How to get to WI from CA- The Long Way

So, we had a family reunion last week. Originally, it was going to be in Maryland, but then it got switched (very last minute) to Wisconsin due to some health problems. We had bought plane tickets to MD, and we couldn't get them switched, so away we flew! That was around 8 p.m. CA time.

After a layover in Denver (only about 30 minutes), we got to the Washington Dulles Airport in Virginia around 5:30 a.m. VA time. From there, we drove for about 16 hours to WI.

Good thing for us we had 6 drivers, and only two cars (we went with an aunt and two cousins). It was certainly an adventure, but we made it! In 24 hours, I was in 9 different states and one district. Doesn't that just sound so fun? Here's the list:

California

Colorado

Virginia

Washington D.C.

Maryland

Pennsylvania

Ohio

Iowa

Illinois

Wisconsin

We all survived to tell the tale, and nobody's head got taken off, which means that it was a pretty successful trip! Not only did we drive for many hours, but we got to drive through at least 3 big storms- one of which included flash flood warnings and tornado warnings- and lived to tell the tale. I will get some pictures on here if I can, and then you will see the just how much of an adventure we had!

Tess

She's Home!

Hermana Houghton can be called Eliza again! Yay! We went and picked her up at the airport where she walked past Levi, but that may or may not be understandable, even though he was holding a bouquet of flowers...

Anyway, reunions are always fun, and sometimes there are some tears, but everybody was smiling!

We meandered through Mom and Dad's old neighborhood in San Francisco and then headed home!

The next day, we enjoyed Yoursomebody (or is it supposed to be Yosemite?) on the bikes. We got lots of compliments on our awesome reunion shirts from last Thanksgiving, even though Levi refused to wear his (problem child!).

The weather was beautiful, and we loved having Eliza with us!

Anyway, school is over and summer is started! We have some great plans, including a trans-Tahoe Relay in July, a Family Reunion in mid-June, and lots of family time in the summer heat. Marta and I are working as lifeguards, Eliza is job-searching, and we Levi is a graduated kid with a free summer (that he wants to spend in the woods, but we'll see about that). 

Summer is so wonderful and free!

Love,

Tess

My Driving Philosophy

No, not about driving a car. It's not even a simple quote. I (Tess) have to tell you in verse that goes very well to the tune of a wonderful song I know.

Here it is:

There is an end to high school;
There is an end to the 500;
There is an end to Calculus;
There is an end to tests.
There is an end to essays;
There is an end to dirt;
There is an end to hiking;
There is an end to life.

That may sound really depressing and pessimistic in spots, but it is really what gets me through a lot of things. After all, each of those things will end eventually (except maybe dirt). Whenever I am feeling really weighed down by what I am trying to accomplish and feel like it is impossible, I just remember that it will eventually end, and then I just wait for it to end.

High School is, well, high school! It's got its ups and downs, but in the end, everybody is glad to have made it through and moved on.

The 500 is my race in swim meets. When I am swimming and feeling physically incapable of finishing my race, I just have to keep going and it will eventually end. As Dory says, "Just Keep Swimming!"

Calculus is my Achilles Heel this year. There is always more to be figured out!

Testing is terrible! As a junior I have had to take all sorts of tests and have several more coming up. I have to take the ACT and SAT if I want to go to college. Then there is state standardized testing- ultimately just many painful hours spent filling in bubbles. And last, but certainly not least is AP testing! I only have 3 more of these super-duper FUN (sense the sarcasm here?) tests to take and then they will be over (for a while, anyway).

I just finished writing an essay, and since writing is not in any way a forte of mine, I am very glad to have turned it in this morning just so that I won't have to think about it any more.

Cleaning the bathroom will eventually end (for the day), and that is good enough for me.

When Dad, Levi, and I hiked Half Dome last summer, I thought I was going to die on the way down (it's THAT tough on the knees), but I just kept going, and eventually, I got to the bottom!

Finally, life will end for everybody one day. I don't know when that day is and I do like living, but with all the challenges we as humans have to face each day, I will be very glad to return to my Father in Heaven when all this is over.

So, next time you are thinking you can't do something because it is too hard, just try it and see where it takes you. Yes, you will absolutely need help at some point or another and a few tears may escape, but it will end and you will be blessed for your efforts.

<3 Tess

Spread Out!

Settling in for bed last night, it struck me that we were experiencing a Houghton Family milestone!  Less than two years ago, we were continuing, as we have pretty much since we began our family, all together in one place.  Last night, Mark and I were, possibly for the first time since having a child, without children in the house overnight.  Not only that, but not one of our children was within 500 miles of another child!

