spirit week, field trips, and soccer

A few weeks back was Spirit Week at school; one day was College Day. Our kids are planning on going to the UofU.





Last week I got to go with Anna and her classmates on the 2nd grade field trip to Red Butte Gardens. We rode the bus and ate lunch at a park and learned all the parts of a flower. We went on a walking tour and learned about different habitats. It was a warm, gorgeous day and we had a nice time together.
Soccer is a big deal at our house. Zachary (who is in 4th grade) is playing in a 5th-6th league, playing very well, and loving it!



I absolutely love this action shot of Griffin! This very intense kick was a goal!

professional soccer and Easter

In addition to Anna's baptism this last weekend, we scored a stack of free tickets to the Real (ree-al) professional soccer game at the new stadium about 2 miles from our house. The weather was bleak, but our seats were covered so we enjoyed the game minus the rain. Real won 2-1 and it was great fun to share this neat experience with our cousins!

We enjoyed an Easter egg hunt at our house and then another at Grandma Wright's with the cousins. The kids managed to come away with lots of candy. It was such a nice weekend.

Anna's baptism

Last Saturday Anna was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It was a wonderful day. Anna was one of five children from our stake who were baptized.

We were overwhelmed at the tremendous support from our extended family and our friends. There are so many people on Anna's "important people" list and we're so grateful to all of you.

In February I started working on Anna's dress. She picked the pattern and the fabric and my wonderful friend, Sue, gave me some direction and help with the smocking. When it was all said and done we estimated, in addition to all of the hours of smocking, that there are 1900 french knots on the arms, neck, and back buttons. I was so pleased with the dress and Anna gasped when she saw herself in the full length mirror.

The picture shown is of Anna and her school teacher, Miss Ellison. I wanted to post a picture of Anna's dress and this picture shows most of it (even though the picture doesn't do it justice).

The spirit was sweet and Anna was so happy and beautiful. The spotlight that the Primary counselor read is:

Anna is very creative, loves to draw, make lists, and play school with her younger siblings. She writes kind notes to her family all the time. She has a style all her own and is artistic. Anna has a fun imagination and likes to make up and play games.

Music is important to Anna. She plays the piano and loves to sing, dance and listen to music.

Anna excels in school, enjoys story problems, reads late into the night, and is a good friend. Anna likes to be outside and is a great soccer player.

Anna is determined and driven and is a peacemaker. Anna is a very important part of her family.

Her favorite scripture story is Daniel in the Lion’s Den and she loves to sing in Primary. She has a testimony of the gospel. Anna is very excited to be baptized and make covenants with her Heavenly Father.

secrets of a Kindergarten teacher

Griffin came home from school this week wide eyed and very quietly said, "Mommy, I gotta tell you something. Mrs. Smith's real name..." (pause) "...is Teresa Smith." "Really?" I replied. He answered, "but she doesn't really like that name and that's why we call her Mrs. Smith."

my girls

How can they be growing so fast? Anna turned 8 last week and had a fun party with her friends. Aunt Sarah came with all of her polish and painted nails!


















Our Idaho cousins were in town for the weekend (it was their spring break). Part of the fun included going swimming, a favorite for our kids.



Anna loves to read and write notes and make lists. She is driven and creative and musical. Anna is a good friend and can be an amazing peacemaker.

Our Jane turned 4 the same weekend. She is a busy girl who loves to chat, sing, play, and pretend. She is a good counter and likes to color and paint. She is a joy.

Maryland, Virginia & Washington DC

Mindy and Clinton welcomed Emma Catherine on March 14. She weighed 9 lb 15 oz! I had the privilege of going to Maryland the following week for 5 days!

Regardless of Emma's size, she seemed small to me, smelled so good and was so very soft. I've forgotten a few things about babies... how they like to scrunch up and how tricky it is to change their entire outfit. I did love holding her and having her smile at someone, who I couldn't see, over my shoulder or above my head. She and I spent some time walking together in the wee hours of the morning which was actually quite pleasant.

I enjoyed the time I got to spend with 2 1/2 year old Lizzy. She and I have never bonded like that because the times we've been together my children, her cousins, were there too. She wasn't sure about me at first, but we became great buddies and quite enjoyed each other.

