72 Degrees Today

It is 72 degrees today. My windows are opened. I'm wearing shorts. I did a project outside today. Nothing but blue sky. I miss the beauty of winter wonderland, but my body loves it here. I am practically pain free. The desert weather is great therapy for my health. I am loving winter here.

Taylor's 5th Grade Band Concert

Huge stage at the Highland HS auditorium. Taylor in front with his back showing.

Look at that straight back!

Pre-stage jitters? Never. Super handsome!

5th grade is year of the band/orchestra. When the time came for Taylor to sign up, he was pretty excited. I was a bit worried about the commitment. I told him he could chose anything. He chose the flute. "Why the flute?" I asked. Being the ever so logical Taylor-"I'm really good at whistling." And so he is.

Awesome job Taylor! You have worked so hard. It was quite the symphony. Thanks for coming G&G Cardon and thanks to the rest of the kidos for being such a good audience.

Good Notes for Summer

Summer's favorite pastime-BOOKS!

I'm Summer's drama teacher at HJHS and I just wanted to write a little note telling you how much fun your daughter is to have in my class. She's the dream student... bright, creative, quiet when she needs to be, and a natural performer. She's one I would hope would try out for the Advanced Drama class next year if she were interested. Thanks for raising such a great kid.

Sincerely,

Brandi Oveson

We had a nice message from on our answering machine from Summer's Language Arts teacher Ms. Redden saying basically the same thing.

It's always nice to get GOOD NOTES. 2 in the same week. You Rock Summer!

Kate's Weekend

Kate being Mr.Fredrickson from UP

Kate has been waiting weeks to go to the zoo to see all the animals and eat cotton candy. On Saturday Kate and Andy went to the zoo for hours. She saw every animal at the zoo and got the biggest bag of cotton candy ever made. Her favorite animal was the flamingo. That night Kate and I had a lovely chat about every animal she saw and about everything her dad told her about each animal. Her face and voice were full of excitement. Kate is lucky to have such a smart and fun dad. Kate's day was great! She drifted to sleep before 8:30 pm (miracle), dreaming of flamingos.

Gingerbread Houses

I'm following my friend Kim Boyce's tradition of making gingerbread houses with graham crackers, homemade glue frosting, and of course lots of candy. We had fun doing it with cousins this year. Big mess. Lots of sugar. What could be more fun!?

Peyton and Grandma

Kate and Becky

Emily and Hailey

Silly guys, Joshua and Noah(Joshua really got into it this year)

Candy sneakers-Summer, Taylor, Jacob

Adventure is out there!

Joshua being the young Mr. Fredrickson with flying goggles

Joshua loves the movie UP. After watching it about 3 times he knew practically every line by heart. I think he likes it because they talk slow enough and he can pretty much understand every word. He loves the Wildernes Exploreer boy, Russell. He sounds exactly like him. It is so fun to watch him and his siblings act out the different scenes. There is one line that he thinks is hilarious. He gets the giggles each time before he says it. It's when the young Ellie is showing the young Carl (Mr. Fredrickson) her adventure book with a picture of of the falls. "I ripped it right out of a library book!" He loves that line and so many others.

Last week I had the great opportunity to go with Joshua on his First Grade hike in Lost Dutchman State Park. He was so excited about it. When we got there he said, "Time to hike!" The scenery was beautiful. The desert, the mountains, lots of space. It was great being outside in December enjoying the sunshine. Joshua was being pretty social. He returned hellos, including names, to his classmates he saw. He looked at the things his teacher pointed out. He even shared a stick with one of the boys. In the middle of the hike Joshua says,
"I'm tired."
pause
"My knee hurts."
pause
"My elbow hurts."
pause
"And I have to go to the bathroom."
I started cracking up. He was being Russell in the most perfect setting. A little girl, got worried and shouted, "Joshua needs to go to the bathroom!" I explained to the group that Joshua was being Russell from the movie UP. They all laughed and Joshua loved that. He started smiling and saying more lines from the movies. It was fun seeing him be part of the group in his own way. He was really paying attention to what was going on and we were having a great time. It was the most I had seen him social outside of our family.

When it was time to go, I waved goodbye as Joshua got on the bus with the other 100 first graders. He wasn't worried or scared. He got on the bus with his teacher, just like everybody else. At that moment I felt a wave of peace knowing that Joshua was exactly where he needed to be. I am at awe at how far he has come. I just love who he is. He is such an amazing boy. His smile makes his whole face glow.

Other happy Joshua moments that have made my heart smile:

He finally said hello to the little girl from his primary class who never fails to say "Hello Joshua!" whenever she sees him. I thought she would give up, but her consistency paid off.

Joshua's bottom teeth are growing in, the ones that got knocked out when he was playing with his brother.

Yesterday he walked in the house and saw the Christmas tree and said, "Santa puts presents under the Christmas tree." Fist time in his life he has ever said anything about Santa and presents all on his own.

Everyday he is saying new things that let us know he is making more and more sense out of this complicated and sometimes crazy world we live in. Most of what Joshua says and does makes us smile or laugh. He is always adding more sunshine to our lives. We just love that boy!