Annie!

It's fun watching my kids in shows.  It just is.  Here is Mark as FDR:

One thing I also love about my kids in shows is feeling the love from people that come to watch.  My parents and grandma came on Thursday, Geri's been here since Friday, and Saturday afternoon Robert came.  It was lots of fun to sit and talk with Robert after.  At some point over the years I think he crossed from brother-in-law to brother.

I like going to every performance but ended up with a migraine on Saturday night and a terrible neck pain that makes me extremely happy that I have a chiropractic appointment today.  So I didn't go Saturday night.

I love drama kids in general and I am grateful for the associations my kids have had with them.  In Washington, I knew most of the kids pretty well because I was so involved with the drama booster club.  I miss that involvement, but it did kind of take over my life so this isn't terrible either.

I asked Braeden to take a picture for me of Mark and his friends, after the show.

Braeden delivered:

Jensen (who shaved his head to be Daddy Warbucks!) and Rachel and Mark

Same group but with the addition of Gage.

Josie, Mark and Gene

Andrew, who played Sandy (on a tricycle, it was cute!)

Savannah, who was Eleanor Roosevelt and valiantly put her back into pushing Mark across the stage and Allesandro who took Mark's dare to eat jalapeños after one show and took Mark's dare to drink Tabasco after another show.  I'm amazed he is still friends with Mark.

Friends who came to watch the show:  Brandon and Kaden

Grateful Friday

Yesterday I just walked around all morning with a smile on my face and a spring in my step.  I realized it was because I was getting my girl back.

After volunteering, I headed straight to Emma's dorm.  Braeden and his roommate Ben were there waiting for us so they could help carry boxes.  We filled the van and Emma hugged her friends good-bye (except her roommate, Vanessa, who lives in Pleasant Grove...that good-bye was more of a "see ya").

Emma inherited a beta fish from her friend Bella who lives in Texas.  I may have said something about pouring the fish out before we left which caused Emma to be scandalized.  I said, "It's going to die anyway."

Emma said, "Well not yet!"

There's a reason we're not pet people and that reason is me.  (And Adam)

Bella had named the fish Bruiser but we quickly switched the name to Brucie and spoke to him in encouraging tones as we traversed the terrible roads in Pleasant Grove.  "Hang in there, Brucie!" as water sloshed on Emma's hands.

We got home and had Mark help unload boxes. (brothers!  a great invention!)  We just had everything somewhat sorted when my parents and grandma came.  I was so happy to see them.

We visited awhile then took Mark to get ready for his opening night, Emma went to work, and the four of us went to dinner at Chubby's.  I love the scones there even though they are probably only making me more like the name.

Adam joined us in the nick of time.  (Emma had enlisted Adam's help in stopping at the store to pick up a fish net on his way home from work.)

Braeden and his date, Lia, joined us too.

We enjoyed Annie and look forward to more performances (where I will try to sit closer and take pictures).

The girl who played Annie wore a wig so that her hair would somewhat resemble Mark's.  Too bad that kid isn't a much smaller girl....

(Not really, I like him Mark-sized and all boy.)

After the show, I watched Lia put on lipstick and then as we walked into the lobby to greet Mark, Braeden said, "OK, here we go, the moment of truth."

Then Lia (who knows Mark pretty well) hugged him and kissed his cheek and then Mark had a lipstick mark on his face and Braeden and Lia thought that was hilarious and Mark didn't seem to mind in the least.

I don't know about these kids, but that is usually the case.

When we got home, Emma was home from work and it is a delight to have her home.  Brucie's water was dark and nasty so Emma googled how to change water in a fish bowl and carefully followed the directions.  She was scared to hurt Brucie with the net and was just holding it there so he would decide to swim into it.  I told her she had to scoop but she was worried about "stressing" him.

I grabbed the net and scooped the fish and dumped him into the fresh water.  Emma carefully cleaned the dirty bowl and rinsed the rocks and fake plant and I couldn't help but realize with dejection that we have a pet.  I had to scoop him back into the clean bowl, due to Emma's timidity.

Who knows, maybe I'll start to feel affection for the little guy?

Emma joined us for scriptures and prayer before bed and that, my friends, is a wonderful thing.

Braeden and Geri and Ben (the roommate) come today.

And all of that makes me grateful this Friday morning!

