African Celebration

Shilo had a choir concert last night... an African Celebration.  The middle school and high school combined, and the concert was held in the gym.  My plan was to get there nice and early... I figured it would be pretty crowded.  But yesterday was just not my day.  I had some errands to run, but didn't make it to them all before it was time to pick up the carpool.  Rats.  And then, as I was leaving the store on my way to the school, I dropped my sunglasses and the little logo thingamajig on the side flew off.  I saw it fly, but do you think I could find that little gold thing?  I spent at least 10 minutes (that I didn't have) looking.  It's not like the ground is covered with gold stuff.  Needless to say, I was highly annoyed that I could not spot it, and now will be wearing sunglasses with a little hole on one side.  Just in time for my trip to California.  Several times the thought crossed my mind to go back and look again... after picking up the kids.  But the store is 15 minutes away with good traffic.  I couldn't fit that into my day -- I needed to get to the concert early.

So after driving Mauri to piano lessons, trying to help Britta figure out some cell phone stuff, picking Mauri up from piano (30 minutes can really fly), dropping Shilo off early at the school, then making sure Lex and Mauri grabbed some dinner, it was time to go.  But where was my camera?  (Remember that I couldn't find it before our anniversary overnighter?...)  I had it earlier in the day.  I knew it had to be somewhere in the house.  After 10 frantic minutes of searching -- nothing.  So I grabbed Shilo's camera again, and we headed out the door.  A little late.

When we got to the school, we encountered a line like I have never beheld at any event held at any high school I've been to.  The line wrapped eternally around... we had a difficult time even finding the end.  Finally we got into the gym, and located some seats toward the top left corner.  They ended up pulling out extra chairs to set up along the sides and had some people sit on the floor.  Gymnasium seats are not roomy.  I straddled the poor fellow in front of me while the gentleman behind me kept apologizing for kneeing me.  It got hot.  My toes started falling asleep.

  (The seats actually go up another whole level... so we were sitting somewhere in the middle of the crowd...)

The bright spot in this episode is that I had the good fortune to actually be sitting on the side Shilo was on.  The choir performed some great African songs, and there was even some dancing.  The kids were all given African-style clothes to wear, and a band was there to play the music.  It turned out to be a great concert... despite the very vocal and clappy mom sitting directly behind Bill.  I wanted to get a picture of Shilo in her African shirt before she handed it in after the concert, but we could not find her in the crowd of people milling around (although I swear I saw everyone I knew BUT Shilo).  We finally found her outside of the gym about 20 minutes later.  She had already turned in her costume.  Rats again.  Like I said, not my day for finding things.

Overnighter and Inspiration

Bill and I took a quick overnighter to celebrate our anniversary.  We stayed at the Hotel Teatro in downtown Denver, and ate at  Prima, a restaurant in the hotel.  At dinner, our waiter asked if we were attending the symphony that evening... no, we told him, we had planned a more casual night and were hitting a movie (Alice in Wonderland, anyone?).  Next time, we decided, we'll go for the more refined entertainment (since the entire "theater district" complex -- with plays, musicals, and symphonies -- is right across the street from the hotel).

We had a corner balcony room -- 9 floors up.  The hotel is in a very old building, but the rooms were nice and the bed was super comfy 
(oh, and the waters were complimentary -- how nice).

The kids survived, and even managed to make it to their activities the next day (thanks to oh-so-helpful neighbors).  We slept in, got ready in a leisurely manner, and headed to Lexee's track meet.  The day was lovely, although those track meets are endless.  

Later that night we attended a ward pot-luck dinner... I thought it was an "International Foods Night," but discovered on my arrival that it was actually a "European Foods Night" (I'm in the Nursery every Sunday... I sometimes miss those details).  My enchiladas and guacamole were a little out of place, but gobbled up nonetheless.  Probably because there were a lot more desserts than main dishes.  Pizza was ordered to make up the difference -- but only after all the main dishes were scraped bare.  It made me feel good to have my pot-luck dish devoured (nothing worse than taking home a casserole dish 3/4 full after a hundred people have been by it... and passed it up), but I also realize that had the pizza been there first, I might not have been so lucky.


(A funny side note:  I had maybe slightly overbaked the enchiladas and had decided that it was because I had made them in one of those stone baking dishes, so as we were driving to the dinner I was talking to Shilo about how I needed to add to my Things I've Learned notebook to not bake enchiladas in that particular dish, since it had happened the last time I made enchiladas in it -- like I said, I'm not a quick learner.  Bill looked over and said, "You have a Things I've Burned notebook?"  It made us laugh.)

