find joy in the journey

singing and drumming in downtown las vegas

For the second year in a row Conner auditioned and make the cut for the school district's middle school honors choir!  For the past 6 weeks they have been practicing weekly and last week was the big performance, along with the high school honors choir.

What made this year's performance ah-mazing was the fact that they got to perform inside The Smith Center.  This building is gorgeous!!  And the acoustics are crazy good.  Just a beautiful performing hall.  I can only imagine the shaky knees and thumping hearts of those 6-8th graders as they stood on this massive stage and looked out at the sweeping audience and 5 balcony tiers.

They did a fantastic job.  The high school choir was amazing (something to aspire to next year).  And the guest director gave the kids an experience they - hopefully - will never forget.  This man, Dr. Rollo Dilworth, has over 150 choral compositions that have been published and he even brought one of his brand new, never before performed compositions for the combined high school and middle school choirs (360ish kids) to present that night as the closing number.  It was an arrangement of Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho and it. was. phenomenal.

We met Conner outside and he was on a high.  It makes me so glad when he gets to have great experiences like this and he appreciates it and soaks it in. 

Earlier that afternoon we dropped off Conner at 3:00 for his dress rehearsal and the rest of us went exploring around downtown.  First we stopped at Fremont Street and took pictures outside the infamous Heart Attack Grill.

Yep, you eat for free if you weigh over 350 lbs.  Payton doesn't make the cut.

But honestly, Freemont Street felt really yucky, dirty, creepy (and naked - "I'm averting my eyes!") to us so we left pretty quickly and walked the 2-3 blocks to the Downtown Container Park.

Ahhh, much better.  I'm telling you, the vibe in this place screams Portland and the Pacific Northwest.  Scott completely agrees.  It is so not Vegas.  And we love this little quiet, clean, hipster block in the middle of downtown.

The kids played, Scott and I sat nearby and chatted, I bought a bag of kettle corn for munching, and we just had a lovely little afternoon/evening.

As we walked out of the park we noticed a semi-circle of drums out in the open with random people beating to their heart's content.  Of course we joined them! 

Soon they began a drum ceremony to awaken the mantis.  Ok, we're down with that.  Whatever "that" is.  The drumming intensified as the countdown began, 3 - 2 - 1 and BAM!!!

Massive, hot flames shot out of the mantis antennae.

Now this is what is what Vegas is all about.  Random, cool stuff, with high entertainment value.  

And it is possible to like both:  the laid-back hipster vibe AND the flashy entertainment vibe.  Just as long as you can steer clear of the naked brand of entertainment.  :)

halloween 2014

First, the Pink Princess.  All month she planned on being a witch.  Then 2 weeks before Halloween -- and before I had had time to make a witch costume -- she needed a costume for the fall festival so she rummaged through the costume bin and pulled this together (remember my Captain Irony costume?). And she LOVED it.  So much so that she gave up the idea of being a witch.  You should have seen her eyes when I came home from the store with that princess crown -- "it's just like Elsa!"

Next Merlin.  No, not the Merlin with a long beard and wizard hat.  And as much as your initial instincts might tell you cowboy, he is NOT a cowboy.  The kids have recently become hooked on the BBC show Merlin, which follows a young Merlin and his wizard training and friendship with Arthur, etc.  Anyways, it is a great show.  Family friendly, clean, entertaining enough that it's the first thing the kids watch on Saturday mornings and I hear plenty of comments of exasperation/frustration as they are that invested in the plot.

So Payton really, really wanted to be Merlin.  We warned him that it was most likely that no one would know who he was.  And he was totally okay with it.  That is just like Payton - to do his own thing and be completely confident in it.  And you'll see from these photos that he owned the character.

I should note that I did not pose him for these pictures.  I simply called him over for pictures and he stepped right into character.  This kid cracks me up.

And this costume share would not be right without a side by side comparison to the actual Merlin:

See what I mean?  We worked on piecing this costume together and we were both really happy with the way it turned out.  

And while Conner has aged out of trick-or-treating he still dressed up, thanks to this $5 find at Party City a few months ago.  Captain Kirk.  That phaser rifle is his own design -- a mocked up nerf gun.

What a good looking group!

And will you look at this, Scott and I got in on the Halloween action too!

 

That would be my mom's prom dress from the 70's.  And a Dumb and Dumber Tuxedo which passes really well for 1970's prom.  (I wore this costume a few years back for a Halloween Bunco at my house - holy moly, I just looked up that blog post . . . it was 7 years ago!  Crazy!)