Fun with 1st graders

One little girl read the word hem and said, "Well, now, that's a nonsense word."

I said, "No, it's a real word."

She looked extremely skeptical.

So I showed her the hem of my skirt.  She tilted her head to the side in amazement.

Then she read curb.  "Do you know what that is?" I asked.

"No."

I drew a picture of a street and sidewalks and curbs.  She said, "Oh, I know what those are!"

"Do you have them in your neighborhood?" I asked.

"Everyone has them in their neighborhood," she said with disdain.  Which made me think she's never been to rural Nevada.

She read the word expert (we were working with r controlled vowels).  I asked her if she knew what an expert was.

"Is it like someone who goes to the hospital and they go around and take care of people and then they take care of more people and more people and more people and then they say, I'm an expert at taking care of the human body!"  She gave a fist pump.

"That is what it means," I said.

*

**

I was listening to a girl read to me.  She read Ann instead of Anna so I corrected her.  She looked at me for a second then she said, "My teacher said that if I can't pronounce Anna, I can say it Ann."

"OK," I said.  I didn't point out that she had just pronounced Anna.

*

**

A new student was enamored with Braeden's old notebook.  "Who did that?!?"  I explained that it was my son's old notebook, etc. etc.

She opened her brown eyes wide and asked, "Did he get in trouble?  Were you mad at him for doing that?"

I told her no and I could tell she was disappointed.

*

**

When I first get there and the classes are coming back from lunch.  Some of the students cross their fingers hopefully and point to themselves meaningfully, like they are desperate for me to pick them to work with.  It doesn't matter how many times I tell them that their teachers select who I work with.

I've never been so popular, even if it's only because I have a notebook Braeden colored.

Tomorrow!

It's opening night

Tomorrow

Bet your bottom dollar

That tomorrow

The show will open

Just thinkin' about 

Tomorrow 

Clears away the cobwebs, 

And the sorrow 

'Til there's none

Mark donned his show t-shirt this morning which has hair that mimics his current tower of curls.  I said, "Let me take a picture."

And this is what I got:

Drama kids, am I right?

Costco

I picked Mark up from rehearsal and since he knew we were headed to Costco, he immediately started telling me he was famished.

"I know," I said. "You can get a hot dog."

"Oh, Mama..." he said like I had just told him I'd donate an organ to him.

We had to swing by Braeden's on the way (don't ask) so Mark was good and hungry by the time we got to Costco.  He retrieved a cart for me and I handed him some cash and it looked like I was buying the cart from him.

"Come and find me," I said, as he headed to the food court.

I started filling my cart.  We don't buy too much at Costco these days with our diminished family size but this was a different sort of day.  We are not only getting our college kids home this week, but Geri is coming to visit and some extra boys--friends of Braeden's--are coming to stay too.  I don't know how many boys or for how long (don't ask), but I do know we need FOOD.

Mark joined up with me and I think he recognized a bull market.  Buy! Buy! Buy! Because he started finagling his way into filling the cart.  He grabbed a big box of yogurt out of the refrigerated case.  "Too much sugar," I said.

"But Mom," he said, "I've been wanting these for decades."

"You haven't been alive for decades," I pointed out.

"Still."

"OK," I relented, because that child is spoiled.

Things will change in a few days though.  I have three strong willed children and when they are all three around, they take turns being in charge even though they would each argue they alone should be in charge all the time.

In the meantime, I'll let Mark eat yogurt.

I like weekends

They're just the best.

Friday we went to Dillon's wedding.  It was a wonderful occasion and I was delighted to see Stephanie.  We've been friends a long time and we've seen each other through some things and we've shared a lot of our lives while we pounded the pavement around our neighborhood with Squire, her pug.  I miss walks with Stephanie (and Squire) but I'm infinitely grateful that they have a house in Sundance now so we get to see each other occasionally.

After the wedding we went to their lodge for a lunch and it was beautiful and we enjoyed it.  We were completely hemmed in by other cars when it was time to leave and Adam thought his Subaru could go through a crazy small and rocky space and Braeden was egging him on and a woman whose van was parked nearby was increasingly nervous about the foolhardy man in the Subaru and his encouraging son.  Gavin, who was going back to PG with us to hang out with Mark for the evening, just laughed and shook his head.

