It starts.

Music a la Mode

The last concert of the year was a city-wide affair, with every group from 5th grade on up participating. It also happens to be the music booster's major fundraiser. The beauty of it all (at least for the kids) is that with the adult's paid admission you get not one, but two - count 'em, two - servings of cake and ice cream. This generated quite a bit of excitement among our little champions.


Also generating excitement (at least for the adults) were the fine performances by the 5th grade band and choir.







*I just can't seem to get this whole video thing down. I finally have a memory card big enough to hold all the video, but now you can hear when I take a picture, something that never happened before. I promise to get the bugs worked out over the summer, and next year's concert footage will be seamless!

Dancing with the Cougs

Since Emma and Leah were born prematurely, it was only natural that we celebrate their birthday early as well. Spring break fell the week before April 21st and it lent itself to a get-together with friends, a cousin sleep over, a family dinner, and a late night Cavs game with Emma.

But there was just one piece missing...Leah's special night out with Mom and Dad. After weeks of waiting, the night finally arrived. Her big event was an evening with the BYU Ballroom Dance Company. Real live ballroom dancers!

There was dance after dance of beautiful performances, inspiring music, and
sparkling, modest (!) costumes.

We even got to meet one of the dancers!

The birthday girl's reticent verdict?

"Pure awesomeness!"

And now, with this final belated birthday bash,
the 11 year old birthday hoopla is officially complete.

My glass is more than half full.

FORTUNATELY

Melissa and I got to take a road trip to Washington DC.UNFORTUNATELY
the mp3 player stopped working and we had to rely on fuzzy country music stations through the middle of Pennsylvania.

FORTUNATELY
we found a Ross right after we got off the freeway to head to the hotel.

UNFORTUNATELY
it was in the opposite direction of the restaurant and movie theater,
so we were power shopping on very empty stomachs.

FORTUNATELY
the restaurant had THE BEST seafood burritos
in the WHOLE ENTIRE WORLD
(and I am not exaggerating here).UNFORTUNATELY
I had to take my last bite and the meal was over.

FORTUNATELY
we were able to make the 8:50 showing of "17 Again."

UNFORTUNATELY
it was really late when we got back the the hotel,
and we had to be to the temple by 8:00 the next morning.

FORTUNATELY
the temple was beautiful (as always) and
we were able to see our good friend Andrea get married.
UNFORTUNATELY
we had to try to figure out the DC Metro system on our own.

FORTUNATELY
we did, and began walking the streets of DC to see all the sights.


UNFORTUNATELY
we were starving by the time we were done with the west end of the mall,
and there was still so much more to see.

FORTUNATELY
we found a nice little pretzel stand.UNFORTUNATELY
the pretzels were kind of nasty.
I think they had been sitting around a while.

FORTUNATELY
it gave us the energy we needed to keep going.

UNFORTUNATELY
all the museums we wanted to see were already closed (and it was only 6:00!).

FORTUNATELY
we could still walk around the Capitol building,
see where the inauguration took place,
and play with the self-timer a little.UNFORTUNATELY
there were some less-than-friendly security guards
who were not in the mood for touristy chit-chat

FORTUNATELY
we found one who was, who told us that the Senate was
still in session and that if we hurried, we could see it.

UNFORTUNATELY
they ended right as we got to the second security gate.

FORTUNATELY
our new security guard friend told us that we could come back in the morning, take a tour, and see the Senate was vote on a bill at 11. This gave us a plan for the next day, and we headed to Top Chef contestant Spike's restaurant for dinner.



UNFORTUNATELY
Spike wasn't there.

FORTUNATELY
his dad was. And the milkshakes were delish!



UNFORTUNATELY
we stayed downtown too long and missed the last shuttle back to the hotel from the Metro station. So after all the walking we had already done, there was still one mile more to go before we could crash and nurse our aching feet.

FORTUNATELY
with some ice, rest, and prayer, we were able to haul ourselves
back downtown for the rest of our sight-seeing Friday morning.

