Door Signs

 Sorry about the sideways orientation of the first one and the bad focus on the last one, but I wanted to share the signs on bedroom doors around here.

The first door has an excellent reason for the signs and warnings.

The second door was just following the example of the first, but they (thankfully) have no rat to justify keeping people out. They do, apparently, have land mines and an easily frightened bear.

The third door is not very welcoming, but we love the occupant all to pieces anyway :)

Vegas, Baby!

Last Thursday, Claire and her boys had a layover in LAX, so Michael, Naomi and I drove over to see them for a little while. It was so wonderful to get hugs from them all and to sit and chat. The kids all ignored each other until I said the magic L-word, Lego, which broke the ice. Theo and Luc showed Michael the Lego sets they got for the trip and the other stuff they brought for the plane.

After we got home from the airport, I took a nap because I had a six hour drive ahead of me Thursday evening. Heather turns 16 in just over two weeks and so she and I took off as soon as school was out. My sister Sara took Summer to NYC for her sixteenth birthday and Rachel to San Fransisco for hers, but now she has a husband and other vacation plans (one of which includes coming to see us this summer - yay, we can't wait!) so I told Heather I would take her on a road trip.

Heather is interested in aerial circus performances, so she chose going to a Cirque du Soliel show in Las Vegas. We headed up to Southern Utah first to see Grandma Spencer, the Craigs and the Bangs. Heather, Cynthia, Mother and I went shopping on Friday, I took nap and helped make dinner. Then, the surprise for Heather showed up! Summer, Rachel, and their boyfriendscame down from Provo. It was so great to see them, even for a little while. We had dinner, cake and ice cream for Heather and watched Frozen Friday night.

Saturday morning, Cynthia, Nikki and Jake made us a big, delicious breakfast and then we used some of the calories up hiking to look at some petroglyphs not far from their house. Here are Cynthia and I chatting away in the sunshine.

Will and Jake checking out the goat family.

Heather and Tristan with the Craig's adorable little dog Ryah (total guess on the spelling).

Saturday after lunch, Heather and I reluctantly left our loved ones behind and headed to Vegas, slowly getting excited as the time passed for our big night out. After agonizing way too long over the price, we finally decided to bite the bullet and eat at the buffet the hotel clerk recommended. Even though it was expensive, for a once in a lifetime trip, it was totally worth it. Almost all the food was delicious and it was so much fun being able to eat so many different things!

Here is my (first) plate - 

1. California roll
2. spring roll
3. cocktail sauce
4. fried calamari
5. crab legs (I went back for seconds!)
6. steamed clams (my favorite food as a kid - I ate at least a dozen)
7. heart of palm (I had never had this before - delicious!)
8. crayfish
9. Brussels sprout (trying to eat my vegetables)
10. mussels
11. fresh pineapple (with an antennae)
12. clarified butter
13. sweet potato casserole
14. white truffle cheesy potatoes (amazing)
15. lamb with mint jelly (Heather thought that was gross, but I told her that is how we always had it when I was a kid)
16. lemons (obviously)
17. oyster on the half shell (I kept the shell for a souvenir)

Whew! Do you know when the next Shellfish Anonymous meeting is?

Here is my beautiful, fascinating almost 16 year old date for dinner in her new birthday shirt :)

We stuffed ourselves and then went to the dessert bar. Big mistake. We should have saved more room. That didn't stop us from choosing, yes, fifteen desserts between the two of us. It is a good thing the portions were tiny. Smart buffet people! We tasted each others' stuff and reluctantly, didn't finish every last bite, but oh my, they were good. My favorites were the sorbets and souffle. Mmmmmmm!

Here's the lineup - 

1. hazelnut chocolate cup
2. cheesecake
3. canolis
4. coconut macaroon
5. meringues
6. cookie dough gelato
7. raspberry sorbet
8. mango sorbet
9. coconut sorbet
10. bread pudding
11. chocolate souffle
12. chocolate marshmallow bark
13. flan
14. raspberry pistachio cup
15. mint chocolate chip gelato

We wobbled out of there and booked it over to our show. We saw Mystere. It was supposed to be the most family friendly Cirque show, and it pretty much was, except for when the clown gave the ringmaster the bird. Oh well.

