Teacher Appreciation Day

Teacher Appreciation Day was on a day that I was away on our graduation road trip....well, one teacher in one of the classes had her students write one letter to any teacher in the school that they appreciated most. Isn't that cute?

Well, today was my first day back and the class and teacher came out and told me about how the assignment, and 6 kids chose me as the teacher they appreciated most! I couldn't believe it!...I was shocked and very touched!

Here are what the letters said.

Dear Mrs Avrick,

You are the coolest and best P.E. teacher ever! You have taught me a lot about physical education. I have learned a lot about the games we play. I have learned a lot about football and tag games. You have made me feel confident. I feel excited during P.E. You are nice, and kind to everyone. I appreciate what you do! You have made P.E. awesome and fun! You have made it cool by doing fun games and sports. You rock, Mrs. Avrick!

Your student,
Paul

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Dear Mrs. Avrick,

You're my first and best P.E. teacher because you are so active, nice and cool! You always make us have the most fit bodies ever. You always teach us new games and give us new challenges.

Love, Jorge

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Dear Mrs. Avrick,

I'm writing this to you because you're the nicest P.E. teacher. You really care about us, you are fun and you always know what to do. You are always in a good mood for P.E. and so am I. You always tells us we were the best class and that makes me very happy. I wish you would never leave Capri. You are my favorite P.E. teacher ever.

Your student,
Yamlak

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Dear Mrs. Avrick,

Thank you for P.E., also known as physical education. It is so fun playing the games, and my favorite game is boys against girls. I do get in trouble a lot, but it is just because i want to play the game. I memorized some of the games, I think. Well, when you get back I hope we play it again.

Your student,
Justin

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Dear Mrs. Avrick,

Thank you for letting us do P.E. I got more flexible than usual. I really like it when you let us do flagtag and other fun stuff. And that you again for letting us do fun stuff in P.E.

Your student,
Reo

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Dear Mrs. Avrick,

You're my favorite P.E. teacher! I have a lot of fun with you. You're nice, and fun, and energetic. I love it when we do the drawing each week. It's fair and square and everybody's happy. I'll never have another teacher like you again.

Your student,
Andrew

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Aren't those letters the cutest?? They are just too sweet and I will seriously cherish them forever!

Surprise Party

From the beginning of our road trip Aaron and I knew that the day we came home, my sister would be celebrating her 23rd birthday at my parents house....so we got home a little early, and as I am pulling up to the house, my sister calls and asks me what kind of beer I want for her party...I tell her and then say, we are home, but you guys aren't! She says, Oh,...well surprise! I noticed some balloons on the mailbox and I thought they put them there for me...so sweet!! So I say thanks, and then we hang up.

I walk inside...my dad is home....then I see balloons everywhere..not just birthday balloons, but congratulations graduate balloons!! And when I went out side there was a banner that said, Congrats Heather and Aaron! And my dad says, "surprise!" LoL!...we were supposed to get home a bit later and everyone was going to be there to surprise us, but oh well...I was still VERY surprised!! So we had a combination birthday and graduation party!!

Now this was no regular party!..My family had a ping pong table out, a fooz ball table, a beer pong table and they rented a black jack and craps table and hired dealers to come out and deal to all the guests!! It was freaking AWESOME!!!

Here is the set-up
The Craps Table
The Black Jack Table
The Balloons and party glasses...
Our Banner...I was SO surprised!
The Snack table that later turned into the beer pong table
Kelly's Happy Birthday Banner
Part of the backyard....where all the games were.

OK...now it is time for some party pictures!
Jennifer and Tony....ALL smiles!
Jaime, Stephanie, Kelly, Baby Christian and Tucker
People playing black jack
People playing craps
Funny story about this picture....I got this in Vegas....I tapped Libby on the shoulder and was like, "watch this" (my mom was near by)....I said, "I got a tattoo in Vegas"....my mom looked over at me like a deer in headlights....she said, no you didn't!! And I said, yes I did....took off my sandal....She was like OMG...Don't tell your dad!! And if you do, wait until after the party!! LoL! Then I laughed so hard because she totally thought it was real...it is just Henna. So I figure I will pull the same trick on my dad....I go up to him and tell him, "dad, you can't get mad...I am 25 and I am old enough to make my own decisions..blah, blah, blah....I say, "I got a tattoo"...I show him like I did my mom and he looked shocked! He kept saying, "how stupid"...LoL! He was definitely not a happy camper...LoL...I told him it was Henna and he was much happier....it was great!
Kalista....she was waving to Jennifer
Kalista and Baby Jennifer
Too freaking adorable!!
Her eyes are just to die for!
Jennifer loves the beer cup!
Cupcake time!! Check out JC's cheek!!...Kelly smashed a cupcake in his face!

