The Deacon

So last week Ethan finally turned 12. I say finally because, as an official Jr. High student, Ethan was one of the only 11-year-olds in the joint.

But one of the best parts of having a son who turns 12 is the chance to have a Deacon in the house. Ethan was ordained to the Aaronic Priesthood by his Dad (and a bunch of the other important men in his life.) It was a great occasion worth celebrating.







So fun to have so many family members participate *and* celebrate. (And Wyatt enjoyed the Fritos.)

Other goings-on? I finished the tallying and hounding necessary to pull of yet another Super Saturday. Tallying: dozens and dozens of individual checks representing two pages worth of orders equaling almost $3,000 worth of stuff due to our much appreciated Super Saturday lady (yeah, we have these out here--it's a new profession that's sprung up in the crafting industry, roving craft ladies visiting wards with desperate Enrichment counselors like me). Hounding: Calling and cajoling, entreating, then begging women in the ward to come GIVE ME THEIR CHECKS. ("I want my two dollars!!" Quick, name the movie.) Luckily I only have three more outstanding payments to recoup.

Makes one feel a bit like a moneychanger in the temple. Sigh. But we're makin some dang cute square pumpkin porch decorations and modgepodged magnet boards, I'll tell you what! And we're doing some hygiene kits, just so we don't feel completely commercial and lucre filthy.

I also taught my very first creative writing class at BYU, lo this very night. Enrollment is pretty low in elective courses at the SL Center, and right now I only have SEVEN students! Egads. I was hoping for around 12--small enough that I can spend some real time with each student's manuscript, but large enough to encourage discussion--but, heck, it will be less work for me, and the students in the class seem engaged and interested enough. Man, it was fun to teach, though. So much more fun than Freshman Comp and rhetoric. Rhetoric. Blech. But now I get to talk about poetry, short stories, the writing process, what it means to be creative--all the stuff I actually LIKE to talk about. I feel so lucky and blessed to have this opportunity.

I was thinking about this while driving to the Triad Center tonight: I have been in school, either as a student or a teacher, pretty much continuously since I was five years old. I had a break of about six months after Elise was born before I enrolled in a creative writing class in MN, and I had another break of about a year after Wyatt was born (I went back to teaching when Ethan was SIX WEEKS OLD, crazy, and I went back to Hamline when Jonas was two months old). But other than than those short breaks and the inevitable summers, school has always--always--been a part of my life. Isn't that amazing? I went up to the BYU Provo campus last week for a faculty meeting and being on a college campus gives me an almost drug-like shot of adrenaline. I guess it's how some people feel when they're in the mountains, or near the ocean, or in the middle of New York City. I suppose roaming a college quad is a better way than some to get my adrenaline fix. But man, do I love school. And I'm so lucky to be able to have it be such a big part of my life.

Parting shot (and change of subject): Sarah Palin was impressive last night. I was skeptical, and she impressed me. John McCain tonight? Not so much. Forrest kept saying, "I'm Tim Calhoon" and I agreed completely. And for those of you who don't watch Saturday Night Live, here's the reference:



Harsh? Or eerily similar?

Four for Four

On Thursday, August 21, the fourth of my four nieces was born! Macy Claire weighed in at 6 lbs. 14 oz. and she's (of course) just beautiful. Enormous congrats to my sister, Amy, and her husband Dave. And I'm sure Jack is going to make an excellent big brother. I can't wait to meet her in person.

A Plethora of Cords

And I don't mean corduroys. I mean cords for connecting electronica. They are EVERYWHERE anymore, no? Charger cords, computer cords, plain old plugs--all with their own special purposes and special connectors. And at some time over the last few weeks I'd lost a very very important cord--the one that connects my camera to my computer. Thus the dearth of Hallstrom family photos on this here blog.

But joy! Today Forrest found my cord! It was entangled with the Singstar microphone cords (of course!!!) and stuffed in among all the PlayStation cordage. So hallelujah, we have pictures.

The first picture is one of Wyatt, which I've fondly titled "Guck!" (Meaning "stuck." It's one of his favorite new words, since he finds himself--or his beloved toys--"guck" multiple times a day.



