All-City Orchestra

First of all, this is the reason I love my camera. This picture...
...is actually a zoomed-in version of this picture:
I love the orchestra program here. It sounds a little daunting, but it's really very awesome to hear all of the NPS string students play in one night. (And what a difference one year makes between 5th graders and 6th graders, but shh! don't tell Hannah I said that because the 5th grade performance last year was delightful.) Still not as cool as 5th grade All-City Choir which ends with an audience-wide rendition of "Oklahoma!" But definitely cool.
Our neighbors' son plays the viola so we sat with them. Have I mentioned that I absolutely love my neighbors? The sat with my middle 3 children while I paced the concrete with Sariah (I carried her the whole time, you'd think with that much weight-bearing walking I'd lose a few pounds, but alas! no!). However, before I resigned myself to the task, I had time to take some pics.
Funny, I don't think they wanted their photos taken.

But the real surprise of the evening was yet to come. I had been laughing earlier this afternoon that our county was under a thunderstorm watch, but there were no clouds anywhere to be seen. It was a beautiful spring day, perfect really.

That's why it was kind of like ... well, cold water in the face, when we came out after the concert to pouring rain, cats-and-dogs-type pouring rain, thunder, lightening, and as we were scurrying to our cars (which being at Lloyd Noble were of course out in the back 40), it started hailing pea to marble sized hail. Yippee!

But my day was absolutely made when, from the relative warmth and dryness of the Nastymobile, I observed my friend Shawna and her family run past our car (they must have been out in the back back 40), and they were all smiling and laughing, out on a little family adventure. For some reason, that just warmed my heart right up.

Family Traditions

"Quacks, quacks!"
"Yes, Sariah, ducks say 'Quack!'"

"QUACKS!! QUACKS!!"
"No. Ducks."

"No. Quacks, Mommy."

And here the most important detail comes out:
"Mine. Mine, Mommy."

I love this stage in Sariah's development. She's really learning how to talk, how to converse, and she's trying to start labeling things for herself. It's great fun. All of our kids have had something, and it is fascinating to me how it becomes a permanent part of the family vernacular. As we drove past the duck pond the other day, I heard myself saying, "Look at the quacks, Sariah!"

When Hannah was a baby, she always asked for "mac-mac & cheese." Elisabeth always needed "lonely time" for herself without Hannah or Caleb or Mom around. Caleb's catch-all phrase was "Stuck!!" whenever he needed help, even if he wasn't stuck. And Rex? Rex always celebrated "Zee-pa!" at dinner time gleefully--you have to imagine it with a My Big Fat Greek Wedding kind of inflection to get the full effect. We still call it zee-pa these days; even Sariah says it occasionally.

It goes to show how much difference one person can make. Who knows? Maybe when Sariah's all grown up, everyone will wonder why old people call quacks ducks. LOL

Snowstorm 2009

For my out of town relatives, especially my parents, who actually lived through the Denver blizzard of 2009 (even though they don't actually live there)...I bring you the Oklahoma Snowstorm of 2009. You know what snowstorm I'm talking about...the one they talked about for 2 weeks beforehand on the weather, the one that was supposed to drop 4-8" on us, or 3-6", or 1-4", or something like that. Yeah, well, it may have snowed that much, but not a lick of it actually stuck...not surprising, really, when you consider that the thermometer at our house never dropped below 33 degrees F. All that agony over whether or not to have Caleb's baptism and birthday party over this???

I will grant you that the snow that fell was gorgeous--humongous fluffy flakes like we never get here (because it typically ices, not snows). And I will grant you that the thundersnow was pretty cool.

But the storm of the century, as my friend Melessa refers to the dire predictions?

Come on.

Caleb's Big Day

Bob baptized Caleb on Saturday, and confirmed him a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We are so proud of Caleb for all the good choices that he makes each day, and for the many kindnesses he extends to those around him, and for his eagerness to choose what is right and good. He is so very loved, and we are so grateful to have him in our lives.

Sighted!

