Fort Worth

Oklahoma City Memorial

It was oh so late when we finally arrived at our Fort Worth hotel last night. We got out of Denver by 7:30 AM, but we didn't get to Hays, Kansas for lunch until 2, which meant 3:00 because of the time change. My sweetie said the winds cost us an hour.

 

Teach and Craig were ahead of us, but we caught them in Oklahoma City and while we made a quick tour of the memorial, they ran to Sonic and grabbed dinner for all of us and then it was back on the road.

 

I called the hotel about midnight and let them know we would definitely be late arrivals, and we finally rolled in about 1:30 AM. It had been a long day on the road. Much too long to write a blog post last night. We all just fell into bed.

 

Making waffles with Sport

We got up this morning to free breakfast in the lobby and I had to show you a picture of my Texas-shaped waffle! Sport and I had fun making them. We ate in shifts and then some of the kids swam for an hour before we all got ready and took off to go to church.

 

Teach went to an early ward in White Settlement, but she wanted the family to attend in Lantana. In Utah, our building is only about 2 minutes away. I think it was an eye-opener for the kids to have to travel for almost an hour just to find a meetinghouse. We got settled a few minutes before the opening song.

 

Heading to church selfie!

I was surprised how much this Texas ward was like our ward at home. It was large and there were many children. The bishop welcomed Teach and her family right from the pulpit which was a little embarrassing, but wonderful for Teach.

 

We attended all 3 meetings and then spent an extra half hour in the parking lot waiting for everyone who wanted to talk to Teach. It was obvious that she was well-loved in this area! So many people thanked me for sharing my amazing daughter with them. We drove around Lantana for another half hour admiring the area and seeing where she lived.

 

We arrived at the Fredrickson's just before 6:00 for dinner. This wonderful family offered to feed all 14 of us a traditional Texas BBQ! The brisket and ribs were amazing! We had peach cobbler and Texas sheet cake with homemade ice cream for dessert. I loved visiting with the family and learning more about Texas.

 

Waiting for Teach, Starburst and Bugles...

At 7:30 we thanked our generous hosts and headed out for another hour's drive to visit with the Marks. Teach lived with them for 6 months during her mission and they seemed to know her the best. After sharing many stories and some warm cookies, we got talking about family history and it turns out that Brother Marks and I are second cousins! He promised to email me some information and after we left I called my dad and he was so excited to hear that I had found family right here in Texas.

 

Back at the hotel we sent the kids to their rooms and I read a bit to my sweetie before he dozed off on me. It was a good day. So far, Texas hasn't been nearly as hot as I had feared and we are loving the wide open spaces. We have early plans for tomorrow, but I will try to share when we get back. It will be late. We are seeing the Texas Rangers play the Yankees tomorrow night. You know me, I love a good baseball game!