I felt kinda bad about this one because I'd been in on my computer and I heard him wailing "Guck! Guck!" in the kitchen, and I assumed it was something inanimate that was stuck. Like a spatula he wanted to play with. (He loves spatulas). But no, it was Wyatt himself . . . and then I went and grabbed my camera and compounded the indignity of it all by taking his picture. He's a good sport.

The next photos are the obligatory kids-standing-by-a-tree-in-the-front-yard first day of school pictures. Ethan was not enthusiastic this year. We had to do it early, before anyone started gathering for the school bus. Do you think I can keep it up until he's a senior in high school??? Maybe not. But they're cute pictures nevertheless.





Ethan's first official day of school is tomorrow. Aaacckk! He had a 7th grade orientation "dry run" day on Thursday, where the 7th graders came from 7:30-11:30 and did a quick tour of the school and visited all their classes without those menacing upperclassmen present. Great idea, I think. Ethan enjoyed it and is looking forward to tomorrow. I hope all goes well!

Elise and Jonas are both enjoying their new classes and teachers. They come home smiley and tired. And Jonas was the student of the week in his class for the first week of school! Way to go, Joe.

And finally, here are pictures from the biggest event of the weekend, Forrest's first triathlon. He did it with my brother Tony and they both did a great job.


Good lookin men, ready to show the world how tough they are. And Forrest in a BYU shirt? I know, I know. He says it's comfortable.


The kids, scrambling on the rocks beside Jordanelle resevoir. You should have seen me scrambling down them. Graceful as a mountain goat.


Ready to swim. Kicky white cap. Sweet.


Tony, rising like a leviathan from the waters. (But not an evil, monster-like leviathan. A nice, seminary-teaching leviathan.)


Tony very helpfully wore a wetsuit with green on the arms, so it was easier to see him coming. Here he is on his way up the ramp to get his bike.


And here's Forrest looking wet and proud after kicking it in the swim portion. And he really did kick it.


Cindy and the Vivster on the road, waiting to catch sight of the menfolk racing by. I missed Forrest on his bike! Don't know how, but he must have zoomed by in a flash of black and red.


We caught him on the run, though. He was feeling good enough to flash us a peace sign, even though it was near the end of the race.


And here he is, crossing the finish line.


Two sweaty guys, carbo loading after a long, hot race.

It was a lot of fun to be there and cheer them on. And even though we had to walk about three miles in the heat, lugging blankets and coolers and lawn chairs, it was worth it.

So, photo update complete. Hopefully I'll keep better track of my cords from here on out.

Connected Through the Internet

Through the internet--blogging in particular--I have found myself part of a community that has strengthened and enriched my life. Segullah, in particular, has been a place where women of uncommon strength and wisdom and humor and insight can gather to lift each other up and share a portion of themselves.

Through Segullah, I became acquainted with a wonderful person (and fantastic blogger) named Courtney. I've linked to her blog on my sidebar because it's so good. I don't know her well, but I *feel* like I know her because I read her blog. (And yes, it was Courtney's review of my novel on her blog that was responsible for a the single largest number of my book's sales--more than reviews in Meridian Magazine or In Utah This Week or an article in the Salt Lake Tribune or a book signing at Women's Conference.)

This weekend, I read the news on Courtney's blog that her sister, Stephanie, and her husband Christian had been in a devastating plane crash. I'd checked out Stephanie's blog, The Nie Nie Chronicles, only a handful of times, but in even those few short visits I was so impressed with her sister's beauty and goodness and love of life. She's a young mother (only 27) of 4 children, ages 6,5,3 and 1. She and her husband were both severely burned in the accident--Stephanie was burned over 80% of her body--and are facing months and months of painful healing. The flight instructor piloting the plane died of his injuries.

So I post this here not because I know Stephanie. I hardly know Courtney, really. But I have been so touched by both of them through their blogs. There are literally thousands of people praying for this couple and their family, many of them because they got to know them through the internet. I'm sure a few prayers from some of us couldn't hurt. The internet can be a wonderful blessing for good.

