Spring Break 2026 - PS I Love You

Palm Springs 2026 - Sunset

PS I love you and I loved that sign in downtown Palm Springs and at the airport. It's also Peyton's initial so she had fun posing by it for pictures. 

We started off our trip on a Thursday night after all the kids got home from school on a Thursday (including Austen who drove the two hours home so he could catch our flight and do a part of spring break with us). We drove to the airport and left our car in daily parking (so Austen had a way home when he got back on Sunday) and it was a quick and painless journey through TSA. Our flight was delayed by about 20 minutes due to storms in the area but our pilot made it up in the air and we still landed on time. 

Peyton and Palm Springs I Love You!

Palm Springs airport is so easy. Beautiful and mostly outside. Rental cars on property so we picked up our Ford Bronco (kids were very excited about renting a Bronco) and were on our way to our Air BnB - well that was before all the kids begged to go to In and Out. I don't understand the fascination with that place (they got shakes and burgers, I did not) it's not that good. 

Anyway, arrived to our house before 12am and checked it out including the amazing backyard with a pickleball court, putting green, pool, fire pits and life-size chess board. Games on the inside included a pool table, air hockey, skee ball, foosball and mini bowling so we had a lot of things to keep us busy!

The first morning, Tom and Austen got up early and walked to the golf course that we backed up to and played 18 holes while the girls and I got groceries and enjoyed some pool time. We had a great dinner at TacQuila in downtown Palm Springs that night after all enjoying games of basketball (in the pool) and pickleball. 

On Saturday, we woke up and drove to the aerial tramway. The ride up was amazing. All of a sudden the tram car started rotating so you could see every part of the valley. The ride up was steep and Peyton (who is afraid of heights) was more than a little scared when the tram would sway and rock. We got up to the top and did a brief hike (it was cold up there - big difference from down below but we were prepared with sweatshirts.) After the tour it was back to the house for more pickle and pool time. Dinner was in LaQuinta that night at Rd Rnnr and ice cream at some nitro infusion place. 

Hailey was happy we were in the Blackhawks terminal 

Woke up Sunday and took Austen to the airport so he could head back to class. On the way back, we stopped in Palm Springs for a little shopping and then back home for some more pickleball and pool time. Dinner that night was also in LaQuinta at Lavender Bistro. 

On Monday, we headed to Joshua Tree where we did an easy 3 mile hike of Skull Rock. It was a bit cloudy that day which was good as the temperatures were still in the 90s. Once we got back we cooled off in the pool and played more pickleball and then got ready for dinner at Enzo's Italian Bistro (this was probably one of my favorite dinners). 

On Tuesday, we took the girls and did a self-guided bike ride of downtown Palm Springs. We biked for almost 3 hours past the mid century homes and around the downtown. I was definitely tired and we were all very hungry afterward. We went home and made smoothies though (which we found a great mix at the store that we could add bananas and strawberries to that made really good smoothies). The houses were pretty cool though! We ended the day with dinner in Palm Desert at Pacifica Seafood restaurant and discovered a boulevard of shopping at every store you could imagine. 

Backyard View

Wednesday was a total day of pool and relaxation but first the girls wanted to do a little more shopping. We went back to Palm Desert and Palm Springs for both. The girls bought jewelry and t-shirts/sweatshirts (and we got one for Austen) before we went home for more smoothies, pool time and pickleball. We planned dinner that night in La Quinta at the famous PGA West Golf Course (Ernie's Bar and Grill). The grounds were amazing so we watched the last of the golfers come in after sunset. 

Thursday we woke up planning to board our 11am flight but when we got to the airport our flight was delayed due to storms in Chicago. We waited 6 hours and were finally able to board. That was good news since they didn't cancel our flight (although in retrospect they probably should have). We flew for the 3.5 hours and circled DesMoines, Iowa, for an hour to get clearance to land in the storms. We could not and needed to be diverted. They diverted us to Rockford (which isn't much of an airport and United does not fly out of there). We sat on the runway for another four hours until they could get us unloaded and get our bags and then United just left us there with no way home. It was 3am. Rental car center didn't open til 8am. You could not even get a ride to a hotel because at that hour in that location on a Friday morning there were not enough Lyft or Ubers for the hundreds of people stranded at Rockford Airport. I just kept refreshing my Uber and Lyft apps until at 5:30am, we lucked out and got a Lyft ride home for $250. I was never so happy to fall into bed at 7am!

Hailey Loves to Order Mocktails

Anyway, we loved Palm Springs. Played a lot of pickleball every day as well as many other games throughout the house. Had some nice dinners. The weather was fantastic and there was so much to do that we definitely weren't bored. I'm glad the flight issues were at the end of our trip and not the beginning (United did end up paying for our ride home and offered us all $75 e-certificates - thanks United!) but overall it was a great spring break and we were all glad that Austen got to join us for part of it!

