End of the year fun!

A favorite...Callie, with Kyra and Whitney.
One of our favorite graduates! D with Kyra, and Whitney and a friend.

A favorite for sure! Whitney and Cass!

Really TIRED girls with their NEW shirts! The girls saran wrapped together, they boys in black, and the pie!!

The boys are ready to go!!

Learning Japanese...

I am writing this post in Canyon View Teal. The school year is over and thus means the Seniors Graduate. Our family had 3 special girls graduate on Friday. Callie, Cassie, and D all graduated on Friday. We have loved these girls for the last 4 years. They all played soccer for Mark for the past 4 years. And Cassie has been one of my "lovely Laurels". This year there has been a war between the 3 girls and Mark. It started last summer when they would leave street cones in our yard and draw pictures and messages on our driveway, porch and sidewalk. On their first away trip last summer Mark hid his famous Japanese cat clock under the bed in their hotel room. They were woken up at 3:00am by the sounds of the clock. They did not know where it was coming from and they called Mark saying, "Coach... there is a guy speaking Spanish in our room. We think he is under our bed! Help us!" Mark went to their room and took the clock. They plotted to get him back for a few months. One night in the Fall our family was woken up at 3:00am by an AWFUL beeping sound!!!! We thought at first it was our fire alarm but then figured the noise was coming from inside our walls! We found "the screamin' meanie" inside a vent. On Wednesday night we got them back GOOD! We enlisted the help of Jordan and 5 of his friends. The boys came over about 10:30 pm and we started planning the activities of the night. The boys kidnapped the girls at 3:00am. The boys ran into their room screaming the Japanese words that the clock says. They saran wrapped them and put a mask on their face. (They saran wrapped them because last summer the girls saran wrapped Whitney one night and left her on our front porch) They were then driven around town listening to Mark's voice on a cd. Then they were brought to the school and saran wrapped together and made to listen to the cat clock over and over again. While the boys smeared cheerio-cream cheese pie on their faces. (The pie is a favorite of ours.) We have made it for the girls many times in the last four years. We then brought them back to our house and made french toast for them and the boys. Mark made them t-shirts with the cat clock on the back and the words "NORAKURO" on the front. It is what the clock says. It means GET UP! The girls wore the shirts proudly to school the next day. And the whole thing was the talk of the Graduation Ceremony Friday night. Because both D and Cassie were nominated for Girl of the Year. And one of the boys that was with us was nominated and WON Boy of the Year. We had such a fun night. They are a great group of kids and we will miss seeing them at school, church, and in our home!

Grads Dance

Jordan went to the Grads Dance tonight. It is the last dance of the year. It is a girls choice dance. Micheala (one of my "Lovely Laurels") asked him a few weeks ago. She left 28 pounds of bananas all over his room. A "Curious George" stuffed animal was on his bed with a sign that said "I'd go bananas if you would go to Grads with me!" One of the many bananas in his room had her name on it. I was going to take the bananas to school and let my kids eat them but Jordan went on a band trip a few days after Micheala left the bananas and he took them with him. He fed them to his band friends:)

The Best Moms!

What a blessing it is to have 2 wonderful moms! My mom and my mother-in-law (who really is just mom to me). My mom is one of the best women I know. Last Sunday for Mother's Day we were together at my brother's house and we were all sharing memories of our moms. I talked about how I remember her jogging in the mornings and sometimes she would bring day old donuts home for us to have for breakfast. Of course we had to have eggs with the donuts. Mom has always been into healthy eating and made sure when we were growing up that we always had well balanced meals. Another of my favorite memories of mom is when I was 14 and she would have the YW in the ward over to sew. We sewed every Tuesday or was it Thursday? Anyway, that summer she would have any of the girls in the ward over who wanted to come and she would take us shopping to buy fabric and we would come to our house and she would help us sew. I had the cutest school clothes that year! And so did alot of girls in the ward. When our family moved when I was 17 years old it was mom who came up with the idea to have one of my best friends, Heather move with our family. That really saved me! Mom knew how hard it was for me to move and she went above and beyond in trying to make it as painless as possible. Another of my favorite memories of my mom is her being there with me to take Jordan home from the hospital. We were walking out of my hospital room to take Jordan home and mom was carrying him. The nurse stopped mom, who had Jordan in her arms, and said "Usually the babies mother carries the baby out of the hospital." Mom did let me carry Jordan out of the hospital:) Anyway mom I love you! Thank you for your example of motherhood and all you have taught me. I hope to continue to make you proud. NOW my other mom. I love Mark's mom so much. I have loved Mary longer that I have loved Mark! She was my seminary teacher my Senior year in high school. I just did a Stake Primary Training this week and I shared the story of my fabulous Seminary teacher Sister Comstock! My whole talk was based on mom's "Hershey Kiss" scripture. Alma 37:6 "by small and simple things, great things shall come to pass." My other mom has helped me through many things in these last 19 years. I always know I can talk to her and she always has great advice for me. She is an amazing women with a great love for her family. I love to get her weekly family emails. She has a strong testimony of the gospel which is an inspiration to me. I am so blessed to have these two amazing women to look up to in my life. I love you BOTH!

2nd Grade Program

Madee and some of her friends even helped Jordan answer a girl who asked him to a dance!

Madee had her 2nd grade program this week. They sang some fun songs they had learned this year. Madee has had a great year. She has loved the 2nd grade and especially her teacher!

Jordan is a Keeper!

At least that is what the girls say! Some of his friends made shirts that say "Jordan is a keeper." My pictures of them in the shirts are on my other computer I will post them later. Here are some good shots of his season.

A Broken Arm and Soccer!

Madee broke her arm a couple of weeks ago. How you may ask? She got hit with a soccer ball. The ball was coming towards her face and she put up her arm to block her face. I am glad she did, just think what that ball would have done to her face. A girl who is trying out for the HS team next year is the one who kicked the ball. She felt so bad she called Mark to apoligize. He just told her he would definately remember her and her hard kicks! Madee chose a bright green cast to match her softball team shirt for her team she has not played any games with yet! She got her cast on ther day of her first game:(