7th Grade

So Ethan's headed there, in just a couple of weeks. He got his schedule yesterday. Band (beginning brass), honors English, pre-algebra, Utah Studies (remember Utah Studies? It seemed so important to me at the time, like my patriotic Utahn duty, and my spell checker just underlined Utahn which, as one, I KNOW is spelled correctly), gym, science, the whole shebang. He's excited. Called all his friends to see if they had any classes together (and some of them do, sigh of relief) and already has his locker combination memorized.

Here's what I remember about junior high. First, my dad took me to my junior high orientation for some reason. I wasn't alone with my dad very often, so roaming around the echoing halls of West Lake Junior High with my DAD made me feel incredibly grown-up and poised on the precipice of something monumental and scary and exciting. I also remember my friend Karen, one year older than me, telling me how important it was to 1. never, under ANY circumstances, pick up anything you drop on the ground, lest someone call you a scrounge and, 2. ALWAYS give upperclassmen the right of way in the halls. Not a good idea to mess with eighth graders.

In seventh grade I had a really cool English teacher named Ms. Shea who had long black hair past her butt and was a belly dancer on the weekends. We read Ishi, the Last of His Tribe and played word games like Boggle on Fridays. I had another really cool choir teacher, Miss Straussberg, who asked a terrified me to accompany the 7th Grade choir when we sang "Saturday's Warrior" for our concert. (Only in Utah. In the mid-80s. Never in a million years could a public school get away with singing that song now.) I remember practicing and practicing that song, pounding away--those opening chords are etched into my reptilian brain.

I ran for (and won, somehow--I wasn't particularly popular that year) the position of 7th Grade Class Secretary. Don't remember what that office entailed, just that I got my picture in the front of the yearbook. I was just on the cusp of puberty and hadn't quite figured out yet how to do my hair right, or wear mascara, and in my individual yearbook picture I have a smudge of Covergirl Greatlash under my right eye and my eighties bangs are curled but not sufficiently ratted or sprayed. I wore a purple sweater vest, I think.

I was afraid I smelled after gym. I was afraid I would forget my homework. I was afraid I'd make my elementary school friends mad if I didn't hang out with them, even if I was SO intrigued by the seemingly-coooler, more mature and worldy-wise friends from the more easterly region of West Valley City that I met in my classes. I still remember one girl named Jennifer who was so cool and smart and I wanted to be JUST LIKE HER. I even went so far as to buy a pair of Jordache jeans almost exactly like hers (but not quite exactly--didn't want her to think I was creepy or anything.) My first girl-emulation crush.

I tried out for the Junior High production of Annie and was crushed--CRUSHED, I tell you--to be relegated to the chorus. No speaking lines to, well, speak of. In the sixth grade, I'd played Nellie, Annie's little sister in Annie Get Your Gun at Cyprus HIGH SCHOOL, no less, and I figured with my wealth of experience, and obvious facility with the plaintive tune "Maybe" (" . . . their one mistake, was giving up meeeeeee . . ." oh, the pathos) that I'd be assured at least one of the sidekick orphan roles. But nope. No dice. Heartbreaking. I sighed and calumphed my way through the Annie experience as a member of the chorus, though, and in the end it was fun.

Seventh grade is a big dang deal. I think Ethan is ready, and I think he'll do great, but it's such a transition in a person's life. I'm looking forward to it for him (and keeping my fingers crossed!). What do YOU remember about 7th grade??

My Husband Looks Really Cool on a Wakeboard

We've been boating twice in the last 5 days. On Saturday, we went with some good friends, the Youngs, and their four boys to Rockport. Great company, lots of fun, choppy water. Then yesterday we went to East Canyon with Mindy and Peter. Great company, lots of fun, and smooth water.

Both times, it was fun to watch my better half out their jumping the wake, tooling around looking studly with his newly chiseled biceps and beefed-up quads. He's always been an impressive wakeboarder, but he's taking things to another level this year with his increased overall fitness. It will be fun to cheer him on as he crosses the finish line for his triathlons (shouldn't there be an "a" in that word, somewhere??).