What started off as a random comment - "Hey Scott you should dress up as my prom date!" - to a man who does not dress up for Halloween, turned into a really fun couples costume!  We got a lot of comments from people which led us to brainstorm what we need to add to make it even better -- corsage?  boutonniere?  prom king crown?

We were invited to trick-or-treat the night away in a nearby neighborhood.  We have heard many things about how this neighborhood does over-the-top Halloween.  When we pulled up at 6pm there was long line of cars waiting to get past the guard gate.  Once inside there was a bounce house

Lots of fun & spooky decorated homes, 

And plenty of homes handing out the coveted full-size candy bar.  Some passing out two each.

It was a very nice evening, the weather was fantastic, and I just realized that this was the first time ever that we trick-or-treated all together as a family!  Usually one of us stays behind to hand out candy at home.  Pretty nice!

Really - how lucky am I to get this guy to dress up with me!  I felt like pinching myself all night.

Great Halloween.  Great costumes.  And great memories.

Now, I just need to get some photos printed and add them to my Halloween Memories Album.

first day of school 2014

That 5:30am alarm came early on Monday morning.  But everyone got up, showered, dressed, packed lunches, and even practiced the piano without any nagging by Scott or I.  They fell right back into the routine very nicely and that makes me very happy.

Cinnamon rolls for breakfast.  A chapter of the scriptures.  And pictures outside the front door before it was time for the middle school run.

When we stepped outside the sun was just coming up, directly down the street.  The golden light silhouetting the palm trees was just beautiful!  It was a sign that this was going to be a great day.

Even though this photo is super blurry I still love it.

The 8th grader.  The big man on campus.  At least until next year.  

He knows the drill so I barely gave him a second thought in all the back-to-school hoopla.  And my lack of concern was well-founded as he came home from the first day of school just as chill as ever.  Been there.  Done that.

English, though, has always been a thorn in his side and while I encouraged him to have a good attitude on the first day & an open mind, he came home with this report, "Payton's English teacher greeted him with a smile.  Mine greeted me with 10 vocabulary words and 10 latin and greek roots that I had to look up in the dictionary."

Day 2 he left and came home from school tired and droopy. So we sent him to bed earlier.

And on Day 3 he was a much more peppy version of himself and attacked his Algebra homework as soon as he got home.

His classes:  Honors Algebra, Acc World Geography, Acc English, Acc Science, Advanced Choir, and Health/P.E.

The 6th grader.  He's only 54 1/2 inches tall and I'm sending him off to middle school?!  What he lacks in height he more than makes up for in confidence.

I have to say that I was the most nervous about Payton on the first day.  It's a BIG school.  1700 students.  There are 6 classes to navigate to and don't forget about lockers. And while he can be a confident kid, happy, and sure of himself . . . he can also get frustrated easily.  If there is a situation that is new or difficult, and he doesn't catch on immediately he can go the panic route pretty quickly.

So . . . when he bounded into the car at the end of the day and exclaimed, "This is the best school ever!! I love it!!" I was incredibly relieved and over-joyed!  That was the best news this mom could hear.

He loved his English teacher (a man).  He thought he was so funny.  And he was excited to see a good friend in art class.  They don't sit by each other (assigned seats) but Payton said that when he sits down he can look across the room and has a clear view of his face.  It sounds like all the kids from 5th grade sit together at lunch - table 7.  He has Art for 1st quarter and it must be inspiring him because everyday he has come home and drawn something -- this is totally new for him.

Day 3 and he is still loving it.  

His classes:  Acc English, Acc Reading, Acc Math, Acc Science, Computers (1st semester) / P.E. (2nd semester), and Explorations (he has Art 1st quarter, and each subsequent quarter will "explore" a different topic - it could be Spanish, Brainology, Greek & Latin roots, etc.)

The 3rd grader.  Who actually looks like a 5th grader.  Sheesh!  We keep telling Anna thank you for being in elementary school so we can still feel young.

The most exciting thing about going back to school for this girl was getting to check out the new field!  2/3 of the way through the year they closed down the field, killed the grass, and turned it all to dirt.  Anna suffered through those last few months of school without soccer as a recess option.  It was crushing.  But the field is back and each morning she races to play with all the boys.