Here's a report of their where- and what- abouts today!




Eliza--Fort Lauderhill, Florida--enjoying the last months of her Spanish-speaking mission which will draw to a close on May 29!

















Luke--Gloucester, England--celebrating his birthday in a week and closing in on his 11th month as a missionary.


















Marta--Provo, Utah--facing down the last month of school and finals of her Freshman year at BYU















Tess--Park Ridge, New Jersey--as a high school Junior, enjoying a 5-day tour of the NYC area with her American Federation of Students pals.













Levi--Disney Ranch, Tuolumne, California--attending a friend's overnight birthday party and wrapping up his eighth grade year.  But before that. . .coming home to chop wood and mow the lawn this morning!










As for Mark and Denise, we slept in and are having a lazy morning.  But soon, it will be good to have at least one of our brood home today.  We're not quite ready to be empty nesters. Besides, it's time to pick up the pace and get to the tasks the weekend requires!

Denise

Productive Ways to Procrastinate

Everybody (well, almost everybody) has had an experience where they were given an assignment (or two, or three, or a hundred) and just couldn't bring themselves to do it. That happens to me fairly often. On the occasional day, I can make myself sit down and do it right away, but most days, that is not the case. Let me show you.

• Spend some time talking to your family! It is always good to know what your siblings are doing all the time in that place called COLLEGE or ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, and telling all your stresses to your parents is a great way to let it out.You may also find that your family has lots of friendly or sarcastic advice for you.
• Find something to take a picture of and take lots of pictures, and then edit them. That can take as much time as you want it to!

• Organize your closet (or any awfully messy space you have)- who would stop you?

   

• Start pounding out the latest song you have been trying to learn (this is Levi's favorite).

 CAUTION: May make other, more studious, people a tad bit angry...

• Do other, less intimidating, easier homework.

• Research something you have never heard of- preferably an animal or carnivorous plant. For example, I bet you've never seen this before! This animal is called a pika. It lives at really high elevations and is a pretty tough critter. Pikachu was derived from it, which is why this one looks like- guess who- Pikachu!

• Bake a yummy something. Preferably something like...this! Yes, this is a cake, done by the Cake Boss). Did I mention that it is taller than me? It is.

• Do the dishes. Nobody else wants to do it; your mother will love you more than any of her other children, and you will have clean dishes to eat off of the next day.  On a side note, the less people there are at home, the more time it takes to do dishes because there are less people to help.

As you can see, I have plenty of ways to avoid homework when I want to. Don't worry, I still get the assignment done eventually, but you have to admit it- these temporary alternatives (you still have to do it sometime) are all pretty great!

Your Favorite Procrastinator, Tess

Siblings are Super Cool, and so are Family Traditions

In the case that you are an only child, I am sincerely sorry. Having siblings is so much fun! Yeah, sometimes they make a lot of noise and try to get on your nerves, but they are just some of the best people to hang out with! My siblings are particularly cool, because when we all get together, we can be super silly- just ask Mom and Dad, they'll tell you. Right now, with just Levi and I at home, there's not as much silliness, but...when Mom and Dad leave us for too long, we still have the occasional fun. :)

Notice that it isn't me with whipped cream on my face- that's Levi.

Basically, Levi, well, let's just say he could be my brother- oh wait, he is! Isn't that quite the coinkidink!

So, every year, we have a family competition. Since we are all swimmers, we compete via the pool. Also, our family isn't really a sprinter-type family, so we like to do a distance race. 500 yards? Nah, that's not long enough and that would be a guaranteed win for me (Tess). 1000 yards? Well, that is not really a commonly done race, so we'll veto that as well. How about a mile? Yes! A swimmer's mile (at least where we live) is 1650 yards or meters. The two missionaries couldn't compete this year, and Mom opted out due to some back/neck problems from last September, but the rest of us have done or will do it. Dad swam it on the 25th and went a 24:29- which was a solid improvement for him. I swam it on the 31st and went a 21:58, which is...well, let's just leave it at that. Levi swam it on the 1st and went a 22:40, which is super good for him, and last but not least, Marta is going to swim it sometime this week and will then let me know so that I can let you know.

Tess

Winter Break Pictures

At Yosemite...

The view outside of Mom and Dad's window yesterday morning. :)

This was the view off of our front porch.

The new Bay Bridge.

Playing Basketball for FHE!

The Merced River.