football and birthdays and cookies

I spent the day making cookies for Tatum's baptism.  She is getting baptized on Saturday morning, her cousin Carson is also getting baptized.  It will be a special day.  Tomorrow after 2nd period, both the kids have math 2nd period and we hate to miss that, we are going to drive to Utah for the weekend.  I am really looking forward to it.  Hannah and her roommate Emma are already there.  They took the BYU bus.  Jenna and Clayton are there too.  Clayton's friend happens to have a wedding tomorrow so the timing worked out great and they could fly out for the wedding and be there for the baptism and Dani's birthday party.
This type of cookies take me a long time...and they look cute but not professional.  They are fun to make if you are baking with a partner.  In this case my partner was the "Great British Bake-Off", newly recommend to me by Dani for netflixing purposes. They do taste good though so that's a win.

Last night we had a fun YW night.  It was a 5th Wednesday and we always work on personal progress on a 5th week.  Our personal progress sister recently moved so we had to come up with something ourselves.  I found a fun idea on pinterest to do 8 experiences in one night.  Most of our Laurels and Mia Maids already have earned their medallions so it's basically Beehives that need to do to the work.  I asked the older girls to each prepare an experience that they could work on with a younger girl.  Rachel, Audrey and I did too.  Then I bought 8 kinds of candy/treats and we set up 8 tables with a leader/older girl & a treat at each one. Then the Beehives went around to the different stations and started and sometimes finished or sometimes went home with just a bit more to do.  All of the girls visited all 8 stations and I felt like we got a lot done.  Hopefully it was fun.  We have one more 5th Wednesday this year so we will have to come up with something again, unless we get a leader called.

I haven't heard back from my interview.  I was really hopeful but I kind of think I was not chosen.  I guess I'll just keep applying!

Today Rob went back to the shelter to try and rescue Steve back.  It turned out that he was adopted the first day he was there.  I hope he will work out great for the new family.  It's awful to give a pet away. Seriously I can't deal with it.

Hannah is almost done with her summer term.  She has 2 A's and has enjoyed her weeks in Idaho.  Next weekend is move in weekend for all the new fall freshmen, which she is one as well.  She will move apartments to a different building (I wish I was there to help because that will be a lot of work),  and Kenz and Madi will be there as well as her new roommates.  I think it will be a lot busier and crazier.  She's up for the task. She is taking 6 classes and I am excited to hear about them.  She has loved her religion class and is actually talking about majoring in theology.  I don't think that's practical ~future career wise, but she could minor in it.  Sawyer broke up with her this week.  She is sad but taking it well.  I feel bad for her, of course, but really I feel like this is a great move.  Sawyer needs to really focus on being an awesome missionary and not be distracted by Hannah.  Likewise I am happy that Hannah is now emotionally free to pursue her own passions and interests.  She is sad but handling it really well.  I am excited to see her tomorrow and give her a big hug.

Today is Dani's birthday.  30! Wow!  She's having a big party on Saturday night, which will be really fun.  She is an awesome awesome woman.  I think I've written about her every birthday since I began blogging but honest it's so easy to do.  I am so proud of the woman she has become.  She is the best big sister ever.  A sweet and loving mom and wife.  The best daughter.  She's so fun and smart and hard working.  I LOVE that girl!! and feel so blessed to be her mom.

Today is the first football game of the season.  Ohio State Vs Indiana.  Rob is off watching it with friends from work.  We are watching here.  By "we" I mean mainly E while Grace and I do whatever but I am paying some attention to the game.

still hot out

Last night Rob and I were watching Ethan's soccer practice (at 8pm).  It felt quite nice out so we looked up the temperature and were surprised to find out that it was 95 degrees.  We've been in the desert too long!

Soccer practice went well.  Ethan is a much faster runner than he was last year.  He's got a great foot.

Grace had choir tonight.

