July the 4th, Among Many Things

Huh. It would seem that I did not take a single photo of the holiday celebrating the birthday of our nation. 

Well - we actually did do a couple of things. We decided to make another early morning trek up Millcreek Canyon for breakfast in the mountains. It was just lovely. Our power was still out, and it was a hot day, so slipping up into the cooler air was, as always, just the best. Also, we made pancakes along with sausage and eggs. I do not know what I did, but somehow, those were the dang best pancakes I have EVER made. I really don't know what happened. Extra butter? Extra buttermilk? Extra time for the baking powder to fill the batter with bubbles? I don't know. But they were delicious. Far too delicious to waste time on taking photos when we could be gobbling pancakes. 

By the time we got back from the canyon, the power was back on, and we could get on with finishing up the work on the kitchen. It pretty much took all dang day long for us to get it all painted and the plates hung up and the kitchen furniture and books and bowls and all of it all put away. Just in time for a few friends to come over for burgers and salads on the back porch. Such a pleasant evening. So pleasant, in fact, that we saw no need to leave and go watch fireworks. Although I was really worn out from the whole past couple of days I was willing to take the girls up to the country club like always. However, I was not at all sad when no one wanted to go and we could just collapse into bed. 

Since I have no photo evidence of Independence Day I thought I'd throw in some pictures from a couple of other things we did.

The Tate family continues to be dear to us, and we love to see any production they're a part of. Ben was a lead in Freaky Friday, and this time, Dave had some small parts as well. Summery evenings outside, watching musicals in the dark, well, that's just heaven. We love the Tates.

One morning, Misty called me up to lure me away. She and her youngest daughter ventured down town for a couple of errands, and really wanted to try this Japanese dessert cafe called Doki Doki. It was so fun! Misty just ordered like 6 desserts and we just passed them around. They were so tasty although I learned that I prefer my chocolate ice cream with raspberry sauce to NOT have rose water added to it, as I suffered with rose-burps for the next 12 hours. 

And here's some artwork from the cafe - I had to send these photos to Chase because they are from some of his favorite anime shows. 

The Becky had another wedding in her family! Her oldest son and second child married the sweetest gal and I got to hang out with them all day long. The wedding, the lunch, the reception. I sure love my Becky. Here's what made me a brilliant person. The day was just wretchedly hot. And there were many photos to be taken. I found a shady spot and hollered to all the ladies that I was the purse babysitter and I got a lot of takers. This meant that I sat in the lovely shade while everyone else stood in the sun getting their photos taken. I'm no dummy. Well, I wasn't at that moment. Later, when Becky realized that she was going to be late picking up the food for the luncheon, I came to the rescue and went to get it for her. But I tried too hard in my heroics and tried to surprise her with a lovely cold beverage. She did indeed appreciate this and was delighted but it meant that I almost was late with the food. Becky said the drink was worth it. 

Right in the middle of all the wedding business, The Becky's husband Jon was in a production of Guys and Dolls. Emma and I went to see it and had such a good time. Jon played Big Jule, and was very funny. He purchased a large collection of dice with no dots on them for the role, and every night found someone to give them to after the show. Emma was the lucky winner that night and she giggled so hard and was just delighted. 

Yep so there are some of the things that filled up our calendar for a few weeks. We are lucky folks.

Addendum: 
Troy just told me he does have photos from the 4th! I'm laughing and also... I'm not going to rewrite the post. Here you go:

The LIST

Before summer got started I decided to make a list (yeah, shocker, say all of my kids with an eye roll) of all the projects I wanted to tackle. Some were small, like washing the windows or cleaning the refrigerator, and others were large, like remaking the stone pathway in front of our house. That one remains un-checked-off at this time.