The performers were absolutely amazing! There were balancing acts, trapeze artists, a woman on aerial silks that took my breath away, these two incredibly strong men that contorted and balanced on each other, people climbing up poles (one guy did it with just his hands touching the pole and his body held out away from it) and sliding down headfirst, then stopping just in time, flipping, dancing, twisting, and flying everywhere! It was so fun!

We collapsed in our hotel room, slept a while, then woke up this morning, ate a quick breakfast, stopped by at a nearby sacrament meeting and headed home. 

It was a wonderful trip and I am so glad I could spend time with Heather. Happy early birthday, Darling!

Happy 16th

Today is Stan's birthday, but we aren't celebrating until the weekend, so I'll post more about him later, but in the meantime, Happy Birthday, Darling!

It has put me in a birthday mood, though, so I thought I'd finish this post that has been waiting as a draft for a couple of weeks.

Rachel is 16!

Happy Birthday Rachel!!!!

Rachel, Sara and Summer were getting home from San Francisco the night of Rachel's birthday, so we threw her a surprise party. It was a a little nerve wracking after I told a bunch of teenagers to come over at 7:30 to have my three travelers call and say they were running two hours late, but with some help from Rachel's darling friend Jillian (who helped a lot with the guest list) we got a hold of everyone and told them to come later.

For our Christmas letter Kelly asked everyone their favorite colors and, Rachel, being slightly pert, or maybe cheeky, answered gold and diamonds. So, I bought some stuff at the after Christmas clearances and we decorated for her party in bling!

Heather made her a sparkling banner.

Her chocolate cake with chocolate frosting.

I was a bit nervous about throwing my first party for teenagers, but got some good advice from my sister-in-law, Gina and from Anthony and made sure we had a LOT of food.

Besides cake and ice cream, we had chips and dips...

...a chocolate fountain with candy, cookies, pretzels and fruit to dip in it...
(which was a gift from Matt and Steph - thanks again!)

...and s'mores...

...which were roasted over a bonfire in the backyard.

I gave the kids waiting in the garage my camera to videotape Rachel when they surprised her.

Hee hee :)

Cousins!

We love Will, Cynthia and their kids. They came to visit a couple of weeks ago - lucky us!

We went to the beach with them and saw some amazing tide pools. I'll post pictures when I find the beach camera :(





Three teenagers in one twin bed...

...and Uncle Will picking Michael up by the ears!

A Mother's Day Post

My family spoiled me rotten yesterday. I got a nap, Stan gave me a Godiva gift card (mmmmm...), Summer cut me some flowers and made a chocolate layer cake from scratch with seven minute frosting. She decorated it with shaved chocolate and fresh berries. It tasted as good as it looked. The rest of the kids gave me cards with expressions of love I will treasure and there were even a few "help with a chore" coupons thrown in.

It really is amazing that they treat me so well, considering my behavior. Rachel pointed out last night during FHE that I have the awful habit of embarrassing her and Summer, and I admit it's true.

I think I learned this behavior from my dad, or did I inherit it from him? Nurture or nature? Anyway, the more I like someone, the more I enjoy teasing them.

Summer and Rachel have these two friends, who happen to be boys. S & R like these two young men a lot, but just for the record, they don't LIKE them.

Anyway, they are very likable young men. They are kind and respectful and are gentlemen. I like them, which is where the problem lies. I also really like S & R. I see them together and I just can't help myself!

Here is a list of the teasing I have let slip out of my undisciplined lips provided by the daughters (I don't remember 2/3 of these, but they do - vividly) -

One time, I saw the four of them chatting in the halls at church and one of my daughters was twirling her hair. One of the boys was fiddling with his tie. I walked up and said, "Don't you all look nervous!"

