Luke is Officially a Teenager

Luke had his birthday this last week, September 23rd to be exact. It's hard to believe that he is now a teenager. He informed me I would have to get up earlier than usual to get his breakfast in bed ready because he is now in Junior High and it starts earlier than elementary. I set the alarm for half an hour earlier than usual but Luke was excited for the day and woke up even earlier than that. He was showered and dressed by the time I awoke so he had to have his "breakfast in bed" on his bedroom floor fully clothed. Then I made him wait a while before waking up the other kids to open presents.

I've discovered it's not easy shopping for a teenager when they won't give you any specifics about what they would like. I also discovered that sometimes, after thinking it over, they will present you with a list the night before their birthday. Unfortunately, that is not enough time to shop! I think I did pretty good getting Luke some surprises for his big day. It turns out his favorite gift has been a Gatorade water bottle and instant Gatorade mix to fill it with. It's funny how the simplest things are usually the best. Just as a side note, I was very excited to finally find instant Gatorade mix--it brings back a lot of memories from playing high school sports. Luke agrees with me that it's better than the bottled stuff.

Lindsey and I snuck up to the Junior High to fill Luke's locker with treats and decorations. However, once there, I was unable to open his lock. I had to laugh at myself because during his 7th grade orientation, the student advisors made such a big deal about letting the kids practice opening locks and buying them locks to practice with, etc., that I found it comical and was even mocking the idea that if locker locks was the most worrisome thing a student encountered, their school career couldn't be all that difficult. I guess what goes around comes around because I soon found myself at the junior high unable to unlock a locker. What can I say, at Beaver High, no one locked their lockers! Anyhow, we had to settle on decorating the outside of his locker and hope that no one ate the candy before he saw it.

That evening our family enjoyed dinner at Outback Steakhouse, Luke's choice. Of course, Luke ordered the biggest steak he could. After dinner, we returned home to have blueberry pie and ice cream.

Howdy Y'all!

The three girls and I recently returned from a trip to Texas. My sister, Nicole, lives in Lubbock and has lived there for nearly 14 years. This was the first time we had journeyed out to see her and her family. In my defense, she often told me how there was little to do, the scenery was drab, and the wind always blew. She couldn't have gotten a job with the local travel bureau. However, after spending time there, I found the area quite lovely. There are cotton fields everywhere, blue skies with large cumulus clouds, and very kind people.

We arrived on a Wednesday evening. The actual plane ride is not long but there is no direct flight so we did have a layover in Albuquerque. Upon arrival, Nicole picked us up at the small airport and shuttled us off to her home. The kids were excited to see their cousins. They got to hang out for a bit before bedtime. The Cluff's had school the next day so had to get some shut-eye.

While the kids were in school, we hit the Lubbock mall. We got some great deals on shoes and the girls even found some unique Christmas presents for all of their girlsfriends (one less thing I'll have to worry about in December.) After school got out, we were able to watch Emily play in a tennis match. She's quite good. I also learned about Texas High School Football. The school's stadium was next to the tennis court. It was larger than many of the smaller college stadiums I've seen. They also have indoor practice fields for the high school team. I had to get a picture to convince James it was true. I guess that "Friday Night Lights" deal is actually true.

On Friday we took a trip into New Mexico to a place called Carlsbad Caverns. We hiked down into a cave that was full of various caverns. The hike down was just over a mile. We passed some bat caves which, in my opinion, are quite stinky. It didn't raise my opinion of the nocturnal rodents. I still find them very creepy. The caverns were beautiful. The kids enjoyed exploring the miles of stalagtites and stalagmites. The best part is, you get to take an elevator back to the top. I was relieved we didn't have to go back up the way we came.




Saturday was Justin's baptism, as well as a few soccer games. Lindsey and Emily played a piano/violin duet that was great. They only had a couple of days to pick a song and practice but they sounded very good together. We could tell Justin was excited. Baptisms are always neat experiences and the Spirit is so strong. Justin's baptism was no exception. We are thankful we were able to be a part of it. The Lubbock Temple is right next to the church building that the Cluff's attend so we were able to see the temple grounds and feel the Spirit of the temple.