I subbed 7th grade.  I've had a lot of not horrible sub days lately.  Which is nice, but weird.  After school I had a job interview.  I took a test last week to see if I was qualified to be a school secretary and I passed so the panel interview was today.  I think it went well but I've been applying for literally 2 years and haven't ever been chosen so I am not holding my breath. I have long thought that school secretary would be an awesome and pleasant job.  You have the same schedule as school but don't work with the kids.  What could be better?

We shall see.

104

 That's how hot it was yesterday.  And we got to spend the day at the Lancaster Soccer Complex sauna.  So hot!
Ethan had two games so we were there from 10:30 to 5.  It was actually not a great soccer day.  In fact after it was over E said that was the only time he ever didn't enjoy playing soccer.
The first game the boys were on fire.  They scored 6 goals in the first half.  Then they were told not to score any more and played an 8 man defense with 2 forwards pretty much keeping the ball in the corner.  The rule, which is intended to promote good sportsmanship, is actually demoralizing for the losing team and frustrating for the winning one.  This is not the first time we've ran into this but every time it makes for a tough game.
The second game we lost 1-4.  That one was HOT as Hades out, the boys were tired, and sluggish, and we were happy to see it end.
Bummer.

Evan Gillians, Jon Silva, Ethan, Preston, Levi, Jayce, Noah, Jerry, someone I don't know, and Brian Pincock

After the games no one wanted to do anything but we had a couple hours to cool off (thank goodness for a backyard pool) and then we went to Jayce's eagle court of honor.  It was a really nice evening.  I think Ethan's is next! (fingers crossed)

Today Ethan and Grace each had to teach lessons in their classes. They reported that it went fine. We chatted with Hannah for a while, took Sunday naps, cleaned up some messes.  

sad things..and not sad things

 Grace got her braces yesterday.  I think she looks so cute and teen-agery.  This morning they were hurting.  I anticipate a beautiful smile in 2 years!

Last night Rob and I went to a Jethawks game with some of his work friends, also it was Mormon night so he had invited them.  It was fun but too long.

Sad news:

Luis died earlier this week.

Steve went back to the pound today.

The Steve pound thing was a hard decision.  We've had him a long time now, more than 6 months.  He has never been reliable with the litter box, which has been super frustrating.  However we extended ourselves in every way possible for him because a) we picked him and planned on keeping him for 18 years.  and b)survivors guilt from Percy and c) in every other way he was a great cat, funny and affectionate.  We took him to the vet several times to see if he had a UTI or other infection.  Gave him antibiotics even though no infection was found.  We changed his litter to the most desirable kind.  We gave him HUGE littler boxes.  In several places in the house.  We gave him anti anxiety meds every day because the vet said that might help.  We kept bedroom doors closed.  We bought a special pheromone mister.  What more could we do?  This week had 5+ accidents, the last being on Rob's side of the bed in the middle of the night and that was it.  We can't live in cat pee.  We can't buy new mattresses. We can't trust him.  So it was with heavy hearts, and guilty feelings, and regret that we took him back.  I am done with cats.  It is too devastating. 

same ol same ol...and an epic once-in-a-lifetime astronomical event

Sunday was church day.  We also had a nice fireside with Hanna Eyre, who was a contestant on "the Voice".  She did a good job, she was cute and bubbly.  She sang some songs and shared her testimony and talked about keeping her values and standards while in the music industry.

Monday was the "American Eclipse", which was pretty darn neat.  We only got to enjoy 70% but Hannah was in the path of totality so that was awesome.  I was subbing a 5th grade class and the whole day was devoted to eclipse viewing/ studying about/ etc.  It was a lot of fun.

Today I subbed special ed.  Grace went to the orthodontist, she's getting braces on Thursday.  And that about covers it.

Soccer

We had two games in Apple Valley.  It was HOT.  In the 90's.  And sunny.  Really sunny.  The boys played  well.  This is a new team, and a new season, so it was the first time we'd watched them play together.

