Rise and Shout

"...Loyal, strong and true
wear the white and blue."

David and I got to attend the BYU Alumni Chapter Chair training again this year. Although we gave up the "chairship" (is that a word?) in January, the new Chair couldn't go and asked if we'd like to. Of course -- it's the best part of the "job!" (We're still on the board.)
So we flew to SLC on Thursday morning. After meetings and training Thursday afternoon, we got to hear from President/Elder Samuelson at dinner that evening. He is so eloquent and the perfect man for the job. (President of BYU)

Me and Cosmo (And yes, my grandchildren will be jealous.)

On Friday, we got to tour the new BYU Broadcasting Building. It is the most technologically advanced building in the world. (Really.) David was pretty excited to see the place and we even took a picture of him sitting on the same chair that Jimmer did when he visited the set of "True Blue." Our tour guide said that it won't be disclosed how much money was put into that building, but he was told from a reliable source: "Think of a very, very high number and then go north. And then go north again. And again." (And not one penny came from church funds.)
Friday evening we had a tailgate party and Cosmo joined us. Gotta love Cosmo!
Then it was off to the game where we FINALLY PULLED IT OFF AND WON!!!! So exciting!

This was about 30 minutes before the game started. And by the way, David was happy about being there. Happier than the picture shows.
This morning (Saturday), Athletic Director Tom Holmoe spoke to us at breakfast. He talked about athletes, games, coaches, integrity and the Honor Code. What would this world be like if all schools had - and upheld - an honor code? I'm just wondering out loud. Back to Tom. Yup -- he's "Tom" to us. He says everywhere the Cougars go, they have a strong presence at the games and the other athletic directors wonder why. (There have been many times where the BYU fans outnumbered the home team fans. The HOME TEAM for Pete's sake.)
My heart swells with pride for this great university. We are so blessed to have had every member of our family attend BYU. We definitely bleed blue.

"...we'll raise our colors high in the blue
and cheer the Cougars of BYU.
rah rah rah rah rah
goooooooooo COUGARS!"

What we've been up to

David went to Oviedo, Florida (Orlando) for Benjamin's baby blessing. Laura's parents went too.

Nap time. Again.

Quality time with Papa.
Jessica, Benjamin, Chandler

Saturday outing to Cocoa Beach

Michael and Chandler pontificating about the meaning of life.

Maybe life isn't so complicated after all.

Building a sand castle.

Fredricka the Frog. Named by Jessica. Not feared by Papa. Caught by the front door.

I spent a few days in Nashville holding, cuddling, and kissing little Matthew Michael. I was a happy camper. (He'll soon be moving to Phoenix, so at least he'll be closer to us!)

Stake Conference is this weekend, so I did the flowers to reflect the 9/11 Patriots Day holiday.

The above flower arrangement (and its twin) are on each side of the podium, and the ones below are on the outside corners.

We are back to our empty nest. Adam is back in Rexburg for the fall semester.
We had a great summer visiting all of our children and grandchildren. Fremont, CA.
Oviedo, FL. Nashville, TN. They are the light of our lives.

Matthew

Grandson number five -- Matthew Michael

Mother and son doing fine

Adam's 22nd birthday bash

The cousins at surf camp this week.

Right after we took this picture, we went home to begin the birthday party.
The guests at Adam's party were his cousins and one friend from the ward. (a 10 year old friend) Adam said he hadn't had a "proper" birthday party for a couple of years, so he enjoyed all the festivities that were planned for him. And they were definitely geared for the younger guests, but all the adults liked it too.

The birthday had a surf theme, so naturally his cake had a surfer on it.

The activities were as follows: 1) eat dinner (grilled hamburgers) 2) make a "sand castle" out of rice krispy treats 3) break a pinata 4) eat all that sugar. Parents, you can thank me later.

And what self-respecting surfer birthday bash doesn't have a pinata? A surfer pinata!

So there you have it. Going back to the "old" way of birthday parties made for a lot of fun for both kids and adults.
Happy Birthday Adam!

Surf Camp with Adam

I should have used the telephoto lens. Adam caught some good waves.

Adam and Nathan. He is a little young to surf in the real thing, so he directed how this picture should be.

