Assorted Spring

 

These kids are totally normal and know how to eat food.

In March, I signed up the family for a free race called the FitKidz Mile. The kids got a free shirt, a real number to pin to it, and a family friendly race experience followed by a pancake breakfast. The kid's reactions to this activity perfectly captures their personalities. Elliot decided he did NOT want to participate. He was forced to come against his will, so he protested by leaving his shoes at home. We coerced him into participating anyways, so he walked half of the race barefoot (it was all on grass). The course was in the shape of a figure 8, so he got to the finish line after the first loop at the same time as other kids were finishing the whole race. Elliot is fiercely independent and does not like being forced to do things. 

Annie was on board from the moment we told her about the race and was enamored by the idea that she could win a real race. She ran with Aaron and gave it her all. She didn't come in first place, but I was impressed by her efforts!

Isaac ran with me with Felix in the stroller. He generally had no idea what was going on, and did not at all care that we were in dead last place by a very wide margin. We took plenty of water breaks, and I had to remind him several times that we hadn't finished the race yet. We eventually got to the finish line and he was so very proud of himself.

I'm always intrigued by a good foraging project. This one was desert sun teas. I put jars of water with mesquite flowers, palo verde flowers, and prickly pear flowers in the sun. None of them had a super strong flavor. My jar of water infused with mint from the garden was fairly yummy though. 

We spent a ton of time in the pool at Casa Johnson this year! Blake came to visit in April between semesters and was oh so happy to soak up some sun before returning to frigid Rexburg. 

There's always smoked meats and yummy sauces when Blake is around! We had many dinners in the backyard.

A favorite pool activity was standing on Grumpa's shoulders!

Aaron took the kids camping at Picacho Peak for the annual Priesthood Commemoration Campout. The report was that some people killed a snake and ate it. 

Annie used her own money to buy a boba tea book at the school book fair because she LOVES boba. This was a surprise to me because she had only had boba once before in her life, more than a year earlier. She persuaded me to buy some tapioca starch so that we could follow the recipe ("What's the point in me spending my money to buy a book if I can't even try the recipe, Mom!") The tapioca finally arrived, and a few days of constant nagging passed before I finally had time for the project. We went to go get the boba book... and couldn't find it anywhere. We seriously tore the whole house apart looking for it amidst many tears. I tried looking for recipes online instead, which was when I realized that boba is actually a super complicated multi-step process and I had no idea what we were getting into. 

We persevered. I complained every step along the way, but Annie's enthusiasm carried us through the long, tedious process.

We found the boba book a week later. 

It was super nice having Mimi come with us to Fiesta Sahuarita! This event is bigger and bigger every year. Even with more rides, there were still long lines because so many people show up and because middle schoolers are shameless about cutting in line. 

Isaac's favorite was this climbing structure with a big slide. The rest of us liked the starship ride that spins to pin you to the wall with centripetal force. 

I subbed in Annie's primary activity group. We brought a our cardboard construction kit and had a great time with it. 

We got really into watercolor painting for a while! This library book was awesome for giving step-by-step tutorials. We got some good crafternoons out of it.