They lost the first game 2-4.  Which was disappointing.  Then we won the second game 4-3.  Which was exciting.  Ethan scored! Super exciting and played really well.  He is tired and sore now.  He had some trouble with leg cramps during the second game, which is unusual for him.  I guess we're going to have to get some supplements of some kind and pay more attention to hydration.  He did drink a lot of water, although clearly not enough since he still had an issue.

The last few days have been crazy busy.  Friday I subbed for Ethan's seminary class.  Then I went to school and subbed for 5th grade.  Then I picked kids up from school and Grace and I left for the fair.  That's a 5am start time and a 9:30pm end time with only 15 minutes at home squeezed in.  I'm not used to that kind of a day!

Today we had to get up at 6 for the soccer games and now that we are home we have to go back out and go grocery shopping.  

Tomorrow I am leading teacher council, and we have a fireside, and Monday morning it's back to seminary.  It's good to be busy.

Grace's weekend

 After school on Friday Audrey and I took the girls to the fair.  The first hour it's open, for the season, parking and entrance is free so we made sure to get there promptly.  It was hot but really fun.  We enjoyed looking at the animals and the exhibits.

 The girls rode rides and played games.

 After we  spent 4 hours or so playing we were hungry and thirsty so we found some fair food to end our day with!  It was, in the words of Templeton, a most wonderful fair.

 Today Ethan had a soccer game so Rob and I went with him but, and here's a shocker, Grace didn't want to come.  Also it was the ward beach party so she got to go with the Sherwoods and she enjoyed a very nice beach day.

 Now all the playing is done and she has to do homework.  Last week her Algebra teacher called me and said she wanted to move her to the advanced algebra class.  Grace is a smarty.  She's one of 4 7th graders in adv. Alg.  She's also one of 3 7th graders in concert band.

temple marriage

 last night for YW we had an activity about temple marriage.  Ramona, owner/operator of Sweet Brittle Baking Co & fabulous beehive advisor, made us a gorgeous and delicious wedding cake.

For decorations we (the leaders) had photos from our weddings, we invited 3 newlywed couples to come talk to the girls and they also brought their photos.  Sister Tilden had her great grandmother's handmade wedding dress to display.

Our handout was a mirror with vinyl stick-ons of a temple with the words "See yourself in the temple" and also a pretty ring and ribbon.

 The first thing we did was play some games.  We had a bunch of Disney love songs and their movies to match up. Sister Sweeney won that one!  She knew them all!

Then the girls divided into teams.  Each team got a bride and 3 rolls of TP.  They had 7 minutes to make a paper wedding gown.  Sara Swenson's team won with their modern, fitted design.  It was a lot of fun to watch.

Lastly the girls were given a tube of lipstick and using only their mouths they had to draw a temple.  Charlotte won and her temple looked amazing! A lot of the girls did surprisingly well with that task.

 After the games we gathered and read a couple of paragraphs about what marriage is, then we had our panel discussion.
The couples did a great job and I think the girls really enjoyed it and could relate to them, more importantly I think they heard some really great advice.

We ended with cake and some time to visit.  I was happy with how everything went and consider it a success!

One of the temple drawings.

Today was my first day subbing for the new school year.  I was supposed to be a rover but when I got there I found out I was assigned to PE.  It was me and another sub.  She was great, very energetic and fun.  Very talkative. We had a good day.  PE is generally easy.  It was all outside though and it was SUPER hot so I came home so sweaty and a little sunburned.  I would have dressed differently if I had known. I hopped in the shower and changed first thing after school, even before I picked up E from high school.

So this picture doesn't really have anything to do with anything except it's our cute Sierra, making a face her dad always did when he was sitting on a rock.  Her new hobby is rock climbing so she lives in the perfect place for that and is having a lot of fun with that.

Happy Happy 18th Birthday Hannah dear!!!!!

After a great and fun weekend in SLC with Chelsea Hannah went back to school and then Chelsea went to Idaho!!  What fun!  She posted this picture after Hannah went to the mailbox.  Thanks Chels!!