One of the things I've always loved about Forrest (and admired, because I don't necessarily have this quality) is when he's interested in something, he goes after it wholeheartedly. He jumps in and does all he can to figure it out, learn the ropes, and eventually, usually, excel. I'm more of a dabbler, myself. I dip my toe, and sometimes my whole entire foot, into lots of different pools. So I end up doing lots of stuff kinda well. Whereas Forrest is usually pretty focused and does the one or two things he's focused on *really* well. As spontaneous as Forrest seems, he's actually pretty methodical, circling around a problem or a challenge for a while and sizing it up before he tackles it. I, on the other hand, tend to jump in and hope I figure things out as I go along. Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't.

We're good for each other, though. Complimentary. Which is a nice thing to be able to say about one's spouse. The other night we were driving to West Jordan to pick up some crafts for my upcoming Fabulous Friday (yes, it's the newest permutation of Super Saturday. And how do you like that word? Permutation? It's a good one, no?). Anyhow, Wyatt was asleep and we left him with the kids, drove to West Jordan with the windows down on a pretty summer night, went and got a shake at Ab's, and I thought how lucky I am to be married to the person that I most want to drive around with and share a shake with and tell a joke to (even though his jokes are usually better). We've been driving around together for the better part of 20 years (minus that whole mission thing)--in a beat-up Honda Civic, a 1976 Plymouth Volare, a little red Civic (yet another) with no air conditioning, a turquoise Ford, a really cool little Mitsubishi Eclipse (thanks, Dad, for helping us not get taken by the car salesman on that one), two Jeeps (a Wrangler, then a Cherokee), a Dodge Grand Caravan (once new, now stinky), and a Tahoe with seat warmers. The Tahoe's nice, but that Wrangler was really fun. Lots of driving we've shared, and we're still not bored.

Anyway, enough stream of consciousness rambling. Just thankful for my husband, that's all. Love ya, babe.

Julyishness

1. Went and saw The Police in concert last weekend for a belated celebration of our 16th wedding anniversary (Forrest was in Moab helping out with Youth Conference on the actual day). We had a fabulous time ogling Sting's yoga-charged physique (well, maybe I was the one ogling, can't speak for Forrest, although you wouldn't blame him, really), swaying with my honey on a beautiful summer night, and listening to some excellent music. Even knew almost all the words. Perfecto.



2. On Wednesday, took the kids to Cherry Hill, Davis County's famous water park, and spent the day. My good friend Sally lives in Kaysville and she even lined up a babysitter for Wyatt for part of the day. He was supposed to nap--and didn't--but it was nice to have a few hours to lounge by the pool and chat with a good friend while the big kids ran loose. And once Wyatt joined us, he had a great time in the kiddie pool.

3. My neighborhood had a big 24th of July celebration. Tons of families, mucho bbqing, kids on bike jumps, cookie baking contests, and (of course) a truckload of illegal fireworks courtesy of the bravest and most pyromaniacal of our neighbors and the state of Wyoming. We had lookouts posted on either side of the street, ready for cop sightings, and most of the fireworks were done by the time the big fire truck showed up. (Really! A fire truck! So much more fun than the coppers). I think a bunch of South Jordan firefighters roam the city all night on the 24th, busting folks like the good people of Ivory Crossing. Actually, they were really nice. Didn't fine anybody, didn't even confiscate anything, just told us to cease and desist, honked their horn, waved at the kids and took off. We all cheered.

4. Saw Batman. Very intense movie--well made, strong story, gripping but unsettling. It was satisfying to finally see a movie in the theater and not be disappointed. When it was over I noticed that I still had half my Diet Coke left in the cup. Now THAT's a sign of a good movie--when Angie forgets to finish her drink.

5. Finally finished reading all the contest entries for Irreantum. 75 or so initial entries for the fiction contest, 40 or so for the creative nonfiction. That's a lot of reading, I've gotta say. Granted, I didn't read every word of every piece. If something was obviously not going to win, I'd give it a couple of pages and move on. But still--LOTS of manuscripts. Glad to be over that hump, although I do enjoy working on the contests. I love finding new talent, being surprised by the quality of the work (one contest had more quality represented than the other, but I won't get into it here), and getting the chance to promote/encourage LDS writers in whatever small way I can. So, truly, I remain honored to be involved at all even when it does take up some time.