One of the bigger things was finishing a quilt. It doesn't seem like that would be that big of a deal, but for me it sure was! I used to do a lot of quilting in the distant past. The last quilting I did was make a top created from every scrap of red fabric I had in my possession. I just loved the idea of having a very red quilt. It does have some white borders in it as well, to break it up a little bit, but it's just very red. I enjoyed making that top so much (if I memory serves...maybe I hated it. I don't know actually.) The thing is, right as I basted all the layers together and started the quilting process, I did this crazy thing where I gave birth to my first baby. Yep, Chase came along and ruined everything. Just kidding. But he did ruin my quilting momentum. I just folded that thing up and tossed it in the blanket pile to "think about later." The blanket pile migrated around the house for years, finally landing in a neat corner behind our armchair. We use the blankets all the time - except for the red quilt, because "think about later" eventually came to mean "20 years later." 

When I first fished it out of the pile, I was worried that I had forgotten how to quilt. It was so weird though - the minute I picked up the needle and thread, my muscle memory kicked in and I was stitching and tying knots and tugging thread through fabric like I hadn't missed a day. Not that there's a lot to the process, but it was so crazy to almost just watch my fingers automatically make the moves that I hadn't made in so long. It definitely took some weeks to finish, but not as long as I thought. And it just made me so happy! Here's the finished product, pictured here with a Romney on top:

 

So fun to finish that. Now I can start on another thing on my list....starting a new quilt! The red one isn't big enough for our bed, and I want to make a real queen-sized quilt for us. Hopefully it will not also take 20 years. And I confess, I will have the new one quilted on a machine by a professional. I'm not sure I'm up for hand-quilting another one ever again.  

Another bigger-than-I-meant-it-to-be project this summer - the kitchen wall. We have one blank white wall in our kitchen, and over the years it has developed quite the collection of pin-holes, screws, dents, stains, drips, etc. etc. etc. Basically, it was gross. And I was sad looking at it. I felt like I had the skills to clean it up, use joint compound to smooth out the dents and pin pricks, and paint it. No sweat! (I have a feeling that you know exactly where this is going.) Troy very kindly agreed to my idea. My main goal was to not trouble him with my projects. He does so much for us, and I just wanted to make this little improvement without bugging him. But...you know how it goes. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie....He's Going to Want a Glass of Milk to Go With It. (You know the book, yes?) We have that house - If you want to paint a wall, you're going to have to replace the outlet. And if you want to replace the outlet, you're going to have to fix the wires. And if you want to fix the wires.....yeah. Like that. 

There was one outlet that was basically hanging off the wall, and Troy really wanted to replace it. Which led to chopping into the drywall around it to try to fix the ancient wiring. There was one horrible evening where we thought we might have to replace an entire wall because someone had put drywall OVER lath and plaster. But Troy figured out a way to handle it without the project creeping out of control. It still took longer than I meant it to, though I tried to do as much of the work as I could. And in the middle of the project, I had to go to St. George to pick up Emma! You know what my wonderful husband did? He took over the drywall patching around the outlet and made it look so amazingly perfect. Way better than I ever could have done it.

Then came...the painting. Choosing a color is so hard! I always think I know what I want, and I go to home depot to get the paint and I put a little on the wall and it looks dreadful. It is so weird. And crappy. Independence Day was on a Tuesday, and I got home on Sunday. I meant to have it all done on Monday because we had friends coming over for a holiday BBQ. And....as I was priming the walls at like 10pm on Monday the power went out.

Cue tantrum.

I finished priming that night by battery light, and Troy and I spent all of the fourth getting the right paint, painting the walls, hanging these dishes we bought in Russia in 2001, and trying to get the kitchen off of the back porch before 6pm when friends were coming over. We did it. But just barely. 

Best part? Not a soul noticed. I could NOT believe it. People who have known us for 10 years came in and didn't notice at all! At first I was kind of offended, but over the weeks as more people have come over and also didn't notice, I realized that people just don't always see that kind of thing and that's ok. But every single time I look at the wall, I feel SO HAPPY. We also feel extremely happy every time we plug something in to the new outlet and it is secured so beautifully into the wall. Can we run the microwave and dishwasher at the same time? Still no. But that's ok. It's a thing of beauty and I'm so so so so happy. 