Pictures like this are few and far between these days (as you can see, she almost got her hand up in time to block my pic, but not quite!). Hannah goes out of her way to get out of the way of the camera. It's kind of sad for me as her mom, because I think she's lovely, gorgeous, amazing! When I look at Hannah's pictures, her smiles make me smile. They remind me of everything that I love about her, like the fact that she has spent this week lovingly caring for our lizard, which is very ill week. Or the fact that Sariah loves "my Hannah," as she calls her, as much as (or maybe even more than) Sariah loves her mommy, because Sariah absolutely knows that Hannah loves her. Or the fact that Hannah is incredibly intelligent and thinks much faster on her feet than I do. She's just ... amazing!

I Am Loved

~"I have spoken here of heavenly help, of angels dispatched to bless us in time of need. But when we speak of those who are instruments in the hand of God, we are reminded that not all angels are from the other side of the veil. Some of them we walk with and talk with--here, now, every day. Some of them reside in our own neighborhoods."~Jeffrey R. Holland, General Conference address, October 2008

I believe in angels. I have to. It's how I know that God hears my prayers, even the ones I don't give voice to, and that he knows what my needs and wants are. He answered for both of those this week, through people in my life whom I'm lucky enough to call my friends.

On Tuesday, we had an unexpected showing of our house on very short notice (an hour). I bribed my kids and all of their friends with a pizza party to help me clean up the disaster area ... er, the house in mega-fast time (45 minutes!!). But my favorite part was when my neighbor (the mom, not the kids) came over unasked (but not uninvited), supervised some of the kids' cleaning, and scrubbed my stove. And I mention in passing, as a testament to her mothering skills, that her 13 year old son was the only one willing to clean the bathroom up cheerfully. She is most amazing, and her help was much needed and more appreciated than words can say.

These events on Tuesday led to some of Wednesday's events. On Wednesday morning, my mother's family learned of a very tragic and unexpected death. It really threw all of us for a loop, especially with the news coming on Caleb's birthday. Instead of coming here this weekend for Caleb's baptism and birthday, they have opted (with our full support) to be with my cousin and her family at this time. I was rattled at the news, and canceled a lunch appointment with a dear friend in order to make some different arrangements for the coming events. My friend was, of course, not offended and immediately asked what she could do. I didn't know the answer to that question.

But she showed up at my house an hour later with a yummy tart from LaBaguette, a local French bakery (kind of an oxymoron, I suppose) , as shown above, because "Caleb's birthday is a day for Mom to celebrate, too." How could she have possibly known that the day before I was craving exactly that, and had planned to (learn how to) make one on Tuesday night, but was thwarted in my endeavor by the house showing?

Now, did I pray outright for either one of these blessings? Absolutely not. Okay, well, I did pray for a miracle in the housecleaning debacle. But of course I did not pray for a fruit tart from LaBaguette. I might feel pretty ridiculous doing that (depending on the day, lol). Still though, it seemed to me that Heavenly Father knew that I would need to feel His love this week, and He sent His very own angels to fill those needs and desires. The tart was certainly not the most delicious part. The most delicious part was having a friend who cares that much, and who listened to a still, small voice deep within her heart. Despite the stresses and cares and heartaches of the week, I know that I am loved, and I am so grateful.

Sheer Joy

Yesterday was the big day. We got up, we had cinnamon rolls, we sang Happy Birthday (which Rai-rai continued to sing all day long, too cute), we sent him off to school. After school, he played and played and played until we ate his Birthday Request Dinner, stuffed crust pizza, and then we opened presents. Does he look surprised?
He's a really good actor, eh? He was with me at the store and picked that Webkinz out, but I told him he had to act surprised when he opened it. He thought it was way cool, and he did a good job, too.

But now ... take a look at the real thing. It's pretty entertaining.
And yes, yes, YES, we bought our son nerf dart guns. (The weapons ban has been temporarily suspended.) He's the toast of the neighborhood now. But who's really paying attention, right? {wink} Anyhow, he's at just the right age for expressing perfect appreciation for something so wonderful. I wish I still had that.

Then it was on to cake and ice cream. We tried Bluebell's Candy Jar ice cream. It's almost as good as Braum's peanut butter cup, as long as you don't mind mixing your candy, but my kids still preferred the little candy letters on top of the cake. So do I, for that matter. Even chocolate can't compete with pure sugar (yesterday, anyway).