That's it for now. Forrest has taken the big kids to the Wilkey's so he and Darrin can go on a bike ride. Forrest's triathlon training is well underway . . . he continues to kick it in a very admirable fashion. Wyatt is sleeping and the laundry is tumbling. Better go be productive.

But oh! I almost forgot. I discovered this blog about a month ago and keep meaning to publish a link to it. It's a new blog, but it's getting famouser and famouser by the day. It's pure satire (and hopefully you can tell--some people are legitimately confused) and can get a little snarky, for sure. But a little snarkiness comes in handy sometimes at the end of a long, hot summer day. It's called "Seriously, So Blessed." Check it out.

My Favorite Summer Picture So Far

is this:


Just home from the library, every piece of electronica shut off. Ahh . . .

I have a few other good photos, too, though, but since the setting is Lagoon they're not nearly as peaceful-looking. But that's what summer's about, right? Time to chill on the couch and read, time to go to Lagoon!

We met the Wilkeys--our perfect Lagoon companions, since there's somebody for everybody to hang with--and all the kids (and grown-ups) had a great time. I still love roller coasters and had a blast going on Wicked and the Colossus with the kids. (Hate the skyride, though. Had to sit behind Forrest holding Wyatt in the car in front of me, and every time the ride wobbled itself to a stop I had to gaze off into the trees and try not to notice my 1 1/2 year old wiggling around or else I would have had a panic attack.) There were no injuries, no throwing up (poor Elise was sick last year), very little whining, and it wasn't even that hot. Hot enough, but not scorching. So a great day all around. Here are some commemorative shots:


Wyatt officially entered the ranks of big-kiddom and went on some rides all by himself. Although he looks decidedly grouchy in this shot (love the jutting lower jaw) he really seemed to enjoy himself most of the time. No wild-eyed screaming, etc.


Sweaty big kids. Although Jonas went on every big kid ride he could (the aforementioned Wicked and Colossus), I took this shot in line for a ride he was 1/2 an inch too short to go on. Ethan took off with the older Wilkey boys by himself for a while and reaaallly enjoyed that first taste of Lagoon independence (remember??).


We let Jonas try his hand at some carnival games to take the sting off of being 1/2 inch too short, and soon he was feeling good enough to take his little brother Wyatt on a couple of rides. What a nice big brother.



And another Jonas-related bit of commentary. If you'll notice in the car behind him, Ethan and Elise and Jane Wilkey are all crammed in together. Jonas had tried to squeeze in as well, but the attendant wouldn't let all four kids do it. So who had to man up and let two girls he'd never seen before in his life smooshify him for four whole minutes? Good ol' Joe. He was plucky about it. (And notice in the blurry shot behind him how Ethan and Elise and Jane got into their car incorrectly. Ethan lost the arms-behind-the-head pose pretty quickly and ended up squishing the life out of poor Elise and even poorer Jane Wilkey, who probably weighs 50 pounds soaking wet. Physics. Tricky.)

We stayed until dark and Wyatt held up incredibly well, considering this was his only nap for the day. Oh, and how do you like Wyatt's new big boy haircut??:



We drove home sticky and sweaty, sore-footed and tired, but it was worth it.

Happy Birthday to Me, I'm 103

Or at least getting closer to it.

Had a great birthday yesterday. Lots of nice phone calls, the kids all gave me kisses, etc etc.

Then last night Forrest and I went to a new exhibit at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts, "From Monet to Picasso," and went out to eat and a wonderfully funk little Thai place. So much fun.

I've seen a few exhibits featuring the Impressionists over the years, so while it wasfun to see a few new Monets like this one, "The Red Kerchief," (featuring his wife who died in her early 30s)


and this one, Renoir's "Romaine Lacaux" (his "first" painting, since he purposely destroyed all his work before this one):



I was more interested in seeing the work from other artistic movements. I've seen Van Gogh live a few times, but he never fails to disappoint. The paint is so surprisingly thick, and there's so much emotion, even in landscapes. I usually prefer art with people in it (does this mean I'm shallow???) but I could sit and look at Van Gogh for a long, long time, even if there's no person staring back at me. We got to see this:



and it was beautiful.