Justin was supposed to have a soccer game after his baptism but apparently, Texas Tech (the college there) had a football game and no one wanted to miss it so his game was postponed. (I told you football was big there.) We made plans to go to an amusement park instead. The park was closed for the season but we were next to Prairie Dog Town so we decided to stop for a look. Unfortunately, there was not much to see. It was a field of grass with a couple of animals. I'm not sure what the purpose was and who would actually drive out there to sit and watch prairie dogs but there is a pavillion and an area to set up chairs if you are so inclined. We were not inclined and decided to hit a corn maze instead. This was probably the most enjoyable corn maze I have been too. Not only was the weather perfect, cool and dust-free, but we had the option of getting a map to help you find your way out. I find a corn maze much more enjoyable when I don't have to wander aimlessly around searching for the exit. I know for some that's part of the fun but I'd much rather know where I'm going. At the end of the maze they had corn cannons you could shoot. These were air compressor cannons that the host would shove ears of corn into and you could aim and shoot at targets out in the field. If you hit a target, you received the prize labeled on the target. Heather was the only one that consecutively hit the target. She received a couple of bags of candy. Grandpa Yardley tried to show us how it was done but Heather outshot him as well. We all had a great time at the maze.

Our next activity of the visit was viting the Science Center. This place is similar to a science museum we used to go to in Oregon. The girls, along with Ryan and Abigail, ran around trying out various experiments. There never seems to be enough time in a science center and before you know it, we were headed to the airport to catch our flight home.

This was our first mother/ daughter trip and we had a blast. Thanks to the Cluff's for their hospitality. I worked hard at it, but I'm pretty sure that I'm Ryan's favorite aunt now!

A Little Bit of Drama

It appears the drama bug hit our home and decided to burrow in for a while. We just had the Primary Program in our ward. It was fun to watch the kids, not just mine but all of them. It was also a little strange to have Luke sitting next to us in the pew. Savannah delivered her part beautifully, she just went with the wrong group. Matthew taught us all that "Joseph Smith went to the grove to play." And Heather and Lindsey entertained us with a violin performance. I have to commend our Primary Presidency for including all of the kids in a very large primary, and letting many of the kids share their talents.

Just when I thought we were finished with practices I got called in and was assigned to do the ward roadshow. Our First Counselor (apparently the Bishop was afraid to extend this calling to me) informed me the roadshows were going to be held in October. I replied, "Oh, so they're next year." His response--"No, next month!" This should be a fun adventure.

Update on the House, Chapter 2

I know there are some wondering about the progress of our remodel. Here are some pictures of what you see when you look out our windows or from the street.


The walls are finally going up and the brick has been coming down. It seems to be that I have very little warning before moving and cleaning has to be done. I was in the kitchen when all of a sudden there was loud pounding and things started falling off the walls. That was the day they started removing the brick. I quickly ran around and took down all our pictures and wall hangings. While we were on vacation we received word that the remainder of the things downstairs had to be cleared out. Thank goodness for Marcia, Dan, Aunt Ruthie and Uncle Paul who were willing to help us out there. I will now begin packing up the kitchen things that we don't use so it won't be such a surprise when they come in and say it "needs to be done by tomorrow."

I did meet with the cabinet maker, a man from our ward. We went through the first draft of the cabinets and shelving for the addition. It was fun to see the kitchen in an actual 3-D drawing. The hard part is making the decisions of what I like and want. There is so much to choose from.

You can open the back door without fear of falling into a 10 foot deep pit. The kids like to go out and see. They are very fascinated that the builders left a bag of "Chips Ahoy" wedged between the framing. I know they so badly want to eat them. I'm pretty sure they don't like that type of cookie but the fact that we have a bag of cookies stuck in the wall brings them great joy.

"Faith, Hope, Charity, Honor" and some FUN!

James and I just returned from a trip to the east coast. We boarded a plane to join thousands for a march on Washington supporting a Return to Honor. When James heard about the Return to Honor event he immediately wanted to go. I agreed to join him, I'd never marched on Washington--why not?! The morning of the ralley we decided to park in Virginia and take the Metro into the city. We weren't the only ones with that idea. This was our first insight to how many people were actaully attending the event. The line to board the metro had thousands of people. The city eventually opened up the gates and let everyone ride for free to get them through.