We don't know how this keeps happening, but this is the 2nd year in a row that she has not had any friends in her class.  Kind of odd to me.  Being the outgoing girl she is, she took matters into her own hands on the first day of school and made friends with the girl who sits next to her.  She is new to the school and now they eat lunch together everyday.

This year she gets to use an agenda book to record her daily assignments.  She also has a binder with divider tabs for each subject.  That made her feel very grown up.  She says that her classroom is freezing.  Her classroom also has a water cooler which she loves -- she has always complained that the water from the school water fountains tastes like blood.  

So far she has just been eating up the school routine, classroom procedures & incentives, and assignments.  I don't hear a peep from her as she dutifully goes through her papers and homework at the end of the day.  I think that 3rd grade feels a bit older to her and she is loving the extra bits of responsibility and expectation.  So far. 

Skills to master this year:  multiplication facts and cursive.

 

Just look at those cute kids.  At the end of the first day I welcomed them home with giant frosted sugar cookies from Great Harvest Bread.  We went through all of the papers (mom homework) and had lasagna for dinner.

As crazy as I know the school year is going to get . . . I'm enjoying this moment, this week and setting them off on a new year of learning & growing.  I know that I won't be in this phase forever (10 year plan) so I am thankful for the chance to be in the thick of it -- the schedules, the projects, the pull your hair out moments, the applauding straight A moments, the drop-offs and pick-ups, the walks to school, the laughter at the homework table, the missing mechanical pencil freak-out, the lunchboxes, the bedtimes, the early mornings, the family prayers -- all of it, right now.  (Note to self: read this paragraph again in mid-February.  And in May.)

back to school shopping

Last week I took my TWO middle-schoolers back to school shopping. Yep.  This year I am going to have two kids in middle school - 6th and 8th grades!  Craziness.

After a lunch date we made our way over to the outlets.  At one store I walked up to the register with my purchase and the sales girl's eyes went big,  

"Oh my gosh you look just like Rachel!  She works here.  Ya, you could totally be her mom!"

Ouch.  Her mom?  Really?  

Thankfully, the sales girl at the next register who had been pulled into the conversation back-pedaled to help out her clueless co-worker, "Oh ya, you look like you could be her sister."  Thank you for your customer service.

But really . . . her mom?  Thanks for making me feel super old.  Yes, I know I have wrinkles and bags under my eyes.  But I'm only thirty-freaking-four years old!  I am not ready to be compared to an adult someone's mom.  Maybe I need a new haircut.

One of the items on my shopping list was church shoes for Conner.  My kids have always had pretty small feet and Conner just barely made it into men's sizes.  But holy cow, the men's shoes are a whole lot more expensive!  At least in the Sunday shoe category.  I'm talking, 60-70 bucks.  No thank you.

We went in and out of 3 different shoe stores with this same experience.  Finally we ended up at Target and I found him a pair for $29.99.  That is totally doable.  So we bought them - the last item on our 4-hour shopping excursion - and made our way home.

At home we spread out all the goods to show Scott and I told him the story of going to 4 different shoe stores to find something for Conner.  "What?!" he replied, as he stared down at Conner with the evil eye.

"I just bought you church shoes last week!  And you wore them to church!"

Oh my word.  

Apparently, over their weekend in Idaho (while I was in California) Scott had bought the needed church shoes for him.  But Conner - being 13 years old - had no recollection of this. When we did the pre-shopping inventory of his closet he even pulled out the new church shoes and told me that they were too small.  I didn't question him on it because they were identical to his previous pair that were in-fact too small.

Oh my goodness.  So in my earlier post when I told myself that I need to remember that Anna is just 8 years old . . . . I also need to remind myself more often that Conner is just 13 years old and while we may think he's able to function as a young adult, his brain is still working out the kinks.

It's a good thing I like these kids so much.

friends first

On Saturday we took the kids to see Maleficent.  The kids brought their own money for popcorn & snacks and stood in front of the counter debating this important decision for quite some time.  Conner and Payton decided to pool their money together and were in serious talks about the most cost-effective options.

I loved how Conner wrapped his arm around Payton, and then pulled him close as he pointed to items on the menu.  Most of all I loved observing this simple, tender gesture which demonstrated the brotherly kindness, friendship, and trust that they have for each other.

Seeing things like this, hearing my kids get along, and watching them choose to spend time with each other -- that is what makes me happiest.