People moved their vehicles and we made it out in one piece.

(There are certain people who shouldn't have Subarus and Adam is one of them.)

We picked Mark up from rehearsal and the smile on his face when he saw Gavin in the back seat could melt chocolate.  I had printed two copies of this picture and put each in a frame.  I gave them to Mark and Gavin.

I took the picture one day years ago when I threw caution to the wind and took those two to the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle.  I should take a picture of them now.  They're big and getting increasingly broad shouldered and they behave much better than they used to (they were wild boys!) but they are still sweet boys and the best of friends.

Having Gavin around feels as familiar as having my own kids around and hearing Mark and Gavin laugh was one of the high points of the weekend.

Adam and I got them pizza and we went out to dinner.

It was a classy Thai restaurant.  You could tell it was classy because the decor was taped together with Scotch tape.

The food was delicious and the company was good so who am I to complain?

Saturday we had a work day in the yard.  Adam pressure washed the deck and furniture and he and Mark moved everything up from its winter home below.  Mark and I pulled the cushions out of hibernation and I filled up my weed bucket a few times.  We're in that early stage when the warm sun feels lovely.  In a few months it will feel more like punishment.

That night, because it was apparently that kind of weekend, we went to dinner again.  This time it was with Cortney and Jordan and it was fun to catch up with them.  We visited long after our fish tacos were gone and sort of lost track of time.  I felt sorry we were so long because poor little Emma had food poisoning and we'd promised a visit to her.

We high tailed it to Provo to give her our love and hugs and clean up Loki which had had to bear the brunt of the food poisoning.  What's parenthood about if not to show up at times like that?

Sunday was a perfect weather day.  (Although Braeden whined he was too hot and I said, "You need to toughen up!  This is only the beginning!"  Then two minutes later I went inside because it was too hot.)

We ate on the deck and ate food that felt like summer food (including strawberry shortcake).

Sam joined us and he is leaving this week to go back to Switzerland for the spring.  We asked him what food he was most looking forward to eating.  He said, "Non-alcoholic beer."

I remembered we had some so one of the boys put it in the fridge.  Adam had bought some months ago for a chili recipe.

Later, after dinner and soaking up vitamin D on the deck and then playing Mölkky, which Adam won because he always wins, we came back inside.  The boys cracked open the bottles of non-alcoholic beer.  Braeden took one drink and spit it out in the sink.  "That is terrible!" he said.  Mark had the same reaction.

"This is good," Sam drawled in his Swiss accent that manages to make everything sound interesting. Then he asked Mark if he could drink the rest of his.

Braeden and Mark were amazed Sam liked it.  Sam wanted to know where we'd found it.  Braeden kept trying to find things to eat or drink to get the taste out of his mouth.

Mark said, "Well Mom, you know your boys will never be beer drinkers."

So there's that.

Grateful Friday

A list:

I'm grateful that today is Dillon's wedding and since it is practically in our backyard (Mt. Timpanogos  temple) we get to go.  I'm excited to see Stephanie--OK, the whole family.

I'm grateful for spring weather.  (For real spring weather, not the snowy kind.)  I want to set up the deck furniture tomorrow and let the evenings out there commence.

I'm grateful for creative projects that make me happy.

I'm grateful to Emma for teaching me how to use Snapchat and then sending me snaps.  Is that how we say that?

I'm grateful Emma has extra money on her meal card so we can all join her for family dinners from time to time.  Even though "The Canc" as Emma calls it is not as good as it was in the Pax Thelma, I like family dinners there.  We're the only ones sitting around laughing too loud.  It reminds me of when I was a freshman and laughing with Adam and Robbie and Erin and Rachel.  Adam is still making me laugh, but now we have these witty kids too.

I'm grateful for Braeden's and Mark's relationship.  They are straight up friends where they used to be big brother and little brother.

I'm grateful the semester is almost over and we will 24/7 be together for awhile.  I'm bracing myself for the noise/laundry/dishes/groceries.  Totally worth it.

I'm grateful I get to volunteer and tutor.  When kids have that I get it now look in their eye it is one of the best feelings in the world.

I'm grateful for book club (we had it last night).  One of my book club friends told me about some books she read set in Seattle.  She said, "I thought of you.  You might like them."

I'm grateful there are SO many books I haven't read yet.