I've been debating whether or not I should put pics of some of my other favorites directly on my blog since they contain (horror!) nekkid people (yes, Angie likes the nekkid people, think what you will) . . . so I've decided to put in hyperlinks instead. That way those of you who DON'T want to see nudes or partial nudes don't have to.

I loved Gauguin's In the Waves

and I've never seen a Picasso in real life before (well, that I can remember. I'm sure I saw one in Paris but I can't remember it!) and there were a bunch of wonderful Picassos. I don't like his cubism as much as stuff from his Blue period, like La Vie.

There was a whole room full of Rodin sculptures, too. Just amazing. This one, called "The Bronze Age", was such a perfect replication of the human form that Rodin was accused of casting a real person--which he, of course, vehemently denied. Seeing the detail up close, it was easy to see why people were suspicious.

Okay, enough nekkid people. There were a few cool surrealist pieces, like Max Ernst's "Le Dejuener sur l'Herbre":

It's a riff on a well known Manet painting of the same title, where a (yes) nekkid woman is picnicking on the grass, surrounded by clothed men, and looking straight at the camera. I'm not going to hyperlink that one--you can google it if you'd like. So in good surrealist fashion, Ernst replaced the woman with a freaky scary fish and added a few other flourishes. It's a pretty big painting that uses a lot of interesting techniques--and cheeky and fun, too.

I also liked Dali's "La Reve" ("The Dream" . . . although I hope I don't dream anytime soon that my mouth is covered in ants):



At any rate, we had a great time and missed the big crush of crowds (as we left there was quite a line forming), so it was fun to linger in front of paintings and get up close and look at the brush strokes without feeling as if you were in anyone's way. Great opportunity. If you live in Utah and you like art, go see it.

Then we went to a great little Thai place called Chanon Thai Cafe. A hole in the wall, for sure, but the food was great, and the whole experience was a little hilarious. First there was our waiter giggling when we ordered the combination appetizer plate (he started laughing and yelled, "Combination Appetizer!" into the kitchen and when we asked him why he was laughing he said, "Oh, combination appetizer so hard. So many steps! My brother is cook and he HATE combination appetizer so I think it very funny." And excuse the probably racially insensitive dialect but it's only funny if you hear it they way he said it.) Then there was the decor: Precious Moments figurines; Pottery-barnish candle holders holding candles melted down to the nub; Gold's Gym posters hanging crooked on the wall, covered in packing tape; a penguin with a missing leg on the fireplace mantel. You get the idea. TGI Friday's and their ilk are going for eclectic, but licence plates and baseball caps are nothing compared to one-legged penguins. Then when they brought us our check, instead of a nice little ball point pen to sign our credit card receipt, they provided us with a Crayola marker. Classic. Anyway, the appetizer plate was FANTASTIC (thank you waiter's brother), the Pad Thai delish, and our desserts were wonderful. Fried banana and coconut ice cream and mango sticky rice. Mmmmm. One dish was a little too hot (and had a weird spice I couldn't identify and didn't really like), but everything else was tasty tasty.

And that's enough of a recap. Going to the zoo! Kids are waiting. But it was a fun day, and now that I'm 36, I'm on the slippery slope to 40. Ahhh!

Thrice the Blessings

Today I got a triple dose of Auntie goodness. All three of my new little nieces--Lillian, Vivian, and Caroline--were blessed today. All three! Mindy and Peter blessed Lillian at 9:00, Tony and Cindy blessed Vivi at 1:00, and since Andrew and Andi were (lucky us) in town for Andi's sister's wedding, they were able to bless Caroline at my mom and dad's house this evening.

So not only am I full-to-the-brim with pot luck bounty (three blessings, three potlucks, three opportunities to overindulge) but I'm feeling so, well, blessed to be an aunt to these three beautiful little girls. And there's one more niece on the way in August to boot! Amazing.