So now it's a new week... I'm getting ready for our trip, but also feel very inspired by the Clover Lane blog lady, and want to start organizing and purging junk in my house.  I've done a little here and there over the past week... I've organized the CDs, my dining room hutch, and I've condensed my plastic dish drawers from 2 to 1.  I even threw out the Mickey Mouse trays we had saved from Disneyland two years ago.  (I know, I know... I think we are the only people in the world that would bother to save those little trays from the kiddie dinners... but seriously, they last forever... and they can even go in the dishwasher... and they are so cute.  Plus they serve as a pleasant reminder to your children that you did actually take them to Disneyland.)

Here's the organizational issue I ran across this morning:

Bill and I couldn't locate our camera before our overnighter, so we grabbed Shilo's.  When I went to download the pictures today, to my dismay I could not find the connector cord to her camera.  This is the drawer in the desk (really it's our old kitchen table... it only has one drawer... and this is it).  It wasn't in that tangled mess of cords.

So then I looked here:

and then here
(Bill's nightstand drawer... this is his space, he can keep it however he wants):

then here:

and finally found it in here 
(I took this pic AFTER downloading pictures, so imagine it next to that other cord that goes to who-knows-what):

It was in the original bag, with it's original twist-tie... I think the camera is at least 2 years old.  And I have no idea why it was HERE... with the 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens... that only my husband has listened to (although he has encouraged all of our children to listen to it.  None of them have as far as I know).  I was thrilled to find the connector, but have decided that something must be done about all those crazy cords.  I am determined to get rid of the duplicates (I found at least 8 of the same kind), and put them all in one location in a nice orderly fashion.  Wish me luck!

My First Baby Girl

We stayed up all night the eve of our 3rd anniversary... in the hospital...

anxiously awaiting the arrival of our first baby girl.

She finally arrived at 5:27 AM.

A tiny little 6 lbs. 1 oz., she made Taylor look like a giant.

I can't believe she's already 19

(And to think I would occasionally think they couldn't grow up fast enough!)

Ghosts of Birthdays past (from the easily accessible digitals):

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

It's fun to see Britta AND her friends grow up in these pictures.

This is the first year we can't celebrate with her.

I hope she has a cake... or a cupcake... something with candles.

I hope she has friends around her.  She had better take pictures.  And send some to me.

I hope she knows she always has the love of her parents and family.

Happy Birthday, Britta!

All That I'm After...

22 years ago today...

we were just newborns in the world of marriage.  Babies.

We're probably not much more than know-it-all teenagers now

(although I will be the first to admit that I don't know it all... just don't tell Bill that).

I know there's more learning to do... more wisdom to gain... more knowledge to acquire.

But I can't help but smile when I see these pictures, remembering:

the excitement of the morning (which led to excessive gum-chewing on my part)

Bill's oh-so-white tuxedo (I begged him to wear black)

the St. Patty's Day parade going on down the center of Main Street

the fake rose I brought for pictures (WHY???  it's possibly worse than the white tux)

how skinny I was

how dark Bill's hair was

how the photographer kept hitting on my mom

how we didn't eat anything before the reception, and all the refreshments were gone when it was over


how we were so restrained as we fed each other wedding cake

how we hid the car so nobody could decorate it

how we went through a Burger King drive-thru on our way home after the reception

how we spent our first night together in our second floor apartment at 2310 W. Orion Way (apt. J) 

how we borrowed sheets from my parents for our bed (Bill's Christmas present from a few months earlier)

how we had all of our family over the next day to open presents

and how I felt guilty for skipping church that day

...there's definitely more things to smile or chuckle about.  Some that will stay just between Bill and me.

Infants.

And the honeymoon is a whole funny story on it's own.

Some of that stuff will go into my Things I've Learned notebook, so my kids can reap the benefit of all that learning.

The best part is:  I chose wisely.

I have been blessed to have a wonderful husband who is willing to learn and grow right along with me.  

And the VERY best part is:  we can be together forever.  

And I have the faith that we will.

She's Counting Too

All of my kids are looking forward to Spring Break.  
Something about just leaving everything behind and enjoying someone else's life seems appealing.  

Mauri has been especially excited to see her cousin Hannah.  
She has spent several hours talking on the phone to her...reconnecting...making plans.  
Those girls are so cute together.  Here are some of my favorite pictures of them:

Mauri's counting the days until she and Hannah can be together again.  
She'll endure the 16 hour car trip.  One way.  

Let the crafting and giggling and games begin.

Give me a break!

