Family Time

Yesterday was President's Day. So, after an early morning workout and a couple hours of work, the family and I spent some serious time together. Here's what happened:

• The boys and I burned palm fronds. Why? Because tomorrow is Ash Wednesday and I need to get ready. Burning palm fronds is fun, but a little dangerous. They burn rapidly, so the fire goes from raging to extinguished quickly. That means you have to keep feeding the branches while the flames lick at your fingers. The boys were more brave about this before they actually saw it.
• We went to Pizza Hut for lunch. The boys had "Book It" coupons, and I was given a buy one, get one free coupon. So, our meal, with beverages, was just over $10 for the buffet.
• Shopping. David needed pants. Apparently, his size are hard to find. But there's an outlet store that has them. So we headed to Gettysburg.
• While in Gettysburg, we stopped at the Abraham Lincoln statue on the square to rub Abe's nose. Why? Why not! Besides, its a memory builder. Someday, when my kids are grown, I want them to have a library of fun memories. That only happens if you make them. And I am passionate about making them.
• On the way back, we drove through some of the monuments. When we got to the Eternal Flame monument, we discovered that the hill it sits on was perfectly crusted with frozen snow. A perfect place to slide! So, I told the kids to go play. What a riot! The funniest part was watching them try to get back up the hill.
• We arrived home in just enough time to make some peanut butter sandwiches and head back out the door for basketball. It was Ship's last home game of the season. So the boys and I went, with sandwiches in our pockets. The girls won. The boys didn't.

So, there's my day. To tell you the truth, getting up this morning at 5 was a little challenging. But well worth it.