It was a real treat to be able to visit with Mindy and Clinton (almost constantly) and get them all to myself. It was delightful to visit about U.S. History and learn things that I'm sure I should've learned in high school, but clearly didn't. It was just neat to be with that little family. They fed me and housed me and drove me around and provided me with a computer so I could check my email. They're great people.

Mindy felt very well so we went on several outings. We rode the rail into downtown Washington, D.C. I was overwhelmed the minute we walked out of the rail station. The buildings were magnificent with columns and quotes carved into the marble. We walked across Pennsylvania Avenue and down to the White House (the president didn't come out and wave to us).

I had read a biography on Abraham Lincoln and George Washington prior to my trip so that I could appreciate more some of the things I was seeing. I am so grateful that I did that. It gave great importance to the Lincoln Memorial which has the Gettysburg Address and Lincoln's second Inaugural Address, on the walls. We sat at the World War II Memorial for some time and walked past the Washington Monument.

Mindy sat and rested and fed Emma. Clinton, the amazing and most fabulous tour guide, and Lizzy and I did much more walking.

A few days later we went downtown to the National Archives where we saw the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the Magna Carta. Simply amazing.

We took one day and went to Mount Vernon, George Washington's plantation. I wish I could verbalize how magnificent this place is, how blessed we are to live in this country, and how fortunate we are to have the freedoms that we have.

I am determined that we need to take our children to Washington, D.C. It's moved to one of the top three places that we need to vacation!

Jeremy is my hero. He spent a week at home with sick children, got the healthy ones to school on time, got Anna to dance, hosted a late night with some of the neighbor kids, did laundry, managed to work, and keep the house tidy. He is the best.

Thanks to Michelle for planting the idea (that I should go to Maryland) in my head last November, thanks to Mindy and Clinton for allowing me to come and play, thanks to my kids for being great and making me feel like I could go, and thanks to Jeremy for encouraging me to go and being happy that I got to take such a remarkable trip. I'm a lucky gal.

**pictures top to bottom: (1) the girls standing at the WWII Memorial with the Lincoln Memorial in the background, (2) Emma and me in front of the White House, (3) Lizzy and me in front of the Washington Monument and the Capitol Building behind that, (4) Mindy, Emma and me at Mount Vernon standing in front of the Potomac River, and (5) me with Emma and Lizzy resting after a fun day

Go Utes!

Saturday we went to the University of Utah basketball game. We had a great time with our friends and enjoyed a well played game. Utah beat TCU, 68-49. Go Utes!

cabin trip

We had a nice, nice weekend at the cabin. Here is our little family at the snow fort, right next to the sledding hill, that Jeremy and the kids built.



My brothers and their families spent the weekend with us and we were fortunate to have enough machines running to snowmobile a bit.



This is Zachary driving us around. He loves that he can drive his own machine.








The snow was packed down pretty good so we were able to hike in and out of the cabin.

The weather was brisk, but pleasant, and sunny--enough to put some color on our faces. We ate good food, played games, went sledding, and watched movies--it was very relaxing and down right FUN!

snow and shorts

It's like spring here this week, but last week we had snow. This is so Griffin, to shovel snow in his shorts.

priorities

I have no less than 8 things that HAVE to be done before I go to bed tonight. My brain is on overload, I've got to do follow up on stuff for the school carnival, come up with some ideas for New Beginnings (my new job is in the young womens), my hallway is full of my scrapbook stuff (on account of my cleaning out my office, but now I don't know what to do with all my pictures and supplies), my inbox in 2 email accounts is full and needs attending to, and my house needs to tidied (by some sweet miracle I have no laundry to fold and put away). Fortunately tonight is the Blue & Gold banquet (cub scouts) so I don't have to make dinner. I worked with a great lady, Joan Reid, for many years who, when on overload, set all of the Priority A's to the side and accomplished a Priority C. So, one of my Priority C's is sitting here at my computer. I'm reading blogs of people who I love. Thanks to all of you who share your lives with me through the beautiful invention of the world wide web.