Spring Break: Asheville

 We've traveled to the Asheville area several times recently for clogging, but we haven't been able to spend time in the city.  We decided that we would take a few days over Spring Break to visit and explore. 

Travel with teenagers.

We stayed at the cutest cabin, and Mittens came to visit when we arrived.

Macy insisted on picking up a cat toy when we picked up groceries.  They had a lot of fun with Mittens.

We're always on the lookout for local donut shops when we travel.

We did a scavenger hunt around the city. It was super fun exploring and solving clues along the way.

This iron eluded us for too long. 

We finished the scavenger hunt in about an hour and a half.  Macy's legs were worn out and hurting, so we rested at the soda shop while Marc went to grab the car.

We had fun zip-lining as a family for the first time. Macy wasn't a huge fan of the experience, but she was a good sport.

The sky bridges were not anything near a favorite on my list.

Our little cabin.

We enjoyed a yummy dinner at Honey Tupelo downtown.

Winter Clogging Invitational

 We had another competition this weekend.  We in the Asheville area and found a fun ice-cream place.  They have cones made out of cereal.

The girls did wonderful, as usual, at their competition. 

Starz - Trad. Line (4th), Hoedown (1st), Formations Trad Line (1st), Standing Line (4th)

Juniors - Trad. Line (1st), Formations Trad. Line (1st and Grand Champion), Hoedown (1st and Grand Champion), Precision (1st and Grand Champion), Standing Line (1st), Formations line (2nd)

They competed together in a new precision routine with new uniforms.  It's one of my favorite routines to watch.

Aunt Teresa lives nearby, so we visited her new tiny home, and then she came to watch the competition.

March Happenings

 When you hybrid school, curling up on the couch with your dog to do your work is pretty normal.

Brooke participated in Battle of the Books.  Her team competed in the finals, but ended up coming in 2nd.  I was super proud of her!

When you realize you have the same shirt as the competitor on Survivor, you have to grab a picture.

Macy has been struggling with pain in her legs for a while, but after our trip to Disney World, we knew we needed to have an orthopedist check it out.  Her Achilles are short, and that is affecting her walk the way her muscles, tendons, ligaments, etc. are working.  She started PT 3 times a week for a couple of weeks, and we will hopefully be able to stretch the Achilles out so that she doesn't have to have surgery.

We took a trip to Mountasia when the Huntsville family was in town. 

Apparently, Marc often got in trouble at the Mountasia go-carts when he was younger.  Looking at his face, I can see why.

It's been a fun March so far. Next up, clogging competition.

Winter Break: Universal Studios

 Marc and I haven't been to Universal Studies since high school, and the girls have never been.  We happened to be there the same day as PowerTaps, which was a little awkward since we didn't travel with them and perform.  Our school schedule is different from the local school system, and we just couldn't take off the whole week.

We were able to get into the park early because we were staying on property.  Velociraptor was our first stop of the day, and it did not disappoint. 

I didn't get many pictures this day, but the Andersons were spending their winter break at Universal as well, and they met up with us in the park.  Because they have season passes we were able to have our own personal tour guides. 

We decided to brave the 90 minute wait to ride Hagrid's. Unfortunately when we were so close to our turn to ride, it shut down.  You never know if you should wait it out or leave.  We opted to wait since we were so close, but we ended up waiting an extra hour in the end.  At least we were able to stay and talk with friends while we waited, and the ride was amazing.  I'm not sure it was amazing enough for that long of a wait, but we did enjoy the ride.

Brooke was intent on finding this chocolate frog, and then we headed out to drive a few hours towards home before stopping for the night.  It was a quick, busy, and fun trip that we were so glad we were able to take together as a family.

Winter Break: Disney Springs and Animal Kingdom Lodge

 We took a slower day today.  We weren't sure how much time Kayla would need to work on her college classes, so we decided to add in a day to take it easier.  We enjoyed breakfast before checking out of our hotel and heading to another one.

We made a stop by the Animal Kingdom Lodge to see the animals.

We had lunch at Disney Springs and found some more Disney treats.

We checked into a Universal resort, relaxed at the pool, and then Marc picked up Moe's for dinner.  

Winter Break: Hollywood Studios

 We haven't been to Hollywood Studios since all of the Star Wars things were added.  We enjoyed walking around this area. When we got to the park we took off for Rise of the Resistance.  It was in the back of the park, and poor Macy's legs were already hurting (more on that later). It was a fun ride.

Beauty and the Beast never disappoints.

We spent a lot of time playing Heads Up on their phones to kill the time.  I think we even got a few other groups started on the game throughout the week.

Waiting for the Tower of Terror.  We had a fast pass for this one as well, and we walked by SO many people waiting in the regular line. It was crazy, and we sure were glad we had the pass for this one!

2016 Version

Cream cheese pretzel #2.

Never a dull moment with these three.

It was another jam packed day, but we had the best time together.