New High

Jena and Gary headed to the bowling alley after school today.  Jena scored a brand new high of 136.  Big smiles all around!!!!

More on graduation

Scott and Chantel dropped by on Thursday night just as I was getting ready to wrap up their graduation gifts.  Now Gary thought I should just give them without wrapping them (save the papers, etc.)  But you know how it is.  The wrapping and unwrapping is part of the plan so I hurried them to the kitchen and made them wait while I got things ready.  Here is the final product which they unwrapped 30 secnds later.

Silly I know, but moms hae plans  (at least some of the times--the rest we are just winging it.)

Here is the picture for their children to see!
They made their goal!!!

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April Pack Meeting

One of the fun things I get to do in my calling is to be involved with Pack Meeting each month.  Cub Scouts can be fun and we have great leaders to make it fun.  We had a conflict with a school program involving our Webelos so we had an unconventional Pack Meeting this month.  Instead of our regular time and day, we held it on Tuesday during our regular Scout time.  Families were invited but we focused our activities mainly for our Scouts.  Our theme this month was on "Health and Fitness" so Chantel came and gave a PowerPoint presentation on good health for kids.  Then she had them all do warm-ups what she would do for track.

We played a clothespin tag game and then headed out for a cub scout jog/walk to our house.  We held a closing ceremony in our front yard where more parents joined us for awards and a retrieval of the flag ceremony from our flag pole.  It worked great  and the boys had fun.  Success!



Gathering activity--the bunny hop

Retrieving the Flag by the Webelos.


                                                     On an additional Scouting note:
                        After graduation, Gary headed out to Antelope Island with the Webelos
                        to join up with the 11 yrs. old for an evening with them at a campout.
                        A buffalo walked between their location and the next campsite....about 30 ft. away.
                                                      A little too close for my comfort!



Graduation Day times 2

Friday was the big day for Scott and Chantel to "walk" after all of their hard work (and easy work), bood sweat and tears of college.  Scott graduated in "Long-term Admin." and Chantel in "Human Performance".  They were in different graduation exercises, but they wanted to graduation together so Chantel joined in Scott's college services.  (She said as she shook hands with the professors, she was saying, "I am from a different college that's way you don't know me.)  They had made a plan (unknown to us) to continuing walking out after getting their diplomas.  However an usher stood in their way of a clean breakaway.  About 300 diplomas later, Scott tapped Gary on the shoulder.  They had slipped away from their seats and were in the lobby with Chantel's parents.  (We hadn't noticed.)We headed out and got pictures taken just before the masses let out.

Scenes from the day:

Waiting in the tunnel before Graduation.
They have different tassels due to their majors, 'although Scott was
given the wrong color.  Hs should have been salmon colored.
Of course, he thinks it is silly to go to the effort of having it changed.
Who in the world would really care and say--
I need to see your tassel!

Back to their seats after receiving ther diploma (covers)

After graduaton--Chantel's grandmom, her parents, the graduates and us.

There is something about graduations and parents.  It was fun to watch the picture taking occuring as we headed into the graduation service.  Proud parents, spouses, and even children were there with big smiles.  It is a payoff moment in parenting.

Photo-less moment

Don't you hate that---when you plan on taking a picture, even put your camera in your purse, and then totally forget about the whole picture idea because you are just having fun eating and being together...

That's what happened when Gary, Jena, and I along with my dad and Karla met up with the Utah County "Gibersons"--Megan Ipson, Niles and Rachel Giberson, and Katie Giberson for dinner at Cafe Paesan in Orem on Saturday night.  We wanted to get together one more time before Katie headed back to Grapevine, TX for the summer.  The food was outstanding.  I had a Thai salad with apple grilled pork.  It left such a great taste in my mouth, I didn't want to brush my teeth that night (for the record, I did).  It was fun to catch up with their semesters and their summer plans.  They are all great people and I am glad to be related to them. 

Maybe I will get that picture next time!

My sweet morning view...

On good weather days, this is often the scene out my front door.

I love it.  At dusk, it is usually Jena who reminds us that it is time to get the flag down.

