Nostalgic Night

Thanks to Bryan's keen ears, Brad and I were able to get tickets to go see AMERICA in concert last weekend.  Holy Schmoly!  I felt like a teenager again!  They were great - their songs transformed me back into the teenager whose biggest problem was not having a date for the weekend.  Brad has raised our kids on America songs - they all can play them, sing the melody, the harmony, and even make up more harmonies to go along.  They know all the words.  All this makes them more a product of the 70s than I am!  

The concert was held at The Cannery in North Las Vegas.  It was nearly 100 degrees, so I was SO glad for the frozen wash cloths they were handing out.  The venue was small, so it felt intimate.  I looked all around once we took our seats and commented to Brad, "everyone here is SO OLD! - glad we're not that old!"  It would have been a perfect night, but the lady sitting next to me needed 2 seats, so she used mine.  It was already killer hot - she had to put her arm around me to fit.  It was rather uncomfortable.  

Still, it was a great night out together.  Afterward, we joined the line at the CD & t-shirt table to say a quick "hello" and get autographs.  We were near the front of the line (thanks to sitting in the back at the concert :)  Back in 1990 when AMERICA came to Guam for a concert, Brad was Dewey's divemaster when he joined Micronesian Divers Assoc. for a day of diving.  After the concert the 3 of them had a good time reminiscing about it.

THANKS FOR A FUN NIGHT, Brad!

WHEATGRASS .... Success!!!

Well, we finally did it!  We harvested two whole huge trays of wheat grass.  EVERYONE (except Jace) in the house drank an entire ounce of the very POTENT drink.  

As you can see ... there's so much chlorophyl in wheatgrass juice that it literally turns our tongues green.  This picture was taken AFTER brushing my teeth and tongue!  

Brad swears by it, I believe in it and the kids tolerate it.  It really did give us energy for the day.  And I had some truly BUMMER news that morning - and honestly .. it was weird - it didn't bum-me-out!  Think it induces seratonin production....??  I wonder!  

Two entire trays juiced about 8 ounces and left very little, very DRY pulp.

So, if you want a swig of it next time I harvest, let me know & I'll give you a call.  I realize I need to plant, plant, plant to have enough to harvest daily.  

Our Young Men and Young Women

We're so proud of all of our kids.  Especially how they each set an example for the others.  Trevor has been the perfect BIG BROTHER for everyone ... I remember how he'd hold on to the back of Brooke's neck to guide her on their walks (she probably hated it).  But it insured her safety.  Trevor finished his Eagle Scout project at age 14 - this gave Bryan great incentive to do the same ... AND HE DID.  Brooke has made a point of mothering her siblings (in a good way).  She had responsibility heaped upon her at a very young age, and she not only coped with it, she EXCELLED.  Brooke completed her YW Personal Progress requirements at age 14 which gave Sierra incentive to do the same .... AND SHE DID!  Sierra was just recognized at the Stake YW Recognition Night for that achievement.  We're so proud of her, and so thankful for the program.  

Bryan has taken over as the Man in the House when Brad's been away.  He is the protector our girls need.  Very few people come close to being as generous, tender and caring as Bryan.  Sierra is our peacemaker.  She's quick to include Azure and Bryan in her activities and is an example of steadiness.  Although Azure has no younger siblings, she's still a leader and an example in our home.  She is task oriented and knows the value of humor.  Thanks to the examples of her siblings, she's a songwriter, pianist and guitar player.  

These church programs:  Scouts, Duty to God and YW are truly inspired programs.  Because of these programs, our kids have read the Book of Mormon, participated in important service, become leaders of peers, written in journals, prepared for missions and the temple.  We are so blessed to have continued revelation and a Prophet to guide us.  And Brad and I are SO blessed to have strong children with righteousness as their goals.  

Sierra on Splash!

I think you'll all agree ... Sierra is a star!

SITKA IN APRIL

Sierra and I spent a glorious week in Sitka.  Yes - we worked - but BOY! did we ever play too!  Much to Sierra's happiness, there was a little rain.  But we spent most of our days in the sun in 50-60 degree weather ... PERFECT!  Following are some pictures of our wonderful time there:Above:  Sierra near John Brown's Beach where we collected sea glass.  

Below:  Sierra and her friend, Helaina - during lunch hour on Sandy Beach at low tide.



Above:  The day before leaving, Sierra went to school and I sat on the beach COMPLETELY ALONE listening to the surf and watching sea lions.  It was PERFECT.

Below:  Beautiful Sitka as the plane starts to take off.



Above:  Sunday morning was the lowest tide of the month ... we thought it a very appropriate Sabbath activity - to walk along the beach :)

Below:  Sierra at Halibut Point Rec - it was a GORGEOUS day.



