Carousel Fun

We were supposed to be in Utah this weekend, but decided to stay home due to poor weather (both places, actually...) We wanted to do something fun, but all my suggestions were apparently "boring" until I remembered our friend Jessica's post about the new Carousel at The District in Green Valley.


We decided to take the girls for a ride, then pretend we were rich and go window shopping in the District. We even convinced Dad and Jimmy to go with us. We got rained on a bit, but rain being quite a novelty for us, we didn't mind. (And by the way, I'm quite proud of myself. Maddie and Little Ally both REALLY hinted they'd like me to buy them each an item, but I told them I'd bring them back when they earned the money themselves!)


Sydney rode on the elephant first. She was pretty excited...until it started going up and down...then she wasn't too sure about the whole thing!!


Little Ally rode a cat - with a fish in its mouth!


Julie rode a frog on the second ride...just so Gramma Linda would go "Ewwwww!"


Maddie really wanted to ride the giraffe, but it was stationary, so she rode the white tiger instead.


The second time around she opted for a stationary ride because giraffes ARE her favorite animal (and mine and Grandma D's!)


Amy looked into the "eye of the tiger" on her ride...


Jimmy took Sydney for another turn and she liked it better the second time. She still looked terrifed and held onto the pole for dear life, but she said, "Whee!" the whole time...What a goof! Ally decided to ride the elephant since it was free.


While deciding where to eat, the girls' first grade teacher, Mrs. K., came by with her husband and daughter. She is one of our very favorite people in the world. She surprised us with the news that she is expecting a baby in August! What excitement for their family; their other two daughters are about 16 and 9, we think. Maybe they'll have a boy this time!


Jimmy convinced us to eat in the Elephant Bar Restaurant and Ally had to pose by HER favorite animal inside. What a fun day. The food was good, the company great, and a good time was had by all. Wish everyone could have been there...

Alice in Wonderland

I am very slow in posting this, as I'm still waiting for my "professional photos" of the show, but isn't Maddie lovely as a dancer at the Mad Tea Party in BC Ballet Company's "Alice in Wonderland?" They performed this beautiful ballet (which included tap, jazz, and Irish numbers from the younger girls at the Dance, Etc. studio also) April 24-26 at the historic BC Theatre, owned by Desi Arnaz, Jr. and his wife, Miss Amy.


(These photos were taken at the dress rehearsal by our good friend, Jessica. She is so kind to share with us.)

Maddie concentrates hard on her arabesque. (She smiled more in the show!)


Look at that wonderful "form!"


Maddie drinks some "Mad Tea."


All ballerinas make "pretty hands and arms."

Maddie has danced at Dance, Etc. since she was three years old. She LOVES to dance. This year she only took ballet, opting out of tap and Irish for this year. After the last of four very tiring performances, Maddie informed me, "I think this was my favorite year of dance ever, Mom. I LOVED the show, I LOVED my dance, I LOVED my costume, I LOVED our hairdos, and I LOVED my teacher." If you are going to have an extracurricular activity, it might as well be something you love! We LOVED watching you and Ally dance, Maddie!

Double Graduation!

David and Loretta did it! They graduated with Bachelors of Arts from UNLV last Saturday. (My pictures of the pre-ceremonies, the ceremonies, and the party at our house are terrible, so I'm only posting one. You can see some where you can actually see their faces on Loretta's, Ally's and Amy's blogs.) We are so proud of David and Loretta. I can't even imagine trying to use MY brain for school work while also raising a family. They did, and they did it well! Congratulations to both of you! Now it's on to the next phase of your lives...We'll be cheering for you!

Can You Spell Like This Girl??

She said she didn't study much. She said she was too nervous and couldn't take the pressure. She said she didn't want to compete. She said it was just luck she made it to the finals. She thought she'd get "out" on the first word. But this girl made it through seven rounds of the fourth grade spelling bee on Monday, May 12, spelling words like "cupboard," "awkward," "respectful," "intelligence," "hospital," and "Rhode Island." (I can't remember the first word...) When only she and one other contestant were left, she fell to the plural of "echo." Is that "es" or just "s?" She went for the shorter version and sadly, was knocked out of the competition. Coming in second earned her a medal, a Fisher Space pen, and a $50 savings bond. Not too shabby! We are so proud of this smart girl! Congratulations, Ally!

Sydney Goes to Dairy Queen

Tonight Sydney waxed patriotic during the national anthem at the Junior High Orchestra Concert.


Afterward, she had a "little treat" at Dairy Queen.


When she finished her "baby dish," she started work on Allyson's Blizzard.

When that was gone, she had some of Amy's...

Sydney is a good eater. (Yes, she had dinner before the concert!)

Mindy's Wedding

Cousin Melinda and Adam got married in the Los Angeles Temple Saturday morning. We had planned to go, but Jeff came home from California sick, and having not seen him for two weeks, I didn't have the heart to leave him home alone.

So Amy went with Grandma S. and Aunt Joy and represented our family. She enjoyed the temple grounds while helping watch James, Brendan, Jessica, Samantha, and Tyler during the sealing ceremony.

Los Angeles is a beautiful old temple right in the middle of the city.

The flowers were in full bloom.

Aren't they gorgeous?

I wish I could have been there... and here with Jeff at the same time.

Congratulations, Mindy and Adam! I hope you have a WONDERFUL eternity together!

Who is this Masked Man?

When we went out to do yard work Saturday I told Jeff he should wear a mask, since he was not only sick, but is allergic to olive pollen. (Oh, yes. He IS a man. He would have to be on his deathbed to "not work," even when he's sick.) Anyway, this isn't exactly what I meant...


He wore his "dust mask" the whole time he pruned the olive trees and the sago palm. (I know we're a little late in the season. It should have been done BEFORE the trees were full of pollen. Better late than never, I always say.) Now I can mow the lawn without being "thwacked" in the face by low-hanging branches.

Here's Maddie in the "jungle" in the alley from the NINE garbage cans we filled with olive branches and sago palm fronds.