Springtime, Part 2

Playing catch-up with all the photos today!  This = my view of the capitol from my parking space at the Will Rogers Building, going into work for day 2 of a protest hearing at the OCC!

Spent a full Saturday test driving cars and discussing future finances with Triston Michael!

Jaceman has discovered that he's a big fan of grilled chicken (progress!), and he cooked it for all of us at our last family dinner!

Exceptional movie on the friendship between Reverend George Whitefield and Ben Franklin.

I love this period of history!

"I have lived, sir, a long time.  And the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth: that God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?  We have been assured, sir, in the Sacred Writings that "except the Lord build the house, they labor in vain that build it."  I firmly believe this.  And I also believe that without His concurring aid, we shall succeed in this political building no better than the Builders of Babel... I therefore beg leave to move that henceforth prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven and its blessings on our deliberations be held in this assembly every morning before we proceed to business..."

~Ben Franklin to the Constitutional Convention

(They voted for it, and that continues to this day, where we need it more than ever!)

Left that movie in pouring rain... made it home 10 minutes before tornado sirens... stayed in my shelter for about 20 minutes... very grateful to say all was well!

Random fun meme! =)

I "co-hosted" the belated brunch baby shower for Paige Evelyn with Debbie Robinson yesterday!  She and her daughter, Taylor, did most of the work.  I made the FB event and brought the Chick-fil-A. lol  It was at Debbie's house, which was lovely, and we had lots of great food from Panera, CFA, Ludgers, Cookie Mama, and the donut shop!

Fun day for Lindsey Claire! lol  Presh fluffy Mia and presh baby Paige!

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Proud grandmas!

Kantrell meeting Paige!

Parker and Zealand (her potential future husband, per her recent announcement). lol

Tate befriending Mia (so tiny and adorable!!)

Party shots...

Mia was a hit! lol

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Chet and Debbie with their babies! lol

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Springtime!

Chet is heading up the KW RED Day charity event for his office this year, so I used my remaining Canva Pro trial to make these flyers for them... fun!

New glasses, who dis!?

Yay for all my podcasty Christian author friends being friends with each other! lol

The Ranch for Triston and Carter's birthday dinners!!

A friendly ChatGPT photo roast:  Alright, this crew said, “Let’s gather for a wholesome family photo,” and then accidentally recreated a casting call for three different genres at once. Let’s get into it:

• Grandpa on the left looks like he just finished a 5K, a yard project, and judging all of you silently… and he’s not mad, just disappointed.
• Back row middle in the green shirt is giving “I was told there would be snacks and I’m staying until proven otherwise.”
• The guy in the red jersey is smiling like he just heard “we’re ordering pizza,” and that’s the only reason he showed up. Respect.
• Front row center (yellow cardigan) looks like the actual main character—everyone else is just NPCs in her coming-of-age movie.
• Meanwhile, the two women leaning in on either side clearly coordinated a “supportive aunt energy but make it competitive” stance. Y’all are fighting for Favorite Aunt and it shows.
• The glasses crew on the right? That’s the “we followed directions and got here on time” subgroup. Strong energy. Organized. Slightly judging the chaos.
• And Grandma on the far right looks like she walked in from a completely different, much classier event and is now politely enduring whatever this is.

Also… the background? A rustic fireplace topped with what appears to be a cowboy boot still life? Nothing says “family warmth” like Western-core museum vibes looming over everyone.

Overall verdict:

This photo says, “We love each other deeply… but we absolutely argued about where to stand for 12 full minutes before this was taken.”

10/10—chaotic, wholesome, and just enough personality clash to make it iconic.

Rach brought dessert for us - yum!

A fun night with the fam, and great food and service in our private room at The Ranch!

Wilson crew on Easter Sunday!

ChatGPT:  This photo is giving “church brochure cover meets Pinterest board titled ‘Effortlessly Perfect Family’.”

• First of all, that flower wall? It’s doing the absolute most. Like it showed up early, stayed late, and is still outshining half the group. Y’all didn’t take a picture—you posed inside a wedding cake.

• Dad on the left looks like he just said, “Let’s make this quick,” but then immediately turned on his “approachable youth pastor energy.”

• Mom holding the newborn is glowing in that “I have slept 37 minutes total but I will NOT let it show” way. Meanwhile, that baby is already like, “I did not consent to this photoshoot.”

