Kaitlynn's New Ride

One of our goals for spring break was to begin test driving vehicles for Kaitlynn. With her 16th birthday approaching, we knew she was going to need a car and we wanted her to get some experience driving a smaller vehicle because she had only been driving Jeff's large Expedition for the full year. We had already decided that the Explorer model was a good car for her and I had been searching for one in good shape with low miles for quite some time. It just so happened that when we were ready to look, there were 2 blue Explorers that met our criteria. I shared the listings with Kaitlynn and coached her on calling the dealerships to set up a test drive appointment. 

When the day arrived, Connor joined us and we set out for our first appointment at a dealership near Sugar Land. I continued coaching Kaitlynn on the things to look for to make sure she was ready for the conversation with the sales associate as well as the test drive. It occurred to me that I had never been in the passenger seat while Kaitlynn drove, so this would be an adventure for both of us, ha! It took us a while to finally see the first Explorer because it was being serviced, but they finally drove it out and it looked super nice. After a quick inspection of the vehicle, it was time for the test drive. Kaitlynn got into the driver's seat, I was in the passenger seat, and Connor and the sales associate were in the back. As Kaitlynn adjusted the seat and mirrors for the test drive, she looked over at me and pointed down at the pedals. In a moment that will live in infamy, she said, "This one's the gas, right?" 

Say what? I stared at her with the blankest look on my face. "Are you being serious?" I asked. She began explaining that they felt different than what she was used to, but the rest of us in the car were incredulous and wondering if she should be doing this test drive after all! Turns out it was just her nervous jitters and she managed the test drive just fine, though not without some serious anti-anxiety measured breathing on my part. 

We liked the car and thought it was a decent option for Kaitlynn. The sales guy tried to have a negotiation discussion with us, but we had another car to test drive across town. So we headed toward the next dealership and laughed off Kaitlynn's test drive debacle the entire drive there. The next vehicle was even nicer than the first, and it was for sale at the beautiful Sewell dealership in West Houston. When they brought the Explorer over, we were all taken aback at how nice it was, and it only had 20k miles which made it feel and look brand new. After a quick test drive, we all agreed that we loved it. I made a quick call to Jeff who was on his way home from a golf outing. Before we knew it, Jeff arrived and agreed the vehicle was a great fit due to the condition and low miles, if not for the budget (ha). After a quick handshake and some paperwork, the deal was done!

It took us a couple days for the dealership to get the car fully serviced, but when it was time to pick up Kaitlynn's new car, they rolled it into their delivery area with a fresh bouquet of flowers and a huge red bow. Talk about incredible service! Kaitlynn was beyond excited and happy, and it all still felt a bit surreal at how smooth the process had gone and what a great vehicle she was getting. Check out her new ride - awesome!

The funny thing about Kaitlynn's new car is that it's like the mini version of my own Expedition. Parked side by side, they looked like mama and baby. How cute (and how fitting)!!

Spring Break

We didn't have any formal plans for Spring Break this year, but we were happy to have Connor home for the week to relax and spend some family time together. A few months prior, we were excited for Collin when he bought a new house in Corpus Christi, so we decided to take a quick trip to visit him and see the house and help with some projects. Connor's contribution included a complex math formula on his built-in chalk board, ha! While we were in town, Collin took us for a visit to his workplace where his role is a Tech on the massive wind turbines in the area. It was so cool to see where he spends his days and see the turbines up close and personal. So proud of everything he continues to accomplish!

Kaitlynn was able to spend some time with friends during her spring break, which is always long anticipated and much needed downtime at this point in the school year. I was happy to chauffer the girls around and also snuck in some quality time with Connor.

NCA 2025

If it feels like all the family stories posted recently are cheer competitions, that just illustrates how ALL consuming competitive cheer can be for families during competition season! Yes, our spring is almost entirely focused on cheer and everything that comes with it. And the culmination of the spring cheer season is what I commonly refer to as the Super Bowl of all-star cheer: NCA! The National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) competition is held the last weekend of February every year in Dallas, and it is widely considered the most well known and highly sought after title in the cheer world. What was unique about this year's NCA is that it would be the last time hosted in Dallas for the foreseeable future due to many years of planned renovation for the Kay Bailey Hutchinson convention center. So, the 2025 NCA competition was one that was destined to be memorable; however, as it turned out, this season would live on in infamy. (Yes, that is foreshadowing!)

