Our last summer hurrah was to Dallas for Cale's annual reward trip. He had the best attrition results (student retention which means more earnings for his school) for his division and has been invited to Parthenon three out of four years. This is unheard of so obviously we were very proud of him. The past two years we have gone just the two of us but this year we were able to bring the kids since my parents live in Texas and were able to spend time with their grandchildren while we went to the less-than-kid-friendly events. Plus his company transports everyone so we didn't even need to rent a vehicle.
It took quite a lot of planning to get four kids on a plane in Denver at 8:00 am. We ripped the kids out of bed at 3:30 am so we could make it in time. They had a change of clothes packed in their backpack, we did hair and brushed teeth in the airport bathroom. That's how we roll.
Phew! We made it.
Upon arrival, we had the pleasure of spending a little time with Cale's cousin, Nicole. Her and her kids met us at our hotel and we were able to catch up and visit a bit with them. Made us even more excited about the family reunion coming up next year!
The first evening was almost too good to be true. His company had rented out the new Cowboy's stadium. For someone who has been a loyal fan of the NFL since boyhood (even to the point of wiring himself during church as a teenager so he could listen to the games), this was a very. big. deal. Probably up there with marrying me and the birth of his four children. Most likely higher on the list, he just won't openly admit it. We came in through the player's field entrance.
Roger Staubach (NFL Hall of Famer, Cowboy's quarterback) came to introduce the evening.
First picture of the night
We were able to eat right there on the blue turf (and I won't mention the yummy food).
They had different stations set up to punt, throw, and catch into the end zone. Cale said he felt the urge to tackle someone so he and Kempton played catch and tackle for most of the time.
Kempton wanted me to take a picture of his toughguy football pose.
Buddies
We had the time of our life!
And got home to a nice gift full of snacks.
The next day Gran and Grandpa joined us. We spent the day at the resorts water park.
Kempton was being tugged away in the lazy river.
Didn't mean to focus on the girl in the bikini.
Sleeping beauty baby
Relaxation at its finest
That night was the awards banquet
We came back to this sweetness
A big thank you to Gran and Grandpa for having so much fun with our kids so that we could have so much fun with each other!
The last night was the paaar-taaay, and boy do they always outdo themselves. We danced the night away to the outstanding band and mingled and networked with work friends. Where is Cale's tux you may ask? We left his black pants at home, didn't discover this until right before the event, so he stuck out like a sore thumb but OWNED it.
disclaimer: We don't really look like this. This is what we call a fake tan, fake eyelash, too much makeup, nice suit, and an unusually good angle.
We were so happy we brought the kids this time, it was the best time ever. The perfect way to end the summer. We arrived home just in time for school to begin the next day!
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