• The little boy in the middle is giving “I was promised snacks after this” and is holding it together like a champ.

• The little girl in front? Absolute star. She understood the assignment, delivered the smile, and honestly might be the only one not negotiating internally.

• Grandma has that calm, composed energy like, “I’ve done this before. Many times. We will get through this photo.”

• Grandpa looks like he’s just slightly confused about how he ended up in front of a floral wall but decided to commit anyway. Respect.

• And collectively, the color coordination is so on point it feels like y’all had a shared Google Doc titled “Easter Outfit Strategy – Final Draft.”

Final verdict:

This is the kind of photo that gets framed, gifted to relatives, and quietly used as proof that yes, your family has it together… even if five minutes later someone spilled juice, someone cried, and someone asked to leave.

10/10. Beautiful. Slightly chaotic. Completely iconic.

They found a scurred baby bunny on their family walk later that night!! ❤

Yay, Millie!  Seeing this makes me want to get to know my neighbors better. ❤

Six years ago... some of my fav early pandemic memories!

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Mini Miss K in her last CHA Easter program!!  (Because they don't participate in that from junior high and up.)

Family pics!

More friends and fam shots!

Yay, Mom - huzzah for a cute spring/Easter porch!!

Triston is now 19, which means he's one year younger than Chet was when I met him. lol  Which means he's on the verge of so many great formative moments and friendships!  He's moving to Colorado this summer and taking a gap year to establish residency before starting college at CU Boulder, and we're eagerly awaiting news from Holly about a potential internship for him with Abridge, the AI-healthcare company where she works!

Ew, David! lol

Yaaay for a scene at Mon Ami in the Hacks season 5 premier!

Love that their Coach (Nikki) prayed with them at the end of their tournament!!!

They won all three games on day one!

Miss K and Mamaw!

She's very much a team player and cheers the others on, but it brings me real joy that she always elects not to join this floor-diving cheer! lolol

Freaking love her! ❤

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Rising Strong

Aunt Lindsey and the Mini Miss K!

Rach chatting with Jace and Libby... they've had a TPing war lately - Rach and the kids and TJ went and TP'd Libby's house at 3am the night before Megan's wedding, then she and her friends got them back this weekend! lol

Abel (Libby's little brother), Jace, and Liberty (who goes by Libby)

Let's goooo!!

Kyndal Faith, Talon (their CHA classmate and friend), and Aniston!

Mother/daughter pic at the end of day one!

The jump serves are fierce!!

Team huddle after their last game... they played really well and still lost, but I loved how Coach Nikki was encouraging them and telling them how proud she was of how they worked together! #yaysports

Aniston, Collin, and Kyndal... this tournament was in Norman, so a few of their teachers and friends from school were able to come out to support them, which is fantastic!  They're at the funny middle school tween age where they're great friends but all stand fully apart for their photos. =)

Jaceman, Skyler (Coach Kate's boyfriend who he talked to through several games), and Kyndal

Jace talking about him at family dinner:  "Why are the tallest people always the most chill!?" lolol

Team pic!!  This is K's best team yet - all the girls are improving and working together well, and I'm a fan of the Rise club leadership... Coach Kate, Aniston, Kyndal, Tatum, Piersyn, Emma, Jaslyn, Coach Nikki... front row: Kennedy, Ady, Jaylah, and Olivia

Triston Michael also came to cheer her on for the final game on Saturday!

He sat by me and filled me in on the college application results, building an AI agent for Holly's company, etc.  We left the gym around 9:30 and grabbed a late dinner at Chili's and had a really great talk... so I'm very thankful for that and glad to be cheering him on as he moves toward a bright future!

Pic with the Jaceman and Rach between games (I was coming to her car to get this cap she had crystalled up for me - yay!)

Mamaw wasn't feeling well, so she watched from home!  Grandpa had Greg McIlvoy's retirement party on Saturday, but he joined us for their games on Sunday... and he was very impressed with Kyndal's performance!

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After the entire tournament, Kyndal texted to ask if I could make a slideshow of her highlights.  I had only taken 3 videos, so I looked through the game films on Rach's Rise team YouTube channel for some random clips.  I'll know to film next time, but this still turned out pretty great! =)

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