Leading up to NCA weekend, Woodlands Elite and the Spartans team hosted many theme nights at practice to get the girls excited and ready for competition. Kaitlynn looked the part and was so ready for the weekend of competition. The Spartans looked STRONG and ready to compete!

We drove up to Dallas a little early to kick off NCA weekend, and we were delighted to arrive early enough to cheer on Kaitlynn's former team, the Nighthawks. They looked amazing and we were already feeling the excitement in the air for the full weekend ahead. The weather was gorgeous and we soaked in all the special moments with Jeff joining us for his first NCA experience.

The next morning, Jeff headed out to pick us up some breakfast while Kaitlynn began getting ready. It was a happy accident that we discovered The Biscuit Bar because it was within walking distance of our downtown hotel, and those breakfast biscuits were AMAZING!! It was the perfect fuel for Kaitlynn's competition day, and we were soon on our way to the convention center for warm-ups.

The Spartans had an amazing Day 1 performance and were all smiles after smashing their routine. We were feeling so optimistic about their chances!

After their Day 1 performance, we were hanging around the convention center to shop and watch other teams that were performing in the various halls. We walked through the Fabletics booth and got separated from Jeff, so I texted him that we were going to walk toward the Omni hotel to check out their snack options. We didn't see anything we needed at the Omni snack bar, so we began walking toward the back Hall A exit down the escalators to the ground floor so that we could meet back up with Jeff who was sitting outside in between the Omni and Hall A. Right around the time we reached the ground floor and approached the exit, my phone went off. It was a text message in our Spartans Parents group chat, and in all caps it said, "ACTIVE SHOOTER."

I froze. We were 20 feet from the exit which was a full wall of glass doors, but I stopped in the middle of the walkway to process what I had just read. I must have muttered, "Oh my gosh" or something like that. Kaitlynn stopped right beside me, asking what was wrong. I showed her the text message, and her eyes went as wide as saucers as we looked at each other trying to process. In that exact moment, dozens of cheerleaders, parents, and spectators began charging through the wall of glass doors, running as fast as they could. They were coming from the outside area in hoards, trying to get IN as we were just about to go OUT. We were still frozen in place as we watched the crowd of people running past with sheer panic towards Hall A, deeper into the building away from the wall of glass doors. At this point, my phone was vibrating over and over as more messages were coming in with various parents chiming in about the situation. Kaitlynn observed several of the fleeing cheerleaders run into a nearby team warm-up room, and she grabbed my hand and said, "Mom, in here!" We rushed over and followed a group of cheerleaders and parents into the warm-up room and all crowded into the back corner. There were coaches at the entrance of the room ushering everyone inside and telling us all to get low and huddle together. As we found our spots in the corner of the room and crouched low in a huge group of cheerleaders, I was very calm but still in a state of confusion and disbelief. The cheerleaders around us were panicked and crying, and Kaitlynn was starting to pick up on their emotions and began panicking as well. I assured Kaitlynn and everyone around us to remain calm and breathe, and I began catching up on the countless text messages I had received from the past few minutes with Jeff, parents, and friends all checking in and sharing their location. The word had spread -- everyone in our parent and friend groups across the entire convention center area was messaging with some variation of the news, and it seemed confirmed that people were hearing gunshots and hiding in various locations. The coaches in the room barred the doors closed and we continued to huddle and wait. At one point, I began praying with Kaitlynn and the girls around us in an attempt to calm everyone down. It was clear that mass confusion and chaos was in progress, and I honestly didn't know what to believe. Kaitlynn and I tried to keep a cool head and snapped this photo as we sat on the floor in a roomful of cheerleaders and parents awaiting any updates.

