Spring Break

For six school years now, we have been spoiled with a year round school schedule, meaning our kids go to school for nine weeks and then get three weeks off all year. I cannot say enough good things about this schedule. It is better for the kids, the teachers, and at least for this set of parents. It is so nice to have that time off to recharge. We've also gotten very spoiled and used to traveling when most other kids are in school. Sadly, with Oldest Child heading off to middle school in August (yikes!) our days of this schedule are coming to an end since the middle school follows a traditional school calendar. Having kids on different school calendars comes with a different set of benefits, like more individual time with them and fewer lunches to pack on a single day, but I will really miss this schedule.

The kids are finishing up their three weeks of spring break. I had it all planned that I would take off a week over spring break so we could travel a little and catch up on things at home. And as we've done before, I wanted the week off to coincide with a time when most kids were in school. But then, without going into detail, life happened, and taking off a week was definitely not an option. Thankfully, I was able to take three days off from work and time it so it made Easter weekend six days long. The shorter schedule definitely prevented me from being able to catch up at home, but it did allow plenty of time for family fun.

Our break began with a trip to Defy Gravity, an indoor trampoline park. We received a gift card for Christmas  (thanks Grandpa Gene and Gran!) and it was our first chance to go. Everyone had fun, and we escaped with no serious injuries. (I'm not generally a worrier about these things, but ever since I heard business for the local orthopedic practice quintupled since the place opened, I am a little nervous.)

 

Next, we got ready for Easter. The kids love reading my Parents magazine, and this year they found a project for dying Easter eggs by covering a cookie sheet in shaving cream, swirling food coloring in the shaving cream, and letting the eggs sit in the mixture.We were not wowed by the process, but we didn't hate it either, and the kids loved experimenting with a new craft technique.

 

Easter morning we headed to Airlie Gardens. I know this is azalea season in southeast North Carolina, but I loved these tulips. 

 

And, yes, the azaleas were pretty darn spectacular.

 

The day after Easter, we headed off for a different sort of trip. Jeff and his best friend had been able to get tickets to go see a practice round of the Masters Tournament, and the kids and I tagged along. We actually stayed in Columbia, South Carolina which is about an hour from the tournament in Augusta, Georgia. While the guys were off watching golf, the kids and I headed to Riverbanks Zoo and Garden. We went on a gorgeous day during spring break week for local schools, and it was packed. It made us incredibly grateful that we had been able to go to Florida last fall in late September/early October, because the lines at the zoo were longer than any lines we experienced at Legoland or the Disney parks. Still, we had a pretty good time and we each consumed roughly our body weight in Icees. Mike loves turtles and Leon loves penguins, and both were thrilled to find multiple species of their favorite animals in real form as well as represented in statues and painted rocks.

 

Mike also found this brick at the zoo with his name on it! 

 

Because it had been so hot, after the zoo we went for a long swim at the hotel before heading to dinner. Dinner was nothing fancy, but the kids loved it. We had also received a gift card for Panera (gift cards for experiences are definitely our favorite presents!) that had been burning a hole in my wallet, and the kids were very excited to finally use it. We had planned to go swimming again after dinner, but between seven hours at the zoo and the pre-dinner swim, the kids were pretty zombie-fied, so we spent the evening just relaxing in the hotel room watching Chopped. While watching one of their favorite shows, the kids finally really relaxed, and it kinda felt perfect. Like a real break before life got insane again. Like a spring break.