We begin our goodbyes with a lunch with our friends the Crooks on 30 Apr 06...which happens to also be Lexie's first birthday!!

    
   Kelley, Karlye, Asa,               Miss Marla & Lexie           Happy Birthday
      Kirya, & Crockett                                                                       Lexie!                                        

13 May 06--What a day!  We started the day like any other...cleaning, packing, prepping to leave...Crockett convinced us to let his friend Jourdan and their family take him to his last karate tournament of the year (which seemed like a great idea since it would free up some much needed time for us to pack!).  OF COURSE, the one tournament that we don't attend for either of the boys is the one where one of them wins first place!!  Jourdan's mom, Nancy, was nice enought to take some pictures and let Crockett call to tell us the good news!  Later that day,we made the trip up I35 to Buda to have dinner with Owen, Angela, and Katey Wheeler, Clay's best friend since kindergarten...the kids had a great time after a relaxed dinner at Bill Miller's BBQ.

Asa, Katey, Lexie, and Crockett after dinner.

On 17 May 06, Johnna's office gave her a farewell breakfast at a local Hill Country Resort.  A breakfast buffet was a great way to start the day and a great way to say goodbye to some good friends...

On 20 May 06, a portion of the Hayes family gathered in Schulenburg TX at Frank's Restaurant to say good-bye, congratulate all school age Hayes grandkids on a successful school year (every year as covered except 5th and 11th), and give Crockett a special family surprise birthday cake since he will be en route on his birthday.  MeMe and PaPa gave us a few farewell gifts; we gave hugs and then said farewell.

Clay and MeMe chat while she prepares Crockett's birthday surprise.

25 May 06--After a hectic day working to tie up loose ends, we had an entertaining dinner at the Scenic Loop Cafe with our friends John and Mary Whisenhunt.  It is a relaxing restaurant with an outdoor dining terrace and a great playground for the kids once dinner is over.  We highly recommend it...http://www.scenicloopcafe.com

26 May 06--As a surprise on their last day of school, Clay planned a special mission for the boys.  They woke up at 0545, got dressed and loaded into the van.  They drove to the "rendezvous point" where they picked up their friend Jourdan, who was also very  sleepy and surprised.  From there, the team carried out the main part of their mission...a no-notice breakfast trip to IHOP!  Jourdan and Asa have been friends since the first day of kindergarten and have eaten breakfast together at school every day since...Clay thought it would be really nice to have one last ceremonial breakfast before school that all the boys would remember!
                                                  Crockett, Asa, & Jourdan

26 May 06--Since Crockett and Asa had to miss the last week of school, which meant Crockett would miss his Kindergarten completion ceremony, Mrs. Schneider (Crockett's teacher), Mrs. Franks (Music), Mrs. Ritchie (Art), Mr. Lewis (Asa's 1st grade teacher), Mrs. Solis (vice principal), and Mrs. Dahlquist (principal) made his last day special with a "dress rehearsal" allowing him to get his diploma.  The kindegarteners sang, Mrs. Dahlquist said ho proud she was of everyone, and as a special surprise, the kindergarteners added "We love you Crockett" into the words of one of the songs.  Both Mrs Schneider and Mrs Foster (Asa's teacher) put together memory books for the boys with pictures and notes from their classmates...We will miss our friends at Big Country.

 

A taste of kindergarten...

                                
                                      Crockett graduates                        We love Nurse Lilly

               
 

                                        Asa and Crockett on their last day of school

29 May 06--Although our plans have changed since our passports didn't arrive on schedule, the delay was a great chance to spend Memorial Day with David and Jessica Hooten.  Without Dave and Jess, I'm not sure we would have survived the last month, not to mention the last two years.  They are true friends.

3 Jun 06--While we're in a holding pattern for the passports still, that doesn't mean things are dull.  After a somewhat low key, relaxing day, Lexie and the boys were quietly watching TV (no, really, they were...).  However, the quiet was not to last...while getting down off of the bed, Lexie slipped sideways and fell.  After seven fabulous hours in the emergency room, we left with Lexie in a hard splint with a diagnosis of distal radial buckle fracture and a Salter Harris 2 fracture.