After a few minutes, there were some coaches and event officials that gave us the all clear to exit the room. There were probably 100 or more of us that began to leave the room and walk toward a rear exit to the street level of the convention center between Hall A and B. Everyone was calm but confused as we nearly reached the main street, but suddenly, we heard a single pop. No one immediately reacted to the pop, but Kaitlynn and I looked at each other and she asked, "What was that?" It was around that time that everyone in front of us did an about-face and began running BACK towards us to reach the door that we had just exited from. They were all screaming and panicked all over again, and we weren't sure if it was from the pop we heard or something else. We ran back with the crowd back to the room where we had previously sheltered, but this time we huddled and packed ourselves tight like sardines inside a large closet in the room. Panic ensued, and everyone was crying in fear. My phone was still blowing up with text messages from Jeff trying to reach us and tons of fellow parents giving their location and experience in the moment. I was more confused than anything else, but I did what I could to calm Kaitlynn and all the cheerleaders in the packed closet. I have no idea how much time passed, but we were eventually given an "all clear" by some officials in the room. We slowly made our way out of the warm-up room for the second time, but this time we were escorted out by police in full tactical gear with automatic weapons guarding the room. I turned my head to survey the Hall as we filed out, and the police force was everywhere, creating quite the somber mood as we attempted our exit again. 

We made it outside, past the convention center, and immediately met up with Jeff. He was just as confused as everyone else but thankful we were finally reunited amidst the chaos. At this point, we were getting messages that the rest of the day's events were cancelled and everyone needed to evacuate the convention center. The area was swarming with police, fire and rescue, and every other agency in the city as they addressed the incident. We began to walk toward our hotel and devoured the news and updates from our phone as we tried to process and understand what in the world had happened. Had there actually been an active shooter? Little did we know that we would likely not get any straight answers for hours and even days to come. 

Despite what countless eye witnesses described of hearing shots, officials (much) later described the event as a parent fight that started in the Omni hotel - the area where Kaitlynn and I had just walked through right before the incident - with "poles" that fell, mimicking the sound of gunshots and triggering a mass panic event that spread through the Halls. It was a wild story, and there's not a single parent I know that understands or believes this official account, especially those of us that heard the pops and witnessed the panic as far away as the convention center Arena. Regardless of what actually happened, the experience was profoundly terrifying for so many parents and cheerleaders. NCA 2025, the last one to be held in Dallas for the foreseeable future, became a traumatic event that wouldn't easily be shaken or forgotten. 

Due to the fallout from the incident, NCA officials had to completely reformat the competition, offering teams various options for completing their weekend performances. The Spartans were happy to have the chance to compete on Day 2, despite the residual fear that many attendees were feeling when they returned to the convention center that morning. We all put on brave faces but the talk of the day for every single person was, "What in the world happened yesterday?!" We still felt so much confusion, but we were all trying to shake it off and soak in the moments of the last Dallas NCA.

The girls performed a beautiful routine, but in the end, it just wasn't enough to secure the win. Kaitlynn and her team were devastated. What an insane and disappointing weekend! One we will never forget.

Spirit Sports Grand Nationals in Palm Springs

Woodlands Elite gyms added a brand new competition to their 2025 schedule, Spirit Sports Grand Nationals in Palm Springs, CA. Kaitlynn and I were so excited to visit this venue and check out the area during our stay. We stayed at a super cute boutique hotel, decorated with a vintage feel but with all the class and modern amenities you'd expect in the posh Palm Springs town. The weather was absolutely perfect - no wonder folks love living out in CA! We were within walking distance of the convention center and soaked in the cool nights, warm and sunny days, and a beautiful backdrop of palm trees and mountains. Gorgeous!

The one thing we noticed right away in the city of Palm Springs, as well as the convention center venue, is that the mobile/cellular service was TERRIBLE! The only place we could get good cell service was in our hotel on the WiFi; everywhere else all around town was spotty and frustrating. Only a town as pretty and charming as Palm Springs could get away with that. We truly enjoyed walking around and enjoying the sights and the gorgeous California weather.

We really enjoyed this competition, too, although the venue was incredibly crowded and a bit claustrophobic at times. Because of the beautiful weather, teams were able to practice outside and they even hosted the Awards ceremonies outside as well. We just couldn't get enough of the beauty around us, which was a good thing because the competition scoring for the Spartans ended up in a disappointing 2nd place by the slimmest of margins - 0.1 points. Ouch, so tough!

As disappointing as the outcome was, we still loved the competition and hoped to be back again another season. Even the airport at Palm Springs felt special and unique; we loved checking out the sunrise from the tarmac when it was time to return home.

If nothing else, we left Palm Springs with amazing memories and awesome professional photos of Kaitlynn's performance on the mat. Love these!