We teach our children to be kind to others, to be a friend to everyone, and we really enjoy doing activities with friends . . . . but at the same time as a mom I have never put a lot of emphasis on playdates, friend parties, carpool, etc.  

I want them to be friends first and foremost with each other. 

And when I see things like this outside the window . . . a sunscreen train . . . and hear the laughing and giggling that goes along with it, I feel pretty confident that we are establishing just that.

andersen family reunion // the beach

Love the beach.

Love that the house we stayed in was just 20 minutes from the beach.  We drove down to South Ponto Beach in Carlsbad 3 times over the course of the week to enjoy the sand, dip our toes in the ocean, fly a kite and build sand castles.

The weather was perfect.  72 degrees.  Not too cold.  Not too hot.  

I think the pictures speak for themselves

Anna was introduced to boogie boarding by her uncles and fell in love.  

Here is a little video of her going for it on day 1.  {Can you count the number of times she says "awesome!!"}

On day 2 she waded out to deeper water and rode the waves for a solid two hours.  Non-stop. 

A favorite moment came when we finally convinced Conner to take a break from building sand castles to try out the boogie boards.  He began walking toward the water and soon realized he had no clue what to do.  So he ran back, found his little sister, and asked her to teach him what to do.  Scott and I sat at a distance, mesmerized, as we watched Anna gave her big brother a lesson.  It was priceless.  And reminded us what a good kid Conner is to be humble enough to learn from his sister.  Plus, this moment gave Anna a huge boost in confidence as she proudly exclaimed throughout the day, "I'm a teacher!"  She doesn't get that opportunity very much as the youngest child. 

As Conner rode to the sand after the very first wave he exclaimed, "I'm never building a sand castle again!!" We cracked up at this passionate and immediate shift in beach play priorities.

Bottomline, these were some pretty great days at the beach.

On day 3, as we sat on the blanket watching the kids play I turned to Scott and asked, "why haven't we done this yet?!"  We have lived in Vegas for 2 years, just 4-5 hours from the California coast and we have never come.  We both agreed that needed to change.  I sure am hoping for one more quick trip back this summer.

last day of school

We made it!

Phew!  I'll tell ya . . . the end of this school year has been something else and I have felt like I am just barely staying on top of things/life.  The kids have even started to notice because they ask me questions like, "when are we going to make a summer fun list?" and "what about our summer chore lists?".  These are things we usually have conversations about and plan well before the school year ends, but this year not so much!  We'll get to it, I know, but I'm starting to wonder where the planning-ahead part of my has brain disappeared to!

The past week or so I have opted to drive to school rather than walk because it is so warm in the morning and I don't want to send the kids to school already tired & sweaty.  But on Tuesday I suddenly realized that I would have just one more opportunity to walk to school with Payton before he moves onto middle school next year!  Ack!  The decision was quickly made . . . we're walking to school one last time.  (A slightly cooler 80 degrees at 7:30am and no backpacks made it bearable for the kids.)

What a sweet face.  Love this boy.  I have a feeling the walk to school next year is going to be lonely without him.  I'll miss the way he "accidentally" runs into light posts and street signs everyday.

These flowers sure are beautiful but the walk back home on the black asphalt, uphill, is hot.  Oh my goodness.  After stripping down and laying on the bed under the ceiling fan (seriously), I pulled myself together and went to a presidency meeting (I just got a new calling as 1st counselor in the Primary!).

Soon it was time to pick up the kids from their half-day.  You can guess how Conner feels about the end of the school year . . . 

The other two were a little more solemn.  Payton was a bit sad about leaving his friends, not knowing how much he'll see them next year.  This 5th grade class of 150 kids will move to the middle school and become part of a 6th grade class of 600+.  Quite a change from the safe, tight-knit, almost-like-family experience he has had the past year.

Anna was happy, but hot.  In fact we were all hot.  And sluggish.  And a little bit grumpy.

So I whisked them off to Purple Penguin for a snowcone.

Ehhh, that didn't quite do the trick.  So we made our way out to the pool.

Now this is what summer vacation is supposed to feel like.

The rainbow ribbon banner was a fun summery addition to the gazebo.  (I made it last year for the last day of school)

Speaking of last year.  I saw a photo of the kids on the last day of school in 2013 and just about had a heart attack.  I cannot believe how much they have grown and changed!

surprise solo

What a handsome kid!  