Another time, another daughter was sitting by one of the boys, who started kicking her legs. She kicked him back and it looked like footsy to me, so I told her,"Stop flirting."

A couple of different times, I was ready to leave and so I let my daughters know by saying, "It's time to go, maybe some cute boys will escort you out," and, "Are you ready to go or are you too busy talking to cute boys?"

Finally, my most recent abomination was when the four of them were chatting and I walked up with the five younger kids to gather my two oldest to leave church. One of the boys looked at Michael and said, "Your little brother is so adorable with his suspenders," (see why I like these boys) so I said , "ALL of my kids are adorable."

They knew who I was talking about.

The Beach in the Winter

For Christmas, my parents gave Stan and me a gift card to Bed and Breakfast.com (Thanks Mom and Dad!). I found a place in Anaheim that gave us two rooms for the price of one. It was so much fun. The kids and I left after school and ate take out Chinese. Then, while we waited for Stan to get there from work, the kids played in the pool. Stan and I had one room and we put the kids in another with a stack of DVDs from the library. I like having responsible teenagers :)

The next morning, we stuffed ourselves with "Light Continental Breakfast" and headed to the beach. I love going to the beach in the winter. It is much less crowded for one thing and for another, I wouldn't want to wait all year and only go in July!

Naomi wore her new birthday sunglasses from Rachel.

They hadn't cleaned the sand that day, so there were piles of little, mostly broken shells. We had fun looking through them. Michael collected worm casings...

...and I was like a kid picking up shells.

Here are a couple of good looking birds...

...and here is a picture Summer took.

Doesn't it look cold? It wasn't too bad, but I didn't swim, anyway!

This Morning

Summer needed to get to school early and get ready with the orchestra to play at Disneyland this evening. It's pretty fun for them: they go on rides all day and then perform in the evening.

Stan needed to get to work early because he has reports to get done today, so he was going to take Summer and then I would take the other three school girls.

We had it all planned out, but you've heard what they say about the best laid plans...

6:15 - I was in the throes of a nightmare about Rachel getting engaged at 16 and married at 18 when Stan woke me up to ask for help getting a permission slip filled out for Summer.

6:32 - Stan took Summer and Rachel to seminary

6:53 - Summer, after leaving seminary early, was almost to school on time when she realized that she left her cello at home.

6:55 - I dragged the three little kids out of bed an hour and a half earlier than they are used to and tossed clothes at them, while I told them to get dressed because we had to take kids to school.

7:10 - Summer rushed in to get her cello. I got a second goodbye kiss from Stan (not a bad development).

7:15 - I left with the five youngest to pick up Rachel from seminary.

7:25 - Rachel peered into the car and asked, "Where is my stuff?" I asked if she needed it and she pointed out it means a detention if she doesn't have it, so I pulled out my phone to call Stan.

7:26 - Stan realized that he had Rachel's bag and we called each other simultaneously a couple times, which caused our calls to go to voice mail twice each. Then he got smart and called Rachel's phone to plan a spot to meet.

7:35 - We arrived at the gas station we agreed on and Rachel got her bag and hoodie.

7:44 - Just as I was pulling up in front of Rachel's high school, Summer called. She told me she was in big trouble because she forgot her close toed shoes and Disneyland WILL NOT allow any performers on stage in open toed shoes. Rachel went to school.

7:47 - Gwen ran into the house and grabbed Summer's close toed shoes.

8:01 - I dropped Heather and Gwen off at school.

8:08 - I handed Summer her shoes through the locked fence at her high school while she sheepishly agonized over walking past the entire orchestra with her shoes in hand.

Whew!

When it was all done and everyone was where they belonged, it seemed kind of funny, ha ha :)

The Lineup

The Occasion

The local high school's Midwinter Formal.

*

The Shoes

Rachel made the ribbon roses from the sash material.

*

The Dress

I finished it twenty minutes before Summer's date arrived.

I was really glad he was ten minutes late.

*

The Girl

Summer is good at multitasking.

*

The Date

Anthony looked sharp when he came to pick Summer up.