Emma's Second Getaway

Emma's next week away from our family was not part of the crazy summer plan at all. Once she returned from a week at BYU FSY, she enjoyed a week at home, taking an afternoon sewing class and in the mornings, getting a little summertime relaxing in. During that same week, Peter was in town for a cello institute, and spent a couple of evenings at our house. When I realized that he'd be heading home just in time for Emma to have a totally empty week ahead, I asked her if she'd be at all interested in spending the week in St. George with her best friend cousins. She freaked out. That meant yes. Peter, Sheri, and their kids were also totally great with it, so at the last minute, I zoomed some laundry through, we packed up a bag, and Emma took off for a week in St. George. Here's what is cute. Peter and Emma have driven to St. George twice now and they have developed a tradition of listening to a few entire musicals together as they drive. Highlights have been Hamilton and Oklahoma. Cats did not go over quite as well.

 

Basically what she did there was get time in the sun. So much time, in fact, that she totally fried her shoulders and back and I made an emergency online order of a long sleeved swim shirt for Sheri to pick up and for Emma to wear 100% of the rest of the time she left their house, which she faithfully did, thank heavens. Oh pale one, you must learn the ways of sun protection. You are a woman of the north, like unto your mother. 

Observe your pale skin:

 

I think the kids actually had quite a bit of down time while Sheri worked and Peter was gone at another cello thing in California, but every free minute Sheri had, she took the kids out for fun. They spent a FULL day at Cowabunga Bay in Vegas, plus time in local rivers and pools. 

 

 

I arranged to drive down to pick Emma up the next weekend. We all actually met up in Cedar City on Saturday evening to enjoy some diner food and then hit the green show at the Utah Shakespearean Festival.

Here I am in my basement hideaway - wishing you all a very Merry Christmas:

And here are Emma and Cara wishing each other a loving farewell before we departed. I think they had a great time together - although I know an entire week can get kind of long, and even best friend-cousins can bump into some aggravations. Good for them for working through a couple of tough moments. What a blessing our friendship is!

Emma's First Getaway

When I read the Harry Potter books, I was always a little dumbfounded as I imagined sending off my child for an entire year to go get educated. I guess people do it all the time, but it seemed so weird to me! And now, here I am, with a whole summer ahead of me sending my child away for entire weeks at a time. Emma and I were laughing as we looked at the calendar and seeing how much she'd be gone. And just so you know, each event was something she really wanted to do, so it wasn't like I was sending her away against her will. She was so excited!

I was actually pretty surprised that Emma was so excited for her first adventure. For one thing, it was starting the Monday after school ended, with just a two-day weekend separating her last day of 8th grade and her first day of her first camp. This camp is called FSY, which stands for For the Strength of Youth. It's a camp put together by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints for kids from age 14 - 18. There are camps at college campuses and other locations all around the world, and cost just $75 per kid for a week of camp. Emma was incredibly excited, even though she didn't have a single friend going the same week she was going. She wanted to go alone (????) and also really wanted to attend at Provo's BYU campus. 

Romney and I drove Emma down on Monday morning and I know that she and I were both more nervous than Emma was. I just really wanted Emma to have a good experience with her roommate and her company of kids - usually 10 boys and 10 girls. Most kids I know go to these FSY camps with a buddy. 

And indeed, when we arrived, there were kids everywhere roaming around in pairs. It took us a minute to find her dorm room, which was located down a very quiet hallway in a nice new building on campus, just down the street from the MTC. We found her room, and knocked on the door, just in case her roommate was already in there. I didn't hear an answer, so we let ourselves in, and sitting there at her desk was Emma's room mate. 