It's the end of the school year which means concerts and award nights.  I feel like I am calendaring something everyday and trying to stay on top of it all (plus homework, house updates, errands, keeping the house clean, keeping people fed, and planning for summer trips).  But occasionally my brain gets fried and I totally mess up.

For some reason I thought the choir concert was on a Tuesday night (and to my defense, so did Conner).  The previous week Scott needed to schedule a work dinner and chose Wednesday because we didn't have any commitments.  Perfect.

Tuesday morning came -- as Scott and Conner left the house we ran through the schedule, "Choir concert tonight, 6:30pm.  Got it."

Then I popped onto Facebook and the Middle School posted the week's events:  Tuesday - Orchestra, Wednesday - Choir, Thursday - . . . . , etc.  Wait.  What?!  I double checked the school website and sure enough, the concert was on Wednesday.  Which meant our careful planning was all for naught and Scott wouldn't be able to make it.  Sigh.

Oh well, it would be okay.

Wednesday evening we got ready to go, sans Scott.  Love this photo of Conner straightening his bow tie.

I brought the video camera along and asked Conner which song I should record - I don't record the whole program, just one song.  He told me the second song would be the best.  Alright.

Conner left for the choir room and we headed towards the gym.  I grabbed a program and we made our way to our usual spot in the bleachers.  I opened the program and scanned through it.  

Intermediate Choir

California Dreamin'

Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Soloists Conner Brown and . . . . 

What?!  I read it over 3 times, completely puzzled.  My son has a solo tonight??  And this is the first time I'm hearing about it?

Oh that stinker!  I finally realized what he was doing -- he kept this little solo a secret so that it could be a surprise!

When the choir filed into the gym I could see Conner searching the crowd for me.  Finally our eyes met and gave him a super-surprised, what-is-going-on?, smiling/beaming look while pointing to the program.  He smiled big and nodded his head.  (Later, he told me that he hoped I wouldn't look at the program so it could be a complete surprise.)

Like I said, what a stinker.

He did a great job!  I have a short video clip of his performance HERE.

It was a shame that Scott couldn't be there.  If he had known that Conner was doing a solo he would have tried to re-arrange his plans.  But Conner kept us all in the dark.  :)

Anna likes to hug Conner and recently she asked me why he doesn't like it.  My answer, "He's 13."

I absolutely love this photo.  A proud brother and sister moment.

the fish stick challenge

Somehow, Conner got it into his head that given the chance he could eat an entire bag of fish sticks in one sitting.  He loves fish sticks.

And so it started, "Hey dad, I bet you $100 that I can eat an entire bag of fish sticks."  He saw this as a potential opportunity to make some cash.  But Scott wasn't buying in.

That may have thwarted his plan for a moment, but he continued to talk about his goal to eat an entire bag of fish sticks.  Even with no money on the table -- because he loves them that much.

And so the conversation continued.  And he told his friends at church about it.  And they thought he was crazy.  And we scheduled a date for it to happen.

100 fish sticks.

If you'll notice he also has ketchup (for dipping), a glass of milk to wash it down (I only noticed this towards the end when he was full and questioned why he didn't choose water!), and a big bowl (for the possibility of those fish sticks coming back up).

He invited a couple of his friends to witness the fish stick challenge.  When they showed up with video equipment and a tripod I was over the moon!  These are my kind of kids.  There was a before and after interview, a weigh-in, and a camera on him the entire time.  Such cute boys.  He said that he wants to make it into a documentary.  I can't wait to see it.

Our house was a flurry of boy activity with the fish stick challenge going on and two of Payton's church friends over as well.  I made corn dogs for lunch and they cleaned me out of my jelly bean stash.  It was wonderful.  I wandered around the house cleaning bathrooms and folding laundry, while listening to and loving all the play that was going on. 

Well, an hour into the challenge Conner had reached his limit.  The final count . . . . 40 fish sticks.  He was full, and in a bit of pain, but thankfully there was no up-chuck.  In the process he had also gained 2 pounds!

I saved the leftover fish sticks in the fridge.  And when I pulled them out a few hours later for our "must-go" dinner (all the leftovers from the fridge), Conner took one look at the fish sticks and backed away, "Maybe tomorrow for lunch."

P.S. -- I promise that Conner has more than 3 shirts.  This "Bazinga" shirt seems to make an appearance in just about every photo I take of him and post to the blog!  He has a closet full of great, good-looking, shirts but there are only about 3 that he chooses to wear.  Oh well. 