*

The Couple

Here they are ready to go!

This week…

Naomi has discovered the joy that females everywhere consider their right - changing her mind. Maybe she waffled before, but now she has the vocabulary for it.

All week, she has been saying, "Actually."

I'll ask, "Do you want the pink or the the green bowl?"

Mo replies, " The pink one!"

Then, after the pink one already has cereal in it, she will say, "I want the green one, actually."

Or, I'll ask, "Which book do you want to read?" and after we are half way through the first page of the one she picked, she'll say, "I want the cat cupcake one, actually."

Kelly has been busy trying new things, herself...

...and Summer had to defrost a big chunk of ice to discover she was asked on her first date to Midwinter.

Thanksgiving, finally!

We spent the week of Thanksgiving in St. George with family. It was really a lovely vacation. We relaxed and had a ton of fun. One of the days we were there, I took my two teenagers and their teenage cousin shopping for a girl's day out. We even did lunch :)

Stan took the five younger kids and some other cousins to feed the ducks.

The family dinner was on Friday to make it easier for everyone who wanted to see their in-laws, so for dinner Thursday, Stan, the kids and I went to the community Thanksgiving dinner. We thought it might be fun and would save Stan's mother at least one day of having to feed all nine of us!

It was pretty good, for cafeteria food. They even had live music and jugglers. The only drawback was that they gave us all way too much to eat! I kept saying, "Just a little, half of that, only a bit", but oh well.

After we ate, we took off to Snow Canyon, one of my favorite places in the universe, for a hike. We explored a split canyon...





...and then crossed the road to play in the sand dunes.

I found buckets of red sand in the laundry!

Niquelle helped Summer dye her hair a darker brunette while we were there.

The look on Kelly's face sums up the trip.

Woohoo!

Song of Solomon

Summer didn't have a Sunday School teacher today so the 2nd counselor in the bishopric suggested the class study scriptures together and he would quiz them later.

They started in Psalms, moved to Proverbs and happened upon the Song of Solomon. It was a bit shocking for the group. The five girls and the lone boy were all traumatized and decided to stick with 2nd Nephi for the rest of the hour.

School is in Session

The five oldest girls are back in school. Hard to believe, but Summer is a junior and Rachel has started high school this year. Heather is in 6th grade, Gwen is in 5th and I am homeschooling Kelly in 2nd. It is quiet at home with only three kids around during the day.

Everyone seems to be enjoying school and comes home happy, which makes me happy. I did have a bit of an email run-in with one of the girl's high school English teachers. She assigned three novels with lots of bad language and I objected. I thought it was silly that the high school had a rule that "Students must not be vulgar, obscene, or profane in speaking, acting or writing," but they were expected to read books with incessant profanity. The teacher was unwilling to compromise and, per the daughter's request, I didn't push any more. It still frustrates me, though. Oh, well.

Just in time for school to start, we replaced the van that was totaled with the same exact vehicle, same color and everything, just two years newer. It was nice to skip the learning curve that comes with a new, unfamiliar car :) I also started driving again in time to do school pick-ups, which is uncomfortable in my brace, but it is nice to be able to get out!

Summer's Growing Up

We have evidence that the inevitable is happening - she is rocketing through teenagehood with adulthood on the horizon.

Clue #1 - She has big plans. Today in the car, she informed us all the when she grows up, she will own, "a mint green convertible Volkswagen Bug, a pink Motorola RAZR, a white iPod, a cello, and a little fluffy white dog." I guess the dog is supposed to match the iPod.

Clue #2 - She shows signs of hormones wreaking havoc on her reason. She admitted with a slight smile (wondering at her own insanity) that she had a sudden urge to throw her, worn for a week, stinky to the hilt, PE clothes at people (strangers that she admitted to having nothing against) while we were in the parking lot at Sears.

While the years ahead are looking like they will be full of surprises, we are confident that most of them will be pleasant ones. Summer is a great girl and we are glad it is her breaking us into parenting a teenager.