There is a picture of me blowing out the candles every single birthday. I detest those pictures. I think my mom had an admirable talent for capturing me with my cheeks fully puffed out (like they needed any help). I swore I would never take pictures like that of my kids. But with Bob out of town this week, how could he miss that important moment? Honestly. I mean, I'm being a good wife and mother to my children here. ROTFL

Birthday Boy!

I can't believe he's 8! Time sure does fly.

I Don't Like Pictures

Tiffany and I have been friends for however many years it's been, and there are NO pictures of us together. I kid you not when I say that. We were going to have her photographer sister take our picture awhile back, when we were both skinny at the same time ... but then I went off and got pregnant. While we were at the zoo last week, we asked Matthew and Elisabeth to take some snapshots. It went okay, considering that we were both wishing we were skinnier, younger (but not as zitty as when you're younger), and that our photogs were both skinnier and younger.



And finally, the photoshopped version (or as photoshopped as I can go, anyway)....

I Love My Boy!

Summer, Here We Come!

There's nothing like an ice cream cone to solve all your problems, especially when you've been at the zoo on the hottest, busiest day of the season so far, and you have to drive home in the Nastymobile ... oops, I mean, the nice green van, with added character, and no AC. Did I mention no AC? Oh yeah, but I digress, the family vehic

Round and Round We Go!

The merry-go-round has always been my favorite ride wherever we are, even at Disneyland. I'm a complete sucker when it comes to the merry-go-round. I let my kids ride it every time. At the OKC Zoo, it's only a buck. Okay, a buck is probably a lot to ride round and round, up and down ... whew, I'm getting a little dizzy here ... but in this day and age, a buck per ride is a steal. That's what the kids got to do at the zoo (because I'm too cheap to pay for the tram or anything else ... although the rock wall looks tempting....).

Here they all are, waiting their turn, quite patiently, and very politely, by the way. From left to right: Rex, Matthew, Nathan, Elisabeth. Did you know that Matthew is actually 6 months younger than Elisabeth? Yep, even though he's like 6 inches taller (at least), and only an inch or two shorter than me. That's fascinating to me.

Here's Matthew, even taller.

Here's Lizzy. Every time I look at her, I think how gorgeous she is!

Nathan is the most fabulous picture poser I've seen in a looooooong time.

Rex likes to pose for pictures, too.
As for Sariah, well, I have another picture with her face in it that's really cute, but this one is really REALLY cute because you can tell how little she is (and this picture conveniently hides how fat my arms really are). Look at Rai-rai's hands compared to the carousel pole. I'm so in love!

Maybe next time, I'll actually ride. Or not.

Zoo Crew

My friend Tiffany and I have gone to the zoo together with our kids since ... well, since forever. We've known each other since before her oldest was born. I can still remember Ben gnawing on one of the decorative knobs on my rocking chair--it was so cute (although NOT when my kids did it). We've had to go less often since the kids got older (ergo, whinier) and Tiffany got a full time job. But this week was spring break (and since our family's spring break plans were axed), we up and decided to head off to the zoo. But not with all of our kids. Just half of them.

We had to have the Tortoise Picture. It's tradition, like this:That's Hannah, Ben, Elisabeth, Matthew, and Caleb in 2001.

Um ... it didn't work so well in 2009, even with half of the kids.It was a little ... uh, squishy. The komodo dragon picture above turned out much better. Here's how it was in 2002:

And speaking of the zoo statues, I said in this post that I would find a picture of Hannah and the gorillas from long, long ago. Here it is:
It's just plain scary how much she's grown and how fast time has gone by. {sniffle, sniffle, sniffle} I once sobbed to Bob when Hannah was like a week old that it wouldn't be very long before she grew up and went to kindergarten and got married. It's not looking so ridiculous these days.

Anyhow, this time around, we went with our friends, Matthew,

and Nathan,
and we had a very grand time.


The kids most looked forward to the herpetarium (eeeewwww, gross!).
However, it didn't take long for ALL of us to be hot and absolutely SICK of the spring break crowds. Everyone having their spring break at the same time in Oklahoma sounds good in theory ... not so much in practice. Was anyone NOT at the zoo? That's how everyone looked at the end of Oklahoma Trails. Maybe we wouldn't have looked quite so worn out if we hadn't just had an adrenaline surge and plunge because we thought we lost Rex. It was very emotional. But we survived. Tune it tomorrow to see more exciting pictures! :)