10 things right now // conner

1. You play the piano for opening exercises of Priesthood each Sunday.  We decided that the best route was for you to choose 4-5 songs and simply rotate through them each Sunday.  (We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet, Ye Elders of Israel, How Firm A Foundation, Battle Hymn of the Republic . . . ) That way you can get really good at them and besides, there are only a few songs that the men like to sing anyways.

2. You spoke in church last month on temples.  This is your 3rd talk in the past year and a half.

3. You are starting to work on your Eagle Project.  Right now you are in the gathering ideas and brainstorming phase.

4.  You have pulled off straight A's each quarter so far this year.  Barely.  You always make me so nervous the last 2 weeks of the quarter as I check ParentLink and see that you're just squeaking by in one class (90.2%) as mid-terms or finals are approaching.  But somehow you pull it off!

5.  That being said, you are an excellent, bright student.  The stress over grades doesn't come from lack of ability, but from occasional lack of follow-through (i.e. late assignments).  Grrr!

6.  You love, love, love Studio C.  And now that you have the BYUtv app on your iPod you watch old episodes all the time.  I often hear laughter from your bedroom and I know exactly what you are doing (watching).

7.  You, Payton, and Anna have an almost daily routine of putting on your swimsuits in the afternoon and going for a group jump on the trampoline.  Well, one person is armed with a squirt gun but the other two jump.  I love seeing and hearing you 3 play together.  

8.  You recently decided to join the Krypto Club at school.  I have been encouraging you all year to join a club or organization with no luck. But as soon as you learned from your math teacher that being part of the Krypto Club brings extra credit, you were totally on board.

9.  You finished it long ago, but just recently received recognition for completing your Deacon Duty to God achievements.  They had a Stake recognition night on Sunday.  One at a time, each ward's bishop took a turn on the stand while their boys' names were called -- the boy then went down the line shaking hands with his bishop and all members of the Stake Presidency.  Conner was the only young man from our ward who was being recognized for this year and when he got up to the stand our bishop told him, "You've saved us Conner."  

10.  Yesterday you were lamenting all things english, art, and history related.  "If I'm going to be an engineer why in the world do I need to waste my time learning all this stuff?!"  Said like a true 13 year old.  :)

piano festival

I love these piano playing boys.

Last weekend they both played in the Junior Piano Festival and did fantastic!  This was Payton's first year participating and Conner's second.  They have been practicing their pieces since November -- a lot of work, repetition, and memorization.  So I was so pleased when they both received a rating of Superior!

Some of the judges written comments for Payton:  Strong legato & staccatos!  Beautiful touch throughout.

and for Conner:  Your accurate tempo & dynamics were rereshing!  Great continuity between hands. 

Here is a video of them playing their songs for me at home:

Like I said, I love hearing them play the piano.  Conner was recently called to be the Priesthood Accompanist at church.  That means he plays an opening hymn for ALL the men (ages 12 and up) to sing to as they begin their meetings.  What a great opportunity for him!

braces

We have entered the world of braces.

I was nervous for Conner (and myself) in the days leading up to his appointment because he was not happy about the idea.

He was even grumpier during the process which made me even more nervous.

But as soon as they let him stand up (and get a much needed drink of water - funny story there) he has been all smiles ever since.  Even when he was too sore to eat a doughnut, "That's okay, I'll just have my oatmeal!"

Note to my younger brothers with small children and toddlers:  Start saving for braces now.  Even with "help" from insurance and choosing to go with the cheaper orthodontist (after 3 consults) our out-of-pocket expense for headgear + braces = $4200

Ouch.

thanksgiving week

Hello!

It has been a wonderful, full, relaxing, fun, family week.  This morning I turned to Scott and said, "Can't we just have 2 more days of vacation?"  I'm really not ready to go back to the school/work schedule!  

After taking a break from blogging this week I have lots to share!

Here's a rundown of the past week all beginning with Conner's 13th birthday last Sunday!

Yes, we have a teenager in the house!  It's pretty surreal to think about. And yet, here we are!  I put together a 15 second Flipagram slideshow on his birthday.  It's pretty cute to see his little face grow up right before your eyes.  Check it out HERE.

