Week in Pictures

We had quite a few things going on this week so here are some highlights:

Jared had "Pioneer Day" at school. I'm not exactly sure what he did; all I can get out of him is that they dipped candles.

Kaitlin had her final choir concert. Kaitlin is the white blurry spot with the black dress.

Jared went "camping" in the living room. He slept in the tent all weekend. Chuck taught him how to split wood and he built a fire, all on his own, in the fire pit and cooked hotdogs.

My niece, Amy, came home from her mission to Sweden and we went to her homecoming. She had some amazing stories to share about her 18 months there.

On Memorial Day we went to a fun center and played mini-golf, laser tag, and Jared and I both gave the climbing wall a try. Jared made it to the top, I only made it about 1/3.

On Saturday Chuck bought Jared a box of random Legos for $10.  When we got into it to look at it we realized it had 11 Harry Potter men and some very specific pieces. With a little research and all of Saturday, we put together five different Harry Potter Lego sets. They arn't complete, but they are close.  It also came with the Mega Bloks pirate island and 8 or 9 different pirates as well. Not bad for ten bucks and a fun puzzle for us.

Kaitlin is working hard at learning all the dances for Footloose. The show opens in 2 weeks on June 14th. Kaitlin's in the center in the aqua.

Happy Birthday Me

So this was my big birthday week.  The big four oh that's been staring me in the face for awhile.  My oldest sister warned me that her body started to fall apart at 40.  While I've noticed a few nagging things lately, for the most part I think I'm doing pretty good so far. In hind sight, I'm glad that I started exercising regularly seven years ago.  Now I hate to go more than a few days without running or something.  That can only help with the aging process, right?   Then there is the psychological aspects of entering middle age, but that has not been nearly as bad as the shock it was when all my kids started school;  I already weathered that crisis. 

Chuck decorated the house, bought balloons, and brought home pizza.   I spent the morning dealing with a crisis with one of the kids that left me emotionally spent. In the afternoon I took the scooter out for a spin to clear my head; it was a beautiful day. I then dropped the scooter (my own stupidness) (don't worry, I'm fine).  And then my neighbor came over and we visited for awhile. She didn't know it, but that little visit was a tender mercy to me (Thanks Julia!). The evening of my birthday found me at four hours of Footloose rehearsal.  That was fun. I do enjoy working on the show and I'm getting to know all the new people.  The next day some ladies from church took me out to lunch, which was great! And I have another lunch date with friends coming up this next week.  So, life is good. It's okay if my birthday was just hit and miss.

Other Stuff

Six weeks and the Nauvoo beard has come in nicely. I like it, but Chuck says he'll shave it when Nauvoo is over.

Ruth's end of the year choir concert was this week.  They had problems with the lights so the kids sang in the dark on the stage while the parents sat in the audience in the light.  If you remember Ruth's choir is huge! She is looking forward to Concert Choir next year.

It's been a year since we painted over our family scripture that was on the wall of the kitchen. This week I got vinyl letters done and put up (I had hand painted the original one).  We think it looks good. The reference is Proverbs 3: 5&6.

Endurocross 

Not your normal splash zone.

For the 2nd year in a row we put our red-neck on and went to the Endurocross put on by our city.  They take a week and totally rip up our rodeo grounds and build an awesome motorcycle track with jumps, water, rocks, tires, and all sorts of other obstacles.  Then they let people with dirt bikes sign up to race around the track.  Mayhem ensues.  We made a day of it, going for the first practices and races, because we learned last year that that is where the best action is. This year there were some awesome races at the end as well, and when it was all over we felt like we had gotten our money's worth.

AP Tests, Footloose and Choir, oh my!

Kaitlin, as always, is super busy.  This week she took two AP tests (felt like she didn't pass Spanish, but was very confident about English), and walked around with a weird gait as a result of hours of Footloose dancing. This week was also her State Choir competition, in the which she said her choir did very well.  

Speaking of Footloose, Ruth and I also had a few rehearsals this week and I was able to practice my three lines. 

Ruth is in the aqua on the right.

You're a Good Man  

You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown! was this week. I went to the dress rehearsal on Tuesday and the show opened on Wednesday. Ruth was in the chorus and sang and danced with a smiling face and enthusiasm.  She was also in charge of moving a set piece throughout the show, and while it caused her anxiety, she did just fine. Overall the show was very well done and well directed. I'm so glad that they got this new director at Ruth's school, and Ruth is in her first year and will get to enjoy this new teacher's talents for the next couple of years. Ruth had a great time doing the show and stayed out late at a cast party on Friday night.  She said she is not

too sad that the show is over, as she will get to see all her friends from the show at school and is looking forward to some more free time.

And So It Begins

As predicted, I didn't get a big part in Footloose. It's okay; it will be less stressful that way.  I was cast as a police officer, and I think I have 2 lines.  Maybe they will let me carry a pretend gun. One can dream!  Ruth also has been cast as a town citizen.  Rehearsals started this week.  Kaitlin is a dancing teen, and she has hours and hours of rehearsals each week. Because we are not in the same scenes of the show, Ruth and I almost never rehearse with Kaitlin.  For the next month we will all be ships in the night. 

Women's Conference

One of the highlights of my year is the weekend I take every spring with my dear friends to go to BYU Women's Conference.  This year was not the exception.  We had such a good time together, and I was able to learn a few new things and recenter myself a little bit. It's just so cool to spend a couple of days with other people the believe the same as you do and are all striving to follow the Savior the best they can.  It's like escaping your ordinary life to live in a zionistic society for a few days.  In addition to going to classes, we worked on some service projects (I mated up hundreds of small polyester socks, cut out felt eyebrows and sewed some hearts) and went out to eat and generally had a fun time. I didn't get any great pictures but here is one, and hopefully I will get copies of some better ones soon.

New Glasses

Check out Jared's cool new glasses!  Jared has been on a growing spurt the last six months. He is looking much older.