Adam, Mark, Kyle, Andrew, Jacob, Nathan
Five of Adam's younger cousins.

They all had matching surf shirts for their surf camp experience. (custom made by a friend) They were successful all week in getting up on the board. As they would say in Australia: good on them.

Another upgrade

This is the new vanity in our bathroom. It all started with the free pint of paint that Glidden offered a few months ago.
Then it was the buying of a desk/vanity. Next we used the mirror that we had in the downstairs bedroom (which has just been completely repainted thanks to Adam). But if we were going to have a new vanity, it just begged for a new light to be above it. I mean, it's the law, right? So David removed the fluorescent light that was there and to the far right of the wall. That light got moved to a downstairs bathroom that desperately needed a replacement. So off to Home Depot he went in search of a new light fixture. In the meantime, we had some plastering to do to get the wall prepared and to remove the evidence of where the previous light had been.
Then the painting. Two coats. Then new baseboards. And of course, any respectable vanity has a leopard-print tea light holder. {Still holding out for the perfect stool/chair.}
And like I mentioned, the downstairs guest bedroom is still being renovated.
And all because of this "free" pint of paint . . . .

Crackle/Shatter

Today Emma and I bought some shatter nail polish and then invited friends over to try it out. {By the way, Emma talked her mom into bringing her down because "I need some shopping time with Grandma.} Smart girl. So tonight, Jill, Maddy, Mckay, Cheri, Emma and I tried it out. We were all a little underwhelmed, but it was a fun thing to try.

Seven (or Eight) glowing stones

Jessica is quite a story teller.

Happy Birthday David!

Today we celebrated David's 54th birthday. We grilled steaks for dinner and then we had the obligatory picture with the cake. {And no, I don't believe in putting 54 candles on a cake. After 13 years old, it's ridiculous.}

And the obligatory 'blowing out the candles' picture.

Then he opened presents. He got gift certificates to Cafe Rio, Outback, and Applebees, new wing-tip shoes, running shorts, and DVD's.
I don't think he's looking any older; in fact, he keeps getting even more handsome every year. And I'm not just saying that because he's the one holding the gift cards to yummy restaurants. No sir-ee bob. It is true! And I'm the lucky one. Happy Birthday to my favorite person in the whole world!

From David: I am married to the most wonderful girl in the world. She makes silly celebrations like birthdays amazingly fun, even for an old guy. And by the way, it was the best cake I have ever had.

Go Dodgers!

First of all, Adam is home for 7 weeks! We picked him up from the airport, went home to change clothes, and then back on the road to Dodger Stadium for Mormon Night. We have a friend in the ward that rents a suite for Mormon Night and we got invited. (She kept her regular seats right behind home plate.) So as far as I'm concerned, this is the only way to enjoy a MLB game.

The room consists of 7 television screens. You can sit in the "living room" on the couch to watch, sit up to the bar (above) and watch the game, or sit outside on the room's two rows of stadium seats. We pretty much played musical chairs all night.
We dined on Dodger dogs, chicken wings, potato salad, sandwiches, chips, caesar salad, popcorn, cookies, and peanuts and cracker jacks. And then there was an awesome fireworks show afterwards.

Oh, and then there was a game being played . . . .

Florida trip

I spent last week in Florida with these three little cuties. (and their parents too)

Jessica is such a good big sister to little Benjamin. She starts kindergarten next month and will be sorely missed by her brothers. She kept me entertained all week with her story telling (made up completely on the fly), dancing and singing in Spanish. Her version of Spanish. Hilarious!

Chandler is armed and dangerous. (We had way too much fun with those water guns.)

The boys.

Getting a picture of a newborn smiling was just random dumb luck.

Is that the cutest little face??

Jessica is more tech savvy than I am. (I can't even compete with kindergartners anymore!) I think Benjamin should just get used to being posed for pictures. With dolls.

Chandler was my little buddy. We read books and told stories all week. And the kid is a fish in the pool! {And the day I left, I found him unpacking my suitcase with a vengeance. How sweet is that??}

The week went by quickly and it was hard to leave. When you're with the kids 24/7, you get attached. And then it makes it so hard to leave and there are tears. Mostly mine. But thanks for letting me come and play!