American Ninja Warrior Trip

American Ninja Warrior is not just a TV show. It's a frame of mind. Meaning, it constantly challenges your mind to try new things, be brave, meet new people, go out of your comfort zone, and thrive to achieve. Yes, it's just an obstacle that you are trying to conquer. But, it's more than that...it engraves a sense of freedom in your soul! Freedom to put your walls down, freedom to fail, freedom to grow, freedom to let go of "being like everyone else", freedom to love fitness without pressure, and freedom to PLAY! Yes, PLAY! As adults, we don't play enough. This type of training brings the joys of playing back into your life. The childhood days of playing on the playground...falling, getting back up, laughter, getting bruises and scrapes from playing too hard, trying to balance, jump, reach, pull up, etc. It is freedom in the form of fitness. And I love it!  

Over time, the American Ninja Warrior frame of mind seeps into your everyday life. You find yourself being braver at the gym, running that extra mile, tumbling with your kids in the yard, playing at the park, climbing trees, and just not taking life so serious! It has blessed my children with the same mindset. I constantly hear them talking about "being able to do anything." And they are so brave, which can be scary for me sometimes, but I love that they have that confidence! They are so involved with the ninja world, I hope the "ninja traits" continue to shape their character. So, thank you to American Ninja Warrior for uncovering another layer of my free spirited side. It has transformed the way I view life. I know, sounds ridiculous, but it just does something to your inner being! The ninja community is highly Christian based, so I have grown spiritually too. I can't explain it, but it's like everything came together. I feel like a better mom, healthier, stronger, more adventurous, brave and I am truly enjoying life like never before!

I want my kids to never fear being a beginner! And that's just what I did...I remember my first day of walking into the ninja gym. Total beginner, totally overwhelmed, and totally sore! But, I didn't fear failure and look what has happened as a result, more blessings than I can count! All starting with my goal to live out a promise to my mom...a promise to take care of my body! So, kids, never fear taking that first step, never fear failing, never fear being the outcast, never fear looking ridiculous, never stop challenging yourself, and never take life so serious that you forget to play!

So, that leads me to Oklahoma City!! I didn't get called to be a contestant on the show this year. SO many people applied, under 1% got called. That is crazy! Turns out, a lot of people with inspiring stories got called. In the end, it is a TV show, so they do have to pull the heart strings! However, a lot of very skilled veterans got called too. There are just so many strong and talented athletes! I was totally fine with not getting a call. I am believer in God's timing. This journey has opened up so many opportunities, way more than 20 seconds on TV. It wasn't my time, maybe one day it will be? But, I am not stopping training and soaking up the joys of ninja world! I actually got the opportunity to test the course! How cool is that?!

The show is taped in regions. Our region was filmed in Oklahoma City. Scott and I made the road trip while Gigi (Scott's mom) stayed home with the kids. I ran the course for 2 days. They would watch me run an obstacle then they would tweak it, make adjustments to get ready for the show! I LOVED this! I got the experience of the show without the pressure! And I did really good!! I actually made it just as far as the well known ninja girls that got filmed that night! Scott was so excited when we saw that I was a true contender!

Let me back up a second...my dad got SO sick the week we left. He got a kidney transplant 16 years ago. The life expectancy for a transplanted kidney is 8 years. So, needless to say, he is experiencing the effects of kidney failure. He is not a candidate for surgery. He is too old, weak and they fear he would never recover. So, he is making the most! He gets dehydrated easily, he always has a UTI because his kidneys don't filter, etc. So, he went to the hospital about a week before Oklahoma City for his "usual stuff." However, it was a storm of events from there. He needed a blood transfusion, he was severely dehydrated, his kidney count was way off. So, he stayed in the hospital for a week. This created insomnia because it's just so hard to sleep in the hospital. Put it all together, his mental state flipped like a switch! He seriously went into hallucinations and schizophrenic. So very scary to see. The doctors said it is somewhat normal for elderly people in his condition to get this in the hospital!!! I didn't leave his bedside. After two days, they had to sedate him to get him to sleep! They said it would "reset" his mind. Sure enough, he woke up back to his normal self. Tired, groggy, but much improved! It was the most bizarre thing I've ever seen! He went home with nurse care while he built his strength back. He told me he would hold his breath and take me out of his will if I didn't go on this trip! So, I tried to clear my conscious and got on the road. I was exhausted, physically and mentally, but I was so excited for this experience!