4 Jun 06--Taking advantage of the fact we are still in San Antonio, we got to have lunch with MeMe and PaPa who were visiting Jeff and his family in Bandera.  They were also in town to attend a recognition ceremony for Taylor (Jeff's daughter) who is part of the TIP program (she took the SAT as a 7th grader and did very well).  It was nice to be able to see them one final time (maybe) before we leave.

Good times at CiCi's Pizza.

MeMe and PaPa with Crockett and Asa

5 Jun 06--After a dose of Tylenol 3 (which made her stumble around like a drunken sailor), we took Lexie in for her orthopedic consult followup.  They put her in a full arm hard cast that will stay on for 3 weeks--who knows where we'll be when its time to remove it!! 

Bedtime on our first night with a cast...we need new jammies that fit over it!

We also found that the admin section here has positive control of 3 of our passports!  Crockett's is still missing, but we're on the right track.  It should only be a day or two now...

8 Jun 06-- Crockett's passport came in yesterday so we are now making final preparations to travel.  We'll be leaving very early Saturday morning.  However, today was another day of fun and adventure!  Clay took the boys on an additional secret mission--this time to Natural Bridge Caverns just outside New Braunfels TX.  It is a natural limestone cave formation first explored in 1960.  The caves stay at a constant temperature and humidity (70 degrees and 99 percent)--so it was a good activity for a day where the high is projected to be between 99 and 101 degrees!!  The boys enjoyed it and when asked what they learned, "Cavern water tastes good!"...not sure why they know that...

Crockett and Asa excited to hike through the caves with Dad.

The namesake "natural bridge" of Natural Bridge Caverns.

9 Jun 06--HAPPY BIRTHDAY CROCKETT!!!  What a day!  After outprocessing and the final "you've got to be kidding me" moment (driving to the other side of town because Asa's medical records for some reason apparently migrated there?!?!), we headed downtown for Crockett's birthday celebration.  We visited the Alamo where the boys participated in a scavenger hunt that took us through every section of the grounds.  They had a good time looking for things like Davey Crockett's vest, various flags, a Mexican uniform, and the Alamo Well.  Crockett got a big helping of history on his namesake--and found that Davey Crockett even rated his own fountain near what is now the library!  We took a quick detour out the back gate in the middle of the scavenger hunt and visited the historic Crockett Hotel.  After returning to the Alamo grounds, the boys completed their hunts and got the "offical" Alamo stamp declaring them successful.  Clay also chatted with the tour guides and ended up signing a book they keep behind the desk of visitors who have family members who fought at the Alamo (John Hays of Tennessee). 

Crockett, Asa, Clay & Lexie getting ready to visit the Alamo.
  
            A scavenger hunt at the Alamo.                                   The Crockett fountain.

The day continued with a special visit to the Davey Crockett adventure "ride" and then the Guiness Book of World Records exhibit.  It was really expensive, only marginally worth the money, but the boys enjoyed it and we got a few funny pictures of Clay and Lexie at the "Fattest Man in the World" exhibit...


                              Crockett poses beside the original Disney classic film poster.

After the attractions, we went down to the Riverwalk and had dinner at the Rainforest Cafe with David and Jessica Hooten (after an hour wait during which Miss Jess and Mr Dave introduced Lexie and the boys to the baby ducks in the river).  After "rainstorms" every 30 minutes, gorillas rumbling in the bushes behind our table, and flashing souvenir cups, we treated Crockett to a VOLCANO at the end of the meal--the sparkler on the top of the cake & ice cream was a fitting end to the meal, the evening, and indeed the entire day.

  
     Miss Jess & the kids look at the ducks.                                    Ummmm...OK.....

It was a full moon, a clear night, and we had a great evening.  This was one of the last things we saw as we drove away...

10 Jun 06--The final preparations to leave...we did the final packing, packed the car, had a special lunch with Dave, Jess, Christi, and Tim, and then took a quick look at Dave and Jess' new house...then off to bed to get ready to drive away!

11 Jun 06 --  We're signing out and driving away within the hour...this is the last entry in this tab.  Check "Our Travels" for future pictures and stories...