So here are some shots of the beautiful girls. First, the full-length, pretty dress shots of Lilly, Vivi and Caroline, respectively:





Now, the cute girl close-ups:





And just a few more pics I'm throwing in because I like em:


Uncle Forrest and Lilly, both with their Hallstrom good looks


You gotta love the arm rolls. Chubby babies=happy babies, no?


Isn't this a fabulous picture? All three generations. Love it.


A bunch of amazing Priesthood holders, all in the same house, all a part of our family.

There's much more to post about (4th of July, canyon trips) and Yuba is tomorrow, so I'll get to that soon. But I couldn't resist getting these cute pictures up and sharing them as soon as I could.

Sum Sum Summertime

Summer is upon us, yes it is.

Right now I'm sitting in the airconditioned comfort of our family room, updating my blog while the kids watch Teen Wolf.



Even Wyatt's joining in (well, at least as long as his sippy cup lasts). Forrest Tivoed it for them yesterday. It was one of his all time favorite movies in the 80s and he used to go see double features of this Michael J. Fox classic and Pee Wee's Big Adventure at the dollar movie at Valley Fair Mall and it made him feel all was right with the world. Probably not okay to let my seven year old watch Teen Wolf . . . but it's the AMC version. It's been edited. He closed his eyes during the kissing.

Yesterday was the kids' official last day of school (July 1, FINALLY!). This is the first year Elise hasn't come home crying. She was sad, but no tears. They're growing up. Here they are, posing in front of the tree (and no, Elise doesn't have a really funky fashion sense--it was pajama day in Miss Ernst's class):



And Elise displaying her Applebee's coupon for kids who did all their reading, Ethan giving the "I just finished elementary school!" fist pump, and Jonas proudly offering up his excellent report card.




So now we have six weeks of summer till Elise and Joe go back, seven weeks for Ethan. A lot of hot, lazy days to fill, but we have some plans. Much fun will be had. Heck, last night the kids had an impromptu sleepover at the Wilkey's gorgeous house in Bountiful (thanks Darrin and Katie!) and we spent the afternoon at the Tracy Aviary looking at condors and bald eagles and kookaburras. When I bought the kids ice cream at McDonald's on the way home they sung out their "Thank You, Mom!" chorus and promised to be very, very good all summer long if I'll continue provide an unbroken string of days just like the last one. One day down . . . we'll see how things are lookin 30 days from now!

I had a great weekend myself. Exhausting, fun, stimulating, all that. I spent Friday night and Saturday day up at Darlene's family's cabin in Heber, chillin out with the Segullah girls at their annual retreat. It was so much fun, even though I had a conversational hangover after talking from 4 p.m. to 4 a.m., then getting up at 9 a.m. and talking till 4 p.m. again--amazing conversations, too, with a group of some of the smartest, most interesting, most creative women I could imagine getting together in one room.

Then I took off from the retreat and headed to the Gateway to meet my good friends Sally and Michelle for dinner at Typhoon. The three of us have been friends since my early MN days, and this weekend was the best one for Michelle to come visit us from the Land of 10,000 Lakes, so I got to cram all my fantastic female bonding for the summer into three days of fun. Sally & Michelle and I saw a movie on Saturday (an arty one, The Visitor--thanks Sally--and it was really good). We hiked Timp on Sunday afternoon, and I have the sore calves to prove it, still. Here are a couple of shots of the three of us, outside and inside the caves:




Forrest made us all an excellent dinner Sunday night. I've gotta say, my dear husband went above and beyond that weekend, holding down the fort, cleaning house, making dinner, buying pie, even replanting a little tree in a fashionable pot he purchased from Tai Pan (how domestic is THAT?). And he even had a smile on his face when I came home. I'm a lucky woman.

Now we have family in town and all sorts of fun scheduled for the 4th and thereabouts. Lots more to blog about, photos to be taken, etc etc.

And I'll close today with a couple of catch-up pics. The first two are from Ethan's 6th grade play. They did A Midsummer Night's Dream and Ethan got to be Puck. He did a really fantastic job--memorized all his lines and got the crowd laughing. And then a couple cute shots of Grandma and Wyatt at the petting zoo at Gardner Village. More summerishness to come!