Bring On The Curlz

Sadie decided that this summer, instead of cutting her hair off, as in past summers, she want to keep it long, and give it some curls. We finally made the appointment at the local beauty school, and Sadie couldn't wait! She was up at the crack of dawn, as if waiting for Christmas to arrive, for her appointment today. She had a "perm -a grin" (no pun intended) throughout the whole process, which by the way, lasted 3 hours! I have never seen someone so excited for a hair-do. But Sadie was. These rollers were very heavy once they were in place. Finally, out with the rollers. What did I say about the "perm-a-grin"? Isn't she a beauty. Now, she finally looks like me - with curly hair!

Piano Recital 2008

Alex played Indiana Jones

Keaton played Catch a Falling Star

Sadie played Mickey Mouse March - sure wish you could've seen her better, I has hoping the piano was turned the other direction. They all did a fabulous job, not one of them made a mistake, but if truth be told, I was the one who made a mistake. I was honestly nervous, just like all of those years of recitals in my childhood. But Sadie told me that if I goof up "not to smile", and "don't look at the audience" . . . I didn't.

Here's a photo of Sadie (since she isn't seen on the video) with Grandma Ruth - who drove out to see the recital.

Tazers ROCK!

In case you haven't heard by now, Alex's Tazer team coached by dad, Glen, entered the Memorial Day Tournament last weekend. Typically, a holiday weekend would be a great "get away" opportunity. But actually this weekend was very good weekend for basketball due to the downpouring of rain. They won their Friday night game against some team (after 80+ games it is hard to remember names). It was a dramatic game where the opposing team's coach and spectator were thrown out of the game during the first quarter. The coach actually began chasing the referee before one of our "larger" dad's went to defend the ref. Yep, right there at center court! This is when basketball turns bad. So they got kicked off the court and, while I think the game should've been called right then and there (in our favor of course), they continued to play. Alex shot a lot of free throws for all of the technical fouls called. He did a great job! That was a pivotal point in the game because the climate of the game and the attitudes of their players changed and we took over. Then the next morning, Saturday, Alex played at 9 and 11. They won both games. Then being undefeated, they had to play the second place team again, in a back to back game with them at 2:00. All of the players were so tired, but playing on the main court and being undefeated pumped them up. They played Avalanche for the second time that day and while they came within 4 points at one point, Tazers never lost the lead. Leaving, yes, the Tazers, as the Memorial Tournament Champions!! What a great tournament for these boys who have struggled and this weekend put it all together to make it work. They are awesome. Alex did awesome and so did Glen! No technical's during any of the games for Glen. Although he did get excited from time to time, he maintained his cool. This team deserved this win, and finally got a well deserved t-shirt. I don't think Alex has even taken his off for the past 5 days. He is so proud and so deserving. Wait to go TAZERS!

More deck . . .

We worked a lot on the deck this weekend, just in time for the downpour of rain! Here are some photos of the progress. Keaton and Alex worked on securing the decking to the framing while Sadie set in place two screws for each joist for them. That's what I'm talking about . . . child labor! In the meantime, we tried out the deck chairs on the finished portion. They work out nicely. The kids also had fun with a couple of boards, some string, and a peach tree.

Who knows what they were up to. What a great day!

Deck Progresses

Here's the latest about the deck progress. Glen and LeRoy worked incredibly hard on the deck. They got the frame up and the postsholes dug. It is amazing that they have put this together so fast. Of course, I was a supervisor but helped when they needed me to. It looks absolutely incredible, and bigger than I had imagined initially. I know we will enjoy the space! I can't wait to have our "deck warming" party! Enjoy the photos.

Alex Drives - oops

Alex and the Tazers. A little bit of Alex on defense, then he drives for a fast break. I think he thought that he was fouled, but oh no, it was just turned over. Alex is so good at this and so quick, I think we were all surprised at the official's call. Better luck next time Alex.

Flag Football

Keaton decided that this year he would try flag football with his basketball friend Christian. Keat was a natural, he could run, punt, throw, catch, and scored often this season. I think Keaton would say that this is his new favorite sport - not ready for tackle yet - he says. I was looking forward to an outdoor sport for me to put my legs out for a little sunning. Not so fast. In Salt Lake, it was winter nearly every other game, and never got above 50 degrees. So I bundled in the winter blankets and coats and joined the sideline parents. Keaton said that he and Christian have a "signature" play wherein they always score. And, no doubt, they have not only done well on the basketball court together as "stockton & malone", but they are now making good plays on the grid iron, maybe they should be called "steve young & the refridgerator"!

A Girl And Her Jumprope

Sadie has gone to over 100 basketball games this season with the boys. Believe me, she knows basketball. She has been a great sport and has been determined to master the skill of the Jump rope. She was given a new jump rope, and you can often see her at time-outs & half-time jumping her heart out at center court! Once, one of the referees asked to try out her jump rope, and he couldn't do it nearly as good as Sadie could. She will run the parameter of the court now, even being able to negotiate the turns with the rope, and make it back to the seats before the time-out is over. What a babe!

Blake takes me out.

A couple of weeks ago Blake was traveling through to California for work, and on the way back to Tennessee he stopped into Utah to see the folks. I don't know what they did up there, but I think he got to see most everyone that was there. On his final day, he came down early to take me to lunch. He told me he was coming the day before and asked to get some of the Glaus bakery rum cakes - a well worn Green Family tradition - plus they are really really good. He doesn't know this, but because I know he likes these so much, I would've gotten them for him regardless if he would've asked. He doesn't get these very often and so it is a traditional treat. He drove up in a nice rental car and we stopped into my neighbors house to get some new candle fragrances for Cindy. He is always thinking about her and how to keep her happy. I love that! So, after our noses were done sniffing the scents, we chose some, got a good referral for a mexician joint for lunch, and we were off. Blake bought lunch for us, it was very nice - lot's of food - but the company and conversation was invaluable. I don't remember just sitting and talking with Blake alone for a long time. Sure, he always remembers birthdays, holidays, and phone calls on mother's day, but it was a special treat to be there together. He didn't eat all of his lunch and so we packed it up and I took it home - it wouldn't fly well. We talked some more over rum cakes - several rum cakes later, the kids came home from school and Blake was off for the airport. The next day, I ate the leftovers- and the rum cakes he left - and remembered the priceless hours that I got to spend with my "little" brother.

Remodel Begins!

Okay, so phase one of the remodel is to tear out the bay window in the kitchen and replace it with the sliding door. This was harder than it looked. Seriously, hard for me included listening to Glen and our friend Lee for 4 hours as they painstakingly took good care to not damage more than necessary while they removed the large picture window and siding. Whew! Thank heavens that it was a beautiful day and the sun was warm. They spent the remainder of the day negotiating the sliding glass door, and putting it in place. After 2, maybe even 3 trips to Home Depot - who's counting - they put it in, re-sheet-rocked and mudded the inside of the kitchen and as far as I can tell, from the inside at least, we are good to go. We need to be careful now because if we walk out the sliding door we will have a good 5 1/2 foot drop to the grass. Never fear, we solved that problem for now. We just placed the trampoline there and presto, we have a quick fire exit. The kids, and dogs, had a blast jumping out of the window onto the tramp, I tried it and nearly had a panic attack - maybe that's just old age. The deck - well, we hope to start that next week. Alex made a lego model of what the house and deck will look like. I really think he'll be a talented archechet (did I spell that right)? I'll keep you posted. Enjoy the photos.