Say a Little Prayer

I'm back in the blogosphere ... I hope! Just wanted to ask a favor, that everyone say a little prayer for Todd this week. He's trying out for the basketball team and could use your prayers to calm his nerves. He doesn't act too worried about it, but I know he is nervous. I'm praying that he'll make the team. It would be such a great experience for him. He's been practicing and is getting so much better. We're so proud of his efforts!

Update: Todd didn't make the team. :(. It was a sad day, but he has bounced back quickly. He is determined to work hard this year and improve his skills for next year. We're totally proud of him. He is taking this disappointment in stride and will hopefully use it as fuel in his quest for betterment.

4th of July Fun

Nothing beats the 4th of July in our little town. A whole week of fun, food, and festivities! Thought you might enjoy a few pictures and a video of Todd playing in the summer marching band. He's the snare drum player closest to the camera. He looks so little with all those big high school kids!

End of School Busy-ness

The end of school brings 'fun and frantic' to our every day vocabulary. I'm pretty sure we were at some event or activity every night of May! Some of the highlights were 1) Piano Recital, 2) Ballet Performance Awards, and 3) End of Year Middle School Band Concert. Each year our kids are getting more and more involved and busy, which adds new dimensions of craziness to our lives! But crazy is good, right?

FYI: in the following video Kate is the ballerina on the far left, and Todd is the percussionist in the band videos.

And, truly, as I watch these videos I say a silent and heartfelt "Bless Your Hearts, Dear Teachers"! What patience, what kindness, what near deaf- and blind-ness they must all possess! We love you, dear people. :)

Todd's Memory Book

Todd also had a HUGE writing assignment this year. It was extremely painful at times (for both him and his mother), but we persevered and the result is a beautiful 13 chapter memory book all about Todd. I learned a lot of new and interesting things about him and truly treasure this keepsake/history of the first 12 years of his life. He is a multi-faceted guy!

If you'd like to browse through it, you're welcome to. If not, we're not offended! It's 13 chapters, after all! And admittedly, it will be most interesting to Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa!

For the abbreviated version, you might just want to look through the title pages for each of his chapters. You get a pretty good idea of the content just from the picture choices. As a side note, may I just mention that kids today are exceptionally adept at using the computer! Wow -- go Todd!

** Editor's note: I think I've got these files embedded correctly now, so that you don't even have to log in to Google Docs to view them. They should (cross fingers) just pop up when you click on the hyper text. Let me know if you're having troubles. I'm at the extreme novice level still! **

Todd's First Talk

In January, Todd was asked to give his first talk in Sacrament Meeting since receiving the priesthood in November. We brainstormed together to come up with some key points and create a kind of "web" from which to work. We also helped him mine some relevant scriptures, and then turned him loose to write it on his own. With just a few minor edits and a bit of clarification by mom, he finished it and he did a fantastic job! He was pretty nervous about the actual delivery of the material, but he came through with flying colors and received many kind and supportive compliments. I am so thankful for such a sweet, righteous, and obedient son. Could not ask for better. Period.


**If you'd like to read Todd's talk on Agency and Accountability, here's a link. :)

Piano Recital 2010

Here are a few quick videos of the kids' piano solos and their duets with me. Their recital was last Saturday.

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High Honors for Todd

Just have to brag a bit on Todd. He was honored for achieving a 4.0 and being a top 5th grade reader last trimester! He recently scored a 257 in his reading ISAT test (223 is considered 'advanced'! He reads over a 12th grade level. We're sure proud of his hard work and hope he can learn to be motivated and make the most of the great gift of intelligence he's been blessed with. No doubt Heavenly Father has great things planned for him in the future. We pray he will "hold to the rod".

Todd's Solo

Todd and his good buddy Reegan!

Todd and Mrs. Garner (his music teacher). Thanks for all your hard work, Mrs. Garner!

All the 4th and 5th graders of Rupert Elementary.

Todd sang a solo tonight in the joint 4th grade/5th grade Patriotic Program for his school. He sang "Let There Be Peace on Earth". He did an AMAZING job!!!! We are so proud of him. He worked really hard on it and received many, many compliments. Good job, bud. You're growing up so quickly. It's hard to believe you'll recieve the priesthood this year.

I noticed tonight, as he was getting ready for the concert, that he is changing all of a sudden. There's hardly any little boy left in him. I'm sad and happy about that at the same time. The years are flying by too quickly.