While testing, they needed a tall tester to test the reach for an obstacle. So, they called Scott out of the crowd!! Ha! He's a good sport and went for it! Soaking wet, in his bluejeans! But, he had a blast and got a taste. The show is filmed from 8pm-5am...all night long! So, after I tested all day, we stayed up all night watching the show. Then, onto another day of testing. It was a tiring weekend, but will go in the books as one of my favorite experiences in my life. Scott and I enjoyed the adventures of the weekend, all the new friends we met, and stories of triumph we witnessed! Amazing!

One of the coolest parts of the trip was that we got to stay with one of my best friends! I've known her since Pre-k, and she recently moved to Oklahoma City. She was due with her 3rd baby at any moment, so it was exciting to see her nursery and hear all her baby stories! They came to watch some of the show too. I have really missed her, so I enjoyed our pedicure, lunch and laying in bed and talking! We also had some down time to be tourist. Oklahoma City really is beautiful!

Then, a month later, the show aired on TV. It was so awesome to watch it all edited! It's amazing how they have to shape it for TV. There is some definite editing involved! Scott and I were on TV a couple times. Scott is wearing the neon hat! Then, I was visiting with my ninja peeps and ended up getting a screen shot for a few seconds. When I came up on TV, my phone started blowing up..."I just saw you!" ha! 3 seconds! But, my children totally think I am famous! To wrap it up, this experience has been life changing and I am honored to carry on with this journey!

Frio River Reunion

Leakey, Texas! One of my favorite places in the world. We go every year, since I was a little girl. My dad has been going to the same cabins, every year since he was a young boy in the 1950's! So, this annual tradition goes way back! We look forward to this family reunion all year. It is with my dads side of the family, and we always have a blast. We kicked off the trip with a dinner at a local, very small restaurant. We took over the entire place. This man was playing music, he was amazing! So, we got up and danced...this was not a dancing type place, but we moved some tables and danced away. The singer said no one has ever danced to his music! He said, "having you dance with your children to my music goes down as one of the best moments in my life!" So sweet! He was wonderful, and it was a great start to our long weekend!

My morning workouts were very fun. I had quiet the crew of ambitious participants. All my nieces and nephews jumped in and took on the challenge. My sister in laws and cousins worked out too. We climbed trees, did pull ups on tree limbs, lunges up hills, and used nature to challenge ourselves. So fun! My dad felt good on this trip too, which is a blessing. Traveling is getting very hard on him. But, he made it in great spirits! He also took his first selfie, which was so funny! He loved relaxing with the beautiful views and watching his grandchildren and family have a blast!

Swimming in the Frio River is the highlight of our trip. It is so cold!!! The river is next to our cabins, so we hang out at the river all day. We play on the rope swing, which the boys did for hours! Hours! We skipped rocks, lounged in tubes, and visited. Scott and my brother tested out the rafting trip before the kids went because last year was pretty rough...the rapids were too fast for the kids. Scott and Chad headed out first. We can start the tubing trip straight from our cabins. It takes us about an 1.5 hours down the river to a stopping point, with rapids along the way. Scott said the trip was good to go. So the rest of us headed out to tube the Frio. Scott, our kids, all the other young cousins, my brothers, aunt/uncle and my dad stayed back and played! Our kids may do the trip with us next year, they are still a bit young to take. So, I got to enjoy the rapids kid free, which was fun! However, Scott and I did the rapids by our cabin with our kids 100 times! There is about a 10 minute section at our camp site with good rapids. We would go down, then walk back up and repeat. Over and over. The kids loved it and got a good feel for tubing rapids!

