Christmas break

The airport props are so lovely :)

We got off the plane and went straight to Aunt Pam's to hang out with all her family that we hadn't seen in years!!!  It was so much fun!  And then we crashed Dad's extended family party and that was tons of fun too because its been years since we've seen them as well.  Time goes so quickly and unfortunately, we are all so busy and the effort to keep in touch is sometimes lost, but not this year!

 We flew in on the 23rd, so Christmas came quick

 Candy canes for breakfast....gotta love Christmas!

We tried to sled on Christmas day, but there wasn't quite enough snow and the sleds were getting shredded, but at least we had a nice walk and got some fresh air!

Didn't get to see the Lacey and the gang, so we squeezed in some time for Ainsley and Cadia to hang out.

 So tired!

 We laughed a lot playing this game!!!

Ryan isn't a game fan, but I think he had fun

And this game

Sewing with grandma

 Funko store

We played lots and lots of games this year.  We laughed a lot and grandpa had a great idea in modifying apples to apples, so we started playing that way and it was very entertaining!  Everyone writes their answer and it made it so you could tailor your answer to the person...might be a future game someday.

 I'm not sure who farted here!

End of an era

Ainsley was on a role in the fall with gymnastics and made level 8!  She competed in her intrasquad meet in December and did really well.  Unfortunately, her body failed shortly after (back and wrists) and she's been trying to recover since.  She has been going 1/2 time since January and was feeling great, so she started doing many of the skills she hasn't been doing and her wrists flared up after the first practice and acupuncture hasn't helped this time.  So, the time has come to move on and her last day will be next Saturday.  She is really, really sad.  It is hard for her to not be able to do what she really loves and be with her best friends.  I'm sure we will have a transition :(.  

Ainsley is, however, excited to play volleyball for her school in March and we are trying the Omni Fight Club kid class and trampoline this weekend.  There's lots of options out there and we're hoping she can find something she loves as much as gymnastics.

Sorry you can't hear the music....

She corrected a mistake on bars and actually changed her routine after this meet and it is now much more consistent, but she won't get to compete it...too bad you can't pick and choose your events!

I can't seem to get her beam to upload (which is a real bummer because it was a beautiful routine).  The file is too big, so I will see if I can compress it somehow.

The life lessons this sport has taught her has been priceless....from how  to deal with difficult coaches, to overcoming fear, to working through the pressures of competing to dealing with disappointment when things didn't go well to trusting God's plan when we moved gym's and dealing with the frustrations of a failing body and not being able to do what you love.  She has come away a more mature, better individual with a faith in God that I hope will stick with her always.
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Volleyball

After our trip to Las Vegas last year, it was clear that Reggie was a pretty good volleyball player and I told him we were going to give it a try.  He was very reluctant to try something new, as usual!  He has told us over and over that he doesn't like team sports, but he hasn't tried one since baseball when he was 8, so it was time to give it a go.  He came home the first day and was really angry that he had to do it, but the 2nd day he said it was pretty fun.  He is definitely not the most comfortable kid out there (which is unfortunate because if he were playing against his family, he would kill it!), but he's made a ton of progress since the beginning....he was moving out of the way of the ball and letting his teammates get it at practice.  I have to admit that I bribed him...$1 for every hit.  He is trying to earn a computer and we've been really impressed with all the things he has done and now we know how capable he is (he even folded the laundry!).  Back on topic, he likely won't ever play again on a volleyball team and I'm so glad he had this experience.  He was definitely out of his comfort zone, but that's life and better to get some coping skills now and it couldn't have been a nicer, more supportive bunch of boys on his team.  Very impressed at the teamwork and kindness of these 8th grade boys!!!

Maui and mom

Over the summer mom was having issues with what she thought was a sinus problem but after lots of tests and MRIs they found a brain tumor :(. They scheduled surgery for right after Thanksgiving and because of all the testing they were unable to come for their regular fall trip.
My sister suggested that we crash there Maui trip on mom and dad’s expense and surprisingly they were up for that!!! This discussion happened in early October and their trip was scheduled for mid November through Thanksgiving, so we quickly had to find airfare and a place to stay. It all came together and off we went!!!
Shortly after we arrived mom and dad made an announcement that she wasn’t having her surgery because it was too risky. We were all silent but then they told us that wasn’t true and Mom’s symptoms had gone away so she really wasn’t having the surgery! How rude...not the best joke!  But, what a relief for all of us (aunt Sue and uncle Rich were there too). Unfortunately, a few days later her symptoms came back. They still did not think surgery was a good idea based on what was happening and recommended an MRI to check to see if it had grown.
Even with all the ups and downs, we still managed to enjoy Maui! We headed over to Lahaina one day for lunch and enjoyed the waves at Fleming beach. 

We also spent lots of time at little beach (clothing optional-this was a little bit uncomfortable for the Rinehardt’s, but I think after playing in the waves the kids hardly noticed). 

Reggie Bodysurfing

Grandma was the bird whisperer and the kids were trying to feed them like she was:

We snorkeled with the turtles at secret beach which was wonderfully amazing (the new masks are so much better!) and hiked into the Haleakala crater. I don’t think the kids were really impressed with the view until we actually hiked in a good 1/2 hour. 

