Spring Break Adventure

It's my favorite time of the year. The state basketball tournament followed by spring break.

The state basketball tournament has been one of my favorite vacations since 8th grade. (Background information on my family & the state tournament click here.) My dad has been to every state tournament since 1975. I've only missed 2 in the last 14 years. I LOVE IT!! I left school Wednesday at 2 and we headed to Austin. It was a great 3 days of hanging out with some of my favorite people. It's really a shame that I only see some of them 1-2 times a year. Sunday we drove back to Tulia.

About 3 weeks ago I got 2 new tires and new brake pads on my car so it would be ready for my adventure to Missouri. The day before we left for Austin a belt on my car starting squealing TERRIBLY. Wednesday when I pulled into my parents' garage my mom could hear it all the way across the house. She got concerned. She sprayed some WD-40 on it and we headed south. Sunday when we got home I started the car and it was awful, so she said, you aren't taking that to Missouri...put everything back in my car. So being the smart kid that I am, I grab my gate key to my apartment, load everything up and head towards Amarillo. I am exhuasted, still have to do some laundry, pack and also get some sleep--as I planned to leave between 6-7am the next morning to get to Emily & Kyle's house for supper. Well as I am exiting off the interstate in Amarillo, I realize, I have a gate key, but all of my apartment keys are in Tulia. GREAT!! So I call my mom hoping she has a key in her car, nope...it's in her purse in Tulia. So I turn around and head back south and she heads north to meet me. An hour later I finally get back to Amarillo and to my apartment. I didn't get near the sleep I wanted to, but I got up around 5, showered and headed out the door.

I made great time to Granite City, IL. Emily cooked a wonderful supper and we hung out for the rest of the night. It was so nice to see her and Kyle. Tuesday I slept in a little and headed to Alton to have lunch with Em. I ran a few errands then headed up to school to hang out with Emily a little more before she headed to Indianapolis for a PE teachers conference. They were in the middle of her intramurals periods, so I got to meet several of her favorites. They were pretty humorous to say the least. Afterwards we headed back to Granite, made a stop at State Beauty and then I headed west to CoMo.

I had a GREAT time in CoMo. It was so great to see everyone. Spending 3 days with Tara made us both realize how much we miss each other....and truly relied on each other so much. Tuesday night I went to see the Hairstons and delivered birthday presents. It amazes me how much Harper & Reid have grown. Wednesday & Thursday I hung out at the training room most of the day. I had a great time seeing all the athletes that I use to spend EVERY day with. Wednesday night Casey & Neisha fixed an amazing dinner of steak, baked sweet potatoes and corn. It was sooo good. After that Tara and I headed to the Deuce for some St. Patty's Day festivities. Thursday nigth we went to the Mizzou-North Dakota baseball game. We actually left in the middle of the 5th inning, when the Tigers were up 14-3. The 3rd inning was pretty amazing, scoring 11 runs. It was so good to see the boys play. It was a little odd though becuase there are 21 newcomers, it felt like a WHOLE new team. We decided dinner at Tequila's was a must and invited Casey & Neisha to go with us since they were kidless. After that we headed to the Deuce for a relaxing evening with our favorite "Deuce friends." Being there Thursday night made me realize how much I hate holidays at the Deuce becuase people come out of the woodwork to hang out, but Thursday night was back to our favorite place to hang out, "where everybody knows your name."

1693 miles later I made it back to Amarillo. (This doesn't include the Austin trip, just Amarillo to the MidWest.) Although I didn't get to see everyone that I would have liked in CoMo, it was sooo good to see the ones that I did. There are so many things I miss about the MidWest that I didn't realize. It's amazing how much I am torn between home and the MidWest. Both have so many pros, but with the major con that I am so far away from so many friends and family members. Maybe I should move to Tulsa...it's the halfway point. HAHAHA TOTALLY KIDDING!!!! Then I would just be stuck in the middle with NO ONE.

Alrighty, I gotta do a few things before bed. Sorry I don't have any picutres. I amazingly didn't take ANY. Shocking I know. Have a great week!!!!!