Amazing Sunsets from Our Backyard

PGA West

Riding in the Bronco

Bike Ride (so much easier now that Hailey relearned how to ride a bike)

Skull Rock at Joshua Tree

Mocktail at Lavender Bistro

Pretty Girls

Basketball in the Pool

Us!

Peyton Begins Her College Tours

It's starting again. We had a good year or so off before we once again embark on the college tour schedule. Somehow I think Peyton will be easier than Austen. She doesn't have as many "dream" schools on her list (so far) and is narrowing down what she thinks she wants to do and where she wants to go. Of course, her and Hailey have both benefitted by seeing this process with Austen (as well as visited some colleges already). 

Peyton has moved from wanting colleges by the beach to focusing more on the midwest (I really can't imagine her going far) although she still has Univ of Colorado - Boulder on her list (we visited when we went skiing in Breckenridge a few years ago). She likes the Big 10 - really wants Indiana but needed to be open to other schools too. Missouri, Iowa, Miami of Ohio are all schools she should consider depending on her major. No interest in Illinois. 

Anyway, we took the first of these tours a few weeks ago to Iowa. My niece is a Senior there this year so really wanted Ryan to give us the tour before she graduated. Iowa was one of my top choices when I was picking a college and since my BFF went there, it's also probably one of the schools I've been to the most that wasn't mine. So I'm partial to Iowa. I think it's a solid choice. Ryan gave a great tour including best spots for lunch. Peyton liked the sorority houses and the downtown. She really liked that it had a downtown that she could go shopping at or head to the bars with her roommates. What I liked was a lot of the newer things like the hotels and shopping (for the parents) that they brought to Iowa City. I can see myself enjoying some time here during a parents weekend visit. (I'm still struggling to find a good hotel in Champaign - I think there's one and it sells out super fast plus not a lot of great restaurants nearby.) 

So, Iowa made her list. It's definitely getting one of her applications. Special thanks to her tour guides!

Spanish Student of the Week & Student of the Quarter

Congrats to Peyton & Hailey who both earned honors at school over the last month or so.

Peyton earned Spanish Student of the Week and has been working hard in Spanish class. It's not easy to earn an A in Spanish class especially with the HCHS teachers. I've often heard from native Spanish speakers how difficult these classes are and if you are in Honors Spanish, then it's even more challenging for these non-native speaking students. Anyway, super proud of Peyton showcasing her willingness to speak Spanish in front of her peers in class. Beyond that her teacher thinks she's the greatest and is just very "joyful" when she comes to class everyday. (Her words not mine. I wish she could be joyful when she comes home from school everyday!) 

Hailey on the other hand earned Student of the Quarter nominated by the 6th Grade teachers. I'm not even sure we were notified. We used to read about all the Students of the Quarter in the newsletter when Austen and Peyton were in middle school. I found out by going through Hailey's cubby at home where she keeps her coats and backpack. There, crumpled beneath a book and a bag, was a printed certificate naming her as Student of the Quarter. No idea what she did or how she earned it aside from what it said on the certificate but super proud of her too. 

Honestly, yes, my kids can be pains in the butt at home but it's really nice to hear from both Peyton and Hailey's teachers (at their conferences) how much they really enjoy having them both in class and how hard they both work as well as how respectful they are in class to the teachers and their peers. Good grades are of course important but I'd take good human beings any day over good grades. 

Sports Seasons = Done

We finished up all our sports a few weeks ago. Peyton had her cheer banquet and Hailey's basketball team made it to playoffs where they had a weekend of games earning their spot in the finals. 

Hailey definitely grew as a basketball player this year. She became a more aggressive player - chasing down those loose balls and grabbing the ball when she could to force a jump ball play. She had a number of steals and in the end a few rebounds too. 

I saw her dribble the ball between her legs in a game and make a 3-point shot this year. She definitely improved from last year and has a desire to get better as she went to the park close to our house at least three times in a week to shoot some baskets. She'll continue to improve her skills by doing some ball handling training in the spring since she did not want to play softball again, and will have time to pick up something additional.

She'll also be continuing to skate and hopefully moving into the Intro to Hockey level (not sure where this will lead but she's enjoying learning so we'll keep at it). She just finished a cooking class that was every Monday after school that she enjoyed as well. And, she's finishing up her final religious education classes too after confirmation. 

Peyton continues to take some tumbling classes to prepare for her spring cheerleading tryouts for next year and has an interview to be part of a "link crew" for the school helping freshmen and new students acclimate to the high school. She will continue to lifeguard this summer too at the club she worked at last year. 

Austen, on the other hand, had to get a new job this summer since they are redoing the golf course where he caddied the previous summers. But, he found one at one of the clubs in the area doing golf services (cleaning carts, clubs, etc.). He's excited about being outside and around a golf course and having more hours this summer (with no competitive soccer) to make some money (which he realizes he needs to support his college lifestyle).