Above:  Sierra and I posed with our family's dear friend, Elmo at church (the building is made of cedar and SMELLS INCREDIBLE)

Below:  Sunday morning we found all kinds of sand dollars like the one below, wedged between rocks in tide pools.




Above:  Just an artistic picture:)

Below:  My sis, Camielle, at the beach with us.


Above:  Sierra

Below:  Camielle



Above:  Another artistic picture (I'm getting good, aren't I!??!!)  This one has Sierra in it.

Below:  Sierra working the recorder and switcher for the show.



It was a great trip.  This is Sierra at Silver Bay.  This was after our little stop at the chocolate factory ... mmmmm!  I just realized - no pictures of Camielle's son, Joshua, on this post.  I'll have to add him later - OR - go to my facebook and look at the album I just posted.

That's it for now :)

CATCHING UP ....

It's been a crazy-hectic few weeks lately!  I'll just post some pictures with comments to catch everyone up .....

My Dad flew out from Texas for a quick interview on "The Vegas Splash!".  He's a financial adviser with Eagle Strategies, LLC - and he did a fabulous job.  Our family was so glad to have him here!

 

It was Azure's turn to help with the show ... here she's posing with two of the entertainers I interviewed:  Yves Frulla (Celine Dion's Keyboard Player) and Jay White (Neil Diamond Impersonator - boy is he GOOD!)

It wasn't JUST a family day .... but there was a lot of family there!  My brother, Bruce, representing Tahitian Noni International was a guest on the show as well as (below) my cousin, Susan, representing TechnoHue.com (she's the one in blue - the other is Nola, a cosmetologist)

Brad was also with us on our last taping day of the season - I LOVE these long-distance production shots he got!  We taped at the Galleria at Sunset mall and it was a blast - a little noisy, but nonetheless, lots of fun.  

People started to congregate when Jay White (as Neil Diamond) started to sing "Sweet Caroline" ... by the end of the song, we had a huge crowd.  He was so "authentic" that I was immediately transported back to high school.  SO FUN!

MAJOR yum!  We taped 3 short segments with these sushi chefs ... of course, tasting it was THE BEST part ... they stayed after their segments and made up the rest of the food they brought for the cast and crew .... HOORAY FOR US!

So, that was the end of taping for Season One!  Very exciting!  The shows we've taped will air through mid-June.  We'll get started taping for Season 2 probably in May.  This is tons of fun:)

With the help of Bryan's past Teacher's Quorum Advisor (Brother Leja), Bryan made this BEAUTIFUL chess board for me out of maple and black walnut.  Here he is playing a not-so-quick game with Grandpa Call.

The week before taping the show, the kids and I drove up to SLC for part of conference - some of us spent time on Temple Square listening, then headed up to Idaho where we spent the week with Brookie & Steve with their "Trash Queen" business.  It was a fast, but FUN trip!

Those are more pics from our short time together in Utah ... (oh yeah, HAPPY BIRTHDAY CACI!) ... it was so fun to see our PREGNANT Brookie!  Such a CUTE tummy!  Az stayed with Trevor, Caci & Jace for the week, having tons of adventures, and the big kids and I enjoyed the week learning what REAL HARD WORK is with Brookie & Steve-o.  Good memories!

(but we all missed Brad!)

A BIG Happy 51st Birthday to Brad!!!!!  We love you !

DAVID ARCHULETA'S BIGGEST FAN

For Sierra's birthday, all she wanted was a trip to SLC to see David A. in concert.  So everyone contributed, and that's what she (we ) got!  It was a really fun trip ... Here are some highlights:

This was right before the concert started ... we were headed to our seats (way up!) when Sierra spotted the drummer (Eli, I think) from David's band.  It was so funny ... she tapped him on the shoulder and just said, "Hi".  If I weren't there with the camera, I think Sierra would have just stood there staring at him saying "Hi" over and over again. 

This is right after the concert with Amy-something ... the warm-up singer before David came on.

Ok - the CONCERT was ENJOYABLE, the after-party TOLERABLE, being on the VIP list for the afterparty and walking past the long line to the gigantic bouncer, then being let right in ... well, that was just THE BOMB, or SICK, or WHATEVER THE VERNACULAR is today ...  (THANKS TREVOR ... YOU HAVE GREAT CONNECTIONS!)

Unfortunately, David never showed up at the after-party ... so Sierra settled for a picture with his 15-year-old brother, Daniel.  (He performed and is quite the guitar player!)

... and a picture with his dad (hehe) ...

... and a picture with David Osmond (Idol contestant) ...

All in all, it was a really fun night!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SIERRA.