Her name was Hailey, and I knew instantly that my quiet prayers had been heard. This kid was clearly a kindred spirit with my girl. The first hint I had was that she was wearing a t-shirt that had all these cute chickens all over it. I tried to break the ice by asking about it, and wouldn't you know, her family owns and adores chickens, just like us! Their chickens are all named after Harry Potter and Star Wars characters. I was actually shocked at what a perfect match Hailey was for Emma. They got to chatting right away and it wasn't long before Emma was saying, "Okay MOM you can go now MOM." Ok! But one quick photo first.

I heard from Emma most nights that week and she was just on cloud 9. She had so many stories and things to say about the kids in her group, the things they were up to, the private jokes they had, how much she loved the counselors, the things she was studying and learning, the games they were playing....she gushed every single night. It was incredible. I was so happy and grateful.

On Saturday morning Troy, Romney and I all piled into the car at 6am to go pick her up. We found our tired and happy gal waiting for us on the curb:

Of course we went to breakfast after we got her, so she could tell us all about her week as we ate pancakes and eggs Benedict. The breakfast was not great actually, but being together was. And hearing Emma's enthusiasm was just wonderful.

Want to know what was hilarious? After we got Emma home and started the laundry and stuff, I got picked up by Emily to head out to a baby shower for the daughter of a friend of ours. I thought we were headed to Sandy. But....it was in Orem. About a mile from where we got Emma. It was so funny. Talk about There and Back Again! (And Again - since Romney and I went to check out dorm rooms in the same area on Monday, just two days later. I'm starting to wish I had a secret entrance to the magical land of Orem, Utah.)

One Day, Two Milestones

June 9 was a big day around here! Both of our girls reached an educational milestone. Emma finished up 8th grade and that wrapped up all of middle school for the Preslar family. (Hoorah!) Romney graduated from high school, leaving us with just one more kid to get through the public school system. What a day!

First, the obligatory front-steps photos:

 

 

The day started with me taking Emma over to Clayton Middle School and dropping her off for her own promotion assembly. Did you catch that? Dropping her off. I am so happy that the school district changed its mind about how to handle middle school promotions. For my older kids a big graduation-type assembly was held, and each child could invite only two people to attend. This caused huge problems for kids whose whole families wanted to come cheer for them, and also problems for those of us who found a 2-hour ceremony to be unbelievably long. Since then those types of assemblies have been outlawed and now there is an assembly for just the 8th grade students alone. Parents, friends and families are invited to come form a reception line outside of the school, leading to the fields in back, cheering for the kids as they leave the auditorium and head outside for a party. There was food, icy drinks, a DJ, and lots of photos. I was fully in support. 

 

 

Once Emma and I got home - she requested to be escorted home on the scooter, which was a fun departure - she requested a chance to chill out and flop instead of coming with us to Romney's graduation. We did not blame her for making this request and heartily consented. 

First, photos in the Grad Outfit in front of the house:

 

Then photos in the Grad Outfit in front of THE East High:

 

Finally we made it to the Huntsman Center where Romney participated in the program both by playing cello with the orchestra and singing with the madrigals. It was fun to see her.

 

Romney was smarter than we were and brought her brother's Nintendo Switch on which she and her buddies played Super Smash Bros during the reading of the 400+ names.

After the graduation we tracked her down, hugging many people along the way, and went home to fetch, Emma. We took the girls to the restaurant Troy and I went to many a times while dating other people in the 90's. And haven't been to since. The Spaghetti Factory, of course! Hasn't changed a bit. Except the prices. Had to go with my fave - Mushroom and Mizithra, baby! The girls enjoyed it a lot and I got such a kick out of time traveling back to the land of Spumoni ice cream and garlic herb butter. 

I was kind of sad that Romney wasn't planning on going to the PTA-sponsored senior class party or anything like that, but she ended up making the best plan of all. After our feast of pasta, she and her friends gathered for their favorite thing. A late-night Dungeons and Dragons extravaganza. Perfect.