Oh Faith Ann. She was the focus most of the trip. She entertained everyone. Her sassy little attitude and confidence just makes us laugh. She played football with Parder, danced and performed for everyone. She is too dang cute for words. She was right in the middle of everything. She keeps up with all the kids and has a blast. The boys are in Heaven in Leakey. They catch lightning bugs at night, make smores around the campfire, tell ghost stories, swim, eat, run and play, climb trees, swing...good ole fun! Bentley comes with us to Leakey. She loves swimming in the Frio, she is in doggie Heaven for sure! She runs and swims all day!

 

I love my kids enjoying their cousin time. They all love each other so much. They all get along so great, unconditional love. They look out for each other, protect each other, they love/play/fight hard! Jake (13 years old) was inventing games and missions for the kids to complete. This was entertainment for the adults too. Faith Ann and Gabriella (just turned 3) were right behind the kids, acting like they knew exactly what was going on. Ally, as usual, was a big help. She watched Faith Ann a lot of the time. We played lots of football, bean bag toss, and so much more. The kids are making memories that they will cherish forever! 

 

And the Garner State Park dance...one of my favorite memories growing up! I used to love to get all dressed up and go to the dance at night. I would love to wait for a boy to ask me to dance the 2 step! ha! Garner State Park is a few minutes from our cabins, so we load up the car and head to the dance on Saturday night. Faith Ann and I put on our boots and ready to go! The kids take over the dance floor and dance with each other. Scott danced with Faith Ann, which was so precious. Melts my heart. He loves this girl too much! Hunter loved twirling his cousins! Hunter even asked a girl to dance. It was so cute. He tried to 2 step with her, and he tried to carry on a conversation with her- asking her name, etc. It was so fun to watch his little face and confidence!

Trent and Faith Ann danced the most together. They were hand in hand! I love this picture of them dancing while she won't take her eyes off Scott. Scott has a huge smile as he watches his sweet kids enjoy each other! Trent would not ask a little girl to dance, no way! Maybe next year! My dad got out on the dance floor and danced with his grandchildren. What a special memory. He danced slow and unsteady, but it was such a sweet moment to watch! Leakey 2016 was a huge success! We had an awesome time. As always, looking forward to next year!

Happy Fathers Day

It was a simple day, just the way Scott likes it! I made a big breakfast and let Scott sleep for a little while...little is the keyword because the kids were eager to tell him Happy Fathers Day! Then my dad came to church with us, which is always nice to have him with us. We went out to Guadalajara for Mexican food lunch. Dad loves their tamales! We had a nice lunch!

Scott went to hit golf balls with his dad, then we went swimming at Uncle Greg's with Scotts dad. Scott had a blast swimming and watching his kids maneuver so good in the water! We gave him a picture holder for his office with some adorable pictures of he and the kids!

Scott is a wonderful father. Our children are blessed to have him as their role model. Scott is kind, patient, gentle, steady, adventurous, and loving! Funny...because those are all words I use to explain my dad too! Happy Fathers Day to the two most special dads in my life! Scott, Dad...I love you!

The summer heat is here!!! Our kids live outside, so we create a lot of adventures. I brave the heat and join the fun. We made "turtle traps" out of paper plates, string, carrots, and bread. We placed the traps at the bayou down the street from us. We feed the turtles there often (Sherman the turtle.) So, we made turtle traps and I told the boys that we would raise whatever we caught! Thankfully, there was nothing in them when we went back to check! Ha! But, I love spending our summer days together. I read a quote the other day..."if you want good kids- spend half the money and double your time with them." Amen! I agree. So, we may create traps out of paper plates, but we sure are having fun!

And the rope picture!! Oh my! Hunter is a ninja at heart!! That child can climb that rope all the way to the limb. It's in his blood. He just has to jump, climb, swing, pull up! I understand, so I just let him go! I watch him closely, and I continue to be amazed at his strength and control! Cheers to summer adventures!