I wasn't going to post anything today... I am just trying to get out the door to mail packages to Taylor, Britta, and my nephew Kade.  Then I started clipping coupons...  And  all the while I have been trying to hurry and get through yesterday's mail (which included mail since Saturday).  Oh, and I had to get all the random checks laying around from babysitting and birthday gifts ready for the bank.  Needless to say, I need to take my own best advice that "to be everywhere is to be nowhere."  While I have been hustling around this morning the TV has been on.  Good Morning America.  Then Inside Edition comes on.  I know, I know... it's certainly NOT news.  But it comes on right after GMA, so occasionally it remains on until I hear something absolutely disgusting or ridiculous, then it either gets turned off, or I switch over to Rachael Ray.  I've asked myself WHY I leave the TV on, when most of the time I'm not even listening.  But that's a thought-provoking and soul-searching question to contemplate another day.  I'm too busy today, can't you tell?

Back to why I am posting anything at all today.  Disappointment.  Disbelief.  Frustration.

As I was flipping through those coupon flyers (which I am not one of those dedicated super couponers -- so I'm not sure if my time is worth the monetary benefit in the end), a story came on that show.  It was about Marie Osmond's son and his sad death.  The reporter talked about how the funeral was held at the TEMPLE near their home in Provo.  Come on, now.  The temple???  I am seriously worried about the news we get in general.  Clearly, the funeral was not at the temple, it was at a church building.  Oh, and then they cut to another reporter who attended the funeral.  At the temple.

This only compounds the frustration I felt when reading an article in the Parade magazine (or one of those type periodicals that come with the Sunday paper...) recently about Glenn Beck.  It said he joined "The Church of Latter-day Saints" because his daughter felt good when she attended.  I've heard the story.  There's a lot more to it than that.  But my BIGGEST frustration is with how reporters, who we trust to bring us an accurate and true portrayal, tweak it to fit their own belief and opinion.  In our own local town paper and in the larger Denver Post I have read about "The Church of Latter-day Saints."  Where is Jesus Christ??  I mean, seriously... they choose to leave the most important part of the name out.  And people don't think we are Christian.

Give me a break.  

(This is the xray of Shilo's break back in 2005... with the pins in her arm.  Makes me cringe just remembering it.)

My husband recently attended a meeting with Elder L. Tom Perry.  Elder Perry shared some really interesting statistics on how The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is viewed in the U.S. as well as world-wide.  I don't have the actual numbers (Bill does... in his meticulous notes), but it was fascinating to hear that there is a fairly large percentage of people that don't know anything about us and our beliefs right here in the USA.  And that some view us as members of a cult.  Maybe the only exposure some have are from those great news-magazine shows about polygamists.  The fundamentalist LDS.  And from the newspaper.  So if those reporters could just give a little more attention to the ever-important details (like the name of Jesus Christ), we could possibly have a head start with sharing the truth about who we are and what we believe.

I guess for now we will just have to open our mouths and do it ourselves.

First Track Meet

Yesterday was Lexee's first high school track meet.  Mine too.

The last time she ran track she was in 8th grade.  

She was good, and made it to the district level in several events.

She wasn't interested in doing track last year.  

Maybe because she didn't have that all-important friend support (a buddy on the team).

Or maybe she was just worn out from the seemingly never-ending cheer season.

But things were different this year... thus, our first high school track meet.

Our high school is new, so there are only freshmen and sophomores on the team

(because we only have freshmen and sophomores in the school).

Even though this qualifies the school to compete on the 3A level, 

these kids are competing against older kids... those juniors and seniors.

As I have watched the various forms of school competitions the past two years,

it is very apparent that there is a big difference in growth, maturity and experience

(that can only come from growth, maturity and experience... can I be any more repetitious today?)

between those "full" schools, and our freshman/sophomore school.

But those kids at LHS have done us proud.  They have performed well and played hard.

So back to the track meet.

Lexee was in the sprint relay -- a 100-100-200-400 

(for those of you who understand track lingo -- I'm learning.  It's actually very similar to swimming I've discovered).

She was running the final 400.  She had competed earlier in another relay where she had to run an 800.

She was tired.  She couldn't breathe.  She didn't feel like she could run that final relay.

I was worried... she thought she might throw up along the way... I know how embarrassing that is

(from experience -- Britta's first cross country meet as a freshman.  She lost it at the finish line).

The race began.  The first 100... then the next... the 200... Legend was in last place.

I worried.  I knew how much Lexee would hate being the last one across the finish line.

The baton hand-off was less than smooth, then Lexee forgot to cut to the inside lane as early as she could have.

But she ran... and ran... and ran...

She passed a runner, then another.  She was soooo close to that first place girl.

The Legend supporters were cheering her name.

She crossed the finish line second, but it was close.

Lexee's coach told her she had set a new school record for a girls 400.
Another proud moment for my mommy memory book.

There were smiles after the meet was over... and the promise of a yummy hamburger lunch.

And random pictures...

The day was beautiful.  

And Lexee's goal of someday making it on the "Wall of Legends" at school may be a little closer.