I told Aaron my favorite breakfast is breakfast burritos. The problem is that in order to make them it requires using every pan in the house. In order to make my birthday a day of no worries Aaron bought breakfast tacos from Rudy's (one of my favorite BBQ joints). I think a brisket taco really is the best way to start the day. Plus we didn't dirty any dishes.
After a yummy breakfast, Aaron and I headed to the Dallas Temple. One of the women in the church that I visit on a monthly basis was going to the temple for the first time. It is one of those momentous occasions in a person's life. I was so happy to be there with so many women from church. As we gathered together in the temple, I just felt that the reason we call each other "sister" in the church is because we really are one big family. I love all my sisters!!
Later that afternoon, was Lexi's baptism. Lexi is like a daughter to me.
A few months ago, I was waiting for church to begin. Mike and Melanie usually sit by us so we can help them with the babies. They were running a bit late so half our pew was empty. A young girl came and sat down on the pew. I eventually scooted down and asked if her family was coming. She replied no. She was alone. It was the first time she had ever been inside a Mormon church. I scooted closer to her and explained things throughout the meeting to her.
She later told me that earlier in the week she had just started to nanny for a family in the next neighborhood. She had taken the little boy out on a walk. She had become lost in the neighborhood. As she was trying to find her way back to the house she ran into the missionaries. They talked to her briefly and gave her a pass along card with the address and time of church on it. She had also recently met a member of the church which also peaked her curiosity in our church. When she came to church that day she was nervous and alone. She ended up staying for all three hours. She told me she loved the simplicity of our services. She loved that we take turns talking in church. It is not just one person preaching all the time. That week in Sunday School class we learned about the Plan of Salvation. As we learned where we come from, why we are here, and where we are going, it made sense to her. She went to Relief Society while I went to young women's. After church I went to find her and she was surrounded by women. She had a huge smile on her face.
The smile soon faded as she realized that she had lot her key to her car. We searched all over the church. We couldn't find it anywhere. Somebody suggested we pray. I offered a sincere, humble prayer and sure enough a little boy came walking down the hall with the key. It had been found!
Aaron asked if anyone had given Lexi a Book of Mormon yet. She replied no. Well, just a few weeks earlier I felt to order a paperback version of the scriptures and had them with me that day. I was able to give her a Bible and Book of Mormon.
Later that week, we went to see Meet the Mormons. When she asked to know more about our beliefs in the parking lot, I invited her to listen to the missionaries. She accepted. The missionaries soon started to teach her lessons every week in our home. They brought the Spirit with them every time. It was a great opportunity for our family to help teach her. It was perfect mission preparation for Ethan who will leave on his mission next summer.
As the weeks kept going by I was so impressed with Lexi's devotion to learning more about out church. She started reading the Book of Mormon. She loved the stories. She accepted all of our beliefs without hesitation. I felt the love our Savior has for her. She is an amazing soul and I know that the Lord is very aware of her.
Her baptism added my wonderful birthday. She looked beautiful in my temple dress she borrowed.
The food was fabulous! I had the best eggplant parmigiana in my life (well worth the wait in line). The next day, while we were in Old Town, the first settlement in California, we looked for the Mexican restaurant with the longest line. Aaron still raves about his chicken in creamy jalapeno sauce. Again, well worth the wait. 
AJ did a report on these rolly-polly creatures last year. They really are adorable! I want to be a panda when I grow up. They eat for 8 hours a day and sleep for 14 hours. Pandas are cute when they are rolly-polly, people are not.
Sunday morning we went to a Hmong (Ethnic group from China, Laos, and Thailand.) branch. Everyone was very friendly. They greeted me with, "Good Morning, Sister. Welcome." I felt right at home. 
The beach was beautiful. I love being near the ocean. SeaWorld was fun. Old Town and the San Diego Zoo were interesting and educational. The temple was beyond all of those things and more. It is true there is not another place on earth where you can feel such peace and isn't that what we all are looking for?
The wedding was beautiful! We hadn't met her husband previously. Aaron welcomed him to our family. He seems like a really nice guy and he makes her happy.
She asked Aaron to be one of the witnesses and it was moving to be back in that temple with her on such a special occasion. 
It has been a cold, wet, spring in Utah so we really enjoyed the heat and humidity of south Texas. We went to dinner with some friends and enjoyed San Antonio especially Sea World.
Yep, we went to Sea World without the kids. It felt a little strange not constantly counting heads and worrying about one of the girls wandering off by themselves. It was actually quite nice. Having said that, I realize Aaron didn't have the same reaction to the penguins Vanessa would have. He should have squealed and jumped up and down in my opinion. The Shamu show was the hit of the day and always worth every penny spent to get into the park. I took tons of photos but will only share some of my favorites.
It was there that I decided when I grow up I want to be a killer whale trainer.
We had the opportunity to feed dolphins. Since, we didn't have the kids, I had the food to feed them all to myself. Several came over and started fighting over the food. It kind of made me feel at home, especially since my kids weren't with me.
I did save one little bug for Aaron to feed with. The dolphins didn't want to eat the bug after all the little fishies I had just fed them. (I admit that was a bit selfish on my part.)
Have I ever mentioned I'm kind of afraid of animals? I found the dolphin's teeth a bit scary. (There goes my dream of whale training. I'll just stick to nursing.) Dolphins are probably my favorite animal (except for the teeth). Seriously, who could be afraid of this?
One of the trainers noticed my apprehension and came over to help out. Just to clarify, that is me petting a dolphin. It was one of the highlights of my day.
Aaron and I have been married for almost 15 years, we have lived in 3 states, we have 5 kids, and we did something on this trip we have never done before......we rode a roller coaster together.
Previous trips to amusements parks, had one of us staying with the girls while the other rode with the boys. This time rode it together. We rode in the front seats and then the back seats and analyzed which was better. The answer depends on the ride. (On a side note, I love wearing dangly earrings on roller coasters. It is so fun to feel them beat against your neck and face.)
big fat walruses,
and we also...
That's not really us. Just Kidding.
We attended church on Sunday. Our old ward has split since we moved to Utah. We weren't able to attend the new spanish ward. It was wonderful to see some of the people we worked with and served while we lived down there.
After the kids went to bed, we stayed up really late talking with Monica and Scott. It was so great just to hang out with them. The next morning we headed out to do some shopping at the outlets and the Texas Store. We had lunch at a local restaurant and, of course, Holly refused to eat in the restaurant and promptly dumped all her food in her lap once we were in the car (another act that made me feel right at home without my kids). 
Before we caught the plane home, we went to Amy's Ice Cream, a local favorite in the Austin area. Aaron had pinenut-mango-rosehip-I-can't-remember-what-else flavored ice cream. I had Mexican vanilla with Reese's peanut butter cups (I know I'm boring but, vanilla really is my favorite ice cream flavor).
