Family Update

The kids are advancing quickly in gymnastics. Both Aubri and Gavin have been invited to move up to the next level recently. Gavin is moving to Team, which means he will start to train to compete. His training will soon be 3 days a week for 3 hour sessions. The competitions are against other gyms in the state, usually held in Phoenix.

Aubri is very strong and can maneuver her body very well. She has climbed the the top of the 30 ft. rope several times. I'm impressed that they're both staying focused on the sport and are advancing so quickly.

I think Gavin will get involved in soccer again soon too; while Aubri may get involved in a dance class, possibly ballet. Micah is still doing gymnastics too, but has lost interest the last couple weeks. That's okay for now, he's only three.

We're still loving the church and the people we do life with here. We're trying to figure out our living situation still, though. We currently rent a place 7 miles from town. We'd love to be in town to cut back on gas expenses and to minimize time on the road. Our lease is up at the end of June, although we've gotten the approval to rent month to month after that if we want to. There's a nice place in the right neighborhood in town that we can get in to in January of 2012, but we're not sure if we should make a move before then.

The other major thing that is not quite figured out yet is the kids' schooling. We've decided not to continue the Montessori  school next year. There's some good things about it, but we don't feel like Gavin is really self-motivated enough to excel in that environment. Sara's considering home-schooling again but is wondering how that fits with her part-time job. There's also some other moms in the church that are starting a home-schooling co-op to share resources and some group teaching from those parents that are gifted in specific areas. The public schools around here are pretty good too. I'm okay with that option, but Sara's still a bit leery. I think she still has flashbacks of teaching in the chaos of the Minneapolis School District and doesn't want to do that to our kids. The schools around here don't even compare to Minneapolis though.

So, overall things are good. It's just a slightly strange place of knowing we're exactly where God wants us right now, but we're not quite settled in yet. We'll get there.

Daddy-Daughter Date

Aubri and I were way overdue for having some dedicated time together. I decided to take her skating at the local indoor rink. She was excited at first, which turned to terrified, but after about an hour she was skating on her own. I kind of assumed she would lose interest after 20 minutes, but we skated for good couple hours. She loved it! The rink is open all year long, so I think we'll turn it into a full family date sometime soon.

Weekend in Phoenix

We just got back last night from 3 days in Phoenix. The weather was perfect and we enjoyed some of the sites that area has to offer. The first day, we went to the Wildlife World Zoo. They had a great aquarium and quite a huge zoo area as well. Below you will see the stingray petting area. We ate at the Rain Forest Cafe that night. Micah wasn't too excited about the mechanical gorillas that come alive or the fake rain storms, but I think they all still had fun. The second day was a day of hanging out by the pool. The temperature was somewhere in the mid 80's, so it was good outdoor pool weather. Here's the family hanging out in the hot tub.
That night, we visited Organ Stop Pizza in Mesa. It's an interesting concept of pizza, lots of people, and an organ that comes up from the hydraulic floor and controls hundreds of instruments including drums, guitars, bells, and of course organ. I can't help but be impressed by the guy's skills and the ability to form full band sounds with the keys of this massive organ.

Here's a shot from one of the higher balconies of our hotel. I haven't really noticed the beauty of Phoenix until this weekend. It's such a large city, and much of it seems like dirt and concrete, but other areas are built up quite nicely. Sara and the kids have the rest of the week off for spring break, but I'll be heading into work later today. There are a few more pictures in the Photo Album.