Circle of Stars - Indianapolis 2011

Who knew that 24 hours in Indy could pack such a punch?  We drove to Indy for a gymnastics meet - our first REAL out of town meet.  Grammie and Pop Pop followed not too far behind.  We arrived and Anna and I went to watch the Level 6s compete.  Andy and Jake stayed back at the hotel with Grammie and Pop Pop figuring out where 20+ of us were going to eat dinner.  After watching the 6s for a while, we headed over to Champp's in the Circle Centre Mall.

Back at the hotel, we all chilled out and went to bed...knowing that we had to be up bright and early (and after losing an hour, it would feel REALLY early)!  Anna and I got up, got her hair done, ate breakfast, and left the hotel with the fabulous Muller family to head over to the meet.

Our girls had a good, if not sometimes rough, meet.  Anna placed on all four events - 8th on vault, 5th on bars, 1st on beam and 5th on floor - 3rd All Around!  Wow!  She did a great job...even got a 9.575 (her highest score ever) on beam.  Jake helped me keep track of the girls' scores and even cheered on his sister in between listening to his iPod and playing games.

After awards, we left Indy and met up with the Helms' for lunch at IHOP in Terre Haute and then home to do lots of laundry and get ready for another week. 

Anna and Andy at Cracker Barrell

Jake (and Zach Bernstein) waiting for dinner

Jake's Favorite Meal - Pancakes!

St. Louis Gym Centre "Meet Me In St. Louis"

Team Central Level 5 had another amazing meet this weekend!  After a relatively long wait, the meet got started.  We started on bars...Anna got a 9.15, then beam...Anna got 9.1, then floor...Anna got 9.2 and lastly vault...Anna got 8.95.  Her all-around was 36.4.

Happy Anniversary!

Beam Warm-Up

We love Jane and Megan!

Awards were exciting...Anna got 4th on vault, 5th on bars and beam, and 1st on floor...3rd all-around.  She was a very happy girl (and I was a pretty ecstatic mommy)!  All together, we had 2 all-around champions (Ella Cat - 11 year olds and Rebecca - 8 year olds) and 8 individual event champions.  Then Team Central Level 5 walked away with the 2nd place team trophy!  WOW!  Now I'm exhausted, and all I did was sit and cheer!

Way to go Team Central!

The Left Coast

Now that the holiday season has come to an end, I can reflect on how lucky I truly am!  Not only do I have great family and friends here in St. Louis, but I can honestly say that my circle encompasses most of the US!

The climbing wall at Mountasia

The Spellers headed off to California just before Christmas for Alana Stolnitz's bat mitzvah.  It felt great to be back in the Santa Clarita Valley and to hang out with some good friends.  Anna got to work out at her old gym and we all got to catch up with our SCV family...even Minnie Bear.  We headed out to Simi Valley on Christmas Eve and enjoyed a beautiful Shabbat service at the Brandeis-Bardin Campus of American Jewish University.  The next day was spent relaxing and enjoying the peaceful surroundings, including a killer walk to The House of the Book.  Andy and I weren't sure whether we would make it to the top.

Ruby and Anna

After naps, lots of "friend-time" and some basketball, we joined the Cohen and Stolnitz families for Alana's big night.  The service was wonderful and Alana did a great job!  After the party, we packed and got to bed relatively early so we could head down to San Diego in the morning.

The House of the Book

Sunday mid-day, we arrived in San Diego and joined the Eisenstein clan to board the ms Oosterdam to the Mexican Riviera.  What a wonderful trip!  We all had rooms with balconies and spent a lot of time just hanging out and relaxing.

 

 

 

Our first two days were at sea and after the initial queasiness of the ship, we all got our sea legs and enjoyed the amenities of the ship.  Jake discovered the basketball court and also learned how to play mahjong with Nanny, Teppy, Andy and Jill.  I think he even won a game.  Andy and Anna both won BINGO and we all ate A LOT!  We spent time in the pool and walking around exploring.

Our first port was Mazatlan...not the most beautiful place, but it was fun to drive around with Teppy, Ted, Jill, Emily, Rachel, Matthew and Nan...

Our second port was Puerta Vallarta.  This time it was just us with Nan and Obie.  We took a van and toured around a bit and then Anna, Andy and I did a Canopy Tour zip line...totally cool!

Anna's Zip Line Landing!

Lastly, we went to Cabo San Lucas, by far the prettiest stop.  Andy, Anna, Jake and I enjoyed an America's Cup Experience.  That evening included a formal dinner for New Year's Eve...then on to a nice start to 2011!

How to clear your ears...

Merry New Year

Bob's Banditos

The Cousins: Andy, Stephanie, Emily & Rachel

Happy Birthday to Jake

Our last full day was at sea was New Year's Day and then back to reality.  We got to have a small celebration in honor of Jake's 12th birthday, since he would end up spending his actual birthday traveling...All in all it was a very relaxing vacation!  Thanks so much to Obie...Happy New Year!