End of Summer Bees Game

Summer really flies by for us, especially because half of our kids aren't out of school until the first of July.  When you throw in girl's camp, high adventure, youth conference, EFY, family reunions, sports camps and the various activities James gets to attend as bishop, we come up with a quick and busy summer. 

There was no shortage of activities for each of my kids.  Luke would choose EFY and tennis camp as his favorites, although high adventure was a blast for him.  Lindsey loved EFY and experienced BYU's cheer camp for the first time this summer.  I think she got the busiest kid award this summer with girl's camp, youth conference, junior high cheer camp, two parades and hanging with friends.  Heather wasn't out of school until July but managed to get a few trips to Lagoon with friends, girls camp, and visits with cousins before she fractured her foot playing mini-golf (that's right, she tripped in the hole.)  Savannah and Matthew also got out in July and spent a few weeks relaxing and visiting family before they headed back to school.  Savannah said she missed school and was ready to go back.

One of our favorite activities was hosting a Fourth of July party at our house with the Anderson clan.  There was a lot of food and fun that ended with a firework show provided by the uncles.  With aerial fireworks being legal, we get a whole new dimension of firework shows.  It was exciting but there were a few drawbacks-- ash kept falling on us and Ashlyn got burned when a firework shot the wrong way.  It was all good though and a lot of fun.

Our last weekend of the summer, we met up with Taylor and his kids and went to a Bee's game.  We had a lot of fun watching the baseball game and chatting with each other.  The evening ended with a firework show set to music.  It was a great way to end the Summer.

So Long 6th Grade

Heather is moving on from elementary school to junior high.  In July she finished her final days at Bluff Ridge Elementary and participated in the 6th grade graduation.  Bluff Ridge always has a fun assembly that honors the sixth graders on their last day.  Each "graduate" is recognized and reads where they will be in twenty years.  Heather said she will be a renowned author of fantasy books.  I could definitely see that happening.  Heather constantly has a book in her hands and loves to imagine different worlds.

Sixth grade was a great year for Heather.  She had the best teacher in the sixth grade (according to Heather).  She made a lot of friends, had the lead in the play, participated in Lego Mindstorms, and enjoyed all of the 6th grade competitions-- except for dance.  She thought it was "creepy" to dance with the boys.  Now it's on to bigger and better things as she enters Junior High!

Heather Plays Ball

Heather had a great softball season this year!  I say that because I got to coach her team so she better say she had a great season.   We had a lot of fun together.  We didn't win all of our games but we won a few-- we beat the team that Heather was on last year and that made it all worth it.  Heather played first base most of the season and sometimes played third.  She does well at any position you put her at because she thinks the plays through and knows where to throw the ball.  She is a great hitter and usually started the game as the fourth hitter to get the runs in  or as the first hitter to start the team going.  Hopefully she will stick with playing a few more years and can maybe go out for the high school team.

Ashberry

One of Ashlyn's favorite things she discovered this Spring is strawberries.  She loves to go out to the garden and eat strawberries.  One day I was out working in the garden when I turned around and saw this. . . 

Ash had been picking, smashing and eating strawberries.  She was covered in berry juice but looked so cute I couldn't resist a picture!  They grow so fast, I'm grateful that we have her in our family.

Fathers and Sons

James and Luke participated in BYU Fathers and Sons basketball camp at the end of May.  They have been going to this camp for the last six years but this year was a little different because Matthew was finally old enough to join them.  They spend the weekend playing various sports, attending firesides and temple square, and meeting players and coaches.  They had a lot of fun together.  I heard the ice cream at the Cannon Center was one of Matthew's favorite parts and Luke said he liked spending time with his dad.  This experience always falls around James' birthday so it is a nice gift for him to get to spend time with his boys.

When they returned home, we had a surprise party for James' birthday!! That's right, James is now 40 years old.  He is handling it like a champ-- no mid-life crisis at all.  Then again, why would he have a crisis, he has already accomplished so much.  We are proud of you and love you James!

Luke Bids Farewell to Legacy

The end of the year awards assembly was especially fun for our family this year.  Because Luke was the studentbody president, he gave a final speech to the studentbody and parents.  He did a great job!!  I know pride is something we should avoid but I could not have been prouder of Luke as he gave his speech.  There are some things only a parent sees and knows.  Luke sacrificed a lot of time as he fulfilled his responsibilities.  We saw him grow in so many ways and also saw him struggle with self doubt, questioning if he was good enough.  I know at the end of this evening, he felt good about the job he had done and was finally satisfied.

As president, he got to shake all of the students' hands that received awards.  It was another proud parent moment when Lindsey received her awards.  She got the top English student award and the High Honors award for having a 4.0.  She also worked very hard throughout the year.  It was neat to have Luke help present her award.

One of the highlights was at the end when Luke received his awards.  Because he was shaking everyone else's hands, they skipped him until the end.  When they announced his name, all of the studentbody officers came down and formed a line to shake his hand.  That was a priceless moment!