So today Hannah is 18.  It's been a wonderful almost 2 decades and boy do I love that girl! What a blessing she is to me.

After I got divorced I figured that I would be the mother to 3 beautiful daughters and that was it.  Then Rob and I met and fell in love and got married and the door opened up for a big family.  Rob could hardly wait.  He wanted to make babies right away.  I wanted to wait a little while, I thought maybe a year, but we were only married a couple months when I joined the "right away" train.  We found out we were expecting her at mom and dad's house.  It was a whirlwind time.  I was teaching and R was working and the kids were in school and out of the blue we learned that we were moving to Texas.  In December we closed the sale of our house.  We were staying with my parents for a few weeks until it was time for us to move and I thought maybe we had a wonderful Christmas surprise for everyone.  One afternoon I took a pregnancy test and left it with R then went to the living room to visit with the family.  He stayed to watch the lines.  When he came walking into the room where we were I could tell it was positive! He was beaming and SO excited!! He told my parents and then called his and everyone was delighted.  The girls were VERY excited.  They had wanted a baby too.

Being pregnant with Hannah was great.  Her birth day was great. And being her mom has been great!

As a baby Hannah spent a lot of time crying. That was a tough time for everyone.  She was always in pain and while we all did everything we could to help her really there was little that could be done.  It was exhausting and heart breaking to have a little baby that was constantly suffering.  Thankfully as she grew her hemangioma, which was huge, did start to get smaller and the ulcers and painful lesions went away.

Then we had some really fun years.  Hannah was the cutest little girl and sweet and spunky.  She was also super willful and stubborn so while we had some great times we also had some tough times.  She didn't like to be obedient and was prone to tantrums.  Raising kids is a JOY and also it's hard.  Luckily Hannah's hard times were all when she was young (which is WAY better than hard times with a teenager!)
Slowly Hannah grew (I say slowly because while the days were slow, the years were too fast!) and by the time she was 11 she was just a complete delight.  Cheerful, obedient, bright and kind are all words that totally describe our Han. We moved to MD right about then and that was an awesome move for Hannah.

Middle school and the first years of high school were great for Hannah.  She loved to be in plays, had A LOT of great, fun, friends.  Her love of cooking really became apparent to us and she is a fun kitchen companion.  She was/is a good student.  She enjoyed many neat trips and experiences during those years. She took horse back riding and sailing and piano and voice lessons. Her testimony has always been solid and she loves to go to church.  She is a great example to those around her.  Hannah is a great aunt and great with little kids.  She loves adventures and watching movies and is always up for fun!  She is a girl of many many talents!

Moving to CA the summer before her junior year was a challenge and trial but she was up to the task and grew a lot. Hannah made friends again, continued to do well in school, was a comfort and delight to her mom and a great example to her siblings and friends.  That once stubborn little girl now is resolute in her convictions and is empathetic and goal oriented and obedient.  I could not be happier with the woman she grew up to be.

I am so excited to see what the future holds for our Hannakin.  She is LOVING BYU-I and so excited about life.  I love that.  Heavenly Father has really blessed her and blessed me. I am ever grateful for the opportunity to be a mother and that our family relationships will continue to be a joy and blessing to us forever.

Happy Happy Birthday Hannah!!! Hope it's a good one!

over the edge and into crazy town

 I, and we, have always liked animals and have had a variety of different pets, but we are officially a little on the nutty side now...as is evidenced by the company we keep.

Grace's bird, Nigella (a.k.a. El Diablo) went back to the breeder yesterday.  This guy was the nicest nicest man.  Over spring break Grace and I drove to Orange (by way of San Diego) and picked up her bird, that she had been longing for and saving up for.  We brought her home and she began what turned out to be the rather arduous process of socializing her to our family.  It never went well.  This was a mean, mean, bird.  She hissed like a little velociraptor, and bit everyone who came near her.  A couple weeks ago I reached out to Octavio to see if he had any advice and he said he had babies and we could trade her in.  We kept in touched and followed Luis' growth until yesterday when we could go get him.  This is not a quick trip.  It was about 2.5 hours each way.

