Provo airport!

Dad flew to Denver this morning. Out of Provo airport. LOVE it... :)

A date...and a move...

So...a week ago we had a Friday night play date planned with the 3 local kiddies. Alicia had not yet ridden on the big black bike - always because they "couldn't leave the kids alone" even for a ride around the neighborhood. So when Devon rode his motorcycle over, too, we thought they were going to go for a spin around this neighborhood. They got all geared up, she said her tender "good-byes" to her babes, and they took off. An hour later we called to see if they WERE okay. Yep, they had ridden that bike to Provo for dinner and a movie. Alicia thought it was fun! She especially liked the peaceful late night ride home on the back-roads... :)

THIS weekend, Dad and I helped Tressa move into her very own condo! These pictures include Tressa "being like Ella" in the back of our van with no seats, flowers from Billy, and a few shots of her new home. Tress, we want pictures after you get done fixing it all up!

On the way home we had a blow out on the freeway on the other side of Lehi. SOOO lucky in so many ways. First, we are very glad it didn't happen while Damian and Amy were driving it last month (the van doesn't shake over 70 mph any more...) And I have to drive to SLC tomorrow, and am VERY happy to have 2 new tires before I go! The spare was nearly flat, too, but right after Rudy got it on, the "Incident Management" vehicle pulled up behind us and aired it up, and then helped us merge back into traffic. Also glad that it happened where we DID have a shoulder to pull off to!

And Bowen came for a visit! His first Salem Days weekend. He was nice enough to bring his mom and dad with him. I didn't take a single picture with my camera!!! But his folks took some cute ones, so look for a blog update from the St. George fam... :)

Final Piano Recital

On May 19th, I held what will most likely be my very last piano recital. I don't know why I expected that it would be not much different from every other recital I have had for my students in the past 21 years, but I did.

First of all, all 16 students played their solos beautifully! (There had been some serious practicing going on in the previous 7 days!) ;) But following the recital, I was very touched by very kind words and gifts given to me by my families. Those included beautiful flowers, notes, gifts, and a beautiful black grand piano music box that plays "Fur Elise." All of that was then followed by what one mom described as a "crying fest." Current and former students gathered round for a picture with me. I seriously worry about those pictures - some serious photo shopping will need be done on ME, for sure. Fortunately we didn't take any pictures of the group with our camera, so I can pretend they turned out great...

Some trivia that I shared at the recital:

I started teaching in Salem 21 years ago
I've taught 197 students since 1990
My very first students in Salem were the children of Dennis and Dorothy Tuckett, Linda and Stephen Rees, and Brad and Jan Gordon's daughter, Paige.
24 students played in that first recital in 1991, including 7 of my own children.
Of the families that still have children taking lessons from me, the Stones and Castleberrys are the 'oldest' - both started in 1996.
Castleberrys missed a few years between Chase and Annalee
There have been Stone children in every recital from 1996
The last recital that included an Anderson was in 2007... Which means the Stones and Castleberrys lasted longer (by one year) than the Andersons!

However, we DID have an Anderson perform on Thursday! An hour before the recital, Devon called and said Ava wanted to play a solo at the recital. She and I have only had 2 lessons together, but on Wednesday, Alicia taught her a new song in her book. When Devon and the kids arrived at the community center, she was sooo timid about playing her song with even 1-2 other people in the room, that we were pretty sure it wouldn't happen. Personally, I think it was the fun of announcing her number in the microphone that gave her the courage to do it. She was PERFECT! First on the program, she stepped right up, announced her number, played "Cinderella's Worry" with absolutely no mistakes or hesitations, and made the BEST BOW ever! :)

It's been a great ride...

Hayden's baptism weekend

On May 15, Hayden became the newest baptized member of the Church in the Anderson family. The whole day was wonderful!
Damian and Amy had been in their new house for 2 weeks. They are a little shy about posting photos, so I told them I would take care of that. They feel very blessed to have gotten this home. Many of their neighbors paid a lot more for their homes just a few years ago (in a stronger economy) than they were able to buy this home for. It seems perfect for them in every way. If you can believe it, Amy actually has EMPTY drawers in her kitchen!
BTW, I have permission from Damian and Amy to invite the Anderson clan for Thanksgiving 2012. Damian says by then they will have a heater for the swimming pool. So Andersons, start saving your nickels and dimes!

Declan's party

Well, we woke up to 8 inches of heavy snow, no power, and broken trees all around the neighborhood! The power was off from 4:45 a.m. to 9:20 a.m. Rudy took the turkey over to Devon and Alicia's to put in their oven at 9:00 a.m. We were all VERY glad when the electricity came back on and we were able to enjoy another great day of General Conference and Declan's un-birthday party dinner here at our house. He loved the frosting - the cake, not so much. :) It's hard to believe that this sweet boy is a year old...

Okay, Guys... It's time for MORE blog updates!!! We want to hear from you!

TA-DUM!!!!

I know that ALL of you have checked your computers several times today hoping for the final pictures of the new bathroom to be posted. Well... Here they are!

The important thing about the playroom (besides the painted ceiling) is that it is CLEAN! Well, the bathroom door still needs to be hung. But we are happy to have the playroom back!!

Again, the blue isn't as bright as it looks in the photos. I am VERY happy with the way it turned out. Single most important purchase was probably the shower curtain - 'cause it ties everything together. And your Dad is responsible for that! :)

Thanks to ALL of you for your $$ and your muscle...

ALMOST done!

Come back tomorrow for the final report!!

First of all, the blue in real life isn't as bright as these pictures would make you believe. But we're almost done! THANKS to Dev and Keats for helping with the painting yesterday. They also got the playroom ceiling painted!

Marty and Kindy are coming tonight. Hopefully tomorrow the last shower parts will be installed, the new can light IN the shower will be put in, and all the little finishing touches will be added.

Come on over and shower, take a leak, or just admire the newness of YOUR bathroom. :)

work in progress!

Damian wanted a report in progress on the new bathroom downstairs. (He likes to see all the "fun" he is missing out on...)
Pretty exciting, eh? Dad worked really hard last weekend to get the sheetrock, taping, and texturing done. His shin is healing from the chisel puncture. His back is not quite so resilient. :(
This weekend "we" paint and Marty will be here on Monday with the rest of the shower parts. The bathroom will be DONE for Keaton to enjoy for 4 whole days before he leaves for New Zealand!
Stay tuned for the finished product... Think blue and white with brushed nickel fixtures...
THANKS, Kids!!