We arrived at the mall a little late but still in time to join the hundreds of thousands who were already there. It was overwhelming to be a part of a crowd that size, everyone there for the same purpose. The crowd was quite diverse as well. There were young families, retired couples, veterans and soldiers, church groups, motorcycle gangs, punksters, college frats, etc. The best part- everyone was kind, respectful and attentive. It was quite an uplifting experience. The message conveyed encouraged everyone to turn to God, understand your relationship with Him and what He expects of you. Remember that Heavenly Father had a hand in establishing this country and its constitution and He expects us to protect it. The first step is to live honorably. Participants were encouraged to pray, be completely honest, and to serve others. These seem like simple things but if you think about it, if everyone did this, we would have a very different government. There would be no more corruption, selfishness would fade away and we wouldn't need such big government programs because we would be taking care of each other. It sound utopic but things actually used to be more that way. Many different religious leaders were present and heard from. Medals of valor were given out, John Huntsman receiving one of them. Overall, it was a unique and uplifting experience. I'm glad James had the idea to go.



James and I got to spend a few days in Washington DC after the ralley. We visited some of the sights we had missed on previous trips. We went to the Library of Congress and actually got library cards so we could go into the reading rooms. We saw the Supreme Court building and the remodeled American History Museum and the Korean War Memorial (in the daytime). I know I've mentioned it before, but I'll say it again, Washington DC is always an inspiring place to visit.


After a few days, we took a train up to New York City where we planned to meet up with our friends, the Freis and spend some time there. We arrived in New York just in time to buy some tickets and see a play. We got to see "The Screwtape Letters," which is based on C.S. Lewis' book. It was basically a two man show, Screwtape and his sidekick acting out the writing and recitation of the dialogue between Screwtape and his nephew, Wormwood. It was well done, but would have been difficult to follow in some spots if I hadn't read the book. We actually got to meet the actor that portrayed Screwtape after the show. He told us they were actually considering Utah as a venue for the show when they took it on the road. We informed him that a lot of Utahns/Mormons were familiar with C.S. Lewis' works and would probably be interested.

The next day our friends arrived. They had tickets to see Lady Liberty that morning. Since James and I had had that opportunity more than once, we split up and went to the US Open. I could tell James was very excited to see some tennis matches. I was less than enthused but ended up really enjoying it. We got to see two matches before it was time to meet up with the Freis. We got back to Times Square in time to get tickets to "The Addams Family." What a treat that was. I don't think I've ever laughed so much during a broadway show. The music and set was amazing and the actors were top notch.

Thursday was the Yankee's game which was the main reason we had come to New York. James and Greg (Frei) had talked about how much they would love to see a Yankee game and so a trip was planned. Despite the extra hot and humid weather, the game was great. We got there early enough to go through the Yankee museum and see some of the history of the team. The Yankees played the A's, beating them. We were all decked out in our Yankee gear, looking like true blue fans.



Our last day was spent exploring 5th Avenue and Central Park. Just wandering around the city is an experience. Going into the stores and watching the people is fun. Central Park was beautiful. We visited the castle in the center and walked through the zoo area. We also got lost, more than once, along the many paths that wind through the greenery. Eventually, we made our way back to Times' Square in time for one more play. The Frei's had tickets to Wicked, we had already seen it so decided to try our luck elsewhere. We chose a play called "True Crime." The pamphlet claimed it was the longest running play on Broadway. We discovered that always isn't a good thing. After we climbed the five flights of stairs to get to the theatre, we realized we may have made a poor choice when there were only about 20 people in the theatre. Just before the show started, the usher came in started asking everyone if they would like to move closer to the front. I don't know if he didn't see us or what but everyone was seated in the first four rows while James and I were still sitting five rows behind all of them, by ourselves. We finally asked if we could move forward too. He seemed surprised we would to move but agreed to let us. As we looked over the playbill, we realized the lead had played the same role for the past 22 years. Can you imagine playing the same part in a play for 22 years, and missing only 4 performances?! I don't consider that an accomplishment, I think it's strange. When this actress entered the stage, we quickly realized that the picture they use in the playbill was probably taken during the first year of the play because she doesn't look much like it anymore. I'll sum it up by saying that the play was interesting and we laughed a lot, even though it wasn't a comedy. James was unsure of the plot and had to ask for a "key" to the play at the end. It probably wasn't the best two hours of my life but the company was good. James and I had fun despite the performance. We made it back to our motel before the Frei's who got held up because Times' Square was shut down due to a bomb threat. It turned out to be nothing but they got to go home with the tale of being a part of a real life bomb threat in Times' Square.

Overall, we had a great vacation together. It is always fun to get away and reconnect.