We traded birds, and learned how to feed him (as he is still being hand fed) and Octavio even gave us food and a syringe.  He lives in a low income area of town, in a tiny two bedroom apartment with his wife, 3 daughters, and abuelita.  His home is very humble but he is warm and kind and generous.  He wouldn't take money for the food or the trade and just wants to do fair work.  He showed us his birds, he has several breeding pairs, and his plants that he grows in his "backyard" ( a 9 x3 cement slab), and took a long time teaching us and visiting with us.  We appreciated his instructions and his sharing with us.  Rob left him a pass along card.  A wonderful family like that would be so blessed by the restored gospel of Jesus Christ.

It was late when we left Octavio's,  but not late enough for the traffic to be settled down, so we decided to stop and eat dinner before getting on the road. This is where we met our second character of the night.  The place we went was Miguel's taco shop.  When we were walking up I saw two guys and a parrot sitting at one of the tables outside.  I said "that's a beautiful dinner companion you have" to which they replied "he's not ours.  He just flew down here, stole a taco and has been siting with us ever since."  It was some what unbelievable but they insisted it was true and told us about all the wild parrots in Orange county. They said we should go down to the jail where they (not the men but the birds) congregate at sundown and enjoy a squawky bird fest.  Rob and Grace and I listened to them for awhile (as we were not in a hurry and the bird was lovely) and at one point I asked if he was pulling our leg, but they insisted no.   

Then Grace decided she wanted to feed the bird some spray millet that she had in the car. It was at that point that Brad (the bird guy) asked us what we were doing there and we told him we had just come from Palmdale for a baby bird.  He was impressed and then told us that he was pulling our leg, Maverick was his.  He has 32 birds in total and is a Jesus lover and a story teller.  We had an interesting conversation with him that was a combination of bird advice, testimony bearing, and tall tales.  Eventually we had to go in and eat so we took some pictures, gave him and his friend a pass along card each, and went on with our evening. 

 This is Grace and Maverick.  You meet the most interesting people out and about.  Brad being more crazy interesting than most.

So I guess this pushes us clearly on the side of a little crazy ourselves.  Grace took this picture this morning.  Rob and I always sleep with Steve and Ziva.  

 We hand feed baby birds (an mice) and consider our pets family.  Grace has 2 hamsters, 4 fish and now 1 bird.  We are at maximum capacity but our max is probably 8 animals more than typical!

So far Luis has spent every second in contact with Grace.  He's quite happy to do so.  I hope he won't be too distressed come Monday morning when she goes to school.

In other news we had a family weeding day this morning.  Way overdue.  One thing I learned from my dad was working with your kids gives you great opportunities to talk to them.  The kids are trapped, and also more likely to open up because there you are.  It's easier to talk when there is a task at hand.  Dad always helped in the kitchen after dinner and I think some of our best talks were while washing dishes, or while taking walks together.  Anyway I had some things on my mind that we (Rob and I ) wanted to talk to the kids about so it turned out to be a good time for it. We had a good morning.  The front yard is now squared away and our talk was a good one.  Parenting win!!

This afternoon Grace has Brynn over and tonight E is going to a dance. We have a blessed life.  (despite the broken gate, pool heater, sprinkler, ....)

about the day

Hannah is having such an amazing time at college already.  She LOVES it in Idaho and is learning lots and I am just so happy for her.
They have a bus that goes from BYU-I down to different places in Utah and this week Chelsea is in Utah visiting her family so Hannah hopped on the bus and rode down to spend a couple days with her.  I love these two girls together.  They are such good friends and such good girls.  Chelsea has her mission call waiting for her to open when she gets home! Yikes how can she stand the wait??!?  I am a little jealous that I am not there with them!
I did call Colleen today and we had a wonderful talk.  Before I knew it almost 2 hours had passed and we hadn't run out of things to talk about.  I miss that lady and spending time together.  I miss all of our MD life.

