Bountiful Blessings

Wow am I lucky. I have totally been blessed with many bounteous blessings. Today I spent time taking pictures of four of the greatest blessings in my life. As I looked at them I realized that life is going by so fast and they are growing up even faster.


McKenna is now 14 and about to finish her 8th grade year. She has been on the 8th grade volleyball and basketball teams where she is greatly skilled and so evenly tempered is amazes all. She is so smart and manages to maintain her grades while balancing a schedule that I can't even keep track of. She is currently playing shortstop on her softball team and is looking forward to Student Council at the high school where she will be the secretary.






Kathrynn is now 12 and has entered the world of Young Womens. She is such a good friend and she has tons. Sixth grade has opened a whole new world to her social life. She seems to have a party or a get-together to go to each weekend. She loves to spend time with her little cousins that live a couple blocks away. She has decided she doesn't like competive sports but does like to play her saxaphone. She is looking forward to summer band. If she isn't jumping on the trampoline , look for her in the kitchen cooking up something yummy.











Collin will turn 17 in a couple weeks! Seventeen. Can you believe that? He has totally enjoyed his Junior year. He played football and he wrestled. He participated as an escort in the Jr. Miss pageant. He was selected for the Honor Society and to be in the TATU (Teens Against Tobacco Use) group. He won an award for his solo at a national jazz band competition and the "Best Actor" award at the Honor's English Academy Award ceremony. (Small groups in the two Honor's English classes made movies about something. We haven't seen it yet.) He stays way too busy to do his chores.










Adrienne is also 12 and excited to be out of Primary. She is fun and adventuresome. She too has a social calendar that amazes me. She played on a community basketball team and tried volleyball for the first time. She loved it and did really well. She is also playing softball again. She plays the flute and loves it. She loves to be on the skooter and the rip stick. She has begun doing her own hair and can make it look so cute. She hates to wake up and hates to go to bed. She also has an infectious smile and laugh. She is a talker and keeps us quite informed on the happenings at school.

We sure do love these kids. We are also so proud of them and the choices they make.

The South Fremont Jazz band recently took a trip to Denver and then Greely, Colorado to participate in a Jazz Band Festival. It was a much bigger festival than anyone expected and the band, who are considered to be a fairly big fish in our little pond, found themselves to be a little fish in a much bigger lake. Despite the freezing, cold, rainy, winter-like weather, the trip was a blast. They did respectfully well and came back better musicians. That's all that counts really.

The best part was that Collin, who hates to solo, was forced to do a MAJOR solo because he is the only baritone sax player and that's what the music called for. So, though he didn't want to, he did - and he was fantastic. He never practices. I mean never. I don't know if I can emphasize that enough. NEVER!!!! I listened to him and wondered what would be if.... He received a special award at the festival for excellent soloing. We haven't seen the award yet. I'm sure it is somewhere between here and there, along with his brand new and expensive dress shoes. But, unlike the shoes, we do know that the award exists.

Last week, the band performed a concert. I couldn't wait to hear the solo. Trent's parents drove all the way up from Utah to watch and weren't disappointed. The band is really good. I could listen to them all day. But, Collin's solo (click on the red words for solo) was definitely award winning. I was impressed. It was worth blogging about. You'll enjoy it too. The trumpet soloist is our good friend Connar Moore. He was great too. But, I'm partial to the bari sax - nicknamed Big Bertha.

Just Another of His Many Talents

Collin has been working on a new skill lately - one he didn't want us to know about until it was perfect, apparently. His sisters knew. His friends knew. His friends' parents knew. Did we know? NO!!! And why? BECAUSE ITS DANGEROUS!!!!

Fire blowing is "one of his talents," he announced to me and then he said, "Bring the camera." I did and this is what I got. I didn't know that three lit matches and a mouthful of powdered sugar could be so "freakin' awesome." He tried to convince his band teacher to let him perform his little act at the band concert as part of the big finale of a song. Amazingly the band teacher said, "No." Can you imagine that?

When I found spots of blown powdered sugar all over my kayaks and on the floor of the garage I became a little worried. I approached Collin and he said, "Mom, relax. I'm very responsible with my fire blowing." Of course he is.