I can't believe how quickly this year has gone and that spring is almost here (despite the snow on the ground right now). Soon the kids will be moving on to sophomore year in college, junior year in high school and 7th grade! Trying to enjoy all the moments - even the ones where I get yelled at for not allowing a 16 year old to go to the city of Lollapallooza! 

2nd Place Champs (Hailey back row middle)

Peyton is Such a Princess!

Today, Peyton comes home from school and told me a bird pooped all over her car! I told her that happens to cars. Well, she said, that's soooo embarrassing. 

I told her to go clean it off if it was so bad. "Ew!" she said, "I'm not cleaning that! I already texted Dad to clean it off!" She then said that she's not driving that car (until said poop is cleaned off). 

OMG, what a princess! That's part of owning/driving a car (which she doesn't pay for!). I then told her she could take the bus tomorrow if she didn't want to drive the car/clean the car. 

We'll see what she does. She'll probably convince Tom to clean it. But, she said there's no way she'd be caught dead driving that car with the poop on it! People would post her picture on the "Barstool" - which is a social media site that her school uses to post funny things. 

I guess she'll be taking the bus tomorrow then because I certainly won't be cleaning it (unless she leaves it outside in the rain tonight which would be another good option!).

Hailey Makes Her Confirmation

And that's a wrap! We have successfully ushered three kids through religious education classes receiving many of their sacraments including confirmation. 

Hailey and Papa

It's been a journey through 2 parishes with us changing churches so Austen could make his in 8th grade instead of 10th grade. We returned to the first parish once they hired a new priest (who is fabulous and made you actually want to go to church to listen to his homilies) and after a year there he changed the confirmation age from 10th grade to 6th grade. So Peyton made hers in the 7th grade since that was the year she was in when this change was made. A few years later, Hailey entered 6th grade and her final confirmation class. 

She's the one that is probably my most "religious" but she has complained relentlessly about 6th grade confirmation classes and how utterly boring they are - of course most of her friends are in the Sunday class but they tell her it's the same on Sundays and her teachers are actually nicer. She used to love going to religious education classes but this year it has been hard to convince her to go and they must still go even after confirmation. She says no one goes and especially now since she made her confirmation (even though they are supposed to). In fact, after dropping her off last week, she sent me a text with a picture saying "Thanks a lot Mom, I'm the only girl here!" I did feel bad and promised her that since she has not missed a class since the start of the year, that she can have two free misses - her choice. 

But, she did make her confirmation on a Friday night at the end of February with Papa as her sponsor. (Papa has served as the sponsor for all three of my kids. They all said he's the most religious person they know!) We bought her a white dress (even though they wear red robes over them now), had a nice dinner and ushered off our Madeleine (her confirmation name) to confirm her Catholic faith.  Bishop Spies led the ceremony, which we were initially disappointed about because Father Mark is so good and we wanted to hear from him, but Bishop Spies was absolutely wonderful too. It's such a breath of fresh air to have priests that relate to the kids and the parents. He gave an amazing homily about having a favorite quote from the Bible and being able to recite it and it mean something to you. He shared one that he adopted as his favorite in the 6th grade and it was about friendship (which so many 6th graders could relate to) and yes, that verse could've been talking about your peers who were your friends but he was really taking about allowing Jesus to be your friend. It was a great way to relate to these confirmandi. 

Anyway, Hailey (Madeleine - the patron saint of girls rights and education) was confirmed. We had cake (bundtinis) afterward to celebrate the latest sacrament for Hailey. Now she just has 7 more classes to go until she's totally done with religious education (we'll see if she uses one of her free passes to miss tonight - it's actually confession/reconciliation today but I'm not going to tell her that. After all, she had one year less than Peyton and two years less than Austen where she had to go to religious education classes so I think she's made out just fine). 

Celebrating with Hailey

Papa gave her gifts

Hailey processing in (w/ her friend Bree behind her)

Hailey Confirmed with Sponsor Papa

Peyton Gets Her Braces Off - Finally!

Last Day with Braces!

Last week, the day came after 2 years and 7 months where Peyton finally got her braces off! Every time we'd go for an appointment over the last 7 months, she would get so angry when they would tell her almost there but not quite yet. "Will I ever get these braces off?," she whined. "Do you think it will be before Spring Break?" she asked. Well, it happened. Finally. 

And, while she still has about four more appointments with the dentist to work on her fake tooth and put a veneer on her peg lateral, she is almost there and they are going to look great. In fact, they are already looking great and they aren't even totally done yet. We have about 6-8 weeks to go but she is in the final stretch. 

I'm just looking forward to her actually smiling with some teeth in her pictures now. She refused to really smile with her braces on for shots so she would have these closed lip smiles for the last 2 years and 7 months. 

Your teeth can make all the difference in how you look but also in your confidence too. It certainly has for Peyton.

The Finale!

Beautiful Smile