Griffin and strawberries

I couldn't not put a picture of the fabulous Mrs. Smith and Griffin on the last day of Kindergarten. Griffin said, "Mommy, Mrs. Smith loves me."

All of the kids had such great teachers this year. I feel like that is such a huge blessing and I feel very grateful.








Friday morning we picked our first crop of strawberries from our garden! They are so juicy and delicious; we enjoyed every last one of them for breakfast this morning!

school carni

Last Friday was our school carnival which my friend, Kari, and I were in charge of. It was enormous preparation and I'm grateful for a good committee, good faculty, strong 4th and 6th graders, good friends, a supportive husband, and rock star kids who all helped out.

Zachary and Anna are shown here working the snocone booth. And the kids later on in the night after playing games and dancing and having fun. I don't absolutely love the girls' orange hair, but what's a carnival without colored hair and tattoos?

My friend put her cell phone in her pocket that afternoon at 2:30 which has a pedometer on it; by the end of the night she had walked 7.6 miles! It was a busy and successful day!

the potter

The last month or so the 4th graders have been learning about many different artists and types of art. So last week Jeremy was asked to come in an give a pottery demonstration to the whole 4th grade. Zachary gave a very nice introduction and then while the kids passed around chunks of clay to feel and smell, Jeremy threw a vase on the wheel and then demonstrated a few other hand building techniques. The kids thought it was pretty cool.

lotsa music

Last Wednesday was the spring piano recital. All of my students performed very nicely which is a nice reward after lots of hard work. I've included a portion of Z, A, & G's trio, Brother John. The kids worked well together as they learned and practiced this song. I thought it was fun to see all of them at the piano together. My sister, Sarah, also played a solo in the recital and we ended together with a duet. My mom came as well as Jer's dad came and we felt well supported.


We left the piano recital and went directly to the choir concert where the kids performed very well again. I've included Zachary's solo here.


Anna's class did Jack in the Beanstalk, the musical, and Anna played the role of Mother. She had two solos and fit the part beautifully. It's a blessing to have such great kids!

fun weekend

We had a great Memorial Day Weekend. Saturday we worked hard in the garden and Sunday we had a barbeque with the Wrights. After dinner we played newspaper tag and ultimate frisbee. A highlight of the evening was Grandpa Wright having foot races with his grandchildren! Oh, to be sprinting at 70!
Monday morning, the kids sang in the school choir at a Memorial Service at Sandy Elementary. This year marks the 100th year a school has been on the property. It was a special ceremony with lots of big wigs and many, many retired teachers and former students. The fourth graders prepared a time capsule which was buried at the base of the flag pole that week. The kids are standing in front of 100 flags at the front of the school. It was a very touching ceremony and neat to be a part of it.
Later in the afternoon we enjoyed fishing at Robert & Patty's pond in Holladay. We didn't catch anything, but it sure was a nice afternoon... and a very productive and fun weekend.

girls just wanna have fun!

Anna had a busy night a few days back. She had a soccer game in which she played goalie for a quarter and then went down and scored a goal the next. We left at the end of the 3rd quarter to go to her dance recital. Anna dances with Guyz & Dollz Performing Arts Academy where they have opportunities to dance and sing.

Griffin is 6!

My Griffin is 6 years old! The night before his birthday while he was saying his prayers he said "And please bless us that we can have Lucky Charms for breakfast."

My good friend, Sallianne, suggested I try the easiest cake ever. Griffin was very happy (and surprised!) with his green snake cake.

Griffin's favorite dinner is Hawaiian Haystacks. Zachary made homemade baking powder biscuits in the shape of a 6; what a good big brother.

Griffin is such a sweet boy who loves to laugh and run and imagine. He is kind and enjoys reading and does math problems in his head. He is good at playing the piano and making friends. He gets up the second his alarm clock goes off and gets all of his morning jobs done without being asked. Griffin is a such blessing to our family.

why we keep stuff we aren't using

Meet Patch, our new bunny.

Patch's story: two nights ago Aunt Suzy was driving home late at night and saw something in the road. She drove past, but her conscience got the better of her and she turned around and went back to find a cute little bunny being stalked by cats. Suzy brought the bunny home, bathed her, and gave her some food.

Our bunny story: a few years back we had a bunny, Flower Girl, who was darling and litter box trained. Bunnies don't smell great so Jeremy and Zachary built a two-story deluxe bunny hotel so Flower could live outside. On a winter afternoon I looked outside to see Max, the dog, playing catch with Flower. Flower died shortly thereafter. There was much, much sadness at our house and I vowed, what with the smelliness and the immense grief, that we would never get another bunny. I've tried on several occasions to sell the bunny hotel, but it's always been me, 1, family, 5.

How the stories blend: Suzy called Jeremy and asked if we wanted a bunny. What do you say? Last night Suzy brought her over and the kids were SO excited. We're not sure if Patch, named for the patch of hair missing on it's back, is a boy or a girl. Zachary did a google search this afternoon, though, and knows how to find out. Unfortunately he's at a birthday party this afternoon so we'll have to determine her gender later tonight.

Patch is a sweet bunny who has bursts of energy and the kids absolutely love her. Jane tried to catch her under a bucket this afternoon which she didn't seem to like too well. She also doesn't like to be held, but is handling the attention quite well.

You just never know what supplies you're going to need for various parts of life. So, that's why we keep things we don't use. Oh, and a tiny speck of advice: never say never.

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.