Closing Up, but More Later

Thank you again to everyone who helped make this trip possible.

I have more photos to post and I will after we get back to Houston probably. We have to drive, as we pulled a U-Haul all the way up to Michigan with the team's props. Paul's exhausted, so we may take it easy and make it a three-day drive. That said, we're feeling antsy to get home again.

Several of our team members have left for the airport already; another is on his way to Chicago for a family vacation. Others will be leaving in the next few hours. Once they're all departed, we'll check out of the dorms and be on our way.

This was such an amazing and terrific experience. Our kids learned so much in so many ways--about engineering and prop design of course--but also about kids from all around the globe. Last night, there were winners from China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Poland and a vast collection of states. One Texas team finished second and that was the highest placing Texas team.

We honestly never thought they'd get this far--this is a rookie team (with a couple of experienced members), competing against much more experienced and older kids. The lessons of teamwork, perseverance and on-the-spot problem solving are such valuable life lessons and our kids have learned them to the fullest!

We are looking forward to taking a few months off from Odyssey of the Mind and hopefully making our garage a home for our car again rather than OotM props. Most, if not all, of our team mates want to return to the team. So, we'll gear up again when school starts.

One other note, our buddy team finished 4th. The winning team in their division was from China and their structure held an amazing 1085 pounds!

Thank you all again for your love and support. Check back in a few days for some more photos.