Tonight Grace and I took a little swim, the water was cool and refreshing.

Ziva had a bath, and she smells very nice and looks like a fluffy lamb.

Ethan went to the dentist, he has no cavities.

So good day all around :)

7th grade

 This morning was the first day of school for Grace.  She was up and ready early, as is typical for her.  Our girl is an early riser!  Yesterday she got her schedule and was disappointed with some of the teachers she got.  Hopefully it will be much better than she fears.

 Here she is on the first day of Pre-K.  She was excited then and is now.  Grace is a gifted learner and does very well at school.  It will be exciting to see what she does with that big brain of hers!

Steve is always ready for a good morning snuggle and he wished her well on her first day!

I had a little brunch this morning.  I invited some friends who also sent their kids off to school today.  I only invited friends who didn't have little kids left at home, and also who were not empty nesters, and of course they couldn't have full time jobs because brunch on a Wednesday morning.  So there were 5 of us and we had a nice morning.

I made overnight french toast and sausage and had these cute oui yogurts. Audrey brought a fruit tray and Kim brought juice and we visited and ate.  It was a nice morning and a good start to the school year.  It's always nice to have time to chat with other moms in the same place in life. 

I'm excited to hear about Grace's day after school.

update: The day went well.  Grace has a lot of friends in her classes.  She thinks her Algebra teacher will be her favorite.  She was sad about her advisory teacher and her science teacher but will try to make the best of it.  She is one of 4 7th graders in the honor band and will be marching in parades this year.  Lunch was fine, she had lots of friends to eat with but her ramen was soggy.  Also she and Rylynn, Aubrey and Brynn want to be in the lip sync competition.  So overall I think that's a success!

First day

 Sunday night we went to seminary kick off.  Ethan looked very handsome and it was a good meeting.  Pres. Silva spoke and did a very good job.  The sophomore class does not have a teacher yet so Sister Alius is going to be subbing for awhile. This year the kids are studying the Book of Mormon. Hopefully it will be an amazing year!

Monday morning I drove the seminary/school carpool but I forgot to take a first day of school picture of Bub.  Instead I got this one in the car.   He had a good first day.  He has Ms Beinvietes for math again and he likes her. He's taking Calc A/B.  He also has chemistry, history, honors English, Spanish 2 and PE.  He said his Spanish teacher taught the whole class in Spanish the whole time, which was hard for him.  

Last night he had practice with his new soccer team.  It was fun, the team is young, which is one of the drawbacks to playing AYSO, but he had a good time and I think he might be one of the stronger players on the team which would be okay.

So lots of new things.  Grace still has one day of summer left and then everyone's back to it.

home again, home again

 Saturday Rob flew in at noon(ish) to Burbank.  I went to pick him up and then we had 6 hours to kill until the kids flew in to LAX.

First stop was lunch and second was two camp chairs on the beach.  The water was warm and we had a relaxing afternoon together.

We picked the kids up and came home and all is back to normal!

So I love social media.  I love to have a peek at my big girls lives.  

For example this weekend:

Sierra hung out with some friends!  

Jenna and Clayton went laser tagging and got first and second place!

Dani went to NieNie's garage sale and bought some cool stuff!

And Hannah made banana pancakes at midnight with her roommate Emma!

summer is drawing down

 Rob is in Park City working.  It looks pretty miserable there doesn't it?  He said it's been very productive, which is great, and he's coming home tomorrow, which is even better.

The kids are also coming home tomorrow.  They've been having a great time.  They went to COSI.  They've been golfing and to the movies and shopping and out to dinner.  Ethan's been working on his summer reading and Grace has been thinking about painting her room.  I am really glad that they get to spend time with their Grandparents.  Nana and Abba are the best :)

I'm looking forward to everyone coming home.  It's been a quiet few days around here.  I've watched a few movies, read a couple of books, did 3-4 loads of laundry, walked Ziva, did some planning for YW....