving rings and swam pretty well independently. It won't be long until he's splashing along with his brothers.