Now as the night wore on, people got a little more intoxicated (of course!)....
I missed Harley so much!!! So glad to be home and to be able to snuggle with her!
Kelly and Brandi
Aaron is sauced....
Being Silly...it's what we do...
me and my dad
Playing Beer Pong
Kelly and JC
me and my drunk sister....
Me and my cousin, Trevor
Kelly and JC's Mom....Kelly is SO hammered!
More silliness with my sister
Kelly and Audy (Beer pong partners)
My mom and JC's mom playing Beer Pong...LoL! I freaking Love my mom!
Kelly and Tucker....Kelly always ends up on the ground with the dogs after she has been drinking...LoL
And Again.....
After everyone left (just about everyone) Kelly asked if we could help her do a keg stand...LoL! She had never done one before...
And here is Kelly at the end of the night....it is the way she ends parties...LoL! Hey...but she made it WAY past 6:30 this time!

The party was freaking awesome....we can't wait to have a party like that again....not for any reason, but just because it was so bad ass!

Last Road Trip Stop

It only seemed fitting that we ended our road trip in Santa Ana....why Santa Ana? Well, in Santa Ana, there is a studio that frames important documents like diplomas....So we brought in our diplomas, tassels and honors cords and had them framed!!

We should be getting them next Monday! WOOHOO! I am so excited to see it....It is weird...I thought when we graduated college it would be like OK, cool....I did it...but now that I have...I have to say, at the graduation ceremony, I was really happy and proud. I really didn't think I would have that great sense of accomplishment and sense of pride, but I did and it felt great!

Our road trip has come to an end, but our lives and adventures will continue to move forward. We are college graduates, and I know that the world has so much for us and we can't wait to explore it...together.

Sea World in San Diego

Our last stop in San Diego was Sea World...I was really excited to do this because I couldn't wait to see the Dolphin show....I absolutely LOVE dolphins!

The shows were great and San Diego Sea World is a million times cooler than Marine World in Vallejo!...I have to tell you...I have always thought it would be really cool to be a dolphin trainer and after seeing these shows it just makes me want to do it even more!....but I don't want to have to get another degree in Marine Biology...LoL!
At the Dolphin Show!
Shamu Show!
Inside a Polar Bear Den...It was HUGE!
Shark Mouth....WoW!

A short video of the Dolphin Show

A VERY short Shamu video

San Diego Zoo

The San Diego Zoo was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! The best zoo I have ever been to! They had so many animals and many animals that I had never seen before...the feel of the zoo was great...green was everywhere!

This is Clyde...he is a VERY large and pretty old orangutan. He was SO cute...it was awesome seeing him...he was right next to the glass and he was looking at me and eating....it was crazy looking at his hand...they looked like huge black rubber gloves! It totally reminded me of the OJ Simpson glove....LoL!
The Panda Bear....SOOOO cute!! It was the very first time I have ever seen a Panda Bear in real life!
A Sun Bear....this very Sun Bear was born on our wedding day, 9/23/06!
Hung like a Zebra....LoL!
Having fun at the Zoo

With a Scarlet Macaw

A Baby Gorilla

Gaslamp Quarter in San Diego

After visiting the San Diego Wild Animal Park we headed down to the Gaslamp Quarter in San Diego (basically downtown).

We ate at a swanky little chinese restaurant called Blue Ginger..It was pretty yummy but it didn't hold a candle to Mandarin Gourmet!

But wait! After Chinese we went to Yogo-Tango...a frozen yogurt place....but this was no ordinary frozen yogurt place...it was the BEST frozen yogurt I have ever had!! First, the fro-yo was delicious....but the best part was the toppings! They had fresh, very fresh, yummy fruit...they had strawberries, kiwi, mango, pineapple, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries!! They also had all the other traditional toppings...you put the toppings on yourself (55 cents per ounce)!

It was honestly the best dessert I have EVER had....not just fro-yo....but dessert..EVER!

YOGO-TANGO WEBSITE

San Diego Wild Animal Park

The San Diego Wild Animal Park was really cool...I think my favorite part was the petting zoo. Usually there is just goats and donkeys but this one had gazelles and other animals I have never seen in the children's petting zoo! It was awesome...and comforting!....Quick story...one time when Aaron and I were at the San Francisco Zoo and I had some food pellets to feed the goats....I gave this one goat some food and then went to feed other goats and the goat I just fed nudged me in the side a little bit to get my attention to feed him some more....So I gave him a little more...He nudged me again and again..and when I didn't give it to him (because I wanted to feed other goats), he rammed his head an,d little horns into me...it scared the crap out of me and hurt a little (scared more than hurt) and I threw the food down at him...and yes I cried a little. LoL! (I was probably 23!)....I haven't been a fan of petting zoo's since...but this one turned it around for me!

On the tram...the tram takes you through part of the park so that you can see the wild animals.
They had baby elephants....which Aaron and I continually called bebe l'elephants (French)
My favorite guy in the petting zoo..a gazelle....he was missing one eye.
Also in the petting zoo...I am not too sure what this guy is...