UNFORTUNATELY
when we arrived at the Capitol it was packed, the tour would be an hour long, and in order to see the Senate we would have to go to the Senate office building across the street, find our senator's office, and get a ticket.
We promptly left the Capitol.

FORTUNATELY
the Smithsonian Museum of American History was open
and we got to see lots of cool things.



UNFORTUNATELY
all good things must come to an end, and it was time to head home,
through stop-and-go traffic, more lousy country stations, and pouring rain.

FORTUNATELY
we made it home safely.

FORTUNATELY
we had a great time together.

FORTUNATELY
Jill will be around to come with us the next time.

On the Waterfront

It's kind of unusual for a kid to be asked to give a talk at a baptism. But that's just what Andrew's friend asked him to do. Just add it to a long list of things that made Keegan's baptism very unique.

Keegan wanted his 16 year-old brother, Jack, to baptize him. And so the family continued the youth theme by having the prayers, songs, and talks be given by kids. A couple of months ago, when Andrew was first asked, he was very excited. In fact, he got right to work by Googling "baptism scriptures." After informing Andrew that children do not do random Google searches without an adult present (I am sure nothing bad is going to turn up with that particular search, but we have to set a good precedent here), he kind of set it aside until (of course) the day before. Glenn helped him write a simple talk, but after a few run-throughs, Andrew wondered, "Why did I say yes?" With some more practice, and lots of encouragement, Andrew was ready to go.

We saw Keegan and his family in the hall at church that day, and everyone was excited for the big event that was to take place that afternoon. The plan was to go home for a couple hours and go right back to the church for the baptism.

Except that we got a call that due to some drain issues with the font, the baptism would not be taking place at the church, but at Columbia Beach in Bay Village. Yes, Keegan was going to baptized in Lake Erie.

With Keegan's family and friends gathered on the balcony overlooking the lake, Andrew gave his talk perfectly.

Then everyone headed down the long set of steps to the beach. The water was calm and the sun was bright as Keegan and Jack headed into the water. Surrounded by nature's beauty, the Spirit was very strong as we watched a young boy become a member of Christ's church.

What could have been a disappointing delay of Keegan's big day turned out to be a special experience for everyone there. No one will soon forget Keegan's Lake Erie baptism.


We do hope the baptism font's plumbing problems are fixed in the next seven months, though. Because around here in the middle of winter, when Andrew is baptized, a natural body of water is not an option.

Facebook Status Update

Amy Franklin is thinking that her kids are making it very easy for her to leave for DC tomorrow morning, and that she probably should start packing. But American Idol comes first!

(This is as close as I will EVER get to being on Facebook. Another post for another time...)

The Tempest is Raging

With my hours and hours of free time this year, I have done a lot more volunteering for the PTA. This has been all fine and dandy, fairly low-key, just a little extra time up at school. Until now.

I said I would be in charge of the art show.

It's coming up in two weeks. And today I was told (in so many words) that we were way behind in the preparation. (And why wasn't this pointed out to me earlier during the several meetings I have had with the art teacher and other PTAers who have done the art show previously?) So any free time I may have had during the next few school days has now been filled with art show work sessions.

But there is one bright spot in the middle of all these ravaging storms. Between the hurricane of one-a-day work sessions and the all-day tornado set up in two weeks, Melissa and I are heading to Washington D.C.

I will not think of the art show. Mounting art work on butcher paper. The logistics of hanging said butcher paper from the ceilings in the school. The enthusiastic art teacher who keeps trying to change things and wants to spend hundreds of dollars on food. Other moms who profess to be so willing to help yet just "can't commit" when asked to come in on a specific date.

None of it.

I will think of attending the temple. Navigating the Metro to get downtown. Maybe catching the tail end of the cherry blossoms. The Lincoln Memorial. The Jefferson Memorial. The Washington Memorial. More memorials. And maybe some museums. Finding tasty restaurants to eat at. Stopping at the Pittsburgh IKEA on the way home (is that OK, Miss?).

It will be a passing oasis, a fleeting haven, a momentary escape. But just what I need to recover from one set of storms before tackling the next round of downpours.

I can't wait.