There wasn't much that he wanted for his birthday . . . Laffy Taffy, a few small lego sets, a personalized towel.  But I wanted to make this birthday extra special because he was entering the teen years and that is a pretty big milestone.  So I took an idea from my mother-in-law's friend and introduced "13 days of 13".  For the 13 days leading up to his birthday he woke up to a small gift or activity just for him.

Some of the gifts included:  a book he really wanted to read, lens cleaning wipes for his glasses, 3 different Lego Hero Factory sets, green duct tape, a big tub of Laffy Taffy, a Big Bang Theory t-shirt, a trip to laser tag, a box of twinkies to bring to school & share with his lunch friends, and a birthday date to see Catching Fire.

On his actual birthday we gave him a new bike.  Because he had long out-grown his old one.  In fact, Anna is currently riding his old bike.

He loved it.  

The rest of the day (other than church) was spent chillin'.  This photo below is quintessential chillin' for Conner.  Wearing his favorite shirt and shorts.  Nestled in with his favorite blanket and pillow which have been around for about 10 years.  Messing around with some app on his iPod touch.

13 years.  They really do grow up!

 The beginning of the week was nice because most of our regular activities had been cancelled.  No piano lessons.  No instrument ensemble.  No scouts.  No religion class.  This helped free up some time so I could prepare for Thanksgiving.

The day before Thanksgiving I . . . set out the china, went to Pilates class, and triple checked my recipes with the pantry and set everything out.

Anna's class had a thanksgiving feast, Conner had an eye doctor appointment (new glasses coming up soon), and I spent the evening chopping onions & celery, baking an apple pie, making crescent rolls, and preparing a 2nd batch of rolls for baking in the morning 

Thanksgiving morning Scott organized a Turkey Bowl for dads and their kids at 8am.  It turned out great!

As you can see, Anna participated for the first time this year and she loved it.  Before the game she asked me if I was going to play. Ha!  Sorry, honey -- but mom does not play sports.  

But I do come to cheer and take pictures.

HERE is a little video of the game.

We spent the rest of the day at home setting the table

eating shrimp cocktail

shaking up some butter

and finally enjoying a delicious Thanksgiving meal together.  

(We took this photo before the food made it's way to the table.  Because once it's hot and ready it is time to eat! -- no time for pictures.  Do you like my post-it notes on the serving dishes?) 

A few minutes into the meal Payton said, "It's so quiet."  Then he had a great idea, "Can we play the game Would You Rather?"  And so began a back and forth game of important, thought-provoking questions like, Would you rather jump into a pool of marshamallows or a pool of Jell-O? and Would you rather kiss all the girls in your primary class or be thrown into a pit of scorpions? and Would you rather sit through a 3 hour ballet or spend 3 hours shopping with mom?  

Other thanksgiving notes:

*We watched Punkin Chunkin, a Thanksgiving tradition

*I introduced the kids to pomegranites.  After some initial hesitation they liked it, but we ended up staining at least 2 shirts.

*The kids jumped on the trampoline for the first time in a month or so and came back in with filthy feet, hands, and clothes.  Time for a re-bath.

*This was probably the latest we have ever had Thanksgiving dinner - 4pm.  We usally shoot for 1 or 2pm.  But when I woke up in the morning I didn't feel like being in a big rush to get things going.

*The bacon-wrapped green bean bundles were a hit for the 2nd year in a row.

*Note to self:  Next year make a half-batch of stuffing.  I'm the only one who eats it.

10 things right now // Conner

1. You are in 7^th grade and things are going so well.  Something, somewhere, somehow clicked between 6^th and 7^th grade because you are better focused in class, you come home and knock out your homework (usually) by dinnertime, and the general stress/panic level is way down.

2. Your favorite things to pack for lunch are a turkey + mayo + mustard sandwich or ramen noodles in a mini thermos.

3. You just wrapped up a month long stint with the Middle School district honors choir.  There were weekly practices all month and this week you had 3 straight days of long practices, ending with a performance at UNLV on Wednesday night.  When we met up with you after the concert you said, “That was so much FUN!!”  You were just beaming.  What a cool experience – I’m so glad that you got to participate.  My favorite song was the all-boys number . . . . in 4-part harmony.  Acapella.  That level of musicality is a BIG DEAL for middle school aged boys!

4. You love your iPod touch.  So much so that you were grounded from it last week.  It was becoming too addicting (thank you Candy Crush Saga). 

