A Spring Break Friend Fest

We squeezed in a lot over our spring break.  Monday started off sort of a wash because we were so tired from the time change.  (At least I was.)  Josiah and Caroline set out to make one movie a day over the break.  They do a lot of transitions - they'll snap their fingers and appear in a different room.  It requires a lot of planning as well as a lot of ad libbing, but they love to make them.  Josiah was in charge of the transitions, Caroline was in charge of editing - she adds words and sets it to music.  

Josiah got to help demonstrate the move at jiu-jitsu early in the week.  Sensei Matt demonstrated a trip. 

Monday evening was good for Henry.  He earned his solid grey belt in jiu-jitsu.  It's been a long time coming - 19 months!  He could not receive it the day it was earned because he needed a blackbelt to put it on him.  The next evening, Professor Mike was there and he got it.  A new belt means you get flipped, too.  It also means a meal out, but Henry's still mulling over the restaurant possibilities.  

By mid-week we were in the swing of things.  Wednesday afternoon we went to a new park to play with friends.  This was a very duck and bird-friendly park.  There was an inaccessible island in the water next the park that was filled with fowl.  

Thursday we drove out to Galveston and saw the Gulf of Mexico.  We went to the Galveston Naval Museum with our CC group.  When we arrived, it was a bit chilly and very windy.  We were regretting our clothing choices, but fortunately the sun came out and warmed us up.  The wind stayed strong the whole time, but I suppose that was to be expected.  At the start of our tour, our guide asked if we had anywhere to be later.  We all shook our heads no, and then he proceeded to spend the next three hours with us.  He was a great tour guide and shared a lot of information about the two boats that we saw.  Our tour started on the USS Stewart, the "President's Escort."  In October 1943, this boat escorted FDR to the Tehran Conference with Churchill and Stalin.  We were told that an aircraft carrier would be flanked by 4-5 of these escort ships on each side.  We learned about the depth charges and the gunners.  We saw the sleeping quarters - three high.  They even had an ice cream machine in the mess hall.  It was put there as a replacement for alcohol to keep the men sober.    

From the ship we went to the sub, the USS Cavalla, which was stationed in the Pacific in WWII.  She was known as the Avenger of Pearl Harbor, and became famous for sinking the Japanese Navy Carrier, SHOKAKU, that attacked Pearl Harbor.  We started off in the torpedo room.  It held 8 torpedoes in the bow and 8 in the stern, each one weighing in at 3500 lbs.  He showed us how they would slide them into the tube to be fired.  Interestingly, it had to resurface every 12-48 hours.  During its nightly surfaces, it would run its diesel engines to recharge its batteries.  So, it would go up and down nearly daily.  It could only go 400-450 feet deep, too.  If we thought it was tight to walk around the bowels of the ship, the sub was an incredibly tight squeeze.  Even single file, there were many hallways where your arms easily hit both sides.  And gauges, valves, pipes were everywhere, which we were emphatically warned not to touch.  There were several rooms with bunks three high again, but to accommodate the whole crew, some cots were right next to the torpedoes.  

Tube to launch the torpedo

Not the cot I'd choose.

Todd's favorite part was the symbol used for the USS Cavalla.  It was named for the cavalla fish which is wearing a sombrero and holding a torpedo.  

Immediately after getting home from the Naval Museum, we dropped Josiah off at a Challenge B Game Day at his friend's house.  A few days prior, Josiah mentioned to me that if he lost a game of his choosing, then he would get a hair cut.  I mentioned this to the mom so she could make sure he lost a game and I knew about it.  Later, at pick-up, I learned that all his friends rallied around him and made sure he was on everyone's team so he would never lose.  It was very sweet, but he still needs a trim in the hair department....

The following day, we had friends come over from our CC group.  The mom has a small baking business on the side, so she came to teach us how to make cake pops.  At first taste, they were immensely better than the time we tried to make them on our own.  Learning the proportions made a huge difference.  Caroline and her daughter had a lot of fun decorating them.  They had triangle sprinkles, so there were many cats, dinosaurs, and other triangular-eared animals made.  Josiah made a chicken.  By the end, sprinkles had found their way to all parts of the kitchen.  I also could not find the lollipop sticks to make them cake "pops," so we had cake "balls" which were just as good.  Our cake pop instructor would not like to be shown because our creations were closer to Pollock and Picasso, while her creations are closer to the pretty pastry chef side of things.  They spent the whole afternoon with us, so we had a very full day.  

To close out our break, Henry spent Saturday afternoon at a friend's house.  He likes this friend a lot because they play outside - climbing trees, playing tag, and playing on a tree swing.  Henry would love for his siblings to play outside more.

Sunday afternoon all three kids hung out with their neighborhood friend.    

It's been a friend fest spring break.  

As much as I would love a second spring break to get all the things completed on my to-do list, we have to hit the ground running tomorrow morning.  All three kids have year-end projects that need a lot of attention put towards them.  I've put out my warning that all schedules need to be stuck to and completed.  There are no changes, no substitutions, no compromises.  And definitely no one can get sick.  

Smiles on the surface.  "Henry, stop touching me" under their breath.