After work, I happened upon a Dia de los Muertos ceremony.
Lots of espanol, dancers, and great music.
YM activity- ice skating
Tessa took an after school cooking class
Here she made a bean dip.
She cried when it was over, she loved it so.
Good YM group for temple night
They have taken down all of the trees where we like to walk.
Here the kids are pretending to drive tractors.
While I was at work, Bran flew in and started building a fireplace and built-in shelves.
He is a miracle man. When I got home most of it was already done.
But it sure was fun to be his sous chef and to see his mind at work and marvel at his skills.
Ryan watched the Hans so the parents could go on a date.
Something they have never been able to do with littles.
Ryan took the kids to SeaWorld
Ryan did a 23 mile bike ride down and back on the riverwalk hitting up all the missions.
Making a Halloween Gingerbread haunted house
Sam and Tessa sneaking into our bed
Another fun YM activity
Pretty skies and our bikinb trails
I haven't told the kids but we have claimed a puppy.
We will get her when she is 9 weeks old but they send us photos as she grows.
She looks oh so sweet but I am so nervous to commit to another living being.
It is like an arranged marriage. What if I don't like her? What if she isn't the right one for our family?
Ryan got an infected ingrown nail.
We were introduced to Telehealth urgent care.
It was fabulous.
We planned to do a big Thanksgiving trip and go to a few states and places we haven't been yet.
NATIONAL VIDEO GAME MUSEUM
in Frisco, TX
It was a great stop and so nostalgic.
The kids loved it.
Our stop for dinner before we stayed the night in Texarkana.
Little Rock, Arkansas
Unfortunately, we were underwhelmed with the Clinton Library.
It was very sterile and ego centric.
We did like Little Rock. We walked across the bridge and saw some sites.
We went to the Governor's mansion, previous home of the Clintons and current home of Sarah Huckabee Sanders.
Becky lived here and recommended this old mill.
A historic re-creation of an 1880's water-powered grist mill. It is in the opening scenes of the classic movie "Gone With The Wind."
We went hiking up the "little rock". The reviews advised parking on the west side for an easier hike. Of course I got it mixed up and had Ryan park on the east side and we had to scramble the whole way up with no real trail. Lucky for me, we have awesome kids and the scramble was their favorite part.
MEMPHIS
Our first stop was at the Lorraine Motel
Where Martin Luther King Jr. was killed.
It was a wonderful museum and I highly recommend it.
We then checked into our hotel. Ryan was really worried because it was
downtown and possibly sketchy. The reviews talk about car break-ins.
We found a car park and the hotel and location were great.
We walked to Beale Street and enjoyed the lights.
We ended up at a charming pizza place that brought the kids dough for play.
The next day we left the kids playing screens while Ry and I stopped at Sun Studio- Sun Studio is known worldwide as “The Birthplace of Rock'n'roll”. It is the discovery location of musical legends and genres of the 50's from B.B. King and Elvis Presley to Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis; from Blues and Gospel to Country and Rock'n'roll.
GRACELAND
Our tickets were the first tour of the day which is definitely the way to do it.
We were able to take our time and not feel rushed.
We stopped at Al Green's church on the way back to the hotel.
Waiting for the tram
BASS PRO SHOP at the Pyramid
We went to the Peabody to see the duck walk.
The Peabody hotel in Memphis hosts an odd tradition that dates back to the 1930's. A special ceremony led by a professional "duckmaster" has captured the hearts of millions of travelers across the world.
Then we went to the Grizzly NBA game.
Even in the nosebleeds, Luke caught a t-shirt.
On our way out, we stopped at Mud Island which had its heyday
but is now abandoned but has a cool Memphis sign.
It was Pop Pop's birthday and we sent a Marco Polo to the fam.
One last stop in Memphis was where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered this sermon on the night of April 3, 1968, at the Bishop Charles Mason Temple in Memphis, Tennessee, as a storm raged outside. Titled “I've Been to the Mountaintop,” it was his last speech.
We spent a few days and Thanksgiving in Hot Springs. We enjoyed hiking, Craker Barrel Thanksgiving dinner, bathhouse tours, swimming pools, and hot springs.
We got our tree before we left. It was a good one.
