Daddy Daughter Dance

Trevor took the girls out on a date tonight. They went out for a nice dinner at Sauce Italian Restaurant. They had a great time doing crafts, eating snacks, riding in the limo and of course, dancing the night away.

Mommy Son Date Night

Of course Trace and I couldn't let Daddy and the girls have all the fun, so we went out on the town too. We tried out a new restaurant in town and then did some cosmic bowling. We had fun, but Trace was mad he couldn't get a strike. Can we say competitive...

After we bowled a couple of games, the fun continued with a trip to McDonalds. Trace got an oreo flurry and then ran around in the play area. I think McDonalds may have been his highlight as he has been wanting to go there for quite some time. It was a fun night with my little guy!

District Quiz Meet

The girls had their last quiz meet up at Detroit First Church of the Nazarene. They were quizzed over everything they have learned this year, which covers 20 chapters worth of material, which is basically the entire book of Exodus. They both worked very hard and earned gold. Kianna got 56/60 questions correct and Kaylee got 59/60 questions correct. They received trophies instead of medals for their last quiz meet. Kaylee actually did so well that she qualified to quiz at Regionals in June at Olivet Nazarene University. I think we have decided to sit that one out, but we are very proud of her accomplishment!

Arizona 2015

Easter Egg Hunt

My dad loves yellow bushes and trees

Montezuma's Castle

Look Cacti

Sedona Hike Selfie

Kaylee and her classmate, Makaela Hauer, who we bumped into on the hike.

Hiking with the Hauers

Daddy carried Kianna the last 2 miles. What a good daddy!

Dirty Boy

Slide Rock State Park

Dinner with Joann and Gary

Goldsfield Ghost Town

Dinner and Swimming with our friends

We were blessed to be able to spend our Spring Break in Arizona this year. It had been seven years since we were there last. Pre-kids we used to go annually, but once we had kids and moved to Michigan the cost of  plane tickets became too much. All that to say, we were so excited to be able to return to Arizona to visit my dad and Sue. We were there for 8 days. The highlights included:

• Kianna's Wheelchair Ride Through the Detroit Airport- Kianna spent the school day sick on the floor in Trevor's office while we both worked. Our flight was later that night and despite her not feeling the best we needed to make our flight. We arrived at the Detroit Airport and were standing in line waiting to go through security when Kianna could stand no more. I felt her head and realized she was cold, clammy and not feeling well. The security personnel jumped into action and came to our aide asking if we needed an ambulance. After declining and telling them she wasn't feeling well they offered her a wheelchair which we graciously accepted. Her wheelchair even got us first dips on seats on the airplane. Thankfully once we were on the airplane she felt better and we didn't have anymore issues until the mine. See below.
• Plane Ride- The girls had been on a plane before but they were only 1 & 2 years old last time, so couldn't remember it. All that to say, they were super excited to ride in an airplane. Kaylee was taking pictures out the plane window. Their enthusiasm was fun to see.
• Cactus- Kianna studied cactus last year in school and ever since then has really liked them. The kids were all super excited to see cacti. They also loved all the fruit trees. Grandma Sue makes a killer fresh-squeezed lemonade, which we all thoroughly enjoyed while we were there. We even had fresh picked grapefruit and kumquats. 
• Driving the golf cart- This was the highlight for all the kids. My dad even let Kaylee drive on the road across a busy street one time, which she keeps talking about. 
• Visiting with my dad and Sue- They are such gracious hosts. We always enjoy our time with them and of course our card games. 
• Cubs Game- Trevor, Trace and my dad all went to watch the Cubs in their last Spring Training game against the Diamondbacks. It was Trace's first Cubs game and he LOVED it.
• Visiting with Carissa- Carissa is one of my basketball teammates from Olivet. We hadn't seen each other in seven years. We went out for lunch and had a great time catching up. A lot happens in seven years. We also did a desert hike, which was beautiful as the desert was in bloom.
• Easter- We made a nice meal and our nephew, Matthew, spent the day with us. He moved out to Arizona last September to go to school. We were able to see where he is living and see his school. We had a relaxing time swimming and playing miniature golf. 
• Sedona- We did an overnight trip to Sedona. We stopped at Montezuma's Castle, which is an old indian cliff dwelling, along the way. In Sedona, we enjoyed the beautiful scenery up close with an amazing hike back and forth across a creek. The kids thought the hike was pretty great. We also took the kids to Slide Rock State Park where they had a chance to slide down a naturally made waterslide in the 50 degree water. 
• Date Night- Trevor and I went out for Japanese food and to a movie. It was fun getting away just the two of us.
• Relaxing- We spent lots of time at the pool, playing miniature golf, going on walks, playing a round of golf, and playing some tennis. The weather was in the high 80's while we were there, which was a welcome change after our cold winter.
• Dinner with Joann and Gary- My aunt and uncle spend the winter in Mesa. They were getting ready to head back to Iowa, but we managed to meet up with them before they left. We had a nice meal together and good conversation. 
• Goldsfield Ghost Town- Not sure we would return, but the scenery was breathtaking. It is right at the base of Superstition Mountain. We took a mine tour, where Kianna had to be carried out due to getting all cold and clammy. Daddy came to the rescue and once out of the mine and given some water to drink, she was back to normal. We think she got dehydrated. The kids also pined for gold, which they enjoyed.
• Visiting old friends- We were invited over to Adam and Kelda Smith's house while we were in Arizona. We met them in Cedar Rapids at church when we were first married pre-kids. They only lived in Cedar Rapids for a year or less and then have moved several times. They now live in Chandler, AZ so we decided to reconnect with them. We hadn't seen them in 10 years. Last time we saw them Kaylee was just 4 months old. They now have two kids: Preston, 7 years old and Emme, 4 years old. It was fun catching up with them.