April was busy with spring sports - tennis for Jack and volleyball for Gemma (and Todd, who coached her team, and Hazel, who is still attending club twice a week and helped out with Gemma's team when she could).
Jack played with a few different tennis partners, but seemed to like playing doubles with Evry the most. He played singles a few times at the end of the season and discovered that each has pros and cons.
We had a nice Easter Sunday. Todd did a masterful job hiding the kids' baskets, and we had Erika, Vlad, and Luna over for dinner and an egg hunt.
It was General Conference weekend. I tried out my watercolor book and found it enjoyable.
Then it was spring break - something everyone was thrilled about. We were all ready for a few days of rest. Hazel got an MRI done on her wrist; she's got a cyst from her repetitive volleyball and violin movements and it's been giving her some pain.
Jack and I went to the Monet n Venice exhibit at the De Young Museum in San Francisco. There were a lot of sets, showing Monet's experiments with lighting side by side. We bought a 5x7 print of our favorite to bring home.
Gemma and I went on a behind-the-scenes tour of the Ciciv Center Library. Gemma is thinking about becoming a librarian when she grows up.
Todd, Hazel, and Jack went on a three-day, 175-mile bike ride from Livermore to Yosemite. They've been training for it as best they could since January. There was a lot of weird energy the night before and the morning of: they'd worked so hard to prepare for this gigantic feat, and everyone was nervous for it, especially because the weather report warned of heavy rain, something that hadn't even crossed our minds during this dry, dry winter. But off they went! And it was epic.
They rode 100 miles on Day 1 and made it into camp before the rain started. The night was rough. Like, there was hail, thunder, and lightning. And they were in tents. After biking one hundred miles! It was bad enough that Todd even ate a banana to help with the leg cramping.
Day 2 had literal ups and downs - 50 miles with lots of hills. Hazel cried, thinking about how badly she'd slept and anticipating the next night. She got a flat tire, but Noah came to the rescue and patched it up for her. They raced the rain clouds and made it to camp just before it started to pour. Thankfully, they had a heated pool and a game room to escape to. And thankfully, Pete Andrus convinced Todd to share a hotel room with him, because when they went back out after swimming, the wind had blown Hazel's and Ella's tent away!
By all accounts, Day 3 was the best of the week. They only had 25 miles left, and they finished in glorious Yosemite National Park with blue skies and stunning views. Everyone felt triumphant. It was an epic feat and they all came home worn out and grateful for God's help through difficult experiences.
While they were out busting their buns on bikes, I took Gemma and her friend Lia up to our cabin. We also got caught in a hailstorm, and while we were there, it softly snowed nonstop and we ended up with about eight inches that were all not there when we first arrived. The girls loved it and played out in the snow for hours while I read in the window seat.
Jack is almost as tall as Todd. It's close enough that we needed to pull out a cutting board and take a photo to check!
No reason, but I loved this picture of Hazel and Jack getting ready for school that I got off Hazel's phone. I have to wake up early every morning to see them before they leave for seminary and long, busy days.
Hazel did an awesome job organizing a friend group to all go to Junior Prom with her and Noah. Katherine asked Max to go as friends, and then they had several dateless boys also join them. They met at our house Thursday night to make boutonnieres and corsages. The energy was good!
Gemma and Todd participated in the CMS Staff vs Student volleyball competition Friday night. Gemma was a part of two different teams, one of which beat the adults. It was very exciting! She earned a pass to not have to run the mile in PE because of her win.
Saturday was Prom. Hazel and her group were busy all day long. They went out to the redwoods to take pictures and they turned out so amazing!
This one is my absolute favorite. Hazel is so in her element and looks like a wood nymph to me, in her fancy dress with her bare feet.
They went to the beach afterwards for a picnic lunch, and then then met up again at Concannon Vineyards for more pictures.
The boys made dinner at Noah's house, and then it was off to the dance in Sunol. Afterward, they got shakes at In N Out and watched a movie. What a big day! Hazel said it was so much fun.
That night, Todd and I picked up Katie and Ryan and we played bocce ball at the Bothwell until it got too dark to see well, and then we got ice cream at the new Meadowlark Dairy downtown.
We had dinner at the Dix's. I got a massage and Stephanie gave me twenty extra minutes!!! I went to the movies with Elaine. Hazel and Todd went on a whale watching field trip for her Field Biology class. They were some of the only people in the group who did not throw up. They did not see any whales. Sad!
We had our final spring sport games. Gemma's team ended triumphant - they won five of their eight games. They had a great team energy and I'm excited for her to get to continue playing with some of those girls over the next several years. Jack finished the tennis season with a few points under his belt. It was hard playing on Varsity against all upperclassmen. We're super proud of him for sticking with it!
Jack, Gemma, and I have been playing Garbage with the beautiful Monet cards we bought at the museum. We've got our favorites and got carried away creating special wild cards - the Magic J! The Creepy Q!
Hazel had another amazing, undefeated volleyball tournament. She really likes the girls on her club team. I wish her school team were as positive and fun to be with. It's been a good experience for her.
Gemma was asked to speak in Sacrament Meeting, and she wrote her talk, but she wasn't able to give it yet because she had an awful fever that knocked her out for several days. We're super grateful she was able to rest over the weekend and get back to business without missing out on too much fun, and so glad no one else caught whatever gross bug she had.
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