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Arrow of Light

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A big congratulations to our awesome scouter, Todd! He recieved his Arrow of Light Award last Tuesday night at Pack Meeting. He turns 11 a week from today and is so excited about being an 11-year old scout. We have had a wonderful cub scouting experience. A big thank you to his wonderful leaders and the Cub Masters for our pack. We are blessed to have very dedicated, knowledgeable and conscientious den and pack leaders.

Upward and onward!!!

Scouter-Boy

Todd earned his Webelos badge last week at pack meeting. We're so proud of his efforts. He'll earn his Arrow of Light sometime later this month in preparation for entering Boy Scouts next month. I can't believe he's almost finished with Cub Scouts. Time does indeed fly.

**A Special thank you to Kate for her awesome photography. :)

5th Grade Field Trip

Do you remember the thrill of "Field Trip Day" at school? I do, so it was really fun to relive those memories as Todd prepared for his 5th Grade trip to Craters of the Moon National Monument. I was going to accompany him, but Brad managed to get the day off so they could spend the day together. Talk about a great dad!!! Todd was so excited to have him along. They had a great day together. Enjoy the pictures. :)

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Pack Meeting

Thanks to some hard work on Todd's part and an especially wonderful den leader (and his wife) Todd has earned quite a few segments and pins this year in Webelos. It's hard to believe he won't be a cub scout anymore in just a few short months. When did that happen?

Kate manned the camera at Pack Meeting. I thought she did a great job. :)

Seussical: The Musical, Part I

Seriously, how cute is this?

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"Seize the Day"

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Baseball 2009

For some reason I didn't take many pics of the kids playing baseball this summer. However, it was a fun season. Both did well and they are getting more fun to watch every year. Frankly, the t-ball games can get pretty tedious, but pitching machine is really quite fun to watch. Every year their skills improve by leaps and bounds. Thanks to kind and caring coaches everywhere. :)

Another Successful Year of Piano

For some reason I can't get my video of the kids playing their recital pieces to upload tonight. I'll have to try again later. In the meantime, this picture represents another year gone by. We're so proud of all their hard work. They are both doing so well. Kate played "The Fairy's Harp" and Todd played "Fur Elise". Terrific job guys! Mom and Dad are so proud of you.

Pinewood Derby Time Again

Todd's car was called the "Silver Sliver" this year. He won "Best Paint Job". It wasn't the fastest car, but it looked GREAT!

Poor Todd biffed it at the Father/Son outing. He kept telling people he tripped and caught himself with his face! He had a good attitude about it, even though his was pretty embarrassed by the whole thing. He didn't want to go to school and face everyone, but of course he did and he found out that no one really cared much at all. They asked about it and promptly moved on to other things. A good lesson for all of us ... we're, none of us, the center of the universe.

Todd is always sweet to share his old cars with Kate and Jack so they can race as well. He's a great big bro.

Night of the Notables

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Todd's Discovery class presented the project they've been working on since the beginning of the school year last Thursday night. Their program was entitled "Night of the Notables". Each student chose 1 person in history that was notable for his or her courage, then researched the person, created a large, 16-page accordion book full of facts, stories, quotes and pictures. They dressed up like their Notable, and each memorized a speech, book excerpt, or musical composition and performed it for the audience. Todd chose Beethoven. I LOVE the way his costume turned out. He was a little embarrassed, but felt better once he saw all of his friends in costume. He was a bit nervous, but really did a terrific job. We're so proud.

Basketball Todd

Todd decided to play Youth City League Basketball for the first time this year. He has a wonderful, kind, talented coach who is teaching him the ropes. His first game was Saturday afternoon. He did a great job! He's not very aggressive yet, but I think time and experience will improve that skill. He and his good friend, Chance, played on opposite teams so we had to cheer for both teams. The score ended in a TIE -- can you believe it? It's was pretty exciting. Chance's team scored the tying basket at the buzzer. They were both happy to share the win.

Go Number 10!!!

Show Stoppers

Todd is performing again this year with the "Show Stoppers". They have been performing in various Christmas programs and concerts around the community. He's doing a great job and gaining a lot of confidence in dance and just being on stage in general. How hilarious are these suits???! I told him to save it for Halloween and he can be a gangster (or maybe a pimp?).