Luke's experience at Junior High has been one of growth, courage and success.  He has set an excellent example for his siblings and I know they are already trying to do as well and even better than he.  I feel so blessed to watch him grow into the young man that he is becoming.  I know his high school experience will be just as fulfilling.

Musical Review

Luke and Lindsey wrapped up their theater year with the musical review.  It was big band style with music, dancing and singing.  Luke played the trumpet with his jazz band for most of the show and Lindsey sang a few musical numbers in small groups and large.  Both Luke and Lindsey had great experiences in the musical and theater programs at Legacy Junior High this year.  A big thanks to the teachers who encourage and inspire in these areas.

 

Lindsey had her last Madrigals recital where they performed parts of Les Miserables.  It was very well done.  Lindsey has loved being in Madrigals and looks forward to doing it again next year.  She made some good friends and memories.  I know she is a little sad that most of those friends are moving on to high school next year but she does look forward to being "at the top" as she puts it.

 

 

Luke also had his last band recital.  The last one of the season is always the best because they have improved so much.  This year's final recital did not disappoint.  There was a little bit of sadness at the end when they played the slide show and presented Mr. Madsen with a gift.  Luke started with no knowledge of the trumpet when he began band and has ended with a love for his instrument.  It has been fun to watch him excel in this area and a lot of the credit goes to a good teacher that inspired him.  He will continue to participate in band at the high school and we look forward to watching him there.

 



Soccer, Soccer

Spring not only brings birthdays, it also brings soccer season.  Savannah and Matthew joined the soccer leagues this Spring.  It was a great season with the best weather I can remember.  Usually we freeze until the last two games but this year we got to sit outside and enjoy the sport. 

Matthew was fun to watch.  However, he is a little too smart for his own good.  He figured out it wasn't worth his energy to run and chase the ball when there was ten other kids doing it.  He told me he was better off out on the sides, that way when they kicked the ball out of the huddle he would be ready to get it.  It was a good plan but it also meant Matthew was standing around on the sides waiting for the ball.  I would encourage him to be more agressive and get in the middle but he would tell me no, he needed to be out of the huddle and ready for the ball.  He had fun being a part of his team and we would cheer him on when he would occassionally get the ball.

Savannah was in the co-ed league this year.  It was intimidating for her to play with the boys because they are quite aggressive.  At this age, they play positions and really try to learn the strategies of the game.  Savannah liked playing defense best because she didn't have to fight for the ball as much.  She loves to run but not get run into.  Her team won about half their games. 

Happy 14th Birthday Lindsey!

Spring brings a lot of things but in our home it brings two birthdays-- Heather and Lindsey.  I finally was able to pull off a surprise party for Lindsey's birthday.  She has wanted one for a while, but when they ask for one it is difficult to pull it off.  Now that she is older, she wasn't expecting a party and that was the perfect time to do it.  With the help of her friends, and the beauty of texting, we were able to make it happen.  The plan worked better than expected because Lindsey brought some of her friends home after school and asked if they could go to a movie for her birthday.  That worked great because it gave us time to set things up and put the party together while they were gone.  The original plan was to have James take her somewhere.  We had one glitch, however.  When we got back from the movie, Lindsey went in the back door with her friends and went straight downstairs to her room, bypassing the kitchen where everyone was hiding and decorations were set up.  I had to go downstairs and make and give her a reason to go to the kitchen.  When she went up, they all yelled surprise and scared her but I missed the reaction on her face because I was behind her.  Oh well, the surprise was a success.

I took her and her friends out to dinner at their favorite place, Costa Vida, then they came back and hung out and watched a movie.  Of course, there was some flirting that went on at Costa Vida because one of the employees there was "cute".  Teenage girls are loud but fun to hang out with.

I am amazed as I watch Lindsey grow up.  She is very self motivated with a lot of goals and dreams.  She is beautiful and a great example to her friends and family.  We love her and we're grateful she's a part of our family.

 

 

Heather's 12th Birthday

As I mentioned earlier, Heather's birthday began while we were in Hawaii.  She actually had a week long celebration because of the timing of her birthday.  When we got back home she had her traditional breakfast in bed with presents and hugs.  Later that week she had a party with her friends.  There is a popular show on BYUTV called Studio C that the kids love.  It is a comedy show with short skits (a clean version of Saturday Night Live).  Heather had a Studio C birthday party.  The party goers watched different episodes of Studio C then they actually created their own versions and filmed them. They were cute.  It was fun to just listen to the girls laughing so hard all night long.

Now that Heather is 12 she gets to go to Young Women's.  I can hardly believe she is that old.  If I had to describe Heather in one word it would be "peacebuilder."  She is always concerned about others and making them happy.  She is the calming force in our family.  Whenever someone isn't feeling good or fighting, Heather is there to help them.  I am so grateful for her example and I'm excited for her to be in Young Women's where the other girls will get to know how beautiful she is.

