Surprise Trip

My incredibly wonderful and handsome husband gave me a memorable gift in honor of my graduation. We took a whirlwind trip to Las Vegas to see Phantom of the Opera at The Venetian. It was our first family vacation in ages and we got to stay with Sharon and see her apartment. The show was AMAZING! I'm really into seeing how things work and all the backstage stuff, so I was absolutely mesmerized by the elaborate set pieces and costumes and how the sets moved and transformed during the show. The only disappointment was that the chandelier did not fall during the performance we attended. Las Vegas has changed and grown a lot since I was last there. I'm happy with all the connections between hotels and the elevated walkways. Unfortunately, the attempt they once made to have a family friendly focus is completely gone. It was fun hanging out with Sharon and getting away from things now that my homework is history. This week has been much more fun after having some time away to relax. Only two more days til graduation...

Dwayne's new style

Dwayne has decided to find some sort of style to how he dresses. A friend of his helped him to pick out some new clothes on his last shopping trip. He is now wearing Avirex shoes (skater shoes you wear laced but not tied), plaid bermuda shorts, and designer t-shirts (Hurley, Zoo York, Sean John). I'm not too crazy about the look, but everyone else thinks he looks great. I think it's just hard for me to see him in anything but courderoys or cargo pants, attitude t-shirts, and converse shoes. He's gaining some new popularity with his new duds, so I guess it's okay.

Well...only 23 years after graduating from high school and being promised a way would be provided for me to finish my education...I'm nearly finished!

I will be graduating April 25. This 40 year-old mom will finally have that nifty piece of paper that proves to the world that I'm worth hiring and worth paying better wages.

On Monday, I have to speak at a scholarship luncheon to thank the Woodbury family since they provided the money for my scholarship. The toughest thing about being done with school will be that I won't get more moments like this where I'm special and get acknowledged for my work. Back in the real world, there is plenty of work to do and accolades are rare.

I know all of you are incredibly busy and live far away, so this is more of an announcement than an invitation. I wish I could have you here to share this moment with. Bill's Air Force ceremony to receive his first real rank was wonderful. Rick's graduation made me appreciate even more his uniqueness and his great accomplishments. Sharon refused to do the whole ceremony thing, but she donned a cap and gown so I could at least have a picture; one I still treasure. I wonder if Mom had any idea how far any of us would go... I have also been able to attend graduations for Emerson's brother, Gene, and our sister-in-law, Brenda (bachelor's and master's). We were able to surprise Emerson's mom when we showed up for her graduation for her associate's degree a few years ago.

Dexter is mostly happy that it's not on his birthday this time. He is spending his birthday competing in the Utah state solo and ensemble competition. I hear his solo is fantastic. Dwayne has been done with his high school work for some time now and is focusing on finishing his culinary arts training. He is also taking a driver's education class so he can finally learn how to drive. Emerson is taking classes to become special education certified (required by Heritage) and is having them count towards a master's degree. With Bill, Sharon, and Holly working on their master's degrees too, it's hard to feel like I am accomplishing much...lol.

President Hinckley

A friend of mine sent me this touching segment on Glen Beck's show where he talks about the passing of President Gordon B. Hinckley.

Wildlife

Our winter this year has been tough on everyone, even the critters. The buildup of snow has interfered with wildlife being able to find food.

Since Heritage is at the mouth of Provo Canyon, we've had some of the local wildlife make their way to our campus. The first was a young moose that DWS had to come in and tranquilize to haul off. He had come in to eat the hay we have for our horses. We've had deer a few times. Today there were three mule deer wandering around trying to figure out how to get off the property. I actually had my camera, so I took a bunch of pictures. I also got a picture of one trying to jump over the fence (unsuccessfully).

The state is trying to feed the animals back in their regular environment to prevent more problems. Unfortunately, there have been a lot of deer hit on the roads this year and they expect a lot of younger deer will starve to death.

Mario Mom 2008

How do you welcome in the new year when you're 40 years old, have two teenage sons, and you're going into your last day off before launching into full time work and college craziness again?.... You stay up all night playing video games, of course. The boys talked me into playing Mario Kart. I'm more of a Tetris or Pikmin type when it comes to video games. I can't handle watching very many things on the screen at one time or being under the pressure of time. I'm also severely uncoordinated and can't do all the crazy button combinations that my kids can. I think everyone's familiar with my driving, so you won't be surprised to find out I have even more trouble steering with an overly sensitive joystick on crazy courses while throwing objects and being pummeled by everything my sons are throwing at me. My revenge was that I eventually made them keep racing the same course over and over so I could get the hang of it and I eventually won some races. We stayed up all night and took a quick nap before going to see a movie on New Year's Day. It may be an odd way to celebrate the incoming year, but I had a great time.

Christmas with the sisters

This was my best Christmas ever! I got to spend Christmas with both of my sisters. I get to see Sharon every couple of months, but Kathy and I rarely see each other. Kathy spent a week here and I don't think either of us stopped talking the whole time. Kathy fell in love with our dogs and our dogs fell in love with her. Even Scout, who is afraid of all new people, came right up to her and never left her side when they were in the same room together. We had fun shopping, seeing movies, baking cookies, and playing games. Sharon and I had the adventure of helping Kathy to find the perfect purse. We traveled many, many miles, visiting each store 5 or 6 times so she could agonize over the choices....well, that's mostly true. Both sisters treated us to some fabulous dinners. Sharon showed us how to play Blokus. Kathy proved she shouldn't be driving in video games. Emerson managed to scare the dogs with his remote control jeep. Dexter's bear has been banished from the living room now that it's wearing a Cleveland Browns jersey. Dwayne is looking forward to using his new DVD player when he gets back to Job Corps. Sharon taught me how to put on makeup with some help from Tina. Today was the toughest day since I had to go back to work. All vacations must come to an end sometime...

Office Christmas Gifts

Every year, I agonize over what to give my coworkers. They are all great people and I would love to give them something significant. Unfortunately, by the time you buy two dozen of anything, it gets pretty expensive. This year, I decided to have a little fun rather than attempt a more serious gift. The picture on the left is what I gave my coworkers. In case you can't figure it out, the gift is a roll of toilet paper. I actually had some people who were overjoyed to get the tp since they had run out at home. My boss did a nicer gift, but with a touch of fun. His gift is in the photo on the right. Here's to having some fun with the craziness of the season!!

Elf Yourself!!

I found this cool new way to torture my family....

I transformed my brothers and sisters into dancing elves. Click here to see http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1380871184

Of course I had to try this out on my own little family too: http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1282629920

Just for entertainment, I thought you might like to see your grouchy big sister as Scrooge: http://www.scroogeyourself.com/?id=1381229002

Dexter gets married

At the beginning of the school year, Dexter auditioned for "Fiddler on the Roof" and got the part of Avram the bookseller and was understudy for Tevye. The boy playing Tevye failed to show up for rehearsals a couple of times and it looked like he might have a chance at the lead. Two weeks before the show opened, one of the other actors was ineligible due to grades and Dexter took over his role as Motel the tailor. Fortunately, Dex practically knows this show by heart after helping us with the same show out at Heritage. Everything worked out for the best and the show turned out great. Dexter had a solo and got to get married during the play. I thought everyone might enjoy seeing how different he looks as a young Jewish tailor.