"Popcorn popping"

everywhere in Syracuse, trees are filled with white blossoms which certainly inspired that famous song.  We have had a very dry winter and early warm weather which has contributed to these beautiful displays of white.



Our neighbor's tree

Years ago, before we had kids, I was visiting a friend who had a three year old named Lori.  Lori was so excited to see their tree in the back burst with white blooms.  Her mom told her that it wasn't really popcorn so Lori was informing me of that fact when I arrived.  I asked her if she knew what happened after the blooms were gone (referring to the fact that her tree would get fruit),  She got a big smile on her face and asked ,"Oh then the popcorn will grow!"  The innocence of youth!

Does make you think why do we sing that song...in Primary, no less?  Think of all the children who were disappointed when popcorn never appeared!

We have maple trees--they start red in the spring, then green leaves, and ends with red leaves in the fall.
Beautiful in their own way.

Spring in our backyard.

I love tulips.

Easter 2012

Jena played Easter bunny this week by delivering a basket to Scott and Chantel on Easter afternoon.

At our house, we had our neighborhood Easter bunny's footprints on our steps.  He visits throughout our area during the night leaving footprints, green Easter grass, and even a few plastic eggs.  It is a fun thing and as far as we know, "he" had never been caught.

We had a nice Easter sacrement meeting and then had dinner with some of Gary's family.  It was a good day.  Hope yours was, too.

Spring Break

Although typically "spring break" brings visions of families going to Disneyland or college students going to Florida, this year we spent it in more boring ways.  We caught up on some doctors' appointments and Jena had a sleep study done at Primary's. (The sleep study showed that she still has minor sleep apnea but does not require treatment at this point.) She also got her bottom braces put on.  She dd have fun with friends and got some good bowling in.  Her average over 9 or so games was 99.  Amazing.  Gary had some great games over the past few weeks as well.  I think his high was a 232 or so.

Our main accomplishment for the week was cleaning the garage.



Cleaned and organized including our camping dishes!

Gary installed new shelves
(if you can't throw it or give it away, build another shelf.)
Anyway, this is mainly our emergency prep stuff.
If we have an earthquake, I don't have to dig down to my basement to find my port-a-potty and outdoor shower.

It took about three days to get everything done that we wanted to do, but it is so great to have it done and it is nice to know where things are. 

Temple Square

I planned to post these pictures before conference to "wet" your appetite for General Conference.  However time slipped away and I never got it done.  Nevertheless, here they are now.....I guess they can remind you of this past conference and all of the great talks that were given.

I was at Temple Square on Thursday to attend the Primary General Training (which was amazing and can or soon will be available to watch at www.lds.org under the Primary section.  If you are serving in Primary, check it out.)  I ended up going by myself as everyone else in the Presidency went Wednesday night but we had tickets to the Hale Theater that night.  I missed being with them but it was also fun to enjoy the meeting on my own and to enjoy the training and some time on Temple Square.

The Assembly Hall where the meeting was held

The temple through the trees beginning to "leaf"

Since the weather has been so warm in Utah during March,
the trees are in full bloom.  It almost looked like the trees
were lit up with tiny lights.

I had to post this picture in memory of my first calling in the Church. Soon after we moved to Texas, I was called to lead the music in junior Primary (back when it was held after school).  I was 16 at the time and not very musical. I still have a vivid memory of s Stake visitor coming to Primary on the day I was starting to teach "Little Purple Pansies".  I was very nervous. Afterwards, she spoke to me and told me that it didn't matter how well I sang or knew music, but if the children knew that I loved them..and that, she assured me, they did know. That has been an important advice for all my Church callings.

Facing to the east from in front of the temple,
this is the fountain in front of the Church Office building.

The Reflection Pond to the east of the Temple

 The gardens were filled with lots of varieties of flowers but a majority were purple this spring.  I love purple flowers so it was fun to see some many different types in the gardens.

The core of the training is to consider and discover the "Why" which will lead you to the "How" or "What should you do" of things.  The General Primary leaders are amazing.  Again check out the training.