First week of Summer Vacation!

WE LOVE SUMMER VACATION!

Of course we had to go to Disneyland one more time with the kiddos. We stayed till 11:00 pm, something we've never done with them. Highlights: on the carousel every child was given a crown to wear. Joseph proudly and very seriously kept his crown on until our two rounds on the carousel were over. The drawing academy. We've never done this before. They give you a 15 minute art lesson and teach you how to sketch a Disney character. We did Donald and Minnie. Click on the picture and get a close up of Rebecca's Donald. She did a fantastic job.
The Pixar parade and the Toy Story ride were our other favorites for the night.

Our other adventures included a few playdates and a couple of visits to Buccaneer Bay. These photos are to wet your appetite in hopes that some of our LA friends will come down for the day and go play with us in the water.
What a fun week.

Hollywood Bowl

Hollywood Bowl 2009

The Hollywood Bowl has become somewhat of a yearly summer tradition for us. It's an outdoor concert nestled in the Hollywood hills. Warren's work goes once a summer and Warren and I usually go to one other concert by ourselves. One of the fun things about the Hollywood Bowl is all the picnicking going on before the concert. I think that is as much part of the fun as the concerts themselves. There are little picnic areas all over the place and additionally people sit on every corner and side of the walkways on benches picnicking with tablecloths, goblets and all varieties of fancy food.

Friday night we went to opening night at the Bowl with Warren's boss, his wife, and some of their friends. I was in charge of the picnic. I was a little nervous, but was told by Warren's boss just to get everything from Trader Joe's. So we had a spread of a variety of breads, fancy cheeses, meats, fruit, cheesecake and some other sweet treats. Everyone loved it and it was delicious if I may say so myself. The concert included Kiri Te Kanawa, Frederica von Stade, Josh Groban and John Williams among others. It was a lot of fun. In fact, John Williams, who was really only there as a presenter that evening conducted part of his Star Wars score with fireworks going on in sync to the music above the bowl.

Hollywood Bowl 2008

Speaking of John Williams, last summer we went to see him at the Bowl, conducting all sorts of his compositions. I think that concert was one of my most memorable ever. Other fun memories include Julie Andrews, and another favorite, Harry Connick Jr. If you've never done it you should try it. It's exhausting, the drive there can be brutal and waiting to get out of stacked parking can take a long time, but it's still worth going. We've loved our Hollywood Bowl experiences.

Dirt

I was pulling off Joseph shorts while he was lying on top of Rebecca's bed. Suddenly a whole bunch of dirt came spilling out of his pockets. We had just returned from a playdate at a friend's house. I apologized to Rebecca about the dirt on her bed and said:

"Joseph, did you fill your pockets with dirt?"

Joseph answered, yes, but then, feeling a little guilty I presume, Rebecca said:

"Maybe I accidentally put dirt in his pockets...(and with even more emphasis) accidentally."

Okay, well, then you deserve the dirt on your bed. But thanks for the confession.

Kindergarten Graduation

I can't believe the end of Kindergarten is here already. When the principal got up after all the names of the kids had been read and said: "I hereby present to you the 1st grade class of 2010" I actually got a little emotional. It's been a big year for us. Two schools, three kindergarten teachers, a big move, changes in our life...
Rebecca had a great year and I am proud of her and how well she adjusted to all the changes. She made friends wherever she went, was admitted into the Principal's Math Club for writing her numbers from 1-100, received a Principal's Award, won third place in her track and field event and had a great year.
Above all, she is and always has been a sweet big sister to Joseph and a loving daughter.

Memory lane: the trampoline

I have a hundred memories associated with this trampoline. Break the egg, hop from blue corner to blue corner, back flips, front flips, being bounced high by my uncles, the dirt that would collect in the middle of the trampoline and jump up in the air with you, running to the trampoline with wet feet and sliding around, the feel on my feet, the smell in the air, the view of the garden, the hot sun....
It has a big rip in it now, but my kids still get some use out of it. Rebecca calls it the "jumper."
I'm sure all my cousins have similar memories of this trampoline. My grandpa was always one to create fun things for the kids to do and this was one of those fun things. Thanks, Grandpa, for the great times.

December 1985

June 2009

Nothing like a good book

They kept going and going like that. One book after another.

It's a...

Bishop! Yes, Warren has been called to be the Bishop of our new ward. We have been here just under six months, so it's a little crazy, but we feel the blessings of heaven and the love and support of the members of the ward.
This is a post I've been waiting two weeks to write. It's been an unreal two weeks, with very little sleep. We were blessed to be able to have some family members come down to be part of the experience and are grateful for all of their help.
It will be an interesting chapter of our lives. I'm also one of the ward organists. The person giving the closing prayer prayed that the members of the ward would help me with the kids so that "she will hopefully continue to be one of our organists." It was sweet. I did feel very loved and supported by the ward.
I will let you know how the adjustment goes.
After I get some sleep!

The family in attendance

Bishop Williams and Bishop Thompson

Warren and President Marco (Stake President)

The new Bishopric