Hawaii

The kids had been begging to go to Hawaii so we took a trip over Spring Break.  (The kids don't have to beg too much because James and I love it there too.)  We decided to try a different island this time so we flew to the Big Island or Hawaii island.  It turned out to be a great choice for our family.  I'm going to break it down into the various days that we were there so I don't leave out any of the excitement.
Day 1:  We spent the entire day in the airport and then went to a motel in Salt Lake.  That's right!! Our vacation didn't start out the best.  We woke up at 4:00 am and rushed to the airport to get there in time but were instantly met with a delayed flight.  The flight continued to be delayed all day until late afternoon they finally cancelled it.  We were able to get tickets for the next day and the airline put us up in a motel so we would be close to the airport.  As awful as it sounds, it actually wasn't bad.  Matthew lost his first tooth while we were in the airport and the kids spent time playing and laughing.  We had a good dinner that night and swam in the hotel pool.  It actually was a good start to the vacation.

Day 2:  We flew to Hawaii with a layover in San Francisco.  We landed in Hawaii later in the evening so only had time to go to the swimming pool and have dinner.

 

Day 3:  We started out with a breakfast at a local place recommended to us by the hotel.  The boys feasted on rice, pork with fried egg on top.  The rest of us opted for fresh fruit.  We drove into Kona to check things out stopping at various spots.  Luke was excited that we found a shaved ice stand that Alton Brown (a TV chef that he admires) had been to.  We stopped along our drive back to the hotel to hike around the lava beds.  There are miles of black lava beds that look like they're flowing but have hardened.  You can walk along them and find lava tubes and caves.  It was very interesting terrain.  We ended the day at the beach together.

 

Day 4: Sunday we went to church and visited the Kona temple.  It is a smaller temple with the church building right next to the temple grounds.  It was lovely and peaceful.  We were lucky to be there on the day that an area authority was visiting.  For the last hour of church we spoke to everyone and held a question/answer session.  It was interesting and uplifting. 

 

Day 5: We started off driving around the island to see things on the other side.  Hawaii is a fascinating island that has 12 different climates.  We started off in desert area and made our way through grasslands and mountains to very green forests and waterfalls.  It was beautiful.  We stopped at a national park and worked on filming our family movie for Christmas.  We decided to do Johnny Lingo this year and we filmed on location, it should be fun when it is released!  We later saw a botanical garden that was beautiful.  We also stopped at many waterfalls along the way, including a triple waterfull that was amazing.  Our last stop was at the highest point on the island where you can watch stars.  However, when we got there we realized it was freezing and we were not dressed for the ocassion so we enjoyed the visitors center and then headed back down to our hotel.

Day 6: This was our day to go snorkeling.  We met up with our tour boat around noon.  The kids had already spent the morning swimming at the hotel pool but they were ready for more.  The boat takes you out to a lagoon that was so clear and amazing.  James, Luke, Lindsey and Savannah tried their hands at tuba diving.  It's like scuba but you don't have your own air tank, you share a central tank.  They really liked it.  Heather, Matthew and I took Ashlyn out in a tube and went snorkeling.  The others caught up with us later.  Ashlyn wasn't a big fan of being in the ocean but she did OK.  When James was finished we traded off and he took her out.  When our time was up and they were calling us in, we couldn't find James.  He had pushed Ashlyn out on the tube quite a distance from the boat.  She was not real happy when they finally got back.  Overall, we had a blast.  James didn't want to waste any time so we headed up the coast to see some old ruins. The kids were tired and not enthused about this last excursion but the hung in there for their dad.  The ruins turned out to be a little disappointing, mostly sticks and rocks.  When Matthew fell and got a bloody knee we knew we were finished for the day.

 

Day 7:  We went ziplining through the forests of Hawaii on this day.  I think this was a lot of the kids' favorite part.  We had to split up-- boys then girls-- to take care of Ashlyn.  The girls went first and it was a blast.  Savannah had to have a little help at first but she ended on her own.  You zip over waterfalls and gardens, it was breathtaking.  While we waited for the boys and vice versa, we visited another botanical garden in the area.  This one was more beautiful than the first one we saw.  There are so many exotic plants that grow in Hawaii.  After we met up with the boys, we headed to the live volcano on the island.  As you approach the volcano you enter a jungle area that is misty and very tropical.  The volcano is a distance away from the visitors center so you don't get to see much of it.  After the sun sets you see some of the red glow which is interesting.  I know most of us were hoping to see lava flowing etc but we didn't.  Still, it was a great and eventful day.

 

Day 8:  This was our last day on the island and Heather's Birthday.  In honor of our tradition, she woke up to breakfast in bed via room service. She chose to spend the morning snorkeling and I was the lucky one who got to go with her.  We spent an hour in the ocean snorkeling by our hotel.  It was so refreshing and relaxing.  I loved spending that time with Heather.  Our final activity before our flight was a helicopter tour of the island.  There are some parts of the island that you can't really get to because there are no roads.  There are green cliffs and waterfalls, lush valleys, and black sand beaches.  It was definitely a great way to see everything in a short amount of time.  We were supposed to see the lava flowing but they had to cancel that part of the flight due to weather.  We will have to go back and see it another time.  It was a wonderful vacation and great to spend time together as a family.