The kids enjoyed all the amenities at the Maui sunset.... tennis, shuffleboard and the the pool. We found a great dinner happy hour place and enjoyed celebrating Reggie‘s birthday dinner a little early! 

And lastly, we went to a luau. We had never been so it was good to experience but I’m not sure that I would do it again.

 The weather was just about perfect. Very different than when Ryan and I go in March though. The sun was a lot weaker and it was quite a bit cooler. I’m very glad that I bought a jacket at Costco when we arrived (there were many people eyeing it at the luau because it got very chilly there!). It was a wonderful family trip and we all have lots of great memories. Thank you again mom and dad!!!  Wade made a video that was awesome...here's the link:  https://youtu.be/DtEQuz33c4I
I had planned to fly to Washington to be there for my moms surgery and since that’s where my ticket had me going, I had to go!!! The rest of the family headed back to California and Grandma Peggy came the next day and spent the week with them! That was helpful for Ryan since he had to work. And I came home with all kinds of little surprises that Peggy had done in her boredom (like washing the windows) while the kids were at school, thank you for that!
In Washington, we had cookie day with aunt Pam and made several different varieties of cookies (molasses and shortbread are my favorite) and I made some toffee which turned out fabulous!  Just what we needed after stuffing our faces in Maui.  Later we enjoyed a wonderful turkey dinner prepared by Wade!  The rest of my time there was very relaxing, mom and dad hosted the Seahawks game and we had game night with mom and dad’s friends. It was a really nice, slow paced time for me ☺️.

 Mom had her MRI and the tumor stayed stable so they are just going to continue to monitor and check every few months, praise the Lord! 

Rat

Elsa continues to make our lives interesting.  I heard a ruckus in the middle of the night, but didn't want to get up and deal with it (Ryan was traveling), so I told the kids in the morning to be on the lookout for a critter.  I took the kids to school and this was my welcome back:

Elsa was sitting in the kitchen, looking up and when I followed her eyes, boom!  I thought I'd just get a towel and throw it on top of the rat, but I underestimated its speed.  Elsa had no sense of urgency whatsoever as it was running to the other side of the house.  I knew we had traps, so I YouTubed how to set it.  Just about that time, Laura came over to walk and I was telling her of the dilemma and as I was setting the trap it scurried out from behind the armoire and there was nothing but shrieking from Laura.  It did give me an idea though...see my success below.  Probably should be on YouTube as a way to get rid of a rat!

Fall activities

We had such a mild fall in Livermore which allows us to enjoy lots of outdoor activities.  We went popcorn picking at Ardenwood farms and got a nice stock pile.  I've decided microwavable popcorn isn't so healthy, so we have been blowing through our ears of corn pretty quickly, but I do think we got enough to last us for quite some time.  Our family is big on eating popcorn!
Ainsley's best bud, Makayla joined us.  We were sure sweaty by the end!

I also enjoyed lots of hikes with friends at the backside of Lake Del Valle.  It is such a peaceful place.

We also joined the Livermore rocks movement and painted/decorated rocks and placed them downtown.  Hopefully, we brightened someone's day.  These rocks were unique because they traveled all the way from Lummi Island in Washington.  I think we will make it an annual thing.  It was a very fun activity and didn't require much effort.

Ryan and I had a date afternoon, wine tasting!  There is a wine trolley that drives all over Livermore and we decided it was time to see what that was all about.  We packed a lunch and rode our bikes downtown to catch the trolley and tasted at 3 wineries.  We split the tastings at 2 wineries, thank goodness because by the last one, I was having a really hard time functioning properly.  Wine is very strong!  They were all delicious, especially the last place we went, ha ha!  It was quite a comical ride home for me, laughing all the way.  Not sure if its legal to drink and bike, but I'm pretty sure I would have gotten a ticket.  We made it home safe and sound!

 I just so happened to find someone else's rock that day :)

This was the first Halloween that Reggie did not trick-or-treat with us.  He went with his friends, but at least he was in our neighborhood.  We got stopped by a police officer who was handing out full size candy bars...how great was that!  And we saw our favorite pig :)

 Khalif blends right in the with the decorations at this house!

Ryan flew to Asia the next day and Grandma Pam flew in!  Reggie had a field trip that day that I was chaperoning, so I couldn't even pick up Aunt Pam from the airport (that goodness she has a friend who lives close to us).  Reggie's field trip was really neat....we learned about refugees and experienced just a tad of what they deal with.

 Shocking!

Of course, his field trip was long, so she got thrown into our crazy schedule and had to take Ainsley and Khalif to piano.  It is a good thing she had Siri and maps and was able to navigate.  It is really hard to make the schedule work with one person, so thankfully, she was able to come visit and help out!
This was the next morning....Ryan's tire had been losing air and he just kept putting air in it...I happened to look at it after picking up one of the kids from piano and saw the nail :(.  I drove it anyway since the repair place was only about 1 mile away.  Usually things go terribly wrong when he travels and I was worried this was the start of a crazy week, but that was it!

Playing Taboo Jr....one of their new favorite games.

We kept busy while the kids were at school, going to the gym, delivering food for meals on wheels and having lunch!  Aunt Pam went all out at Sauced.  This is the biggest sweet potato I've ever seen!

 So full