5. I had conferences with your reading teacher and my favorite comment about you – she said you are an incredibly polite, respectful, and thoughtful.  You have lunch break in the middle of her class and every time you leave you tell her, “bye, have a great lunch.”  And when you return you ask,  “how was your lunch?”  That is not common behavior for a 12/13 year old boy.

6.  Recently you began reading Wonder with your Reading class.  (I’m reading it along with you too.)  The other day you brought the subject up and we talked about what it must feel like to live with the kind of deformities that Auggie has.

7.  Star Wars books are still your favorite and you will read them every spare milli-second of the school day.

8. You are the shortest Deacon at church, but don’t worry that growth spurt will come soon I’m sure.

9.  This week you had to make a model of the earth's layers for a science project and you decided to make it out of food.  (We've been watching a lot of Halloween Wars on the Food Network.)  Rice krispie treats, frosting, fondant, and a no-bake cookie core.  The edible Earth.

10. This is the first year that you won’t get to go trick-or-treating and you are handling it well.  (Our cut-off is 6^th grade).  You’re still planning to dress up in your Bionic Booger Boy costume -- for the 3^rd year in a row.

* * * * * * * 

We are one month away from his 13th birthday.  A teenager!!  I'm trying to think of some extra touches (big or little, but probably little) to make this birthday extra special.  Any ideas for celebrating entrance into the teenage years?

first day of school

I kind of can't believe that we just started our 2nd school year here!  Wow.

I'm kind of hoping for a new front door by our 3rd school year.  It's our tradition to take the first day of school pics in front of the front door and this one is not really my taste.  Brassy.

Back to the kids . . . . they were cute as always!

Conner started 7th grade

(the photo on the right was taken on the 2nd day of school)

He has had a great week so far.  I won't lie, 6th grade was rough.  But he has had a really good attitude so far this week.  He wakes up early with his alarm and gets ready for the day, makes his lunch, and practices the piano before leaving for school at 6:45am.  Getting the piano done in the morning helps a TON.  And in the afternoons he has been on top of his work (not much so far), and he is more organized and pro-active which will really help out this year (too much experience with assignments that got lost in the abyss we call his binder).  Plus, it doesn't hurt that Scott has given him a little incentive . . . . if he completes his homework by dinner everyday, then he can play Diablo 3 for an hour on the weekend.  Talk about the ultimate carrot for this boy.  He was surprised and happy to see that he has the same locker-neighbors this year, and his lunch group found each other pretty easily the first day and have continued their routine.  Whew, in middle school it's such a relief to have people you can sit by at lunch!

Payton is now a 5th grader

The big man on campus!  Hard for me to believe that next year he will be in middle school.  Uh, I'm just going to erase that from my brain and we'll revisit the thought in June.  This year things get amped up a little bit.  Throughout the day he rotates (along with his classmates) to 6 different classrooms - Social Studies, Reading, Writing, Math, Science, and Specials (PE, computers, music, library, art).  I wasn't sure how he would do with the constant change in classroom setting, and hauling his backpack from class to class, but he has done great.  In fact, he loves it and he is really excited about some of the projects the teachers have planned for the year.  He was excited to have one of his friends in his class again.  This year we are reminding this boy to strive for excellence!  He's a smart kid, he just needs to start really applying himself and putting his full effort into his work -- then we know he will do great.

And then there's our 2nd grader

Her transition has been seamless.  Her teacher was in 1st grade last year and she even combined with Anna's class on a few projects/units.  So she knows her well.  Anna's only disappointment was that she didn't know anyone on the class roster.  (Except 1 boy from last year, but she didn't really like him.)  But I have no worries -- she is an extremely outgoing, friendly girl.  She will make new friends in no time.  In fact, last week after visiting the classroom and discovering she wouldn't know anyone she later said to me, "I can't wait to find out who my new best friend will be!"  What a great attitude.  Anna was excited for school to start but I think she was even more excited about her new shoes.  The day before school started she said, "I'm so excited to wear my new shoes!  Everyday I would open up my closet and it was like, torturing me!!"  And then she went to school and discovered that one of her friends had the exact same shoes and that made it even more awesome.

What did I do the first day of school?

I exercised.  Showered.  Went to a Relief Society Presidency meeting (I'm the secretary).  Took care of Relief Society emails, phone calls, and typed up my notes.  And made cookies.

And before I had a chance to read or blog or whatever, it was 1:30 and time to begin the pick-up rounds.

Can you believe it rained (well, sprinkled) on the first day of school?